The spiked ball wasn't too difficult to dodge. Link expected it to come at him as soon as the creature started swinging it, and he leaped to the side and out of the way. He had dropped his shield but he ignored it; a shield would do very little against a massive metal ball. It likely weighed twice as much as he did, if not more, and if it him it would smash his bones like twigs. He watched the creature, who seemed to be focused only on him and was ignoring Midna and Ashei. The creature retracted the ball, yanking it back with the chain to have it clang on the floor near its feet. It leaned over slightly, stooped as it breathed heavily. It was weak. Weak or not, he assumed that it could still kill one of them easily if they weren't careful.

He looked at the heavily armored creature, trying to to think of how they could kill it. Swinging and throwing the ball just once had tired it, so it would eventually tire to the point where they could take a closer look to find a weak point. Its face was exposed, so perhaps he could stab it in the eye or the mouth and up into its brain. Part of him didn't want to kill it, and he pitied the monster; this thing was probably human once, one of the poor souls that the queen had turned into something horrifying. It deserved kindness and safety, and to be taken away from this place that had been its prison for at least six years.

It straightened and fixed its yellow stare on him again, and he could see the insanity in its eyes. No, killing it would be a mercy. No matter who it used to be, it needed to be freed from this existence.

"You don't have to fight us." he said. He didn't know what good it would do to reason with it, but it did focus the monster's attention on him while Ashei started to quietly circle around behind it. "We're willing to take you from this place, but if you're determined to die, you can set down your weapon and I promise you that it will be quick."

The abomination choked out a breath that sounded almost like a sob, a very human-sounding sob. "No. Can't. Can't...stop." It lifted its thick arm and started to slowly swing the chain again, whirling the steel ball around again. "You...sound like…" In its maddened eyes, Link could see something he did not expect: recognition. "G...Gwyn." the creature growled, pronouncing the name with mad fervor. "Gwyn, kill me!"

Link did not expect it to call him by his father's name. He didn't have red hair like his father, although Brent did mention that he did have the same facial expressions. The creature had mentioned his voice, and Brent had told him he sounded a lot like Gwyn. Did he really sound like his father? He tried to remember what his father sounded like to compare it to how his own voice sounded in his ears, but the Master Sword's shout within his mind cracked like a whip and interrupted his thoughts.

Focus!

He barely dodged the ball in time, rolling out of the way, the ball grazing his fur cloak as it moved behind him. The armored monster panted from the effort of throwing the ball, but then snapped the chain taut and pulled the massive spiked ball back to it. He looked past the creature to see that Ashei had circled around to its rear, looking at its back in an attempt to find a weak spot.

"Can you cut some straps?" he called to her. She shook her head but didn't say anything, not wanting to reveal where she was to the creature.

The abomination howled at Link's voice and started to swing its ball again. He had no idea how he himself could get close to the beast as long as it had its heavy weapon, but she could. He knew that the next time its ball was away from its body, Ashei would rush in and try something, although he didn't know what. It was something of a plan, at least.

He was prepared this time, and jumped to the side again as the heavy steel ball smashed into the wall where he was a second ago. Ashei used this moment and sprinted towards the monster, leaping up onto its back. She gripped the back piece of its breastplate and looked for a weak spot.

"Ashei!" he shouted. "Try to cut its armor off!" If she could at least do that, either one of them could run it through.

She shook her head and shouted back. "I can't find any straps up here! I think they're under his arms!"

The creature spun, trying to move its head to see the woman on its back. "Ash...ei?" it ventured, knowing the name. "Ashei!" It groaned and snapped the ball back to itself, its eyes wild and its cries frantic. "Ashei, Brent! Please, Brent!" it shrieked in desperation. "Gwyn! Kill me!"

Ashei's eyes went wide for a second, and then her face reassumed the calm expression she had while fighting. She didn't wait for the creature to start swinging its ball at her, and climbed up to plant her left foot on its left shoulder. She quickly yanked the helmet off its head and threw it aside with a clatter. The reptilian monster's head was bare, covered in green and brown scaled skin, its ears nothing but holes in the sides of its head. It had been wearing a chain coif beneath its helmet at some point, but it was now pushed down around the base of its neck.

The warrior pulled out her sword and grabbed the creature's jaw, hauling its head back with her left hand in order to expose its throat. She drew her blade across its throat and red blood welled up, breath bubbling through the wound from its frantic breathing. The creature let out a strangled, gurgling cry and dropped to its knees. The woman on its back leaped over its head to land next to Link, and turned to watch as the creature put a hand to the blood pouring from its throat. It gave a bubbling sigh and toppled over, landing on its side.

Ashei walked up to it with her bloodied sword still in her hand, and knelt next to the creature's face. She put her left hand to its scaled cheek in an act of compassion, to comfort this being that had once been a man in his final moment. "I'm so sorry." she said softly. The reptilian looked at her, and a tear trickled from one of its eyes, its mouth barely moving as it attempted to speak but was not able to. It lay like that for an agonizing moment as it bled out, unable to breathe. Then it was still, its yellow eyes staring sightlessly.

Link stepped forward and sheathed the Master Sword, coming to stand next to her. She continued to kneel, staring at the dead creature's face with a blank expression. "I know who this was." she said quietly, confirming what he suspected. "He was the knight who went missing."

He put a hand on her shoulder in an attempt to be comforting, and looked down at the twisted creature. Its blood was slowly pooling beneath it from its slit throat, even though its heart no longer beat. "I assumed that. He knew our fathers. He knew you."

She nodded and stood, her expression unreadable. "His name was Rolf. He...was my father's friend. His good friend." She turned on her heel and faced the door, and her left hand balled into a fist. "If the queen wasn't already dead…" she began, her brown eyes suddenly alight with fury. Ashei closed them and drew a deep breath. "I need to get out of this room." she whispered, and then snapped her eyes open. Bloodied sword still in hand, she strode from the grisly prison.

He was about to follow her and ask if she was all right when he heard a clink to his left. Midna, who had quietly hovered in the background for the duration of the encounter, was now examining the chain attached to the heavy spiked ball. She summoned an orange and black ball of energy and hurled it at the end of the chain near the dead creature's hand. It snapped, just how Link's own chain had snapped when he was trapped as the wolf in the dungeon of Hyrule Castle.

He watched as she reached down to grasp the chain with her prehensile hair, and suddenly felt angry at his friend for taking the weapon from this knight's dead hands before his body even had a chance to cool. "What are you doing?" he demanded.

She swung the heavy ball in a circle with her hair and grinned, showing her fangs. "Oh, I could get used to this."

"Midna!" he barked, anger in his voice.

"What?" she asked, letting the heavy ball thud to the floor. "It's not like he's going to use it anymore. You don't have to get mad about it."

Link gave a disgusted snort, not only angry that she would take the weapon, but also angry that she didn't understand why it would be wrong. "Sometimes you have no tact." He retrieved his shield and lantern, and left her behind in the prison cell.

Ashei was in the next room, wiping her sword clean on the tapestry that he had ripped from the wall. He put his shield up on his back and then went over to her to put a hand on her shoulder again. "Are you all right?" he asked. "You knew that man."

Her expression was calm, but she couldn't keep the anger from her eyes. "Don't you dare hug me." she said in a quiet, controlled voice. She examined her sword and snapped it back into its sheath with a bit more force than necessary. "I've had enough physical contact from you lately."

He yanked his hand back and held it up defensively, a little hurt that she would reject his attempt to comfort her, but at the same time he understood that she was upset at the moment. Her eyes flickered up to his face, and then looked away. "I'm sorry, Link. I know you're trying to be nice, but I'm very angry right now."

Midna had followed them back into the armory, and spoke up from behind them. "You're angry, Link's angry, but I'm concerned about the mirror shard."

He turned his head toward the Twili and saw that she wasn't holding the ball and chain. He considered explaining why her attempt to take it pissed him off, but decided that it wasn't what Ashei needed to hear at the moment. "Maybe we should just go ask Yeto where it is, and come clean with the truth." he said, letting the matter of the fallen knight's weapon drop for now. "I know he'll be upset if we tell him that it's hurting her, but he'll likely show us where it is so we can take it away as soon as possible."

The imp tilted her head slightly to look at him. "You think so? I think he's hoping to wait until we can do it without upsetting his wife, which was what you suggested we do anyway. Maybe we shouldn't talk to either of them and search the other rooms in this place. Ashei's familiar with the layout so she can guide is through it, and you can use your magic to help search each room quickly." She disappeared into his shadows, and her voice came from all around him. "We should continue on, if Ashei's all right."

"I'll be fine." the female warrior said, her face lacking emotion. Woman Ashei had buried herself deep, and now warrior Ashei was in control. "There's a second floor we haven't gone to yet." She walked to the double doors leading out of the armory and yanked them open. She took a step back in surprise while her hand flew to her weapon, and then relaxed when she saw that the person on the other side of the door was Yeta.

"Oh!" The Yeti jumped, not expecting the doors to swing open in front of her. "Humans, are you all right? Did you have trouble with the ice creatures outside?"

"Yeta?" Link was surprised to see her there. "Why are you out here? You're supposed to be resting."

The female Yeti wrung her large hands, looking a bit uncomfortable. "Yes, well. Um. I am feeling a bit better after having some tea and a rest. It feels like my fever's gone down. I thought I'd sneak out while Yeto was busy cooking and find you. I sent you to the wrong place again." She put her hands to her cheeks. "Oh, I can't believe my mind today." Yeta lowered her hands and looked at the two of them, her eyes focused and clear. She seemed to be cognizant. "I remember it now that I'm feeling better; A week ago, Yeto put the mirror in the basement. Four days ago, he brought it into this room and put it in a chest, over there by the weapon racks. I retrieved it both times, and had completely forgotten that I had done so."

She sighed regretfully. "I apologize for sending you on this wild chase to find it, but the fever was turning my mind into mush. It's not mush right now, because I remember where Yeto hid it this time. Well...he didn't hide it, not really. He decided to leave it where I kept bringing it back to, and locked the room so I couldn't get in." Now that she was feeling better, the Yeti seemed to be rather chatty. This was probably closer to her true personality.

"Does that mean we need to get the key from Yeto?" Ashei asked.

Yeta smiled and gave her a wink. "Not quite." She removed the bear pelt from her shoulders and reached into the head of it. "I made a little spot to hide things in this pelt, which is why I put the top part of the skull in it. I wasn't really trying to make the bear head into a funny hat." She produced a golden, ornate key. "Ta-da! This is the key to our bedroom. That's where the mirror is, and also the reason why I was sleeping in the dining room instead of my own bed." She put the bear pelt back on her head and back, and tied the front legs around her shoulders again. "Now, if you'll follow me." The Yeti turned right to walk down the hall.

The two humans followed her into an adjacent hall that had more wall hangings and decorations. Yeta was no longer shuffling her feet as she moved, but now walked far more normally. She stopped at a set of double stairs set into the wall heading up; a bust of King Adelbert was set into a recess in the wall between them, a reminder to the queen of her husband. Considering that he had actively married her for her looks, the woman was probably using him to conduct her research in the remote keep.

"It's up these stairs. We'll be going outside, so be prepared." Yeta then ascended the left set of stairs, the stairwell curving as she led them up. Link wondered how Yeto had squeezed his way through this space that was barely large enough for Yeta to fit through, but perhaps there was another way up outside. They reached a solid door just to the left of the top of the stairs, and Yeta opened it and stepped outside. Ashei followed her, with Link in the rear.

They came out on a balcony covered in white. The snow had slowed considerably, and only a few flakes fell from the clouds above. To the west, the sun shined low through a gap in the mountains, bathing the snow-covered keep in an orange glow. Link looked over the parapet of the balcony and to the courtyard below, but he saw no sign of the ice creatures. Good. He really didn't want to dodge more flying ice, and he also didn't want to worry about protecting Yeta.

The female Yeti smiled at the sunset for a moment, and then turned to walk to the back side of the balcony, where a rounded stone wall stood. There were a pair of carved pillars with a short roof over an ornate double door, its metal framing gilded.

"This was the queen's chambers." Ashei said, looking up at the large doors.

Yeta put the key in the lock and turned it. "Oh? Well, I'm the queen of this keep now."

"Fine by me." the woman said. "I like you a lot better."

The Yeti gave a little tittering laugh and pushed open the doors. The inside of the room was large and circular, with long windows extending from halfway up the walls to the high domed ceiling. Gold-tinted light from the setting sun shone through the high windows, lighting the room well. There was a massive four poster bed at the back of the room, its bedding bright scarlet while its curtains were a deep purple. If there was a bed large enough to hold the two Yeti, it was this one.

Armoires, a large writing desk, a vanity and two privacy screens all lined the walls. The right wall had a long fireplace that did not follow the curve, but instead stuck out into the room to provide more heat. It wasn't currently lit, but the relative warmth of the room indicated that it had been not too long ago. The floor was covered with a red plush carpet with blue edging, with a blue and gold runner on top of it. Link thought it all overblown, garish and ugly. The colors didn't match, and the extra furniture seemed excessive; suitable for a vain queen who tried to use magic to try to extend her life span.

Yeta walked across the room to the vanity. "I do hope you can determine if my mirror is what is giving me trouble." Following her, Link could see a jagged shard of dark glass leaning up against the regular silver-backed mirror of the queen's vanity. "I really adore this gift Yeto gave me." she said, smiling down at it fondly. "I don't know what I'd do if it turned out to be dangerous. I love him dearly, and so I love anything he gives me dearly as well."

She reached out to touch the shard of mirror gently with her large fingers. "See how it shines? It's so pretty." Yeta leaned forward, looking into the mirror fragment and at her reflection. "Yes, pretty." she said, distracted by her own face gazing back at herself. She slowly raised a hand to gently touch at her cheek. "Pretty…"

The Yeti trembled, taking the mirror fragment in her hands, unable to look away from her reflection. Her shoulders heaved as she began to breathe rapidly, eyes fixated on the mirror. Link could see her reflection in it and in the vanity mirror from where he stood, and he was able to watch the change come over her. She bared her teeth and flared her nostrils, and in the center of her brown eyes were glowing pinpoints of red, like sparks from a fire.

"Yeta!" he shouted in alarm. "Set that mirror down! It's hurting you!"

A low growl came from Yeta's throat, and she suddenly spun around and turned on them, clutching the mirror to her chest. "No! You will not take it!"

A sudden blast of cold air knocked the two of them down, originating from the Yeti. The force of it shattered the glass mirror behind her and slammed the double doors shut, closing them inside. The temperature rapidly dropped and the air swirled around the room, causing the glass windows high above to shatter from the sudden change in air pressure. Glass rained down and the two humans covered their heads and faces defensively with their arms.

Ashei pulled herself to her feet and shouted at the Yeti over the sound of the wind. "Yeta!" Her breath came out in a cold cloud that was snatched away by the currents of air. "You need to drop the mirror!"

Yeta's eyes were enraged, her teeth bared in a snarl. "No!" she cried. "It's mine!" She raised one hand above her head, palm up, and a long spear of ice formed above it with a crackling sound. The Yeti didn't grab the chunk of ice, but instead moved her hand in a forward motion, and the floating ice followed as if being thrown. She shrieked as she hurled it at Ashei, and the ice hit its mark dead center, impaling the woman in the stomach and knocking her down.

"No!" Link cried in dismay. He scrambled to his feet and rushed to Ashei, who lay on her side, her hands wrapped around the shard of ice, her face contorted in pain. He gingerly reached for the spear, unsure if it was better to pull it out or not, fear gripping his heart.

Ashei sucked in a deep breath as if the wind had gotten knocked out of her and coughed. Then she pulled the shard of ice from her stomach, and there was no blood. He put his hands to her abdomen and then saw the jagged hole the ice had made in the white fur coat. She lifted the coat up to show the silver and green armor beneath, and one of the lobstered pieces on her stomach had a dent in it. He sighed in relief at the sight.

"Thank the gods for plate, yeah?" she said painfully.

"I thought she skewered you." he said, helping her to her feet.

Ashei put a hand to her stomach. "No, but it'll leave a bruise." There was a loud crackling sound and she raised her head to look at Yeta. Link whirled around to see what the Yeti was doing now.

Yeta had risen into the air, bear pelt fluttering out behind her, left arm waving around in a random pattern while her fingertips glowed blue-white. Layers of ice formed around her, shields and globes and shards, all orbiting the Yeti. She held the mirror shard to her chest with her right hand protectively, like a mother clutching her baby.

Link drew his sword and shield and put himself between Ashei and the Yeti, not counting on her armor to protect her from another spear. Through the whirling ice that spun around Yeta, he could see that her eyes had gone completely feral. She raised her hand and howled, and the sky outside darkened with clouds, a low rumble of thunder coming from above. Snow swirled through the broken windows, falling thickly and moving in eddies as it was blown about by the wind generated by Yeta.

The room darkened, but the ice surrounding the Yeti herself threw off a pale, ethereal glow. She shrieked and crackling sounds erupted around the room, as thin ice creatures like the ones outside began forming. He realized that the spindly ice warriors weren't created by something left in the keep from the queen, but by Yeta herself. All the mirror did was magnify her innate magical ability and drove her out of control.

Ashei drew her sword and leaped into action, closing in on an ice creature before it could throw its spear, and destroyed it with a backhanded slash. Link rushed at another, opting to simply bash it into pieces with his shield. A spear of ice shattered at his feet and he turned to see that one of the creatures had thrown it at him. Midna appeared, and the massive spiked ball formed out of black squares. She gripped the chain with the large hand that made up the end of her enchanted hair.

"So you did take that!" he shouted at her, feeling disappointed and angry.

She swung the ball in a circle above her, keeping her attention on the ice creature. "We are not talking about this right now!" Then she hurled the ball at the creature and it shattered.

He could see Ashei move to his right, dodging thrown ice as she rushed in to down another creature. As Midna swung her spiked ball into another ice monster, he risked looking up at Yeta. She was bathed in the light from her enchanted ice, the pieces of it spinning around her in alternating layers, protecting her. He had to figure out how to get that mirror away from her. He didn't want to hurt her; she was completely innocent. This kind and sweet young Yeti had been driven mad by the mirror's magic, and her actions were not her fault.

She saw his eyes on her her and shrieked in fury, sending chunks of ice at him. The pelted his shield as he planted his feet, and sent him sliding backwards across the slippery floor that was slowly being coated in ice. His boots weren't designed to walk on ice, and he had very little traction as chunks of ice slammed into his shield. Jagged shards flew as they shattered, and one dragged across his right cheek, drawing blood.

Midna and Ashei had finished off the ice warriors and were now focused on Yeta. A flash of light came through the windows followed by the loud crack of thunder, the mirror having increased the Yeti's magic to the point where it was strong enough to create a thunder snow storm outside. There was a crackling sound as she formed more pieces of ice around herself, cocooning her body in it and only leaving her enraged face exposed. She sent spears and spheres of ice at them with a snarl, baring her sharp teeth like a wild animal.

Midna swung the chain in front of herself and Ashei to deflect the ice. Link ducked behind his shield again, still holding the Master Sword in his other hand, but unsure of how to use it in this situation. If he couldn't use his sword, he might have something else. He considered using the clawshot to grab the mirror, but the moment to do that had passed; Yeta was completely protected by ice.

Thunder rumbled overhead again, and he put away his sword and shield while considering throwing a bomb. If he threw it from some distance away, it would likely shatter a good portion of the ice, and the blast might knock Yeta out of the air. The only problem with that idea was that Yeta had risen higher in the room, and with the swirling wind it would be near impossible to throw a bomb up there with any accuracy. With his luck, it would blow back down to land by him or the two women. Unless…

He shed his heavy outer gloves and pulled out his bow, never taking his eyes off the Yeti. It wasn't a crazy plan this time, but a sound one, if slightly dangerous for Yeta. If it worked, then he'd have a reason to be proud of himself.

"What do you have planned?" Midna asked, her breath steaming in the frigid air.

He reached to the small of his back and opened the quiver he had there. After feeling around, his cold fingers found the rough fletching of the arrows made by Barnes. He drew one of the explosive arrows and briefly recalled what Barnes had said: pull the safety and shoot it. It won't explode until it hits something. Auren had used some of the arrows while on horseback, so it seemed simple enough.

He yanked the piece of dodongo skin out of the paper tip with his numbing, red fingers and set the arrow in place on the bow, sighting down its shaft. His own breath from his nose obscured his vision, the air so cold that every breath created clouds in front of his face. He held his breath, took aim, and fired at the right portion of the swirling mass of ice that surrounded Yeta.

The blast sent small fragments of ice raining down and pushed the Yeti to the side. She shrieked in fear, and then howled in rage at the attack. He hadn't meant to frighten her, but it was the best solution he could think of. If he could destroy her layers of ice quickly enough, he might be able to grab onto the mirror with the clawshot, or give Midna an opening to take it herself.

Yeta let loose an inhuman scream and sent more projectiles his way. His shield wasn't out, so he did his best to jump to the side to avoid them, but his mobility was hindered by the icy floor. A sphere of ice the size of a grapefruit caught him in the gut and knocked him down. Midna rushed over to protect him with her chain, spinning it to deflect the missiles of ice.

He was hurt again. That would figure. He winced as Ashei knelt next to him and helped him sit up. There was a burning pain in his stomach, just to the left of his navel, but he knew that his chain, gambeson and thick clothing had absorbed most of the blow. "I think we're going to have matching bruises." he said, his voice tinged with pain.

"Nice. And you've gotten another for your collection, yeah?" She helped him to his feet.

Yes, yet another. He knew that Ilia was going to be upset with him again, but now was not the time to dwell on it. "Take my shield." he told Ashei. "Cover me and I'll try to destroy more of the ice."

She sheathed her sword and lifted the shield from his baldric, and quickly fit it onto her right arm. Now it was her turn to stand protectively between Link and Yeta, shield held ready.

Link could no longer feel his fingers or toes, it had grown so cold. He could feel ice clinging to his hair, his eyelashes, his clothing, and his long ears were completely numb. He drew another explosive arrow with his stiff fingers, pulled the safety and nocked it in the bow. He would only be able to shoot maybe another two arrows at this rate, the cold was so intense. He held his breath again, waited patiently to get the timing right, and fired at the uneven pieces of ice that wobbled around Yeta. It knocked her back again, and he suddenly heard a cry coming from the door. "No!"

He turned to see Yeto standing there, his eyes wide. The male Yeti had shed his ridiculous saddle and stood with his feet planted apart, gripping at the icy floor with his toes. "No, don't hurt her!" he cried. The large Yeti ran over and held his massive arms wide, positioning himself between the three of them and his enraged wife. "Please, she's sick! She's not herself!"

Midna let the chain in her hand go slack. "Well, what do you want us to do? We have to get that mirror away from her. If she doesn't kill us, it will kill her!"

The large Yeti gaped at Midna in dismay, not liking either potential outcome. He set his fanged jaw in determination. "Let me talk to her. Maybe I can make her see reason. Just please, don't attack her." Link shouldered his bow and nodded at him, willing to give it a try. If anyone would be able to convince Yeta, it was her husband.

Yeto turned to the other Yeti and called out to her. "Yeta, it's me! Please love, don't do this!"

She shrieked in response, forming more glowing ice around herself with a crackling sound, and sent jagged shards at him and the others. He raised his arm in a quick, sweeping motion and made a curved formation out of ice to deflect the projectiles. "Please, listen to me! Don't fight me!"

Yeta growled in response, hovering in the air above the center of the room, glowing ice surrounding her. The female Yeti's eyes were still mad, her teeth still bared in a snarl. It was as if she didn't recognize her husband.

Yeto stared up at her with a look of indecision, and then furrowed his brow and looked determined. He called out to her again. "Blizzeta!"

The other Yeti stopped growling and fixed her mad eyes on him, the whirling ice surrounding her slowing slightly. The sound of her true name had gotten her attention.

"Blizzeta, my love! Please don't do this!" Yeto begged, holding his arms out protectively as he stood in front of the humans. "This isn't like you!"

Her mouth moved as if she was trying to speak, but then she shuddered and threw her head back to scream, and more snow and crystals of ice swirled around the room. It pelted the two humans, and Ashei moved closer to Link, holding onto the shield with a tight grip to protect them. They were both shivering uncontrollably, battered by the unbelievably cold air in the room.

There were tears in Yeto's eyes. He reached out towards his wife, his heart in his voice. "Blizzeta, don't you know me? It's me, Tundren!"

The female Yeti, whose true name was Blizetta, looked down at him, the collection of ice surrounding her slowing again. Her mouth slowly moved to pronounce the name. "Tundren...?" she ventured, moving closer, the ice orbiting her starting to droop.

"Yes, it's me." he said, holding his large hands out to her. "Please, come to me. It will be all right."

The two Yeti stared at each other for a tense moment while a peal of thunder boomed outside. Blizzeta started to move closer to him, but then her eyes moved past him to see the two humans and the Twili there. Her eyes returned to the madness they held a moment ago and she howled in fury.

Midna reacted quickly. Before the Yeti could form more ice around herself, she swung and smashed the large spiked metal ball into the side of Blizzeta, shattering the protective layer of ice she had formed around herself. Yeto, now known as Tundren, took a step forward and cried out in dismay. Blizzeta slumped in the air, stunned from the blow, now exposed without much ice surrounding her.

The mirror shard was still clutched in her right hand, although it now hung at her side while she was dazed. Link pulled out the clawshot and prayed that his frozen fingers would still work enough to squeeze the mechanism. His teeth chattered as he aimed and pulled the trigger, and the digits of the claw shot out and grabbed onto the mirror. He snapped the chain back to himself and grabbed the shard with his numb fingers, finally getting the cursed piece of glass away from the Yeti.

Blizzeta stopped hovering and simply fell, the source of her power gone. Yeto rushed forward to catch his wife with his arms extended. He pulled her close to him once he had caught her, murmuring her true name to her, his voice near tears.

Midna came up beside him and looked down at the female Yeti in his arms. "I'm sorry." she said. "None of us wanted to hurt her. We all knew that she was innocent and it was the mirror's doing, but she was going to kill the humans. And well...the male one is very important to the world right now."

Tundren shook his head, sniffling a bit. "No, you did what you had to. I was considering fighting back with my own ice, something I thought I'd never do. Then you acted." He eased his wife back, cradling her head with one of his large hands. "You stopped both her and I from doing unthinkable things."

The Twili reached down to gently touch the side of Yeta's face while wearing a concerned look on her pale face. She didn't want to attack the Yeti either, but she was given a choice: hurt Yeta, or possibly let Link die. He knew that it was as she said; he was far too important to die right now. He was the Hope of Hyrule, and he had to save it from Ganondorf.

He looked down at the mirror in his numb hands, his body still shivering from the cold. Ashei turned and lowered the shield, and peered at the fragment. "Is it all right?"

"Yes." he said, not looking up from the shiny black glass. "It can't be destroyed easily. The Mirror of Twilight holds a lot of power." He could see his own face reflected back in the dark glass, his cheeks and nose red from the cold, a bloody slash along one cheek, his lower lip still split and his wild hair rimed with frost. It was almost not recognizable as himself, except for his eyes. Link stared at the reflection of his own eyes, the same familiar blue as always.

Ashei said something, but he didn't hear her as he considered his reflection. He was still himself when he looked into the mirror. His eyes were the same. He was the same person, the Hero of Hyrule, and he was destined to defeat Ganondorf and return the Hylians and the Twili to their normal forms. He knew this since he could feel that he was strong now. Almost frighteningly strong, but it was all right. He was still the same person, with the same noble goal, and he could tell because the face that stared back at him was still the same one as always. The Master Sword said something within his mind, but he ignored it, unable to do anything but stare at the reflection of the man who held the mirror.

Suddenly the crest on his left hand blazed brightly. Courage lit up the room as it activated of its own accord, and the mirror grew incredibly hot in his hands. He yelped and dropped it with a clatter, holding his hands out painfully as if they were burned.

"You idiot!" Midna cried furiously. She was suddenly in front of him, scooping up the shard with her hair. It vanished in a flash of black squares, and she focused her red eye on him. "Don't touch it with your bare hands!" He gawped at her, dumbfounded. She continued to glare at him sternly. "If it could so strongly corrupt somebody as innocent as Yeta, what do you think it could do to the person pure enough to draw the Master Sword?"

Link looked down at his hands, which were not burnt at all. If anything, they were still red from the cold, and trembled from it slightly. He turned his left hand over to look at Courage, which still glowed faintly, dimly casting its light. The Triforce had saved him from darkness once again. Farore's power had protected the soul it was bound to.

Are you yourself now, Master Link? the sword ventured, a tone of caution in its normally emotionless voice.

He closed his left hand into a fist, and the golden power within it faded. Yes, I think I'm fine now. He directed the thought at the sword, and then spoke to Midna. "I realize I did something foolish. I was only thinking about getting it away from her. I'm sorry."

Her anger faded and her face softened into a look of fondness and relief. She floated closer to put a cold hand to his cheek, near where he was cut by the ice. "You're bleeding. Still shivering, too. I think you and Ashei need to get someplace to warm up soon, before you get sick."

He felt something on his back, and looked over his shoulder to see that Ashei had hung his shield on his baldric. "I need some blankets to crawl into." she said. "Or a fireplace to crawl into. I don't care, as long as it's warm." He could see that she was shivering too. If she hadn't been so adamant about him not touching her earlier, he would have pulled her next to him and wrapped the two of them in his fur cloak. She really did not seem to like physical contact, and what happened in the Yeti den was an exception, just as she had said. He didn't understand why, but decided he would respect her wishes.

Yeta groaned, and Link moved to stand near the two Yeti to see if she was all right without stepping into their personal space too much. He understood what Yeto was feeling right now. Yeta had opened her eyes and was looking around the room, which was coated in ice. "What…?" She seemed completely baffled by her surroundings. "What happened in here? This is our bedroom, right?"

Yeto continued to hold her gently, probably with a million thoughts in his head and only so many words to speak them. Link could relate to the Yeti. "Don't worry about that. Are you hurt?"

The smaller Yeti looked at her brown hands, and then back up at her husband. "No. I feel very tired, but I'm fine." She gasped suddenly and put her hands to her cheeks, partially sitting up in his arms. "Oh no, the mirror! I…" Yeta frowned as she struggled to remember what had just happened only minutes ago. "I brought the humans to see it and…" Her eyes welled with tears, and her voice hitched slightly. "I can't remember. Did something terrible happen? Did my mirror do something awful?"

The male Yeti shook his head. "The mirror is gone now, love. It kept hurting you, so our guests sent it far away. It won't hurt anyone now."

"But I don't have your gift now." Yeta said, fully in tears now. "I would look into it and see my reflection, and it was so pretty."

Yeto shook his head. "You don't need it." He carefully wiped at her tears with a thumb. "If you ever need to see your reflection, look into my eyes. That's where you can see how beautiful you are."

The female Yeti smiled tearfully, and sat up to wrap her arms around her husband's neck, and he held her close. Link stepped back to where Ashei and Midna were, not wanting to intrude on this moment for the couple. "Let's give them some space and warm up." he suggested quietly.

"You're smiling." Ashei said as they walked across the icy carpet to leave the room.

"I am not." He retorted, assuming a neutral expression. Damn, had he been smiling at that cute scene just now?

She gave him a grin that was almost a leer. "You are." The warrior pointed a finger at him. "You're a romantic, aren't you?" Her grin widened. "Oh yeah, I can see it now. You're the type."

He opened his mouth to defend himself but Midna butted in. "You should see him when he's with Ilia. He's such a sap."

He felt his cheeks turn red from something other than the cold. "Look. Sometimes...uh…" He waved his hands in a dismissive manner and hurried outside. "Oh, who cares! Let's just get out of here." He could hear their laughter behind him, and he started to feel grumpy about the whole thing. So what if he had a bit of a romantic side? It wasn't any of their business.

The snow had stopped falling outside, and the stars had come out during the twilight hour, bright and clear in the cold mountain air. It felt warmer outside than in the royal bedroom, which had gotten so cold that it would have killed them before too much longer. Link stretched, noticing a few new pains from the fights and shield-sledding today. It was too bad he was up in this snowy keep, because a hot bath would probably do him some good. Too bad Kakariko was far away. He considered asking if there was anything like that in this keep, but then he spotted the magenta portal hovering above the courtyard.

He pointed it out to Midna. "That's how Ganondorf got the Shadow Beasts and the shard here."

She looked up at it and went through the ritual of forming a ball of crackling energy and lobbing it at the portal to claim it as her own. After it had turned aqua, she nodded in satisfaction. "There. Now he won't use it again." The Twili turned in the air, crossing her arms...or perhaps huddling up against the cold. "All right, Link. Get ready."

He frowned at her, confused. "Get ready for what? We're not teleporting from here, are we? Our horses are- ahh!" He yelped in discomfort as his question was abruptly answered. She was absorbed by his shadows, more specifically the ones inside of his clothes, and he felt an icy chill against his bare chest. Making a strangled sound, he patted at his torso. "Midna! Can you not do that?"

"Oh, come now." she said from his body. "I even warned you this time. Do you really want me to freeze? Think about being kind to a lady, if you really are a gentleman."

He was about to angrily tell her how putting her shadowy form against his bare skin was not only unladylike but downright indecent, but then Yeto and Yeta came out of the master bedroom, holding hands. "Well, then." said the large male Yeti. "That soup is probably perfect right about now. Why don't we go and eat?"

The five of them made their way back to the front part of the keep, with Yeto leaping down from the balcony to the courtyard below, his wife still held in his arms. That explains how he gets up and down to his room, Link thought. He imagined having to climb up to go to bed every night would be annoying, and then he remembered that he had to do that in order to get to his own bed at home. It had been so long since he slept in it, he didn't even think about it anymore.

The two humans went down the stairs and through the halls of the keep. As they walked, he reflected on how he had almost lost himself to the power of the mirror. He felt ashamed that he could be seduced by magic like that, knowing that he should be stronger. He was the Hero of Hyrule, after all.

The Master Sword felt the need to speak on his thoughts. Any heart can hold darkness, even your own. You recently overcame an old pain in your heart and have shed that darkness from yourself. The sword's normally impassive female voice took on a note of authority, the soul issuing him a warning. However, you must be careful. If darkness were ever to creep back into your heart and soul, you would no longer be worthy to carry me.

That concerned him. Could something happen that could make it so the Master Sword would reject him? If that happened, he stood no chance to defeat Ganondorf. The Master Sword was instrumental in killing the near-immortal man.

I have given you this warning, Master...but I do not believe that it will come to pass. You have proven yourself to be strong regardless of what has happened to you, and your soul is as pure as a human's can be. I estimate that there is a 4.6% chance of something occurring that would cause you to enter that dark state of mind and act on it. While that is not an absolute, the chance is still low enough that it is doubtful you would ever lose yourself to pain and selfishness. Please do not concern yourself with that low chance, Master Link. I believe that you and I will continue to work together.

Only about a five percent chance that he would fall into such a funk that he couldn't use the Master Sword anymore? Considering everything that had happened, the odds must be fairly low. That would be like a one in...uh...

It is approximately one in twenty point seven three chances. Not an impossibility, but unlikely. The Master Sword was far better at calculating figures than he was, at least when he didn't have paper to write on to figure it out. Not that he felt that he was all that great at math in the first place. Still, it was about one in twenty, which were not good odds. He most likely would be all right.

The dining room felt wonderfully warm as they entered, even though the fire had burned down to glowing coals from no one attending to it. The two Yeti went into the kitchen to prepare dinner together, leaving the humans to warm up. Ashei sat in her chair near the fire and removed her gauntlets, flexing her fingers near the glowing embers with a sigh. Link selected a few smaller logs from the woodpile and worked at bringing the fire back to life. As he warmed up, he realized that his fingers and toes hurt. So did his ears, which not only were painful but also felt quite hot after a minute.

"I had no idea being cold could hurt you." he said, touching at the tip of one of his long ears. It didn't feel as hot to the touch as he thought it would.

"The cold can be very dangerous if it isn't respected." she said. "We were dressed for the hike here, but we weren't prepared for the cold that Yeta made with her magic. It became so cold that it hurt to breathe. I don't think anywhere in Hyrule normally gets that cold."

"Good." he said, prodding at the fire with an iron poker. "I never want to be that cold again."

Yeta returned from the kitchen a few minutes later, carrying two steaming bowls with spoons for the two humans. She set them down on the dark wooden dining table that had been shoved up against one corner of the room. "Here, please let me take care of you." she said, her face looking slightly abashed. "I heard what happened from Yeto. He didn't want to tell me but...I insisted. Now I wish I didn't know that I hurt you two." She turned and looked into the fire sadly. "Not only that, but all this snow in the summertime was caused by me, too. So many Yeti tribes and humans have been affected, and I imagine the Zoras have been too."

"Don't feel bad. It's not your fault." Link stood, satisfied that the fire was now burning well, and came over to where the Yeti was. "I almost got drawn in by the mirror's magic when I touched it for only a minute, and I'm supposed to be a hero for my people. You're not to blame for what happened."

The female Yeti gave him a little smile. "Thank you, m- Link." She blinked, remembering something. "Oh, I understand that you heard our true names. Will you please not share them with anyone?"

Ashei brought her chair over to the table to sit at one of the bowls of fish soup. "You have my word that I will tell no one."

"Mine too." he added, picking up a chair from the nearby stack. He set it down at the other bowl of soup and had a seat. "We won't tell anyone."

Yeta clasped her hands in front of her chest and smiled. "Thank you so much. You two are very kind." It wasn't clear whether she meant them keeping her true name hidden, or if she was referring to how they had saved her from the mirror. She never elaborated. "If you'll excuse me...Yeto and I will eat, and then we must go work at removing the ice from our bedroom if we're to sleep there tonight. I'm quite tired, but I absolutely must use my magic to help him. I certainly can't let him do it all himself...I wouldn't be a very good wife if I did, would I? We likely won't return here tonight, so I wish you two good night." She bowed her head to them, and exited through the swinging kitchen door.

He watched her go, and then stirred the steaming soup in the bowl in front of him. "They're very polite, aren't they?"

Ashei stopped spooning soup into her mouth long enough to answer him, hungry enough that she didn't care how hot it was. "That's why you have to be careful not to offend them. Their society is very honorable and polite, and saying the wrong thing can make them angry. And trust me, you don't want to make a Yeti angry."

"We almost did, going outside when Yeto told us not to." The hot soup was warming his face as he leaned over to blow on it. It was as if he had been chilled to the bone.

"I think he was disappointed and concerned rather than angry. Then again, he could be a very patient Yeti." She smiled. "Even thought I wanted to most of the talking, you seemed to do all right. You're pretty informal once you get to know people, but otherwise you're polite, yeah?" She swallowed another spoon of soup. "I'd say almost...chivalrous."

"Like a knight?" He smirked at her.

She laughed. "Halfway to a knight, anyway. There may still be hope for you yet, Link Lon."

"I think I'll be all right if Ashei Mabe teaches me a thing or two." He smiled a bit when she laughed, and then he tried the soup. He wasn't sure what Yeti cooking would taste like, but it turned out to be delicious, if lacking seasoning other than salt. The soup was more of a chowder, made with chunks of fish, potatoes, carrots and a cream broth. He had no idea where the Yeti had gotten his ingredients, but he didn't care.

The two of them ate in silence, both hungry from the ordeal to get to the Queen's Keep, and then everything that happened after. They both went to retrieve a second helping from the kettle in the kitchen, and after eating went and sat down on the piles of pillows in front of the fire. Link felt drowsy even though it was only about two hours after sunset. He had gotten up early, spent a lot of energy at high altitude, gained a few more bumps and bruises, and now sat in front of a warm fire with a belly full of food.

"I admit, I don't want to bother making a fire in the other room we found." he said, stifling a yawn. "I could fall asleep right here."

Ashei stood, not quite as tired as he was. "You do look exhausted. Wait here. I'll go to that room and get the extra blankets you mentioned." She went out through the kitchen, leaving him alone at the fire.

After she left, he decided to speak softly to his silent passenger. "Midna? Don't come out. I know you're happy where you are." If she wasn't, she wouldn't have stayed there the entire time he ate.

"What is it?" Her voice came from his torso in general, not necessarily his chest. Perhaps she was currently in the shadows of his clothing and not too close for comfort at the moment.

"I want to tell you why I was angry about the ball and chain." he said. She didn't say anything, so he continued. "That man was turned into a monster by the queen, and was a human being once. It's disrespectful to loot the dead."

"But the dead can't use weapons. They leave this world and can't interact with it, other than certain ghosts." She was referring to Poes, and while she was correct, it still didn't feel right to him.

"True, but his soul could have still been there watching. Midna, he knew my father, and Ashei's too. Not to mention Ashei herself. He recognized her, and did you see her face when she did too?" He stared into the fire. "We had a connection to him. If he was a knight then he was honorable, and didn't deserve to have his weapon taken from him right after he stopped breathing. Do you understand why I was angry?"

She responded to his question with another question. "How is that any different than the shield you took from the guard station after we buried the guards there? They could have been honorable men too."

"That was different, and it's easy to see how. First off, they were killed by Bulbins, not me. Secondly, I didn't loot the shield from their bodies; I took it from their supplies."

She huffed a short sigh. "I don't understand your morals sometimes. If it bothers you, I won't use it anymore."

Link gave a sour grunt. He had hoped that she would understand, but sometimes Midna seemed...cold. Too different. Even though she was caring and kind, she still seemed detached from those who had little to do with herself. She was from a completely different world, and sometimes her values were far different than his own.

He decided to talk to her about another subject before Ashei came back. "I need to talk to you about being a little too intimate with me."

"What, do you mean when I touch your face? I touch other people's faces, you know." The way that she said it hinted at it not being the truth, and that she understood what he was talking about.

"You know what I mean. While it's really unpleasant when you'd go in my shirt when you were cold, that's not exactly it. I know I said that it didn't really bother me, but it does." He decided to be more clear than he was on the previous subject and hoped she understood. Midna still didn't seem to get the concept of personal space, and he had seen her get close to Auren, Ashei and Renado. "It's uncomfortable knowing that somebody else is up against your skin, and can touch you at any time if they wanted to. And...and I'm a man and you're a woman, even if you turn into shadows. You have to admit it's improper, even if we're good friends. I really don't want you there anymore." He waited for her to respond, but she didn't say anything. "Midna?"

"Please let me stay." Her voice was barely above a whisper. "I've almost lost you so many times by now. I need to be here so I can hear you breathe, and hear your heart beat. I need to know that you're all right." Midna's voice sounded pained at the admission, as if the words themselves hadn't already spoke volumes. "So please. Please let me close."

Link put a hand to his chest and over his heart, considering what she had just said. He remembered back to the desert, where she thought he had died in a burning building. He remembered his thoughts that night as he fell asleep, with Midna leaning against his legs, and how he considered that as close of a friend as she was, sometimes her actions seemed to mean more. While he had seen her be affectionate towards Auren, it still seemed different when it was him. She continued to touch his face, hug him, and even kissed him more than once. He himself would comfort others with a hug, but what she did went beyond that.

He had to accept that Midna had feelings for him. She was trapped in a cursed form, a tiny little creature with a sexless body that could not eat or sleep, but her mind was still the same. She was still a woman. They had spent the past month together, very rarely apart. She had seen him through his victories and failures, through his pain and sorrows, and had saved his life multiple times. She knew nearly everything about him and took an active interest, even though he knew very little about her.

She had gradually grown closer and more emotionally invested in him, unlike Auren, who had a crush and would move on. Auren didn't understand that love can't spontaneously happen that way, but Midna did. She even told the young Gerudo of how he had grown to love Ilia over time and even called it "the real thing". She knew, because she had gone through it. It made sense within that context; it fit. Even though she tried to hide it most of the time, there were moments where what she did couldn't be interpreted as anything other than love.

What could he say to her? He had no feelings for a little imp, woman or not. His heart belonged to Ilia, and Midna knew that. He thought again of the conversation she had with Auren, when they thought he was asleep. A relationship between a Hylian and a Twili would never work. She had said it herself, and knew that there was no chance of anything between them other than friendship. He felt a lump form in his throat at the thought of loving someone, never being apart from them, yet never having it returned. Of having someone so close, yet so far away.

"You can stay." he said gently, his hand still over his heart. "It's all right."

She took a few breaths, as if she was trying not to weep, and then whispered so quietly he could barely hear it. "Thank you." Did she know that he understood?

At that point Ashei came back into the room, carrying a bundle of blankets and quilts. "I took these from the dressers, but the chests and the beds themselves had mice. As it turns out, we didn't want to sleep in there anyway. Between the stuff I have and the things already in here, we should have enough to be comfortable." She nudged the fleece that lay on the floor. "I don't think we want to use that, or any of the other bedding Yeta was using. She was sweaty when she was laying there."

She dropped the bedding in a pile in the middle of the floor and put her hands on her hips. "By the way, there's a privy across from the library. And Midna, you might want to go steal some of those books. Nobody's ever going to read them here, and I know that you like to read while Link sleeps." She waited for Midna to say something, but the Twili didn't respond. Ashei raised an eyebrow and looked at him. "Did you say something to make her mad? Or did she leave?"

He stood, feeling stiff already. "We had a little chat about the ball and chain she took from Rolf. Don't worry about it." He couldn't tell her about Midna's desire to be next to his heart, or her reasons why. "I'll be right back." He exited through the kitchen, and went out into the chilly hall. He was glad that he still was wearing his winter gear, even if it was starting to make him sweat while he sat near the fire.

Midna finally spoke to him again, in a normal tone of voice. "Thank you for covering for me."

"Hey, don't worry about it." he said, trying to sound jovial. "I'm the one who is supposed to be the big baby here. We can't have people teasing you too."

She gave a little laugh, appreciating his willingness to joke and try to bring things back to normal. The imp materialized next to him, and she was smiling as she appeared. "I'm glad you're always trying to crack jokes. Sometimes your mouth is too clever for its own good, but...it's nice to have a friend like that." The way she said it in a normal conversational tone of voice hurt him, now that he knew how she really felt. It was something involving just the two of them, yet he couldn't do anything about the situation to bring it to a resolution.

Not able to read his thoughts, she continued to smile and glided down the hall towards the large door leading to the library. "I'm going in here to rob the place of its riches. Go do what you need to do, I'll probably be back by the fire in a bit."

Twenty minutes later, he was stretched out on a pile of blankets not far from Ashei, his head towards the warm fire. The two of them had removed their furs, armor and gear, and were far more comfortable now in their gambesons and leggings. Midna sat on the dining table with a considerable pile of books, flipping through one of them.

He had his head on a pillow stolen from some chair or couch, and he stared up at the plaster patterns on the ceiling. Yet another day had passed, and he did many things in the span of twenty-four hours. Again. He was thankful that he had both a lot of stamina and a lot of determination, otherwise the grueling schedule he had been keeping would have worn him down. Who was he kidding? He was worn down. Everything that happened in the mountains was exhausting. He felt sleepy, and his eyes started to shut.

"You know…" Midna said as she flipped through the pages of the book. "The queen was into some really weird things."

"Yes, she was." Ashei said sleepily.

"I'll have to show you these books sometime, Link." she continued. "They're bonkers."

"Mm-hm." was all he said, only wanting sleep at this point.

The Twili paused while looking through her book, and then kept talking, much to his annoyance. "How much de-icing do you think those two are doing?"

"Dunno." the other woman muttered. She sounded like she only wanted to sleep as well. Neither one of them wanted to talk to Midna, who was suddenly chatty even though she knew they were trying to go to sleep.

"Just so you know," Midna said in a smug tone. "those two Yeti are probably having sex right now."

Link's eyes flew open and he groaned in disgust. "Midna, come on!"

Next to him Ashei had a similar response. "Shut up, Midna!"

The Twili cackled wickedly from her perch up on the table. "Isn't that a lovely mental image? Consider that payback for all those terrible puns earlier." Even though he couldn't see her face, he certainly heard the petty grin in her voice. "Sleep well!"


Link woke to heavy booted footsteps, and he opened his eyes blearily. Brent was peering down at him with his hands on his hips, looking only slightly less shaggy today; the man had tied his long wavy black hair back. "Good morning, lad."

He blinked the sleep from his eyes and stared up at the man that stood next to his head, confused. "Brent?" He then realized that at some point in the night, either he or Ashei had rolled closer to one another, and she had flung one arm over his chest and shoulder, her limbs sprawled out as she slept on her back. He gently moved the appendage back to Ashei's side and sat up, groaning a little. His muscles were stiff, and he was sore in a few new spots. "I need to stop getting beat up every day, so I can stop sounding like an old man in the morning."

Brent laughed, causing Ashei to startle awake. "I know exactly how you feel. I've woke up feeling that way a few mornings myself." He grinned down at them. "Seriously though, rise and shine, you two. It's mid-morning already."

The dark-haired woman sat up and rubbed at her eyes. "Father? Why are you here?"

The large man stepped back to allow the two of them to get out of their makeshift beds on the floor. "It stopped snowing last night, and the temperature's rising. I don't want you two walking back when there's a risk of avalanches. I decided to get a sleigh so I could bring you back to Mido much faster."

Ashei yawned and scratched at her hair, which annoyingly enough still lay flat and lovely, unlike Link's haystack. She stretched and grunted, and then lifted up her gambeson to look at her abdomen. There was a purple bruise there from where she had been hit in the gut with a spear of ice, her armor saving her life but not saving her from injury. Link looked at it and lifted his own padded linen shirt to see if he had one too. His was a similar color and in a similar spot.

Brent laughed at the two of them. "Look at that, you match! What the hell were you up to in this place?"

She pulled her shirt back down. "There's a lot to tell, father. Let us get dressed and eat something. After that, we have something important to show you."

Her father saw her serious expression, and he assumed a similar one. "Right. I'll leave you two to get to it. I'm going to chat up Saddlehead and his wife. I'll be in the front."

Some time later, the three of them were walking through the halls of the keep. The two young warriors had been able to wash up in the kitchen before dressing, and Link even was able to shave, something he wanted to do before returning to Ilia anyway. He didn't need to hear her complain about him being scruffy again.

Yeto wanted to accompany them to the armory, curious about what could be there, but Link insisted he remain behind for the time being. "This is something personal for the three of us, and it's also something horrible our queen did. I don't think any of us mind if you look later, but please don't let Yeta see. It's gruesome."

"Ah, my apologies." Yeto said politely. "If it is as you say, then it's best I go back to Yeta for now." The Yeti turned to head back to the front of the keep while the three humans continued down the hall, which had far more light coming through the windows now that it was sunny and not snowing.

"Gruesome?" Brent asked. "What did you find?"

"We found where the missing people went." Ashei said grimly. "Except they weren't people anymore."

"We missed some?" The large man scowled. "Damn. We thought we let all of the things out of their cages."

"You wouldn't have found these, father." she said, stepping out into the sunny courtyard of the keep, the passageway now full of slush instead of snow. "Link was the one who found them. He has a spell that lets him see things that are hidden."

Brent looked down at the Hylian. "Is that so? Well, that must come in handy, yeah?"

Link followed the two of them as they went through the next door back into the keep. "It has come in handy, and if I didn't think to use it, we never would have found them." He looked somber. "Brent, one of them was still alive. He begged for us to kill him. He recognized Ashei and called her by name, and called out for you too." He looked up at the approaching doorway of the armory, which was still left open. "He heard my voice and thought I was my father. He called me Gwyn."

Brent didn't respond, and the ex-knight followed them quietly as they led him through the armory and into the prison cell where they had discovered the abominations. The man looked around the room with a blank, impassive expression; he saw the bodies, the signs of cannibalism, and the body laying in a pool of congealed blood in the middle of the room. It wasn't that he was burying his emotions like his daughter, but more that he was in shock. "Dear Hylia, that wicked woman. These poor souls." The shock faded and was replaced with not disgust, but anger. Brent was furious that the queen had harmed even more people and left them to die terribly like this.

The large man took a deep breath and calmed himself, and took a few steps to look down at the body in the middle of the room. The reptilian eyes were still open and staring. "You gave him mercy and killed him, Link?"

He shook his head. "No, Ashei did, and it was her right to do so. I could see her face, and I was able to tell the exact moment she figured out who this was. It was the kindest thing she could do for him." He thought of how she had put her hand to Rolf's face after the killing blow, and told him that she was sorry in a gentle voice. For the rest of his life, Link would remember that moment vividly.

Ashei came to stand next to her father. "This was Rolf." she said bluntly.

Brent stood numbly and stared at the body, at the face that no longer looked like the man he once knew. His face was expressive, and he quite clearly showed the pain of seeing his friend like this. "I'm sorry I forgot you, my brother." he said quietly. He continued to look down at Rolf's body. "Girl." he said to his daughter. "You did what you had to. You're hiding it, but I know how you're feeling. You've never killed a man before, let alone a friend." Brent hadn't known that she had killed Shadow Beasts, but even then they weren't people she knew.

She opened her mouth, struggling to find the words. "Link tried to help me after it happened, but I told him to leave me alone. I was angry, and I thought if I focused on that anger, I'd be fine."

"Are you fine?" her father asked.

"No." she said in a small voice, so much like she sounded in the Yeti den.

Brent put his arms around his daughter, and she didn't resist. In fact she put her face against her father's chest, although she wasn't in tears. "I'm proud of you for admitting that. You must let yourself feel, girl. If you wish to be a knight, you must let yourself experience the same things that others do, and that means not burying your emotions deep. Being noble does not mean being cold."

Link decided to leave the two of them alone and left the room, exiting through the armory to come stand in the hallway outside. It felt like he was intruding on a private moment, and even though his father had known Rolf, he himself did not. "Her father knows that she's bottling up her emotions." he said quietly to Midna while they waited.

"Of course he does, he's her father. I think she's going through the same thing that you went through after you weren't able to save Setskie in that battle." Midna made a small, unidentifiable vocalization. "The only difference was you were willing to hang on to Auren even though you barely knew her, whereas Ashei doesn't want anyone getting close to her other than her father."

"I was under that impression, yes. She really doesn't like to be touched, for some reason." He wandered down the adjacent hall and to the double stairs going up to the bedroom above, idly looking out the window into the courtyard while he waited for the other two to come back out.

Eventually he heard boots down the hall, and saw Brent and Ashei come out of the armory. The two of them started to look around, and when they saw him approaching they waited. "Is it okay now?" Link said as he reached them.

Ashei's eyes looked hurt, but she nodded. "Look, Link...I'm sorry if I've been rude with you. It's just I haven't had anything like this happen to me before, and I don't know how to handle it."

"I know how you feel, so don't worry about it. We're both young and we're getting a lot of horrible firsts through everything that's happening." He looked up at Brent. "How about you? Are you all right?"

The large man gave a short laugh and patted Link on the shoulder with a thick hand. "Don't worry about me, lad. I knew I had lost Rolf years ago when he went missing. It pains my heart to see what was done to him, but at least I know he'll find peace in the afterlife." He started to walk, and the two younger warriors fell into stride with him. "So will the others that were in there. We can't identify the bodies, but at least we can give them an honorable burial. I plan on bringing men back up here to take care of them, and search for any other hidden places. With any luck, we may find Rolf's sword. His daughters would want it, I'm sure."

The three of them stepped back outside into the outdoor passageway, their boots making wet-sounding footfalls in the slush. Link stopped and turned to look at the pile of heavy cannon barrels stacked in the corner. "Please tell me you buried her face-down." he said, his voice neutral. He didn't feel anger for the queen as much as he did for the king, but he still felt that she had earned no dignity in death.

Brent stopped and followed the young man's gaze, and then came to stand next to him. "We tied her hands and feet, cut off her head, buried her face down, and then dragged those cannons on her grave. We wanted to be absolutely sure that she was dead and wouldn't crawl out of the ground. It was not a respectful burial."

"Good." Ashei said from where she waited at the door at the end of the passageway. There was still an angry edge to her voice. Just like he hated Adelbert for altering his life, Ashei hated Lizbeth for changing hers; and just like him wishing he could kill a king that had already been killed, Ashei wished she could do the same for the terrible queen buried nearby. It was something else they had in common, yet it was nothing to be proud of.

They continued their way back into the dining room where they had slept. Yeta sat there holding a hunting spear that she was inspecting. She was no longer wearing the bear pelt, and at some point the Yeti had folded up the blankets and quilts and set them aside. "Hello again, humans. Good morning!" She was quite cheerful, her true personality that she had shown a little of the night before. "Will you be leaving soon?"

"Yes, very soon. Ashei's father came to pick us up with a sleigh, so the horses are waiting." Link told the young Yeti. "He was worried about avalanches so he came himself."

Yeta furrowed her brow, considering that. "But...Yeto told me he saved you from an avalanche yesterday. Do you think you would be unlucky enough to be caught in another one? You do not strike me as a careless male, uh...man."

"What?!" Brent thundered. He turned on the other two warriors. "You didn't tell me you two were caught in an avalanche!"

He hadn't expected the man to get angry over that, but didn't shrink away from his anger. "We were fine, so it didn't seem important to mention yet. Yeto dug us out." he said.

The former knight exhaled, calming himself. Then he shook his head at the two of them in disappointment before speaking to Yeta. "Forgive me for my outburst, madam. I prefer to know when my daughter has been in danger, even if she turns up safe and sound."

The female Yeti smiled and tested the pointed tip of the spear with a fingertip. "My father is the same way. Oh! Yes, I should tell you...since you're the leader of the human village, I plan on resuming hunting today. The snow has let up, and animals will have come out of hiding. Please expect Yeto at your village with pelts and meat soon."

Brent bowed to the Yeti respectfully. "I look forward to any game you bring us, madam. Are there any supplies that you're hoping for?"

Yeta thoughtfully tapped her cheek with a finger. "Hmm, well. I do know that I want pumpkins. They're quite good stuffed with elk meat, you know. And perhaps some cheese? Yeto will have a list."

The shaggy man frowned, like he hadn't expected the Yeti to trade food for food. "I will do my best, but many of our crops were ruined from the heavy snowfall. I'm afraid we'll have few vegetables to trade this year."

The Yeti put her hands to her cheeks and opened her fanged mouth into a shocked O shape. "Oh, dear! I didn't know about that! I can't possibly take away any of your food, then. I will make sure to hunt extra, and Yeto will bring you more meat once winter sets in. It wouldn't do to have your poor people starve." She lowered her eyes, looking a bit ashamed. "I'm...not quite talking to my family at the moment, since Yeti and I eloped. Still, I believe we'll be on speaking terms again soon. I will make sure that the Bluebird tribe will help you through this winter."

Brent smiled and bowed again respectfully. "Thank you for your kindness, madam. My people and I are in your debt, and certainly will find a way to return that kindness. If you'll excuse us, we must be going."

Link also bowed politely, feeling it was the proper thing to do here. "Thank you for taking us into your home. Goodbye, Yeta."

The sweet-natured Yeti gave them a small wave. "Goodbye! And thank you for helping me with my problem, Link. I will not forget what you did for me."

After they went into the foyer, Brent spoke to Link. "When she says that she will not forget, she means that her entire tribe won't forget. If you ever come back to the mountains and their territory, they'll be willing to help you in any way they can. Yeti are firm believers in repaying debts. They're quite honorable." He smiled. "She called you by your actual name, which is not something Yetis do casually. She likes you."

He had to admit that he liked the Yetis too. They were kind, intelligent people that were more than willing to help others. Humans back in Hyrule could learn a thing or two from them.

Yeto was outside surveying the rushing river, which was swollen with extra water this morning. He had the saddle on his head again but now wore the bear pelt around his neck as well. It was far too small for him to tie it as his wife had done, so he had pinned the paws together with what looked like a cloak pin. "The weather is warming, friends! I believe the worst has passed. I hope that you will return to your village safe and sound." Now it was the large Yeti's turn to bow to them. "Thank you for saving my wife, Link and Ashei...and Midna too. She is everything to me, and I cannot imagine a life without her."

Again, Link bowed. Being so formal felt somewhat strange to him, but he understood the reason. He could see Ashei doing the same next to him. "Thank you for caring for us. We appreciate your kindness. The two of us would have been in trouble if you hadn't come to dig us out, so you saved us too."

The large Yeti's formality dropped, and he grinned at them, baring his large teeth. "I'd say that's a debt repaid, but I believe we're past the point of owing one another. After everything, I feel as if we've grown close even though we are from two different peoples. You are welcome to come back here at any time, and the two of us will be pleased to see you. If any of you ever do return, you may call me by my true name. I consider you good friends."

Link smiled at that. Out of all the races that had shown him respect, Yeto's offer to let them use his true name made the most impact on him.