Zelda strode forward, reaching out to take Mipha's hand, frozen in outstretched position. I squinted, preparing myself for the blinding light.

Zelda's hand made contact with Mipha's, and there was no response.

"How long did it take for me to awaken?" Zelda asked.

"It was instantaneous, bright light then you were unfrozen." I said, pondering why it hadn't worked.

Perhaps it won't work for me." Zelda said, gazing at her hand.

"I'll give it a try. You should keep an eye out for any changes though, there might be some hint as to how you got here." I said.

Zelda nodded, taking a few steps away from the statues, she reached out with her hand in the statue's direction. The triforce symbol glowed on the back of her hand, the left piece glowing more prominently than the other two.

I got Zelda's confirmation that she was ready and stepped towards the statues. Reaching out, I barely grazed Mipha's hand before the change began. Mipha dissolved into a golden ball of light, while the small tree beside her bloomed into a ball of white light.

Samus twitched, then swung her arm cannon in my direction, the movement surprisingly quiet for the massive suit she wore. Time slowed to a crawl as I looked down the barrel of the cannon, a crackle of energy visible deep within the weapon. A thousand thoughts flooded through my brain, but the most overwhelming one was that my parents didn't deserve this.

Before Samus could do anything else the white and yellow balls of light struck Samus in the back.

The blinding flash of light forced me to close my eyes once more. When I opened my eyes, I was relieved to not be looking at a dangerous weapon. Though once I took in the woman in front of me, the relief turned to wariness.

She reminded me of a large carnivore, setting my hairs on end in a way I hadn't felt since my run in with a young grizzly bear. While lean, her muscles rippled with every movement, veins visible against her bright red and cream colored skin. The long tail and fins that sprouted from her head, taking the place of her hair coupled with the serrated teeth visible in her open mouth were reminiscent of a shark. The Mipha statue I had seen moments ago shared many of these traits, but this woman was at least two feet taller, at least three inches taller than myself.

All three of us were motionless.

"Princess… is it really you. When did you get so small?" The woman said.

Zelda hesitated for a fraction of a second, "Mipha, you're the one who has grown. I almost did not recognize you."They were still for a moment longer, then began to laugh, moving to grab each other's hands.

I watched the exchange in silence. My hands clutched behind my back to keep them from shaking.

"It is good to see you Princess." Mipha said, ruby lips pulling into a smile.

"It is good to see you too Mipha, I had thought you dead." Zelda said.

Mipha's smile faded, "So did I. I… I remember dying. I was trapped for so long, until Link saved me." A contemplative look crossed her face, the six raised spots making up her brow furrowing. "The other champions and I were able to weaken Ganon enough that Link was able to finish him off. With our work finished, we were ready to.. Move on."

"Calamity Ganon was destroyed?" Zelda asked.

"Yes Princess, you haven't lost your memory as well have you? You were there in the final moments, you fired upon him to help Link," Mipha said.

Zelda turned her head to stare at me, "Just like in the videos." Her voice was low enough that I could barely make out what she said. "Oh, excuse me. Mipha, this is Ranger Fossil. Ranger Fossil, this is Princess Mipha of the Zora tribe. Ranger Fossil has been housing me this past week and assisting in my research of the situation we find ourselves in." Zelda said as she stepped to the side.

"It is a pleasure to meet you Princess," I said, internally debating whether to bow or not.

"It is nice to meet you as well. I thank you Ranger Fossil, for helping Princess Zelda." Mipha turned to look at me, and it was at this point I realized that beyond the blue sash and jewelry she wore, she was naked. Her cream colored breasts were larger than they were depicted in the game, and where the game had shown smooth flesh, very human-like nipples were clearly visible. I wasn't sure if the games had simply left out Zora nipples and genitalia for the sake of making the games family friendly. My question was answered by Zelda noticing as well.

"Mipha, your chest! Fossil look away." Zelda ordered, her royal attitude making itself apparent.

Before I turned away I saw Mipha's cheeks turn bright red. "This is… How did?" Mipha stammered. The feeling that she was a dangerous predator vanished somewhere amongst her stammering.

"I'll go on my patrol, meet you both back at the house later?" I said, desperate to get away.

"That would be best," Zelda replied from behind me and I departed from the glade.

My heart was still racing as I made it to the docks. It hadn't been my first time dealing with someone hostile and armed while working as a Ranger, but it had been my first time looking down the barrel of a weapon.

I hopped off the gator, taking slow deep breaths, calming myself as best I could. The sound of water rocking the empty dock acted like a metronome that I timed my breaths to.

I stood there on the sandy beach, wind tugging at my jacket.

Once my heart was no longer trying to escape my rib cage, I began to organize my thoughts.

The idea that there was a non human sapient from another dimension in my home right now was jarring. I had a lot of questions, most of which neither Zelda nor Mipha could likely answer. The most important one was if this would keep happening.

There were countless others, and I mulled them over as much as I could.

The cold started to creep its way into my thick beard, compelling me to move on with my patrol. It was a little after noon when I returned to the ranch, kicking mud off of my boots and stepping through the front door.

Mipha was on the couch across from the front door, bundled up in blankets. When she saw me she turned away, pulling her head into the blankets and blushed. Her head tail was caught on the back of the couch and stuck straight up in the air, before Mipha adjusted and pulled it under the blankets.

"How was your patrol?" Zelda asked, she was seated next to the blushing Zora, steaming mug in her hands.

"Uneventful, even with the mild winter no one has been coming this far out." I said, taking off my boots and coat.

"Ranger Fossil," Mipha said, lifting her head from the blankets, "I'd.. I'd like to apologize for my indecency earlier. My body has… changed when I arrived here. I did not realize the extent of which at first."

I waved my hand, "I'm sorry for staring. No worries though, I worked at a clothing optional beach long enough that nudity doesn't phase me. I almost didn't notice."

Both Zelda and Mipha were blushing now, making me wonder what Hylian attitudes around nudity were.

"Sooo, Zelda has explained everything, yes?" I said, changing topics.

"Yes! Yes I did." Zelda said, apparently happy with the distraction.

"I informed Mipha about the nature of this world, and she was able to give us some more clues as to the circumstances of our arrival here." Her face fell, "We are no closer to finding a way home however."

"Hyrule is safe Princess, you must not forget that. We can afford to take our time." Mipha said, resting a hand on Zelda's shoulder. "That is, if you are willing to extend your hospitality to me as well Ranger Fossil."

"Of course," I said, "As part of my job I'm allowed to have people on the island, friends, family, significant others. Given that I just met you, I'm bending the rules a litte, but unless you damaged the island or made a huge mess, I won't be challenged on it."

"I would do no such thing, I assure you. The Zora tribe are guardians of nature, that you dedicate your life to similar cause is admirable." Mipha said softly.

"That's another reason why I wouldn't force you to leave. Earth, this world doesn't have other sapient life like the Zora, as far as we are aware. You'd be noticed as non-human instantly and although many humans would have no problem with you, some would be hostile, enough that you would be under constant threat."

Mipha glanced down at her hand, at the fin that sprouted from her skin halfway down her forearm. "So I've traded one prison for another then."

"No, we will find a way for you to explore beyond the island. You said our story was well known Fossil, couldn't Mipha simply pretend to be a human dressed as herself?" Zelda said.

"That isn't.." I paused, "You know, that actually might work. There is a convention in a city nearby where people dress up like characters, sometime next month. I'll look up the exact info, but it could be a good opportunity for both of you to go see the big city. We might have to dress Mipha up a little to make her appearance seem like a costume, but it should be no problem."

Mipha smiled, apparently content with idea.

"There is another matter we need to address. My observations when you touched the statues." Zelda said, looking at me with a serious look on her face. "Right before Mipha appeared, there was light that struck you Fossil. Similar to the light that Mipha and the tree had become."

"That's.. A little concerning." I admitted, "I didn't feel anything or feel any different now, though it is good to know that I should keep an eye out. Did you notice how the colors differed as well?" Zelda nodded, Mipha had a confused look on her face, "Zelda had become a red light when I touched her statue, the tree was white, you were gold when I touched your statue." I explained to Mipha.

"You believe there is a pattern," Mipha said.

"Maybe, but we won't know until more people appear, if they appear." I said.

"There isn't much more we can do except wait. I wasn't able to detect anything new when Mipha was awakened." Zelda said.

"I do have a request, if it isn't too much. Zelda mentioned true to life recordings of our lives, 'Videos'?" She looked to Zelda for confirmation, who nodded. "I'd like to see them."

I thought back to how I had handled the game videos the first time. "That should be possible, but.. Um.. there might be some private stuff on them. How about I just show you the videos about yourself, and if Zelda is comfortable with it, she can share the videos about herself that she wants to share."

They agreed and I pulled up a video compilation of all the scenes with Mipha in them from Breath of the Wild. I gave Mipha a quick run through of how to pause and resume the video and Zelda and I stepped outside to give Mipha space.

"How are you holding up?" I asked as we walked through the dead grass and mud.

"Fine, I'm fine." Zelda said.

"You can tell me, I won't judge." I said.

Zelda sighed, "My friend is alive, a miracle has happened. That is what is important right now."

We paused at the fence surrounding the structures that made up the ranch. It was falling apart in places, wooden beams split down the middle, or the notches at the ends rotted until they fell out of the posts. It still served its purpose for now, but it was halfway gone.

"If you want to talk, I'll be here to listen." I said.

Zelda nodded. Both of us continued to look out over the meadow.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE HE READ MY DIARY!" Mipha's voice boomed from the house behind us.

Zelda gave me a questioning glance. I bit my lip, "I'll leave it up to her if she wants to share."

"Link read her diary didn't he." Zelda said, an amused look on her face.

"I can neither confirm, nor deny such allegations." I said grinning. "I wish the games gave more indicatition to what Link's personality was, some of the stuff you can do seems so out of character."

Zelda froze, "OUR STORIES ARE A GAME?" She shouted.