AN: Song Sheik sings is called All Around Me by Flyleaf. I HIGHLY recommend listening so you get an idea of how Sheik is singing/dancing. Lacey Sturm is the singer's name and she's amazing!

Thank you to all my new followers! I've gotten so many new ones the last couple weeks! :) Some of you don't have messaging enabled, so I'll say it here: THANK YOU!

Also thanks to my regular reviewers Moonlight Raven Grave and Sunnystormcloud and Templeofsouls! And anyone I've missed, I'M SORRY!

Thank you to my new reviewers, KreinReign and MidnaWolf Tamer!

Thanks everyone else who reviews, favorites, and/or follows!

Finally, sorry it's a day late!


There were definite upsides to living with Link and the rest of his brand new family. First, he could share his guitar with Link so Link could practice outside of school, and that was pretty awesome. Second, Granny actually BOTHERED to cook vegan meals for him, so he literally always had food. There was ALWAYS produce in the fridge and on the counter, carrots and apples and bananas—BANANAS! On top of that, he got to hang out with Aryll. He got to help her with her studies with Romani, her private tutor and caretaker. Romani said having him there helped Aryll have fun, and that made him quite happy with himself.

He felt NEEDED here.

He felt WANTED here.

Granny didn't mind him talking to her while she was cooking, and she didn't mind him helping, either. Shadow spent a lot of time at night talking to Link. Link never talked much anyway, and he didn't seem to mind. Aryll liked it when he talked. No one told him to shut up. Nobody ignored him.

And best of all, when he made a mistake, nobody got really mad at him.

Suddenly making mistakes just wasn't that big of a deal.


It was Saturday, and Link was sleeping in. He'd gotten mad last night, and Shadow had, well, overheard something about Link's boyfriend, Shad.

What? So he listened outside Link's door. He couldn't stand Link being mad at him . . . He pulled off his earphones and got off his makeshift bed, padding in his bunny slippers—well, Link's bunny slippers—to Link's bed. Link looked completely out, his hair skewed all over the place.

"Hey, Link!" Shadow said.

Link didn't move.

"Liiiiiink!"

A groan.

"Link!" He grabbed a stuffed Deku Friend from the shelf and lightly thwapped Link's face with it. "Up and at 'em, boyo boy!"

Link sleepily scrabbled for the Deku friend and ripped it out of Shadow's hand. "Stoooooooooop," he moaned. Shadow retreated back to his bed, but not before Link tossed the Deku friend back at his head.

"PFF!" The momentum of the pillow sent him flying onto his mattress. He sat back up, laughing. "Nice throw!"

"Leave me alone, Shadow," Link whined, rolling over and sinking his face into his pillow.

Shadow knew if he left him alone he'd fall asleep again, so he sprinted back over. "Dude, it's almost NOON! Aryll's been waiting for HOURRRSS and just because I love you, buddy, I'm gonna go off and not interfere AT ALL. So it'll just be you and Aryll again. Okay?"

That finally got his attention. Link raised his head and wiped his face. "Huh? . . . You don't have to do that, Shadow."

Shadow grinned, pretending he didn't feel a little sad. "Come on, Link. It's been a while since it was just you and Aryll, right?"

Link pushed his covers aside and frowned up at Shadow. "Well yeah, but—"

"It's settled then! I'll go visit Sheik and you won't hear a PEEP from me until the sun goes down. See ya, Link!" Shadow made a beeline for the door.

Two heavy thumps later and a hand stopped him. "Hold up, Shadow!"

Shadow bit his lower lip and fussed with the ends of his hair.

"You don't have to leave," Link said, pushing Shadow's shoulder so they were facing each other.

"But you and Aryll—"

"Well, so? You're her brother as much as I am. You should be here. At least some of the time. You're my brother. You belong here. You shouldn't go."

Shadow looked up. "Really?"

Link nodded.

"Oh. Well, I thought . . . I thought maybe you didn't . . . didn't want me here."

"That's not true."

"Why were you mad at me last night?"

"I was just—It's just different, you know? You're right, it isn't just me and Aryll anymore, but that's not a bad thing. Not even close!"

Quietly, Shadow responded, "Do you really mean that, Link?"

Link, fully awake now, grinned. "Yup. You should spend Saturday with me and Aryll. It's Aryll's day, and now she's got TWO brothers to hang out with!"

Shadow grinned widely, probably wider than he ever had before. "WOO! We should go get ice cream!"


Link, Shadow, Aryll, and Granny sat around the table at the ice cream shop on the corner of Rauru and Main. Aryll got cotton candy, because it was light blue, her favorite color. She did her usual, take one bite, squish it around her mouth seven times, and then swallow. Shadow mimicked her, including the counting noises she made through her nose, and every time they both swallowed she broke into giggling laughter. Shadow got Darknut Supreme, a vegan option made of coconut milk, dark chocolate ice cream with chocolate chunks, marshmallows, and vegan chocolate fudge sauce. And nuts.

In the midst of laughing, Shadow accidentally miscalculated where his bowl of ice cream was and ended up getting chocolate on his nose. Aryll thought this was the funniest thing ever, and laughed so hard with her head thrown back that she actually fell out of her seat. She seemed fine because she kept laughing. Shadow laughed loudly as well.

Link got off his seat and held his arms out to Aryll. "Are you okay, Aryll?"

Still laughing, Aryll grabbed one of Link's hands and used it to pull herself up. Then she sat back down in her seat, her giggles finally subsiding, and took another bite of ice cream, chuckling to herself.

Link stood in shock. Shadow gave him a knowing smile. Granny looked like she might cry.

Aryll held his hand. She didn't flinch or anything. It didn't bother her at all. She just happily went back to eating her ice cream. Link's hands flew to his face. He felt so happy he couldn't breathe. I don't care if it NEVER happens again, Aryll held my hand! He pushed his hands up and into his hair, revealing the happiest smile ever seen on a Hylian in the history of Hylians.

That's what it looked like to Shadow, anyhow.

"Hey, Aryll," Link said, leaning on her chair. Aryll looked up, not exactly at him, but up. "I love you, Aryll!"

Aryll broke into a smile. "Link! Love Link! Aryll good girl!"

Link chuckled. "Yes, you're a very good sister, Aryll."

"S-s-sister?"

Link sat back in his own seat, unable to look away from Aryll's happy face.


Shadow and Aryll huddled under his bed covers, holding flashlights under their chins. "And THEN," Shadow continued, "There appeared a SHADOW MONSTER!"

Aryll gasped dramatically. She couldn't understand what Shadow was saying, but she figured out when to gasp anyhow.

"Mr. Fab Hair and his friends raaaaan from the monster and back to the stairs. They barely made it in time. They SLAMMED THE DOOR!"

"AAAAAAH!"

Link's head popped underneath the covers. "What'cha doin'?"

Shadow grinned. "Oh, hey Link! I was telling Aryll about that time we snuck into Dad's basement."

"Here, lemme tell it." Link held his hand out, and Shadow handed him the flashlight. Link held it under his chin. "But then, everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked!"

Aryll gasped.

Shadow laughed and smacked Link's face with a pillow. Link grinned and climbed under the covers with them.

Unbeknownst to all of them, Granny walked by the bedroom door, which was ajar. She smiled a smile only parents and grandparents could smile, that smile when they know something good that is supposed to happen has happened, and they know exactly how good it is. She gave a contented sigh, and continued passing by, going to her room.


Sheik walked in a few minutes later. "Hey! Everybody ready to go?"

"Oh right, I totally forgot!" Shadow said, rising from under the bed covers. "Battle of the Bands is tonight!"

Sheik grinned and nodded. "And, uuuh . . . I'm performing so you two had better be there!"

Shadow and Link, who had also appeared out of the covers, gaped at Sheik. "Seriously?!" Shadow exclaimed, his voice squeaking.

"Yep!"

"THAT'S AWESOME!"

Link glanced out the window. He hated this time of year in Hyrule. It was only 6 P.M., but it was already dark outside. Then the night was totally forgotten. "OMG! I forgot to tell you guys!" He jumped off the bed. "Some kids from my school in Outset are performing. I guess they got in the top three at their school and are coming here to compete."

"Awesome! What' their band name?"

"The Indigo-Gos."

Aryll was peeking out of the covers at everyone. "LINK!" She shouted.

"Yeah!" Link replied.

Aryll jumped off the bed and began running in circles, singing some tune off the top of her head.

Link joined in, chasing her around the room.

"I'm confused," said Shadow.

"Me, too," Sheik added.

Link slowed down to catch his breath. "It's one of their songs! Aryll and I used to hang out with them when they'd practice." The band guitarist, Mikau, had been especially nice to Aryll. They'd been middle school kids then, so Link was excited to see how much everybody had grown.


The auditorium was noisy. Aryll sat with her hands over her ears in discomfort, but Link was pretty sure she'd be okay once the music started. She really liked music, and she wanted to see Mikau and the others, too.

Link wrote out an excited text to Mikau. Real awesome to see you, dude!

Mikau replied a bit later. You too, Link ;) watch for special message!

Alright!

Aryll sat between Shadow and Link, and Granny sat next to Shadow. Ganondorf wasn't here. Said he didn't have time. Sheik was backstage, but Link saved him a seat next to him for after he finished the performance.

First up from their own school was The Kokiris, who sounded better when they were middle schoolers, but still pretty good. They were followed by the Sages, who specialized in electronica and funky dance moves. They were from the Light Temple Private School. Third was a group of four similar looking blond boys in different colored outfits: red, blue, green, and . . . violet? Shadow thought they were great, but Link was weirded out by their synchronized dances. Were they people or robots? They were from a school in Kakariko, and they were in a boy band style, singing in harmony with one another.

Finally, a group of five Zoras came onto the stage. Link leapt from his seat and started clapping right away. "WOO-HOO! GO INDIGO GOS! OUTSET FOREVER!"

The band members waved at Link before setting up. First there was Evan, the main lyricist, a brown Zora with a protruding face and itty eyes. Then there was Japas, the bassist who styled his head fin like the metal heads of old, and Tijo, the jolly drummer. Then there was Mikau, the lead guitarist. It had been a while since Link had seen him, but MAN! The guy was ripped for a teenager, and he even had tattoos, with one big one wrapping around his shoulder and down his arm. Link shook his head. Was he allowed in school with those? He pulled out his signature bone-guitar and began strumming. Tijo joined in, drumming the intro in a syncopated frenzy. Japas joined in on the downbeat, adding bass, and Evan played his keyboard, adding organ-like sounds. The band was primarily blues, and this performance was no different.

Mikau spoke into the mic. "How we doin', Hyrule?!"

Hyrule responded with loud yells and cheers.

"Alright!" His fingers flew over the guitar so quickly even Shadow gasped. "This song goes out to a friend of mine. I know he'll recognize it. This ain't original, folks, this is Song of a Seagull by Lenora Knight!"

Link and Granny both gasped. Shadow and Sheik leaned over to Link. "That's your mom's name!"

Link nodded dumbly. His step mom had taught the song to Mikau and the others when they were kids. He grinned.

Mikau broke into an insane riff, before backing from the front of the stage. A shadow appeared on the wall behind, a silhouette, and then the curtains came apart and a beautiful Zora teenager stood in a brilliant blue dress. This was Lulu, the band's lead singer. She stepped onto the stage in time to the music, approaching the mic at the front with the far off expression of a singer who is practiced at getting into the music. Her voice took the audience away to the beach during a sunset.

They received a standing ovation, and Link was pretty sure they were gonna win the competition. His hands already hurt from clapping so hard. Aryll had been humming along with the tune. Shadow was trying to play air guitar to figure out Mikau's guitar moves.

The Indigo-Gos left the stage, and then a single person came on stage and approached the mic. There were some murmurs in the crowd, a few half-hearted claps.

It was Sheik, dressed like a boy, as himself, as usual these days.

Shadow made use of his rock star vocals and whooped loudly for Sheik's benefit. Link joined. Sheik grinned in their direction. Midna whistled from the audience. Soft clapping came from the front of the auditorium. Link saw it was Sheik's mother, and he smiled. Her husband, the king, remained silent. Somebody in the audience was waving a fist around, going, "Hoo! Hoo! Hoo!" enthusiastically. Link and Shadow glanced and found Groose, of all people, cheering for Sheik. They glanced at each other, and Shadow shrugged in confusion. They watched as a flush covered Sheik's face as he timidly waved at Groose.

Link and Shadow glanced at each other again. What was happening there? Sheik hated Groose. Groose was most definitely not gay. So, like . . . what?

Music began to play. Link and Shadow recognized it as one of Sheik's favorite religious rock songs. He lowered his head, his hair hanging over his face, tapping his heel, fingers tapping his leg. His movements were fluid as he sang, completely overtaken by the music and the words of his song. The song was a passionate thanksgiving and expression of faith. Sheik's singing was so emotional that the entire auditorium was silent, frozen, listening quietly until the chorus.

"I can feel You all around me

thickening the air I'm breathing!

Holding on to what I'm feeling

savoring this heart that's healing!"

Some of the audience finally decided to start cheering. All of Sheik's friends who were still his friends clapped and yelled.

Into the second verse, Sheik's father rose from his seat and walked into the aisle. Sheik's voice fumbled as he watched his father walk out on his performance. Shadow quickly pulled his phone out, turned it into flashlight mode, and waved it over his head, and Link yelled louder, both of them letting Sheik know they were there, they were listening, and encouraging him to keep going.

Sheik visibly composed himself as much as he could. Everyone could tell he was shaken, but Sheik yelled the next lyrics out like a declaration:

"I'M ALIVE!

I'M ALIVE!"


Sheik made his way shakily off the stage, was joined by his mother, and they walked up the aisle to where Link, Shadow, Aryll, and Granny sat. Shadow clambered over the others and ran to meet him, throwing his arms around Sheik's neck. "Wow!" Shadow said. "Just . . . wow! You're amazing, you almost made me think maybe there's something to believe in, after all. I feel you, Sheik, I feel you! I NEVER should have said no when you wanted to sing a religious song in our band. I NEVER should have done that, and I'm sorry." He hugged Sheik tightly.

Sheik was shaking viciously, and it even showed in his voice as he replied, "Thank you." Shadow led him to his seat, and Link and Granny showered him with compliments.

They were too busy helping Sheik get comfortable and ignore the stares from the crowd to really listen to the next two bands, but eventually Sheik stopped shaking with both Link and Shadow's arms around him. Aryll and Sheik had switched seats. Aryll sat next to Granny, now. She chewed on her hair and reached over to pat Sheik's knee.

The next performer was a surprise, another solo act. Link asked Granny for the program and looked for the guy's name. But the band scheduled next had four members, and Link knew them to wear bright colors. The soloist had a worn face, blue eyes that looked heavy. He had black hair and wore black clothes. Black mist followed him on stage, gathering around him, making the lights dappled and muted. He looked like a teenager in some ways, but his face and eyes made him seem a lot older. How much older Link had no clue. He looked Hylian. The special effects made him seem almost insubstantial, his hair and clothes and face melding into the shadowy mists as though he were part of them.

Link had no idea who this guy was. Apparently no one else did, either. Nobody cheered, and most were confused why he was playing and not the other band. The special effects seemed planned, though, so it must be a mistake in the printing, or something . . .

A guitar appeared as if from nowhere. The amp must have been hidden in the mists, because the guitar was louder than any other guitar, so loud it reverberated through Link's chest and shook the seats. He didn't speak, he didn't sing. He just played a ridiculous solo that got into Link's brain and he couldn't shut it out. He shut his eyes and shook his head, trying to get the noise out, but it kept digging back inside.

Other members of the audience were having trouble as well. The only ones who seemed unaffected were Sheik, his mother, and Aryll. They just seemed confused.

The mist collected in a way that it collected light and the soloist became a perfect silhouette.

One Sheik recognized. He grabbed Shadow's shoulder and whispered urgently, "Tell me that isn't the thing from your dad's basement!"

Shadow didn't answer. "Oooouch!" was his only reply, face scrunched, hands over his ears.

Sheik got to his feet and yelled, "STOP!" Light magic flowed through the words, and the whole building felt a shift in energies. The black mists disappeared, and so did the soloist.

Sheik breathed a sigh of relief, and looked down at his friends. "Are you guys . . ."

They weren't moving.

No one was.

Time had stopped.