Chaos

      I was always happy then. I had to yell at them, yes, but I was always happy to see them there, even if it meant headaches and strange substances on the newly cleaned floors. No matter how many times I answered the door covered in unidentified goop, I was always smiling. Such a large house, somehow always full of sound and life. Now the only sound is my footsteps through the empty halls, the only life the three pets who had chosen to have their adventures in Shenkuu. I cannot count as life. I drift through the halls like a ghost. Atche and Kei long ago gave up on me. Sala tries to cheer me up, but her attempts are in vain. She'll never leave me, she's too loyal. But she can't help me on her own.

      I have lost hope. I miss them too much. How I wish for them to be back. How I wish for one thing... Chaos.

      How I miss the chaos.

     ~*~

     Hello everyone,

      It's me, Sala. You know, your Fire Wocky sister? Do you even remember the old days when I was the only thing that kept the chaos from becoming utter destruction? Do you remember everyone else? I've heard of what a few of you are doing. Essi, your singing career has taken off wonderfully. Rouge, I love your new line of clothes. Lop, you never could stay out of the paper for making things explode, could you? Chris, your research on Feepits is very informative. And Ket, I always knew you'd make it big on stage.

      As for the rest of you, well, I have a total of twelve up to date mailing addresses here, plus the three of us that are still in Shenkuu. That means five of these letters might never reach their recipients. I can only give them to the mail Weewoos with the most recent pictures of you, all ready two years old, and hope they find their way to you.

      I'm writing to ask you all to come home, even if it's just for a visit. Mom needs you. She's so far gone. The happy girl who was always running after us, trying to clean up in the wake of the chaos we made, is gone. She's little more than a solid ghost now. Please, if you get this letter, visit us. She needs the chaos. She thrives on it. And in truth, I miss it too. Even the petpets I watch over at Fanciful Fauna now cannot make a big enough mess to satisfy me.

      Please everyone, come home. Mom needs you. I need you.

     Your loving sister,

      Sala

     ~*~

      Another day. I stare out the window with paper in front of me and a pen in my hand. When I look at the paper, what will be there? Another doodle of nothing? Another bad sketch of one of my long gone pets? Or will there be words? The day I look down at the paper and see words are the day my hope will return, for my words were lost with my pets. Sala was scribbling over something the other day. Poor girl. She seems to be fading as well. Slower than me, yes, but she's still fading. I wish I could be there for her like I was before, but I am too far gone. Maybe she can still make it.

      I am not sure, but I do not think the mist around this huge, empty house has lifted since the day the last one left. Yesterday I could not sit still and ended up flicking the dining room lights off and on for four hours, that little spark of hope with in me hoping it was all a dream and one of the times I flicked the light back on you'd all be there, fighting for food and looking at me like I had finally lost it.

      Maybe I have lost it.

      For a moment, I thought I saw a flicker of bright green in the mist. My heart leapt for a minute at the thought of my wonderful Glowing Pteri Flite, but I realized it was just the Glowing Kacheek from down the street.

      How I wish they would all return.

     ~*~

      I check the mail, as I always have on my way home from Fanciful Fauna, not thinking that there'd be anything there but a bill or two and some junk mail. Instead, I find seventeen letters. The Weewoos did it, even got the five that had no address to their proper recipients. Every letter is written in the handwriting of one of those that I've longed to see. Of those Mom has needed. Each has a different message, different wording and details, but they all say the same things in the end. The things I've needed to see the most.

      "Is Mom really that far gone? Is my room still as I left it? Are Atche and Kei doing all right? I miss you as well. I need you guys as too. Tell Mom I'll be home soon."

      I smile, and almost run to show mom the letters, present her with the seventeen familiar signatures. But then I stop. Mom will not want her hopes up, and I cannot bear to see her hopes fall again if things go wrong. Instead, I find Atche and Kei. I know they'll help me get everything ready.

      I smile again. Chaos is coming back. My heart soars once more. Mom will be fine. I will be fine. Everything will be as it should be.

     ~*~

      I'm staring out the window again. Today it's a flash of white. Then a small burst of grey green accompanied by a glimpse of electric blue. I sigh, knowing that if I'm seeing three together that my mind must really be gone. The little spark of hope pipes up for a minute, telling me I'm still sane. But how can I be sane when I'm seeing my pets in the mist?

      Then the impossible happens. The doorbell rings. I look down at my paper, and there are words. The mist around my house lifts and I realize that the mist was never around my house, that the day is actually sunny and clear. The mist was around my heart. I see clearly for the first time in nearly two years. At the door, there is a Christmas Zafara, a Ghost Jubjub, and an Electric Acara. My Christmas Zafara. My Ghost Jubjub. My Electric Acara. Three of the pets that left to pursue their dreams so long ago. They've come home. I somehow know that the others will soon follow. The spark of hope deep within my heart bursts into the loving flame it was before as I run to the door. I feel my face stretch into a smile.

      My pets have returned. The chaos is back.

The End