Chapter 3 - Mipha and Link Discuss

Link quickly left the room, trying hard to control his temper. He clenched his fists and swore under his breath once outside the room. He wanted to find Mipha and let her know what happened. He headed straight to the art gallery and found Mipha still in conversation with the Royal Guard Captain assigned as her escort. She stopped her conversation upon seeing Link. One look at his face and she knew things had gone badly.

"Link, you're done with your meeting already?" she asked.

"Yes. I would like to discuss it with you. Would you mind interrupting your tour now?" said Link.

"Of course. Thank you, Captain, for a delightful tour, and thank Her Highness as well if you see her," said Mipha.

"You're very welcome, Your Highness," said the Captain. He bowed and left the room.

"Link, what's wrong?" asked Mipha.

"Let's not talk here. It will be better if we discuss things in our room," said Link.

Zelda had given them one of the guest rooms to use during their visit. They walked there and closed the door.

"Mipha, I don't know what has gotten into Zelda. She denied my request saying that the Hylian Champion can never renounce his Hylian citizenship and that I am needed here. When I asked her how and why I was needed, I'm afraid I lost my temper and ended up having to apologize for my rudeness."

"Calm down," said Mipha. "We can work around the citizenship matter, but I admit I am as surprised as you are by her attitude."

"I guess I could live with that too, annoying though it is. But there's something else much scarier. Zelda started asking me whether she and I had feelings for each other in the other timeline, and when I said no, she wanted to know if I was sure about that, and that after all, you weren't around anymore. Then she went on to say that if we changed time once why couldn't we do it again, and not everyone was happy with the current turn of events. I don't understand what's gotten into her," said Link.

"It's obvious what has gotten into her," said Mipha, "And it was something I always worried about when you were following her around like a knightly puppy. She's fallen for you and wants you to spend your life with her, not me."

"Well, that's never going to happen," said Link. "But I'm not sure that's it. I think I would have sensed if she had any feelings for me."

"Oh yes, of course," said Mipha sarcastically. "You're so perceptive at reading women's feelings, just like you were with me."

"Well, okay. I may be a bit obtuse in that area. But it still doesn't feel like that's the answer. Anyway, whatever Zelda thinks, my being together with her is never going to happen," said Link

"I know it won't happen as we are now. But can she tamper with time again?" asked Mipha.

"I don't think so, though I'm hardly an expert. I'm not sure what I should do. Should I ask to see her father and explain things to him? Or should I consult with Dr. Purah to see what she thinks?" said Link.

"Well, you could do either of those things. Perhaps I could speak with her? " said Mipha.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" asked Link. "She's in a pretty bad mood right now."

"Alright, maybe that can wait. And of course, you could try speaking with her again as well," said Mipha. "I agree the Hylian citizenship matter is just a petty nuisance, but time travel is a real danger."

"I think I will talk to Dr. Purah first," said Link. "If Zelda can accomplish time travel on her own I need to stop this. In this timeline, Dr. Purah usually works here in the castle."

Link knew his way around the castle, and soon located Dr. Purah in the research lab. Dr. Purah was a Sheikah and one of the experts on ancient Sheikah technology such as the Guardians and Divine Beasts. She maintained a second research lab in Hateno Village and had played an essential role in Link's other timeline providing him with enhanced Sheikah Slate runes to aid his mission.

"Link, this is a surprise. I didn't know you were here. What can I do for you?" Purah asked.

"Dr. Purah I need to talk with you about time travel. In the timeline I came from you were, of course, much older and had more time to study these things. Do you understand how the Temple of Time works?" asked Link.

"I understand some of it. What is on your mind?" asked Purah.

"The legends I am familiar with always had the Hyrule Hero traveling through time. But could someone else, like Princess Zelda, travel through time as well?" asked Link.

"Well, that's an interesting question," said Purah. "I don't think any ordinary person could access the time travel powers of the temple. And the Hyrule Hero was the only time traveler in the stories I am familiar with. So that would suggest Princess Zelda could not do so. On the other hand, Princess Zelda is a blood descendant of the goddess Hylia, so I'm not sure what the limits of her powers are. And, despite a scolding from her father, she has been spending a good deal of her time studying Sheikah technology."

"Yes, she told me she has been exploring some of the lower levels of the castle where some Sheikah materials are stored," said Link. That reminded him of her bruise, and the bruise reminded him of something from his other timeline, but he couldn't remember what at the moment.

"Why do you ask about this, Link?" said Purah.

"Because I just came from a meeting with Princess Zelda where she expressed unhappiness with the current turn of events and suggested that if we invoked time travel once again, we could achieve a better outcome or at least one more to her liking," said Link.

"That's very odd. I would think things turned out about as well as could be expected given everything we know about your alternate timeline. What exactly is bothering Princess Zelda?" said Purah.

"Apparently Princess Zelda is not happy with some aspects of her personal life. I think it has something to do with the fact I ended up with Princess Mipha and not her," said Link.

"That is certainly not a good enough reason to tamper with time!" said Purah. "We need to put a stop to this."

"Yes, and we need to hurry," said Link.