Somewhere

     While others think it may just be a myth...

     Only one Neopian has ever seen it...

     However, that was long, long ago. Much too long ago for the average Neopian to remember...

     So, most of Neopia lives in denial of its existence...

     But not Celeste. No, Celeste knew that it was still out there...

     Somewhere....

     Celeste sat, eating a slice of snow pizza. She had always loved cold pizza for breakfast. The young cloud Bori yawned and stretched. Then she ran outside, only to be blocked by her mother, an orange Lupe.

     “Young lady, were you planning on putting on a jacket?”

     “Well...” Celeste looked around the room, as if an excuse was hidden within the light-blue walls of her neohome.

     “Celeste, just go get a coat on.”

     Celeste hopped across the room, grabbed her Taelia style coat, and put it on. Celeste then ran out the door and into the snow of Happy Valley. She waved to her friend, Jenny, as she skipped over to join them.

     “So, what are we playing?” Celeste inquired.

     Jenny turned her head towards her.

     “Oh, I don’t know. Maybe we’ll play...” The yellow Yurble took her hands out from behind her back. Glancing down, Celeste saw that Jenny was holding a few snowballs. A few GIANT snowballs. Celeste stepped back, but tripped on a small ice chunk and fell to the ground. Jenny was now directly above Celeste, and before Celeste could flinch, dodge, or run, she was covered in snow. Although she had snow all over her face, Celeste’s vision was clear enough to grab some snow and throw it at Jenny. Before Jenny could return the attack, Celeste threw another snowball. Then she burrowed down into the snow. She was lucky to be a Bori. Within a few minutes, a few other pets had joined Celeste and Jenny’s snowball war. One was a young purple Meerca, only a few years old, named Leara. The other was a green Zafara named Courtney.

     Suddenly, Celeste and her friends began to get pelted by snow.

     “Stop! That’s enough snow for me!” Celeste screeched.

     “Everyone stop!” Jenny yelped.

     “It’s not me!” Courtney said loudly. “Leara’s not throwing them, either!”

     “Oh, no! It’s a storm, guys! Let’s get to my neohome; it’s the closest!” Celeste said just loud enough for everyone to hear over the ferocious winds that were whipping through the air.

     The four neopets sprinted rapidly to Celeste’s house. Courtney turned the doorknob, and the sheer force of the wind caused the door to whip open. It took all four of them to get the door shut again.

     “Phew!” Courtney sighed. The green Zafara wiped her forehead.

     “Hey, girls! Who needs some nice hot cocoa?” Celeste’s mother called from the kitchen. The orange Lupe came into the living room with a tray that held four steaming cups of hot cocoa, complete with marshmallows.

     “Thank you!” Celeste, Courtney, Jenny, and Leara said in unison.

     “You know, finding the Neopian treasure would be so cool,” Celeste said, staring into space with a dreamy look in her eyes, “They say it’s where all the treasure in all of Neopia is kept.”

     “Wow, Celeste! I did not know that!” Jenny said sarcastically. The yellow Yurble pushed back a stubborn strand of fur.

     “Seriously, Celeste, I think we’ve all heard about enough about this ‘Neopian treasure’.” Courtney laughed. Jenny giggled along with her. Leara was distracted, playing with Celeste’s old Usukis.

     Celeste glared at Courtney and Jenny. “Fine, then. I WILL go find it. And since you two had the nerve to mock me, then I guess I just won’t give you a share of the treasure when Leara and I find it! Let’s go, Leara!”

     The young purple Meerca’s eyes widened as Celeste grasped her hand and stormed out of the neohome. Celeste was glad that the storm had settled down a bit.

     “Celeste? W-where are we g-going?” Leara stuttered.

     Suddenly, Celeste froze in her tracks. She didn’t really know where they were going.

     “Celeste?” Leara repeated. “Where are we going?”

     Celeste paused for a moment. “Fyora’s Library,” she replied. There had to be some information about the treasure there!

     “Wait, isn’t th-that in F-Faerieland?” Leara inquired.

     “Hmm...” Celeste thought. “That could be a problem. But fixing problems is one of my favorite hobbies.” Just then, a brilliant idea formed in Celeste’s mind.

     “Korbats!” the cloud Bori exclaimed.

     “Korbats?” Leara gave Celeste a puzzled look.

     “Yes, Leara. Korbats. They could help up get up to Faerieland. We’d need quite a few, though.” Celeste thought for a moment. She felt a light tap on her shoulder. Assuming it was a snowflake, Celeste continued thinking of how they’d ever find enough Korbats to bring them up to Faerieland.

     “Excuse me, Miss?” a small voice muttered.

     Celeste glanced over her shoulder and saw a group of twenty, maybe thirty, Korbats.

     “We overheard your conversation, and we would gladly aid you in getting to Faerieland.”

     “What’s in it for you?” Celeste asked.

     The fire Korbat who was speaking glanced around. “Um, well... we were thinking...”

     “Ten percent of the treasure if you find it?” a pink Korbat piped up.

     “Make it seven and you’ve got a deal. Just as long as you can get us up to Faerieland.” Celeste shook both the fire and pink Korbats’ hands.

     “Oh, we most certainly can, and will,” said a Korbat somewhere in the depths of the crowd.

     Not even five seconds later, four green Korbats carried a large cloth over to the others. Celeste and Leara watched, quite puzzled. The Korbats formed a circle around the cloth and picked it up off the ground, and a few scurried underneath it. The fire Korbat that had spoken to Celeste and Leara earlier called them over.

     “Stand in the middle of this cloth, and we can fly you up to Faerieland.”

     So, Celeste and Leara did just that. Within moments, the two of them were soaring high above the clouds. Leara, usually a very hyperactive purple Meerca, seemed to be entranced in the beautiful clouds, floating so daintily in the sky. In a few minutes, they had all arrived in Faerieland.

     “The other Korbats and I will return later in the day,” said the pink Korbat. “By the way, I’m Chiru.”

     “W-wait, what if y-you aren’t here when we want t-to leave?” asked Leara.

     Chiru smiled. “I will stay here, and go tell the others when we’re all ready, okay?”

     Leara grinned back. “Yeah,” she replied.

     So, Leara, Chiru, and Celeste ventured forth towards the library. Leara ran ahead and began pulling at the large, decorative, purple door frantically.

     “Aw, man! It’s l-locked!” whined Leara.

     Celeste giggled to herself and pointed at the sign on the door handle.

     Leara sounded it out carefully: “P--puh--pus--push?”

     Celeste couldn’t really blame the little Meerca; she was only a few years old.

     Celeste pushed open the door to reveal thousands - no, millions of books lining the shelves throughout the library. Leara stared in awe. Celeste held onto Leara’s hand so she wouldn’t get lost. Then the two of them walked around, looking for some sort of librarian.

     A small red Kau with gray-rimmed reading glasses approached them. “Might there be a specific book you are searching for?”

     “Sort of,” Celeste said. “Would you happen to have anything on the location of the famous Neopian treasure?”

     “Oh. I’m not really sure. We do have quite a few books about the treasure, but the location? You can look at those books over there; that’s where all the books about treasure are kept.” The Kau pointed towards a small, dusty shelf. Celeste read book after book. Leara was being kept entertained by a picture book about Angelpi, and Chiru was reading a large novel. Finally, Celeste discovered a book that just might help her on her quest.

     “There is but one Neopian to have ever seen this grand treasure, Undaru Grell the white Bori. No one is quite sure of Undaru’s current location, but most suspect that it is still the quaint little neohome east of Neopia Central. In her old age, Undaru seldom leaves her neohome,” Celeste read.

     “Leara, we’re going to Neopia Central,” Celeste announced. The librarian shushed her.

     So, Leara and Chiru put back the books they were looking through and followed Celeste out the door.

     “I’ll go tell the others that we’re ready,” Chiru said, and flew downward towards Happy Valley. A few minutes later, Chiru and the other Korbats returned with the large cloth. Leara and Celeste knew what to do. The view from the sky still amazed the two neopets.

     “Hey, Chiru?” Celeste said. “Would you mind setting us down east of Neopia Central?”

     Chiru giggled. “A bit exact, but all right! Everyone, turn towards Neopia Central! Our new destination is east of there!”

     The Korbats turned in a synchronized way. A few minutes passed, and the Korbats began their descent to the ground.

     “Here you are, Neopia Central, exactly four kilometers east. I hope we helped!” Chiru smiled. “If you don’t mind my asking, why have we come here?”

     “It’s said to be the location of the one person to see the Neopian treasure.”

     “Okay. Good luck with your quest! You can get home from here if you don’t find the treasure, right?”

     Leara and Celeste nodded.

     Chiru smiled again and flew away with the other Korbats.

     “Alright, Leara. I think I see the house. See over there?” Celeste pointed at a neohome. It was the only one for miles. It had to be the home of Undaru. Celeste approached the peaceful, ordinary-seeming neohome. It was yellow and had a garden outside with many brightly colored flowers. Politely, the cloud Bori wiped her feet on the welcome mat and knocked on the door.

     "Come in!" yelled a raspy voice.

     Celeste opened the door and fell down, down, and even further down into the depths of the neohome. She landed with a thud and observed her surroundings. Celeste made sure that Leara hadn’t gotten injured in the fall, and then the two of them sat up. The neohome appeared to be a dank, cave-like tunnel system. So, Celeste crawled into the broadest tunnel and Leara followed. Celeste assumed it would lead to the location of the harsh, cacophonous sound. A dim, warm light flickered as the two pets entered the room. Wax melted and dripped down the thin candlestick and the voice spoke again.

     "Hello," it muttered sheepishly.

     The candle's light illuminated the room just enough for Celeste to make out a Bori-like figure.

     The Bori ruffled her silky, snow-colored fur and inquired, "I’m Undaru. And you needed me for what exactly?"

     “Well, I...” Celeste glanced in Leara’s direction. “We were wondering if you could tell us the location of the Neopian treasure? You are the only one to have ever seen it, correct?”

     “Yes, I am the one,” Undaru’s raspy voice replied. “But I would never just tell you where the treasure was located!” She laughed weakly. “No, not unless you were a close relative of mine. Then I might think about it. The Grell family is quite small, though. I doubt you have any ties to it.”

     Celeste suddenly remembered seeing her real name once. She was put in the adoption center when she was young, and being in a new family changed her last name. But her real name was Celeste Grell. Oh, how would she find out if she was right? They’d left the library. Suddenly, a plan came into Celeste’s mind.

     “Would you mind telling us a bit about your great-grandchildren?” Celeste asked.

     “Oh, sure,” Undaru said. “I have three great-grandchildren. The first one’s name was Renee. Renee was a kind, fun loving girl. A green bori, she was. Second was Xavier. Xavier was a real tough-guy. He’d saved up all his neopoints to get a Grarrl morphing potion so he’d look stronger. I think he’s an Electric Grarrl now, but who knows? He could’ve changed his appearance again by now. Such a fickle boy, that Xavier. Any who, third was Celeste. I don’t really know much about her, except that she was a cloud Bori. Her parents put her up for adoption at a young age. I really wish I could’ve gotten to know her better.”

     By now, Celeste was about to yell. But, she kept in her excitement and simply stated,

     “Could you please turn on a few more lights?”

     Undaru lit about five more candles, and then glanced over at Celeste with a cheerful look in her eyes.

     “Are you... Celeste?” she asked.

     Celeste just smiled. Smiled, and prepared for the adventure of a lifetime.

     “Oh, it’s getting late!” Undaru said. “We’ll rest up and head to the cave tomorrow.”

     “So, it’s a cave. A treasure filled cave.” Celeste thought that night.

     Early the next morning, Celeste woke up to the smell of Tigerbuggle Pancakes wafting through the air. She walked towards the smell and found Undaru cooking on a small wooden stove.

     “Good morning, Celeste.” Undaru smiled.

     “Morning,” Celeste replied.

     Leara came running into the kitchen.

     “I smell pancakes!” she announced.

     In a few minutes, the three of them had eaten all the pancakes and drank some orange juice and were off to wherever Undaru was leading them. They arrived at a ladder in Undaru’s home.

     “You two can go first; I don’t want to be slowing you down,” said Undaru.

     When the three pets had gotten to the surface, they were in a small, enclosed area. They saw a large wall of rocks and a massive golden rock. It glistened in the sunlight. Beside the rock was a gray button that blended into the rock wall. Leara was not hesitant to run over and press it. When she did this, the golden rock rolled aside to reveal a vast room full of neopoints, jewels, expensive paint brushes, and other things that gleamed, sparkled, and glistened. Leara and Celeste were astonished. Undaru just closed her eyes and smiled.

     “You may take any of my treasures that you wish. Just be sure to remember that life is not about neopoints or paint brushes, or even muffins. It is about family and friends and the good times you spend with them.” Undaru said this as though she knew it by heart.

     Celeste looked at the abundant wealth that was around her. Looking down, she spotted a dirty, pink braided string. She picked it up and turned to Undaru.

     “What’s this?”

     “Oh, that was the gift my best friend gave to me before she moved away to Brightvale. Why do you ask?”

     “I thought that it was the most valuable thing in this room.” Celeste paused as she looked at the billions of neopoints lying on the floor around her.

     “I was right.”

     As Leara and Celeste returned home from their visit with Undaru, Leara stopped and turned to Celeste, who was looking at the pink friendship bracelet she took from the cave.

     “Where are you going to put it, Celeste?” Leara asked.

     “Somewhere,” Celeste replied.

     “Somewhere special?” Leara inquired.

     “Yeah.” Celeste smiled.

     “Somewhere special.”

The End