Summary: Midon joins his sister Lapha at the Royal Ancient Tech Lab. Link suffers a bad dream. Linky and family return from North Hyrule to the Domain.

It was a clear early morning in Zora's Domain, the rising sun just barely illuminating Upland Zorana's tallest peaks. The only sounds inside Mipha's and Link's family house by Mikau Lake were those originating from outside it: the steady splashing of the nearby waterfall, the rustling of trees from the strong westerly breeze, and the occasional cry of a night bird.

Suddenly the buzzing of Midon's Tab awakened him, and he quickly answered without looking at it.

"Larena?"

"Sorry to pop your bubble. It's your sister," said Lapha.

"Oh, Laff! You okay?"

"I'm fine, but I could use your help," said Lapha. "I woke you, didn't I?"

"Yes, but it's okay, Laff," said Midon. "What do you need my help with?"

"I need you to come here to the Royal Ancient Tech Lab and help me review some code from the Sheikah Slate we recovered from Eventide Island," said Lapha. "I'm sorry I can't transfer any of the code to you, but we're paranoid about spreading anything that comes from this device. I can set up two screens here, and we can divide the work."

"That's fine. I'll be right there," Midon said as they ended the call.

Midon rubbed his eyes, then climbed out of his slumber pool and quietly headed downstairs to the front door. There was no need to eat before leaving, as he could easily catch a fish on his way to the river ferry. The sky was clear as he glanced up upon stepping outside. But then he was startled to see someone sitting on the nearby rock staring at the waterfall. The person turned to him as he quietly closed the door behind him.

"Dad!? Why are you out here all alone so early?" Midon asked in a low voice.

"Sorry if I startled you. I awoke from a bad dream and didn't want to fall back to sleep right away, so I thought I'd get some fresh air first," said Link. "Why are you up so early?"

"Lapha called and wants me to help her at the lab," said Midon.

Midon paused for a moment.

"Does this kind of thing often happen, Dad? And does Mom know about it?"

"No, it doesn't happen often, and sometimes she knows," said Link. "I try not to wake her if I can help it."

"But why do you get these bad dreams? Do you consider them an evil omen or something?"

"No, no, it's nothing like that," said Link. "It's my past that causes them, not the future."

"You mean because of all that's happened in your life?"

"Yes," said Link. "They say when we sleep, the mind does its housekeeping, tries to organize things. In my case, I think that's asking a lot of one mind, and it sometimes overloads itself. As you know, I've had more strange time travel experiences than anyone could imagine. I've traveled to the past and the future, often changing events. It's difficult sometimes keeping track of what did and didn't happen anymore."

"I can understand that," said Midon.

"And besides that, both Zelda and I have stared into the face of evil. It's a horrible experience and one that's hard to forget. Anyway, all that can lead to a troubled mind and a nightmare. When that happens, I prefer to wait before falling back to sleep. I don't want the nightmare to continue."

"I wish there were some way to cure this affliction," said Midon. "Mom knows about all this, of course?"

"Yes, she knows it happens sometimes," said Link. "But, as I said, I try not to wake her if I can help it. Don't worry about me, though. It only rarely happens, and I'm able to cope with it. I think of it as an occupational hazard."

"I'm sorry this happens to you, Dad," said Midon as he reached out, and they hugged each other. "I love you. We all do, of course. If there is any way we can help, you need to tell us."

"I love you too, and I will," said Link. "Now, you should go. I'll head back inside and try to fall back asleep, as I think the dream won't recur now."

Then something occurred to Midon.

"You doing this is not why Mom thinks you sleep late, is it?" said Midon. "I mean waking up early then falling back asleep without her knowing?"

"No, no, trust me, this seldom happens," said Link. "I do just sleep late sometimes. Just like you."

Midon laughed, then they said goodbye. He made his way to the ferry stop, grabbing a Hyrule Bass along the way. But then he thought he should tell his sister Mila what he had learned. As he waited for the ferry that would travel upriver past Hyrule Castle and then onward to the Royal Ancient Tech Lab, he called Mila. She was still in her slumber pool but answered at once. And Mila had the presence of mind to check who was calling first.

"Mido? Are you okay?"

"Yes, fine, Mi. I have to go help Laff at the lab," said Midon. "I don't know how long I'll be gone."

"Okay. We'll check on Larena so she doesn't wilt with grief in your absence."

"Very funny," said Midon. "I'll contact her myself when it's not so early."

"Oh, so you don't mind waking me up but not your precious Larena?" laughed Mila.

"Well, I...," said Midon, but Mila interrupted him.

"It's fine. I'm teasing you. Work hard and hurry home."

"Listen, Mi, I need to tell you something else. Do you know that Dad sometimes has bad dreams these days and wakes up in the middle of the night? I found him sitting alone outside the house when I left."

"Really? No, I didn't know that," said Mila, growing concerned. "Mom said he had bad dreams after they first married, but not so much anymore. Is Dad still sitting outside?"

"He said he was going back to sleep when I left a short time ago," said Midon. "So, probably not."

"Okay, thanks for telling me," said Mila as they ended the call.

Mila got up, came downstairs, and checked at once if her father was still outside. He wasn't, but at least she could catch some breakfast fish for herself and her parents. Mila dove into Mikau Lake, and it took her only a moment to catch three Hyrule Bass. She returned home with the fish, left two in the kitchen on ice, and then sat down to eat, wondering if there was a way for her to help. She remembered Linky, Tila and Tara were returning to the Domain later that day from North Hyrule so that the house would be busy again. It had seemed all too quiet without Tara there. Then she began organizing her questions on her Tab for her upcoming interview with General Haston.

Meanwhile, Link had gone back inside and to their bedroom when Midon left, quietly undressed and carefully slipped into their slumber pool, trying to disturb the water as little as possible. Mipha was still asleep as far as he could tell, for her eyes were closed, and her gills were silently doing her breathing. So, he was pretty surprised when he felt her put her arm around him and pull him close for a kiss.

"Sorry, did I wake you, sweetheart?" Link asked as he returned her kiss.

"I want you to wake me if something is troubling you," said Mipha. "What's wrong, sweetheart?"

"I had one of those crazy dreams, a mixture of things that happened and didn't happen," said Link. "I woke up confused for a moment, then wanted to wait before falling back asleep. I didn't want the dream to continue. So, I took some air outside."

"You feel better now?"

"Yes."

"Alright, that's good, but you need more sleep. Relax, close your eyes and listen to the waterfall," said Mipha as she brushed some of his hair back and gently caressed his forehead. She often did that when this happened. Perhaps she subconsciously wanted to heal his mind.

Link sighed, felt his muscles relax, and a moment later was fast asleep.

Mipha continued to hold him, her arm under his head and watched as his breathing settled into the deep, regular pattern of dreamless sleep. She kissed him gently on the forehead, then closed her eyes and fell back asleep herself.

When Midon boarded the ferry, there were only two other passengers aboard, both Hylian tradespeople heading to work in Castle Town. They were both quiet and sat apart, their eyes closed. No doubt they were squeezing in a last bit of sleep before they started work. So, Midon was the only passenger as the ferry resumed its journey after stopping to let them off at Castle Town. The ferry proceeded west of Hyrule Forest Park, which was empty on this early morning, and then steered around to the north side of Hyrule Castle.

The castle looked magnificent! Long royal red and gold pennants flapped gently in the breeze, and the castle trees and grass were a lush, vibrant green. The waterfalls toward the rear of the castle sparkled in the morning sun beneath a clear blue sky. Of course, the Hyrule Royal Family was there, including his half-sister Astra, who had just turned twelve. Midon wished he knew Astra better, as he had heard that she was a lot like his Dad at that age. Perhaps he could spend more time with her on her next visit to the Domain. They could even do a bit of sparring together, as both of them had inherited his Dad's flurry rush ability, though Astra was no doubt much better at combat than him now, given how focused she was on that.

Nobody was boarding the ferry at the castle docks, so it followed the waterway as it curved south toward the Royal Ancient Tech Lab. Midon hadn't been to the lab in some time, and it brought back memories of his time there as a trainee. The lab was a large, impressive structure above the river and divided into two major sections. Most of the research work and advanced equipment was in the northern part of the structure. That was where Purah and Robbie worked and where Lapha would be now. The southern part of the building housed the classrooms, residence area, and workplaces where more routine but still essential tasks were performed. Larena's younger sister Karena lived and worked in that part of the building now, and that's where he had studied back in his trainee days. Linky's wife Tila had taught math there at one time as well. Speaking of Karena, though, that reminded him he had better send Larena a brief message explaining where he was.

When the ferry docked, Midon disembarked, climbed the long stairway to the top of the embankment, and knocked on the research area's door. Lapha opened it at once.

"Thanks for coming so promptly," said Lapha as they hugged each other. "The device is set up over there, and we can get right to work. Oh, have you eaten yet?"

"Yes, I grabbed a Hyrule Bass on the way here," said Midon. "What are we working on?"

"We're working on decrypting a password-protected set of pictures," said Lapha. "You're good with code, and it would help a great deal to isolate the part of the code that checks for a password and then extract the encrypted password itself as a first step in deciphering it. Knowing how long the password is would also be helpful. I'm looking through the device for any information about the owner. That may help narrow down the list of passwords, but the key word is 'may.' If the owner was clever and chose something completely at random, well, then it's pretty hopeless."

"Okay," said Midon. "Let me start work. We're set up over there?"

"Yes, and you can scroll through the code using the controls here," said Lapha, pointing to the controls on his side of the Guidance Stone. "I can look through it on my screen from the controls on my side."

"Let me get to work then," said Midon.

He sat down at the screen and began looking through the code.

It was mid-morning when Link awoke again, and Mipha was already awake, her arm around him.

"Hi," said Link as they kissed.

"You feeling better?"

"Yes, thanks, you put me to sleep almost instantly," said Link.

"I'm not sure I like how that sounds, but I understand," laughed Mipha. "You needed the rest, dear. We had better get up, though. Don't you have an ambassador call today?"

"Yes, there is an ambassador meeting today by Tab, and I am the one attending for a change," laughed Link. "Zelda is resuming the meetings now that things are back to normal."

"Are things ever back to normal in Hyrule?"

"Well, as normal as we can ever be in this mysterious magical land of ours," laughed Link.

They got up, Link dressed, and when they arrived at the dining area, Mila was sitting there working. They all exchanged hugs.

"The fish in the kitchen is still fresh," said Mila. "I put it on ice."

They retrieved the fish, Link cooked his fish, and they sat down together.

"Midon is off to the Royal Ancient Tech Lab to help Lapha," said Mila. "But Dad, you already know that. You were up quite early, I gather."

"Oh, yes, Midon and I ran into each other this morning," said Link.

Mila looked at Mipha, but she just smiled and nodded, acknowledging she was aware of the incident.

"Are you okay, though, Dad? Please be honest with me," said Mila.

"Yes, yes, I'm fine, sweetheart," said Link. "As I told Midon, sometimes my mind gets confused, and it triggers strange dreams. If I wake up, I often prefer not to fall back too quickly. Sometimes I just stay in the water where I am. Other times I get up, depending on how bad the dream was. Last night's dream was one I preferred to get up and make sure I didn't lapse back into. It, um, involved something I worked hard to change. That's all, sweetheart. Please don't worry, okay?"

Mila looked deeply into his eyes as he spoke, and she seemed satisfied.

"Okay, well, I need to prepare my questions for my interview with General Haston," said Mila. "The General said he would be happy to visit here as he hasn't been to our Domain since he was a Captain. I'll go to my room now. Love you both!"

"Love you, too," Mipha and Link both answered as Mila left.

"She worries a good deal about you, you know, and always has," said Mipha once Mila had left. "Probably as much as I do."

"Yes, I know, she does, and I've always tried my best to reassure her," said Link. "I love all of you more than anything, and I hate to cause any of you to worry. But really, I'm fine."

Mipha took his hands in hers.

"I know you can't control these dreams, sweetheart, and you want to tough things out on your own," said Mipha. "That's your nature. But I want you to let me be the person I promised you I would be a long time ago - the person who would look after you. Next time, please wake me when this happens. You'd be surprised what I can do to take your mind off it."

"That sounds so exciting that I'm almost looking forward to it!" laughed Link as he squeezed her hand.

They leaned over the table and kissed. Then Link resumed eating his fish.

Meanwhile, in North Hyrule, Linky and his family were preparing to depart for the Domain, and Faray was seeing them off at the pier. Tara was clingy with Linky, and he was holding her in his arms.

"Have a safe trip home," said Faray. "I loved having you here. Return soon!"

"We enjoyed it, and we will," said Linky.

"Thank you, Aunt Faray," said Tara. "I had a lot of fun."

Tila, Linky, and Tara boarded the boat, took their seats, Tara in the middle, but she climbed at once onto Linky's lap. Then they all waved goodbye as it pulled away from the pier. Tara stared at the shore as they traveled through the channel that led to the Akkala Sea, then spoke up.

"Yay! We're finally on our way home!" exclaimed Tara. "But why can't we take one of those really fast boats?"

"We only use those boats for special situations, sweetheart," said Tila.

"Like the time Daddy was sick?"

"Yes, like that time," said Tila. "Are you in a big hurry to get back?"

"Yes, I like it there more," said Tara.

"Why do you like it more there than here?" Tila asked. "And why are you only hugging Daddy all morning?"

Tara was quiet for a moment.

"I enjoy playing in the waves here. But when we're here, you're away a lot, Mommy, seeing your friends and Aunt Faray," said Tara. "I like it better when we're all together, the three of us."

"Oh, I see," said Tila. "I'll keep that in mind, sweetheart. It was just that I hadn't seen some of my friends in some time, and I missed them."

"And Mommy has to work with Aunt Faray, sweetheart," said Linky. "She can't help that. We both love you very much, and we always want to spend as much time with you as we can."

Tara thought for a moment, then she reached out to Tila, and Linky passed her over to her. Tila and Tara kissed, and then Tara settled down in Tila's lap.

"That's better, sweetheart," said Tila as she caressed Tara's tail fin. "Now, let's enjoy the ride. And once we get to the open sea, this boat will go pretty fast too. The trip won't take very long. If you close your eyes and sleep, the trip will go even faster for you."

Tara nestled against Tila and closed her eyes. Tila cuddled her, and the smooth sound of the propulsion system soon put Tara to sleep.

"I thought she was going to say she missed my family," said Linky quietly. "But I guess she just misses us being together. And that explains why she was so clingy with me. She was probably a bit upset at you."

"Yes, she was," whispered Tila. "She has a good point, and I know she's more used to living in your Domain than mine. Maybe we stayed a bit too long at her age. I want my friends to visit us in Hyrule instead of the other way around, anyway. They have quite a distorted impression of life in Hyrule."

They all settled back in their seats as the boat entered the Akkala Sea and picked up speed. Linky put his arm around Tila, and she smiled.

"Love you," whispered Linky.

"Love you, too," whispered Tila.

Tara moved slightly, reached out, felt for both of them, and then settled down again in Tila's lap, still asleep.

"And we both love you too, you little cutie," whispered Linky as he leaned over and kissed Tara on the forehead.

To be honest, he was a little homesick as well, and it would be fun to see his family again. Soon they would all be back home.