The Secret of the Yurbles

      It was a cool spring day and I, a young reckless yellow Yurble, was just walking through the forests of Meridell. I had no clue that I was about to find the secret of my kind. As I padded along, smelling the woodland smell of the forest, I thought I saw flashes of bright colors behind the trees. The minute I looked closer, however, they vanished! I followed a sparsely traveled path, my paws crunching gently as they touched the ground. Suddenly I saw a brilliant array of colors behind a large oak. Before I knew what was happening, something that looked like a Yurble with horns stepped gracefully into the path. It scared me really badly because I am actually a very timid pet. I am not used to big flame colored Yurbles appearing very suddenly! It also scared Poppy, he popped up to my elbow when he saw the strange creature! This was like no other Yurble I had ever seen! Its fur was a swirling mixture of fiery color. The two horns protruding from its skull looked like rings of smoke. The creature looked frightened at first, but it soon relaxed as a tiny, bright green Faellie landed with a small "plop" on its shoulder.

      The Yurble creature looked at me with large eyes and tilted its head. In a voice that was rather gruff but soft, it said, "You are one of my kind!" I nodded, but was so awestruck that I couldn't utter a word. You know, this scared me so badly that I was shaking when my owner asked me to write a story about it, but don't worry, it all ends okay! Well anyway, on with the story. The animal smiled and said in a calm, soothing voice, "Don't worry, I won't hurt you." It nudged its Faellie and the beautiful green animal flew off like an iridescent hummingbird. "Since you are one of my kind, I want to tell you the secret of the Yurbles," the strange creature whispered. Its eyes flashed menacingly. Then they faded to weariness as it continued, "But first we must introduce ourselves. I am Hameer, and you?"

      "I am, uh, Yurbley658," I said feebly. Suddenly my name seemed rather pathetic compared to "Hameer." I mean imagine, "Hameer" seems so powerful and "Yurbley658"…pathetic! Sorry, am I interrupting too much? I always feel like I need to give background information, but okay, the story.

      "Well, nice to meet you Yurbley658! Let me tell you my story." Hameer motioned for me to follow him. Poppy and I followed him quietly through the forest.

      We walked slowly through the trees and I thought I saw an Orb Plant, a Dwarf Tree, and maybe even a Cheery Plant. Soon we reached a beautiful clearing. There were vines and leaves hanging like a velvety curtain from the surrounding trees. The ground was papered with Color Lilies and Swab Bushes. Hameer sat himself down carefully, and got comfortable. Poppy and I did the same.

      "My story starts many years ago, before the king of Meridell settled here, and even before Lord Darigan. In those days, there were thousands of Yurbles like me. We were all ruled peacefully by a very kind Earth Faerie named Aya." He smiled softly and sighed. "Well anyway, about this Aya, she was the most wonderful faerie and she ruled us very well! As she got older however, she became bored with her simple life with the Yurbles. So one night, she flew back to her original cloud home of Faerieland. There she pushed us to the back of her mind and had a beautiful baby girl named Illusen. She grew fast, as all faeries do, and was soon a happy three-year-old. Aya, however, had gotten very sick and none of the faerie's remedies could save her. As she lay on her deathbed, Illusen knelt beside her."

      At this point in the story it seemed hard for Hameer to go on. He continued, but more slowly this time. "Aya told Illusen our story, where to find us, and about our small city. Later that same night, Aya died. Early the next morning, Illusen flew on her miniscule wings, down to Meridell. She searched the forest to see if she could find us, and finally she came to the place her mother had described. It was in ruins. Lord Darigan had attacked us and destroyed our whole civilization. Many of our people had died in the fight. As Illusen sat there in a daze, she changed. Her hair became streaked with green, and she suddenly wore a leafy dress. Her wings turned into giant leaves, and her eyes became like glistening emeralds. As she raised her head, she saw a small circle of Yurbles around her. She stood up and told them who she was, and from then on she ruled the Yurbles. Illusen helped us when we were sick and even introduced us to the Faellies. They became our number one companions. Illusen ruled us for many, many years. Unlike her mother, after she reached the age of 27, Illusen did not seem to grow older. Illusen was always there for us. It was wonderful." Hameer murmured a few more words that I couldn't hear and an eerie silence took over the clearing. He seemed to be finished with his story, but I felt as though there were some huge holes that hadn't been filled. It was so sad, since I am a bit of a wimp, it made me want to cry!

      "Why haven't I heard of this before? If Illusen ruled the Yurbles then, why doesn't she rule us now?" I asked quietly.

      "That's just it," Hameer replied, "she doesn't rule us. Just like her mother, she got bored. Instead of living with us, she built a small cottage on the edge of the forest. From there she had neopets go on quests for her. And, just like her mother, she pushed us to the back of her mind. After Illusen left, our race completely failed. Our sons and daughters were being born with no horns, and, like you, their colors were plain. They became interested in the outer world and left us. There are other Yurbles still alive that are like me, but they are very old. There are only about thirty of us left."

      A stony silence fell upon the clearing and in a sad tone I asked, "Can I help at all? Couldn't we rebuild your village? Then a lot of Yurbles like me could move in, couldn't we?"

      "No, I'm afraid we can't ask that of you. We live in peace here, and someday we too will fade away. But there are still Yurbles like you to keep our race alive." As I looked at Hameer, I saw a pearly tear run down his cheek. He fidgeted and bent down. I could swear I saw him wipe away the tear, but it could have just been my imagination. Softly and soothingly, I said, "I must go. Thank you for your story. Good luck, and I will visit you sometime. Goodbye." Then before I could stop them, these words spilled from my mouth, "I'll miss you." Burning with embarrassment, I dashed from the clearing.

      My heart ached that I couldn't help them. Their race seemed so sad, yet so important. Then it came to me. I have spurred many neopets in my life into actions of kindness, why couldn't I do the same with Illusen? I made a vow to myself: Someday, I'll ask Illusen to go back and visit the old Yurbles. When I go to get my next quest from Illusen, there will be more said than just "thank you" and "goodbye"!

      So that is my story and someday when you have a moment, take your paws for a walk through the forests of Meridell. Maybe you will meet Hameer or perhaps one of the other old Yurbles. Just remember, luck always comes to those that take the time! Don't everyone go worrying, I talked to Illusen and she went back to them for a little while and then Hameer wrote me a letter. He said that everything was going well and that I was their new hero. That part was so cool, but anyway, their babies started being very interesting again and Illusen promised to go visit them for several months every year.

The End