Midna

"Light and shadow can't mix, as we all know. But... never forget that there's another world bound to this one."

- Midna

Midna, the Twilight Princess (ミドナ, Midona) is a character in the Zelda game, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. She is a resident of the Twilight Realm and a descendant of the ancient Twili people. At first she seems to be a strange, dark creature with an agenda of her own and could care less about Link, she ends up changing her mind.

Midna is one of the Twili, a race descended from wielders of powerful and evil magic who were banished to an alternate dimension by the goddesses Din, Farore, and Nayru. This alternate dimension, out of which the sublimated descendants could only exist as shadows, eventually became known as the Twilight Realm. She remains as an imp-like creature through most of the game. In recent time, the Twili have been converted to fearsome "Shadow Beasts" and Midna into an imp-like form by the self-appointed Twilight King, Zant. Midna reveals this information to Link in the Gerudo Desert.

At first, Midna is a "servant" of Zelda, proclaimed as the Twilight Princess. She finds Link, in wolf form, locked in a prison cell, and aids him in his escape. With this comes the new ability to talk to Midna whenever the player chooses, by pressing "up" on the directional pad (Wii), or "Z" on the Gamecube to "give her a sign". Even further along in the game, doing this allows the player to choose from several of Midna's abilities, such as teleporting via portals throughout Hyrule or transforming into Wolf Link on demand.

Midna can be compared to the likes of Navi, The King of Red Lions and Ezlo, in that she provides information throughout the game that serves to aid the player.

One thing questioned about Midna's appearance in her primary form is the fragment of the Fused Shadows on her head, which features an eye closely resembling the eyes on Majoras Mask, insinuating that the Fused Shadows and maybe even the Twili had something to do with the monster Majora that devoured many people before being destroyed. This could also mean that Midna's transformed figure (with the aid of the Fused Shadows) could be that of the Majora beast.

After rescuing Link, Link in return for Midna's help, finds the Fused Shadows for Midna. The power of the Fused Shadows can be used to destroy Zant, returning Midna and the other Twili to their true form. Midna however does not tell Link that she wants the Fused Shadows for the benefit of herself and her world. After collecting all Fused Shadows, Midna is gravely injured by Zant. Wolf Link carries Midna to Zelda who revives Midna. After seeing the unselfish acts made by Zelda and Link, Midna has a change of heart and vows to help save Hyrule from Zant. The duo now set off to repair the Mirror of Twilight, a portal to Zant's stronghold, the Palace of Twilight.

After the Twilight Mirror is rebuilt, the Sages reveal that Midna is the true Twilight Princess and ruler of the Twili race, not Zelda, who had previously been defined as the Twilight Princess by Midna herself, presumably to keep a cover on her identity. Zant, after usurping the throne from Midna, placed a curse on her that gave her the form she maintains for most of the game. This curse could presumably not be lifted until Ganondorf, who Zant refers to as his god, is defeated. 

After Link has faced Zant in battle, Midna uses the power of the Fused Shadows to destroy Zant (temporarily, as he could be revived by Ganondorf). She uses only a fraction of the power that the Fused Shadows hold to do this, and is utterly bewildered by their power. The Fused Shadow's power is also used to break the pyramid-shaped barrier around Hyrule Castle. Midna uses the power to transform into a giant, spider-like beast with a large pole-arm weapon (see below). This same form is used in an attempt to destroy Ganondorf during the ending sequences of the game, but the attack fails. Shortly thereafter, Ganondorf is seen holding up the helmet part of the Fused Shadows that was Midna's trademark garment and breaking it in his hand.



After Link, with some assistance from Zelda, defeats Ganondorf once and for all, the Light Spirits revive Midna and break the cruse placed on her by Ganondorf and Zant, allowing Midna to regain her true form. In a comical moment when Link first sees her true form, she is amused by his silence and asks, "Am I so beautiful that you've no words left?"

Before going back to the Twilight Realm, she bids everyone farewell and sheds a single tear, which is used to destroy the Twilight Mirror just before she returns to the Twilight Realm. She vows Link that she will "see [him] later," however this it is unknown if what she says comes true, as the Mirror was the only known way to the Twilight Realm. As another last word, she asks that everyone "...remember that there is another world bound to this one."



During this ending sequence, as her tear begins to float toward the Mirror of Twilight, Midna addresses Link, beginning with the word "I..." but never finishes her sentence. It is rumored that Midna was interested in Link on a level higher than friendship. This is somewhat evidenced by a few subtle gestures throughout the game, and how she sometimes behaved around Link. Whether or not this is true remains uncertain.

In 2006, Nintendo Power magazine's readers voted Midna "best new [video game] character".

True Form
Standing a head taller than Princess Zelda, Midna possesses red hair, red eyes and a pale complexion from the Twilight Realm. She wears a hooded cloak in similar design to Zant's leading some to believe that this may be some kind of royalty garb. With this, she wears a half-dress that reveals one leg bare, and a headdress (or crown). 

Midna as the Twilight Princess
"I hope you can find it in yourself to forgive our carelessness... O Twilight Princess."

- The Sages

In the game, after hearing Zelda's story about the Twilight Realm and how it came to be in Hyrule, Zelda says to Midna, "The shadow beasts have been searching far and wide for you. Why is this?" Midna, probably not wanting to reveal her identity, replies, "Why indeed? You tell me!" She is the only one of the Twili who has not been turned over to Zant in the course of the game, as Link finds out. Twilight Princess players may find this confusing and hard to believe. Why would an imp be the only one to escape Zant's grasp? The entire Twili race was caught, so why not Midna?

Midna is revealed to have been touched by not only Zant, but Ganondorf as well. This is only because of her true identity as the Twilight Princess. Zant the Usurper King of the Twilight Realm is a pretender. "A fake is a fake, and no matter how much you dress it up, the real thing always wins."

- Midna

Super Smash Bros. Brawl
In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Midna is two stickers. One of them has her riding Wolf Link while the other is just of her floating. Midna's Desperate hour is a song in the game that can be unlocked and played on a stage while brawling. Also, she appears as two trophies. In one trophy, she is seen riding Wolf Link. The other is just of Midna by herself. Her trophy descreption reads: ''A mysterious masked being. Midna was a princess in the Twilight Realm who was transformed into an imp by Zant. Midna's personality is characterized by a sharp tongue and a tendency to act on whims. Midna pairs with Link to save the world. She also possesses powerful magic skills, such as the ability to warp through space.

Relationship with Link
Some fans have suggested that Midna was romantically interested in Link, others suggest that their relationship was just a platonic friendship. During one cut-scene, Midna places her hand on Link's cheek for almost a full four seconds. In another cut-scene, Link cradles Midna in his arms and the two lock eyes for a few moments. Link also reaches after Midna in a few cutscenes and is shocked when she is destroyed by Ganon. At the end of the game, Midna says, "Link... I... See you later". This leaves the impression that Midna was about to tell Link she loved him, but lost her nerve to publicly state her love at the last second. 

Trivia

 * Midna is terrible with a sword and shield.
 * On an interview with GameInformer, Eiji Aonuma was asked if Midna would return for another game. Aonuma stated: Because of the way Twilight Princess ended, I don’t see her making a reappearance, but who knows? If we hear enough voices for her to come back, how can we not?
 * In the table of contents for Twilight Princess' instruction booklet, the true form of Midna's face can be seen in the background.
 * In the Wii version, Midna's right eye is covered by the Fused Shadow, but in the GameCube version (as well as promotional images), her left eye is covered. This is because during development, the entire game had to be mirrored to make Link fit with the Wii's general right-handed controls (Link is traditionally left-handed). Because of this, the markings covering her body are also reversed in the two versions.

Gallery
View the gallery of Midna artwork.