Link awoke in a familiar bed, staring up at the wooden beams supporting the roof of Impa's house. He was back in her guest room. He frowned. Someone had laid him in bed?

Turning his head, he registered with only mild surprise that Dark sat at his bedside. One foot propped over the opposite knee, leaned slightly forward, a book held idly in one hand while the other turned the pages, Dark didn't notice he was awake.

"Dark?" Link grimaced when his voice came out rough as gravel.

The other man looked up, then smiled. "Ah, welcome back to the land of the living, Hero." Dark stood and grabbed a spare pillow to prop behind Link's back while he sat up.

"What happened?" Link managed. "I don't remember…"

"I found you in the graveyard," he explained. "Poisoned by one of the foul monsters in the Shadow Temple, Navi said. I took you to the Great Fairy's Fountain to heal you."

Link tried to stretch, wincing at the pain in his shoulder. "You saved me, then? Thank you."

Waving a dismissive hand, book still clasped in it, Dark said, "Consider it repayment for saving me from that white wolfos in Snowpeak. Besides, Fayne's magic helped after I brought you back."

Link grunted in acknowledgement. "Where is Navi, anyways?"

"With the indomitable Malon. And I say that as the highest form of compliment." Dark grinned. "She scarcely left your bedside these past three days. I finally convinced her this morning to get some food, fresh air."

It was Link's turn to smile. "She's a good friend. As soon as I can get out of bed, I'll thank her."

"Just a friend, hm?" Dark teased, setting aside his book. Link shot him a glare. It didn't deter him one iota.

"What's been happening in Kakariko since I've been asleep?"

Dark shrugged. "I arrived only a few days ago myself. But from what I can tell, the resistance is getting back into fighting form, fixing things up and pulling in yet more refugees. The place is getting downright crowded. Luckily, the gorons have space to spare."

"What about Impa?"

"Busy as always. You want some tea? Malon made some before she left."

Link nodded, watching Dark walk over to the bedroom's small fireplace and kneel to get the kettle. He blew out a heavy sigh. "I'm glad to see you and Epona made it from Lake Hylia."

There was a clatter when Dark dropped the cup he was holding. Snatching it off the floor, he wiped it on his shirt and filled it to the brim.

"Yeah," he agreed. "Glad to see you made it out of the depths of the Shadow Temple in one piece."

Link frowned at the offered cup of tea in Dark's hand. "Is everything okay?"

Dark nodded. "Of course. And Epona is in the stables if you want to see her. Malon's been taking care of her."

"That's good." Link took a sip of the tea. It filled him with a warmth he hadn't realized he'd been missing. "I might need Epona for the search for the final Sage."

"Any idea where they might be?"

"None," he grumbled. "I was hoping Impa could tell me."

"Unfortunately, I can't."

Both men glanced up at the sound of the Sheikah woman's voice. She stepped into the room, a slight smile tugging at her mouth.

"Sorry for the intrusion." She nodded at Link. "I am happy to see you're feeling better."

"Thanks to Dark and the others," Link replied. "So you don't know who the other Sages are?"

"Not until they're awoken," she said. "Once Sheik returns, I will ask him. He has spent a good deal of time researching the Sages. He may have some clues."

"Good enough for me." Link sighed. "But I've already wasted enough time—"

"Not wasted," Impa said firmly. "Recovering. And you need more of it." She gave him a gentle shove against his shoulder. "Get some rest. We'll talk soon."

Link feigned a protest but dutifully gulped back some more tea. Satisfied, she turned to leave.

"Impa," Dark shot up from the stool. "May I talk to you? Privately," he added, with a jerk of his chin towards Link.

Impa tilted her head, indicating the hall. Dark followed her outside the room.

Once out of Link's earshot, Impa's expression became grave. "It's about your curse, isn't it?" she asked.

Dark started, meeting her eyes. With a sick shock, he realized his own probably looked nearly like her own—deep crimson and unnerving.

"You know?"

Her face didn't change, but somehow she made him feel like an oblivious idiot all the same. He sighed.

"Alatar."

Impa inclined her head. Her strange eyes softened with sympathy. "I am sorry for what he did to you."

Dark stared at a spot on the wall. "Not your doing," he replied tonelessly. "Is there any way to undo it?" he asked, not meeting her eyes. No reason to get his hopes up.

"I'm afraid not."

At least Impa doesn't mince her words, he thought. "Thought not," he growled. He looked back at her. "In the meantime, maybe there's something else you can help me with."

Kakariko was just as much a hub of activity in the Shadow realm as it was in the real world.

People walked past him in blurs of colour, indistinct and wispy. To them, he was a shadow. A vision glimpsed in the corner of one's eye.

Wreckage from the recent attack was notably absent, but the houses and other buildings were flickering between ruins under construction and freshly built like a recording in his brain that was being paused, rewound and fast forward again.

Structures and streets warped as the recording spun backwards, changing the map of the town as Dark was propelled into a decade long past. Impa had warned him that places such as Kakariko could be chaotic spaces. The resilient village and its hardy villagers had lived through ages of time, and in the Shadow realm, they all collided.

A kaleidoscope of images winked in and out wherever he looked, different versions of the past being brought to the surface.

Dark focused on the ground, trying to ignore the activity in his peripherals long enough to do what he needed.

As Impa had instructed, he focused on Sienna—his connection to her. Shadow was by nature a difficult element to master, but immensely useful, as he soon discovered. Responding to his silent search, thin threads of light appeared at his fingertips. He wiggled his digits, making the threads flutter. Dark singled out the thread glowing brightest, a pale lavender, giving it a mental tug.

Kakariko melted away, leaving him in a stygian void of nothingness. Only the pale string of light remained to cut through the darkness. He waited a few heartbeats, curling his fingers around the imaginary light.

The blackness receded, leaving him in a cool stone chamber with a low ceiling. Dark watched the lavender thread pulse once before disappearing. When he looked up, Sienna stood there, her arms wrapped around herself, her image transparent and indistinct.

It had worked, just as the Sheikah woman had said. He'd made it to the dungeons below Hyrule Castle.

~oOo~

Hyrule Castle

Sienna paced the limited space of her cell, wearing away at the centuries-old stone beneath her shoes. The habit was more to keep her warm than due to any restlessness on her part.

Although it was cold, dark and lonely, it was dry. She had a reasonable bed with a blanket. Her captors even brought her regular meals and fresh water. She didn't mind the solitude most times.

What bothered her the most was the impotence. The helplessness. Knowing Dark and others were in danger and not being able to do anything. She'd tried the first few days to use magic to reach him, but her gifts were frustratingly limited. Communicating with someone through telepathy or other means was an extremely rare talent.

Giving up on warming herself, Sienna sat on the narrow bed and picked up the discarded bowl of soup that was her dinner. She'd raised the spoon to her lips when movement in the corner of the cell caught her eye.

Bolting upright, she clenched the spoon in a shaking fist. It's just a mouse, she reassured herself, or something equally harmless. The shadows moved again—much bigger than a rodent. Not only that, they were…taking shape.

Sienna bit back a scream when the blackness surged upwards, peeling away to reveal a human form.

"Sienna!"

The spoon dropped to the floor. Sienna's breath stuck in her chest. She let out a strangled whimper. "Dark?"

He was there. He wasn't a dream. Not a hallucination. With a cry, she threw herself at him, heart sinking in relief when she felt his arms come around her, solid and real and warm.

"You're real," she mumbled into his shirt. "You're alive."

"I'm here," he whispered, his breath teasing her hair.

She pulled back from him, framing his face in her hands. "How are you here? What's happened?"

"It's a long story." His fingers curled around her shoulders, spreading warmth down into her bones. "I came as soon as I was able. Once I escaped, I was helping Link and—"

"Where are you now?" She shook her head. "I mean, where did you come from?"

"Kakariko. Everyone is fine," he added, seeing her mouth open to ask more questions. Dark stroked her cheek, brushing away the chill on her skin. "I had to come and see you. Make sure you were alright."

Sienna managed a small smile. "I've slept in better places," she admitted. "But they're keeping me alive, at least."

"I'm going to get you out of this place," he vowed, hugging her against his chest. "I promise. I would take you with me now, but Impa said it was risky. That I could lose you."

"I understand. Here, come sit with me for a moment." She drew back, keeping his hand in hers while she backed towards the bed.

Dark resisted her pull, staying in the shadows where the torchlight outside the cell bars couldn't reach him.

"What's wrong, Dark?"

He was so still he didn't even seem to breathe. She felt his retreat, the loss of his warmth, as if a wall had suddenly sprung between them.

"It's best if I stay here."

Sienna frowned. "Don't be silly, come—" Her words ended in a gasp when she tugged on his arm and she met his eyes, her own having adjusted. "Oh, Dark," she whispered. "Your eyes. What did he do to you?"

He wrenched his arm free, turned his face away. Slowly, Sienna lifted her hand toward him.

"Don't."

She curled her hand back towards her chest. "That sorcerer. He did this, didn't he?"

"It's nothing. I'll fix it."

"Maybe I can use my healing magic—"

"It can't be cured," Dark gritted out. "I just have to find a way to stop him, that's all. Once I do, I can free you."

Sienna shivered, the chill reclaiming its territory. A muscle twitched in Dark's face, but he kept himself angled away.

"I'll go back and help Link finish his quest. Once he does, he'll be ready to face Ganondorf, and I can take care of Alatar."

He caved when another tremor shook her, wrapping her in his embrace and chafing her bare arms. "I'm sorry I have to leave you here."

"It's not y-your fault."

He released her momentarily to strip the blanket from the bed and wrap it around her shoulders.

"I'll come back when I can." He grimaced. "It drains a lot of magic to do this, but I may be able to bring you warmer clothes and more blankets."

Sienna brushed away the tears that had formed in the corners of her eyes. "I'll be fine, Dark. I promise. Besides, you should leave before the guard comes for his nighttime rounds. You won't be able to save anyone from in here."

"Sienna—"

She pressed her fingers to his mouth. "Knowing you're safe, knowing you're doing everything you can to make things right, to help people," she pressed a kiss to his palm, "that's important."

Dark crushed her closer, one hand cradling her head while he dotted kisses over the crown of her head. "Take this," he said, stripping off his shirt. "It's not much, but it'll do until I can bring more."

After dropping the shirt over her head, he cupped her hands and lifted them to his mouth, trying to heat them with his breath.

"Dark?"

"Hm?"

Sienna tried to catch his eyes, but he kept them pinned to her knuckles. "I love you."

His gaze briefly ticked up to hers before darting away. "I love you, too. I will come back for you. Stay safe."

Stepping back, he released her hands, ready to be swallowed by the shadows once again. Energy swirled around him in an invisible embrace. A thought that had been digging at the back of her mind burst through.

"Dark, wait!"

He paused. "What is it?"

Sienna lowered her voice, though they were alone in the dungeon. "It's Sheik…I saw him before they brought me down here. He's—He's one of them, Dark. He's working for Ganondorf."

Disbelief then fury slashed across Dark's half-hidden face.

"You can't trust him," Sienna whispered. "I think he's been fooling everyone this whole time."

Dark reached for her hand again. "Thank you for telling me. I'll make sure Impa and the others know."

"Please be safe, Dark," she implored him.

His thumb brushed over her jaw. "I will. I'll be back soon."

Just like that, he was gone again.

~oOo~

Impa was gone when he returned to Kakariko, likely off attending to something else. Dark let the last tendrils of magic dissipate, feeling its loss like a phantom pain. He would need to replenish right away if he wanted to return to Sienna.

Her skin had been so cold. It made his stomach drop into his boots to leave her there, but transporting another living, breathing person through Shadow was dangerous. He might lose her along the way and never be able to find her again…

Spearing his fingers through his hair, mussing it, he turned to Impa's well-loved kitchen, searching her cabinets until he found some green potion—that apple green, magic-replenishing tonic—and took a healthy swig. Sparks raced down his throat and spread, following the internal trails of his veins.

That was better. Now to gather what few supplies Impa had to spare and bring them back to Sienna. Dark hurried back upstairs to the guest room, stopping when he heard voices from Link's room.

Carefully, he eased open the door, his inner alarm pinging when he saw it was Sheik at his brother's bedside. Dark burst into the room, making Link look up sharply. His friend relaxed, but Sheik's expression didn't budge. Not even when Dark's glare lasered his covered face.

"Dark, you're back." Link waved him over. "You're just in time. Sheik has some good news."

"Does he?" Dark asked, knowing he'd failed in his attempt at nonchalance as he drew up a spare chair and planted himself right next to Sheik.

Sheik's side-eyed glance at Dark flicked back to Link. "Yes…as I was saying, I have a lead on the whereabouts of the final Sage."

"You seem to know a lot about the Sages," Dark commented.

Link cut him off. "Where?"

"Her name is Nabooru. And she is in hiding deep in the Gerudo desert at a place called the Colossus."

Link threw back the blankets covering him. "Then we need to go! Dark—"

Sheik pushed Link back into bed with a firm hand on his shoulder, then let go as if he'd been burned by the touch. Dark slanted his eyes towards Sheik, searching his expression, but it betrayed nothing.

"You can't go anywhere until you're fully recovered," Sheik said, his tone its usual emotionless self. Dark frowned.

"He's right," Dark grumbled.

"You shouldn't go alone," Sheik added. "Which is why I will accompany you."

"He already has an annoying fairy sidekick," Dark snapped. "And he has me. He's covered."

Sheik's eyes flashed. Dark internally grinned.

"Nonetheless, it is a dangerous journey. We will be crossing right through Ganondorf's territory, not to mention the haunted wasteland and—"

"You can both come," Link offered, unaware of the tension rising between Sheik and Dark. "Navi and I can use all the help we can get, especially since Impa and the other Sages are needed elsewhere."

"It's decided then." Sheik stood and turned to Dark, his eyes blank as slates. "We'll leave in a few days."

"Perfect," Dark muttered, watching Sheik exit the bedroom. "Just perfect."

Over a week later, Link, Dark and Sheik had nearly reached their destination. Crossing the expanse of central Hyrule's pastoral countryside was time consuming under good conditions. Crossing it while dodging monsters and Ganondorf's soldiers' patrols was another matter.

Link let out an internal sigh of relief when Sheik called for a halt. With darkness approaching, it was wiser to stop and make camp. Monsters became even more forbidding once the moon rose. The three slid off their horses, reaching to unpack their saddle bags and gear.

"Forgot how sore you get after a few days of riding," Dark complained, stretching his arms above his head, then pressing his palms into his back, arching backwards. "My arse has gone numb."

Link chuckled while he slid off Epona's saddle. "You haven't ridden in a while?" he asked.

Dark, tending his own horse, said, "Not since I moved to Clocktown. No need. Although I've always been fond of them." He clucked his tongue at the mare while he removed her saddle, giving her a fond pat.

Taking the leads of all three horses, Dark guided them into the copse of pines where they would take shelter for the night. The horses needed no encouragement to begin grazing. Dark snuck a glance at Sheik, refilling their water supply at the nearby stream. He walked back to where Link was building a fire and organizing their gear.

"Why did you move to Clocktown?" Link asked conversationally.

"Wanted a fresh start, I suppose," Dark said, making himself useful and starting on dinner while Link started the fire.

Normally, it would be a simple thing to use a spark of magic to light it in an instant, rather than let Link use flint. But he needed every speck of magic he could, especially since he'd need it to check on Sienna and bring her food and blankets again—these little trips he'd kept to himself, of course.

Link and Dark talked while they ate in front of the fire, the sky transforming into indigo twilight above them. Navi dozed in Link's hat next to the heat of the fire, and Sheik was totally silent.

Soon enough, Link curled up on his bedroll and went to sleep. Dark waited until Sheik lay still, his back to the fire, and Link's snores could be heard before getting up and walking a short distance into the trees.

Manipulating Shadow was becoming easier, so it only took a moment to get back to the castle dungeons. Sienna was asleep on her poor excuse for a bed, so Dark spread the spare blanket over her prone form and tucked it close to her. She stirred, mumbling sleepily. A strand of curly hair dropped across her forehead, so Dark carefully pushed it back into place.

Wanting to stay and watch over her, but knowing he shouldn't risk Sheik catching him sneaking off—it wouldn't help to make him suspicious—he re-entered the Shadow realm and emerged back in the woods.

The dying fire was just visible when a shiver pricked at the back of his neck.

"Out for a midnight stroll?" Sheik asked in that strange, quiet voice.

Dark clenched his fingers into fists, deliberately not whipping his head around in surprise. He could almost see Sheik behind him, just over his shoulder, leaning against a pine.

"Practicing," Dark explained in a casual tone. "It helps when I can't sleep, and I want to be prepared."

"Are you concerned?"

Dark's eyes narrowed. "Of course. We're heading into unknown enemy territory, right?"

He chanced a look over his shoulder. Sheik's eyes were unreadable.

"Of course," the Sheikah said at last.

An uncomfortable silence stretched on. Far off, a crow cackled.

"You're very protective of him," Sheik blurted. "For not knowing him long."

Dark replied, "I could say the same of you."

"I was tasked with helping Link."

"By who?"

Sheik's expression hardened, though it was more in the eyes and the twitch of fabric around his mouth that gave it away. "Princess Zelda."

Dark tried not to snort in disbelief. "Ah, I see. All business, then, is it?"

Sheik didn't move. He might have been a statue.

"He talks of her often, you know," Dark said. "If you know where she is, you should tell him."

"I can't." Sheik's eyes flicked to the left. "She...is in hiding. It's dangerous."

Shrugging, Dark said, "I understand." He started back towards the campfire.

"What is your reason for helping him?" Sheik prodded.

Halting midstep, Dark was unsure how to answer. By helping Link, he was helping to free Sienna. He was aiding the people of Hyrule. But he was also bringing himself closer to defeating Ganondorf, the man who had killed his parents.

And then there was the fact that Link was his brother. The last of his family.

"He needs me," was all Dark said, in a mutter so quiet he wasn't sure Sheik even heard.

Lying back down on his bedroll, Dark kept his back to Sheik when he returned to the camp a long minute later. He said nothing else, the silent night broken by the low crackle of burning embers and the calling of crows.