hi

I miss my bird

[loftwingsandfrogs]

👋

[a picture of a milcery looking happy.]

👀❓🧡

🐴👩🏻‍🦰...

🍃🌪️🌄

❓🏞️❓

Pokemon RP blog run by @moonflowero1 (YES another one). This is A version of Link (he/they)! Elements of different canons apply to them, but not all :) Link prefers emojis and sign language where they can, but will type if absolutely necessary. He can read! Hearing is mid, and he's functionally mute for secret reasons to be revealed later. No rules that I can think of just don't bully him too much--

[loftwingsandfrogs]

On some level, Link is aware he's being corralled like an Ordon goat. That level is heightened into full-bown hyperawareness when the older man touches his back, and it takes all their strength to not shiver with fear and disgust under his hand. This kind of touch is... Not one they expected from a group of tourists. It's the kind of touch they're familiar with receiving from Zelda, or Sidon, in the way it lingers and the area it's applied. Usually, it makes him melt into relaxation. Usually, he welcomes a familiar, friendly form of contact. Usually, they feel safe from it.

Link does not feel safe.

Link feels violated.

He sprints ahead of the older man purely to get as much distance between them as possible, not fully registering the challenge he'd issued, rolling their shoulder blades to try to shake off the nervous static where the hand touched him. He ignores the burning in his lungs. The milcery follows close behind, becoming increasingly visibly scared.

[facelessreflections]

To say that seeing Link, the hero of Hyrule, fall into an expression of absolute panic just from his touch made Sai feel happy was an a massive understatement...no, it was thrilling, intoxicating, even, like inhaling the fumes off a cup containing an impossibly strong drink, or being given a bunch of bananas after not eating for three days. It gives Sai a much-needed hit of pleasure, and s=a desire to chase the hero down and appear before him for another scare, to send him from one direcfion to another like a mouse being toyed with by a cat before its inevitable, bloody demise.

Evidently, Tali is not pleased by this turn of events. She had already stopped near the edge of the cliff, and seeing Link gaining on her faster than expected, she is...just about to shoot Sai a look of sheer outrage, before a nasty idea pops into her mind.

Tali extends her leg forward, and with an obviously unrepentant "Oops!", trips Link, sending him tumbling towards the edge.

Once the hero has his face in the dirt, the trio of people start to crowd around him, the third one having gained on them inhumanely fast.

In fact, so fast, he had outpaced the equine creature in a single dash. Mudbray can be heard braying in confusion from quite a few feet away. Poni did not particularly enjoy leaving the little creature to catch up, but he had a feeling that the time for disguises was quickly running out.

With a snicker and a flash of teeth that could pass as a smile to them, the lady who tripped Link curls her knuckles against her hip, and looks down at the hero like one would look at a particularly gross piece of trash, and definitely not a creature in distress, which was entirely absent from the area.

"Well, would you look at that." The man who had previously put a hand on Link drawls out, sneering at Link as he draws a little closer, savouring the moment.

"A foul pest, far from its natural habitat." the one accompanied by Mudbray says, his voice both heavy and soft, as if he were merely noting actual wildlife.

"Maybe it's planning on becoming an invasive species! That sounds SO like it." The girl sneers as well.

Mudbray's trainer(?) kneels down, but he is careful to keep his body poised, ready to counterattack. The senses of a warrior lying beneath skin that did not belong to him.

"Tell us. What brought you here?" He questions.

They haven't dropped their disguises yet, but no real attempts were being made on their part to hide their disdain anymore, what with Link's only way out being through them, or through a long drop down.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

Well. Shit.

They should've listened to their gut - said gut is currently doing acrobatics, and they very much would not like to throw up at this moment.

A weapon. They need a weapon and they need it now. Link is entirely unarmed. This strange, peaceful world caught them off guard, so of course the Yiga Clan would be here too. Of course. He knows better than this, why didn't he prepare better?

He takes a slow breath, regaining control of his heart beat, and scans their surroundings.

My fear does not control me, but it can serve me. My fear is my desire to survive, and I will not deny it. I will take its hand and show it the way forward. I will survive.

The mental mantra is grounding, and the milcery chirps curiously at them, sensing the complete shift in tension with her trainer. Where before it was scattered and tight, chaotic, now it's sharp - not relaxed, but focused, controlled in the direction of a specific purpose. She copies their efforts and hovers beside them with more confidence, also looking around for anything that might help her human(? She's still unclear on that).

Spotting a small rock by his hand, Link doesn't bother responding to the trio's taunting, and instead throws the rock and a small cloud of dirt at the man crouching in front of him, using the bare minimum caution to avoid hitting their pokemon by accident. He doesn't particularly care where the rock hits that man, only that he can create an opening. Milcery takes her cue and tackles the Mudbray, and while it startles Link, he nods approvingly as he rushes forward, using the man's back to vault over the trio.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

"Her name-- uh," Link's hands falter, and he scratches the back of his neck awkwardly, "I haven't had time to name her. I'm not good at naming things."

Not entirely a lie. They have to admit, "Red" isn't the most creative name for his crimson loftwing. "Epona" wasn't even his idea. They've been pondering names this morning, but none of them quite seemed to stick.

Meanwhile, the milcery is very conflicted about the atmosphere of the moment. She could tell the human (...? he might be the same as her new trainer - their scents are similar) in front of her meant well, but. Only towards her specifically. And her trainer reeks of stress and adrenaline. She floats a little closer to Link, after a small smile to the human that greeted her.

[facelessreflections]

"I see." Definitely-not-Poni watches the strange creature retreat, a little disappointed, but also intrigued. He takes note of her facial expression—a threat display? She had no teeth, but paired with the retreat....she might already be too far gone.

He glances upwards at Link, unintentionally giving him a look that could kill. He thinks Link is getting suspicious, but isn't quite sure what to do to put him more at ease beyond lean in to his genuine curiosity.

"Are you at the very least aware of...what breed of pokémon she is?" he can feel the gazes of his teammate's piercing his back, and raises his hands in a calming gesture as he heavily hoists himself back up to both his feet. In this disguise, he is still taller than Link by quite a few inches, but nowhere close to towering over him as his true Blademaster form does.

"I apologize for my ignorance," Poni wasn't actually that sorry, or even cared that much what he thought about him. Link was one of the few people Poni knew whose forgiviness meant nothing and his opinion on him was more worthless than a rotten banana peel.

"we simply are not from this...area." Lying really wasn't his strong suit...unless it was by omission, leaning on half truths and such.

"...So certain pokémon are...quite new, to us."

He feels the tug of an incredibly powerful urge to look behind him to see what Sai and Tali are doing, if they have any instructions, but resists it.

Much to his benefit, Tali and Sai nod to confirm his words, both relieved to see him lean in to his strengths when it came to deceit and happy to encourage his more credible-sounding lies.

"Doesn't stop us from wanting to help the locals in need, though!" Definitely-not-Tali cheerily adds on, grinning at Link like she was just a pure, do-gooding soul like him.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

"She's a Milcery," he signs hesitantly, spelling out the pokemon name. "Like I told you earlier, I'm also... new here. I'm not sure how much I can tell you."

They pause for a beat, swallowing the instincts screaming, danger, danger, danger.

"We must keep going. Which way?"

The milcery gurgles nervously, her blobby shape quickening in its idle movement.

[facelessreflections]

"Oh! Totally! For sure! Just a little further up!" Not-Tali looks up from the quite captivating little milky-creature that had drawn her attention as well, puffing out her cheeks in a determined expression as she makes two fists by her chest.

"Let's go!" She points ahead, the person closest to Link nods quietly in agreement, before not-Tali breaks into a sprint, Purrloin close by her side, their brief talk enough to "replenish" their energy.

A mischievous grin forms on the face of the person who had been hanging in the back, and his stride picks up, not stopping as he puts a hand on Link's back, sliding it across as he locks eyes with him. Unaware to the both of them, a particular foxlike Pokemon was using its delicate paws to quietly move behind Link and check him for something worth swiping.

"Bet you can't beat us to the top." Not-Sai taunts before breaking off, changing the formation of the trio—no, the hexad—and leaving the last two of them to stick behind Link, believing him and his Mudbray more than enough to obstruct any possible escape on the hero's part.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

On some level, Link is aware he's being corralled like an Ordon goat. That level is heightened into full-bown hyperawareness when the older man touches his back, and it takes all their strength to not shiver with fear and disgust under his hand. This kind of touch is... Not one they expected from a group of tourists. It's the kind of touch they're familiar with receiving from Zelda, or Sidon, in the way it lingers and the area it's applied. Usually, it makes him melt into relaxation. Usually, he welcomes a familiar, friendly form of contact. Usually, they feel safe from it.

Link does not feel safe.

Link feels violated.

He sprints ahead of the older man purely to get as much distance between them as possible, not fully registering the challenge he'd issued, rolling their shoulder blades to try to shake off the nervous static where the hand touched him. He ignores the burning in his lungs. The milcery follows close behind, becoming increasingly visibly scared.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

"Her name-- uh," Link's hands falter, and he scratches the back of his neck awkwardly, "I haven't had time to name her. I'm not good at naming things."

Not entirely a lie. They have to admit, "Red" isn't the most creative name for his crimson loftwing. "Epona" wasn't even his idea. They've been pondering names this morning, but none of them quite seemed to stick.

Meanwhile, the milcery is very conflicted about the atmosphere of the moment. She could tell the human (...? he might be the same as her new trainer - their scents are similar) in front of her meant well, but. Only towards her specifically. And her trainer reeks of stress and adrenaline. She floats a little closer to Link, after a small smile to the human that greeted her.

[facelessreflections]

"I see." Definitely-not-Poni watches the strange creature retreat, a little disappointed, but also intrigued. He takes note of her facial expression—a threat display? She had no teeth, but paired with the retreat....she might already be too far gone.

He glances upwards at Link, unintentionally giving him a look that could kill. He thinks Link is getting suspicious, but isn't quite sure what to do to put him more at ease beyond lean in to his genuine curiosity.

"Are you at the very least aware of...what breed of pokémon she is?" he can feel the gazes of his teammate's piercing his back, and raises his hands in a calming gesture as he heavily hoists himself back up to both his feet. In this disguise, he is still taller than Link by quite a few inches, but nowhere close to towering over him as his true Blademaster form does.

"I apologize for my ignorance," Poni wasn't actually that sorry, or even cared that much what he thought about him. Link was one of the few people Poni knew whose forgiviness meant nothing and his opinion on him was more worthless than a rotten banana peel.

"we simply are not from this...area." Lying really wasn't his strong suit...unless it was by omission, leaning on half truths and such.

"...So certain pokémon are...quite new, to us."

He feels the tug of an incredibly powerful urge to look behind him to see what Sai and Tali are doing, if they have any instructions, but resists it.

Much to his benefit, Tali and Sai nod to confirm his words, both relieved to see him lean in to his strengths when it came to deceit and happy to encourage his more credible-sounding lies.

"Doesn't stop us from wanting to help the locals in need, though!" Definitely-not-Tali cheerily adds on, grinning at Link like she was just a pure, do-gooding soul like him.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

"She's a Milcery," he signs hesitantly, spelling out the pokemon name. "Like I told you earlier, I'm also... new here. I'm not sure how much I can tell you."

They pause for a beat, swallowing the instincts screaming, danger, danger, danger.

"We must keep going. Which way?"

The milcery gurgles nervously, her blobby shape quickening in its idle movement.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

"I don't have-- Again, I just got here. She's my first ever pokemon."

He hesitates before bringing her out. He'll apologize to her later, but right now, he needs her out and ready. Something isn't right here, and he can't afford to be defenseless. He can wrestle a goat and fight with a stick, sure, but that's different than hand to hand combat. And if the extremely unlikely possibility of them being Yiga is true, then, well. The trio will have the advantage, no doubt. But maybe a magical friendly monster by his side, with powers he hasn't tested but has definitely seen in other battles, will make them think twice.

The air feels tense as he pulls out her ball and presses the button. She emerges with a delighted coo that devolves into confused gurgles.

"Sorry," he begins, "I met some... friends who need help. Stay close, please?"

There's no way the milcery actually understood him, but she seems to get the gist. She hovers less than a foot away from him, offering a nervous greeting to the other humans and pokemon present.

[facelessreflections]

For the first time, the trio are distracted from their target, watching, fascinated by the white light that bursts from the red and white sphere, jagged like a bolt of lightning and just as bright. It twists, and once it hits the ground, the light grows wider, taller, forming a strange shape until it fades...

Looks are exchanged. None of them exactly certain of what they are looking at. Weren't pokemon supposed to be...animal things?

Yet...Link was speaking to some sort of...gooey-looking, off-white creature that they have never seen before. It looked more like a messed-up chuchu rather than any animal they've ever encountered.

One of the trio hums, curious about Link's new ally, and what sort of problem it might present.

"How interesting..." despite the normal pitch of his voice, the cadence of one of the stranger's musing is almost a rumble, like something behind it was far deeper than it should be.

"Yeah, I'd say." says the other man present. He shoots Tali a look, trying to quietly convey "don't ask anything that makes it obvious that we aren't from around here yet.", to which Tali responds with a look of her own that says "duh, genius. I already know that!"

Poni presses a hand to his chin, while his other arm crosses over his chest. He leans down, and studies the living dollop. If this really was just a creature, then that played into his strengths. His ability to handle animals was far better than his ability to act.

He lowers himself further, putting one knee on the ground as he gets close to the creature, making sure his posture and movements appear as nonthreatening as possible.

"Hello there." Poni softly greets the creature in return. He didn't approve of it having any allegiance to Link, but understood that animals were not always the smartest. Sometimes they got their heads stuck in fences, or decided that they should ally themselves with an absolute menace. Perhaps he could convince them to rethink their decision, lest they suffer the consequences of working alongside Link.

"You are quite cute..." he says to the pokemon, being entirely genuine, before looking up at Link. It was time for him to take the lead and speak. He knew how to get the hero to tell them what they will be dealing with while keeping their motives inconspicious. "Do they have a name?"

[loftwingsandfrogs]

"Her name-- uh," Link's hands falter, and he scratches the back of his neck awkwardly, "I haven't had time to name her. I'm not good at naming things."

Not entirely a lie. They have to admit, "Red" isn't the most creative name for his crimson loftwing. "Epona" wasn't even his idea. They've been pondering names this morning, but none of them quite seemed to stick.

Meanwhile, the milcery is very conflicted about the atmosphere of the moment. She could tell the human (...? he might be the same as her new trainer - their scents are similar) in front of her meant well, but. Only towards her specifically. And her trainer reeks of stress and adrenaline. She floats a little closer to Link, after a small smile to the human that greeted her.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

Link resists the urge to flinch and twist his arm out of her grasp. What would their reaction be if he did do that? He's surrounded - everything in them is screaming that they've made a tactical mistake by going with this.

They don't like the way she grabbed his wrist. She understood HSL - she should know that restraining hands is the worst thing you could do.

These are normal people, they think, I can stand up for myself just as well as in Hyrule. It's fine.

They yank their wrist back, and keep running alongside them. At least now he has both hands free.

[facelessreflections]

It is easy for somebody who has faith in Tali's diabolical ingenuity—such as, say, Poni—to presume that her restraining Link's hand was a stroke of genius, as it could prevent him from communicating with anybody else nearby. But in reality, Tali had just gotten overexcited and completely overstepped Link's boundaries on impulse, just as she would do with just about anyone else (If asked, however, Tali would say it was definitely part of the plan). Which is why it doesn't really bother her that Link had broken free—as long as they were still following them, that was fine. That being said, her companions do pick up on how that might be a problem. Poni nods to Sai, and they both match their pace so that they are on either side of Link, while the three creatures that had followed them until now block him at the rear. Link would now have a much harder time getting out of their clutches, should the hero decide to be a coward and run.

But like the dutiful little drone they were, Link does not try to escape, and they continue to follow Tali under the false pretense that they're off on another unplanned rescue mission (a sidequest, if you will).

Tali, or the person she is pretending to be, doesn't slow down until they're at the very foot of the mountain. Being Yiga, it took way more than a run through a field to deplete their supernatural amount of stamina, but to keep up the act, Tali stops to catch her breath, while the other two copy her. Sai complains about needing a drink, and both Tali and Poni wonder if he was talking about water, or something a little stronger, given their current situation.

"Whew, what a run...! It...should be—" she says between heavy huffs of air. "—just a little further up..." the disguised Yiga pretends to nearly collapse from exhaustion, bracing herself on her knees. She is unsure on whether or not her partner was picking up that this was part of the ruse, but is still grateful that he steps forward to "help her back up", as it adds to the illusion. She mutters a quick "thankyou" to him.

"Come on." she says, turning her head to Link once she is back up, now leaning on her disguised partner for support she didn't actually need. "Let's...walk...the rest of the way." So there would be some time to interrogate Link before they kill them, that is.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

By this point, Link starts coughing from exertion. His face is red, and his nerves are frayed. Every part of them is still screaming, "There's something off about these people! Danger!" but, with the possibility of the life of an animal at stake? And, from what they understand, sentient animal? Damn it, he'll do what he has to. He just wishes they could've done a light jog instead of a full blown sprint. He can do a light jog for days. Sprinting? No more than around 15 seconds, even at his best. He's always been like that. His old roommate used to tell them how strong they were, and they suppose it's true on some level. But, also, this was coming from someone who could not do more than 5 push ups at a time, so he might've been a bit biased.

They wipe the sweat off their forehead as she talks, barely absorbing what she's saying. He nods anyway, taking a couple more slow, deep breaths before following her.

[facelessreflections]

Link's genuine exhaustion is quite amusing to his company. There was always something so...sad, about the way regular people functioned. Tali and Poni hadn't realized it until after they joined the Yiga Clan, until their third eye was opened, senses became sharper, bodies more capable. It was like a new world opened up to them. Meanwhile, Sai, who had always been in the Yiga Clan, simply never knew what it was like to be without such things.

But they all knew that so many people were missing out.

Not that anyone like Link deserved to be capable of such feats, though. Everyone in the Yiga Clan could agree on that.

The group keeps their formation around him like sharks circling their prey as they herd him up the mountain and further away from any witnesses.

"Question time!" The girl announces, looking back at Link. "Why are your ears so long and pointy?" she nosily asks, pointing a finger at Link's ears, while a wide grin is spread across her face.

Recalling the words of the first round-eared stranger they had encountered, Poni chimes in with the same exact question they had asked.

"...Are you wearing some kind of costume?"

[loftwingsandfrogs]

The small amount of normal blood circulation Link regained is lost again as they blush, but they resist the urge to cover them. He shrugs and signs his response.

"Born like this. I hear some people are born with no ears, and others with small ones."

That deep unsettling feeling they've been having increases by magnitudes. They're just curious, normal people, they tell themself, but even that starts to feel drenched in denial.

Fuck, I wish Fi were with me.

"Can I take out my pokemon as well? Who knows what's out here," he tries to ask as innocently as he can.

[facelessreflections]

"Of course you can!" Tali replies, followed by Sai encouraging Link further with "In fact, we'd love to see a demonstration of how you do it."

That sounded a bit too suspicious.

"Since, y'know, everybody does it a different way." He adds on, shrugging in a very nonchalant way. Seeing what Link had in his arsenal might make things easier, allow them to take them out before Link can command it or whatever...or at the very least, it will answer some questions they had about how this world worked.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

"I don't have-- Again, I just got here. She's my first ever pokemon."

He hesitates before bringing her out. He'll apologize to her later, but right now, he needs her out and ready. Something isn't right here, and he can't afford to be defenseless. He can wrestle a goat and fight with a stick, sure, but that's different than hand to hand combat. And if the extremely unlikely possibility of them being Yiga is true, then, well. The trio will have the advantage, no doubt. But maybe a magical friendly monster by his side, with powers he hasn't tested but has definitely seen in other battles, will make them think twice.

The air feels tense as he pulls out her ball and presses the button. She emerges with a delighted coo that devolves into confused gurgles.

"Sorry," he begins, "I met some... friends who need help. Stay close, please?"

There's no way the milcery actually understood him, but she seems to get the gist. She hovers less than a foot away from him, offering a nervous greeting to the other humans and pokemon present.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

Link resists the urge to flinch and twist his arm out of her grasp. What would their reaction be if he did do that? He's surrounded - everything in them is screaming that they've made a tactical mistake by going with this.

They don't like the way she grabbed his wrist. She understood HSL - she should know that restraining hands is the worst thing you could do.

These are normal people, they think, I can stand up for myself just as well as in Hyrule. It's fine.

They yank their wrist back, and keep running alongside them. At least now he has both hands free.

[facelessreflections]

It is easy for somebody who has faith in Tali's diabolical ingenuity—such as, say, Poni—to presume that her restraining Link's hand was a stroke of genius, as it could prevent him from communicating with anybody else nearby. But in reality, Tali had just gotten overexcited and completely overstepped Link's boundaries on impulse, just as she would do with just about anyone else (If asked, however, Tali would say it was definitely part of the plan). Which is why it doesn't really bother her that Link had broken free—as long as they were still following them, that was fine. That being said, her companions do pick up on how that might be a problem. Poni nods to Sai, and they both match their pace so that they are on either side of Link, while the three creatures that had followed them until now block him at the rear. Link would now have a much harder time getting out of their clutches, should the hero decide to be a coward and run.

But like the dutiful little drone they were, Link does not try to escape, and they continue to follow Tali under the false pretense that they're off on another unplanned rescue mission (a sidequest, if you will).

Tali, or the person she is pretending to be, doesn't slow down until they're at the very foot of the mountain. Being Yiga, it took way more than a run through a field to deplete their supernatural amount of stamina, but to keep up the act, Tali stops to catch her breath, while the other two copy her. Sai complains about needing a drink, and both Tali and Poni wonder if he was talking about water, or something a little stronger, given their current situation.

"Whew, what a run...! It...should be—" she says between heavy huffs of air. "—just a little further up..." the disguised Yiga pretends to nearly collapse from exhaustion, bracing herself on her knees. She is unsure on whether or not her partner was picking up that this was part of the ruse, but is still grateful that he steps forward to "help her back up", as it adds to the illusion. She mutters a quick "thankyou" to him.

"Come on." she says, turning her head to Link once she is back up, now leaning on her disguised partner for support she didn't actually need. "Let's...walk...the rest of the way." So there would be some time to interrogate Link before they kill them, that is.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

By this point, Link starts coughing from exertion. His face is red, and his nerves are frayed. Every part of them is still screaming, "There's something off about these people! Danger!" but, with the possibility of the life of an animal at stake? And, from what they understand, sentient animal? Damn it, he'll do what he has to. He just wishes they could've done a light jog instead of a full blown sprint. He can do a light jog for days. Sprinting? No more than around 15 seconds, even at his best. He's always been like that. His old roommate used to tell them how strong they were, and they suppose it's true on some level. But, also, this was coming from someone who could not do more than 5 push ups at a time, so he might've been a bit biased.

They wipe the sweat off their forehead as she talks, barely absorbing what she's saying. He nods anyway, taking a couple more slow, deep breaths before following her.

[facelessreflections]

Link's genuine exhaustion is quite amusing to his company. There was always something so...sad, about the way regular people functioned. Tali and Poni hadn't realized it until after they joined the Yiga Clan, until their third eye was opened, senses became sharper, bodies more capable. It was like a new world opened up to them. Meanwhile, Sai, who had always been in the Yiga Clan, simply never knew what it was like to be without such things.

But they all knew that so many people were missing out.

Not that anyone like Link deserved to be capable of such feats, though. Everyone in the Yiga Clan could agree on that.

The group keeps their formation around him like sharks circling their prey as they herd him up the mountain and further away from any witnesses.

"Question time!" The girl announces, looking back at Link. "Why are your ears so long and pointy?" she nosily asks, pointing a finger at Link's ears, while a wide grin is spread across her face.

Recalling the words of the first round-eared stranger they had encountered, Poni chimes in with the same exact question they had asked.

"...Are you wearing some kind of costume?"

[loftwingsandfrogs]

The small amount of normal blood circulation Link regained is lost again as they blush, but they resist the urge to cover them. He shrugs and signs his response.

"Born like this. I hear some people are born with no ears, and others with small ones."

That deep unsettling feeling they've been having increases by magnitudes. They're just curious, normal people, they tell themself, but even that starts to feel drenched in denial.

Fuck, I wish Fi were with me.

"Can I take out my pokemon as well? Who knows what's out here," he tries to ask as innocently as he can.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

Link resists the urge to flinch and twist his arm out of her grasp. What would their reaction be if he did do that? He's surrounded - everything in them is screaming that they've made a tactical mistake by going with this.

They don't like the way she grabbed his wrist. She understood HSL - she should know that restraining hands is the worst thing you could do.

These are normal people, they think, I can stand up for myself just as well as in Hyrule. It's fine.

They yank their wrist back, and keep running alongside them. At least now he has both hands free.

[facelessreflections]

It is easy for somebody who has faith in Tali's diabolical ingenuity—such as, say, Poni—to presume that her restraining Link's hand was a stroke of genius, as it could prevent him from communicating with anybody else nearby. But in reality, Tali had just gotten overexcited and completely overstepped Link's boundaries on impulse, just as she would do with just about anyone else (If asked, however, Tali would say it was definitely part of the plan). Which is why it doesn't really bother her that Link had broken free—as long as they were still following them, that was fine. That being said, her companions do pick up on how that might be a problem. Poni nods to Sai, and they both match their pace so that they are on either side of Link, while the three creatures that had followed them until now block him at the rear. Link would now have a much harder time getting out of their clutches, should the hero decide to be a coward and run.

But like the dutiful little drone they were, Link does not try to escape, and they continue to follow Tali under the false pretense that they're off on another unplanned rescue mission (a sidequest, if you will).

Tali, or the person she is pretending to be, doesn't slow down until they're at the very foot of the mountain. Being Yiga, it took way more than a run through a field to deplete their supernatural amount of stamina, but to keep up the act, Tali stops to catch her breath, while the other two copy her. Sai complains about needing a drink, and both Tali and Poni wonder if he was talking about water, or something a little stronger, given their current situation.

"Whew, what a run...! It...should be—" she says between heavy huffs of air. "—just a little further up..." the disguised Yiga pretends to nearly collapse from exhaustion, bracing herself on her knees. She is unsure on whether or not her partner was picking up that this was part of the ruse, but is still grateful that he steps forward to "help her back up", as it adds to the illusion. She mutters a quick "thankyou" to him.

"Come on." she says, turning her head to Link once she is back up, now leaning on her disguised partner for support she didn't actually need. "Let's...walk...the rest of the way." So there would be some time to interrogate Link before they kill them, that is.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

By this point, Link starts coughing from exertion. His face is red, and his nerves are frayed. Every part of them is still screaming, "There's something off about these people! Danger!" but, with the possibility of the life of an animal at stake? And, from what they understand, sentient animal? Damn it, he'll do what he has to. He just wishes they could've done a light jog instead of a full blown sprint. He can do a light jog for days. Sprinting? No more than around 15 seconds, even at his best. He's always been like that. His old roommate used to tell them how strong they were, and they suppose it's true on some level. But, also, this was coming from someone who could not do more than 5 push ups at a time, so he might've been a bit biased.

They wipe the sweat off their forehead as she talks, barely absorbing what she's saying. He nods anyway, taking a couple more slow, deep breaths before following her.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

"No!" he signs snappishly, and he takes a deep breath. "Fine. Where is the well?"

He's had many run-ins with the Yiga, posing as people in need, begging for help or laying on thick the flattery. Ultimately, he always ends up helping. But they still get goosebumps when people act like that.

There's no way they're Yiga, he assures himself, the nurse understood me just fine, sort of, and even if they are a danger, this is a completely different world. I'm sure it'll be fine.

[facelessreflections]

Her mood flips the instant Link agrees, eyes alight with joy and a completely-grateful grin spreading across her face. "It's just a little ways up that nearby mountain, of course!" she cheerily points to to a mountain on the right side of route 4, just outside the city. Before Link can really say anything, though, the girl already grabs him by the wrist and starts to run in the direction she pointed at. "Let's go! Hurry!!"

Catching her drift, the other two turn to follow closely behind her, one of them nudges Link on the shoulder with his elbow. "Knew we could count on you." he says with a wink, withstanding the urge to finish that sentence with "to be a complete sucker".

[loftwingsandfrogs]

Link resists the urge to flinch and twist his arm out of her grasp. What would their reaction be if he did do that? He's surrounded - everything in them is screaming that they've made a tactical mistake by going with this.

They don't like the way she grabbed his wrist. She understood HSL - she should know that restraining hands is the worst thing you could do.

These are normal people, they think, I can stand up for myself just as well as in Hyrule. It's fine.

They yank their wrist back, and keep running alongside them. At least now he has both hands free.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

Link doesn't move at first. If these are locals, why did he mispronounce "pokemon"? He wants to help, but...

Something's wrong. They get the feeling they should go absolutely nowhere with these farmers, especially not alone.

"I don't think I can help you - if you want, I can go get a pokemon ranger? They specialize in helping pokemon."

Link takes a small step back, wishing they had their sword on them.

[facelessreflections]

"What?" the girl sputters, needing a buffer in the conversation so that the gears in her head can turn, and she can figure out where to go with her scheme. Link always made things so, so difficult!

She grimaces, but instead of letting frustration overtake her and resorting to aggression, as several Yiga would have done by this point, Tali looks to the rest of her teammates for support. Somebody needed to make a decision as to the right course of action. Now.

"No. Time is of the essence here." Poni simply states, crossing his arms as he applies more pressure with his stare, which he tries to make look more judgemental.

Tali exhales before turning her attention back to Link. Okay. She got it. Trying to bring another person into this could get messy.

"Yeah! By the time we find one, it might be too late! We need a hero NOW." She fixes Link with her own intense gaze. "Without your help, that poor thing might die!"

Using her superb acting skils, Tali channels her annoyance and outrage at Link's lack of cooperation into producing real, actual tears, and widens her eyes so they look extremely big and sad.

"You're really just gonna let that happen?" she sniffles, innocently clasping her hands together.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

"No!" he signs snappishly, and he takes a deep breath. "Fine. Where is the well?"

He's had many run-ins with the Yiga, posing as people in need, begging for help or laying on thick the flattery. Ultimately, he always ends up helping. But they still get goosebumps when people act like that.

There's no way they're Yiga, he assures himself, the nurse understood me just fine, sort of, and even if they are a danger, this is a completely different world. I'm sure it'll be fine.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

Link had a splendid time chatting with the local gym leader, a farmer named Milo. He seemed to be a sort of community leader as well, open to helping anyone, and reserving his tough battles for the participants of the current challenge. It's a bit too late for Link to enter, to their disappointment, but he supposes that's not too bad - he still only has this milcery with him. And he can't use his sword.

He looks up as he hears someone call to him, and something about their tone of voice puts him on edge. He waves to them cautiously, and signs from a distance, "Hello, I'm new here. I don't think I can help you."

He thumbs his lone pokeball. He got to sit in and watch one of Milo's challenger battles, and while it looks exciting, he's not sure his pokemon is much of a battler. Surely these weird tourists wouldn't challenge him, right?

[facelessreflections]

The three watch Link sign very closely, quickly recognizing the form as Hylian Sign Language, and thus, revealing that this man was absolutely, 100%, their sworn enemy.

"Oh, no, I think you can." Tali replies with a tone as sweet as poisoned honey. The trio were now face-to-face with Link, giving the impression that they were almost, but not quite blocking his way.

"In fact, I think you might be the only person that can help us! Our first question was going to be if you're a heroic type, because you certainly look the part." She cocks her hip, winks at him, and sticks her tongue out a little, making sure to look as cutesy and harmless as possible. Sai has to stifle a giggle, while Poni glances at her for a moment, then returns to staring directly at Link, his expression grim.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

Their skin prickles at the speed at which the trio approaches them, the familiar faux sweet tone, and the outright death stare.

He decides to play along. The odds of them actually being Yiga are so extremely low. Clearly they're trying to pick some sort of fight, though, and nothing says this strange "Pokemon" world never has crime.

"Well, yes," he replies, signing slowly, "I help others here and there. Do you need help?"

[facelessreflections]

"I knew it!" The totally-a-stranger closes her eyes and grins, pleased with her deduction. Behind her, the farmer who is definitely-not-Sai offers a hand for his companion to high five so that they aren't just standing around and looking suspicious. Once that exchange is made, okay-maybe-Sai steps forward, and puts his hands on the girl's shoulders, using them to lean over her.

"We sure can! Y'see, one of those uh," he tries recalling what that weird child in the yellow, bokoblin-esque costume in the field called them, "Pikmin—"

"Pokemon." Tali whispers in his ear, the urge to smack him for his blunder prickling in her hands.

"Yeah, Pokemon, fell down a well nearby. Y'mind helping us get them out?" he gives a short glance to Poni, who stands behind him with crossed arms. Sai assumed that these pokémon were like animals, so Poni would prefer they not be called "it", as he did with animals.

"We'd do it ourselves, but you give the impression that you've got a lot of experience jumping down wells. Which we don't have." a lie. Several Yiga including themselves have hid out in wells before, but Link need not know that.

"Yes, you would be perfect for the task." the third one adds, once again, so that he seemed less suspicious.

"Uh huh!" not-Tali chirps. "Just follow us. We'll ask the rest of our questions on the way, okay?"

[loftwingsandfrogs]

Link doesn't move at first. If these are locals, why did he mispronounce "pokemon"? He wants to help, but...

Something's wrong. They get the feeling they should go absolutely nowhere with these farmers, especially not alone.

"I don't think I can help you - if you want, I can go get a pokemon ranger? They specialize in helping pokemon."

Link takes a small step back, wishing they had their sword on them.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

Link had a splendid time chatting with the local gym leader, a farmer named Milo. He seemed to be a sort of community leader as well, open to helping anyone, and reserving his tough battles for the participants of the current challenge. It's a bit too late for Link to enter, to their disappointment, but he supposes that's not too bad - he still only has this milcery with him. And he can't use his sword.

He looks up as he hears someone call to him, and something about their tone of voice puts him on edge. He waves to them cautiously, and signs from a distance, "Hello, I'm new here. I don't think I can help you."

He thumbs his lone pokeball. He got to sit in and watch one of Milo's challenger battles, and while it looks exciting, he's not sure his pokemon is much of a battler. Surely these weird tourists wouldn't challenge him, right?

[facelessreflections]

The three watch Link sign very closely, quickly recognizing the form as Hylian Sign Language, and thus, revealing that this man was absolutely, 100%, their sworn enemy.

"Oh, no, I think you can." Tali replies with a tone as sweet as poisoned honey. The trio were now face-to-face with Link, giving the impression that they were almost, but not quite blocking his way.

"In fact, I think you might be the only person that can help us! Our first question was going to be if you're a heroic type, because you certainly look the part." She cocks her hip, winks at him, and sticks her tongue out a little, making sure to look as cutesy and harmless as possible. Sai has to stifle a giggle, while Poni glances at her for a moment, then returns to staring directly at Link, his expression grim.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

Their skin prickles at the speed at which the trio approaches them, the familiar faux sweet tone, and the outright death stare.

He decides to play along. The odds of them actually being Yiga are so extremely low. Clearly they're trying to pick some sort of fight, though, and nothing says this strange "Pokemon" world never has crime.

"Well, yes," he replies, signing slowly, "I help others here and there. Do you need help?"

[facelessreflections]

Starter for @loftwingsandfrogs

Of all the situations the Eye Trio have ended up in, this, by far, was the weirdest; one second they were about to ambush Link in their disguises, and the next, they wake up in some field of wheat, full of a bunch of unknown animals with mystical powers, and a population of people with rounded ears.

It takes them a bit of time to get their bearings, each one of them greatly confused, but after a particularly strange child tries and fails to challenge them to fight, they learn that they are in some place called "Galar", nearby a small town known as "Turffield".

So, needless to say, they were by no means anywhere in the proximity of Hyrule—a distressing revelation, to say the least.

With little other option, the three decide to go to the nearest town, to try and find any clues on how they could possibly return to their home.

On their way, it becomes apparent to them that their disguises were inadaquate for the location, and after being questioned by one of the locals, the trio decide to find the three biggest suckers imaginable, lure them where nobody will be able to see them, and then knock them out so that they can rob them blind—identitites included.

Their small act of theft gains the interest of two strange creatures—a purple cat-thing, and a strange-looking fox, who begin to follow them around. On the way, they also encounter a weird-looking brown donkey; Poni concludes that it must be lost, as there are no other of it's kind in the area, and they decide that if they're already here, they might as well bring it into town and return it to whoever it belonged to. But not because they were good samaritans or anything ridiculous like that; they were just in it for a quick and easy reward and didn't want an animal—which is distinctly not a person—to get hurt!

So, through this series of shenanigans, the trio, now disguised as round-eared farmers in green overalls, eventually make their way into the small town of Turffield.

"What a weird geoglyph! It's nothing like the ones we've got back home!" Tali points out, gesturing excitedly at the strange pattern covering a nearby hill, which the three, interested in the familiarity of it, stop to observe.

"Fascinating...perhaps there is a connection between it and our appearance here." Poni theorizes, tapping a finger against his chin. He's only ever seen the kinda that painted the ground and even the grass, glowing in a light shade of green. This, however...seemed moreso like an intentional attempt to restrict growth so that it could maintain the pattern.

"Y'think so?" Sai says, leaning back on arms crossed behind his head. "Could be worth looking into."

"Well, it's not like we've got any better leads." Tali, much to her disappointment, has to agree, shrugging to make it clear that they really didn't have many other options, and if she focused too hard on anything besides for the what, when, how, and why's, she'd start to get homesick. "We've gotta start somewhere with unraveling this mystery! The sooner we figure things out, the sooner—"

"Wait." Poni says, but Tali continues to speak.

"—we can go back to—"

"—Shut up and turn around! You're gonna wanna see this." Without giving her a moment to reply, Sai grabs her by the head and turns it towards the stadium at the center of the city.

"—huh?" she says, before swatting Sai's hand away, then using her own hand to block out the sun and squints to get a clearer view of the figure emerging from the stadium.

Ugly blond hair...unnaturally bue eyes...and...

"Pointy ears!" Tali exclaims, "No. Way. Is that...?"

"Link." Poni spits out with utter distaste.

"What's that little twerp doing out here?" Sai grumbles.

"Ooh, ooh, I've got an idea! Let's ask him!" Tali pulls her two comrads down so that she can then sweetly add in a whisper "...and then kill him."

"Works for me." Sai says, while Poni merely nods.

With that, Tali releases them, and they hurry down the steps and towards Link.

Tali, leading the charge and still in her disguise, waves her hand up high in the air, in an effort to grab the misplaced hero's attention.

"Hey! Hey you! Over here! Can we ask you a few questions?"

[loftwingsandfrogs]

Link had a splendid time chatting with the local gym leader, a farmer named Milo. He seemed to be a sort of community leader as well, open to helping anyone, and reserving his tough battles for the participants of the current challenge. It's a bit too late for Link to enter, to their disappointment, but he supposes that's not too bad - he still only has this milcery with him. And he can't use his sword.

He looks up as he hears someone call to him, and something about their tone of voice puts him on edge. He waves to them cautiously, and signs from a distance, "Hello, I'm new here. I don't think I can help you."

He thumbs his lone pokeball. He got to sit in and watch one of Milo's challenger battles, and while it looks exciting, he's not sure his pokemon is much of a battler. Surely these weird tourists wouldn't challenge him, right?

[loftwingsandfrogs]

fucking hello????? are you some kind of master chef or something? are you a faller from the land of Cookery where all parts of society are determined by cooking, disputes are settled by way of great galarian bake-off?

🤭🙂‍↔️... 😏❓

[loftwingsandfrogs]

[a picture of some incredibly fancy-looking poached razz berries and pecha berries. There's a glaze on top, and a spring of sugared rosemary.]

😋😍

[anotherscreed]

museum director let me pet her dog I'm winning

[A picture is attached of a Herdier getting pets. Looks like Des is still wearing that same white jacket, though there's not much of it in the photo.]

[swiftbluelightning]

I imagine you would be delighted to know that in this world dogs can become Even More Dog.

[A picture is attached of Astra petting her Stoutland, who seems altogether extremely pleased by this.]

[anotherscreed]

oh my god that's so BIG can you pet yours more for me-

[loftwingsandfrogs]

🐶➡️🐺⁉️❓

[swiftbluelightning]

Pokémon, under certain conditions, can undergo a process called evolution (which is really more of a metamorphosis or a transmutation and nothing like the actual process of evolution by natural selection but I am powerless to change the terminology and simply must suffer) in which they change form and capabilities, typically enhancing their current skillset, though I am aware of some evolutions in which their abilities change drastically upon evolution. A Pokémon's evolutionary capabilities and conditions depend upon their species, with an observed maximum of two evolutions per 'evolutionary line', as they are called.

There's also Mega Evolution, so I hear, but I'm not familiar with that and this explanation is getting convoluted enough.

As some examples, the Herdier and Stoutland you see in the above images are the second and third stage of the same evolutionary line. Your Milcery is the first stage of its line and will evolve once and only once. Our friend Des' Absol is a Pokémon that does not evolve at all, and nothing evolves into it.

[loftwingsandfrogs]

❗🤔

💚👍

[loftwingsandfrogs]

ouppy

🐕✅