The Greenest Glyme

    Stereotypical Glymes are green-bodied and fuschia-flowered, but this colony contained a plethora of different flower colors. Some Glymes had ruby red flowers while others had deep violet flowers. Many of the Glymes in this community were very proud of that fact, but it didn’t make them any less judgmental of one such Glyme out of the warm-toned colorway.

     Gladys the Glyme was said outlier. She had a green body like any other Glyme, but her flower was also green. Her mother swore up and down that she would grow out of it as her flower blossomed and bloomed, but no amount of growth changed the fact that her flower was the exact same shade as her slimy, sluggy body.

     Luckily, there was one slight advantage that Gladys possessed in being such a strange color…

     “Five, four, three, two… ONE! Ready or not, here I come!” Gary, Gladys’ childhood friend, called as he was “it” in their daily game of hide-and-go-seek.

     Gary slid his way under a series of rocks that were all claimed by Glymes of their colony, but to no avail. Then, he heard rustling under a pile of leaves just a few inches away.

     “Aha! I heard that, you silly snail! You can’t hide from me!” Underneath the top layer of leaves was Gerald, Gary’s little brother. Gerald had the lightest pink flower bud on his back, the envy of many of the Glyme parents in the community.

     “Oh, phooey!” Gerald exclaimed, his little eyebrows crinkled in frustration.

     “Alright, everyone! I found Gerald. He’s ‘it’ now. You can come out of hidiiiiing!” Gary sang in his victory.

     A few other neighborhood Glymes came out of their hiding places while they all watched Gladys simply open her eyes and slug towards them. Her coloring camouflaged her impressively well just behind a few blades of grass.

     “That is so not fair. I didn’t even see you there!” Gerald sighed, predicting his upcoming defeat.

     Gladys shrugged. “It’s the one upside to being a bit of a freak,” she said with a wink.

     * * *

     One day later that week, the cornucopia of Glymes watched a storm roll in from atop their rocks and logs. If there was one thing Glymes enjoyed more than eating a field of flowers, it was rain and storm-bound humidity. They all lounged with their families and friends in anticipation of what was to come.

     In the distance, thunder boomed and the small Petpetpets could feel a low vibration in their earthly homes. In just a few minutes, they watched as a light drizzle bathed their muculent little bodies.

     All of the Glymes broke out into an excited chatter as they wriggled in the rain.

     “Mom, isn’t this weather just so lovely?” Gladys asked her Mom, beaming.

     “Yes, yes it is, Gladys,” she responded, her lilac flower accumulating raindrops as she spoke. She gave her daughter a gentle nuzzle.

     Distracted by the nicety of the weather, the amalgamation of Glymes didn’t happen to notice a Weewoo circling above them. While the Petpet kept its distance, it still hovered over the group of Glymes suspiciously.

     In the distance, a blue Kougra recalled the Weewoo, inquisitively waiting for its Petpet’s response. The Weewoo cooed thrice, seemingly in a communicable pattern.

     “Good job, Wally,” the Kougra said in a whisper as it stroked the Weewoo’s head affectionately. “Let’s go.”

     The Neopet and Petpet pair stealthily approached the section of the glade where the Glymes were out enjoying the rain. The Kougra gingerly placed his paw on the handle of a net hanging from a clip on his back.

     Hearing a commotion a few yards away, Gladys’ senses perked up.

     "Did you hear that?” she said to her Mom.

     “Hear what, sweetie?” her Mom said, eyes closed in relaxation.

     Gladys was fixated on the part of the glade she heard rustling from, eyes unmoving. A few seconds later, she saw movement in the tall grass. The movement seemed to be approaching the gathering of Glymes.

     “Everybody! Get under your rocks and logs quickly. Something is coming our way!” Gladys yelled to the rest of the Glymes.

     Her Glyme comrades stared at her blankly, not reacting at all, but she persisted. “I mean it! Something is headed our way and it seems to be coming for us. Over there! Don’t you see it?” Gladys’ voice rose in urgency.

     Gary’s eyes followed her gaze and felt a pang of fear. “I see it too. We should hide, even if it ends up being nothing. Whatever it is seems to be approaching fast.” Gary motioned towards what caught their eyes.

     The Glymes agreed in unison as they made their way into and underneath their shelters. Since Gladys noticed the danger first, she felt responsible for getting everyone to safety.

     “I see them!” the Kougra whisper shouted in excitement, drawing his net. The Neopet appeared in view of the Glymes and they erupted in a cacophony of screams and exclamations.

     “His net! Do you see his net?”

          “Gladys was right! Run for cover!”

     “He’s trying to catch us!!!”

     The Weewoo circled the Glyme, nosediving into the group of Petpetpets with an open-beak, nearly missing an elderly Glyme with a bright fuchsia flower.

     “Over here! Over here!” Gladys yelled to the Glyme who almost got caught by the Weewoo as she directed her towards the cover of a rotting tree branch.

     “Gary, take my Mom under our rock. You’ll be safe there,” Gladys said with an even, yet stern tone. Gary nodded as they slid away to safety.

     At this time, the Kougra was upon them. His net was drawn and ready to capture the few remaining Glyme. Thinking fast, Gladys knew what she had to do to protect her community.

     At the last moment, the green Glyme jumped atop two of her smaller counterparts who were frozen in fear - twin Glymes who were separated from their parents and didn’t know where to go.

     “Stay still and be as quiet as you can,” Gladys whispered to them reassuringly. “It’s going to be okay. I promise.”

     Gladys held her breath and closed her eyes, remaining as motionless as possible. The final few Glymes made their way into hiding and it was as if the Petpetpets were never there in the first place.

     “Darn it! I think we approached too quickly…” The Kougra said, searching for any remaining Glymes to be swooped up in his Petpetpet-catching netnetnet.

     Gladys’ green flower on her green body blended in with the low-lying vegetation that surrounded the clumps of grass around her. She protected the Glymes beneath her, appearing to be just another plant among the herbage.

     The Kougra lifted a few unlucky rocks to find no Glymes beneath them. He snickered in disappointment.

     “Come on, Wally. It’s time to go. Let’s go to our usual spot and see if we can catch any Draphly or Springabee.” The Kougra turned around with Wally the Weewoo in tow.

     Once the predatory pair were out of sight, the Glymes started to emerge from hiding and crowded around Gladys and her two rescuees.

     “Gladys! Gladys! Gladys!” The crowd cheered. For the first time in her life, Gladys felt acceptance. Her tiny Glyme eyes filled with tears.

     “I never realized that your green flower made such good camouflage!” said a voice from the crowd.

     “You saved their lives! You’re a hero!” gushed another voice.

     After the crowd died down, it was just Gladys, Gary, Gerald, and Gladys’ mother.

     “I’m so proud of you, lovebug,” her mother said. “I’ve never seen a braver Glyme than you!” She chuckled.

     “Yeah, Gladys. You really are courageous!” Gerald squealed in a shrill, high-pitched voice.

     “Thanks, everyone,” Gladys responded. “You know, being the greenest Glyme might just be a blessing in disguise.”

     The group smiled from earhole to earhole and climbed atop the nearest rock to enjoy the rest of the rain.

     The End.