Link was late.

Waiting for him on the grass, Mipha didn't bother to restrain a sigh, her webbed fingers tapping on her face. It was true that he had a bad habit of sleeping in whenever he could, but... it was mid-afternoon right now. And getting on into late afternoon. Unless he'd somehow fallen asleep after lunch, that couldn't explain his current tardiness. She supposed it wasn't completely impossible, but it was pretty unlikely. Once he was awake, he was as big a bundle of energy as any other ten year old boy in Zora's Domain. As a Zora girl of the same age, whether she could keep up with—or even outpace—him depended on whether they were on land or in the water.

So with that in mind, where was he?

Behind her Veiled Falls roared down, emptying itself into a large pool dotted at its edge by fleet lotuses; their sweet, almost heady fragrance drifted through the cool air, carried by the soft breezes that made the flowers sway in a delicate dance on the water's surface. Mipha sat with her back against a tree of gleaming lavender that even shone in the dark, it was so iridescent. She could hear the gentle ribbiting of hot-footed frogs and the occasional quack of a bright-chested duck, but what she couldn't hear was the sound of Link's footsteps.

At last, though, the noise of his boots on the rocks caught her ear, and he came hurtling towards her over the ridge. Mipha's heart leapt. She rose to her feet and hurried to him. "Link! You had better have a good ex..." She trailed off as she saw his face—his eyes were red-rimmed, his cheeks unusually pale and bearing the streaks of tears. At the sight of her, he looked ready to cry again. Her stomach clenched. "Link? What's wrong?"

"I..." He was breathing hard, and she had the sinking feeling that it wasn't just from rushing here. "My dad... he just told me, I..." Link's face crumpled. "I'm leaving..."

"What?" Mipha's eyes widened. "Why? Is he being transferred? Is the king withdrawing the ambassador?"

"No." Link shook his head. "He's still staying here. Dad, I mean. I'm the only one leaving. Because I'm going to be fostered by the king and learn to be a knight."

"Oh... I..." She'd wondered, hadn't she? If he was going to pursue knighthood like his father. Most boys did take up their father's professions, especially this sort of one. But naively, she'd never stopped to think that it might entail the two of them being separated like this.

"I don't want to go." Link's voice caught, and his eyes shimmered. "I mean, I do want to be a knight like Dad, but... I thought I could stay here and do that, learn from Seggin like everyone else." His hands clenched into fists at his sides. "I want to stay here. I love it here. All my friends are here. You're here."

"I wish you could stay too..." Mipha struggled to speak around the sudden lump in her throat. "When... when will you be able to come back?"

"I don't know." Despair crept into his voice, his desolate expression. "Dad said training is going to take years and years, and I won't be back for a long time. I won't even see him for a long time." He stepped towards her, a pleading look in his eyes. "Can't I just hide somewhere? Can't your dad do something?"

"No." Mipha shook her head, her eyes stinging with tears. "You are a Hyrulean citizen, and my father is the King of Zora's Domain. If we were to try something like that, they'd think we were kidnapping you, and Father would get in such trouble... it could even start a war."

"... I know." Link's shoulders slumped. "I just... I really want to stay. I'll miss you so much..."

"I'll miss you too." She drew a shaky breath. "Don't... please don't forget about me while you're away."

Link shook his head, his eyes wild with grief. "I could never forget you! You're my best friend, and I..."

"You what?" Mipha prodded him as he trailed off, blushing.

"I..." He reached out and shyly took her hand. "I want to... marry you someday. When we're all grown up." His fingers tightened a little. "Is that okay?"

"I—of course it is!" Mipha blurted out, her heart starting to race. "I—I want to marry you too!"

"Then—then I promise." Link lifted her hand and kissed it. "I promise I'll come back and marry you someday, when I'm all done becoming a knight."

"Me too. I mean..." Mipha blushed, and kissed his hand in return. "I promise I'll wait for you, as long as it takes. And we'll get married when you come back."

"You mean that?" His eyes lit up. "You really want to?"

"Of course I do, I..." She paused. "Link, come with me! This way!"

She started off without waiting for an answer, pulling him along with her. "Where are we going?" Link asked, sounding confused.

"To the palace!" Mipha adjusted her pace, knowing that with her shorter legs she'd tire more easily than he would. "I'll explain when we get there, okay?"

"Okay..."

Mipha led him back down into the heart of the city, crossing the long bridges and weaving around everyone they passed—mostly other Zoras—on the way to the palace where she lived. She held her breath as they entered, praying to Nayru that no one would see them and stop her. Especially not Muzu, he could be so, well, crabby, as Link had put it, about her close friendship with a Hylian boy. On one memorable occasion, she'd gotten him to admit that Link wasn't as bad as most Hylians and he didn't mind him so much, but that was the most she'd ever managed to achieve. Still, it was a lot more than a lot of other Zoras of his generation would concede to, so she was glad. Despite his crabbiness, he was kind to her, and loyal to her father, so she was mostly okay with him.

And given the fraught history between the two kingdoms, it really wasn't that surprising that most Zora his age weren't fond of Hylians. The last war wasn't in living memory anymore, but the elderly Zora would've known those who did recall it, and it had done nothing to engender warm feelings amongst them for the people of Hyrule. Not to mention the fact that there were many Hylians that didn't understand Zora culture and didn't care to, preferring to mock or deride them for it. Mipha didn't like them either.

But Link was different. He'd come here when they were both four, when his father got assigned to be the captain of the new ambassador's personal guard. She'd been a little wary of him at first, but he'd won her over almost instantly. Bright, energetic, and a little bit reckless, but also warm and sweet, with an unfailingly kind heart and a boundless determination to help others: that was Link. They'd become fast friends, playing together every chance they got. Swimming, exploring, sparring with a wooden sword and toy spear, catching frogs, teaching him anything he wanted to know (which was everything) about Zora culture and legends, playing pranks on poor Muzu... the list was endless. Her parents were fond of him too, treating him like their own son. Her mother had said more than once that they were inseparable.

If only that were really true.

Finally, they reached their destination: Mipha's bedroom. She eased the door open, mindful of any noise that would attract guards or servants, and then tugged Link inside behind her. Water lapped gently at the sides of her sleeping pool, the light of the afternoon sun that streamed through the window augmented by the faint glow of luminous stones set into the walls. Still holding Link's hand, she led him over to where a huge chest sat beside a shelf full of trinkets and toys. "Here."

Link watched her as she took a key out of a small vase and unlocked the chest. "What's this?"

"Mother said it's called a hope chest." Mipha lifted the lid. "It is full of things I will need for my wedding day, and simply for being married as well." She rummaged around in it, careful not to overly disturb the well-wrapped bundles and boxes. "What I need should be... ah! Yes, here it is."

She withdrew her hand, and showed Link what she'd retrieved. His eyes widened. "Is that a..."

"Yes." Mipha ran her fingers over the surface of the large, uncut opal. "An opal. It was discovered in the mines at Ulria Grotto, and gifted to me so that someday Dento could make wedding jewelry for me with it." She took his hand, and laid the gem on his palm. "And now I want you to have it, as proof of my promise to you."

"What? No!" Link shook his head and tried to give it back to her, but Mipha stepped away, clasping her hands behind her. "I can't take something so important from you..."

"Yes, you can." She reached out and closed his hand around the opal. "But you have to bring it back." Mipha smiled. "You can return it when you come home to marry me."

"Oh... okay." Link smiled too. "I promise I will, then. I promise I'll come home as soon as I can to marry you, and I'll give this back to you. And I swear I'll take good care of it."

"I know you will." Mipha laid her hands on his shoulders. "And I promise to wait for you." A moment's hesitation, and then she shyly kissed him on the lips; Link's eyes widened again and he trembled slightly. "This opal will seal it."

"I hope I can come back soon." Link's voice hitched. "I don't want to make you wait too long..."

"I hope so too." Mipha sighed. "But I will wait however long you need me to. I promise."

"Thank you, Mipha." Link leaned forward and gave her a small kiss too. "I'll try not take too long."

"I know."

And for a moment, despite the coming sorrow, they shared another smile. An uncertain future awaited them, but one thing they were both sure of was their faith in the other.