Author's Note: Legend of Zelda is owned by Nintendo, not me.

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Life and Trust

Link wakes up feeling various degrees of soreness and numbness, and he hasn't even tried to move yet. He risks turning his head to the left, and, along with the relief that moving his neck didn't cause him great pain, recognizes the design on the wooden door as evident of the Rito, being fashioned to look like a bird.

By the door is another familiar face, and he smiles weakly. Link attempts to push himself into a sitting position, and manages through a couple flares of pain.

"Oh, you're awake." Medli states as she sets a tray down on a nearby table. "How are you feeling?"

After catching his breath he replies, "Could be better."

Medli hands Link a cup of water, "You're lucky that Lord Valoo has good eyesight. He saw your distress shots even as far away from the island as you were. I had to get Quill's help to get you here."

Link's memory finally kicks back in, so that even before Medli asks what had happened, the fear and desperation that he had felt on the submarine creep back into his being, making him feel heavy and empty.

"I found a submarine, and I wanted to defeat the monsters inside and take the treasure. But…I wasn't strong enough." He looks down in thought. A familiar position to Medli, who had seen Prince Komali stuck in this same dilemma. She sometimes had to remind herself that the warrior in front of him was still just a boy. "I just want my sister back…but if I can't even protect myself, how am I going to save her?"

After a moment, Medli replies, "Part of me wishes that Komali were here, he might be able to talk the same sense into you that you did for him. But maybe you'll hear me more now than he did then."

"You have climbed this volcano to see Lord Valoo. You did so with very little preparation, right? You're swordsmanship was still a bit sloppy and you could hardly take a hit. I remember watching you fight with that Moblin. I remember seeing the confidence in your face and stance change to concentration. Then the Moblin landed a single swipe that flung you across the arena. I remember seeing a fairy revive you, and then you were afraid. The Moblin had taken a lot of damage already, but you grew much more cautious. Do you remember how you felt during that fight?"

"I remember thinking that I had to win. I had to save you. There wasn't another option. Seeing you there, you were so close that I just had to find a way to win." Link pauses, looking at the ceiling, "though I do remember thinking that I wasn't strong enough then too."

"You acted, even though you were afraid, that's courage, Link. If more people today showed the same courage you do on a daily basis, evil would have no place to hide."

Link shakes his head, "But that's just it, Medli, I tried my best to beat those wizards and miniblins earlier today,"

"Yesterday."

"Right, but I couldn't, I didn't have the power or the tools or the strength. I started looking for a way out…to run away. That isn't courage, and they weren't even powerful monsters either, there were just so many of them. What will I do if I'm faced with that force again and I can't run away? Then Grandma would be all alone. She was so sick just over losing Aryll-"

"Stop." Link complies after Medli's strong interjection. "It's good to know why you fight, but what ifs aren't going to help you. You went in, thinking you could beat the enemy, found out you couldn't, and left before they could kill you. Tell me, was there a point in that submarine where you stopped fighting?"

"Uhh…"

"The answer is no, because if you had, you'd be dead. So how are you still alive?"

"I ran."

"You mean they let you leave?"

"No, I had to fight my way out. What are you trying to get at Medli?" Link asks, a bit confused and offended by Medli's rising tone and what sounded like condescension. She was talking like his Grandma did sometimes, how old is Medli again?

"That leaving behind the treasure and those monsters and a chunk of your pride in exchange for your life is NOT the act of a coward. And staying would have been a stupid act, not a courageous one." She recollects herself, calming down a little, "Even in the time I've been on this island, I've seen more than one young Rito attempt to climb the volcano up to the Dragon Roost to receive their wings and fail. Some gave up because they felt they didn't have the strength, some thought they did and injured themselves when the volcano decided to prove them wrong. But even my old master would have attested that no Rito has ever failed to receive a scale. All of us know what it means to fall, it takes courage to keep trying despite this, and wisdom to learn from past mistakes." She pauses and still has Link's full attention, "It takes more courage to live than most people realize." Link fails to reply once more…that is, until his stomach growls for him.

Medli smiles, "Hungry?" Link nods, prompting Medli to leave for a moment to bring food. In the meantime, Link takes the moment to think over what she had said. His eyes wander to the tray that Medli had set down when he had woken up. On it are bandages, unraveled and stained red. He lifts his covers, noting that he isn't wearing his green tunic any longer, but rather a plain, long white shirt, which then leads to a simple logical connection of these two bits of information, along with the white bandages that are wrapped snugly around most him. Link's face and ears turn red at the image made in his mind and it is at this moment that Medli decides to return.

-x-x-x-

Still wrapped in bandages, but now hidden underneath his green tunic and the rest of his clothing, he slowly descends to the shore where The King of Red Lions waits in the shadow of the island as the sun rises in the East. Medli had insisted that at least the leggings should be thrown out, but Link could not bring himself to part with any part of the Hero's garb, noting that fairies seem to be very good at mending clothing if they have the extra power. A sobering thought when he remembers that the fairy that he had brought did not mend any part of his clothing during his fight in the submarine. Assuring Medli that he would head straight for Northern Fairy Island just to the southwest of Dragon Roost Island, she allowed him to leave, in turn releasing her to return to her duties with the Great Dragon, Valoo. Link was smart enough not to let her see him limping and hissing in pain on the way out.

Slowing even more as his unsteady feet reach the sand of the beach, he eventually stops in front of King of Red Lions before entering the water. He meets the sapphire eyes of the boat as the Lion speaks.

"Good to see you well, Link."

Link smiles, "I don't think I'm quite there yet." He pulls out the Wind Waker, but holds it in his hands, looking at its simple, yet elegant, design. "I'm sorry…I almost got myself killed over some-"

"Link," King of Red Lions' booming voice cuts through the boy's stumbling apology, "whether or not you made a mistake is not my concern." Link stops fully and listens, relieved that he didn't have to try and continue apologizing, "Exploring this Great Sea means that you must take risks, and conquering the mysteries of this ocean requires courage. I do not find fault in your wish to defeat Ganon's forces, though I do think that you need to be much more cautious and cognizant of your surroundings and limitations. Your life is too important to throw away in stupid bravado." Link lowers his eyes, focusing on the Wind Waker once more.

He continues, "That said, courage cannot exist without fear." Link looks up again. "Fear is a powerful emotion that can lead to irrational action, but can also lead to greater clarity, a clarity which only comes from courage, the strength to look beyond what is being feared and to move toward it. I am glad that you had enough presence of mind to know when you were outmatched, and the strength to act toward life, rather than panic and despair."

Link sighs, a wringing his hands around the Wind Waker, "But…what happens when I find myself in a fight that I can't win? What if I can't run?"

The boat pauses, choosing his words carefully. "Firstly, never let your fear get the better of you, always keep your head about you. Your reason can be sharper than any sword." He pauses again, looking off to the side before continuing. "However, you are right to worry. I'm glad to see you acknowledge that you are vulnerable…but acknowledging that comes with its own questions and doubts."

"Do you remember the first time we arrived here, when you had succeeded in freeing Valoo from Gohma's torments? You stood right here on this beach, saying your goodbyes to Medli and the young prince Komali. Do you remember what happened?"

Link thinks a moment, then replies, "He said that he was going to go see Valoo, and gave me Din's Pearl, saying he didn't need it anymore."

"Train your memory, Link, much more was said in that one moment than that. That Pearl was his keepsake, a memory of his grandmother who passed away recently. To him, it was not Din's Pearl, it was a symbol of his love for his grandmother. He gave you this saying, 'Giving you the thing I value most will give me the courage I need to stand up to bad things.' Komali gave his most prized possession to you, so that he could move forward without looking back in doubt and weakness. But his action is but a transitory step in his life."

"Tell me Link, what do you value most?"

"My grandma and my sister. That's why I'm doing all this."

"And what else?"

"What else? There isn't anything else."

"If your Grandmother and Aryll died today, what would keep you going?"

Link drops his arms and stares at the boat, "I…what?" he runs a hand through his hair, pulling off his hat, "I wouldn't be doing any of this if it wasn't for them!"

"Tell me, were you thinking of your grandmother in that submarine, when it finally dawned on you that you were outmatched?" the King asks firmly.

Link huffs, "I don't remember, there was kind of a lot going on at the time."

"I am no fool, boy. I have been around long enough to know that the mind never stops, even in the midst of battle. Did you think of her or your sister?"

"Why is this important?" Link responds, "Why is everyone asking me about what I did and how I did it and what I was thinking? I was fighting! Then I was fighting more and the monsters didn't stop coming. Then I was trying to find a way out and fought my way through that too. I was hardly thinking anything else."

"Except that you didn't want to die."

Link takes a breath, "Well, yeah."

"So let me ask you again, what is the thing that you value most? The thing that kept you fighting even in the darkness of that submarine and your fear?"

Link hesitates to answer, part of him was warning that if he said what was the obvious answer, that he'd be betraying the only ones who cared for him and counted on him. But part of him also knows the truth, "Living. I want live. My life is what I value most. But I also would do anything for my family…"

"True," King replies, "there are times when you have to fight to accomplish your goals." Link nods and the boat continues, "So, when what you are fighting for is so great and important that you are putting your life on the edge of sword, how do you keep fighting? How do you set aside what you naturally value most for the sake of another?"

"You…entrust it to someone else for safekeeping."

King of Red Lions nods once, "So, if you want to show perfect courage, then you must do this."

Link remains silent, and, at King's suggestion to start traveling, he conducts the wind to blow to the southwest with the Wind Waker. He wades through the saltwater and climbs into the boat, still cringing. He opens the sail and they set off for Northern Fairy Island. Link looks back at Dragon Roost, seeing Valoo resting on his perch at the top.

He answers the boat some time later, "I don't know how I can even do that."

"Hm?"

"I mean, I can't give my life to any other person. I usually travel only with you, and you're just a boat. But even still, I can't trust my life with someone if they can't really do anything about it. And I can't ask someone like Valoo or another spirit, since the best they could do with my life is try to avenge it if I were killed." Link sighs, "Is there anyone?"

King glances back at the boy, "Yes, it is difficult. A life is not something that you just give to someone without real discernment."

"You're alive, right King?"

The boat laughs, "In a way, I am, yes."

"Who do you trust? You know, who do you give your life to?"

King of Red Lions doesn't respond immediately. "I put my trust more in a what, than in a who."

"Huh?"

"I live for the future, I fight to try and keep this ocean safe. And to help you, of course."

"But…what happens if you get smashed or something?"

"What do you take me for? A rickety dinghy? I'm made of sturdy stuff, boy."

"Right, but how can you trust something that isn't even a person?"

"We're here." The boat states. "Take the time you need to refresh yourself, then we should place the last pearl." Link, a little put off that his question was ignored, jumps out and manages to make it to the rocky shore of the small heart-shaped island. The island only features a couple trees and a tall pink spiked conch shell. Underneath the shell is a fairy fountain, where he hoped that the fairies there could not only fix him up, but his clothes as well. Before dropping in, Link looks back at the small red boat, realizing that King of Red Lions is much more mysterious than he first thought.

"Hey, Link!" The boat calls.

"Yeah?" He calls back, walking away from the opening to the fountain for the moment.

"Ask the fairies about Farore!"

"You mean the pearl, or-"

"Just Farore, just ask!"

Shrugging, Link waves and drops into the fairy fountain.

-x-x-x-

"You look much better." King of Red Lions states, looking the boy over. Even his clothes are mended, and Link had taken the time to remove the bandages that were wrapped around him as well.

Link smiles, "Yeah, fairies really are amazing." He wades out into the water and climbs into the boat, "You ready to go?"

"I've been ready to go for quite some time, you little whelp."

Link chuckles, pulling out the Wind Waker and directing the wind to the south-east. The boy opens the sail and the two ride the wind to place the last pearl.

After Northern Fairy Island is behind them and shrinking, Link speaks up, "I asked the fairies about Farore."

"And?"

"They told me that she's a goddess that's responsible for making them. They said she's really nice…but that's about it."

"Hm. Tell me, Link, do you know anything about the goddesses?"

"uhhh, not really."

"It is said that three goddesses, Din, Nayru, and Farore, created this world and the living creatures on it. Din used her power to create and shape the land. Nayru, in her wisdom, brought order to the land and established laws that it would follow and obey. And Farore, with love for live, filled the world with life and a desire to live. The three worked together in order to make the world what it is."

"So then…why is…" Link starts, something about the boats tale clicking in his mind, "So are these the same gods that the people of that old kingdom prayed to? The lost kingdom?"

King of Red Lions, after a moment, responds, "Yes." Link opens his mouth to ask about the kingdom when the boat continues, "We established before that you prize your life more than anything else. I have seen that you possess more courage than most. Each of the goddesses is said to favor those who exhibit particular attributes. Din favors those whose will is strong and who show great power. Nayru favors those whose knowledge is great and who show great wisdom. Farore favors those whose love for the living shines through their being and who show the courage that is needed to stand up to the trials that living naturally present. Which of these three do you think fits you, Link?"

"Well…Farore."

"I think so as well."

"Hm." Link ponders for a moment before remembering, "Do you put your trust in any of the goddesses?"

"In a way. Though I will have to tell you later, we are here." Sure enough, the small island is just a short swim away. Link had not even noticed how far or fast they had traveled.

"Ugh, again? Can't you just tell me?"

King pauses once again, "I told you that I put my trust in the future, and I believe that the future is in their hands…but they do not favor me."

"How did you lose...wait, how did you gain their favor in the first place?"

"You have many questions, Link, I understand, but you must place the last pearl so that you can gain the power needed to save your sister."

Link huffed, "Fine." Grabbing Farore's pearl, he swims to the island. When he climbs onto land, he sets the pearl down to catch his breath.

King of Red Lions calls, "Link, could you please change the course of the wind so that it blows to the west?"

"Why?"

"I have a feeling that we will be traveling that way next."

Pulling out the Wind Waker, he complies and shrugs it off as a strange request. He picks up the pearl and climbs the ledges to the old and weathered statue set on the highest point of the island.

If Link had bothered to look back after placing the pearl, he would have seen his faithful red boat sailing away to the west.

-x-x-x-

"You could have told me that the statue was going to blow up…stupid boat." Link mumbled as King of Red Lions floated outside the Tower of the Gods, recently risen from the depths of the ocean and which Link had promptly crashed into after the being blown through the sky from Eastern Triangle Island.

"Yes, but then where would the fun be in that? You, more than any other human, has enjoyed the experience of flight now twice! What a thrill!"

"I hate you."

"Yes, yes, but in all seriousness, we are here at the Tower of the Gods. This tower, which the pearls of the gods have caused to appear, is a place that the gods of the ancient world prepared so that they might test the courage of men. Only one who is able to overcome the trials that await here will be acknowledged by the gods to be a true hero. Only then will that hero be permitted to wield the power to destroy the great evil. Link, that which you must obtain now lies before you! You must believe in your own courage, which has led you to triumph over the many hardships you have faced...and you must triumph once again! You must rise above the trial of the gods!"

"Yeah? Well, what if I'm not so sure I can do this?"

"You asked how to gain the favor of the goddesses, conquering the trials of this tower is a sure way to do so."

"I get that, but that doesn't answer my question now." Link looks up and up and up at the stone white tower that seems to reach the ceiling of the sky. "I'm going to be fighting all on my own until I get to the top…"

King stares at the boy, Just a boy. Perhaps his first real brush with death, and already his youthful confidence is being checked by his own mortality. It is always easy to convince the young to be courageous, since they have so little experience to draw fear from. Courageous to the young is known as confidence to the old, and, with age, confidence in oneself is not a necessarily a good trait to have.

The boat slowly cruises to the entrance to the tower. "Even in short time that I have been with you, you have grown, Link." Link turns to look at the lion, "You can't rely on your courage alone, nor your own power, nor your own knowledge. But remember, this is the Tower of the Gods. You are not fighting alone, the goddesses themselves are watching. Though you yourself do not have the strength to overcome such a high challenge, you can start to call on them even as you climb. You are fighting for their favor and power, but to achieve this you must also draw on the gods in order to attain their favor at all. Do you understand?"

Link's expression clearly read that he wasn't, "How do I draw on what again?"

"Let me explain it this way. Link, are you a god?"

"No, I'm not."

"Are you as strong as one?"

"No."

"And this Tower, this trial of the gods, can anyone complete it?"

"I dunno, I don't think so."

"Can someone complete it?"

"If they're strong, I suppose."

"Is any man alone strong enough to equal a challenge made by the gods?"

Link hesitates but shakes his head. "You're not making entering this Tower seem like a good idea."

King chuckles, but continues, "If this trial is set by the gods in order to win their favor and grant the one who completes it with the title of a hero, but men by themselves cannot hope to complete it, then why have the trial? What are they waiting for?"

"Uh…" Link is ready to say that he doesn't know, when a thought floats into his mind. "Trust. They're waiting for someone to trust in them."

"If you've already figured this fact out, then the tower is certainly within your skill to overcome." King cruises through the open door into the tower, "I have utmost confidence in you Link."

The boy smiles, "I'll do my best."

"That's all that's ever been asked of you."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

A/N: There may or may not be an epilogue, but this short story is finished.

Thanks again for reading. Please review if you have the time, I'd love to hear what you think.