Petal's Initiation: Part One

by acoustic_hathor

Petal, the Pink Magical Lupe, was coming of age. Her coat was thickening from a baby's fuzz to a long, smooth silk. Her flower-petal-shaped scar was growing stronger, and now shone more brightly when she felt strong emotions. Her ears grew more pointed; her nose elongated. Her bright blue eyes, though, still sparkled with mischief.

Petal's parents, Galilobo and Celest, were the leaders of the Magical Lupe pack in Neopia. They loved their only child dearly, and taught her well. She was growing up right, they agreed, and were very proud of all her accomplishments.

One day, as Petal was out playing with her best friend Amenophis IV, Galilobo and Celest sat down in the shade of a weeping willow to have a talk together. They watched Petal playing for a little while. Then Galilobo sighed. "You know that the roots are breaking ground again," he commented to his mate.

"Yes," she replied softly. "She will have to go on her quest soon."

"We mustn't tarry any longer," Galilobo said decisively. "As soon as the moon rises tonight, we will take her to see the Faerie Queen. The sooner done, the better."

"I know, but I worry about her so," admitted Celest. "I would hate myself forever if I let anything bad happen to her."

"It cannot be helped, my dear," replied Galilobo. "You and I both know that she must go through with the quest, no matter how hard or dangerous. She must become a true Lupe. Only by doing this quest can she legally join the pack."

"You're right, of course," she told him. "We will take her tonight."

The two settled down side by side to watch their daughter romp across the grass as the sunset painted the sky in rainbow colors.

***

That night, as the full moon rose high above the meadow where the Magical Lupes slept, Galilobo and Celest nudged Petal awake. She mumbled incomprehensibly, rolled over, and went back to sleep. Celest gently nipped her on the ear. Petal opened one sleepy eye and looked up at her parents. "What?" she asked, yawning. "Is it time for classes?"

"No, my dear," answered her mother. "It is time for your quest."

At that, both of Petal's eyes opened wide and she leaped up. "Really?" she squealed. "I get to go on my quest now? I can be an adult Lupe? Hurrah!"

"Petal, shhh!" warned Galilobo, motioning to the slumbering pack. "Hurrah," Petal whispered.

"We must hurry," Galilobo said, looking up at the moon, which was slowly floating across the sky. "Your mother and I need to be back by morning."

"What about me?" Petal asked in a worried voice. "Aren't I coming back, too?"

Her parents looked at each other, then turned to her. "That depends on what your quest is," Celest told her softly. "The Faerie Queen will choose a task that is hard, but that she knows you can do. The Faerie Queen is never wrong."

"But I'm not coming back?" Petal whined, distress in her voice. "I have to go somewhere else for my quest? Can't you come with me?"

"No, my sweetling," said Galilobo gently. "This is your quest; to prove that you are a true Lupe, you must do it on your own."

Petal still looked unsettled, but she agreed with her parents. With that, they set out across the plain, moving quickly and silently through the grass.

The trio of Magical Lupes jogged through the woods. All three of their scars shone, as all three were feeling strong emotion: Galilobo's lightening-bolt was bright with worry for his daughter; Celest's star was illuminated for the same reason; and Petal's flower-petal was ablaze with anxiety. She had no idea what her quest would be, nor had she any idea of what sort of difficulties it would entail. She wasn't quite so eager to meet the Faerie Queen anymore.

After a few hours of walking, they stood before an enormous redwood tree that reached perhaps 70 stories high. Its trunk had a large, gaping hole in it. Petal looked up at her parents with fear in her eyes. Deep black holes were not her favorite things, and she told them as much.

"Darling," Celest said gently, "you must go. It is very important! You are the heir to the position of leader of the pack; if you don't become a true adult Lupe, you will not be able to lead them when we are gone!"

"Petal," her father said, "whatever happens on this quest, we want you to know that we're proud of you. You've always been a joy to us, my daughter, and we thank goodness for your existence. Because that's what you are, of course: pure goodness, through and through. That will help you to the end of this road." Then he leaned over and whispered: "And you must make it to the end of this road, Petal. We're counting on you. We love you."

Petal gulped and slunk up to the door. Her tail was low between her legs, and her ears were flat against her skull. She didn't have to worry about finding her way in the darkness, though: her petal-shaped scar was so bright with her fear that she felt like the sun.

The moment she stepped into the hole in the tree, she knew that she really didn't want to do this. Who cares if she never got to be the leader of the Lupes; she was too scared! She turned toward her parents, but before she could cry out or run to them, they shimmered and vanished before her very eyes. She squeezed her eyelids shut tightly, hoping that perhaps when she opened them again, her parents would have returned. Very slowly, she raised one eyelid, and then the other. Standing in front of her was not her parents, but a very tall woman in a flowing purple dress. Her skin was white as cream, and Petal immediately was struck by her beauty; the only thing unsettling about her was that Petal couldn't seem to make out any facial features. Still, the fact that no eyes, nose or mouth were visible seemed to work with this particular character. Her hair was long and of the same color as her dress. She had a sparkling crown set atop her head, and in her hand she carried a wand tipped with a small star. And, as Petal stared, she saw that the woman had… wings! This woman had wings - like a butterfly! Or… or like a…

"Like a Faerie?" came a voice from out of nowhere.

Petal jumped. "Are you the… Faerie Queen?" she asked, her voice quivering as she stared up at the graceful-yet-powerful-looking woman.

A laugh tinkled in the air around her. "Yes, I am the Faerie Queen," the voice replied. Petal couldn't seem to find where the voice was coming from, since the figure before her had no mouth, but it didn't seem to matter. The voice obviously belonged to her.

"You needn't tell me why you are here, Petal," said the Faerie Queen in her bell-like voice. "I know who you are, where you're from, and what you need. You need a quest. I can tell that you're very anxious to become a true Lupe."

Petal wasn't so sure about that anymore.

The Faerie Queen continued, "Well, I have just the thing for you." She waved her wand, and a bubble appeared before the two of them. Inside the bubble was an image. Petal squinted at it, then slid up closer to it to get a better look.

"This," the Faerie Queen said grandly, "is the Ball of Rainbows. It has ten magical rainbows trapped inside it. You must find this ball and bring it back to me as quickly as possible.

"There are a few things I should mention before you begin your search," the Faerie Queen went on. "One: you have a time limit. You must return the ball to me before the moon has disappeared from the sky for the month."

"That gives me…" started Petal. She was still calculating when the Faerie Queen answered her question for her.

"It gives you three days. Two: There are traps along your path. Be watchful; they aren't physical traps, but rather ones that require you to use your mind. Three: I can give you one ability that will help you along your journey. This ability you may choose."

Petal thought for a moment. Hmmm. If I could have any ability, what would it be? She let her mind wander for a few minutes until she found herself staring longingly at the Faerie's lovely wings. They were as thin as rice paper, and she could almost see through them. The outline of the wings was a deep violet color, and the insides were florescent. Before she knew it, she heard herself saying: "I want wings to fly!"

The Faerie Queen nodded. "Very well; if that is your wish." She raised her wand. Petal was expecting her to chant a spell, but instead, to her surprise, the Faerie Queen sang a song in her beautiful voice:

"On a quest this Lupe must find
A rainbow ball, so to her bind
A pair of wings so soft and light
That with one leap she will take flight."

As she sang, a sparkling white mist began to float from her wand through the air and toward Petal. In a moment, her back began to itch horribly. She sat down to scratch, but just as she raised her hind leg to reach her shoulder, she heard the Faerie Queen sing out:

"Do not scratch, though it may prick,
Or you'll forfeit this magic trick!"

Petal lowered her leg back down to the ground. She squeezed her eyes shut and held her breath until the itching faded away. Then she felt a tugging sensation. She looked behind her to see the Faerie Queen tugging at something on her back. She reached her head around a little further… and she saw a pair of gorgeous rose-colored wings, just like the Faerie Queen's, attached to her shoulders! Finally, the Faerie Queen let go and said, "Just wanted to make sure that they were on tightly. Now, you must be on your way. Remember, you have three days to find the Ball of Rainbows."

Petal nodded. She was eager to get outside and try her new wings. As she bounded toward the opening in the tree, the Faerie Queen called out behind her:

"Oh, and one more thing: The ball is protected by the Snowager. You may have some trouble getting past him, but there's a trick to it. You find that out, and the Ball of Rainbow's all yours!"

Petal's heart hammered in her throat. The Snowager! She'd heard of him before. One time, a foolish Lupe was trying to steal his treasure, and he caught him in his lethal grip and ate him for dinner! It was just a legend, of course, but Petal remembered what her teacher had once told her: "All legends are rooted in truth." Was something terrible going to happen to her on this quest?

She shoved the thoughts to the back of her mind and burst out of the tree and into a foreign meadow that was filled with bright sunlight. It was time to try out her new wings!

To be continued...