They left the torched remains of the nest, all the eggs inside reduced to ash, veins of venom incinerated, all deep below the ground. The Kokiri emerged from the tunnel stained with sweat, dirt, and what Mido would insist were not tears. Their bodies were heavy from exhaustion, but their souls were light from the relief of their success as the little band of heroes fanned out into the clearing. 

“Great Deku Tree, we did it!” Mido exclaimed as they turned to face the Father of the Forest. The Deku Tree didn’t respond, only remained silent and still. It was like even the leaves on his branches were no longer affected by the breeze, the absence of their consistent subtle rustling with the minute movements of the Deku Tree unnerving and jarring. It was a sound they never even realized could go away, and now the clearing was eerily silent. 

“Great Deku Tree…?” Saria called out, her voice wavering from anxiety.

Nothing.

Navi flew slowly up close to the Deku Tree’s face. His face was like stone, and his bark had lost the colour of life, appearing now fragile and ashen. “He’s… gone. I’m sorry, children…” Navi said, her words barely audible. 

A heavy silence fell over the young forest spirits. The air was sucked out of their lungs. The whole world was holding its breath. 

Link felt frozen, the storm of emotion roiling in his chest twisting down through his belly and down his legs, wrapping around his ankles and anchoring his feet to the earth. His throat felt too tight to breathe properly, and what weak breaths he could take trembled as they passed his teeth. His hands clenched to fists at his sides, so tightly they shook, and his shoulders tensed, so deeply it was painful. 

Saria approached the Deku Tree with halting steps, sitting down and curling up against one of his massive roots. Her back was to them, and Link couldn’t see her face, but she was quivering like a sapling battered by high winds. Link had never seen her sad like this before. He had never felt sadness like this before. He didn’t know what to do. 

He heard a hiss, and Link watched as Mido, red in the face and teeth bared in pain, spun around and stormed out of the clearing, in the direction opposite the Kokiri village. Fado had not turned away, but stared blankly down at the forest floor beneath their feet, her toes kicking lethargically at the blanket of dead fallen leaves. 

Link looked all around him, his helplessness rising and consuming him, looking for something, anything, anything to break this spell of despair. But there was nothing. He couldn’t move, only shake, and when he opened his mouth to try to speak nothing came out, he could only wheeze. He was starting to panic. He didn’t know what to do.

The Great Deku Tree, their father and guardian, was gone. Dead. And he had even said so, what felt like a lifetime ago, that his time had come, that this was goodbye… but he didn’t think they wouldn’t actually get to say goodbye. There were so many questions Link still had, so many fears and doubts that only the Great Deku Tree could have assuaged, and now he was gone. They would never hear any of his stories again. They would never play in his branches again. Everything was different now, and he knew it would be, but Link didn’t know he would still feel the same. And he didn’t know what to do.

Navi fluttered down to Link, perching on his shoulder. It must have been obvious how overwhelmed he was. His fear and confusion were completely taking over. 

The Deku Tree called him brave. Link didn’t feel brave.

“Link,” Navi whispered in his ear. Link sucked in a deep breath that rattled his lungs. 

“Navi,” he croaked, his voice fragile and even smaller than the fairy’s. “What-- what, what do we do now?”

Navi sighed, and the tiny gust ruffled the curly ends of his hair. “Now… I suppose, I must teach you all how to perform a funeral ceremony.”

Fire… the natural predator of forest. Fire, real fire, that crackled and burned and roared like in Navi’s stories of great northern forges and mighty mountains of molten flame, were the most frightening of boogeymen to the Kokiri. They knew embers, and sparks, and small infant flames that must be shielded by small hands from a breezy demise. 

Fire like this… this fire was apocalyptic. A pillar of flame lit by the biggest gods to signal to the whole world that an era was over. That a life had ended, that a powerful force of love had been lost. But also that, while that life was over and that love lost, there were so many more lives that were only beginning, and so much more love that would only continue to grow. The Great Deku Tree had died, and his era was over, but the Kokiri remained, evidence in their sorrow that life would go on. The past era was no more, but a new one was also beginning. 

All the Kokiri of the forest were gathered in the Great Deku Tree’s clearing, watching tearfully and afraid as their guardian burned like he was never anything more than wood and foliage. 

At the same time, Link felt something in his mind and heart growing, watching the flames little by little break the bark and branches of the Deku Tree down into ash and charcoal, the sparks and ashes flying high up into the air. The epic funeral pyre was somehow also comforting, like a warm embrace holding all of them. Though his sorrow was like a deluge of rain beating down on him, a lake of tears, enough to put out the fire before them, Link also could feel his strength rising, his conviction growing, and his will burning hot as the tower of flame. The sword and shield on his back were so heavy, but they had also become a part of him.

Saria sat a ways away, her knees hugged to her chest, silent next to Fado. Link and Saria hadn’t spoken since they came out of the tunnel.

Navi pulled his attention away with a delicate chime at his shoulder. “Link,” the water fairy said, “Will you follow me? There is much I have to tell you-- much that the Great Deku Tree asked me to tell you.”

Link said nothing, but followed Navi to the edge of the orange-lit and hot clearing, into the soft, soothing shadows of the forest.

For a few long minutes, there was only silence in the trees. Link watched Navi hover turned away from him, her wings fluttering gently. He was nervous. He remembered their last conversation with the Great Deku Tree, when the Deku Tree said that Link was a pillar of hope, and for Navi to remember what she and him had discussed… the young Kokiri couldn’t fathom what it was, though, or what Navi was about to tell him. 

Navi sighed and turned in the air, floating towards him. Link held out his hand, and Navi perched on his palm. She dimmed her light so that he could see her eyes, and they were heavy and sad. It was a look Link had never expected to see on her face. “Link,” she began, “The Deku Tree said you have a great destiny. Do you remember that?”

Link nodded. 

“It was something the Great Deku Tree saw in his visions years ago. He saw your future… though the details of his premonitions he never shared with me. All I have are his instructions.”

Link nodded again. That made sense. The Great Deku Tree used to frequently have visions, but he always said that he could not tell anyone what he saw, because if the gods decided anyone else needed to know what the future held, they would have shared it with them as well. 

Navi continued, “I’ll be blunt, Link. You have a quest you must accept, and many challenges you will have to overcome. Your trials as a hero are only beginning. I am meant to guide you on your journey, I will be with you from beginning to end. And, in order to fulfill your shining destiny that the Great Deku Tree spoke of, you will have to leave the Kokiri Forest. ”

Link said nothing as he let Navi’s hushed words sink in. He took a deep breath in, and slowly let it out again, looking down at the forest floor. The weight of the Kokiri sword and shield on his back had become to feel like something steady and comforting. He felt Navi’s worried eyes on him as he asked quietly, “Will I… be allowed to come back home after?”

A Kokiri had never left the forest before, never ventured beyond the protective barrier that was the Lost Woods. Link had never known anything other than these trees. He already felt like an outsider in the forest and he had lived there all his life-- if he left, would he still be the same? Outsiders were absolutely not allowed into the Kokiri Forest. Would they let him back in, after this mysterious quest was over? What if he was too different? There was so much more about all of this, so many more unknowns and uncertainties that would surely have Link awake and shivering until sunrise, but at that moment, this was the thing that scared him the most. If he left, would be be able to come back? Navi’s silence and the weight of her stare only made Link’s anxious little heart race faster. 

“Yes, Link,” Navi said, “of course.”

Link knew she wasn’t lying. Navi had never told him a lie before and never would. But still, something in his stomach lurched as if she had. Link swallowed heavily and gave one last nod, his eyes squeezed shut. 

The Kokiri walked away from the funeral, back to his treehouse, the fairy resting on his shoulder. He’d already paid all of tonight’s respects, and he was tired. Tomorrow’s dawn would bring with it the new version of the world that Link now lived in, one so unfamiliar and so much bigger, that he would have no choice but to face. The Great Deku Tree called Link brave. He didn’t feel brave, but his conviction was strong as stone: if he failed, it wouldn’t be because he gave up. 

From the clearing, wary hazel eyes watched Link leave. 

Come dawn, Link was up before anyone else in the village. Dressing in silence with Navi at his shoulder, he dug through his sparse belongings to create some semblance of a travel pack. He donned his fall cape, light brown with different-coloured leaf patches stitched on. It wasn’t the right season, but Link didn’t want to be getting cold at night. Or, what if outside the forest was really windy? Over the cape he strapped the Kokiri sword and shield, and across his shoulder he slung the little sack that he’d put his meagre supplies in. He hoped he wouldn’t be gone too long.

The village was peaceful in the moments just before daybreak. Quiet. Pale sunlight lined the very bottom of the sky, and fresh morning dew wetted Link’s boots as he walked along the grassy path. 

It was even more hauntingly serene in the Great Deku Tree’s clearing, silent and still. Nothing was left of the Deku Tree except a mountain of ash. “Navi…” Link said, stopping at the edge of the clearing. “Why did you tell me to come back here?” 

“It was part of the Great Deku Tree’s instructions for me,” Navi floated towards the tree’s remains. “He said there was a key hidden beneath his roots, one you would need in order to complete your quest.”

“A key?” Link asked as he followed the fairy. “What does it unlock?” 

“I don’t know,” Navi answered honestly, words she rarely used. “What I just told you, is all he told me. You will have to sift through the ashes to find it…” 

Link knelt in the dirt at the base of the fragile gray mountain. The ashes spread and stuck, dusting his knees, the hem of his tunic and the ends of his shorts. He paused there for a moment, before asking, “Is that why… did the Great Deku Tree also tell you we’d have to burn him?” 

Navi angled downwards. “Yes,” she said. “Hopefully we won’t have to dig too much…”

Link reached out, but hesitated, his hands hovering just a hair’s breadth away from the ashes. He closed his eyes and sighed, pretending he was just combing through the soft, floaty earth at the bottom of the stream looking for interesting stones, and let his fingers sink in to the flaky mound. He pushed handfuls of ash aside, more and more, until he felt something solid and smooth brush his palm. Link took hold of it and opened his eyes, trails of ashes floating away and streaming back down from his closed fist as he lifted it. When Link uncurled his fingers, he saw sitting in his gray-streaked palm not a key like he was expecting, but a small, round green jem. It was polished smooth and glittering, and carved into the face was a spiral the same shape as the Kokiri’s emblem. 

“Hmm…” Navi flew closer to inspect it. 

Link turned it over in his fingers, holding it up to the light. Against the brightening sky the gem lit up, casting a small, shimmery green shadow onto Link’s cheek. “What kind of lock is this supposed to fit into?” 

“I’m not sure,” Navi said, and alighted on Link’s shoulder. “But I suppose we’ll know it when we see it.” 

Link stood, putting the gem in his pocket. Brushing his hands and clothes clean as best he could, he turned away from the ashes, and walked out of the clearing.

Even though the sun had now crested the tops of the trees, the other Kokiri still hadn’t emerged from their homes when Link again crossed through the village, towards the north edge. He looked around, wondering what things would be like in the forest now, if the rest of the Kokiri would mourn quietly, or if they would pretend like nothing had changed. He wouldn’t be there to see it. He wondered if anyone would really notice he was gone. 

Link didn’t take the trodden trails that wound through the denser greenery of the rest of the Kokiri Forest, instead, squeezing between tree trunks on a hidden path he knew well. It was the way he and Saria took when they snuck out to play in the Lost Woods. Though those mysterious, misty woods were the defending shield between their forest and the rest of the world outside, the Kokiri weren’t supposed to go in them. It was too dangerous, the Great Deku Tree always said. Since they were fairy spirits and not mortals, Kokiri were immune to The Curse, but there were still monsters around. Not that Link had personally ever actually seen any, but it’s not like he’d ever really gone looking for them, either. 

Link and Saria were the only Kokiri to ever break the rule. Deep in the woods there was an old abandoned temple of some kind, so overgrown it was impossible to tell underneath all the moss what it once was for. Saria liked to go there to be alone sometimes. Unlike Link, Saria actually enjoyed spending quiet time by herself every once in a while. Link most of all liked to visit his and Saria’s friend that lived in the woods. Despite how creepy it was, Link liked it in the Lost Woods.

Right at the edge of the lush green Kokiri Forest, where only the smallest tendrils of cursed fog crept between the roots of trees, there was a small ravine with a creaky little suspension bridge. Link and Saria liked to challenge each other to see how far along the bridge they could jump, trying to see if either of them could clear the whole thing. There were little notches carved on the planks for every time they set a new record. Only four planks away from the other side, there was a mark Link had triumphantly carved in just the month before, the farthest either of them had ever gotten by a long shot. 

Sitting on that plank was Saria, tracing the mark with her finger.

Link’s pace stuttered and slowed. The bridge shifted and swayed under his steps. Halfway across, he stopped. Saria stood, looking not at Link, but some point on the bridge between them. Sadness dimmed her eyes, and the shrunken line of her mouth showed she was deep in thought. Anxiety bit Link’s stomach. He didn’t know how he would have said bye to Saria, and he was kind of hoping he wouldn’t have to.

Looking away, Saria said quietly, “I always had a feeling you would leave the forest someday.” 

Ice water. Ice water pouring down Link’s back.

Saria continued, “I’ve been feeling it more and more lately. It’s hard to explain, but, even though we’re both different from the other Kokiri, you’re… different in a different way. Kind of like you’re… too big for our little forest.” Her eyes met Link’s. “Is-- is that mean to say?”

Link broke the eye contact and shrugged, his chin tucked low. “Um… kind of?”

Saria sighed. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s… it’s okay,” Link mumbled. “It’s kind of true… I guess?”

Saria shook her head. “No, I’m sorry, it’s not, I-- I’m just trying to make it make sense, you know, in my head? That you’re leaving. Because that is what’s happening here, right? The restless evil the Great Deku Tree was talking about, and the unbalance-- it’s still out there, and that’s why you’re leaving… right?”

Swallowing the lump in his throat, Link nodded. “Yeah, but… it’s going to be okay! I won’t be gone too long, and when I come back, I’ll tell you all about my whole adventure and-- and all the cool stuff I’ll have seen!”

Saria pulled on her sleeves. “What if you are gone for a long time, though? What if-- what if you forget about me?”

Link shook his head vehemently. “That’s not going to happen,” he said, stepping closer to her. “The whole time, I’ll be thinking about how much I miss you, and how much I miss home. I’m--” he choked up, and tears started to well in his eyes. “I’m going to be really sad that I can’t see you and talk to you every day… so don’t say that I would just forget about you, you’re my best friend in the entire world and that’s n-never going to change, okay!” He sniffed, wiping his nose on the back of his arm.

A moment passed where the only sound was the gentle ambiance of the forest around them and Link’s quiet sniffling. “Me too… you’re my best friend too.” Saria said softly. “I’m kind of scared, I guess… I don’t want you to leave. You have this big destiny, and we’ve never been really, actually apart before. I don’t know how things will change when you’re not here.” She scuffed her feet on the wooden planks. “I guess it’s not fair, though. Even though I’m scared, you’re the one that has to go, and I’ll be in our home still, with all the people and places we know, and all that to remember you by…” 

She reached into a pouch at her feet, and pulled out a small, wooden object. “Here,” she held it out to Link, who looked between Saria and the thing in her hands in surprise. 

“You’re giving me your ocarina?” 

Saria gave a small, watery smile. “Whenever you feel lonely or sad, just play our song we always play and it’ll be like you’re right at home.”

Link took the ocarina, and placed it carefully in his travel pack. Not knowing what else to say, he just stood there, looking at her, while she looked at him. Then, Link lunged forward and hugged Saria tight, memorizing how her sweater felt against his neck when he rested his chin on her shoulder. She hugged him back, just as hard, and she said, “Come back soon, okay? I want to hear all about your big, big adventure. And, you’d better bring me back a present, too, got it?”

Link smiled, feeling relieved. Since Saria hadn’t spoken to him after the tunnels, he was afraid she hated him now. But she didn’t hate him, she was just scared and that was a feeling Link understood. They were still best friends and nothing would ever change that.

“I promise,” Link said as they parted. Saria grinned back, though her eyes were still a little red and Link could tell she was still sad, it was okay because he was feeling the same thing, and he was learning that someone could feel both happy and sad at the same time. He stuck out his pinky, and Saria looped her pinky around his. 

“Okay,” Saria said, stepping around Link so their places on the bridge were swapped. “See you later.”

“Yeah,” Link took a step backwards, then another and another, until he felt solid ground under his feet again. He waved, and she waved back. “See ya.” 

Link kept walking backwards and kept waving, until he stumbled on a root and almost fell on his butt into some bushes. Framed by the tree trunks between them, Saria laughed, and it was only then that Link turned around and left.

Compared to the thick greenery of the Kokiri forest, the Lost Woods were practically barren. Their forest was almost impassable anywhere there wasn’t a cleared trail, cozy and tight, but the Lost Woods were a span of flat, mulchy earth that muffled footsteps almost completely, covered by seemingly endless pine trees, their trunks tall and skinny and their bark rough, their needles drooping just low enough to brush against the backs of people’s necks. The trees grew in weird patterns, like they were making shapes, but just when someone would start to think it looked like a proper maze, they’d blink and the pattern would stop. The mist totally obscured everything farther than a hundred or so paces away, making it impossible to tell where the woods ended. 

Link was used to it, though. 

He walked through the trees, his steps casual and confident, kicking up fallen needles and weirdly floppy pinecones. The cool mist brushed his face, and he tilted his head back and sighed. He kept replaying the conversation with Saria in his head over and over. The Lost Woods were always so quiet, unless something or someone in them made some noise. 

Navi hovered near his shoulder. “So, Link… how are you feeling?” 

Link stopped. He dug around in his pack, and pulled out Saria’s ocarina. He turned it over in his hands, fitting his fingertips to the little holes. 

He lifted the ocarina to his mouth, and started playing their song as he continued walking.