The Lost Eyrie

     It was Wednesday. Just like any other Wednesdays, the three friends; Inrina the Xweetok, Bahgir the Eyrie and Joshua the Kacheek; would spend their afternoon picking berries at Meri Acres Farm in Meridell, a historical land where legends were born. However, Bahgir did not show up that day.

     The two others waited until the sun was almost setting and Inrina voiced out that Bahgir had never been this late, especially for an Eyrie with wings that could fly. Getting worried, Joshua suggested that they headed back home, which was also in Meridell and just right next to the Food Shoppe along the road going to Brightvale.

     Bahgir was not at home. This caused the two friends to worry even more.

     Inrina did not want to give up yet, so she searched around for clues. Bahgir loved to play with toys and there was always a stack of broken toys waiting to get repaired. Inrina picked up a headless Von Roo plushie and said, "I have not seen this toy around before."

     "Indeed," agreed Joshua. He poked inside the headless plushie with his finger and pulled out some stuffing. Amongst the fluffs that fell on the floor, there was a small piece of paper which was crumpled like it was supposed to stay hidden inside that broken plushie.

     "Uh oh," Inrina tried to read what was written on the paper but it was too wrinkly and the ink was all smeared up. "I think someone ripped apart the plushie's head to put this note inside."

     The two friends could not think of anyone who could be delivering a message to anybody that way, unless it was meant to hinder itself from others. Possibly, it contained some kind of a secret.

     The writings that were still visible could only be read as:

     01 Ann ni

     As they could not think of anyone whose name was Ann, they decided to walk to Brightvale and meet the smartest friend they knew; Arnabmalu the Cybunny.

     "How delightful!" she said, after inviting the two friends inside. "A secret code to crack! Let's see which Ann are we looking for."

     It did not take long at all for that intelligent Cybunny to discover who was Ann.

     "101 Ways to Annoy a Uni!" she said, followed by a laughter. "It's a book, not a person. Silly me! I must have one here in my library."

     She spent a few minutes looking for that book from her bookshelves and came back with some dust on her furry face. "Take a look."

     There was nowhere inside the book that seemed like a clue. It was just a full guide book on how to annoy a Uni; the calmest creature in the whole Neopia.

     Both Inrina and Joshua were feeling so frustrated, but Arnabmalu did not want to stop searching. She offered herself to join them in their quest for their missing friend.

     "How about we simply ask a Uni?" the clever Cybunny suggested. "What if our next clue is not inside the content of this book, but its title?"

     The three of them thought that it would be wise to drop by the Brightvale Motery where Fifya the Uni was living. The friendly and humble Fifya immediately brought them inside and served them some warm tea.

     "My old friends!" said Fifya with such joy. "I'm so happy you haven't forgotten me!"

     Of course, they did not forget. Fifya moved to another town, therefore they could not meet altogether like they used to.

     After addressing their intention for the visit at such late hour, Fifya read the book and immediately found what was wrong in there. "Number 74 here says that a Uni will be very annoyed if seated next to a Mortog. This is obviously a mistake. Mortogs are loud, but they can never be loud enough to annoy me."

     "Oh, such information!" Arnabmalu quickly grabbed her notebook from her pocket and wrote it down. "I shall get this book corrected immediately."

     "If that's the case, our possible next clue is a Mortog," said Inrina, thinking. "Where can we find one?"

     "Don't you remember?" asked Joshua, in disbelief seeing how forgetful his friend was. "We do have a whole lot of Mortogs back in Meridell."

     "Of course!" Arnabmalu agreed. "That's where we used to play Kiss the Mortog when we were kids."

     Inrina patted her own forehead. "How could I forget! Arnabmalu didn't want to play because she couldn't stand the croaking and she immediately ran back home when a Mortog jumped towards her."

     "Ah, that's definitely one way to annoy a Cybunny," Arnabmalu giggled shyly, reminiscing their colorful childhood. "What are we waiting for? Let's go!"

     Assuming the next clue could be with the Mortogs, all four of them ventured back to Meridell and headed straight to the home of Mortogs. As they expected, Bahgir was not there. However, the Mortogs started croaking loud and gradually the sounds changed into a song they were familiar with; Happy Birthday theme.

     All of a sudden, they felt strong wind coming from above and there was Bahgir flapping her wings, joining the Mortogs in their orchestra.

     It was actually Inrina's birthday but the forgetful Xweetok had once again, forgotten all about it.

     "You're lucky the Mortogs haven't gone to sleep yet, or else you would have missed the show," said Bahgir as she landed on the ground. "Thank you for helping me set up the clues."

     Inrina looked at her friends who were circling her. "All of you were planning this? How touching!"

     "We hope this will be the best birthday celebration ever that you can never forget!" Arnabmalu handed a corrected version of 101 Ways to Annoy a Uni which she kept hidden inside her satchel. "I hope you like it."

     Inrina was so grateful with the gift. "I love it! Thank you so much!"

     Joshua came forward with Mortogberry which they could pick up at Meri Acres Farm but very rarely. "I knew you've been wanting this."

     It was something Inrina had been searching for months! She could not stop thanking Joshua.

     Meanwhile, Fifya gifted Inrina a Xweetok Popstar Microphone that they could only find in Unis Clothing Shop, with a little help from fellow Unis. "This should transform you into a better singer than the Mortogs!"

     "I love to sing!" said Inrina, taking the gift from Fifya. "Thanks a bunch!"

     "And now my turn," said Bahgir, coming closer. "My gift for you is my wings. Name a place, and I'll take you there swiftly."

     "I've always wanted to visit the Healing Springs in Faerieland," Inrina said, confirming that was the only place she had been dying to set foot in. "Will you please take me there?"

     "Of course!" Bahgir held Inrina gently with her claws and flew up to the sky while that Xweetok shrieked in joy. As soon as they saw a rainbow, they knew that they would soon reach Faerieland.

     It was a view that Inrina could never forget. The Healing Springs were so tranquil and how she wished she could stay there forever. Before flying back home, she picked up some flowers for her awaiting friends.

     In the end, Bahgir was not lost like she originally thought. It was all just a trick pulled by her friends in attempt to make her remember her most amazing birthday ever.

     All five of them were so glad that they got to spend the day altogether. It was a memory they cherished and stored deep in their hearts; a memento of an everlasting friendship.The End.