16. Reflections

I was starting to really hate the Desert Colossus. Something that I was still refusing to think about had happened the first time I'd come here, a very nice woman who hated Ganon had been kidnapped by deformed witches the second time I'd come here, and I'd been attacked by Leevers and crow-like thingies called Guay both times. Now I was here for a third time, trying very hard not to think about the first time, and being attacked by Leevers and Guay.

Oh yeah. I was really starting to hate the Desert Colossus.

I stared at the goddess of the sand for a good fifteen minutes, telling my brain to shut up the whole time, and made a decision. I couldn't do it, I just couldn't do it. Too much that was too painful had happened to me, and I needed time to recuperate. It was getting late in the day anyway, and it's not like I had a deadline or something. I wanted to save the world, sure, but I just needed time. Standing there, I was close to tears, and I am not a crier.

I played the Prelude of Light and sunk to the ground near the Spiritual Stones, leaning against a wall.

"You want to talk about it Link?" Navi asked.

"No."

"You should."

"No I shouldn't."

"Link…"

I sighed. "I just want it to go away, I don't want to talk, or even think about it."

"And that is your problem."

I stared at her. "Huh?"

"You don't think about your feelings, you don't question them or give names to them. That's not exactly a bad thing, but in this case, you should."

"Huh?"

"Tell me about Sheik."

I looked away. "I like him."

"So what happened back there?"

I shrugged.

"He likes you, obviously."

I nodded.

"He likes you very differently from how you like him."

I didn't move.

"Do you like him that way?"

I bit my lip.

"Are you attracted to him Link?"

I shook my head. "No, not really. I mean, he's got really pretty eyes and moves like a cat, but I'm attracted to the parts of him that are feminine, not really him."

"But when he kissed you…"

"I thought of Zelda."

"Oh."

We were both quiet for awhile.

"It hurts, doesn't it?" Navi said it like it was a statement.

"Yeah, it hurts."

"Why does it hurt?"

"I dunno."

"Think about it."

I sighed again and leaned my head back. "It feels like a betrayal, I guess."

"Betrayal?"

"Like he took advantage of me. I'm sure he knew how much I liked him, and I know he knew how horny I've been, and I think he might have used that to get close to me, to get away with…what he did."

"Okay, feeling of betrayal. That's the first layer, what's the next?"

"What?"

"There's another reason it hurts, tell me about that."

I said nothing for a few moments, then admitted, "Guilt."

"Guilt?"

"I made out with a guy Navi," I said bitterly. "I doesn't matter that he's really feminine and I was thinking of a girl, I still made out with a guy. And the worst part is…I liked it."

"It's okay to enjoy a good kiss."

"From a guy?"

"You said yourself he's really feminine."

"But-"

"Maybe it's not that you kissed a guy, maybe it's just that you kissed anyone."

I didn't say anything.

"You said you thought of Zelda, maybe you're guilty because you think you betrayed her."

"That's ridiculous Navi, why would my kissing anyone be betraying Zelda?"

"The same way your 'servicing' half the Gerudo tribe is betraying Zelda."

I froze.

"You are guilty about that, aren't you?"

"That's got nothing to do with this Navi."

"Uh-huh, sure."

"So what if I feel guilty about that? So what? It wasn't betraying anyone, it's not like I was saving myself for anyone."

"Weren't you?"

I didn't say anything.

"There's one more."

"One more?"

"One more reason it hurts."

I slumped forward. "He said… he said 'I won't be seeing you again.'"

"That hurts?"

"More than I thought was possible," I said truthfully.

"All right then." Navi bobbed away.

"That's it?" I blinked.

"Yup, I'm good, are you?"

I stared at her for a moment, then looked away. "For now. When did you get to know me so well?"

"While you've been busy saving the world Link, I've been busy saving you."

zzz

The next morning I went back to the Desert Colossus, rested and ready to take down Twinrova. The Silver Gauntlets fit perfectly now, and I'd tested them on some big rocks in Hyrule Field before coming here. It was very cool to chuck enormous rocks at random trees and see which one would shatter, but after last night's little 'vacation,' Navi wasn't letting me get away with anything more.

The Silver Gauntlets let me move the big gray blocks that had blocked the way before. I pushed the one on the right into a hole, where it became the floor, giving me access to the rest of the Temple.

Although that might not have been a good thing. In the second half of the Temple I found: Beamos, Razor Traps, silver rupees puzzles, Wolfos, two Like Likes, a Wallmaster, plenty of mirrors to move, trick chests, psycho pots, rusty switches, Anubis, more Beamos, Armos statues, and finally, another Iron Knuckle.

"You…" my eyes narrowed. "I remember you. You're going down!"

The Iron Knuckle wasn't really impressed by my macho talk, but I showed him that I wasn't kidding.

"Yeah! Not so tough now are you! Now that I'm all grown up and have a sword almost as big as your axe! Yeah, I didn't think so!"

"Link, stop taunting the poor thing and go through the door."

"Poor thing?" I exclaimed. "Poor thing! This 'poor thing' tried to kill me!"

"But instead you kicked its ass."

"Yeah, I did!"

"So leave it alone and get going."

I snorted, but did. In the next room I found a shield with a highly polished metal surface, so highly polished that it worked as a mirror. I peered at my reflection in it. "Is that what I look like now?"

"You mean you didn't know?"

"You've been with me this whole time, when have I had a chance to look in a mirror?"

"Good point." Navi bobbed over and looked over my shoulder. "Yeah, that's what you look like now."

"Huh, not bad," I turned my head from side to side, examining my profile. "No wonder the Gerudos wanted to keep me around."

"You're not gonna get a big head now, are you?"

"Hmm…" I pretended to think about it.

"Link!"

I laughed. "Calm down Navi, I'm not gonna get full of myself. I know as well as you do what an idiot I am."

"Oh, well…good, I guess." She looked at me seriously. "Are you feeling better?"

I slipped the Mirror Shield onto my arm and drew the Master Sword. "Much. After all, once this is over, I'm going after Ganon."