Skull Kid

The Skull Kid is what becomes of children getting lost in the Lost Woods and appears in Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, and Twilight Princess. They first interact with Link in Ocarina of Time, and later a Skull Kid plays a major role in Majora's Mask. Skull Kids dress in a red cloak and hat covering an underlayer of clothing comprised of a straw-like material (much like scarecrows), and play a flute, which they can also use as a weapon to shoot projectiles.

Ocarina of Time
In Ocarina of Time, a Skull Kid can be found in the Lost Woods, in the area directly to the left of the entrance room. Whenever Link approaches, the Skull Kid will disappear from the area. To circumvent this, Link can befriend the Skull Kid by playing Saria's Song while standing on top of the stump across from the Skull Kid's position, and he will receive a Piece of Heart as a gift. Another two Skull Kids can be found in the area directly to the right of the entrance, where there is a mini-game in which Link repeats a sequence of notes on his ocarina to win a Piece of Heart. It is not known whether these are apparitions of the Skull Kid in the area on the left of the entrance, or separate Skull Kids entirely.

While Z-Targeting, Navi mentions that the Skull Kid seems unhappy to have no face. Some of the Kokiri remember hearing him complaining about his face, as well. Upon first seeing Link wearing the Skull Mask, the Skull Kid comments that he would like it to make him appear a little tougher. Link is able to sell him the mask as part of the Mask Trading Sequence, but the Skull Kid pays just ten rupees when the wholesale price is twenty, leaving Link to cover the difference.

It is said that non-Kokiri who enter the woods become Stalfos upon getting lost. However, there is speculation about whether or not Kokiri or Hylian children turn into Skull Kids. It is more plausible that the Kokiri turn into Skull Kids, due to the fact that they stay children for their whole lives, but also because Stalfos never appear within the Lost Woods, as well as that there already exist Stalchildren.

If Link encounters the Skull Kid as an adult, he will be attacked with poison needles shot from the Skull Kid's flute. Navi says that he is attacking because he does not like adults. If Link kills him, the Skull Kid will collapse and disappear, leaving behind an orange Rupee.

Majora's Mask
The Skull Kid becomes a central character in Majora's Mask. Under the influence of the Majora's Mask that he stole from the Happy Mask Salesman, Skull Kid becomes a powerful sorcerer. Using this new-found might, he wreaks havoc on the four worlds of Termina, ultimately attempting to destroy it by bringing the Moon down upon the land. He appears to be the main antagonist through most of the game, though he himself is not evil and is merely being controlled by the powers of Majora's Mask. Skull Kid is self-centered and has an affinity for mischief. Due to his behavior and physical appearance, he is often called an imp. The Skull Kid is resented by most Terminians because of the tricks he plays on them, though he finds companionship in the sibling fairies Tatl and Tael. He is strongly implied to be the same Skull Kid as the one in the Lost Woods of Ocarina of Time.

Background
Long ago, before land of Termina was split into four worlds, Skull Kid befriended the Four Giants. But on the day of the Carnival of Time, the guardian deities announced to the people of Termina that they would guard the land while laying dormant. With the world of Termina now split into four parts by the order of the Four Giants, each of the deities took one hundred steps towards their respective regions, telling their people that if trouble should befall them, they should call them in a loud voice declaring their predicament. Skull Kid, who had been friends with the giants even before they created the four worlds, became greatly afflicted with their decision and was woefully stricken by their departure. The imp, feeling neglected and alone, began to spread his anger and frustration throughout all of Termina. Overwhelmed with misfortune, the people of Termina called upon the Four Giants for aid. They answered with an infuriated roar, ordering the imp to leave Termina; otherwise they would tear him apart. Frightened by the giants' anger and saddened by the loss of his old friends, Skull Kid returned to the heavens.

Whether the Skull Kid actually "returned to the heavens", or this is merely a hyperbole in this story told by Anju's Grandmother, Skull Kid somehow reappears in Termina prior to the events of Majora's Mask. The two sibling fairies, Tatl and Tael, stumble upon the Skull Kid taking shelter from a storm in a tree hollow in Termina Field. He tells the fairies that "he had been fighting with his friends and that they had left him all alone." Shivering from the cold, Skull Kid and the fairies huddle for warmth, and a bond between them is formed.

Later on, Skull Kid encounters the travelling Happy Mask Salesman at the crossroads of Hyrule and Termina, the Lost Woods. He steals the evil Majora's Mask, a powerful artifact used by an Ancient Tribe for hexing rituals. The series of events that stem from this seemingly random occurrence constitute the plot of Majora's Mask.

Majora's Influence
In the prologue of Majora's Mask, Link appears riding on Epona in the Lost Woods. Along with Tatl and Tael, Skull Kid—now bearing Majora's Mask—ambushes the young hero much in the same way as the Happy Mask Salesman. Startled by their sudden appearance, Epona rears up and throws Link off, knocking him unconscious. While comatose, Skull Kid rummages through Link's personal effects and finds the Ocarina of Time. Fascinated by the object, he plays with the ocarina until Link awakens. He then jumps on Epona and rides away with the ocarina into an uncharted area of the woods. Link pursues him, falling into the hollow tree trunk that serves as the passageway to Termina. In a brief confrontation inside the hollow, the Skull Kid informs Link that he "got rid of" Epona, claiming the young hero's horse was disobedient and he was doing Link a favor by doing so. Using the powers of Majora's Mask, the Skull Kid traps Link within the body of a Deku Scrub. He then leaves with Tael; Tatl is left behind. Link and Tatl forge an alliance and chase after Skull Kid, crossing the threshold into Termina.



Deku Link finds the Skull Kid atop Clock Tower at the end of the Final Day. He can make the Skull Kid drop the Ocarina of Time by targeting him and firing a Bubble Blast. With his ocarina returned to him, Link plays the Song of Time, turning back time to the first day. Link is returned to his normal self after learning the Song of Healing from the Happy Mask Salesman, who urges Link to retrieve the stolen Majora's Mask from the Skull Kid lest the world be destroyed by its influence.

Granted tremendous power by the evil mask, the Skull Kid had imprisoned the Four Giants within their temples. Without their guardian deities, each of the four regions of Termina succumbed to various disasters. Skull Kid was also responsible for harming the Great Fairy, turning Kafei into a child, and informing the Gerudo Pirates of the Zora Eggs. He also threatened to break Professor Shikashi's instruments. After following Tael's advice and releasing the Four Giants from their respective prisons in the swamp, mountains, ocean, and canyon, Link returns to the top of the Clock Tower at the end of the Final Day to confront Skull Kid once again. Link summons the Four Giants using the Oath to Order to stop the Moon. This causes Skull Kid to pass out, at which point Majora's Mask detaches himself from his puppet and rises into the Moon. Link follows it to engage in one final battle.



During the ending sequence of the game, following the defeat of Majora and the subsequent destruction of the Moon, Skull Kid, Link, the Happy Mask Salesman, and the Four Giants come together on the outskirts of Termina Field. The giants reassure Skull Kid—now free of Majora's influence—of their friendship with him. After the giants return to their resting places, Skull Kid asks Link if they too could be friends, mentioning that he has the same smell as the "fairy kid" who taught him a song in the Lost Woods. This suggests that the Skull Kid is the one by the tree stump near the bridge in the Lost Woods in Ocarina of Time, to whom the young hero sells the Skull Mask. Finally, the group goes their separate ways. The last scene shows a drawing on a tree trunk made by the Skull Kid himself of Link, the Skull Kid, Tatl, Tael, and the Four Giants.

Twilight Princess
In Twilight Princess, the Skull Kid leads Link through the Lost Woods portion of the Sacred Grove until he reaches the resting place of the Master Sword. Along the way, the Skull Kid plays a cruel game of hide-and-seek with Link, and Link must find him several times before he will lead him to where he needs to be.

When Link returns to the Sacred Grove area later in the game, the Skull Kid will help him navigate the Lost Woods a second time, this time leading him through different areas to take him to the Temple of Time dungeon. His hiding spots will be more difficult to find. However, two factors give away his location: the light of his lantern and the sound of his instrument playing Saria's Song. Although the Skull Kid never physically attacks Link, he will summon Puppets to do the job. Every time he is hit in battle, he will summon more puppets, but he can be beaten quickly with the bow and arrows. After defeating him the second time, he will tell Link that was fun and vanish.

One may note that his eyes and face look very similar to those of the Moon from Majora's Mask, although with a mischievous smile instead of the Moon's trademark scowl. Due to the fact that he knows Saria's Song, it is possible that he is the same Skull Kid from Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask. Strangely enough, the horn with which he plays the aforementioned song bears somewhat of a resemblance to Deku Link's Pipes of Awakening both in its appearance and sound. The lantern he carries is also similar to that held by Poes.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl
The Skull Kid appears as two stickers in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

Theory
Given that Skull Kid recognizes Link from before Majora's Mask, and that he has the same fondness for intimidating masks as the Skull Kid of Ocarina of Time, it can be inferred that these two Skull Kids are one and the same. Thus, the Skull Kid was present early in Terminian history before the world was split into four, then appeared in Hyrule during Ocarina of Time, and some time after returned to Termina for Majora's Mask. This Skull Kid must therefore possess the ability to travel back and forth between Termina and Hyrule at will. In Anju's Grandmother's story, it is said that the Skull Kid was ordered to depart from Termina and "return to the heavens" after provoking the Four Giants' wrath. The "heavens" Skull Kid returns to could possibly be Hyrule.

Little information is given to connect any of the Skull Kids in the series. It is unknown whether the two other Skull Kids in Ocarina of Time are apparitions of the original Skull Kid or separate beings entirely. In addition, whether the Skull Kid from Twilight Princess is the same as the one from previous games has never been confirmed, although it is possible since Skull Kid only appears in the Child Timeline after Ocarina of Time. It is also worth noting that this Skull Kid knows Saria's Song, which Link taught to the Skull Kid of Ocarina of Time. Therefore, there could be as little as one single Skull Kid in the entire series or as many as four.

Depending on how long ago the sundering of Termina took place (which is never specified), Skull Kid could have aged centuries or even millenia by the time of Majora's Mask, and even more by Twilight Princess if they are the same individual. Hence, Skull Kid is immortal or at least very long-lived.

Trivia

 * Skull Kid shares many chracteristics with the Flute Boy from A Link to the Past: both are kids who play music with a flute in the woods and both disappear when Link approaches them. The Flute Boy may have served as a prototype or concept for the Skull Kid.
 * Skull Kid's instrument in Twilight Princess resembles a modern version of the Deku Pipes from Majora's Mask.
 * Like Skull Kid in Majora's Mask, Kamo from The Wind Waker developed a fascination with the moon after having been disappointed by his best friend.
 * In Twilight Princess, Skull Kid's facial features bear a slight resemblance to that of the Moon in Majora's Mask.
 * In most versions of Ocarina of Time and the Japanese version of Majora's Mask (and official artwork), Skull Kid has a plain black face. In Ocarina of Time 3D and international versions of Majora's Mask, however, his head has a wooden texture.
 * Moreover, Skull Kid has a beak in Majora's Mask, unlike his counterpart in Ocarina of Time, who simply has orange lips. In the remake, Ocarina of Time 3D, the Skull Kids were retconned to also have beaks.