Link was rudely snapped back to the present as his reflexes, honed to an almost god-like speed, kicked in, and he jerked back on his horse, a strange black arrow cutting through the air where his head had just been. The lingering pleasant feeling of running on all fours, wind rushing through his hair, disappeared, replaced by wariness as he back flipped off Epona. Even though it felt like hours had passed, only a few minutes had, as they were still in the vicinity of Lake Hylia, under the huge weathered tree stump that straddled the road south of the Great Hylian Bridge. Looking around, Link could see nothing but shadows as a low, familiar laugh issued from an area behind him. Whipping around, he saw that there was nobody there, either. He searched the upper reaches of the vaulted ceiling created by the tree as the eerily familiar voice issued from there.

"You don't catch on very quickly, do you?" Link furiously racked his brain for where he had heard that voice before. Zelda came to the correct conclusion first though, as she too spun around, wildly searching for the source of the disembodied voice.

"Link, it sounds like you!" As Link continued to look around, he kept his sword sheathed, with his hand clasped inconspicuously around the grip that protruded over his back. Even with the air crackling with tension, he still managed to exude an aura of calmness as he waited for his adversary to show his face. Zelda stiffened, gasping and staring at a point right behind him, as clapping was heard from that same area. As the voice started to speak again, Link executed the most deadly move he'd been taught by the Hero's Shade: the Mortal Draw. Loosing a battle cry, he pulled the Master Sword from it's scabbard, swung, and turned all in one fluid movement, concentrating all his power into the blow. Only to have the Mortal Draw blocked for the first time ever, after all the times he'd used it, by what looked to be a black version of the Master Sword.

As the blades met and sparks flew, there was a brief flash of light and darkness. Black and white combined to leave a gray afterimage temporarily burned into the retinas of the combatants. "Not very friendly, are you?" Link's shadowy counterpart seemed more interested in talking down to him than fighting, as both parties stumbled away to gain some distance until their vision could clear. As Link finally recovered enough to search his opponent out, he experienced a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. Apparently, the contact between the two blades had done more than set off that blinding light.

"You can call me Dark Link, or Dark for short. It's what your predecessors knew me by." What looked like a mirror image of Link, cast in darkness, leaned casually against a tree that shouldn't have been there, his black sword thrust into the ground next to him. Except for the small island that the tree rooted in, there was water for as far as the eye could see, which seemed to be only a couple inches deep, fading into the mist that covered the area. Two apparently useless doors stood opposite each other, vertical bars ensuring that neither combatant would use them. As Link looked around in consternation, Dark glanced up from where he was inspecting his fingernails, revealing that his eyes were actually a blood-red. "Now this is poetic. We're in the exact same room that these two blades last met." He chuckled at Link's obvious confusion. "Yes, we are in a room. The endless water is just an illusion." The hero finally managed to regain control of his faculties.

"Where the hell are we then?! What are you?" Dark chuckled again, but suddenly turned business-like as he yanked his sword from the ground.

"You were so eager to fight earlier, so lets fight!"

Link smiled grimly as he heard this. He may have been in an unfamiliar place, brought there under strange circumstances, but in the end, it always boiled down to battling. He grew angry as another thought occurred to him, the reason for his dear friend leaving him becoming clear in a flash of realization. His attention focused outward again, coming to rest on the embodiment of that reason, as he allowed his rage to lend strength and aggressiveness to his movements.

Link pulled his shield off his back, twirling the Master Sword professionally before settling into his too familiar battle stance. He took the time Dark spent slowly advancing to study his opponent, noting the unsure way he held his sword as he splashed through the water. Deciding that his earlier blocking of the Mortal Draw had been a fluke, Link snarled at his counterpart as he started stalking towards him.

"You know what really pisses me off? It's the fact that things like you are the reason my best friend, the person I care about most in this world, had to destroy the only connection between my realm and hers. For that, you bastard, I am going to kill you!" Link charged forward suddenly, closing the last few separating yards in a rush, blade held at his side and slightly behind him. Droplets of water sprayed as he met Dark with a clash, flung into the air by his sword tip as he swung the weapon in an upward arc. Dark just barely managed to deflect the blow, almost losing his sword as he tried to keep from having a leg amputated.

Dark was entirely on the defensive then, not having time to pull his shield free as Link rained punishing blows on him. Link kept moving to his right, his opponent turning to face him as he circled. He side jumped occasionally, to avoid the clumsy stabs directed at him from his apparently inexperienced black-clad enemy.

Deciding to bring this to an end, he stopped attacking and waited for Dark to strike, still circling. He was not disappointed, as the anti-hero sliced at him vertically. As Link side jumped yet again, Dark attempted to catch him off guard, sweeping his sword across in a sad attempt to catch him midair. He connected with nothing but air though, as Link had gone under his sword, rolling as soon as his feet touched the ground. Coming to his feet with a spin behind Dark, he swung his sword as he did so, lifting into the air slightly with the force of the blow; Dark's shield was all that saved him, since it remained on his back. Instead of being brutally cut in half, he was knocked to the ground, just as Link had intended. The hero moved with a cat-like quickness, leaping into the air with the Master Sword pointed down almost before his opponent hit the ground.

The Finishing Blow was another move taught by the Hero's Shade; he had used it on nearly every boss that he fought, even ending Ganondorf's breath with it. All the past memories flashed through his mind in an instant, to be replaced by the visage of the latest monster to be put down using this technique.

Time seemed to slow as Link watched his counterpart roll out from under the falling blade, sparks flying as the Master Sword nicked the shield on Dark's back before slamming into the ground. Both warriors dripped as Dark back flipped to his feet and ran towards his sword, which he had lost while escaping his death, trying to reach it before Link could wiggle his own sword enough to loosen and pull it free of the ground.

As it so happened, they both got their blades back at the same time, Dark scooping his sword up as Link yanked his free of its stone sheath. Link could detect a change in Dark, in the way he held his sword, as if he had been playing earlier. His suspicions were confirmed as Dark twirled his weapon in a perfect imitation of the way Link had earlier, after taking a moment to inspect the small scratch in his shield. "Now that was close."

"I was just screwing with you earlier," the shadowy assailant chuckled, as if at some private joke. "You may have already guessed this, but I'm your opposite in quite a few ways. Or I'm supposed to be, anyway."

Before the hero could ask what he meant by this, Dark whirled into action. Closing the distance between them in moments, he caught Link off guard, backhanding him with his black shield hard enough to send Link stumbling. Dark just stood back and chuckled as Link bent double to stay on his feet. "See, I'm obviously not your opposite when it comes to fighting. In fact, I'd say I'm quite a bit-"

He was cut off as Link straightened suddenly, flinging his enchanted Gale Boomerang. The hero caught his weapon and settled back into a relaxed stance as his counterpart picked himself up from where he'd been blown. "Nice toy you've got there. But I have to say, I'm kinda disappointed. I figured you'd be brave enough to fight me without tricks, even if your predecessor wasn't."

Link just watched Dark serenely as he waited for him to make the next move. "So, who was it that created you? I don't think you ever mentioned."

"It was Ganondorf, obviously," Dark smiled widely before continuing. "And before you ask, yes, I know that he's dead, and no, I will not tell you why I'm harassing you now."

The two then started fighting in earnest. Sparks flew as swords met, both combatants striking with enough force to numb hands. Neither was able to gain an advantage though, and the battle wore on. The two combatants eventually found themselves back at the tree, as they both sought the slight advantage of the island. As broadswords and shields grew heavy, Dark made the first mistake.

As Dark stabbed forward with his sword, Link sidestepped and trapped the anti-hero's hand against the tree, kicking him square in the chest as he did so. As Dark stumbled back with an audible oof!, Link took the moment to settle back again and regain his breath.

Breathing heavily, Dark laughed," You're as good as the Hero of Time. Maybe even better. Who taught you?"

Link gave him a wary look. "The Hero's Shade. Who taught you? It's like fighting a mirror." Dark smirked as he sat down and sheathed his sword in one swift motion.

"Why don't we call a truce for a minute. I don't know about you, but I'm tired. Besides which, you could never reach me even if you wanted to." As Link looked at him questioningly, Dark smiled. "I learned a few things from the Hero of Time. I also got a few of my own toys. Deku nuts, actually." As Link sat down in defeat, Dark continued. "When Ganondorf originally created me, he used his magic to make me the polar opposite of the hero. Where he was kind, caring, and basically good, I was evil. Ganon made me to be just like him when it came to fighting, though. Even though we had the same skill, I was supposed to be able to kill him, because I was more vicious than him. Only problem was, his good qualities were what allowed him to gain insight into his enemies, me in this case, and he was able to defeat me."

Link couldn't contain his curiosity any longer. "If he killed you, then why are you even here? No offense or anything, but I think I would like you better dead." As Dark glowered at him, Link just smirked and settled back to wait for the rest of the story.

"Well, since you're too stupid to put it together yourself, I'll explain the rest." It was Darks turn to smile as Link seriously considered chopping off his head right there. "The reason that I'm here in front of you is because I get reborn with every hero that comes along. Only thing is, with every hero that has ever come along, I've been defeated. Every time ,Ganondorf gave me more of the hero's qualities. This time, he went too far. He gave me enough of your 'goodness', you might say, that I was able to be something other than evil for once." Dark just leaned back against the tree as Link absorbed what he'd just said.

"So, if you're not evil, which I'm not inclined to believe, then why are you doing this?" Link was having a hard time deciding whether or not to believe him. Before he could make up his mind, Dark jumped to his feet with a wide smile.

"Why, I want to hang out with you! We're practically brothers, for goddesses' sake!" Link just watched Dark warily for tricks as he processed what he'd just been told.

"So let me get this straight. You just ambushed me under a tree, transported me to this place, and we tried to kill each other, and you want to 'hang out'." Dark just nodded, as he smirked at the apparent confusion Link was experiencing.

"Don't think too hard now. I don't believe you heroes are very well equipped to do that." Despite this last comment, Link's forgiving nature won out and he sighed.

"Fine. But don't think I'm not going to watch my back." The smirk on Dark's face seemed to be permanently plastered there as he helped Link to his feet. "Well, you said you've been in here before. How did you get out last time?" Dark's face finally became serious as he looked around himself.

"Since you apparently weren't listening, I'll repeat myself. The Hero of Time defeated me. I never really left. Also, I didn't plan for us to end up here." As Dark talked, Link walked over to one of the doors. On closer inspection, he could see that even though the bars over the door looked new, the door itself was rusted completely through.

"I think a bomb would take care of this door, but we're still blocked in."

"You don't have to shout." Dark chuckled as Link jumped and whirled around. "If you can take care of the door, I can slip through. The room should unlock if you're the only one in here." Link gave him a curious look as he motioned for Dark to follow him away from the door.

"How do you expect to get out? I'm pretty sure neither of us is skinny enough to fit through those bars." As Link took his bow out and strung it, Dark chuckled.

"Well, if you don't remember, when we were under that tree, I was speaking from the shadows. What I can do is occupy shadows. If I can see it, I can jump to it." As Dark finished, Link pulled an arrow from his quiver, stuck a bomb on it, lit it, and shot the door. As the bomb arrow connected with the door, it exploded, causing the door to collapse in a shower of rust. Fresh air blew from the opening as the two walked over to inspect Link's handiwork.

"Nice arrows you got there." Dark whistled appreciatively as he stepped forward and looked for a shadow on the other side. As Link watched, he seemed to disappear from existence with a pop of air taking the space he'd just occupied. Seconds later, the bars lifted into the wall, and Link stepped into a slightly larger room. As he looked around, Dark's voice issued from Link's shadow.

"I think I'll just catch a free ride. You're the hero, so you should be able to find your way out." Link just sighed as he set about making his way across the room.

--

As Link emerged into what he assumed was the main room, the nagging feeling he'd had for a while finally emerged as a question.

"If you had that ability when you fought the Hero of Time, then why didn't you defeat him? It would be pretty hard to defend against that." As Dark popped out of his shadow, he pointed at the water that lapped at the ledge that they were on.

"The entrance to this place is down there. I just hope you can hold your breath for a long time." In response, Link activated his Zora Armour, but didn't dive in.

"Well?" Dark looked sheepish as he activated a dark copy of Link's suit.

"I actually didn't have that ability when I fought your predecessor. It showed up in the last few days." Link realized he had a puzzle on his hands when he heard this. Instead of saying anything more, he just dived in and began swimming toward the previously indicated hole, with Dark a couple feet behind.

As they reached the end of the tunnel, they found out that it was blocked. As Dark shook his head and prepared to swim back, Link stopped him and motioned to a spot a few feet away from the wall. Pulling out a bomb that appeared to have been eaten by a peculiar fish, Link lit the fuse and dropped it next to the blockage. Rejoining Dark, he mentally laughed at his look of surprise as the wall disappeared in an underwater explosion. Swimming through, Link recognized the new path as the one leading to the Water Temple. He gestured down the path that led out.

--

As the two arrived on dry land and took off their Zora Armour, Link looked wistfully at the portal that floated over them.

"Are you going to stare at the sky all day, or shall we get going?" Link glared over at Dark in annoyance.

"If we're going to go anywhere, you'd better hide in my shadow again. I don't feel like explaining this right now." As Dark obligingly disappeared, Link walked up to Fyer, the owner of the house-cannon, for the second time that day. Falbi said nothing as he took the offered fare from Link, as he was used to the hero appearing from all sorts of unexpected places.

Link's feet had barely touched the ground before he was off again, dodging chickens as he headed for the door to the building that he had landed in. Using the same steady pace that he'd developed while traveling across the fields of Hyrule, he headed back across the Great Hylian Bridge, all the while wishing he could transform back into a wolf, both because it was a faster mode of travel, and because that would have meant that Midna was with him.

As he left the bridge and came within sight-range of where he'd disappeared, a relieved Zelda called out to him.

"Thank the godesses! Did you kill that monster? Where did you go?" An angry snort came from Link's shadow at the word 'monster'. Slowing to a stop next to Epona, Link patted her on the neck before swinging into the saddle.

"Actually, I think I was in an old part of the Water Temple. And yes, I did kill that thing. Wasn't much of a fight." As Link smiled at Zelda he felt a poke in the back, which felt suspiciously like the tip of an arrow. As they started out again, Zelda noticed his much improved mood, but decided not to say anything. The two continued their journey in companionable silence.

Author's Note- Thanks to KeEsH for leaving a review. If this chapter seems to change in the middle, that's because I had half of it written, and then left it for a long time before writing the other half. When I say a long time, I mean like three or four months. If there's anything that needs to be improved, just say so. Thanks.