Epilogue

"Quick! I heard her calling us."

The two children crouched behind the sprawling fronds of a fern. They'd surely be missed among the palace garden's thick vegetation.

"Is she gone?"
"Shh! I think so." Their eyes were fixed on the door.

In a rush of magic that made them scream with the delight of hide-and-seek, their mother appeared behind them and scooped them into her arms.

"How do you do that every time?" cried the girl.

Midna chuckled. "I always know where to find my little ones."

"I'm not little anymore," protested her son, puffing out his chest. "I'm almost seven!"

"Pardon me, your majesty. And where did you get all that?" She pointed to the bag of pastries dropped in their hiding place. "I've told you about spoiling your lunches."

"We already ate with Aunt Kiri. She gave them to us."

"I see." She laughed. "I can't argue with Aunt Kiri, can I?" She kissed them each and set them back on their feet to run off in search of more mischief. Caro and Iris: the fearless prince and princess of Twilight. Even at seven and five it they were striking blends of Light and Shadow, the first of their kind. At least Midna thought so. She didn't know if Areanna had borne children yet; she'd been out of contact since leaving the realm to marry her Hylian soldier. Her mother spread plenty of slander about it, but the day Areanna departed she visited Midna a last time. That meeting was the only time Midna ever saw the silver-haired girl really smile, and she hoped the new beginning brought Areanna happiness.

In a pensive mood, Midna lingered in the gardens. Life gave few quiet moments anymore. There was always something undone, something new to face. Kiri did her best to help, but now had an infant daughter of her own to care for. That still didn't stop her and her husband from spoiling their niece and nephew, but in perspective it didn't matter. Caro and Iris had in their father a shining role model of honor, and even after eight years Midna couldn't be upset with Kiri for anything. Someday she would tell the children why. Someday they would need to know. But not today.

At last she stood and stretched. Link would be back soon to share a light lunch before she was expected in a Council meeting. The responsibilities of a queen were endless, but she couldn't complain. With the horrors of the past behind them, her people came together stronger than she ever hoped, restoring the bond between the realms.

Link was waiting for her on their balcony with a basket in his lap when she warped up to meet him. "There you are. I was worried it might've been a bad day."

"No. I was just taking some quiet time in the gardens." She was always touched by his concern. There were days when the damage done by Sareth's magic reared its head, days when even gliding down a flight of stairs brought on migraines that only sleep assuaged. Each year, though, those days were fewer and fewer.

She sat with him and they unpacked the small spread. "Where are the kids?" he asked.

"Probably following Kiri around for more sweets and a chance to hold the baby."

He laughed. "Sounds right."

They talked idly as they ate, and when lunch was finished she leaned against him and relaxed, watching clouds tack slowly across the sky.

"Sometimes it's still unreal to me."

"Mm?"

"Our lives. Our family. No one could ask for more."

"It's remarkable to look back now," he agreed.

"And there's still so much ahead."

Life had to be measured in moments like these; a child's laughter, a warm breeze, a lover's caress. Glimpses of pure bliss. She kissed him softly and closed her eyes, pretending this one would never end.