Janet and Jane: The Case of the Amnesiacs: Part One

      I woke up with a serious headache. It felt like something hit my head. I rubbed my head to find a bump on the back of my head. It was a pretty big bump, too. The bump hurt whenever I touched it, so I decided not to rub it.

      What even happened? A bump like that couldn't have just happened from a fall or from a stray ball. I was no doctor (or, at least I didn't think I was), but this seemed pretty serious. I couldn't even remember what I was doing before... uh... I woke up. I tried my best to remember, but to no avail. It was as if my mind was a blank before... uh... this happened.

      I sat up to take a look at where I was. First off, I was on a table. A table. Why on Neopia was I on a table? Why not on something like, I don't know, a bed? A couch? The least anyone could do was add a few pillows and maybe a blanket. It wasn't even like a doctor's table. It was just a table that you could find at any furniture store. Yeah, that was very dignified.

      Where I was posed even more questions. I was in a room that had wood walls, a wood ceiling, and a tile floor. There were a few chairs scattered around the room (one of which being laying on the floor), but that was pretty much it. A few chairs, a table, and a door. Not even a window. There was no sign to where on Neopia I was.

      This made me rather uncomfortable.

      Maybe if I looked around, I could find out what happened. I got up off the table and on the floor. When I was on the floor, I could hardly keep my balance. I fell two or three times before being able to stand up. Even then, I couldn't walk straight. Long story short, I tripped over the chairs in the room a couple times. It was like I couldn't move without some assistance. I wouldn't be surprised if that bump had anything to do with it.

      When I finally got through the door, I was greeted with a hallway that split off into two directions. The hallway looked pretty much like the room I just came out of. This place was consistent. A bit creepy, but consistent none the less. Would it be like this through the entire place?

      As I walked through the hallways, I looked around for any clues to what happened to me. This place seemed familiar, but I couldn't put my finger on how it was familiar to me. I couldn't remember where to go, even though I was trying my very best to. To be honest, I couldn't remember much about anything. Maybe it was the head injury, maybe I was never here before and it just reminded me of something, maybe I was still asleep and this was a dream.

      I opened the first door I came across. It was filled with a lot of random items. Notes, weapons, trinkets, I could go on for hours. Maybe there was something in here that could possibly give light to what on Neopia happened to me. That didn't seem very likely, though. As if random trinkets will help me figure out where I was or why I was here.

      While I was looking around, I came across someone staring at me. I stared at her. She was a shadow Kacheek. Her long, curly brown hair was a bit messy and was topped off by an askew hat. Her clothes were messed up as well. It looked like she was through a lot. She mimicked everything that I did. This Kacheek looked so familiar (so many familiar things), but I just couldn't pinpoint who she was.

      I walked away from the mirror and went back into the hallway. That certainly didn't help me figure out what happened. If anything, I was more confused than before. What were all those items for? Who owned them? Why were they there?

      All these questions were making my head spin. I felt worse than I did when I woke up (then again, I did walk into a few walls. I still wasn't completely coordinated). How was that even possible? Maybe I should just go back to sleep and hope that this was all a crazy dream. If it wasn't, maybe I could remember what happened.

      Now where was that room I was in? I forgot where I went already. Correct me if I was wrong, but I thought I walked in a straight line. There weren't many turns in the hallway, and if there were, I didn't take them. Did I take some turns? If so, where? If not, then how far did I walk?

      In the end, I walked into some random room. There wasn't much in there, just a window. I looked out the window to see it was nighttime. There were some trees and bushes outside. After that, I just laid down on the ground and tried to fall asleep.

      Only I couldn't.

      Questions were bouncing around my head. They wouldn't let me fall back asleep. Where was I? Why was I here? How on Neopia did I get that bump on the back of my head? That bump still hurt, too. And not to forget the most important question of all, what happened to me?

      "Alright, so now what?"

      "What's that?"

      "Wh-what are you doing?"

      Some rapid footsteps could be heard on a dirt road. Panting was coupled with it.

      "Seriously, you shouldn't do this!"

      "I'm serious! You better not unless you want some trouble!"

      "This is your last warning! Get away and- No! Ow, stop! Stop it! Please!"

      "No!"

      I screamed as I sat up. What on Neopia was that? Oh, it was a dream. Just a dream. That sure was a crazy dream, though. Why did I dream that? What could that mean? Did it even mean anything?

      I realized that my head was still hurting. I held my head. Sleeping definitely didn't help get rid of the pain. The bump didn't go away, either. How much longer was it going to be like that?

      Some sunlight reached my eyes. I squinted. It was morning. I wasn't intending to sleep that long, but I guess I was more tired than I thought I was. I felt the same as when I fell asleep, so I guess sleeping didn't help. Still, I made it to morning. Maybe something can be found now.

      I slowly got up to avoid what happened last time. Still, I wasn't very coordinated. At least I was better than last night. However, I did fall and run into a wall or two. Maybe I could navigate this mysterious place better.

      Maybe not.

      This place still seemed like a maze to me. I didn't know where to go or where the exit was or even if there was an exit. Like last night, I just went wandering around again. Who knew? Maybe I would find something that could help me.

      "Guys! I can't find her!"

      I stopped at the intersection I was by and pressed my back against the wall closest to where that voice came from. A purple Bori ran by, not even noticing me. Just by looking at him, I could tell that he was apprehensive. He said he couldn't find her (who I assumed was me). Why would he be nervous about not knowing where I was? Did he need me for something? Was he worried about me?

      My head began to hurt a little worse. Maybe I should stop asking myself all of these questions.

      After my head felt a bit better, I walked in the direction that Bori ran in. As I did that, I thought about him. He was definitely talking to someone, so there was at least one other Neopet in this... weird place. I would assume they were at least acquaintances, since I would think they got along. Maybe they were friends? I hoped they knew what happened to me.

      A chaotic chatter came from the end of the hallway. I walked a little bit faster to see what was going on. When I reached a corner, I peered around it to see what was going on.

      And let me tell you, it was just as confusing sight.

      The Bori from earlier was talking very fast while an alien Aisha was talking over him. She seemed as distraught, if not more, than the Bori. Behind them was a shadow Korbat who was trying to calm them down. I tried to listen in on what they were saying, but everything was layered and I couldn't understand a word any of them were saying.

      "Alright, stop!" the Korbat shouted. "James, are you sure she was not in the room we put her in?"

      The Bori nodded. He said, "I checked all the rooms that were close by. I'm telling you, I didn't see her!"

      "Oh, she must be up," the Aisha said nervously. "She could be anywhere in the building! Maybe even in Neopia Central."

      "Come on, Natia," the Korbat comforted. "She wouldn't do that. She'd stay within the building until she let us know that she's okay." She made eye contact with me. "See? There she is."

      The Korbat flew up to me. The Bori and Aisha followed her. I stepped back when the Korbat landed in front of me. Those three Neopets seemed so familiar up close, but I didn't know how.

      "Janet, are you okay?" the Korbat asked.

      Was that question for me? I still answered it, "Yeah, I'm fine. I just have one question."

      "And what would that be?"

      I held onto the bump on the back of my head (I don't know why - it still hurt) and asked, "Who's Janet?"

      To be continued…