A/N: This chapter was revised as of 10/4/2019 - Polished, minor errors and typos fixed.
When Heroes Fall
By: Selphie Kinneas 175
Chapter 17: The Undoing
.:.
As he walked, everything started to feel wrong.
The lights around him went from dark to darker, from thick to thicker. He felt sluggish, as if he was trudging through mud. He had been so confident before stepping through, but now that he was here, he was worried. He could feel all of space and time colliding and reacting around him. His body was turning to jelly, but all he could think about was praying to the goddesses that he would end up in the right place. Then, the nausea hit him.
Ren fell to one knee as the world began spinning. He flung his hand to his mouth, afraid that if he didn't cover it, he would throw up. Suddenly, a mysterious wind picked up, dim lights came out of nowhere, and he saw ghostly forms beside him.
One wore a green tunic, bent down on his knees with his head lowered. The other was small, hovering beside the former, looking at him worriedly.
"Geez, Link, are you okay? You looked drunk the way you stumbled through that door," the phantom consoled.
The man rubbed his head, "Yeah, just, suddenly felt sick is all. I'm okay."
Ren stared in bewilderment. At first, he nervously waved his hand in their direction, but they looked right through him. His gut told him these were projections of the past, though he didn't understand how or why he was seeing them. He imagined it was simply the portal determining a place and time to connect to, but that didn't make it any less of a shock.
He studied the man breathing raggedly on the floor. He didn't even have to question it - he was positive that this was his father from ages ago. He looked so much younger, so much lighter, before years of untold grief and sacrifice weighed him down. His eyes were the same, but they were so much warmer. His father's eyes as he knew them now were just... cold.
But what, or who, was that creature with him? The Hero of Time had mentioned his father having a companion, maybe this strange girl was who he meant. This must have been something that had taken place in the past when he was on his journey. Perhaps his father had used the very same door during his time as hero. But, had he had the same destination?
"You sure?" the feminine shadow asked.
The apparition of the hero spoke with strength through the discomfort on his face, "Just give me a minute."
Ren did not have the iron control of his father. The world around him spun and his stomach was doing somersaults. Bile sat in his throat as he looked back and forth between his otherworldly vision and the sky-like 'floor' beneath him. The hero appeared to have experienced the same nausea and was able to keep it at bay. Ren, on the other hand, doubled forward and emptied the entirety of his stomach in several painful heaves.
"Ugh," Ren groaned through watery eyes and utter disgust on his face.
He wiped the back of his hand across his lips and held his stomach as he struggled to sit upright. He looked back over at the phantoms who accompanied him. The imp-like creature looked excited, hovering toward the hero and poking him like an eager child.
"Link! Look at this place!" she gawked.
But when his father pulled himself to his feet, the manifestations of the past blew away like sand in the wind.
In their place stood grand architecture. Sprawling glass windows, marbled floors, stone columns that seemed to touch the sky... Perhaps this was the temple as the Hero of Time once knew it.
Ren was awestruck, eyes wide and jaw agape. He stared at his surroundings in innocent wonder. He thought for a moment that he heard a deep, ancient hymn, but he was sure he was just imagining things. Then, the room further ahead caught his attention. He sprinted for it, slipping on the tiles that appeared waxed only moments earlier. He was distracted momentarily by the massive, glowing triforce in the center of the floor, but his anticipation pulled him back to his feet.
He entered the chamber, each footfall echoing like a drum. Stained glass windows reached for the heavens, brilliant light casting a rainbow of colors through them. The sun was a spotlight through the windowed ceiling, but Ren was more interested in what lay beckoning before him.
He approached the plinth, no longer chipped and withered, but ornate and golden. He saw ghosts of heroes come and go. He saw each one with fear - yet somehow courage at the same time - grab the hilt of the Master Sword and pull with all their might. He saw his father plunge his blade into the stone, but when his ghostly form disappeared, the sword remained. Ren approached cautiously, but when he went to grab the hilt, it vanished. A staircase now lay before him, and beyond it, another entry. He made his way to it with anxious excitement, and, just as before, everything felt off.
Ren whirled around, glancing about as the surroundings evaporated. He stood on the brink of abyss, nothing but the void above and about him. Then, it all began to take shape. Black clouds hung ominously in an orange sky. The sun was frozen on the horizon like an image of a sunset. Dark, stone buildings loomed before him, resting atop rock that hovered above an endless chasm. His mouth hung open in shock – this world looked like a perfect negative of the one he knew.
"So, is it what you imagined?" he heard the ghost of the imp girl again.
Ren turned to see her floating beside his younger father as the world around him continued putting itself together.
"Well, I guess I don't really know what I imagined," the apparition spoke, "I didn't expect it to be so... dark."
"We don't call it the Twilight Realm for nothing, you know," her reply was a sassy one, and Ren wanted to laugh at the strange face his father was making, but he was too confused to.
"You don't like it," the girl deadpanned, and at that Ren forgot his predicament just long enough to chuckle.
But his amusement was cut short.
"Hey!" a voice shouted at him, forcing Ren's heart to skip a beat as the ethereal visions disappeared and he was left staring at... something.
The creature before him was unlike anything he had ever seen before. It looked human enough, but its eyes were red and orange. Its skin was a mixture of gray and blue and black with strange swirls of color across its abdomen. Ren forgot his manners, staring, wide-eyed and jaw slack at the person before him.
"What business do you have at the Palace of Twilight?"
Ren just stared. His voice was missing.
This person - man? - however, appeared to be a guard. It thrust a spear toward Ren and he threw his hands up instinctively.
"Answer, outsider!"
"I- uh- um," Ren stammered, heart beating fast, "You, uh, said this is the... Palace of Twilight?"
The creature narrowed his eyes at him, "Yes..."
Ren sighed in relief that the portal had worked. A 'Palace of Twilight' must mean that he was in the twilight world his father was trying to get to.
"Oh, thank goodness," Ren smiled meagerly, "I'm here to see Midna."
The guard's brow tensed, but he said nothing. He grabbed Ren firmly by the arm and pulled him toward the largest building. His heart jumped at the abruptness, and worry began to pile high in his chest at the man's stern demeanor. Another guard met him halfway. They whispered to one another at which point the second guard took on a surprised expression. Ren's pulse was quickening as fear nestled uncomfortably in his stomach. If this was where his father was trying to go... why did he seem so unwelcomed?
They walked Ren up the long staircase, one on either side of him, until they approached a grand door. Two more guards stood before them, and with a nod, they opened the way. Ren stared before him in bewilderment. It was a long corridor, followed by another. He assumed he was inside their castle, by the lavish decorations and gawdy finishes. He saw paintings of more of these strange creatures, though the ones depicted appeared to be royalty. He gazed in wonderment as they led him onward, not paying attention to how far they walked to reach where they were taking him.
The throne room.
It didn't look very much different from the one Zelda occupied. This one was darker, colder, with harsher textiles, but it served the same purpose: a seat from which the monarch could rule.
At the end of the excruciatingly long chamber, he saw the throne. Guards lined the plush carpet leading up to it, and two stood proudly on the steps at its feet. The beings urged him forward, but only just close enough that he could make out a woman seated upon the throne.
"My queen," the guards bowed their heads before her as the first one spoke, "I discovered this trespasser just outside the palace."
Ren gave him a look, "I wasn't tres-"
"Let him come closer."
The queen's voice was powerful, yet soft. It commanded all that heard it both with fear and with adoration. Ren looked at her. The guards nudged him closer and he complied, now only strides from the throne.
The queen of twilight sat upon her throne with cool grace. She leaned all the way back into the dark cushions, her black and teal cloak cascaded down her frame and spilled onto the floor like a waterfall. Her legs were crossed and her floating foot pointed, her asymmetrical skirt and the gems around her ankles accentuated her balletic presence. Her right arm lay elegantly across the arm of the chair, fingers hovering lightly with black nails and shimmering rings. Her jawline rest delicately between her left pointer and middle fingers, her elbow supporting her. A look of piqued interest sat upon her pretty face, her fiery eyes matching the sparkle of the jewels atop her head. She was poised calm, sly intrigue, refined sass, tactful confidence, and cunning charm. She exuded levelheaded luxury. She radiated detached composure.
She was the queen in every sense.
"And what is this?" her voice was a violin in an echo chamber, "What creature has managed to wash up into my kingdom?"
Ren couldn't find his voice.
The queen eyed him curiously. He stood, blond-haired, blue-eyed, in clothes a size too big for him. He looked awestruck back at her. She did not budge; she was silent for some time until words at last found her.
"You look like someone I knew in a different lifetime," her dark, thick brows drew together, "Who are you?"
Ren opened his mouth to speak, but she cut him off.
"I don't want you to tell me."
The boy bit his tongue and stood in dumbfounded silence. He didn't know if he was supposed to speak or not. His heart pounded from the nerves – he decided to remain quiet.
She scrutinized him. Her eyes narrowed and he couldn't tell what she was thinking. Was this the woman his father sent him here for, or was she elsewhere entirely? He was starting to second guess everything. Maybe he should have never come here. Would they take him prisoner? He was scared.
Her sunset eyes looked him up and down, dissecting in silent contemplation. She dropped her hand from her chin and motioned to him.
"Come closer."
He looked at her in apprehension, but she said no more and her eyes showed no deception. The guards let him go and he approached the throne, stopping at the steps leading up to it. He didn't know if it was the right thing to do, but he bent down to his knee and hung his head in respect – it felt like the right thing to do.
He couldn't see it, but she smirked.
She wiped it away.
"Look at me."
He obliged.
Her probing eyes bore into him and he felt vulnerable. He blinked and glanced and grew uncomfortable under her analytical glare. Her fingers tapped on the arm of her lavish seat in time with her thoughts. After an eternity, she... laughed.
Ren anxiously gulped, and her laughter continued.
"You can't be who I think! How did you even get here? I actually thought you were a light-dweller, but you can't be."
A... light-dweller? Was that the opposite of this world? Well, he supposed he was.
"I... am. Y-Your Majesty," he added the last quickly out of fear.
She leaned forward abruptly, "You can't be! The portal was closed and the pathway destroyed!"
He cleared his throat nervously when seconds passed in silence, taking it as the opportunity to speak at last, "I... came to get help for my d-"
"Don't say it," she held out her hand, "You can't be. You just can't."
He was paralyzed. What was he supposed to do? He thought he was going to find a person who had been dear friends with his father and who would help no questions asked. He must not have found the right one. Maybe this wasn't even the right place after all. He was so confused.
The ensuing quiet was eerie, and the queen struggled to keep up that elegant composure.
Her heart hadn't reacted like this since...
"Say it."
Ren looked terrified, but she stared him down and said no more. So he spoke.
"My name is Ren. I'm the hero, Link's, son..." he paused, watching her reaction cautiously before continuing, "He needs help... He sent me to find someone called Midna."
Time was lost, minutes uncounted, heartbeats by the handfuls – one could have heard a pin drop. She stared... and stared... and stared. Then she stared some more. At length, she laughed again, but it was quick and quiet.
"For Din's sake, you look just like him," her smile was a sad one.
She appeared contemplative, but pain replaced her prior composure. She looked as if a thousand years of suffering long-since locked away were beginning to resurface. Ren watched her expression, but she did not look at him.
After a length of silence, he dared to ask, "Are you... Midna?"
She looked at him then. He was the very image of the hero she'd once known at the start of his journey. Naïve, innocent, young, unburdened by the agonies of the world and the responsibilities of being chosen. There was still that gleam of optimism in those eyes she recognized, a spark of hope. She remembered her hero losing those things at the conclusion of their time together.
Her sad eyes stared at him. She sat up straight and her thin lips at last parted to reply, "Yes. I am Midna, Queen of Twilight."
Ren was silent. He looked at her in surprise. His father sent him to find the queen, of all people? He had so many questions.
His brow furrowed deeply as their eyes locked. He felt so much emotion from this... Midna. There was so much pain on her face, in the way her fingers twitched, in the uncomfortable lock of her jaw.
"Were you and my father friends?" Ren ventured to pry.
Midna looked at him, eyes tense with uncertainty. He didn't know it, but her heart beat hard inside her chest. Inside she was a flurry of erupting emotions she never thought she would have to feel, on the outside the only indication she let on was the frown on her delicate lips. Part of her wanted to cast this outsider away, or lock him in the dungeon. He had to be lying. This had to be a sick joke, a game, a ploy of some sort. Her brain tried so hard to tell her this wasn't real, but she felt it in her heart.
Midna swallowed the lump in her throat and replied, "You could say that."
Ren smiled. It was stupid and childish and cute and gods did it remind her of the person she'd spent so goddess-damn long trying to forget.
It was only a tiny grin, but he felt her unease at it, and he frowned again. He didn't understand... If they were friends, if his father trusted this girl enough to send him on a wild goose chase after her, why was she reacting in this way? There was something between them that Ren could not piece together.
It was silent for ages. Both of them forgot that they were not alone. Ren wanted to grab her arm and drag her through the portal; he just wanted to hurry up and get back to his father. Midna... wanted nothing to do with it.
"Guards," the queen spoke, standing from the throne, "See our guest out."
"What? Hey!"
The two men at Ren's side grabbed him, his temper rising to heat in his cheeks.
Midna turned away from him as the guards pulled him backwards, thrashing all the while. She took two strides forward, but Ren's words stopped her short.
"My dad spent fifteen years trying to find you! He spent everything on it! He clearly trusts you, and you don't even-"
In an instant the queen stood before the hero's son. She stared with eyes as red as the confusion-fueled anger in the boy's chest. Her lip snarled and she felt fury that her hero would dare reopen her wounds like a blunt knife. She wanted to scream at this boy for stepping foot in her world. She opened her mouth to speak, but when she looked at him this close, she didn't just see Link in his innocent face.
"Ilia," Midna whispered.
He had the cobalt eyes of his father, but their shape was Ilia's. His soft nose, his round face – she saw the perfect combination of the both of them in this boy. His hair and ears were even an exact in-between.
Ren looked at her strangely, noticing her expression shift drastically. Midna's stomach flipped inside out and her heart and her throat sat in the remnants. She could never forget that girl. The girl she loved to hate but, Farore, she gave it her all to be civil in the end. Ilia had wanted her hero with every fiber of her being; that day she'd seen them kiss had been burned into her brain, no matter how strongly she willed it away. Her fists clenched at her side and it took all the restraint she had not to lose her composure. She hated it – so many feelings she'd learned to bury over the grueling years resurfacing. She felt... jealous.
She turned from him again, it hurt just to look at him.
"You should have never come here. Go back home and be with your mother. The matters of heroes and goddesses and other worlds shouldn't concern you."
"My mother is dead," Ren blurted.
Midna froze. She held her breath unknowingly and she became uncomfortably aware of her heartbeat. Dead... She had found herself wishing many malicious things towards that girl from the forest over the years, but death was never one of them. She felt the nastiest ball of guilt, regret, and shame weigh in her stomach like an anchor. She closed her eyes and sighed, swallowing the frog sitting far too at-home in her throat.
At length, she turned back to him. Ren's expression was serious, his muscles tight. He pulled against the guards' firm grip. Midna nodded to them, signaling for them to stop. She looked at Ren, and she could feel her hero. He was determined, she could see it in his tense eyes. There had been a part of Link that always loved Ilia, though Midna was never quite sure the extent of it herself. Clearly, if they had a child together, it was stronger than her intuition had told her all those years ago. That pang of jealousy whacked her upside the head again. She knew Ilia's death must have weighed heavily on him, and, knowing Link, he had likely done all manner of stupid things since she'd last seen him.
"He needs help, then?" Midna asked, her voice resuming its strength.
Ren relaxed if only a bit, "Yeah."
Midna nodded slowly, "He always was a dummy. I'm not happy about any of this... but take me to him."
Ren smiled, but one of the older men who stood beside the throne spoke before he could, "But, Your Highness, you cannot leave-"
"I can," Midna said flatly, not even casting a glance his way.
Midna headed for the exit, and with a nervous look, Ren followed at her heels. The man stammered incoherent grunts, and took his leave.
The queen did not utter a word on her way out of the castle, and Ren struggled to keep up. Various passersby looked on in confusion, but she did not speak to anyone. Once outside, it was still dusk, and Ren thought it was so strange that the very sky lacked the passage of time here.
"Will your people be okay without you?" Ren dared to ask.
Midna turned to him, but ignored the question entirely, "Show me where you entered from."
Ren's brow furrowed, but he was too nervous to argue. He pointed towards a door in the distance. Midna looked at it strangely, as if she recognized it.
"Have you seen it before?" Ren inferred from her expression.
Of course she had. She and her hero had used it to go back in time what felt like eons ago. She had no idea it could be used for anything else... for bringing one back and forth between light and twilight.
"Yes."
Her answer was short, and she did not allow him time to reply before approaching the otherworldly door in the distance. At last, she stood before it, and she did not move. She stared at the stone, and she felt so many things that she could not name them all.
At the forefront of her mind was one question.
"What kind of trouble is he in?"
Ren looked up at her, but she did not reciprocate. Her expression was contemplative, tense, maybe even anxious.
"Um, well," Ren began, "There's this king-"
Midna raised her hand with a sardonic chuckle; she knew more malevolent kings in her time than otherwise, "Say no more."
Without another word, she stepped through. Ren was taken aback, but after removing his jaw from the floor he followed quickly behind her. Surroundings blurred and his stomach dared to escape through his mouth, but the land reformed itself in a flash. Ren looked around in surprise, finding himself back in the world of light much faster than he had left it.
Midna walked forward, paying no mind to the boy at her heels. She closed her eyes and inhaled slowly. Her lungs filled to the brim and she drank in the smell of the forest around her. It was a smell she could never forget. Leaves... bark... her hero. She opened her eyes. The sun was high and light sparkled brightly on her skin. She had almost forgotten the way the sunlight warmed her skin, the way it made the world brighter, happier. But now, it was like she'd never forgotten. This was real, she was really here. The world of light... she never thought she would see it again.
"HEY!"
The voice spun them both around. Ren knew exactly who it was, and he ran down the steps to meet him.
"Uncle Colin!" Ren called to him.
Colin was absolutely dumbfounded when he met his nephew halfway, "I just woke up and you weren't here! And wait, wasn't it just nighttime? And we didn't even go to sleep... But I was following you, and now you're over there? Ugh..." he rubbed his temples, "I feel like I got hit in the head. What in the world happened?"
Ren chuckled, "Well, uh-"
But Colin's shift in expression stopped him short. His eyes were wide and his lips were parted. Ren followed his line of sight to see that Midna had approached from behind him. He turned back to his uncle with a grin.
"You got Midna," Colin said, as if stating out loud would help him grasp it.
"I got Midna."
There was silence then, but the Queen of Twilight never did stay silent for long.
"Did you come find me to help Link or just to stare at me?"
Colin stared only a moment longer, "Sorry, I..." he chuckled, "Part of me thought I had just imagined you as a kid."
"Well, you didn't," she glared, one hand on her hip.
His sweet face went somber at her attitude, and an annoying pang went off in her heart as she remembered her hero, and how much he had cared for this boy.
"You've..." she cleared her throat, reminding herself how to be kind, "really grown up."
Colin smiled, but when Midna turned to leave, he looked at Ren anxiously.
Ren's expression mimicked Colin's, but there was also optimism there, as it rarely ever left.
"I can explain on the way," Ren offered, and at that they followed the queen out of the forest.
They had no idea how she knew her way out of the woods, but they were back at their steeds before long. She truthfully didn't know, either, she simply followed where her heart told her to go. She thought she almost heard an echo on the wind, bells directing her feet...
She hoisted herself up behind the saddle of the nearest horse without a word. Colin and Ren eyed each other before mounting up and taking off.
Midna's silence made the trip uncomfortable. Each sat in their awkward space of rampant thoughts and voiceless anxiety, no sound amongst them save the wind past their ears. Midna sat behind Colin, watching as the landscape rolled past. Her face remained as stone, never letting anyone see how disjointed her thoughts were. How could they have so easily made it into her realm? Could she just as easily make it back? If so, could just anyone stroll in while she was away? And her hero... she was going to see him. How could she look at Link again? How had he changed?
Her heart beat hard as each nagging question gnawed at her. She felt her pulse in her throat and she began to tell herself she couldn't do this. She should have just sent his son away as her first instinct had told her to do. She should have ensured her realm was impenetrable. She should have done so many things differently.
That mountain grew nearer and nearer, the one her hero had nearly died in. Though, that could have been said about most everywhere. She felt sick again. She had spent so long putting all of this behind her, teaching herself to forget, punishing herself for feeling, remembering. She looked down and away from that mountain that reminded her, only to see the wide, open field. The field where they'd travelled back and forth and back again. The field where she'd transported him to safety near death so many times she couldn't count. The field where she'd cradled him after his battle with Ganondorf, when she was sure that was it, when her world crumbled around her and she'd failed him. The castle loomed in the distance, the one they'd stormed together. The town bustled beneath it, the one they'd nestled in and found refuge. The snowy mountain mocked her with memories of abandoning her hero on the side of the cliff to freeze. The lake, the desert, the very sky above her, it all taunted her and mocked her very presence and for Din's sake she almost threw up or passed out or screamed at the top of her lungs or burst into tears or all of them at the same time when...
Kakariko Village.
She looked. That was all. She just looked, as townsfolk passed and gorons rolled by and buildings came into view. So much time they had spent here. So many nights wondering if he would survive to see morning. So many days wondering if it would be their last. She portrayed no emotion, she just... looked.
"We're here," Colin stated when she didn't immediately dismount.
She didn't look at him, let alone utter a response. She hopped off of Ilari, made her way towards the inn, and threw open the door as if she owned the place.
Midna stood in the threshold of the inn that held so many memories for her. Most had haunted her as dreams when she first left, and slowly they had turned to nightmares that woke her in cold sweat. Her hero dying, dying, always dying, just out of reach. His last breaths leaving him and she could do nothing but watch. Then she would wake up, and she snapped herself out of it.
She simply stood, with no words, no movement. Colin and Ren at last caught up behind her. Zelda, Shad, and Ashei stood from their seats at the table, their astonished expressions meeting Midna's blank eyes.
"Why, Midna, my stars-" Shad tried, but Midna was quick to interrupt.
"Is he here?"
Shad and Ashei glanced between one another, but Zelda's gaze did not falter.
"He is not," the queen answered.
Midna cast an irritated glance over her shoulder at her escorts, "Then why are we here?"
"Uh, well," Colin stammered, "We figured we should have a pla-"
"No," she stated bluntly, turning back for the exit, "Let's be done with it."
"Midna," Zelda's voice stopped the twili in her tracks, "We should talk."
Midna paused, and for a while, she did not move. At last, she sighed and gave a frustrated wave of her hand, "Fine. Let's talk."
The others in the room glanced at one another in discomfort. Ashei motioned for Shad to head outside, and Colin nodded for Ren to go upstairs, leaving the room to the two queens.
Zelda sat down at the table, looking plainly over at Midna. For some time, Midna simply stood in defiance. When her stubbornness wore out, she joined her old friend and sat opposite her.
"It has been an age," Zelda said with a meager smile.
Midna did not reciprocate, "It sure has."
Zelda looked pensive, which she rarely ever did. Midna did not care, so Midna did not look at her.
Zelda spoke up, "Though I wish it were under different circumstances, I am glad to see you again."
When the Queen of Twilight picked up on that annoying pinch of optimism in her counterpart's tone, she couldn't help but give in to the soft side she had developed at the fault of her hero eons ago.
Midna sighed, "Me, too."
Zelda smiled again, but it was stronger this time, "Link will be overjoyed."
"Yeah, that's what worries me," Midna pouted and looked away, adding the last as a mumble, "Or he'll be furious with me for leaving."
Zelda pursed her lips, "It was hard for you both to let go... You don't want to relive that pain."
Midna scoffed, "Obviously. Hard is a bit of an understatement, Your Majesty."
Zelda's gaze did not falter, "He gave up much to find you."
"Well I didn't ask him to!" Midna burst.
Zelda did not flinch. She watched her friend's irritation take form in the heat on her cheeks. She gave her the time to collect herself.
Midna breathed deep and did just that, "I didn't ask for any of this."
Zelda shook her head, "We rarely ever do, but still, it is thrust upon us."
"Well, it's stupid," Midna muttered.
"I would say I agree, but it would perhaps be unbecoming of the Queen of Hyrule."
Midna laughed, "Who cares. Kings, queens, castles, it's all stupid."
Zelda giggled, but the truth she felt in that statement was one she would never utter aloud.
"Speaking of kings," Midna began, "I hear you've got a nasty one?"
Zelda suddenly appeared downtrodden. She sighed heavily, as if the weight of the world resumed its comfortable position atop her shoulders.
"Yes."
Midna could read her expression, and she remembered a conversation they had had years ago when they were both princesses and everything was easier.
"It's that guy they forced you to marry. Bison?"
"Viscen."
"Makes more sense," she snickered, "Big shocker - he turned out to be a loser?"
Zelda sighed, but retained her composure, "He... turned out to be exactly what I feared."
Midna was silent a moment, but she had too many questions, "That's why the boy came and got me. He said Link was in trouble because of a king."
Zelda nodded.
"Okay, but I don't understand," Midna huffed, clearly growing agitated, "You were the one that told me to lie to him. To tell him I didn't love him and to leave indefinitely. I know they didn't figure out how to get me without your help."
"You are right," Zelda answered simply, knowing where this was going.
"Then what is this about, Zelda?" Midna asked frankly, "The portal was destroyed. We made the mutual decision that our worlds needed to be cut off from each other to keep both our people safe. A new portal is open now. How are you okay with this?"
Zelda inhaled deeply, taking the time to bring the correct words to fruition, "Link took your departure worse than I thought. He was farther down than I could pull him from. I... I feared for him."
Midna's eyes were wide as she listened.
"He lost himself. He used anyone and anything he could to find temporary satisfaction. He was not the same."
Midna looked heartbroken. To hear that the man she had cared so deeply for had fallen so far... To hear that she had hurt him so... Through her sadness she was also confused.
"I don't get it. I thought he would be okay with Ilia... I thought she could make him happy."
Zelda said nothing, watching the wheels turn in the twili's head as she pieced it together on her own.
"Of course he couldn't be happy with her. She was just a physical manifestation of a life he no longer had," she huffed, "I was so stupid."
"I believe we all underestimated the toll being hero would take," Zelda consoled, "He needed you."
Midna frowned, "Well, I needed him, too."
Zelda took on a sad expression, and they each sat in their thoughts a moment. Midna had truly thought she was doing the right thing, being selfless, at last being a hero so her hero didn't have to be. She thought she was protecting him, allowing him to move on and be who he used to be. She was so ignorant. She should have known he wouldn't have been able to just pick up right where he left off, to shrug off the nightmarish year as the hero chosen by the gods and go back to being a goat herder of Ordon Village. The fact that she didn't see how desperately he needed her... That she left him right when he was his most vulnerable, when he needed her more than he had yet to need her...
She felt horrible.
Zelda sensed her friend's mental descent and reverted back to the initial question, "I do not know what will become of the portal that was opened. I do not know if opening it was a dire mistake. I do know that we all need your help. It was a risk we had to take. We cannot rescue Link without you."
Midna sighed with a smirk, "It really is tough being so important."
Zelda giggled, "I can imagine."
Midna leaned forward, "Alright, Zelda, enough beating around the bush. Where's my stupid hero?"
Zelda glanced down at her hands folded neatly in her lap, then she returned to Midna's imploring eyes.
"The king has him imprisoned in the castle dungeon. He is gravely injured and bound to where he cannot escape on his own."
Midna's eyes narrowed, "That careless wolf can survive 'gravely injured,' I know he can. So, what's stopping him? What's stopping you guys from rescuing him?"
Just as Zelda's lips parted to reply, Midna had another thought to add.
"And aren't you the queen, Your Majesty? You should keep your king in check."
"It is not so easy."
"Enlighten me."
Zelda huffed – she'd forgotten how Midna could manage to so easily ruffle her un-ruffleable feathers.
"He has the people's adoration. They all believe him to be good, fair, and just. They have not seen the wicked man he really is. He tried to kill Ren when he went to Link's aid. And as for what's stopping him..." Zelda sat up straighter and met the twili's gaze with a serious one of her own, "I already told you: he is not himself. He has given up much of the fight he once had."
Midna didn't know what to say. She stared back at the queen of Hyrule with a look of perplexity. Her gaze lowered, she leaned back in her chair, and for some time she simply tapped her finger on the table while she thought. Zelda watched her, but Midna looked elsewhere.
Finally, she formed a question.
"How do you even know he's still alive then? Wouldn't the king just kill him?"
Zelda's shoulders visibly rose as she drew in a deep breath, "I suppose we do not know for certain that he is still alive. But my daughter has a gift of sight, and I believe she would know were he to pass into the Sacred Realm."
Midna's brow furrowed and she stared across the table at her. She said nothing, and Zelda took that as desire for elaboration.
"Viscen attempted to kill our daughter as well as myself... He poisoned the sacred waters of Zora's Domain and threw us from the waterfall..."
Midna listened intently, a heavy pout on her pretty face as she absorbed the dour story. She couldn't help the faintest smirk creeping up the corner of her lips as she knew the next part.
"Link saved you."
Zelda nodded, "He saved us both. My daughter lost her physical sight, but gained a sight much greater."
"I see..." Midna pondered aloud, "So, we know our careless little wolf is alive because your daughter can... see it..." her eyes narrowed, "But that doesn't explain why the king wouldn't just kill him. How did some prissy monarch even manage to capture the goddess-damned hero to begin with? Has he really gotten so careless in my absence?"
"Viscen may not be a monster the likes of which Link takes down with ease, but he is cunning," Zelda explained, "He took Shad captive and used him to get Link to come with him. From there, I do not know the details, but I know that Link did everything he did to keep us all safe. He is too selfless for his own wellbeing."
"Pff," Midna scoffed, "another understatement."
"Ren, Colin, and Rusl have each gone to his aid, but ultimately have been unable to do anything. As for myself... Viscen does not know that Emeline and I survived the waterfall."
A light went off in Midna's head, "That's why you haven't gone to Link yourself. You've been using the king's ignorance to your advantage."
Zelda nodded, "Yes."
Midna pursed her lips, scrutinizing the queen opposite her, "You've been leaving one question unanswered, Your Majesty."
She knew.
"It is the one your reaction to troubles me the most."
Midna snickered, but she did not look amused, "I figured."
Zelda inhaled, held it, and released. Their gaze did not break.
"Viscen was attempting to use Link to open the portal to the Twilight Realm for him. Ren was able to get to you by realizing an ancient prophecy which called for use of the Master Sword. Viscen has kept Link alive for this purpose – to wield the Master Sword for him, so that he may enter the twilight."
Midna's face was blank. Her eyes were devoid of emotion and not a single finger twitched. She stared at the Hylian queen but said nothing for what felt like centuries.
At last, her voice was plain though her words were vibrant, "Knowing that an evil king wanted access to my world, you still believed it was a good idea to open it?"
"I know it seems foolish. I-"
"Did you have dinner planned as well? Why, Your Majesty, if you had only let me know I would have had a room made up in the palace for our guest. The finest linens, a warm fire, a feast!"
"Midna, it is not-"
"Oh, but it is, my queen!" Midna stood from her seat and emoted expressively with each word, "You claim this man is cunning, cunning enough to trick my hero into chains. You know this man's one goal is opening the portal to my world. So, you open it for him? And to think I make fun of Link for being stupid."
Zelda stood to meet her, but she remained externally calm, "Though we are friends, I would ask that you mind your tongue."
Midna laughed, "Would you ask that, Zelda? What would you do if I didn't? Would you throw me in the dungeon with the hero that saved your kingdom? Let us both perish together, Your Majesty?"
"Enough, Midna," Zelda's tone rose, "Your temper is not one that frightens me. Your sarcasm is not one that impedes me."
Her voice was powerful and stern, and though Midna did not feel fear, she felt respect. She swallowed her anger and listened.
Zelda remained strong, "I am aware that the decision to allow them to go through with opening the portal seems foolish. I am aware of the risks that were taken. My belief was that Viscen would have no means by which to locate the portal – he has no idea where it is now, and he keeps Link alive for this reason. Nevertheless, I am prepared to bear responsibility should anything happen to your kingdom. We need Link... I need Link... Getting you was the only way."
Midna wordlessly sat back down. She stared at her interlaced fingers atop the wooden table. She still had so much anger, so much frustration at the entire situation. She used her royal composure and forgot about her selfish emotions. She thought of the light world she had grown to love, and the hero who had awoken a part of her she never thought existed. She knew Zelda was the most intelligent person she had ever met – whether something horrible happened because of this or not, she trusted her.
Zelda sat back down, hands folded elegantly in her lap.
"I believe that was all of your questions?"
Midna looked up at her with a smirk, "Just one more."
Zelda looked pensive, "Yes?"
"If you know me at all, you know I'm not sitting around while all of you get your ducks in a row," she stood from her seat, "I'm going to get that stupid wolf right now, like it or not."
Zelda furrowed her brow, "What was the question?"
"Oh, there wasn't one, I just wanted to let you feel involved in the decision."
Zelda laughed wholeheartedly, "I should have expected nothing less," she, too, got to her feet, "I will accompany you."
Midna looked shocked, "Are you sure?"
"Yes," she answered with no hint of uncertainty, "I have sat idly by and allowed others to dictate my kingdom. I will be inactive no longer. We still have an advantage: he expected the others to go to Link's aid, he will not expect me."
Midna smirked mischievously, "Alright then, let's go get our hero."
Upstairs, Ren had sat in his own contemplative silence for some time. He tried to eavesdrop on the queens' conversation, but he couldn't make out much. He'd done it, he'd actually gotten Midna. He'd done what his father asked... would he be proud of him? Would he be happy? He was so excited at the prospect of having a relationship with his father. He felt adrenaline wash over him and he wanted to see Emeline.
He entered her room to see that she wasn't there. Confused, he went back to the hallway and saw that the door at the end was ajar. He approached it and peered inside. Her voice reached his ears before his eyes could behold her.
"Hi, Ren."
Ren couldn't help but chuckle, "Do you always know I'm coming? Can I never sneak up on you?"
She giggled, "Yes, I do. And no, you cannot."
Ren stepped inside with a smile, "What are you doing in this room?"
He watched as she stood over the bed, not appearing to do anything in particular.
"The hero will return to us soon. I wanted to ensure his room was filled only with bright colors."
"Bright colors? How can you do that?"
She smiled, pressing clasped hands to her lips, and right when she expected it, his brain caught up.
"Wait, you know that my dad will be back here soon? You know that he'll be safe?"
Emeline's eyes went tight, "I do not know for certain, but I can see his indomitable will. It is cloaked under the deepest layers of darkness. Blankets of the void bury his unbreakable spirit, but even when it is dim, it is so very bright."
Ren smiled and the words just fell out, "You're amazing."
His cheeks instantly flushed and he turned away, but she had already seen the colors of embarrassment.
"I-I just mean your gift, or power, or magic, or-"
She laughed, tucking silver hair behind her ear out of a reflex she had yet to grow out of, "It's okay."
Ren cleared his throat, eager to change the subject, "I found Midna."
"I know, and what a journey it was for you."
"You could see that, too?"
"Not entirely," she shrugged, "I do not see what you are doing, just what you are feeling."
Ren nodded, "Well... I guess we can go get my dad now."
Emeline was silent for a moment. Ren didn't know it, but she saw her mother's feelings of calm resolve just downstairs. She knew exactly why that feeling was there.
"Yes..." the princess whispered, "My mother and I will accompany you."
Ren looked shocked, "Wait, what? No, it's not safe. You shouldn't-"
"We will," she replied, turning to head for the door into the hallway, "I can see my father's malicious intentions. I can see his motives, his plans. I can help you."
Ren followed behind her, until suddenly, she stopped. She turned to him on her heel. She opened her stormy eyes and settled upon his face.
"In his lust for power, he forsook his family, he took my sight from me. In turn, he gave me something much greater. I will see what he does before he does it. I will see what he thinks before he thinks it. He tried to undo me. He failed. Now, I will be his undoing."
Ren was silent, staring into this girl's whirlwind eyes for what felt like eternity. For a moment, he thought he had her gift. He could see her determination so clear. He could see her strength and her courage as plain as day. She had everything taken from her, but Ren knew, she was stronger because of it.
Ren nodded, eager to match her strength, but the tiniest hint of uncertainty was a pinprick in his spirit, "Can you see if we all will be safe?"
Emeline tucked a lock of hair behind his ear and closed her eyes, "Silly boy, I cannot see the future."
Ren shrugged, "I mean, basically though, right?"
Emeline giggled, "Not exactly. But I do believe we will be alright."
"Then that's good enough for me."
Ren smiled.
And it was good enough for both of them.
What was done becomes undone, and what was unmade is made again.
A big thank you to the following for helping me get this chapter out there!
Big Jake, Jared Thomason, Moonfairy, Jacob Peachey, Lee Glerum, Owen Reilly, Anonymouse, Ivalee, Lotus Eater, Silvia Delgado, Eponas, Sabine, Rob Walters, Yami No Nokutan, Mandelbrot, Jessie, Gabby-J, Claudia, Chloe Rose, Debora, SonadowKokoro100
You guys are amazing!
