Life in Zora's Domain

Chapter 51 - Family Reunion

Summary: Mipha's dearest wish for a reunited family comes true, but she and Link pay a price with ten years of partially false memories. Mipha defends her decision to Link while King Dorephan fills in what he remembers. The children consider how to view their changed parents and Mila gets emotional over the risks they take.

Mipha, Link and family made their way from their home on Mikau Lake to have dinner with King Dorephan and Sidon. It was early evening on the day Mipha and Link returned from the Temple of Time, a mission in which Vera was destroyed, but they had been sent back to the past. They used that opportunity to warn King Dorephan of the Yiga Clan attack at which he lost his life. Now their four children were walking ahead of them, talking to one another, while Mipha and Link lagged behind.

"At some point, we need to tell our family what happened," said Link. "There is no way we can cover for ten years of changed history, even if we hope most of what happened is similar. The only decision is when to tell them and how."

But Mipha seemed to be paying no attention. She first took Link's hand then changed her mind and put her arm around him, and he then put his arm around her. Link glanced over at her, and she looked happier and more excited than he had seen her in years.

"Are you listening to a word I say, sweetheart?" laughed Link. "You've been ecstatic since we got here. You need to come back down from the clouds."

"You mean to come back up from the seabed? Yes, I'm listening," said Mipha. "But I feel so happy right now! This is what I always dreamed, for all of us to be together, for Father to live to see all his grandchildren. Despite Purah's warnings I trusted my heart and the goodness of the Goddess, and thank Hylia, it worked! We need to visit the shrine and say a prayer of thanks."

"Yes, that would be very appropriate," said Link. "I already do that every day I can. We can let the children go on ahead."

"I wonder if the children will have trouble dealing with the fact we experienced a different ten years of their growing up," said Mipha.

"Well, hopefully, there is a lot of overlap," said Link. "It's going to be confusing. But I have a good deal of experience dealing with these kinds of things, so you can just follow my example."

Mipha and Link stopped for a moment by Hylia's shrine at the foot of the stairs to the throne room. They bowed their heads, and each said a silent prayer of gratitude. Then they joined the rest of the family.

"Ah, we're all here now," said King Dorephan. "Let us sit down and enjoy today's family meal. As usual, anyone can bring up any topic they like, but we rotate whose turn it is to start, and if I remember right, today it is young Link's turn."

Everyone sat down to dinner.

"Yes, I'll start," said Linky. "I joined the swim team at school and..."

"What!?" said Link, interrupting in his surprise.

"Relax Dad, I volunteered to be the team's scorekeeper," said Linky. "Of course, I'm not competing against Zoras in swimming races."

"Oh, sorry," said Link.

"One of the boys on the team teased Linky about it though," said Lapha. "He said it was too bad there wasn't a princess in his life to make him some armor."

"Oh, really, Laff? Someone actually said that?" said Mila, annoyed someone was picking on her little brother. "Next time Princess Tila visits here from North Hyrule, I'll ask her to accompany me to the competition. I know she'll be happy to hang out with Linky after the race. That should make whoever teased him think twice and clam up."

"It's okay, Mila, I can take the kidding," laughed Linky. "But I'm always happy to see Princess Tila. Anyway, my next topic involves Laff, so maybe she can take her turn to tell us about it."