Twilight Storm

Prologue: The Light and Shadow

"Shadow and light are two sides of the same coin… One cannot exist without the other. I know now the reason the goddesses left the Mirror of Twilight in this world… They left it because it was their design we should meet. Yes… That is what I believe."

~Zelda, Princess of Hyrule

This stone chamber was small compared to the other buildings in the palace, but for the intents and purposes of today it would do. A tall, slim, cloaked figure walked into the center of the room and stared intently at a small pile of ashes that lay there, hardly distinguishable from the smooth, gray stone floor. The figure looked around the room, as if to make sure no one else was around to stand witness to her actions. The figure bent over and lightly touched the pile of ashes, shuddering as her finger brushed the dusty ash.

Then suddenly, as if the shudder had beckoned it forth, the room lit up with a brilliant light not frequently seen in this place. The cloaked figure took an involuntary step backwards and shielded her eyes. The light quickly dimmed and all that was left was a soft, blue glow radiating throughout the small space. Twisting, twirling designs on the walls were lit with blue light, covering the room from bottom to top. The figure traced the patterns on the wall behind her with her hand before tracing the rest of the patterns with her eyes.

After a moment the blue light detached from the walls and drifted to the small pile of ashes. The cloaked figure watched carefully as the pile of ashes began to glow. At first it was the same blue-colored light that the walls had held, then it became a soft yellow much like the sun's light. From the yellow it only intensified, changing from a color you could look at and smile with to a white so blinding you began to feel your skin tingle and burn. The tall figure had to once again protect its eyes, squeezing them shut and not opening them again until a loud gasp was heard followed by heavy panting.

The cloaked figure stared down at the source of the sound. There, where before there had been a pile of ashes, now kneeled a new body. The man's head rested on the stone floor with his balled-up fists grinding into either side of his skull. He was still breathing heavily. A few minutes passed as the man waited for his breath to catch up with him.

"Where?" he shrieked, his head shooting up to examine his surroundings while his fingers clawed at the ground. His eyes darted around the small room and came to rest on the cloaked figure that had been standing there, waiting patiently to be noticed. "You," he accused. The cloaked figure smiled a little before responding.

"Welcome back, old friend," she replied. The man in the middle of the room sat back on his haunches and stared at the figure for some time before responding.

"Where?" he asked again, but this time his voice was only a whisper.

"The palace."

"Why?"

"Many reasons." The cloak figure paused only briefly before continuing to detail this explanation. "Mostly… you helped me, believe it or not, I owe you the same kind of help."

"Help you? Do you have some kind of memory loss friend?" he spat the last word at the other person bitterly. His eyes narrowed and he stood up slowly, unsteadily. He stumbled back several paces and leaned against the wall for support, never once removing his gaze from the figure opposite him.

"Not at all. You gave me a chance to redeem myself and my people in the eyes of the goddesses, so I decided that you deserved a second chance as well." The figure scowled at the man across from her. "Much has happened since you… left… but you will be caught up to speed soon enough. Until then you will remain here, a prisoner."

The man stared back across the room with untrusting eyes. "You would not resurrect me simply to help me redeem myself," he accused. "What else do you want from me?" The cloaked figure frowned a little more, but rather than answer she turned to her right to exit the room.

"I see how it is," the man said quickly, catching the attention of the cloaked one with his tone. "You don't want to stay here any longer than you need to. I would bet there are plenty of fun memories popping up, and you just want to talk all about them with me. Yes I understand. Even after all that has happened you're still afraid of me." The man grinned triumphantly, thinking he had at last gained an edge.

The cloaked figure turned on her heel and stared at the man across the room with narrow eyes. "I have no fear of you," she responded vehemently.

"Well if that's not it, then you must be eager to return to your beloved wolf," the man retorted. The cloaked figure gasped and turned away before responding. "You really are a fool. That one is not here with me." This answer puzzled the man, who frowned in response.

"Odd, here I was thinking that he would've followed you all the way back home like the lost puppy he is," the man said with a smirk.

The cloak figure grinded her teeth together a moment before responding through tight lips, "I shattered the mirror before he had the chance." With that she left, slamming the door shut behind her. The man who remained in the room heard murmuring, probably his unwanted captor talking to his even less wanted guards.

His eyes were drawn to spots on the floor, smaller than buttons and a slightly darker gray than the rest of the floor. He walked slowly towards the odd dots and with one finger he reached out and touched the largest one. He pulled his finger back and examined it in surprise. It was wet.

He lifted his gaze to the door where he had last seen the cloaked figure and pondered this. The mirror was shattered, which meant there would be no way back to the other world. It was well assured that he wouldn't be able to cause any harm that much was clear. He studied the room again, double-checking for any sign of escape. After his tenth time circling the room it was painfully obvious there would be no escape, so instead he sat down and began to plot for once he was released.

He realized a few things as he sat there in the cold, dark cell thinking. The Light World and the Twilight Realm were forever separated. The Twilight Princess had returned to her throne. Perhaps the most important thing he realized, though, was this: the Twilight Princess may have broken the connection between Light and Shadow physically, but she had forgotten to sever the emotional ties as well.

Zant had been staring at the ground during this time and would've raised his eyes to the ceiling now, normally. He felt that looking to the sky was the worst mistake he had ever made though, so instead he continued to stare at the ground and giggle to himself. His laughter grew louder and louder until the guard decided it was time to sedate him. It wasn't soon enough though, for the laugh echoed down the mostly empty corridor until it reached the cloaked figure's ears.

With a bowed head Midna silently allowed several more tears to escape before returning to her chambers.