Wintry White

     Nabile knocked on the door of her husband's study. "Jazan?"

     "Hm?", the Kyrii King answered, whilst he was looking over some paperwork.

     "I just got mail from Brynn."

     "Oh? About our trip?"

     "Yes, precisely... she says she won't be able to travel since she isn’t feeling all too well, and, of course, Hanso doesn't want to leave her alone, so..."

     Jazan sighed. "I understand. It's a shame."

     "Yes, it is... but... I still want to go, though, I don't know about you."

     "... No, I do!"

     Nabile looked at him, amused. "To the snowy mountains of the Southern Isle? You, Jazan the fourth, who hates the cold?"

     "Anything for you, my darling", the Kyrii exclaimed chivalrously.

     "Good, my King", she teased. "Huh. But since we had made reservations for four people, we'll need to take two more with us... huh, what about your mother and her husband?"

     Jazan shook his head. "No, Mother hates the cold more than I do, and given her age, I fear the cold wind might ail her..."

     "Someone just called me old. I can sense it." That was Nida, who just so happened to be passing by the door of her son's study. She walked inside. "Ah, good morning, son", she greeted. Jazan just stared at her nervously. How long had she been standing outside?

     "What's going on?", the Kyrii asked.

     "Brynn and Hanso won't be able to join us on our trip", Nabile explained.

     "Ah, well, too bad", Nida simply replied.

     "But we still want to go, yet we have two extra reservations left, and we were considering inviting you and Idan to go with us, but Jazan said you don't like the cold."

     "Ugh. Yes. I despise it with every fiber of my being. And Idan wouldn't be able to go, either, as the cold isn't good for his health." She mused, "Hm, why won't you take Amil and Lina with you?" Jazan blinked. "What? You're not going to tell me they're too young to go with you. They're not, they're teenagers. And all they know is this desert, which is nice, of course, but it would be good for them to see the world, you know? A trip like this would be great for them. I don't doubt they'd be delighted to join you... unless you were seeking to have some time just for the two of you, which is also fine."

     "No, no, that's fine", Nabile said. "Right, dear?"

     "Yes, that's alright", Jazan replied.

     "Good! Then I shall tell them-"

     "Yaaaay!"

     And that was Amil and Lina, who were standing behind the door.

     Amil swallowed nervously. "Oh, hi, mom, we were just-"

     "Eavesdropping? You're not supposed to do that, Ami."

     "Sorry, mom."

     "Oh well, son, all is well. But don't do it again."

     "Sure, mom."

     "So, are we going on a trip with Jazi and Nabile??", beamed Lina. "Yay! Where are we going?"

     Jazan said, "We're going to the snowy mountains of the Southern Isle. It's wintertime over there, so we'll have to buy some winter clothes for you two... ah..."

     "What's wrong, Jazi?", asked Lina.

     "Nothing, sweetie."

     "He's not precisely excited about the idea of wearing winter clothes and being in winter", giggled Nabile.

     "Ah", giggled Lina as well. "But then why are we going there?"

     Nabile explained, "It was Hanso's suggestion."

     "Oh? And Jazi just agreed to that so easily?", inquired Nida, surprised.

     The queen explained, "No, it's just that it was his turn to pick the trip's destination... given our four-year-old tradition of going on vacation, each of us have picked a different place to go each year."

     "Ooooh, I see", said Lina.

     Nabile smirked mischievously. "And given Jazi's tendency to stay here in the desert, like when we went to Kheru last year, that was alright, but going on a fun trip means going far away from home, y'know, and Hanso's own liking for the cold, I suppose that's why he chose the snowy mountains. From what we've been told, they're beautiful! I- no, we really look forward to going there. Right, my dear?"

     Jazan nodded unenthusiastically, mentally preparing himself for the cold that was awaiting him.

     A few days later, they set out to the Southern Isle. They eventually arrived at a cabin set amongst tall, lush green, snow-covered pines, all on top of bright white snow.

     "We're here!", Nabile said gleefully.

     "Yay!", exclaimed Amil and Lina.

     "Yay...", said Jazan, not as enthusiastically.

     "Oh, cheer up, grumpyface", teased Nabile as she twirled around gracefully. "Isn't this lovely?"

     He mumbled, beneath his scarf and tons of layers, "Yes. But it's cold."

     "Well, it's snow! It's supposed to be cold. But it's pretty!"

     He couldn't stay angry seeing her so happy. "Well, if you say so, my darling."

     They then proceeded to enter the cabin - it was cozy. They sat on their respective beds as they put away their luggage.

     "So...I have to share a bed with Ami?", asked Lina.

     "Yes, sweetie", said Nabile. "Why, is there a problem?"

     "Yeah", chuckled Lina, "He snores!"

     "H-hey! N-no I don't!", stuttered Amil angrily.

     "Yeah you do."

     "I don't!"

     "You do!"

     "Alright, you two", interrupted Jazan. "Don't get into a fight."

     "Sorry", both said.

     "It's fine", he said. "We should go eat something, I'm starving, but that means we'd have to go..."

     "Outside?", asked Nabile."

     "Ugh. Yes."

     The Pink Ixi couldn't help but giggle.

     "Come on, dummy, it'll be fun!", she said.

     "If you say so, my love...", he groaned.

     Later that day, the Kyrii and Ixi couple was sitting on a bench in a park.

     "This is nice", sighed Nabile.

     "Yes...", said Jazan.

     "Oh, good to finally see you agreeing on something since we arrived here", jested the Ixi.

     The Kyrii pointed, "Eh, well, anything to make you happy, Nabile."

     "But, are you happy, Jazan?", she asked, a bit worried.

     "Yes, Nabile, I am", he said sincerely. "Seeing you happy warms my heart. I love you, and your happiness is more important than me complaining about the weather. As a matter of fact, I must admit, it's not so bad, I've actually come to enjoy it-" He was interrupted by his wife leaning in to kiss him. He tenderly kissed her back, and, drawing apart, both blushed and smiled, chuckling softly.

     They had been married for nearly seventeen years now, but they still loved each other deeply, like young newlyweds whose love had blossomed into something beautiful.

     A few moments later, they rose up and walked around the park, holding hands and chatting. Then they stood in silence. Nabile was watching the falling snow with childish wonder, whilst Jazan was struggling not to shiver beneath the multiple layers of clothing he was wearing.

     Suddenly, however, the Ixi felt someone tug her dress coat.

     "Huh?"

     She turned to see, and saw a tiny White Kyrii girl with big red eyes looking at her pleadingly. "Oh no, Jazan, look!", she exclaimed, and kneeled down to the girl's height, asking, "Are you alright, sweetie? Are you lost?"

     The girl only rubbed her eyes, sobbing softly. Nabile scooped her up and held her in her arms, and comforted her. "There, there, sweetie. You're safe with us."

     Jazan approached and touched her face. "She's so... cold", he gasped. "Here, give her my scarf", he uttered as he promptly took off the blue piece of fabric and gave it to his wife, who then put it on the girl. "What cruel soul would abandon a child?", he asked, anguish in his voice.

     "I don't know, Jazi", replied Nabile. "Let's take her back to the cabin to take care of her until we can find her parents."

     So the couple made their way back to the cabin...

     ...unaware that they were being watched.

     Amil and Lina had stayed near the cabin to play.

     The young Eyrie was gazing upon the snowy fields, enjoying his time there.

     "Hey, Ami, look!", called Lina. Amil turned around, and saw that his younger sister had built two snowpets in their likeness.

     "Oh, these are seriously cool!", he smiled.

     "I know, right?", the Kyrii said proudly. "Wait 'til Jazi sees them! I still need to make one of Nabile and him, though, hmm..." She looked up, and saw someone coming. "Look! There they come!", she beamed, waving frantically.

     As the couple drew closer, however, both siblings noticed the child Nabile was carrying in her arms. "Huh?", exclaimed Lina. "Who's that?"

     "Is she hurt?", Amil asked Nabile, as they finally arrived.

     "She doesn't appear to be... but... we're not sure yet. We found her in the park. She seems to be lost and hungry. We're going to take care of her until we can find her parents... Lina", she asked the young Kyrii, "Would you help me bathe her?"

     "Sure!", she replied. So Nabile and Lina went inside the cabin to tend to the child, while Jazan and Amil stayed outside.

     "Poor girl!", exclaimed the Eyrie.

     "Yes..." agreed Jazan. "I wonder...", he began, but then went silent. He sighed. He was pained at seeing a poor child lost and scared... and, being a father, it hit him differently than it would have before he became one.

     He turned around and noticed the snowpets. "By the way, are those snowpets intended to be you and Lina?", he asked his little brother.

     "Yeah!", the Eyrie smiled. "Lina made them. They're pretty cool, huh?"

     "Yes, they are!"

     Not long after, Lina came outside. "Hey, you two! You can come in now", she said.

     So the Kyrii and Eyrie made their way inside.

     "So, how is the girl?", asked Jazan.

     "Oh, she's better now!", exclaimed Lina, and pointed at the child, who was drinking hot cocoa from a tiny mug. Nabile sat beside her, helping her grasp it.

     "Oh, thank goodness", sighed Jazan in relief.

     The younger Kyrii nodded. "Yeah! There is, however, one thing..."

     "Huh?"

     They didn't have to wait for an answer - the girl sneezed, revealing a pair of small dark grey wings emerging from her back. Thankfully, though, she didn't drop the mug.

     "She has wings?", asked Amil.

     "Yup!", Lina replied. "Weird, huh? I've never seen a Kyrii with wings before..."

     Jazan approached her to examine her more closely, and sat on the floor. "Was she hurt?", he whispered to Nabile, as he caressed the girl's little face.

     "Just a few scrapes, nothing major", Nabile replied.

     Jazan nodded, and turned to the girl. "Hi, sweetie... what's your name?" But the girl only blinked in reply, and shyly looked down at her cup. "It's alright, we won't hurt you... you're safe here." Still, she didn't give an answer. She had finished her cocoa, so Nabile took the mug and took it to the kitchen. Jazan picked her up, lovingly holding her in his arms, close to his chest, in a warm, fatherly embrace.

     Amil asked him, "Jazi?"

     "Hm?", he replied absent-mindedly, without averting his gaze from the child.

     "Why do you think she has wings?"

     "I don't know, Ami... but that's not all that important", he said softly. "What really is, however, is getting her back to her home safe." Amil nodded.

     Lina sat by them. "I do want to know why she has wings, though", she said. "I wish I had wings, my dad being an Eyrie and all. But... ah, whatever. I'm sure my complaints are nothing compared to what she has gone through."

     The group looked at the small Kyrii girl sadly, wondering why life had been so unjust to her at such a young age...

     Early the following morning, the family was getting ready to go outside, so as to start looking for the child's parents.

     Nabile had washed the girl's little red dress coat, and was accommodating it on her. She smiled at the child, trying to get a similar reaction out of her, but the child still looked sad and scared, albeit less than before. The Ixi kissed the little Kyrii's forehead, and picked her up.

     "Where should we start looking?", asked Lina.

     "Her home must not be far, I don't think a child her age could've wandered long", said Jazan.

     As they were leaving the cabin, they stopped as they saw an unfamiliar figure standing in the middle of the snowy road.

     It was a White Zafara with shoulder-length pale blond hair. His eyes were a bright red, just like the little Kyrii girl's, and was wearing a dark red coat. The most unusual of these details, though, was...

     "Oh, look, he has wings too!", gasped Lina.

     He had large white wings, which he promptly extended so as to take flight, having been scared away by the family.

     "Hey! You! Come back!", yelled Lina as he chased after him.

     He was flying away, but since he wasn't paying attention because he was looking at the young Kyrii in fear, he crashed into a tree and fell.

     "Ow...", he exclaimed, while rubbing his throbbing head. He then looked up and saw Lina coming, and tried to flee again.

     "Wait!", she said. "Don't go. We won't hurt you." So he stopped. "Who are you?", she asked him, but he didn't reply. As the rest of her family approached, she noticed he looked intently at the White Kyrii girl. "You got anything to do with her?"

     "She's... my friend", he said, approaching timidly. "I've been looking for her since yesterday. She wandered off, and-"

     "Whoa whoa whoa. Answer my question first", insisted Lina, standing between him and Nabile, who was holding the child. "Who are you?!"

     The Zafara blinked, "Oh, my name is Noel. I could ask the same about you, though. I can see you're not from around here."

     "I'm Lina", the Yellow Kyrii said. "And this is my family, my brothers Amil and Jazan and his wife Nabile-"

     "Jazan as in King Jazan?", Noel interrupted. "Oh my goodness", he said as he promptly bowed. "Your Highness."

     "That's alright, please, stand up", the Kyrii said. "Tell us, who is this child?"

     "She's my friend, White", Noel explained. "We live in an orphanage not far from here..."

     "So she's an orphan?", asked Nabile sadly.

     "Yes, so am I", replied the Zafara.

     "How old are you?", asked Amil.

     "I'm fifteen, she's five."

     "Oh, fifteen, just like me!", Amil exclaimed.

     "Five... that's Tali's age", whispered Jazan to himself, referring to his youngest daughter. This saddened him more.

     White, who was sleeping, awoke and saw Noel. "Noel!", she said, happily extending her arms in his direction. The Zafara approached Nabile, and took the child from her arms.

     "Hey, little buddy", he smiled, hugging her tightly. "You scared me. Where were you?"

     She said sheepishly, "I... um... I don't know, Noel, I got lost."

     "But don't do that ever again, okay? I... you... you are like my little sister, and my reason for living."

     "Okay, Noel."

     "Good... then... let's go back home."

     "But I don't want to go, Noel. I want to stay with them", she said, pointing at the family.

     "White, they don't live here, and can't stay... and this place is our home. I don't want to go." The Kyrii pouted. "I'm sorry, buddy..."

     "Can we... accompany you?", offered Jazan.

     Noel blinked. "Huh?"

     The Kyrii continued, "At least, until you get home... I- No, we're curious so as to where you live."

     "And as to who you are, people", asked Lina. "If you're not related, then why do both of you have wings? I need answers!"

     "Well... then, follow us."

     So they followed the Neopet down the snowy path, going through a dense pine forest and finally ending up in a village... a village of winged Neopets.

     "Whoa, more winged Neopets!", exclaimed Lina. "That's so cool! But it still doesn't answer my question, though. Who are you people?!"

     Noel sighed and approached a big statue of various winged Neopets. Then he pointed at the inscription on the plaque. It read:

     SNOW ANGELS

     "Snow angels, huh?", asked Lina. "Cool! But what are you guys?"

     "She asks many questions, this one", Noel said, unamused. "We are a race of winged Neopets. We protect these mountains and their inhabitants. That's pretty much it about us."

     "Then why do you hide up here?"

     The Zafara explained, "Me? Uh, because I'm a nervous wreck and horribly shy. As for the rest of us, uh, we're not really hidden, people come here all the time to visit... but a lot don't come because they'd rather not go through the pine forest because they fear they might get attacked by the Shadow Prowlers, a faction of sinister thieves that roam our land and constantly annoy us." He looked intently at the Yellow Kyrii. "Satisfied, miss Lina?"

     She stared at him intently, crossing her arms. "...yes."

     "Noel!", someone called. It was a winged Silver Wocky. "Oh, thank goodness you're okay!", she hugged him. "And you brought back White!" She gently took the child from his arms, and hugged her as well. "Where were you, you little prankster?"

     "She got lost, and they found her", Noel explained, referring to the family.

     "Oh, thank you so much!", the Wocky said. "I'm Wendy, um, one of the people who runs the orphanage. Nice to meet you all, um-"

     "That's Lina, Amil, Jazan and Nabile-"

     "Oh! Oh my goodness! As in King Jazan and Queen Nabile? Your Highnesses!", she said as she slightly bowed, still with the young Kyrii in arms.

     "That's alright", Nabile said. "You don't need to bow, we're on vacation here..."

     "Oh! That's wonderful!" she smiled. "We're honoured to have you both here- a-and, of course, the children, um, are they yours?"

     "No, these are my youngest siblings. I have nine of those, actually", Jazan said.

     "Oh! You have siblings! I-I had no idea! That's nice!", Wendy continued. "C-come! W-we'll prepare something for you-"

     "No, that's alright", said both monarchs.

     "Please, I insist! You're our guests."

     The family looked at each other, shrugged, and gladly accepted the invitation.

     They were treated to a simple meal, but, nonetheless, it was an enjoyable time.

     Nabile and Jazan were sitting next to each other, as they watched Amil and Lina play with White, Noel and the other kids in the orphanage.

     "Hey, Jazan?", asked Nabile softly.

     "Mm?"

     "You're awfully quiet."

     He teased, "I am awfully quiet, Nabile."

     She chuckled. "Right... but... you've been a different type of quiet, my dear. Everything alright?"

     He sighed. "No... it's just that... seeing the poor little girl so lost and scared... I don't know, it shatters my heart into pieces."

     "I know, sweetie, I feel that way about it, too..."

     He began "I wish...", but then he trailed off.

     "What, sweetie?"

     "Nothing."

     "No, you were going to say something. What is it?"

     He sighed. "I wish we could help her, somehow."

     "Me too. But what do you mean by 'help'? Adopt her?"

     He was surprised. "Wh-wha- I-I didn't-" But Nabile smiled at him lovingly. Well, what was he to expect? They had been married for nearly two decades. She knew him like the back of her hand.

     "Jazi... I know you want to help her, but... four children are a handful already, aren't they?"

     He chuckled nervously, embarrassed. "Y-yes..."

     "And... well, despite everything, she seems quite happy here, with Noel being an older brother to her... I don't know, taking that away from her would hurt her, at least, that's my opinion..."

     "Yes... you're right. But... I don't know, what could we do?"

     She said sadly, "I don't think there's anything we can do this time, Jazi." Both sighed.

     Suddenly, Jazan rambled, "Maybe... maybe I could ask Kieran if he... could help her... no, them, she and Noel, somehow... I-I don't know if he knows about this village- well, he must know, he's the king, I know every inch of my own city. I-I-"

     Nabile tugged him by the coat and kissed him. Jazan blinked, dumbfounded. "...that's a 'shut up, dummy, everything will be alright, stop rambling' kiss, right?", he uttered weakly. She smiled. "Alright then..."

To be continued…