Summary: Some family time together and then some new information about the anti-aging rune.

"What are you and Mom laughing about?" said Mila. "And why did you both answer to 'Mom'"?

Link had recently "been" Mipha for a short time due to one of the magic masks, and both Mipha and Link were feeling in a funny mood afterward.

"It's a long story," said Link. "But there were magical masks that would allow you to become another person while you wore them. To fool our enemy, I became your Mom for a short while. So, when you called 'Mom,' we were both laughingly remembering when I briefly was.

"That's weird," said Midon. "So, for a while, you were a Zora, Dad? And a female one too? How did that feel?"

"Weird is the right word for it," said Link. "But I didn't have too much time to experience it. I put the mask on when, as we expected, I saw guards coming to arrest Mom, and then the rest of the time, I was standing around pretending to be your Mom. I never got to do anything, and I especially regret I didn't get to swim. But believe me, you two have the best mother in the world, and I have the best wife. I am still in awe at the depths of her feelings for us. Anyway, we're thankfully done with these masks. Did you have a good time with Uncle Sidon and Grandfather? And how was school today?"

"Yes, we had a good time," said Mila. "But I could tell Grandfather was worried about you and wasn't telling us everything. So Mido and I were a little nervous. We're happy you are both safe at home now. And glad you're back to being our Dad, Dad."

Hugs were exchanged all around.

"Speaking of school," said Midon. "The teacher asked me to give you this note, Mom."

"I hope you are not in trouble," said Mipha taking the note and opening it. But it concerned something else entirely.

Dear Lady Mipha,

We just covered the events of Ganon's defeat in Zora history class, and it occurred to me that it would be an honor and a privilege if you would be willing to attend a class and answer student questions. You do not need to prepare anything, and I have already covered the events. I hope you will have time to do this as I am sure having a hero of this event present in person would help the students appreciate it more.

Your loyal subject,

Galfa

"Your teacher, Galfa, would like me to go to your class to answer questions about Ganon's defeat," said Mipha. "Are you two alright with that?"

"Of course, Mom," said Mila. "That would be neat."

Midon nodded agreement.

"I wonder why you're not invited, Link?" said Mipha. "I guess they want to focus on the Zora aspect. Let's have a little fun before dinner. Anyone for some diving off the waterfall just north of here?"

It was a quick walk and swim there. The four of them all swam up the waterfall, then took turns diving. Mipha, Mila, and Midon had all completed their first dive and were in the water below, and now it was Link's turn. He thought he would do pretty well with the Zora Armor on and had dove into the water on many occasions in the past. He took his position on the rock, checked below him the coast was clear, and performed what he thought was an excellent dive, landing smoothly in the water below. But his dive must not have been very good by Zora standards.

"Nice one, Dad," said Mila laughing. "Were you trying to introduce yourself to all the fish? I felt the splash all the way over here."

"Now, don't be too hard on your father," said Mipha laughing. "That's my job."

"Gee, you're a tough audience," laughed Link. "I thought I did pretty well."

"The last one up has to catch dinner," yelled Midon as he and Mila raced back up the waterfall.

Mipha and Link followed them up, and then they dove a few more times.

"Let's catch some dinner now," said Midon. "That is if Dad didn't scare all the fish away."

They soon had enough fish for everyone and headed home. It was a delicious but light dinner. After dinner, Mila came over to where Link was sitting. She reached for him and put her arms around his neck, then sat down on his lap.

"I'm still not too big to sit with you like this," said Mila.

"No, not at all, sweetheart, far from it. And I love it when you do," said Link. "Everything okay?"

"You know I was just teasing you about your diving, Dad," said Mila. "You did very well for a Hylian. And we all love you."

"I know, Mila," said Link. "Don't worry. You didn't hurt my feelings. Your Mom teases me all the time, and a lot worse. And I love all of you more than anything in the world. Is something bothering you?"

Mila looked into Link's eyes, and again he was struck by their bright gold color and hypnotic effect.

"We learned about the fight against Ganon today at school, and it made me worry about you and Mom. What if you have to do it again? Do they still expect you to be the hero?"

"We don't think Ganon is coming back for a long, long time, Mila. Last time it took him ten thousand years. And if he does, we will be ready. Please don't worry about that," said Link.

"But if he did, you and Mom would have to battle Ganon again, wouldn't you?"

"Yes," said Link. "But we will be ready if he ever does. You should have seen how Princess Zelda used her power as a descendant of Goddess Hylia to encase him in a giant ball of light brighter than the sun and banish him from our world."

Mila stopped to think.

"But can someone take over for you and Mom as hero and Champion?" said Mila.

"Well, I think in Mom's case, she will probably train your uncle Sidon to be the next Champion when he and she are ready. In my case, it's more complicated. I think, at some point, the sword that seals the darkness will let me know our time together is over, and I need to return it to its resting place. In a way, I'm surprised it hasn't done so already, but I'm also glad it hasn't. Like Mom and Ruta, the sword and I have a bond that feels like love."

"But no matter what, you are not going to leave us, right?" said Mila.

"Mila, I would only leave you if I thought my not leaving you was worse for all of you," said Link. "Mom, you and Midon are my life now, and you will always come first. It breaks my heart to see you so worried. What can I do or say to make you feel better?"

Mila leaned forward and put her head on Link's shoulder. He put his hand over the part of her tail fin that covered her neck and patted gently. Then he leaned over and kissed her cheek. She nestled into him with her head and held him tighter.

"In my heart, you will always be my baby girl," said Link. "I will never, ever let you down. And I think I have a pretty good record of keeping my promises."

Mila looked up at him and smiled, then kissed him on the cheek.

"Thanks, Dad, I do feel better now. And when I'm older, I will never, ever let any harm come to you. I will heal you, no matter how bad the wound. I love you, Dad."

At that, Mila got up and went over to join Midon, while Link sat there wiping his eyes. Mipha came over to Link and saw his tears.

"Are you alright?" said Mipha. "Looks like you had an emotional father-daughter moment. Could you use a hug?"

"Very much," said Link as he reached out, and they hugged.

"The class discussion of Ganon has made Mila feel insecure. I guess Midon is okay. You remember when she was smaller, Mila always worried about me leaving the family to be with other Hylians? Now she's worried we will both go off and battle Ganon again. I think I calmed her fears. But then she told me that when she's older, she will take care of me, and she used almost the same words you did at Ruta. And I broke down because of how touching it was to hear her say that, and because she hasn't realized yet that when she's older, I won't be around anymore."

"You do need a hug," said Mipha. "And you'll have me crying too if you keep talking like that. Can we change the subject?"

"Okay," said Link. "How about a dance? I have that small box that plays music Robbie gave me."

"Sure, that would be nice. You know I love music," said Mipha.

Link retrieved the box, something Robbie with his passion for music had created. Link turned it on, then took Mipha in his arms, and they danced.

Mila and Midon saw them and gave them brief applause.

"We should do this more often," said Link. "Music really can heal the soul, and holding you makes it even better."

They continued dancing until the music ended.

"I hope you're feeling better now," said Mipha.

"Yes, you've healed me again," said Link.

"Good. Now, if you would only let Revali teach you to dance better," said Mipha laughing and thinking back to Zelda's wedding.

"I'm sure he would love that!" said Link.

The next morning the children had left for school, and Mipha and Link were home. Mipha had agreed to answer questions from Mila and Midon's class that morning.

"Nervous?" said Link.

"A little," said Mipha. "I don't want to say anything that will embarrass Mila and Midon. But otherwise, I'm fine."

"Well, good luck," said Link. They kissed, and Mipha headed for the class.

Classes were usually held during the day in one of the water pools below the throne room. There were eight people in Mila and Midon's class, and when Mipha arrived, the teacher interrupted what she was doing to introduce her.

"Now, class, it is an honor to have with us Lady Mipha, whom you all know, of course, is a member of our Royal Family and our Champion. She has agreed to answer any questions you may have about the subject we just studied. Please raise your fin if you have a question, and I will call on you. Then politely ask your question."

As the students raised a fin and were called upon, they stated their question.

"Lady Mipha, were you scared when you battled Ganon's creature?"

"Yes, I was scared," said Mipha. "The creature was a huge purple monster, with large weapons and a horrible screeching voice. It had one eye that could also shoot a strong beam of energy at you. And it could hurl giant ice blocks your way too. Anyone would be scared facing something like that. It was created to scare you. But I had someone special there helping me, Link. He bore the brunt of the battle and helped distract the creature enabling me to get safely to Vah Ruta."

"Lady Mipha, do you know what the creature you battled was trying to do?"

"Yes, it was trying to take over Ruta," said Mipha. "Fortunately, we had recently developed something that we hoped would prevent that, and it worked."

"Lady Mipha, what if that had not worked, and Ruta was taken over?"

"Now, that is not a question about what happened," said Galfa. "So, if Lady Mipha does not feel comfortable speculating we can all understand."

"No, I don't mind," said Mipha. "We discussed that possibility when we were planning our strategy. Had the creature taken over Ruta, Link and I would have entered Ruta and destroyed it together. It would have been more dangerous, but we could have done it. Fortunately, we didn't have to."

"Lady Mipha, we were told you destroyed the creature and saved Link's life at the end? So, are you the real hero?"

"I'd like to say we destroyed it together. Link was wounded in the battle by its energy beam, and the monster was about to fire its weapon at him again, but I was able to activate Ruta in time. But the entire battle up until that point was all Link's," said Mipha.

"Lady Mipha, can you describe the battle?"

"Well, I can try, but Link could answer this better than me. Link shot a lot of arrows at the creature to distract it and weaken it. He couldn't attack it with his sword since the creature was hovering over the water. All this time I was swimming underwater to Vah Ruta. When I got to Ruta, I saw that Link was hurt from one of the creature's energy beams and was lying on the pier, trying to get up. I activated Ruta in time to destroy the monster, then came to Link's aid."

"Lady Mipha, speaking of Link, why is he called the Hero of Hyrule? It seems to me he never actually finishes a task. You destroyed the creature that attacked Ruta, and we were told Princess Zelda destroyed Ganon. And you and the other Champions weakened Ganon for Link beforehand. Aren't you and Princess Zelda and the other Champions the real heroes, not Link? Would you mind explaining this?"

"That's a good question, and I don't mind explaining," said Mipha. "And I can understand how you would get that impression. Yes, it is true the Divine Beasts weakened Ganon before Link attacked. But they only weakened him partially. Ganon remained a very, very powerful enemy that Link had to face alone. If you would like to hear about that battle first hand, perhaps your teacher would invite Link to answer your questions. But it was a very terrible battle, and it was only thanks to his victory over Ganon that Princess Zelda was able to complete Ganon's destruction. Princess Zelda could not have done it without Link, and vice versa. So, both are heroes, but Link had to go first, and Princess Zelda designated him the Hero of Hyrule because of that. I hope that helps."

"Are there other questions?" asked Galfa.

"Lady Mipha, can you describe how it is to pilot Vah Ruta?"

"Yes, Ruta is a true delight to pilot. It took me a little while to get comfortable with how to control her as she is very complex and powerful. She responds very well to what I need her to do now. While inside Ruta the ride is very smooth. And I feel as if we are friends, even closer than friends. I guess you can tell that because I think of Ruta as she, not it. And I was happy I was able to pilot Ruta for Hyrule's sake."

"Lady Mipha, what do you think of the other Champions? We all know you like Link."

At this, there was some giggling from the class, and Galfa had to remind them to be quiet and respectful.

"The other Champions are all heroes, and each has his or her personality. Daruk, the Goron Champion, is very good-natured and likes to clown around, but he understands people well and is a fierce combatant when needed. Lady Urbosa is a strong warrior of the Gerudo. She can handle herself in combat with great skill, but she also has a kind side, especially toward Princess Zelda. Revali is a very proud Rito warrior and the most skilled archer you will ever see. His flying ability is beyond any other's. We all respect each other for our roles, and I view them all as friends. But I still do like Link the best."

That brought a laugh from the class.

"Okay," said Galfa, "we only have time for one or two more questions. We need to be mindful of Lady Mipha's time."

"Lady Mipha, what do you think of Princess Zelda and her role?"

"Well, as I mentioned earlier, she played a key role in sealing Ganon away. She is a descendant of the Goddess Hylia, and only she can access the power needed to do that. She is a very kind person and a friend. I hope you can meet her someday."

"Lady Mipha, were you ever afraid you might lose the battle?"

"Not when Link was with me," said Mipha. "He was very courageous and had a lot of confidence. I think if he wasn't worried about my safety, he might have even defeated the creature by himself."

"Alright, class," said Galfa, "I think that is enough questions. Let's put our fins together and show Lady Mipha our appreciation."

The class applauded, and Mipha said they were very welcome. Then she headed home.

"How did it go?" said Link when Mipha arrived home.

"Pretty well, I think," said Mipha. "They asked some questions about you as well."

Mila and Midon came home from school, and Mipha asked them how she did.

"You did fine, Mom," said Mila. "Some people thought you were too generous about what Dad did, but that's because they want to believe a Zora was the hero."

"Yes, some people were saying you were making Link sound more important because you're married to him," said Midon.

"Well, I'll only say that someday when you're older, maybe you will learn the whole story. For now, just take my word for it that your father is the real hero. And he could have had a place of honor and a great career at Hyrule Castle, but he chose love over honors, and that's why we're together."

"By the way, two of the boys in my class were teasing me over my eye color," said Midon. "They said I wasn't a real Zora. I was going to fight them, but I remembered what Dad said about using my flurry rush skill, and I held my temper."

"You did the right thing," said Mipha. "People like that are just ignorant. You have that eye color because of your father, but you are one hundred percent Zora as any medical test will show. The genes your body got from your Dad are ones that Hylians and Zoras share in common."

Meanwhile, back at the Hyrule Castle Lab, a discussion was taking place.

"Dr. Purah, can I see that experiment again?" said Robbie.

Purah was using a Sheikah Slate to apply a modified age-reducing rune she had created to some butterflies she had collected. She had set the parameters of the rune correctly and picked out one of the butterflies. Then she activated the rune, and an instant later, there was a butterfly pupa present.

"That butterfly was exactly 32 days old," said Purah. "I know that because I raised it in the lab. Now I set the anti-aging rune to reverse its age by 15 days, and it changed into a pupa, which is between 10 and 20 days old for this species. So, it appears the rune worked fine. But now, let's try it again."

Purah took another butterfly from the collection she had in the lab and applied the Sheikah Slate rune to it. In an instant, there was a caterpillar where the butterfly had been.

"Now that butterfly was 33 days old, so it should have ended up a Pupa as well," said Purah. "But instead we have a caterpillar, which for this species occurs between 5 to 10 days old. So, the rune reversed this specimen by 23 to 28 days, not 15. That's why I am saying something is wrong with the rune's consistency."

"Is it possible the rune is not accurate to the day?" asked Robbie. "After all, the original rune was designed for Hylians, and a few days, either way, would not matter much to their age."

"No, I recalibrated the rune for a species with a lifespan of 40 days," said Purah. "Everything should scale in proportion. But if you don't believe me, I can show you my notes of similar experiments I have performed on longer-lived species such as trees whose lifespan is many years. The same erratic behavior resulted. Trees of about the same age would become saplings in one instance and acorns in another or show little age reduction in a third trial, all with the same rune settings. This problem is not due to the coarseness of the calibration."

"Alright, let's go over again how you constructed this rune and examine it relative to other runes that we know work. There must be some aspect of your rune that causes instability," said Robbie.

"Fine," said Purah, "though I think we have done this before."

"Yes," said Robbie, "but I am familiar with a good deal of ancient elements, and I am trying to determine what properties a missing element would need to have to provide stability to the process. So, it helps me to hear it again."

Purah pulled out her notes and went over all of the information with Robbie, which took almost two hours.