The Discarded Enigma

      That's what it had come to be known as over time. The little blue Grundo plushie, stuck up in a tree in Faerieland had become a phenomenon across the whole of Neopia – a hot topic, constantly on the tongues of the population. The little plushie quickly became something Neopians travelled across lands to visit, near and far, from Brightvale, Faerieland's new close neighbours, to Kreludor. There was an almost magnetic quality, attracting Neopets to it, rich and poor, old and young. It was a mystery, and for most, a rewarding one.

      It had started as just a local marvel, the young Neopets of Faerieland racing off as soon as they woke up each morning to visit to plushie, often returning home with a bag of neopoints, or a once discarded plushie of their own to cuddle, or simply a feeling of overwhelming happiness to carry them through the day ahead.

      Then word began to spread of this marvel, and Neopets from farther afield began to visit out of curiosity, often to see if the rumours of a sentient plushie were true. Some came to figure out why, and left with a happiness more blissful than anything they'd experienced before. Others just tagged along, and left with a fascination and a new toy to bag.

      It was a boost to Faerieland too, bringing in more visits and consequently boosted the economy there.

     The blue Grundo plushie quickly became a talking point as word spread across the whole of Neopia, making the discarded plushie a focus point for many eager minds.

      One thing remained throughout, though – no-one ever touched the blue Grundo plushie. It was taboo, and to do so became an unthinkable action; to try and remove, or even just move the plushie from its resting place felt wrong to even consider. There was something about being there – people claimed the thought either completely left their mind when they set eyes upon the plushie, or that they felt compelled to leave it undisturbed. To touch it felt like it would be committing some sort of crime against the blue Grundo plushie, a crime beyond measure.

      The spread of knowledge about the plushie prompted a rise in theories as to how the Discarded Magical Blue Grundo Plushie of Prosperity wound up in an average tree in the middle of Faerieland, each new theory as outlandish and farfetched as the last.

      Very few know how it actually ended up in the tree, snagged on one of the few branches. Some like to think that it has always been there, and that it always has been and always will be a given – a fixed part of Faerieland and Neopia as a whole. Others like to think that the faeries put it there, and what the plushie does for them is actually the magic of the faeries manifesting through the blue Grundo plushie, kind of like an anonymous show a generosity. Some even like to play with the thought that it is an experiment conducted by Sloth himself, that the plushie is a result of one of his experiments and that is how it has a conscience and independent thought system. They like to toy with the idea that he put the blue Grundo plushie there himself, though what the experiment he is conducting could possibly be is a blank area in the theory; no-one has any ideas for it yet.

      Few like to imagine what really happened, because they want something exciting. They want something as incredible and magical and peculiar as the plushie itself. They don't want to consider that the Discarded Magical Blue Grundo Plushie of Prosperity has simple origins and a simple back story.

      They don't want to believe it was once just a regular old blue Grundo plushie, sitting on a shop shelf when a Neopet bought it for their child. They don't believe that the "magical" plushie didn't have fascinating origins, and that actually, it belonged to a young Kyrii who treasured it. They don't want to believe that this young Kyrii was just playing with her blue Grundo plushie, throwing it in the air and catching it with a smile on her face when it got caught in the tree, and no matter what she tried, never came down. That no matter how much she tried, she, or anyone else, couldn't get it out of the tree.

      They don't want to believe something that isn't magical and incredible and meaningful, because it thins the mystery and ambiguity shrouding the plushie.

      How the plushie does what it does though is unknown by all.

      It could be karma manifesting itself through the plushie, making it appear to have some level of sentience as it awards those who have done good, and looks blankly on at those who haven't been quite as generous and kind as some of their fellow Neopians.

      Or it could actually have sentience. The faeries could've given it sentience out of sympathy, and a limited range of their powers, allowing it to dole out awards as it felt fit, whether random or calculated. It could be the place of Faerieland itself, the realm being so magical in nature that it animated the plushie and gave it a conscience and the ability to think independently.

      It could be the goodness and kindness of its past owner, all the happy memories and smiles spilling out to help other Neopians create happy memories and smiles of their own. Maybe the plushie isn't truly sentient, but living off borrowed memories of its past owner, the young Kyrii. Or maybe it's the smiles of Neopets, the pure happiness that they feel when they receive something that powers the plushie.

      Maybe the discarded blue Grundo plushie is essentially a component for recycling happiness, drawing excess happiness from those around it and it's environment, and turning that into smiles on its next visitors. Maybe the blue Grundo plushie isn't a sentient plushie, but rather a hive mind for good memories and smiles in Neopia, based in the most magical world. Maybe that's why people feel so compelled as to not to move it – to move the plushie would sever the emotional attachments the plushie has created with the environment and the people around it, and therefore cause it to cease functioning as it does.

      Or maybe the plushie truly is sentient, and in some way or another, has developed a conscience capable of manifesting neopoints and items, as well as being able to influence the emotional and physical state of others.

      Maybe how the plushie functions will always remain a mystery, and maybe that's for the best. Without the mystery, the Discarded Magical Blue Grundo Plushie of Prosperity wouldn't be such a hot topic in Neopia, and there would be less visitors, driven to the plushie by pure curiosity.

      One thing is for sure, though. Between the Kyrii losing the blue Grundo plushie, and the plushie becoming famous across Neopia, something incredible happened, which likely can never be explained. Because if the Discarded Magical Blue Grundo Plushie of Prosperity is anything, it's a mystery, and a rewarding one at that, even if it can never be solved.

The End