The Legend of Zelda, its characters and locations are all property of Nintendo. Any and all OCs and original locations belong to me unless specifically stated to belong to someone else.

The Voice
Chapter 74 - You Have Spawned?!

Link woke up feeling like he was being suffocated...which in fact turned out to be the case. Something was pressed up against his face, blocking off his airways. Granted, it wasn't entirely unpleasant. For one, the thing pressing up against his face and cutting off his air supply was soft and warm. For another, there was an extremely soothing, rhythmic beating beneath it, which threatened to lull him back to sleep.

His lungs disagreed, however, and he groaned, pushing at the soft, warm thing.

Which turned out to be Sheik, still wearing Link's tunic, out cold and snoring.

Loudly.

Louder than a Hinox, which was an accomplishment in itself. Link was surprised the bed itself wasn't vibrating from the force of it.

Link managed to roll the sleeping Sheikah off him and watched Sheik for a moment as he continued to snore, face-down on the mattress, dead to the world. It was, without a doubt, one of the most adorable things he had seen Sheik do so far. Link couldn't wait to tell him how loud he was later.

"Impressive, isn't he?" Sidon's voice murmured as a large, soft-scaled arm wrapped itself around Link's middle and pulled him until his back met with something solid and equally warm. "He's been at it for at least half an hour. He really doesn't do anything by half, huh?"

"I d-don't think h-he has it in h-him," Link said, smiling and turning around in Sidon's hold so he could look the prince in the eyes. "G-Good morning," he said.

"Good morning," Sidon replied, tilting his head down and kissing Link on the forehead. "I've missed you both terribly."

"The f-feeling's mutual, even f-for h-him," Link said, gesturing towards Sheik after kissing Sidon's chin. "He w-won't s-say it, though."

Sidon chuckled, the sound reverberating through Link's entire body, giving him a pleasant buzz. "I don't expect him to, either. His actions speak louder than words...which says a lot given his general volume."

"Mhm," Link hummed, yawning and rubbing his eyes. "Wh-What time is it?"

"Just after dawn," Sidon replied, shifting so he was lying on his back, Link splayed across his chest. "Still early, but we must get up soon. There is still so much work to be done, and we cannot afford to be seen as lazy—or morale will suffer." Link made a grimace, and Sidon grinned toothily. "But we can stay like this a little longer," he said, letting his fingers trail lazily along Link's back, his claws eliciting the most delightful little shivers from the Hero.

Link relaxed atop Sidon, enjoying the prince's ministrations (and maybe doing a little tactile exploration of his own, pleased to hear the little pleasured sounds from the Zora) for a few minutes, amazed at the sheer volume Sheik could output even through the mattress. Eventually, however, they had to face the day, and Link regretfully climbed off the prince, reaching over to gently shake the slumbering Sheik awake.

Easier said than done.

The snoring stopped (after a lengthy bout of snorting and coughing), but Sheik showed no signs of actually waking up. There wasn't even the usual grumbling and slapping of Link's hand in an offended huff.

That alone was worrying.

"Sh-Sheik?" Link asked, shaking him a little harder. "Hey, y-you okay?"

The mattress shifted as Sidon got off the bed and raced to the other side, kneeling beside it, splaying his hand across Sheik's back, shaking him as well.

"Sheik? Please wake up, we have to start the day." When there was no reaction, he looked at Link with a worried expression. "Does he usually sleep this deeply?"

"N-No," Link said, carefully turning Sheik over with some effort. He put his ear to Sheik's mouth, relieved to feel the hot air of his breath ghosting across it. "Sh-Sheik? P-Please wake up!"

"Mhmrgrrrgh," the Sheikah said, his face slowly screwing up.

Sidon and Link exchanged a look, both unsure if this was a good sign or not. It was confirmed as good when his visible eye cracked open, the red eye behind the lids slowly moving to look at the pair of them.

"Whuh?" Sheik said.

Link couldn't help but laugh in relief. It'd be just his luck if something were to happen Sheik now, just after he'd given Link the biggest scare so far by suddenly running into an active battlefield without even telling anyone. He was honestly tempted to let Sheik sleep longer, if it meant he'd stay put.

"Good morning, sleepy one," Sidon said, bending down to kiss Sheik's forehead as well. "You were miles away."

And still appeared to be, if Sheik's unfocused expression was anything to judge by. In fact, it didn't seem like he was awake at all.

"Where...am I?" Sheik asked slowly, hesitantly. Like he was truly lost.

"You're in th-the Domain, Sh-Sheik," Link said, worry beginning to gnaw at him when it took a good ten seconds before the haze of confusion lifted from Sheik's eye and some clarity returned.

"Oh...how did we...get here?" Sheik asked, his gaze focusing on Sidon, his eyebrow rising delicately. "That you, Sharky?"

"It is I, Sheik," Sidon said with a concerned look on his face. "Are you feeling well? You seem a bit out of sorts."

"Huh?" Sheik's mouth turned down in a frown, and he gave a small hum. "Power levels are...processing...critically low. Oh. I thought I'd have more time...hang on...redistributing..." Several seconds passed by, and while the fog appeared to lift from his mind, Sheik's movements were slow and lethargic. "Ah, that's better," he said, trying to sit up, almost failing if not for Sidon's knee appearing steady his lower back. "Sorry about that. Had to shut down some auxiliary systems."

Link had had enough. He huffed and looked at Sidon. "W-We need t-to t-take him t-to P-Purah and Robbie. They'll know wh-what t-to do."

"Of course," Sidon said, nodding, reaching down to lift Sheik. "Come, I will carry y—"

"Absolutely not!" Sheik exclaimed, rolling to the side of the bed and (after two failed attempts) managing to rise to his feet. "I am not a child, I can walk! I will not be carried around like some helpless toddler!"

Walking was a relative term in this case. Link didn't have the heart to tell Sheik that his wobbly steps made him look like an oversized, cranky toddler as he staggered over to the screen to get dressed. Sheik disappeared behind the screen, and they heard nothing for several terrifying seconds. Then a harsh growl.

"No one asked you!" Another beat of silence. Then a calmer voice: "Link, I need your opinion on my outfit. Come back here."

"D-Do you n-need hel—"

"I do not need help! I just need you to check if the colours match!"

Link exchanged a look with Sidon that communicated just how ridiculous their lover was being, then he sighed and went to, indeed, help Sheik. Which meant helping him out of Link's Champion tunic and into Sheik's Gerudo-made Sheikah outfit, on account of Sheik barely being able to stand on his own, much less carry out the balancing act of putting his legs into the trousers. He slapped Link's hands away when he tried to help him with the belt.

"That I can do on my own," Sheik hissed, quiet enough for Sidon not to hear. "Stop laughing!"

"I'm n-not?" Link said, frowning.

"Not you, Stabby," Sheik muttered. "He keeps offering advice."

"He's a g-good boy," Link said, nodding. "Th-Thank him f-for me."

"Don't encourage him," the Sheikah said, finishing the arduous task of slipping on his uniform top. It wasn't quite as tight-fitting as the Sheikah-made ones, but it certainly made him look formidable...or would, as soon as they could remedy that wobble. Sheik paused, and then made a frustrated sound.

"Hm?" Link hummed questioningly.

"Boots," Sheik said, staring at the footwear like they were a mountain he had to climb. Link made to pick them up, but Sheik shook his head. "I can go barefoot, let's—"

"D-Don't be ridiculous," Link hissed. "C-Come on." He knelt down and had Sheik lift first one leg, and then the other, getting his feet into the boots. "N-Not so h-hard, was it?" he said, smiling in response to Sheik's sour expression.

"You're enjoying this a little too much, I think," Sheik said, shrugging Link's hand off his shoulder and leaving the shelter of the changing screen, clearly trying to look formidable for Sidon.

He almost succeeded, even. If it weren't for the sudden lurch to the right after a misstep, they might have been able to pretend Sheik was perfectly all right. If they squinted. A lot.

"Let's go, Sharky!" Sheik announced before Sidon could open his mouth and voice the concern that was rapidly growing more and more desperate in his eyes.

Link could only offer a shrug when the prince's gaze met his; there was no winning this battle for now. They simply had to go along with it.

"O-Of course," Sidon said, nodding, the fins on the side of his head twitching uncomfortably. "Come, I will show you where Mistress Purah and Master Robbie have set up their laboratory. It is on one of the lower levels, where access is restricted."

"Excellent, lead the way," Sheik said, wobbling towards the doors. Link made sure to get ahead of him, opening and holding the doors for Sheik. He'd rather not find out what happened if Sheik tried to open the door and his balance failed him right then and there.

Broken pride, lots of screaming, and bleeding ears, most likely, if previous events were anything to judge by.

To Sheik's credit, he did manage to keep the act up.

For a few minutes.

The problem was the grand staircase leading down to the city proper. Link took his eyes off Sheik for a single moment, to return a greeting from one of the Zora guards, and when he looked back, Sheik was gone.

Well, not gone. Just...rapidly descending the stairs. Without using his legs. It happened too quickly to stop. The next moment, Sheik was at the bottom of the stairs, having come to a stop on the last step, sitting up and staring into space in confusion. A Hylian soldier was already moving to help him, looking concerned.

Oh no.

Link practically flew down the stairs, hoping to intercept the Hylian before it was too late, desperate to spare her the inevitable—

"Get your hands off me!" Sheik shouted, slapping her hand away. "I don't need your damn help, nor did I ask for it!"

The soldier's face fell. "I just—"

"Just nothing!"

Link stepped between them, giving the soldier an apologetic smile, bowing his head a little. "S-Sorry about h-him," he said. "B-Bad morning. Th-Thank you for t-trying. I'll t-take it f-from h-here."

"Ah...no problem?" the soldier said, her confusion clearly not lifting, but looking a little relieved to be rescued from the wrath of a clumsy Sheikah whose pride had just taken a blow. "I'll...let you get on with it, then," she said, turning back to her squad, who appeared to be torn between laughing at Sheik and coming to their comrade's aid.

Link waved her off with another tight, fake smile and turned back to Sheik. Sidon had reached him by now, and was kneeling at Sheik's side, murmuring something into the Sheikah's ear, which only made Sheik's expression sour even further.

"No, I can walk by myself, Sharky," Sheik said between gritted teeth, which would be bared in a snarl if it weren't for his mask. "Just...give me some leverage, would you? No, don't lift me, just give me your arm, or something so I can pull myself up—"

"No," Link growled, surprising both Sheik and Sidon...and the rest of the square, apparently, which had ground to a halt to observe the spectacle. He stomped over to Sheik and, in a single, graceful movement that even surprised himself, knelt down and lifted Sheik up in a bridal carry, setting off across the square.

On the third step, he realised just how bad of an idea this was. Both because Sheik was being very uncooperative, wriggling and trying to break out of Link's hold, and because...well, Sheik was really fucking heavy! Links's back screamed at him to just stop for Hylia's sake, please! But no, it was too late for that. Sheik was acting unreasonable, and this was his punishment.

"Put me down!" Sheik shouted. "Right this minute! Or I swear to Din I will make your life a living hell, Link!"

"Too late for that," Link snarled. "Act like a baby, get treated like one."

"Um...Link? Perhaps this isn't the best idea..." Sidon said from somewhere behind them.

"He needs to learn, Sidon," Link called back, ignoring the people they passed on the way to the central stairwell that led to the city's lower levels. He also ignored Sheik's glare, which was aimed right at him, as the Sheikah kept trying to break loose.

"Learn what?!" Sheik spat. "That I don't get to be responsible for my own locomotion? That you make all my decisions for me? That you are my—"

"That nothing's wrong with asking for help," Link said, stopping as they reached the stairwell, every muscle in his body protesting against the strain of carrying a heavy, artificial body. "That you don't have to do everything on your own." He was panting by now, sweat rolling down his face. "And speaking of: Sidon, a hand?"

The prince was there in an instant, taking Sheik out of Link's hold. Sheik's weight barely fazed him, and Sidon only smiled brightly as he adjusted his hold so that Sheik was comfortable.

"Happy to help," the prince said brightly. "Now, shall we?"

"Y-Yes," Link replied, his anger and annoyance at Sheik's stubbornness evaporating in an instant. He shouldn't have snapped like that, but what else could he do? Let Sheik continue to embarrass himself for however long it'd take him to cross the square on his own power, after that fall? He'd lose any hope of gaining anyone's respect after such a display. He wasn't happy about it, neither were his muscles, but at least they were moving again now.

And Sheik was quiet, settling on stewing silently in Sidon's hold, refusing to look at Link.

That was okay.

Maybe he'd actually internalise this.

Hah, right.

Link should have expected the uproar when they showed up at the laboratory, but the sheer chaos that erupted when Purah and Robbie spotted them was ridiculous, even for them. They'd expected their arrival, apparently. Paya had been by to inform them of the attack on Kakariko, and let slip Sheik's new...situation, to his chagrin.

Purah was running circles around Sheik, asking a million questions a minute, ranging from innocent things (what powered him, what he could do, why he kept his awesome laser eye covered up) to invasive (what comes out the other end) to downright perverse (what's between his legs and does it work).

All the while, Robbie was poking and prodding at whatever he could reach with several complicated-looking instruments, shouting out observations for his poor wife and an assistant with honey-coloured hair to write down, which they did with put-upon sighs.

"...and this is real skin! Real skin!" the tiny old man shouted, prodding Sheik's shin, where he'd rolled up the trouser leg. "Jerrin, Granté, are you writing this down?! This is incredible! Imagine the applications!"

"Yes, father," Granté replied, jotting down more notes on his bundle of papers.

Wait, father?!

Link looked up in surprise and saw Sheik's eyes widen with horror.

"You have spawned?!" Sheik asked, looking down at Robbie with a face that conveyed revulsion, disgust, and abhorrence. "Din above, we're doomed!"

Robbie was too busy examining Sheik's body to bother replying (if he'd even heard it), and his wife and son only rolled their eyes in unison, seemingly used to that reaction. There was definitely a family resemblance there, so Link had to accept the fact that Robbie had, most likely, at some point...procreated. And not that long ago either, as Granté looked quite young...

...and that was more thought than he'd ever wanted to devote to Robbie's love life. Based on the way Sheik's face screwed up whenever he looked at Robbie, he was of the same mind.

"Never mind the shell, Robbie!" Purah said with a scowl, climbing onto the table so that she and Sheik were at eye-level, the ancient toddler leaning so close Sheik looked ready to bolt.

Which he couldn't, on account of Sidon holding him up. Link had specifically asked Sidon to do so. Chances were Sheik would run the moment he realised he had voluntarily entered the lab and put himself at the mercy of the two most brilliant (and insane) scientific minds Hyrule had to offer.

"I'm interested in finding out what's running underneath!" Purah said, reaching out to touch Sheik's temples. "Sheiky, tell me! Is there a real brain under there, or something else?! Ooh, is there a CPU, maybe? Or a hybrid system?! Tell me! Tell me!"

"Hybrid, hybrid!" Sheik shrieked. "Stop touching me!"

"But how does it work?!" Purah demanded. "Which is the main processing unit? Biological or synthetic?! How do they communicate?! Is there a compilator, or a simultaneous translator?! How does the machine processor know what the fleshy brain is saying, and vice versa?! Sheiky, you must tell me everything!"

Sheik's face was getting red, and Link knew better than to let this continue for much longer. Something was going to give, and soon!

"O-Okay," Link said, stepping forward to try and separate the scientists from their semi-unwilling subject. "M-Maybe give h-him some space?"

Neither Purah nor Robbie paid any attention, continuing to shout questions at Sheik or instructions to their assistants and family.

"Symin, get the notes on the Sheikah operating system!" Purah ordered, pointing accusingly at the poor man. "We gotta start investigating the programming immediately—see if it's the same as the Slate's!"

"Jerrin, fetch my surgical kit!" Robbie said. "I need to take samples!"

"Shut up!" Sheik shouted, kicking out and nearly catching Robbie right in the nose. "Back off, you fucking imps! I'm not some damned experiment for the two of you to hack away at! I'm a fucking person!"

"Sheiky, come oooooon," Purah said in a tone that bordered on whining. "There's so many questions I wanna ask, so many things I wanna look at! I mean, look at you! This is amazing—you're amazing!"

"What she said," Robbie said, unrolling a bundle of—as Link feared—surgical equipment, including some very sharp-looking scalpels. Why Robbie had such a kit, he didn't even want to know. "And come on, you can spare a little skin. And muscle. And blood."

"I'll spare nothing, but I'll gladly show you how strong my muscles are by kicking you out the fucking window and into the lake! Hope you know how to swim, gnome!" Sheik snarled back. "Back off!"

"Don't be such a baby," Robbie said. "This'll further our research by decades! A tissue sample will reveal volumes about this body of yours..."

"R-Robbie, maybe th-this isn't—"Link tried.

"Please, Mistress Purah, Master Robbie, surely you need not be so...pushy?" Sidon said, carefully taking a step back with Sheik in his hold. "I am certain Sheik will be more than happy to provide you with any information or samples you need—"

"The hell I will!"

"—as long as you ask for it in a respectful and considerate manner and...well, ask for it," Sidon finished, giving Sheik a little shake. "There is no need for such aggression!"

Aggression, that was one word for it. Looking at the pair of Sheikah scientists, Link swore he could see pure hunger in their eyes. Understandable, really, but they were getting uncomfortably eager for knowledge at this point...

"What Sharky said," Sheik hissed. "And if you don't back the hell off, I'm telling Impa you've been harassing me when she gets here!"

To Link's surprise, Robbie paused, his eyeglasses glowing eerily. "You wouldn't," he said, sounding anything but confident.

Sheik grinned. "Oh, I would," he said gleefully. "I'll tell her about how you wanted to cut me into pieces for you to dissect! Me! A clan member!"

Purah gave a triumphant hum. "My little sister understands the scientific process! She knows we need to examine you closer to truly understand you!"

"Not without my consent, you don't! Or are you saying Impa's the type to let a clan member go through cruel and unusual punishment for the sake of your curiosity? How will she react when she gets here, huh? I'm sure she'll be very interested in the complete and utter lack of ethics in this room!"

Purah looked ready to argue, but Symin bodily lifted her off the table despite her protests and carried her off to a corner of the lab.

"Mistress Purah, perhaps it is time to cool off a bit," he said calmly. "My apologies, Sheik. She gets grumpy when she hasn't had a proper night's sleep."

"Symin, put me down!"

"Hmph," Robbie grumbled as he replaced his scalpel and rolled the surgical kit back up. "If you're not here to make yourself useful to the scientific cause, why are you?"

"He n-needs power," Link said before Sheik could make things even worse. "He's been s-slowing d-down."

"And how am I supposed to help him with that if I don't know how he works?" Robbie asked. "Or what powers that body of his?"

"Just give me a damn Guardian battery, old-timer," Sheik hissed. "I'll do the rest."

"Hah, and what would that entail?" Robbie asked. "Eating it?"

"I just fucking might!"

Link's stomach lurched with horror at the thought of Sheik eating one of those. And then his mind helpfully provided a mental picture of Sheik biting into one like an apple. He couldn't decide if that was something Sheik would enjoy or not.

He probably would since he'd be doing it out of spite, which Link was starting to believe could be a power source for Sheik's body.

"Huh, and I thought you were unpleasant when you were stuck in the Slate," Robbie said with a huff and a theatrical gesture of resignation. "Fine, fine. Granté! Get one of the charged batteries! An intact one! Knowing our luck, he'll fry himself if he tries one of the ones we repaired."

The tension in the laboratory eased off a little as Granté fetched an orb from one of the shelves, carefully handing it to his father. The battery itself was shaped like a sphere, made from the strange, glowing rock that so much of the other Sheikah tech seemed to incorporate, this one pulsing brilliantly. A ring of golden metal ran along its equator, with tiny, triangular holes at each quarter.

A chair was found for Sheik, and Sidon gently placed him on it, taking up a position behind him, a giant wall of muscle ready to spring into action, just in case. Link loved him for it. He wasn't sure he could handle Purah and Robbie at the same time if they decided to throw all morals and ethics to the wind.

"Charged this one just yesterday," Robbie said, holding the battery out but snatching it back just as Sheik reached for it. "I was going to use it to power another shield like the Hero's, but I suppose keeping you ticking as well is a good cause. For some reason." He let Sheik take it, then hastily demanded a piece of paper from Jerrin. "You won't mind if I take notes, at least?" he asked sarcastically.

"Oh, I mind—"

"Sh-Sheik," Link said quietly. "Please."

Sheik groaned and shook his head. "Fine, fine, you can take notes, but if I see one scalpel..."

"Me too, Sheiky! Me too!" Purah shouted as she left her corner and jumped back up on the table next to him. "This I gotta see!"

"Hey, hey, personal space, got it?" Sheik said, glaring at her. "Now..." He stared at the battery for a few moments, looking thoughtful. Then he grimaced. "You what?" he asked quietly. Stabby must have said something. "All right...which one?"

"Um," Sidon began, looking confused, but he cut himself off as Sheik suddenly reached up to touch his right ear...and casually flipped it up, like a lid.

The prince looked like he was ready to faint, and Link felt a little ready for that himself, but he was at least relieved to see that, instead of the fleshy, bloody mess he expected to find behind Sheik's ear, there was only smooth metal and what seemed to be a million little bundles of wires, so thin and fine they reminded him of spiderwebs.

"Oh, how convenient!" Purah said, eagerly leaning in for a closer look.

"Quiet," Sheik hissed, his fingers gently touching the wire bundles, apparently seeking the right one. "I'm trying to concentrate. I pick the wrong wires and I'll short-circuit myself, and then where will we be?"

"Lost," Sidon said immediately, looking gravely offended at the thought of it.

"Hm," Robbie muttered from where he'd climbed up on the table next to Purah, scribbling away in a journal. "Just a charging port, or a general access point, do you think?"

"Hard to say, but all those wires have to be connected to something," Purah said, perching her glasses on the tip of her nose. "If we can get the terminal working, we'll be able to see Sheiky's inner workings, maybe even read his thoughts!"

"Read my thoughts and die," Sheik muttered. "Bad enough having one person do it." He paused. "Hm, this one? Right." He pulled on a small bundle, and the wire extended from the opening in his skull a lot farther than Link expected. The end of the wire had a triangular plug that fit perfectly into one of the battery's many slots with a click. "Hm...connected."

"And then?" Robbie asked, practically salivating at what he was seeing. "Is there a process?"

"I need to distribute the power manually, at least this first time. Once I know how this works, I can write a script that does it for me." Sheik said, carefully placing the battery in his lap. "This'll take a while," he said, looking to Link and Sidon. "I trust you to make sure those two—"he jerked his head towards two Sheikah scientists"—don't get any funny ideas while I'm gone."

"We'll stand guard, Sheik, I swear it," Sidon said, nodding firmly.

"J-Just do wh-what you need to," Link added. "W-We'll be h-here."

"Hmph, good," Sheik nodded. "Because if I wake up and find something plugged into me, I will be very cross."

"Where would we plug it in?" Purah asked.

"His a—"Robbie began with a grin, but his wife wisely covered his mouth with her hand.

"That's quite enough of that, Robbie," she said icily. "Leave the poor boy alone."

"Nothing poor about him," Robbie grumbled, climbing off the table. "Well, if he's not going to say or do anything for a while, I might as well do some sketches."

"I'll keep observing," Purah said, settling herself into a meditative position on the table. "Sheiky, can I see your eye?" she asked sweetly, pointing to his blindfolded Guardian eye. "Paya had some very interesting thoughts on it."

"Later," Sheik said, huffing. "Fucking impatient scientists..."

His eye closed, and his body seemed to relax in the chair, nearly falling over were it not for Link's quick reaction in steadying him. Sidon put a hand on Sheik's shoulder to hold him in place as well, just in case.

And so, time passed. Sheik hadn't said how long this manual power distribution would take, but it was certainly not a quick process. Not very exciting, either, and while the Sheikah were all abuzz with thoughts on Sheik's new body, it left Link and Sidon with little to do. Which was probably why Sidon finally found the courage to ask:

"So...about Sheik's new little...habit," he said carefully. "Do you know how it came about?"

Link blinked in confusion, looking up at the prince. "H-Habit?" he asked.

Sidon grimaced. "You know...talking to himself? He keeps doing it and I don't understand why. Is it some way for him to cope with this new development? A manifestation of his conscious, perhaps? If so, then I am happy he has found an outlet."

"Wha—?"

"Only, perhaps it is best for him to be careful about where he does it," the prince continued, apparently unable to stop now, "in private chambers and gatherings like this, for certain, but perhaps yelling in public is not the best way to convince people he is harmless."

Link didn't really understand that. Yelling in public was Sheik's default way of interacting with the world. Honestly, if he stopped doing it, Link wasn't sure he'd ever be able to get used to the quiet. The world was supposed to be filled with a loud, slightly grating Sheikah voice. It had to be.

"I hesitated to ask him directly," Sidon said, looking down at the Sheikah in question, letting a hand run through his soft, blonde hair. "Which I suppose makes me a coward, but I admit I too am still reeling a little from this development, and I do not wish to offend him on accident. Perhaps you can ask him to...be careful? If only to preserve his image amongst those who do not know him as well as we do."

Link still didn't understand what Sidon was getting to, unless...

Oh.

Right.

Link couldn't help but laugh. "Oh, I s-see what y-you mean!" he said. "Sh-Sheik's not t-talking t-to himself; he's t-talking t-to Stabby!"

That did not clear up Sidon's confusion in the way Link had thought it would. If anything, the poor Zora's confusion only worsened as his tail twitched.

"He has named it?" he asked incredulously.

"W-Well, of c-course he's n-named him," Link said. "Everyone n-needs a n-name!"

Nope, the prince was still confused. Honestly, it wasn't that hard to wrap one's head around, was it? Link smiled, though, an idea striking him.

What better way to clear the confusion entirely?

"Wh-Why don't w-we introduce the t-two of you wh-when Sheik w-wakes up? L-Let you m-meet Stabby?"

Sidon stared at Link for a long moment, taking several deep breaths before asking, with a look of horror:

"Meet him?!"