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Faerie Bubbles


by bittersweet52

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Also by 0123kl

Westerly_Fog found himself at the base of Poogle Mountain on a sunny afternoon at the same time as his friend, Katherine_The_Jewel.

      "Hey, Kat!" he called out. "Where are you headed?"

      Turning at the sound of his voice, Kat bounced over to where the Cloud JubJub stood.

      "It's such a nice day. I thought I'd head over to Faerieland and check out some shops. I heard they have something new called Water Faerie Blueberries at Faerie Foods. Those sound interesting, don't they?"

      "Do you want to go together?" West asked. "I was planning on going to the Faerie Foods shop too. I'm trying to find the perfect present for Bygn, and I know she likes the rare mushrooms they sometimes have there."

      Kat fell in step with her JubJub friend as they left the foothills of the mountain. A hop, skip, and jump later, they had arrived at the new, grounded, Faerieland. The purple towers of Faerie City gleamed in the distance as they walked between the sparkling waters of the Healing Springs and the Rainbow Fountain.

      "I wonder if they taste different from normal blueberries?" Kat wondered under her breath. They had blueberry bushes on Poogle Mountain and she loved the way the little fruits popped with flavor when she ate them. But fruits from Faerieland must be special in some way. After all, most of them had wings.

      "I saw an ad for them in the news," West commented. "The Earth Faerie who works there claimed that they were 'spectacularly refreshing' or something like that."

      "I think I saw the same ad," Kat said. "They looked strange, more like cherries, didn't they?"

      "It's the wings, I think. The stems come up to connect to them and then the wings themselves look like leaves."

      "I was just wondering about that," Kat said nervously.

      "What do you mean?"

      "Are Faerie fruits... alive?"

      "Well, plants are technically alive," West pointed out.

      "But I mean. I've seen those fruits hover and flit about on their wings. How do they do that?"

      "Faerie magic, I suppose." West shrugged, unconcerned.

      Kat continued to fret until the two Neopets found themselves at the entrance to the Faerie Foods shop.

      Taking a deep breath, Kat crossed the threshold and found herself in a cozy shop decorated in the purples and pinks common in Faerieland. Behind the counter, with her back turned to them, the Earth Faerie shopkeeper was busy rolling out some dough. A big bowl of what looked like orange jam was at her elbow and filled the shop with a light citrus scent. In various corners of the shop Kat could see barrels and displays of fruits and vegetables. All of it, thankfully, resting quietly in their containers with their wings folded. Although the Faerie Artichoke over there couldn't seem to stop twitching. Kat quickly looked elsewhere.

      West made his way to the counter and cleared his throat.

      The Faerie turned and spotted Kat, who was idly inspecting colourful little containers of breath mints.

      "Those are on sale! Just 2500 Neopoints. When you finish the mints, the container is perfect for holding pieces of jewelry."

      Startled, Kat dropped the box and it clattered to the floor. A little "Oh!" escaped as her hand flew to her mouth.

      "Don't worry," the Faerie said, coming around the counter. "You can't hurt the containers. Quality made right here in Faerieland. They won't dent or scratch." She scooped up the box and placed it back on the display in a swift movement. "May I help you find something?"

      Clearing his throat again, West hopped up onto a stool so that he would be more at eye level with the shopkeeper.

      She turned, surprised to see that she actually had two customers. "Excuse me," she apologized.

      "Happens all the time," West turned one foot up in a JubJub-version of a shrug.

      Embarrassed, the shopkeeper turned and repositioned the mints she had just put down. "Well, um, what can I interest you two in today?" she asked. "Some Cloud Cookies?" she suggested, eyeing West. She walked over to a bakery display case on one side of the counter, with Kat and West trailing after her.

      "Actually, I'm looking for some rare Faerie Mushrooms for a friend."

      "And I was hoping to buy a couple of those new Water Faerie Blueberries?" Kat interjected.

      "We're all out of the blueberries, unfortunately. They sell like hot cakes, Fluffy Faerie Hot Cakes, that is." The shopkeeper winked playfully. "They're new so they're really popular," she added by way of explanation.

      "I understand," Kat mumbled. She couldn't quite decide if she was disappointed that she wouldn't get to taste them today, or relieved that she wouldn't have to eat something that might try to fly out of her mouth while she was biting into it.

      "As for the mushrooms..." the shopkeeper led them to a few crates lined up along the wall. She opened the lid of one and tilted it so Kat and West could look inside. "Battle Faerie Mushrooms," she named. "And in that one," she pointed to the next crate, "Tooth Faerie Mushrooms."

      "I was hoping for something more rare, like an Air Faerie Mushroom," West said.

      The shopkeeper's eyes narrowed just slightly, and West added, "Or an Earth Faerie Mushroom, those are gorgeous. It's a present for my friend who collects cute mushrooms."

      "Well, I'd love to help you," the Faerie said congenially, "but we're sold out of those. We only sell what we can collect sustainably. They are quite rare here in New Faerieland, and virtually impossible to find anywhere else. We have our own growing stock, of course, but the climate down here is so different, they just haven't been thriving. Maybe it has something to do with the atmosphere, or the quality of the sunlight? We haven't quite worked it out yet. Too many variables, you see."

      "Well, I guess this trip was a bust," Kat said.

      "We're already here, why don't we get something to eat on the way home?" West suggested.

      "How about some Faerie Bubbles?" the shopkeeper suggested. "You can get a few extra, share them with your friends when you get home."

      Kat and West considered their flavour options.

      In the end, Kat bought a Blueberry Faerie Bubble, to make up for not being able to get the Water Faerie Blueberries she had come for. West bought a Voidberry Faerie Bubble, and the two enjoyed their snacks while they decided what to bring back to Poogle Mountain with them.

      After some discussion, the shopkeeper placed two Islandberry Faerie Bubbles, two Lime Faerie Bubbles, three Orange Faerie Bubbles, and three Lemon Faerie Bubbles into a bag for them. As the friends turned to leave, the Faerie stopped them.

      "I'm sorry we didn't have what you came in for."

      The two Neopets assured her that they didn't hold it against her.

      "Why don't you check back next week? I'll try to get my hands on some new stock before you come. Here, a sign of my good will, okay?" The Faerie plopped an extra Lemon Faerie Bubble into their bag. "On the house!"

      Kat and West thanked her and waved as they left the shop.

      Back at Poogle Mountain, Kat and West decided to meet up with a few other friends to share the Faerie Bubbles they had bought. Everyone gathered around the table as West fetched the bag of treats. He brought the bag over to the others and dumped the contents out into a waiting bowl in the center of the table.

      "Why did you buy only one flavor?" one of their friends laughed.

      Astonished, Kat and West stared at the eleven Lemon Faerie Bubbles sitting in the bowl in front of them.

      "I thought..." Kat looked over at West confused. "I saw her put in those Islandberry ones. We got a bunch of flavors, didn't we?"

      Suddenly, a lightbulb went off in West's head. "That extra Lemon Faerie Bubble she gave us as we were leaving!"

      Kat blinked, not understanding.

      "Four Bubbles of the same colour trigger a special Faerie Combo. The last Lemon Faerie Bubble she threw in must've caused all the others to also change flavors."

      "West..." Kat began.

      "West!" Bygn chuckled.

      "West?"

      "Westerly_Fog."

      "WEST!"

      Westerly_Fog sat up quickly, feet flailing in the sheets. He rubbed his eyes sleepily. Kat was standing by the side of his bed.

      "West, wake up. You said you'd go with me to Faerieland today to see if Faerie Foods had any Water Faerie Blueberries. Remember?"

      Groaning, West got out of bed. "Remind me never to play Faerie Bubbles before bed again, Kat."

The End

 
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