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When Marco stumbled across the media library, he concluded that this had to be the best day so far on this freaky meatship.

Music. Massive screens. A giant, alien entertainment centre. And, most importantly - video games.

Marco was immediately drawn to the tall white box with the strange looking controllers. He snorted when he saw the name "Wii" (who though that was a good idea? The puns where almost too easy) but hey, this was clearly gaming of the future. Or gaming of a strange and bizarre alien race - it was hard to tell. Either way, it was cool, and Marco was so going to try it out.

He fished around for a vaguely interesting looking game, bypassing all the ones that looked boring (Wii Fit? Cricket? Imagine: Fashion Idol?! pfft), eventually settling on Escape from Bug Island.

Marco had been a bug before. Waaaaay too many times. Now he could squish them in safe video game fun.

But as Marco began to play, his good mood rapidly diminished. Who thought up this whole "swinging around the controller" thing? What the hell was going on with that animation?

"What the hell is with this?!" He yelled, as he tried to get the control to do what he wanted dammit. "This is nuts! GAMING OF THE FUTURE IS CRAP!"

[[ooc: For reference, this is the extraodinarily bad game Marco is playing.]]

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Sheik shrugs, fidgeting with the edge of his tabard. "I am myself. The princess is the princess. We are not the same people, were not born as one - we are both individuals."

Just ones that happen to share the same body, but he sees no reason why he should tell Marco that.

"It hasn't happened yet, in my time," he says quietly, "I was taken before I reached the temple. But what you will see there is nothing more than an illusion."

For a moment, he remains silent. Then, ignoring Zelda's protest, he quietly asks, "What happens? In the game that... I appear in. How does it end?"

"Dude, she freaking turns into you! What, have you two come some weird freaky swapping magic going on or something?" Marco said, sound affronted. Though really, he was just feeling very ticked off that...whatever it was that was going on between Sheik and Zelda, it wasn't included in the games.

Marco glared at him, suspicious. And feeling a little disappointed that Sheik wouldn't just suddenly go "poof!" and there was Zelda.

"Well, for one thing, you turn out to be Zelda."

"Yes, we've established that," Sheik muttered, a faint note of sarcasm in his voice. "Clearly I'm just Zelda in disguise, despite the fact that we're of different age, height, build, race, and gender. What happens after that, I mean?"

So clearly, the general plan worked. Enough so that people believed they were apparently the same person.

Somewhere in his mind, Zelda was chuckling. He gave her an irritated, [Zelda... don't.]

[Sorry. He thinks you're secretly a girl, though... isn't that a little funny?]

[No, not really.]

((OOC: Don't mind the snarkiness >.> And I'm off to bed. Night!))

That argument might work on most people, Sheik. But not only has Marco been a different age, height, build, race, and gender, he's been a whole different species. "Zelda's got some pretty good magical abilities up her sleeve," Marco said coolly. "I'm pretty sure changing your appearance like that is no trouble."

"And if you're not Zelda, how come you want to know what happens afterwards so much?" Marco demanded.

[[ooc: Night!]]

[...Three spare me.]

Actually, Marco was closer than he suspected. Yes, it was technically Zelda's body, and Zelda's magic that had shifted it to his own form, but that didn't mean he didn't exist as a separate consciousness.

"I want to know because it's my world as well, you realise," he said quietly. "We only ever planned up to the Temple. I assume that Link defeats Ganondorf?"

"Yeah, you guys trap him in the Sacred Realm and all that," Marco said. "Though you know, since this place has got all these games you could just find it and play it yourself."

He was still giving Sheik a suspicious look though, as if expecting him to throw off his clothes and suddenly be Zelda at any moment.

[[ooc: sorry for the...extreemly vague descriptions. I think the plot of this game confuses me, orz]]

Sorry, Marco, if Sheik threw off his clothes, all he'd see was, well, Sheik.

"Well, I wouldn't," Sheik corrected him, "It would be Link, the Princess, and the Sages who sealed him. My part ends at the Temple of Time."

Except now they were here and Hyrule was gone, so who knew when his part would end?

Snorting a little, Sheik shook his head. "I doubt it would be that easy," he said dubiously, "I don't even know what to look for - you said there was a game called Ocarina of Time, that is the one I am in?"

((OOC: Heh, no, you got the gist of it ^_^))

Okay, Marco does not want to see that. Eew.

"Yeah, maybe I would beleive that. If you know, you didn't turn into Zelda," he said, still looking suspicious.

"Dude, we just need to find a Nintendo 64. If they've got all these other consoles, they've gotta have that one too, right?"

With that, Marco wandered off to search through the Media Library. Eventually, he managed to find what he was looking for. "Aha! Now, Ocarina of Time, Ocarina of Time..." he said, starting to flick through the available games.

Then it was a good thing he was keeping his clothes on, right?

Sheik sighed, following Marco as he searched for the game he appeared in. He knew enough to associate Sheik with Zelda but not enough to know the specifics, and if their enemies were here, that that put them both in danger. He didn't move as Marco searched, silently arguing in his head.

[But he could be a danger!]

[He doesn't seem malicious. Sheik, please - he has a little knowledge, but not the full story.]

[He shouldn't even know that! I was hardly expecting for our story to be made publicly available in his world.]

[All the more reason to tell him. He can't simply forget what he does know.]

[...Do you really think this is... right?]

[I do.]

[...Alright. I trust you.]

"Marco," he started carefully, "Are you aware of what the possible consequences would be, should Ganondorf and the princess both be present on this ship?"

"He'll try to take the Triforce, duh," Marco said idly as he flicked through the games. But despite his careless tone, when he glances up at Sheik his expression is serious. "And even if you are somehow not Zelda, she's definitely on the ship. Sorry, but you're a minor character. If the Daligig consider your story important enough to take, they definitely have her in the pods somewhere. And probably Ganondorf too. I mean, come on. They've got Lex Luther. They don't seem to have been that discriminating."

Flicking through a few more games - where the hell was it? - Marco continued. "But dude. If you're that worried, make some plans. You've got Stacy with her tentacles, a whole battalion of super-heroes, and a bunch of other people with who knows what kind of freaky powers. Seriously, you've got more resources here than you'd ever get back home. And you have an advantage: you woke up first."

Oh, he knew full well he was only here due to the fact that he was currently sharing a body with the Princess of Destiny. A few minutes later, and he wouldn't have been brought here at all.

"Ganondorf did not simply take over by brute force," he murmured, "He had to integrate himself with the castle, first."

Finally, he sighed. Zelda couldn't remain hidden forever - he couldn't ask her to put her life ever more on hold. [I would, but... I think he's right. It is safer, here.]

Nodding in response to her words, he murmured, "I can explain, if you wish. But not here." A speedy glance around. "There are too many people around."

"Yeah, but like I said. You're here first. You get to do all the integrating before he ever gets here."

Marco narrowed his eyes. Was Zelda trying to disguise herself? Is that why she - Sheik - was still trying to pass off as a whole different person?

"Alright," Marco said calmly. "Where?"

Sheik shrugged a little, heading out and beckoning for Marco to follow. The hall that led to the Sensoriums tended to be busy, as did the one leaning to the Obs Deck, so instead he led him to the one leading to the sleeping halls - with the crew quarters open, they were largely disused.

"You were partially right," he said softly when they reach a spot with no one else around, "Zelda is strong in magic, and she can change her appearance."

Another steadying breath. "If Ganondorf is here, and if he still desires the Triforce, then she will be in danger. And that is the reason that she remains safely hidden within me. So," he continued, "You understand why I was reluctant to indicate that I had anything to do with Zelda within earshot of other people. We share form - this is her body, it merely looks like mine right now - but we are both separate individuals."

There was definite sadness in his expression, now. "I was brought back specifically to protect her over the past seven years, and when she is to reunite with Link in the Temple of Time, then my part will be done and Link will never know that I was anything more than a clever disguise." He smiled, but it was definitely wry, sad. "I suppose that will never happen, now, thanks to the Ohm."

Marco would have been happy to know he was right - if that description of two individuals in the one body hadn't sounded too eerily familiar for Marco's liking. "You sound like a Yeerk," he said flatly. "How do I know that you aren't controlling her body by force?"

[[ooc: sleep time for me - I'll tag back tomorrow!]]

"If I meant her any harm, why would I be protecting her?" he said flatly, shaking his head. "I don't know what a Yeerk is, but I promise you, this is not by force. She is the stronger of the two of us - I maintain control now only because she allows it."

He sighed again, then offered, "If you do not take my word for it, will you take hers instead?"

((OOC: Heh, I should be heading off, too. Night!))

Logically, after thinking back on his memories of the game it was pretty clear that Zelda and Sheik's situation wasn't anything like the Yeerks. And Sheik did have a point - but after all those years of fighting the Yeerks, suspicion did tend to be Marco's first response.

And no way was he going to pass up the change to talk to Zelda. "Yeah, I'd listen to hers," Marco said, trying to sound cool when he was really feeling giddy on the inside. Princess Zelda!

"Then," Sheik said quietly, "I would shield your eyes."

Because on the back of Sheik's right hand, three triangles were glowing, one piece brighter than the others. They flared, and then there was a blinding flash - and when it cleared, Sheik was gone, replaced by someone else entirely - a young woman, three inches shorter, feminine curves instead of muscle, strawberry blonde hair in a neat braid, fair skin instead of tan, blue eyes instead of red.

"Marco," she said with a faint smile, offering her hand, the image of the Triforce slowly fading from sight, "It is a pleasure to meet you."

"Why do I need to...ack!" Marco quickly brought his hand up before his eyes as the sudden flash blinded him - eesh, could he have at least given him a little more warning? - but when he managed to blink away the stars he stared at what was in front of him.

"Princess Zelda!" he said, all traces of anything even remotely approaching cool gone: right now, he was definitely a giddy fanboy. With a grin he went and shook her hand. "This is so cool!"

And normally at this stage, when suddenly meeting a very hot and awesome girl, Marco would be trying to think up a good pick up line. But the fact that he now knew that Sheik was also in there somewhere kinda creeped him out a little. For all that this was totally awesome, it was also very strange.

Zelda gave him a smile - sincere, if not a little sheepish. "I must admit that it is unusual to know that others know our story," she confessed, "But knowing that we succeed is indeed a relief."

But on to business. "I can indeed vouch for Sheik's words," she said gently, "He has not taken control - indeed, I am the stronger of the two of us." Clasping Marco's hand, she gave him a reassuring smile. "Without him, I would not have survived the past seven years."

"Hey, if we can find the games, you can play them yourself," Marco said, still grinning like an idiot. "And okay, I beleive you. Sheik is not a power-crazed Yeerk wannabe."

Zelda quirked a smile at the image of her playing one of those... games, shrugging a little. "If we can, then I may," she chuckled. "And... what is a Yeerk?"

Marco shuffled a little a her question. He'd kinda got the impression from the other Animorphs and people like Selene that there had been Yeerks on board, and everyone knew about them. Apparently not, though, if Zelda didn't know.

"They're alien parasites. From my universe. They're slugs that crawl into a person's ear and take over their body. Then it's goodbye freedom, hello to being a prisoner in your own head."

Sorry, Marco, Zelda and Sheik just managed to miss them.

Zelda looked distinctly concerned. "Sheik is not a Yeerk," she reassured, "Even when he is in control, I can resume control whenever I need to." If anything, she was the Yeerk - Sheik was little more than an observer when she was in control.

What was it that Luke had described them as - symbiotes? "It isn't a parasitic relationship - it's a symbiotic one."

((OOC: Technically speaking, parasitism is a symbiotic relationship too - specifically, this type of symbiosis is obligate mutualism. Sheik can't survive without Zelda, and it's mutually beneficial to them both. ...But that's the science student talking, don't mind me XD))

"Well, he's not slimy and living in your brain, so yeah," Marco admitted. "But hey, as long as you're cool with having some dude living in your head."

[[ooc: XD Alas, Marco would probably just be, "don't care, parasite's a parasite" in response to your logical argument of science XD]]

[I am most certainly not slimy.]

Chuckling a little at Sheik's indignation, Zelda nodded. "We have learned to adapt, yes," she confirmed, not bothering to correct him to the fact that most often, it was her living in Sheik's head. Then she smiled a little. "I think it would be very lonely if we were separated again."

((OOC: But but but. Mutualism and parasitism are mutually exclusive by definition? ^_^;; ))