Summary: The Sheikah in North Hyrule search for clues about their missing scientist's research. Tila and young Link have a baby Zora girl they name Tara.

In the North Hyrule Sheikah settlement, Scientist Apprentice Aldora ate breakfast, feeling somewhat depressed. Not only had her personal life taken a turn for the worse, but she feared her advisor's disappearance was a cause for more significant concern.

She had been an excellent student at the academy and graduated near the top of her class. She had every reason to look forward to a satisfying career as a respected scientist, someone capable of advancing Sheikah technology and knowledge. And at the time, being assigned as Master Grendon's apprentice had looked promising as well, since she had seen his name mentioned as a respected researcher several times in the course of her studies.

But now her career was on indefinite hold. She needed to finish her apprenticeship before she could move on. And what was Grendon researching? How worried should they all be?

Aldora had finished her meal when her Tab alerted her to a message. It was a request by the Sheikah Chief, Saldon, to meet with her, and so she hastened at once to see him.

"You wished to see me, Master Saldon," said Aldora when she arrived.

"Yes," said Saldon. "With Grendon gone, you need an advisor to serve out the remainder of your apprenticeship. If you are willing, Aldora, I would be pleased to take you on as my apprentice."

"I am deeply honored, Master Saldon," said Aldora bowing her head.

"I feel bad for what happened to you and wish to make amends if I can," said Saldon. "And I would like your help to search for clues as to what Grendon was doing. I will alert everyone that you will be investigating and collecting information. Anyone having dealings with Grendon should contact you and share what they know. Find out where Grendon went, whom he spoke to, what he said, anything you can about his activities. I would like you to report to me whenever you learn something significant and weekly in any case."

"Very well, Master," said Aldora. "I will do just as you say."

"I do not know Grendon well," said Saldon. "But my impression of him is that he is a very dedicated researcher. His leanings were definitely toward the academic. And, sadly, I think he may be very trusting, perhaps even gullible. Living here without enemies may have made him complacent and naive. I could see someone with evil intent deceiving Grendon."

"But who would have evil intent these days, Master?" said Aldora. "We have been at peace for many years."

"I do not know," said Saldon. "But we should not be naive. Evil always manages to take root somewhere, no matter how many times we pull up its weed. You no doubt heard of our former Queen Sopha's misdeeds with the Shrine of Transformation."

"Yes, sadly, I did. That too reflected badly on us, as one of us must have assisted Queen Sopha, though perhaps unaware of her intentions. I will find out all I can, Master," said Aldora. "Thank you for having confidence in me."

Aldora left, feeling excited. To serve as an apprentice to the Chief was quite an honor, though she realized it was only due to the unusual circumstances of her real advisor disappearing. She had already learned that Grendon's Tab had been wiped clean, so there were no clues there, though it wouldn't hurt to check if any record of his messages survived. She sent a text message to that effect to their network administrator. She would also have to wait for people to contact her, but in the meantime, she could start speaking to people she thought Grendon might have consulted. She knew he sometimes ate lunch with Master Mandon, and so she would start with him.

After a brief Tab exchange, Mandon agreed to meet her in his office at the academy.

As Aldora made her way to the academy, she stared at the building. She had fond memories of her years living and studying there. She had made some good friends during that time and enjoyed the pursuit of knowledge that everyone shared as a common goal. Not that it wasn't hard work, but it was work she loved.

When she arrived at his office, Mandon greeted her warmly, offered her some tea, which she accepted, then they came to the point.

"I read Chief Saldon's message and expected to meet with you," said Mandon.

"I am trying to learn anything I can about Master Glendon's work," said Aldora. "I know you sometimes ate lunch with him."

"Yes, we did have lunch sometimes, and we often had excellent discussions," said Mandon. "The problem is that Grendon was interested in so many things and could speak intelligently on a great variety of subjects. I often sought out his ideas and advice."

"Can you tell me about the topics you discussed?"

"Yes, I can, but it may not be of much help to us. Grendon was interested in astronomy, and we discussed the nature of stars and whether other worlds might exist around them. He was interested in geology, and we discussed how minerals formed and properties of the land, including why volcanoes erupted. He was interested in biology, and we discussed curing illness and prolonging a healthy life as well as cellular regeneration techniques. He was interested in ancient energy and how it could be harnessed to do more things. He was interested in the properties of light and color. He was interested in climate and weather. There was almost no physical science you could bring up that he hadn't educated himself. He admitted he wasn't good in mathematics, but not being good was relative to his other knowledge. He was still fairly strong in mathematics. Did you know that he graduated from the academy with honors and the highest exam scores ever recorded?"

"Yes, I heard as much, which was one reason I was excited to be his apprentice," said Aldora. "But was there any topic he was especially interested in talking about lately, something perhaps he brought up?"

"I'm sorry, no," said Mandon. "Grendon seldom brought up a topic on his own. He preferred to let someone else bring up a topic. It was as if he was making his mind available to you for a time, loaning you his knowledge."

"But, forgive me, Master Mandon, even someone as brilliant as Master Grendon must have struggled in areas as he sought to extend his research."

"Yes, no doubt that's true, Aldora," said Mandon. "But he must never have considered me someone who could offer him any help. Perhaps lunch with me was his chance to relax and step back from his research, give his mind a rest, so to speak."

"I see," said Aldora. "Do you know of anyone else Master Grendon might have consulted? I'm still waiting for Tab responses to Master Saldon's alert, but I thought it no harm to ask."

"I'm sorry, again, no," said Mandon. "I can't think of anyone at the moment. As I said, Grendon did not speak about his work with me, and I'm not sure he spoke about it with anyone. You will have to wait for people to contact you."

"Very well, thank you, Master Mandon," said Aldora.

Aldora left and returned to her room. As Mandon had said, she would have to wait to be contacted by others. And thinking about her conversation, Mandon had not been able to offer much in the way of useful information. Grendon was as secretive with Mandon as he was with her. Or, was Mandon lying and in league with Grendon? She had always trusted her Sheikah colleagues completely and had never seen any evidence of untruth her whole life. Still, she did not want to be considered naive. She would keep that possibility in the back of her mind. But it seemed as though this investigation of hers would take some time.

In Hyrule Castle, Queen Zelda had finished her Tab call with Faray. So, a scientist was missing from North Hyrule and one who needed funds for potentially dangerous research. The pieces of the puzzle were far from clear, but some were coming together. It was no coincidence someone was going to great efforts to raise funds. The funds must be to support this mysterious research. But without more information, it was unclear what to do at this point.

Tila was with her husband at Hyrule Castle when she received an encrypted message.

"Oh! Excuse me, sweetheart. This is something official from my sister," said Tila.

She opened and read the message, which automatically deleted itself afterward.

"Everything okay?" said Link.

"I'm not sure," said Tila. "One of our leading Sheikah scientists has disappeared. They are beginning a search and investigation. As next in line to rule, my sister needs to keep me informed. It's nothing for us to worry about at this point. Come on. I could use a good swim."

"Are you sure it's okay?" said Link. "I mean with the baby?"

"Yes, I'm sure it's okay, sweetheart," said Tila. "Please don't worry! It's an egg, and it's very well protected. Honestly, if we were that fragile, our race would never have survived."

"All right," said Link. "But can you at least be less acrobatic than usual?"

"That's sweet that you're so concerned," said Tila touching his cheek. "And if it makes you nervous, I promise to swim calmly. But there are some things, dear husband, that I refuse to give up. You'll just have to get over your worry. But, trust me, I can help you with that."

"Yes, I'm sure you can," laughed Link. "I'm very, very sure you can!"

Meanwhile, in North Hyrule, after two months of investigation, Aldora had made little progress. She had spoken to everyone she could, but the story was always the same. Grendon had kept his research to himself, and no one was able to provide any reliable information on what he had been doing. What Grendon wanted to investigate required additional funds, so he was never able to conduct his research. Which was probably the main reason there was nothing to show for it.

But in Zora's Domain, the Link Family was having some excitement of their own. Tila had passed the egg three days earlier, and it finally hatched.

"Oh! It's a girl!" exclaimed Tila to her husband, who was by her side. "We have a little girl, sweetheart! As we agreed, her name will be Tara."

She's beautiful, just like her mother," said young Link kissing Tila.

Tara had pale blue skin pigmentation to go with her deep blue eyes. And like any hatchling, she was quite active. They watched Tara swim around the nursery tank and gobble up pieces of fish that had been placed there for her.

"Isn't she adorable!" exclaimed Mipha.

"Her eyes are such a gorgeous shade of deep blue," said Link. "They look like sapphires."

"Or like the deep blue sea," said Mila as she watched Tara swim.

"I'm so thrilled!" said young Link.

"And well you should be," said Link. "Tara is a lovely name too. But your life will never be the same now, son. Trust me on that. And enjoy every minute of your time with her. Zora's age much slower than us, but it still feels too fast for a parent."

"I think I know what you mean, Dad," said young Link.

"So, I finally have a Zora niece," said Midon as he watched Tara swim. "Who would have thought it would be thanks to my little Hylian brother? I would have thought for sure my big sister would have been first."

"Given your obsession with coding, Midon, I'm surprised you thought about it all," said Mila. "But if you had, you would have realized it's the most likely outcome once our brother married Tila."

"Please, let's not bicker," said Lapha. "This is a happy time for our family. And I can see Tara is going to be one very striking looking girl. She's so beautiful, Tila."

"Thank you, Lapha," said Tila. "I just Tabbed some pictures of Tara to my sister Faray, and she can't wait to see her in person too. She would like to visit next weekend if that's okay."

"Of course! Faray is welcome to visit here any time she wishes," said Mipha.

"I don't suppose you want..." said Link, unsure of how to raise the subject.

"No, Sopha is no longer family in my eyes," said Tila. "I will never trust her again. I thought she loved me as a sister, but she only loves herself."

"Come, let's all have lunch," said Mipha, eager to change the subject.

Lunch was pleasant, and afterward, everyone returned to the nursery tank to see Tara. Tara stopped swimming briefly to stare out of the enclosure at everyone, though it was unclear how much she could see of them. But it brought smiles and oohs and aahs. Then Tila asked to speak privately with Mipha.

"I hope you don't mind our staying here, Mother," said Tila.

"Mind? We love it that you both agreed to stay here!" said Mipha. "Little Tara is already bringing back some fond memories for my husband and me. If you're happy here, you are more than welcome to stay as long as you like. Link and I would love to be part of raising Tara if you'll allow us."

"Allow you? I would love nothing better!" said Tila. "You have a beautiful family, and I am thrilled to be part of it. And I know my husband will love returning here too. He missed all of you when we lived at the castle. He and I can always take Tara home to North Hyrule for visits when she's older. But I believe we will all be happy here."

"I'm glad to hear you say that, Tila," said Mipha. "My husband and I are here if you want us, but we won't get in your way. We want you to think of here as home too."

"I do," said Tila. "And I'm very grateful. Now I promised Link I would take a walk with him after lunch. I need to show him I'm fine, he's so worried I won't recover."

"Please, go then," said Mipha. "Tara will be fine. Besides all of us, a nursemaid is coming soon to help with all the feedings."

Tila returned to where her husband was watching Tara, then took his hand, and they went off for a walk across the western bridge.

"It's just amazing," said Link. "I'm back home but with you now, whom I love so much, and with a beautiful baby girl. I don't know what to say other than I'm floating with joy."

"So am I," said Tila. "And that's a perfect Zora way of putting it. "

"Are you feeling all right? Not sore or anything?"

"I'm fine," said Tila. "Passing an egg is not anywhere near as difficult as a Hylian live birth. The baby has most of its growth after hatching."

"I know my parents are thrilled you agreed to live here," said Link. "But if you ever miss your home, I will understand. My place is with you and Tara, so don't worry about my feelings. I'll happily live in North Hyrule if that's what you want."

"I appreciate that, sweetheart," said Tila. "But I'm happy here, and you have a much bigger close family than me. I think Tara will be fine here. And we can visit my home when she's older. If it turns out at some point that my sister needs me there, then, of course, we will have to go. But Fa was fine with our decision to remain here and understood my reasons."

"Then that's settled for now," said Link. "This is Veiled Falls coming up, and it has a good deal of sentimental value to Mom and Dad. Mom told me this is where they first kissed, and they visit here every wedding anniversary."

"Then, if it worked for them, let's share a kiss here too," said Tila. "Do you remember our first kiss? "

"Of course," said Link. "It was at the dance."

They kissed, then continued on their walk toward Ralis Pond.

Meanwhile, at home, Mipha and Link continued to watch Tara. The rest of the family had gone out.

"Her eyes are very distinctive," said Link. "They're a much deeper blue than Link's, and there is no hint of green in them like Midon's."

"Yes, and they are a much deeper blue than Astra's as well," said Mipha. "How does it feel to be a grandfather?"

"I don't feel any different, but it's cute to have a little one at home again after all these years," said Link. "And it's wonderful that all our children are home again too. I missed Lapha and Link while they lived at the castle. Our little house will be full again. But we'll manage."

"I missed them too," said Mipha. "But I didn't want to let that influence their decision. They needed to find their way, and the fact it led them back here is terrific. Oh! I think Tara may finally be resting for a bit. "

Tara had paused from eating and was resting on the bottom of the tank. And just then, one of the nursemaids assigned to help arrived.

"Lady Mipha, Prince Link, my name is Elira," said Elira. "I will be happy to watch over and take care of the new princess. Oh! She is so beautiful, isn't she?"

Elira had approached the tank to look at the hatchling.

"Yes, she is, Elira," said Mipha. "She's just resting now but should be active again soon. Thank you for your help."

"It is an honor," said Elira. "You may not know this, but my aunt assisted as a nursemaid when Princess Mila and Prince Midon were hatchlings. "

Meanwhile, back in North Hyrule, Aldora had her regular weekly apprentice meeting with Chief Saldon. After discussing Aldora's research, the conversation returned to Grendon.

"It's a pity we could learn so little from your inquiries, but I commend the zeal and thoroughness of your work," said Saldon. "It seems Grendon trusted no one and needed no one's help."

"Yes, Master," said Aldora. "He certainly kept his own counsel."

"Sometimes, I find it helps to step back from a problem and let the mind sift through the information it has gathered. Now that you've spent two months at it, in all the time you investigated, did nothing strike you as odd?" said Saldon. "It could be anything, some conversation or activity. Even if it did not appear significant to you, but just seemed out of character for Grendon, given all you've learned about him, it would be worth mentioning."

"Believe me, I've been poring over everything I learned, Master," said Aldora. "Anytime someone asked Grendon about his research, he would invariably find an excuse not to discuss it. Grendon would say his work was still too preliminary or just complain it was hard to do the work with limited resources. Only with a subordinate like me did he say it was too dangerous and sensitive to discuss. I've gone over everything several times."

"I see," said Saldon. "Well, I know you've worked very hard at this, Aldora. I hope you don't blame yourself."

"Wait, Master," said Aldora. "What you just said, 'I see,' did just remind me of something a bit odd."

"Yes, go on," said Saldon.

"Well, when I interviewed Master Langor, she said she had tried to discuss Master Grendon's research with him and was teasing him a bit to coax him to reveal something about it. Master Langor said she playfully mocked Master Grendon, saying he was probably getting nowhere and when would she ever see the results of his latest research. And Master Grendon laughed at first, then shook his head, saying she would probably never see it. But Master Langor said Master Grendon had said it strangely. He said it not like you might expect that he was discouraged that he would never make progress on his research. She said he answered as if she had said something clever and it was some sort of inside joke. But he never explained further."