Enduring The Heat

     That being mentioned, I was not at all pleased with the move Pink had decided upon.

     The thing you should know about Pink is that she gets rather restless if she remains in one place for too long. Thus far, we have already resided in Neopia Central, Roo Island, Faerieland, Tyrannia, and Maraqua (not in that order). The latter was possibly the most difficult to adapt to.

     Until now, that was. For whatever ungodly reason, Pink had decided that it would be a good idea to move to the Lost Desert.

     First of all, how does anybody even get to the 'Lost Desert'. It's supposed to be lost, right? But if people are moving there, that's a bit deceptive.

     Secondly, at what point did she think that I, a chocolate pet, would enjoy basking in the fiery sun of a desert? I suppose I should answer my own question: she obviously didn't think. Pink never thinks. I wouldn't be surprised if, at some point, she decides fire is a better color for me and that she misses Maraqua. The girl isn't the brightest bulb.

     All bitterness aside, I was dreading the move from the very moment of which I knew about it. I tried reasoning with her; I made charts. Still, she waved off my concern as nothing and pranced back to her duties. Yes, pranced. I told you, the girl's a nut, and not even the good kind.

     On the day of the move, I was writing out my will when I decided that perhaps I had been going about this the entirely wrong way. Sure, the Lost Desert would inevitably be hot, but what of the good things? Grabbing my copy of the Neopian Encyclopedia (K through O) from the bottom of a box, I flipped to the first page of the entry on the Lost Desert. I grimaced at the reports of the lack of water, of frequent hostile take-overs and deceit, and of bugs. However, there were definitely some interesting aspects. It looked as if they had some absolutely fascinating architecture, history that spanned centuries, and a plethora of activities that I would simply have to try. In the end, I managed to psych myself up for the move.

     At the time, Pink and I had been living Faerieland, where the air was always cool and the citizens polite. It was a dream of a land, and despite the success of exciting myself about the move, I found myself growing more apprehensive the farther we traveled from the beautiful cloud in the sky. Faerieland had been a haven of sorts, where I had bathed in the Healing Springs, spent time during the summer at the Poogle Races, and frequently completed jobs at the Faerieland Employment Agency. Life had been good there; I didn't know what to expect from the almost savage-appearing land of the Lost Desert.

     Sand is what I first encountered. In all of my fretting up to the day, I had never even wondered how I would handle the acres of sand. I am a simple Neopian, not often concerned about clothing. Pink frequently attempts to dress me up in whatever is 'the latest fashion', but I usually manage to evade actually having to put the garments on. That being said, I don't wear shoes, and that was a severe oversight on my part, for when I first stepped out of the transport on which we'd arrived, my chocolatey foot (which was already a little gooey from the heat) attracted the tiny, irritating particles like the Bug Brothers to neopoints. And, of course, throughout the days of stay, constant sand storms absolutely coated me in sand. It was in my eyes, ears, toes; I couldn't get rid of it. But like the trooper I was, I took a deep breath, held my head high, grabbed my suitcase and boxes, and told myself to only look ahead.

     What was ahead was our new house, if you could even call it that. It was really just a hole in a brick wall. Back in Faerieland, everything in our house had been so elegant. Here, we couldn't even sweep because, honestly, what would be the point?

     But again, I forced myself to remain positive. So there was sand in my fur and now in my home? So what? The Lost Desert had plenty to offer, and I was going to go investigate it.

     After organizing most of what had been within boxes, I decided to wander around the land. I checked out the Sakhmet first, browsing through each tent with interest. I found that I rather liked the selection of petpets here, particularly the Turtmid. I made a note to ask Pink for one later.

     The Food Stall was next. While the Pyramicake and Sutek Muffin both looked tasty, the rest did not. Sand Apple? Scorched Gobi Fruit? Dust Covered Salad? Mummy Burrito? I really hoped that Pink would not be grocery shopping among this selection. Sand in my fur and home was one thing; sand in my food – sand for food – was entirely different.

     Finding nothing else of interest in the food selection, I quickly found several different games that my new home had to offer. I tried my hand at the Fruit Machine first. To my surprise and delight, I won fifty neopoints and a Tchea Fruit. I snacked on my prize as I continued through the city, playing Scarab 21, Sakhmet Solitaire, and Geos without any further luck.

     When the city had been thoroughly examined, I ventured out into the open of the Lost Desert. By this time, I felt the cream upon my head already melting (I may have actually lost my cherry at this point), but my curiosity was fervent, and I could not help but continue on.

     I found a few things within the desert that I enjoyed, Sutek's Tomb and the lovely river cutting between the desert being a few. In reverse, I found that I was no good at Tug-O-War.

     In my exhaustion, I paid no attention to the ruins of Qasala. That would be an adventure for another day. I had already worn out the tourist attractions in both Sakhmet and the Lost Desert; it was time to rest.

     Even as the sun was setting, it held a blistering heat beyond comparison. When I finally managed the trip back home, all I could think about was how much I wanted to climb into bed, listen to my copy of Philharmonic's latest release, and sleep.

     If you've concluded that, upon arrival, something else happened, then you are a very smart individual indeed. Have you ever tried your hand at the Lenny Conundrum?

     See, throughout the day, I had lacked a certain self-awareness. Pink, on the contrary, was very aware. When I was just a few steps away from my new room, I heard a shrill scream like no other. “There is chocolate EVERYWHERE. Clean this up RIGHT NOW, young man. And look at you! The lab finally gave me something to work with, and now you've gone and melted! A plain blue Kacheek? What's so impressive about that? I swear, I'm never wasting anything expensive on you again. Ugh. And go take a shower. You REEK!”

     I didn't stop for her shouts; I simply trudged along and collapsed onto my bed, praying that the next place we moved to would be more accommodating.

The End