A Slorg in the Bakery!

     As the Kacheek began gathering packages, measuring cups, and other equipment necessary for cooking a Starry Chocolate Usul Cake, he failed to notice the tiny green Slorg moving - at, well, a Slorg's pace - along the counter. The Slorg stopped about three feet from him and hid behind the pile of cups he had just measured his ingredients with.

     The Slorg watched intently as the Breadmaster dumped well over half a dozen different ingredients into a single orange bowl, then began to stir until everything began to blend together. He was humming quietly as he focused all his attention on this one task; he still did not see the slimy petpet.

     Several minutes passed, and at last the Kacheek seemed finished. He then poured the cake mix into three pans. "I will just put these in the oven, then get started on the icing..." he murmured as he snatched two white oven mitts off the counter and slipped them on his paws. One at a time, he placed the pans in the oven, then began dashing around the kitchen in search of two clean bowls in which to make the blue and yellow icing. It was as he bent down to see into one of the lower cupboards that he made eye contact with the Slorg, which was still in hiding behind the measuring cups.

     "Ahhhh!" the Kacheek shrieked, stumbling backwards. "What are you doing in here?!" He glared at the Slorg as if expecting it to give an answer. It only gazed sadly in response. Immediately he felt guilty for shouting at the poor thing, and slowly inched closer to the counter. He then said, "I am sorry, little guy, but I cannot have you wandering around my shop getting slime all over my food. I would be in so much trouble! No one wants to eat Slorg slime on their cakes and cookies!"

     He then proceeded to tell the Slorg a story of a Xweetok who had come in here asking for ten cookies, and he had accidentally given her nine. "She was furious!" he exclaimed. "And I thought that was a terrible experience. Can you even imagine how angry Neopets would be if they ate my food and found slime on it...?"

     The petpet remained silent.

     The Breadmaster also became silent as he pondered what to do about this situation. Then, "Ahh, I know! I can take you to the Petpet Protection League tonight after I close the Bakery..."

     He extended a paw towards the Slorg, and chuckled as it oozed up his arm and rested on his shoulder. "You can hang out there until this evening," he reminded it. "After that, you will go to the Petpet Protection League, and they will find you a great home."

     All throughout the day as he baked, and as he sold food to customers, the Slorg remained on his shoulder. Not once did it leave that spot. Several of the Neopets who entered the Bakery that afternoon commented on the Slorg as it stared at them from the Kacheek's shoulder. "Oh, I never knew you had a petpet." "How adorable!" "Where did you find it?"

     He was never really quite sure how to answer that one question.

     As the day was nearing its end and the sun began to set, the Kacheek sold one last cake to his last customer of the day, then flipped the sign over so the side with "Closed" was showing. He sauntered over to the open door and stepped outside into the cool air, then shut the door firmly behind him. He walked down the street in the direction of a massive building with giant yellow letters on the roof: PPL. The Petpet Protection League.

     Cautiously, he opened one of the glass doors and peered inside. "Hello?" he called out. "Is anybody here? I, um... I have a Slorg that... I would like to drop off here." He then quickly added, "It is not mine, by the way."

     From out of the lit hallway to the right appeared a Bruce, clad in pink and lavender. She grinned cheerfully at the Breadmaster, but he could tell she was tired and was getting ready to go home before he arrived. "What can I help you with?"

     "I am sorry for bothering you..." he apologized. "If you want me to come back tomorrow morning, I can do that." Truthfully, he was now doubting if he really wanted to leave the Slorg here, and just wanted a night to think about it. In just one day he had become rather attached to the slimy little thing...

     "No, no, I can help you right now. You said you have a Slorg, yes? It is not yours, you said, if I heard you correctly. You want to give it to us?" The Bruce patiently waited for an answer, but he did not respond for some time.

     Finally, he answered her. "...I... I think I changed my mind. I think I want to keep it," he replied in a quiet voice. "I apologize for wasting your time."

     "Oh. Well, okay then." She shrugged and returned to whatever she was doing down the hall. The Kacheek slowly pivoted to face the pair of doors, but glanced over his shoulder once before exiting the building. He was not quite certain he made the right choice...

     The instant he reached his house two miles from the Bakery, the Kacheek hurried into the kitchen - a much smaller kitchen than the one at the Bakery - and grabbed a small bowl off the table. He filled it with cold water from the sink, then set it back on the table. He reached up to his shoulder and gently picked up the Slorg. "Are you thirsty?" he asked it, placing it next to the bowl. He watched as the Slorg climbed into the bowl and slurped a bit of the liquid. "You are probably hungry, too," he mumbled, dashing over to the fridge and opening the door a bit too forcefully. He shoved aside containers of all shapes and sizes in search of something that would be suitable for his new little friend to eat. "Neggs... cupcakes... tomatoes... Oh! I know what you can have!"

     He checked the bottom shelf of the fridge and found a head of lettuce. "I was going to use this for a salad tomorrow, but I want you to have it." He ripped a few pieces of the lettuce into small shreds and held them in front of the Slorg. It ate all of the shreds given to it.

     "For a Slorg, you sure eat fast!" The Kacheek laughed, picking up the Slorg and affectionately petting it. The Slorg seemed to enjoy this attention. "You know, I have not given you a name yet." He sat down in the chair to think. "Slimy?... No. Lucky? No..."

     For fifteen minutes he muttered names out loud, trying to find the perfect one. Then, "I know what I will call you!" He grinned down at the petpet in his lap, which glanced up at him curiously. "Frosting. That is when I found you, when I was making frosting. Do you like it?"

     The Slorg blinked twice, which he assumed meant 'yes'. "Frosting it is, then. You are going to love the Bakery, Frosting. Trust me. Just make sure to stay out of the food, okay?"

     And at that moment, as he fed one last piece of lettuce to his Slorg...

     ...he was definitely certain he made the right choice.

The End