⊥ Little watcher

[sorcerer_vaati]

[Kakariko Village is the same as it ever is, except for a small plush bat-thing resting on the lip on the stone well.

[It's a cute little thing, a round body with large wings and a single red eye with copper 'lashes', and it's very well-made. The little plush doll just sits there, propped up by two little cloth-clawed feet, looking for all the

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[linkshaia]

[On the way back from the well, Linksha notices something rather out of place: a plush toy! Actually, it's the FIRST plush toy he's seen since he got to this Hyrule, so he goes up to inspect it. It's a... bat? -ish? sort of thing. Since there's nobody around and no children that he knows of living in town, he wonders if this is another fun little bit of randomness, on the part of the Great Fairy.]

[He picks it up and examines it. Looks brand-new. No smudges. The stuffing's evenly distributed. He doubts any child's even held it, so far. The one big eye is disturbingly cute, actually. He smiles at it.]

[After a bit of thinking, Linksha decides to take it with him, as a gift for Sheiky -- the kid will enjoy it, he's sure. He starts walking towards the inn, plushie held firmly under one arm, bucket swinging from the other.]

[sorcerer_vaati]

[For a moment, the little doll is perfectly content to just ride along. It doesn't know the man, of course; it doesn't know anyone besides Master. But this means it doesn't have to fly, and this is kinda fun, too.

[No, make that really fun.]

Wheeeee~!

[linkshaia]

[The noise startles Linksha, who stops and quickly spins, looking around. Nobody nearby. Huh. That's odd... Maybe it was an echo from somewhere? Hoping he's not just imagining things, Linksha takes a few hesitant steps, then sets his shoulders and proceeds toward the inn.]

[sorcerer_vaati]

Whee~! [it calls at the spin. But then the motion stops. And then starts, but it's slower. Aw, that's not nearly as fun.]

Faster!

[linkshaia]

[And THAT makes him outright JUMP to look behind him, hoping that if he moves fast enough he'll catch whoever it is that's messing with him. But of course, once again, nobody around the corner. His eyes scan the scenery, eyes betraying how lost and dumb he feels, right now, because either someone's messing with him, or he's losing his grasp on reality. Raising the arm in which he holds the plush toy, he tugs irately at his forelock.]

[Well, if someone's playing a prank on him, they won't be able to, once he's inside. So in he goes.]

"Sheiky? ... Little Bro?"

[Hmm. Nobody around. Sheiky must be visiting with Spirit or out with Rose. Linksha shrugs and goes up to his room to wait. He drops off the bucket as he passes the bathroom, turns into his room at the end of the hall, and flops down atop the cushion he's so fond of, little toy still in-hand.]

[sorcerer_vaati]

[The doll stays quiet for the rest of the trip, instead taking in as much of what it sees as it can. Some kind of big building -- not like the wind-house at all.

[Then the man carrying him flops down, and wait... this room feels faintly like Master... not like Master lives here, but like Master has been here.]

You know Master?

[linkshaia]

[And at THAT he bolts upward, and this time, he can't help himself.] "Oh, what the HELL!!! Who keeps saying that stuff?!"

[And then something clicks: "Master"? There's only one person he knows who says "Master". Doesn't sound remotely like him, BUT...] "...Vaati?" [The anger quickly makes way for curiosity, one ear twitching as he listens.]

[sorcerer_vaati]

I say~!

[The doll tries to bounce.] I say; I say!

Vaati...? What is Vaati? I is Aifor.

[linkshaia]

[If Linksha's eyes could pop out of their sockets, they would. SERIOUSLY. He kind jerks backward on the bed, the little doll rolling onto his lap, the eye looking up at him and -- yep! Either the years of facing monstrosities and defying death have taken their toll and he's finally lost his mind, or... that little plush eye just blinked...]

[He spends a good minute just looking at it, jaw slack, eyes wide, thoughts spinning. He eventually realizes this and brings up a hand to smack himself across the cheek, to shock himself into not gaping.]

[He probably shouldn't be THIS surprised, after everything he's seen in his short life. He DID think this might be a random act of the Great Fairy, earlier. Maybe this is the culmination of the trick? If so, it's strange, but not dangerous and, really? he should expect this kind of humor from someone with that insane a cackle.]

[sorcerer_vaati]

[The little doll just watches. This doesn't explain why Master has been here, but that can wait. For now, why is it being stared at? Did it do something wrong?

[When the human hits himself, it decides to talk anyway.]

Why you hit yourself?

[linkshaia]

[Great. He's being punked by the Great Fairy AND having his idiosyncrasies put on display for a bit of talking fabric and stuffing. This day's just getting better. Taking a deep breath, he decides to try and not make this worse on himself by taking the situation too seriously. He forces a smile onto his lips and relaxes his shoulders.] "Oh, I was, um, making sure I wasn't dreaming, is all."

[... So, what do humans and plush toys talk about, anyway?] "Er, I'm Linksha. You, um, have a name, there, little fellow?"

[sorcerer_vaati]

Dream? I not dream.

[Its name? It already said that. Oh, well. Maybe when the human hit himself, he forgot. Or maybe he was asleep? But Master doesn't hit himself when he wakes up, so... It's confused now.]

Hi, Link-sha! I is Aifor. I watch town for Master.

[linkshaia]

[Yep; it HAS a name.] "Hello, er, Aifor! So, Master wanted you to watch the town? Who's 'Master'?" [If someone's interested in Kakariko, it's good for Linksha to know, in case there's a new threat to the town. Although, what kind of wizard would send a stuffed critter to spy on a potential invasion target? It's probably nothing to worry about.]

[sorcerer_vaati]

[Aifor blinks once, twice, three times.]

Master is... Master. Master want me to watch while he still gone.

[But it feels Master here, so shouldn't Linksha know him?] You not know Master?

[linkshaia]

[He quirks his head to the side.] "Don't think so. At least, not by that name. You seem surprised I asked; how come?"

[The little guy IS cute as a button. Linksha reaches for him, lightly scratching the top of its... head?]

[sorcerer_vaati]

[It turns around carefully, looking around. This doesn't make sense at all. Maybe Linksha doesn't know that Master was here once?]

I feel Master here. Weak, but here.

[And then it half-closes its eye and lowers its wings a little. Oooh, that feels nice.]