Zach had slept through the worst of his injuries through the night and well into the day. The worst of it was his eye; even though he did not damage his eye, the fact was that the healing water did not heal self-inflicted injuries. Zach would need an eyepatch while his good eye recovered. The sun had just about set when Midna found the hot spring atop one of Kakariko's buildings. Hopefully using the warm spring water instead of Eldin's spring would afford more privacy. As well, Zach had built a resistance to the healing water; best not overuse it lest the same happen to Midna.

The day seemed to fly by for Midna. She had to be escorted to bed by the shaman, as she refused to leave Zach alone in his state. Sahasrahla finally assured her that Zach was in good care and she needed rest herself. Once she managed to get a few hours of sleep, she had to contend with the villagers and their questions. What was that monster? Were there more like it? What happened up on the mountain?

While she was very grateful that Sahasrahla assisted in the discussions between herself and the Kakariko villagers, there were still too many questions and concerns for her to address. With the elder's blessing, she was allowed to see to Zach as he awoke, but that proved to do far more damage than simply talking with the townsfolk.

Midna removed her helmet and set it on a nearby stone. Looking at it now, even the very material of the Fused Shadow seemed drenched in darkness. She summoned the two artifacts she and Zach had acquired so far, placing them beside her helmet. One was the lower portion of the helmet's front, the other its ridged lower back. Naturally the only piece left would be the rear horns that matched Midna's helmet.

And then she would...

"Child," Sahasrahla said as he climbed the steps up to the spring, "you must not give in to despair."

"What else am I supposed to feel?" she whispered, hugging her knees. She glanced at the helmet, her eyes already stinging and misty. "I've just had my doom spelled out for me. Am I not allowed a moment to... a moment to think?"

"Very well." The elder sat on a nearby stone, his beard waving in the wind. He leaned on a wooden staff. "What thoughts do you have?"

"I don't want to talk about them."

"As you wish."

. . .

"I'm so angry at him," Midna snapped. "How could he keep this from me? After all we've been through so far, what did he have to gain by hiding this? What did he have to lose?" She clenched her fists tight. Her breath was ragged, weary. She furiously wiped her face and slapped her hands in the spring water. "I just... I'm tired. I'm tired of all this trudging about. I'm tired of being in this body. I'm tired of hiding in the shadows half the time. I'm so damned tired of it all."

"Suppose he told you immediately," Sahasrahla said. He tapped the ground with his staff. "What then? Would you have reacted agreeably?"

"I..." Midna deflated and flung herself back, lying on the edge of the spring. "I don't think so, no."

"And suppose he did not tell you at all. You surely would ask afterward if he knew, and he would have no choice but to lie or be honest. You would react well then?"

"Absolutely not," she hissed. "I would be furious and I... I would most likely abandon him right then and there."

"What would you have done in his place?"

Midna rubbed her eyes. "I'm not in his place. I don't know anything about him that he hasn't already told me himself."

"But if you did... if you knew that something terrible would happen to him, would you tell him or not?"

"... I would want to tell him, but I wouldn't know when," she whispered. "We didn't get off to a good start when we first met, so... he really didn't have a choice but to wait until now. I wouldn't have reacted well... I'm not reacting well..." She drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Okay, so I can understand him not telling me. That still doesn't change the fact that all this is pointless."

"Is it?"

"Stop...!" Midna sat up and pointed sharply at Sahasrahla. "Stop asking questions trying to nudge me to the answer. I'm through with being misdirected. I just want a straight answer!"

At that, the elder chuckled. "What is the question in your heart?"

Midna's hand fell. She glanced at her reflection, those cursed impish eyes staring back at her. But despite her revulsion at this form... it was still better than what had happened to her mother. Had it been so long since she thought of her parents? When was the last time she told them how much they meant to her? And her beloved Twilight Realm... would she ever see it again?

"If... when all this is over," she said, wiping her eyes once more, "will there be any of my people left to save?"

"Yes," Sahasrahla said firmly. "If the legends are true, your people are born survivors. You are not so easily swept away by the winds of change."

Even in her mood, Midna had to smile. "I appreciate the sentiment. I... I'm sorry I lost my temper at you. I'm sorry I lost it at him as well." She rubbed her temples, her eyes drifting shut. "I don't know what do about his mood swings. They're so turbulent, so vicious... I've never seen that anger before."

Oh yes, she has. She knew she saw that look somewhere before. That hateful gleam, the curled snarl... Zant had that. His face remained perfectly still as stone, but his eyes... He and Zach shared the same eyes.

Midna came to that realization before but now she realized that for all his rage, Zach pushed himself to the brink of death to protect those children. Or perhaps he was that determined to destroy King Dodongo? Perhaps both?

Whatever the case, Zach's temperament must not continue. His emotions were dangerous! But why? He was barely older than her yet his fury burned far hotter, and that was saying something. He was berserk, they all saw it. Crazy, manic, deranged! That degree of temper does not just fall from the sky, it had to come from somewhere. It had to!

Pressing against her aching temples, Midna groaned, "I shouldn't be spending so much energy on this..."

"Then spend it on other matters," Sahasrahla said. "Take a moment and see the world around you."

The night sky above sparkled with lights. Stars, Zach had said. Hundreds, perhaps thousands of them filled the sky. The Twilight Realm never had a view like that; it was the same dusky dark-but-light no matter where or when one looked. And they called it a world of shadows, hah!

This world had so much more variety, Midna had to admit. More colors and peoples and lands than Midna knew what to do with, and she has only seen a fraction of them!

The wind blew across her skin. Wind... The Twilight Realm had wind but it was different; stiff, like it was being tasked too hard to roll across the plains of twilight. Shivering, she shifted further into the spring, allowing it to cover up to her neck in mercifully warm water.

Midna envied the land of Hyrule, she supposed. It felt as though Hyrule was designed to be the perfect, idyllic world, and why should it not? Why else would the dark interlopers of old covet this land? Why would they be sent to a realm that is all Hyrule is not?

That thought chilled Midna's spine. For all the beauty she saw in her realm, in the end it was a prison meant to punish those who would threaten Hyrule and the Triforce. She always knew the story—everyone in the Twilight Realm did—but to see the contrast between light and twilight was truly eye-opening.

Contrast indeed. Their worlds contrasted so much that normal daylight was harmful, even lethal, to Midna. Her pulse quickened but her breathing slowed. She was destined to be blasted by pure light and mortally wounded by the very madman that drove her to this state of being. The Fused Shadows for which she fought so hard were to be stolen from her.

And it would fall to Zach to save her.

A shuddery gasp escaped her lips. Zach had not explained the details but judging from his words and tone, he was not up to the task and he knew it. No wonder he was so afraid to tell her! All the effort they expended, all the cooperation and arguments, it was all pointless! Everything was pointless, nothing mattered, and hope was a lie! Midna squeezed her eyes shut tighter and tighter until she saw spots and let out a dreary sigh.

The path of life split and left her with two choices; go through all the pain and misery that awaited her for a chance at saving her family and people, or give up.

It sounded so simple to give up. All she had to do was find a comfortable place to live and let the world fall to darkness. You never fail if you never try, yes? Zach would either join her or go off on his own and get himself killed. He would do so of his own volition, so Midna would be innocent in the event of his death. With luck, she would never even know if he died since she would be spending time on a farm or at the inn or anywhere else she saw fit to reside.

Midna let out a dry chuckle. Why did she even bother to entertain the thought? Of course she was going to keep going! For the slightest chance of success, she would give anything. She would give up her life if it meant her people were alive and safe. As much as Midna wanted to surrender to that notion, she dared not give up hope.

That being said, Midna felt a wave of melancholia sweep over her. "I know I shouldn't wallow," she whispered, "but knowing what may happen... it's hard, you know?"

Sahasrahla nodded sadly and said, "Better than most. Do not be afraid to weep, child."

"I'm not weeping." She furiously wiped her face but failed to stop the hitch in her breath. "I'm not going to cry by myself in some puddle while there's better things to do with my time and energy." Try as she might, the dam had already cracked. She buried her face in her hands and let out a quiet, desperate sob. The water was warm but Midna felt icy cold. Her eyes stung, her lungs burned, and her heart ached.

With the blessing of privacy, Midna wept. She missed her parents, her friends, her home. With no small amount of shame, she missed the feeling of her parents embracing her when she was a child. She missed the feeling of her mother lovingly stroking her hair as she sang Midna to sleep. Would Midna ever hear her mother's voice again? And what of her father, he who always presented himself as a man of steady and fair authority? Would Midna ever see his smile again?

Too many questions. Just like the villagers, there were just too many questions.

"Why wasn't I more prepared?" Midna muttered, but more out of bitter curiosity than scorn. "Why did things have to happen this way?"

"You are paying for the sins of your forefathers," Sahasrahla replied with a bow of his head. "Perhaps one day, you may have it in your heart to forgive them."

Midna shook her head. "My forefathers paid long before I was born. We made the most of it, we survived and made a home out of a prison." She even dared a smile. "We have a way of life. We have art, literature, music. We didn't need Hyrule for that. Maybe we'll share our culture once this is over. So far, these seem like good people if a little backwards and complacent."

"And what of the boy?"

"Oh, I imagine he'll go back to whatever home is waiting for him." Midna's brief peace of mind soured. "He'll probably get escorted personally by those Golden Goddesses of his. He shouldn't be so grouchy, he has so much going for him."

What did Midna have going for her? She was trapped in that impish form, trapped in this fatally beautiful world, trapped with a fool who had nearly died twice—

He did nearly die twice, did he not?

That thought shook Midna out of her mood. Somehow, the world went back into focus. Midna looked up at the stars for a third time, once more remembering Zach's explanation of them. He certainly seemed knowledgeable in several fields of study, so he was intelligent to a fault. Therefore, he had at least some idea of what he would be dealing with in Hyrule, yes? His knowledge proved useful time and again, when he was prepared. When he was caught off-guard, he paid the price.

That first fight with Diababa, his body was mangled and his blood had been poisoned. For nearly a full day, Midna watched over him to ensure he did not die but her worries had less to do with his well-being and more to do with what she would do without him. When he finally awoke, she immediately pressed him to get back to work with little consideration for what he went through.

In fact... he has been through an awful lot throughout their time together. So has she, but he considered her feelings much more than she had considered his. He gave her refuge in his home, protected her from Diababa and Fyrus, even comforted her after Death Mountain's eruption in spite of his eye injury. Even after she yelled at him when he was at his lowest...

Midna's cheeks burned hot. "I haven't been the best companion to him, have I?"

"You had to mature in your own way." Sahasrahla reached over and settled his hand on Midna's shoulder. "You have been through much, Princess."

"And now here I am wallowing about my problems," she said, "while he's in the middle of recovering from a cannon exploding on him."

"I don't care about your feelings!" Midna flinched at the memory of what she said to him just a day ago. All he wanted to do was help. "We don't need you right now!" Midna still agreed with the reason she refused him and was thankful that she was able to apologize but in hindsight, she wished she had explained it without yelling at him.

"I don't blame you, I really don't," said Past-Zach.

He had just been blown up but he harbored no blame toward her? The cynical part of Midna wanted to shrug that off and say he was lying, but Midna wanted to... she needed to believe he was honest.

"It's all your fault!"

Did he blame himself? Was he taking responsibility for Midna's behavior? Now that was just not fair. Midna understood now; She needed to own up to her own actions just as she expected him to own up to his. She needed to be more level-headed, just as her father told her before she began this adventure.

For the good of the Twilight Realm, Midna promised herself that she would make her parents proud. If Zach had the spine to go through two near-death experiences, then so did Midna. Of course, hopefully they would be able to avert that particular scenario, but Midna would face death with a smile if it meant saving her people.

Her stomach grumbled.

"Okay, important life decisions have been made," she said with a clap of her hands. "Time for food." Midna did not fool herself. There were still raw emotions to deal with, but she felt enough progress had been made for the day. After wiping her face and making sure her eyes were not too puffy, she vanished the Fused Shadow, departed the hot spring and immediately jumped back in. "Freaking freezing out there..."

Sahasrahla chuckled and offered a robe. "It is quite the luxury, is it not?" Midna donned the robe and followed him to the inn, which was fairly populated tonight. The villagers all sat at tables happily dining away at their food, barely acknowledging Midna as she entered the main dining room. She was tempted to float through the room but perhaps it was best not to frighten these poor Hylians with shows of magic.

Once he settled into his seat, Sahasrahla hummed in thought. "I had neglected to ask, how is he?"

"He's recovering," Midna said as she hopped onto a nearby stool. All right, she actually floated up but no one noticed. "I think some food will help."

The elder chuckled and nodded. Midna smiled at him, briefly reminded of her own grandfather with that enormous beard of his. "A warm meal and good company can be even better than the strongest potions," he said, and then turned to Anju as she walked past. She was headed for the kitchen, though she did not work alone. Her husband—Midna assumed the purple-haired man was her husband from their loving embraces—worked in the kitchen as well, chopping vegetables and setting them in a pot above a fire. The aroma made Midna's mouth water, and she made a mental note to ask for the recipe later. "Please dear, two bowls for our honored guest and her companion."

"I neglected to ask as well; How is everyone?" Midna asked as they waited.

"The village is recovering," said Sahasrahla. "I have alleviated most of their concerns. We received word from the Gorons; once they have repaired the damage done to their facility, they will send a group of Gorons to aid our own recovery."

Midna sighed in relief. "It's good that they're willing to help. They seemed kind of stubborn and hard-headed at first."

"Ah, they are a prideful sort," he said, "but not without virtue."

Anju returned with two steaming bowls of soup with matching bread slices. She bowed her head and Midna returned the gesture. "I wish I had the money to repay everyone's hospitality," she muttered.

Sahasrahla waved Midna off. "Think nothing of it. It is we who must repay you for saving our village thrice now. A gift, you could say, from one land to another."

"I like the sound of that," she said. "When this is over and I take a leisure tour through Hyrule, I'll make sure to stop by."

"We would be honored and delighted," he said.

With another bow of her head, Midna took the two bowls and bread and left the inn. Zach's injuries required him to stay in a different building across the street, mostly because that was where he happened to be taken and it was too risky to move him now. The air was still warm even a full day after King Dodongo's rampage, and the ground bore scorched tracks left in its wake.

With the window still open, Midna floated in and was greeted by the sound of music. Like all of Zach's music, the words were gibberish to Midna but the tone certainly told her enough by its melancholy string instruments and vocals.

Zach had not shifted since Midna left, minus the arm used to grab and activate his phone. He was covered in wrappings and gauze, including most of his head, yet he seemed to be breathing more easily than before.

Midna cleared her throat and said, "I brought soup if you're hungry."

"Very." He sounded drained, yet his voice had more of its regular tone than the pained whispers from before. "Thank you."

Setting the bowls on the small table near the bed, Midna tried her best to sound casual. "So... Ahem, I heard the Gorons are going to help the village after they're done fixing our... messes up on the mountain."

"That'll be good," he said, sitting up.

Wait, he sat up? "Uh..."

"What?"

Midna blinked at him. "You... you sat up. Shouldn't you, I don't know, be injured to the point of paralysis?"

Zach shrugged with a wince. "I'm still really sore but I feel fine overall. I think so much exposure to the spring water gave me a faster metabolism and healing rate."

"... Well, that's convenient."

"I'm all for it." Zach's movements were still stiff as he carefully stretched. "If it means we can get the last Fused Shadow that much sooner, the better."

Midna nodded, but the remark left her appetite a little lacking. "Let's take this time to relax a little."

"..." Zach stared in her direction, his jaw clenching and unclenching. "I'm confused. I thought we were supposed to do this as fast as possible."

"I was wrong. I was wrong about a lot of things." She took a deep breath. "I... after some thinking, I realized that I've been less than courteous with you—"

"I know what you're going to say." Zach's shoulders sagged beneath the bandages. "You're going to say, 'but this is the third, fourth, fifth, however many times we've had this conversation, and I've been trying hard to treat you like an adult, and you keep giving me the bare minimum'." He reached up to grab his head bandages, but his hands stopped just an inch away. His fists clenched and relaxed like he wanted to rip the bandages off but knew he should not. "And then you'll say something along the lines of, 'I've fucking had it up to here with you, you little shit-bird. You have any idea how much I want to throw this at you? I want to so fucking badly, because that feels like the only god damn way to get through to you, but if I throw this I'm going to throw this at the wall because I won't hit you.'"

Zach's dread and fury bled through the connection in their minds like hot poison. Midna's jaw was slack, her eyes wide as saucer plates. He could lash out at any moment if she so much as looked at him wrong. She wanted to run, hide, anything to get away from him! Her ears ached with the sound of blood rushing inside them, a consequence of her panicked heart racing.

Zach's breath hitched. His hands flopped to his lap. "And then you'll see me being obviously upset, and then you'll say, 'oh, you're getting pissed at me? I fucking dare you to tell me I'm wrong! Well? Am I wrong?' And of course you're not so I'll say, 'no, sir.' And then you'll... then you'll grab the nearest thing of mine and smash it against the wall. 'Clean up this mess,' you'll say, 'I don't feel up to it.' And then you'll—and then you'll leave and slam the door, and then you'll yell, 'You better not break anything or I'm gonna beat your ass!'"

Midna seethed with an anger not her own, clenching and unclenching her fists in tandem with Zach. She would smash something on the floor if not for the consequences, which left her in a perpetual state of panic and rage and no healthy outlet for them. But this was not her anger, she was only feeling the aftershock of what Zach was going through.

She did know what to do, however. "Zach," she said, but stopped when Zach shielded his face. Was he afraid of her or the apparition of whoever he was quoting? She took a deep, long breath and exhaled slowly. "Zach, I won't hurt you. I want to help you."

"... but...?"

"No buts. I want to help you, so I will." Midna carefully, gently took Zach's hands and pulled them away from his face. "Breathe with me. Just breathe."

Zach stared down at their hands, despite the fact that he was blind. His fingers slowly grasped Midna's but he did not fully hold them. "You... you shouldn't have to work this hard with me."

Midna shook her head. "That's not important right now—"

"Yes, it is," he said, his voice cracking. "I shouldn't be like this... I should be better... and you're going through enough..."

"I really appreciate your consideration," she replied. "I really, really do. But you know what I did just before I came back?" Truth be told, she was loathe to admit it to him, or anyone really, but she trusted him. "I went up to the hot spring, got all nice and cozy in the water, and then I cried my eyes out."

"I'm so sorry, Midna..."

Well, it was a relief that he did not judge her for it. "That's the next thing I was going to say. I haven't been good to you. I've been selfish, hardheaded, and I think you knew there was no good time to tell me the truth." She lightly squeezed his hands. "I put you in a terrible position and I'm sorry. Anyway, you're holding onto these harmful feelings for dear life and you need to let them out. Not by breaking things or yelling, mind you. I... forgive my presumption but no one has actually told you what to do with your anger, have they?"

"Of course they have," he muttered. "I need to take what I'm feeling and what caused it and stack it up against how others are feeling and weight them against each other."

"And?"

Zach's hands trembled against Midna's. "And apparently I'm supposed to understand that the things I'm angry at are tiny and miniscule and I'm overreacting, which doesn't help me even if that's right because... because I don't want to calm down. And that's bad."

Midna nodded and said, "That's not a good thing, yeah. But I think I understand; you don't want to calm down because you're upset that it happened in the first place, and things like that shouldn't happen to you. Right?"

Slowly, ever so slowly, Zach nodded. "And I'm supposed to just accept that bad things happen and I'm never allowed to be upset or angry and I should be grateful that it isn't worse than it is."

"Well... they make a lot of good points," Midna said. "But that middle part about not being upset or angry? Sorry to whoever told you that, but that's bullshit. Should you be violent and loud? No, of course not. But we've both been burying stuff down and that's getting us nowhere."

"Then... what do we do?"

"First, we breathe."

"This is ridiculous."

Midna raised an eyebrow. "Why? What's so ridiculous about breathing?"

"Not that," Zach said, but he hid a chuckle behind it. "I mean it's ridiculous that you have to instruct me like I'm a four-year-old. I faced down giant monsters, I should be able to do something simple like breathing."

Midna caught that chuckle and it gave her hope. Even without breathing exercises, she was helping him calm down. "Just breathe. Focus on keeping it nice and steady."

Despite his hesitation, Zach did as instructed. He breathed in and out in rhythm with Midna, inhaling slowly and exhaling twice as slowly. Soon enough, the searing anger within him cooled enough for both their hearts to slow down and relax. His hands held Midna's, the glowing runes on her fingers illuminating his.

Midna gently traced a scar along the side of his hand between the thumb and index fingers. "I'm sorry I ran on you. Again."

"You just heard some really bad news," he said. "I understand."

"I appreciate that." Midna released one of his hands and sat beside him on the bed. "I've never been good at hiding my emotions. I've sat through many a lecture from my parents and friends." She half-smiled. "Just before all this happened, I was so angry at Zant that I slapped him right in front of the royal court."

Zach snorted and said, "That must have felt good."

"Oh yeah," she said with vigor. "Knocked his stupid hood sideways for good measure. He tries to hold in his emotions but he can't change that annoying glint in his eye."

"Bah, it's a ruse."

"Of course it is." Midna cracked her knuckles in anticipation. "I can't wait to see the look on his face when we get him." She suddenly turned to Zach with a gleeful grin. "Hey, you know how he reacts, don't you?"

"Uh..." Zach had to ask Midna for help but eventually he grabbed the soup bowls. He passed one to Midna and sat properly on the bed with his feet stretched out. Midna happily shifted so she sat beside him, smelling her soup with a hungry hum. "Yeah, he doesn't take it well."

"Details, Zach, details."

Zach had to laugh at that. He ate a spoonful—which had only cooled slightly while Midna calmed him down—and hummed himself at the flavor. "Side note; Anju's cooking is apparently much worse in the game than it is here. Her grandmother faked senility just to get out of eating her supper."

Midna spit out her spoonful and coughed up a laugh. "That... oh my, that is... so unfortunate!"

"Anyway," said Zach after he was sure Midna was done with that cough/laugh fit, "Zant has a complete breakdown. Bending over backwards, twisting his torso, stomping on the floor like a little brat, the works."

"Ha! And he thinks himself so above everyone."

Zach grabbed his phone and said, "Lemme pick a different song, I don't want this one right now." Midna watched with mild fascination as Zach activated his phone and navigated its interface without even looking. "If I remember right..." The music changed to a very pleasant version of Midna's lullaby, accompanied by bells and soft strings.

"Ooh, I like this. I take it it's from my game." Midna allowed herself a certain degree of pride that she had an entire game named after and featuring her.

"Sure is. It's the music that plays once a boss is beaten before you go back to the entrance of the dungeon."

"Eee hee! How fitting."

They spent the rest of the meal in a semi-comfortable silence, and once they were both finished, Zach set their bowls on the table and relaxed on the bed. He threaded his fingers together and sighed.

"May I join you?"

Zach hesitated for a moment and then nodded. Midna vanished her robe and wrapped herself in a spare blanket before settling in beside Zach, though there was a fair amount of space between them. They were not that friendly, after all.

"Thank you," said Midna as she twiddled her thumbs. "For telling me the truth, I mean. That... that takes courage, Zach."

With a mild shrug, Zach said, "I have my moments."

"You do." Midna broke into a yawn and stretched her arms out, groaning appreciably at the pop! in her spine. "Hey, Zach?"

"Mm?"

"... Would it be all right if I slept with you tonight?"

"... sure... but just so you know, I tend to roll around a lot."

Midna smiled, a weight having been lifted from her shoulders. She had no romantic intentions toward him but her heart was still very raw from so much emotional strain. Maybe it was the inner child in her, maybe it was the sense of isolation, or maybe she was warming up to him, but she could not bear the thought of sleeping by herself in another room or even on the floor of this one.

She snuggled into bed and said, "Thank you." Before long, Zach drifted to sleep. Midna was awake still but she knew sleep would find her soon enough. She was too tired to be embarrassed at herself when she leaned over and kissed his cheek. She was just thanking him for his heroism, that was all.