Sister, Could You Spare a Care?

      "Come on, Sto. I think it's sweet."

      "Kitty! You turned me into a GIRL!"

      "Like I said. Sweet."

      "What's next? Are you going to paint me disco?"

      "Who told you? It was supposed to be a secret…"

      "KITTY!"

      "I'm only kidding, for Coltzan's sake! You really need to lighten…"

      Ugh. Kitty's at it again. She has such a hot temper. I had every right to yell at her. She used that… thing… to turn me into a girl! I was just your average, gorgeous, male red Wocky, beautiful, but nooo, Kitty had to go change me! Don't get me wrong, I love her, but…well, let's just say that she's not exactly the most understanding person on the block.

      "And anyway," she continued with her lecture, "This experience will be good for your vanity."

      "Now wait just a minute!" I jumped to my own rescue. "I have many fine, glorious qualities, and out of them all, humility is one of my finest!" I don't know why I have to tell her this so often.

      Kitty just stared at me. She blinked.

      "By the way," she began, as I rolled my eyes at the prospect of more lecturing, but to my surprise, she continued, "While you, Mel, and Zhy were at school, I went to the pound…"

      This was starting to sound like… nah, it couldn't be.

      "And I… well, I…"

      This was not good. Kitty never stutters, unless she is about to break some important news, and is not sure how we pets will take it.

      "Well, she was just so cute…"

      "WHAT?"

      "I adopted Kastrena the red Usul."

      I tried to talk, but, as you have probably realized at one point or another in your life, it is hard to talk while you are hyperventilating. When I finally regained my speech, I exclaimed, "What? You drag me away from Neoschool right before a really cool science experiment, you drag me to the Lab Ray, you turn me into a girl, and now… this?"

      "Chill, Sto. You will like her."

      "No, I won't! Why do you need another pet? And a pound pet, at that!"

      "Sto, you are not even giving her a chance. Besides, you were a pound pet at one time, too!"

      "I… I'm different," I said. Don't remind me, I thought. "Can't you take her back? Get a refund, or something?"

      "It doesn't work that way! Sto, she is your sister!"

      "She is not! She is an abandoned pet! She belongs in the pound!"

      "She is your new sister and you will treat her like one."

      "Fine!" I shouted. "Just promise me one thing."

      "Depends on what it is."

      "If I turn myself into a boy again… you will take her back." Kitty looked at me strangely. "Promise?"

      "Sure… promise."

      We walked home in silence.

      As we walked up the street to our Neohome, Kitty started to lecture me…again. "Sto, remember, she is your -"

      "I know, already!" Kitty looked like she was on the verge of blowing up at me. Good. I was not going to be walked over without a fight.

      The closer we got, the more nervous I became. What if she was some stuck up, selfish brat? I simply can't stand pets like that.

      I took a deep breath as I turned the door handle. Whatever she was like, she would not be staying long. At least, not if I had anything to do with it.

      As soon as I walked in the door, I noticed Mel, my sister and best friend, and…her sitting on the couch.

      "Hey, Sto! This is Kassy. She…"

      "I know!" The red Acara stared at me. She looked a bit hurt, but not as much as this pet they called Kassy. I hate it when I hurt Mel's feelings, but I wanted to make sure that Kassy knew she was not welcome here. "Where's Zhy?"

      "She went to the Book Store," said Kassy. I glared at her, trying in vain to think of a witty remark.

      "Sto, shouldn't you be in your room finishing your schoolwork?" Kitty unknowingly saved me. I didn't have any homework, but I took the escape. Not that I couldn't stand up to this insolent Usul, but I needed to plan.

      Everyone watched as I stalked to my room.

      I curled up on my Royal Oak Bed and wondered how things could have gone so wrong. I decided to rethink things in the order that they happened. First, I woke up to the sound of Lainey, my Kookith, chirping, I ate my omelette, I went to Neoschool, Kitty…

      Kitty.

      She picked me up early. She took me to the Lab. She turned me into a girl. And she adopted Kassy. I hissed at her, remaining unsatisfied since I knew that she could not hear me. Oh, well. I'd get my revenge later. Right now I had to get to work.

      As I got off my bed, I remembered the Neopedia that Zhy had gotten me for my last birthday. I went over to my desk and pulled it out of the drawer. Looking through the pages one by one, it was a long time before I found what I wanted. First Zhy walked in, said good night, and went to sleep on her bed, then Kassy came and joined her. She said good night, but I "didn't hear". Finally, I found what I was looking for. I closed the book with a sigh of content. Tomorrow I would find this strange potion, turn back into a boy, and Kassy would go back to the pound. I smiled as I pictured her, bewildered, back in her cell at the pound, where she belonged. Maybe, if I was feeling nice, I'd tell one of my friends' owners about her, to prove that I'm not cruel. Which I'm not.

      I climbed into bed just minutes before Mel came in. She looked at me and said, "Kitty said that you and I will need to share a bed until we can get one for Kassy."

      "Good one," I said, laughing uneasily. Mel must have been joking. Mel always sleeps with Zhy. The blue Ixi likes having Mel next to her.

      But Mel was not smiling. "Seriously, Sto. Do you really think that Kassy, Zhy and I would fit on that bed?"

      "Why can't Kassy sleep on the floor?" I mumbled as she slid into bed. But Mel heard me.

      "Sto, you are being selfish. I had to share a bed with you when you first came home."

      "Ugh. I can deal with it… I guess. Besides, it will only be one night."

      "One night?"

      "Yeah." Then I explained to Mel my plan, pausing only when Kassy turned over in her bed. "So, you want to help?"

      "Sto! How could you? What has Kassy done to you?"

      "I can think of ten things…"

      "No, you can't! And anyway, even if she had, your plan is ridiculous! The Strange Potion? Do you know how much that cost?" I shook my head. "Two million Neopoints. There is no way Kitty will give you that much. For, Coltzan's sake, she doesn't even have that much!"

      "Well, I'll earn it myself! Goodnight!" It was obvious that Mel was not going to help me. Oh, well, first I needed to get a good night's sleep. I would need my energy tomorrow.

      After Neoschool the next day, I went straight home to pack a knapsack with things I would need during the day. I left a note and waltzed out the door. No sooner had I stepped foot in the front garden than a cheerful voice asked, "What are you doing?"

      I turned around, and there, to my annoyance, was Kassy. I was going to ignore her, but then I thought of a better idea. "I'm searching for a Strange Potion. You want to help?"

      She hesitated for a moment, and then replied, "Sure." The silly Usul. She didn't realize that she was contributing to her own return.

      "Great. You look, and I'll try to earn Neopoints in case you can't find one." I smiled as my naïve "sister" trotted off to search who-knows-where. "Wait!" I shouted after her. "Meet me in front of the food shop at eight-o-clock."

      It was seven fifty-five. Kassy was nowhere to be seen. A minute after eight, she ran up to me breathlessly.

      "Sorry I'm late," she said.

      "What took you so long?" I inquired, feeling perturbed that I couldn't control even this Usul. "I hope you found something in that extra minute you took."

      "Only this!" she exclaimed triumphantly, handing me a bottle filled with a weird colored liquid.

      "Wha…Where did you find it?" I asked, speechless.

      "The Air Faerie. Apparently she took a sudden liking to Usuls."

      I uncorked the bottle and peered inside. The liquid seemed to say, Drink me. Drink me, and all your problems will be over. You will have Kitty and your sisters all to yourself. This is the moment you've been waiting for.

      I knew that this was the moment I had been waiting for. Just as I was about to lift the bottle to my lips, all of my feelings of joy were drained. I looked over at Kassy, who was unusually still, and, by the single tear sliding down her cheek, I knew that she knew as well. But how? I may never know. But the real question was, why? She knew that I was going to make Kitty take her to the pound, and she still helped me? What pet in their right mind would do that?

      Suddenly the answer came to me. She helped me because she cared about me. As much as she wanted to have a new family, she wanted me to be happy. She cared more about me than she did herself. I blushed inwardly when I thought about how mean I had been.

      But who cared? As soon as I drank this, the deed would be done.

      An inward battle was going on. As my selfish desires began to be wiped out, I looked over at Kassy.

      "Drink it," she said. "It's what you want."

      That was the final straw. Kitty need never know. Zhy, either. Mel already knew my plans, but I could trust her to keep a secret.

      I felt no remorse as I let the fragile bottle slip from my hands. As I expected, it broke on contact. The liquid was absorbed immediately, but the slivers of glass remained, casting rainbows around like a prism.

      At that moment, I realized that I was selfish. I was rude.

      And maybe, but just maybe, I am a little vain.

The End

Woot, Woot! My first NT Story! Dedicated to my friends Lizard and Bug (sorry for using your mom's name for you).