The Master Sword was light in his hands despite its length. Even though he held it aloft, he could tell that it was far longer than the sword that Rusl had made, and was perhaps only a bit shorter than Link himself. There was no way that a piece of steel that was nearly five feet long was this light, but perhaps the sword was made of an ancient alloy that no one knew how to make anymore. It was thousands of years old, he knew that from the legends of the ancient hero that first held the sword. Yet it looked pristine.
He lowered it and held it in a standard stance, testing its balance before giving it a few experimental swings. Link gave a small smile of satisfaction after doing so. It felt like an extension of himself, as if it was made specifically for him. Or perhaps he was made for the sword, since the spirit of his ancestor had mentioned that Link was the soul of the ancient hero reborn.
Midna approached him to hover at his left, looking in awe at the silvery sword and then at him. "The sword chose you as its master." It shouldn't have been a surprise to her, after what both Zelda and the knight's spirit had said, yet he hadn't simply pulled the sword. He had bonded with it, its artificial soul melding with his. That was likely why she was dumbstruck, since her magical senses were strong. "I haven't felt a magical relic that strong before. It's even stronger than the completed Fused Shadows, but in a different way. The magic in the sword feels kind of...quiet. Serene." She flickered her eyes up to his. "Do you feel all right?"
Link lowered the sword and nodded. "I feel tired, like all of the energy that Faron gave me is gone, but otherwise I'm fine. The pain's gone. It's strange though.." He placed the fingertips of his right hand on his forehead. "There's a presence in my head now. Like the sword is with me in more ways than one. It feels like the sword's consciousness has joined with mine."
There was more to it than that, and he couldn't quite describe what he actually felt now that he possessed the Blade of Evil's Bane. The soul that merged its mind with his was intelligent, but not human at all. It had no emotions or desires, only a quiet curiosity as it observed the world through his body. The strangest part of it was the familiarity it seemed to have with him, this ancient sword merging with the mind of a young man not even twenty years old, and deferring to him.
It had spoke to him and called him "Master".
He realized that he now had two swords, and his other one was still strapped to his back. He couldn't remove it with only his right hand. It felt disrespectful to set the beautiful, sentient sword down on the stones of the ruined temple. "I don't need two swords, so I'll leave my old one here for now. Can you help me take off my baldric?"
"Sure, but how are you going to carry it if you don't have a sheath? Your old sword is shorter." She glided over to him to help him like he requested.
"Yeah, good point. Maybe I'll go to Rusl's house instead and see if he has-" He stopped mid-sentence as a blue and gold sheath appeared on the ground at his feet. The sword would have its own scabbard, of course. "Oh, uh. Thank you?" He had no idea where it was up until now, but perhaps the sword had abilities he didn't know about.
Affirmative. Link practically jumped at the female voice heard inside of his head, not expecting it to speak to him again. Not only was it paying attention, it had commentary.
"You okay?" Midna asked quizzically, putting a hand on his arm.
"Oh. Um, yeah. The sword it...it can talk." He stooped to pick up the beautiful gold-trimmed scabbard and carefully slid the sacred sword into it before setting it on the dais.
"Oh, so that's what it was doing. I heard a little sound, almost like a chime and then you jumped like you were spooked." She watched as he began to remove his baldric. "What did it say?"
"Just now it said 'affirmative', and it was saying it in response to something I was thinking. It seems fairly formal if it said that instead of 'yes'." He slid the leather straps off his torso and knelt to unbuckle Rusl's sword from the back of them. "It sounds like a female voice, but it isn't really female. It's a sword so it doesn't have a gender." Link gave a short sigh. "I'm finding it hard to explain these things properly. I understand them pretty clearly in my head, but putting them to words is another thing."
"Such is the way when dealing with legendary sentient swords, I suppose." Her voice moved farther away behind him as he worked to strap the Master Sword to his baldric. It was far longer, so he hoped it wouldn't get tangled in his legs when he ran. Perhaps if he adjusted the other straps that went around his waist and shoulder, he could get it to sit at more of an angle across his back.
He was doing just that when Midna spoke again, moving directly in front of him. "Link, look." He raised his eyes to see an object balanced in the air above her small hand. It was a jagged thorn of black crystal etched with angry orange lines that contrasted with the aqua-colored ones on her hands. The crystal was about the size of an unshelled almond.
He furrowed his brow, wondering what it was. They hadn't noticed it before. "What is that thing?" he asked, reaching for it.
"Don't touch it!" Midna warned, moving back and away from him slightly. "This is the thing that cursed you. If you touch it, Courage will probably turn you back into a wolf."
His hand froze when she raised her voice, and he lowered it to peer at the spiky little object. There were so many sharp points on it; no wonder it hard hurt. "That's what went into my brain? How am I not dead?"
"You could ask that about a lot of things by now, you know." she said dryly and then turned her attention back to the magical object. "This evil little thing is most definitely not the magic of my people. You said it yourself that shadow magic in itself isn't evil, but this isn't shadow magic. It's something else dark and sinister. I think that Zant wanted to use this on me so I would die, and when that didn't work he…" She shivered, still traumatized by the fierce beams of light that Lanayru had used on her.
"Are you all right?"
"I'll be fine." the imp said, brushing her trauma aside. She did it so easily, that he felt a small pang of jealousy; he was slow to get over his own issues. "If he wanted to kill me, that means he still sees me as a threat, and by extension you as well. Because of that I think we should keep it. Let's use his stupid little spell as a tool against him. That way, you can be a wolf if you need to in the future."
Link gave a snort. "Like hell I will. I've told you how much it hurts."
"But why not? The magic sword you now have would probably change you back into a man if you wanted."
Affirmative, said the sword.
Midna frowned down at the purple hilt that stuck out of the dark blue scabbard. "Is it going to keep talking all the time like that? Because if it is, it's going to get annoying real quick."
He opened his mouth to reply, but then the sword sounded in his mind. Please tell her that I did not mean offense, and I apologize. I shall endeavor to remain quiet for now. He'd have to get used to it interjecting like that. "The sword says it's sorry and it wasn't trying to make you mad. It's going to be quiet for now."
"Peachy." She seemed to accept the apology, and continued talking about the dark magic. "I know I should probably get rid of this, hide it in the Temple of Time or drop it into a sea somewhere. I think I can find a better use for it, if you don't want to be a wolf anymore. It might be nice to curse him in return, and stick him in some twisted little form that can't eat or sleep for the rest of his life." Her tone was malicious, and then bitter. He could understand how she felt, but he didn't agree with her idea.
"Isn't that petty?" He asked, pausing in the middle of adjusting a strap on the baldric to look at her. "There's no denying the guy's evil, but we can't turn around and be evil right back at him. Having to kill him in order to protect our homes is one thing, but torturing him the way he tortured you? It's monstrous."
Midna slumped and shut her eyes, the small thorn of evil magic vanishing into a few squares. "You're right." she said weakly. "He's cruel but...I can't be cruel back. The fact that we won't stoop so low to be that horrible is what separates us from him, isn't it? That's why he's a false king and I'm…" She opened her red eye, looking right through him as she mumbled to herself. "I'm a good person…" Her voice became small and unsure. "Am I good person, Link?"
He hadn't seen her like this before. Once she was close, when she feared the Fused Shadows and what they were doing to her, but even then that was fear and not self-doubt. Now she seemed so vulnerable, and more like an uncertain young woman. Link left the baldric on the ground and stood, gently putting his arms around her and pulling her close to his chest. "I think you are."
She stiffened, not expecting the embrace, and then relaxed with an unhappy little sigh. "Why did you trust me? Why do you still trust me? I treated you like dirt when I first met you, and Zelda too. I hated the people of the light world just like Zant does. Why would you care about me?" Her voice was ragged, hovering on the verge of tears. "Why did Zelda give me her soul? The body can't live without a soul…" She shook, and when he looked down at her he could see from her face that she was weeping, yet no tears fell from her eyes. Did Zant's curse make it impossible for her to shed tears, just like eating or sleeping? She still felt the emotion behind tears and her small shoulders heaved with heavy, choking breaths.
Link stood there in the ruined temple where the Master Sword had slept and listened to the unbelievable sound of Midna crying. She always had seemed so strong, but regardless of her bluster earlier about not crying much, even she had her limits. The two of them had nearly died, and she was afraid she was like the horrible person that had tried to kill them. Like him, she had bottled up her emotions and they were all coming out.
"I know you're still feeling guilty over what Zelda did, but please don't blame yourself. Both Faron and myself said that it wasn't your fault." he said gently. She made a small weepy sound and turned her face to hide it in his green tunic. It was a horrid little sound that tugged at his heartstrings. "Shh, it's all right. You deserved to be saved. Zelda saw the good in you, just like I did. You were dying, yet you were thinking about me, and about both the people of Hyrule and your home. After spending these past couple of weeks with you, I can see that's your real personality. You have a good heart."
Midna grew quiet as he spoke, his words soothing. She gave a small sigh and turned her head back, staring out at the ruined walls of the Temple of Time. "It's just...I'm so frustrated with myself, Link. I tried to stand up to Zant, but I didn't use the full extent of my power because I didn't want to kill him. I could have done more, but I didn't because I never would have thought he would become so cruel and wicked. He always was ambitious, but ultimately harmless." She brought her small hand up to rest it next to her face on the tunic. "When did he change? Was I blind?"
"I don't have all the answers with only part of the story, but I know that you've been acting in good faith so far. Even if you say that you hated my world and the people in it, your true nature didn't let you look away." She was so much like he was, he knew that.
The imp was quiet for a minute, no longer crying. She had her ear and hand rested against the middle of his chest, and if he had to guess she was listening to his heart. "I haven't been entirely honest with you." she said after a moment.
"No kidding." He knew she couldn't see his wry smile, but he figured she heard it in his voice.
She made a small sound and the corners of her mouth turned up ever so slightly. Now that she was no longer a shadow being, it was far easier to read her expression. As it turned out, Midna had quite the expressive face. "I need to tell you where Zant I come from. It's a place called the Twilight Realm, although your people may know it as the Shadow Realm. It's a place of darkness and peace, with many islands floating in a dark sky. My people are users of shadow magic; not that horrible evil stuff Zant got from his 'god', but real shadow magic. The shadow magic that's the other side of light magic, as part of the great balance of things. We Twili...we didn't start out there, but were banished. Exiled, for using our shadow magic to harm others."
The Twili raised her face to look up at him. "Don't you get it? We're the descendants of the Interlopers that were sealed by the Light Spirits." She carefully tried to read his expression, but didn't see what she was expecting there so she continued. "We're of the bloodline of those who tried to invade the Sacred Realm and made the Fused Shadows, the most terrifying magical relic the world has ever known. Doesn't that bother you?"
"No." he said truthfully, now understanding so much more about her. "You think I should be angry, don't you?"
"Yes. I've been lying to you."
Link gave a small laugh. "You've been hiding the truth, which is different than lying. I've been doing both, so I'm not in any position to judge you." He raised his eyes to look at the broken pillars and walls that surrounded them, considering what she had said. Now was the time to tell her the thing she wanted to know. "What you said makes a lot of sense in light of the vision Lanayru gave me. It warned me about the Fused Shadows and how dangerous it was, but the way it did it was terrifying. I saw the war and the reasons behind it, but then I saw an Interloper use the Fused Shadows to kill hundreds in seconds."
His voice grew quiet. "Then I was that man using the Fused Shadows, and I could hear it talking to me, demanding that I destroy everything. Killing was addicting, and even though I kept begging for something to stop me, I kept doing it. I was out of control. Then the Light Spirits came and they hit me with that same light that Lanayru used on you, but it killed me. It burned me into nothing. I was able to see my body and bones burn away. Then I was dead, and there was...nothing." He fell silent and tightened his arms around her, still horrified. The experience made him fear his own death now.
He felt her hand pat him gently on the chest. "No wonder you were screaming."
"Yeah." Link lowered his eyes to meet hers again. "I didn't want to tell you the details, not just because it really broke my brain for a while, but because I didn't want you to believe that you were like that. I wanted to trust you, and I wanted you to know that I trusted you."
"You did, and you saved me from them. And now you should be wearing your legendary sword, but instead you set it down to hug me and talk me through things." She sighed and shut her eyes. "It makes me think of my father, when I was a little girl. After I got older we grew apart, and then nobody did this for me. Except you. It's nice." That confirmed his theory as to why she wanted to touch him all the time. Nobody else did. She really had to have been so lonely.
"You did hear my stance on crying friends, right?"
"I'm sorry I wound up crying after all. I'm supposed to be more in control of myself, but I guess everything got to me." She pushed off his chest and he let her go. "I'm okay now. Thanks for being a good friend."
A good friend. Hearing her say that warmed his heart. "No problem. I want to help you."
"And I want your help. There's something called the Mirror of Twilight in Hyrule. I know you were only supposed to help me find the Fused Shadows but…" She put her little rune-covered hand to the side of his face. "...will you help me find it?"
Link smiled. "I couldn't say no at this point. Just point me in the right direction and I'll go."
She returned his smile and gave a satisfied nod. "It's in a desert, on top of an old stone building. It's huge, so it's probably some kind of temple. There was a large town near it, or maybe a small city, I'm not sure. That's where I came into Hyrule, before the Twilight was here." Midna tucked her hands behind her back and lowered her eyes in shame. "That's also where Zant followed me, and why he came to the light world in the first place. He was looking for me."
"Is that why you said you feel responsible for some of the things that happened?" He knelt and tested the straps on his baldric to make sure they were securely fastened to the Master Sword's scabbard.
"Yes. He probably wouldn't have come here if I didn't use the Mirror on the Twilight Realm side of things. I quite literally left the door open for him." She stop staring at the ground and met his eyes, looking determined. "I had to come here, though. I knew this is where the Fused Shadows fragments were, and I knew it was the only way. People back home need my help because I'm one of the more powerful sorcerers, but the only way I could help them was to go get the relic that sent our ancestors into the Twilight Realm in the first place."
"You know, it's entirely possible that when you got away from Zant, you happened to be running in the direction he was going anyway." He stood and began to strap on the baldric. "He knew about the Fused Shadows too, so he might have wanted to find them. It sure sounded like he wanted to conquer Hyrule and the other nations of our world. This is another thing you shouldn't blame yourself for."
Her red-on-yellow eye followed the movements of his hands as she spoke. "Whether I shoulder the blame or not, I need to lure him back to the Twilight Realm to get the Fused Shadows again. I know I can convince my people to fight him. Zant wasn't exactly popular back home, even before the coup. The Twili will help, I'm sure of it. We need to get to that desert first."
"The only desert in Hyrule is the Gerudo Desert. You have to cross a canyon and go through the Gerudo Highlands to get to it." He rolled his shoulders to shift the Master Sword into place, trying to get it to sit comfortably between his shoulder blades. "The problem is, relations with the Gerudo soured after the war centuries ago. They keep to themselves, so there probably aren't any Gerudo we can walk up to and ask about it."
"Then what's your plan?"
"Hmm. We could try asking Telma, since she has connections. She might know a Gerudo, or knows somebody who knows one…" He trailed off, staring into the distance as something occurred to him. "Zelda was telling Shad about a guy that was in the desert that was supposed to come back to the castle. Maybe Shad has some information about that."
"Shad isn't going to be happy when he figures out that you were the wolf he helped. I doubt he's found Zelda's body yet, but it's only a matter of time." She picked up the Ordonian blade that was originally intended as a gift. "Is it my imagination or is this scabbard sloshing?"
"What?" He took it from her hands and pulled the blade from its sheath. A few droplets sparkled on the sword, and when he tipped the brown leather scabbard upside down, water dribbled out of it. "I used it underwater." Link said with a rueful grimace. "Great. Now I need to oil it." He began to wipe the water off the blade on his leggings, muttering. "After I was so careful to take care of it, I had to be an idiot and draw it underwater. Link, you moron..."
"We can go back to Ordon and go to Rusl's house to get some." The Twili rose up into the air a bit to take in a large portion of the Temple of Time with her eyes. "This place has a pretty strong magic about it so I don't know if I could teleport here, but if we go back on the road I think I can. Cities are built at a big crisscross of ley lines." She floated back down to smirk at him. "Provided your stomach is okay with the trip."
"I would teleport through every damn portal in Hyrule if it meant I could fall into a bed soon." He slid the sword back into its sheath. "But I don't want to go to Ordon. I ought to go back to Kakariko to tell Renado and Ilia that Ralis is safe with his people. If that town was full of miners, they'll have a blacksmith's shop, and I'll find what I need there to take care of this sword." If not, he knew of alternatives.
"Sounds good to me. We ought to leave this temple if we're going to get anywhere." She gave his hair a gentle pat. "Let's find you a bed to fall into."
It wasn't too long until he and Midna materialized at Eldin's Spring and the bright morning sun of Kakariko. It had risen high enough to be above the canyon wall, and the summer morning was already growing hot. It was quite the difference from the cool forest that surrounded the Temple of Time.
Midna turned to face the sun, shading her eye beneath a hand. "It's so bright...but it's so warm too." She giggled, putting her hands to her pale gray cheeks. "I had no idea that sunlight felt this good."
"Don't get sunburn on your first day out in it." There was a laugh and a child's excited shout, and he turned to her quickly. "You'd better hide. The kids are out."
"Oh. They still might think I'm a monster, even if I'm not all dark anymore." She sighed a bit unhappily and formed into dark orbs, still able to turn into shadows at will, and merged with the ones on Link. "I guess I'll be riding with you for a bit longer." her voice said from his chest.
"You know you love it." He smirked when she gave a little laugh, and then stepped out into the road. Colin, Talo and two Goron children were playing with a leather ball in the middle of the road not too far north of the Sanctuary. There was a cafe nearby, and Gor Liggs, Malo and two adult Gorons sat on the edge its porch to watch the children play. Talo raised his eyes from the game, and they widened in excitement when he saw who was walking down the road.
"Link's back!" the boy cried, running past the other children to hit the young man with what was halfway between a tackle and a hug.
He gave a startled "oof" and returned the child's enthusiastic hug. "Woah, easy there buddy. I've had a rough night and haven't gotten to bed yet. Don't beat me up, okay?" He noticed that the boys were wearing different clothes. Ilia had been busy.
"You got to stay up all night?" Talo raised his feathery eyebrows. "Uli would be mad."
"I won't tell her if you won't. Hello, Colin. How's your arm today?" The hug from the blonde boy was far more gentle, which Link appreciated. He couldn't picture Colin being rough with anyone.
"It hurts sometimes, but Renado gives me medicine when it does and then it feels better after a while." Colin gave a happy smile. "I can still play, which is good because we made friends with Cero and Karkan."
The two Goron boys offered polite hellos to the adult they didn't know, or perhaps to the hero they had kept hearing about. "Can we get a hug too?" asked one of them. He had no idea if the boy was Cero or Karkan. One of the two fathers chuckled from where he stood behind the children, the adults having walked over.
"Sure, why not? Hugs for all the kids." He wrapped his arms around the giggling Goron children. "Nice to meet you, Cero and Karkan."
The Goron child who had asked for the hug turned to one of the adult Gorons with a grin. "Dad! Did you see? I got a hug from the hero! Dad's gonna flip when he hears about this!"
The Goron grinned widely just like his son. He was a bit taller than the average Goron, and his skin had more of a yellow tone to it. "You bet. He ain't gonna believe his ears."
Midna made a small confused sound in his ears, speaking to him alone. "If all Gorons are male then how do they- ...you know what, I don't want to continue this sentence."
"Link, you got a new sword!" Talo exclaimed. Everything was exciting and loud when it came to Jaggle's eldest boy. He had either noticed the purple hilt sticking up, or the old sword and its scabbard held in Link's left hand. "It's really fancy. Look at that pretty gem." He took in Link's flat expression and held up his right hand as if taking an oath. "I promise not to ask to see it. Swords are weapons and not toys." It sounded rehearsed, but it was nice to hear him say it.
"Good boy." Link ruffled his hair, and then frowned when he saw Gor Liggs' expression. "Are you okay?"
"Your sword…" The tattooed old Goron's faded blue eyes were wide. "You have the Master Sword."
The other two adult Gorons gawped at him, recognizing the name. The children didn't seem to. "What's the Master Sword?" asked Malo.
"It's the legendary sacred weapon that only the Hero of Hyrule can use. He didn't have it before, but now it seems that he has fully stepped into his role of the hero." Liggs said. Like he hadn't stepped into the role before when he risked his skin to help others? The sword didn't make a difference, did it? Ralis had said as much. "Now you are truly like the ancient hero. I have no doubt that you will save us all." To his surprise, Liggs bowed. Since their elder bowed, the other two adult Gorons did as well.
It was extremely awkward. Gorons never bowed for anyone.
"Um, thanks. Listen, where is Renado?" He hoped a rapid change of subject would make them stop. It was bad enough people stared at him when they realized he was the hero. Now they were going to bow too?
"In the Sanctuary with Ilia and Gor Coron." Liggs thankfully stopped bowing, straightening up. "Coron told me that you found my son and grandson, and they are safe. I thank you for that news, hero."
"No problem." He would tell Liggs the details of his family another time. For now, he was tired and wanted to hurry up so he could eat something and sleep. He glanced over his shoulder at the Sanctuary. "I'm going to talk with Renado. You kids go back to your game." He turned, his boots scuffing on the dusty road, and made his way to the large adobe building. They had bowed. Renado had better not bow.
It was nice and cool inside the round building when he stepped inside, shutting the bright morning out as he closed the door behind him. Renado sat in one of the library chairs, reading a book. Ilia and Coron sat cross-legged on the floor near the large statue of Eldin, with their backs to the door. They didn't even turn their heads when he entered, and kept staring forward. What they heck were they doing, anyway?
Renado raised his eyes from his book and stood up, wearing his robes today. "Link, you are back so soon? I thought you would have spent time in Zora's Domain instead of returning here. Ralis most certainly would have extended his hospitality to you."
"Waterfalls are pretty, but I doubt they have any beds there for a human. At least I can rest my head here." He noted that Ilia immediately turned around once she heard his voice.
She smiled and stood, brushing off the seat of her pants before walking over to him. While she was still wearing the blue Sheikah leggings, the robe had been replaced with a white sleeveless top in the Kakariko style. She came to stand close and didn't shyly avoid looking at him with a blush. Now that he had been gone only a day, she was far more composed around him. Midna was right, yet again.
"Nice shirt." he said instead of a hello. He had just seen her the morning before, after all.
"Thank you. I've been making clothes, using supplies in a tailor's shop that's next to Renado's house. I haven't managed to make something for Beth yet, but I'm working on it. So far I've made outfits for the boys and this shirt." Now she did avert her eyes, but there was no awkward blush. "I didn't hear you come in, sorry. Renado taught me how to relax my mind so I can remember things easier."
"She has taken to meditation well, and her sewing also helps free her mind while her hands are busy." The shaman had come to stand next to them with Coron, and he smiled gently at Ilia. "So far, she has not had any episodes."
"These two fine gentlemen have been keeping me company in case that happens again." Ilia raised her green eyes to meet his, and gave a little smile. "I can't expect you to be here all the time, after all."
He felt his heart skip a beat, struck by how beautiful she was even though they had only been apart a day. "Well you can expect me to be here today. I had a rough night and didn't get to sleep much, so I plan on doing that soon. I did want to come here and tell you and Renado that Ralis is safe and on his way home. We found a bunch of his soldiers, and they'll escort him up the river and back to the Domain." It was more or less the truth. She had no idea he went to Lake Hylia. Renado was the only one who knew what Link and Midna were actually up to, but he couldn't tell the man what had happened even if Ilia wasn't here. The Fused Shadows had been stolen, and that was a failure on their part.
"I'm glad he can go home." Her smile faded. "I wish I could."
"Don't you start." Link put a hand on his hip. "No moping. You're going to remember things, and then I'm going to bring you home. And maybe after you've had some time back in Ordon," He waved his right arm expansively. "I can bring you to some of the places I've been. How'd you like to swim in Zora's Domain, or relax in a Death Mountain hot spring?"
"You would certainly be welcome to visit us." Coron told her. "I know my son would give you the royal treatment if you did."
Now she did turn bit shy. "Just you and me?"
"Well now you've done it." Midna muttered in his ears.
He ignored the tart comment. "Sure, why not? We used to go riding together on Epona. It would be a longer ride, that's all. I'd have to get you your own horse, too." As soon as he said it, he realized that he had revealed some things about them that he shouldn't have. Not only did they go out riding Epona, but he implied that they both sat on the horse together. That on top of suggesting that a young man and woman travel alone across Hyrule together seemed to be too much for poor Ilia, who averted her eyes.
At least that was what it seemed like, at first. Then he realized that she hadn't looked away awkwardly, her eyes had simply looked straight ahead of where she was facing, staring unfocused at nothing. Ilia raised a trembling hand to her forehead. "I can't go riding. I can't." Her breathing suddenly came in rapid gasps, hovering somewhere between tears and total panic. Then her eyes fluttered and her knees buckled.
Link's reflexes were quick, and he dropped Rusl's sword with a rattle while moving forward to catch her. Her body was limp in his arms and she sagged against him. "No...oh no no no…" Now it was his turn to panic, not expecting something as innocent as talking about riding to trigger her.
The shaman stepped forward and took Ilia from Link, putting his arms beneath her knees and behind her back, and carried her to one of the nearby kneeling pillows that were scattered across the floor surrounding the wooden statue. He knelt and lay her out on the floor, Coron helping by placing the pillow beneath the young woman's head.
Link came to her side and knelt, breathing heavily from panic and the tears he knew were going to come. "This is why I can't be here." he said, failing to keep emotion out of his voice. He was so tired, and once again while he was so tired something had happened to fray his nerves. "You say that I should be here with her, but I'm better off gone. I could say anything that would set her off." He had no idea why mentioning riding of all things would make Ilia pass out.
"Please calm down." Renado said, placing his fingers to Ilia's neck to check her pulse. "This is not your fault. You had no way of knowing."
"I know." He should leave right now. He shouldn't be here when she woke up, but he found himself rooted on the spot, his eyes burning with tears. "That doesn't change the fact that I'm a danger to her. I shouldn't be here."
"Link. Control yourself." the man said sharply, fixing his eyes on him with an intense stare. "She will wake up soon. Do you really want to explain to her why you were in tears?" He lowered his eyes to look at Ilia again. "I know that you are a very emotional young man, but you must conduct yourself like an adult; regardless of what you have gone through to make you this way."
He sat back on his heels, feeling the long scabbard of the Master Sword tap against the floor. Renado had scolded him like he was a boy. Then again, he knew that he was acting like one. He was getting weepy just because he felt that he had caused Ilia to pass out, when in reality he did have no way of knowing and didn't do it on purpose. He sighed and rubbed at the tears standing in his eyes. "Sorry. I'm sorry."
"Do not be sorry, be in control. If you underwent something stressful while you were gone, you may find it useful to speak to me about it later. Or Coron."
"We fathers tend to be good listeners." the old Goron said, resting his brown hands on his knees as he bent to peer down at Ilia near her head. "Ilia has been speaking to us and has found it helpful."
"No, I'll be fine. I'm always fine eventually." He did not want to talk about it, feeling like talking about it would only upset him further. Neither one of them could relate to what he was doing anyway, only Midna could do that. "Thanks for the offer, but I'll work on it myself. If I'm going to be the hero, I need to set an example for others."
"While that is admirable, your mind needs care just as much as Ilia's. We did speak about this-" The shaman stopped speaking when the young woman on the floor made a small sound. He put his hand on her forehead, his brown skin looking dark against her pale face. "Ilia. Ilia, are you with us?"
Her eyes opened and she glanced around the room muzzily, looking confused. "Am I in bed? No...wait. This is the Sanctuary. Why am I on the floor?"
"I'm afraid you blacked out, my dear." The old Goron gave her a reassuring smile. "Link caught you, and we did our best to make you comfortable until you woke up."
"Oh." She sat up slowly, putting a hand to her head. "I'm a little dizzy." Ilia sat there for a few seconds taking slow breaths as she recovered. "This happened once before. It was when I rode in the wagon with Ralis. When I woke up, he was holding my hand even though he was injured, and he told me what happened. I should have told you, Renado. I'm sorry." Ralis wasn't supposed to tell her about that. Damn him. Link found himself mildly annoyed with his new Zora friend.
"Do not apologize. The dizziness will pass in a moment. You were only out for perhaps a minute. The important thing right now is for you to remain calm." the long-haired man said.
"I'm not scared, if that's what you're worried about. It feels like I was talking to the three of you, I blinked and then I was on the floor." Ilia lowered her hand and peered at Link's face carefully. "Are you all right?"
Was he all right? No. He absolutely was not all right, but he knew he needed to be. He hoped that she was unable to tell that he was about to turn into a blubbering idiot again. "Yeah, I'm okay. I got a little scared after seeing you faint."
Ilia gave a relieved sigh and slowly stood with Renado's aid. "I would be scared to see it too, so I understand. At least it happened here with you three and not in front of the children." She smiled at Renado and took one of his large hands in hers and gave it a gentle pat. "I'm fine now, thank you. You don't need to fret over me too much."
Renado did not admonish her for brushing off his concern, which was completely in character for her. It seemed that he had gotten to know Ilia well during her time at Kakariko. "You do indeed seem fine. It was as if it was only a momentary interruption. If that is so, then your brain is adjusting even when you are triggered. If you are feeling fine, I suggest you go find something to occupy your mind for the time being instead of meditation."
She nodded in agreement. "Maybe I'll have some of that blackberry tea that the merchants brought in and read the book you gave me."
Gor Coron offered her his arm. "Let me escort you, young lady. It wouldn't do to have you have a dizzy spell on the way to the inn."
Ilia gave the Goron a warm smile and accepted his arm. "Link, after you get some rest, let's talk a bit. I might not remember you, but I still like spending time with you."
He only faintly felt the butterflies in his stomach at her admittance of enjoying being near him. The physical and mental fatigue had caught up to him, and even the thrill of being near Ilia had dulled somewhat. "Yeah, sure. Go enjoy your book."
Link watched as the two exited the cool Sanctuary to walk through the hot summer day. What could have triggered her reaction? There weren't any tears this time, just some hyperventilating and a fainting spell. It was different than when he had held her in the stable while she cried.
"I lied to you." Renado said. When Link turned his head back to him with a confused expression, the shaman explained. "She did have one episode while you were away, but she is not aware of it. Coron and Ilia were sitting at Eldin's Spring yesterday after dinner, and Luda brought Epona over to the water to let her drink after exercising her. Seeing the horse standing in the spring made her panic just as she had here, and then fall unconscious. Coron caught her, and when she awoke he told her that she had nodded off. She has been working quite hard since that first meal she cooked, so it was a convenient lie that she believed."
"You don't want her to know about it? I don't understand." He stood up, finding it a bit awkward with the long sword strapped to his back. It would take some getting used to. "She seemed fine after you told her just now."
"I want her to remain positive, and in order for her to do that I would like to focus on her progress. If she cannot remember an incident, then we simply will not tell her of it. While her mental state is improving, she is still quite fragile." Renado picked up the book he had set down when Ilia had fainted. "Just like you. I know you likely think yourself strong and noble, but after getting to know you I can tell that you are slowly wearing down."
Link sighed and rubbed at the back of his neck. "I said I don't want to talk about it. Not everybody can feel better about talking about their problems."
"We almost died." Midna said. "Not in the usual way where we fought things, but in a way where we were helpless. He was cursed and in a lot of pain, and I was burned so badly that I actually was dying." She materialized next to Renado. "I had a bit of a mental breakdown earlier over what happened, so I'm not surprised he's close to one."
"I see." He looked her up and down. "You are no longer shadows. Is this what you really look like?"
"Yeah, this is the real me...well, the real cursed me. It happened as part of everything we went through this morning. It's too long to explain right now. Mr. Hero here needs some food and rest, but we can chat about it later." Midna moved to give Link's shoulder a gentle pat, which he didn't acknowledge. "We had some success even if the whole thing was stressful. Ralis is home, I'm not stuck hiding in shadows anymore, and Link has the Master Sword."
"Yes, I can see that he has the sword. Eldin told me once he entered the Sanctuary." Of course Renado would be able to mentally speak with the Light Spirit, if he was its shaman. It was likely a similar connection than what Link had with the Master Sword. "I did my best to contain my surprise, although I am certain Gor Coron noticed as well. You have truly done something amazing by pulling that sword. It is known that it will kill those who are not worthy."
"I think that might be an exaggeration, since I didn't see any bones laying around the sword." Link said, feeling exhaustion tug on his muscles and his mind.
Negative, said the Master Sword, which had been silent up until this point. If a soul that is not pure or your own tried to pull me from the Pedestal of Time, I would drain enough of their energy that they would die hours later. It has happened before. Sensing Link's horror that the sword would willingly kill someone, it continued. It is a necessary precaution, Master. I am far too dangerous of a weapon, and if I fell into the wrong hands it could cause great harm to Hyrule.
After waiting patiently while the sword spoke to Link, Midna gave Renado a small smirk. "It talks to him."
"Does it? Fascinating. I would like to ask some questions, but I can see how exhausted poor Link is." He picked up the Ordonian sword and placed it into the young man's hands. "We can certainly talk later. Go eat and rest."
Link mumbled a thank you and vaguely noticed Midna merging with his shadows again as he made his way out of the Sanctuary. Having to eat was a chore, as was needing to find a place to sleep. He was weary of having to do the same things day after day and having to care for his worn-out body afterwards. Fight something, deal with something unexpected, return to Kakariko to recover. Renado was right to worry about his mental state, but he doubted the man could help him.
The interior of the Eld Inn was dim, the curtains having been drawn to keep the heat out. Even the swinging screen door to the rear yard had a long thick curtain drawn over it. His eyes adjusted after he stood blinking for a moment, and he made his way into the kitchen. Ilia was there, as he knew she would be, pouring water into a glazed teapot that had a mesh tea strainer set into it.
She gave him a friendly smile, which immediately faded. "You look awful."
"I feel awful." He set the sword down on the table and pulled the long green hat off his head to toss it next to the scabbard. "I don't know which I want more, food or sleep. I'm settling on food first." He glanced around the room, looking for something easy he could eat. It would probably wind up being apples again. Whatever.
Ilia capped the teapot with its lid and put the kettle back on the warmer plate of the stove. "Sit down, I'll get you something."
"No, that's okay. You should go do what Renado said. I can manage-"
"Sit down, Link!" She ordered, putting her hands on her hips. He reflexively listened and sat at the prep table, used to her shouting orders at him through the years, which he obeyed without question. She was used to getting her way, so it was far easier for him to go along with it. "Honestly, you don't want anyone to help you, do you?"
He made a neutral sound and folded his arms on the table in front of him, resting his head on them. There was no point in arguing with Ilia when he was this exhausted. Midna was right, he probably was close to a mental breakdown. He had nearly lost her, found out that Zant was unbelievably powerful, and lost Zelda. Then there was the sword that kept gently prodding at his mind, doing something. Searching, perhaps. Maybe it wanted to know about his memories.
I am attempting to access them, but you have closed your mind off. It is likely related to the way your brain processes and suppresses trauma, but it is problematic when I must learn more about you.
Oh. Great. The sword didn't need to know much about him anyway. He was just another guy in green that had pulled it and marched off to save Hyrule. After seeing so many heroes do that, the sword probably thought they were all the same.
Negative, I disagree. You are the first in a long time to have a mind organized properly for me to communicate this well. In fact it has been four thousand, seven hundred and… The sword's artificial voice droned on and he tuned it out, not listening.
Somebody roughly shook his shoulder. "No. No sleeping!" Ilia's voice said sternly.
He lifted his head and opened his eyes. "Sorry." he said, half-speaking and half-yawning.
"Cover your mouth when you yawn. I don't need the inside of it like that." She sounded like somebody's mother more than a best friend, but then again she always had. He was used to her little quirks.
"Sorry."
"Eat this. We managed to get some venison thanks to the merchants that came in yesterday after you left. Some meat will do you good." She placed a plate in front of him that had strips of lean meat, a sliced tomato, and what looked like left over fried potatoes from breakfast. They must have a lot of potatoes to get through if they served them all the time.
"Sorr- uh, right." He picked up the fork and began to do as he was instructed, although she didn't need to tell him to eat. Just the sight of the food reminded him of how ravenous he was.
"You shouldn't automatically apologize for everything, either." Ilia said, pushing a full mug of tea next to his plate. "Saying things just to make somebody else happy is insincere, you know."
"Yes, mother." If he had more energy, he'd be angry about her nagging him so much.
He didn't see her facial expression, but he knew exactly which one she was making; she was glaring at him. He was treading on thin ice now, although he found he didn't care. Whatever would happen would happen. She could scream at him all she wanted, but in the end he was going to eat and then pass out upstairs.
"You really are a smart-alack, aren't you?" She sat on the bench next to him and picked up her tea to sip at it. Ilia was annoyed with him, but subconsciously wanted to be near him.
"It's a defense mechanism. The world sucks so I try to turn everything into a joke. Things are a little easier to handle that way." It was the truth, and Ilia hadn't known it before she lost her memory. Nobody knew it except for Rusl and Uli. Everybody else assumed that Link had a clever mouth to get a rise out of people, or perhaps had an inferiority complex. He was on the short side, after all.
"That wasn't a joke."
"No. It wasn't." He blew on the tea before sipping it. It was delightfully fruity. "I never told you that before. Maybe I'm telling it to you now because I'm so tired and words come out before I can stop them." Which was dangerous, since he might say something that triggered her again. Or let her know how much he was smitten with her.
"I could use that to my advantage and ask you questions you normally wouldn't answer." Which would be a bit cruel to take advantage of him like that, but he doubted she had much ammo. Besides, if she was going to take advantage of him, he would prefer it be more physical in nature. Even as tired as he was, his brain could go to certain places easily.
"Fine. Do your worst." More words tumbling out of a dumb guy's mouth, landing out in the open where he couldn't take them back. If he had any sense he would just shut up.
"Who is my father?" He had been expecting questions about him, but instead she was trying to wheedle information about her out of him.
He glanced at her sideways, holding his fork halfway to his mouth. "A man."
She pressed her lips into a flat line. "My mother?"
"A woman. Any more?"
Ilia made a grumbling noise. "I guess you're not as stupidly tired as I thought."
"Oh, I'm certainly stupid and absolutely tired, but you still won't catch me giving you information you should be remembering." He raised his mug to his lips. "You'll get me in trouble, you know."
"Do I have any brothers or sisters?" she pressed, ignoring his deflection. She certainly was stubborn. He ignored her and drank the slightly-cooler tea. It was a nice addition to Kakariko's kitchen. Ilia leaned forward to try to look at his face as he paid her no heed. He was thirsty. "Do you have any brothers or sisters? If so are they my friends too? Were you one of my closer friends? How close were we? Were we dating?"
That last question made him splutter and choke, and he realized she had stacked the other questions in front of it to try to catch him off guard. Clever. Now if only she hadn't asked it when he had a mouthful of blackberry tea. He coughed into his hand, both annoyed at the question and excited that she would want to know about the subject.
"She's unbelievable." Midna muttered his his ears.
"Oho, that got a reaction." she said smugly.
"Il—" He coughed, thumping at his chest. "—ia. You just asked me a ridiculous question when I was in the middle of drinking something. Of course you got a reaction. No. No, we were not dating. If that was the case, I would have told you so." He coughed again, trying to will away the tickle in his throat from tea going down the wrong tube. "If I gave you that impression, I'm sorry."
"Oh." She lowered her eyes to stare into her tea, and began to turn red with embarrassment. "It's just sometimes you seem kind of flirty and over-familiar."
"Well, yeah. I guess I would to you. I like you a whole lot, but there's a reasonable explanation. We're best friends." She should have figured that out herself, but he had to tell her before she got the wrong idea about the two of them. He felt a bitter disappointment that he didn't turn the situation around to his advantage, but he knew that he shouldn't.
Ilia herself didn't seem disappointed, just red-faced and awkward. "That did not go how I expected."
Link laughed at that, and noted that her color darkened when he did. "You thought I'd be the one red in the face, huh? Look, I'm sorry if I sent you any mixed signals, but we used to joke and pretend to flirt with one another all the time." Although that had become more infrequent over the past year since it had led to some awkward silences. "I've been trying not to fall into my old habits with you, but it's been hard. I've had a lot of other things on my mind."
"It all makes a lot more sense to me now. I wish I had known sooner so I wouldn't have made a fool of myself." She was hunched over, as if she was trying to make herself smaller.
"You're not foolish. It was a perfectly reasonable question." He gave her a smile and patted her on the back. "If there was one person you could ask something awkward, it's me. I'm not going to make fun of you." She wouldn't look at him, so he soldiered on. "If you feel uncomfortable, why don't you take your tea and go read that book? Get away from the irksome blonde idiot that made you as red as a tomato and find a nice distraction."
Ilia nodded and stood, still avoiding eye contact. "I'm sorry." She grabbed her half-drunk tea and fled from the room.
Link listened to her footsteps as they went up the stairs and into her room, and then the distant click of her door. Then he sighed and ran a hand through his hair. That was certainly one hell of a conversation, and in the end he wasn't the one feeling awkward. Disappointed, sure. But not awkward.
"You handled that really well." Midna said. "I think you said exactly what you needed to in order to head things off."
He shrugged and resumed eating, feeling less unhappy about the whole thing than he thought he would. "It isn't fair to her. We both heard her talking to Telma, so I can guess the things running through her head. I can't come back here all the time to give her attention, even if things went in the direction that I think both of us want."
"I'm glad you realize that. There will be plenty of time for romance after we turn Zant into a bloody smear on the ground." She gave a little girlish giggle. "Maybe I'll find a nice light world man to spend some time with before I go home."
"You've been spending time with a nice light world man, you know."
She snorted. "You know what I mean."
He finished his meal and cleaned up his plate even though he was bone-tired. The conversation with Ilia had revitalized him enough to take care of his own dishes, even if the food made him more sleepy. He grabbed his hat and old sword and made his way into his room, which had the curtain drawn back. He hadn't left it like that. The bed was also made, and he frowned at it as he shut the door behind him.
"I guess Ilia's become the inn's housekeeping." Midna appeared nearby and sat on the dresser. "Was she always like this in Ordon?"
"She didn't clean my house or wash my blankets, if that's what you were wondering." He began to remove his gear, taking care to pull Rusl's sword from its sheath to let it dry. "She did all the work for her father, though. The women of Ordon usually do, since it's expected from them."
"That sounds backwards, and stupid." She turned to look at herself in the mirror, standing to get a better look at herself.
"Ordon is a different country, so it has different traditions than Hyrule. But yes, I agree with you." He thought of the one he had almost gotten tangled in, the proposition that Bo had made shortly before he left. Maybe one day he would tell Ilia about it, but now was not the time. Now was not the time to tell her many things.
"This is what I look like…" Midna said, putting her small hand to the glass of the mirror. "This face doesn't look anything like my normal one." She lifted the Fused Shadows to look at herself with both eyes. "It's all wrong. I'm beautiful, I really am. I don't have a stupid round baby face and long ears and a dumb little stubby nose."
"What's wrong with long ears?" he asked mildly, still fine to banter with her despite being tired.
"Nothing, for you Hylians. These ones are jagged and weird." She settled the stone helmet on her head and looked at her body. "I have a belly button. Why do I have a belly button when I don't have anything else one would expect a body to have?"
"Zant has a pretty twisted sense of humor. Why else would he take away only three of the four pieces of the Fused Shadows?" He pulled his gambeson up over his head. "Would it make you feel better if I say that I'm looking forward to seeing what you really look like? I'm curious after all you've said."
She turned back to him and grinned, appreciating his comment. "You're going to be floored, buddy. I'll bet you fall head over heels for me after seeing my real face. Many men have."
"Uh-huh." He climbed into bed. Hopefully he wouldn't put his sleep schedule out of sync by sleeping in the middle of the day like this.
Midna's grin faded. "It was all superficial, though. They didn't want to know me as a person. They saw a pair of long legs and only thought of one thing."
"A lot of men are like that." He shut his eyes, ready to sleep. The conversation with her would stop sooner or later, or she would simply shut up and let him rest.
"Yes, I know. I can tell when you're thinking along those lines."
His eyes flew open. "...you can tell?!" He was absolutely mortified. No way. He thought she was just listening to his heartbeat. Where the hell was she hiding in his shadows if she was able to notice other things?!
She laughed lightly and floated over to pat him gently on the head. "You're so fun to get flustered. Look at you! You're as red as Ilia was. Relax. I was kidding."
Link resisted the urge to scowl at her and rolled onto his side, turning his back to her instead. "Yeah, whatever. Wake me a bit before sunset, all right?" He drifted off to sleep only moments later to the sound of her ridiculous giggling.
Author's Note: Again, I know this seems very much like shipping bait, and I apologize for that. Ilia is Link's girl, and oh boy does he make it even more obvious in book two.