Shards of glass sliced into my back as I let it soak up most of the damage, then I smashed into the floor and rolled until my body slammed into the heavy door far across the room. Like... a glove...? I groaned and struggled to stand up, but everything hurt so much that I could barely move, let alone look up and meet Midna's eye.

She was on me in seconds, grabbed me by the back of my neck and pressed her helmet into my head so that our eyes were barely inches apart. "Never. Do that. Again," she whispered, her voice laced with seething rage.

"Midna?!" cried the cloaked figure nearby, one handing clutching at her chest as she panted in fright. Midna and I both spun to face her, causing her to edge back slightly. I glanced at the window and winced at the broken glass and twisted metal. It was no wonder the woman was panicked, I nearly killed her.

Midna huffed and waved casually to the woman, saying, "You remember my name?" The sarcasm was practically dripping from her lips, but she definitely did not sound coy or amused. "What an honor for me."

The woman, whom I knew was Zelda even with only her nose and eyes visible beneath her hood, looked down at me, tilting her head slightly in curiosity. "Who is this?"

"A complete fool," Midna growled. "To make a long story short, there's a legend among my people about a hero in the form of a Sacred Beast who will appear when my realm is under attack." The imp crossed her arms and scowled. "Evidently, the legend has lost its original context. It's about a man who can change into the Sacred Beast. Honestly, I wouldn't say he's what I had in mind," Midna spared an angry glance at me, "but I guess he'll do."

"What happened to his eye?" the Queen asked, and I immediately closed my eyes and tried not to growl.

Midna frowned and shrugged. "He hasn't told me yet, we've only just met."

Zelda knelt down and gestured for me to come forward, her eyes kind but wary. I had to drag myself over slowly, but when I finally reached her, Zelda gently stroked the top of my head. I felt her Triforce resonate with mine, and the ache in my joints slowly ebbed away. I looked down and saw that even though my cuts and scrapes were still raw and bleeding slightly, the pain from them was greatly reduced and allowed me to move a bit more easily.

"Thanks," I thought. She must have heard it because her eyes widened as she pulled down her hood with her free hand, which meant that I could communicate with anyone by touching them. Zelda looked older than I expected, mid-thirties at best, and the ring on her left hand did not escape me. "You're married, huh? Congrats."

Her face flashed with such pain that I could feel it flowing from her Triforce. I winced at the heartbreak and agony she was feeling, but I tried not to show it. Instead, I decided to skip the proverbial cutscene.

"Look, I know you probably have a lot to say, but I already know." Zelda lifted a brow and nodded for me to continue."You're Queen Zelda, you've been invaded by a foreign power that has since covered Hyrule in Twilight, the people have become oblivious spirits, and I think we both know that I'm the only one who can get everything back to normal."

After a moment, the Queen nodded her head and ceded, "Perhaps." She turned to Midna, who by now was floating with her arms crossed over her chest. I shook my head at her stubborn temper as Zelda withdrew her hand, stood, and said, "Midna, the Shadow Beasts are searching far and wide for you." Midna spun around and turned her back to the Queen. "Why is this?"

Because she's the Twilight Princess, I thought drolly.

"Why indeed?" Midna held up her arms and shrugged her shoulders, forcing a giggle out. "You tell me!"

The sound of a heavy iron door creaking open distracted us from further important discussions. "Please, you must leave quickly," whispered Zelda, "before the guard comes." I nodded and forced my aching legs to push me onto the windowsill, Midna covering my back with one of the ragged blankets before sitting down, but Zelda held me back with a shaky hand on my paw. "I have one request. Please find my daughter and take her to safety."

I fought down the urge to growl in irritation as I thought to her, "I have enough problems right now, and I don't have time to play babysitter. Besides, she's a spirit by now."

Zelda's lip trembled but she clenched her jaw, even as the shuffling footsteps grew louder. "I have cast a spell of protection on her, but it will fade in short time. I implore- No, I beg you to free her. She's just a child, no older than three. She should not suffer because of the faults of her mother. Take her to Telma's tavern in the Castle Market. She will keep my Jun safe."

I was about to decline again when I noticed the tears welling up in Zelda's eyes. I looked up at Midna, who seemed indifferent. With a sigh, I faced Zelda and gave her a solemn nod. "You have my word."

She gave a small smile and pressed her lips to the top of my head, then withdrew into her room-turned-prison. I faced the outside world and leapt at it, knowing Midna would help me land safely. She indeed did, but not without a rough kick in my sides. A soft melody reached my ears then, and I turned in the direction it was coming from and saw Queen Zelda humming her own lullaby. I started to shake with laughter as the window repaired itself, simultaneously showing me exactly where I struck it.

"Hey, what's so funny?" Midna asked.

I shook my head and answered, "You wouldn't understand the joke."

"There is a lot I don't understand about you, but I think I can grasp a simple bit of humor."

I frowned. "... Not my humor." Clearing my throat, which sounded more like I was trying to regurgitate in my lupine body, I asked, "You hear that?" I listened for a moment and found that I could make out the sound of someone crying. "That way," I said, gesturing my head at a lesser citadel, one that was connected to the sloped roofs by rickety scaffolding several stone platforms and roofing away. I made my way over to the edge closest to the nearest platform, the burning and stinging of my injuries straining my muscles. Midna sighed and helped me cross the expanses, while I winced every time I landed and jumped, until at last we reached the wide windowsill of Jun's chambers, the window barred shut and locked.

"Hold on," Midna groaned before vanishing out of sight. After several moments and some clicking noises, she pushed the window open from the other side and let me in. The room was far sparser than Zelda's; while hers had a bed and desk with open book plus a small fireplace, Jun's quarters were furnished with only a pitifully disheveled mattress and even worse blanket.

The prisoner was lying on her side on the bed, the blanket bundled up under her head as a makeshift pillow, her quiet sobs the only indication that she was alive at all. I walked over to her slowly and nudged her arm with my snout, taking in the fading scent of flowers and honeycream and the sight of her smudged but otherwise undamaged yellow sundress. She stirred slightly, her knees drawn into her chest in a pitiful attempt to stay warm.

"Poor thing…" whispered Midna, much to my surprise. She gently brushed some dark brown hair out of the girl's face, revealing pale but fair skin. I nudged Jun again and this time she roused enough to open her sky blue eyes.

"Momma…?" Before I could blink, Midna spun around, going from short and obnoxious imp to the beautiful Queen of Hyrule herself by the time she faced Jun. 'Zelda' smiled down at Jun and stroked her cheek, causing the child to shudder. "You're cold, Momma…"

"Jun, I have to go away for a little while." I was surprised that she copied Zelda's voice so well, not to mention that the care and affection in her tone seemed almost real.

Jun whimpered and held what she thought was her mother's hand. "Don'd leave me all alone, Momma…" she whispered, tears welled up in her eyes. "Nod with these bad people..."

'Zelda' smiled lovingly and kissed Jun's cheek, and for a moment, I forgot that it was Midna and not actually Zelda speaking. "I will always be in your dearest thoughts, my child. I am having two close personal friends take you to stay with Telma." With that, the image of Zelda began to fade away, despite Jun's cry of despair.

"Please, Momma! Don'd go!" The rest of her protests were drowned out in her sobbing, which slowly quieted once Midna, in her imp form again, wrapped her arms around the child's shoulders as far as she could.

"Your mother loves you very much," Midna whispered, surprising me once more with how soft and affectionate her voice was. "But she needs you to be with Telma, away from the bad people." The imp gently stroked Jun's back. "She needs you to be strong for a little while, so don't cry, okay? Can you do that for your momma?"

Jun hiccupped as Midna wiped a tear from her own cheek. "Okay…" Her voice sounded like she was trying so hard not to weep again, and her face was riddled with absolute misery and despair, so I gently nudged her with my snout. She blinked at me and tilted her head. "Dog-" HICCUP! "Doggie?"

I nodded and pressed my head into her shoulder. "Midna and I are going to take you to Telma's," I thought to her, making sure my mental voice was not as annoyed as I felt. I was irritated by the pain in my limbs and back, the severe waste of time talking to Zelda was, and I just wanted to go to Ordona's spring and get warm and cozy there, but even I knew better than to upset a young child.

Jun looked at Midna as if seeing her for the first time, her eyes wide with fright. "You look jusd like the bad people…"

Midna nodded, a look of sadness etched into her face. "I look like them, but I'm not anything like them, I promise." Jun then yawned, stretching her arms up and moving to her feet. I lay down beside her, nodding to my back for her to get on. I winced at her weight and would have collapsed if I were not already on the floor, while Midna huffed impatiently.

With a heavy sigh, Midna said, "Jun, to get you out of here, I'm going to have do some strange things, but I need you to trust me and remain calm as much as possible, okay?"

Jun didn't seem to understand but nodded anyway, only to scream in terror when she was lifted off my back and into the air. "Nod this!" she begged, reaching desperately for the floor. "Please nod this!"

Midna set the toddler on the ground and held her shoulder. "Jun, it's the only way to get you out of here..." Jun drew herself into a fetal position and clenched her eyes shut. Midna sighed in defeat and sat on her knees beside the girl.

I lay down then touched my snout to Midna's thigh and said, "We should try to get her to fall asleep."

"How?" Midna whispered. "I don't know what her favorite lullaby is or if she wants a bedtime story or... if she needs to be fed or changed."

I nodded and rested my head in Midna's lap, her stomach just inches from my good eye. "I think a lullaby will work, but I'm... not the best singer around."

Midna rested her hand on the top of my head and scratched gently. "Me neither... even if I did Zelda's voice, I still couldn't copy the proper tones and such for putting a child to sleep."

I sighed and tilted my head so I could see Jun. "I'll try to sing a lullaby for her. After all, most people's singing voice is better in their head than out of their mouth..."

Midna shrugged and patted my head. "It's worth a try."

I moved my head over until it was beside Jun's. The moment I touched her cheek with my snout, she reached out and clung to my fur, cuddling me like I was a giant teddy bear. I could feel her little heart beating in her chest and the wetness of her tears on my cheek. Midna continued petting my head as I said, "Jun..." I took in a deep breath and stuffed down my embarrassment. When I next mentally spoke, it was with the melody of Zelda's theme. "Go to sleep... Hear this lullaby... Let it dry the tears in your eyes..." I nuzzled against her cheek. "You will grow... And then you will know... How love makes you strong..." I felt that I was doing well if Jun's contented sigh was any indication. "Leave all the bad behind, Let peace consume your mind, Find the courage to carry on..." I tried to look at Jun but my good eye was on the side Jun was not hugging. I glanced up at Midna and raised my brow in question.

The imp nodded and gently released the sleeping girl's grip on my body. I tried to stand up but discovered that I was actually floating in the air. Midna held Jun with her hair hand serving as a basket while she seated herself on my back. "You're too weak and injured to follow me down the castle walls," she thought to me, catching me by surprise. She rolled her eye and added, "Yeah, I can do this too. Jun just fell asleep, I don't want to risk waking her up." After a moment, she said, "That was really nice of you, Zach." She then playfully flicked my ear. "Your voice was horrible though. At least you're creative enough to add musical instruments."

I tried to shrug. "Like I... said, I guess is a good word? Anyway, I'm not a good singer."

Without another word from either of us, Midna levitated me and Jun out of the window and down the very high castle support columns and pillars, until we finally reached the streets below. We meandered through the Castle Market, completely ignoring the spirit orbs floating about in their frozen routines, unaware that their savior was walking among, and occasionally through, them. Along the way, Midna plucked up a random basket, blanket, and cushion and hid them from sight, probably so the oblivious denizens would not panic at the sight of floating trinkets. After many twists and turns, Midna finally huffed and set us down beside the fountain in the center of town. "Do you know where the tavern is?" Midna asked. I nodded while I lapped up the fountain water, which tasted less than clean, I'll have you know. Once I had my fill, I looked around for the alley where the tavern was in the game.

"That way, then take the second left," I instructed, nudging my head towards the southern castle gates. Midna nodded and lifted Jun and me into the air. On the way, I found myself growing curious. What would I learn if I were to eavesdrop on the tavern patrons? After all, this was a major sequence break, so I might as well use it to my advantage. I wanted to ask Midna about how to focus my senses, but then I remembered that I rather rudely told her to shut up before she could tell me. That ship sunk, I decided to try it myself as we came at last to Telma's Bar, tucked behind a short alleyway near the fruit stands.

For the brief few seconds that I could keep my focus, I heard various people inside the tavern talking excitedly, but not to each other from the sound of it.

"What'll you have, honey?"

"Men, I want to know the status of Bombarmos."

"Anyone seen Jovani?"

When we reached the front door of Telma's establishment, Midna set the basket down in front of the door and gently placed Jun inside, laying her head down on the cushion and covering her with the blanket. Though she was too large for the basket, Jun curled up into a ball, her hands squeezing at the blanket like it was a life preserver, and Midna almost looked sad, to the point that I saw her chin tremble.

"Be safe, Child of Light," the imp murmured, pressing her lips against the toddler's temple, which caused Jun to whimper and bury the kissed skin into her blanket just before her body and blanket were replaced by an ethereal green-flamed orb. Midna floated to the door and knocked thrice before following me out of the clearing.

I slowed to a pause and turned my head to face the direction of the bar, Midna seated on my back. "Take care, Jun." I continued onward, slowly so as not to agitate my wounds, until I was past the semi-open gate at the south and onto the large patio and grand stone staircase that signaled the end of Castle Market and the beginning of Southern Hyrule Field. I looked up at Midna and nudged her with the back of my head.

"I didn't think you'd be so good with kids."

Midna pursed her lips and looked to the side, hiding her visible eye from me. "You tend to care more when you canno…" she trailed off and clenched her fists. "Can actually understand them."

"Wait, what? I thought you could speak Hylian."

"Are you kidding?" she spat, and I winced at her tone. "I've been completely clueless about what everyone's been saying since I got here," She floated off and spun around, her one eye glaring flaming daggers at me. "Everyone's been talking in a foreign tongue except for Zelda, her daughter... and you." The imp frowned and crossed her arms. I rolled my eyes at her own, ignoring the twitch of her lip and the spasm of her fists unclenching and clenching again. "Now hold still. This... probably won't kill you."

Wha- In an instant, I felt my body shatter apart and my consciousness spread to each individual sliver of my being. I felt like I was everywhere and nowhere at once, that I was being stretched across the world and at the same time squished into a match box, and that possibly, just possibly, I was both dead, alive, and neither.

The next thing I knew was the overwhelming light of the high noon sun, piercing down on me like a wrathful god hurling thunderbolts. I waited for my sight to readjust to the blinding rays, and once they did, I found that I was in Ordona's spring. Without delay, I all but leapt into the warm water and let it soothe over my paws and back, gleefully drenching myself in the healing liquid. I was also glad that the water was shallow, it would have been very awkward if I drowned in a healing spring. I winced at the sensory bombardment but was able to pull myself into the grass nearby, taking in deep breaths of air to calm my nerves. I rolled onto my back, kicking my paws up in the air playfully like a pup, until I saw the red lines along my left wrist, the wounds I caused to escape from the chain cuff. I frowned and dipped the cuts into the water, but they remained where they were.

Hm, seems like the springs can't heal self-inflicted injuries… Better keep that in mind…

I leaned over the edge and looked at my reflection. I was certainly a wolf and had the same decorative patches of white fur on my head, but where there was green fur for Link to symbolize his hat, I had dark brown hair the same shade as my normal hair. Other than the hair color and lack of earrings and dreadlocks, thank goodness, I was the spitting image of the Hero of Twilight, except for a split second when my reflection became more menacing and sinister, with a hideous black spot where my left eye should have been and a red eye that seemed to darken the still-blue iris, which winked at me.

"Oh, I forgot to mention..." I jumped, having forgotten about Little Miss Pissy Pants, and shook my fur out to disguise my surprise. "Though you left the darkened realm, you haven't transformed into your former self, and you won't anytime soon!" Midna materialized from my shadow, looking like a shadowy ghost of herself with her eye and hair remaining colorful and lively.

Midna shook her head and smiled, showing her darkened fang. "Now why could that be?" She giggled and flipped backward, dipping down into my shadow once more. "One more thing; while I was warping you, I established a connection between my mind and yours. Now we can talk anytime without anyone eavesdropping and without having to constantly touch each other."

"And this won't be confusing, trying to tell when we're speaking and thinking at whatever time?"

"Hm. Well, I guess you can tell because our mental voices are bit... I dunno, slanted? Does that make sense?"

"To me, but it could be confusing to other people."

"What other people? You keeping a harem in your brain or something?"

I had to fight back a threatening growl as I said, "Very funny. Can either of us turn it off when we don't want to talk?"

"I can, since I made the connection in the first place, but you can't!" A laugh echoed around the spring. "This means I can hear each and every thought that goes through your teeny little wolf brain. Eee hee hee!"

"What about images? Suppose I start thinking about food? What then?"

"Simple, Dummy. I can see and hear any thought you think of."

I raised a brow and began to laugh. "Any thought, you say?"

"…Why don't I like the way you thought that?" In an instant, I thought of a lion devouring a zebra and Midna squirmed out of my shadow. "Oh, gross! Quit it, stop that this instant!"

"Make me," I huffed. I was not going to let some pipsqueak roam around my brain like it was a candy store. "My mind is exactly that; Mine, and I'll ask that you respect my privacy and adjust our link so that we only hear and see what the other wants us to." Midna gritted her teeth but nodded. I sighed and looked her in the eye. "Look, you need my help and I need yours."

Midna pressed her fists on the bulge of her hips and scoffed. "What makes you think I need your help?"

I lulled my head sideways and looked from under my brow at her, using my patented 'Are you kidding me?' expression. "I'm the only other person besides the imprisoned queen and her three-year-old daughter whom you can understand, plus I can walk freely in normal light and the Twilight without turning into a little ball of fire."

Midna giggled and shook her head. "That doesn't answer my question. Even if what you say is true, what do I need you for?"

"I'm sure you've noticed my uncanny knowledge." She nodded, narrowing her eye at me. "That knowledge doesn't end at your name."

Her single eye widened and twitched slightly, her arms pressed against her sides, and every muscle looked about ready to pop from sheer tension. "H-how much do you know?" I was caught off guard by the tone of her voice. It was sturdy but had a slight quiver and stutter at the beginning. Was she afraid that I knew she was the Twilight Princess? Her face quickly grew dark as she said, "I think now's a good time for us to have a nice little chat."

I sighed and lay down on the grass, my eyes never leaving Midna's. "I'm not from Hyrule. I come from America."

Midna blinked and her expression turned foul as she said, "That's just a fictional land from a story book. If you want to lie, at least make it convincing."

My snout twitched in irritation as I snarled back, "You want proof? I'll give you proof!" I thought of the American Flag, the White House, Congress, even the country as seen on a map. The mental image shifted into the entire planet, the black backdrop of space behind it. "This is where I'm from. A planet called Earth, and believe me, I thought Hyrule was just a made up place too until I got here."

Midna narrowed her eye. "How do you know about me and how much do you know?"

I sighed, projected the image of my Nintendo GameCube to her, and replied, "This handy little box projects interactive images and sounds, called video games, and the story of the little imp named Midna fighting against King Zant is one of them." I picked myself up and walked into the shade, which turned out to be a mistake when Midna seamlessly transitioned between floating shadow and scowling imp.

"That only answered the first question." She grabbed me by the ear and hissed, "How much do you know?"

"Let's just say-"

"Let's not." Midna tugged my ear. "I want the truth."

"You can't handle the truth." I then asked myself why I was being so stubborn about Midna's royal status. After all, what harm could it do? I sighed and leaned into her hand. "Look, what I know is a bit of an invasion of privacy-"

"Then return that privacy to me. I just want to know what you know about me, how is this such a difficult question?"

I let out a deep breath and looked right into her red and yellow eye. "You're the Twilight Princess." Midna snapped her hand back and hovered away from me, a shocked look on her face.

"Y-you know?" I nodded.

"I know you're Princess Midna of the Twilight Realm, Zant has usurped the throne, and you need to find the Fused Shadow so you can challenge him." I paused to see how Midna was taking this. She was trembling, her eye peering at me. "You need my help because I know where the other pieces are being kept and what's guarding them, so I can get them without much trouble. You wouldn't be able to do much on your own, you're too little and not built for combat."

Midna, to her credit, held herself relatively well, placing her hands on her hips and glaring at me. "I'm not that short."

I scoffed and looked at her through the bottom of my eyelid. "Squirt, I'm not even in my true form and I'm still taller than you."

That was another mistake, one Midna rewarded by grabbing my head with her hair and forcing me to the ground. She rubbed my nose into the dirt and seethed, "Don't you ever mock my body again, do you understand?" Angry at her treating me like a dog, I growled and tried to stand up, but Midna slammed my head into the ground again. "DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!"

"Alright! I won't bring it up again, okay?!" The imp glowered for a minute before finally letting me up.

Midna crossed her arms and continued to glare at me as she said, "I'm curious about your eye, but I'm willing to wait until you're back to your normal body for you to tell me." She then cracked her knuckles warningly. "But trust me when I say that you have no more right to harass my body than I do to harass yours, and if you bring it up again, I will make you suffer." Taking a deep breath, Midna closed her eye and held her hands out in peace. "Let us move on now. You get those Fused Shadows and then I can get rid of Zant." She paused and sneered at me. "Though... Are you sure you're not forgetting anything… important?"

I rolled my eyes at her. "I have a sword and shield in my house, the kids from the village are in Kakariko, and Ilia is in the castle town." She harrumphed and made an exaggerated pout.

"You're no fun." Midna dramatically sighed. "Well, I guess you're better off on your own without little old me dragging you down."

"Don't be stupid." Her pout quickly morphed into a scowl. "We both know I can't enter the Twilight without the aid of someone from the Twilight, namely you, which means that, for the foreseeable future, we need each other. Now..." I cracked my neck and rolled my shoulders. "If we're finished with the expositions, there's a sword back home with my name metaphorically on it."

Author's Note: Lyrics written by WindWaveProductions on YouTube.