AUTHOR'S NOTE

Hey guys! I'm still figuring out what update schedule works best for me, so you can have this chapter a little early. I'm really encouraged by the number of views this story has had, and of course, my first review! Thank you so, so much, kind reviewer. You made my week, really!

CHAPTER 3

The Dark Of Night

Darkness had never been Link's friend. When he was five years old, he had woken up on a cloudy night and could not see any stars outside. He was convinced the goddesses had extinguished the sky, and cried and cried, but he had no mother or father, and no fairy companion, to comfort him. In the end it was Saria who had come to his aid, telling him that the stars needed to sleep too. Though his fear had temporarily been quelled, it had only increased in the past couple of years – now, instead of just imagining the bad things that could happen in the dark, he knew all too well what could be lurking there.

However, none of those things seemed to be around, at least at the moment. Most of the monsters Link knew of made distinctive sounds, and those that didn't were not in the habit of hiding in dark areas. His biggest concern at this point was falling into traps. A hole in the floor never made noise, and although he carried the lens of truth, even its penetrating gaze could not cut through darkness.

Link lifted up his left foot, gently feeling the floor in front of him before setting it down. After falling down several times when exploring the bottom of the well in Kakariko, he had decided this was the best way to avoid holes that you couldn't see. After a while, he realized that he must have left the first room he was in, and entered a narrow hallway. Stretching out his arms, he could feel the walls on either side of him. He kept feeling the edges of possible doorways, or perhaps they were just irregularities in the wall, but they were all blocked with stone. The only way he could go was forward.

He wasn't sure how long he had been carefully walking through the hallway, when he felt it widen. He could only assume that it was an opening to a larger space, and so, hugging the left wall, he continued to move forward. As he felt the right side of the wall get further and further away, he grew more confident, and strayed from the sides. After all, his eyes were beginning to get adjusted to the pitch black surrounding him, and he was sure there wouldn't be anything waiting to jump out at him from the shadows.

No sooner had he finished his speculation than his foot ran into something, and as the unknown object rattled at the touch he thought he heard quiet laughter coming from another part of the room. He froze, caught in the battle between fight and flight as he tried to regain control of his emotions. Fight won, and he pulled out his bow to shoot at whatever he had touched. His bow was powered by fairies, and with it he had the ability to shoot magical arrows. Sensing his intention as soon as he touched it, his bow turned his arrow into a light arrow, considerably brightening the room. His fear quickly turned to embarrassment as he realized the object he touched was a clay pot. He loosed the arrow, watching the shards of pottery go flying in every direction. After the arrow had touched the ground, still gently glowing, he noticed a red rupee glittering amongst the wreckage. He picked it up and admired it. It wasn't quite enough compensation to make up for his lost pride, but it would have to do.

"The first visitor I get in over a year, and you turn out to be a thief? What a shame." Link jumped in surprise and dropped the rupee. He stared in the direction of the voice, for the first time noticing a figure standing in a corner of the room. He wasn't able to make out any specific details, but the unknown entity certainly didn't look or sound like a monster.

"Sorry, I didn't know." He felt calmer after deciding that the figure looked more Hylian than anything else, and casually kicked the rupee in its direction, like he had meant to drop it.

The figure grunted in response. In one swift movement, he – Link assumed it had to be a "he", from the voice – darted forward and picked up the rupee, before disappearing back into the darkness. If it hadn't been for the sound of the rupee dropping again, presumably into another pot, he could have believed he was alone in the cave once more.

Link dashed towards his light arrow, picking it up and holding it out in front of him. The light didn't spread very far, but it was more helpful at eye level than on the ground. Unfortunately all he saw around him was a few more pots; he couldn't see a door, or even a switch or block that he could move to make one appear.

"What's wrong? Can't see?" Rather than conveying sympathy, the voice seemed to be mocking him. Link chose not to reply, and was eventually rewarded with a loud sigh. "There are plenty of torches in here. If you can find them, you can light them."

He crept forward, looking for one of the torches. Places such as this were generally full of them; he wouldn't be surprised if there was at least one. But he was suspicious of his apparent companion in the shadows – if there were torches here, why hadn't he lit them? The answer was simple – he obviously could see well in the dark. Still, he couldn't help but feel relieved when the light fell on a torch, revealing its black metal frame and wick sticking up from the center.

As he walked closer to the torch, he caught the distinct "torch smell" and wrinkled his nose. It was a hard scent to describe – it certainly wasn't the most pleasant scent in the world, but it was never so terrible that Link was forced to cover his nose. This particular torch smelled a little musty, like it hadn't been lit in some time. An unlit torch always seemed incomplete somehow – like it needed a flame to bring it to life.

Link bent down on one knee, slamming his hand to the ground. Din's Fire was undoubtedly his most useful magic spell, but it always required enough force to be generated to push the flames outward. They rose up around him, spreading in all directions. Three torches lit up due to his efforts, and he felt instantly comforted by the increased amount of light and warmth in the area.

"So. You have magic." Link looked up to finally see the speaker in full light, and gasped in surprise. He saw now that there were more torches than just the three he had lit, and that they created a semi-circle around a small tree, slightly bent over with the weight of troubles long forgotten by the people of the world. It seemed familiar somehow, like he had seen this tree or an identical one somewhere during his travels over Hyrule.

"I wasn't sure, when I saw your bow." The man continued to speak, his voice sounding as shadowy as the far edges of the room appeared now. "Weapons and other items can be imbued with magical qualities. But you have magic yourself. I'm surprised that you didn't feel your bow simply itch to plunge an arrow into my chest."

"Don't be so sure that I didn't." He proudly held his bow and drew another arrow. This one was brighter than the last one, and the glaring light made the stranger cover his eyes with a strangled noise that could only be interpreted as pain. Link took the opportunity to look him over. He didn't look like much of a threat – actually, he looked a little like Link himself. His outfit was entirely black, but mirrored Link's own in style. He wore a hat that looked almost too big for him, jammed far forward on his head to prevent it from falling off. He looked to be in desperate need of a haircut – his hair was long and dark, falling over his face like a set of curtains. His arms were bare – Link could tell that the tunic once had sleeves, but they had been torn off. He was not wearing another shirt under it; nor was he wearing gloves of any kind. His breeches had several small tears in them, and were tucked into scuffed boots. Next to his dark and dirty clothing, his skin seemed extremely pale in comparison, and between that and his reaction to the light arrow Link begin to wonder if he had ever been outside this cave before.

Link didn't recognize his growing feeling of pity until his bow reacted to his feelings, lowering the light from the arrow until it was but a dull glow. He felt more ridiculous than threatening, holding an unlit arrow, so with a short sigh he returned it to his quiver and slung his bow over his shoulder. "It's okay. You can look now." He hoped that his kindness would not prove to be in error.

The stranger removed his hand from his face, but rather than looking relieved, he looked troubled. He put his hand by his side and curled it into a fist. "Nothing will ever be okay." When Link didn't respond, he continued to speak. "Do you know what this place is? Many years ago, it was called the Temple of Light. Now, it exists between worlds – worlds to which I will never belong. Light is my enemy, and it has trapped me here for all time."

They locked eyes, and Link instinctively took a few steps backwards. The last time he had stared into such deep red eyes, they had changed into blue in front of him as Sheik was revealed to be Princess Zelda. "Light is your enemy?" He found it hard to believe that Rauru, the Sage of Light, would be anyone's enemy. He must have been referring to the element itself – or maybe to the Temple. "But that would make you Dark."

"That's what they call me." He sounded bitter over that, and Link wondered if Dark was really his name or just a nickname that he had given himself. "You, of course, need no introduction. I've been wondering if I would ever see you again, and here you are."

Had he really been recognized as being one of the Heroes from the legends? He looked himself over, seeking anything that would reveal his true identity. He carried several indicators that he associated with the Royal Family – namely the Hylian shield and the Master Sword. Despite this, Link found it hard to believe that the Master Sword could be so easily recognized when strapped to his back, and he certainly wasn't the only person in Hyrule that carried a Hylian shield. Then he focused on the word again. He was sure that they had never come face to face before. He would remember eyes like that. "How do you know me? Have we met?"

"And here I thought you might have recognized me. I'm hurt." Dark threw his head back in forced laughter, and just as suddenly as the sound had started it stopped. "We fought in this very spot a while back. Don't you remember? For every time I swung my sword, you mirrored me. For every step that I took, you followed me." Link could feel his stomach lurching. It did sound familiar to him. "It can't have been a very satisfying fight for you – you put in all that effort to copy my every move, only to have it end in a draw. And now, I suppose you're here for a rematch." He drew his sword, a blade as black as his clothing, and waited for Link to do the same.

Link, however, was not drawing his sword out in response. He was staring behind Dark, at the tree. He remembered where he had seen it now. He had seen it in the Water Temple, when he turned away from a barred door in a room that seemingly had no secrets. But there had been a tree in the center of the room, and a figure was waiting near it. He also remembered a fight with this figure, where it seemed he could make no winning move. Eventually the figure had fallen through the floor, never to rise again. He had not thought about the fight in a long time. He tried his best not to recall any of the things he had been put through during his bout as the Hero of Time. But this tree now seemed to be calling out to him, asking him to remember. Without realizing what he was doing, he began walking towards it.

He reached out his hand and placed it on the trunk of the tree, feeling a slight breeze ruffle his hair as he did so. Magic always moved the air, even when there was no wind to speak of. There was a brief moment of discomfort, and Link closed his eyes at the sharp sensation. When he opened them again, he knew something was different. He was still in the cave, but he was somewhere else too. A room with a small covering of water on the floor and white fog in the distance. It was both tranquil and terrifying at the same time, and he knew exactly what it was – the Water Temple.

He shrunk back from the expanse before him, feeling as small and insignificant as he did the first time he entered the Room of Illusions. Originally created by the Zoras, they had intended this room to be a home away from home for their Sage and any visiting royalty. Ganondorf's twisted sense of humor had later turned this room into a prison, leaving an ambassador of his own to greet any visitors – a shadow that bore a surprising resemblance to Link.

Remembering the shadow reminded him that he was not alone in the temple - Dark was still with him, watching him. He could sense his presence, even through the illusion. Come to think of it, the shadow from the Water Temple looked a lot more like Dark than him. And he seemed to know details about the fight that ensued there, details he couldn't possibly have unless he participated in it. All of this clicked in Link's head at once, and a sudden burst of anger clouded his thoughts.

"You want a rematch? You've got one," he snarled, reaching his hand behind him to grab his sword. On some level, Link was aware that this aggression was very uncharacteristic for him, but he pushed it back as he rushed at Dark. The image of the Water Temple faded away as he stepped further and further from the tree, and before long all he could see surrounding him was the dank walls of the cave and the shadowy patterns over them, created from the lit torches.

Dark had watched the whole scene play out with wide eyes, the tip of his sword slowly dropping closer to the ground with every passing second. Now, however, he held his sword upright in front of him, preparing to defend himself. Dark considered himself to be an excellent swordsman, although he preferred hand to hand combat. He had learned how to fight at a young age, and had loved it as long as he could remember. He could always feel a battle with his entire being, which is how he sensed that even before Link's sword crashed into his, the shifting of the two blades would force extra weight on his wrists. He bent his knees before the impact, hoping he could depend on his full body weight, and not just his wrists alone, to push upwards on Link's blade.

What he hadn't counted on was Link's ability to switch tactics. Initially Link had lunged at him, sword raised as if to split him down the middle. He stopped short just an inch away from his outstretched sword, twisting his blade horizontally and snaking it past his defense. Dark barely had time to react. He jumped backwards, twisting around as Link rolled behind him.

The fight wore on for what seemed like hours to Dark, swords clashing together and echoing off the walls. He continued attacking and defending until his legs felt too weak to support him and his hand felt almost completely numb. He changed his grip on his sword, moving it from his left hand to his right – not the way he would typically choose to fight a left-handed opponent.

When Dark reflected on this fight later, he would remember a sharp pain in his right side as he passed over his sword, and the sound of the wind rushing past his ears as he fell to the ground. He would think about seeing the blood on his hand when he clutched at the pain, and the sharp clang of his sword as it, too, fell. He wouldn't remember Link standing there dazed and confused as the spell that had seemingly been on him was lifted, or the tormented expression on his face when he realized what he had done. He would never recall the clinking of bottles as Link fiddled with his belt, or the triumphant cry when he had found what he was looking for. But the one thing that would be forever in Dark's memory from this point forward was the image of Link, his blond hair hanging down in front of his face, a single tear in his eye, and a glowing pink fairy in his hand.

An hour had passed by the time Dark woke up, confused and disoriented from his ordeal. He sat up with a start, pressing his hand to his side and groaning in agony. It was all coming back to him now - the fight, his failure, and the pain he felt because of it.

"Easy there." Link was sitting next to Dark, polishing his blade as if to cleanse it from the evil act it participated in. "I may have been able to heal your wound, but your body will take a while longer to recover."

"Don't you have anything else to say?" Dark growled in annoyance. He had been on his own for far too long to be left feeling this helpless.

"Yes." Link pointed over towards the tree. "Don't touch that. It plays tricks on your mind and makes you think and act differently than you usually would." He looked over at Dark, tired blue eyes meeting angry red ones. "I'm sorry. I would never normally do something like that."

Link had always prided himself on his gentle nature. People were not afraid of him, and animals would willingly run up to him. He did routinely attack and sometimes kill monsters as part of his duties as a Hero – but they were monsters. Strange, unruly creatures that did everything in their power to hurt the innocent. Sometimes he felt regret for taking a life. But sometimes, it felt right. Sometimes he was helping the world more by killing a monster than letting it live. But Dark was not a monster, and it went against everything Link stood for to kill him – or try to, in this case.

"Yeah, yeah." Dark had obviously been looking for an apology, but now that he had one he didn't really want to hear it. He twisted his body, examining himself for any additional injuries before jumping to his feet. He winced in pain, but resisted the urge to lay back down. "Do you think you could help me with something?"

Link blinked in surprise. "I tried to kill you." His words were tinged with both regret at his actions and curiosity on what could be so important as to ask for his aid.

"And you did a damn good job of it, too. Just not good enough." His tone sounded almost proud, but his eyes betrayed his feelings of intense distrust for the man in front of him.

"I'm listening." Link laid his sword to the side, trying to look as non-threatening as possible.

"I'm looking for something," Dark explained. "Something that I haven't been able to find on my own. With your help, I might have more success." It looked like it was hard for him to admit that he needed assistance.

Link stood up, narrowing his eyes at Dark. "What are you looking for?" He had felt like Zelda wasn't telling him about something important, and he couldn't help but wonder if that important thing and this important thing were actually one in the same.

"None of your business," Dark snapped at him. "Are you going to help or not?"

Link studied the irritated expression on Dark's face. He owed him for what had just happened. Besides, the Hero in him had a hard time resisting the opportunity to help someone. "Yes, I will help you." Dark nodded at him, like he had expected him to say that all along. "But first of all, I think we got off on the wrong foot. Regardless of what happened, it was never my intention to harm you – not now, not during our fight, and not any time before then either. So, hi! Nice to meet you. My name is Link."

He stuck out his hand and waited for the other man to shake it. Dark stared cautiously at Link's hand before taking it in his own. He surprised Link with his handshake; though his hands were clammy and rather bony, he had a firm grip with serious strength behind it. "Link, huh? That's a strange name."

"No stranger than yours, Dark." Link had stopped caring about what others thought of his name long ago. "Now, let me tell you a little something about me. I came here on a mission -" He was interrupted by Dark's sudden laughter.

"A mission? What do you think you are, some kind of Hero?" He smirked at Link, seemingly not perturbed in the slightest by the serious expression on Link's face.

"Yes." Link mustered up as much authority to put behind his voice as he could. "I traveled a long way to get here, and since I'm here I might as well explore a little. But without knowing my way around, and with limited light, I'm likely to get lost. Having someone that knows their way around would be a great help to me. Since I've already agreed to help you - do you think you could help me?"

Dark stared at Link with an intensity that he found to be rather uncomfortable. If Link needed him for something, he wasn't going to be likely to hurt him. That in itself made it worthwhile to agree to guide him around. "You've got yourself a deal." He started walking towards one of the hidden doorways in the room, not wanting to waste any time. "Let's get out of here."

Link didn't know what to make of Dark. It was odd enough to find a whole temple hidden behind something he had thought was solid rock, but it was even more unusual to find a mysterious man there, both a prisoner and not according to his own words. His pale but dirty skin and his black hair and clothing gave him an almost shadowy appearance. And then there were his eyes, those deep swirling vortexes of red that seemed to stare straight into his soul. Quite frankly, he found everything about him to be rather unnerving.

What was most unsettling was how Dark seemed to know him, even though they had never met before. He found it difficult to believe that the shadow he had contested against in the Water Temple was the same person that he was now following blindly down a hallway. Dark had battled defensively, while the shadow had always been on the offensive. He also had a distinctive fighting style, one that Link wasn't familiar with, and knew he hadn't battled against before. At the same time, he couldn't ignore what he had seen - a tree that was extremely similar to the one from the Water Temple, and the image of the Room of Illusions that came to his mind when he touched it.

Then, there was that cloud of anger that seemed to settle over him as soon as he had approached the tree. He knew of only one thing that could alter emotional responses, and that was black magic. He had seen it performed on Nabooru before, by the twin witches Koume and Kotake, and he knew of its power. If there was black magic attached to the tree, and Dark was near the tree in the Temple of Light at the same time that Link was near the tree in the Water Temple, it could theoretically have been possible for them to battle illusions of each other. But that possibility almost seemed to create more questions than it answered.

Dark, on the other hand, was concerned only with who Link was, and why he was here. The first time he had ever seen him, he had appeared as a white translucent figure by the tree. Convinced that he was a challenger sent by the temple and those who watched over it - a group he collectively referred to as "Light" - he had fought his hardest against him, only to fight his own feelings of disappointment later when nothing had changed for him.

Seeing Link again, and fighting him again, he knew that his initial assumption had been wrong. Despite his claim that he was on an exploratory mission, it was obvious that he had no idea what the Temple of Light was. It was almost as if he had stumbled in here on accident. But there were no true accidents - he had to believe that everything happened for a reason. It was his last shred of optimism left, the one positive thing that even these hopeless years in the temple hadn't beaten out of him. It almost made him wonder if someone had sent Link to this area to look for him. But there wouldn't be anyone trying to find him now. Not after all this time.

"Ouch!" Dark heard a loud thwack as Link bumped into something, and several smaller thumps as he hopped on one foot. He sighed theatrically, turning around to see what Link had walked into. It was a medium sized treasure chest, nestled up against the side of the wall. Dark, walking in the middle of the hallway, hadn't even been anywhere close to it. Link must have been clinging to the wall as he followed him.

"You should really look to see where you're going," he drawled, watching Link feel around carefully to see what he had hit.

"Well maybe, if someone turned on some lights in here, I would be able to," he retorted grumpily, finally placing his hands on the treasure chest. Obviously recognizing what it was, he opened it and felt around inside. "Hey, it's empty!" Link couldn't help but feel a bit cheated.

"Looking for this?" an amused Dark pulled a crumpled up piece of paper out of his pocket, waving it in front of Link's face. He pulled it backwards just as Link reached for it, his hands closing desperately on empty air. "I found and emptied that thing ages ago. There are a couple in other rooms, too – also empty now, I assure you." He tucked the paper back in his pocket.

"Is that a map?" Link asked, the annoyance evident in his voice. He was used to collecting objects from temples, and was surprised at how much it bothered him to not be keeping something from this one.

"What does it matter? You wouldn't be able to see it anyway." A wide grin spread over his face at the irritated huff that came from Link. Pushing his buttons was kind of fun.

"I know it's a map." Link decided not to press the issue. Dark did have a point, after all. "It wouldn't hurt you to look at it, though – are you sure we're not lost?" Even though it had only been approximately thirty minutes, Link had already decided he didn't like having a tour guide. There had been lots of twists and turns, and at times Dark had even turned around and pushed him back the way they had come.

"I'm sure." Link heard the distinctive shuffling of Dark's feet moving away from him, and he crossed his arms, walking after him as quickly as he dared. "In fact…" the shuffling noise stopped, and Link stopped abruptly so he wouldn't bump into him.

"Get over here." Dark commanded, turning around to face the wall to his left. He reached forward, attempting to touch the wall but feeling only empty space in front of him. He felt Link approaching from the left, and stepped aside, putting his hand out and shoving Link forward. "I believe we've found the next room."

Link had braced himself to hit the wall from the moment Dark grabbed him, bringing his arms forward to protect his body and turning his head sharply to the left, away from Dark. But the impact never came. As he opened his eyes and uncurled his body, he noticed he was standing in another room entirely – one that was already filled with gentle torchlight, emanating from a structure along the wall to the right.

"Did I scare you?" Dark stuck his head through the illusion over the entrance to the room. Link tried not to grimace at the sight of Dark's face floating in the middle of a solid sheet of rock.

"Not at all." Link tried to sound cool, calm, and collected, but he was sure his voice was shaking from the sudden adrenaline rush. "Come over here and look at that." He pointed at the torches, lined up around a platform made of wood. He could only recall seeing something like this once before in his life, and he found it fascinating that there was one here.

"I see it." Dark walked over and stood next to Link, crossing his arms angrily. "What's so exciting about some torches and a piece of wood?" His eyes narrowed and he turned to glare at Link. "Don't tell me you're thinking about lighting it on fire."

Link rolled his eyes. It seemed that all Dark thought about was destroying things – first their potential friendship, then Link's peace of mind, and now the only way Link could see out of this room. "No. It's an elevator. It should bring us either to the floor above or below this one…I could tell you more if I had the map." Link couldn't help but smile at the look on Dark's face.

"That can bring us somewhere different?" Dark reached in his pocket for the map, opening it and twisting it around with a confused look on his face before handing it to Link. "Fine, take it. I don't need it anyway."

Link eagerly grabbed the map, his face falling as he reviewed it. It seemed to be in bad condition, with torn edges and slightly smudged ink. Not to mention how rumpled the paper had become, sitting in Dark's pocket. "This isn't a very helpful map," he said, shoving it back at Dark. "You can have it back. I'm not even sure it belongs to this temple."

Dark chuckled, taking the map back once more. "If I thought it would be helpful, I wouldn't have handed it to you."

Link shook his head at Dark's comment, and begin walking towards the elevator. Instead of getting on it, he turned to face the wall, and pulled out his bow. He had caught sight of a glint of gold nestled into the wall as he walked by, and that could mean only one thing. There was a hidden entrance over there.

"What are you doing?" Dark cried, ignoring the potential danger of the bow as he ran towards Link. "I've already gone this way; we aren't going to find anything there!" It was obvious that he was eager to explore the new area that the elevator promised him.

"We can take the elevator after we're done with this floor," Link replied, putting down his bow so he didn't loose an arrow at Dark on accident. "I think it's a good idea to explore everywhere, even places you've already looked on your own."

"But we aren't going to find anything there!" His voice rose higher the closer he looked at Link's determined expression. "Great," he said, slumping against the wall. "I'm going to be stuck here forever."

"That's exactly the sort of attitude that will keep you here forever." Link looked pointedly at him. Taking the time to re-evaluate areas would not just be to Link's benefit, but potentially to Dark's benefit as well. For all Link knew, the thing Dark was seeking could be hidden right under their noses.

"Fine," he said gruffly, striding towards the hidden entryway. "But you don't need your bow to open this." He balled his hand into a fist, and smashed it against the golden eye. A panel of stone rolled backwards in response, revealing an entrance. Dark stood at the left hand side, swept into a mock bow with his hand gesturing towards the area. "After you."

IN CLOSING

Don't forget to check back for Chapter 4: Helping Hands. Thank you for reading!