Author's Note

I realized that I wanted some more Link x Midna in my life, and had to continue.


LEGEND BELOW

"Well aren't you adorable." = Normal speech.

''I wonder what he really looks like.'' Normal thoughts.

"Oh Hero, chooses by the goddess." = Higher beings speech/faeries.


Chapter 6

To Kakariko village


The first thing to greet him upon exiting the forest temple was the warm comforting rays of the sun, the light having forced its way through the heavy thicket that towered above the forest floor below. He took a moment to revel in it, after having gone through the wet dank dungeon standing behind him, this warmth was wonderful…

"Are you going to stand there all day or are we going to leave?" With his eyes closed in bliss, he heard the snarky words of the plump little imp he called his master behind him. The both of them had just overcome the overwhelming challenges that the dungeon held, barely managing to emerge victorious in the end. She obviously wanted to get on the move already, not wanting to take a moment of rest after their ordeals.

He supposed he could understand where she was coming from, and he too wished to push on forward to save the missing children of Ordon. He had no idea where they were, how they were doing, or if they were even alive still. It was weighing on his mind at all times, and he couldn't ever forget of his objective.

"H-Hey! Don't ignore me, y-you stupid m-man!" Midna hissed indignantly, face hot red. Link finally opened his eyes, turning to face the imp. He quickly noticed her burning cheeks and grew worried, leaning forward as he placed his hand on her forehead.

"Are you sure you are fine? Did you get hit in that battle?" He asked in concern, leaning in so close that their heads were almost touching. The imp started sputtering incoherently, face catching fire as she was forced to stare deeply into his eyes. His beautiful blue eyes...

"I-I'm fine!" She screeched, pushing away as she quickly put some distance between the two of them. She grasped her cheeks, blushing heavily as she tried to catch her breath.

Was the forest always this hot? She thought it was supposed to be cooler out here! Why was she burning up? Why was it so hot?!

Breathe! She needed to breathe!

She couldn't get this excited over some dumb Hylian man! It shouldn't be possible that he could make her feel this way! It's impossible!

"Midna?" The imp squeaked as Link appeared behind her, grasping her shoulder gently as he tried to face her.

"I'm fine! It's n-nothing! Let's leave already!" She practically screamed, flying deep into the forest, far away from him. He watched her go, eyes scrunched up in confusion, before he sighed.

He still didn't understand her at all…

He thought he did, but it was apparent that he was missing something important about her…

He didn't stand around any longer, quickly running after her little form. Eventually he stumbled across her hovering over Coro that lived in the woods, the same man that he'd saved while in the form of a wolf a few days prior. He sighed as he realized that she was harassing him, and he was too terrified of a floating shadowy imp creature to say anything in response.

"Where is Hyrule Field?! Why won't you tell me what you know!" The imp hissed, floating aggressively above the cowering man.

"L-Listen! I-It's that way!" He squeaked, pointing a shaking finger off to the side, pointing at a large gateway. "J-Just leave me alone!"

"Finally!" Midna sighed loudly, quickly flying back to her hero. Link hummed in surprise as she started dragging him towards the field. "Come on! Let's get out of this stupid forest already!" She ranted, dragging him along. The hero threw an apologetic wave at the man as he passed, promising mentally to apologize at some later date for the imp's actions.

She dragged him along for a short while, passing by the gate and following the only available route. Rapidly, the towering trees that made up the forest of Faron faded away, leaving only small oaks to cast shade over them. Eventually those too faded away, leaving only some small hills to line their pathway…


It didn't take long for the two of them to finally breech the border of Faron, leading them straight into the land of Hyrule. He was stunned by the land that he saw before him, and it stayed his feet. He was awed.

He'd lived his whole live in the land of Ordona, and similarly the land of Faron. So, to see a land sprawling in all directions, rolling green hills and a spattering of small lakes here and there…

Well…

It was just a lot to take in all at once. When he was atop Hyrule Castle before while underneath the veil of Twilight, he couldn't see past the fog that enveloped the castle.

"Hello? Are you still in there?" Link blinked in surprise as Midna appeared in front of him, arms crossed. "Are we going to stand here all day or what?" She asked rudely, a frown marring her face.

Link sighed, shoulders slumping at her brash response. "Where to?" He asked simply, living up to his nature as a man of few words. Midna suddenly blushed as he patiently awaited her response, eyes boring into her.

"W-What do you mean, 'where to'?" She jumped back defensively. "We've got to save the other light spirits or whatever. So, get going already!" She muttered crossly. Link only tilted his head, staring at her.

"I don't know where I'm going." He stated, as if it was obvious. Her expression fell.

"W-What do you mean you don't-?!" She hissed, before spinning around to face away from him.

That's right! Of course he wouldn't know where to go! He'd never been outside his own land before, why would he know where the other spirits would be? She was asking a question that he couldn't answer, and she was getting upset about it.

"L-Listen… it's… I'm sorr-…" She muttered, facing away from him. He stepped forward, looking over her shoulder in confusion.

"Hmm?"

She started sputtering, cheeks catching fire. "I-It's nothing! You're fine, let's just leave already!" She hissed, flying off ahead of him. His eyes scrunched up in confusion at her sudden reaction to him, before shaking his head in defeat.

He didn't understand her at all it seemed…

Not willing to leave her alone in this world, he quickly ran after her. She hadn't stated where she was going, so he felt it safe to assume that she was likely heading in a random direction.

It was still rather early in the day, the sun hanging high above the fields of Hyrule. And while he was certainly fit to be running a long distance such as crossing a massive field, he wasn't prepared for the lack of shade. If it was one thing Zora's didn't handle well whatsoever, it was heat and the blockage of their gills. And while he'd made adjustments to his tunic for the one danger, he realized that prolonged exposure to the sun wasn't going to do him any good.

Thank Hylia it wasn't hot out. The fields he found himself in weren't much warmer then the forests of Faron, so he could manage. Midna wouldn't find him complaining from this minor inconvenience.

Eventually he caught up to the imp, gazing at her from behind as she overlooked a small hillside underneath the shade of a lone oak tree.

"Link! Get over here!" He sped up on approaching her as she hissed at him, waving him over. He slid to a stop beside her, overlooking the land below. There was a large group of Bokoblin below them, but that wasn't really important.

No…

It was the unarmed man that was surrounded by them that posed the problem. They were going to kill him.

"Okay… While they are distracted we can…" Midna started, watching them from the safety of the ledge. But she noticed rather quickly that her hero had left her side, and a second of searching found him leaping off the ledge sword first. "Link?!? What are you doing?!" She hissed loudly. "G-Get back here!" She shouted after him.

Unfortunately, the young man had already decided on his plan of action. Link cut the first Bokoblin down easily, the creature caught completely off guard by his presence. He stood tall, brandishing his sword dangerously at the remaining enemies.

"Y-You saved me!" The stranger cried out, eyeing his hero from his spot on the ground. Link hadn't anything to say, sharp gaze boring into the foes that dared to stand before him.

The Bokoblin stared in surprise at the newcomer, but that surprise quickly led to cackling as they broke down laughing.

Perhaps they thought that numbers meant that they had a chance against him in battle. No matter, it would only be the thing that sealed their fates anyway.

The first monster took his silence as a sign of weakness and charged him, wooden bat raised to strike him down. The Hero's expression sharpened as he bashed the weapon out of the way, making the beast overextend and leave himself open. It couldn't react in time as it suddenly found itself impaled by his sword. He stared the rapidly dying beast down dead in the eyes, no sensation of remorse within him. Then he twisted the blade, before pulling it free of the corpse.

The remaining Bokoblin were suddenly unsure, the fear of a capable enemy standing before them too much all at once. Link spun his blade in his hand, flicking it clean of blood.

Pushed into a corner by this new threat, they resorted to their basic tactics, and charged him all at once from all sides.

"Link! What are you doing?!" Midna cried out, eyes wide as she was forced to watch her hero become surrounded. "Watch out! Just get out of there! Please!" She screamed.

He wasn't seriously going to be taken down by a bunch of bumbling buffoons, was he?

Then she saw it. The young man struck a half crouched stance, sword extended far behind him. As soon as the Bokoblin were within range he unleashed his attack, spinning wildly as his sword slashed in all directions. In just a single moment, all Bokoblin fell dead.

Finally Link let out a breath, shaking his blade clean before he turned to the man cowering on the ground. He gave him a once over before nodding and glancing up to the hillside, throwing a sharp toothed grin to the imp hiding underneath the shade of a tree.

"What was that?!" Midna hissed down at him, flying down to rejoin his side. "Why'd you throw yourself into that?! What am I supposed to do if you got hurt?" She ranted hotly, face flushed. Link recoiled at her words. "How am I supposed to stop Zant if you up and kill yourself?!"

Link looked shocked, staring her deep in the eyes. He could see that she was hurt, but was that because of him?

"Don't leave me again, alright?" She muttered, looking away. Link's gaze softened. "I can't do this without you…" She muttered quietly.

A look of understanding entered the man's eyes.

Ah…

So that's what this was about.

Tension was still high after the events that took place in the forest temple, and she was emotionally exhausted from it. If not that, then from before when she was attacked by the shadow beasts in the woods and he wasn't there to protect her right away. That event would likely haunt her for a while to come, and he'd been careless in understanding her feelings.

She was hurting still, and he'd failed to see that. She was tired too, bleary red eyes pulled up almost as if she was going to start crying at any moment. And that could've been avoided if he'd paid closer attention to her.

She wasn't him. She wasn't a strong swordsman that could handle himself. No, she was a small nearly defenseless imp who had a serious evil after her life. She didn't want to be left alone.

Also, this thing she mentioned. This Zant, must have done something terrible to her for her to feel so strongly about it.

He decided then that if and when he faced them, he'd personally see to it that they suffered the same pain that they'd caused her.

He sighed to himself, upset at himself for not listening to her before.

"W-W-What are you doing?!" She squeaked as he stepped forward, grabbing both her hands gently with his own. She started sputtering at the closeness between them, but calmed slightly at the genuine look in his eyes.

"I'm sorry." He said quietly, not daring to look away from her. "I promise, I won't leave you again."

His words struck a cord within her heart, and she found her anxiety washing away. The warmth of his hands, the determination in his eyes, and the strength in his body. He'd protect her, with everything he had. He'd stay with her, not straying from her side.

He'd take care of her.

"Here…" He said, pulling her along. Her face warmed greatly at the action.

"W-Where are you taking me? What are you doing?" She said indignantly. He didn't stop, dragging her up the hillside and back to the shade of the tree. He plopped down against the tree, setting her in his lap. "W-W-What are you doing?!" She squeaked. His looked down at her, eyes sharp.

"I'm caring for you like you did for me." He said seriously, gently pressing her head to his chest. She tried resisting him, but begrudgingly gave into his demands. Her face felt warm pressed against his chest, and she wanted to rebuke him for even putting her in this situation…

But she didn't, and instead she felt the tears start coming. She didn't want him to hear her, so she stifled herself, but it didn't matter. He knew all too well that she was hurting, and that was indicated when he pulled her tighter to him, wrapping his arms around her.

He didn't say anything. He didn't judge her, make fun of her, nothing. No, he offered to be that shoulder she could cry on, and the safe space where she could let her heart out. And cry she did.

He wasn't sure at what point she fell asleep, but he had no plans on waking her now. She needed to catch up on some sleep while she could, because he knew that their journey was about to become even busier then ever before.


The sun was setting on the lands of Hyrule when the imp finally awoke. Cute little eyes blinked slowly as she stretched within a warm embrace, slowly coming to. Her face warmed when she realized her placement, eyes turned to the face of the man that held her.

Link smiled down at her, that stupid charming fanged grin of his setting her heart aflutter. She felt her embarrassment rising at his look, but he didn't say anything. Her first instinct was to lash out and say something she'd probably regret later, but she didn't.

She'd be lying if she said that she didn't enjoy it, so she settled with sitting there quietly instead, enjoying the moment while it lasted knowing that they had a job to do. If she was honest with herself, which she never was, she'd be happy to stay like this in his arms for a lot longer then she was going to.

"You feel better now?" He asked lightly, smiling a soft smile down at her. Her cheeks warmed at the concern, but she turned away, lest he see the reaction his words had on her.

"I'm just fine…" She muttered, crossing her arms underneath her chest. She closed her eyes, not wanting to see his face.

He sighed, but he wasn't upset. He looked up instead, eyes searching the horizon. He could see another towering wall of twilight not too far ahead. If he had to guess, that would be the best bet for searching out the next Light Spirit. Hopefully Midna would agree.

"B-But…" His attention was drawn back to the imp in his lap as she seemed to struggle with saying something on her mind. Instead of asking her, he'd decided to wait it out to see what she would say. He could feel her face get warm as she spoke. "Let's do this again sometime…" She muttered quietly, looking away.

His eyes widened for a moment, before his face softened. He nodded, not that she could see him. "Okay."

With a grunt of exertion he stood up, holding her up as she took to hovering beside him again. It was night out now, but they were both wide awake. Staying in one place as such wasn't the smartest idea in the wilds, so they'd make their journey now instead.

Link pulled out his lantern, lighting it up as he went. He knew how Midna felt about him not being prepared in enemy territory, so he drew his sword as well. He'd decided to forgo using his shield, because a, it was severely damaged, and b, he'd prefer seeing the approaching enemies by having better use of his lantern with his other hand holding it up.

Midna hugged his arm, holding it as he walked through the darkness of night. Sure she was capable of flight, but she felt more comfortable beside him. She would try to not let that go to his head too much.

They followed the road they happened upon, seeing little reason to depart from it. More wild Bokoblin would appear here and there, but in a one on one, there was a zero percent chance that he'd have even the slightest trouble taking them down while defending Midna.

More appeared as the night went on, but the sight of Bokoblin blood staining his blade gave them pause as it was made apparent that he was in leagues above them.

Eventually the two stumbled upon the wall of darkness. The sheer size of it awe inspiring.

There was no turning back now…

Midna flew up to the wall of darkness, stopping only to glance back at the light-worlder. She flew past the wall, vanishing into the darkness. Link stood there motionless for a moment, waiting for her to pull him through. Not a moment later came her massive glowing hair hand, taking hold of him and pulling him through.

He was dropped into the dark world, blinking as he took a moment to get used to the feeling of twilight on his skin.

"Ahhh…. This is so refreshing!" Midna moaned, stretching out in the air in front of him. Once again in the veil of twilight, the imp wasn't reduced to her shadowy form, instead her more vibrant colors shined through. He'd almost forgotten that her hair was orange, or that she had these interesting blue glowing markings on her arm, legs and her inner thighs.

He'd ingrain the way she looked in the twilight in his mind, on the off chance he never got to see her like this again.

"W-What are you looking at?" She muttered, cheeks red as she noticed his gaze lingering on her. He blinked in surprise as he went to answer.

But…

He grabbed his face suddenly as he was slammed with a sudden onset headache, and in mere moments he was once again tainted by the darkness. In a swirl of dark he was transformed into a blue furred wolf once again, dropping onto all fours in surprise. The now wolf turned up to the floating imp in surprise, but he supposed he really shouldn't have been. This had already happened before.

Midna looked upset at the reaction. She'd apparently have to wait for whatever he'd planned on say for another day, because he wasn't capable of speech anymore.

Link sighed, instead looking around the gloomy land he now found himself in.

It wasn't the best way to venture the land of Hyrule for the…

For the…

"Hey! Where are you going?" Midna asked as she watched him slowly wander off down the road, nose to the ground as if he was being led by something. Suddenly curious, she instead followed him as he went, floating beside him.

The wolf let his nose lead him, until he stumbled upon the source of the strange smell. It was a wooden sword, broken and left behind on the road. His eyes widened as he quickly approached it.

There was no mistaking it!

This was his sword, the one he gave to the kids back then!

Midna, he had to tell her. He turned back up to her, eyes wide. She stared down blankly at him. "What? What do you want Wolfy?" She smiled a little at the appropriate return of his nickname. Said wolf rolled his eyes, motioning to the sword on the ground.

She still didn't seem to understand.

Link frowned, eyebrows furrowed in thought. Using his paws, he scratched out the rough words of 'children' into the dirt. Pleased with his work he turned back to the imp. Her eyes widened.

"The kids? From your town?" She asked in surprise. He nodded. She blinked in surprise. She honestly didn't expect to ever come across those kids again.

Midna understood just how harsh this world could be, especially to those considered weak.

Weak like children…

Weak like her…

You were to be used up and thrown to the side by those stronger, never to be seen from again. When she learned of the fate that befell the children from his village, she had no room in her heart for hope. The beasts that took them were the kind that feasted on the members of the light world, and they'd been taken so many days ago now.

In all likelihood, they were long dead. But she'd never bring that up to him. She'd cross that road whenever it came, but never sooner…

"What are you waiting for, stupid wolf? Let's go already!" She ranted, pointing off to the horizon. He barked at her, filled with a newfound sense of energy.

Finally, after all this time, he was making some headway on saving the children. He couldn't be slow now.

"Well? Are you going to sit there all day or- wah?!" Midna ranted, only to squeak in surprise as he tore off as blistering speeds down the dusty road. She grabbed on for dear life as he ran, the wind flowing through her hair. "Waaah!! Slow down!!" She cried out, but he either didn't hear her, or didn't care to stop…


He didn't know how long he ran, but it was still dark out when he slowed. Breathing heavily, the wolf stopped by a crack that split the land. Just shy of a large mountainous region was a crag that split the land, preventing anyone from crossing. However, center of this crag was a bridge.

Taking a moment to catch his breath he slowly trotted across the bridge, the rickety wooden planks groaning as he went. He tried not looking off to the side, nor down, when he crossed. Heights was not his strong point.

He continued on through the field, but eventually something gave him pause. He approached a mountainside, tan and dusty in color, a stark contrast to the colorful green fields he'd been running through the last half the day. Just ahead there was an opening in the mountainside, a path leading deeper inside.

He pressed his nose to the ground, eyes closed as he reined in his senses. He could smell them, the children from Ordon Village. They'd passed through here, he was sure of it. And they also went through this mountain path.

"Hey hey… The path's blocked… how do you expect to get through?" Midna ranted absentmindedly from atop him, the imp laying on her stomach with her head in her hands. Now that he was moving at a slower pace she could relax a little without fear of falling off. But it seemed like she would already have to leave her comfortable perch.

Link barked something quiet at her, but she couldn't understand him. But from the way she upturned her head, he assumed she understood. She took to the air, flying over the gate as he dug underneath the heavy wooden gate. Crawling through to the other side, he shook out all the dirt from his fur before Midna reclaimed her seat atop his back.

Now on the other side, he couldn't help but notice that he was surrounded by the towering walls of the mountain on each side. Pushing aside his curiosity about the layout of the land, he put his nose down and followed the scent.

For roughly another ten minutes he walked, never straying from his path. Until eventually he wandered into a town. It was a canyon, with a spring on the right from the path, and the entire town to the left. Buildings lined the canyon walls, all in a line leading farther into the canyon.

And while all this was new to him, and a part of him felt implored to explore, something felt off…

Something was wrong…

"Link… I don't like this…" And it was Midna whispering with a unnerved voice that cemented this feeling inside his heart.

The wolf stopped were he stood, eyes narrowed sharply at his surroundings. He smelled the air, taking in all the scents that surrounded him. His eyes widened!

He smelled a vile stench, one he's smelled before. He knew what that smell was.

And he didn't like it. He scanned his surroundings as he slowly approached the nearest building, a round tower of sorts. There was an open window, and just inside of it was a spirit. It was of a man, someone he didn't recognize.

And his face spelled terror.

Link looked around once more, to make sure that, for the moment, they were alone. Sure of his surroundings, he leaned an ear towards the man, hoping to catch something.

"Come on, come on… W-We can't just stay locked up i-in here forever!" The man hissed, rapidly scanning everything he could see from his window. He looked like he'd seen a ghost.

It didn't sit well with Link…

"If we stay here any longer, t-those black creatures are going to come for us too! T-They already got the others, w-we're next!"

Link stepped away from the window, eyes wide. He couldn't be sure, but it sounded like the shadow beasts that came for Midna from before. If more of them showed up now, then he'd need to be ready. He survived the last attack, but just barely. Now, in an open area with light, he was sure this fight would go a bit differently.

Link looked up to the nervous imp sitting atop him, barking to get her attention.

"What? What do you want now?" She asked impatiently. He made a swinging motion with his paw, repeatedly, until she got the memo. "Oh…" With a snap of her fingers, she summoned his sword. He quick took hold of it with his mouth, getting a firm grip on it.

And not a moment too soon. The sound of stomping could be heard, coming from the direction of a graveyard behind the building he stood next to.

The shadow beasts were here.

But this time he was ready…