Link stood alone in the cold teleportation chamber beneath Kakariko, shivering slightly. Shad had spoke to him about how reckless he and Ilia had been, and now it weighed on his mind. As if he wasn't already worried about the subject. He heard the other man's shoes on the metal ladder as he climbed up, and then Midna's faint voice as she spoke to him once he entered the Sanctuary.

He had made Auren cry, again. Just like last time, it wasn't anything he did intentionally, and this time what she saw was none of her business in the first place. He still felt guilty, not to mention uncomfortable that somebody would catch him fooling around with Ilia. At least it was just a friend, but still...what was he thinking? He wasn't thinking, and that was the problem. He knew that later she'd come to visit him, and then he'd have to talk to her about the subject again, and she'd get frustrated with him again. He understood her frustration, but what Shad had said touched on everything that Link had been thinking about himself. He was the hero, and people had a certain image of him that he didn't want to destroy.

He was still thinking about it as he climbed up into the Sanctuary where Midna and Shad waited for him, and he gave absent-minded responses when the Twili spoke to him. He was going through a jumbled mix of emotions and didn't feel like talking. That's why when he followed Shad outside, he didn't even notice when Midna merged with his shadows, and he wasn't pulled out of his thoughts until he came into the strong afternoon sun of Kakariko.

Shad held out his arms and raised his face to the hot sun with a pleased smile. "Finally. Maybe now we can dry off."

Link pushed aside his thoughts on Ilia, knowing that turning them over in his head repeatedly would do nothing. "Yeah, no kidding. As interesting as the Oocca city was, it was pretty cold and damp. Then there was that thunderstorm."

"Ah, yes. The thunderstorm that we happened to be inside of. That was a first for both of us. Our trip was full of many firsts, wasn't it?" The scholar ran a hand through his hair. "Now my hair is going to get all curly and wild as it dries. I hate looking like a mess."

"If I was the same as you, I'd never get far in life." Link smirked at him. "I'm always a mess, especially my hair. In any case, as nice as the sun is, I'm hungry. It looks like it's a couple of hours past noon, so we should go get a late lunch." He began to walk down the dusty road towards the Eld Inn.

"I wholeheartedly agree." Shad said, following him.

The two of them got their share of odd stares from the temporary residents of Kakariko. They probably wondered why the two young men were soaking wet in the middle of a dry summer day. Since they came from the direction of the spring, maybe they thought the two of them were idiots and fell in. It would be a far easier explanation if anyone asked, since he didn't think the average person should know about the Oocca or their floating Hylian city.

They entered the inn to find Ilia, Auru and Ashei seated at the long common table. Ashei was not wearing her armor and had rolled up the sleeves of her dark gambeson, and was examining her sword with oil and a whetstone nearby. Ilia sat at the wind stones board playing a game with Auru. After playing with the older gentleman, Link knew that she was losing before even seeing the pieces on the board.

Auru raised his eyes from the smooth stones in front of him and then stood, visibly confused by the two wet men. "What in the world…? Why are you two all wet?"

"There was a thunderstorm up there, and we happened to be inside of it." Shad told him coolly.

"What?" Auru looked at Link, and then back to Shad. "The winds inside a storm are quite strong. How did you not get blown off the island?"

"I did." Link said pointedly.

Ilia stood and reached out to touch at his arm, but didn't get close otherwise. She obviously didn't want to get wet. "You fell off the island? Are you all right?"

"Yeah, thanks to Midna. It's not an experience that needs a repeat, though." he said, shivering a bit at the memory of the fall.

"I concur." the Twili said from somewhere near his chest. "It scared all of us."

Even though he could see that Ilia was upset at hearing about it, he couldn't give her a hug as wet as he was. He opted to smile at her instead. "As much as I'd like to tell you about how I was plummeting to my death, Shad and I are soaked and hungry. Is there anything we can eat before we get out of these clothes?"

She relaxed a little. "I think I know what you two need. Telma's been working on something for dinner later, so let me ask if it's anywhere close to ready." Ilia looked him up and down one more time, then walked into the kitchen.

Auru watched the two of them as they sat down on the bench. "Was your trip a success? You weren't gone all that long."

"It was." Link tossed the piece of black metal onto the table with a clunk, but didn't explain what it was yet. "We have all the mirror shards, so now it's a matter of going back to the Mirror of Twilight, putting it back together, and then going to the Twilight Realm."

Ashei chuckled at him. "It's funny how casually you say all of that. Let me tell you, spending the past few weeks with you has been anything but dull." She reached over to tug on a lock of his hair with a smirk. Shad's had already begun to dry, but since Link's was longer and thicker, it was still fairly wet. "Your hair is kind of long when it's wet, yeah? No wonder you hide it in that dumb hat, if you need a haircut."

"Ashei, if you keep making those comments, you're going to wake up one morning wearing that hat." He knew that he could do it too, since he was aware of how quietly he could move if he wanted to. Actually, it might be funny to do.

"That's a good way to get a black eye." she warned him.

"Do you think you could beat me in a fistfight?" It wasn't a challenge, but more of a curiosity. He hadn't fought against Ashei in any way, even though the two of them had discussed it.

The warrior shrugged. "Who knows? I'd rather not find out, after watching you fight Max. I want to avoid that mean left hook of yours. If you ever want to spar with weapons or wrestle, I'm game." It was an interesting proposition, but he knew he didn't have time.

Ilia returned to the common room carrying the tray she had used the other day to bring him breakfast. It looked like the kind of tray waitresses used in restaurants. She set down two steaming bowls of soup in front of Link and Shad. "It's pretty hot and missing some vegetables yet, but she made goose soup. We're having it for dinner, but I doubt either one of you care."

Shad inhaled the steam coming off the bowl of slightly greasy soup and sighed happily, even though his glasses fogged up once again. "Ilia, you are a dear. How would you like to ditch this guy in green and come to work with me in the castle? I could use somebody to make sure I eat properly."

Link stirred the hot soup and blew on it. "She couldn't get rid of me even if she tried. Besides, she's going to take care of me, not you. I'm just as much of a dummy when it comes to overdoing it as you are."

"You said that, not me." Ilia said with a smile. "Now why don't you two tell us what happened?"

The two of them carefully ate the hot soup that was little more than broth, meat and onions, and told the group what happened in the floating city. Midna offered her input from where she hid in Link's shadows. There were no children in the inn at the moment, but she stayed out of sight just in case. Auru in particular was interested to hear about the ancient Hylian city and how the Oocca used ancient technology to watch the current Hylians. Telma stood in the doorway to the kitchen and listened, but didn't say anything. After a while, there were two empty bowls on the table and a completed tale.

"You know, Link...I may have to write a book about everything you have done." Auru said while holding the piece of molded black armor in his hands. "You befriended a dragon, of all things."

"I don't know if he's a friend or not, but he was at least grateful that I helped him. He told me he owes me, although I don't know what I'd need a dragon for." A joyride through the skies? He dismissed the ludicrous idea, and stood up to step back from the table. "I can help you write that book sometime in the future. I was wondering if I should have been doing the same, but I really don't want to spend my free time writing thousands of words down."

"You should have kept a journal." Ilia said.

"Right, I should have thought of that when I was dragged into the Twilight by a Shadow Beast. How silly of me." He grinned at her when she made a face at his sarcasm. "I kid. You know I'm kidding."

"Link, all you do is kid. Sometimes it's hard to tell when you're serious." she said with a sigh.

"He gets all serious when I make fun of his height or his hat." Ashei quipped. He considered taking up her offer on wrestling right now and pinning her obnoxious ass to the ground, but decided that would be childish and settled on scowling at her like usual.

"I'm going to get out of these clothes." Shad said as he also rose from his seat at the table. His hair was dry, but his shoes sounded squeaky and wet when he moved around. "Then I'm going to take a bath. As amazing as that city was, it was quite cold and wet." He looked over at Link. "I really have to thank you."

"It's fine. I wanted us to go together. I know how important it is to you." The hot soup in his belly was warming him up, and he was beginning to feel drowsy.

Shad shook his head. "No, really. Not only have I been able to add to my father's research, I've been able to surpass it. I learned about my own self and my magical ability as well. I couldn't have accomplished these things without you."

People sure thanked him a lot, even his friends. And for what, for doing what anybody else would have done? "Don't worry about it. I'm glad to help." He wasn't sure of what else to say.

"That's how Link is. After all he's done for other people, is it any surprise that he'd do the same for you?" Ilia asked, feeling at the hem of his green tunic. "Goodness, this is wet…" she said quietly, more to herself than any of them.

"Yes, well...as much as I'd like to sit here and bask in praise, I'm done standing around in wet armor. Excuse me." Link went around the table and began to climb the stairs. Midna appeared next to him when he was halfway up, surprising him. "Normally you don't appear out here." he said to her.

"I'm still wet, and I'm not really sure how to make my hair dry." She looked down at herself, and while she was no longer dripping wet after waiting around for the two of them in the Sanctuary, her hair still was. He knew it felt like normal hair, so perhaps it took on water like normal hair as well.

"I'm not an expert on magical hair so I can't help. You could try sitting in the kitchen by Telma. It's warm and dry in there, and you could chat with somebody that isn't me." Ever since she had been injured, she had seemed out of sorts. She probably would welcome a chance to get away from him.

"You'll probably be fine in there, Midna." Ilia told her as she gathered up the bowls and spoons from the table and put them back on the server's tray. "If any of the children come in, you'll hear them coming and can go hide in shadows somewhere. You don't always have to hang around with Link, you know. We all like you and enjoy your company."

Ilia wasn't looking, but Link was right next to Midna so he could clearly see her face. She briefly, ever so briefly looked as if she was about to cry. Then she assumed a neutral, tired-looking expression. She had admitted that she was lonely, and while she had been talking about the romantic kind of loneliness, she mentioned that she wasn't "lonely anymore" when it came to friends. The thought of it made his heart ache. He tried to think of a comment to let her that he noticed, but he couldn't think of anything. "Go ahead, Midna. I'm going to dry off and probably nap for a while."

The imp snorted and rolled her eyes in an overly-dramatic fashion. "Well now I'm going to hang out with Telma for sure. I don't need to listen to you snore in the daytime too." She patted his cheek with a faint smile, and floated over to the kitchen. He had given her an excuse to make a joke at his expense so she was able to hide her emotions, and she knew it. He smiled and continued up the stairs.

Link went into his room and shut the door behind him. Sometimes it was nice to be by himself. Even though Midna was giving him a bit more space while they were in Kakariko, Ilia had now occupied that time he otherwise would be alone. He so rarely had any time to himself, he sometimes forgot what it was like. Even now he wasn't truly alone; the Master Sword was with him.

I am not a person, so I do not count.

He smiled at the sword's comment. That was true, he supposed. He sat down on the chair to remove his wet boots, and heard Shad go into his room next door. Just as he expected, his toes were wrinkled from being wet. While the boots the gods had given him were made well enough for him to splash through puddles or other water briefly, even they began to take on water when worn in the middle of a thunderstorm. He wasn't sure which was the stranger thing he did today, fighting inside a storm or saving a dragon from dark magic. Today was a doozy, compared to many of the other things he had done.

He had removed his gear and was holding the scabbard of the Master Sword after unbuckling his baldric when he heard a knock. He realized it was Shad's door and not his own, so he set the sword down next to his shield. Then he heard the man's voice, as well as Ilia's. Link thought about the friendship Ilia had made with Shad, something he wasn't aware of until he saw the two of them hug one another earlier. Wasn't he supposed to feel jealous or unhappy after seeing that? He didn't feel anything of the sort. If anything, he was happy that she had good friends other than him. She would need some people to talk to once he had to leave for the Twilight Realm.

Link pulled the green tunic off and tossed it near his other gear with an unhappy grunt. He knew he had to go, but he didn't want to. He wasn't sure he wanted to see Midna's home, and find out why she was so touchy about it.

Ilia knocked at his door instead of simply walking in, which he appreciated. He crossed the room and pulled it open, and she stood there smiling while holding a towel. "I thought you and Shad could use something to dry off with." She walked into the room past him and set it down on the dresser. Oh, well that was fine. He hadn't asked her to come in, but she was his girlfriend after all. "I know there's a smaller towel in here for washing, but I thought bath towels would be better."

Link considered the door for a moment, then shut it. It wouldn't hurt to talk to her for a bit. "I appreciate it, although I think my hair's finally dry. Too bad it's all sticking up now. I always look like a haystack after I get wet." Or after he slept. Or after riding his horse. Or after simply existing with this maddening hair of his.

"I think it's cute." Cute? She watched him as he pulled the chain shirt off. "You think your hair looks bad, but I like it."

"Of course you do. I could have a third eye and you'd say you love it." He spread out the chain on the floor to dry.

"Is that going to rust? It doesn't look like steel." she said, still watching what he was doing.

"It's not. I have no idea what metal it is. I don't know what kind of metal the Master Sword is made of, either. Oh, speaking of which…" He pulled the sword from its scabbard and set the two of them down next to one another. "Even the inside of the scabbard got wet. It was raining so hard that I could barely see at times."

"So you said. If you didn't have that magic spell of yours that lets you see hidden things, I'll bet you wouldn't have found that shard for a while." Her eyes darted to the door when Shad left his room and walked to the back stairs in order to head to the bath. Link had pulled off his soggy gambeson and unceremoniously tossed it in the pile when she looked back at him. "I was really impressed by the magic you two used today. I've never seen anything like it."

"I'm sure I'll discover other ways I can use magic soon. I keep finding them." He peeled off his wet leggings and tossed them on the floor, not caring if she saw him in his underwear. He had certainly seen plenty of her, after all. "When I said that I used the enchanted boomerang before, I didn't mention that it wasn't the fairy inside of it that cast the magic. It was me. I had no idea that I could do that, but for some reason I just...did it. I made a magical being cast a spell, or maybe I cast the spell through her. I'm not sure which it is." He absently put his hands on his waistband, and then froze. His eyes moved to look at her, and she was still watching what he was doing.

She met his eyes. He hadn't been shy about undressing in front of her so far, but he was afraid of how she would react if he was naked. It wasn't as if he cared if she saw him that way, but more that he didn't think she'd behave herself. Both times they almost got themselves in trouble, she had been the one who started it. Ilia misunderstood his hesitation, and looked unhappy. "You don't want me to see you."

"No, that's not it." How could he explain without upsetting her? Maybe he couldn't. "I'm not ashamed in front of you or anything. It's just...I really don't feel it's appropriate right now. As I am right now is already pushing it."

She lowered her eyes to stare at the floor. "This is about last night, isn't it?"

"Ilia—"

Her eyes moved back up to his. "It is, isn't it? You're being funny about this again." Her tone was accusatory and hurt. They had talked about this, and while he had planned on talking to her again, this was not how he wanted to ease into it.

"Funny? Now hold on—"

"You do things to lead me along, and then you backpedal and cucco out. I don't understand it. Now you don't want me to see you with no clothes on because you think I'm the one who is going to start things?" She wasn't raising her voice, but she was getting angry. "You don't trust me, do you?"

"Stop." Link took a step forward and practically snarled the word, since he was so frustrated. She actually shrunk back from him nervously. He had been angry at her before and she had been unfazed, but something about the way he said that single word had unsettled her. He licked his lips, unsure of how to proceed, and unsure of how he could talk to her without starting an argument. "Sit down." he said quietly, trying to keep his voice neutral.

Ilia sat on the bed and rested her hands in her lap, still looking uncomfortable. She didn't say anything. He took a deep breath. "I trust you. I trust me. I don't trust you and me together. The two of us collectively lose our heads when we're left to our own devices, and that's a problem. Yes, I have backpedaled, but that's only because my brain has been slow to catch up to my body."

Link picked up the towel and began to dry under his arms with it, pointedly not looking at her. "I wanted to talk to you about this, but I didn't want to get into it this way." He snorted. "Well, too late now. We're talking about it, whether you're uncomfortable or not."

"You've never used that tone of voice with me before." she said quietly. "We've argued, but that wasn't the same."

He began to dry off his legs as best he could while still in his wet drawers. "I'm not trying to upset you, or scare you, or whatever I just did. It's just the subject is frustrating for both of us, and I'm starting to lose my patience. I'm losing my patience because the two of us are a pair of idiots who can't keep their hands off one another, and we should know better." He stood up straight, towel in hand, and gave her an intense look. "I'm going to make things clear, right here, right now. I do not want to have that kind of relationship with you yet, especially while we are at Kakariko."

It sounded reasonable to him, but clearly it did not to Ilia. She looked angry and hurt, and her expression was halfway between a scowl and tears. Suddenly she stood and turned towards the door to flee, but he was faster than her and grabbed onto her wrist. "No, stop. We're still talking about this."

She stared at his hand on her wrist, looking surprised that he had moved that fast, and then back up at him. "No we're not, Link. You're talking." she said icily.

"I'm not—" He stopped and sighed, shutting his eyes. "I don't want to argue, okay? I don't want this to get ugly, or make one of us cry. I understand your frustration with me. I've been inconsistent, I know." He opened his eyes, but still didn't let go of her wrist. "I could have phrased what I said better, but this is really important. Just please...listen to what I have to say and try to understand my reasoning, okay? Don't leave."

Her eyes were still hard, but her voice was a bit calmer. "All right. After I listen to what you have to say, I get to say my piece."

Link nodded and let go of her wrist. "That's fair. I know you're not happy with me, and that's also fair." He tossed the towel on the dresser next to him. "I'm an important person, and so many people have their eyes on me. I hate to admit that, but it's true. A dragon called me 'the mightiest among your people' today, and I know that he isn't the only one who thinks that. People look up to me and hold onto hope because I fit their image of the hero. Now what do you think they would do if that image of me was shattered because I immediately jumped into bed with a girl I just started dating two days ago?"

"It's none of their business." She frowned, still frustrated.

"You're right. It isn't. But that's the problem, Ilia. Everything about me is suddenly their business, whether I want it to be or not. I'm famous, and by extension so are you." He took one of her hands in his, even though he wanted to hold her. That would be counter-productive to the point he was trying to make. "I'm saying all of this because I love you. I know the kinds of things people would start to say about you, and I don't want you to go through that. That's why I'm saying hold off for now, even though I don't want to."

"We could be discreet, couldn't we? On the outside we'd keep up appearances." Of all the things for her to be stubborn about, this was not one he expected. This was a side of her he knew nothing about until yesterday, and this side of her was rather aggressive.

He still held her hand but looked away. "I didn't want to tell you this, at least not yet. We're not discreet, not in the least. Shad only sleeps a few hours a night and he knows you sneak here and then back to your room." He frowned and shook his head. "He said that he hears us talking for most of the time, but there are also times that he hears 'a lot of silence', as he put it. The guy made a point of telling me this to warn us, since we're his friends."

"Oh. Okay." She sounded awkward upon hearing that. Finally. Not that he wanted to make her uncomfortable, but that was the only way to get through to her.

"That's not all. Auren saw us in the orchard yesterday. Shad didn't say what exactly she saw, but I'm going to assume it wasn't us talking."

Ilia stared at him, a flush creeping up her cheeks. "That can't be right, can it? We were behind the house, and far enough back from the road that it would be hard to tell what was happening anyway."

"She's a sniper with amazing eyesight. Auren can clearly see things that I'd need a spyglass for." He patted her hand and let it go. "I don't think Shad would make that up, and that he was telling me the truth."

She sat on the edge of the bed again and rested her face in her hands. "I was...I was kind of mad when you threw an apple into my hands and made us leave. Now I'm glad." Ilia made a distressed sound. "Oh gods, what were we thinking?"

"We weren't." He sighed, both unhappy yet relieved with where this was going. "You understand why I'm taking this stance, right? Imagine if one of the other Gerudo found out, or somebody like Hayes. Or Renado." Link stepped up to her and ran a hand through her dusty-colored hair in a mimic of what she did to him, and the contact made her lower her hands and raise her green eyes to him. "Listen, Ilia. This is just temporary. When we get back to Ordon, we can be ourselves."

"Can we? Do you know what my father would do if he found out?" Ilia sounded worried. She was right, and her point was just as important as his. Bo was very traditional, and he would be livid if he found out what Link had done with his daughter. Was that why she was in such a rush? Did she think they wouldn't have any time together for things innocent or otherwise, without her father breathing down their necks?"

"He'd make us get married. Or he'd try to do that, anyway. I'm not going to do what he wants. I'm going to do what we want to do." He cupped her chin with his hand and lifted her face slightly. "Do you know what he did shortly before I was supposed to leave on my errand? He asked me to marry you. The guy didn't even ask what you wanted, and decided to offer you to me."

Ilia stared at him and shook her head in denial. She didn't want to believe that her father would do that. "All he needed to do was discuss it with the two of us. Why would he do it that way?"

Link wished he could sit on the bed next to her, but his rear end was still too damp for that. "Control. He wasn't able to keep us away from one another even though he did his best for years, so now he figures if he gets us together on his terms, he can decide what we do. Ordon tradition dictates that we would have to listen to him. That hadn't occurred to me at the time, but even then I didn't like the idea of him arranging the whole thing without telling you. I told him no since the two of us are so young. I was still seventeen, and a few months ago you were still sixteen. Because of that I got him to drop the subject, for the time being." He knelt down so he could look up at her, just as he did when apologizing to her after being drunk, but this time he wasn't afraid of getting too familiar and put his hand on her knee. "We'll do what you want to do, Ilia. If he doesn't like it, then I'll take us somewhere else. The Snow Peaks, the Gerudo Desert, Hyrule Castle, it doesn't matter. Home can be wherever we want it to be."

She leaned forward to brush his wild hair out of the way and kiss his forehead. "I already have what I want. Still...I like it here. I thought about what Betsy said, and maybe I should work at the tailor's shop. We have some time to think about it, since you still have important things to do." She continued to comb at his hair in an attempt to fix it, or perhaps she really did like it and wanted to touch it. "I have a question. Why did Auren come tell Shad of all people? I know they're good friends, but I'd assume she'd talk to the other Gerudo first."

He rested his head against her knees, completely disarmed by her hand on his hair again. It was stupid how easily he melted from that. "I never told you about it, but Auren's in love with me too. She went to Shad to cry instead of letting the other Gerudo know what she saw."

Ilia sighed softly. "Another one? Link, how many women are in love with you?"

"That I know of? Three, including you. Epona might be a fourth, but technically she's not a woman." He paused, considering what he would tell her next. "She proposed to me when I was still recovering from the Lanmola. When I told her no because I was only interested in you, she asked me to have kids with her because of our great bloodlines, or whatever. It was a really weird, uncomfortable conversation and it made me angry. She knew how I felt about the other Gerudo trying to get together with me, and then she had to go and do it herself."

"You're ruining my image of the woman. She's beautiful, graceful and funny. Kind of like you." She patted his head. "But she's a Gerudo, and I understand how different they are. I'm not going to let it get to me, although I'm sorry that she's still hung up on you."

He decided he wouldn't tell her about how Auren had kissed him, because then he would possibly have to explain how he had enjoyed it. "You and me both. I want my friends to be happy, especially Auren and Midna. I don't know what Midna's story is yet, but Auren's life wasn't a pleasant one."

"Worse than yours?"

"Thankfully, no." He thought of his friends, and of how nearly all of them had gone through hardships. Auren's struggle to earn her mother's approval while living in the shadow of her dead sister was just one of many. Link raised his face to look up at her. "I used a lot of magic and I'm pretty tired. As much as I enjoy standing around in my underwear while having a serious conversation with you, I want to get a few hours of shuteye." He smiled faintly when she laughed. "Although I never gave you a chance to tell me your side of things, even though I said I would."

"I think how frustrated I am doesn't matter, now." She stood and carefully stepped around where he was still kneeling on the floor. "I'll be fine. If you were fighting a dragon of all things, you need to rest." Ilia looked down at the heap of wet clothing on the floor. "Did you want to hang up your wet clothes? I already offered to do it for Shad, so it wouldn't be any trouble."

Link stood and eyed the green outfit he had discarded on the floor. "Sure, if you don't mind. It saves me the trouble of doing it later. Leave the leather behind, since I'll probably have to treat it again."

"All right. I'll be back in a few minutes." She looked as if she was about to kiss him, but then her eyes flickered down to his bare chest and she sighed and backed away. She was making an effort. Ilia walked out of the room and shut the door behind her.

Their talk didn't start as well as he had hoped, but it still went better than the one last night. He knew it would be far better to reason with her now instead of when she was caught in the moment. He looked at the towel that he had discarded on the dresser and decided that he didn't need it at this point. His hair and body were dry, except where his damp drawers touched his skin. He took them off and tossed them along with the towel on the chair, figuring he could use it when he bathed later. Then he climbed in bed and stretched his muscles before laying his head on the pillow. Even though it was the middle of the afternoon, he was fairly tired. Normally he didn't have a chance to rest after fighting, so he planned to take advantage of it.

Some minutes later Ilia walked back into the room without knocking, quiet on her feet as she came in. He heard her gather up his wet things and throw them in something, presumably a basket. Even though he was listening to her movements, he didn't open his eyes. She gently kissed his cheek and started to leave the room.

"Don't take my underwear." he said, halfway to sleep. He heard her walk back to the chair and throw something soft on it, and then she left the room. He sleepily chuckled at her after she was gone.


Ilia still visited him later that night, and told him that she had spoken to Shad about doing so. She had assured him that nothing was going to happen because they weren't going to be idiots, and the scholar had seemed satisfied with that answer. They both decided they wouldn't speak to Auren, since that would make the whole thing even more awkward.

They talked some, which was to say that Link talked and she listened. He told her how his journey started and how he had woke up in the spring after being healed by Ordona, only to get dragged into the Twilight by a Shadow Beast. It was time to tell Ilia everything, which included Courage turning him into a wolf, Midna finding him in Hyrule Castle, and everything past that. It was pleasant to hold her in his arms while talking to her quietly. It almost made him forget about going to the Twilight Realm. Almost.

They didn't fall asleep together, and she didn't wait until the middle of the night to leave. She instead snuck out while Shad and Ashei were downstairs, their voices distant and faint as they talked quietly by the fire. If they heard the doors opening and shutting, so be it. If anyone had happened to walk by the room, they would have heard Link's voice and not a suspicious silence.

It was probably for the best that Ilia went back to his own room, because he had a nightmare. It was the first time he had one in a while, although the ones he had before were due to the magical influence of the Fused Shadows on him. This time it was the memory of falling from Argorok's island, of the visceral fear he had felt as he nearly fell to his death. The rain shot up past him as he fell and he screamed, but this time Midna did not come to save him.

Then the image faded and he felt as if he was no longer falling. Everything was dark, so this wasn't the dream where he encountered the Hero of Time. He saw a faint glowing line in the distance, a touch of gold on the horizon of a world where the sky and earth were black. A point of light shimmered in the middle of it, reflecting on what looked like a vast black sea below. When he heard the female voice call to him, he wasn't surprised. It called out his name, just as it had the last time.

Link… the voice sounded in his head, similar to how the Master Sword spoke to him. You're...all right. I'm with you.

He tried to reach out to the voice like the previous Link had suggested, but he didn't know what he was doing. It was like reaching out to grab something blindly in the dark. "I can hear you!" he called to the glowing light. "If you're with me, who are you?"

What? The voice shouted back in a confused tone, as if she couldn't hear him clearly either. Can't...you! Don't...I am… The words were distorted and he could only pick a few of them out. ...my body sleeps. I have faith...Midna.

Her body sleeping? Was she dreaming just like he was somewhere? Then it hit him. He knew who it was that had been trying to contact him, and why he thought he recognized her voice. He hadn't heard her speak in a while, but the formal cadence of it was familiar. "Zelda? Zelda! Can you hear me?" Knowing who she was, he reached out with his mind and suddenly her voice was clear. The light in front of him started to brighten.

Link! You know it's me now, don't you? It's difficult for me to talk to you, since my soul is in Midna's body.

Then suddenly he could see the silhouette of a slender woman, not backlit by the golden light but the source of it herself. Her glowing body and face were featureless except for her eyes, which were the blue ones he remembered. "I can see you. How long have you been trying to contact me?"

Weeks. It's difficult with Midna's cursed body, and the spirit of your ancestor keeps getting in the way. It was funny that she said that, considering it was exactly what the knight had said. It was like the two of them were trying to go through the doorway to his mind at the same time. I've been with you ever since we last spoke, and I have seen your progress so far. We're so very close to finishing this. Things didn't go...quite how I had planned, but they're looking up.

"Saying that it didn't go how we had planned is a bit of an understatement, princess." he said, and was pleasantly surprised when she chuckled. "Why did you give Midna the gift of your soul? You said you know who and what she is."

The blue eyes looked down and away from him. Yes, about that. First, it really isn't my place to tell you Midna's story; it's hers. Secondly, I did not mean to give her the gift of my soul. I meant to give her the Triforce of Wisdom, so it could protect her in the same way that Courage protects you.

Link stared at the glowing figure before him. Suddenly it made sense. "You tried to give her Wisdom, but since our Triforce pieces are bonded to our souls, your soul went with it. Is that what healed her? Or was it Wisdom?"

I...I'm not quite sure. Zelda continued to avert her eyes, and even though he couldn't make out her facial features, her body language indicated that she felt awkward. I don't know what I did or why I knew that I could do that. I only knew that I wanted to save Midna and...I did. He couldn't help but laugh, and the brilliant blue eyes moved to stare at him disapprovingly. Link, it isn't that funny.

"It is! I've been doing things with Courage and my own magic without understanding exactly how or what I did. The two of us really are cut from the same cloth, aren't we?" He felt himself grin, but he doubted that she could see it. "Sorry, I know you're frustrated. I can relate. Maybe once this is all over we can try to figure out what both of us can actually do."

I agree. We should speak to the Oocca. But first, I need to be back in my own body. I know that Midna felt guilty about what I did, but I've been unable to communicate with her at all to tell her what I had planned. She lowered her head and put a hand to her her glowing chest, and her long hair moved as if she was actually standing there in the flesh. I have a small, tenuous connection to my body. I believe since I'm not entirely severed from it, I can return. I may need Midna's help, if she understands how to use the Fused Shadows...which she is more than capable of figuring out. She is every bit as powerful as she claims to be.

"I've noticed that modesty isn't one of the traits of Midna's personality." he said dryly. He tried to see her better, but she was all glow and no features. That was probably for the best, since she appeared to be naked. "I'm glad to hear you know that your soul can go back to your body, and Wisdom with it. I'm also glad that your piece of the Triforce isn't currently with you, so Ganondorf can't get his mitts on it."

You were right in your assumption that he's waiting for you and Courage. He currently believes that I have Wisdom, although I don't know for how long. I can sometimes see what he's doing when he's near my body and… She raised her face to look at him again. ...he's mad. At times he seems to be in control and stands quietly while looking out the window at the courtyard, and he looks almost sad. Then other times he mutters to himself, bursts out laughing, or even holds at his head like it hurts.

"I had to figure his actions were those of a madman. What he's done goes far beyond normal revenge."

I know. He isn't rational, but he's still intelligent which means he's very dangerous. I know you're afraid of him, but I'll be with you. Whenever I return to my body, I'll wake up. Then I can use my abilities to help you defeat him. Both Courage and Wisdom are needed to defeat Power. She reached out towards him with one of her glowing hands, and he could see three triangles shining on the back of it. He raised his own hand, his left one to meet with her right, and lined his palm and fingers up with hers. Link thought he could feel something, as if he was actually touching her hand. She was warm, as if she was alive. He saw that his own arm and hand were glowing just like hers, and she likely only saw him as a luminous figure with a pair of blue eyes as well.

Her shoulders rose and fell as if she started to breathe more quickly, and she stared at their hands. It...it's like I'm actually touching you. Nobody ever… She floundered, trying to phrase it better, but she sounded as if she was becoming emotional. I'm Princess Zelda Hyrule. No one touches me. No one can touch royalty without permission.

He pitied her, and remembered all that Auru had said about her being alone with no friends other than Shad. "I know what it's like to be isolated, but even then I was allowed human contact." He moved his fingers to intertwine them with hers, and smiled even though he knew she probably couldn't see it. "If I have to break some rules in order to hold your hand when you're feeling lonely, so be it."

Zelda's other golden hand moved to where her mouth would be, and her eyes crinkled ever so slightly. Link….you're going to make me cry. I'm trying to look regal and wise, and here you had to go and put me into this terribly human state. Why did you have to ruin my fun? Her voice sounded like she was still partway to tears, but she had at least ended it with a joke. Zelda, the princess of Hyrule was joking. He liked her already.

"Yeah, well...I have this horrible habit of making women cry without meaning to. If it makes you feel any better, you can give me a black eye later. I'm sure I deserve one." He squeezed her hand, and then heard a long, silvery note. When he looked down at their hands he saw that Courage had began to glow as well, and the two pieces of the Triforce were resonating with each other. Courage and Wisdom were now part of their souls, and just like their two souls, the two pieces of the Triforce were meant to work together. "Zelda, I know we're tied together. I know about the cycle of reincarnation."

I do too, although not much. There is supposed to be some information passed down through the women of the royal family, but my mother died before she could tell me. I only know about our souls because of what Auru told me.

He knew more than that, but didn't feel this was the time to reveal who they were actually reincarnations of. "I wish I knew you better. This is the first time I've been able to speak to you without anything interfering."

The beautiful blue eyes warmed as if she was smiling. You don't know me, but I certainly know you. I've been in Midna's body for weeks, and after spending so much time with you, I feel as if I've grown close to you. It would figure that she saw everything that had happened through Midna's eyes. That meant that Zelda had seen him at both his best and his worst. I can't communicate other than like this, but I want you to know that I'm still with you.

"Cool. My secret friend, the princess of Hyrule."

That made her laugh, and the sound warmed his chest. Just like how he wanted to Midna to not feel as if she was alone, he wished the same thing for Zelda. I wish I could speak to you all night, but you need to rest without me in your mind. We should say goodbye for now.

"No, hold on. I have a question. Should I talk to Midna about your soul being linked to your body? It might help her out." Her hand felt warm in his, although their two pieces of the Triforce stopped their magical tones and had fallen silent.

No. Please don't tell her about this conversation, or my attempts to communicate with you. While she is aware that my soul is in her body, she isn't aware that she now holds Wisdom, or that I'm able to see everything through her eyes. She probably could figure it out, but her mind is very preoccupied right now. Zelda moved ever so slightly closer and clutched her free hand to her chest. Link, she is in so much pain.

"I know. She tries to hide it, but I can read her pretty well by now." He remembered the brief moment when Midna looked as if she was about to cry earlier. "I don't know what I can do for her."

Nothing, until she decides to reveal her past to you. If she decides to reveal her past. She is considering only telling you the bare minimum so you can hurry through the Twilight Realm and return here. Please don't take it personally, since she cares deeply about you, and much like you, she does not want to trouble you or anyone else with her own problems. All you can do is continue to be her friend and support her. You're the best thing that ever happened to her.

Zelda lowered her hand and shut her eyes. He saw the vague impression of long eyelashes, and now that he was a bit closer, he could see her mouth open and shut as she sighed. I should be able to communicate with you again, since your magic has grown much stronger. She opened her blue eyes. Please know that you are powerful, but you should not fear that power. You are capable of so much not just because you are the hero, but because you are Link, the person. I have faith in you. You should as well.

She believed in him. Zelda, the reincarnation of Hylia and likely the most powerful person in Hyrule believed in him. He had already felt that he had overcome his own self doubt and fears with the help of his friends, and knew that they had faith in him. Yet hearing that Zelda did bolstered him, and somehow he felt more prepared for what he needed to do. "I'll certainly try, but if my head gets too big from all this praise, I'm not going to fit through the portal to get into the Twilight Realm."

Zelda laughed again, and it made him smile. She was human, a person just like him, and much like him she had been denied letting that humanity come out from behind her title. She reached out with her other glowing hand and put it to the side of his face, a familiar act with a certain fondness to it. It was so much like what Midna had been doing to him. She had started doing it more often once Zelda had transferred her soul, but he had assumed it was because the Twili's brush with death made her more open with him. Now he had to wonder if Zelda was influencing Midna's actions at times.

He wanted to ask about it, but she spoke again. I should go, as much as I'd like to stay. I hope to speak to you soon, in person. Until then, I'll try to come into your mind if I'm able.

Link's smile widened, and he wondered if she could see it. "I look forward to it. We'll free your body soon, I promise."

I don't doubt that. Like I said, I have faith in you. Goodbye, until we can speak again. The glowing body in front of him vanished into particles of light, leaving behind the faint feeling of human warmth from where she had touched his hand and his face.


Link opened his eyes.

He was laying on his stomach with his arm underneath the pillow, and he had used it to cushion his head. The room was lit with warm morning sunlight. He could remember the entire conversation he had with Zelda, and knew that it wasn't a dream. The nightmare of him falling was, but she had somehow pulled him out of it. Zelda had spoken to him and told him that she was all right. He raised himself up on his arms and peered over the headboard to where Midna was seated in the corner.

She looked up from her book. "What? You're not still dreaming, are you?"

"No, I'm pretty sure I'm not. I was dreaming not too long ago, though." He couldn't tell her about it. Zelda told him not to, and now that he was awake he agreed that it wasn't a good idea. Midna had a specific thing she needed to do, and he didn't want to distract her with the information he learned in his dream. She had seemed distracted over the past few days, something within her own mind that he knew upset her. Midna had enough on her plate right now.

"Good. I've heard a few of the kids and Telma downstairs, so some people are up if you want to start your day." The imp lowered her red eye back to her book. "Let me know what you decide to do today."

He rolled over and then sat up, swinging his legs over the side of the bed. Link knew what she was talking about. She wanted to know if they were going to the Twilight Realm today or not. He had been apprehensive yesterday and thought he would need a day to recover, but today he felt strong and confident. Speaking to Zelda had somehow given him that strength, even if she had only spoken to him for a few minutes. He stood. It was time to get up.

His clothing was dry when he checked on it, and he set out his leather in the rear yard to let it do the same while he ate breakfast and had the usual morning chitchat with the others. The leather had partially dried overnight, and would be fully dry in no time after sitting in the arid Kakariko air. After coming back a little bit later, he found that he was right. He decided to treat it, as he said he would. He set the Master Sword aside in its scabbard and rubbed oil into the now-dry baldric.

Master. the sword said as he worked. I told you that I would inform you if your magical energy had recharged. It has. Even though you used quite a bit of magic yesterday, you rested sufficiently. I believe that you and Midna are safe to travel to the Twilight Realm.

He stared at the oily rag in his hand. Was it time to go? Midna had been apprehensive, and now he was beginning to feel the same. This was the final piece of the puzzle, their last destination before they were ready to face Ganondorf. It wasn't Ganondorf she was worried about, it was Zant. She hated Zant with every fiber of her being, that much was obvious. Zant was to Midna what Ganondorf was to Link. The only difference was that Midna didn't have a Zelda to back her up.

"Is something wrong?" Ilia came into the yard to hang up a bunch of towels, and paused with the basket on her hip to look at him while he was deep in thought.

Link was pulled out of his reverie, and he blinked at her. "Oh. No, I'm fine." He went back to work and after a moment, decided to tell her what he knew she wouldn't like to hear. "I've decided I'm leaving today." He heard a sigh coming from her direction. "I know. It's how it has to be, at least for now. We're ready, and if we're ready there's no reason to hesitate."

She made a small sound in agreement. "It also wouldn't be fair to Midna if you decided to spend more time here first. She's so close to being human again."

"Thanks for thinking about me." Midna said from within his shadows. "I really am close, and I'm looking forward to all kinds of things: eating, sleeping, not being naked all the time…"

Ilia jumped at her voice, not realizing that Midna was with him. "Oh! Hi, Midna."

He chuckled at the Twili's joke. "Like you being naked matters. You have the anatomy of a doll." It was true. While she had a vaguely girlish shape, she was sexless. That in itself probably felt strange. He couldn't imagine not having...parts.

"You don't know how much you miss clothes until you can't wear them. And before you say anything, no Link; I don't want to wear clothes for a dolly." She caught him there. He was going to make that exact joke. "I want my robes and my dresses, and jewelry and shoes. I want to eat cake and fall asleep in the light of the Sols with a book in my hands." There was no sarcasm, no edge to her voice, and she was quite clearly no longer joking around. Midna missed being human badly, and it hurt to hear. If she had been next to him while telling him this, he would have hugged her.

"We'll get you those things back. I can't imagine what it's been like for you." He couldn't. He probably would have been in tears all the time, or the lack thereof since Midna couldn't shed them in her cursed form. "We can go to the Twilight Realm in a little while."

She was silent for a moment, and Link and Ilia continued to work quietly. He set aside the baldric and picked up one of his boots to work on it next, and then Midna spoke again. "It's not going to be what you expect, Link."

He wasn't sure if she only said it to him or not, but Ilia turned towards him to listen. "What, the Twilight Realm?" he asked.

Her voice was quiet, almost shameful. "Everything. The Twilight Realm, the people there, me…" She was in pain, just as Zelda had said. The things that caused her that pain would be out in the open soon, and she had to face them. "Please promise me something."

"Of course." he said, willing to do anything to help her at this point.

"Promise me that no matter what happens, no matter what you see, you won't hate me for it." There was worry in her voice, and fear. She feared losing him. Zelda had said that he was the best thing that had ever happened to her. Midna likely thought that if she drove him away, she would have nothing. She would lose the connection she had to the other people she had met in Hyrule, and would have nothing. She would be completely alone again while caught in whatever trouble she had escaped from when she had fled her home. His eyes filled with tears at the thought of it. "Don't cry, you fool." she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

He blinked them away. "I can't help it, with what you just asked for. Midna, I know how alone you are. I don't know how you came to be that way, but I know I'm the closest thing you've ever had to a best friend. Perhaps I'm your first close friend." Link put a hand over his chest, to where he knew she was hiding in his shadows. There was nowhere else for him to hide on him, since he was wearing some of the Kakariko clothes Ilia had made for him. "I promise. I couldn't hate you. No matter what you've done, I can't hate you. We're getting through this together, whatever may be."

She didn't say anything, but he heard a soft little quivering sigh, like she was close to tears. The sound tore at his heart, and he felt for this poor woman that believed she had done something so terrible that she would drive away the one person she could trust. He didn't know what else to say to her, afraid that he would start crying himself. He felt Ilia's arms slide around his ribs as she hugged him from behind, and perhaps she was trying to comfort Midna as well. There was nothing else to say, not until they made their way to the Mirror of Twilight, and everything became clear.

Two hours later, after he had prepared his gear and eaten an early lunch, he stood at the spring with Ilia and Midna. The Twili had said little since her request for him to not hate her. He still had no idea what she could have possibly done, but he also knew that she wouldn't tell him. Unless it was something terrible like genocide, he probably would feel the same way about her. He already knew that she felt personally responsible for the things that Zant did, just as she felt personally responsible for what Zelda had done. He also knew that she was a good person and she hadn't intended for either of those things to happen. The problem was he had no idea how to convey that to her, past what he had already said. Her own doubts and fears were something she had to work though herself.

The sun above was hot, but he knew that it would be far worse in the desert in the middle of the day. He hadn't thought of that, but didn't want to wait until evening to go. If it was hot, so be it. They would be going to a completely different place not long after entering the desert, anyway.

Ilia clasped her hands in front of her unhappily. "I know you'll come back. You always do, but this time you won't be in Hyrule anymore. I've been all right so far because I've been telling myself you were still not too far away. It's different this time. Where is the Twilight Realm? Is it somewhere in this world? Is it another world entirely?"

Midna didn't say anything. Either she didn't know, or didn't want to say. Link stepped forward and took Ilia into his arms. "I have no idea. I don't know how long it will take, but I absolutely will come back." He kissed her, and when he pulled his face back he hadn't missed that Midna had turned her back to them. "Hang in there. You'll be okay."

"Yeah, I will." She stepped back to give them the space to teleport. "Good luck."

Link watched as Ilia and Kakariko dissolved into black squares, and then was replaced by the bright sunlit coliseum that sat on top of the Arbiter's Grounds. As soon as they appeared, the heat hit him like a punch. It was far hotter than he had been expecting. At least it confused his senses enough to make his reaction to the teleportation negligible.

It was also uncomfortably bright, and he shaded his eyes as he looked around. The round frame of the Mirror of Twilight itself was still in the morning shade of the coliseum walls, but it wouldn't be for long since it was about an hour before noon. He walked into that shade and found the temperature there far more bearable. No wonder the Gerudo wanted to sleep the day away.

"Do I have to do anything?" he asked Midna, who had not followed him into the shade. The Twili's pale gray skin was almost white in the bright desert sun. Her one eye squinted in the harsh light.

"No." She spoke in a neutral tone, carefully controlling her emotions. Poor Midna. "I have the power to repair the mirror, and you shouldn't touch it anyway." She finally moved into the shade next to him and waved a hand. The pieces of the mirror seemed to come out of her hair itself, or more specifically the helmet of the Fused Shadows. One by one they floated over to the metal frame and slotted back into place. As each mirror fragment went its rightful place, there was a flash of white along the jagged breaks in the glass, and they fused together. The Mirror of Twilight was complete, and whole again.

Wordlessly, Midna raised her hand, and the faint pattern of lines along the mirror's surface awoke with pure white light. Magic circles etched with runes spilled out in front of the mirror, growing larger until they landed on the sunlit brown boulder that was still held in place by four massive chains. Even though the sun was bright, a pattern of light appeared on the stone; a series of what looked like pure white cogwheels that rotated slowly and formed a tunnel leading into inky blackness. It looked exactly as he had remembered from the vision Rauru had shown him.

"People of this world think my home is a dark place of evil, or perhaps the underworld, but they don't understand. That couldn't be farther from the truth." Midna spoke softly, lowering her hand while looking at the portal she had just created. "It isn't dark, it's beautiful. You can see that same beauty in this world, every time the sun sets or rises. That purple and pink, that faint warmth...that is the Twilight Realm."

She didn't look at him as she spoke. "We lived in peace in that beautiful light. My people weren't cruel users of dark magic, they were pure and gentle. They were willing to atone for the sins of the Interlopers, our ancestors, but instead we found contentment in our world...the world and home we built with our magic. It's what we are all taught as children, that our home was once wonderful. But then two centuries go, that changed."

Midna narrowed her eyes. "Two centuries ago, a great evil came to us. Greater than the evils found in the outer islands, greater than the evil of the Fused Shadows fragment I now wear. It changed my people. It made us...bitter. Resentful. We started quarrels with one another, and there were even fights over the various islands. Our peaceful land changed, and all we could do is survive in it. You know this evil, Link. You know his name."

"That is our fault." a familiar male voice said behind them. Link turned and saw the Sages there, no longer wearing the magical disguises that made them look identical. He could see them for who they were without his power now, and he knew Midna could see their true forms as well. Rauru continued to speak. "We overestimated our power, and thought we had the ability to handle Ganondorf on our own. That was not the case, and in order to save our world and king I had to banish him to yours. You suffered because of our failure." He bowed his head respectfully, as did the other four Sages. "I beg that you forgive us, O Twilight Princess."

Link stared at the Sage in disbelief, and then turned towards Midna. Her expression was unreadable. The princess, the next leader of the Twilight realm, that's who Midna really was? All this time he had assumed that she was like him, somebody powerful who tried to fight a dark power in her world and failed. He hadn't realized how wrong he was. She was their leader after her father's murder, and when she didn't stand up to Zant, he cursed her so he could steal her throne. It all made sense now; her harsh opinions on royalty, her asking him if he could ever befriend the princess, her expecting him to follow orders indiscriminately, her fury over Zant.

She wasn't the Twilight Realm's version of himself; she was Zelda's.

Midna lowered her eyes and shook her head, her face shameful. "No. I can't forgive you. As a ruler who abandoned her own people, I'm hardly qualified to forgive you. What I did is far worse than what you did."

That was it. That was why she was afraid of him hating her. She had a responsibility to her people, and she had run away instead. If he had learned about the situation with an outside view, he probably would have hated her, the powerful princess that didn't fight and failed her people due to it. That wasn't the case. Over the past month he had gotten to know Midna well, and knew what a kind soul she was. He knew that she didn't fight because she didn't want to abuse her power, and that she felt the way Zant used her people to create Shadow Beasts was somehow her fault. He tried to think of what to say, but then she spoke again.

"In our world, we have a legend. A prophecy, if you will. For two centuries, we believed that a hero would come in the form of a divine beast to save us from the dark power that ruined our home. When I first saw you, it was at the spring of Ordon. I had been searching the area for the piece of the Fused Shadows, and happened across you and Rusl when the two of you were on patrol. I followed you for a few days, hiding in the shadows, watching you. I could sense a strong magical power from you, nearly as strong as Zelda's, and I wondered if you were important to this world. After I saw you transform into a wolf when a Shadow Beast tried to turn you, I knew it. I knew you were the one."

She gritted her teeth, and a look of self-loathing passed across her pale features. "I thought I'd use you to my own gain. I didn't care about this world of light or its problems, even though I was the one who inadvertently caused them. I didn't care about you. I only cared about the Twilight Realm and returning it to normal. To returning me to normal."

Her voice trembled, and she still wouldn't look at him. "But after I met you as a human, things started to change. I couldn't be selfish, not after seeing how selflessly you behaved. In spite of everything that happened to you, you still did your best to help others. I thought at first it was because the gods told you to, but after a while I could see that's just how you are. You did it because you knew that you were someone who could. Just like Zelda." Midna's lower lip quivered. "You two sacrificed so much for your world. Especially you, Link. The world has been so unfair to you, and yet you still do what you must. You didn't run from your problems, like I did. You were so much better than I was." Her voice dropped to barely above a whisper, and she shut her eyes and hung her head. "You are so much better than I am."

Link stepped forward and put his arms around the Twili and drew her close. She didn't resist and buried her face in his chest while gripping at the green tunic with her small hands. She still couldn't shed tears in this awful little form that she was trapped in, but the emotions behind crying were the same, and so she softly sobbed. As before, the sound of it hurt him, just as it had when she had thought he was dead. He couldn't let himself shed tears, though. She saw him as a strong, caring person. She needed his strength.

"No. No I'm not." he said gently. "We're the same, Midna. You're like me, and you reacted like I would. I can't hate you, not when you did the same things I would have done if I was in your place." She shook her head, but didn't reply. "No, come on. Listen to me. You can't see it in yourself, but I can. You're the leader that your people need." He didn't know if she believed him, or if he could even convince her. This was what she was afraid of, returning to the mirror and facing the harsh reality that was her failure. This was her moment in a field beneath the sea of stars.

He turned his head to look at the Sages, and the five of them were no longer bowing their heads, but were watching him silently with sadness in their eyes. They felt guilty too. He thought of them being the friends of the previous hero, his ancestor. Did they see the Hero of Time when they looked at him, the Hero of the Twilight? He and the previous Link had the same face, the same voice, yet they were different. He couldn't picture the spirit he had met in the misty dreamscape comforting somebody like he was doing.

Her breathing became more even, and she didn't cry for long. Midna never did. He felt for his friend, for this woman that he found that he loved, but not in the same way she loved him. Link felt close to her, but would never have the kind of relationship with Midna that he had with Ilia.

"I don't want to believe you." she said finally, her voice muffled. "But I have to. You wouldn't tell me those things unless you felt they were true." Midna thumped a small fist on his chest. "Damn you. I want to hate myself, and you're ruining it. Why are you like this?"

He gently patted her back. "Because not too long ago, a young man collapsed in a field because he was overwhelmed by everything that was expected of him. He wanted to run away because he felt that he had failed everyone he was supposed to protect, but you came and told him he wasn't a failure. He realized that you were right, and he was only human." She raised her face to look up at him with her one yellow and red eye, his words getting through to her. "So Midna...you're only human. You aren't the failure you think you are. Don't expect more from yourself than you can give, just expect who you are."

Midna sighed and turned her head to look at the Mirror of Twilight, which was still active and glowing in the hot desert sun. "Ashei did say that, didn't she? It would be foolish of me to hear her give you such good advice, yet not follow it myself."

"We're going to go through that portal and get you back to your human form." he told her. "Aren't I supposed to feed you peeled grapes after that happens?" She looked back up at him, and then smiled. He felt relieved, seeing her smile. "I can feed you, and Shad can fan you while you lay around on some fancy couch."

Midna laughed and pushed off his chest. He let her go, and she floated away to hover in the air not too far from him. "That's right. And you're both going to wear nothing but loincloths."

"Great. I'm looking forward to being your slave." He smiled when she laughed again. "I really don't resent you for anything. You understand that, right? Even if you used me, I was using you too. We learned to trust each other at the same time. We changed for the better, and we changed together."

"Yeah. After I was with you, I learned that this was bigger than myself. Now I know in the bottom of my heart that I must save this world too."

He nodded. "Just like I have to save your world. There's no other way. We're doing this for both worlds, together."

She turned back to the portal, which continued to operate. Nobody had cast the spell to turn it off yet. "Zant will be difficult, you know. He almost killed me once, and now he's within his element. He has most of the Fused Shadows, too."

"I know, but I'm stronger now." He felt it, too.

The Twili gave a small chuckle. "You are. You're probably stronger than him, and he doesn't realize it. He still thinks that since he got me out of the way, he's unstoppable. He's full of himself, and thinks that the gods have given him the right to do what he wants. He even told me so. He told me that since I wouldn't join with him and his god, I was worth nothing." She looked down at her small hands. "He cursed me, but he didn't kill me. I think that he still felt something for me."

"Felt something? Midna, is this guy in love with you?"

She had to laugh at that. "I don't think a sociopath like Zant can love. I think it was a combination of lust for power, and lust for me. He was trying to convince my father to arrange a marriage between the two of us. I can't be queen and the leader if he's the king."

Link pushed some of his hair off his forehead. He was sweating, and their shade was disappearing. "Wow, okay. This is news to me. You really have some explaining to do once we go through that portal."

"Yeah, I know. Don't worry, I'll tell you the rest. I'm not hiding anything from you anymore." The princess of the Twilight Realm turned to the Sages. "You guys have been guarding this portal for centuries, right? Keep doing that and make sure it stays safe. It wouldn't do to have your hero stuck in the Twilight Realm, would it?"

Four of the five Sages bowed, but Rauru only nodded his head. "Of course. We will certainly do this. It's the least we can do, after everything we caused."

Midna shook her head. "No, we're not playing the blame game here. We're going to fix everything and we're going to revive Zelda. I know that we can." She turned to Link. "Are you ready?"

"Yeah. Let's do it." It wouldn't be too bad to leave this hot desert behind, but he wasn't going to steal her thunder by making a joke about it now.

The imp smiled at him broadly, showing her fangs. "Let's go then. For Zelda, and for all of this world."

Link stepped up onto the mirror's platform and walked to the front of it as she floated next to him. His feet were on a strange runed rectangle, and when he looked down he could see that it extended into a shallow flight of white, floating stairs. The stairs ended at a glowing platform that floated in the air in front of the portal, purely made out of the same white lines that the stairs were. It wasn't all that different from the entrance to the Sacred Realm. He had opened the way to the Sacred Realm, and now Midna had opened the way to the Twilight Realm.

He turned his head to look at her, and she nodded at him in response. Link took a step up and Midna moved with him, and the two of them climbed the magical stairs to reach the platform at the top. As they gazed into the portal, everything around them started to dissolve into black squares, and the Twilight Princess and the Hero of Hyrule left the light world behind to enter the Twilight Realm.

END BOOK TWO

To be continued in book three: Blood, Spirit and Hatred


Author's Note: I need to build up more of a buffer since I've fallen behind in my writing over the past two months. Because of that, there will be no update next week. When the start of the new book is posted, I'll add a little extra chapter here to let you know.