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by an awesome blossom

Sometimes the difference between real and imaginary is just perception.



I don't have to mention that I've taken extreme artistic liberties again, do I?



IV.



Link didn't have to open his eyes to know he was still in the Shadow Temple. There was that everpresent crawling sensation, like centipedes up and down his back and sandpaper to his skull... But there was warmth, and he guessed from the scent of smoke that it was fire.



"How are you feeling, Hero?"



An incoherent, murmuring whisper escaped his lips as he groggily opened his eyes to the flashing warmth and another shadow before him.



"I could guess as much." Light laughter accentuated the echo of stone. "You've been out for a while. I did what I could to heal you and stop the bleeding."



All this roughly registered in his murky thoughts, and eventually his eyes came to rest comfortably on dancing flames on a small pile of wood. It reminded him of Din's Fire, hovering in his palm like a fairy friend...



"Navi!" Link said in a loud panic as he quickly sat up and stared at the Sheikah, wide-eyed. "Where is she?"



"Shhh, shh, relax," Sheik softly reassured as he sifted through fabric near a pile of the Hero's belongings. Gently he pulled out a dull fairy and carefully handed her off to a relieved Link. "She was like this when I found her with you."



He nodded as he traced his finger along the edges of her aura. "She...she's been like this since the Water Temple. I've tried giving her potions, but...nothing. I was hoping that...or Impa, even..."



"This is a magic that the Princess can reverse," Sheik said gently.



Link nodded again. "I just have to awaken Impa and then I can see her, right?"



"That's...correct."



He stared at her a while longer before reaching behind his head for his hat; it wasn't there, though. "Hey...do you have my hat over there?"



Sheik nodded and presented Link with the fabric he originally took Navi out of, saying, "I figured that's where I always saw her..."



"So you understand?" Link asked, his eyes widened slightly as he placed Navi back in his hat and secured it on his head.



"It's her home, isn't it?"



Link said nothing but smiled as warm as the fire while he nodded.



A few moments passed as Link alternated between gazing into the fire and surveying his surroundings - the art gallery - before Sheik reached to his side and pulled out the Lens of Truth. He turned it back and forth and the reflection of the fire emitted a warped light off the thrice cracked lens.



"So what happened?" Sheik asked finally.



It took Link a few seconds to register the odd, warped light, and then he asked with an odd tone of panic rising in his voice, "It's broken?"



Sheik nodded, and Link thought he detected a hint of impatience as he asked again, "What happened?"



Link opened his mouth and began slowly as he wasn't sure what to tell him, "I...I didn't realize it broke. ...I'm not sure what happened."



Continuing to turn the Lens back and forth, Sheik didn't say anything at first. Then, several seconds later, "This was a Sheikah artifact. Just like the Sheikah, there aren't many of those left."



Link winced.



"...But I guess it wasn't intended to be in the midst of battle. I can understand how you almost died from that monster, but it was a guardian of the Lens of Truth. You should have gotten it after you killed the monster, so...how did it break? I'm not accusing you or anything, Link, but I just don't understand."



At Sheik's words, Link was both relieved and put on edge. It was good he didn't have to explain about his shadow - that was the one thing he didn't want Sheik to know about - but then he didn't know how to explain about the Lens of Truth. He decided to feign ignorance. "I don't know. I can't recall much of anything, I guess. ...I almost died, though?"



Sheik's head shook easily, but his words were unsettled as he continued to turn the Lens of Truth. "After I stopped the bleeding, it took me hours to get your temperature and heartbeat back to normal."



"Hours? So how long was I out?"



"Long enough," Sheik murmured as he finally set the artifact to his side. "Honestly, I can't tell the passage of time very well in this temple. About a day, perhaps. I don't know."



Link expressed his amazement in a soft murmur as he drew his knees against his chest, resting his arms and chin on his knee caps. Several moments passed in silence as he considered the flame before him and Sheik toyed with a loose pebble near his foot. Finally, he asked, "So how did you know to come?"



Sheik looked up with an expression tinted in an uncertain darkness. "I guess I just had a bad feeling about the whole thing. You were in there just a little over an hour, and already within that time I was so worried to the point of feeling very ill. I was a little guilty about doubting your ability to make it through even a temple like this, but I had to at least know that you were doing well. I'm not sorry for coming, though, and I doubt I'll leave until I see you through to Bongo Bongo."



"I guess I deserve that," Link admitted with a small grin, "near death and all."



"Indeed. And besides, you'll need someone to guide you through, especially since the Lens of Truth has cracked. I doubt without it that you would make it even past the chasm in one piece."



Shrugging neutrally, Link asked, "You mean the big pit in the room with the skulls and torches?"



Sheik nodded. "And right now we're in the gallery, which is, obviously aside from the guardian of the Lens of Truth, one of the only real...safe parts of this temple." He then cracked a wry smile that showed only through his eyes. "You picked a good place to almost die."



"So what is this place? Just a collection of skull paintings?"



"Skull paintings?" Sheik repeated with a little confusion in his voice.



"Yeah," Link said as he looked around him and gesture, "they're all along the walls."



Staring at him for a few seconds, Sheik finally murmured, "Oh, I guess that's what you see..."



Link considered this statement. "So...I guess you can see things like that? The things that I can't?"



Sheik shrugged as if not particularly proud of his ability. "They're just representations of ancient Sheikah through the years. The dead ones, at least. Did you notice one of the last paintings at the end of the hall? The empty one just before the steel door?"



A twisted reflection had caught his attention at that moment, Link recalled in distaste, with insinuations he didn't care to discuss. "No, I don't think I did."



"It's the only blank one and at the end of the line. I believe it's supposed to be Impa, and the fact that her portrait is still missing is very good for us. It means that she's still alive," Sheik explained.



"Where is she?"



"Somewhere in this temple. She has about a day on us, but I don't know if that means that she's already reached Bongo Bongo or not. This temple is large, I know that, but I actually haven't been too far through it, so I can't say for certain."



Settling into a cross-legged position, Link relaxed his body as he spoke with tension, "She is the Sage of Shadow, you mentioned. What is she trying to do in this temple? Where is she going?"



"All the Sages thus far have gone through and purified each temple, pushing the root of its evil back until it is confined to just a small area. Of course, they can't physically go through a lot of it - only you have the ability to do that - but they spiritually purify it, whether this is a conscious effort or not. What you, as the Hero of Time do, is go through and physically cleanse each temple of monsters before defeating the root of its evil at last."



Link made an amused face. "That little job description would have helped a lot when I first started doing this."



A brief grin crossed Sheik's eyes. "Well, I hardly had the time or opportunity to sit down with you and tell you exactly what was happening. I could only tell you at the time to go somewhere and defeat the evil."



"Is it okay, then?"



"Is what okay?"



Tilting his head slightly, Link looked at Sheik steadily. "...That we're sitting here, talking like this, while Impa is somewhere in this dangerous temple?"



The Sheikah returned the even gaze in silence for several long seconds before he instructed, "Why don't you close your eyes and take one last rest before we move on."



Link nodded as he shut his eyes and curled to the side, enjoying the warmth of the fire.