Izuku watched his new friend stare at the mossy remains of the Guardians, silently cursing himself for not knowing what to say. Link had just sounded so defeated as he had relieved his sporadic memories. How did you even begin to reassure someone with memories like that? Even now, Izuku had to repress a shudder of horror as he thought about the situation. If he'd been in Link's spot, would he have been able to protect the princess? What if he had to face a situation like that as a hero, where he was protecting someone he cared for? His mom, Uraraka, Kacchan…

'Wait, Uraraka?' Izuku blushed. 'I don't even like her that way! She's a friend! I'd do it for any of the others—I have done so for Iida and Todoroki. Why her specifically?'

Beside him, All Might stirred, pulling him from his thoughts. "It seems, Young Link, that you too have experienced the horrors of being a hero."

"Horrors?"

"Horrors." All Might coughed and deflated in a rush of smoke, returning to his weakened state. "Every great hero or warrior will see and fight many terrible things. Eventually, each hero has to face the very real possibility that he might one day fail." All Might pulled up his tunic, and Link sucked in a breath as the older man revealed a chest covered with puckered scar tissue that seemed to twist and branch across half of his torso. "I was dealt a deadly wound in a battle I fought six years ago, one where I was sure that I had defeated—no, that I had killed—my opponent. As of a week ago, I know that that foe is still alive and continues to terrorize innocents. In fact," he continued, his gaunt face pulling into a grimace as he dropped his tunic back into place, "I believe that he may have come to this world with us, though I don't know where he is or what evil he might be working.

"My point, Young Link, is that like you, I have failed. I understand how you might be feeling. But you can't let that past failure drag you down. Yes, you were defeated, but you didn't die. You wouldn't be standing in front of me right now if you had. Your princess survived, and even now she fights because she knows that you will come. A hero is defined by his ability to fail—and then to push through that failure to seize victory on behalf of those he protects."

Link didn't say anything after All Might finished speaking. He continued to stare up at the Guardians, his eyes glazed. Eventually, he shook his head. "I—you're right. I don't like it, but you're right."

All Might clapped a hand on Link's shoulder. "It'll work out. You've got this second chance. Make the most of it. Now, how about we head back to the stable and rest for the night? We can leave for Kakariko in the morning. One night won't make much of a difference."

Izuku held his breath as Link considered All Might's proposal. After a few minutes, Link finally sighed. "That's probably the best course of action. Let's go back, then. We'll wait until morning."

The man known as One for All observed. A week in this castle had brought about some interesting discoveries. The machines that guarded the grounds were generally hostile; any living thing that caught their attention was quickly eradicated. The only exception to that rule had been the monsters, which the machines usually ignored. Those monsters had also originally been hostile, but had quickly fallen into line after Tomura and his League had erased a few of their leaders. Now, they served him.

Perhaps the most interesting discovery was the purple sludge that coated portions of the palace. The nightmarish creatures that now obeyed him were apparently immune to its effects, but not so for other beings. Magna had reacted violently when she had brushed up against some of it while Compress was removing it. Hence, his experiments.

Below him, a young buck struggled through a room coated in Malice. It tossed its head back and forth, and All for One could see foam gathering at the animal's lips. A visceral reaction to the corruption's presence, perhaps? It hadn't actually touched the Malice yet, but given the sheer amount of it caked on to every surface in the room, it was only a matter of time. Ah, here was the moment. Overcome by its fear, the animal leapt forward, nimbly bouncing from one clear patch of floor to another. All for One actually thought it might escape unscathed, but as it landed on the last patch before the room's entrance, it stumbled, and one of its hind hooves skidded into the purple corruption.

The result was instant. From his vantage point on the room's second-floor landing, he could quite clearly see faint tendrils race up the deer's leg. Its head reared back and it shrieked in pain before pulling its leg out of the mess. All for One watched curiously as it took a few steps forward, trying to get its balance back, but in doing so, it stepped into another patch of Malice, which raced its way up the deer's leg and across its chest and belly. The creature bleated again, its voice filled with terror and pain, and it leapt forward. It's strength seemed to have faded, however, and it crashed down amidst the Malice. It cried out once more, much more weakly, and then fell still as the purple ooze covered its body. Soon, no sign was left of the buck's body save the new pustule of Malice where it had once been.

"Fascinating," One for All murmured. The Malice had reacted so quickly to the buck's presence. Maybe it sensed life energy? It seemed to feed off of such, though from what he could tell, the pus didn't seem to require any form of energy or nourishment for survival. Given enough time, he thought that it might grow to cover the entire castle, and perhaps even beyond.

This called for more experiments. All for One turned around to the goblin waiting in the room with him. The red creature perked up and stood at attention. Good, it knew its place. "Go and gather your brethren. You will go and raid the nearest human settlement and bring me back a live captive. I have suddenly found myself in dire need of more subjects."

Link slept fitfully that night. All through the night, pieces of the last battle with the Guardians—the catastrophic failure that had come from his inability to anticipate the enemy's moves—had plagued his dreams, painting a picture of fire and death that he wished had stayed locked away. What little sleep he got was snatched in between fits of tossing and turning. When the sun finally dawned, he was exhausted.

He debated just pulling the covers over his head and ignoring what was coming, but eventually worked up the will to haul himself out of the bed. Other than the man behind the counter and a few stablehands, no one else seemed to be awake. Fine by him. He didn't want to deal with people at the moment.

After pulling on his boots and tunic, Link picked up his sword and strode out of the building, nodding at the innkeeper as he passed. Tasseren barely looked up from the book that he was reading as he waved Link out. The blond snorted; apparently the innkeeper wasn't much of a morning person.

Outside, the dawn's light streamed over the mountains and between the peaks, illuminating the valley in bright golden light. The sun itself hadn't actually peaked yet, and probably wouldn't for another hour or so. Link noted the position of the light and resolved to awaken his companions when the sun appeared. For now, he needed to practice. He rounded the side of the stable, looking for something that he could use to train with. After a few moments of rustling among the supplies and crates stored against the side of the building, he found an old scarecrow with a turnip for its head. That would do. He hauled it back to the front of the building and set it up across from the stable, making sure to keep it out of the way.

Once he was satisfied that the scarecrow wouldn't move, Link unsheathed his sword and started training, going through the basic steps that he had learned all those years ago. The familiar movements helped soothe him, even if he still couldn't recall how he knew them, and he quickly fell into a comfortable rhythm that mostly left his mind free to wander.

He had failed a century ago, and while he had had an inkling that that might have been the case, having the memory of failure suddenly thrust upon him without any other context, of having his suspicions confirmed, had undermined his confidence a little. He was supposed to save the princess and defeat Ganon; how could he do that if he had already failed once? What hope could he possibly have of emerging victorious? His efforts might be better spent trying to evacuate those he could.

He moved from basic steps to more advanced maneuvers and stabbed the scarecrow, twisting the sword in the 'wound' before whipping it back out and scowling as he fell back into position. No, he couldn't do that. People likely wouldn't leave, and even if they did, there was no guarantee that Ganon would stay confined to Hyrule. Besides, the mere idea of turning his back and letting this corrupt power overrun the land was utterly repugnant to him.

No, he would have to push through, much as All Might had said. He had no idea how, but he would do it, even if it took years. He trusted the princess. She had held the monster back for this long; he had to believe that she could hold it back long enough for him to gather the strength he needed to seal it, and while Midoriya and All Might had said they would help him, he wouldn't use them as a crutch. They had their own battles to fight.

He spun around and lashed out at his practice dummy, slashing high. The turnip head toppled to the hard-packed dirt path and bounced away, and Link slowly stepped back, breathing hard. The sound of clapping hands behind him pulled him out of his thoughts, and he turned to find he had attracted a small crowd of stablehands and children despite the early hour, who immediately whooped and cheered when he turned to face them. He smiled slightly and waved before sheathing his sword. 'Don't worry, kids; I will protect you.'

A booming laugh echoed from behind the crowd of excitedly chattering children, causing several to turn. Link looked with them to see All Might in his strong form grinning at him from the entrance to the stable. The hero saluted him before bending down to ruffle the hair of one of the kids who had run over, the smile on his face never leaving as he answered the little boy's question. The smile that split the little boy's face almost matched All Might's, and the boy took off running with his friends. All Might stood back up and watched them run off, but Link wasn't paying attention to them anymore; all of his focus was on the giant of a man. 'I think I understand why Midoriya basically worships him. He's a warrior, but he hasn't let his battles hinder him. If anything, he seems to inspire and cheer up everyone he comes in contact with.' After a moment, Link thoughtfully strolled back over to the stable.

"That was quite the routine," All Might observed, holding out a water bottle he had brought out with him.

Link shrugged and accepted the bottle. He hadn't realized it while he was practicing, but now that he was starting to come down from the adrenaline high, he was becoming increasingly aware of how thirsty he was. "It was just some basic training patterns; nothing too fancy." The hero just smiled knowingly, causing Link to roll his eyes. "Anyway, shall we get some breakfast and hit the road? The sooner we reach Kakariko, the better."

"No need. I watched you leave and decided to get everything else ready. Our packs are stocked with food, and Young Midoriya should be along with breakfast in just a moment."

Just as All Might finished speaking, Midoriya stepped out of the building's interior carrying a wooden platter stacked with eggs, cheese, and slices of bread. "Oh, you're done, Link! I wasn't sure if I would need to interrupt you. Anyways, here!"

"Thanks." Link took a wedge of cheese and a slice of bread with egg on it. While he didn't really want food, he knew he needed to eat, so he took a few bites and forced it down without really tasting it. "You said we're packed? We can eat while we walk, then."

All Might didn't say anything; he just reached down for something just on the other side of the doorway, quickly producing all three packs. Link accepted his pack and shouldered it while munching on his cheese, shrugging it until it was comfortably in position before setting off down the road. No point in waiting; the sooner he got to Kakariko, the sooner he could get the information he needed to continue on. The other two caught up quickly enough, and within minutes they were outside of the small hamlet. It was early enough that there weren't any other travelers on the road, something that Link immediately became grateful for as the dust they kicked up hung in the morning air behind them.

The sun lazed along its path, extending its light across the valley. They crossed a bridge that had seen better days, though judging on the piles of cut stones and scaffolding on the their side of the bridge, Link assumed that repairs would probably start on it soon. Still, the bridge was sturdy enough, and the road on the other side was well maintained, making for an easier hike than Link had been expecting.

About midmorning, the group crested the last ridge before the road began to even out. Link had found the hike refreshing initially, but as the morning had dragged on, his breathing had grown more labored. His companions hadn't fared much better; Midoriya had started wheezing earlier, and they had had to stop several times for All Might, who had admitted between bloody coughs and rattling breaths that his lungs had been damaged when he had been wounded.

Link glanced back at his companions as the doggedly followed him. 'I think we might need to call another rest before we move on.' Once again, Link wished that they had been able to get horses. It would have made this climb much easier. 'Well, might as well look for a good spot to rest.' He turned and scanned the side of the road, but didn't look long before an oddity caught his eye.

Standing by the side of the road was a pair of trees, one tall and skinny and the other short and shaped of a rotund old man with pale, green-striped bark. Adding to the strange effect, the middle branches of the short tree didn't seem to have any leaves; in fact, they looked a lot like arms. Link stared at it for a moment and was prepared to dismiss it as having just grown oddly when the man-tree moved. One of the arm-like branches twisted around and started rummaging through something at its side.

He wasn't the only one to have seen it. Beside him, Midoriya gasped. "What is that?"

"What is what, Young Midoriya?"

"That fat tree up on the ridge. It just moved!"

All Might finally caught up and squinted at the ridge in question. "You mean that little tree? It's just blowing in the breeze, that's all."

Link glanced sharply at the hero. "No, the short fat one next to that. Can you not see it?"

"No, I can't." All Might rubbed his chin. "It might be a spirit of some kind. Back home, our ancestors believed in yokai, creatures and spirits that were manifestations of the natural world. Some were kind, others destructive. Most were mischievous in some way. Maybe Hyrule has something similar?"

"Well, there's only one way to find out." Link paused. "Ah, might be a good idea to ready weapons in case it turns out to be hostile." He followed his own advice and unsheathed his traveler's sword before trudging the last few yards up the hill. He didn't get too far before the tree seemed to notice him, and he hesitantly waved at it as he approached.

The tree's reaction wasn't what he expected. It seemed to jump in surprise and bowed toward him as he approached. "Shalaka?! You can see me?"

Hesitantly, Link nodded. "I can see you." Now that he was closer, he could see the tree much better and realized that it wasn't quite a tree. Its arm-like branches were, in fact, arms. It had a rough but very distinct face, with massive knots that would have been very bushy eyebrows on a hylian and a large leaf that functioned as a beard. In place of hair, a couple of short branches sprouted from its head, and these were covered in a sort of puffy foliage. Hanging at its side was a leather messenger bag, and for one wild moment, Link couldn't help but picture this odd being as a member of Hyrule's postal service.

The tree's reaction quickly pulled him away from that thought. It threw its arm-branches into the air and started to shimmy back and forth, singing some sort of song. After a moment, the strange words were replaced with understandable Hylian. "It's been a hundred years since anyone has been able to see me! I'm Hestu, and I need your help!"

"You need our help?" Link turned to see Midoriya appear next to him, and he chuckled to himself. If someone was in need, Midoriya was there to aid them. "What do you need."

Hestu's wooden face twisted in what Link could only describe as an expression of surprise. "Two in a hundred years! Two in one day! Shala-zah! Then you both can help me." He turned and pointed toward a pile of boulders farther up the ridge. "Those monsters over there stole my beloved maracas! They ran through a tunnel in those rocks. I think they're still on the other side."

"Your… maracas?" Link asked. What in Hyrule could a tree spirit want with maracas?

The tree seemed to slump. "Without them, I can't use my powers. Shoko… So please get my maracas back from them!"

Link exchanged a glance with Midoriya, who shrugged before facing Hestu again. "Sure thing, we'll get your maracas back for you."

A hand clapped onto Midoriya's shoulder. "Pardon me, but what is this about maracas?" All Might asked.

A grin split Link's face as the absurdity of the situation washed over him, followed by laughter that seemed to force itself out of his chest. All Might and Midoriya just looked at him in surprise before Midoriya started giggling. Eventually, Link managed to gain control of himself and forced himself to take deep breaths. "Sorry, haha, I just realized what that must have looked like for you. This is Hestu. I don't know why you can't see him, but his maracas were stolen by some monsters in those rocks up there and he needs them back."

Link would forever remember All Might's expression as the hero tried to process Link's statement. Midoriya took one look at his mentor and immediately doubled over in a renewed fit of laughter, and Link had to struggle not to join him. "So you see," he said, trying and failing to keep the wide grin off of his face, "we've agreed to get them back for him."

All Might stared at him for a moment before throwing back his head and roaring with laughter, bulking up into his strong form. "Well then, Young Link, let us go and help! And you, Young Hestu," he said, turning and bowing toward a space a little to Hestu's left, "though I can't see you, I trust in my young companions. We will return your maracas."

Still chuckling, All Might turned and strolled up the hill toward the rocks with Link and Midoriya in tow. The boulders had fallen in such a way as to create a tunnel leading to a sheltered ledge. From the other side of the boulder wall, Link could hear the squeals and snorts, confirming that the monsters—bokoblins, probably—were still there. All Might winked at the two of them. "I'll handle this. You two stand by in case things go south."

Link's protest was cut short as the hero leapt up and over the rocks. "Malice's breath!" Link swore as he dashed into the tunnel, glad that he hadn't sheathed his sword yet. Professional hero or not, All Might had severe injuries and couldn't stay in his strong form for too long, and monsters shouldn't be taken lightly. He rounded the corner of the tunnel and skidded to a stop just as a blue bokoblin flew past him and crashed into the rocky embankment. He turned in time to watch All Might send the last bokoblin sailing over the edge of the cliff. The hero swung around and grinned fiercely at the surprise that Link knew must be showing on his face. "Fear not, Young Link. I've still got a little fight left in me."

"Good. We'll need your strength." With the threat eliminated, Link surveyed the little ledge. It was big enough for a small campsite, and he made a mental note of the location. As All Might shifted, Link caught a glimpse of their goal leaning against the rock behind the hero: a pair of larger-than-average red maracas. Link slipped past All Might and scooped them up, giving them an experimental shake. They rattled feebly, as if there were only a couple of beads inside. He shrugged and turned around. "Got the shakers. Let's bring 'em back to Hestu."

The group backtracked back to Hestu, who started shimmying as they approached. Link smiled and held out the maracas. "Here you go. Two maracas, as requested."

"My maracas!" Hestu gleefully took the instruments and started shaking them in time with his dancing. "SHAAAAAA-LAAAAH-KAAAAAAH!"

After a few moments, Hestu slowed, and his face twisted into an expression that Link couldn't quite read. "But wait! There's something wrong with them. Most of the Korok seeds are gone! How am I supposed to dance now?"

"Korok seeds?" Midoriya asked. Link noticed that his notebook had appeared again from wherever it was stored when the youth wasn't using it.

"Yes, seeds from the Children of the Forest. I can use them to shake and dance and use my powers. I never thought I'd be the target of one of their pranks." Hestu stiffened. "Oh! But I have a few from the sound of it, so I have a little power. Here, take this." Hestu removed his satchel and handed it to Link. "Now, I will use my power of expansion!"

Hestu started dancing once more, but this time, the pathetic shaking of his maracas didn't sound quite so empty. They began to glow as he twirled about, and after a brief, final flourish, the glow turned to streamers of red light that flowed into his former satchel.

Link hefted it, noting that it didn't seem to be made of leather, but rather of some kind of extremely pliable wood. Other than that, he couldn't tell what the lights had done. "What did you do?"

"I expanded it! Can I see your sword?"

Link did a double-take. "My sword?"

"Yes! Also, you should open the bag."

Link dubiously did as instructed, handing his sword to Hestu and holding the open bag toward the tree. Hestu took the sword and very carefully inserted it into the bag. Link heard Midoriya gasp as the sword, instead of ripping through the bottom of the bag, seemed to vanish into its depths. When the tree—or Korok, Link realized—finished, Link pulled the bag back and peered inside.

Resting just inside the mouth of the bag was the hilt of the sword, and Link could see that there was still plenty of room for more supplies. "That is incredible! How did you do it?"

Hestu shrugged, causing his head branches to roll in what might have been a minor earthquake. "My power! I can expand storage and inventory spaces, like bags. This is my reward to you. If you find more Korok seeds, bring them to me, and I'll use their energy to expand your bag more."

Before Midoriya or Link could respond to this statement, Hestu's branches twitched and he stiffened again. "Oh, look at the time! I need to get back before Grandpa yells at me. Bring any seeds you find to Korok Forest!"

With that, Hestu turned and waddled off down the slope. Link watched his swaying foliage for a moment before shaking his head. "That was, without a doubt, one of my stranger encounters."

"But he's so useful! We'll have to keep an eye out for Korok seeds." Midoriya paused in his sketching and looked up, frowning. "D-did Hestu mention what Korok seeds look like?"

Link sighed. "No, but if they're anything like Hestu, I'm sure we'll know what they are when we find them."

All Might coughed and shrunk back down to his normal form. While it was unorthodox, Link had to admit that the encounter with Hestu had done what he had wanted. Both All Might and Midoriya looked much more energetic, and he had to admit that he was feeling more cheerful himself. "Well, we've only got a little way left to go. Come on; let's get to Kakariko."

I'm not dead! Finally have a chapter for y'all. Not quite as far along as I would have liked, but we'll take what we can get, haha.

The reason this has taken so long is because my university creative writing course demands a lot of the time that I otherwise have for this story. I'll be getting a little of that time back soon (hopefully) and will keep working on this as I can. In the meantime, if enough people express interest, I'll probably start up a collection of the short pieces I've been working on that I'll update as I go through the class.

Thanks for y'all's patience, and I hope you enjoy!