Legend of Zelda: Wolf Princess

Chapter Six: Amadahy

Zelda/Link

Zelda woke with a start. Her muscles tensed the moment she sensed the presence next to her and she prepared to jump off and run away. Then her human half took over and she realized it was Link, in his human form. She stood up slowly, hoping not to wake Link and stepped away quietly, though she winced at her stiff muscles. Epona, who had been asleep underneath a horse blanket, lifted her head. When she saw it was Zelda, she whinnied softly, "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to the nearby tree," Zelda answered. Epona nodded, satisfied. She lay her head back down. Zelda began to walk off again, muttering curses whenever she stepped on her front paw. The wound from the Master Sword pulsed in pain with each step Zelda took. For the most part, she had been able to ignore then pain when they had been running yesterday, but today the pain came in full force.

Zelda went into the first line of trees of the forest around the camp. She walked up to a tree she decided to use as the bathroom last night and hiked. Once she'd relieved herself, Zelda started back towards camp. Then she saw the flash of black and paused. She lifted her nose, trying to catch wind of the air. There was no smell. She did see the black blob flash again, but she couldn't pinpoint what it was or where it was at any time. Zelda stood still, trying in vain to find it, with no luck. Eventually, she decided to ignore it and began to walk away. She could feel something watching her. Zelda spun around, her lips curling back in a snarl. Then she saw it.

It was in the shadows. The form it took looked that of a deer, but the edges of the animal continued to ripple and change. After a moment, the shadow animal disappeared. What was that? Zelda scanned around the area one last time, then turned and started for camp. Link was awake when Zelda walked towards their campsite. He already had a small fire stoking and was cooking something inside a pot. He smiled the moment he saw Zelda. "Good morning, Zelda," he greeted, stirring the pot with a twig. Then he changed form so he could understand her.

"I saw something this morning, Link."

"What was it?" Link looked concerned.

Zelda explained what it looked like to her. Link tried to think, but he couldn't come up with anything that followed the shadow Zelda described. After a moment of silence, Link changed back to human to stir the pot again. When Zelda tried saying, "What's for breakfast?" to Link, Link changed back to a wolf. Zelda repeated her question.

"There's stew for breakfast. I had some salt-cured ham I brought with and thought to make it."

"Where do you plan to store the food?"

"Well, I was exploring last night after you had collapsed with exhaustion and found a secluded cave. It's nice and cool and also close to the palace."

"We're near the palace?" Zelda asked, surprised.

Link nodded.

"Are you going to be heading there today?"

"I plan on going up there. I don't think I'll be able to bring you with."

"It couldn't hurt to try."

"The King might not be pleased. I don't even know if I'll be able to get into a meeting with him any time soon."

Zelda gave a wolfish grin. "Father will meet with you. At least, he will since you are the savior of Hyrule."

Link nodded, then changed human again. He pulled the stew off the flames and pulled out two shallow bowls. He poured as much as he could fit into the bowls, then set the pot aside. He handed a bowl to Zelda. She gave a small lick to the warm stew. He didn't start on his food, but walked over and pulled off a bundle, which he proceeded to open and hand to Epona. Zelda hadn't realized it was some alfalfa on Epona's back. She began to eat the food happily.

Link walked back over to his bowl of stew, changed to a wolf, and proceeded to lap up his food. Zelda followed suit, thinking while she ate. Zelda didn't know if her father would believe Link that she had been changed into a wolf. She also didn't know if Link would be able to take her with. Castle Town had been different since the Twili had attacked. Father might try to kill her right away if Link took her into town. Maybe the best solution would be to send Link in alone…

"Zelda?" Link had quit eating and was observing Zelda with a look of concern on his wolf face.

"Sorry, Link. I was just… accessing our situation."

"What do you think?"

"Let's talk to my Father first, and then see where to go from there. I can stay in the forest with Epona until you return."

Link nodded his agreement, then said, "I should probably head in soon."

"The sooner you go in, the better," Zelda agreed.

Link hesitated. "Are you sure you'll be all right?" he asked eventually.

Zelda nodded, smiling at Link. Link smiled in return, walked over to Zelda and gave her a lick. Zelda's tail wagged and she gave Link a lick as well. "I should be back by sunset," Link promised, nuzzling Zelda's neck. Zelda nodded. Suddenly feeling shy, Zelda stepped away from Link.

She said, "Epona and I won't leave here."

"I'll make sure to ask your father about you coming to town also."

Zelda nodded gratefully.

Then Link was gone.

Link

Castle Town was further than Link had originally thought. He ran for nearly an hour, jumping over logs and trotting through streams to get to Castle Town as fast as possible. After what seemed like forever, he broke out into the field at the entrance. Exhausted, but grateful, Link went back into the shelter of the trees to change form again. Once he was human, Link ran out of the trees and straight to the east gate of Castle Town. It was the entrance he had used many times and he still enjoyed using.

The town was bustling with life. People went about cheerfully and joyfully, walking, shopping or conversing in large numbers. It seemed no one had really noticed the stars disappearing. It was that or they didn't care. Either way, Link was relieved they weren't too worried.

A few people waved at Link, who waved in return, but he headed straight for the palace entrance. Hopefully he could get to the King easily. The King needed to be informed of what was going on. Link could only hope the King would believe him. If the King didn't, who knows what could happen to Zelda. Or him.

The guard at the gate greeted Link, then asked, "What are you doing here?"

"I need to meet with the King. It's very urgent."

"What seems to be the problem?"

"It's about Zelda."

"What's wrong with Zelda?"

"What do you mean?"

"I know a few days ago she wasn't feeling well, but Zelda is doing well now."

"Can I please enter?" Link was as confused as he could be. Zelda was far from fine. She wasn't even there right now.

The guard allowed Link to pass, though he seemed as confused as Link was. Link shrugged it off and continued into the palace. Many people traveled around the front grounds of the palace; squires, council members, astronomy drawers, and the guards. Many nodded to Link and he nodded in return as he passed. Then he continued in. A young woman with a clipboard came forward with a smile. She had auburn hair cut in a pixie style and wore brightly colored top, skirt, and knee high socks. She bowed.

"I'm Effie, how may I help you?"

"Is the King available at the time?"

Effie cocked her head to the side and said, "I'll check with him immediately. Who is trying to speak with him?"

"Tell him it's Link of Ordon."

A smile formed on Effie's face. "The King will meet with you in the throne room immediately. Let me just tell him you have arrived."

"…Don't you have to ask?"

"The King informed me if someone calling themselves Link of Ordon ever appeared, he would meet with that person instantly. Since that's you, the King won't even need asking. Ellie will take you there." Effie signalled for a girl with raven black hair in the corner of the main. The girl, Link assumed to be Ellie, walked forward. She gave a shy smile, her blue eyes shining. Effie explained to Ellie her task. Ellie nodded and signalled for Link to follow.

Effie leaned in to Link before he left. "Ellie is deaf, so if you need to ask her anything, tap her on the shoulder and say it very slowly. She can read lips."

Link nodded and continued on after Ellie. Ellie glanced back at Link, gave a smile, and continued to walk on ahead. Link was quick to catch up to her and then fell into step with her. She was silent, hardly registering Link's presence. She did smile at him when they entered the throne room and she bowed slightly as she walked out. Link smiled, nodding in return. Then Link was almost alone. He could feel a presence of some sort. But he had no idea what it was. He decided to ignore it. Then the door opened and the King entered.

The King wasn't alone either.

Someone walked in with him, looking exactly like Zelda.

Zelda

Zelda walked around the camp, bored out of her mind. Epona had gotten up and wandered a little ways off for food. Zelda couldn't go for food and she couldn't leave camp. If Epona needed her, Zelda had to be able to get there at a moment's notice. Zelda finally decided to run through the trees a little. She could still stay close to camp if she went around in circles. If she was lucky, maybe she could associate with someone in her situation.

Once Zelda started running, her mind cleared. She was able to actually enjoy herself. The wind blew against her flank, brushing back her fur. The trees flashed around her. She caught scent of so many different things; animals, trees, streams, people…

Zelda suddenly froze, her paws digging into a log she paused on. They sounded close, but Zelda picked up no sounds of humans. Could they be transformed animals? With that thought, Zelda picked up her pace, almost happily. She could find others like her… she wouldn't be completely alone… Wait, what was she thinking? She had Link.

A warm feeling flooded Zelda at the thought of Link. He was sweet and seemed to care about her…

All thoughts suddenly left Zelda. She had wandered quite far into the forest. In front of her, Zelda saw a bright spring. The spring had many waterfalls and seemed to glow. It seemed to glow with power… Zelda stepped forward toward the spring. She heard a snap of a twig and jumped to a fighting stance. A young pup, probably a wolf, stepped out of the tree line. The pup paused as soon as it saw Zelda.

"Hello, little one," Zelda said softly, hoping to coax it forward. Instead, the pup turned tail and ran. Zelda sighed and walked up to the edge of the pond. What seemed like fog suddenly began to swirl from the top of the water and reach out towards Zelda.

As soon as the fog tendril reached out to Zelda, she was plunged into utter darkness. Zelda went to yelp, but instead heard her own cry. Her human cry. What the…? She reached out and saw her hand. She was human again!

"Princess Zelda."

The voice was in her head. She looked around, but didn't see anyone. "Where are you?" Zelda called out. She was relieved to hear her voice again.

"Magick has transformed you."

"Yes, it had. I'm normal again."

"You are not. For the time being, you are human, but once I bring you back to your present mind, you will be a wolf once more."

"Who are you?"

"My name is Amadahy."

"What do you do?"

"I was once part of the Goddesses Council. The Goddesses sent me here to help council the land as it was needed. Nayru lead me to you. She believes you need help."

"What is it you have to offer?" Zelda hoped she sounded polite.

"You wish to become human once more, do you not?" At Zelda's nod, Amadahy continued, "The Goddesses left gifts scattered across Hyrule. You must find these gifts. They will help you become human once more."

"Where can we find them?"

"The only information I have for you is this; everything can be found in the largest library of Hyrule. It is in a small leather bound book, which had been written ages ago by a man who had found and documents these gifts."

"Are you talking about the library in my palace?" Amadahy agreed with the statement. "All right, thank you, Amadahy."

"With the Goddesses blessings, I bid you-"

Zelda interrupted before he had a chance to finish his sentence, "How can I contact you again if I need help?"

A bright light flooded the darkness around Zelda. Suddenly, she could see her; a beautiful pale woman with silver hair. Zelda knew instantly it was Amadahy. Amadahy smiled at Zelda and said, "The Goddesses will lead me to you if they believe you need help."

"Wait, what about the stars? What are we-?"

But everything had already begun to fade.

Zelda awoke in the middle of the field. She noted instantly that the spring was gone. With a sigh, Zelda moved. She could feel herself in the body of a wolf once more. Ignoring the feeling of longing to be in her original body, Zelda stood up and began to run back towards camp.

She found it easily. Epona was back there, but Link was not. Zelda, tired out by her run and confused by the meeting with Amadahy, sat down near Epona. "Epona, please wake me up if Link returns or someone or something shows up at our camp," Zelda said. When Epona agreed, Zelda closed her eyes and went to sleep.

Link/Zelda

When Link arrived at camp, he watched as Epona nudged Zelda awake. He had turned wolf as soon as he had left Castle Town. It was getting late, but he had made it in the time limit. Zelda looked bright, but also shaken. She could see something was wrong with Link the moment she saw him.

"Link, what happened?"

"Can you promise me you're really Zelda?"

Zelda was confused, but of course, she nodded. Link sighed and fell onto his side.

"What went on?"

"There is someone in Castle Town, who is managing to pose as you perfectly."

"…W-what?"

Link nodded. Zelda fell down. Link got up and resituated himself next to Zelda. "I had asked the King to meet with him without the presence of the imposter, though obviously I didn't imply whoever it was wasn't you. The King agreed and sent the other one away. When he asked what was wrong, I explained to him the situation. He didn't believe me."

"He didn't?"

"It made sense," Link admitted, "There's so much more pointing to the other Zelda. Of course he wouldn't believe me. He did agree to keep an eye on you. I promised him I would try to fix the situation and also told him I was working on the Star situation too. I figured this situation ties in with the latter."

"I have information too," Zelda interrupted. Then she proceeded to explain the situation with Amadahy.

Link had a gigantic grin on his face when Zelda was done explaining. "We have information to start our quest, Zelda!"

"We just need to get access to the library in the palace."

"The King will allow it. He said I could go there if I ever needed to." Link gave a smile. "You're able to come too, Zelda. I told the King I had a wolf companion."

"Then we'll head in tomorrow."

Zelda grinned and nuzzled her face into Link's flank. Link curled his tail around Zelda, who rested comfortably against Link. "Do you want some food?" Zelda asked after a moment. "You must be hungry."

"I am," Link admitted.

"You can show me the cave you told me about and then we can eat." They proceeded as they discussed and eventually ate food together. It was late at night when all three companions went to lay down. Zelda curled up against Link and rested her head against his side as they fell asleep together.

~Author's Note~

Thank you for all of the reviews! It helped me write the story. Please, tell me all that you think.

Note:

Sapphiet: all of your questions about Zant and the Triforce he supposedly owns will be answered as the story unfolds.

Again, Thank you!

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