The Neovian Misadventure of Will and Biggs: Part Five

      They came to the square just outside the park. A stream of Neopians were coming out and going in to the soup kitchen.

      “Ugh.” Will wrinkled his nose, “Where in there was she?”

      “She came to me after I demanded that I pay for my soup to the chef.”

      “Hah! You!” Will nudged Biggs’ little shoulder.

      “Apparently you do have to pay provided you can do so.” Biggs shrugged.

      “I refuse to believe anyone would willingly come here.” Will flicked his two tails.

      “I’ve heard Ms.Wisp sells the recipes too.”

      “Hah!”

      They stood at the door, watching the constant bustle of Neopians that never seemed to cease.

      “Well…I don’t think it is going to get any less busy.” remarked Biggs. Will muttered under his breath in agreement and they barged inside. The same Skeith was handing out bowls, though he was quick and quiet today. The line moved fast and before they had time to look about they found bowls in their claws.

      “Where did you sit last time?” Will whispered. Biggs slunk through the many round tables to one in the corner. Empty bowls and strewn napkins littered its marred surface. A blue Wocky and a green Ogrin sat on one side quietly slurping their soups. “We can’t sit here!” Will hissed.

      “Sure we can. Look around, no one has a table to themselves.” Biggs whispered back as he pushed away the bowls and refuse. He pulled out a stool for Will then cleared off a space for himself. He sat down and started eating his soup. It reeked of leeks, maybe onion and a hint of potato. Will stared at his bowl until the Wocky and Ogrin left.

      “How is it?” Will held his head low.

      “It’s fine. A bit spicy with the onions.” slurped the small Buzz.

      “Hmm.” Will brought a spoonful up to his nose then put it in his mouth. “Hmm!” He went quiet and ate with tenacity. Biggs scouted the room, not a hide nor hair of the old Darigan Buzz. He frowned and drained his bowl.

      “Maybe we should ask for her?” He said after licking his mandible.

      “Ask who?” Will waved his spoon at the burly Skeith,“ That one is perpetually busy.”

      “Hmm…” Biggs looked to the door where used bowls were stacked high. A Ruki clad in a soup stained smock zipped out of a set of double doors, grabbed a stack of bowls and disappeared from whence they came. “There’s somebody.”

      “Alright.” Will tipped the rest of the soup into his mouth. He grabbed his cane and got to his feet. As they walked to the door the Ruki popped in and out at least three more times. They stood by the tables after neatly stacking their bowls. As the rushed red Ruki rushed at them, Will called out, “Hey! Can we see Ms. Wisp!?” The Ruki merely shook their head nonstop while grabbing another stack of bowls and rushing back to the double doors. Will furrowed his brow as the Ruki reappeared.

      Biggs walked over, “Is Ms. Wisp even here?” The red, disinterested head shook once more. “Hmm. Well, we can try tomorrow.”

      Will let out a heavy sigh and together they walked out into the night. Weak lamps lit the plaza and strung out into the dark green park. Quite a few Neopians meandered in the park and sat idly chatting in the plaza. Will groaned and hung his head.

      “Where do they come from?! It’s as if they come out just to spite me.”

      “Aw. It is rather busy…But I’m sure they’re just enjoying this nice night. I mean how many are actually looking at you?”

      “None,” grumbled Will after he took a quick glance around.

      “Hah! You’re short at least one there!” A high pitched cackle rang out behind them.

      They turned around to face the voice. Biggs’ hair spikes only came up to her shoulder, Will came nose to maw with the feathered boa wrapped, violet robed, Darigan Buzz. Her eyes glowed with a ferocious red and her boa flicked with the breeze of the night. “Have you no sense boy?” She sneered down at the young, small, seafoam skinned Buzz.

      Biggs took to the air to face the older Buzz at her level. “I’ve plenty!” He spat back. She turned her attention back to Will.

      “Disgusting brute! Why not hide away all the ugliness that is you! No one wants to see you!” The old Buzz brandished a gnarled claw at Will’s nose.

      “No one has said anything like that.” Will muttered.

      “Well I don’t want to see it!”

      “If this is for what I said…I’m sorry.” He hung his head low.

      “Stuff your sorries in a sack sappy!” She snapped back and snapped a claw at him.

      “Well what do you want from me!?”

      “You to live with your ugliness that reflects what you are inside!” cackled the rasping Darigan Buzz.

      “Hm!” Huffed Will.

      “Who are you to judge him!?” Biggs yelled. “You met him once, only talked to him once! Doesn’t that seem a bit one sided?!”

      “I don’t care-he’s done it once he’ll do it again. Once is enough to call for a judgment!”

      “That’s crazy lady!” Called out a Wocky slumped against the plaza fountain.

      “You stay out of this!” her withered maw scowled back.

      A Tonu barged up to her. “I put a tack on my teachers chair when I was eight! Should I be judged entirely on that?”

      “What did she do to him?” hushed a ragged Zafara.

      “I thought only Sloth could make mutants.” mumbled a Lenny.

      “Maybe she is Sloth!” The lazy Wocky pointed up at her.

      “Did she mutate that park bum Lutari?” called out another Neopian from the street.

      “Shut up all of you!” Howled the violet tower as a crowd started to form around them.

      “You can’t go around mutating Neopians!” cried out a yellow Grarrl.

      “Isn’t that Ms. Wisp?” someone whispered in the crowd.

      “All of you are fools! He deserved this! He deserves derision!” Ms.Wisp howled.

      “I don’t know that! I don’t think being a mutant shows that either!” the Tonu pointed at her.

      “I just want my normal outside self back.” Will growled at her.

      “Hah! You think I would be so easily swayed?” she glared back at him.

      “Then do it for me!” Biggs barked.

      “Hahaha! Why would I ever do it for you? Don’t think I care for you so greatly over what I told you that night!”

      “I don’t! But I did nothing wrong and he doesn’t deserve this!”

      “Hah! Lies!” she pointed a claw at Biggs as Will eyed the satchel slung around her.

      Another pet yelled out, “Heck, I’ll give him a morphing potion!”

      “Ahah! It won’t work! Waste your pittance of points on pity for this pathetic pleb-”

      “Doesn’t work? My Fyora!” The crowd erupted into startled gasps.

      Biggs caught sight of Will’s claw, carefully reaching at the tweed satchel at Ms.Wisp’s side. He flew up into her face once more. “You cannot be judge and jury for any of us!” The small gathering roared in agreement. Will snipped her satchel’s sash and carefully crept away.

      “Hey! I need that! Thief! See!? He’s a no good-awful-!” She started hobbling after Will who upped his slow pace away from the crowd.

      “Maybe you deserve it lady!” cried out a voice, as the crowd became increasingly agitated.

      The old Buzz reached out a claw to Will before he tossed aside his cane and galloped away on all fours, leaving her far behind. An angry rancor of a crowd rang out behind him.

      “We don’t need another Krawley!”

      “Nor another Sloth!” The crowd’s jeers and hollers faded as Will bounded away. A sharp shrieking hiss faded too as he found himself halfway across town.

      Biggs buzzed up to his companion’s pace. “What are you doing!?”

      “I saw her take something from this once! Maybe…it has an antidote! Maybe!? I don’t know!” Will huffed as he continued his mad dash across town.

      “Okay!” They bolted across a bridge and onto a soggy dirt road, then zig-zagged into the trees. Biggs zipped along just beside Will until he came to a stop in a meager clearing. The latter collapsed panting up against a huge oak tree trunk. Biggs landed next to him and sat beside him.

      “Are you alright?”

      “Hopefully.” Will gasped as he put the sack down. “You better look at it.” Biggs picked up the sack and peered inside. Bottles of all sizes clattered inside, some empty, others capped with small corks. He pulled out one and turned it over in his palm.

      “No labels!”

      “What a maniac!” Will huffed.

      Biggs set it aside and pulled out another, and then another. All of them smooth glass bottles with simple corks.

      “Oh! For all we know they could be poison!” Biggs groaned. Will picked up a bottle and held it up to his eye.

      “There are symbols along the cork.”

      “Hm!” Biggs picked up another bottle and scrutinized the cork. Indeed little shapes rounded the lip of the bottle. “Altadorian?”

      “Hm! So it is! This one says flight boost.”

      “Ear drainage?” Biggs gagged.

      Give me that one! It does say that! Whatever could that mean?” Will stuck his tongue out.

      Biggs snatched the bottle back and teased the cork, “Want to find out?”

      Will chuckled, “Hah! No!” He grabbed another bottle and checked the cork, “Restore all? Is that worth a try?”

      Biggs scrutinized the liquid inside. “It isn’t any of the usual colors of any poisons I know of so, sure.” Will struggled briefly with the cork before Biggs plucked out the cork for him.

      “Thanks pal. Cheers.” He drank the small bottle in one gulp and shook his head. “Ah! Sweet and a little tart.” He threw the bottle down and stared at his paws.

      “Feel anything?” Biggs chirped.

      “Awake, well-rested, and ugly.”

      Biggs frowned and started to rummage through the bag once more. Rough paper crinkled in the bottom corner. “Aha!” He pulled it out from the bag and glanced it over. Will continued to scowl at his paws.

      “What is it?” he muttered.

      Biggs began to pace back and forth, “It looks like…recipes. Soup, Lentil soup, vision serum, restore all!? If she has these she must have whatever she used on you written down some where!”

      “So then we can make it and mutate her?”

      “Guh! No! So then I can try and make an antidote!”

      “How long would that take?” sighed Will.

      “That depends on the composition.”

      “Harrumph.” Will sat down and glowered out into the woods. Idly he flicked the bottles with his massive claws. They flew through the air and shattered against a tree trunk with a tinkle. Biggs frowned at him as one of them started to bubble on the ground.

      “You’re going to kill that tree.”

      “Or drain its ears.”

      The pair chuckled.

      To be continued…