Seamstress Cybunny: Part One

     I lived only with snobby sisters, who were twins. Colleen and Colette were always teasing me, and made me do all of the housework. The two yellow Cybunnies were very much alike in many ways, and the only way to tell them apart is what they were wearing. Colleen liked to wear warm colors while Colette liked to wear cold colors.

     I disliked my sisters and they really disliked me. Even on my birthday they would put something disgusting in my birthday cake, while on their birthday, I always added something special to each individual cake. We survived in Terror Mountain, where it's difficult to keep warm in town. I wanted to move to Neopia Central when I got older, so I could teach and get away from the twin Cybunnies.

     Other relatives? They're out fighting against the sandstorms. They've become a huge problem in the Lost Desert, so all the relatives went there. My sisters and I were too young to fight against powerful sand. We would be defeated in an instant, if not sooner. Colleen liked to clean only her room, and Colette enjoyed cooking. I was the one who was forced by my siblings to do one thing I liked the most - sewing.

     There was always cloth for me to practice on and to make clothes for all three of us, since the local clothing store is closed because of the winter season. Most of the time, Colleen complained and Colette moaned about how small or big their shirts and pants were. It was tiresome enough, and they made me go back and fix it. I wanted to start practicing on silk, since it is a different material. The Cybunny twins sneered and began calling me "Silk".

     One day, things changed. I was looking through the wardrobe for some cloth to practice with. Colette grinned evilly at me. "You'll have to go to the clothing store," she snarled.

     "But, it's closed for the season!" I replied with tears in my eyes. My sisters always made me go out into a blizzard to find cloth. My fur wasn't good enough to keep me warm yet. Colleen and Colette were always being lazy slorgs.

     Eventually, my sisters shoved me out the door and locked it. I pleaded to open the door, but they went off to do something different. I growled at the door, sighed, and started to find the nearest building. Around here, all the houses were dark and locked because of the snowstorm. I hopped as fast as I could go in the blowing wind and snow. I thought I wasn't going to make it at first, because it was the coldest day of the year.

     I shivered and continued moving. When I finally got to the town, there was at least enough snow to have a snowball fight all day. Many of the shops were closed for the night, and I was getting desperate. I started knocking on the doors of the homes of the neighbors, but no one answered at all.

     Finally, I saw a shop that was still open at this time of night. I hopped over as fast as I could manage. My feet and paws were as frozen as ice lollies and I felt like I was going to be a frozen icicle in a minute. I knocked on the door, winds blowing at me left to right. Finally, the door opened and I fell in.

     The elderly Wocky looked at me, closed the door, and took me to the fireplace. "My dear child, who would toss you out on the coldest day of the year? They should've remembered that it's the coldest night in Terror Mountain," she asked me as I became warm enough to talk.

     "My…sisters," I replied weakly, still feeling frozen. "I was going to practice sewing with cloth and I noticed that there wasn't any left. My sisters tossed me out of the house to get some fabric to sew on to make clothes."

     "Oh my," the Wocky gasped as she wrapped me up in a blanket. "Your sisters don't really like you, do they?"

     "No, they hate me. They tease me. I feel miserable as ever when near those two," I coughed. "If only my relatives weren't fighting sandstorms…"

     "I see," the Wocky said. "Tell me, child, what is your name?"

     "Sakura," I replied, shaking.

     "Sakura? That's a beautiful name for a Cybunny," she said, smiling sweetly, and looked at her stock. "My shop here sells clothes all year long."

     This is a clothing store? I thought and looked up at the Wocky. She was yellow, with many wrinkles. Her kind smile made me feel safer. I smiled a little back, but was too cold and tired to do so.

     "Why don't you stay here for the night?" she asked as she placed more logs in the fireplace. "There's no way you would survive going back home."

     "Could I?" I said weakly. The Wocky nodded and she headed upstairs. She suddenly stopped and grabbed a blanket and placed herself on the couch. I fell asleep almost instantly after that because of being tired and worn out.

     The next morning, snow was still on the ground. I looked up and felt much better after dealing with the snow. The Wocky from last night was making tea. "Would you like some, dear?" she asked as she was pouring the amount.

     I nodded for her to pour some in for me. I knew that I would have to go back home and face the twin sisters, but at least I wouldn't be a frozen Cybunny. The thought of going back to Colleen and Colette sent shivers up my spine. Plus, the two would expect me to have cloth in paw.

     "Here you are," the Wocky smiled and sat down and took her first sip. "This tea has been made by my ancestors for generations."

     "Generations?" I asked. This Wocky may be elderly, but she knew best. "Also, what is your name? I never grasped it when I first arrived last night."

     "I'm Shai, dear." She smiled and pointed to a cabinet. "There's some fabric in there to work with. Pick a colour you desire."

     I had a large grin on my face as I hopped to the tea coloured cabinet and opened the doors, which creaked as loud as a stomp on an old stair. The cabinet was filled with many colours - from red to white. Some patterns were found as well. There was enough fabric to make a whole year of clothes for my sisters and I.

     "Speechless?" Shai came over to me.

     "Yes…I am!" I replied nervously. I had never seen so much cloth in my life - even in a clothing shop. There were many shades of basic colours to be found, so that it was possible to make a special costume or gown. The old and wrinkled Wocky dragged out a variety of cloth from the bottom of the cabinets. Was it silk?

     "This cloth came all the way from the other side of Terror Mountain, so they are perfect to make outfits around here. It is a special kind of silk," Shai explained as she handed me a few shades of pink silk. I felt like as if I could make a beautiful winter dress out of this silk for winter parties. The silk looked and felt elegant.

     "Thank you very much!" I exclaimed with happiness. I could go home and start working! Get everything measured and stitched together and made with extra love. However, I still had one more thing to worry about - my twin sisters. They would demand that I should use the silk to make them new fancy dresses. The nerve of those two!

     "There's still one problem, though, isn't there?" the old Wocky asked with worry. She seemed to care about me a lot, even though we had met only last night. I sighed and nodded slowly, when Shai rushed me out the door to home. The Wocky winked at me and I know what was going to happen.

     I rushed home and grabbed a suitcase to pack up. "Where do you think YOU'RE going, Silk?" Colleen asked in a snobby way.

     "I'm moving," I replied without even looking at her. Colette appeared and realized what was happening. She ran off to lock the front door, while Colleen went out with her. Confused as ever, I finished packing and dashed for the door.

     "I refuse to let you leave this house!" Colette yelled and Colleen nodded in agreement. "It's an infraction of our house policy!"

     "House policy?" I sneered. "The rule that bans me from going outside is not in the house policy. Now out of my way!" I backed up and ran at full speed. Colleen and Colette almost grabbed me, but I managed to bust through the door and hopped off to Shai's store. The two angry Cybunnies ran out and chased me in the frozen snow.

     It was obvious that I was running away from home and my sisters. I wanted to be away from them forever. Holding on to my belongings, I finally made it to Shai's. Colleen was hopping faster than Colette, so she was almost right behind me. Shai closed the door and Colleen bumped into the door and fell into the snow.

     I grinned and went upstairs to a room the old Wocky picked out for me. It was much more luxurious than my old home and included a fireplace. A shimmering light came from the lamp next to my fluffy pink bed. The wardrobe only had hangers in it, so I dragged my somewhat heavy suitcase and tossed it in there.

     Meanwhile, Shai explained in a sweet and elderly tone to Colleen and Colette that I had decided to move into the shop. I looked down at the twins on the snow, shocked and appalled as ever. They eventually left the shop in disappointment and went home. No more dealing with them for me!

     I dashed down the stairs, where Shai placed a plate of cookies on the table. She smiled as I sat down on a comfortable cushion. "I appreciate you for taking me in." I bowed to the Wocky. "I will work my hardest to live here!"

     Shai laughed a little at the thought. "Well, dear, the only "work" you have to do for me is to sew some clothes for the clients who will arrive in a week. You mentioned that you were a pretty good seamstress for your siblings." She smiled and I ate a cookie. "If you do a great job on it, I will let you stay with me. How many outfits do you have, Sakura?"

     I forgot about how many clothes I owned. There probably wasn't much, because Colleen and Colette always demanded for clothes, when they had over twenty outfits each of their own. The suitcase was trapped in the wardrobe, so I excused myself and went to get it. When I brought it down and opened it up, Shai became surprised.

     "Poor child, you are! Only three outfits?" She looked through the clothes I had. I only owned a T-shirt, a pair of pants, a pair of pajamas, and that was it. There was a dress, but it became ruined when I was escaping from the Cybunny twins. Shai placed the suitcase and the clothes down next to my cushion.

     I nodded sadly. "My sisters always demanded for clothes, so there wasn't much for me," I sobbed. The old Wocky patted my head and handed me the pink silk from earlier. She smiled at me and I began to feel better.

     "Your first assignment here in Shai's Outfitters is to make you a new dress," she explained and passed me a needle. It was perfect for my paw and didn't slip out easily. I nodded at Shai and began drawing a plan on paper. The pencil sketch I finished looked complicated at first because I wanted so much on my new dress.

     "What will this dress be used for?" I asked with curiosity.

     "That's your dress for parties and for working," the elderly Wocky replied. "I expect you to be done the day after tomorrow. You'll need the last five days to make clothes for clients."

     "Okay!" I exclaimed and started stitching my dress. I planned for my dress to have a cute look and to have it fit me for a while - I was still a growing Cybunny after all! It turned out that Shai made gowns and other clothes. She also designed shoes to fit pets of all sizes and shapes.

     By the time I got done and tried on my dress, it was a day earlier than usual. Pink shades combined to make a dress with a darker pink heart in the middle. The stitching was straight and even, plus I was proud of my work. Shai approached me with a large smile.

     "That's store quality work, Sakura. Very nice job," she nodded. Shai suddenly turned around and looked at me. I knew that something wasn't right.

     "Is something wrong, Shai?" I asked the old Wocky. Shai fell over almost instantly and fell into a deep sleep. I rushed over to her side and felt her head. The elderly Wocky's temperature suddenly went up in an instant. Shai had a high fever!

To be continued...