-TP- This fanfiction starts on Lake Hylia. While Fyer rebuilds the canon, Link goes to check on the Lakebed Temple due to a huge noise coming from it. Who he finds both helps him and tears his life apart.

"I don't blame you—any idiot for miles heard that place. It's like its heart is beating or something…" Midna trailed off as Link dove into the water. Her body melted into the sliver of shadow and she groaned. Water made her feel sickly, like she was inhaling something sweet. "Did they block it off again? If not, they're idiots—hey, they did block it off!" Midna's voice still came out as a high, bubbly soprano under water.

Link nodded, body shooting out towards the rock that guarded the temple. Midna looked around uneasily—where were the Zoras? They never left, and Midna knew it. The temple was sacred to them. They never left, unless….

Midna gulped. What was so terrifying that the Zoras had left? Link picked his way through the outcroppings of gray rock and pale green seaweed. "This isn't good….I've got a really bad feeling about this…" Another 'beat' of the temple choked out the rest of her sentence, the world shaking and spinning. Midna's eyes scanned the water…"Look out!"

Link ducked just as the jagged, black boomerang whizzed past his head. It was coated in scales, as far as he could see…designed to work underwater. He drew his blade and bit his lip, the blue Zora suit slowing him as he whirled down into the water.

And then, he saw what he was positive was a reflection. What twisted joke was this? A man who was he, but not….a man who could have been Link's twin, if not for the black shade over his body. Like a shadow, everything about him was darker. And his eyes were glowing, vibrant crimson.

"It took you two long enough!" The man laughed in a voice, alike to Link's, but deeper and edgy, like you'd bleed if you could touch it. "I thought that even if I did escape that blasted Lakebed Temple, you two would never come. And here, I was wrong."

Midna snarled, outraged. "Who are you? Give us a good reason not to cut your miserable throat."

"Ah, Midna. I've heard many things about the pr—" When he saw Midna's blue lips stretched out further into a snarl and amber eyes go wide, he understood. "Ah…you haven't told Link who you are."

Link wasted no more time. He lunged for the man's throat, the Master Sword glowing and striving to kill the man and let the water cleanse his blood. But the stranger was too quick, and by the time Link was in the position that the stranger had been in just a second ago, he was gone.

Midna curled from Link's shadow, blue skin materializing over her silhouette. She swam a few yards away, looking and listening. "Where'd he—"

"Go?"

Midna let out a shriek when a cold hand clamped onto her shoulder. She felt a body hurl backwards, out of the way. "Geez! I'm not gonna hurt you!" The stranger spoke from behind her, and Midna's hair stretched into a translucent orange arm. It darted out from her, grabbing the man by his neck and dragging him to her.

"Who. Are. You?!" She growled, each word so alive in flame and intensity that they were their own sentence. Midna saw Link start to silently approach, and she stopped him with a glare. She wanted to know who this man was, and what he wanted.

"I'm sort of Link—now, now, Midna, calm down. To make someone so pure, like Link here is, they need to separate him into two halves that are each their own person. Link is the pure one of us. I, however, am the opposite of Link. I am full of the excess hatred that he once, so long ago, carried with him. My name is Dark Link, though I prefer Dark." He seemed so proud that Midna hadn't snapped his neck yet—cocky, even.

"You're…Link? But…not Link?" Midna shook her head, confused, frustrated, and mad. "Link? Is this true?" She called.

"I was once told…in a dream, that I didn't carry the normal burden of hatred and anger that a human had…that my hatred and anger was stored in someone else." Link shrugged, not understanding it himself. "I don't know. But his story makes enough sense…release him."

"Thank you!" Dark chastened, gulping in air. How is he able to breathe underwater? Link thought, cocking his head. "Oh, right…that look…I can breathe underwater because I was buried in the Zora Temple."

"Really? Go re-bury yourself," Midna responded, turning her back. Link paddled upwards, towards the surface, Midna following.

"Wait!" Dark cried.

"What is it now?" Link groaned.

"I came out for a reason. I'm coming with you, of course. I'd like to go to the Twilight Realm, one of these days…" Dark shook his head. "Midna. You know what I'm talking about, don't you? How bad it is to be a shadow in the Light Realm?"

How does he know…about…me? Midna silently asked herself. She didn't like this "Dark" person, and she wanted to either kill him or shove him back into the temple. "I get your point, but you're not coming with us."

Dark raised one eyebrow. "Oh? I'll tell him, Midna."

Link shot her a baffled look and Midna gulped. "What's your goal? It's not like you can help us much."

"But I can!" He protested. "I have a weapon. I can help you. And my magic isn't too bad, either. Would you like to see?"

Link rolled his eyes, low voice coming out bubbly in the water. "Sure. Knock yourself out."

Dark Link grinned, reaching into his tunic and pulling out a small slip of…paper? A scroll? Talisman? Midna and Link couldn't see, but he threw it at a stone pillar. It glowed, brighter and brighter until you could no longer see the black writing on it. Finally, it crackled…

The pillar exploded into a cloud of dust. Midna sucked at her teeth while Link gasped. Dark…Dark was very, very powerful. Magic wise, at least. He could be useful…but he could prove to be a burden. They knew so little about him.

But what choice did they have? Midna, for sure, wasn't letting him spill the beans and unless what she had just seen was a hoax, she wasn't defeating him anytime soon. And Link was curious about his other half. It was so intriguing that it was a danger. Every sign around it marked danger. But it was glossy, and the attraction was that of a child to a toy. It wasn't a want anymore. It was a need.

"I'm getting older," Dark mocked.

"You can come…" Midna trailed off, her teeth clenched. Her lip curled in a snarl. She didn't like the way he stared at her. It was the way people stared at her when she had been in her true form…and the way Link stared at her. Link, not this foolish freak. That look of awe and understanding and love was supposed to be on Link's face. Midna's anger boiled in her blood.

Link nodded. "But only till we get to the Twilight Realm. You're staying there, understood? Unless I change my mind. And that will only happen if you prove useful. Which," He stopped with a quick grimace and shake of the head, "won't."

"I knew you'd come around, bro!" Dark responded, slipping into casual slang without taking his eyes off of Midna. They burned like neon red embers as he took a water-slow stride towards Midna and put his hand on her right shoulder. "It'll be so interesting to hang out with someone in the Twilight realm besides my origin…."

Midna shrugged his hand off, fury seeping into her voice. "It'll be so interesting to blow your arm off." Oh, she wanted to blow his arm off. Blow it off into a million little chunks and then laugh her way to the Twilight Mirror without the freak.

Dark winked at her and put a finger to his lips. Midna gagged and groaned. Greaaat. She had not only been blackmailed, but this freak was a pervert. She mentally shrugged. How far would he go with that blackmail…?

That's chapter one. Reviews are loved!