The Spellbook (of DOOM)

     Various crafts and spells of old were inscribed onto the tattered, yellow pages. Spells ranged from the simplest "How to make an orb of light" magic word to the advanced "How to turn your sister into a Zomutt" spell. Ooh, Dustin could use that one for later...

     Just then, the door swung open.

     "Dustin!" Beauty complained. "You were supposed to help me clean the Living Room, and you're up here reading a book?"

     "It's not just any book," Dustin pointed out. "It's a magical spellbook. I can use the spells inside to do certain things."

     "That's just a lie!" argued Beauty,

     "Oh, really?" Dustin questioned. "Then how come I can do THIS?"

     Flipping ahead to page 89, the Tuskaninny closed her eyes, took in a deep breath, and murmured the words of an ancient spell. Suddenly, her hands turned blue. Without even thinking, Dustin raised them up high over her head, and a blue light struck from them, hitting the curtain. A second later it had fallen from the window and onto the floor, as...

     "A pie," Beauty laughed. "Wow, it takes real skill to make a PIE!"

     Dustin's face turned red in anger. That's what was always wrong with her; she got angry much too easily. Just one hurtful comment from Beauty would enter her into such a state of anger that she'd do anything without thinking straight. And with a magic spellbook in her hands... erm... let's just say that that's NOT a very good combination.

     "Laugh while you can," Dustin screamed. "Because when I use the spell on page 194 on you, you'll be sorry!"

     ---

     Pretzel walked contently into their little Kiko Lake home that night, carrying groceries. She walked into the Hallway, smiling.

     "Ah, home," she said, inhaling the wondrous aroma. "I've missed you."

     Zerpana zoomed out of the living room, skidding to a stop in front of her owner.

     "Zerpana!" Pretzel exclaimed. "Just the neopet I wanted to see!"

     She shoved the groceries into the Flotsam's flippers.

     "Care to take these to the kitchen while I check on your sisters?"

     "Okay, Pretzel," Zerpana said, barely able to see over the armload of food as she wobbled into the kitchen. All while doing that Pretzel ran upstairs.

     The very second she reached the first floor she heard laughing from Dustin's room. Pretzel ran over to investigate. Holding her breath, she placed her ear onto the door and listened.

     "A pie," she heard Beauty say through the door. "Wow, it takes real skill to make a PIE."

     "Laugh while you can," Dustin screamed. "Because when I use the spell on page 194 on you, you'll be sorry!"

     Oh, no! Pretzel had to stop this. She opened the door.

     Surprised, Beauty jumped back five feet when their owner opened the door. Dustin was just finishing her spell.

     "Aquarius..." She turned to face Pretzel, and her eyes widened. "...Tailicus!?"

     Suddenly, a bolt of magic shot out of Dustin's hands. It soared across the room, and hit Pretzel, knocking her over backwards.

     "Pretzel!" Dustin cried.

     "What did you do?" Beauty yelled as she ran and knelt down beside Pretzel.

     "I... I don't know! I panicked!" Dustin stammered.

     Just then, a blue light surrounded Pretzel. Dustin gasped.

     Oh no, she thought, I did not just... not that spell!

     The light faded, and Dustin wanted to just collapse onto the ground crying. Her owner's short, brown hair was now curled into long, golden locks. Her eyes, which used to be such a pale blue that they were almost gray, were now a deep ocean blue. But the most disturbing part? Her legs; Instead of a pair of legs, her owner now had a light blue tail.

     Dustin had turned her into a water faerie.

     ---

     Slowly Pretzel's eyes fluttered open. First, a Rainbow Uni came into vision, then a Blue Tuskaninny. Argh, she rubbed her head in pain as she sat herself up off the ground.

     That's when she saw it. The light blue scales, gleaming in the light from the overhead lamps.

     "How... why...?"

     At that exact moment, she figured it out. She glared at Dustinany.

     "You... did you DO this to me?" she roared. "I'm a FISH!"

     Beauty smiled nervously. "Well, you're not a COMPLETE fish..."

     "Change me back," Pretzel commanded. "NOW!"

     "Okay," Dustin could only mutter, as she scrambled into her room.

     Suddenly, Pretzel remembered something, and turned to face Beauty.

     "Wait a second," she said. "Don't books disappear after a neopet reads them?"

     Just then, Dustinany ran out of the room. "Oh my gosh, the spellbook's gone!"

     Pretzel's eyes glazed over in disgust.

     Dustin sighed. This was all her fault. If she hadn't have gotten angry at Beauty in the first place, none of this would've happened. How stupid of her!

     But she knew she couldn't dwell on the past forever. She needed to figure out how to solve this problem, and turn Pretzel back into a human. Oh, if only she had that spellbook with her, she would...

     "The spellbook!" Dustin cried. "That's our way out of this!"

     Pretzel beamed up at her with those ocean blue eyes. "Great!"

     Her smile faded. "But how do we find it? It disappeared, didn't it?"

     "Well, I purchased it from Kauvara," Dustin informed her.

     "Well, what are we waiting for?" Pretzel said. "Let's go!"

     Out of sheer excitement, she tried to stand herself up and sprint down the stairs, but her tail tripped her, and she flopped back onto the floor. She groaned.

     "You should just go without me."

     ---

     As the two sisters travelled through the woods to Neopia Central, Dustin gulped. What if Kauvara didn't have another spellbook? How would Dustin change her owner back? Even if she had the spellbook, would there be a spell in there that could even change her back anyway? Or was she... *GULP*... stuck as a Water Faerie forever?

     "That would make an awkward scene at a Pool Party," Dustin said to herself.

     Finally, they emerged from the forests in between the two lands, and were now in the Main Shops of Neopia Central. Beauty pointed to a small shop, in the shape of a hat, far away and nearly invisible compared to the gigantic NC Mall building behind it.

     "There's the Magic Shop!" Beauty cried. "C'mon, Dustin, let's go!"

     Before Dustin could even process what her sister had said, the Uni was already halfway into the shop. Dustin ran to catch up, and they both entered the Magical Shop.

     In the shop were many shelves, some filled with overpriced healing potions, another with overpriced Novas. The third shelf was empty - it probably was stocked with Morphing Potions before restockers attacked each other like Meepits to purchase them. The only other item in the room was a desk, which lay deserted in the silent shop.

     "Um... Miss Kauvara..." Dustin called.

     Suddenly, from behind the desk, out popped the Starry Kau, wearing her trademark hat and carrying various potions in her arms.

     "Welcome, Dustinany! How well has that spellbook been working out for you?"

     "Actually," Dustin told her. "I accidently turned my owner into a Water Faerie using a spell from the book..."

     "Ah," Kauvara said. "You used the spell on page 194! Oh, it's a very good spell, indeed."

     "Yes, but... how do you change her back?"

     Kauvara's smile faded. She scratched her chin thoughtfully with her hoof, trying to conjure up a spell that could help.

     Oh no, Dustin thought. Did she think of a spell? I hope so. I don't want Pretzel to be a fish the rest of her life all because of me!

     "Ah, yes!" Kauvara exclaimed. "I remember a spell that could counteract spell 194. Here, I'll write it down."

     She pulled out a pen and paper and began to write the spell down. Dustin breathed a well-deserved breath of relief.

     "Here you go!" Kauvara said, handing them the note. "But be careful, there is a slight problem that could arise when using this spell..."

     But before Kauvara could tell them, Beauty and Dustin were gone, already on their way back to Kiko Lake.

     ---

     Pretzel groaned as Zerpana carried her into the bathtub.

     "Well, since you are a Water Faerie now," Zerpana told her, "you should at least be one with your element."

     Then, before Pretzel could protest, the Flotsam had dumped her into the Disco Bath Tub, filled with lukewarm water that splashed in her face. She looked up at her pet doubtfully.

     "I don't think this is much of an improvement," she said.

     Just then, Dustin and Beauty ran into the bathroom, holding the note proudly in their hands. Pretzel grinned.

     "You found a spell to fix this!"

     "You bet!" Dustin said. "Now, just let me cast it..."

     Closing her eyes, she mumbled the words to the spell. A blue beam of light erupted from her hands, and hit Pretzel yet again, causing a blue light to surround her. Dustin smiled. Finally, she had fixed it!

     Her smile faded as the blue light did. Pretzel's hair was brown again, and her eyes were back to normal, but the tail was still there.

     The Tuskaninny collapsed onto the ground, her face in her hands.

     "I don't understand!" Dustin cried between sobs. "I thought the spell would fix this!"

     "It's okay, Dustin," Pretzel told her, placing a hand atop Dustin's shoulder. She looked up at her, and her weeping ceased.

     "You tried your hardest, and that's all that matters."

     Dustin smiled. Pretzel looked down at the ground. "Now can you help me get out of here?"

     "Sure," Dustin said. Together Zerpana and Dustinany pulled Pretzel out of the bathtub, and her tail drooped lazily on the bathroom floor.

     Suddenly, it began to change. Her tail split into two legs; the same two legs she had had before. Pretzel's face illuminated with excitement. She touched them, gladly knowing that it wasn't just her imagination, and hugged Dustinany again. Zerpana scratched her chin thoughtfully.

     "Interesting," she mused. "She now seems to only have a tail when in water."

     "That must've been the problem Kauvara told us about," Beauty concluded.

     Pretzel smiled. "Well, at least I'm not completely stuck as a fish anymore."

     Beauty smiled. Pretzel motioned for them to join in a big group hug. As long as they were together, nothing could keep them apart. Suddenly, Dustin grinned.

     "Ooh, there was this one spell in there that I wanted to try out..."

     "NO!"

The End