"...li…"

…

"...link…"

...

"...Link…"

...

"Link! Please wake up!"

The stiff bones of the hero creaked as he started to awake for the first time in 7 years. Apparently, spending the better part of a decade outside of your body, letting it sit in the same kneeling position for the entire period? It made your body rigid beyond belief. However, it allowed it to mature as if he had been a soldier in a war, fit in a way few could claim to be. It also gave the Sage of Light, Rauru, time to educate him in the arts of combat, as well as things he should have learned during his time in both the Lost Woods and while being sealed away.

He could barely say he was the same person, but he knew he was Link, the Hero of Time. "Navi." His baritone voice was scratchy beyond belief, another side effect of sleeping as long as he did.

"Wait! Holy cow you can actually, speak?! I thought you were like a mute or something!" She exclaimed happily, glad finally having someone to talk to again. She really liked talking, and sleeping for that long had taken away a lot of chances to do so, even though it had felt like an instant to her.

He smiled warmly, stifling a laugh. "No. I just prefer silence"

His fairy took her usual spot on his shoulder, folding her wings into her back as Link attempted to stand up, only to fall back down, crashing to his knees. 'Link, I told you we wouldn't communicate again until you've awakened a sage, but I must warn you! Something has gone terribly wrong!' The voice of the lonely sage echoed in his mind, awakening an unearthly headache. 'Through unknown means, you were transported to a completely different reality than your own! I don't know the specifics of what this could mean Hero of Time, but I am able to sense another Master Sword within this realm. Not only that, but a carbon copy of you and your memories before you trained with me has remained inside your reality.'

'I apologize for causing you as much pain as I am, my boy, but this is going to be the last time I will be able to talk to you. I don't find it possible for you to return to your own world, as the means to do so is unknown to me. All I can do is reassure you that the timeline in which you left shall be taken care of by your replica.' Hylia, his head felt like it was about to explode. He heard Navi trying to speak to him, but it was impossible to understand. 'My boy, I must leave you, as this communication is putting too much strain on the Realm of the Sages. Know that there is a deity like myself in the reality you dwell in now, who shall be willing to guide you through what needs to be done, as well as a creature similar in part to Ganon. Seek out the bearer of the second Master Sword, and help them do what is right! Farewell, Heroic Link!'

And, in the same amount of time as it came, the irrepressible pressure on his mind disappeared, leaving him hunched over, gasping for air. "Link!" Navi once again addressed the out of breath hero. "What the hell just happened! Are you alright?!"

He had to swallow the saliva that had nearly drowned him while he lost control of his body before he could speak. "I'm alright." He reassured her, rear. "I spoke with a sage. It hurt." He explained, leaning back onto his gloved hands.

She looked at him, confused. "Sage? What sage?"

He remembered that she hadn't been present in the realm of the sages as he had. "Never mind. We need to go."

His fairy looked at him with worried eyes. "Are you sure? I mean, are you gonna have another one of those attacks? And how do you know what to do?"

Link frowned as he stood up. "I'll be fine. The sage told me what to do." His raucous voice told her, sheathing his blade in its purple and gold holder.

"So then...where are we headed?" Her voice was shaky, and she was surprised he had managed to shake his shock off as easily as he did.

"Kakariko village. We need something from there, then we go to the lost woods."

Navi's shiny aura grew with excitement. "You mean we're going home?"

He nodded. Silence continued, and would continue to be his forte.

Navi had a sudden realization. "Why do the stones look different? They weren't like that before!"

"The sage messed up. We aren't in the same world."

Her radiant light became damp. "Wait. Does that mean that the forest children are gone? What about the Deku Tree! All my friends?" She whizzed around his head, her light wavering in desperation.

Link shook his head. "This land is similar to ours. The Kokiri will be there. There will be another Hero too."

It didn't lift the dampener on her light, but stopped the worried flickering. "Does that mean, there's going to be another me?" She asked hopefully. He shrugged. She deemed the subject as something to get her mind off everything else. "I hope so. I'm sure we'd get along really well. And since you don't talk a lot, it'd be nice to have some company. Not that you're a bad listener, but sometimes it's nice to get more than a nod in reply. I wonder if...games...

He let her voice drain away, serving as a sort of background noise as he walked out into the raining graveyard that was placed in front of the temple. Navi snuck under his green cap, sitting atop his blonde hair as she attempted to avoid the stinging rainfall. It smelled acidic, the carbon clouds pumped out by Death Mountain merging into the clouds to give it its signature, hyrulian scent. This world really wasn't all too different from his own. In fact, the rain managed to relax his firing nerves.

'Alright, Dampe. Let's see what you got.'

"Huh. Looks like we need something to help us get into the temple. I remember the old grave-digger talking about something that would pull him to high up places , so maybe he could help!" A twinkling, bright purple fairy said to her companion, who was looking at a branch much too high for her to reach.

The woman nodded, her blonde, shoulder-length bangs drooping sadly in the rain, along with the messy pony-tail that peeked out from beneath her cap. "We should probably hurry too! I really don't want to be out here when it turns to nighttime." Another nod, the fairy falling into place on her breast pocket. "Kakariko Village here we come!"

And the duo headed off into the maze that was the lost woods.

"Are you sure this is an alternate reality, because it feels like everything here is identical to what's usually around."

Link rolled his eyes at the fairy, though she wasn't in sight. "There are small differences. They're barely noticeable, but there." He told her, the proclaimed hook-shot in his possession after he had raced the old grave-keeper's ghost around an underground chasm.

For a dead person, the dude could run. "Anyway, do you mind if we stay at an inn tonight Link? I know we just slept for a couple of years, but I hate traveling in the rain. And it's even worse at night."

The hero looked at the sky, the clouds not showing any sign of dissipating anytime soon. "Yeah, I guess I don't mind." He answered, looking around the town for the sign of an overnight home. Eventually, he found one that seemed suitable for his wallet, reminding himself to find more rupees as he barely managed to pay for a day of rest. It wasn't the greatest when it came to structural soundness or space, but it smelled nice. People took smell for granted until you slept in sulfurous caves, or inside the stomach of a giant monster.

"I can't believe he didn't have the stupid hook-shot! Someone else managed to snatch it before us! Can you believe it Lazuli?" His ear caught the outraged complaint of a high-pitched, scratchy voice, which he could've mistaken as Navi's if it wasn't for the nasally, pubescent tint. Almost like Mido, in a way, if only less brusque.

It didn't take him long to piece together exactly who the person most-likely was, the acquiring of a hookshot a very niche need, the similarity of the voice only solidifying his assumption. That being said, it put Link in a predicament. Should he interfere directly with the Hero of this realm, or continue on his own course, taking care of the problems using his own Triforce of Courage?

Then another thought hit him. 'If there's another me running around back home with the Triforce of Courage that belongs with the other pieces, then what Triforce does mine mold into?'

Link quickly shot his gaze to the back of his hand, where Zelda had shown him the glowing mark of the Goddesses. And, in place of the singular, radiant triangle, sat a completed Triforce. He had the entirety of the Goddesses Gift in his body, though he didn't feel anything different about his physical being. Then again, he hadn't exactly been doing strenuous activities since he arrived.

Link shot the thoughts into the back of his head as he made his decision, opening the elden-wood door and stepping out into the hallway, where the doors to the rest of the inn-rooms laid, as well as the exit.

...And accidentally bumped into a woman, her shorter, less-beefy stature causing her to recoil backwards. She caught herself, however, her instinctive reactions flaring awake. They almost mimicked each other's movements, hands reaching over their shoulders and resting their fingertips on the hilts of their respective Master Sword's, ready to swing if the intruder posed a threat, but not unsheathing them and initiating an unprovoked battle. Link had to pivot on his foot to face his potential opponent, though he didn't finish his 90 degree rotation before he removed his hand from his sword.

The fairy, Kokiri clothes, and the Master Sword all screamed that she was his counterpart, no matter that she was, in-fact a she, and about 8 inches shorter than him. All of those aside, she was most definitely the Hero of Time. Of her own time too.

"Oh. Sorry." Link apologized, dropping his stance and his hand. She stared at him for a couple seconds, mouth open slightly in surprise.

When she realized what she was doing, her eyes fluttered and she followed his actions. "I-It's okay. I apologize t-too. I was just leaving. Don't have enough money to stay."

He frowned. "This is the cheapest inn. Where do you plan to stay?" She shrugged, though she really knew what would end up happening. She would take a seat under the extended roof of one of the buildings and try to ignore the rain. She was regretting her hasty purchase of the shield she now wore on her back. "You can stay here then. I would like to talk to you anyway." She had started to shake her head, not knowing the man, before he pulled out the object of her quest. The hook-shot. "Please?"

Her hesitation hadn't left her, but she accepted, Link letting her in before shutting his door. Finding the hero was done, now he needed to explain his situation.

He would have to break his brevity streak, but that was okay.

She seemed nice enough.