Cold Hands, Warm Heart

A mischievous baby Blumaroo named Hippie was always up to something it seemed. If she wasn't jumping in Mrs. Lupe's pool, our ever-patient neighbour, then she could be seen climbing her favourite broccoli tree. Up and down she would climb and would be seen hanging from the tallest branch shouting, "Hey, I'm King Skarl, look at me!"

     Mrs. Lupe never seemed to mind Hippie's interruptions and always had a warm smile to greet her as she lived alone. Her children had grown up and she desperately missed the voices of the busy children coming from her home. One daughter moved to Terror Mountain, another to Mystery Island, and her son to Kiko Lake. She loved to travel to the different areas of Neopia but was very fond of her home in Neopia Central and enjoyed the company of all her neighbours. Especially Hippie because she always made her laugh!

     The long summer days passed quickly and turned into the crisper days of fall. In the cool autumn afternoons Hippie could be seen plowing through the many piles of leaves that she raked for Mrs. Lupe. It seemed that Hippie would never tire of this game, and wished it would go on for hours. Mrs. Lupe, on the other hand, delighted in simply sitting on a well-worn wooden bench to watch Hippie play.

     Although Hippie loved playing with her neighbor, Mrs. Lupe was an older Neopet and tired easily. Eventually, Hippie found herself very lonely for a friend her own age. And one day, late in the fall, she began to pout, with nothing fun to do but her regular chores.

     That very afternoon, as she was kicking rocks around the front garden, she spotted two people moving into Mrs. Lupe's house next door! To Hippie's surprise and delight Mrs. Lupe's daughter, who had moved to Terror Mountain, and her daughter Morgan the baby Mynci had come to help for a few weeks. It wasn't long before Hippie decided to pounce over the fence, accidentally trampling the rowzez on her way to greet the youngest member of the family.

     While Mrs. Lupe got reacquainted with her daughter, Hippie and Morgan took a plate of chocolate chip Cybunny cookies, vanilla milkshakes (Hippie's favourite) and a green picnic blanket out to the garden to set up under a Heart Fruit Tree. They played Kacheekers all afternoon stopping long enough for refills of cookies and milkshakes. Hippie and Mrs. Lupe were both very pleased, since they both finally had the company they had desired for so long.

     As the days went by, Hippie and Morgan got to know one another and became great friends. Morgan, you see, was a rather shy and reserved baby Mynci, quite the opposite of the rambunctious baby Blumaroo Hippie, but it took them no time at all to find things to do that interested them both. They could be seen having picnics under the broccoli tree, feeding the Maraquan Koi that lived in Mrs. Lupe's pond, playing Kacheekers, and Hippie running with Morgan braced in the wheelbarrow all around the neighbourhood.

     Once, Hippie took the time to set up an obstacle course made from the mini pumpkins that Mrs. Lupe and her daughter had harvested to make pumpkin pies. This was not a long-lived activity, as Mrs. Lupe, hands on her hips and laughing, asked Hippie to return her garden gems so she could bake some pies and cookies. Hippie raced and gathered the pumpkins as Morgan tried to hold the wheelbarrow steady, all the time talking about what they could do for their next adventure.

     The cool fall days began to get shorter and colder, and Hippie and Morgan waited anxiously for the first snow. Then one night while everyone was sleeping, it happened. The first snowfall! By the time the morning sun filtered through the falling crystals all the plants in the garden were now covered with a fresh layer of fluffy snow.

     Hippie jumped out of bed and ran outside, leaping and catching as many snowflakes on her tongue as she could. She was so excited and made enough noise that she woke a sleeping Morgan, who could be seen peering from her frosted Tyrannian style bedroom window.

      Moments later, the reserved Morgan appeared before Hippie dressed for the weather, unlike Hippie who chose to wear only a scarf in the mad rush. "What are you doing Hippie?" she inquired.

      "Having breakfast," Hippie replied. "Gulp, gulp. I love the snow and I want to use my new sled, but we don't have any big hills nearby!"

     Morgan thought for a moment, scratched her head and suggested, "Why don't we build our very own ice slide, so we can slide all winter?" Hippie agreed and filled with renewed excitement, bolted to gather as many supplies as she could carry (and she never once thought about using the wheelbarrow).

     The two found a secluded spot in Mrs. Lupe's backyard to begin the great task of building a slide. The project started out small, but Mrs. Lupe gave them a wagonload of old boarded-up windows to use as they saw fit and soon the plan for the slide grew bigger and bigger. Hammering, banging and the occasional "ouch" were heard for days. They worked together hauling many Feepit Bath buckets filled with water, pouring each bucketful carefully down the ramp of the slide on the cold nights.

     The slide grew and over the next few weeks, until the next big snowfall. That morning, when they went out to the slide it jutted out like the largest icicle around! It shimmered and glimmered in the morning sun, and the girls stood in great amazement at what they had accomplished.

     They played that day for hours. Neither one wanted to venture inside for anything but meals and to warm by the fire, and the occasional change of mittens. Then in the late afternoon as they were still sliding, a very loud rumble and a "crack" were heard. This stopped the girls in their tracks. Their eyes focused on the ice ramp as a crevice appeared making cracking sounds the length of the slide.

     "OH NO, our slide is ruined!" the two shocked and dazed Neopets said in unison. Dismayed they sat with their boots in the puddles of water formed from the drippings of the slide and the many tears they shed. With their heads in their hands, they sat very still all afternoon pouting.

     Suddenly, a bright glow appeared at the top of the slide! They sat wide-eyed and watched as a female figure approached. With a soft voice she said to them,

      "What's the matter little ones?" she whispered. "My name is Taelia, and I am the Faerie who lives atop Terror Mountain. I see you need some help mending your ice slide." Her soft voice calmed them as she wiped away their tears. She helped them to their feet and wrapped them in warm Taelia styled coats. The girls smiled sweetly, as Taelia, the most famous of all the faeries, was helping them! All the girls could do was nod in agreement and utter "uh huh".

     With that she breathed a long breath of cold air along the slide. A cloud of vapour filled the air and as she touched the slide it turned into crystal, preserving it forever! Not a blemish or imperfection could be found!

     After this she turned to them and said, "My darlings, may you always know the joys of playing in the freshly fallen snow." The wind picked up and it began to snow. Happily, the girls danced around. Turning to thank Taelia, they stared in amazement, as they watched her float away on cloud of snow. This left two bewildered creatures, with lovely new winter coats, to contemplate what had just happened…

     So, if you are out playing in the snow this winter keep your eyes to the sky! For you never know when your favourite faerie might lend you a hand!

The End