A Toast To My Existence

     "WAKEY WAKEEEEEEY!!!!"

     Herrine's eyes shot open and she screamed. The voice had screeched right into her ear, which was currently being covered by a pillow to protect her eardrums from the offending noise.

     "Aw, C'mon, Reen! Can't you be a morning person for once?" Herrine blinked, and threw a pink pillow at her older sister, Zeffenne the striped Zafara, who had been the one who yelled.

     Zeffenne dodged it easily.

     "Come ON, Reen, it's a new daaaay! FerulaSnow's already in the living room, and I think she's trying to gnaw on the end of the table."

     Herrine blinked and tried to ignore her sister. She was probably lying, anyway...

     And over at the living room, which was literally one step away from Zeffenne's room, a white Snowbunny named FerulaSnow was trying to chew a table leg.

~~~

"Rinet?"

     The addressed was currently placing a vial of Noxious Nectar on a shelf. Her other older sister, Rinettaneo, a blue Aisha with a passion for all things Jhudora, didn't pay attention.

     Herrine called Rinet's name a few more times. Why, it should have been easier for Rinet to hear her, seeing as they were right beside each other in Rinet's room. (Which happened to be the only way to the Living Room from Herrine's room, by the way...)

     Finally, giving up, Herrine thwapped Rinet's head with her hand.

     Rinet didn't even notice. She was just staring at the pretty green liquid of the Noxious Nectar...

     Herrine poked her.

     She didn't notice.

     Herrine elbowed her.

     She didn't notice yet again.

     Sighing in exasperation, Herrine took the bottle away from her sight. Rinet perked up immediately.

     "AAAAAUUUUGGHHHH.."

     Then Rinet dive-bombed straight onto her bed, muttering something about 'Evil Faerie Queen Dolls' and how horrifying 'Dr. Sloth marrying Jhudora' would be.

     Herrine shuddered at that last sentence, before placing the bottle of Noxious Nectar back on the shelf and exiting the room, muttering something about how this family really WAS insane.

     As soon as Herrine left, Rinet went back to stare at the Noxious Nectar.

     I knew that would get her to go away! And she went back to goggling at the sight that is poisonous, green liquid.

~~~

"So, why have you come to me? Why not Zeffenne or Rinet?" Herrine's older brother Genev plainly asked, not looking up from his book of puzzles.

     "Because Zeff is off somewhere in the Marketplace with her Selket, Sibenitte, and she seems hyper today. Plus, she's probably going to buy lots of chocolates while she's there. Probably going to spend all of the 3,000 Neopoints Jessica gave her."

     "Which brings me to another point. Why didn't you go to Jessica? After all, she IS our owner." Genev raised an eyebrow, then closed the book. It vanished in a puff of purple smoke.

     "Well... Because you're the eldest. And the most sane here in our little family. You've SEEN it all. You've seen when Jessica was a newbie, you've seen her turn from a nine-year-old 'til she turned eleven!" Herrine was practically begging at this point.

     Plus, she thought, Jessica might be a tad bit offended at what I'm going to ask you.

     "And... Why are you asking me, again?" Genev yawned and blinked questioningly at her.

     "Well, because," she said, "Jessica would probably be all stressed out about schoolwork, and... well... She doesn't have a good memory at all."

     Genev sighed. His ear perked up at the sound of the front door closing rather loudly. Zeffenne must be home. And yes, he was right.

     "HEYA, GUYS! I HAVE CHOOOOOCOLAAAATE!!!"

     Genev and Herrine watched with amusement when Rinet came busting out of her room, hearing the word 'Chocolate'. She ran past them without a second glance, and opened Genev's door and ran into the Living Room.

     Genevive39 looked away from the door and turned his eyes toward his youngest sibling.

     "What do want to ask me?"

~~~

Genev blinked at her in a confused manner.

     "Why in the world did you want to know that?" Genev blinked.

     "Because I really want to know... If my existence means anything at all. I want to know what it would be like if I wasn't born!" Herrine shouted, apparently getting annoyed at this point. "Yes, yes... No need to get stingy now, little sister." Genev sighed and tried to shift through his memory of the past two years. He looked up at the bamboo ceiling.

     "Well, for starters, we would have had a different little sister."

     Herrine listened closely. Was there another Neopet before her...?

     "Yes, if I remember correctly, she was a blue Lupe, and her name started with an 'L'. I don't think Rinet or Zeff remember her, though." He looked back at her.

     "A blue Lupe? How come I didn't know?" Herrine cocked her head in confusion. How come she didn't know until this point? Why? .... Why not?

     "Because Jessica forgot about it, apparently." He stood up and walked over the the door and peered out into the Living Room. Rinet, Zeff, and Jessica were there, eating chocolates and drinking Neocola.

     He then closed the door with a soft 'click', and walked back to his bed and lay down.

     Herrine looked at him from the corner of her eye, as she had craned her neck to look at what was happening outside.

     "She was actually very hyper and girly," Genev continued. "I still remember how she used to fawn over the display window of UsukiLand. Not that different from you, actually."

     Herrine's eyes widened. I'm girly!? she thought with desperation. I don't goggle at the dolls in Usukiland.. I do that to the Toy Store. Then she silenced her own thoughts and began to listen to what her brother was telling her.

     "She liked to battle, however, and was quite strong. She even beat Zeffenne in a pouncing match..." Genev looked up at the ceiling again. He seemed quite distraught at having to remember.

     "Rinet wasn't really as close to her as she is to you, however. Even if she never admitted it, that blue Lupe was quite hypocritical..." He stuck out his tongue in disgust.

     "She kept on not wanting Rinet to touch her, since, apparently, 'Aisha's were not as good as lupes'." Genev looked angry at the moment, yet the look on his face faded away.

     Herrine was still listening intently.

     "Then came a few days before Lupe Day, and more Poogles like yourself were released. Jessica really wanted one, and she couldn't give up one of us three, so she decided to put L in the pound."

     Herrine stifled a giggle. "L?" she said, eyes twinkling in amusement.

     "Hey, I forgot her name. That was two years ago!" Genev gave her a look of mock annoyance and continued.

     "They were both so sad... Jessica and L."

     Herrine couldn't help but put in her two Neopoints. "And before Lupe Day, too?" Genev nodded at that. Herrine looked at her hands. There was so many things she didn't know... So many things that have been kept hidden in the dark from her..

     Herrine suddenly looked up at her brother.

     "Let's switch the topic... to something less gloomy. What if I didn't exist? What would my sisters and you be like?"

     Genev smiled at that. Here was something he could tell her, and not feel bad about.

~~~

Herrine started to giggle at her brother's statement a few seconds ago. Really! She couldn't imagine that SHE was the reason for that!

     "It's true, Herrine. If it wasn't for you, Zeffenne would never had gotten interested in Usukis! Your girlishness has rubbed off on her." Genev was smirking now.

     Herrine laughed. Am I THAT girlish!? To think that Zeff, my older sister, one who loves to fight in the Battledome for fun, would get interested in a girl's toy because of ME! She laughed a few more times.

     "Shush, I'm talking." Genev held up a paw.

     "And as for Rinet, if you hadn't accidentally bumped into her in Faerieland, she wouldn't have landed on the entrance to Jhudora's Cloud, and she wouldn't have been so interested in Noxious Nectars."

     "Whaaaa!? Her obsession is because of meee?" Herrine pretended to die.

     Genev smiled warmly. Younger siblings definitely were curious.

     "Yes. And I myself would be hyperactive by now, if you weren't here. You're possibly the only thing that keeps me sane, since Zeffenne and Rinet had someone else to contaminate with their weirdness, and you're a girl. So I guess I have to thank you for that," Genev stated, looking extremely serious.

     Herrine was giggling uncontrollably. To imagine Genev, the ever-so-rational one, to jump around and be hyper was just too much to bear. That was like... Seeing a book try to drown itself in baby neopet food!

     Genev smiled again. "So, you now know that we really appreciate you, even if Jessica DOES regret abandoning L. So why don't we go into the living room and eat, shall we?" Genev got up from the bed and made his way toward the door.

     He opened it. "Ladies first," he smirked.

     Herrine grinned at him as she walked past. Maybe her older brother wasn't so boring after all.

~~~

"Herri!" Jessica, her overly-hyper owner glomped her. Herrine smiled.

     "We have chocolates! And Neocola! You want some?" Rinet's voice was heard among Zeffenne's loud chewing.

     "Sure!" Jessica led Herrine to the center of the room, where Zeffenne and Rinet were laying on the floor munching chocolates.

     Herrine picked up FerulaSnow, who had still been trying to destroy the table leg.

     "I guess you weren't lying after all, Zeff!" Zeff gave her a look, as if to say, 'Why in the world would I lie?' but she continued eating.

     Rinet and Genev's petpets were there too, Hikari No Tenshi the White Ona and Kaivegh the Wadjet. They were on the table, in a seemingly strange staring contest.

     "Should we all open our Neocolas now, now that Herri's here?" Rinet questioned.

     Jessica grinned. "Definitely! I'm thirsty and I want soft drinks!"

     Herrine laughed at her in a childish way. She picked up a piece of chocolate. She looked at it and smiled shyly.

     It was a milk chocolate Lupe. She put it down back onto the table, not wanting to eat it.

     After everyone had opened their Neocola, Herrine held up a hand before anyone could drink.

     "What is it, Reen? I want Neocola!" Zeffenne pouted.

     "Shush, Sis. I think she wants to say something," Genev scolded lightly.

     "Yes, I do."

     Everyone peered at her.

     Herrine took a deep breath.

     "A toast! To my existence!"

     Everyone laughed.

     "Ya sure, Herri?" Rinet asked.

     "Oh, I'm sure." Herrine started to laugh with them. 'Well, if I didn't exist, I wouldn't be having this much fun!'

     "Okay then!" Jessica shouted.

     "A toast! To Herrine's existence!" Everyone said.

     They clinked their cans of Neocola together.

~~ The End ~~

Author's Notes: In case you were wondering, the story of Herrine's origins are quite true. Yes, I did have a blue Lupe. Yes, she was female, and yes, her name started with the letter 'L'. I do regret abandoning her, but I don't regret creating Herrine, either. Over and out.