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~MEETING~

Two sisters running with each other in the snow, the Zafara was running after her older sister and trying to catch up.

."Hurry up Nova" Kagome screamed over her shoulder.

."Wait up. You are faster then me." Nova screamed back, but ran faster anyway.

Suddenly, the xweetok stopped in her tracks, lifted her ears and turned right. Nova was confused but still followed her sister.

."Where are you going?" Nova yelled at Kagome.

."I hear… chanting… in the old xweetok language" Kagome explained.

The sisters kept running until they wound up near a cave. They slowed down at the mouth of a cave.

."It's coming from somewhere in here." Kagome whispered.

."What are they saying?" Nova questioned her older sister.

Kagome concentrated then slowly said "The night is short, the day is long. We stay loyal to our selves and each other. We will never run, but we will fight. This place is ours and so it should stay, Xweetoks around the country unite together to fight the darkness. We will defend what's ours, we will protect ourselves. Xweetoks unite! CHIRKA! CHIRKA! CHIRKA!"

Nova listened, thought, and then asked, "Should we go in?"

."A little voice inside of me is saying something bad will happen if we do. But it's drowned out by a bigger voice of curiosity and adventure. I also get the feeling I need to be here. Let's go."

They slowly walked in the cave, keeping to the shadows, but the necklace around Kagome's neck was glowing brighter the closer they came to the chanting, making it harder to hide. They finally made it to the source of the chanting, a big circular room filled with every possible Xweetok color. They were all sitting around a fire, eyes closed, chanting.

."Kagome, I'm scared. Can we go back?" Nova whimpered.

Suddenly, all the chanting stopped and one, spotted, Xweetok, the leader obviously, stood up and looked at the spot where the two sisters were hiding.

."Intruders! Seize them!" He called.

The two tried to make a run for it, but were quickly surrounded. Xweetoks closed in, their leader in front.

."You are… one of us." He spoke, facing Kagome.

."How do you know?" She asked.

He pointed to Kagome's necklace. "All the chosen ones were given that necklace at birth. Show us your tail."

Kagome obeyed, showing her birthmark. A moon shaped mark. "How do my necklace and mark make me one of you? Nova has the same mark on her tail."

."But she is not an xweetok. She is one of the Them. Let the Xweetok go, but take the Zafara to the dungeons!" He called.

The Xweetoks moved to grab Nova but Kagome place her self in front of them. She got down to the attack stench and whispered dangerously, "You will have to kill me first."

The Xweetoks looked confused. "You dare protect one of Them? You dare disobey your leader?" Their leader boomed.

."I will tell you this, my necklace and mark do not mean I am one of you. I will not let you hurt my sister!" Kagome bellowed back.

Just then, a wall of the cave blew up, sending a couple of Xweetoks through the air. Different pets tumbled into the cave, with a purple Kougra in front. They were all different except two things. None where Xweetoks and they all had the moon mark on their tail.

The Kougra quickly spotted Nova through the sea on Xweetoks. He stared at her, then her tail. Moon shaped mark hard to see against her cream white fur but still there. He glared at the spotted Xweetok.

."So, Screech, you decided to take on the weak, to try and defeat us." It was only then that the two sisters noticed that through the still coming waves of pets, none of them were Zafaras, just like there was no Xweetoks.

."Have not! Why do you come and blow up our home, Claw?"

."I have waited many years of training and waiting for this moment, the moment when I wipe the Xweetoks of the face of neopia." He called loudly.

At those words, all the pets rushed forwards, including Kagome, and begin the fight. The only one who stayed behind was Nova, never really being a battle pet, she never trained and she hated hurting someone. She just watched helplessly.

The battle raged on, many neopians were injured, some even lost their lives. Through out the whole time, Kagome kept fighting, while Nova cowered by the wall. No one was going for the scared Zafara, too caught up in the fight. It seemed that the Xweetoks were losing, being outnumbered and taken by surprise. A few pets were just hanging back and watching the action, having no one to fight themselves.

Bad thing that cream white fur is easy to see against a shadowy wall. A shadow Bruce caught sight of Nova and sneaked towards her. She didn't see it coming, but next thing she knew; there was a flipper over her mouth and a sword by her throat.

Nova tried screaming for help, but the Bruce said coldly, "If you want to live, say nothing and take this sword and run it through the heart of one of the Xweetoks."

By that time, only two Xweetoks were still standing, Kagome and Screech. Nova didn't want to hurt anyone, let along them. She shook her head and felt a slight pain in her throat. Out of vexation, the Bruce made a slight cut in her throat, which was now dripping blood. Nova let out a muffled scream.

Lucky for her, all Xweetoks have good ears, especially Kagome. Hearing her sister scream, she quickly looked at the place where she had left her sister, and saw the captured Zafara. She became angry, knocked out the Acara she was battling with, and went for Nova's aide.

."Let my sister go, you stupid penguin!" She called before pouncing on him.

The sudden attack made the Bruce let go of Nova, to defend himself.

."Get out of here, Nova!" She called to her sister.

."Not without you!" She took the sword the Bruce dropped, for protection.

."AIIE!" Nova turned at the sound. Screech was lying on the floor, his spotted fur turning red with blood coming out of a large slash on his back. Claw moved forwards, planning to kill the Xweetok himself, but didn't see the Christmas Zafara, running towards the purple Kougra. Nova took him by surprise, slashing at his side. He winched a little, but turned eyes on the Zafara. She had picked up some more weapons from fallen neopets. She now had not only the sword, but also a bow, a quiver filled with arrows, and a shield.

For pure fun, Nova had become an excellent archery, so the bow and arrow were nothing new to her. The sword and shield were another story initially. This was the first time she actually battles, and she didn't know the first thing about the shield and sword.

."Looks like the little Zafara has courage. I could use you, with some lessons and practice. What do you say?" He questioned with a grin.

."I say, get a life!" and with those words, launched an arrow at the Kougra.

The arrow was too quick for him to dodge and ended up slashing his arm instead. He eyed Nova evilly.

."Last chance to live. Your Archery is very good but you need to work on you aim. We could teach you, make something useful from you."

By the time he managed to say all that, Nova had another arrow on her bow, pretending to think over the offer, giving her the element of surprise. She took a quick aim, without giving her surprise up, and let the arrow fly. He must have seen it coming because he managed to dodge. He throws a knife towards the Zafara's hand, the one holding the bow.

Nova dropped the bow, unable to hold it through the pain surging through the deep cut the knife made. It didn't actually disconnect her arm, but it was close. ."Nova! Get out of here NOW!" Kagome yelled, trying to come to her sister's aide once more, but the waves of neopets were exhausting her and the neopets attacking her barely broke a sweat knocking her out.

."Kagome!" Nova cried, trying to hold back tears. She looked around and saw that she was the last neopet standing on the Xweetok's side. Then she straitened up, turned to Claw with red, glaring eyes that didn't belong to her.

."You might kill me, but NO ONE, kills my friends and family!" She screeched with a voice that, also, didn't belong to her. The voice and eyes were in Nova's body, but they belonged to someone else.

Nova started to morph in front of their eyes, becoming a Darigan Zafara. The necklace around Kagome's neck glowed far brighter then before, disappeared, then reappeared on Nova's neck. The necklace glowed blue, covering Nova's whole body, until her Darigan form turned blue. She held the sword and shield with more experience and run towards Claw.

Mesmerized at the sudden change, Claw was far from ready to dodge or block the attack. The sword went sailing through his heart. Down he went, dead.

."You killed the captain." A red Grarrl said amazed.

."We're FREE!" Everyone danced around, hugging each other, crying and thanking Nova, who by now, was returning to her Christmas form, but the blue glow remain. Nova started pushing through the delighted group of pets, to a far corner, where her sister and Screech lay, tiered from the battle.

."I'm sorry for judging you by your specie. Will you forgive me?" Screech muttered, ashamed that a Zafara had out battled a foe that he himself could not.

."Of course." Nova replied. "We should be going now."

."Nova. I'm not coming with you." Kagome said. At her sister's confused face, Kagome explained, "The Xweetok war is far from over and I am needed. Keep the necklace to remember me."

Nova wiped a single tear from her cheek, but said nothing else.

."We will have to block this wall and the entrance to the underground forest." Screech called to all the awake Xweetoks. Together, they sent a single note at the ceiling above the cave wall, and the hole was repaired like it wasn't blown up. Then all the Xweetoks walked and carried an injured one on there back to a hidden hole at the back of the cave. Nova walked with them until the entrance of the hidden hole and looked into the forest.

."Guess this is goodbye." Nova faced Kagome.

."Only for a while." They hugged and said their goodbyes, and then Nova walked back a couple of steps. The Xweetoks again released one note and the hole was gone.

The Zafara went home, told the news to her parents and then packed some food and hiked back up to the cave. Every few week, she is seen in the village, but only for a while, then she disappears to the mountains again.

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."There's my story. I still don't know who the Darigan Zafara in me is, and I don't think I will ever find out, but so what?"