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Spread Your Wings
I woke in the middle of the night, probably around
3:00. I shivered under the covers as the wind gusted through the open windows.
Getting shakily out of bed to shut them, I got a glance through the windows,
and gasped. The stars were brilliant, as were the moon: the glistened and twinkled
proudly, lighting the shadows on Omni's sleeping face. I turned back to my bed
and wrapped a blanket around my shoulders, and then climbed the steps from our
cabin to the main deck.
The wind tousled my fur and ears, but I didn't
take my eyes off the sky. The stars kept me bound to them, I thought of what
I'd said only a week before. "I wonder if I just closed my eyes, I could fall
into the world of the stars, and just dream... So I wonder if I could fall into
eternal sleep and dream forever...that there's a place for me."
I leaned back when I was on the deck, and the
blanket fell from my shoulders. I stared up at the stars and felt a tear trickle
down my cheek, not because of the reason it had a week before, but because of
the sheer beauty and pureness of the light. It seemed as if their light did
not come from inside or from outside, but as if it came from another source
all together...
And I wondered if I was dreaming.
The gentle rocking of the boat put me to sleep,
and when my eyes bleared before I slipped away into sleep, all I saw was the
blinding white light of the stars, and then I was gone.
***
"Po. Po, wake up!"
I shook my head as I sat up groggily, shivering.
Shapes danced in front of my eyes, and slowly they cleared, sharpening, and
becoming people. Or a person. Omni, to be exact.
"Are you all right?" There was worry in her
eyes and her voice. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and yawned.
"Yes, I'm fine, I just came up here last night
and I suppose I fell asleep..."
She didn't seem convinced.
"I'M FINE!"
"Oh...ok, but then you should pack up. The
boat arrives at Faerieland Transportation in about an hour, so hurry!"
I walked slowly down to our cabin and packed
my bag thoughtfully. Faerieland was one of my favourite lands of all, and I'd
only been there once or twice. This time we were spending a week there, but
at the same time I was excited, I was also very apprehensive. I hoped desperately
that if the same thing that happened at Mystery Island happened here that there'd
be someone there to help me out of there. Finally packed, I was able to make
it up to the top deck for the docking.
When we settled into our seats on the helicopter,
ready for our short ride, I leaned toward the window. I remembered how much
I loved to watch us ride from the ground, and go straight up for ten minutes,
to land on cloud above us. The ground dropped away below us and I watched the
boat travel out of the harbour and back into the waters toward Mystery Island.
With a soft thump, we landed on the cloud and
unloaded the helicopter. The clouds felt nice beneath my feet, and I helped
Omni with my trunk as we made our way to our hotel.
When we arrived, I slumped on the bed. "I'm
soo tired..." I announced, and turned over on my side while Tika snuggled next
to me.
"Aw, Po, come on! We just got to Faerieland
and you're going to sleep? Nope, we're going exploring," Omni grabbed my hand
and tugged me up off the bed.
Inside Faerie City, Omni let me go off on my
own for a bit. I stumbled into the bookshop, and browsed the titles, most of
which I'd read, or others too expensive. I picked one off the shelf and sat
down in one of the overstuffed chairs to read it.
"Hello!" I heard someone chirp in front of
me. I took my book down from my face, and looked at her.
At first glanced, she looked a bit like a little
girl, but at closer look, you could see her developing wings, and the slight
green tint to her skin. An earth faerie.
"Hello," I replied, shutting my book and putting
it on the table next to me.
"I'm Anna," she said. "And you are...?"
"Polayo," I answered with a grin.
"Well, Polayo," she said, "I'm Anna. You seem
like you're about my age, which is lucky, because I don't meet many people my
age around here." She finished with a grin.
"You're about a year old?" I questioned doubtfully.
Neopets did mature faster than any other animals-including faeries-but this
faerie looked as if she were a lot older than one year.
She cast her eyes downward. "Well, no," she
admitted, "but since faeries live for so long, we count each day as a year..."
I almost rolled my eyes, but I caught myself
just in time. Finally, I said, "So, what's up?"
She grinned and plopped down in the chair next
to me, and we started talking.
***
I spent the rest of the week with Anna. She turned out to be pretty nice, and
we had some good times. The day I was leaving, she stopped by our hotel room
to say goodbye.
When I let her in, I could immediately tell
she was troubled by the way she looked around the room.
"What's wrong?" I asked while I latched the
door.
"Why...why aren't you packing?" There was a
tone of worry in her voice as her eyes shifted around.
"Well..." I paused. "It might be because I'm
not leaving."
"What...!?" She exclaimed. "Po, you're kidding."
"No, I'm not. Why don't you want me to stay?"
"Oh, Po, I'd love for you and Omni and Tika
to stay, but you can't!"
"And why not?"
"Because-because-Oh, I just can't find the
right word!" She took a deep breath, and started again. "There are so many places
in Neopia to explore, and Faerieland just isn't yours. And you have the chance
to get out of here, to be free-but you can't stay here. You've got to spread
your wings and take flight, because you can, and you should. And you're journey's
just beginning."
"But...jeez, everyone has to tell me I don't
belong, don't they."
"It's because you haven't found your place
yet."
"And how'd you even know I was looking?"
"Well, Po..." she grinned and patted me on
the shoulder. "I wish you luck on spreading your wings...and don't forget me."
She slipped a photo into my paw as I hugged
her, and she floated out the door.
To be continued... | 
