[ Plush ]
sleep to dream of unimaginable things
It seemed like so long ago when she stopped into The Easy Magic Convenience Store. She hadn't even been looking for anything in particular. A complete whim drew her into the shop and again to the gatchpon machine on the counter. She almost thought it a waste to insert a coin into the machine when it looked empty. She doubted anything would come out of it. The machine probably didn't even work anyway. But after she gave the handle a turn, a capsule popped out, dropping right into her hands. The curious thing about the capsule was that she couldn't open it. No matter how hard she tried to pry it open, the thing simply wouldn't open.
Since then, the capsule sat on her desk in her bedroom. It was still puzzling why the capsule refused to open, but there was little point in continuing to find a way to open it. Any drastic measures might damage the item inside of it, and she wouldn't want that. For a time, she forgot about the capsule, busy with work and school. But as she went to bed one night, something about the capsule called to her. She fell asleep staring at the capsule perched on her desk. Nothing was different about it, but the memory of receiving the capsule stuck out in her mind, like it had only happened earlier that day instead of weeks ago.
The following morning, she awakened not by the irritating beeping of her alarm clock but by a terrible squawking noise. She sat up suddenly, throwing off the covers of her bed. What was making that awful sound? She cringed as a rather loud squawk seemed to come from right next to her ear. Rubbing at her poor ear, she turned to the side. Her gaze landed on the spot on her desk when the capsule was placed weeks ago. It was no longer there. Instead the plush of some kind of bird sat there. The plush blinked at her and tilted its head with a curious expression somehow managing to cross its face. The plush could move? A strangled yelp of surprise burst out of her as she flailed backward, nearly falling out of her bed. How was even possible for a stuffed toy to move?
"No," Madison whispered, rubbing at her tired eyes. "I must be seeing things. There's no way that noise came from a plush." She laughed to herself. Perhaps she needed more sleep. Yes, that was it. Her tired mind was playing with her.
"You mean this noise?" The squawking came again, and Madison covered her ears to block the sound. When it stopped, she looked over at the plush.
"That... must have come from outside," Madison mumbled, looking toward the window in her bedroom. A plush couldn't move or talk or make such a horrible noise. Movement from the corner of her eye caught her attention. She turned her head and nearly gave a scream of surprise. The bird plush hopped from the desk on the bed then hopped again to perch on her knee.
"Your noise maker was ineffective in waking you," the plush explained.
Madison stared down at it. Confusion over the whole situation was making her head hurt. How was it that the plush could move and talk? What did it mean by noise maker? She glanced over to her desk. After a few moments, she noticed the clock and the time it read. She moved suddenly, making the plush tumble down onto the bed, as she grabbed at the clock. "It's already this late? I'll never make it on time!" She started to climb out of bed then stopped. Her gaze turned back to the little bird plush as it rolled back onto its feet. She couldn't just leave after a discovery like this; she would never be able to concentrate on lectures at any rate. "How exactly is it that you can move and talk?"
The plush placed the tip of its wing to its beak, seeming to ponder over this question before answering. "I fear I have no answer to that," he admitted, looking disappointed at his lack of knowledge in this area.
At least, she wasn't alone in her confusion about a talking plush, Madison decided. Drawing her knees up, she hugged them to her chest. Questions passed through her mind as she stared down at the plush. Too much of this situation was a mystery, and she doubted the plush had the answers if it didn't even know why it was able to move about and talk like a living creature. "Do you have a name at least?"
The plush nodded its head. "Beauregard," it answered.
An unusual name, but Madison kind of liked it. It sounded like a male name, so the plush was a boy then. That bit was cleared up, at least. "I'm Madison," she introduced herself with a bright smile. "Hm, I guess this makes me like a guardian, or something, for you."
Beauregard stared at her for a time, and Madison wondered what was going through his mind. It was hard to read his face, which seemed to be in a constant expression of neutrality so far. "I suppose you'll do," he finally said with a short bob of his head.
Madison puffed out her cheeks. What kind of response was that? It sounded like he was settling on her simply because she was there, but he preferred someone better. But a growl from her stomach brought her thoughts up short. She flushed slightly as she stood up from the bed. "Let's talk more while we have some breakfast," she suggested as she picked up the little plush. What did a plush eat anyway? Or did it even need to eat? She guessed she would find out soon enough.
