Ninja Faellie Diaries: Part Four

Chris silently thanked Fyora when he saw Ello make it safely through the waterfall. “Thank goodness,” he said.

     “How long have you had Ello?” Lola asked curiously.

     “I’m not quite sure. I really don’t remember times when Ello wasn’t with me. She’s like the little sister I want to protect. Life without her is pretty boring.”

     Lola smiled. “That’s good to hear. It’s rare that I see genuine relationships.”

     “How about you, Lola? Do you have a petpet?” Chris asked. There was silence. He wasn’t sure why, it was a simple enough question. “Lola?”

     The red Shoyru’s eyes met the starry Shoyru’s, and Chris saw sadness within Lola’s look. “Once...” she answered softly. “Three years ago, my parents got me an Ona for Christmas. His name was Tigersquash, because that was his absolute favorite flavor of just about anything.” Lola paused before she continued. Chris noticed her struggling, as if she was holding back tears.

     “What happened?” he asked gently.

     “There were bullies at my school. They would make fun of me, because I’m a horrible archer from a family of archer legends. One day they went too far, and they... stole Tigersquash from me.”

     “No...”

     “Yes. It was supposed to be a practical joke, but they went too far. I searched for Tigersquash for weeks, until finally the bullies decided to give him back. But...”

     “What?”

     “It was too late,” Lola choked. “Tigersquash was staying at the house of one of the bullies, and had bonded with the bully’s younger sister. He completely forgot about me, and fell in love with a new owner. It hurt me to know I’d hurt him if I took him back, so I let them keep him.”

     “That’s horrible, Lola.”

     She sighed sadly. “I’ve hated Christmas ever since.”

     Chris was about to put his paw on Lola’s shoulder, an effort to give her reassurance, to cheer her up and make things better. But as he lifted his paw to her, a sudden force grabbed around his waist, and he cried, “Lola, look out!”

     It was too late. Lola had been taken as well, and the next thing Chris knew it was dark, he and Lola were inside a box, and there were laughing voices all around. “We’ve been found,” Lola said.

     “No, we’re being kidnapped.”

     ~*~

     “CHRIS! LOLA! Where are you?” Ello cried desperately, her voice going hoarse. This was bad. Really, really, bad! She had no idea where her friends were! “Focus, Ello, focus,” she told herself. If it was one thing the wise old Techo Master taught her, it was that ninjas never panicked under pressure. They analyzed the situation, analyzed quickly, and then acted upon instinct.

     After a few deep breaths, Ello lifted up her paws, concentrating on the magic within her. True, it was her dream to be a ninja, but also a wizard, so she and Chris concluded they would train to be ninja wizards. Not only was that an awesome combination, but it’d be impressive on any job resume. “Magic, magic, flow through me, show me where Chris and Lola be!” Ello chanted.

     Purple sparks flashed out of the end of her paws, and Ello’s eyes fluttered to the back of her head. Inside her mind, she saw two masked Neopets grab Chris and Lola, put them inside a box, and drag them away. But as she focused harder, she saw that one of the Neopets was a Jetsam, the same one in the alleyways of Altador!

     The Faellie growled. She knew where they were going. And they weren’t getting away!

     ~*~

December 5th, Month of Celebrating

     Dear Diary,

     They’re not getting away!

     ~*~

     Chris already had a formulating plan inside his mind. He and Lola would wait until nightfall, and then slip out of the box they were in, and escape. Luckily, it was almost dark when they captured them, so they only had to wait a few hours to ease their suspicions. The box was small, with a few slits at the top for air. “You okay?” Chris asked Lola.

     “Yeah,” she answered glumly. “Sorry about this. It’s my fault we’re in this mess.”

     “It is,” Chris agreed.

     Lola didn’t expect him to say that. “WELL, EXCUSE ME!” she exclaimed angrily.

     Chris laughed. “It’s alright, I’m not mad.”

     “Why not?”

     “Because this is fun.”

     “FUN? You think this is FUN?”

     “Well, okay, let’s just say I’ve had worse times.”

     “What could be worse than getting captured?”

     “Ever been shoe shopping with three sisters who only want to talk about high heels? Yeah. That was probably the most horrific day of my life.”

     Lola chuckled. “You’re weird.”

     “Yeah, blame Ello, she’s rubbed her weirdness off on me.”

     Lola chuckled again. “So how come you don’t like Christmas?”

     “Hmm,” Chris thought. “I’m not sure. I think it’s because it seems like a waste to me.”

     “A waste of what?”

     “Time. Neopoints. Energy. I’m kind of a pessimist when it comes to holidays.”

     “I can see that.”

     “Hey you’re not much better.”

     “No, not really.”

     Chris smiled. “I think it’s time we make our escape.”

     Lola smiled as well, but not for the same reason. “I was thinking we put on a little show first...”

     ~*~

     Ello usually left the tracking business to Chris. When the two got lost in the Haunted Woods, it was Chris who found their way out. When the two went scuba diving in Maraqua and swam off the trail, it was Chris who found their way to the Fishing Hole. And when the two were trying to locate the Hidden Tower, it was Chris who asked directions from a Dark Faerie... and well, long story short, they still don’t know where the tower is. But they know how vicious Dark Faeries can be.

     Ello wasn’t sure how she was going to find Chris without Chris. She knew the kidnappers weren’t out of Shenkuu (probably) and she thought hard on where to look. Unfortunately for Ello, she spent the next three hours of the night looking for Chris and Lola. But when she finally did find Chris and Lola, she found them right outside the country limits of Shenkuu, inside an old style Altador wagon, with Chris and Lola tied up.

     She saw a Jetsam, a Yurble, and two Blumaroos around her friends, and the Jetsam was talking to them haughtily. Chris just happened to look up to the ceiling where Ello was, and gave her a quick wink. Ello paused. That wink was a signal, and she then knew to strike at the appropriate time...

     ~*~

     “LET ME OUT OF HERE! PLEASE! I’M SORRY, I’M SO SORRY, PLEASE LET ME OUT I DON’T WANT TO BE IN HERE ANYMORE!!!” Lola’s piercing howls filled the air.

     “Wash, that Lockhart girl is crying to be freed. Shall we let the Shoyrus out of the box and tie them up to some chairs?” Benny the green Yurble asked.

     Wash the Jetsam (and yes, his name was Wash, courtesy of his parents Bubbles and Soap) thought for a moment. “Oh alright,” he finally said. “It’s time to have fun anyway.”

     Benny nodded, and signaled the twin Blumaroo Goob brothers to help him pry open the box. When they opened the box, they put Chris and a trembling Lola on two chairs, tying their paws together with secure rope. “All clear, boss!” one of the Goob brothers called.

     Wash walked into the cabin, smiling and flashing his rows of many long teeth. “Lola Lockhart, it certainly has been awhile, hasn’t it?”

     “Not long enough, it looks like,” Chris mumbled under his breath sarcastically.

     Lola was still trembling. “Wha-wha-what do y-you want from m-me?”

     “Oh relax, Lockhart, my boys and I were hired from your parents to bring you back home. You had them worried sick, you know that?” Wash asked.

     “What’s he talking about?” Chris whispered.

     “Did I forget to mention I ran away from home?” Lola answered, smiling sheepishly.

     “Uh, YEAH, you sort of did!” Chris scoffed.

     “She ran away because little Lola Lockhart couldn’t take the shame she put on her family. Did you know she broke the golden arrow of the greatest archer family? Shamed her family that she did. And she’s not even a good archer, she couldn’t even pass the tests!”

     “Tests?” Chris asked.

     Lola sighed. “Before any archer picks up a bow and arrow, they must first pass a written test. I studied for three weeks nonstop, and I still failed.”

     Chris groaned. “So what you’re telling me is, is that you have no idea if you’re a bad or good archer or not, because you’ve never picked up a bow and arrow?!”

     ...

     “Well...” Lola stammered. “Uh... maybe?”

     Chris laughed. “Then how do you know you’re a bad archer? You’ve never tried it before!”

     “Doesn’t matter anyway,” Wash grinned. “When we take you back home, you’ll be grounded all the way until summer! You’ll be locked away in your room with no one to talk to, and no one to play with.” Wash laughed even more. “I guess because I won’t be seeing you, I can tell you what the boys and I have been laughing about this whole time.”

     “What?” Chris asked, his voice sharp.

     “Lola, you got 100% on your archer test. Benny and I went into the teacher’s lounge, switched the test results, so you only got 10%. We laugh about it every single day.”

     There was silence. And quickly Lola went from pretending to be sad, to extremely angry. “You did WHAT?” she shrieked. “YOU CHANGED MY TEST RESULTS?!”

     It was like the strength of a thousand Myncies entered Lola, as she ripped through the ropes tied around her wrists. “Stick to the plan!” Chris hissed.

     “Forget the plan! I’m going to make you pay for the pain you and your friends inflicted on me!” Lola cried. “You’re just a mean spirited Jetsam, who likes to laugh at other people’s pain because you can’t face your own! You’re despicable!”

     “Now, Ello!” Chris exclaimed.

     A surge of hot pink zipped throughout the wagon, and suddenly Wash was flat on his back, a swift kick having been delivered to him by the Faellie herself! “After them!” Wash commanded.

     The two Goob brother lunged for Chris and Lola, but underestimated the fact Chris was almost a ninja. All it took was a quick rear punch and deflective swipe from the trained Shoyru to send the Blumaroos to the floor, and Benny the Yurble came charging after Chris himself! However before Benny even got so much as a paw on Chris, Lola had blocked his punch, pushing him aside as well! “You’re mine!” Lola hissed to Wash, her eyes blazing.

     “No, Lola! You can’t hurt Wash no matter how cruel he was to you! No matter how horrible he and his friends were, you have to be the bigger Neopet; you can’t stoop to their level!” Chris cried. He furrowed his brows for a second and turned to Ello. “Did I just say that?”

     “Yeah!” Ello exclaimed.

     “Oh my Fyora, I’m teaching MORALS. What has this Neopia come to!?!”

     “Worry about that later!” Ello exclaimed. “I’ve got the Lotus Flowers. We need to get out of this wagon!”

     “Speaking of wagons... who’s driving it?” Lola asked.

     “You were supposed to drive, Paul!” one of the Goob brothers accused.

     “No, you were, Stanley!” the other brother retorted.

     “You nimrods! Are you trying to tell me no one is driving the wagon?!” Wash yelled.

     Quickly Lola looked out the window of the wagon and froze. “Uh, guys? We’re in some serious trouble.”

     “Let me guess, by some cliché turn of events we’re about to go off a cliff, aren’t we?” Chris asked in a monotone voice.

     “Yeah,” Lola answered, “and it’s a big one.”

     Everyone inside the wagon exchanged glances. For one minute they forgot that they were fighting and really focused on the fact they were about to dive off a huge cliff. So actually, the only thing everyone said, or screamed rather, at that very moment was, “AAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!”

To be continued...