Another thing she resented about school was the awful wake-up time: 6:00 in the morning, since she had to be there by 7:30! It was 12 noon, just before lunch, and Nadaba was super tired from staying up late the previous night to play games. She fell asleep on her desk quickly and started snoring loudly.

As the other students giggled, the teacher, a snooty Yellow Draik, walked over to Nadaba's desk and banged on the wooden surface, waking her up. "Nadaba!" barked the teacher. "In what year did the Champions of Meridell war start?"

"Don't know, don't care," replied Nadaba sassily as she put her head back down.

The teacher scowled. "You dummy! With no high school diploma, you will be stuck working at Pizzaroo for the rest of your life! At least PRETEND to care. You're a complete imbecile!"

"Well, so are you," grinned Nadaba.

The teacher, aghast, began yelling. "HOW DARE YOU!" she fumed. "Go to the office, you insolent little BRAT!!!"

"Okay. I'm happy to miss your dumb class." Thus, Nadaba smirked and walked out.

She knew very well that she had no intention of going to the principal's office as directed. Instead, now was the perfect time to leave school and cut her boring classes for the rest of the day. Thus, she walked out the door and started strolling through Meridell.

She had initially planned to buy some yummy food for lunch, but when she passed the Rubbish Dump, its disgusting stench ruined her appetite. She noticed that there was a large crowd gathered around the dump, so, holding her nose, she curiously approached the scene. "What's so great about a stinky pile of trash?!" she asked.

"Haven't you heard?!" answered an excited Green Ixi. "The drop rates for avatar items here have gone up a lot. I'm---"

"THAT ONE'S MINE!!!" someone shouted furiously as they pelted a competitor with a Squished Tomato and grabbed a paint brush out of the trash.

"...hoping to get the avatar soon."

Just then, a food fight started over the coveted paint brush and who got to keep it. While Nadaba didn't want to get covered in rotten food, the amusing scene gave her a sneaky idea. She snickered as she thought of a trash-themed way to get back at her mean teacher.

Just then, she saw...

Stunned, Nadaba looked around her to see if anyone was about to pluck the small petpet; surely that had to be worth the avatar, right? However, the chaos for the paint brush continued, and she realised that no one had seen the Dragoyle. As another roar erupted at the appearance of an Everlasting Apple, the Dragoyle broke its gaze and quickly took to the sky, heading north, on track to exit Meri Acre Farms.

"Oh!" Nadaba cried, shaking herself out of her daze and following the Dragoyle as it flexed its wings and picked up speed. If I grab it, she thought, maybe I can get the avatar for myself! And have a super rare petpet to boot!

"Come back!" Nadaba shouted, now far enough away from the Rubbish Dump that no one paid her any mind. The Dragoyle glided past the Pick Your Own fields and continued to gain altitude while flying directly along the path below. Nadaba began to pant as she gave chase, never taking her eyes off the petpet. "Slow down! Get lower! LET ME GET THAT AVATAR!"

If the Dragoyle heard Nadaba's pleas, it paid her no mind, careening into the northern woods and finally breaking off the path. Grunting with frustration, Nadaba peeled off the dirt path and did her best to track its flight.

The forest grew thicker, and her view of the sky slowly began to shrink, making it difficult to keep her eyes on the Dragoyle. She occasionally spotted it through the upper branches of the trees, but after a few moments she realised she no longer saw its small frame.

Breath heaving, Nadaba slowed to a stop while still looking skyward. "Ugh!" she huffed, "What's the big rush, anyway?" She leaned over slightly and continued to catch her breath for a few more moments when she looked across the way and saw the Dragoyle perched on a low, stone structure several feet in front of her.

Once again, its eyes were locked on to hers, very deliberately. Nadaba's breath caught in her throat as she stared back at the bright orange creature...

"I..." The Maraquan Draik sank down on the grass. Why had she chased the Dragoyle, anyway? In retrospect, it seemed like an impulse of the moment. She'd randomly decided to try for an avatar item just because other Neopets were rooting through the Dump. It wasn't like there was anything else she'd specifically planned on doing when she chose to skip class.

The Dragoyle continued to look at her. "If you really want me, I'm happy to be your Petpet," the mysterious words sparkled in Nadaba's mind. "But you have to really want me." The orange creature lifted its wings. "I refuse to belong to an owner who has no visions or plans for the future."

Nadaba looked into the solemn amber eyes, and felt ashamed. Already, in the past fifteen minutes, she'd made and failed to follow through with three plans. Plan A was to go get lunch, but that ended when she walked past the Dump. Plan B was to make a trash-themed prank on her teacher. That ended when she suddenly decided on Plan C, which was to grab the Dragoyle and get an exclusive avatar... for what?

"No one is going to respect you just for having an avatar, you know," the Dragoyle's voice continued to shimmer in her mind. "Especially not if you skipped class for it."

Nadaba looked down at the ground. "You're right," she mumbled. "I'm sorry for chasing you. I will go back to class now."

"Well, not so fast. Is that what you really want?"

What did she want?

History bored her. She wanted to get back at her teacher for yelling at her and sending her to the principal's office just because she had dozed off during a class she considered pointless. Catching the Dragoyle had been exciting enough, as was the thrill of possibly getting an exclusive avatar...that was more like the games she loved to play so much.

The Draik soon realised what it is she wanted.

"Going to school, repeating classes, rooting around through a garbage dump along with so many other Neopians..." She snorted and waved a hand dismissively. "I want something more. Something new. Something that isn't just the crusty old past or more of the usual. That's what I want!"

Belatedly she realised that she had shouted her last few words and was upright again instead of slumped in the grass. Not to mention, if anyone had passed her by, they would have thought her odd, talking to a Dragoyle perched on an oddly-shaped stone. While waiting for the Dragoyle to say something more, Nadaba scrutinized the stone - it looked like a portion of a column. A column of a castle reduced to ruins, perhaps? Just like in one of her favourite games...

"And I want you to be my Petpet. You're a talking Dragoyle! Sort of. This is so much better than any old avatar!"

Suddenly the Dragoyle's voice echoed in her mind again.

"Very well."

The Petpet flitted away from the stone. A crack fanned out from it and spread down into the ground, racing toward Nadaba. Before the Maraquan Draik could get away, the earth beneath her yawned and pitched her into the darkness underground...

“Ouch!” she exclaimed, rubbing her shoulder as she hit the ground with a thud. Grumbling, she squinted her eyes as the dust settled.

Before her, she saw a Gothic, golden arched doorway with clouded glass that was shattered and jagged throughout. Through the glass, she could see the light of torches flickering in the distance, dimly lighting the dilapidated building. The stone wall was grey and what she assumed used to be a vibrant teal.

“This… This looks like the Castle of Eliv Thade,” Nadaba gasped as she brought herself to her feet, her head and heart suddenly flooded with nostalgia. The Maraquan Draik used to love to play that game as a child before flash games were outlawed in Neopia. She was always a fan of word games - games that really made her think.

“But it can’t be,” she said aloud, still incredulous. She looked overhead at the hole she fell through, but all she could see was total darkness. Was she really that far down? Or was she transported here?

Nadaba approached the castle door, admiring the turrets and peaks that lined the castle in disrepair. Atop the one closest to the entrance sat the Dragoyle, a familiar face in this new, but old place.

“You’re here with me,” she said to the Dragoyle.

It responded telepathically, “Well, I am your Petpet now after all.” The bright orange creature glided down to meet Nadaba, landing on an old handheld lantern next to the castle door.

“Thanks, friend,” the Maraquan Draik said, picking the light source up as the Dragoyle flew through a windowless frame in the door.

As Nadaba crossed the threshold into the building, she stepped onto the ever-so familiar mosaic tile of the castle floor…

She felt the Dragoyle’s tiny claws on her shoulder, giving her a comforting squeeze, but Nadaba couldn’t help shuddering as the figure of Eliv Thade came to the edge of the lantern’s light.

“Little Draik, come to play a special game,” he said quietly, his smile widening. “That is why you came. To escape that which is the same.”

“He is quite ugly, isn’t he?” The Dragoyle said in Nadaba’s mind. She shushed the Petpet, momentarily forgetting she was the only one who could hear him.

“Uh, yes. I mean no. I’m not sure,” she stuttered. Again, she tried moving a foot, but some force was holding her feet firmly in place. Was she dreaming this? Was she actually still asleep on her desk in class?

“Tsk, tsk,” Eliv Thade clicked his tongue. “You’ve agreed to play when you stepped through the archway. The only way back is through. But you already knew that, didn’t you?”

Nadaba sighed. Even though she recalled enjoying word games, she never thought she was any good at them. And now she was being forced to play the real life version of a game she remembered losing many times. And what would happen this time if she lost?

She heard the familiar tinkle in her mind. “This is the kind of adventure you wanted, isn’t it?” The Dragoyle asked.

“What’s the first puzzle?” Nadaba asked confidently, squaring her shoulders.

“Your word,” he said, the corners of his mouth curling upwards, “is death….”

"Death?" she thought to herself. "Isn't the word supposed to be jumbled up, and then I guess what the correct word is?"

Eliv Thade noticed Nadaba looked puzzled, so he clicked his tongue again. "You seem confused little Draik. A normal game did you think? FALSE! This is a new game. If you win, you'll get the fame."

"Geeze, those rhymes are brutal," the Dragoyle said. "Why would he change the rules all of a sudden? Maybe you should ask what the actual rules are before you..."

..."Breath!" exclaimed Nadaba.

"Nadaba! Why didn't you wait?!" the Dragoyle exclaimed.

Before Nadaba could answer, Elive Thade's evil grin became a gaping hole of disbelief. "H-h-how did you know that?" Eliv Thade asked as he stood there in disbelief.

Nadaba smiled. For her, it was all too easy. "Look, I may not like school, but if there is one thing I know, it is a terrible rhyme. The fact that you keep rhyming instead of saying normal sentences gave it away. I was ready to assume the rules were the same, but when you mentioned a new set of rules, it all came together. I'm kind of disappointed in you. You are supposed to be one of the evilest minds in all of Neopia..."

"You insulant young Draik!" Eliv Thade interrupted as he rushed towards Nadaba whose proud grin turned into one of shock. "I will make sure you will never forget this moment!"

Nadaba couldn't move, her feet still rooted in the spot. She realised she should have approached this situation a different way, but it was too late. She didn't know what was going to happen, so she shut her eyes and hoped for the best. Before she could open her eyes, the sound of rushing wind filled the room, and she could see a great bright light through her eyelids as Eliv Thade yelled, "Where do you think you are going?!"

Then there was silence. Nadaba opened her eyes to realise she was back at the Rubbish Dump.

"Well, that was fun, wasn't it?" the Dragoyle said. "I loved the look on your face when you realised you shouldn't have pushed Eliv Thade's buttons. Makes you wonder, doesn't it?"

Nadaba looked puzzled. "What are you talking about?"

Then it hit her. She was so worried about getting back at the professor and skipping school that she was missing the big picture. A feeling of guilt suddenly came over her body. She knew what she had to do...

How will this story end?

The door to the office opened, and Nadaba quietly let herself inside, the Dragoyle perched on her shoulder. Before too long, she was being seen by the principal.

"I must say, I didn't expect to see you here without a teacher, Nadaba," the Wocky principal said with a raised eyebrow. He glanced at the Dragoyle on her shoulder, but otherwise didn’t comment on her recently acquired Petpet.

"Well, I am," Nadaba said automatically before she stopped herself. "...I just want to say something."

"Sure. Let me just point out the reason you’re here, that Mrs. Fairfire outlined to me after you skipped class. The usual things. Refusal to participate, sleeping in class, shouting at your teacher, disrupting class, failing your classes with this behaviour, to the point of repeating a year. ...If we could actually talk about this?”

"Sure, but me first," Nadaba said. "Yes, I did all those things. We lashed out at each other, as usual. And I just made it worse. So I'm... I..."

Nadaba struggled, and it took a look from her Dragoyle for her to stop struggling and let out a sigh. "I'm... sorry. For my part in this."

The principal blinked, surprised. "Well. I appreciate the apology, as I'm sure your teacher will. ...Will this behaviour continue, then?"

Nadaba looked away. “Dunno. It's a habit at this point, being stuck in this place, with nothing new, with a teacher who's done nothing but insult me from day one."

"I... I'm sorry, she's done what?" The Wocky shifted his glasses.

"She belittles me, spends her class drilling tiny things like dates of events instead of, oh, anything actually useful, she screams at me and calls me a dummy and a brat." Nadaba drilled through her description before folding her arms. "Sure, I'm provoking her half the time. But last time I checked, she's supposed to be one of the oh-so-mature adults."

The principal wanted to argue, but he found himself speechless. And when he looked at Nadaba's report on his desk, he realised what he should've already known. He had a report of her from before high school. She was always a little lazy, and it always impacted her grades. She was always somewhat impulsive, and she had her share of detentions. But she had gotten by, and she wasn’t a pariah. Not until she attended this school and began classes with Mrs. Fairfire.

"Anyway, you don't have to worry about that anymore," Nadaba continued before the principal could speak. "Fairfire and I hate each other, there's nothing I like about my classes, and I don't want to waste time in classes I'm just going to fail anyway." Nadaba stood. "So I'm not doing it anymore. I'm leaving."

The principal blinked. "You're dropping out?!"

"Not for nothing. I have money saved up, and I make enough from games. I'm going to see the world. See what else is out there. See everything different that I'm missing here!" Nadaba found herself shouting again. She calmed herself down, but she had a new smile on her face. "A life of new experiences. New things. A life worth living."

The Wocky stared. The Nadaba standing before him now was nothing like the Nadaba he knew in all of his years of gossip about her, and of him cornering her in his office to attempt to talk to her. This wasn’t someone, nor acting on impulse. This was someone with motivation. Purpose. A plan for fulfilment.

A new and better Nadaba.

"Well," Nadaba said, interrupting his thoughts. "I don’t need to wait for your permission. I'm going to go home, rest, and prepare. Tell my class that I'm sorry for the trouble." Nadaba waved and turned around.

"W-wait," the principal called out, his voice quiet. "I won’t stop you, just. What do you plan to do after?"

"...Haven't thought that far yet," Nadaba said. "Maybe I'll keep travelling. Maybe I'll find something I like. Maybe I'll just go back to games and find some living. Either way, I have more chances and more to look forward to than here."

"...If you do decide to come back," the principal offered. "Talk to me about your experiences, and what you've learned. Maybe we can work out credit for your experiences, graduate you or get you somewhere you want to be. Either way, if you're ever in trouble, or if you eventually decide to go to a different school, either way... mail me. Let me know. I can help you, or point you in the right direction."

"...Maybe." Nadaba paused at this. "...Maybe not. Depends on where I'll be. ...I'll think about it. All of it. Thanks."

And with a smile, Nadaba walked out the doors of the principal's office, and then out of the school for the last time.

The Dragoyle on her shoulder stared at Nadaba with a sense of pride. Nadaba had the ambition and cunning that it admired, and now she walked with purpose. Perhaps in time, she would come to understand more and do greater things. Until then, they had an exciting future ahead of them.

It wasn’t just for Nadaba, but the Dragoyle as well. The Dragoyle who spent so much time in and out of the rubbish dump, hiding, and taking and concealing avatar items over months. All to wait for and lure the perfect owner to satisfy their own adventurous ambitions. For the Dragoyle was bored and restless and lonely, just like Nadaba.

Now, they had a future filled to the brim with purpose. And if nothing else, they had each other, a true friend.

The End.