"Wow." The brown Acara paused in his tracks to take in the view that stretched out in front of him. The blue of the sky had darkened and become touched with the myriad oranges and golds of sunset. Light danced along the snowscape and glinted off the frost-locked trees close by and the jagged mountain peaks that scissored their way icily into the horizon.

Aspen inhaled the cold, clean air with relish as he surveyed the wintry landscape a final time before continuing his trek. There was a certain purity in his surroundings and Aspen felt a clarity, a refreshing kind of lucidity, here as crystalline as the ice that sparkled all around him. It was scenery like this -- quiet, calming, and beautiful, that made him glad of his decision to spend his vacation hiking in Terror Mountain and regret the need to turn in somewhere for the night.

The Neopet was very much alone on this mountaintop and there was, at present, not another figure in sight. Many Neopians, Aspen knew, would be spending their breaks hanging out in warmer and less treacherous locations such as Kiko Lake or Mystery Island. Not Aspen.

He tightened his grip on his hiking stick and took a careful step down the winding, ill-travelled trail he followed. A chuckle escaped him as shrieking winds sliced into him and flurries of snow whipped about his feet. The Acara loved adventure, especially adventure that involved braving the elements.

Cresting a knoll, Aspen spotted the outline of an inn in the distance. It was small and dark in contrast to the expansive yards of gleaming white powder that surrounded it and heavily blanketed its roof. He shivered as fresh winds wailed about him and noted with reluctant satisfaction the smoke that spiralled merrily out of the inn's chimney.

The innkeeper, a short, bright-eyed Kyrii, greeted Aspen with an enthusiastic grin. "Welcome," he said, waving him inside to where a fire crackled in the common room hearth. "Come in, come in! You must be freezing. Dinner will be ready soon."

Aspen shrugged off his pack and sank into a chair before the fire. There was another Neopet seated by the hearth; another traveller, he assumed. The cheery flames were reflected off her spectacles, but Aspen could see that the light in the elderly Lupe’s gaze itself was grave. He nodded at her politely and her brow furrowed as if in thought.

"You're a hiker?" she asked, indicating where he'd left his gear with a solemn paw.

"Yes," Aspen replied, startled. The Lupe shuddered at the sound of the winds outside and Aspen jerked his head at the window, feeling an impulsive need to keep the conversation going. "The winds are strong right now and I thought it best to find somewhere to take shelter."

The other Neopet's eyes cut into his, strangely serious. "That's not the wind..."

Aspen was a bit confused. "This is far too strong to be the Snowager," the Acara replied.

The Lupe shuddered a few more times, looking at the crackling fire of the inn. "You have chosen a very bad time to go hiking here, my young friend. I did not mean that literally. Breath of the Snowager is the name we give this storm."

Aspen felt a bit more relief. "A mere winter storm shall pass in due time," he replied.

"Not a storm like this," the elderly Lupe responded. "This is a storm that only occurs once every hundred years. It is a massive storm of ice, snow, biting winds, and below-freezing temperatures. It is so named because it feels like being caught in the Snowager's icy blast -- except this storm will last for two months."

Aspen gasped. "A two month storm? That is impossible! Even the worst storms of Terror Mountain can only last for a week at most!"

"Yes, if this were a normal storm, but it is not..." the Lupe replied gravely. "This is a curse..."

"A curse?" Aspen offered, preparing himself to hear what was probably the ravings of a deranged elderly Neopet. Yet, as the Acara listened to the whining of the wind that was slowly turning into a roar, he felt he had no alternative, given the remote hospitality of his situation.

The Lupe nodded gravely, sitting back onto the dusty armchair. "The denizens of this town are cursed! A hiker, much like yourself, visited this town three hundred years ago and stole something from Niella. Ever since then, she has shown her wrath by destroying the town so the inhabitants have no choice but to start again from scratch. The only thing she leaves standing is the ruins of this inn. No one bothers to live up here anymore!"

"I'm sorry," Aspen said, interrupting, "but who's Niella?"

"Taelia's sister, of course."

The voice that answered was that of the Kyrii, who appeared behind Aspen's chair. "Dinner's ready," he said jovially. "I hope you like eggplant."

With more stability than was expected, the Lupe stood quickly and shuffled off excitedly to the dining room. Aspen had no choice but to follow.

"Wait a moment," he said as they all sat down at the table. "I've heard of Taelia, everyone has, but there's never been any mention of her sister."

"That's because Taelia keeps her locked away most of the time -- except the magic expires after 100 years and Niella always escapes, looking for the hiker. They say the wind whipping about is the fury in her heart, the ice is her tears frozen in time, and the howl of the gusts is her cry of rage."

The Kyrii shook his head. "Oh, Winifred. You and your stories. The storm is just a freak weather occurrence that, statistically, is bound to happen at least once every hundred years. I'm sure there's a perfectly logical reason for it."

"What did the hiker steal?" Aspen asked, directing his question towards Winifred...

"Your eggplant is getting cold," the Kyrii reminded the two of them as he scarfed down his own dinner.

"My apologies," Winifred said after a pause. "You've spent so much time making this for us." She took a hurried bite, and Aspen followed suit. Neither of them spoke until they had finished their eggplant.

"That was delicious," Aspen told the Kyrii. He then turned to Winifred and resumed their conversation, asking, "The hiker stole a ring?"

"Yes," she said, so softly that Aspen had to struggle to hear it above the Breath of the Snowager. "It was a beautiful ring, but the hiker--"

"Why did she take it?"

The Kyrii gathered up their plates and hurried off into the next room, leaving the two of them alone with only the chill of the air and the howl of the wind. "She didn't know what she was doing," Winifred bit out. "She thought it was a beautiful thing and she took it; she didn't know how important it was. She didn't know what she was doing--"

"Wait, though" Aspen said, the Lupe's words sending a chill down his spine. "How do you know this?"

"B-because," Winifred said, bursting into a sudden sob, "Because I was that hiker."...

"I can't!" Winifred shouted. Her eyes grew dark and fierce, like the storm beyond the now-shuttering walls of in the inn. It passed in an instant. "I'm so sorry," she added. "Sometimes I feel Niella's anger in my own heart."

The Kyrii rushed back into the room. "Is everything okay?"

Winifred nodded solemnly. "As okay as it can be."

"Go on," Aspen said, prompting the Lupe. "You were going to explain why you couldn't give back the ring."

"It was a beautiful ring, clear as crystal and ice cold. When I stared into the band I could see my reflection, but it was changed. It's hard to say exactly how I knew it was different, but what I saw in that ring was a better me -- the me I wanted to someday become: kind, caring, generous. Maybe my smile was warmer, I don't know.

"I wore the ring constantly. It reminded me to make good choices and be a good Neopian because I wanted to realize for myself what I saw in the band -- a patient, courageous Lupe. Thinking back on it now, I wonder if the ring meant the same thing to Niella that it meant to me."

"So, what happened?" Aspen asked again. "Surely the Winifred you wanted to be would have given the ring back as soon as she realized what it meant to Niella."

"Oh, yes. Yes, she would have. You see, however... she didn't realize it until it was too late, until the first storm came. We had no idea what was going on, only that the mountain was taking a beating none of us had ever seen before. I was with a group of friends not far from here and we got caught in it. We built a small lean-to and a fire and stayed huddled around it with our scant rations until the storm broke long enough for us to make a run for this place. But..." she trailed off.

The Kyrii had paused at the door and started to listen intently.

"A few hours after we got here, I realized that the ring wasn't on my finger anymore."

"Someone stole it from you?"

"No. There was also a spot of water right about there," she said, pointing to a spot in front of the hearth. "It was then when I saw the puddle that I heard Niella's voice for the first time... a whisper on the wind, full of poisonous anger. I then knew what I had done, but it was too late. By the time the storm abated, it had destroyed almost all of the settlement. Now, for centuries, the storm has come and gone like clockwork, and I stay here, waiting, hoping that one day Niella will show herself here and I can apologize."

Aspen stood up and walked to the frost-covered window. All he could see was a sheet of white, even when he breathed on the glass and wiped the fog away. "Did you ever think about going to find her?" he asked.

"Oh, I couldn't."

"What happened to the courageous Lupe you saw reflected in the band? Taelia has to know where she is, and maybe you can put an end to all of this."

"I can't go out there on my own. The years have not been kind to me."

"The Snow Faerie doesn't live far from here. I'll go with you. I have tons of hiking experience, and I'm sure you'll remember how to use a rope when one's in your hand."

Winifred looked hesitant. Aspen reached for his pack, unzipped the largest pocket, and fished around inside. "Here. Smarts are what you really need out there, not strength, and age only heightens those." He handed her his spare climbing rope and the old Lupe's eyes lit up, warm and excited.

Holding a rope again was all the convincing she needed...

"There's the Winifred I knew from so long ago," the Kyrii piped in from where he had been listening. "Strong, brave, and not willing to yield to something as trivial as a storm -- no matter what beast it's named after. I wish you two the best of luck on your quest, and I sincerely hope it ends on a good note." Aspen nodded toward the Kyrii and turned from the window. He looked over at Winifred, who seemed so different now than she had before. Was she -- dare he say -- an entirely different Lupe?

"I feel as spry as a young pup, and it's all thanks to you, Aspen. If you hadn't stumbled through that door earlier, I would've still been sitting by the hearth, wallowing in my regrets. Now, though... now I can do something about the past. I may be old, but I can still change my future." Aspen was touched and couldn't help but smile as he swung the pack over his shoulders.

"We should be able to make it to Taelia's in a matter of hours, give or take a few considering the storm will whipping us around," he said. The Lupe grunted in acknowledgement, beginning to stumble toward the door. When she was almost there her left leg twitched, and she collapsed.

"Are you alright?" Aspen exclaimed, rushing over to her side. The Lupe nodded and picked herself up before she could hit the floor. Propping herself up against the doorknob, she breathed heavily for a moment before speaking.

"Don't worry about me. I just got up too quickly, that's all." She turned her paw and opened the door. A blast of icy air hit the two 'pets, but she didn't falter. "Let's go. You've got everything in that pack of yours, correct?" Aspen nodded breathlessly, amazed by Winifred's tenacity, then stepped in front of her as though to block the wind.

"This is going to be quite a hike... but we are ready!" he yelled, only glancing back once to see the Kyrii bidding them farewell with a sad wave.

It must have been at least an hour before Winifred and Aspen reached the large estate Taelia resided in, maybe more. The Acara hadn't bothered to keep track of the time as he had been too concerned with making sure Winifred didn't collapse in the snow before they reached their destination.

"We're so close to meeting the Snow Faerie. I can't believe you got me to do this..." Winifred wheezed once they reached the towering doors, her breath short. She seemed grateful, however. Aspen could tell she was worn out.

"Let's just get you inside; I'm worried you'll catch frostbite or something!" Aspen half-joked. The Lupe smiled and extended her right paw to knock on the door. Once the echoing had faded, the two proceeded to wait.

"What do you plan to say to Niella?" the Acara questioned, shivering as a snow-fringed gust struck the exposed fur on his face. Winifred gazed down at the doorstep, which was just beginning to get dusted with snow, her eyes cloudy.

"I'm not entirely sure, to be honest. I was just going to--" Her reply was cut off by the sound of a door opening. The Lupe jumped back mid-sentence to dodge the heavy object, then exchanged a look with Aspen.

"You were saying?" he offered, but Winifred had already moved on to gazing at the interior of the castle. All the Acara could do was shrug and follow her. As soon as they were both inside, the doors closed with an echoing thump. Aspen didn't bother to glance back at them for fear of losing sight of Winifred.

The Lupe had already begun to walk around the castle, gazing wondrously at ice sculptures of various Neopians and oohing and ahhing at the pointed icicle chandelier hanging overhead.

"Ah, guests. Welcome," a regal voice said, emanating from somewhere within the castle's main room.

"Taelia," Aspen whispered, glancing around to see if he could catch sight of the faerie.

"What are your intentions, coming into my castle during such a baleful storm?" she asked, still hidden.

"We'll tell you if you reveal yourself to us," Aspen said calmly. "We carry good intentions, if that's what you're worried about." A laugh echoed through the room and the coated figure of Taelia appeared from behind an ice sculpture.

"You are a smart Acara, young traveller. What is it you want?" she asked, her voice showing trust.

"It's not what I want -- it's what my friend Winifred desires."

"Ah," she murmured, turning her attention to the elderly Lupe. "Did you trek all the way out here to see me?"

"Yes," Winifred stated proudly, "and I would like to speak with your sister, Neilla." There was a moment of silence, then Taelia replied.

"It's been years since I've spoken with her, but I suppose it would be worth a try to call for her..." She trailed off, and the castle was plunged into another silence. "Wait, I have a better idea. I can teleport you two to where she lives, but after that point the rest is up to you. I can only teleport two at a time if I want to have enough energy to make a round trip."

"Really? That is more than we were expecting. Thank you very much..." Winifred replied. Taelia smiled warmly and extended a palm toward the Lupe. A small orb materialized in it, a small flame suspended within.

"Just throw this on the ground when you wish to return," she instructed. The faerie handed the orb to Aspen, who took it gingerly and placed it in his backpack's side pocket. "I wish you the best of luck..."

Those were the last words the two heard before beginning a plummet into darkness.

"Aspen, we're here!" The Acara was brought to by the sound of Winifred's voice. He opened his eyes slowly, partially expecting to be sitting by the hearth in the inn. He instead found himself in a cavern, with Winifred standing by his side. He pushed himself up, quickly making sure the orb was still in his pack.

"Who's there?" a malicious-sounding voice screeched from above the two 'pets. Aspen frantically looked up but could see nothing in the darkness. A moment later, an invisible force knocked him against a wall. He felt the earth crumble against his backpack, but he couldn't move any of his limbs, let alone attempt to escape.

"Winifred!" he gasped out, feeling the air around himself grow cold. "It's Neilla!" The elderly Lupe shivered, but remained standing.

"Your magic will not work on me!" she proclaimed loudly, her feeble voice seeming much more firm than it actually was. There was another screech, and for a second Aspen could swear he saw a flash of onyx.

"You have no power against me as long as this storm is raging!" she shouted louder than Aspen had ever seen a Lupe roar. "I have become the Lupe your ring showed, and I have invincibility here!"

"You stole my ring, then!" the voice shrieked accusingly. "I want it back!"

"You'll have to come and get it from me, then," Winifred bluffed, holding up her hand as though she were beckoning the faerie down. There was a grunt of indignation, then a form appeared before her. Aspen was surprised at how different she and her sister looked; she had long hair so white that it appeared as though she had just been hit by a snowstorm and eyes that were grey like ash. She wore no coat, instead letting a torn black cape flow over her knee-length grey dress. The dress was just as ripped as her cape, and two obsidian wings framed either side of her body.

"Where is the ring?" she demanded, one hand resting on her hip.

"Like I said, I've become the Lupe it showed, so in essence, I am the ring," Niella scoffed.

"What do you mean by that?" she asked, clearly impatient.

"I mean, I've become a Lupe that I once thought I never could be," she said with a smirk, "and guess what? I didn't even need the ring to do that for me. The truth is that old ring never meant anything. It simply reflected what was in the viewer's heart, what they truly wanted to be -- and what they could be -- if they tried. That's where your ring stopped functioning and began hurting you more than it was helping you."

"Lies!" the faerie sputtered. "I was beautiful with that ring! I-it--"

"Who's saying you're not beautiful now?" She waited for a reply, but there was none. "Only you... and that supposed magical ring. What I'm trying to say is that the ring kept pushing you to be perfect, someone you couldn't possibly be, and that made you bitter. I was like that for many years, until this young Acara quite literally got me out of my chair and made me realize that I couldn't be exactly like the Lupe I saw in the ring -- but I sure as Fyora could be the best one I could be. I never would've come to that realization if someone hadn't intervened. So, that's what I'm doing for you."

"But--" Niella started. She didn't even get halfway through her sentence before Winifred continued.

"But nothing. You know, deep down, that the ring is just a glorified mirror, and you've been whipping up this snowstorm to block that truth from yourself. All I'm asking for you to do is realize you can be the faerie you've always aspired to be without the help of some fancy piece of junk that's just going to make you feel bad about yourself. All you have to do is believe that you can come out of this cave and start turning into that faerie... from the inside out." Aspen felt a smile spreading across his face, certain that, if he could move his hands, then they would be applauding Winifred. Niella looked down at the cave floor dejectedly.

"You're right," she sighed, for once sounding sad instead of angry. "I have regressed into this cave for most of my life and turned into a recluse, and all because I thought I needed some ring to be beautiful." She turned her gaze toward Winifred and then to Aspen. "How could I not have noticed myself slipping away? I mean, Taelia must be worried sick about me." She made a downward motion with her left hand and Aspen felt the compression leave his chest. He fell back against the wall, gasping for air that he hadn't realized he'd been missing.

"Don't feel bad, Niella," Winifred began, her eyes burning with a fire that could melt the coldest of snow. "I didn't know I was falling until Aspen came and offered me a hand." She extended a paw up to rest on the faerie's shoulder.

"How will I begin piecing my life back together?" Niella asked, her voice breaking. "I don't even know where to start. My heart is so cold; I'm worried it's too broken to be repaired."

"Don't say that. No one is too broken to be fixed, not even a faerie like yourself. The first step to recovering your true self is to cease the storm you've brought upon Terror Mountain." The Lupe removed her paw from the faerie's shoulder, then walked over to where Aspen stood.

"I-I'll do that at once," Niella whispered, bringing a hand up as though she were attempting to touch the sky, then sending it down toward the earth. She muttered a few words that Aspen didn't quite catch, then brought the hand to rest by her side. "It is done." She nodded toward Winifred, giving her thanks that couldn't be expressed through words.

"The second step, if you're willing to take it, would be paying your sister a visit," the Lupe said. Shock flashed through Niella's eyes, but only for an instant.

"Will you two be able to make it back safely?" she asked. Winifred nodded, gesturing to Aspen. The Acara pulled the orb from his backpack and showed it to Niella, who in turn smirked. "Typical Taelia giving random travellers a teleportation sphere. Just tell it where you want to go and it will take you there. Tyrannia, Mystery Island, wherever. It even caters to specific buildings and shops, so long as you know the name." Trusting the two would know how to use the sphere based upon the instructions she gave them, Niella waved once and was then gone in a puff of smoke.

"I can see she's already become a better faerie," Aspen stated, his grip tightening around the ball. "Hey... Winifred, look at this." The Lupe glanced down at the orb, a smile spreading across her face as she realized who was being displayed in its interior. The fire had disappeared, and in its place was the flickering image of two sisters embracing for the first time in years.

"She's going to be alright," Winifred whispered before turning to look at Aspen. "As am I. I feel better now than I did in all the time I had the ring in my possession. Thank you." Aspen smiled at the Lupe, seeing her true self.

"Shall we head back to the inn?" the Acara suggested. Winifred nodded, placing a paw atop the orb.

"Together." The two were sucked into another onyx embrace before they heard the glass sphere shattering against the floor.

Aspen awoke and instantly recognized his surroundings. The fireplace crackling before him was identical to the one in the inn. Beside him, Winifred reclined, intrigued by the dancing flame in the hearth. Had the whole thing -- Niella, the ring... been a dream?

A wide smile crossed the Lupe's face when she noticed her friend was awake.

"We really did it," she stated triumphantly. In that moment, everything came back to the Acara. The storm must have...

Without a word, Aspen jumped up from his seat and rushed to the window. Greeting him was a tranquil scene. Other than the few inches of snow that remained clinging stubbornly to the ground, there wasn't a storm to be seen.

"It looks like someone's excited for eggplant!" He heard the jolly voice of the Kyrii innkeeper echo from behind him. Whipping around, he noticed Winifred already sitting at the table. Sometimes I wonder if she's really as old as she claims to be, the Acara thought with a chuckle. Winifred beckoned for him to take a seat next to her, so he did. The Kyrii placed steaming plates of eggplant before the two 'pets, then proceeded to sit across from them.

"So... what happened?" he asked, picking up his fork and hovering it over the food. Aspen and Winifred exchanged a look, then the Lupe began to recall what had happened while they had been on their trek to Taelia's castle.

Aspen was sure that their eggplant would be cold by the time she finished telling the tale, but he didn't mind.

The End