Chapter Text
Vio
Shadow grinned at Vio politely. “Of course you can use my ink, Violet!” Shadow and Vio were in the library. They were surrounded by bookshelves, and the smell of books. Vio was sitting in an uncomfortable chair and was writing a paper. He had just run out of ink. His eyebrows were still turned up from his question.
Vio stood up and strolled over to Shadow casually, seeming to be sizing Shadow up. Shadow squirmed uncomfortably under his gaze. Vio reached for the ink.
Vio quickly slammed Shadow into the wall. The wall was cold and hard. It was made of gray bricks. The ink Shadow was holding smashed to the ground and the glass container shattered, leaving a stain on the beautiful carpet. Vio pointed the knife in his hand at Shadow's throat.
“So, ‘Shadow’, who are you actually?”
‘Shadow’ stared, mildly perturbed, at the blade pointed towards his neck.
“Wh-what do you mean?” ‘Shadow’ stuttered, innocently.
“Shadow doesn’t stand like that. Nor does he smile like that. He has never once in his life called me Violet,” Vio listed. Their faces were so close to touching that ‘Shadow’ could feel Vio’s breath on his face. He could taste it in his mouth. Vio pressed the knife closer to his neck. ‘Shadow’ could feel the cold metal on his skin. “Who are you, and what did you do with Shadow?” Vio inquired. Vio’s cold eyes stared directly into his.
‘Shadow’ hummed, “You must think you’re so smart.” His nervous demeanor faded and was replaced by arrogant confidence.
Vio studied ‘Shadow’ as his face slowly shifted from Shadow’s to match his own.
‘Vio’ smirked at Vio. ‘Vio’ kept complete eye contact as he screamed.
“Help! Help, please! It’s Shadow! He’s attacking me!” Two guards rushed into the room and gawked at the two Vios. “Please,” ‘Vio’ pleaded, “It’s Shadow. I think he’s turned evil! No, you were evil all along weren’t you?” The fake’s face was filled with the sting of betrayal. The guards shifted their weight as they looked between the Vios.
He’s good, noted Vio.
“He isn’t Vio,” Vio elucidated, coolly, “I am. That’s a doppelganger.” Vio struggled to come up with proof. ‘Vio’ was quicker. He had planned this.
“If I’m the doppelganger, why are you the one with a knife to my throat?” ‘Vio’ turned his attention towards the guards. “Wouldn’t you think the imposter would be the one attacking?” To the real Vio, it seemed obvious that ‘Vio’ was attempting to replicate his calm attitude. However, it clearly was not as easy for the imbecile guards to catch on. Did Vio really have to do everything by himself?
Vio opened his mouth to speak, he would set things straight. “C-”
“Don’t listen to anything he says, he’ll manipulate you. I know that from experience,” ‘Vio’ claimed, clearly referring to his lie that Shadow had betrayed him. Vio highly doubted that the guards were intelligent enough to pick up on this subtle hinting, but he could appreciate the dedication.
The guards shoved a gag in his mouth.
They really carry a gag on them? He thought. Vio tried to turn around to break free and make a break for it, but his arms were being firmly grasped by the guards. They tied his wrists together. One guard clutched his left arm, and the other followed suit on his right. Vio’s knife clinked to the ground.
The guards dragged Vio out of the room. Vio looked back at ‘Vio’. He was wiggling his fingers in a gloating goodbye.
“Thank Hylia we have a reason to lock up this terrible thing!” The first guard exclaimed merrily, talking about the man they thought was Shadow.
“Right? I hate it so much. I’m so glad we won’t have to deal with it again.” The guard intentionally stepped on Vio’s shoe, causing him to trip and fall onto the ground. The guards picked him back up, but Vio just smiled internally at their foolishness.
“I’m mostly just glad I’ll be able to sleep at night! Having a villain in the castle scares me beyond all reason.”
Vio glared at the guards. How dare they harbor such feelings about Shadow. How dare they dehumanize him by calling him an “it”. Shadow had saved them all. If Shadow was a villain, so was Vio. If these were their true feelings, those cowards should have told them to Vio or Shadow to their face! He wished he could say these things to them, but his gag restrained him.
The guards dragged Vio down a long staircase. Step, step, step, step. The air became more and more stale. Step, step, step, step. Vio knew where they were going. He had only been there once since he had split off from Link. Step, step, step, step.
The castle dungeon.
They reached the bottom of the staircase. The floor was made of concrete brick. They dragged him past rows of doors only barely lit with torches. They came to an open cell and shoved him through the doorway. He fell down to the musty floor. The dungeon’s door slammed in his face.