The Cross-Painted Curse: Part One

I'm writing this on behalf of my beloved eldest pet, lorelae_01. It is only recently I found out her feelings on her customisation, and I cannot believe I didn't listen sooner. Hopefully through reading her words you'll see what a mistake I made, and won't make the same yourselves.

     "Lorelai? Lorelai? Come here, girl, where are you?" It's not often Kai screams like that, she normally calls. I rushed down the stairs and bowled straight into her excitable arms. I'm a magma Koi, so I try not to jump on her too often; these mortals, you know! But she didn't mind; she was too hyped up over whatever it was that interrupted my reading.

     "What's happened? I thought you were at the games room?" I'm really concerned. Her eyes have gone all Angry Meepit on me.

     "I've finally got it!" She's glowing. I think I want to run away. Before I know it, she's dragging me out of the house and down the road, faster than I can swim, so she's carrying me. This is crazy. She never moves this fast.

     "Got... what?"

     She's running now, actually running. I don't think I've ever seen her run in my life, but no, she's charging to the Wharf and jumping onto the Galleon to- where? I can't see the destination flag at the front, as she flings me into the water. "Swim, Lorelai, I've no change for you!" she yells, seconds before I hit the water. It's a good thing I love her, because this is getting tiring. I don't mind swimming; in fact I prefer it to the ship, but chucking me into the water? Not the best way to get on my good side! But I'm in the water, and it's cool, and normal, so I'll let it go.

     "Neopia Central? But we do our shopping on a Tuesday, not a Thursday; why are we here now?"

     She's ignoring me. I hate it when she does that! And now we're bouncing up the steps to the bank, why are we going to the bank? I get bored here; why has she brought me? She brushes past the Skeith on the front desk and taps impatiently as the slow moving Usul finds our Safety Deposit Box and lifts it down for us. Kai puts me down on the floor. She knows I hate it when she does that. She pulls some things out of the box and hands it back to the Usul in charge, and we're off again.

     "Wait, slow down, Kai, where are we going? What's happening?" We burst out into the sunlight and Kai pushes me onto a nearby bench. "STOP!" I yell. "Just tell me what you're doing." She takes a deep breath, and tries to calm down for my sake.

     "Okay. So you know you've been Magma for quite a while?" I like being Magma, the water sizzles when I swim fast, where is she going with this? I nod slowly at her. "And you know I've been playing a lot of games recently?"

     I thought she was avoiding her homework, but she doesn't like it when I say things like that, so I just nod again, warily. "And you know how you're my oldest girl, my favourite darling pet?" Now I'm scared. She doesn't say I'm her favourite very often. She doesn't use terms of endearment unless I'm upset. I don't nod, but she rushes on anyway.

     "I've finally made enough neopoints to give you a truly beautiful makeover!" she beams at me. "Isn't that great?" I don't want to be made over. I like the way I look, but I don't have a chance to say this, she's rushing on and pulling something out of her backpack. "Here, we don't have much time, drink this," she says, forcing a bottle to my mouth. I obediently tilt my head back and swallow the vile mixture.

     At once I feel cold, like I've lost the fire in my stomach, my fins aren't working, I want to soothe the ache in my tail, but I can't reach, what's happening, what's that pain in my head, the worst headache I've ever had, is my skull exploding, what's happening to my crust, it's falling off, this hurts so much, why has she done this to me, what's happening to my nose, I don't have a nose, why does this hurt, ow, ow, OW!

     "Oh shh, darling, shh my pet, it's okay, it's okay." It is clearly NOT okay; this is agony!

     I'm panting in her arms as the pain recedes. Why don't I fit there properly?

     "Come on, hurry, we've got to go!" And she's running again, but at least she's holding me. I don't feel up to swimming. It must have been a Vile Vial, is that a gourmet food? But she's feeding Calvin the gourmet foods, I'm the BD pet, what's going on? I'm tired now, so very tired. I start to doze in her arms. I can hear her talking to someone, shuffling me around so she can hand over something to this other person, is that a faerie I can hear? Oh who cares. I'm so tired, so so tired.

     "Lorelai? Sweetheart, wake up, it's time!" I groggily focus on Kai. Oh Fyora, she's still looking like a Xweetok that found the cream.

     "Where are we?" I mumble, as I attempt to right myself. I think I drooled on her. Whoops.

     "The Rainbow Pool. Get ready to take a big breath, there's only two people in front of us!" Okay, those are fairly serious words.

     "Why... are we at the Rainbow Pool?" I enquire, very nicely I thought. She takes a step forward and, oh my Fyora we're on the diving board, is she painting me? She holds me out over the water- but that's not her, just someone that looks like her but she's holding a yellow Acara. A yellow Acara that's rubbing its face. That's what I'm-doing. Oh. Oh no. Oh no no no NO!

     "I'm an ACARA!" I shriek at her, so loudly she nearly drops me.

     "Well, yes, what did you think you were drinking?" She's bemused. How on Neopia can she be the one sounding bemused, don't you think that's MY part?

     "But- but- but," I stammer, as she takes another step forward to the front of the diving board.

     "Big breath," she warns and drops me in. I have the time to think as I'm falling, big breath? I've got gills, don't be silly.

     SMACK! I hit the water,-hit? I usually dive in without thinking, but anyway, at least I can get a mouthful of wat- I start coughing, why can't I breathe-oh. Acara. What do I do? I flail my paws- paws? I have paws! But it's getting harder and harder, my limbs-limbs?- aren't working, what's happening?

     Just as I think I can't stand it anymore, a hand closes round my horns and drags me up, and I'm there in Kai's arms again, shivering and coughing. "Oh poppet, there there, nearly over," she soothes me, as I try to make sense of this last crazy hour. A bored looking Water Faerie drifts over and hands Kai a hat and coat, and Kai hands her something in return. "Are you ready, darling? One last time!" She grins at me, but before I can refuse, she's dropped me in a second time. What, does she want me to turn into a Zombie? I barely survived the last time!

     At least this time I managed to get a nice lung-lung?-full of air before I slap the water and sink, and at least I keep my wits about me, I push my limbs downwards and swim back up fairly quickly, but of course this isn't swimming, this isn't moving with the water, this is fighting it, and it's getting harder, and harder, and harder, and why does it feel like my limbs are getting softer, that's stupid thing to think, but they are, they aren't pushing the water as well as they were a second ago, who'd have thought that was the strong stuff, this is getting really tricky now, and a hand grasps my horns and I'm back in Kai's arms again, safe and sound, and she's pulling a hat and jacket onto me because I'm cold, I'm so so cold.

     "There. Don't you look smart?" Kai gloats, as she carries me to the nearby mirror.

     I step up hesitantly, and look at my reflection for the first time. I'm scared. I don't know what I'm looking at. I'm wearing a Christmas Acara Hat, but as my gaze moves downwards I get confused. "I'm not a Christmas Acara?" I question Kai, who shakes her head with an ecstatic grin on her face. "I'm a snow Acara?" She nods, she couldn't be happier. "But- if I'm a Snow Acara, why am I wearing a Christmas Acara's Hat and Jacket?" I don't understand; it doesn't look right.

     "You remember last week, when we went to see if we could get the avatar from the Snowager? We were chatting in the boards afterwards, and someone mentioned cross-painting" Cross painting? Moltara right, I'm cross! "you know, where you paint the pet one colour to get the clothes that come with it, and then paint them another colour so they have a different base colour."

     I stare at her, dumbstruck. Why would anyone want to look so different? I hate it. I HATE the way I look now, is there no way I can go back to being a Magma Koi? That's different enough for me! But I can't find the words, I'm so tired, and my throat hurts so much. Kai hefts me into her arms and starts for home. We've been out less than an hour, but I'm exhausted.

     As we reach the pier, I jump down and stagger on my new limbs. I'm stretching, reading myself to jump into the water when Kai grabs me! "Lore, you can't swim, you're an Acara now, remember? Land Neopet, come on!" My spirits drop even lower, and I follow Kai up the gangway onto the smelly old Galleon. She passes the Captain a handful of Neopoints and starts down into the belly of the ship. I'm about to follow her when a Kyrii Swordsman Sword is flung into my way and I'm brought up short.

     "And what be you then!" the dirty Pirate Kyrii bellows at me "Confused? Ha ha ha!" His laugh follows me as I sidle around his grimy feet, my ears dragging on the floor and curl around Kai's legs. Oblivious, she reaches down and scratches behind my ears, and it's comforting, but I can still hear a baby Ogrin ask, "Mummy? What colour is that Acara?" and is silenced, very quickly. The Pink Ogrin is flushing, she looks almost Fire with embarrassment as she avoids my gaze. Can my spirits drop any lower? This journey has never taken this long. I just want to see my brother now. I just want to get home. I'm never leaving the house again.

     The only thought keeping me going is my brother, calvin018. Cal is my saving angel. I love him dearly. He is the complete opposite to me in most things, except we share the same sense of adventure, and split the dailies fairly between us. Kai calls us her hot-headed twins, because he's a Magma Kougra and I'm a Magma Koi. Oh. We really are opposites now, I guess. Can't get any more different than Magma and Snow.

     The journey to get back to Krawk Island is taking forever. I could feel everyone on the pitching ship looking at me, trying to work out why a Snow Acara was wearing the clothes of a Christmas Acara. Was I crazy? Had I missed the notification that I was a different colour now? Or was I just greedy? Did I like standing out like that?

     We finally arrive home, and though Kai is tired, she's still bursting with energy. She bounces the door open and screams "CALVIN!" I can hear a thump upstairs. That's definitely Calvin falling out of his bed with shock. I can hear him collecting himself and jogging down the stairs, no doubt expecting to be in trouble for something. She really needs to calm down.

     "Lor-Lorelai?" Cal stares at me from the bottom stair, mistrustful. I nod miserably, and hold up my front legs in our usual fashion, silently begging him for a hug. Bless him, he gets it straight away and barrels towards me, sweeping me up into his paws and instinctively avoiding my new horns. Somehow, this makes everything better, I'm where I belong, he's here for me regardless. I feel myself melting into his arms, secure, safe, he can explain to Kai why I'm upset, he'll understand, he'll fight for me. Wait- I'm not melting like I usually do, I'm-

     Thrown to the floor. We realised at the same moment and forced space between us. Cal and I stare at each other in horror. My Magma brother can't ever come near me again because my Snow exterior will melt and-

     This is too much! I throw my head back and howl, as long and loud as I can. I can't hug my brother, I'm not what I was this morning, not what I know, but I'm not what everyone else knows, I will forever be thought weird and confused, no one will ever see past what I am and what I'm wearing. I'm not Christmas, I'm not Snow, I don't know what I am. My throat aches, but I can't stop, I scream and howl. I can't stop. I won't stop. I won't ever be okay with this.

To be continued...