Dunmaaaaaa I love her so much she's the best~ and so strong for dealing with the hot mess that is her father. How often does she contemplate patricide, I wonder.
Read more for my thoughts on Zora childhood~
5,6. The age from 3 to 6 is very important. Once a Zora is comfortable with air, they can learn how to crawl and then walk, and also start working on basic speech. Handling them is a major chore though, since most of them really would rather return to water and also they're Very Hungry. All the time.
For once in my life I'm going completely anachronistic and giving Rivan access to a camera. The idea of a Proud Dad photo album was just too fun not to take advantage of.
I won't elaborate much on exact circumstances of Dunma's birth and upbringing, this is just a Baby Zora Growing Up kinda thing.
1 .Egg. Smaller than you'd expect (every time Zora women hear about Hylian pregnancies they shoot a grateful prayer to Nayru) and pretty durable. Needs very specific water conditions (clean, cold but not too much, oxygenated) to develop correctly, which takes around 6 months.
2. If everything goes right, the egg hatches into a tadpole. The tadpoles are much more fragile than the eggs and can die very easily if the water conditions aren't right or they get too little/too much/wrong kind of food. They don't really do anything besides eating, pooping and trying to get themselves killed. Because of this, baby Zora only get named on their first birthday, when they're deemed strong enough to probably make it through.
3. Until around 3yo the baby Zora will remain in the water, working hard on getting fat and sprouting limbs. They start demanding more protein-rich food - if two or more tadpoles survived, they should be separated, or they'll quickly become just one (but very round).
The baby still needs more or less constant care, as it will bite on things it shouldn't or jump out. They can start interacting with other family members, becoming more resistant to infections.
4. At around 3, the baby is ready to be introduced to the concept of using their lungs. They tend to not like it very much and it does take a while.
7. A zora usually gets their first neck brace and accompanying adornments around 6/7 years old, when it's deemed to be safe (as in, their necks are long enough that they probably won't choke).
8. The Zora toddler years last until around 10/15. They can run around (if a bit clumsily) and communicate (more or less coherently). Can start eating foods that are not algae or raw fish. Finally can be left to its own devices for short periods of time, moves to more communal care (parents with kids of similar ages often share care responsibilities).
9. 15-25 is an early childhood stage, the child Zora can do most everything that an adult can, just with a lesser degree of motor control. They're still very small, but mostly independent, curiously exploring the world. They start learning how to read and write.
11. Once the Zora is grown enough (within like 1 head of height to being adult size, usually around their 40s) they're expected to start helping out at some easier jobs (though with no compensation). Usually it's fishing, gardening or some menial Guild tasks (if they're from a Guild-adjacent family). They're still very much treated like young kids and have few civil rights.
10. 25-40 is Zora equivalent of early teenage years. Most of their essential education happens during this time (it varies a lot between commoners and nobility). Zora grow in spurts, which depend on an individual and are not consistent at all. You can have a friend group where everybody is roughly the same age and the tallest has two full heads on the shortest.
At this age the Zora are encouraged to explore the Domain and start building connections with the community.
12. The age of 50/60 is the biological adulthood barrier, though of course it varies between individuals. A Zora usually reaches their final height until then (though for some it might take until their 80s) and could technically start having children of their own (it's preferred they wait a bit more on that). Those who can, finally start their career paths as Guild apprentices or guard recruits. They gain some actual rights and are treated as their own legal people (for some more serious stuff they'll need to wait a bit more, one becomes a full citizen only at 100).
I actually don't have that much to add, Dunma was a pretty normal kid in terms of development, despite the extremely chaotic start (Rivan became a dad at 70, which is most definitely -not- a proper child having age,,, not to mention Dunma's mom went to the store to get shrimp and never came back).
Gaddison was helping out since the beginning but Bazz was a different story, which drew a major wedge in his and Rivan's friendship. The man was terrified of finally meeting her for many reasons, some more justifiable than others. When he finally did, he almost got his fin chomped off multiple times, which ironically made it a bit easier for Rivan to forgive his crimes. He ended up adoring her (he keeps some of her baby drawings on his office wall) and she kinda idolizes him in turn. Rivan is unsure what to think about it.
Congrats on making it through to the end, here's a sketch that kickstarted the Baby Dunma Photo Album idea~
jbbartram-illu
dededos
tangentwithtanner
germansingergirl
areudirty
jacobvanloon
2087
