Lost-Alikes {ENDED} (838 views)

[Otter]

She couldn't believe she missed it--no, she could believe it, she just refused to. This denial took the form of violent devastation for almost two hours; now, escorted away by the Colosseum staff, she slumped against a park bench a ways outside the Colosseum. All who noticed her as they passed by--watching her sobbing and crying out pathetically--thought she was dumped by an ex. This was nowhere near the sadder truth.

Her family would crush her if they knew of her failure. She had made a sworn oath to attend every Altador Cup no matter the cost...and, for the first time in her life, she missed one--by two months. How could she be so late, when she left Tyrannia two weeks prior to the game's opening, only to arrive today? She'd admit it was her fault, but the truth would end there, with only a myriad of excuses to protect her pride. She'd call the excuses the truth and tell it as such, so you may not even notice they were excuses at first glance. Not that she'd tell you all of this now, in her current state.

What would have been a quiet, peaceful time at the park was disrupted by random bouts of tears. With her head thrown back behind the body of the bench, tiny trickles fell and fed sadness to the earth. The rest of her body sat there, as if in defeat. No one, out of awkwardness and synced thought processing, bothered to talk to her.

[Blue]

"Ugh... I can't believe this!" Exiting the Hall of Heroes stomping, Sweet looked very frustrated as she carried a sack behind her back. "Why couldn't B collect the daily prizes at the Council Chamber himself?! The prizes aren't even always cool. Today, it's just a water mote!" She complained. Sweet grabbed a piece of paper from her pocket, on it is a to-do list.

"Well, at least this is the last thing I needed to do. And all the boys are up to today is playing! I sure hope they don't play around with my Maraquan necklace when I'm away. That thing is special to me." The Gelert continued to walk along the park. She heard weeping noises along her way. She tried to follow the sound until she saw a Grarrl sitting on a bench, crying.

Sweet raised an eyebrow. "Hmm. I wonder what's wrong." At first she wanted to ignore it. She took a few steps away but immediately stopped as a flashback came into her head; it's a flashback of herself as a young Mynci crying in the streets and no one was noticing her. Sweet shook her head and groaned. "Oh fine. I guess I should check." The Gelert approached the crying Grarrl on the bench. "Hey." Sweet called out in a monotonous voice. "I know I'm just a stranger and all, but I can't help but notice... Why are you crying? Is there something wrong?"

[Otter]

That dull, somewhat-caring voice was lost in the noise; the stranger's presence, however, was immediately detected as soon as she got close enough. Audrey gathered enough integrity to calm into whimpers and sniffles, eyes open and staring at nothing but floating clothes. It took a second for her brain to process what was before her, as she had seen one instance of an Invisible Neopet wandering through Tyrannia many years ago. Quickly she turned over--perhaps a little too quickly, as the rush of blood caused a minor headache--so that she could face the stranger properly. She cracked her stiff, painful neck as her body rested comfortably on its left side against the bench.

"Well....you're the first person bothering to care," she replied, sniffling as she wiped away her tears with her palms. Her deep, rough voice, despite the fluidity of it, failed to hide the Tyrannian accent. She looked on at the levitating clothes with dullness in her eyes. "It's nothing you should worry about, really. Sorry for the commotion." She looked around, completely aware that the surrounding folk were grateful for the returning peace. She snorted, but that only caused a ball of snot to gather in her throat, which she quickly turned away to gargle and spit out. "Sorry," she apologized to the stranger for her rudeness.

[Blue]

"Hmm. That's fine." Sweet replied. "I've seen worse, with my obnoxious little brothers and everything." She shrugged. Sweet was standing really still. Probably 'cause the Grarrl was only seeing floating clothes, the Gelert assumed she was afraid. Or maybe something else. "Well, if it's really nothing, it's best that I'll be off then." She turned around, about to leave, but something stopped her.

"So..." She turned towards Audrey. "You sure, huh? No need of help with anything? Maybe I could help you if you want or something."

[Otter]

Audrey chuckled at the mention of obnoxious siblings. Boy, could she empathize; her siblings were nothing BUT obnoxious, if not unbearable to deal with. In a family of competition, siblings were the worst enemies to have because they were always around you--and they constantly started fights. Not that she mind. She watched as the clothes began to float off somewhere before stopping, their owner asking once more for assistance. Audrey smiled--razor sharp teeth instantly reflecting in the daylight--and waved her hand dismissively as she stood up, responding, "Well, maybe you could send me back in time with whatever made you invisible. That'd be a life saver. Literally!"

[Blue]

Sweet chuckled, then stops laughing, going back to her serious face. "Ha, I'm not some kind of magician. Sorry." She then pondered for a moment. "Time travel huh? Wasn't there this time machine that crashed in Tyrannia many years ago? I think it's disappeared now though. One of my little brothers told me." Sweet looked around. "Speaking of my little brother, he's a sorcerer, but he didn't turn me invisible... I don't know how this even happened!"

She still spoke in a dull tone. "If you want, we go search about time travel in the Altadorian Archives, if that was even possible. But heads up, I'm not that good with magic. Again, my little brother is a sorcerer, but he and the others are far deep in Maraqua right now. So what'll it be?"

[Otter]

She couldn't be serious? Audrey had no face to judge from, so from the tone of the stranger alone, it seemed the invisible Neopet was serious. Audrey folded her arms, considering the offer; time travel wasn't an impossibility, but never in her life did she think she would ever take it seriously. Besides, the stranger's magical sources seemed to come from their younger sibling, which is dubious at best. Then again, she knew of the tale regarding a certain little sister who was critical in saving Meridell from Kass' forces. At the same time, obviously tampering with time could screw everything up.

But this was her pride on the line. Her family would not tolerate her failure despite its insignificance in reality; only her mother, whom she'd come to realize as the only "sensible" one of her father's family, would forgive this triviality. If the stranger was serious, she'd have to take a chance.

"You're awfully eager to offer something that Fyora wouldn't approve of," Audrey responded. "Are you really serious about this?"

[Blue]

Either Sweet was being sarcastic or really serious. Despite being invisible, no one can read her, whether she would be plotting anything sinister, or just really meant what she said. Sweet however has learned the habit of helping others selflessly, ever since she found her adoptive brothers. They taught her how to become generous and forgiving.

In her past, she used to distrust people. But just as she was distrustful, she also has a knack for adventure. She'd love to get into quests, even if it meant dealing with either the most amazing or absurd experiences ever. She wants a challenging one, one that can be with a long epic journey, and not the boring going-to-claim-prizes-only deal.

Sweet was indeed willing to take risks and wants her exciting life back. These days she's not getting into the most of that. "Yeah, I'm serious." She replied. "It's pretty boring at home anyway. My little brother is in charge today. After all, he's a genius. He can handle our other 2 little brothers just fine."

[Otter]

"Your little brother sounds like he should be providing your family with everything, if he truly is a genius." Audrey chuckled as she unfolded her arms and, out of growing excitement, punching her right fist into her left palm. "Well, let's get this show on the road! I'm Audrey, by the way." She held her right hand up to shake. "Also, need me to carry that sack for you? Looks heavy; nothing I can't handle though." Instantly swelling with pride, she demonstrated her muscles by flexing with her free arm, a broad smile on her face.

[Blue]

The invisible Gelert shook hands with Audrey. "I'm Sweet. No, really. Sweet's my name." She smirked. "Yeah, he may be a genius, but he is still a kid. A responsible kid. I suppose." Sweet looked over at the sack she was carrying. "Oh this? Actually, there's nothing in here but a water mote. I didn't even think this was possible to hold." She showed it to the Grarrl.

[Otter]

As she shook hands, something kicked in her subconscious. No thumb. Paw. Of what? Walks on four legs? Her brain searched for species with no thumbs, had paws, and walked on four legs. Acara? Too big. Xweetok? Lupe? Eyrie? Too small... Her brain continued to figure out the possible enemy, trying to figure out the mystery species from the paw alone. Then, from there, it would have to figure out Sweet's weaknesses, and from there, the best way to take care of her if the need arisen. Without a confirmation--neither physical nor audible--it would only be stuck on the first stage.

"You sound like a Sweet-ie," Audrey replied with a laugh, her previously winding-down pride rising once more with the awful pun. She opened her mouth to say more when she heard the word "water"--she froze, smile dropping instantly. Her eyes drew into the bag and stared at the Water Mote, floating there with its innocent smiling. Her heart pumped into overdrive as she instinctively entered fight-or-flight, taking a couple steps away with a snort. "Close the bag," she said--or, more like demanded.

[Blue]

"Yeah, I knew you'd react like that." Sweet closed the bag insensitively and placed it behind her. She seemed rather a little ill-tempered after that Sweetie remark. "No, I'm not that kind of sweet." She had a somewhat bitter but still dull tone in her voice. "Anyway. Let's get going then, shall we?"

Even though she may seem a little too poker-face and sound mean at this point, it was only in her nature. Probably more intimidating if painted a different color, Sweet doesn't know how to act enthusiastic or happy about anything. "And by the way, I'm not mad. I'm just eager to get this started." She added.

[Otter]

Anger swelled within and made Audrey snort; if close enough, one would feel intense heat the minute the air exited her nostrils. Already her patience with Sweet was beginning to run low. Clearly the Neopet has no sense of humor and some anger issues, considering she purposely used Audrey's fear with no apparent remorse. Yeah right, that's complete bull... she thought, in response to Sweet's emotional claims. The invisible Neopet spoke the same, infuriating dull tone since she first spoke to Audrey.

Fueled by Audrey's temper, her warrior instinct made sure to put any new information from Sweet into its data banks. After all, she clearly made a new enemy.

"The day I hear eagerness out of you is the day I grow wings," Audrey responsed, waving her hand dismissively towards the direction of the Archives. "Let's go." She didn't wait for the floating pair of clothes to move before she marched on ahead.

[Blue]

"Finally." Sweet whispered. She followed Audrey. It seems that Sweet had once again created some kind of tension between herself and whoever she's dealing with. Pretty common for her to put herself in such situations. Despite Audrey's behavior, Sweet doesn't mind one bit. The sarcasm wasn't enough to make her leave either. She only wanted to get it going to the matter at hand. That was one of the few who would react like that towards her cold personality. Even though they had a rough start, Sweet would still want to help. She kept her word.

They soon make it to the Archives. "I suppose you know your way through here, since you stormed off here faster than I did." Sweet remarked.

[Otter]

Unable to head directly to the Archives due to the enormous wall of the waterworks, Audrey was forced to proceed through the Hall of Heroes. The moment she placed her foot within the monumental building, her anger completely dissipated. Here stood a place of legends; here stood one of the many hallmarks that she was raised to praise. Instantly her pacing slowed to a crawl as her eyes--her very soul, in fact--were drawn to the eleven stone statues that stood in the center. At that moment, she held her breath; reality became a dream. Her blood boiled throughout her veins, her muscles stiffened into rock, and breathing became near impossible. Brilliant rays of light heated the building and made the statues almost seem alive. Audrey desired to stand on the center of the sun that connected every Founder of Altador, yet she resisted with great strength. Her pride swelled in a heartbeat as her eyes were drawn to King Altador, only to intensify when resting upon Torakor, the Gladiator. She smiled fiercely...until she saw the pile of rubble.

They made her statue far too great. Years had passed since Altador's history was restored, yet the destruction of the Darkest Faerie's statue had yet to be fully cleared. Even now that infamous, fiery janitor was hard at work getting what little remained. Audrey's warrior instinct had flared the moment she saw the emptiness. Her eyes now glared, her mouth snarled, and her hands clenched into very tight fists. Her good mood gone, she paid a respectful bow to the statues before marching to the exit.

She tried her best to stay civil as she and Sweet progressed to the Archives. Oh yeah, she hadn't forgotten about her invisible associate, but didn't really care about Sweet at the moment. Her mind was far too occupied with figuring out plans.

One wouldn't be far off if they described the Altadorian Archives as "a labyrinth library". It was times when she found herself almost lost in the maze of similar rooms that she was most thankful for her fantastic memory. "It's my home," she replied off-handedly to Sweet. Her tone made it difficult to tell whether she was serious, or joking at all. "We'll need permission from the archivist. I'm sure your incredible persuasive skills will win him over."