Zelda TOTK: Where Is Mei In Wife Wafted Away?

Summary Side quests in Tears of the Kingdom, like "A Wife Wafted Away," add depth to Hyrule's lore and reward Link with useful items.

The quest has Link searching for a Zora's wife, who has not returned from her fishing trip.

Such side quests draw connections between Tears of the Kingdom and Breath of the Wild, enriching the story.

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom has plenty of side quests that Link can complete while he works on solving the strange phenomena occurring in each region, including "A Wife Wafted Away," a sort of recurring story beat from Breath of the Wild. These quests aren't required to complete the game, but they often reward Link with items like Rupees or food that he can use later to gain a buff effect. Additionally, they expand on the lore of Hyrule and add depth to the characters living there as strange events start happening due to Ganondorf being freed.

In Zora's Domain, side quests aren't available until Link completes "Sidon of the Zora." This is part of the "Regional Phenomena" questline that takes Link to each region, so he can investigate the events that happened once Ganondorf was freed. "Sidon of the Zora" has several steps, and it leads into the Water Temple of Tears of the Kingdom, but it's required as part of the game's main quests. And once complete, Link can explore Zora's Domain and undertake side quests there.

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Starting The "A Wife Wafted Away" Side Quest

A Husband's Concern

After the water is pure and flowing into Zora's Domain again, Link can find a Zora named Fronk on the main path into the town. He looks upset and keeps saying the name "Mei." When talking to him, he tells Link about his wife, Mei, who he's concerned may have gone somewhere dangerous to fish. As such, he asks Link to look for her.

Where Is Mei In "A Wife Wafted Away"

Finding Fronk's Wife

Mei is on Wellspring Island, trying to fish up a Hearty Bass. Since Link has to complete the Water Temple before he can take this side quest, he should have access to the Water Temple's fast travel point. This makes finding Mei fast and easy because she's located a level below the temple. After warping to the dungeon, jump off the Water Temple's eastern edge and use Link's paraglider to land on Wellspring Island. Here, Link talks to Mei and lets her know that her husband has been worrying about her, which leads her to return to Zora's Domain.

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After Mei leaves, Link needs to return to Fronk to complete the quest and collect his reward. Fronk is still located on the main path into Zora's Domain, and speaking with him completes the quest and rewards Link with a Hearty Fish Skewer. The Hearty Fish Skewer is a great item to have on-hand and use during dangerous fights because it restores all of Link's health, and gives him a few temporary Hearts that vary in number depending on the ingredients used when crafting the recipe.

How "A Wife Wafted Away" References Breath Of The Wild

Twin Quests

Fronk's concern over his wife being gone fishing might seem excessive, but it's due to a side quest from Breath of the Wild. After completing the main quest "Divine Beast Vah Ruta," Link can speak with a disheartened Fronk and accept the quest "A Wife Washed Away." Similar to the TOTK version of the quest, Fronk is concerned because his wife, Mei, hasn't returned yet from her fishing trip. As such, Link has to go find her and let her know that her husband is worried about her.

In this version of the quest, Mei is located to the west of the Bridge of Hylia, swimming near Hylia Island. It seemed she didn't realize how long she was gone, or that Fronk would worry so much about her absence. So, after Link speaks with her to let her know that Fronk is waiting and worried, the quest is completed and Link is rewarded with five Staminoka Bass, because Mei rushed away and left her fish with him. As such, Link keeps those fish as his reward for reuniting hte couple.

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This additional context makes the "A Wife Wafted Away" quest more meaningful, and it makes the relationship between Fronk and Mei sweeter. Fronk is concerned in BOTW because Vah Ruta was dangerous and Mei could've gotten into a bad spot because of it. Then, he's concerned again in TOTK because strange events are happening, so there's no way to know if Mei is really safe, since anything could happen. And as a result, Mei and Fronk come to appreciate each other even more, since Fronk's worry shows he loves Mei, and Mei rushes back to Fronk to stop him from worrying as she also loves him.

Side Quests Are Worth Completing In TOTK & BOTW

For Rewards & Lore

Close

Depending on the game, side quests perform various functions. In some cases, they unlock side features or give experience to help with leveling. In other cases, they help flesh out the game's universe by adding context and lore that doesn't quite fit with the main quests, but worth including through extra activities. As such, Link helping out with extra tasks as he explores Hyrule and works to save it not only supplies him with resources and materials for his journey, it gives him additional knowledge about the world that he missed, since he had amnesia and was asleep in the Shrine of Resurrection for a century after being overrun by Calmity Ganon's Guardians.

Of course, Zora's Domain isn't the only location with side quests that make Hyrule feel real and lived in. Another notable side quest takes place in Tarrey Town called "Mattison's Independence." Mattison is the daughter of Rhondson and Hudson, which means that she has Gerudo heritage and needs to go learn about her mother's culture. The series of tasks Link helps her with not only expand on what life is like for a young Gerudo girl, but also show the unique culture of this blossoming town and how much the residents there care about and help each other.

Zelda as a series is old enough to have a lot of history and Easter eggs from previous games hidden within newer titles. However, with TOTK being a direct sequel to BOTW, there are many more references found in TOTK, even in subtle ways, such as the side quests that revolve around Fronk and Mei. While there won't be a third game added to make a trilogy, or any DLC coming in the future for these two titles, these small details still make it worthwhile to replay both Breath of the Wild and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.