A Darker Shade of Violet

I Go Insane

I sat shivering in my cell and dripping blood for a while. All my thoughts were hazy, my nose hurt, I had a migraine and I knew that if I went to sleep, there was a chance I could die.

So I tried to keep myself awake for as long as possible.

After two hours, I almost nodded off when I heard Shadow enter.

"Oh, Vio, I didn't wake you, did I?" 

I didn't answer. I couldn't think.

"I don't appreciate being ignored," he seethed. He got angry too quickly. I didn't think I'd make him angry. "Speak up or I'll make it so you're incapable of speaking ever again."

"I'm sorry, Shadow," I responded.

"Yeah, I knew you would be. Come closer, baby. Come here."

I moved closer to him, near the cell door. If I could avoid making him angry, I could avoid getting killed or injured further.

I felt his fingers trace some sort of pattern over my cheek. His fingertips were ice cold and I wanted to turn my head away so he'd stop. 

"Hey, Vio, do you know what happens when one-fourth of the Four Sword breaks?"

"No...Shadow, please--"

"You're gonna find out sooner or later now, Vivi," he removed his hand and smiled.

"Shadow, how did you find out?" I was starting to panic. "How do you know?"

Without warning, his grabbed onto my collar and pulled me forward. I didn't hit my head, he had just meant to bring me closer. "Went out and destroyed some stuff, ended up finding something." He yawned as if he found that particular subject boring. 

"Shadow Link, please don't...don't do anything like that, please."

He frowned. "It's either your sword or Red's; if you really don't want me to break yours, I won't."

"What does it do?" I asked. he stayed quiet. "What happens when a piece of the sword breaks?"

His fingers started tracing my lips. "Apparently, it doesn't kill anyone, if that's what you're worrying your pretty mind about. It just makes the owner go insane."

My mouth felt a thousand time drier than it already did. "Please, Shadow, don't hurt anyone, you really don't have to do this."

"But I have to do something, Vi, something that will keep you here with me, I can't do this alone."

"Shadow, please, I'm begging you, I'll do anything."

He stopped in his tracks and pulled me a little closer to him. "Anything, Vio?"

I swallowed. "Anything."

He hummed thoughtfully and pressed his nose into my cheek before sighing. "Then stay down here and behave yourself while I break your sword."

"No!" I yanked myself away from him. "Shadow, you can't do this, why can't you see? They're using you, Shadow! You're their puppet! They'll just throw you away when they're done with you! You don't have to serve them anymore, just come with me, we can find the others, please, you don't have to do this."

He looked angry again before he calmed down, but I had a feeling he was just bottling his anger. "You chose Hyrule over me because you'd save more lives, right?"

"There's more than that--"

"But in the end, that's what it came down to."

I sighed. "Yes. Shadow, I love you, but...I can't...please, Shadow..."

"So, if Hyrule's population were to decrease drastically, would you choose me?"

Everything seemed to slow down while it dawned on me. I was staring at the floor I couldn't look at him.

"Well, would you?" 

I looked up until we locked eyes. "Go fuck yourself."

He smiled. "Why would I do that when I have you right here, Vi?"

I shook my head. "Shadow, this isn't you, you're a good person, there isn't any way you could possibly love me enough to murder everyone in Hyrule."

"No, but I am angry enough. But, as angry as I am, I don't want to do it alone." he smiled and started leaving. "I'll be back soon, love!"

I felt my heart still racing, I felt sick, and overall, I felt scared. 

He was going to do this, he was going to do this...

Maybe if I slam my head into the bars again...

It was obvious that would kill me. Shadow wouldn't be able to hurt me, but I wouldn't be able to help Hyrule...but I didn't want to play a role in its destruction either.

I wrapped my hand around two bars and tried to calm myself down. One good blow, that was all I needed, I had already had some pretty severe damage done. I started counting down in my head.

Three...

Maybe this wasn't a good idea, Shadow didn't know what he was talking about, maybe he was just trying to mess with me, but I had a sickening feeling he wasn't.

Two...

My palms were sweating and my hands almost slipped down. I was scared; of what Shadow might do to me, of what I was about to do. This wasn't right. What could I do?

One...

I let go, knowing I couldn't. I probably wouldn't even be able to kill myself that way, maybe knock myself out, develop brain damage, go into a coma, hurt like absolute hell, but not kill. I sighed. 

And then I started hearing something.

"Of course you wouldn't want to kill yourself, why would you when you could just go with Shadow Link?" And much to my horror, this voice juts sounded exactly like mine.

"I don't want to..."

"Kill yourself, I know. But with Shadow Link, the two of you could rule the world, you can kill those three, and honestly...if you don't want Shadow Link around, just off him when everything's over. Use him."

This really isn't what he wanted.

"Use him, like I'm gonna use you."

___________________________________________________________

I was greeted by a totally mind-broken Vio standing in his cell, just standing. His eyes were closed, his head was still bleeding, I'd patch that up eventually, I was much less angry at him.

I knew it was against his morals to abandon Hyrule and to overall be a hero. But if those morals fell apart like that, he'd stay. He wouldn't be a hero, he wouldn't be a part of their group, he wouldn't leave.

"So, Vio, you still want to go meet up with the others?"

He opened his eyes and frowned. "No. I don't."

I took a step closer to him. "Oh, really, why not?"

He didn't flinch or move back, but he didn't move forward either. It didn't matter.

"Because...they're nothing. It's not worth the effort to save Hyrule, I..."

I got closer to him. "You what?"

"I want to take over the world with you!"

I grabbed onto his hands and he didn't pull away. "And...?"

"We'll take down Ganon, seal Vaati away, and destroy all of Hyrule. Shadow, please, I--"

I pulled him closer to me. "Let's go patch you all up."