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  sudden there was ice."

  "Hm…" Midna mused. "Maybe its emotion based… Let me try something then."

  "What?" Link asked warily, somewhat concerned with what she might have been planning when he saw the roguish grin she was giving him.

  "This!" the Twili imp exclaimed with a wicked giggle as she used her hair to shove the unsuspecting hero to the ground roughly, before gliding away from him quickly,

  glancing back briefly as she saw the confused, angered expression he was giving her as he picked himself up.

  "Hey!" the hero exclaimed hotly, already giving chase after the Twilight Princess just as she had intended "Midna!"

  "You want me so much?" Midna called back playfully, a hint of mocking in her tone. "Then come and get me, little wolf!"

  Link clenched his fists at his sides as he realized what she was doing, but he was still frustrated with her nonetheless, knowing that her training methods were already

  proving to be belittling him, just as she always did. And so, he thrust his hand out in an attempt to coax another burst of ice out, this time a planned one, but instead of a

  rush of cold flowing through him, this time, a sudden heat coursed through him instead, and out of his hand came a ball of fire instead of ice.

  Fortunately, the Twilight Princess knew that such a thing was coming, and so she was quick to dodge out of its path safely, but what she had not been expecting was fire,

  which was why both her and the hero were taken completely by surprise when the flame struck the ground and quickly began to spread. "Link!" Midna exclaimed in a

  sudden panic, looking back at him as he stood still, his eyes wide as the glow of the flames he had created reflected in his silver eyes. "Do something!"

  "Do what?!" Link retorted as he was broken out of his initial shock, quickly glancing down at his hands to see the red glow surrounding them now instead of a blue one.

  "Use your ice powers to freeze it!" the Twilight Princess nearly screamed at him in impatience. "Or something! Just hurry before the entire forest burns to a crisp!"

  The hero anxiously nodded as he held his hands out in the direction of the fire, his heart pounding as he watched it spread quickly thanks to the foliage under the layer of

  snow covering the ground that it had quickly melted through. But nonetheless, he closed his eyes tightly and mentally commanded himself to produce ice once more,

  even though he wasn't sure if it even worked like that. However, the feeling that filled him now was not one of hot or cold, but rather something that was akin to a sudden

  gale, which translated to a strong gust of wind, as opposed to ice or fire, blew out from his hands and stirred up the fire even more.

  "Link!" Midna yelled in both fury and fear upon seeing this, wondering what other powers he might possibly have as the hero threw his hands down, quickly putting a stop

  to the wind coming out of them. "Stop making it worse!"

  "I can't help it, Midna!" Link exclaimed in desperation, not knowing what to do at a moment like this, as he had absolutely no control over the situation.

  "Ice! Use ice!" the Twilight Princess shouted as she glided over to him and took his arm, not even noticing the green light that was clustered around his hand, forcing him

  to hold it up and point his hand towards the blaze.

  "I don't know how!" the hero shouted, his eyes wide as he shook his head. However, even despite his panic and fear, ice soon began to converge around his hand once

  more as Midna kept it outstretched towards the fire, and thankfully, a rather large burst of cold magic shot out from it, colliding with the flames and replacing them with

  jagged icicles that covered the ground in all directions.

  Even though the danger of the fire was no more, Link and Midna were still breathing heavily in the aftermath of the frightening experience, both of them trying to make

  sense of what had just happened. When they were finally able to speak coherently once more, the Twilight Princess was the first to say something. "Goddesses…" she

  breathed in exasperation. "One of these days you're going to end up sending me to an early grave, Link! You could have ended up killing us both!"

  "It's not my fault, Midna!" the hero argued. "I've never done anything like this before! This whole magic thing is completely new to me. You can't expect me to get it

  instantly."

  "Well, I should at least be able to expect you to keep it under control!" Midna exclaimed hotly. "If you keep this up, then we might as well just get ready for a flash fire, an

  ice age, a hurricane or all three!"

  "Then I'll learn to control it," Link said firmly and insistently, clenching his hands incredibly tightly at his sides to the point that no magic could have come out of them even

  if he wanted it to. "With or without your help."

  "You moron! You need my help!" the Twilight Princess retorted harshly. "Mind you, I'm one of the only people you know who knows anything about magic in the first

  place!"

  "I could always ask Zelda for help," the hero said stubbornly, giving her a cold glare. "I bet she'd be a lot more patient then you're being."

  Midna let out a growl of frustration as she scowled darkly at him, remembering well just how angry she used to get with him for this blatant defiance of his. However,

  before she could scream at him in fury, she forced herself to close her eyes and let out a deep breath, knowing that he did have a point. She had to be patient with him;

  after all, he had never used magic before in his entire life. The least she could do was show him the basics. "Ok, fine," she said relenting. "I'll try and be more patient, or

  whatever, as long as you listen to me."

  "Fair enough," Link agreed with a nod, even though he still felt the slightest bit angry with her for her former condescending tone.

  "But before we do anything else, let's focus on getting that sword for now," Midna said as she began to lead the way to the Sacred Grove, which was very close by now.

  "I think we need to know a bit more about these powers in the first place before I can start teaching you anything."

  The hero agreed to this as he followed the Twilight Princess, and though no more conversation came between them as they went through the grove, soon enough they

  had made it to the chamber of the Master Sword once more. As they had both expected, the sacred blade began to glow in its pedestal as Link approached it, clearly

  reacting to his presence, but before he could draw it, the spirit of the sword emerged from her vessel once again, hovering over the hilt as she looked down at the hero

  with her unblinking eyes.

  "Greetings once again, Hero of Twilight," Fi said in her smooth, robotic voice. "I see that the curse cast upon you by the Queen of Shadows has been lifted and that you

  have been restored to your true form. In that case, you may take up the Master Sword once more. It is yours to use as you see fit."

  "Hold on a minute," Midna cut in before Link could even say a thing, giving the sword spirit a critical gaze. "Before we get to that, we need to ask you about something

  first."

  "Very well," Fi complied politely. "You may inquire what you wish of me. As I said before, I am knowledgeable in many things."

  This time, the Twilight Princess let the hero do the talking as he took a step closer to the sword, anxiously holding his hand out and hoping that he wouldn't cause any

  more destruction as he tried to make a burst of ice, a ball of flame, or a gust of wind appear. Ultimately however, ice was what came out, but before he could stop its

  path, it shot out from his hand and towards Fi, who was quick enough to see it coming and block it with one of her cloaked arms, completely dispersing the magic

  altogether. "Do you know anything about this?" Link asked with a frown as he quickly clenched his fists to suppress the magic, instead turning his hand over to show her

&
nbsp; the green mark of the Triforce of Courage.

  Fi looked down at the mark and seemed to examine it for a moment, before speaking once more. "When did the mark of the Triforce of Courage begin to behave in such

  a way?" she asked, needing more information to come to a logical conclusion.

  "Not too long ago," the hero replied, knowing that he had not noticed it until Midna pointed it out to him. "About the same time I discovered I had powers I guess."

  The sword spirit nodded in understanding before presenting another question. "And you have never been able to tap into such magical abilities before now?" she asked.

  "No," Link said, shaking his head as he hoped she would be able to clear everything up for him. "Never."

  Fi was silent for a moment, before asking one final question. "What types of magic have you discovered thus far?"

  "Fire, ice, and wind," the hero answered, somewhat hoping that there were no others, as even the three of them were too much for him to handle, something he had

  clearly seen.

  "What do all these questions have to do with anything?" Midna asked impatiently, crossing her arms as she let out an agitated sigh.

  "I simply needed to obtain as much information as possible in order to properly assist in the situation," Fi said, still emotionlessly as ever. "And I am now able to say that

  my analysis is complete. Would you like to hear my findings?"

  Both Link and Midna nodded insistently, which the sword spirit took as her cue to dive right into her explanation. "Each piece of the Triforce contains a different set of

  magical abilities locked away within it," she began. "Each power is meant to be a gift from each separate goddess. For instance, the Triforce of Power has magic that is

  based around the manipulation of physical forces, such as earth, water, and nature. The Triforce of Wisdom grants control of temporal forces, including light, time, and

  healing. And, as you are discovering, Hero of Twilight, the magic of the Triforce of Courage bestows upon you the ability to conjure natural forces. The ability to create fire

  comes from the goddess Din, the blessing of ice was given to you by Nayru, and the gift of wind is from Farore."

  The hero was silent for a moment as he took this information in, realizing that his powers were gifts from the mysterious, illustrious goddesses themselves. Though this

  revelation was certainly daunting, at least it answered the question of their origins, though he still wasn't sure why he had apparently unlocked them so suddenly. "So… if

  I've always had the Triforce of Courage, then why am I just now discovering these powers?" Link asked curiously, wondering what could have set them off in the first

  place.

  "I am still trying to discern the reason for that myself," Fi responded. "In most cases, the magic of the Triforce is blocked for its wielders until they are old enough and

  experienced enough to properly yield it. According to my records, the last wielder of the Triforce of Courage, the Hero of Time, did not discover his abilities until he was

  almost twenty years of age and had been through many great hardships. With that said, I cannot come to an exact answer as to why you might have uncovered them

  now. By all accounts, it is still too early for you to have them."

  "That must explain why he can't control them…" Midna deadpanned to herself, though the sword spirit had managed to overhear her and responded appropriately.

  "The power of the Triforce of Courage is fueled by emotion," Fi said eloquently. "However, as I am incapable of adequately understanding the mechanisms behind human

  emotions, I am unfortunately unable to give you proper advice on how to specifically control them. I apologize."

  The Twilight Princess let out an annoyed groan upon hearing this, but the hero simply nodded in understanding, realizing that he would have to figure these powers out on

  his own if he ever wanted to gain control of them. "It's ok," he said to the sword spirit patiently. "Thanks for all of your help anyway."

  "You are quite welcome," Fi said with a nod. "If there is nothing else that you require of me, then I shall return to the sword, allowing you to draw it and wield it once

  more. I wish you luck, Hero of Twilight, in both controlling you powers and in your stand against the Queen of Shadows."

  With her final message relayed, the sword spirit returned to her vessel in a blue glow, clearing the way for Link to approach the Master Sword. The sword once again

  accepted him immediately as he touched it, its flawless blade shining brightly as the hero pulled it from its ancient pedestal and held it aloft, heavenly light radiating from it

  just like it did before.

  "Well, you finally got the dumb sword again," Midna said as she glided to the other side of the pedestal, crossing her arms with a scowl. "Are we finally ready to go face

  Verona now?"

  "But… what about my powers?" Link asked a bit apprehensively as he sheathed the Master Sword.

  "What about them?" the Twilight Princess asked dryly.

  "Shouldn't I learn to control them first before we go rushing back to the castle?" the hero asked, knowing that he wouldn't be able to do much good against the Queen of

  Shadows if he couldn't even utilize his new abilities properly.

  Midna sighed impatiently, wanting nothing more than to rid the threat that Verona posed to both Hyrule and the Twilight Realm at once. Because of this, she saw Link's

  new powers as little more than a hindrance to their ultimate goal, but she knew that he was right. After all, maybe if he learned how to properly use them, then they could

  potentially aid greatly in the struggle against the Queen of Shadows. "All right," the Twilight Princess complied. "We'll continue your training on our way to the castle. Just

  because you can use magic now doesn't mean you're entitled to a day off!"

  "I never said that I was," Link said with a slight laugh, knowing that Midna's temper was starting to get to her already. Nonetheless, the two of them quickly made it out of

  the Sacred Grove and back into the woods, heading northwards on foot as opposed to the hero calling for Epona, as it would give them more time to train.

  "Ok, so… emotions, huh?" the Twilight Princess said to the hero as they walked through the forest at a steady pace. "Why don't we test that out then?"

  "You're not going to push me to the ground again, are you?" Link asked with a frown, knowing that such a thing would most likely only lead to more disaster.

  "Nah," Midna said, shaking her head. "Instead, I just want you to get angry all your own, without my help this time."

  "How do I do that?" the hero asked in confusion. "It's not like I can just make myself mad."

  "Try thinking of something that frustrated or enrages you then," the Twilight Princess suggested. "Like… uh… Think of how Ilia accused Zelda of not really liking you! That

  made you mad, right?"

  "Well, yeah, I guess," Link said with a shrug, though he had mostly gotten over it now. But even so, after an insistent, commanding nod from Midna, he closed his eyes

  and held his hands out in front of him, trying to focus on his remaining anger over the situation, only to find that it wasn't enough to even bring forth any sort of magic

  whatsoever.

  "Come on!" the Twilight Princess said forcefully. "Get angrier!"

  "I'm trying!" the hero retorted harshly as he glared at her. However, as he said this, a sudden burst of flame appeared over his open palms, something that both of them

  couldn't help but smile at.

  "Great!" Midna encouraged with a grin. "Now, get rid of it."

  Link nodded, however as he tried to will the fire away, it simply wouldn't disappear. He even tried to physically suppress it with his hand, only to find that even upon

  touching the flame he had created, it did not burn him like it did everything else.

  "I said get rid of
it!" the Twilight Princess commanded, growing frustrated with his lack of control.

  "I don't know how to get rid of it!" the hero shouted back, his eyes wide with fear and worry as the flame grew even larger. He let out a frightened cry as the oncecontainable

  fire grew into an uncontrollable blaze above his palms, before it finally shot out from them and into the skies above, exploding in a bright burst high in the air

  but thankfully not setting anything on fire.

  "Well, that was almost another disaster," Midna said, shaking her head once the explosion had cleared out. However, as she turned to Link to continue attempting to teach

  him, she paused when she noticed that he was still staring up at the black skies in absolute shock, his expression distraught and absolutely terrified. "Link?" the Twilight

  Princess asked softly, hesitantly placing a hand on his shoulder. However, the moment she did, the hero snapped out of his frozen terror and leapt away from her touch,

  clearly startled and shaken up from what had just happened. And yet, as he moved away, his fear quickly translated into magic once again as a sudden whirlwind

  surrounded him, circling around him at incredible speeds as he stood within the center of it, completely taken aback by the powerful gust he had created.

  "Link!" Midna practically screamed so she could be heard above the rushing wind. "You need to calm down! Your emotions are causing your powers to be out of control!"

  Link didn't respond however, as he had barely heard her amidst both the wind and his own racing thoughts. Glancing down at his hands once more, he saw they were

  glowing a bright green, a testament to the source of the spiral of wind surrounding him. He quickly realized once again that he had no idea how to get rid of it, or even

  how to control it. Another burst of fear coursed through the hero as he began to wonder what would happen if he never learned how to properly control his newfound

  powers. How in the world could he be the hero that Hyrule and its queen needed in these dark times if he couldn't even go anywhere without destroying everything in his

  path?