So...hey there guys. I'm kinda new here and stuff, so this is my first story posted. Ever. So, if I messed up on any of the little techy details...or the big stuff... please, tell me. R&R and tell me if I even have a chance at writing at all. Although I am 13 so I guess even if I suck now I can get better.

Street Urchin

Chapter One

Link was running. Running from one of the most important and powerful people in the world. He was running from the king of Hyrule himself. The very same one who was the commander of the Hylian forces in the Imprisoning wars, the one who had acted as a peacemaker when the war was drawing to a close, who had gone personally to each leader of the races of Hyrule and persuaded them to sign a treaty, drawing the 20 year war to an end. The one who was rumored to have taken on 100 Gerudo warriors at once, and defeated them all with barely a scratch. Link turned a corner and found himself at a dead end. The sound of footsteps echoing down the street made his blood freeze. He turned, and found himself facing Daphnes Harkinian, the present king of Hyrule.

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It was turning out to be a beautiful day; the sun was slowly climbing through the deep valleys of the mountain range of Deaths Gorge, in which the tallest and most dangerous volcano in Hyrule, Death Mountain stood, where the mighty Gorons lived. The sun had just started to reach the in between of the mountains, and was illuminating the mist that covered most of Hyrule in the mornings, stretching from the small town village of Kakariko that lay right at the foot of Death Mountain, to the Castle Town of Hyrule in the north, the Farm of Lon Lon Ranch in the middle of Hyrule field, all the way to the beautiful lake Hylia at the western side of the fields.

It was in that very same mist that Link snuck his way through the town of Kakariko, towards one of his secret hideouts on top of the roofs of one of the residential buildings. Nimble and quiet as a cat, he jogged silently through the empty streets and alleys until he reached the house. It was early, and no one in their right mind would get up at this time unless forced to. He climbed the house, using a crate nearby to reach the bricks up farther that were sticking out more, giving him handholds all the way to the top of the two story house. At the top there was a small fort, or at least that's what Link called it. In all honesty it was little more than a small tree house without a tree to be in. He had built it from scratch up here, and it had taken him all summer to finish it. He climbed in, and sat down on a crate he used as a chair. His target wouldn't show up till about two hours before noon, so he had time to spare. He would be waiting for a while, he knew, so he decided to do one of the few things that helped with waiting. He thought about his past.

He was an orphan, a peasant growing up all alone on the streets of Kakariko. Well, not all alone, he amended. He did have Navi, though if she counted as a parent, a friend or even a sister he didn't know. Navi was a fairy, a rare race in Hyrule, thought to only live in the Lost Woods or the fairy Fountains scattered throughout the world. She had found him when he was twelve; hiding in a crate that the ranchers from Lon Lon had left when they brought their supplies to the town. She had stayed with him that night, and never left after. Right now she was off watching the mayor's manor, where a supposed important guest was staying the night while traveling through the country. You never could tell if they were actually important because all the Nobles had inflated opinions of themselves. They all acted like the world would just end if they weren't there to keep it working right. It was him who was Link's mark. He planned to steal from him.

Link was fourteen now, and he knew how to survive on the streets. Stealing was the name of the game, and he was one of masters. He could take the belt off of your pants without you even realizing. Literally. He knew how to survive on the smallest amount of food and water possible, and could outrun the Hylian guards, even the ones without all the heavy armor, while jogging. He was more acrobatic than anyone else he knew or had heard of, and was no lightweight when it came to a fight, using his superior speed and agility against the enemy. He had even stolen a dagger a season ago, and could throw it 50 paces out and hit a bulls-eye, and he was only getting better.

Most people would wonder why a teenager would need to learn all this. Couldn't he have found a family and lived with them through his childhood? And what had happened to his parents?

In all honesty, Link didn't even know the answer to those questions himself. The farthest back he could remember was when he was seven, and had woken up one day on the side of the streets. He didn't even know when his own birthday was, so he just used that day since, he reasoned, he might as well have been born that day. He had survived on the streets since then somehow, because of instincts. They told him everything he needed to do. It was surprising, those first few weeks, when his body unconsciously stole apples and bread from the street vendors without him even realizing it, sinking into the shadows to hide himself from the guards without him trying. He had just accepted it, and saved all the questions he had for days such as these, when he had nothing to do but wait.

Who were his parents, and why did they leave him all alone on the streets? He was wearing earrings when he Awakened, as he liked to call the first day he remembered. They were turquoise rings, exactly the same in every way. Many people had tried to buy it from him, and many times he considered it. He always decided to keep them. They were the only things he still had from the time before he Awakened, and he felt very connected to them. He usually felt that way with things. Growing up as an orphan, you tend to have very little, and appreciated and connected to everything you did own. For Link that included his dagger, a small pouch on his hip that contained his most precious item, a wooden ocarina, and the clothes on his back.

"COCK-A-DOODLE-DOO." The sudden sound rose Link from his reverie, and he looked out at Kakariko. It was a very organized town, though it used to be sprawled and all over the place. That had changed after the war, because it was attacked and burned down easily. It was orderly now, and even after twenty years you could still see some buildings being built, the most noticeable being the archery store. After the war they had decided to build the more important houses first, such as the residential ones and the mayor's manor, and the less important ones when everyone had a home. They were almost done now, and the reason it had taken this long was because they had decided to expand the village majorly. The village was split into three parts, the Residential District, the Market, and the Plaza. The plaza was at the front of the town, and was basically just a field of grass with benches and a tree growing in the middle. The Market district was to the left of the plaza, and was near the entrance to Death Mountain. The Residential District was to the right of the Plaza, and the Mayors manor and the entrance to the graveyard were located there. To the north of plaza was a large windmill, which was where Link slept most of the time. He loved to climb up to the top and just sit and watch the townspeople go through their daily lives.

The sound Link had heard was a Cuckoo, and its crow signified that there was about an hour before Link's target left the manor, and that was when he would act. Normally Link only stole what he needed, and never more. The only time he had stolen more then what he strictly needed was when he took the dagger, and that was just because the owner was a cruel man named Ingo, a ranch hand at Lon Lon who often kicked Link when he passed by. The only reason Link was stealing from a Noble was because they were rich, and he figured a few rupees and a little food missing from his packs wasn't much to get angry about.

He sat, staring at the mayor's manor, willing Navi to come and tell him that it was time to act. He never liked waiting much, especially if it was in a line. Of course most people tend to not like waiting in lines either, but for Link, there was just something in him that completely despised them. If he was starving to death, and the only way for him to get food was to wait in a line of six or more people, then he would rather starve. Navi had once asked why it was six, and not five. He had replied with the fact that five was his lucky number.

One more hour he thought, and then I'll be taking on the most difficult heist I've ever done. Stealing from a Noble...that's something that's only done in fairy tales. It was true, too. Almost no one had the guts to steal from Nobles, because they always had their own bodyguards, and if they caught you the penalty was death. The Royal family was even more impossible, because of the Sheikah. They were a race of Hylians, at least that's what people assumed they were, who had sworn to live in the shadows to protect the Royal family. They were the best at what they did, which was hiding in the shadows, not letting anyone know they're there, and striking when you least expect it, using their speed and agility to the greatest advantage. Much like what he did, he realized with a start.

He was drawn out of his musings by a sound, a twinkling that no one else ever seemed to hear but him. He got up and stepped out of his fort just as the bearer of the sound arrived, Navi. She was a fairy, although only he seemed to be able to see her body. Everyone who had seen her besides him only saw her as a blue ball with wings. She claimed it was because she was his guardian fairy, and only he could see her true form. She was a miniature woman, and unlike most perverted adults seem to think, she did wear clothes. A forest green dress was what she always had on, and while some people might think blue glowing skin and a green dress didn't fit together, it just seemed right on her. Like nothing else in the world would fit her like the dress did.

"Link!" She exclaimed "The Noble's leaving the manor, and he only has two guards! This is gonna be so easy!"

"Alright Navi, calm down" Link replied with a smile. "You always tell me stealing is bad, yet you get so hyped up right before we do a big mark."

"Well you're going to do it anyway," She remarked, "I might as well get excited about it."

Link just smiled and shook his head. She was always so...happy. Even when he was starving and freezing out on the streets, she encouraged him to keep going, and that it would just get better from then on out. It was infectious. Whenever she was around, he couldn't help but be happier.

He started walking towards the front of the house, when he heard the door open. He quickly made sure he was hidden from view, but still able to see the street. A young girl, probably around his age, was at the door, and she seemed to be trying to sell something to the owner of the house. After a few moments, the sound of rupees being exchanged caught his attention, and then she started skipping towards the market, basket in hand. He knew her of course. After living here for seven years, he knew everybody, even if they didn't know him. Her name was Malon, and she was the daughter of the owner of Lon Lon Ranch. She was probably out selling their most famous product, Lon Lon Milk. He had heard other boys his age look at her and call her cute, but he didn't really agree. It wasn't that she was ugly; he just didn't have time for things like that. The only reason he even knew her was because she was nice, and always gave the other orphans money and food. Not him, of course. He never accepted handouts, unless absolutely necessary. It wasn't that he was too proud, it was just he didn't like the idea of owing anyone favors.

As soon as she disappeared and he heard the door slam shut, he jumped off the roof, landing with a roll to soften the fall. He started walking slowly, in the way his instincts taught that made people's gaze slide off of him like he was just scenery. Head down, hands in pockets, and walking slowly. This technique didn't always work, of course. He suspected it had something to do with his hair and eyes, even though they were usually hidden. It was hard to be part of the scenery with blonde hair, even if it was a dirty blonde, as the scenery usually wasn't yellow. Except for that one house owned by that crazy old bat Fracia, but that didn't count. And then there were his eyes, which were the deepest pair you have ever looked in, and happened to be two colors. His left eye was blue, like a sapphire, his right eye green, like an emerald. His eyes made people want to look in them; like once you looked you couldn't look away. He managed though; by making sure no one saw his eyes, and putting a black hood over his hair.

All around him were signs of life that were absent just an hour ago. Candles lit inside homes, the sound of cooking, wives and husbands talking about the day ahead of them, brothers fighting and sisters giggling. Link was gifted with exceptionally sharp hearing, and he could go into a tavern, and pick out one conversation out of the whole building, no matter where they were in the building, and listen in on it. Not that it's always helpful, Link thought, there was that one time when that baby was screaming right next to me because his stupid mom dropped him on the ground. I mean, is it that much to expect your mom to at least not have the saying "did your mom drop you on your head when you were a baby" actually applied to you? And then of course there's the fact that every time we have a thunder storm I have to stick my hands in my ears all night to not go deaf. Still he reasoned, it was very helpful in most cases, and he was glad he had that gift.

Link reached the plaza with ease, no one stopping him or asking him what he was doing. Not that he expected them to, but he had found that it was better to be careful, just in case. He looked around, and was surprised at what he saw. Not that it was any different than normal, but that was what surprised him.

The tree in the middle still stood as a lone sentinel, and there were still a couple other orphans and beggars lying underneath it and on the benches around the plaza. It was too early for them to beg yet, as no one was out. From what he had heard, this Noble was extremely important. Most Nobles who are important like to have all the common folk, peasants as they called them, line up and cheer for them as they paraded past, displaying their riches to the world. It was sick, what they did. On one such occasion, Link had seen Duchess Veran, a widow to the former Duke of Lake Hylia, order all the peasants to line up, and cheer for her. She rode past on a magnificent horse, one that looked like it had been cared for by the finest horse groomers around, proudly displaying all of her riches and expensive finery. But then a beggar, Link didn't know his name, stepped in front of her. He had pleaded on his hands and knees for a couple rupees, nothing much, just five or ten. She completely ignored him, and urged her horse on. Straight into the beggar. He was left there on the ground for three days with a giant hoof print imprinted in his forehead, crusted in blood, on her orders, for all to see what happened when a street rat got in the way of a Noble. Link hated them all.

Not to say that there weren't good Nobles, just that there were only one or two out of the dozens of them. One that Link knew of was Duke of Termina, Lord Kafei. He had visited once, when Link was twelve. He had found Link in the worst situation he had ever been in. Mido and his gang had attacked him and left him for dead.

Mido was another orphan on the streets of Kakariko, but there was a difference between them. Mido didn't beg or ask for money. He considered himself above it. Instead he beat on everyone else, and stole all of their stuff. He was the leader of Kakariko's very own gang, the Kokiri. Link had been in it, once upon a time, before Navi had found him. He had been there best, and had never failed a job. Back then, Link hadn't cared about anyone else, only that he survived till the next day. Well, nobody but Saria of course. She was the one who convinced Link to leave, that they could find a family and live together with a mom and a dad, not having to fight every moment of their lives just to survive.

So they left. And then Mido found out. Mido had always liked Saria, and hated Link because he thought Link was an obstacle he had to overcome to get her affection. This wasn't true of course. Even if Link was gone, Saria wouldn't have had anything to do with him. Mido sent someone to stop Saria and kill Link. That might seem harsh, but those were the rules. No one left the Kokiri unless it was in a body bag to the graveyard. They snuck up on them that night, and almost killed Link. But Saria jumped in front of him at the last moment, saving his life and ending hers. Link blanked out and didn't remember what happened next, only that the next thing he remembered he was standing over the charred body of the thug, and his hands were slightly burnt.

When Mido found out, he sent the whole gang after Link. But at the last moment, he decided to let Link live, but take all of his clothes and possessions. Winter was coming, and Mido wanted him to freeze and starve and suffer, because in Mido's twisted mind it was his fault Saria died. All Link had left was the fairy ocarina that Saria had given him, which he had hid the night before.

Kafei had found him that winter, and given him clothes and enough food and money to survive the winter. He had offered to take Link in as a servant, but he had refused. Even though he had saved him, he still had a general distrustfulness of Nobles. But that wasn't it; he couldn't say an exact reason why, only that his instincts also told him to stay. And he had learned long ago to trust his instincts. The sound of cheering raised him from his thoughts.

What is wrong with me, why do I keep spacing out today? I have this weird feeling like...like today's gonna be the last day I see Kakariko for a long time, he realized with a start. He would have stayed and tried to figure out exactly why he felt like that, but Navi was pushing inside his hood to the direction of the cheering.

"Come on Link, that's the Noble! We gotta go get ready." Navi exclaimed

"You know, this would be a lot less stressful if you had figured out who the Noble even was. If it's one of the more important ones, we might not be able to do this." Link told her.

"I already told you, Nobles like to trap my kind in bottles and study us, some of them even dissect us! There is no way I was getting any closer to him than I was." She explained.

"I know, I know. I just...have a weird feeling. Like this might be the last time I see Kakariko for a long time." Link replied. That weird feeling in his gut had gotten even stronger the closer they walked towards the cheering.

"Oh, stop being silly, nothing will go wrong. You've done this thousands of times." She said.

"Navi, that was forever ago. You know I haven't done anything like this since a year after I met you. You should remember, you wouldn't shut up for days because you had finally gotten through to me, and how proud you were for me turning over a new leaf." Link said, his voice laced with annoyance.

"Oh be quiet." She huffed. "Besides, everyone knows stealing is like riding a horse, once you learn you never forget."

"Well I wouldn't know would I? I've never rode a horse." He replied, thinking of the magnificent creatures he had seen every once in a while come through town.

"Details, Details." Navi remarked "just quit your complaining and get on with it."

"Hey!" he exclaimed "I do not complain! And you're not the one who has to put his life on the line for a few measly rupees."

"Shhhhh. We're near the crowd." Navi said, quickly diving back in his hood. Like she had said earlier, it wasn't a very good idea to let it be known that you had a fairy.

They quietly approached the cheering crowd, slipping in and heading to the front. They couldn't see who the Noble was because he had yet to approach the stairs that were the main entrance to the residential district from the Plaza. On both sides of the stairway were raised walls, and that was where Link planned to hide, and dash out from when the Nobles back was to him. Oh well, Link thought guess I'm not gonna find out who I'm stealing from until I'm done stealing from them.

Link maneuvered his way through the crowd until he was at the spot he had chosen the day before, using the crowd to hide. Like before, he didn't expect anyone to stop him, but it was always better to be careful. Once there, he stood and cheered like everyone else, blending into the crowd perfectly.

"Well, well." Someone behind him remarked. "Lookie who we have here. If it isn't Link, my bestest buddy in the whole world."

Link froze. There was only one person he knew of with a voice THAT high and annoying. But that was impossible. He had heard he was in Jail, finally caught after two years of hiding. Link turned around slowly, and found himself face to face with none other than Mido, most annoying bastard in the world. Who also happened to have a knife in his hand. Pointed right at Link.

/