At my insistence and Midna's resistance, Link agreed to get checked out by Renado before heading back to the mines. Link slowly staggered barefoot along the dirt road that made up Kakariko Village, my hand hovering over his arm in case he stumbled. I had really wanted to go fetch Renado by myself and bring him back so Link wouldn't have to exert himself, but Link thought it would be better for him to just go along. He said he felt fine, really, it was just that his feet hurt. I kept a watchful eye on him anyway, not trusting him to tell the truth when it came to how bad he felt.

The lobby of the Elde Inn was empty when we entered. I told Link to wait a second while I got Renado, then went upstairs to the hotel's lone room. Colin was sleeping on his bed while Beth, Luda, and Renado looked over him, and Talo was frowning over in his direction from a bed in the corner. I approached Renado and reached up to tap him on his shoulder. Once I had his attention, I asked if he would go downstairs with me to check out Link. He nodded and followed me down to the lobby, where Link had taken a seat on a stool.

"He had a heat stroke in the mines," I told Renado. "I just want to make sure he's okay to head back so we can finish up in there."

Renado questioned Link on how he felt both before his heat stroke and afterward, briefly looked him over, then walked into the kitchen and returned with a bottle of red liquid. Link downed it in seconds. He thanked Renado and handed it back to him without a trace of the medicine left in it.

"It is called Death Mountain for a reason, you know," Renado said. "Humans are not made to be able to survive for long in such extreme conditions. Do not spend more time there than you must."

"So I'm good to go?" Link asked.

Renado nodded. "Just try to take it easy for the rest of today."

"Before we go," I said, looking up at Renado, "will you tell him to keep his hat off?"

"It would certainly be wise to not wear a heat-retaining item of clothing inside a volcano."

I gave Link the 'I told you so' look, to which he rolled his eyes back. He reached into his pouch and pulled out the clothes I had taken off of him, sans his hat.

"Should you begin to feel off again, listen to what your body is telling you," Renado went on. "If there is nothing stopping you from leaving the volcano when you need to, then do it. Continuing to fight when you need to stop is a sure way to hurt yourself."

Once Renado was upstairs, I paraphrased what he said. "Nothing's stopping you from leaving when you need to. You don't have to keep fighting." It wasn't like I wanted to convince Link to back out—I'd be screwed if he did—but I still wasn't over our little fight from earlier in the day, and Renado's words reminded me of it.

It seemed to take Link a second for what I said to go through. He sighed. "I can't just go back to Ordon whenever I want to. I don't know what else I gotta tell you to get that through your head."

"But you can. Even Renado thinks so."

"But. I. Can't." Link slipped his shirt back over his head. "It's my destiny to defend Hyrule. I have to. I fight because I have no choice."

"I don't understand what makes you think you don't have a choice," I said, my words coming out harsher than I intended them to.

"I," Link said, sitting up straight, "am the Hero Chosen by the Goddesses. I can't go against their will."

I rolled my eyes. "Uh huh. And how do you know that you're 'the Hero Chosen by the Goddesses'? Did an angel appear to you in a prophetic dream?"

"A Light Spirit relayed it to me."

I was reminded of the night when Link told me a Light Spirit had been talking to him, when he was staring straight ahead and listening intently, and I saw and heard nothing but the rustles of the trees and the trickling water in the spring. I genuinely worried that he was schizophrenic or something. It was one thing to believe in their existence, like Midna seemed to, but another to believe they were talking to him personally. "So, how come only you saw and heard that Light Spirit down in Faron? Why didn't it appear to me?"

Link shrugged. "I guess Faron had nothing to say to you." He paused. "Do you ... not believe in the Light Spirits?"

"No, I don't believe in them. Or your 'Golden Goddesses.'"

He stared at my face blankly, like he was expecting me to crack any second and tell him I was just joking. "...I understand you not believing in the Light Spirits—I've heard of some people from Hyrule not believing in them either, since they've never seen or heard from them like you—but everyone knows the Golden Goddesses are real. Maybe you don't believe in them because they didn't create your world, but they definitely created mine."

"Suuure."

"Vanna—"

"Believe whatever you want to," I interrupted him, holding my hands up. "I'll believe in the Light Spirits when I see one. And maybe then I'll consider believing that this world was created by Goddesses who shaped your destiny."

He breathed out a short laugh and shook his head. "No wonder you and Midna clash so much. You're too much alike."

"What?!" I nearly screeched. "I am not anything like her!"

"You're both so ... stubborn. It's ridiculous."

I huffed and crossed my arms. "Well you're a pushover."

"I know," he said under his breath. "I know."

Back in the mines, neither of us said anything.

I felt both better and worse at the same time. There was no resolve from our conversation, but at least there was closure in having it. It left me with an understanding of where Link was coming from, even if I thought it was absurd. I couldn't believe he had the gall to say that I was like Midna, though. I had no problem conceding that we were both stubborn, but that was absolutely it. I had nothing else in common with her.

Even without talking to each other, getting to the last Goron elder was quick. When he handed over the last key shard, I got out the other ones and slotted them all together. I swapped out the completed key for the map as Link and I left the Goron's room. Darbus's location was marked on the map by a drawing of a skull.

Since I had the map and knew where to go, I led the way. Link followed behind me silently, coming forward only to kill the Torch Slugs and flaming bats ahead of us with his newly acquired bow and to open the door. Once we were through and back outside, we were up on the dock of a magnetic crane we couldn't reach before. It dropped us off in front of the room that we first saw Beamos in. Once we got through it, we would be back outside where the Bulblins were guarding the ramps, and from there we just had to take a different path to get to Darbus. I started trying to open the door, but it wasn't too long before Link came up beside me and rolled it open with ease. I contemplated thanking him—I really was thankful he had opened it, because I admittedly was a weakling and the doors were surprisingly heavy and hard for me to move—but it still felt too soon to say anything to him after our last little skirmish.

Link opened the door leading back outside as well, and then he systematically began to shoot down the Bulblins with his bow and arrows. He didn't miss his targets on the ones that were closer to us, but the farther away they were, the more tries it took. We couldn't move any closer to them though, because already their own arrows were just feet away from hitting us. No matter how many times Link tried, he just couldn't get the last three who were the farthest away from us. When he had run out of his own arrows and had to carefully reach forward and grab some of theirs that had missed us, he was starting to get visibly frustrated. I couldn't stay quiet anymore.

"You can't see them, can you?" I said.

He sighed. "I can kinda see where they are when they have their fire arrows out. Otherwise... No. It's all a blur." Link pursed his lips for a second, then dropped his bow-wielding arm to his side and turned to look at me. "Do you think you could, maybe...?"

My eyebrows raised. "Uh, there is no way."

"But your vision is good, isn't it? You can see 'em just fine."

"Well, yeah, but, I mean..." I stuttered. "I've never held a bow in my life."

Link held it out to me. "Neither have I before today." Before I could make an assertion of my disbelief, he started speaking again. "I haven't. I mean it." He held the bow out closer toward me. "Just try to do exactly what you saw me doing."

I hesitated before giving in and grabbing the bow. Link handed me an arrow, and I tried to hold the bow and arrow exactly how he did. "Like this?"

"...Good enough. Now just aim and let go."

I took a few moments to line up my shot, and when I felt it was right, I let go of the arrow. It wasn't right, missing the Bulblin I was aiming for by a good twenty feet, but I at least had it in the right direction it needed to be going. I was slightly embarrassed with Link watching me, feeling like he definitely would have gotten it on the first try if he could only see. I nocked another arrow and aimed it much higher, but that time it was too high. I tried again, and again, and again, gradually lowering my aim every time, until I finally hit the Bulblin in the head and it died. I smiled and jumped up and down, loudly proclaiming that I did it, only to settle down when I remembered that Link was still watching me. Embarrassment washed over me again when I looked over to see him looking like he was trying not to laugh.

"Good," Link said, smiling. "Do it again."

It was slightly easier the second time, and slightly easier again the third time, though still quite difficult, but I did it. My work done, I held the bow out to Link for him to take.

"...You don't like using your sword, do you?" It was a question, but he worded it more like a statement.

I shrugged. "Not really. I really don't know because I've barely gotten to use it, but I don't think I'll ever be that comfortable whipping around a giant knife."

"Okay." Link took his quiver off and tried to hand it over to me.

"Link, I—"

"You'll get good, you just need practice. Then I can handle close-distance fighting and you can handle long-distance. Sound good?" he said, nudging the quiver toward me again.

I looked back and forth at the quiver and Link as I contemplated it. A bow was a lot closer to my gun than a sword ever would be. It was also a lot lighter than a sword, so it would be easier to use if I could only better my aim. I could keep a safe distance from enemies with it, too.

"Fine," I said, grabbing it and putting it over my shoulder.

I put the bow into my pouch, and we started on our way across the ramps. I used my gun to kill a Beamos that was on the opposite side of the way we originally left the room from, and we went up a ramp that it had been blocking. Link used his iron boots on a switch to activate what I hoped was the last magnetic crane we'd ever have to use. We hitched a ride on it, and it brought us over to a bridge held up by a rope. I opted for shooting the rope with my gun, and the bridge slammed down just when the magnet dropped us. Feeling slightly disoriented, I checked the map. Once we got through the room past the bridge, which looked short enough, we would be in Darbus's room.

There were a few more Bulblin archers in the next room who were oblivious to our entrance. I nearly brought out my gun, since they were close enough for me to aim at with it, but I decided that it would be good to practice my aim with the bow and arrow on them. Killing them in fewer tries than the last ones gave me a confidence boost, even though it probably shouldn't have since they were much closer anyway.

The giant door, with its equally giant lock, that would open up into Darbus's room was just past another bridge. Like in the Forest Temple, I had to get up on Link's shoulders to get the key into the lock. Our movements were better coordinated this time, the lock falling and me getting down without a hitch. My heart started to beat harder in anticipation of what was beyond the door. I couldn't imagine something scarier than Diababa, but video game logic told me that Fyrus would have to be a step beyond it.

Link and I rolled the door open together—though it was debatable how much I truly helped—and entered the room. It was quite dark in there, the only source of light being the magnetic floor emanating a soft blue glow. In the middle of the room was a gargantuan creature, all black and shadowy like Midna, with his ankles chained to the ground and his arms chained to two of the pillars circling the room. He had some sort of helmet on, though it was hard to distinguish in the darkness.

An orange gem resembling a cat eye on his helmet suddenly lit up, supplying more light to the room. It was only after I got over that jump scare that I realized what I thought was a helmet was actually just his head. Two beady eyes glowed along with the gem, and the extra light allowed me to see that he had giant fangs protruding from his mouth. He hunched over so his head was as close to us as possible and roared like a bear, his smoldering breath blowing against us like a strong gust of wind. He stood up and looked at his cuffed wrists. He threw his head back, let out another roar, and his body erupted into flames. With staggering ease, he yanked his hands forward and broke the chains, freeing himself.

As Fyrus began to stomp toward us, I reached into my pouch and grabbed the bow. I remembered how Diababa had an eyeball inside its mouth that we attacked to kill it, and figured that the gem on Fyrus's forehead was essentially his version of that. I missed once, and decided to give myself one more try before booking it to the other side of the room to avoid being stomped on. The arrow collided with the gem on my second try. Fyrus roared in pain, stopping in his tracks and holding his hands over the gem. I was clueless about what to do next. I couldn't shoot him in the gem again with his hands covering it, and there was no way we could get close enough to his flaming body to stab him.

Link grabbed my arm and ran with me behind Fyrus. He put his iron boots on and grabbed one of the chains attached to Fyrus's foot. I wondered why Link had brought me around with him—surely he knew that I wouldn't be of much help him when it came to pulling the chain if that was what he wanted—but his decision made sense when Fyrus tried to walk forward again only to promptly fall over right where we had been standing because of Link pulling at his ankle. The flames covering his body dwindled upon his impact with the ground.

Already I knew how the rest of the fight was going to go. Link ran over to Fyrus's head to attack his weak spot while I backed myself up against the wall and readied the bow again. Link ran to me when Fyrus stood back up. The monster became engulfed in flames once more, and turned to face us. I shot him in the gem again, and as I ran around him with Link again, all I could think was that this had to be the easiest boss fight. As long as I was quick enough in hitting his gem each time he rose, Fyrus wouldn't be able to do anything. More than likely there would be just one more round, and then the fight would be ours, and we would walk out unscathed.

And naturally, I had to be proven wrong immediately after thinking that. Fyrus stood up and turned to me the second time much quicker than anticipated, and before I could even loose my arrow, Fyrus swung one of his chains like a whip against me, and I flew back into the wall. I slid down and slumped against the wall, throwing my arm over where the chain hit me on my ribs. The bow had fallen out of my hand, and with Fyrus getting closer to me every second, I knew I didn't have time to go forward and get it. I scrambled away along the wall, hoping I could circle back around to it.

Too caught up by my own movements and the throbbing pain in my ribs and back, I didn't realize that Link had managed to get the bow until he ran over to me with it in his hand. He grabbed an arrow from the quiver, and when Fyrus noticed where we were and started to come over, Link shot his gem. I moved out of the way so that Fyrus wouldn't fall on me when Link tripped him. Fyrus only took a few more slashes from Link's sword before writhing and screaming in the pain of his defeat. His body turned back into a shadow before tiny black squares exploded out of him. A smaller, but still large shadow was in his place, and it fell to the ground as the black squares all came together above Link and formed the second Fused Shadow.

Midna came out of my shadow and floated over to it. "Well done! Now we have two Fused Shadows..." She grabbed it with her hand-hair, and it disappeared behind her back. I slowly walked over to stand next to Link. "You know, you two have been very helpful so far, so as a reward, I'll tell you an interesting story."

I sighed. We were still inside a volcano, and she thought it was a good time to tell us a story.

"Zant," she spat. "That's the name of the King of Darkness who cast this pall of shadows over this world. He's very strong. Both of you together would still be nothing against him in your current states... But Zant will never be my king! I have nothing but scorn for his supposed strength. Not that Zelda is much better... It still appalls me that this world of light is controlled by that princess. A carefree youth, a life of luxury... How does that teach duty?" Midna turned away from both of us. "...But I guess I shouldn't begrudge her the circumstances of her life. She didn't choose it, after all. And I would never wish harm on her... No, as long as I can get my hands on the Fused Shadows, I'll be just fine."

"Are you done monologuing yet?" I asked.

"Yes, I'm done," she said. With a flick of her wrist, a portal appeared on the ground. "There's only one more Fused Shadow left... Shall we?"

One more. Just one more, and I could go home.

A deep groan brought me out of my daydream about going home. The large shadow had gradually faded out of being a shadow during Midna's monologue, and was back in the form of the Goron who had been corrupted by the Fused Shadow. I was relieved that Darbus didn't have to die after all.

Link and I walked onto the portal, and Midna warped us out. The feeling of breaking up into tiny little slices was still just as jarring to me, and again I got a headache when I was all put back together. We appeared back in the spring at the end of Kakariko Village. Just like the first time Midna had warped us to a spring, Link stared straight forward, supposedly listening to the words of the Light Spirit that lived in the spring. I still didn't see or hear anything. Link's eyebrows raised, and then the corners of his mouth slightly turned up.

"What'd it say to you?" I asked him.

"Ilia is in Lanayru," he said.

I almost forgot about his girlfriend. "So, I guess you want to hurry up and go find her even though Renado told you to take it easy, huh?"

"I know I should take it easy, but something could happen to her. I need to find her as quick as I can," Link said.

"Well then, let's go get rid of the twilight in Lanayru so you can find her," Midna said. "Vanna, you'll have to stay behind again."

I nodded and looked at Link. "I know you want to spend time with your girlfriend, but maybe don't take too long this time?"

Link's eyes widened and he blushed. "What?! Ilia's not my girlfriend! I-I never even had one..."

I raised my eyebrows. It was hard to believe that someone as attractive as him managed to go seventeen years without a girlfriend. "Really? Midna told me Ilia was your girlfriend."

Midna snickered. "He's denying it."

"I'm not denying anything," Link said. He sounded like he was definitely denying something. "Ilia's the only girl in my village that's around the same age as me, and Midna assumed she's my girlfriend because of that, but she's not. She's my best friend. That's all."

'Good,' I thought. Immediately, I was ashamed of how happy it made me to know they weren't dating, despite it seeming like he wanted to date her. I knew several girls back home who were jealous of me for being Zi's best friend, and I always thought they were being ridiculous, but there I was being just as ridiculous as them. I couldn't help it though. Link was just one of those people, impossible to not be attracted to, pushover or not.

"Oh," I said. "People always assume I'm dating my best friend, too. Or they did, I guess, before I came here. But..." I couldn't help the little smile that crept up on my face. One more Fused Shadow, and then I could go back home and be annoyed at all of Zi's little fangirls. I had never been more excited at the prospect of being annoyed. "I guess you should be going then, huh?"

Link nodded, and Midna hopped into his shadow. "I want to go see Colin real quick first, and I think it's your turn to go get checked out by Renado."

As we started to walk to the Elde Inn, my hand went to my ribs. I didn't feel any breaks or fractures, and most of the pain had subsided already. It only hurt a little when I pressed down on them. I wondered if just standing in the miracle water of the spring for that short amount of time helped to heal me, regardless of the fact that the water didn't even come in contact with my skin. Along our walk, I continuously pressed down on my ribs again and again, seeing if the lingering pain would wear off as quickly as the rest of it did.

Link's demeanor changed when we got to the Elde Inn's deck, and as far as I could tell, for no reason. He suddenly looked plagued with worry, and he raced inside, leaving me behind. He was already over halfway up the stairs by the time I stepped in. I stopped just in front of the door.

I didn't have to follow Link upstairs to know what had happened. The crying I heard was enough.

Thanks to Jack54311, Rojak, and Guest for reviewing!

I really do love subtlety, but I believe a eulogy is in order. When I first played Twilight Princess and I got to the part where Colin gets in front of the Bullbo, I immediately thought, "He ded." Then it turned out he didn't die, and I thought, "Nah, he ded." RIP Colin, 11/19/2006 — 5/12/2017. May you live on in our hearts and in our copies of Twilight Princess.