I own nothing. Big thanks to neenabluegirl and KyuuketsukiNekko for their reviews! And might I add that the spell checker for FFNet's Edit/Preview Document thinger sucks! Blah. The awesomeness of Animethon 16 has refreshed my creative juices, and therefore, I have updated. Yeah!

3: Bo-Le-Ro: Into the Fire/Into the Ice

After I stayed with Link that night, he seemed to accept that I would not walk with him again. I noticed from my perch on a cliff of the mountain that the small strip of my tabard was tied securely around the Hero's belt. He seemed to be struggling to climb Death Mountain. This was probably due to the humongous rolling boulders that erupted from the mountain's top. I watched carefully as he entered the inner complex of the Goron city, then turned and began my ascent toward the upper entrance to the mountain's molten centre. For any normal traveller, it would have been an overwhelming journey. The falling rocks were larger and in more abundance than they had been seven years previous, and I was sure the thick cloud of dust surrounding the mountaintop was toxic. Thankfully, my cowl filtered out the worst.

The heat was tremendous. I could see the waves lifting up from the rocks as I entered the cavern, and I thanked my ancestors for the design of the exoskeleton I wore. It was designed for intense heat, though I was sure the temperature of the inner mountain was more than it was built for. I carefully crossed the wooden bridges that I found extremely illogical, and nestled myself into a small opening in the rocks that I knew would provide me with a little shelter from the scorching heat of the lava below.

After half an hour passed, I found myself wishing for the Hero's presence. I would then be able to teach him the song and leave this Din-forsaken crater. Just as the thought passed, I heard a rumbling from where I knew the secret entrance to the Goron city was located. A loud grunt which echoed quite strangely around the crater confirmed my suspicions that the Hero had made it through safely. I saw him clearly, though distorted by the heatwaves, from my hideout in the rocks, as he stepped tentatively onto the wooden bridge. However, he jumped back quickly as a huge burst of lava and flames engulfed the bridge. It smouldered for a short period of time, and the ropes snapped, leaving half the bridge dangling precariously over the molten sea. Link seemed to be unfazed by the fact that he no longer had a way across. The heat distorted what I could see, but I heard a clink and a thunk and then Link was walking slowly over what was left of the bridge. I hopped down from my spot, obviously startling him.

"Sheik," he smiled. "I thought you'd be here somewhere."

I nodded, and pulled my lyre from its place beneath my tabard. Without a word, I began to pluck the strings, forming notes that echoed in the natural acoustics of the mountain. After a few moments, Link caught on and put his sky blue ocarina to his lips and played along easily. He was a natural when it came to playing that tiny instrument. As the last notes of our song faded I opened my eyes and wondered when I had closed them.

"The Bolero of Fire," I told him, "will bring you back here if you ever need to return." I stepped back from the bridge and reached for a deku nut when another spray of lava and fire engulfed the bridge between Link and I. The ropes snapped and instinctively I reached out for Link as he began to plummet toward the magma below. I felt Link's gauntleted hand grip tightly around my arm and I grasped his other arm with my free hand. He was heavy with all of his equipment. The smoke from the burning bridge made it hard to see him, but I could not let it stop me from pulling the slightly singed Hero of Time onto the stone platform in the centre of the rocks, safely away from the edge.

Panting from panic and exertion, Link glanced my way. His blue eyes caught me and I found I couldn't look away. Then he turned his head away from me, his face flushed from the heat of the mountain. The moment, though only a second long, was broken, and it was like someone had dumped ice water on me and doused the flames that had begun to rise within me. For another short moment there was silence, and then: "Thank you. I wouldn't have made it if you weren't there. You're a good friend, Sheik."

I smiled to myself beneath my cowl. "It is something that grows over time... a true friendship. I'll see you again, Link."

With that, I stepped back, tossed a deku nut, and jumped as high as I possibly could. I perched on a high point, obscured by the smoke emerging from the small holes in the rock. I watched as Link looked around, and then marched on into the depths of the Temple of Fire. I did not wait for him to emerge from the temple again. Instead, I left the mountain at full speed. As I dodged the rolling boulders, my mind relived the incident in the crater. One part of me felt guilty, as if it were my fault the lava destroyed the bridge and almost killed the Hero. The other part knew I had no control over it. I barrelled past the townsfolk of Kakariko, not caring that they saw me, and I leaped to the roof of the house that once belonged to Impa. The small mountainside that the house was built against provided me with some cover from the prying eyes of the people I had disturbed on my way down.

As I sat on the rooftop, the sun began to set, and a cool breeze came in from the river to the east. A shiver ran through my body, and I recognized the sensation that often accompanied the use of magic. However, something was strange about it. There were only a few people in Hyrule who knew enough magic strong enough to be felt so far from where it was used, and even then only a few of those people would dare under Ganondorf's unrelenting watch. The only person, to my knowledge, who would dare use such strong magic and risk being detected would be the Black King himself. I pulled my cowl tightly about my face. Knowing who it was using the magic, it was likely the residual traces of it were tinged with something poisonous. I left Kakariko as quickly as possible. Zelda's orders were not needed for me to investigate, as I was sure I knew her well enough to know that she would send me to the source of the magic either way.

Kakariko soon disappeared behind me as I rushed across the plains of Hyrule. As I ran, I wondered vaguely if the Hero of Time had succeeded in the Fire Temple. I knew he would have no further clues as to where to go next, so I hoped he was not all brawn and no brains.

By the time the sun had completely fallen, I was running along the riverside. The air was getting colder, and as I neared Zora's River I knew something was wrong. All along the riverbank were bodies of frozen Octoroks. Clearly the river was too cold for even those beasts to survive. I noticed it had begin to snow. The nearer I got to the torrential waterfall that blocked the entrance to the Domain, the thicker the snow beneath my feet was. It was a wonder the waterfall itself was not frozen. Thankful that I had not forgotten my lyre, I pulled it out and played the Royal Family's song, and then made my way inside.

What I saw was like something out of a nightmare. There were Zora scattered about the main cavern, all partially, if not completely encased in ice. The ice was slowly creeping up their bodies, and as they saw me, they called for help. The waterfall was freezing as it ran, sharp spikes of ice threatening to fall at any moment.

I ran to the nearest partially encased Zora, and he reached out to me. "P-please... Save the P-princess!"

Without a word, I nodded and headed straight for the throne room. The situation there was not much better than in the main cavern. Though not all of the water had frozen yet, it was equally as horrific. King Zora was encased in a strange red ice, and his daughter was screaming, tears streaming down her face, as she tried to break it. Slowly, the ice was climbing up her piscine legs. I ran to her.

"Your Highness," I said carefully, though she did not seem to take notice of me. "Please come with me."

Ruto stopped for a moment, looking at me skeptically. "And who are you supposed to be?"

I frowned behind my cowl, though she could not see. Was it not obvious from my clothing who I was?

"I am Sheik, of the Sheikah. I've come to rescue you from here."

Ruto frowned at me. She took one long look at her father, and then nodded. She reached a fishy hand out to me and reluctantly, I took it. Through her hand I could feel magic working inside of her. This took me by surprise, though I did not show it. Her eyes were closed and her face held a look of complete concentration. The ice around her legs began to melt enough for her to move, and I felt a little of my own energy being drained. She stepped away from the ice and fell against me, completely unconcious. The ice that she had melted turned instantly back to ice where she had once stood. I lifted her up into my arms and left the throne room through the back cave.

Jabu-Jabu's frozen body lay lifeless. I was glad Ruto was unconscious, for the large fish had definitely not died of the cold. Carefully, I made my way to a sizeable log to set Ruto down on. I then went to Jabu-Jabu and spent the next twenty minutes pushing him into the water. Heavy though the fish was, I managed to get him in far enough, and soon he slid right to the bottom of the pool.

"Sheikah..." Ruto was slowly coming to. "I must go to the Water Temple. The reason for this ice has got to be there, but I may need Link's help. Please send him to me when you see him."

"How do you know I am not one of the Black King's minions?" I asked as I fixed the Zora princess with a stare that would have made any regular person tremble. However, the stubborn Zora merely smirked at me.

"A Sheikah would not work for Ganondorf. You are bound to Princess Zelda, whether she is dead or not."

Ruto left then, and I didn't care enough to watch her go. I gazed about the open space. There were large ice chunks were scattered about the water. Feeling drained from all I had done over the course of the day, I allowed myself a bit of rest. I sat down on the log which I had lay Ruto on and stared off into the distance. Vaguely, I could see the outline of Death Mountain and its noxious clouds.

I did not get any sleep that night, nor did I try to. I found myself absorbed by the silhouette of Death Mountain, watching hopefully for some sign of Link's success. Each time the mountain erupted, I feared for Link's safety, and each time I feared for the blue-eyed Hylian, I told myself it was only because the fate of Hyrule rested upon his shoulders.

As the sun began to rise, the dirty clouds around the peak of Death Mountain began to dissipate.