The Sisterhood of Terra and Phee: Part Three

      "Terra!" The Pink Uni calls her name so enthusastically, it's almost frantic. I couldn't discern what else she said. It was too low for my still-dreaming brain. It was too fast. We were just waking up when she came in. It's a Tuesday. When we passed the menu board last night at supper, I noticed when I looked under 'Tuesday's Meals!' that we weren't having tacos. I should have known right then.

      My eyes bolt open, then slide closed, then bolt open again. Mornings are not my strength.

      "What's going on?" I ask, sitting up in bed, mane a royal mess.

      Terra was getting dressed as quickly as possible. "I don't know. She said it's really important, though, and I need to get ready fast."

      I frown. "Let me get my stuff on," I say, glancing down at my pajamas. Whatever it was, this probably wasn't proper clothing for it.

      "Uhm..." she bit her lip. "She said it's just for me. But don't worry!" she hastens to add. "I'll tell you all about it when I get back. Whatever it is." Her lips smile, but her eyes seem conflicted about whether or not they mean it.

      I lean back against my pillow as she runs out the door. I don't know what's going on, but I don't like it.

      So I decide to follow her.

      Stealth has never been my forte, but following Terra when she was nervous like this was easy. A piece of cake, as it were. Nothing could break her focus from what was up ahead. The mystery was too intriguing to allow space for thought of anything else.

      And then I saw the doors. Two of them, made of glass. One of the offices was the main Pound office.

      The other, on the right, was Adoptions.

      And there, holding the door open, is the Pink Uni with a clipboard. Beyond the glass, I see a boy who looks about as old as our mom had been. He's bouncing his leg up and down, biting his lip and looking nervous. His eyes shift left and right, uncertainty showing in them. He takes Neopoints out of his pockets and counts them, then counts them again.

      He takes a deep breath.

      Terra takes a deep breath.

      The Pink Uni grins.

      Terra steps inside.

      I can't breathe.

      I pace our room, back and forth, like a caged petpet. I cry. I smack the bunk bed frame with the bottom of my hoof. I try to breathe. I try to think clearly. I try, and try, and try to look calm.

      Not because I'm angry.

      Because I know what's about to happen. I know what I'll have to say. And I know with my entire heart, the whole of it, that I will never regret it. But I also knew that life will never be the same.

      By the time Terra comes back, my mind is numb. I can't hurt any more than I already do. I can't be more joyful than I already am. I can't cry, can't laugh.

      I register the energy in her step. The buzzing excitement. And the tears.

      "Phee, don't get mad, okay?" is the first thing I hear her say.

      "I'm not mad," I whisper, my voice barely a breath. Barely a sigh.

      "He was at the Heartfelt Valentine's Cafe & Gift Shop. He saw me and asked the manager if he knew anything about me. The manager knew we were from the Pound." She lifts her wrist to reference the identifying bands we wear when on outings, in case we get lost or hurt, much like a Baby pet at a theme park might wear. "So he told him. The boy didn't know we were sisters."

      "I'm not mad," I repeat. Of course it was always going to be like this.

      "I'm sorry," she says, and sits down on my bunk. I sit beside her, ready to say goodbye. Or as ready as I'll ever be.

      I summon my strength. I know her answer. But I have to ask. "Are you going?"

      She hiccups and sniffles. And shakes her head. "Not without you."

      Which is what I knew she'd say. Before she even went in, it's what I knew she'd say. Because I'd seen the boy counting his Neopoints so nervously. He didn't have enough for both of us. And Terra was, well, Terra. Even though she'd been waiting forever for this, just like I had, she would focus on the second part of that sentence rather than the first.

      'Just like I had.' Not 'she'd been waiting forever.' Because that's who she was. That's exactly why I say what I do next.

      "You have to go," I say. Which only makes her more upset. "Terra, hey! Look at me. You have to go. I want you to go. It doesn't mean we won't be sisters anymore. It just means goodbye for a little while."

      She shakes her head. "I already told him no. I said I didn't want him to be my n-new...owner." She can barely get the word out.

      I look up at the light on the ceiling and blink once, twice, a thousand times. Trying to stay strong. Because of course she said that. If she hadn't, this wouldn't be so hard.

      "Okay," I say, without meaning it. I hug her, tight, like I'll never let go. She relaxes slighly, and hugs me back.

      But in reality it's less like I'll never let go. It's more like I'll never see her again.

      If I get my way, maybe I won't.

      On the next outing, I tell her I have to look for something important. A gift, I say, that I've been saving to get her for the Day of Giving, which is coming up soon.

      It's not entirely a lie.

      I've done my snooping. I've asked the right people all the right questions, conversed with the sneakiest pets in the Pound. And here I have it, ink on a scrap of notebook paper. Ink in little lines and curls that hold all the power in Neopia.

      I walk up to a Neohome. It's modest. Not shabby, but not impressive. I may be too late by now. It's been a month, after all. There are so many pets in the Pound to choose from. I know my sister is the best one there, the kindest, the brightest in all the right ways. But that doesn't mean he does.

      But when he opens the door, I don't see any pets behind him. I don't hear paws or hooves or wings. No one shouts from the depths of the Neohome, "Who is it?" It is just him.

      He frowns, not unkindly. "Can I help you?" He notices the band on my wrist. "Are you lost? You can come inside while we figure out where the rest of the group is." He gestures to a modest-looking couch in his livingroom.

      "No, no," I say. "I'm here about Terra, actually."

      His face lights up momentarily, and then falls. He sighs. "I don't suppose she's changed her mind?"

      "No," I say, and his face falls even more, like a dreadfully failed bread loaf caved in. "But you need to know why. And you need to try again."

      "I don't see that trying again would help. I already visited the Adoption center and asked to speak to her once after that first visit. She didn't even want to see me. I don't know what I could have done to offend her so much."

      Terra had never told me about that second visit.

      "Did she ask you, by any chance..." I hesitate on how to say it. "Uhm, did she ask you about your...Neopoints?"

      He thinks for a moment. "Actually..." his face clears with remembrance. "She did ask something about that. If I had any other pets at home. If I'd be adopting any pets other than her. I told her that I'm new to town, and I hardly have enough Neopoints to care for one pet. But that I want so badly to have a pet to love and care for. I assured her she'd be happy here. But I don't think she believed me." He shrugs. "I've been looking at Stocks, the Food Club, different games I can make Neopoints from. Maybe if I come back with a better Neohome to offer, or gourmet food, she'll be okay with coming home. I mean," he corrects, "coming with me."

      "Why her?" I ask bluntly. "There are so many other pets who need cared for. Why not pick one of them?"

      "There's something about her." He shakes his head. "You can tell things about pets and owners sometimes, you know? About their attitudes and personalities. About if you'd be a good fit or not. I had a feeling we would be. When I found out she was in the Pound, I was so unhappy for her, but so glad I had the opportunity, you know? To at least try. And then we had that meeting, and my instinct had been correct. We got along so well. Made each other laugh. We had a lot of things to talk about, and I know she'd love it here. But when I said I didn't have enough Neopoints to care for anyone but her and myself, she just...shut down."

      So it really was for Terra's sake that he cared so much. Because of her wit. Her personality. Her wonderful, wonderful laugh.

      "Anyway." He shakes his head, looks at me, and smiles weakly. "Thanks for listening to me. You're so easy to talk to. Has anyone ever told you that?"

      I smile back briefly. He seems nice. If either he or Terra could have been just a little more harsh, just a little less like the good pet and owner I can tell they are, I wouldn't have to be doing this.

      "I have something to tell you," I say. "And I don't really know how you'll take it. The thing is, it's not your Neopoints that she's concerned with, so much as it is me."

      He tilts his head to the side, and waits for me to continue.

      "You see, I'm her sister..."

      His face lights up. Not the response I was expecting, for sure.

      "So it really isn't about the Neopoints."

      I shake my head. No. Just me. Effectively keeping her from her biggest dream in life -- having a home.

      "She doesn't want to leave without you," he says, more of a statement than a question.

      I shrug one shoulder. What kind of sibling would?

      "I would adopt you, too, if I could," he says. "In fact, I almost asked about you, too, but thought it would be wise not to. Since I didn't want to get carried away and not be able to take care of the pets I adopt," he adds by way of explanation. "But I understand now. And I won't stop trying. I don't know how I could possibly make enough Neopoints fast enough, but..." he scratches the back of his neck and a thoughtful expression takes residence in his eyes. "Maybe someday I can come back for both of you."

      My heart leaps. This wasn't what I was aiming for. But it's better. It could work. Even if he doesn't mean it.

      "Tell her that," I say emphatically. "Go back to the Pound. Ask her again. Tell her you'll bring me home, too, one day. Maybe then she'll say yes."

      He gives me a long, hard look. "You really love her, don't you?"

      I swallow with difficulty. My mouth is dry. I may have succeeded.

      "More than anything."

      To be continued…