Hero's Spirit



In The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, the Hero's Spirit, also called the Hero's Shade, was a skeleton-like spectre that taught Link each of the seven hidden skills throughout the game. The Hero's Spirit is also believed by some to be the spirit of Link from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.

The Golden Wolf


The Golden Wolf, also called the White Wolf, was the animal incarnation of the Hero's Spirit. The wolf was summoned by finding a howling stone, with the exception of the first time, in which he confronted Link directly. Once a howling stone was found, the song had to be howled in tune with the Spirit. He then told Link to "take sword in hand, then find him," implying that Link had to return to human form before searching for the Wolf. The Golden Wolf also appears as a symbol on Link's map, which is useful in case the player forgets where the location of the Hero's Spirit is. When he confronted the Wolf, Link was transported into an ancient arena. The wolf then finally transformed into his true form, the Hero's Spirit, who then taught Link one of the seven hidden skills. The true form of the Hero's Spirit resembles a cross between a Stalfos and a Darknut.



The Skills

 * Ending Blow
 * Shield Attack
 * Back Slice
 * Helm Splitter
 * Mortal Draw
 * Jump Strike
 * Great Spin

Theory
Note: At the end of his teachings, he said that he accepted the role as the Hero long ago. This implies that he may be an earlier ancestor of Link. This theory is also supported by the Hero's Spirit saying this to Link: "Go and do not falter, my child!" Though, this in itself is not supportive evidence since many mentor-like characters in many stories refer to their young charges using the phrase "my child".

Further evidence of the Hero's Spirit being an ancestor of Link is given just prior to learning the Mortal Draw. He says that the skills he will now be teaching Link are forgotten ways that "do not leave our bloodline". He uses the word "our" instead of "my". This clearly indicates the Link and the Hero's Spirit are indeed related. However, it does nothing to tell whether or not the Hero's Spirit was once one of the great heroes of Hyrule or if his name was once Link as well.

Also, in both Wii and Gamecube versions, both Link and the Hero's Spirit wield their swords in the same hand. The Gamecube version (the version that Twilight Princess was originally meant to be portrayed as) has Link as a left-hander. In every past game, Link has always wielded his sword with the left hand.