Chapter Text
“The flow of time is always cruel,” whispers the old woman. She pulls the younger woman by the hand, dragging her tired body through the woods. Twigs snap beneath them.
There is a fire. It started in the town, then spread through the great fields. Their last refuge is the woods, but even the trees begin to crack behind them as the flames spread wider. The old woman is clad in red robes and carries a satchel on her shoulder. Her silver braids swing as she leads the younger woman away from danger.
The young one stops to rest. She checks the bundle that she holds tightly to her chest. She feels the heat come like the breath of a hot giant.
“Quickly now,” the old woman beckons, “the place is not far.” She looks to the young one. Her face is covered in ashes, but golden hair spills out of a brown cloak, untouched by the chaos around them.
They continue as the blaze grows, heading east, deeper into the forest.
The young woman begins to notice the roots on the ground. As the forbidden wood gets thicker, the roots on the ground get larger, nearly gigantic, like small hills. The old lady stops them, and the young woman looks up to see a massive tree towering over them. It has yet to be touched by the flames, but there is a strange glow coming from it. A wind blows from its branches and it speaks to them.
Impa…
The tree speaks with a loud whisper.
“Madi Deku,” the old woman bows her head.
...He has parched the ground.
“We come seeking protection,” she says.
...I have been cursed.
Impa closes her eyes and lays her hand on the trunk of the great tree. Their spirits flow through one another.
...The boy.
Impa’s eyes shoot open and she turns to the young woman, who is clutching the bundle at her chest.
“Madi Deku - I do not understand-”
That is the one the sorcerer from the desert seeks...
...Hero of Time.
Impa sighs.
“Amaia,” Impa says, “The time has come.”
“Wha-,” she stutters, “What do we do?”
“The Great Deku Tree has the power to protect your son. You must give him to me.”
Amaia begins to cry. “I cannot go with him?” Amaia unwraps the bundle. The small infant begins to coo in the forest. “But,” she says between her sobs, “he is so small.”
The baby looks up at her and moves his small arms about, reaching to up to his mother. She strokes his face.
“He will be safe,” Impa tries to reassure her.
Amaia kisses his forehead and hums a song to him. Thunder claps and it begins to rain.
“The goddesses cry with you, Amaia.”
Amaia hands Impa the baby, and he begins to cry.
“Please,” Amaia cries, “Is there any other way?”
Amaia...
A gust blows the older woman’s red robes.
...Your son will return to you.
Impa stands under the Great Tree and grabs and small what looks like a small bead from her pouch.
“What is the child’s name, Amaia?”
“His name is Link.”
Impa throws the bead down and a great flash blinds the young woman. Impa and the baby are gone.