In the last couple of weeks, I have received complaints that one update a week is insufficient for this story. I am happy to say that I enjoy your frustrations and hard nuts to you. :D
Chapter 3: Master and Student
Midna was the first to wake. The first rays of light tickled her eyes, causing her stir reluctantly from blissful dreams. She sat up and stretched her arms out wide, gazing up at the rising sun with a smile. The twili had never thought that she would enjoy the light so much, having been born and raised in a shadowy world that looked towards its sister realm with contempt. A single glance behind her and Midna was smiling even more as there she found Link snoring softly with a thin trail of drool running down his cheek.
She thought of trying to catch more sleep but she was fully awake now and the crisp morning air did not help at all. Making certain not to disturb the slumbering hero, Midna rose to a standing position and walked a short distance away. The twili figured that she might as well practice her magic for a while until the young warrior woke up.
Midna began with the simple conjuring of a dark sphere of energy. Concentrating, she made the ball expand and shrink to her will then had it orbit around her at a steady rate. Next she created another orb, then two, manipulating them all at once in the same fashion before making more. Soon she had a nexus of magical balls flying around her in intricate patterns, pushing her focus to its limit. She kept it up for a minute or so until she lost control of one of the balls, which struck a small rock with an audible pop.
Link jerked into sitting position, hand automatically going for the scabbard by his side. "What's happening?" he exclaimed, standing up and scanning around for threats. Midna couldn't contain herself and burst out laughing, allowing the remaining spheres to scatter and disappear. Realising that there was no danger present, the swordsman took a calming breath and looked at her quizzically.
"What were you doing?" Link asked her. His voice carried a combination of curiosity and annoyance.
"Practicing," Midna managed to say between stifled giggles. The hero replaced his weapons onto his back then sat back down on the ground. "You might want to get up again," she added.
"Why?"
"If you're down there, I can't teach you any magic." Midna smirked as he leaped up to his feet, a glint of excitement in his clear blue eyes.
"You serious?" he beamed. "Yes! Where do start? Warping? Levitation? Jumping into shadows?"
The twili grinned at his childish enthusiasm. "Hold your horses, wolf-boy. First I need to teach you some basic theory." She fought the urge to laugh again at his chest-fallen expression. "This isn't like swinging a sword around. There's actually a thing involved in magic, called thinking. You might have heard of it at some point."
"Alright," he said, his impatience was plain. "But can we hurry it up so that we can get to the good stuff?"
"Okay, okay, steady on," she grinned. "The first thing you need to know is that every living being has mystical energy in their bodies, which is also known as mana. Magic works by tapping into your mana and manipulating it. I want you to close your eyes and relax."
He did so, taking deep breaths to siphon off some of his earlier eagerness. "Imagine that there's a power flowing through your veins, all around your body," the twili instructed. He tried to follow although it was a little hard to think about something he didn't understand. Link simply imagined that it worked similarly to the blood coursing within him. He felt tingly inside, but perhaps that was just his nerves.
"Just feel it flow," Midna encouraged. "Breathe deeply and relax," she then whispered into his ear. Link couldn't stop himself from laughing, immediately distracted by the certain thoughts she put into his head.
"You know it doesn't help when you get all close and personal like that," he chuckled, looking at how near she now was to him.
Midna smiled impishly, one fang pointing out from under her lip. "I'm just checking if you're getting it or not. Have another go, you were almost there."
He tried once again, this time holding on to a warm sensation as Midna commented on his progress. Link concentrated onto the feeling for as long as he could until Midna instructed him to open his eyes again.
"Okay, now that you seem to be getting a feel for that, I'm going to get you to try something simple." She placed a tiny pebble into his palms. "Concentrate on lifting the stone with your mind. Use your mana to push it up off your hand as you would physically."
Link creased his brow, focusing all of his thoughts at performing the task. The first time the pebble didn't even so much as quiver. Neither did it the second time. On the third however, the little rock popped a few millimetres into the air before dropping onto its side. Ecstatic, Link kept trying, finally succeeding at keeping the object suspended for more than a few seconds. Midna pushed him further by attempting to move the stone around while airborne, eventually continuing on to larger, heavier items such as his wallet full of rupees. The strain was equal to carrying sacks in Ordon, with each bag holding more grain than the previous. Link struggled from the effort yet he persisted.
Midna was impressed by his progress and began teaching him other techniques. What amazed her was how despite the difficulty he faced, Link didn't tire from the exercises. The goddesses' chosen hero apparently had a vast amount of energy within him, likely from the legendary Triforce of Courage that he possessed. She predicted that if Link ever mastered magic, he would become one powerful sorcerer indeed. Over the next two hours, Link had learned how to light and sustain a ghostly-blue flame within his fingers, created energy orbs and juggled them with his mind, and managed to lift himself high off of the ground, although only to land on his face shortly afterwards.
"Alright," Midna said after her latest fit of laughter. "You're doing really well so far so I'm going to get you to try something a bit more complicated." She looked up towards the sky where a black hole opened right above them.
Link stared up at the vortex in astonishment. "Are you telling that after all this time, you were able to make your own portals? You do realise that could have saved us a lot of time and hassle?"
"Up until now I didn't have the strength to do this while I was cursed," Midna explained. "I want you to reach out to that portal with your mind and pull yourself into it. This isn't anything like what I've just taught you though. For you to warp to your destination, you need to keep that location in mind, keep your breathing level and never lose your concentration even for an instant. If you do, you could end up anywhere, provided there's a portal there."
Link nodded, paying rapt attention. He focused his thoughts on the rift in the heavens, feeling its magic with his mind alone. He grasped at it like he would a doorknob with his hand and attempted to delve into the dimensional distortion. Black squares of shadow magic began sprouting from all over his body but as soon as they came, they vanished.
"That was a good effort," Midna comforted. "A bit more practice and I think you'll get it." Link managed a small smile. "We should get going now," she added. "We've wasted a lot of time here already and we shouldn't keep the zora prince waiting any longer than necessary."
The couple broke camp after a breakfast of bland rations and continued to walk north across the field. Ten minutes passed by when Link interrupted the silence. "Hey, Midna? There's something I want to ask you." She looked at him, signalling for him to speak.
"I've just noticed that your left foot isn't black anymore even though it was yesterday. How is that?"
Midna looked down at her toes, all ten of which were pale as opposed how she usually had half as black as pitch. "Most twili use shadow magic to cover their bodies. The darkness acts like a second skin of sorts. We often clad ourselves in shadows rather than use proper clothing. It's kind of a cultural thing, plus it's cheaper. Generally it's considered indecent for a twili to go walking around with either clothes or shadows covering them."
The portal overhead closed itself, returning the blue sky to its natural state. "And you changed how you wear your shadows because..?" Link inquired.
"I just felt like a change, that's all," she said, looking at him. "After all, everything else about me is different now, so I might as well do a complete makeover. I can change it back if you want."
He shook his head. "You do what you feel is comfortable. Just don't do anything gross like pierce your face with jewelery or something like that," he grimaced.
Midna gave him an impish smirk. "You can do that? Huh, I might give it a go." She giggled when Link glared at her jadedly. He then relaxed his expression.
"So what about the markings on your arms?" He asked, pointing to the glowing blue glyphs.
Midna glanced at the intricate bluish designs. "That's a bit different. These are tattoos. They're drawn using magic and, unlike shadows, their permanent. Some of them enhance my powers but most are just for looks. I can teach you what they mean if you'd like."
"Can you teach me how to control shadows too?" He asked.
She quickly explained the process to him, becoming surprised to see black shapes already dancing on the back of his hand. The fingers of his right hand turned as completely dark. A thick shadow streaked across the side of his face, engulfing his right eye. "What do you think?" he asked.
Midna examined his new appearance with approval. "Dark and handsome," she grinned. "Now if you were taller, then you would be the perfect man."
He jabbed her playfully in the belly, making her squeal. "What's wrong with my height?" he said in mock offence.
"Nothing," Midna giggled. "I like how tall you are. It makes it easier for me to assert my dominance over you." She broke away from him and sprinted before he could poke her again. He chased after her, both of them laughing loud without a care for who heard or saw them. Eventually Link caught up to Midna and tackled the twili to the ground. He then assaulted her with tickling hands until he found his mouth against hers, bringing them into a long, passionate kiss.
When they parted for breath, Link stared down at her with a goofy smile on his lips. "At this rate," he panted, "it's going to snow before we deliver Zelda's letter. Maybe we should warp the rest of the way."
She gave a short chuckle. "You may be right. But first, get back down here. I'm not finished with you yet, mister."
Three days had passed since Princess Zelda had sent the hero and his companion on their mission for Zora's Domain. The young ruler was fully aware of her shadow counterpart's ability to instantaneously teleport from place to place, regardless of distance. She also knew that the journey there and back only took two days to complete on horseback. It had been longer than that and Zelda still hadn't heard any word from her two friends since they had left. The princess was becoming agitated, an experience that was rare for her typically calm demeanor.
A knock at her office door snapped her out of her restless stupor. Zelda called out for the visitor to enter and breathed a sigh of relief when the Twilight Princess walked in. "By the goddesses, where have you been?" Zelda demanded.
"Training," Midna responded cryptically. Zelda finally noticed a sword sheathed on the twili's back.
The Hyrulean monarch was no expert in weaponry yet she recognized the design of the hilt as being of zora make. Such blades were exceptionally unique in terms of the creation. They were thinner than a standard broadsword and lighter by far, however the method in which the swords were forged made the steel strong enough to hold its shape even against powerful blows. The technique the zora used took much longer than that the blacksmiths in Castle Town used yet the benefits were worth the extra waiting time and cost. The lightness of the swords allowed the fish-men of Hyrule's north to fight underwater with ease and they were largely popular with female warriors far and wide as well.
"You have been training with a sword," Zelda noted.
Midna affirmed the conclusion with a nod. She drew the sword to reveal its glossy, silver surface. The double edges of the blade gradually tapered to a deadly point. "Yep. And don't worry about your letter. Link and I delivered it the day after we left. It's just taken us this long to get back because we got a little sidetracked. Oh, and here's Ralis's reply." She handed Zelda a letter closed with a blue wax seal.
"I see," was the reply. The human princess glanced around her friend, seeing that she was alone. "Where is Link?" As soon as the question was asked, Midna's shadow leaped up from the floor and shaped itself into a humanoid form in front of Zelda's eyes, startling her. Black became green as the hero emerged into the physical world.
"Hello, Princess," Link greeted cheerfully. The shock on her face was priceless. Midna fell into a state of laughter, quickly joined by the swordsman.
"Link?" gasped Zelda. "How did you...? What has happened to your face?"
"Training," Link answered. He wrapped his arms around Midna's waist and held her close. "While I've been teaching Midna how to fight, she's been giving me lessons on how to use magic."
"You have been doing what?" Zelda said with wide eyes. The princess's expression set him on edge.
"I've been learning shadow magic," the hero repeated anxiously. Midna sheathed her blade and looked at her friend as evenly as she could manage.
"He asked so I taught him a few things. Then he did the same for me. I don't see what the big deal is."
Zelda's brow furrowed disapprovingly. "The 'big deal' is that Link is known throughout Hyrule as the Hero of Light, the one who fought back the darkness that oppressed its people. How do you think the public will react when they learn that their savior has tainted his name by taking up the same art that caused them all so much suffering? Your folly could be the source for further fear among them." A tense silence fell in the room.
"I see," Link said sadly, looking at the princess with a deflated expression. "I see how it is." As he turned to leave, he looked towards Midna. Although he was done with his audience with Zelda, he could tell from the twili's burning eyes that she still had some choice words to give. "I'll be waiting by the western gate when you're through, Midna." He then warped out of the room.
The princesses of light and shadow stared at each other, a tension charged between them. "You taught him shadow magic?" Zelda glared at the twili.
"So what if I did?" Midna shot back. "You make it sound like I've condemned him to hell! I've been using shadow magic all my life and you know that I would do anything to help you and Link. You did bind your soul to mine a few months ago so you have most of my memories."
Princess Zelda exhaled to calm herself then returned her gaze firmly to Midna. "I understand that your intentions were pure, but the fact remains that you may have irrevocably tarnished his reputation. You could have very well made him an outcast, and I doubt that even I can do anything to remedy the situation."
Midna threw her head back and laughed humorlessly. "I don't believe this. Link saved you and this lousy kingdom of yours when you needed him most. Now you're turning your back on him because he's taken an interest in something that is important to me, his girlfriend. I would have thought you would at least support him in this. After all, you're the one person we believed would have understood. But no, all Link gets from you is distrust, anger and rejection." She turned away.
"Midna, please. I did not me-" Zelda began softly.
The Twilight Princess looked back over her shoulder, eyes brimming with resentment. "When I first came to this world, I thought that light-dwellers were nothing more than selfish, greedy bottom-feeders spoiled by the goddesses. Then you and Link showed me otherwise when you both saved my life. But now I see that maybe I was right the first time." Midna warped out of the room before Zelda could respond.
She found Link leaning against a stone wall where he said he would be, curiously with his tunic slightly damp. "I see you made it here in one piece," she said.
"I had to double-back from Snowpeak. There's a blizzard raging over there at the moment."
"At least you got it quicker than the first time," Midna grinned.
He groaned, feeling the moldorm bite throbbing on his thigh. "Don't remind me."
The twili giggled then her face turned sullen. Link saw her change in expression and brought her into a tender embrace. Midna held him tightly, not caring about the wetness of his clothes. After her argument with Zelda, she needed something to comfort her. The smell of pine in her hero's hair gave her that as she leaned against him.
"Zelda did have a point," Link spoke, as if he read her mind. "She may understand what we're doing, but Zelda's wiser than most people. And unlike us, she's thought about how everyone else might react."
"That doesn't mean she had the right to attack you like that," Midna mumbled bitterly.
Link sighed. "Let's go home," he said. She felt a pulling sensation as he warped them away from the city then felt water lapping at her feet. Looking around, Midna found that they had arrived in the spring of the spirit, Ordona. The corners of her mouth lifted upwards as she noticed that Link had taken them to where they were supposed to go. He was definitely getting better. A sudden scream rented the air. Link spun around, drawing his sword and fearing the worst.
He quickly realized that the scream had come from Ilia, who only seemed to have been startled by the couple's unexpected arrival. The country girl stared at them by the spring gates with eyes as wide as saucers, rigid as a statue.
"Ilia?" Link lowered his sword. "Sorry. We didn't mean to scare you like that."
She slowly recovered from her shock then spoke after a few tense seconds. "Link? Midna? Where in Nayru's name did you come from? Link, what happened to your face?"
"Don't worry," he said as he slowly approached her. He placed his darkened hand onto her arm reassuringly. "It's just magic, I'm not hurt. See?" Link's face cleared up as the shadow retreated down his collar. Ilia gawped in bewilderment. "Midna's been teaching me a few tricks. We just warped here from Castle Town."
Ilia turned her gaze to Midna then back to Link. She shook her head slowly. "Those are some tricks. One second there was no one here then the next you showed up." The swordsman chuckled as the black streak snaked its way back to its original place on his cheek.
"Link!" Midna cried out. Before he could respond he heard a loud crack and Ilia's body went limp. As she fell to the ground, Link saw that a single bulblin stood behind her. A thick wooden club rested in the squat, green monster's hand. The creature's beady red eyes looked up at Link savagely. Anger quickly took over the hero as the Master Sword rose up to cleave the bulblin's head from its shoulders. Three more of the monsters appeared afterwards, rushing forward together. Link raised his free hand and blasted the lot of them with dark energy. The fiends flew back into the rock wall behind them and collapsed, broken and lifeless. Link ducked down to where Ilia laid, sick with worry. She was still breathing and there was no bleeding but she was unconscious.
"Is she okay?" Midna asked from over his shoulder, her voice full of concern.
Link exhaled before looking up at her. "I think so. We'd better get her back to the village." He flicked the blood of his blade before sheathing it. He then scooped up Ilia into his arms and carried her out of the spring.
"Looks like there are still some monsters around," Midna commented. The twili checked behind them for any other dangers but found none.
Solemnly, Link nodded. "It was lucky for Ilia that we got here when we did. After what happened last time those things were here, I don't want to think about what they could have done to her."
Midna studied him intently. "You really care about her don't you?"
The question made him flinch. "She's been my best friend since as long as I can remember. It was hard enough losing her once, especially when she lost her memory." He turned to face Midna. "Don't get me wrong, you mean far more to me than she does. I do care about Ilia, but you're the most important person in my life. Never forget that."
She smiled at him. "I won't. I was just asking."
"I may have known Ilia for longer than I've known you, but she hasn't been through half the hell that we've been through together. You're the only one for me, Midna. No girl will ever replace you."
"Thank you, Link," she blushed.
Moments later they walked out of the forest and into the village. Link let out a sigh of relief, glad that everything seemed to be in one piece. The bulblin attack had rattled him more than he had originally thought. He made his way over to Ilia's house. Link wasn't looking forward to explaining to her father, Bo, what had just occurred to his daughter. The mayor of Ordon was normally a laid-back fellow but like any parent he would freak out if he heard that his child had been in danger.
The aforementioned mayor walked out of his front door. The portly man had a reputation for being a seasoned sumo wrestler in his youth, although seeing him standing on his porch, idling scratching his rear, made him appear deceptively harmless. Bo glanced in Link's direction and his face turned to horror.
"Ilia! Link! What happened to her?" He came charging towards the young warrior. Link fought the strong instinct to back away from massive man before he got flattened. Thankfully Bo slowed down when the gap between them shortened to a few feet.
The mayor took Ilia from Link's arms as the boy tried to explain. "She was struck from behind by a monster at the spring. I killed it afterwards along with the rest of its pack. I think she's okay, though."
Bo looked up at him. "Goddesses, what in blazes happened to you? Looks like whatever attacked you did a real number on your face."
Link shook his head, beginning to feel self-conscious about the attention being drawn to his appearance. He had thought his new markings made him look cool. "They're just shadows. I've been learning shadow magic from Midna."
The mayor recoiled as he said the words. Link suddenly realized that after the way Zelda reacted, perhaps he should have been more delicate about addressing the topic. Bo's expression turned into one of deep anger.
"You... You've been learning that demon art?" the man's tone was dangerous. He glared at Midna. "And you know enough about it to teach it to him? Are you a witch of some kind?" Midna took a step back, looking as though she had been slapped.
Link leaped to her defense. "There's nothing wrong with shadow magic! And don't call her a witch!" he growled. "Yes, Midna knows how to use shadow magic but that doesn't mean anything. Her entire race has been using it for centuries."
Bo's horrified eyes widened further. "You mean she is one of them? She's one of the monsters that attacked Hyrule last year? Don't you remember what those fiends did to our village?! What they did to our children?!" The commotion had drawn the rest of Ordon around them. Every one of the villagers looked on with a mix of expressions, most of them stunned, some fearful.
"Don't think for one second that I've forgotten!" Link shouted furiously. "But Midna didn't do anything to us and her people weren't responsible for what happened!"
"Has she put a spell on you, lad? Or have you turned traitor on us?" The mayor's accusations made the hero's blood burn.
"Neither of those! Midna is not my enemy or yours. She helped me find the children again and save Hyrule."
Some of the villagers exchanged nervous glances yet Bo remained as he was. "Your kind has no place here," he growled. "I want you both to leave this village and never return."
Rusl finally stepped forward. "Mayor please, I believe your being rash and unreasonable. I'm sure this is simply a misunderstanding."
Bo looked at him, the scowl never leaving his face. "Rash and unreasonable, huh? Alright fine, does anyone else want these two prowling around our homes?" Uli and Colin protested, as did Fado, yet the rest hesitated and refused to meet Link in the eye. The mayor swept his gaze around and nodded, huffing. "I see we have a majority. Link, you and your demon woman are hereby banished from Ordon. Now get out!"
Link felt as though he had been gutted with a dull knife. He looked around at the people who had been his friends and family throughout his entire life. Saddened, he hung his head and his hands clenched into tight fists. "If that's how you all feel, I guess then this is goodbye." He turned and walked away. The children all called out to him, resisting their parents' attempts to keep them at bay.
Midna stood there watching Link with a heavy heart. Then she glared at Bo. "Good going, Mayor," she spat. "That's the second person today who's betrayed him." She turned and ran to follow Link, her sword jostling on her back.
I can imagine what some of the next reviews are going to be like so I'm just going to nip this in the bud now. Yes, Midna is in her true form and still has fangs. Personally, I believe this is the entirely logical. We never see what Midna's teeth look like after she's returns to normal, but coincidentally we see that Zant has what look like needle-sharp teeth. Since the physiology of twili was molded by the forces of the Twilight Realm over many generations into darker beings, it's very possible that their teeth could resemble that of monsters. Regardless of what others might believe, I am going to hold fast to this theory and make it a recurring theme in the majority of my future works.
Despite the idea that Midna might have the mouth of a predator, she's still pretty hot. Just saying.
Oh yeah. You're also probably wondering about the whole shadow skin business. This was originally Magic Basher's idea. I thought it was a brilliant idea because it was unique, interesting and potentially plausible, so I decided to keep it in. It was this idea that made me so quick to get in when Magic Basher offered for someone to take over for the story, I pretty much jumped at the opportunity.
