The Shoyru Tamer: Part Two

     "Sorry Tamer. I keep forgetting." The Christmas Shoyru smiled weakly at the Shoyru Tamer and then walked down the hallway. It seemed empty. "Weird," she muttered as she opened the door to her room. The lights were off, but she could hear someone sobbing. "Hello? Is anyone in here?" She flicked the light on and saw a Green Shoyru sobbing on top of the top bunk of one of the two bunk beds. "Hey, are you okay?"

     The Green Shoyru looked down at Angel. She looked like she had been in the room for a while, and black mascara streamed down her face. She sniffled, and then said, "I'm fine."

     "Are you sure?" Angel asked.

     "Yeah," the Shoyru replied. She hopped down off the bunk bed and looked at Angel's furry clothes. Angel looked at the Shoyru's punk-like clothes. "I'm Duel."

     "I'm Angel," she replied. "I guess we're roommates."

     "I guess so." Duel touched her face for a moment. "Oh, I'm going to have to do my mascara again!"

     "It looks like you put a truckload onto your face," Angel said. "Why?" Duel hesitated for a moment.

     "Er, do you promise you won't laugh?" Duel said quietly.

     "Sure. What's there to laugh about?"

     Duel looked around, and then finally said, "I'm the lead singer in a rock band." Angel looked at Duel with a puzzled look.

     "Why on Neopia would I laugh at that?" Angel snorted.

     "Um, never mind." Duel searched her jeans pockets for something by turning her pockets inside out. A few neopoints fell out of them, but obviously that wasn't what she wanted. She swore under her breath and started searching the room.

     Angel climbed to the top of one of the other bunk bed. "What are you looking for?" she asked.

     "My container of mascara," Duel replied. She flew to the top of her bunk bed and tore the sheets around. "Argh," Duel muttered. "It seems that I don't have any of my stuff with me."

     "You can borrow some of my stuff," Angel offered politely.

     "Eh, that's okay, Angel," Duel replied. If on cue, the door to the room burst open and an Island Shoyru came in bitterly. He was carrying two suitcases in each hand, and, by the look of how he was stumbling into the room, they were heavy.

     The Island Shoyru threw one of the bags onto the bed underneath Angel. Duel climbed down the ladder from her bed. She and the Island Shoyru made eye contact. "You Duel Walkers?" he said with a grunt. Duel nodded. He tossed the other suitcase at her. "That's yours."

     Duel caught the heavy suitcase and got the wind knocked out of her. She staggered and tried to stand upright. "Uh, thanks," Duel said breathlessly. She dropped it down onto the floor with a loud bang and opened it up. She ruffled through her items, throwing books and clothes all over the place.

     Angel looked through the mess of books and clothes, noticing one titled 'The Cursed Anubis'. Angel reached for it, but Duel spun around, so Angel returned to her seat. Duel smiled and held up a small container of black mascara. "I'll be right back," Duel announced. She nodded to Angel and the Island Shoyru, and then left the room.

     "I'm Nikandros," the Island Shoyru said to Angel. "You can call me Nik."

     "I'm Angel," Angel replied. "Did you just get here?"

     Nik nodded.

     "Well, today is my official first day. I came here yesterday and I started my training this morning."

     "What about that Green Shoyru?" Nik asked.

     "Oh, she just got here also. Her name's Duel."

     Nik snorted a giggle.

     "Hey, I wouldn't be laughing if I were you. You have just of a funny name as her." That comment made Nik stare at his feet in a guilty way. "There was another Shoyru here earlier, but she left. So, it's just Duel, you, and me."

     "Cool, I guess," Nik muttered. The door opened again and Duel walked into the room. Nik gaped at her. Duel was wearing a thick amount of mascara around her eyes. Not only that, but on her left eye, a bit of the mascara stuck out like a curving line, and on her right eye, the mascara started sticking out, but then curled up.

     "What?" Nik blinked and snapped out of his trance. "What are you staring at?" Duel asked.

     "Huh? Oh, uh, sorry," Nik said. "I'm Nikandros. You can call me Nik."

     "I'm Du-"

     "I know. You're Duel."

     Duel blinked. "Oh. Well, now we three are roommates. How long are you staying for?"

     "I dunno," Nik said.

     "Me neither," Angel replied. "My dad's just gonna come and get me when I'm done, I s'pose." Duel said nothing, but looked at the clock. It was almost 6 o' clock. I must've been here longer than I thought, Duel thought.

     The door to the room flew open. The Red Shoyru from earlier stuck his head in and glared at Angel, Nik, and Duel. "Yo, dinner's served. Get your unworthy rear ends out here and head over to the Dining Room!" The Red Shoyru's head disappeared behind the door, and he slammed it shut on the way out.

     Nik looked from Angel to Duel. He walked over to the door and opened it up wide. "After you, ladies," he said in a gentleman-like tone. Angel and Duel smiled and giggled, and then walked out the door. Once Angel and Duel were outside, Nik walked out the door and closed it behind him.

     ******

     Angel, Duel, and Nik stared up at the large sign hanging from the ceiling. The writing was in black marker and was written large enough so that you could read it on both sides from every point in the huge Dining Room. It read:

     Today's Dinner is Blumaroo Steak with Kau Kau Farm Milk.

     "Blumaroo Steak?" Nik asked himself. The three of them got in line to get their dinner. As they neared the table where the dinner was being served, they noticed that the one line split into 3 lines. At the head of each line was one of Tamer's Shoyrus serving the food to the other Shoyrus.

     Duel looked around. "Gee, I've never seen so many Shoyrus before in my life," she said to Angel.

     "Oh, you'll get used to it," she said. "Most of them are as soft as Teddy Bears."

     "I hope so," Duel muttered. The three of them split into the three lines. Nik walked up to the Red Shoyru, Angel got her food from the Blue Shoyru, and Duel approached the Green Shoyru. The Shoyru was glaring at Duel.

     "Excuse me, but wouldn't eating this steak be cannibalism?" Nik asked the Red Shoyru. Angel and Duel glanced over at him.

     The Red Shoyru looked Nik in the eyes. "Are you a Blumaroo?" he asked slyly.

     "Uh, no," Nik replied quietly.

     "Then it ain't cannibalism!" he yelled back. Nik gulped, took his dinner and walked off. Angel and Duel did the same.

     The three of them sat down next to a Red Shoyru who was sipping on his Milk. Duel glanced down at his tray. It looked like he hadn't even touched his steak.

     "Hi," Angel greeted. The Shoyru looked up at them.

     "Hey," he replied. "I'm Auo."

     "Auo?" Duel repeated. "Aren't you Sabs's Neopet?"

     "Yeah," Auo said, sitting up a little more straight. "How'd you know that?"

     "My name is Duel Walkers. My owner is Sammy."

     "Oh, oh right. That pink haired weirdo. Wrote that story about the Anubis in the Neopian Times. Goes to the catacombs."

     "The catacombs?" Angel asked. "What's that?"

     "A place for the artsy type to hang out," Auo said. "Hey, you might want to sit down and start eating…if you even want to eat this stuff. Isn't it cannibalism?"

     "Finally, someone who understands me," Nik said after his silence. "I'm Nikandros. You can call me Nik." Nik sat down next to Auo, and then they started talking. Duel and Angel sat down next to Nik.

     "So," Angel said while cutting her steak in half, "your owner's name is Sammy?"

     "Yup," Duel replied.

     "Is that short for Dragon Catcher Sammy?" Duel stopped in her tracks.

     "Uh… Well, her real name is Sammy, but I guess it could be short for Dragon Catcher Sammy. How'd you know her name?"

     "I read her story in the Neopian Times. So you're famous?"

     "Um, not really. It was really only one story."

     "But are you rich?"

     "Technically, yes. Sammy's saving up for the Lab Map so she can get Cantine zapped."

     "Cantine?"

     "Our soon-to-be Lab Rat."

     "Oh. Cool." Angel and Duel ate the rest of their dinner in silence.

     *****

     The hallways were filled with Shoyrus by 7:00. Almost half of the Shoyrus there were headed towards their rooms, while the other half headed outside.

     "Where are they all going?" Duel asked Angel. "Isn't training over for the day?"

     "Yeah, but who says they can't have a little fun out there?"

     Duel didn't reply.

     "You wanna come out and play with us?" Angel asked.

     "Uh, I dunno," Duel said. She thought for a moment. "Oh, what the heck. Sure, I'll come out."

     "Okay, I'll meet you out there!" Angel nodded to Duel, and then ran off. Duel followed her, but she walked instead.

     "Hey, Duel," Nik said as he walked up next to her. "I'll see you later."

     "Yeah, see you later," Duel replied. He and Auo walked off, along with the rest of the Shoyrus around her. Duel was alone in the hallway.

     The doorbell rang. Tamer ran from the Dining Room, up to the door, and opened it up. Duel hated being nosey, but she stopped in the hallway and tried to see who was at the door. She could see platinum blond hair and glasses. Next to the boy at the door was a large, Red Grarrl.

     "Dude, you're stealing my business!" the boy at the door said. He looked about Tamer or Sammy's age. Suddenly, it hit Duel. That boy was the Dino Master. He trained Grarrls.

     "Look, I'm sorry, Dino Master, but-"

     "You'll stop your training now!" the Dino Master yelled. "I'm losing customers!"

     "But I train Shoyrus!"

     "And Shoyrus are more popular than Grarrls! People are making more Shoyrus and fewer Grarrls! Quit your training business!"

     Tamer sighed. He took off his Accelerator Helmet. Dino Master gasped, and Tamer put the helmet back on. "Whoa, I'm really sorry… I didn't know it was you…"

     "It's okay, Adam."

     "See you later."

     "Bye." Tamer closed the door and turned around. Duel was gaping at him. Tamer's eyes went wide. "Did-did you see him?"

     "Yeah."

     "You know who he is, right?"

     "One of Sammy's friends."

     "Did you see me take off my helmet?"

     "Yeah."

     "So then you know who I really am?"

     "Not really."

     Tamer sighed in relief. "Good," he said. And then he walked off.

To be continued…