I soon lost all sense of time. I have no idea how long I was stuck up there.

And since it was really suspended animation, I experienced no changes while in there.

It was so fun, as you probably guessed.

Every once in a while, using my small powers, I probed for Link's location.

But he was either too far away, or--

Never mind.

Then, suddenly, my heart reared with hope. It was Link! Wow . . . he got big! He grew up! I could see him clearly, ducking the guards in the maze. He had some sort of sproingy-thing, a hook . . . hook-something, which he used to nail the guards in their backs. Cool.

He reached the temple. But how would he get in? Would that weird misty-thing lift him up, too?

He walked over to the structure. But wait! There was someone in front of him. A man.

He had the eye of truth design on his clothing. His face was covered, except for his eyes and bangs. I felt his name buried deep within my mind.

Sheik!

He . . . he had told Link to rescue me!

I felt a flash of hope rise within.

Sheik taught Link a song to take him here again. I made a mental note to write it down as soon as I got out of here. It could be useful. I saw Link use his hook-thing . . . hookshot! to pull himself up to the temple.

And then I lost consciousness.

There are many ways for me to watch someone with my powers, but I use only two.

The first, to just watch that person, as if a few feet behind him, and the second, to actually plant a small part of myself into his body. The second takes more energy than the first, so since I have grown older, I have usually use the first. But neither tire me out to the point of fainting, unless I use them for long periods of time over great distances.

With shock, I realized what had happened.

The Evil One had drained my powers to the bare minimum. I was lucky to have seen as much as I had.

When I got out of here . . . !

Suddenly, I heard the booming laugh again.

I glanced down. The floor spun crazily at the distance I was above it, but I could make out a figure clad in green.

Link!

I saw him battle Phantom Ganon, as I had come to call him. I winced each time Link fell to the ground. But then . . .

He triumphed!

Phantom Ganon was toast.

I felt the sick anger grow inside of me as the real Ganon spoke to Link. He was secretly impressed, I gathered, but he still didn't think of Link as a threat.

Fatal mistake, he would soon learn.

I felt myself being lowered from the ceiling. I was nearing the ground when---

Suddenly, I was . . . where?

My vision swam. I felt knowledge literally pouring itself into my brain. It is the strangest feeling, and I cannot possibly describe it. But it was way cool.

I was in the Chamber of the Sages!

I . . . I, Saria, boring old Kokiri girl . . . was a sage.

A sage? What was a sage?

Everything became fuzzy.

Sages . . . are the care-takers of temples. I was the sage of . . .

The Forest Temple!

The brain-overload finished, and I could see normally again. I could see Link descend inside a crystal to land in front of me. I grinned and spoke. "Thank you." I was so . . . relieved. My best friend was still alive, I was somebody important too (!), and the evil had been driven from the Forest Temple. I could not have been happier.

Oh, couldn't I?

"Hero of Time," I remarked with a laugh. Who'd have thought? Link, the Hero of Time.

Who'd have thought? Who'd have thought that that scruffy-looking boy of only ten years old, with a psychic forest girl for a best friend, a self-righteous and stubborn bully for an enemy, a mysterious past, and strange, sword-fighting powers would grow up to be the savior of the world?

Not I, said the Forest Sage.

We chatted a bit, but not much. There wasn't much time. And we had both changed. Link wasn't such a big-talker now. After all, he actually had to do what he had once boasted about, seven long years ago.

"Here," I said, when the conversation reached a lull. "Take this Medallion. It will help you. And remember . . . I will always be your friend." He grinned, and holding his Medallion, which added my recently acquired-much-stronger-powers to his, waved, and vanished.