Happy Ending For The Hero Of Time And His Friends

He felt like he was left behind, fearing more than anything a tragic fate.

Epona, his trusted steed, followed him across the green meadows of Hyrule Field. The forest was just ahead.

It wouldn't be long before he returned to his best friend, Saria.

Using the Master Sword, he was able to travel through space and time into the future. And it was in the future that he had met his dear friend not as she once was but as a stranger: no longer a Kokiri but one of the guardians of Hyrule's mysterious universe.

He missed being young.

While he was only 14, he felt very old at this age in the future. After all, he was truly 7 years old. He felt himself when he was a child...before he learned he was not Kokiri.

The forest children stayed young indefinitely. And there within Kokiri Forest, the immortal children watched over the Great Deku Tree. They never died. And they never had to lose their friends or loved ones. They always had each other.

Even though he did not fit in because he was not Kokiri by blood, he knew that he desired their everlasting bonds. When he left the forest for the first time after receiving the gift of the ocarina from Saria, he never EVER was happy.

His fairy companion Navi tried to cheer him up. She told him that he would see Saria again and one day could return to stay forever in Kokiri! This was the only thing that gave him hope. And Navi understood more than anyone exactly why.

As they battled through dungeons and slew various forms of evil, the two companions learned more about each other than anyone could possibly know except for the whispers of the universe.

And it was upon the tears of the boy that Navi saw the necessity for him to one day return to the forest.

'I don't want to grow old...'

She heard him say many times.

'What do you want to be?' she asked.

'I want to be a Kokiri and live innocently forever within the forest among my friends...my family.'

'But the others were mean to you except for Saria.'

'It seemed that way. But there were plenty of friends that were not mean to me. They played games with me and we laughed together...shared our lives together. And now it is gone. They remain, but I am gone.'

'You are a young boy again and you will stay that way forever. I promise.'

'Navi...'

'Yes?'

She flew gracefully around his face. She liked to see the sparkle she made in his eyes. Without this peace, she knew she was incomplete. Bringing joy to her child was the single most important purpose she had. It was what she lived for: to bring joy to this child.

'Thank you,' he said.

She flew to his forehead and kissed it. Tears left his eyes. He was both sad and very sad.

'Why can't I hang onto joy in my life?' He asked. 'I can hang onto a sword and a shield, but I cannot hang onto time itself---the times when I am happy.'

Patiently she listened to her dear child.

'I have destroyed a demon and saved the future. But even the princess I saved, just like her kingdom, did not bring me joy. They left me, Navi! They killed me even when I was alive! They hurt me more than that demon Ganon could have ever done.'

'I understand.'

'But you...you never left me. Why? You have no obligation to me. You know I am not Kokiri. The task we were given is now complete. Will you leave me?'

'I am with you forever. I choose to never leave you. NEVER!'

And she kissed him on the forehead again.

'Will I have my dream come true? Will I be Kokiri at long last?'

She felt at that moment a great hope surge through her fairy body.

'Is the Great Deku Tree going to make me Kokiri?' he asked.

'I am going to take you to the person who will !!'

He wiped his tears and followed her into the forest. The young Epona followed him. And the three companions journeyed to a distant place in the forest.

'I have never been here before? But I feel as if I have,' he said.

'Then you must know who she is,' said Navi.

'Who?' he asked.

Navi took led him along a path that glittered with pixie dust and glowing snowflakes. But it was not cold. The air was perfect. Just like Kokiri Forest always was. But there was a perfume within the air. It was a beautiful nectar that fed his spirit!

'Look!' said Navi.

He looked. They were pretty flowers of pink and ruby color.

'Roses without thorns!' said Navi.

He touched the flowers gently. Someone with the most gentle voice giggled. It was...her!

'Little hero, little Hero of Time...' the voice said.

Through the flowery vines he walked, seeing a pool of many fairies. And there in the midst of the pool was the greatest of all the fairies!

She wore a beautiful sparkling blue dress. Pink glitter swirled around her. The elegant train hovered over the pool, lifted by little fairies just like Navi.

And golden angels that appeared above--into the heavenly realm, showered the Mother of All Fairies with beautifully rainbow light rose pedals!

Her face was the most beautiful he'd ever seen! Her ears were pointed just like a Kokiri. And she looked as if she were an adult but with the complexion of a child. Her eyes were filled with all the stars!

He bowed before her.

'Mom? Momma, is that really you?' he asked through his tears of anguish.

'You remember!' she cried with joy.

And then, he ran across the fairy fountain, through the shallow waters towards his mother.

He embraced her! And she hugged him warmly, lifting him in her arms.

'Your heart was always longing for me. You just didn't know where to look,' she said.

'Navi brought you to me, after I told her that you were my child. You are not Hyrulian or Kokiri. You are a fairy child!'

'But how? Why did you leave me?' he asked.

'I adopted your heart and through it your life because you longed for joy. And through that spring of love you blossomed into the boy that you are now. The parents you once had had given you to the Great Deku Tree. And I made him, too. All along I was guiding you to me because you were a heart too pure to be without the love of Heaven. And so, I as the Queen of Heaven, came to you and watched over you before you even came into the world. I made the fairies, and Navi is especially yours. I gave you all these things to lead you back to me. Because while your life was away from me, your heart was forever within me, united to my heart. You are the child of my heart, and my little Hero of Time.'

'What will happen now?' he asked.

'I have already taken you and Navi into Heaven. You neither felt pain nor the sting of death. And you are free to spend your time in Kokiri Forest with your friends as much as you desire. For time is no longer your impediment. And mortality is no longer your curse. I have given you eternal life through the One that gave it to me. And now, my dearest child, you are no longer bound by the tragedy of the worlds. The temporal inmortals that betrayed goodness can no longer see nor touch you. And with Saria and your friends you can adventure and play forever without the cares of mortality. You are immortal and my child, a child of the heart forever. You will always be a child, innocent and free. And I am your Mother, your life giver. I am Mary, and I rule all the planes and all the lands and all the spans of time itself. You completed your true quest: not to save Hyrule, but to accomplish your dreams. And your dream was to be a child, a Kokiri, my child forever.'

'Mary...' he had no words. 'Mom...'

'I know.'

And thus began the happy ending for the Hero of Time. And I, Kaepora Gaebora, have remained as the watchful guardian of these and other mysteries.

There is more to learn of the Hero of Time's happy ending. You too who seek joy will find strength, hope, and courage to continue in your quest for eternal happiness through his life and the lives of his loving friends.

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