A/N: Short, sweet, Lipha fluff.


Mipha's eyes cracked open to find her bed-chamber bathed in the dark of night. It was fairly unusual for her to wake up at such a time. Shifting around, the Zora tried to find a more comfortable position; however, even after readjusting herself, sleep eluded her. Even the sound of rain wasn't enough to lull her back to sleep. Something required her attention.

Feeling herself grow more lucid by the second, she finally sat up. Her eyes swept the room, knowing that something was wrong, yet she failed to see anything out of the norm. Feeling a small sense of dread building up in the pit of her stomach, the Zora Princess threw her blanket aside as she jumped to her feet.

Crossing her room in a state of near panic, Mipha rushed to the shallow pool that had been built into the floor. Within it, a small tadpole drifted peacefully, blissfully unaware of her mother's distress. Like all Zora of her age, her scales were grey and lifeless; however, she was still the most beautiful thing that Mipha had ever seen.

Just to be sure that the infant was well, Mipha stuck her finger in the pool and drew shapes within the water. It wasn't long before the tadpole had awakened and was chasing her finger around in earnest, just as she did her food. Breathing a sigh of relief, the Zora removed her finger, watching her daughter fondly for a moment as the tadpole continued swimming frenetically. The little one was still certain that her prey was somewhere within her small world, and so she prowled.

As much as she wanted to remain by the pool's side all night, she knew that sleep was necessary for her to perform her duties.

Feeling relieved that all was well with her child, Mipha returned to her bed. As she pulled her quilt back over herself, she quickly became dissatisfied with how cold it had grown. Certainly, it was warmer than it should have been (thanks to a certain Hylian) but it wasn't as warm as it had been. Carefully edging over, she worked underneath her husband's arm, nestling her head on his chest.

She sighed in satisfaction as she felt the warmth begin to seep below her scales. Unfortunately, it wasn't long until she was frowning. She could hear his heart beating erratically beneath her head and, pressed against him as she was, she could feel the tension he was carrying in his arm and chest.

"Is something wrong?"

"...No," was the quiet reply.

She knew he was lying; however, calling him out directly never helped anything. So, she remained where she was, hoping that her patience would win out. As the quiet minutes dragged into eternity. Eventually, Link began to relax.

Then, a thunderclap resounded above them, shaking everything in the room with its rage. In an instant, Link went rigid once again.

It was then that Mipha began to develop an idea of what was wrong. Though it had been a while since their last battle, Link was still recovering from the scars of two wars. While he normally handled things like loud sounds well, it could be hard on him, especially if he weren't expecting it. And, if he were suffering from a nightmare just before, it could be disastrous.

Readjusting herself once again, Mipha managed to situate herself so that she could hold his head to her chest. Wrapping herself around him, whispering to him quietly, telling him fond stories of their childhood, of her memories with her time with him on the road, and what she hoped the future might hold for their child. As she spoke, she could feel him relax in her arms until he was sleeping. Even as another, quieter thunderclap resounded above them, he only flinched slightly. Even so, she continued to hold him close as she drifted off to sleep.