FicWad

Childhood Dreams

By Pata Hikari

Chapter 2: Real Life Magic

Link walked up to Saria, "So, you want to become a Kokiri?" He placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Maybe..." Saria pulled Link's hand off her, "Stop touching me!"

"Touchy..." Link smirked, "Anyway, it isn't easy to become a Kokiri, it's a lot of hard work."

Shadow spoke up, "What are you talking about? It's easy to- oomph!" Link jabbed Shadow in the ribs with his elbow.

"Anyway." Link coughed, he leaned forward his face was an inch from Saria, "Are you ready to go forward on a journey that will almost surely be filled with trials that your puny mind can not understand? One that the odds of pain, injury and death are very high?"

Saria rolled her eyes and punched him.

"I think that's a yes." Navi quipped.

"You're such a drama queen." Shadow shook his head.

"She's violent! That's a minus right there!" Link rubbed his arm, "That hurt!"

"Please, stop bein' a baby." Navi hovered between Link and Saria, "Look, Saria, tah way ta become a Kokiri it tah head ta tah Kokiri Forest. Once ya get there ya get a fairy ta be your guardian."

"Don't forget the fighting off the monster horde!" Link jeered. Navi smacked him in the face. "Ow!"

"Ya don't have ta fight off a monster horde." Navi folded her arms, glaring at Link. "There's nothin' more ta it other then what I told ya."

"Yeah... um, not that I would know." Shadow laughed, "There hasn't been a new Kokiri since I came to be."

"Anyway... you want to become a Kokiri?" Link smirked, "It'll require you to leave your parents, you'll never be able to come back."

"Could I visit my friends?" Saria paused; she hoped she could tell Maple and Likel about this.

"I'm here, ain't I?" Link pointed to himself, "If you can see me, surely you're little friends can."

Saria smiled, "OK then, I don't see the problem... well, except I hope the other Kokiri aren't dorks like you." Her smile became falsely sweet.

Link bristled at the comment, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means you're a dork." Navi answered flatly, "I've been telling you for years, she clearly agrees with me."

"Yeah..." Shadow said thoughtfully, "You are kind of-" He shut up when Link glared at him.

"OK, time waits for nobody." Link said, "So let's stop messing around for the moment."

"OK! Let's go!" Saria laughed quietly; soon she would be free...

"First, Miss Saria, you might want to put some real clothes one." Shadow pointed out.

Saria froze, suddenly realizing that she was still in her pajamas. Her face became bright red, "Right..." She rushed to her room.

"Take your time!" Link called out mockingly.Saria hit him square between the eyes with a slipper.

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Saria pulled over the red blouse over her. She had already put on the black skirt that went down to her ankles. She quickly ran a comb through her hair; she had already dumped the school work out of her backpack and was filling it with things she wanted to keep. Some books, a few mementos, a couple pictures, and her dairy. She paused as she thought about her parents... she might never see them again...

"Good riddance." Saria shook her head; still, she couldn't leave without warning. She tore a page out of her dairy and began to write a note./Dear Mom and Dad,/

By the time you read this, I will probably be gone. For you see, I'm running away.

Now, don't bother looking for me, you won't find me. Ever. So you can save yourselves the damage I'm sure having a runaway daughter would do to your careers. Just pretend I don't exist anymore and you'll be fine, because as far as you're concerned, I don't exist.

Don't you dare bother Maple or Likel about this, they have nothing to do with this. They won't be able to tell you anything either.

I'm sorry it had to come to this, but I need to move on.

/-Saria/She smiled at the note. Now her conscience was clear. She stood up and left the room, leaving her old life behind.

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"You done?" Link was tapping his foot impatiently.

"Yup." Saria walked in, slinging her backpack over her shoulder.

"Well, glad to see you're ready." Shadow popped up behind her, "Shall we leave?"

Saria nodded, smiling slightly, "How do we... get wherever we're going?"

"We walk." Link said flatly."Oh..." Saria paused, "What about magic? I mean... there's a fairy here; I'd assume that, um, magic exists."

"Yeah, it exists." Navi said, "But don' expect anythin' flashy."

"Anyway, it's time to go." Link started to walk off, "We'll take the door this time."

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Saria winced as the rain started pouring down again. After sneaking out of her apartment she had followed Link down to the bottom floor and out into the streets.

"I hate Seattle." Navi muttered, "It's always rainin'."

"You get used to it." Saria sighed, "Though I wish I had brought my umbrella, maybe I should go-"

"Here." Link suddenly handed Saria a small umbrella, "I don't need it." It was old looking, made from wood and some kind of cloth. Yet it was still functional.

"Oh..." Saria took it, blushing slightly, "Thanks..." How nice of him... Giving me his umbrella, but wait, that means he'll be all wet!

"Like I said, I don't need it." Link then pulled out a larger, much nicer and newer looking umbrella. "Heck, keep it; it's a piece of junk anyway."

Saria glared at Link, "You...." She sighed, "Well... at least you're /slightly/ generous."

"Yup, not only that but-" Link was about to start bragging, but Navi shut him up.

"Someone's coming!" The fairy suddenly hissed.

"Crud!" Link grabbed Saria, pulling her behind a corner, Shadow rushed in after them.

Saria suddenly froze. What if it were her parents coming to get her? She didn't want to go back... Oh why did I have to go through with this now I'll be in even worse trouble and-

A person walked past them without giving the group a glance. "All clear. Sorry, false alarm." Navi chuckled weakly.

"Hey, no prob Navi." Link said with a wave of his hand, "This place looks perfect." He pointed to the alleyway they were facing. "Come on!"

"Huh?" Saria stood there, confused.

"This looks like a good place to make a Door." Shadow explained, "You'll see." He continued after seeing the puzzlement on Saria's face.

The alley was a dead end, yet Link was examining the brick wall intently, He suddenly pulled out a piece of chalk and began drawing on the wall."What is he...?" Saria looked on as Link etched out a large rectangle, then he added a small circle on one side of it. He was drawing a door. "That's ridiculous..." Then a door appeared.Just like that. One moment it was a chalk drawing, the next it was a wooden door with a knob. No signal, just instantaneous appearance.

"Well?" Link opened the door, "Ladies first, if you are a lady, that is."

Saria stiffened, "Why do you have to insult me? Besides, why must I go first?"

"Because, A: You make it too easy. B: The moment /I/ step through the Door it will vanish, so it's best that you go first." Link shrugged, "But if you /want/ to go last I guess we can leave you behind."

"Fine fine..." Saria glared at Link, walking to the door. She stopped just in front of it. "Well, here goes nothing." She stepped through the door...

...into cool dry air. It was a rather sudden change, one moment she was getting rained on, chilled to the bone. The next moment she was in a dry cave, without a drop of water. The cave was small, she could see the exit just a couple feet away. Really, it was more like a hole in the ground then a cave.

"I take it you're impressed?" Link's voice sounded behind her. Saria spun around, seeing Link, Shadow, and Navi. "The new guys are always like this, when they first see a Door."

"Urm..." Saria blushed, "It's... interesting.

"Well, you wanna see your new home or not?" Link grabbed Saria by the arm and pulled her out of the cave.She winced as bright sunlight suddenly shot into her eyes. Within a minute she got used to it though. They were standing on top of a hill that was overlooking a great forest. Trees as tall as buildings could be seen scattered through the land. In between many streams and ponds placed around grassy meadows seemed to shine. It was a beautiful, pristine world. Perfect.

"Welcome," Link whispered in her ear, "to the Lost Forest."

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"Zelly! I'm bored!"

A girl with long red hair whined. Her head was topped with a long green cap that hung past the side of her head. Her green tunic was covered in various patches of many colors. Her blue eyes shone with a clever mischief. "Zelly! Hello!"

The other girl, with soft pinkish skin. Her tunic appeared soft and delicate, like fragile silk. Yet once a closer look was given it could be seen that it was much stronger and tougher then it appeared. Her straw blond hair was draped by a wide hat. Intelligent sky-blue eyes glanced down at the redhead with annoyance, "Will you please stop calling me that Malon?" She asked with a British accent. "Just call me by my proper name, Zelda."

"But it's no fun!" Malon sighed, "It's boring without Link here."

"Well deal with it." Zelda folded her arms, "Until he comes back with Shadow we're stuck without him."

"Aw man..." Malon moaned, "Stupid Shadow... why does he have to be such a troublemaker?"

"Well, he is /Link's/ Shadow." Zelda pointed out.

"...good point." Malon looked out into the distance, "Hey... who's that?"

"What?" Zelda glanced at Malon wondering, not for the first time, if the girl was seeing things.

"There!" Malon pointed out to the distance, "Tatl! Tatl!" She pulled off her cap, giving it a good shake until a fairy fell out. She was a yellow fairy, with her hair tied into a long braid that was longer then she was tall. She was wearing shorts, with a tube top seen underneath a vest. With a soft thud she hit the ground, waking the fairy up.

Tatl opened her eyes, "Wha? I was sleeping!""Tatl, can you please check if Link is over there?" Zelda asked politely.

"Huh?" Tatl said sleepily, "Why not have Tael do it?"Zelda folded her arms, "Tael isn't here, you know how he is. Probably off trying to talk to Eri."

"Oh... geez, lazy bum." Tatl shook herself before taking off. For a moment she was high in the sky, but then she came back down. "Yup! Link's back! Shadow and Navi are with him."

"Score!" Malon gave Zelda the Victory Sign. "Toldcha he was back!"

"Plus... there's someone new." Tatl continued.

"Someone new?" Zelda asked, excitement creeping into her voice. While novelty wasn't rare in the Lost Forest, a new person was something that just didn't happen often. The last new person to join the ranks of the Kokiri had been Shadow, so this was big news.

"Are you sure it isn't a bandit Link might have caught?" Zelda asked.

Tatl shook her head, "He's heading towards the village, he wouldn't take one of them there."

"Good point!" Malon grinned, "Let's go greet the new guy."

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Saria looked around the forest. They had entered a large clearing, spotted with large tree stumps. A small stream was flowing out from a small pool in the center.

"This is where the Kokiri live." Link said proudly.

"It looks nice..." Saria could feel a quite feeling of peace filling the air. "So... how do get myself a Fairy Guardian?"

"You have ta catch one." Navi answered.

"What?" Saria blinked.

"Basically, you have to find a Fairy Ring." Shadow pointed out into the forest, "Once you do that all you have to do is wait. When some fairies come, catch one! That fairy will be your guardian."

"That seems easy enough..." Saria smiled.

"Once you have a Fairy, you'll be a Kokiri! One of the eternal children!" Link said enthusiastically.

"Wheee!" A voice cried out from above.

WHAM!

Saria suddenly tumbled to the ground, knocked over by something ramming into her.

"Hey there new guy! Wazzzup!" A very hyper looking girl with long red hair said, her face an inch from hers.

"Malon! Get off her!" Another voice said.

"Awww...." The girl named Malon jumped off Saria, "You ruin all my fun."

"Glad to see you're here." Link said, pulling up Saria, "Well, I see you've met two of the other Kokiri."

Saria looked, standing behind Malon was a delicate looking girl, the one who had told Malon to get off her.

"Anyway, this is my sister, Malon." Link pointed to Malon, who grinned widely. "And this is Zelda."

"Pleased to make your acquaintance." Zelda smiled and held out her hand.

"Um, thanks." Saria shook Zelda's hand. "So, you two are Kokiri?" She couldn't help notice that both girls were wearing similar clothing to Link, albeit with some differences. Malon's had definitely seen better days.

"Yup!" Malon grinned, pulling off her hat and reaching into it, "Tatl! Say hello to the new guy!" She pulled out a fairy that looked asleep.

"Wha?" She opened her eyes, yawning slightly, "Oh, hello there. Are you here to see the pretty trees?" She said sleepily.

"Yer as lazy as ever Tatl." Navi commented, "Don' ya /ever/ stop sleepin'?"

"Huh?" Tatl snapped fully awake, "Oh, hello Navi." She shook her head, her long braid snapping like a whip. "Oh! A new human child! Does this mean a new Kokiri?"

"Well, does it?" Zelda asked suddenly, excitement forming on her face.

"Yeah! Are you going to become a Kokiri?" Malon grabbed Saria's arms. "Well?"

"Yes!" Saria pulled back, these people were pretty excited, "New people don't come here often, do they?"

"Not many new Kokiri." Malon answered.

"OK, well, I guess you should go into the dark parts of the Forest now." Tatl said calmly, "Go before the other Kokiri notice you."

"Huh? Why can't I rest?" Saria asked.

"Because..." Zelda answered, "It's best not to get everyone else's hopes up... in case you fail."

Somehow that did not fill Saria with confidence.

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"So..." Malon asked Shadow as Link took Saria to the entrance to the deepest part of the Forest, "Do you think she'll make it? Catching a fairy is tough."

"You caught me when I was asleep." Tatl said dryly.

"OK, for me it was easy." Malon grinned sheepishly, "But the last three kids to come haven't managed to do it."

"Link has a lot of faith in her..." Shadow smiled, "That's really enough for me."

"Still... she's the closest I've ever seen to an adult that can still come through a Door." Tatl commented.

"What are you talking about?" Zelda asked, "She's... tiny. She's shorter then Mido!"

"Size, or age, has nothing to do with it." Tatl continued. "Being an adult is a state of mind. She's walking the line between child and adult."

"Well... Link has faith in her, so I will to!" Malon said.

"That's a good idea..." Tatl yawned, "Now, if you excuse me, I'm going to take a nap." She pulled up Malon's hat, dashing under it. A moment later there was silence.

"You know," Zelda smirked, "Maybe you should have gotten the hint when you saw her sleeping in a Fairy Ring."

"Meh." Malon shrugged.

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Link had guided Saria to a small path, leading off into darkness.

"OK, from here, you're all alone." Link said, "Good luck."

"Wait... what's a Fairy Ring?" Saria asked.

"Ya'll know it when ya see it!" Navi answered as they both pushed Saria into the forest.

Suddenly Saria felt a sudden separation, as if she was being pulled a far distance. She spun around, and noticed that she was now surrounded by trees. Link was nowhere in sight.

"Hello?" Saria cried out, "Anybody there?"

No answer, not even an echo, just silence.

"OK..." Saria shivered, "I can do this..." She stepped forward, starting her walk through this dark forest. She kept on walking, already noticing how strange this place was.

Every other forest she had been too had never been truly silent. There was always some noise being made. Yet this forest made no sound, for the first time ever she could hear nothing. Not even, she noticed, the sound of her own footsteps.

How could she even see? This place was so dark, yet she could still see every detail as clearly as if a spotlight was shining over everything.

The trees loomed over her, every type and size imaginable were growing here. Plus a few trees that seemed impossible, such as one that had grown in a loop with the leaves sprouting all around it, producing the impression of a decorated archway. There were plants that seemed to lean close to her, as if eager to touch her.

"This place is strange..." Saria muttered. Yet, a small pink flower caught her eye. Its pedals glinted with an unknown light. "Oh, how pretty." She reached down to pick the tiny flower. Yet it wouldn't come up, she tugged for a moment. Nothing, the flower was rooted firmly into the ground. "Oh well." Saria shrugged and stood back up.

"You could have said sorry you know." A voice said.

"Huh?" Saria looked around for the source of the voice.

"Down here." Saria looked down at the flower, "Well, glad to see you aren't stupid." The flower said.

Saria temporarily suspended her shock as a flower speaking to her, instead choosing to take offence to the insult. "Excuse me? Is a plant insulting me?"

"Yes I am." The flower said dryly, "I mean, that was very rude of you. How would you like it if you picked you up and shoved in some girl's hair? Or some other inane thing."

"Oh..." Saria paused, "Well, I never thought about it. I mean, most flowers aren't..."

"Oh please, how do you know? We plants have feelings too." The flower shook a leaf at Saria.

"Um," Saria blushed, "I'm sorry, I didn't know... I'm just looking for a Fairy Ring."

"Oh. I see." The flower said, "Well, if you want to find a Fairy Ring, head through the Arch Tree and take a left at the Walking Stone. Then all you have to do is count to ten and open the box."

"Oh, thanks," Saria nodded, "But wait, why are you helping me after I tried to pick you?"

"You apologized, didn't you?" The flower asked.

"Oh, right." Saria blushed and smiled weakly, "Well, thanks." She turned, and decided to head through that strange tree, guessing that it was the Arch Tree.

She walked forward for a few minutes, before coming across a large rock, it seemed too just suddenly appear in her sight. "So... is this the Walking Stone?"

As if to answer her question, the rock suddenly sprouted about a dozen legs. It walked in a circle, before stopping back in front of her, plopping back down where it had sat.

"..." Saria stared at the rock, before turning left and moving on. She didn't say a word.

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Saria came across a small wooden box, sitting on a stone table. "OK... One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten." She opened the box, expecting the Fairy Ring to be inside. Instead, the box was empty.

"I should have known..." Saria sighed, setting the box down. Except the table wasn't there anymore. In fact, the box was gone too. She was now standing in a grassy meadow, a dirt path running through it with some large stones scattered about.

Beside her there was a circle of flowers with rich grass inside it. A little further away there was another one, and another, and another. It seemed that this whole meadow was filled with...

"Fairy Rings." Saria realized, there were dozens of them. Moving quickly, she ducked behind a rock, peering out at the nearest Fairy Ring. Now all she had to do was wait.

And wait.

And wait some more.

For hours.

Just when Saria was about to give up and look somewhere else a dim light appeared in the distance. This light grew brighter as it came closer, it also began to break up into many individual lights. These lights continued to become more diverse as Saria realized that there were hundreds of those lights of every color imaginable! Sounds began coming from the mass of lights, voices, as the fairies were chatting amongst themselves about who knew what. As the fairies passed over the Rings, groups of them broke off to stay. Saria didn't know the reasoning behind it, nor did she really care at this point in time. Finally, a group of fairies stopped at the Ring nearest to her.

OK, you can do this Saria. You just need to be quick about it. She looked out from behind the rock, what appeared to be a couple dozen fairies. They were chatting, laughter could be heard, and many were spinning around wildly in what looked like some kind of aerial dance.

Yet some fairies stayed down, keeping low to the ground, settling for just watching the others dance. One fairy caught her eye, she couldn't tell if it was a boy or a girl, its glow obscured how it looked. But what a beautiful glow it was, a soft emerald green that seemed to both blend in and stand out among the grass. Please let me catch that one... Saria thought as she sneaked out from behind the rock. She slowly crept near the dancing fey, keeping low to the ground...

But one of them spotted her, with a loud shout it warned all the others. In an instant there was a burst of movement as the whole meadow became brighter as the fairies began to scatter. Instantly the very air around her seemed to become a twisting mass of light and confusion.

"No!" Saria cried out, somehow managing to keep track of the green fairy. She ran as fast as she could, trying to keep up with it. Yet it began flying higher, out of her reach. "I... stop!" Saria shouted.

And they stopped. For a single second all the fairies nearby suddenly stopped. It was enough for Saria, she jumped into the air, trying desperately to grab the green fairy. She grabbed something, and she tumbled to the ground with the fairy in her grasp.

"Ummph!" Saria hit the ground face first, she had taken such care to keep the fairy from hitting the ground, though, that her arm still was up in the air.

"I did it..." Saria grinned, taking a better look at the fairy she had caught. It was male, that much was obvious. He wasn't wearing a shirt, though strips of cloth were wrapped around his arms. He was wearing loose fitting pants, and two belts formed an "X" around his waist. Two long wings were folded down against his back. Saria snickered when she realized that she was holding him up by his hair.

"I'm glad to see /you/ find it amusing." The fairy snapped at her, folding his arms in irritation.

"Oh." Saria blushed, "Sorry." Taking care not to crush him, she used her other hand to hold him by the legs. She let go of his hair, it spilled down past his waist. It was rather long. Like his pants and the cloth on his arms it was an emerald green color.

"Well, what do you want?" He asked her.

"Um, hi, I'm Saria Larson." Saria grinned weakly, "What's yours?"

"Kalo." He answered dryly, "I'll never get why humans insist on having more then one name, seems too confusing." He shook his head, "But you did not answer my question. Why did you decide to crash our party?"

"Sorry." Saria sighed, she suddenly felt very rude. "I just... I was told to catch a fairy."

"Why?" Kalo asked her.

"I... So I could become a Kokiri!" Saria stared at the fairy, she was beginning to feel very uncomfortable.

Kalo's eyes suddenly showed realization, "Oh..." He shook his head, "Well, Saria, I'm afraid just catching me doesn't make you a Kokiri."

"What?" Saria froze, "But... what else do I need to do!"

"Well... nothing really." Kalo grinned weakly, "But what if I don't want to be your guardian? You can't be a Kokiri without a fairy guardian. All I have to do is not agree to it, and all you've done is for nothing."

"Oh..." Saria whispered, "Well... if you don't want to... I'll let you go."

"You will?" Kalo blinked, "OK then, let me go."

"OK..." Saria said quietly, a few tears streaking down her cheeks. Who knew how long it would take to find a fairy who would be willing? Making sure to be gentle, she set him down on the ground. "Well, good-bye."

Kalo looked up at Saria, he spread his wings and flew up to eye level. He looked at her for a few moments. "Aw... heck with it. You're a nice kid, and I've been bored lately. I'll be your guardian."

Saria instantly sprouted into a big grin, "Thank you!" She grabbed Kalo and held him close to her in a hug. "Thank you thank you thank you!"

"Air!" Kalo squeaked out, "Need to breathe!"

"Oh! Sorry!" Saria let Kalo go, "Thanks."

"Don't mention it..." Kalo coughed, "You have quite a grip."

"Urm... how do I get back to... I don't know... the place where the Kokiri live?" Saria paused, realizing that she had no idea where she was.

Kalo raised his hand, "Well-"

"Hey! Saria! I see you made it!" Link wrapped an arm around Saria.

Saria sighed, she was in the middle of the cluster of buildings again. "Why am I not surprised?"

"Wow! A new Kokiri!" A voice shouted, and eight other children in green clothing swarmed around her. Malon, Zelda, Link, and Shadow were there too, but they just stood back.

"Hello there!" A cheerful looking Kokiri in somewhat fancy looking clothing said, his black hair dropping over one of his eyes, "My name's Makan. Pleased to meet you..."

"Saria." She looked around, "Please! I'm tired, can I rest before I get to know you people!"

"You heard her!" A loud voice, one belonging to a boy just barely taller then her. His orange red hair stuck out in tuffs behind his hat, his clothing seemed well worn and comfortable. His slightly pudgy face was covered with freckles. "You heard her! Let her get some sleep!" He held out his hand, "Here, I'll take you to your new home."

Saria smiled, "Thank you." She took the boys hand and followed him as he took her away from the crowd. Looking back, she saw that Link had a look of intense anger on his face.

"Huh?" Saria blinked, "Link looks mad..."

"It's probably me." The boy grinned, "Link and I don't get along that well. I'm Mido, by the way."

"I'm Saria, as you probably guessed." Saria smiled, "This is..." She pointed to Kalo.

"Kalo's the name." Kalo paused, "Daka? Is that you?"

The red fairy hovering over Mido's shoulder suddenly laughed, "Kalo! I can't believe it's you!"

"You guys know each other?" Mido smiled, "That's neat!"

"Yeah, it is." Saria laughed slightly, "I still need to get to know Kalo though."

"You'll have plenty of time." Daka said supportively.

"Thanks." Saria nodded.

"Well, here we are." Mido stopped in front of a large tree stump with a hole on one side.

"So... how was it decided that this would be my house?" Saria asked.

"Because," Kalo said dully, "I'm guessing this wasn't here a few minutes ago?"

"Yup." Mido nodded, "The Lost Forest is always changing. In this case it changed to accommodate a new Kokiri."

"Oh..." Saria shook her head, this place was strange... "Well, thanks."

"Don't mention it." Mido smiled, "It was either that or have Link guide you."

"Heh." Saria snickered, "He is kind of a jerk."

"Tell me about it." Mido laughed softly with her.

"Ahem. You can let go of each others hands now." Kalo coughed.

"Oh." Saria pulled away, both of them were blushing. "Well, good night." She dashed inside her new home.

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Her "house" was really just a single room. A table, bed, and dresser were placed around. Other then that, it was bare.

Saria threw off her backpack, throwing herself on the bed. "Good night Kalo."

Kalo flew down, sitting on the table, "Good night Saria."

Saria fell asleep.