I'm very sorry for the delay. I had a lot of stuff to do, school related mostly. But anyway, here's the next chapter!

Disclaimer: I do not own anything Nintendo related except for the products they sell.

X.X.X

Young Link was not used to the cold. He was not used to the wind being so cruel against bare skin. He wasn't used to the concept of numb fingers.

Clearly, Popo, Nana and Lola could see that. But instead of waiting for Young Link, they had rushed off, without waiting for him. Ness stayed behind.

"Dude, putting on ice skates are really easy," Ness said, standing in the snow dozens of feet away from the frozen creek. He wobbled slightly on his skates, but regained his balance. "These have already been laced! It's just like tying sneakers!"

"Ugh… Sneakers," Young Link groaned. Young Link hated wearing sneakers. He preferred his boots to sneakers any day. Luckily at school, there wasn't a strict dress code, seeing as how a lot of students had unusual preferences and requirements. Prince Ralis, for example could never stay dry, otherwise he'd pass out. Every hour or so, he would drink ample amounts of water, or douse his clothes with water.

"You know how to tie sneakers right?" Ness asked anxiously.

"Yes," snapped Young Link. "Link showed me how. It's just that my fingers can't feel anything! They're not working properly!"

"They're numb, dude. Chill," Ness said, bending down in front of Young Link. He laughed and said, "Get it? Chill?"

Young Link slapped his forehead with his palm and groaned. He let Ness tie his skates for him.

"Finally!" Ness exclaimed cheerfully, getting up. "It's been awhile, since I last skated. I might fall…"

"At least you know how to skate," grumbled Young Link.

"You don't know how to skate?" gasped Ness. "But… You… You've seen snow before you came here to the Mansion, right?" he asked worriedly.

Young Link rolled his eyes. "Yes, stupid. I've seen snow and ice, when I had to save the Zoras. But that was when I was older. Since I'm not Link's age yet, I can't have known how to skate."

Ness blinked for a while, trying to comprehend what Young Link was trying to say. "Oh… I see what you're trying to say. Stupid time screw-up," he added.

"Yeah." Young Link said, "Exactly." He stood up and took a step, before stumbling over and landing flat on his face.

His face turned red, despite the fact that he was covered in snow. Ness was laughing, and when Young Link lifted his face off the snow, he could see the young PSI boy doubling over in laughter.

"It wasn't that funny," Young Link grumbled, picking himself up from the snow. He nearly fell down again, but caught himself just in time.

"Yeah… But… Man… You really don't know how to ice skate!" Ness said, still chuckling.

"You finally noticed?" muttered Young Link darkly. He wobbled slightly, and then took his first step.

"Imagine how you'll be like on ice," giggled a feminine voice.

Young Link nearly fell over again, turning so quickly to see Lola, her cheeks bright pink from the cold. He saw that she was accompanied by Popo who was also laughing, and Nana who was refusing to meet his eyes. All three of them had halted to a stop on the snow bank

What's up with her? Young Link found himself thinking. She looks like she'd rather be anywhere but here. What a killjoy…

"Yeah, you can't even stay straight on the snow!" chirped Popo.

"Shut up!" Young Link said, his cheeks reddening. He expected Nana to say something else to ridicule him, but she was still avoiding his eyes. He noticed her cheeks were also pink, not as rosy as Lola's, but there was still color on her face.

"Alright, we'll stop," Ness chuckled.

"Here, take my arm. I'll teach you how to skate," Lola said, proffering her arm to Young Link.

Reluctantly, he linked his arm through Lola's. He stole a glance at Nana who had finally lifted her eyes off the ground. She was talking to Ness. She seemed like herself. Oddly, Young Link felt disappointed at this.

Together, they walked to the creek. Popo and Nana were the first to reach there. Popo tentatively placed his skate on the frozen floor and announced, "I think it may be hard enough."

But Nana was already on the ice before Popo had given this announcement. Young Link wasn't surprised by how fast she was, but noted that she didn't really look graceful on the ice, the way he'd seen professional ice skaters. She skated like…

…Like a hockey player.

"C'mon take your first step," Lola said, breaking into his thoughts. She was still holding his hand, but she was on the ice, while he was on the snow.

"I… Can't," muttered Young Link refusing to budge. Lola tugged on his hand, trying to make him move.

"Yes you can!" responded Lola, "Anyone can ice skate. It just takes practice!"

"Dude, are you going to stay out on the snow forever?" Ness asked, slowing to a stop at the edge of the ice.

Ness was neither graceful nor fast for that matter. He didn't look like he knew much about skating. But at least he knows how to do it…

Reluctantly, Young Link took a step on the ice.

"Finally!" cheered Lola. She waited until Young Link had both his skates inside the ice before saying, "I'm going to drag you across the ice, so you get the feel of it."

"Wait… Lola… No…" Young Link said, weakly. But it was too late. Before he knew it, he was moving.

Lola was a graceful skater. Perhaps she was not as fast as Nana, but she skated gracefully, moving her body forward, her back straight, and her face leaning forward, showing off her neck.

After awhile, Young Link was starting to enjoy being on the ice. "This isn't that bad," he admitted to Lola. Too bad he failed to see Lola's smirk.

"Really? Glad you think so. Now I'm going to let you go. If you want to go faster, just… kind of do what I'm doing. And if you want to stop, bring your skates forward so that they kind of make a stop like this," Lola explained, slowing to a stop by making her skates go inward.

She started skating again, and once she had achieved a slow gentle pace, she let go of Young Link who yelped.

"What do I do?!" Young Link asked, scared.

"Skate!" Nana shouted, zooming by him.

Show-off! One day, I'll make her climb redwood trees. We'll see how she likes those… Young Link thought, gritting his teeth. He placed a skate forward, trying to mime Lola's graceful posture. But he stumbled over and fell over on the ice. It hurt, but Yong Link wasn't about to let anyone know.

"Are you okay?" Lola asked worriedly, effortlessly stopping in front of him. She put her hand out so that he could get up.

Young Link took it, and Lola managed to pull the boy up to his feet without wobbling once.

"You seem to be very good at keeping your balance," Young Link stated. He was being very honest when he said that.

Perhaps that was why Lola blushed and looked down at her feet. Young Link looked away uneasily. He hated what he was doing to Lola, but at the same time, he didn't know how to end it. He'd always liked Lola… Only as a friend. He wished he'd never asked her out. At the time, when he wanted to tarnish Nana's reputation badly, it seemed like a good idea. Now… As Young Link watched Lola's face resume her original color, he knew what he was doing was cruel. He had to stop it, but how? He didn't want to make things ugly. If he ended it, He was scared that things may end up awkward between the two, or otherwise it might end up nasty. He wanted it to be the way before; to tease Lola with Ness, Popo, and Nana. But that was all. He didn't like it when she held his hand. It just… Didn't seem right.

"When I was little, Popo and I used to skate together all the time!" Lola said cheerily, "He was a very good teacher. Always patient with me. I used to be worse than you were right now. But… It's always been my dream to be a professional ice skater."

"Really?" Young Link asked, surprised. A professional ice skater. It seemed to suit Lola, but Young Link would have never guessed. "Then why are you a Smasher?" he asked, frowning.

Lola turned away from him, so that her back was facing him, "I got lonely."

Lonely?

"Lonely?"

"Yeah. Nana and Popo were my best friends. A year after they left, I was truly alone up here on the mountain. I wanted to be with people my own age. Not only that, but I also wanted to be famous. I thought, if I joined Super Smash Brothers, it would be easier for me to become recognized as a figure skater. It was a perfect opportunity. Lila was against me going of course. And who could blame her?" Lola murmured the last sentence so quietly that Young Link had to strain his ears to pick it up.

"Why was she against you going?" Young Link dared to ask.

"Because…" Lola slid her feet around and faced him again. Her face, he noted, was paler than usual. It seemed to be drained of its color. Her eyes were on the floor. Young Link held his breath. He could sense that Lola was about to reveal something she shouldn't.

BAM!

Young Link felt himself roughly push into Lola. He felt his body hit her roughly, as both of them collided to the floor, hard. His shoulder stung from hitting the ice so hard. For one brief moment he felt something almost fall on top of him.

"Oh sorry! I totally lost control, and next thing you know, I hit you both. I'm really sorry! Are you both okay?" Nana asked, laughing. There was an edge to her voice that suggested she had known what Lola was about to say. Young Link untangled himself from Lola as quickly as possible.

"Why don't you just get glasses, Glace?" Young Link spat irritably. "Then you'd know where you're going."

Nana opened her mouth, perhaps to retaliate, when she shut it again.

"Yeah… You'd better stay quiet!" Young Link snarled. He was trying to pick himself up.

"Stop it! Stop moving!" Nana yelled. She grabbed Young Link's hand and forced him on his knees.

"What are you doing?" Young Link asked, snatching his hand away from her. He looked around for Ness and Popo. Their eyes were wide open, far away, staring at where Nana and Young Link were.

"Link!" Lola screamed. Young Link turned around, and saw Lola. She had crawled away from the ice and was sitting in the snow.

What's going on? Why did Lola leave so quickly?

"Get on your knees and place your hands on the floor. Crawl out of the ice. Now!" ordered Nana. Her voice had fear written all over it.

"Why?" Young Link asked.

"Just do it!"

CRACK!

Nana closed her eyes, as she felt the ice beneath her lose its stability.

Young Link quickly placed his hands on the ice. This is all Nana's fault! If she hadn't bumped into us, this wouldn't have happened!

"Go slowly," instructed Nana, trying to sound calm. "Don't move too fast. You'll make it worse."

Young Link slid his hand up. He heard the ice crack again. Nervously he inched his way back to the snow.

"I'm right behind you," soothed Nana. "Just keep going." Ugh… This is all my fault! If we ever get out of this alive, I swear, I'll let him nose around as much as possible without interfering!

"Just keep going… You're doing okay…" Nana babbled, comforting herself more than she was Young Link.

CRAAAACK!!

Nana screamed. The ice beneath her was splintering underneath them. She watched in horror as Young Link slipped underneath the ice with a yell.

Just my luck! As much as I hate that kid, I can't even consider letting him drown. This creek isn't very deep… It shouldn't be hard getting him out…

Before she could doubt herself, she took a deep breath let herself fall into the water.

The water hurt so badly. It was so cold that she felt like it was fire on her skin. Already her body was numbing up. She opened her eyes, and through a haze, she saw Young Link falling… Falling… Falling to the bottom. The weight of his skates were pulling him down even faster. He seemed to have been knocked unconscious because of the sudden cold.

She kicked her legs furiously. Please don't be dead… Please don't be dead. Please don't be dead!

His cap was gone from his head, letting loose a stream of golden hair, clouding his face. Only his mouth was exposed, slightly open.

Please don't be dead. Please don't be dead. Please don't be dead! Nana had finally caught up to Young Link. She caught him around the waist and began to swim upward.

But her legs were tired and Young Link was heavier than her. The skates were making it difficult to swim upward. Her lungs ached for air. Her body, no longer screaming for warmth, was numb and clumsy. She almost lost grip on Young Link.

We're never going to make it up… Never.

Nana desperately tried to go up faster. She kicked as hard as she could, but her legs wanted to rest. Her lungs were starting to feel pressured. They needed air.

We'll never make it out! Unless…

Praying that Young Link always carried his weapons, Nana rummaged through his belt. His sword hilt was still there. She finally found what she was looking for.

The hookshot.

Pleased with herself. She took careful aim, prayed that Ness, Popo or Lola or somebody was nearby, and pressed the handle, activating the weapon. She felt the force of the hookshot, as its point broke through the thin layer of ice, five feet above.

Her body felt dead, her brain felt dead. It was too late. She felt herself almost slipping out of consciousness. Her lungs begged her to take a breath. She had to. She didn't care if she died anymore. She needed to breathe.

And suddenly she felt herself being dragged upward. Slow at first, but faster. She was going to die. It was too late. She couldn't wait any longer.

I'm sorry Link…

She let out a gasp, fully prepared to meet her Maker. Only she was on the surface. She wasn't dead. She coughed out the water that had gotten into her.

She was alive.

"Nana!" she heard her voice uttered by Popo. His voice sounded relieved, and scared at the same time. She felt his arms wrap around her tight.

So warm… He was so incredibly warm. It was strange… He was on fire. Was he running a fever? She tried to withdraw from his embrace, but he wouldn't let her go.

"I'm… Fine…" she coughed into his chest. Really. She was. She kept taking in the air, gulping lungfuls of it.

She felt him pull her out of the water. She felt her and Young Link get dragged to the snow. She tried to stand, or at least get up. But she couldn't.

"Where… Is Lola?" Nana asked blearily. She had spotted Ness, who had his arms tight around Young Link.

"She went to get help," Popo said. "Are you alright?"

"I'm alive, aren't I?" Nana said, trying to laugh. But her lungs were weak, and they wouldn't let her. "Can you get off of me now? I love you too Popo, but uh…"

"Shut up! I'm sharing my body heat with yours, idiot." Popo said, irritably.

Nana let out a wheeze, which was supposed to be a laugh.

"Is he awake?" Nana rasped. "Link?"

"Yeah, I think so. He's a bit weaker than you though. He's not a winter person, so falling into ice cold water must've really done him in."

"You don't say…" Nana muttered. She glanced at Young Link who was unsuccessfully trying to push himself away from Ness. His blonde hair hung limply over his clear blue eyes. His hair was longer than Nana had ever seen. Wet, it hung just past his shoulders.

Young Link turned his head in her direction, and caught her staring at him. Nana blinked, feeling the blood rush to her cheeks. She averted her gaze.

I've seen those eyes somewhere in my dreams…

X.X.X

They would live, according to Mrs. Glace. Nothing a hot shower couldn't cure.

It did leave him feeling refreshed, though his nose was a bit drippy. He wandered around the room in warm, flannel pajamas that he'd borrowed from Popo. His hair was still slightly damp from the shower, and he felt like taking a nap, but Mrs. Glace advised against it, saying he wouldn't sleep at night, when he would need it the most.

So he strolled aimlessly on the upper floor, pausing just outside of Nana's room. She was probably still taking a shower, but Lola might be in there. And Lola was about to tell him something that could be important.

So he knocked the door quietly. What if Nana did open the door? If Nana did answer the door… He wouldn't know what to say to her.

Thankfully Lola opened it. She gave him a bear hug that Young Link once again, felt reluctant to receive.

"Come in… How are you feeling?" Lola asked.

"Fine, thanks to that shower. I really needed it…" Young Link responded. He sniffed. "I have a bit of a cold though."

He walked into Nana's room. He could hear the shower on, which meant Nana was showering. He could also hear her singing faintly too. Horribly.

Young Link repressed a grin.

"Aw… That's too bad," Lola cooed. She drew close to him and lightly kissed his lips. "I'm sure it'll get better."

Young Link jerked at the sudden contact.

If Lola hadn't noticed how uncomfortably he was before, she did now. She studied Young Link's face, and with a frown she asked, "Is something wrong?"

Young Link flushed, feeling the guilt again. He changed the subject. "Uh… Well… You were about to tell me something before Nana knocked into us."

Lola looked disappointed. "Yes… I was. I forgot what I was going to say…"

Young Link knew it was a lie. But he didn't press it. He looked down at Nana's floral bedding, and traced the quilt stitches on it. He wondered. Should he ask Lola who Lyle was? Now was his perfect opportunity. Nana was taking a shower, and it didn't seem she would be finishing anytime soon.

He weighed his chances.

"What are you thinking about?" Lola asked, looking at his bowed head.

Young Link lied, "Nothing."

"Terrible liar," Lola said lightly. She was smiling though, which encouraged him.

"I don't know if you want to know what I'm thinking," Young Link said, still idly tracing the patterns. He was baiting her.

"Silly! Of course I do!" Lola said. She put a hand on Young Link's cheek and brought it up so that he could meet her stare. "What are you thinking about?"

Young Link hesitated. Well… She's insisting. I warned her, so it's not my fault…

"Lola… Do you… Know who Lyle is?"

Young Link heard her sharp intake of breath, and felt her hand on his cheek grow clammy. She froze for a minute, and then she let go of his face. Her eyes held a look of shock.

"How do you know about him?" she asked in hushed tones, "Why do you want to know?"

Young Link tried to keep his voice calm, and subdued, "I saw him in a picture in one of your old albums. Nana seems to know him very well, but she refuses to talk about him. She seems… sad every time his name comes up. I was just curious…"

Lola quietly said, "You seem to know Nana's intake on Lyle. Why don't you ask her? What else have you talked to her about that I don't know?"

Alarmed, Young Link looked at Lola. Her eyes were seething. "N-nothing. I was hoping I could get the answers from you!"

"Why do you want to know so much? Because it hurts Nana? That's probably the reason isn't it?"

"What? I'm not going to blackmail Nana!" Young Link protested. He wished he hadn't said anything now.

"That's not what I meant!" Lola angrily responded, "Now I know why you've been so uncomfortable around me. You like Nana, don't you?"

"What?! No! I just want-"

"Want to know more of Nana's angst-ridden life?! I have one too, you know! Lyle isn't only her business. He's more my business than hers!"

"What do you mean?"

"Don't talk about things you don't understand, Link," Lola snarled. She got up from the bed and faced away from him. Her voice changed to a calmer yet icier tone, "Do you really want to know who Lyle is?"

"…Yes," Young Link said, his heart beating fast. "But if you don't want to tell me… Then you don't have to."

"You'll know anyway," Lola said, giving a humorless laugh, "When you start going out with her."

"I never said-"

"Yes… You didn't," Lola responded in a bored tone. "But you're going to dump me aren't you? I should've known you never liked me. You probably just used me to get back at Nana. To filch her undergarments…"

Young Link squirmed. The way she put it made him feel even guiltier. Was he really that transparent?

"I should've seen that coming. I just wanted a boyfriend so badly… But no matter. About Lyle… Let me start from the beginning.

"In Ice Climber culture, having twins is good luck. Popo and Nana are twins. So their family was blessed with good luck."

Young Link didn't know where Lola was going with this, but he was quiet. He let her continue.

"Unfortunately, my family wasn't blessed with the same luck. But it's also a custom to have two children, in each family. Any more is considered bad luck. Any fewer children meant bad luck, unless of course, the wife cannot bear any more children. But that seldom happened. Icicle Mountain used to be a healthy place full of happy thriving people. Now, everybody's gone…"

Lola gazed out the window at the white, blank scenery. Suddenly she changed tack. She let out an odd laugh. It was half hysterical, half real.

"You know… Popo was more of my friend than Nana was? I enjoyed being in Popo's company a lot more than being in Nana's. Popo always understood me more than Nana. You probably think that Nana was the oddball. She wasn't. She found friendship and quite possibly developed a crush on Lyle, now that I think of it."

Lola took a deep breath, and faced Young Link, her shoulders oddly upright, her eyes shinier than normal. Young Link vaguely acknowledged the shower had shut off, and now there was only the quiet that separated what Lola had to say next.

"Lyle… Was Nana's best friend. He was also…" Lola stopped. Young Link was startled to see tears in her eyes. Her hand crept to her face, and discreetly tried to wipe away the tears.

"Lola…" Young Link started. He was going to tell her to stop. He couldn't bear to see her like this. He pitied her. But before he could even think of what to say, Lola spoke the rest of the sentence.

"…My older brother."

X.X.X

That's the end of this chapter! Could you figure it out in the beginning?

Uhh… So please review!