AN: Can it be? It's me! Sorry about the break. I'm back now. Will be updating once a week until this story is finished!
Excuse the dust as I relearn this system~
Twilinofthewillows: Hey there! I know this is years late, and you may not even ever see this, but thank you so much for the review! I'm so happy you feel the LGBT representation is good, that's what I'm aiming for! I've actually had a lot of thoughts about aro/ace characters over the last couple years. Slowly I hope to represent a huge amount of people in the LGBTQA+ alphabet soup! Because I agree with you, it's so hard to find GOOD stories about them where it doesn't just revolve around their sexuality. I think I struggle with Sheik's storyline the most, because it IS so tied in with his being transgender, but It IS such a big part of his life! I really struggle with that balance, so if it's coming off ok, I'm really glad haha!
TyJupiter: Hiiiiiiim, my friend! I've missed you! I hope you're doing alright! Glad you enjoyed that chapter, hope you come back and read this one as well. It's gotten so serious in here, aaaaaugh what am I gonna do about it?! Shadow/Ganondorf interaction is hard with him being in jail, but noted! Maybe I can sneak something in . . .
Ollie: Hey! Welcome! Thanks for the review! There's a tiny bit of Link/Nabooru in this chapter, actually!
Guest: Welcome! Thanks for the review! HMMMMM INDEED!
Onward to the chapter!
Shadow was miserable. How could he not be? Vio would text him, but when Shadow asked when they could meet up, Vio would text back, "Never."
Le me: I don't care if you hurt me
Babe: I care
Le me: it's my life! I want to see you!
Babe: stop it
Le me: you first
So here he was, at Vio's house. He'd put up with this crap for days now, but it was the weekend. Vio wasn't at school, and neither was he. He'd finished teaching his guitar students this morning, so there was nothing pressing going on.
He took a deep breath and walked up the dilapidated pathway. It looked like Red had done some weeding in the flower pots and beds, but the grass was still overgrown. Shadow climbed the creaky porch steps and pulled out his keys, switching to the door key to Vio's house. He hopped on his heels, trying to think of what to say. It was a nice day out, not cold enough for a jacket, not too hot, either. There was just the slightest breeze. He fancied going on a walk through town with Vio, then felt his stomach twist as he realized he was getting ahead of himself.
He just needed to talk.
Putting the key in the lock and turning it, he pushed open the door and went inside.
Green was asleep on the couch, the TV playing cartoons. Red was in the kitchen, like usual, baking. He smiled at Shadow. "Hey, Shadow!" He cupped his mouth and called upstairs, "Vio! Shadow's here!"
Spirits lifting slightly at the thought that Vio was here, and not out, or else hiding in his lab, put a spring back in Shadow's step as he took the stairs one by one, hand on the rail. By the time he got to the top of the stairs, however, his nerves were frayed again. Vio's bedroom door remained closed. Is he not here? Is he ignoring me?
Shadow gripped the door handle and twisted it. It wouldn't budge. It was locked.
He's here.
Trying to keep his voice steady, he picked at his black nail polish, leaned forward and said, quietly, "Vio? Open the door."
He heard Red walk out of the kitchen and look up the stairs, wondering what was going on. Shadow ignored him.
"Vio, please."
He thought he heard something, clothes moving around, maybe Vio changing position on his bed, or his desk chair. Tears stung Shadow's eyes, but he blinked them away and said, without wavering, "I'm not leaving."
"Vio!" Red called, agitated, but with worry lines on his forehead. "Come out now!"
Shadow felt a little irritated at the intrusion. He turned around and waved at Red. "It's ok. He's in there, he's just doesn't want to talk to me."
Red's face cleared a little, making way for sadness. He gave a tiny, slow nod, then left him alone to go back to the kitchen. Shadow knew he'd still be listening.
A click turned his attention back to the door. It opened a crack, and he could see Vio's hollow eye staring at him through it.
Shadow put a hand on the door before he could think not to. It met resistance. "Can I come in?" he asked.
"No. Go away." Vio shut the door in his face.
He sounds angry, Shadow thought guiltily. Why is he mad at me? Not sure why, he tried the door again. To his surprise, it opened. He went through and found Vio sprawled face first on his bed, but his head was raised, looking at Shadow as though confused that he got in. His hands were raised from the elbows, as if right before Shadow came in he'd buried his head in his pillow and covered it with his arms.
Shadow smiled and hurried to the bed, sitting at the end of it. "Why are you pushing me away if it's hurting you so much?"
The second Shadow had reached his bed, Vio had crawled to the top of it and turned around, scooting as far away as he could. "Shadow," he said, words of warning on his lips. Shadow could see them. But instead of saying them, he just lowered his eyes and set himself down on the bed.
Shadow clambered over the bed until he sat in front of Vio. "I miss you."
A startled glance. Then he averted his eyes again. "You shouldn't be here."
"Don't say that." Shadow reached up and placed a hand on Vio's cheek, brushing it softly.
Vio responded to the touch positively, but he took Shadow's hand and pulled it away, saying, "You don't know what's in my head. You don't know . . ." He trailed off as Shadow sidled next to him, his face inches away. Shadow could see he was trembling, eyes glassy, his chest rising and falling rapidly.
Shadow bumped their foreheads together, saying, "So tell me."
Vio was staring into his eyes intensely, more shaken than Shadow had ever seen him. Then he turned away. "No!" He got away from Shadow and lay down, rolling over so his back was to Shadow. He covered his head with a pillow. "No!"
Shadow sighed. He lay himself down on his back.
Ears perking up, Vio flipped back over. "I—" Vio said, then broke himself off and rolled back over. "No, I don't." He laughed roughly. "That's ridiculous."
"What's ridiculous?" Shadow asked, rolling onto his side and throwing his arms around Vio. He laid his face next to his neck. "Why are you mad at me?"
"I'm not mad."
"Worried?"
"I . . ." Vio turned just slightly, so he could look Shadow in the eye again. "I don't want to hurt you."
Shadow chuckled. "You're not going to hurt me, Vio."
"Idiot." He spun back around, palming his face.
What did I do?! "Why are you being like this, Vio? I just want—"
"You can stay," Vio rushed to say.
"What?"
"You can stay!" He gripped Shadow's hands tightly around him. "Please just . . . Don't be upset anymore, okay?"
Shadow grinned and snuggled against Vio's back happily. "Okay."
Vio was furious with himself. He had been doing so good, staying away from Shadow. Why hadn't he thought to take the house key back? Hell, why hadn't he just changed the locks? Now he was laying here, Shadow spooning him. He could feel Shadow's breath on the back of his neck. Why'd he have to come here? Why did Red have to yell at him to come out? He didn't need any encouragement.
Fear gripped him like a vice. What if Shadow asked to see the basement? What if he saw what Vio'd been up to the last few days, when he was desperately trying to get his mind back under control?
Shadow would never forgive him.
He was struck with an idea. Maybe . . . Maybe that would get Shadow to stay away.
Why do I care? Let him hang onto me! I like this. So what if I snap? What do I care? What do I even care? He's stupid enough to hang around me even if I don't care! He DESERVES it if I—
But if I hurt him, he'll be gone forever. At least if I let him go, I can at least pretend we'll get back together. And I can stalk him online, look at him. If he's a big rockstar, I can go to his concerts and he won't notice.
He didn't want to think about this right now. He slowly turned, dislodging Shadow, then reached over him to grab his glasses, and put them on his nose. He leaned on a hand in the mattress, staring down at Shadow.
"Shadow?"
"Yes?"
"Can I kiss you?"
Surprise crossed Shadow's features, and he glanced away, thinking.
"Please?"
Shadow looked back up at him. "Vio, I've got something to say."
He furrowed his brow. "What?"
"I love you."
Pain, joy, what was he feeling? "W-what?"
Shadow pushed himself up on an elbow, rising until their faces touched. Shadow's lips closed over his own, and his whole body went haywire. Shadow pulled away before he could kiss him back.
"I love you," Shadow said again. "And I swear, I'm completely sober."
Link dusted the shelves at Linebeck's place. He was really bored. He wanted to be outside, checking out the shipyard, maybe building something, but Linebeck said that wasn't his job.
He hated being indoors this long!
Linebeck's husky voice wafted in from behind the counter, in the room to the back, singing some sea shanty.
"Linebeck!" Link shouted. "Can I go to the shipyard?"
The captain's greasy head peeked around the door frame. "But if you did that, who would watch the shop?"
You? Celia? ANYBODY! He sighed. "Fiiiiiiine."
The World's Tiniest Fog Horn sounded from the front door, announcing someone had come through.
"Ah!" Linebeck put his hands on his hips. "There's that somebody, Link!"
Link peeked around his shelf to get a better look, and almost fell off his ladder.
It was Nabooru! She stepped through the shop curiously, her waist-length ponytail flipping with each head movement. She was dressed in a white, off-the-shoulder crop top and tight, yellow leggings, and gold sandals. Not exactly the right outfit for this tetanus trap of a shop.
Link jumped off the ladder and ran up to her with a grin. "Nabooru! Hi!" He stopped a foot away from her, aware of the greasy grime all over his hands and arms. He stuffed his filthy rag in his back pocket. I look like crap.
Nabooru blushed when she saw him. "Hi."
He blushed, too. I look like crap! "You look amazing."
"Oh. Thanks! You t—uh."
Link laughed. "It's ok, you can say it. I look awful."
"It's not—I mean, I didn't want to sound bad, but . . . I kinda like it." She bit her bottom lip with a smile and looked away, reaching up to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
Link blushed harder. "Really? Uh . . ."
Linebeck suddenly appeared next to him, startling them both. "Link, what are you doing? This is an interview!"
"What?" Link's mouth dropped open. "Really?!"
"Y-yeah," Nabooru answered.
Linebeck made a shooing motion, almost smacking Link with his dismissive hand. "Scram!"
"Yes, sir!" Link ran back to the shelves, not bothering to hide his big grin.
Shadow and Vio were sitting in the living room on the couch. Vio was stoic, as usual. Shadow was chatty. Green was enthusiastic. Murphy the cat sat in the armchair cleaning himself.
Vio wasn't as stoic as usual, actually. He was agitated, but he was always agitated, so he only came off as slighter more of an asshole than he usually was. Shadow had to repeat things he said, because Vio's brain wouldn't focus. Vio still only got half of what was being said, if that.
From the kitchen, Red yelled, "Hey! I'm headed to work." He was wearing his black, full body chef attire. He didn't work anywhere special, just a local diner, but he seemed to enjoy it anyway. "Green, you're coming with me so I can make you do your homework."
Green groaned. "I'll do it here! I wanna stay with Vio and Shadow." He looked at the two pleadingly. "Pleeeeeease?"
"I'm sorry, Green," said Shadow. "Vio and I got some plans."
Vio wasn't listening.
"Ooooooooo, what plaaaaaans?" Green crooned.
Shadow smacked him with a pillow and a grin. "Shaddup!"
"Are you two going to be alright?" Red asked at the front door. "Green! Put your shoes on and get your backpack!"
Sighing, Green trudged upstairs with sagging shoulders. "Okaaaaaaaaay."
"Yeah, Red, we'll be fine," Shadow responded.
Red glanced at Vio with a raised, concerned eyebrow. "Ok. There's food in the fridge, like always. Oh! But they had some oranges at the food bank today. Don't eat those, okay? I'm saving them for Sunday."
"Sure thing." Shadow shot him a flashy grin and a thumbs up.
Red grinned with a laugh. "Ok. GREEN!"
A flash came down the stairs and ran out the door. "LASTONETOTHECARISACHUCHU!"
Red took his time, walking out the door and locking it. The two's voices were heard bickering playfully as they got further away.
As soon as it got a little quieter, Shadow snuggled against Vio, wrapping one arm around his shoulders and placing his other hand on his chest. "What are we gonna do, Vio?"
"Huh?" Vio looked around suddenly. "Wait . . . Are we alone?"
"Uh, yeah? Did you not even notice?"
Vio stood and looked around, then scratched the back of his head. "I guess not."
Shadow stood as well. "We could go to your lab!"
Glasses flashing as he suddenly turned to stare at him, Vio almost said no. Then he remembered everything he thought of before. So he said, "Yeah. The lab. We could do that."
Feeling uncertain, Shadow grabbed his hands again. "Vio, are you ok? You're not having second thoughts, are you? About me being here?"
"I never said you should be here." He looked directly into Shadow's eyes, with a soft expression. Shadow wasn't sure he'd ever seen Vio with that expression. "I do want you here," Vio continued. "I'll always want you here."
Shadow sighed. "This again . . . What exactly am I supposed to be afraid of?"
Vio's expression darkened. "Everything." He put his hands in his pockets and walked out of the living room and down the hallway. "Any bad thing you can think of." He stopped at the big cabinet that hid the entrance to his lab, pushing it out of the way.
Following him, Shadow offered, "What? Hitting? Pushing? Are you going to kill me?" He laughed at the absurdity.
Turning from the cabinet, Vio asked, incredulously, "Is that the worst you can come up with?"
Shadow's grin slowly died. "I don't like you like this."
Sighing, Vio started descending the stairs.
Slightly terrified, Shadow followed. As he descended each stair, a vile stench grew stronger and stronger, until Shadow was breathing through his glove. He came to the last stair and came around the corner. He froze.
Animals. Animals everywhere. Dead. Dissected. Hung up. Pinned with tags like insects. Shadow's other hand came up to meet his first as he gagged. Trying to find any sense in the chaos, he turned to Vio.
Vio just stood there, looking back at him with a cold expression.
"Vio . . . Vio, what is this? You promised!"
Shiny streaks formed beneath Vio's glasses even as his face remained cold. He offered no explanation.
Shadow began backing up to the stairs, grabbing the corner for support. "You pro—" Spinning on a heel, he fled. Back up the stairs, through the hall, to the front door. Then paused when he caught Murphy out of the corner of his eye. He went back and grabbed the cat, clutching him to his chest, then ran to the door. He paused to look behind him, at the living room, the kitchen, the stairs, his memories here, still trying to find the sense in what he'd just seen, still trying to believe it. The stench was still in his nose. He grabbed the door handle, wrenched it open, and ran out of the house like the devil was after him.
Vio couldn't stop crying. It was annoying, and embarrassing. He'd be thinking of something other than Shadow, like his tests, or his homework, and suddenly his face would be wet again and he'd have to wipe it away. It got more and more annoying the longer it lasted. He wasn't even sad. He was disappointed. For himself.
I love you, Vio.
He closed up the lab and walked up the hall to the living room, blinded by tears. He couldn't find Murphy anywhere. Had Shadow taken him? Probably.
He was disappointed that Shadow was gone. He wouldn't have a chance to do anything to him now. And that's when the tears kept falling. He didn't even want to do anything to Shadow, that's why he'd scared him away! So why was he mad? He was mad because he couldn't have his way.
Damn it, that wasn't it, either!
I love you, Vio.
He wandered up the stairs to his room, hoping to find some quiet with his books, but as soon as he sat down and opened one up, his eyes leaked again. He tried for half an hour. He couldn't read like this! He threw the book aside and got up again, this time wandering down to the kitchen. He opened the fridge and stared blankly into it, like it could hold the answers.
If I were anybody else, anybody else at all, I could be with Shadow.
He fell to the ground in a heap, shocked at his lack of strength in that one moment.
Was that it? He covered his head. He waited for the moment to pass. It didn't. He scrabbled his hair. "Ugh!" He forced himself to sit up, back to the fridge, knees up.
A click and the front door opened. Heavy bootsteps came around the counter, and Blue stood there, staring down at Vio in surprise. "Vio."
Vio didn't even try to hide.
"Are you . . ." Blue had never seen Vio like this. His foster brother never showed any emotion, except anger, and fear, and those only in a controlled fashion. He never broke down. He wasn't capable of it. So Blue had always thought. He dropped his bag on the ground and took a few steps forward. Still shocked, he wasn't able to think up what to do. This was Red's territory. Red was closer to Vio than him. Hell, Green would be better at this!
Silence was probably the right answer. Vio spoke up. "I hate being me. Why can't I be like everyone else?"
What the actual Farore? Vio, wanting to be somebody else? The proudest, most selfish bastard he knew? Blue squatted down carefully, reaching for his knee. "Don't say that, you're—"
"Shut up!" Vio reacted fiercely, irritated. "Don't give that stupid platitude crap."
Blue pulled his hand back. Maybe he should just shut up.
"I just . . . Want . . . To be with . . . Shadow."
"Shadow? Did you guys break up?"
Vio's silence was all the answer he needed. Vio choked on a sob, then another, then he was sobbing uncontrollably. He was staring at Blue, not like it was Blue's fault, but everything was Blue's fault, or at least Blue made everything worse. That was their relationship.
Blue settled himself into a cross legged position.
"Why can't I be like everyone else?" Vio said again, burying his face in his knees. "Why can't I be . . . More like you? I hate you, but I hate myself more."
"You know what?" Blue interrupted. "Shut up."
"What—? No—"
Blue grabbed Vio's shoulders and pushed him up so he would stop crying into his knees. "Stop hating yourself. Just . . . Stop it."
Somehow, Vio stopped sobbing. He looked away from Blue.
Blue smiled. "Where's that confident Vio? The one that gives me shit all the time?" He ruffled Vio's hair affectionately. "I can't stand the idea of you wanting to be me. One of me is too many."
Vio glanced at him sideways, face still a mess, but there was a twinge of a sardonic eyebrow.
Blue grinned. Then he sighed and scooted to the fridge, next to Vio. "Wow . . . So, you and Shadow, huh?"
"We're done."
"Damn . . ." He wrapped his arm around his little brother and gave him a firm, bear-like squeeze. "You're stuck with me. And you've got Red, and Green. You can't lose us."
"I dunno about that."
"What?" Blue gave him a look that could be seen as angry, even though it wasn't. "Don't ever say that again! You're stuck with us, got it?"
"You said you might send me back to the shelter."
"Jesus, I . . . I never meant permanently." He felt guilty, and sheepish. "Frankly, I don't think I could have actually done it. Red would be heartbroken without you, Green would be, too. Without you, we're just a broken family, you know?"
"That makes no sense."
"Yeah, well, love never does, so deal with it, you moron."
"Ew."
Grinning with mischief, Blue held him tighter around his neck. "I loooooooove you, Vio."
"You're disgusting," Vio responded, trying to pry Blue's arm off of him.
"Twoo wuuuUuuUUuuUUuuuv!"
"Oh my God!" He couldn't escape Blue's laughing embrace, but the words resounded anyways.
I love you, Vio.
Shadow made it to the end of the block before his chest felt like it was going to explode, his heart beating like a cannonball. He clutched the confused Murphy to his chest and wandered from street to street. Somehow, in the fading sunlight, his feet took him home. And not to the empty mansion where he used to live. Home home.
Granny's house. Where Link and Aryll and Granny lived.
He had calmed down by then, but he still didn't know what to think. He didn't want to think. He couldn't go back, he couldn't see Vio ever again, not ever again . . .
He didn't need to think about what was in that basement, because he was never going over there ever again. He was never going to see Vio ever again. He scratched behind Murphy's ears absent-mindedly. Then he climbed the porch steps and went inside.
"LINK LINK LINK!" Aryll came bursting out of the living room at the sound of the door opening. She quit yelling when she saw Shadow. Then, just as happily as before, she threw her hands in the air and shouted, "SHADOW SHADOW SHADOW!"
"Aryll Aryll Aryll!" Shadow yelled back, although a bit subdued. "How are you?"
She swayed back and forth sadly. "Aryll day . . ."
Add guilt to the top of the maelstrom of emotions. Why not? "Oh, Aryll, I'm sorry, I completely forgot. Wasn't Link here?"
"No. Work."
I suck. "I'm so so sorry! I . . . Look, I brought a kitty!" He held out Murphy, and Aryll grinned shyly, her hands brought shyly to her chest as she examined the cat.
While she did, Shadow looked at the clock, and brightened. "Hey! There's still a couple hours." I can fix this. I can fix this! "If you want, we can have Aryll's day right now?"
She tore her eyes away from Murphy to look at him and bounce up and down excitedly. "Aryll day! Aryll day!"
Shadow laughed. "Okay! Uh . . ." He thought about what to do with Murphy. "Well . . . I hope Gramma's ok with a new animal." He let Murphy go, and the ragamuffin looked around curiously.
He let Aryll lead him to the living room.
Granny's voice came from the stairs. "Shadow, is that you?"
Shadow whipped back around and ran to the stairs. "Gramma, can we keep him, can we pleeeease?! He was gonna get chopped into little bitty pieces if I didn't save him, can we keep him pleeeeease?!"
"AAAAARYYYYYLLL DAAAAAY!"
"Coming, Aryll!" Shadow ran back to the living room.
Grandma shook her head. "What is going on?" She pattered down the stairs and almost went to the kitchen when a flash of fur ran past her feet. "Was that a cat?"
The front door opened again, and Aryll went flying to it. "LINK LINK LIIIIIIINK!"
"ARYLL! ARYLL! ARYLL!"
Link was in an incredibly good mood.
Shadow, already sitting on the living room carpet, launched himself forward and bellyflopped so he could see the entryway. "We're having Aryll's day late!"
Link grinned. "I didn't miss it! Yay!"
Aryll jumped around in circles.
In the kitchen, Granny was looking at a ragamuffin cat, who sat politely, twitching his tail at her curiously. She opened the fridge, took out some milk, and poured it in a bowl. Then she set it on the ground. Murphy stretched his nose out to it, ears perked forward, then pounced on it as soon as Granny let go of the bowl. Granny watched him lap up the milk, then suddenly smiled. Murphy meowed at her once, blinking his eyes slowly and licking his lips. Then he kept drinking.
Link and Shadow were busy folding paper into seagulls while Aryll built an aerie for them out of blocks. They played Guard the Seagull Base, defending the aerie from invading moblins.
This is good, Shadow thought. This is a good place. He looked at Aryll's bright, happy face. When he looked at Link, Link grinned back. I'm good. I'm really good here. I don't have to be scared, and nothing feels wrong here.
Sheik struggled with the lipstick case. He hadn't used this thing in months . . . When was the last time?
He shuddered as he put it on, a light pink shade.
Lipstick isn't gendered. Groose says so.
He tried to take a calming breath, but the second he opened his eyes again, he saw his reflection again. Full face of feminine makeup, curvy figure, girl clothes.
He flinched.
This is fine. This is fine!
He turned from the mirror, trying to hold down his disgust, and left the bathroom. He took the stairs two at a time and skid into the dining room. "Daddy, I'm ready!"
But his dad wasn't there. Groose was. He sat at the dining table
"What the heck?" Groose dwarfed the tiny table meant for three, sitting hunched over to protect his head from the low-hanging chandelier. He looked like a confused, bent over troll.
Sheik laughed.
"Why are you dressed like that?" Groose asked, not joining in.
Sheik flipped his hair. "Wellllll, you're always saying that gender isn't what you wear or how you look, so I figured, why not!" He laughed nervously, his heart racing like he'd just ran a mile.
Groose's face was not content. It was downright frowning. He put his hands on his hips. "Do you think that's a good idea? You look like you're panicking. I can feel it from here."
"I'm fine!" Sheik claimed, tensely.
Mr. Harkinian finally appeared. "Hey, peanut!" He looked Sheik over and smiled. "You look lovely."
Sheik wanted to throw up, but also blushed. "Thanks, Daddy!"
"This isn't ok," Groose announced. "Zelda, this isn't ok!"
"Ah! You must be Groose." Mr. Harkinian held out a hand. Groose shook it automatically. The senator grinned happily at him. "It's nice to see such a strong supporter of who she really is."
Groose looked like he'd swallowed his own tongue. He placed a hand on Sheik's shoulder and nodded out the door before leaving.
Sheik was panicking more than ever, now. "Uh, I'll be right back, Dad!" He followed Groose into the hall.
He barely got there when Groose laid into him. "What is going on, Z?!"
"Please keep it down!" Sheik pleaded, wishing Groose would choose any other time than now to talk about this. "I need this, ok? I need it!"
"You can't tell me this is real!"
"Of COURSE it's not! I'm still me! I'm still SHEIK! But . . ." Everything inside of him pleaded with Groose to shut up, to just stop. "I need my dad." His begged with his eyes.
"Z, look at you. Sheik, you're literally sweating. I can't even see you, you're completely invisible."
Sheik gulped, and his vision blurred. He covered his face in his hands. "I need my dad!"
"He doesn't need you," Groose said. "He doesn't even believe you exist."
Sheik fiddled with the Triforce pendant he wore around his neck, heart pounding harder than ever. "Just let me pretend," he asked, weakly. Suddenly he brightened. "Do you want to come with us? Dad seems to like you."
Groose considered. "Do I have to treat you like a girl?"
Sheik paled. "Yeah, but it's ok. To you, I'm Zelda, right? Not gendered, just who I am. You can get away with it. It'll be ok. It has to be."
Groose's face scrunched as he breathed out very slowly through tight lips. "Nnnngggggggghokay. I'll do this for you."
Sheik took his hand. "Two of my favorite people!" He gasped. "Hey! Dressed like this, Dad'll let me hold your hand. Isn't that great?!"
"Yeah, yeah."
Sheik led him back to the dining room. "Hey, Dad, do you mind if Groose comes along?" He made it very obvious he, as a she, was holding Groose's, a boy's, hand. Very straight! Very hetero! Very normal! LOVE ME!
Mr. Harkinian smiled. "Of course! I want to know all about your friends." He came over and wrapped an arm around Sheik, squeezing him close. Sheik felt warm all over, and for a second, it was all worth it. He hugged his father back, clutching him tightly as the three walked down the hall to the front doors. He didn't want the hug to end . . .
They went into town, got lunch, went shopping. Mr. Harkinian bought Sheik several dresses.
It was only the second time Sheik had to go to the bathroom to get his panicking under control. It wasn't that bad!
Of course, Groose couldn't go in with him, like he normally did. Sheik went into the ladies' room, and Mr. Harkinian was watching, anyways. They stood nearby, waiting, Groose wishing he could be there, and Mr. Harkinian oblivious that anything was wrong.
"I appreciate you being there for her," Mr. Harkinian was saying.
Groose blinked at him blankly.
"It's been tough, I imagine, being in school with all of this going on. I admit I blamed her, to start with. But these are just things teenagers go through, aren't they?" He shook his head. "I should have been kinder."
Groose thought about Sheik curled into a ball in the corner of a stall, shaking. That's what you call kinder?!
"I truly am grateful," Mr. Harkinian continued. "It's nice to see a friend of Zelda who truly appreciates her for who she is, and isn't trying to change her."
"I like Zelda no matter what she looks like," Groose stated simply.
Mr. Harkinian nodded with a smile. "That's just the friend she needs!"
Groose shook his head. Sheik was taking a long time . . . He opened the restroom door and shouted, "HEY, Z! WHAT'S UP?"
No one answered, so with a glance at Mr. Harkinian, gauging what the man would think of Zelda's "true friend," he slipped in.
To his surprise, Mr. Harkinian came in after him, looking worried.
"Z?"
Groose found Sheik on the floor by the sinks, head in his hands.
"Zelda!" Mr. Harkinian rushed over and knelt down, patting Sheik's shoulders. "Zelda, are you alright? What's wrong?"
"I'm sorry, Dad, I can't . . . It's so hard . . ."
Mr. Harkinian pulled him into a hug. "It's going to be alright, peanut."
"I'm sorry I'm such a failure at everything."
"You're alright, you're not a failure! You're the most wonderful daughter in the whole world!"
Groose blanched. He left the bathroom and stood right outside, staring at the carpet between his feet. Some lady came up to use the bathroom, but Groose waved her away with a "You really don't wanna go in there" look. She nodded seriously and puttered away, reflecting his look of disgust and bewilderment.
When Mr. Harkinian and Sheik came out of the bathroom, Sheik's makeup was basically gone. It brought Groose relief, but he knew that was just a placebo effect. Sheik was still a wreck. Oh, but he smiled. He smiled as they went to the arcade, and ate ice cream, and finally went to the movies.
In the middle, Sheik patted Groose's arm. "Hey, wanna escort me to the bathroom, big guy?" he said, loud enough for his dad to hear.
"Sure," Groose said. They exited to the aisle, and Sheik grabbed his hand immediately. His hand was clammy. He said nothing all the way to the main hallway.
"What's up, Z?" Groose asked.
Sheik's head was lowered, his hand shaking inside Groose's. "Nothing," he said with a sob. "I just needed to be a boy for a second."
"I'm here for you, Sheik," Groose said. He glanced up at the sky dramatically. "Even if it's the hardest thing I've ever had to do watching you pretend to be a girl. Oh my goddess!"
He got Sheik to chuckle. "I'm pretty convincing, though, aren't I?"
Groose pointed a thumb at the theater. "You fooled him!"
Now Sheik laughed. "Like THAT'S hard!" He cleared his throat, then took several shuddering breaths. "Okay . . . Okay. I think I'm good. Thanks, Groose."
"Can we go to the men's section after this?" Groose asked as Sheik walked them back to the theater door. "Like, just us two?"
"Y-yeah, that would be nice."
Ganondorf sat in his cell, waiting for visiting hour. Visiting moment, more like.
A guard came to his cell early. "You've got a visitor, Dragmire."
Already? Is Shadow here early? It couldn't be. He could only come exactly when scheduled. Once a week. Twenty minutes. 4:30. Thursdays. So who? He followed the guard. Getting to the visiting area was an ordeal, but they made it finally.
The boy sitting opposite the bullet proof glass, Ganondorf had never seen before. He had brown hair with bleached ends, hollow blue eyes behind slim glasses, and a somewhat gangly frame. Not gangly in a weak way, though, but wiry all the same.
Ganondorf raised a brow and sat down, waiting for the guard to cuff him to the table before picking up the phone. The boy on the other side did the same. "Hello?"
"Ganondorf Dragmire."
"Yes."
"I'm here about Shadow."
It clicked. "You're Vio."
The boy nodded.
Ganondorf took a good look at him. The driven eyes, the dispassionate voice, the confidence. The way he held himself suggested he had charm, but only when he needed it to get what he wanted.
He was staring at himself, from years ago. A corner of Ganondorf's mouth turned up. He leaned onto the counter. "What can I do for you, Vio?"
"I need to know how you repaired Shadow's heart."
Ganondorf would have scoffed, if the boy hadn't looked so serious.
Even so, Vio explained, "I was the one who captured Krad and put you in here."
As if you need to exert dominance. I see you, boy. "Does Shadow know?"
"Yes." He said it proudly, as if to say that even Shadow had been unable to resist him.
"There isn't much I can actually tell you," Ganondorf said, pointing around the jail space.
"I'm a very big fan of your work," Vio said, his voice a dead monotone. "I have a big project at school. I'd welcome any advice."
After a moment, Ganondorf nodded.
"Gerudo potions are the most potent around. What's the essential ingredient in a blue potion?"
Ganondorf sat back slowly. He knew Vio wasn't actually asking about a blue potion—certainly everyone knew what those ingredients were. His point in asking the question was a code.
What was this boy about? Could he really help Shadow? Had he really captured that cursed shadow thing? Studied it? Did he really know how to do it, just lacking the what to use?
There was a specific way to extract a shadow being's heart. It involved manipulating the properties of a physical object that could then be fused with shadow. "A pig's heart," Ganondorf said. "Closest thing to a human's. That's how my elders always did it."
Vio's eyes squinted slightly. "That's not good enough," he said. "The subject still dies when put under enough stress."
Ganondorf shrugged, then said, carefully, "You could always try a fairy. That is, if you can find one."
"A life for a life."
"Not just any life, a magic life. Potions are magic."
"A magic life." Vio glanced at his hand under the table. He looked through the glass at Ganondorf. "Sir . . . Could I see the back of your hand?"
Ganondorf turned the phone so the Triforce symbol on the back of his hand was visible to Vio. What did he care if anyone knew he had the Triforce of Power? It wasn't that weird, being a Gerudo male.
"Could that work?" Vio asked.
Brilliant! "It . . . just might."
