Al the Lupologist

by Al_the_chia

There was once a peaceful village located in Neopia, a tiny town where Chias made up the surplus population. It was called Furgleton. In Furgleton, you would find many Chias bustling about the streets. Chias are industrial pets when put together. Nearby Furgleton, a forest existed. It was called Lupe Forest because it was inhabited by Lupes. Lupe packs dwelled in the forest, and most loved to pick on the Chias of Furgleton whenever they wandered into the forest.

There was one Chia who managed to get picked on a lot, an eccentric little blue Chia, with owlish glasses and a high IQ. His name was Alexander T. Chia, or Al, as he preferred. Al had an unusual interest in Lupes. No one knew why. Maybe it was that he loved the danger of working with them. Maybe it was a childhood trauma that warped his mind. Maybe he had nothing better to do. Whatever it was, he spent most of his time reading up on Lupes. He was a famous Lupologist, and you could ask him almost anything about Lupes, and he knew it. He still yearned for knowledge that the books couldn't provide, so he constantly wandered into the forest, trying to observe some of the Lupe packs that went by. Of course, those expeditions never ended well. He kept on trying though, and went to extremes to just watch the Lupes for a good five minutes.

One day, Al, often finding himself bruised and battered, decided to form a better plan. He shut himself into his Laboratory and began to ponder. After fifteen minutes of genius: "EUREKA!" Al cried. "I can't stand myself! I'm too genius for my own good!!"

Al grabbed a professional looking doctors bag. He walked into the streets, his Cobrall, Fluffy, following behind, hissing. "Now to put Phase One into action..." Al pulled out a shopping list as he entered the marketplace...

Al made several stops. One was at the Chia Deli for some sausage and Chedder Cheese. One was at the Chia Bakers for some French Bread. One was at the Chia Petpetco for some Cobrall Chow. And one last trip was a long hike to Neopia Central to reach Kauvara's Magic Shop. On the way home, a storm began to brew in the dark night sky...

Al came home with bags of groceries and his doctors bag full of potions. "Phase One complete!" Fluffy curled up and snored on the kitchen rug as Al opened the door to his Laboratory. He pulled two bottles out of the doctors bag. Both contained a curious blue liquid. "Now to start the Experiment!!" Al lifted one of the blue bottles. He uncorked it and the potion inside bubbled furiously. Al closed his eyes, held his nose, and illuminated by a flash of lightning and a crackle of thunder, poured it down his throat. It tasted like dog food. Suddenly, Al felt his skin crawl. Blue fur grew all over his body. He fell on all fours, his glasses flying off his face. He sprouted pointed ears and sharp teeth, and his hands and feet separated into paws. His eyes widened, his throat deepened, and he felt a long, bushy tail shoot out before he collapsed.

He woke up a short time later. Groaning, he grabbed his glasses and pulled himself up to the mirror. A smile crept across his face. "Success..." A blue Lupe smiled back at him. His Chia glasses rested at an odd angle on his face, and he adjusted them so they looked better. He studied himself up and down. He let out a couple of growls, yips, and barks with his new voice. He swished his marvelous blue tail. "Yes!! Phase Two complete!!" He let out a long, wailing howl, as thunder and lightning crackled outside. "AROOOOOOOOOOOOO!!"

The next morning, Al grabbed a bag and stuffed a notepad and the other potion inside. After a hearty breakfast of Neocrunch, he marched down the road, straight into Lupe Forest. Al nervously entered the strange Lupe land, almost forgetting he changed into one of them. Al looked around, waiting for a Lupe to appear, waiting for the next Phase to begin...

Suddenly, a loud, commanding growl filled the silence. Al gulped. A huge fire Lupe leapt from the bushes and snarled.

"Who are you?!?"

"Err..." Al stammered, tail between legs. He forgot to think up a Lupe name. "I'm Al- I mean, Alpaw..." he blurted.

The fire Lupe looked at him strangely, sniffing him cautiously. "Alpaw, what kind of a name is that?" Al cringed. His first mistake. "Well, I'm Nightmare."

Al immediately grabbed his notepad. "Note to self: Lupes prefer more dashing, menacing names..." He murmered as he wrote it down.

"What's that?"

"Uh, it's a very dashing, menacing name..."

Al tossed the pad back into the bag. Nightmare sniffed him again, a suspicious look in his eye.

"Where'd you come from? And why do you smell like Chia?"

He glared at Al, his sharp white fangs showing. "Err... I just... got a Chia this morning... it was a skinny little wimp... a blue one with glasses... I threw him a dumpster..."

"Ah! You mean Al? That little nosy baby? Ha! We have lots of fun picking on him!" Nightmare laughed heartily, Al managing a light guffaw before scribbling a few more notes.

"Say, Al, what do you say you come meet my pack?" Al smiled. Phase Three was going smoothly. "I'd love to meet them..."

Al was astonished as he walked behind Nightmare. He muttered while his paws scribbled wildly on the notepad as he watched the Lupes in their cave. They had a large horde of Chia-shaped Lupe treats, and were eating them heads first. Al shuddered. The Lupes all turned and stared at him. Al's paws stopped cold as he tossed the book back into the bag.

"What's wrong Geeky? Whats with the notepad?" A Christmas Lupe hollered.

"Err, I'm just jotting down some ideas..." Al stammered.

"Everyone, this is... What was it? ...Alpaw. Alpaw, this is everyone."

Al looked around, itching to pull out his notepad. A shadowed Lupe, a skunk Lupe, a cloud Lupe, a faerie Lupe, the Christmas Lupe, and a massive, menacing golden Lupe all glared back at Al. Al, the boring old shade of blue, managed a smile and a wave. The gold Lupe stood up. He was way above the others height wise.

"I am Goldpaw," he declared. "I'm the leader of this pack. It's nice to meet you Alpaw."

Al bowed, a gesture he learned he should do when greeting Alpha Lupes from page 784 of 'Loyal Lupes.'

"Um, it's a pleasure to meet you too..."

Suddenly, Goldpaw put a paw up to his nose as if he smelled something offensive. "Where's the Chia?" he snarled, crouching and searching through the bushes. Al gulped.

"Should have thought of the smell..." he muttered. Goldpaw sniffed Al up and down. He stared at him in the eye, making Al extremely uncomfortable. "Al, you know, we don't like Chias in this particular pack." Goldpaw put on a menacing tone, circling around Al. "As a matter of fact, we despise them. You reek of Chia." Al gulped again. "I know you either chased one down, or you were among them, a traitor." Goldpaw growled at the word 'traitor'. "Are you a traitor, Al?" Al blinked. One bead of sweat would ruin the plan. He let out a calm, controlled, lie test passing

"No."

"Good." Goldpaw smiled. "Then welcome to our pack."

The Christmas Lupe, Hollypaw, seemed suspicious of this Alpaw character. Where did he get those glasses that look so much like the Chia nerds? How come their names were so close? Holly decided to investigate this strange blue Lupe...

Al was delighted to be in the company of Lupes. His paws were scribbling faster than he had ever written before. He got many notes on the behavior and social levels of the Lupe. He learned how they treat friends, how they deal with enemies, hunting, territory, care of pups, he was like a two year old locked in a toy store. Phase Four was going all to plan, and Al thought he had found the Tree of Knowledge...

Hollypaw snuck across the ground, staring at the mysterious Alpaw. She grinned. He had left his notebook out. Holly grabbed it. She flipped through the pages, reading the notes he had taken, his plans for Phase One, Two, Three, Four, and the shocking Five. She gasped. Alpaw was a Chia! A traitor! She felt like pouncing upon him and tearing him to shreds. No, she would wait until the pack was awake, and then persecute this miserable little twerp. She growled softly and went back to sleep, clutching the notebook in her paws.

***

Al woke up happily. He had spent a happy night with the Lupes, and was looking forward to a great day. He munched on a chocolate Chia and waited for the rest of the pack to get up. "Perfect opportunity for sleep notes..." He reached for his notebook, and gasped. "What the-?"

"What is it?" Goldpaw yawned, rolling over onto his back.

"Err, nothing, choked on the chocolate Chia..." Al muttered.

He searched around the cave, and then ran off into the woods, searching. "Where is it? Where did you put it?" he hissed to himself, searching the bushes all over. Suddenly, Hollypaw appeared behind him.

"Looking for your notebook, Alpaw? Or should I say... Alexander T. Chia? I bet the other Lupes would looove to learn about THIS!!"

She wielded the notebook. Al growled angrily. She had found his notebook! And now she was going to tell the whole pack! She let out a sharp bark, and the pack all woke up with a start.

"What's going on?" Goldpaw grumbled, stretching.

"I'll tell you what's going on..." Hollypaw smirked.

Al's mind raced. He let out a growl and pounced onto Hollypaw. Hollypaw let out a vicious snarl and threw him off. He landed with a dull thud onto the ground, his glasses askew. He was ruined! Again! Suddenly, he remembered it. The tube full of the bluish potion, Phase Five. He threw it onto the ground, and a blue cloud covered him and Hollypaw. Hollypaw let out a shriek, which slowly diminished and shrank into a tiny Chia yelp.

"What? What's going on?" she cried. She looked at herself. A blue Chia! "What's going on?!?" she sobbed.

Al looked down at himself. "Oh no..." He had become his original blue Chia form, but he still had his bushy Lupe tail and the pointed Lupe ears. "This is bad... Phase Five failed..." Al grabbed the notebook and fled. Goldpaw and his pack looked around confused, until the smoke cleared to reveal the Chia form of Hollypaw. They crept up behind her. She turned around and gulped. "Err, guys? It's me! Hollypaw!" The Lupes growled. "Don't you recognise me?" she shrieked, her little Chia arms waving in the air. But the unfortunate Hollypaw was unrecognisable. The pack pounced!

Al muttered angrily as he ran back home, his Lupe tail swishing. He successfully got some good notes on the Lupes, but he had other things on his mind. "Phase Five Failed! Failure is intolerable!!" Fluffy was laughing so hard his hood turned purple. Al angrily growled at him, and he fled into the house, hissing. Al muttered as he stomped into the house and slammed the door shut. "And now I'm stuck with this stupid tail and these stupid ears until I figure out the formula to fix it!" Al grabbed his kiddy chemistry set. "The indignity is overbearing!!" Al wailed as he set to work to fix himself...

Al's curiousity has never ended despite this situation. He remains a Lupologist, and still yearns for more knowledge about Lupes. He's even plotting now, creating a master plan to make his comeback! But right now, his first priority is still getting rid of his tail and ears...

The End