Chapter 40 – Waiting
A thin ray of sunlight shone through the window and landed on Midna's face. She blinked several times, rubbing her eye drowsily, and straightened her body on the chair on which she sat. From somewhere within the room, she heard wood creaking loudly as Renado turned around on his armchair, moaning lightly in his sleep. He had curled into his woollen blanked so that only his head looked out, but due to his coal black hair and his dark skin, it was hard to tell which part was human and which not. All Midna could make out was a messy heap of skin, hair and cloth, all squeezed into the wooden armchair which actually seemed to be a rocking chair, now that young sunlight shone through the window and let it become visible.
Her lips could only produce a small smile since the grief in her heart was still too great.
Before she even looked down at her companion, she wished silently that she would see his blue shining orbs glistening with courage she so longed to gaze at. It seemed months away that she had seen his eyes for the last time, and she had to convince herself that it had only been two days ago that the mighty Argorok was slain by Link, that it was only a bit more than twenty-four hours away that she had witnessed the beauty of his sparkling twin oceans for the last time.
As she lifted her sight on his face, though, there was no blue sparkle to be found. His eyes remained closed as he laid motionless in the bed, held alive only by his nearly inaudible breathing and the feeble beating of his weary heart she guessed pounding somewhere in his chest. It was not the first time that she desperately wished to hear or feel it, but the fear of hurting Link while trying to detect its weak throbbing was way too great.
So she contented herself with a soft stroking to at least show him her presence, even if she perfectly knew that he would never feel it.
Or so she thought …
She was too absent-minded to perceive that Link's breathing became deeper the moment she touched his cheek, and his head turned but a millimetre to the left in her direction, barely noticeable, as she began to caress his face with the back of her tiny finger.
Midna was more concentrated on how she felt his boiling skin; it was very soft, a lot softer than her own or that of other persons she had met before. The part directly underneath his closed eyes was redder than the rest, for he was still very feverish. But she had no eyes for the colour or the fact that he was so febrile, her attention was more locked on the shape of his face, on all the curves and rounds his skin made to form this wonderful being where everything seemed to be perfect. The size of his forehead, the distance between his eyes, the length of his respiring nose, the size of his long, pointed ears, the elegant arc his short throat formed to end in a small, curved chin which on its turn adjoined a mouth unlike every mouth she had seen before, with two lips visibly tender … so tender, so irresistible …
His lips, she thought with a sigh of desire. Oh, what would I give to kiss them just one more time …
She really had to pull herself together to not let her desire win the better part of her. But she caught herself several times approaching his face, and mentally slapped herself. Stop it, Midna! she scolded herself. This is disrespectful, and you're not alone!
Renado's presence daunted her, letting her fear that he might wake up every second and catch her at kissing a very wounded and unconscious Link. She cast a quick glance at him to make sure that the shaman was still fast asleep. But the Kakarikan seemed still in peaceful dreamland, for his breathings were calm and steady with eyes tightly closed.
But what is wrong about letting my feelings go? Renado is asleep, and Link cannot feel it since he is unconscious. He'll never learn what I did here.
The thought was too alluring. Her body quaked with lust just at those words ''Kiss Link''. She couldn't suppress her feelings of desire any longer.
So she carefully stood up on her chair on which she had passed the night beside her wounded companion and knelt down on the edge of the squashy mattress. She felt Link's left arm slowly and feebly slide down to nudge her leg, the touch alone driving her almost insane. But she tried to hold her wits together and leaned forward while supporting her upper body on her left arm.
Soon, she found herself above Link, felt the feverish warmth radiating from his injured body, smelt the blood crusting over his multiple cuts. For a little moment, she was stunned by the sheer beauty of his face, for even inanimate he looked bewitching. When her attention was drawn to his lips which, after all, were her actual objective, she discovered that their skin stood slightly apart, revealing a millimetre of his snow white teeth just behind them. The warmth he shed let her own elevate by at least two degrees, making her brow sweat both in hotness and in nervousness. As soon as she had managed to dislodge her eyes off his mesmerizing face, she would quench her untenable desire of kissing him at last.
Her body suddenly felt much lighter than before when she finally lowered her upper body towards Link's respiring mouth. She felt like hovering on a cloud in the sun, with him lying asleep just underneath her. Then, wind rose and caressed her face, and she realized that Link's lips were so near that she could feel his wavering breaths on her own mouth. Wrought-up feelings mixed with all kind of scenes in her mind bombarded her in form of the warm air Link exhaled, and suddenly, she stopped moving.
No … I cannot do this. When her pupils adjusted to focus on Link's face so near, she saw through the barrier of feelings and desire that had shrouded her in and blurred her mind. What she saw now was a lonely, much too young being, suffering under pain and darkness unknown, alone in the cold but shivering with fever. The usual fierce countenance on Link's face, brows furrowed in fury and determination to slay whatever Evil faced him, had vanished from his features, only agony and helplessness had kept their siege on him.
It shocked her to see him in this state, for she was used to a Link who fought with strength and courage. However, there was no courage to be found on his face at that moment, only torment and anguish. It made her eyes water in sadness when she straightened her body again and crawled her way back to the chair once more. She had been so selfish, wanting to satisfy her lust by kissing him. What on earth had crossed her mind by that? She had made use of him so many times, had made him a slave and had treated him like one so that he could bring her what she needed to claim back her realm. He had done so without complaint, had always acted for the well-being of others by repressing his own, along with his safety, and even had, without hesitating one second, wanted to sacrificed his young life to save her stupid Mirror Shard.
And what had she done? She had watched, she had laughed at his clumsiness along their journey, had made fun of him and had pressed him forward even when he was still wounded. And now, she had even taken advantage of him being unconscious to kiss him, and that was surely the last thing he would want from her! Who would want to receive a kiss from an ugly imp which had made your life like Hell on Earth?
As all those thoughts crossed her mind at once, new tears welled up in her eyes, along with a few sobs coming from the depths of her throat. Not able to look him in the eye any more, she turned away from Link's suffering soul and wept silently, for it felt so good to at last open the valve sealing the pressure away.
The window pane at the far wall had been clanking softly under strong wind from outside all the time, and now, light rain was patting against it. Midna ignored it completely, actually she had even forgotten that there were two other persons with her in the room, one of them now waking at the sound of water pelting from the glass behind him and the sniffle coming from the bed in front of him.
Midna jumped as the low, kind voice of the shaman called out to her. ''No need to weep, it's already raining enough outside.''
The imp quickly hid her face with her arms and hands as she turned away from the Kakarikan now approaching the bed. ''I'm not weeping!'' she said in an offended voice. Renado did not answer as he inspected Link closely, placing a hand on his forehead then holding a finger right under his nose to check his breathing. Only when he was assured that he was neither better, nor worse, he pulled the other chair to him and seated down. ''No, of course not. But will you nonetheless tell me why you are so upset?''
Midna, after having dried her tears enough so that no traces were remaining, turned back to him and looked at him rather confused. ''Why are you so kind to me? Really, I don't deserve it.''
But Renado seemed shocked. ''What?! How can you say that? You saved Link's life, you tried to save that of my wife, of course you deserve being treated kindly. That you're a Twili doesn't change anything at all.''
He leaned slightly forward, being careful not to touch Link's upper body. ''When I look at you, I see way more than just a little Twili sitting here in front of me and trying to hold back tears. I see strength and will power, kindness and courage far more than you're willing to accept. And even though I don't even know your name, I can tell by the look in your eye that you do deserve being treated well and listened to. And believe me, I'm always right when it comes to that. So please tell me what grieves you, or just say some words, you don't have to tell me the details. I'm not only here to help Link get back on his feet, but also his companion who brought him here.''
Midna was stunned, she didn't know what to think of that. For a long moment, she simply stared at him, not moving an inch, and only the patting rain broke the silence in the room. Renado kept his kind smile, but soon noticed that she would need a bit of time to believe in his words, so he turned towards Link again and gently pulled the blanket away from his naked belly, inspecting the wounds which had already begun to close at the ends.
Midna barely noticed that he stood up after a moment and went to the table next to the rocking chair where he fetched the same bowl than before. When she at last managed to dislodge her mind from its stupor, she was startled by the sight of Link's open wounds just in front of her. The shaman returned to his seat with the bowl in hand, placing it on the bedside table like the evening before and started to smear its content on the cuts once more.
''I was selfish, from the beginning!'' it shot out of Midna's mouth suddenly. ''And Link, he was so selfless, all the time! I feel so bad recalling what I've done to him before! I laughed at him, I asked so much of him! I was disrespectful, merciless and cruel! I don't deserve his help, I used him, all the time! I … I hate myself for it!''
And so she continued. She shot all sorts of bad remarks at herself, told Renado all she did to Link, all the offences she said to him, all the hurtful remarks, everything that could have made someone feel bad inside. When she had somewhat listed everything she had said to Link at the beginning of their journey, she continued with her thoughts, what she had thought every time Link had done something that hadn't suited her. When she had finished that too, she didn't remain there, she kept on talking, for her tongue felt like freed from a narrow cage, as if it had found the key to unlocking her mouth and could at last babble freely. While Renado smeared the ointment onto Link's sore body and listened silently, she told him about all the things she and Link had done so far, the temples they went to, the enemies they fought, every single wound Link had endured, and how she had felt so bad every time he got hurt. She told him about her feelings of guilt at having dragged him with her without pause, tired him and driven him to the limit of his withstanding. The only big detail she left out was the fact that Link transformed into the blue-eyed beast when in Twilight, for he had wanted so badly to keep it hidden from the others, especially Renado and the children. And having already caused him enough trouble, she wanted to at least respect that.
One long episode in her telling was Celestia and the battle against Argorok. Link had been so close to death countless times up there, either nearly catching a blow of fire from the dragon or just able to hold himself upside down on the sharp scales of the mighty reptile, sawing like mad at the leather straps holding his initial target attached to the beast. Renado's head shot up quite a few times in disbelief during her narration, looking down just afterwards to the inanimate Link with big, sad eyes. When Midna described the lethal fall from the clouds, and the impossibly long time Link remained underwater, the shaman shook his head slowly, abashed. Noticing that the young imp had begun crying again, he stood up and fetched a white cloth from the table, handing it to her and indicating her to wipe her tears away.
''Thanks.'' she sniffed and buried her face in it. Renado, having finished his treatment with the ointment, covered Link with the sheets once more and sat down again. ''It's really hard to believed that you and Link went through so much! But seeing in what a state he is, I dread that all you tell me is true. Why did he never tell us about his journey?''
Midna, still holding the cloth to her drenched eyes, replied in a quiet voice. ''He never wanted to burst out his deeds in order to impress someone. He wanted to keep them secret and just restore peace in Hyrule so that no one would suffer. He thought that, if he just slew the evil unseen by everyone, they would never notice that something was ever amiss and simply keep on living in peace. But I think that Evil was quicker than him, seeing that Zora kid who lost his mother at the hands of Ganondorf.''
Renado nodded slowly, understanding. ''But let me tell you something, my little friend. Whatever deeds Link accomplished, he would never have been able to do it without you. By what you told me, you pushed him again and again, but I think it served its purpose. Link became skilled with the blade, and strong in his heart, thanks to you. Everyone needs someone to keep faith in their actions, and you gave him a purpose to do all those things. You held him company over your journey, you were there for him when he was there for everyone else. Look at you, and look around you, realize where you sit. You sit right beside him, you're there for him, like he was there for you to help you claim back your realm. Don't think you are no use, or you did wrong, because it's not true. I'm sure that, if we asked Link now about what he thinks of you, he would tell us that he would have never been able to do all those things without you. But if you still think you caused him trouble and pain, you have the opportunity to ask forgiveness, for he needs you now, right now, beside him. Will you do that for him?''
Midna took a time to digest all those words and truths coming out of Renado's mouth. When he finished and looked at her with kind, dark eyes, she turned her head towards her Hero lying motionlessly under the blanket. Some tears were still running down her cheek, but the white cloth remained on the sheets, untouched. ''Yes, of course I'll be there for him. I'll always be.''
Renado nodded with a large smile and took the bowl in his hand, carrying it to the table next to the window. ''Good, then I'll leave you to him and go downstairs to prepare breakfast for the children. I'll come again later.''
With that, he turned towards the door and opened it. However, Midna called back to him. ''Renado, wait!''
The shaman turned around and looked at her with a questioning look. ''Yes?''
Midna broke a weak smile. ''Midna. My name is Midna.''
Renado considered her reply for a moment, then grinned broadly. ''Welcome to Kakariko, Midna.'' Then he walked out of the door.
0
The day went on in a rather monotonous fashion. Outside, it rained uninterruptedly, the downpour eventually morphing into a thunderstorm which sent big, heavy drops onto the earth. Midna stayed most of the time at Link's side, looking tirelessly at his immobile form. Sometimes she stood up and went to the window, looking outside and watching the dust transform into large puddles of mud that ran down the street. From time to time, some lonely cuccoos sprinted from one side of the village to the other, letting her snore out a laugh at their stupid look. But even the clumsy appearance of those animals didn't work their medicine on her mind for long. Soon, she found herself looking towards Link again, wishing silently that he were there beside her at the window, laughing along with her at those silly birdlike creatures getting their feathers wet.
But he wasn't. He laid in a deep unconsciousness trying to keep the bit of strength he had left to stay alive. How long would it take before she could at last talk to him again, hear his voice answer hers, see his blue irises gaze up at her, and smile with him?
After good two hours of sitting nearly unmoving on her chair, staring at him, Renado came back into the room. He was carrying a bowl with what resembled a steaming heap of vegetables inside, and handed it to her. She eyed it suspiciously but shook her head the moment she realized it was for her to eat. ''Thank you, but I'm not hungry.'' Renado looked at her thoughtfully, but did not insist and placed the bowl on the table.
During the entire day, they both sat in the room, speaking only a few words, listening to the rain outside. Renado treated Midna's own cut on her right arm with some ointment and a white bandage, which she accepted thankfully. It didn't hurt as much as before, she noticed, but every touch was still agonizing. Then, about every half an hour, Renado poured some water onto Link's tongue like he had done the evening before. Every time, Link swallowed mechanically but didn't react otherwise. He was like a shell with no life that only worked on instinctive, pre-programmed functions. In the afternoon, Midna asked Renado, who was a healer after all, why Link was in this sleep-like state but couldn't be woken up like that.
''It's called a coma. When a person is in mortal danger, the body shuts down to a protective state to preserve the vital functions and allow the life-threatening injuries to heal. By this, no damage is caused while moving or tiring the body, but it isn't like sleep which regains strength. Link will be rather exhausted when he'll wake up. If he wakes up … ''
That last sentence, he had pronounced softly in a worried tone. Midna was shocked. ''He will wake up, won't he?''
Renado looked at her with a stern look. ''In most cases, the person being in a coma wakes up after a few days, but when the injuries or the loss of blood are too great … well, they may never wake up again.'' Seeing the terrorized look on Midna's face, he added quickly. ''But Link is very strong, the Goddesses will not let him down like that. And he is our Hero, he simply has to wake up again.''
By the sound of his voice, Midna could tell that he wasn't very sure of his own words. But he was right. Link was the Hero of this age, Hyrule still needed him. The Goddesses would not let him succumb to his injuries, they would save him and bring him back to her.
That afternoon, Luda, Renado's daughter, came into their room and talked a bit with Midna. Renado had apparently spread the news that Midna was very kind and not dangerous at all, and the little girl wanted to know her a bit better. Upon Midna's question as why the other children weren't there at Link's side as well, Luda answered in an understanding voice. ''My father has forbidden them to come here because Link needs silence and rest to recover. I'm allowed to be here because I must help my father take care of Link.''
Midna noticed, when the shaman and his daughter subjected Link to another treatment with ointment, that the black-haired girl was very skilled with the art of medicine. It was she who assisted her father when he took, to Midna's horror, a long needle and wire in his hands and started to sew up the smaller cuts on Link's belly. They worked at least one hour piercing Link's sweaty skin countless times for one incision, pulling the thread through the lightly bleeding hole and then puncturing the other side of the cut to join both ends in a violent thrust that let the skin turn white. Midna had to look away from the gruesome operation in horror and disgust.
But then came the longest, infested cut which caused new trouble. As soon as Renado pierced the skin with his needle, a gush of blood flowed out of the wound, letting him shout out in fright. Luda had acted quickly by pressing a clean cloth on the wound, and Midna, sitting beside Link's head, jumped as he let out a sudden moan. It became a cry when Luda pressed harder on it, and Midna shouted out. ''Stop it! It hurts him!''
She immediately withdrew her hand, leaving the cloth where it was, and Link silenced again, breathing hastily and painfully. The white towel turned a deep red that spread outwards slowly, but already it receded and soon stopped completely. All three looked confusedly at the wound that returned to normal again, Renado then gazing disbelievingly at his needle. ''I don't understand. I've never seen a wound act like that when I tried to suture it.''
But Midna could already guess why it acted like that. ''It's this infection of dark magic, it keeps us from treating this wound.'' Renado looked at her with utter confusion in his eyes. ''You mean it reacted to my needle by letting the wound bleed? An infection can't think, Midna.''
''But this is no normal infection. It was on the Shard, and Zant put this curse on it to protect it from persons such as Link and myself who want to bring all Shards together. I saw it when it attacked us. The Shard was thinking since it recognized Link as an enemy, so why not this infection?''
Renado pursed his brows as he thought hard. ''So you think it's a curse, this infection? Some sort of magic that prevents us and Link from healing this wound?'' Midna nodded.
''This sounds not good.'' Luda replied worriedly. ''How will we treat the cut if we can neither touch it nor sew it up?''
''A healer says suture, my Love.'' said Renado, receiving a nod from his daughter.
''I don't know.'' answered Midna, ignoring their little remark between father and child. ''What shall we do?'' She turned towards Renado and waited for an answer. The shaman looked at her, then at the open wound in front of him, and scratched his chin. ''I think it's better if we leave the wound like that and try, for Link's sake, not to touch it at any prize. With all the others sutured, they should start to scar over in the days to follow and won't loose any blood. The only thing I regret is that we can't bandage them without covering the large one too, so I'm afraid Link will be frightened by open wounds covering his belly as soon as he wakes up.''
Midna nodded, this seemed quite a good start. And remembering the state in which he was the last evening when they rode into the village, that sure was a big progress. He was no longer in mortal danger, the only thing he still had to accomplish was to wake up soon. She hoped with all her heart that he would.
Renado ushered his daughter with a pile of bloodied bandages outside again to bring them to the washroom where she should cleanse them. He fetched another bowl filled with transparent ointment and smeared another layer on Link's now sutured cuts. Midna just watched them go by their occupations, eventually loosing her focus on them to plunge into deep waking dreams. All this was so new to her, talking to humans and all that. She still couldn't believe that she really had revealed herself, but it had been necessary so that Link could be treated properly. And she was sick of it anyhow to always hide in his shadow and look onto the beautiful Light World from under his toes.
''What are you cogitating about?'' came Renado's inquisitive reply from opposite her. She crashed down to reality once more, looking at him. ''Oh, nothing. I was just … you know … thinking.''
''Hm.'' made Renado as he finished smearing the last bit of ointment onto the cursed cut on Link's belly. ''I reckon the last few days need a lot of thinking about. After all what happened.'' he stated plainly. Midna watched him clear away the bowl while she thought about if she should tell Renado about this huge step she had done by revealing herself, or if she should keep at least those details unknown to retain some mysteriousness about herself. Halfway through this reflection, Renado broke once more into her musings. ''You should go to bed now, Midna. It's already one hour past sundown. Don't worry, I'll take the watch over Link this night.''
''No, I'm not tired at all, I can do it.'' answered Midna. She would never be able to sleep knowing that Link could wake up at any minute, and she wanted to be there when it happened. She wanted to be the first to ask him if he was all right, to thank him for what he had done at the lake.
Renado nodded and smiled. ''If it is your wish, then so be it. I'll be in the room downstairs should anything happen, and don't hesitate to come and wake me.'' With that he went to the door and bade her a good night. Midna watched the door close behind the shaman, listened to the room become quiet again. Because of the warm, flickering light of the only candle standing on the bedside table, she could see Link's gentle, sleeping face bathed in gold. He looked only more beautiful than before, and she found herself staring at him with mouth agape.
Shaking herself out of her stare, she decided to try not to let anything about her feelings for him slip out, for this was a secret she wanted to preserve above everything, that and something else, but no one should know it. Not Link, not Renado, be he so kind and proposing her his listening ear. She really appreciated this gesture from him, but: It's still to early for that, she thought. He's really amiable wanting to help me, but I managed so much myself, I can handle it. But he's right, now it's Link who needs me. She was determined to do her faithful companion this favour by not letting him alone in his torment. She would be there for him, would be his backbone to support him and give him strength, like she had always been. This was her duty, she reminded herself, and like she had vowed to herself: I will never break that promise!
0
The next day, the storm outside had receded a bit, but it was still raining heavy drops that tapped gently against the window. The sky was grey and cloudy, patched with dark here and there. Mud now coated the deserted streets of Kakariko in thick layers, and not even cuccoos broke though the rain; presumably, they preferred staying in the dryness of a barn or the cave leading to the enclosed area of the spirit spring. Midna had given up diverting herself by looking past the window. So all she could do was stay on her chair next to the still unconscious Link, walking around occasionally when her buttocks ached too much from the long sitting around.
Renado often came into the room, looking after Link by doing the usual checking of all his vital signs and smearing more layers of ointment on the wounds. He had a very special way to check Link's pulse, for he lay one hand around his neck as if he wanted to throttle him, pressing just the thumb and middle finger a bit deeper on the skin to feel the actual pounding of the heart. The first time he did that, Midna nearly interfered in shock, really thinking that he wanted to suffocate her Hero, which was just absurd. She even scolded herself for just thinking of it. She was also astonished, for she could see that Link didn't like that, even if being in a state of coma. Every time he was grabbed like that, he winced ever so slightly and his brows furrowed just a millimetre, barely visible, but she, having watched him all day and night prior, knew each curve and dip his face was made of and so noticed every move he performed.
Already, some of the smaller cuts had begun to close and form scurf at the corners, which relieved the shaman a lot. ''At least, there we have some improvement.'' he said. Of course, the only one not healing at all was the cursed incision, but Midna had already given up foolish hope to see any melioration in this one. It was clear now that there was dark magic at work, and the sheer thought of it drew fear into her bones. But there was nothing they could do about it now, they would have to wait for Link to get better before doing anything. The risk that he lost blood again was too great to take, so they judged it better to leave it as it were and see to Link's recovery at first.
Luda sometimes came up to them to keep them company and help her father take care of the wounded Hero. She and Midna had an especially long chat about the weather in Hyrule, for Midna knew nothing about rain or thunderstorms, since they didn't exist in her realm. The little, black-haired girl told her everything she knew about the wind blowing, the sun shining, the thunder rattling the windowpanes and the rain piercing the dust on the road. ''It's as if Farore herself mourned her wounded Hero.'' the girl had said rather absent-minded, gazing at the inanimate youth in the bed. At that Midna looked rather suspiciously at her, trying to guess what she was cogitating about. Luda had strangely glassy eyes, as if lost in thoughts, but she soon noticed the imp's piercing look and shook herself out of her stare.
''Why Farore?'' asked Midna to change the subject. She knew that the three goddesses Din, Nayru and Farore, had created the world and its dwellers a very long time ago, or at least so believed the Hylians. But why should she and none of the others mourn her Hero?
''Why her? It's because Farore is the Goddess of Courage, and the Hero represents courage by his green tunic. That's at least what my father told me.''
She made no mention of the strange mark on Link's left hand, but Midna knew that it had to do something with it. Zelda had used the Triforce of Wisdom to sacrifice her own life for Midna, and Ganondorf was the one wielding the Triforce of Power, otherwise he would never have been able to survive the Sages' execution. So, obviously, the mark on Link's left hand was the last fragment of the broken Triforce remaining, the power of Courage. Just to think that Link wore such a power let her feel proud to just know him, let alone be his companion and friend. She didn't know if he was even aware of the power he held within him. She had that strange feeling that it would be of crucial meaning once Link would stand against Zant and Ganondorf in her realm, once all this here was over.
Otherwise, the day was filled with dreadful waiting and loosing hope more and more. Midna would sit at Link's side for hours, not saying a word, holding his hand to at least give him company subconsciously. Renado would walk around the room in circles with hands folded in his back, stopping sometimes to gaze out of the window, and then just resume walking. When he was tired of the constant creaking the wooden floor made under his steps, he would sit down on the chair at the table where he had piled up a great amount of books, and would begin to flip through one of them as if fiercely searching for something. Sometimes pointing on a certain place on one page, then muttering under his breath the few lines that stood there, then shaking his head and closing the book once more, taking up another one.
When Midna could not stand his strange behaviour any more, she lifted her head and looked at him already pacing up and down again. ''What are you looking for? You make me quite nervous, you know.''
Renado stopped his deep musing by sitting down on the other chair to Link's right. ''I'm searching in my library for this curse thing you told me about. It didn't get out of my head since you actually mentioned the fact that it could think like a real being. I have many books about magic and curses, but none of them matches these pebbles in the wound or the fact that every touch hurts horribly and makes it bleed.''
Midna nodded. ''I could say that it's Twilight magic, but we're not capable of doing this with our powers. It must be a dark power Zant received from Ganondorf.''
Renado briefly brooded over it, then answered while turning his head to the books. ''Maybe I'll find something in the books about more ancient magic, at the time where the Hero of Time fought Ganondorf.''
With that he stood up, took all his precious books in his arms and carried them out of the room, asking Midna to close the door behind him since he had no hand free. As soon as the Kakarikan had left, everything went quiet again. Midna almost called him back, not wanting to stay alone once more, but she thought it was important that he searched for a way to break this curse on Link, even if they knew very little about it. Maybe they could even stumble over a solution before Link opened his eyes, and would be spared from the horrible knowledge of being cursed.
Renado did not return in the hours to follow, only his daughter kept Midna company until late evening, when even she had to go to bed. They spoke only little during that time, for Midna had lost pleasure in passing the time with talking. She was used to Link who, after all, was more the quieter personality, and it lacked also of topics of discussion. The little imp could hardly give her opinion to the sudden excess of rain in the region, which was, according to Luda, a rather uncommon event, or the fact that the Gorons were friendly to humans again. Well, she knew just how hard it had been for Link, the journey into the Goron mines, but didn't want to burst out his deeds and accomplishments during this specific part of his quest. Not only because Link would not have liked that, but also because she tried with all her might to not talk about him, for it would have made her only sadder that he wasn't there with her. And shedding tears was the last thing she wanted to do in the young girl's presence, be she so kind and respectful.
For the first time that night, she really felt the effects of two days and one night without sleep. Several times, she caught her eyes fall close and had to summon up all her strength to keep them open. Walking around the room helped for a while, but soon her legs did not want to carry her weight any further and ached horribly, so she had to sit down on this damn chair again. Her fatigue and worry for Link made her feel awful, to the point that she even became frustrated in the end. Renado had to shush her when she burst out her feelings too loudly.
''You don't have to stay beside him all the time, I can take over.'' the older man said that night as soon as she had calmed down again. Midna sighed wearily. ''No, I want to be there when he wakes up.'' she said. ''It's the least I can do for him now.''
Renado just shrugged and left the room some time later, after having done a final check on Link.
Midna didn't know how long she stayed beside her companion, all that she noticed was that dawn soon transformed into morning, morning morphed to midday, which eventually became evening again. And still no sign of life from Link. To her dismay, Renado started to become seriously worried too, even if he didn't show it. She could only notice it when he thought she wasn't watching. To comfort her, he kept saying that this was normal and that he would surely wake soon. He didn't sound very convincing though.
That evening, she finally accepted to take in some food. It was a kind of spicy stew made with meat and red vegetables, and it tasted not bad. She had tried a small bite at first, and being astonished by its pleasant, salty taste, she had gulped the rest down in a matter of minutes.
Soon, however, she regretted having eaten so fast, the whole fact that she had accepted Renado's meal. For when she resumed her watch on Link, her entire organism worked to digest the newly acquired stew, and she felt even more tired. Her eyes burnt horribly and begged for darkness, her head which she rested in her palms searched for a way to embed in the mattress, and when the sun dropped behind the horizon, bathing the world in shadow, Renado could see from his position at the table, leaning over his books, how Midna's little imp form gently slumped to the blanked just next to Link.
Despite she fact that he knew her for only three days, the healer smiled sympathetically. He indicated his daughter, who just came into the room bringing clean towels from the washing room, to spread half of a woollen blanket over the armchair while the other half would serve as sheets to cover Midna's sleeping frame. Then, being careful not to wake her, Renado took the Twili into his arms like a child and carried her to the rocking chair where he laid her down gently. She made no sign of noticing that she was being carried, did not even moan. Renado understood just how tired she must have been.
Just after bidding his daughter a good night, he sat down on Midna's chair to Link's left, taking over the job of keeping a vigilant eye on him. A book entitled Dark Curses and Other Magic rested in his lap, waiting to reveal its secrets when being opened. But for now, the older man just sat there, watching the youth in his bed, and sighed at the sight of him being so lifeless.
His still unconscious condition started to really worry him. Even in his current state he normally should have woken by now, he thought with a frown. But knowing that Link had to accomplish this deed on his own, he could do nothing else but keep a watchful eye on him and ensure that he kept breathing, and watch over Midna's restful sleep. At that moment he felt like a protecting parent who had his two children badly wounded and incredibly tired under his care. And somehow he felt proud about it.
With a little smile, he went back to his reading. All day he had searched in every book he owned about dark magic and curses and such, but hadn't found anything about a curse resembling the one on Link's wound. He wasn't even sure if it really was a curse, but if Midna said so, then it must be right. After all, she was a Twili who possessed magic and knew how to use it. And she knew what and who put it on Link, so there was no point in contradicting her. Plus, even if searching in his books didn't amount to anything, it at least served one good purpose: passing time.
And indeed, time went on. Dreadfully slowly. Near two hours past midnight, at least that was what he thought since he had completely lost any sense of time, the one candle on the bedside table was merely a little stump, and soon he had to fetch another one from downstairs so that there was at least one light source in the room. The moment he re-entered through the door with a new candle in his hand, however, his heart nearly missed a beat, and he froze right where he stood.
Link's head was moving. It was turning very slowly from left to right, eyes still closed, but his breathing had become more laboured and occasional, quiet moans escaped his throat. Instantly, Renado was at his side after quickly lighting the new candle from the other one and placing it on the table.
''Link? Can you hear me?'' he said quietly while cupping a palm over his right shoulder. Link apparently couldn't, or could not yet, for he didn't answer. So he waited patiently for him to come to himself entirely and took his hand to make him notice his presence.
After a couple of minutes, Link seemed to become aware of the dreadful pain that smote him, for his groans became more frequent, and sometimes he tried to lift one arm in order to clap it over his stomach, but to no use. It only twitched upon his will, nothing more. Renado knew that his strength had yet to find a way back to him, but he hadn't expected that the agony from his wounds would be so bad. Every time Link's moans grew painfuller, he spoke soothingly to him in order to calm him down. After a moment, it seemed to help, for Link's quiet wails ceased and only his breathing remained deep and heavy.
Then, about five minutes later, Renado's lips arched upwards to a relieved smile.
Link's brows pursed slightly, and underneath their skin his orbs were moving from side to side. Then, his eyelids twitched a few times before separating from their counterpart completely, and Renado could see, for the first time in three days, Link's glistening, pure blue eyes at last. He was so happy that at first he couldn't utter a single word, but when Link's pupils moved slowly under drooping eyelids, he found his voice back.
''Link? Can you hear me?'' he said again. His voice nearly broke in emotion but he forced himself to remain calm. Link's eyes then turned to him, and he furrowed his brows. ''Ren - ado?''
His voice was absent, and his reply came out in a scratchy whisper. The shaman nodded with a smile. ''Yes, it's me, Link.''
The youth's eyelids seemed to have just enough strength to stay separated, for he looked at the healer as if he hadn't slept in weeks. Just like I thought, thought Renado as he took the Hero's hand in his. Link's look moved slowly down as if searching for the touch that suddenly encircled his hand, then his eyes scanned the room around him. ''Where … am …'' His words broke off as a new wave of pain came over him and let him screw up his eyes.
Renado answered quickly so that he wouldn't have to strain himself finishing his question. ''You're in Kakariko, Link, safe with us. You need not worry.'' This seemed to calm him down a bit, for Link relaxed again, opening his eyes and gazing at the older man above him. Yet, the pain caught up with him, and a moan escaped his mouth. ''Shsh, it's okay, Link. It's all right, calm down. Don't let it overcome you.''
Link gritted his teeth in torment, and his breath caught in his throat. ''Try to breathe it out,'' the healer said without loosing his calm, although inside, he was terrified. Stop making him suffer! Leave him alone! he screamed inside himself as if thinking that the Curse would hear him and would somehow be daunted by him.
Link tried to breathe evenly, but he couldn't concentrate enough since the pain was so unbearable. Renado then moved his open palm up and down in the air to help him. ''Calm down, Link. Follow my hand, breathe in, and out. Steady, that's right.'' he said soothingly, and little time after, Link's breaths became steady again.
''That's it, Link. Very good.'' he said smiling.
Link looked at him then. ''What happ- ppened, Renado?'' he whispered. Outside, a low thunderclap resounded in the scarcely lit room, making him twitch slightly in fright. Renado had already anticipated this question, and he knew that he couldn't answer that to him. ''Link, I think I'm not the right person to tell you that. I think it's better if your companion reveals that to you.''
The reaction following was not the one Renado had expected. Link's eyes widened a bit, and his breaths suddenly quickened again. He turned his head sharply as another thunder boomed behind the window, and Renado noticed in fear that the youth was panicking. ''Link, it's okay, calm down, please calm down.'' he pleaded, tapping lightly on his shoulder.
''Mid- mid- na!'' Link huffed. ''Where- why-''
Renado carefully stroked his head and hair to soothe him, which eventually helped, either because he calmed Link that way, or because the Hero didn't have enough strength any more to panic. ''How do … you know ab-about her?'' Link asked effetely.
''It was her who brought you here.'' the healer answered. ''She's just over there. Shall I wake her?''
Barely visible, Link nodded while staring deeply into the healer's eyes. He seemed not to believe in the shaman's words that his companion was really there, and Renado was quite puzzled by that. However, knowing that Link's strength was leaving him with every second he waited longer, he decided to hurry up.
Midna hadn't shifted the entire time in her armchair, and Renado had to shake her gently to get her back to her senses. ''Midna, wake up.'' The young imp was instantly on guard and screamed out. ''What?! What's wrong?! What-''
''It's all right, Midna, it's all right! There is … just someone who wants to speak to you.'' Renado turned his head, indicating the bed with a little smile, and Midna froze.
Link's motionless form rested in the bed as always, but then a move stirred his body as he turned his head slowly to her. And at last, she saw his cerulean eyes once more, dark with tiredness and quite blurry, but still beautiful. His infatuating lips twitched as they arched upwards into a weak, little smile that let her heart leap.
''Link!'' she gasped, jumping up from the rocking chair and racing at his side. ''You're awake!''
Link's drooping eyes locked on her face lit with happiness, and yet his smile faded again. He seemed so fragile and feeble, it almost startled her. But her mind was so happy to at last gaze into his blue eyes that she forgot all the grief of these last three days without him. ''How are you feeling?''
Link's voice was not audible, only a quiet whisper found its way to her long, pointed ears. ''I'm not feeling … quite much … just tired.'' It was just as Renado had foretold: He will be rather exhausted when he wakes up. Midna smiled in order to reassure him, noticing from the corner of her eye how the shaman silently left the room to give them some privacy.
''And you … are you … all right?'' Link then asked. Midna nodded briefly, considering what she should tell him. She didn't want to frighten him too much just after he woke up, since he was still so weak. ''I'm all right, just a little cut on my arm, but Renado treated me. He's been very kind to me, you know?''
Link inclined his head to nod, but then he narrowed his eyes – if you could narrow them more with your lids barely open. ''Midna, why … why did you show … yourself, I thought that … that you wanted to remain h- … hidden.'' He exhaled in effeteness after his speech and closed his eyes momentarily, which elicited Midna a worried glance. Then she looked down, thinking. ''You know, I had to. You were so injured that I had no choice, and actually I'm glad I did it, because the humans here are very kind to me, especially Renado.''
''Injured?'' Link asked in a whisper, now pursing his brows incredulously. Midna just then realized; he could likely not remember anything that happened at the lake. ''Er, yes, we fell from the sky and fell into the lake, don't you remember?''
Link briefly said nothing, still with brow pursed as he thought hard, then he moved his head slowly from left to right. ''I remember f-falling from the s-sky … but nothing else … '' With worry-filled eyes, he looked at her. ''What happened … M-Midna?''
The young imp noticed that he fought to stay conscious, so to give him a little support in the world, she took his right hand gently in hers. He noticed it and stirred his fingers once, feeling her tiny hand in his. She then looked at him again with sympathy and sadness in her eye. ''We fell into the lake with Argorok, you know, the dragon you defeated, but when I surfaced, I couldn't see you anywhere. You stayed so long underwater that I feared the worst, but then you came up again. Oh, you can't imagine how relieved I was. You gave me a heart attack.''
Link listened quietly, and watched bits and pieces of memory gradually come back to him. He could remember the dragon, Argorok, and the dangerous plunge from the sky. Then, a darker picture flashed before his eyes, and suddenly a searing pain ripped itself through his chest and stomach, letting him moan out loudly and painfully. Midna stopped in her telling, looking anxiously to him. ''Link! Are you okay?''
As quickly as it had come, it vanished again. Link breathed heavily a few times before assuring that it was nothing. But the pain and the memory triggered something else inside his brain, the actual goal they were struggling towards for so long and the reason why they actually challenged a dragon and fell from the sky.
''Midna!'' he huffed, drawing himself up in fright, or would have if he had had the strength. His head only lifted an inch from the pillow before weakly lowering down again. Midna pressed a hand on his shoulder and scolded him gently for being so careless with himself, but he cut her off. ''The Shard! Midna, we must … do you have it? Is it … safe?''
The imp hushed him by tapping his shoulder carefully and nodded. ''It's all right, Link, I have it. It's safely locked away with the others.''
Link looked as if he had just learned the survival of a friend who had to be executed. ''Good.'' he muttered and sighed. It shocked Midna that he was so relieved to learn the safety of the Shard, since it was, after all, this fragment of Shadow that had cut his body almost to the innards and had cursed him with this horrible, pain-causing magic. ''Link, I don't quite understand why you're so relieved, after everything this Shard did to you.''
At that, Link narrowed his eyes again, and she could now discern a tiny glimpse of fear in his pupils. ''What? What … did it do to … to me?'' he asked, frowning. Midna suddenly felt the urge to bang her palm against her forehead. Oh Midna! You're such an imbecile! Of course he didn't know, for he felt nothing but tiredness and couldn't remember anything from the night at the lake. ''Link, you are badly wounded, this Shard attacked you underwater and …'' Should she tell him? ''… and infected one of your cuts with its magic.'' Now it was out.
Link stared for a moment at her as if he could not grab her words and put sense to them. But it took not long before the pain resumed and confirmed their truth. He closed his eyes and turned his head away from her, exhaling deeply. ''Oh no … '' he breathed, grief-stricken.
''Don't worry, Link.'' Midna said quickly. ''Renado and I will take care of you.'' But he shook his head without opening his eyes.
''But what about … your r-realm? We have t-to get there and defeat … Zant … '' Link's words trailed away as his strength left him more and more. Midna placed a hand on his shoulder, and when he lifted his lids again, she looked him deeply in the eyes. ''Now listen to me, Link. First, you can't even open your eyes completely, let alone travel to the Mirror Chamber or defeat Zant. I want you to recover fully before you even think of leaving this village for heroic deeds. And secondly, time is what we have plenty of. I want you to take all the time you need to heal, otherwise I'll enchain you on your bed until you are well again. Do you hear me?'' That last reply she said with an amused tone, and Link's lips arched upwards again.
''All right … my little imp. If this i-is your wish … ''
Midna grinned broadly and stroked with one finger over his cheek. ''I think you should get some sleep now. You look terrible, my little wolf.''
Link inclined his head to nod his agreement, and with his whispering becoming quieter still, he asked one last question. ''Will you stay with me … till I f-fall … asleep?''
What? Had she really heard properly? ''Yes, of course.'' she whispered with a kind smile, but inwardly, she was bursting with joy. He really had asked her to stay, not to retreat into his shadow. He wanted her by his side when sleep's unconsciousness had taken him once more, and that made her heart almost explode with pride and happiness. So they had definitely passed the threshold of being just friends and partners. There was something deeper, stronger binding herself and him together, there was no doubt any more.
She shifted a bit to get a more comfortable seat on her chair, and watched Link's eyelids sink back into their lock. At that moment she felt as happy as she hadn't felt in a long time.