Ember By The Sea

     She paid no attention to the stares and whispers among the Pirate Krawks nearby.

     "A fire faerie? You don’t see many of them visit here," one whispered. "I haven’t seen one since Eithne passed through here on her way to Mystery Island."

     "I think she’s famous, but I can’t quite recall her name," another said.

     She continued walking and soon arrived at a lighthouse where tour guides met their tour groups. Not interested in a tour, Ember continued to the Golden Dubloon. The place bustled with activity, but Ember decided that she wasn’t here to spend a lot of Dubloons on food.

     However, something caught her eye further ahead -- a large crowd gathering around what appeared to be an arena of sorts. Upon closer examination, she noticed there were two Grarrls, two Techos, and a few other pets. All of them had enormous plates of food in front of them.

     "Gooblah! Gooblah! Gooblah!" shouted some audience members while others frantically scribbled on slips of paper.

     "Last call for bets!" shouted a Scorchio at a booth. Neopets rushed over to hand in their slips with bags of Neopoints.

     A Pirate Jetsam attendant approached and handed Ember a bag. "Place your bets in the bags and drop them off at the betting station if you want to play!"

     "Uh, how do I...?" Ember began, but the Jetsam disappeared into the crowd.

     Ember stared at the contestants, and eventually decided that she would bet on Gooblah. "Surely the Grarrl would win an eating contest?" she said.

     "I wouldn't do that if I were you!?" said a voice.

     "I've been here for many years. That Grarrl can't drink a smoothie!"

     Ember and Floee turned to find a tall Pirate Krawk wearing Yooyuball shin guards and a Krawk Island Yooyuball cap.

     "Dasher! It’s you!"

     The Krawk grinned as he shook Ember’s hand.

     "Haha! Yes, my crew and I have been expecting you, Ember. Hopefully you’re enjoying Krawk Island! But let me do the betting."

     He took Ember’s betting slip and marked it all up. "Cute Fire Yooyu, by the way. We should play Yooyuball sometime," he said, petting Floee. He then handed back the betting slip.

     "Ah, thanks." Ember stared at the betting slip looking a bit confused.

     "Don’t worry about it, just trust me," Dasher remarked.

     "Okay, I guess. You seem like you’ve done this a lot," Ember said as she turned the slip in with a bag of Neopoints.

     ***

     Fresh off a Gormball Championship, Ember looked for things to do during the off-season that did not involve the typical faerie activity of giving quests. One day she had noticed a job posting at the Faerieland Employment Agency:

      Multiple Neopets retirement communities are currently seeking folks to organize activities. Highly motivated individuals willing to teach and lead outdoor games that will keep residents active and engaged in a warm, welcoming atmosphere, are more desired.

     After applying for the position, the agency assigned her to Krawk Island as a Gormball instructor. And as fate would have it, they assigned her to none other than Altador Cup IV Champion Dasher’s retirement community.

     ***

     Ember and Dasher strolled away from the Food Club crowd.

     "You don’t have to stay to watch all the matches. Just be sure to collect your winnings on time," Dasher explained.

     "How do you know you’ll win?" Ember asked.

     "Didn’t I just tell you to trust me?" Dasher boasted with a wink. "I haven’t busted in Food Club since I retired from Yooyuball!" Dasher boasted.

     "Speaking of Yooyuball, I’ve been meaning to ask you. How did you make the decision to retire?" Ember asked.

     Dasher glanced at Ember and shook his head. "I didn’t really make that decision. My body sort of did. One day in practice, my knees ached more than usual, and I just knew that my time on the field would wind down soon. However, that doesn’t stop me from playing the game for fun." Dasher reached over and petted Floee again. The Yooyu stared at Dasher with curiosity.

     "Anyways, we’re here!" Dasher said.

     They stopped at a part of the shore where several houses were built on stilts with wooden ramps in front for easy access. The beach in front of them featured a sand volleyball court. Behind them, they had a full-sized Yooyuball pitch. Out on the front porch of one of the houses stood a Faerie Flotsam. He leaned against his cane with his right fin.

     "Hello, Weston. This is Ember, she’s a…"

     "I know who she is. I lived in Faerieland for a bit. A faerie who played Gormball instead of giving quests. Heard all the gossip," Weston replied. "I used to sail the seas as a privateer. Got caught and I chose community service in Faerieland."

     "Ah hello Weston," Ember greeted. "So, what brought you back here?"

     "I did enjoy helping others in Faerieland. But I knew I wanted to be back here."

     "Should we go meet the other residents?" Dasher suggested. Ember turned and saw that the others had gathered outside near the volleyball court, intrigued by their new guest.

     "Who is this?" asked a tough looking Island Nimmo who wore a couple of daggers on a belt around her waist. She narrowed her eyes and scrutinized Ember, placing her paw on a dagger hilt.

     "I’m Ember. I’m a Gormball champion."

     "You can relax, she’s here to teach us Gormball," Dasher said.

     She held out her paw for Ember to shake. "Nice to meet you. I’m Janner." She looked Ember directly in the eye, as Ember nervously shook her paw.

     "Janner retired from the Krawk Island coast guard years ago. She patrolled dangerous waters with mines from time to time," Dasher explained.

     Janner then stepped aside. Next to her stood a Pirate Jetsam with a pleasant smile. They enthusiastically reached out with their fin for Ember to shake.

     "Why hello. My name is ‘Benni’. I used to work at the Smugglers Cove, and I saw all sorts of rare items… and gourmet foods for that matter. And Dasher, I busted yesterday in Food Club again."

     "You need to take my advice next time! I told you not to bet on Gooblah!" Dasher exclaimed. He then turned to Ember and shook his head.

     "They never take my, their loss."

     Next to Benni stood a Maraquan Scorchio with a small toolbelt around her waist. "And I guess I’m last. I’m Sunny. I built ships and the work I’m proudest of is the Black Pawkeet and the Cyodrake’s Gaze. I still fix things up around here sometimes."

     Floee decided she didn’t want to sit on Ember’s shoulder anymore. She suddenly curled into a ball and began rolling around in the sand. Dasher instinctively put on his Yooyuball racket and began to play with Floee, letting her roll into the racket and then tossing her into the air. She landed with a smile and then wanted to do it again.

     "Ahhh! Again? Let’s go! You’d make a fine Altador Cup Yooyu. Hahaha," Dasher laughed.

     "Back to his old game," Weston commented. "He’s still obsessed with Yooyuball. There isn’t a day that goes by that he doesn’t mention it.

     "I can show you where you’ll be staying," Benni chimed in. "Do you need help with your things?"

     "I can handle them. Floee, don’t cause Dasher too much trouble."

     The Krawk continued to play with the Floee while Benni took Ember towards one of the houses on stilts.

     "This one hasn’t been occupied for a while. We cleaned it and got it ready for you, though," they explained. The two of them made their way up a wooden ramp and to the front door. Benni handed Ember a set of keys.

     "I hope the accommodation is to your liking for your stay. Please let us know if we can get anything for you. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll need to check with the chef to see if dinner is ready soon -- I’m getting hungry. You should get some rest, long journey and all, right?"

     "Sure, thank you," Ember replied. Benni then turned and headed back down the ramp. Off to the distance, Dasher and Floee were still at it.

     "She does appear to be having a lot of fun," Ember said to herself. She inserted the key and opened the door.

     Natural light peeked in from the windows and illuminated the roomy interior. A blue reclining couch that had cupholders on the side sat in a comfortable living space. In front of the couch sat a light blue rectangular coffee table. Ember stepped in through a door to the right and into the bedroom. She found a Fyora Print Bed and set her suitcase aside, collapsing into the bed.

     "Just because I’m a faerie doesn’t mean… oh but this is very comfortable..."

     She fell asleep briefly before another knock came at the door.

     "Dinner is ready," said Dasher. Ember arose and greeted Dasher at the door.

     "Hi Dasher!"

     "Also, here’s Floee back."

     "Ah, hi Floee." She gently patted her Yooyu on the head before she hopped back onto her shoulder.

     "We had a lot of fun. She’s a fine Yooyu!"

      "You should eat with us. Our chef used to work at the Golden Dubloon. We have nothing, but the best food here."

     Ember followed Dasher to a larger building on stilts between the other smaller houses. The other residents were already there, sitting around a table with numerous dishes.

     Aubergine Casserole, Bacon Belly Buster, Caesar Salad, Double Stuff Guppy, Loretta Fontaines Perfect Pizza, Our Famous Krawk Pie, Baby Bloater, and Capn Threelegs Cutlass Crusade. And then there were a couple of Faerie Foods too: Faerie Meatloaf and Heavenly Roast Turkey.

     They all began eating without much further ado. Floee also joined in, eating mostly canned dried grubs. The conversation turned into mostly complaints about the Governor’s usual grumpy attitude to almost everything. Once everyone had eaten their fill, Dasher turned the subject of the conversation to Ember’s purpose.

     "So Gormball, eh? What’s the best tip you have for a newbie player?" he asked.

     Ember thought for a moment and then answered. "Well, the ball gets slightly heavier when it’s about to explode… very slightly."

     "Is that so?"

     "Yeah, you can see it slow down a bit. But… that’s enough secrets now," she said with a wink.

     "Ohhhh, keeping secrets, are we?" Sunny said with a grin as she dug her fork into a Famous Krawk Pie.

     "Looking forward to learning Gormball," Weston said. "I’m so bored of Dasher always wanting to play a pickup Yooyuball game. Neither that nor volleyball is good for these old knees."

     "Yooyuball is NOT boring," Dasher quipped, folding his arms.

     Benni sighed and turned to Ember. "This is why we need you. We like you to teach us something fun."

     Once dinner wrapped up, the residents retired to a common area and enjoyed a few card games like Cheat. Janner won practically every round so the residents eventually wanted to call it a day.

     "Why do you always win?" Sunny groaned.

     "We played this game all the time when I was in the coast guard," Janner replied, fanning herself with the cards.

     "Well, that makes you the biggest cheater!" Benni laughed.

     "If you put it that way, maybe my next role should be Krawk Island governor!"

     Everyone laughed and Dasher patted Janner on the back. "Haha, maybe! I’d certainly vote for you!"

     After all the residents retired to bed, Ember returned to her room and began to unpack.

     Her Gormball wardrobe consisted of a pair of striped orange and yellow leggings, a pair of red Gormball cleats, a pair of fire-patterned Gormball Knee guards, and a sleeveless light orange top with a fire faerie wing pattern.

     On top of that, she included some rope to tie her wings back in the event of windy conditions along with hair ties. She also unpacked extra cleats for the residents.

     Underneath all of this was a dozen reusable Gormballs. Unlike the ones used for the official tournament, these Gormballs did not explode completely. Instead, they simply drenched the player. She set the Gormballs in a box on the table.

     After that, she unpacked the rest of her clothing, various T-shirts featuring other faeries like the "I Love Fyora T-Shirt." Also, comfortable jeans and cute Snorkle slippers.

     Finally, she pulled out cans of dried Yooyu food made from grubs and Petpetpets.

     "Whew, that took way too long." She sighed wearily.

     Floee had already curled up in a chair and fell asleep moments later. Ember also decided to curl up and get some shut-eye as well.

     The next day, after everyone had eaten breakfast, a uniformed Ember drew a circle in the sand and began preparations for Gormball. She brought out her set of Gormballs and set out cleats for everyone. Floee spent her time rolling around in the sand when suddenly a wave crashed ashore, drenching the Fire Yooyu.

     "Wahhhhhh!" she began to cry. Ember quickly used a fire spell on Floee to dry her off and reignite her flame. She then carried Floee back with her away from the shore. The residents had wandered out to the beach to see the Gormball setup.

     "Good morning to all, we’re going to start the day with some warm-ups," Ember began. She dug her cleats in the sand to attain better footing. "Get some stretches in, reach your arms up to the sky as high as you can! And then bring them all the way down as far as you can!" She peeked over at Weston who hesitated. As she continued guiding them through stretches, he started to do them slowly.

     "Everyone, keep it up for a few more minutes, I'll be back in a bit." Ember then walked over to Weston and stood next to him.

     "Is everything alright?" she asked.

     "I think Gormball might be a little rough for me," Weston said.

     Ember looked at Weston and gently patted him."I’ll do my best to slow the game down so everyone can take part. If you want, I can stand next to you and when you’re comfortable joining in, I’ll let you take over. But please, get some stretches in. I don’t want any injuries today."

     Weston nodded sceptically but began stretching. After a few more minutes, Ember brought everyone around the circle with one Gormball in hand.

     "Normally you have five seconds to get rid of this Gormball once you receive it. I’ve tweaked these Gormballs to have a longer period of play before they soak you. Take your time; you’ll have ten seconds at most to get rid of the ball. I’ll start with a serve to you Dasher. If you bobble the ball too much, it will also explode so be sure to catch it cleanly. Ready? Go!"

     Ember tossed the Gormball at Dasher. Dasher snatched it and shot it with full force towards Sunny. Sunny took a bit of time before tossing it towards Benni.

     Benni then tossed it towards Weston, who bobbled it several times, causing the Gormball to soak him with water.

     "Oooo, nice try," Ember said, handing a somewhat dismayed Weston a towel.

     "Are you ok?"

     "Yeah," he quietly replied.

     "Ok, I’m gonna start with you next round, you up for it?" Ember asked.

     "Sure."

     Ember lightly tossed the ball to Weston who tossed it to Janner. Janner jumped up and kicked the ball towards Sunny. Sunny used her head to bash it towards Dasher. Dasher then knocked it towards Ember who knocked it back to him.

     "Oh, I see how it is! It’s on!" Dasher said.

     He then tossed it as hard as he could at Ember who stuck out her hand, blocked it back towards him, causing it to burst all over Dasher. The Ember and the others all laughed. Even Floee grinned.

     "Grrrr how dare you!" Dasher grumbled.

     "Nice try, but I do this in my sleep, Dasher."

     "Oh, do you?! Well, I’m gonna show you!"

     They went round after round and soon, Dasher began to rack up losses. Finally, on the tenth round, he shot a ball over Ember causing it to burst above her.

     "Hahaha!" he laughed as Ember got soaked.

     "Excuse me!" Ember replied loudly. She used a heat spell to dry herself off.

     She got into Dasher’s face for a bit and then smiled. "You got me that time! I’ll give you that. But you have a long way to go, Dasher. And good job to the rest of you all!"

     At the end of the day, they started playing elimination rounds.

     "Ok, it’s just us three now! Bring it!" Dasher growled as it came down to him, Ember, and Weston.

     "He’s got that fire in his eyes," Janner said.

     "Let’s go!" Benni cheered.

     Weston had gotten good at using his cane to knock the ball around and did so with ease. However, as the round continued, the game got faster. The ball then hit Dasher in the face and exploded.

     "Ughhhh! Again?! So close!" he yelled.

     Ember looked into Weston’s eyes and nodded.

     "It’s just us two. I’m not gonna go easy on you. It seems you’ve gotten better very quickly."

     Weston began and tossed the ball to Ember. Back and forth they went, trying not to be the one to destabilize the ball. Then suddenly, Weston lost his balance and the ball fell on him and exploded.

     An audible gasp filled the air as he slowly tried to get up. Ember rushed over to his side.

     "Are you ok?" she asked, kneeling by his side.

     "I think so. My right tail fin kinda hurts."

     She tried to help him up, causing him to wince in pain. So, she picked him up and carried him back to the main building as the others followed, deeply concerned.

     Ember and the others helped Weston to bed, and he remained there for about a week. During the process, the other residents took over caring for him. Janner came in and ensured Weston’s fins were wrapped up well, having experience from rescues in the coast guard. The others took turns bringing him food. At the end of the week, he moved around better but needed rehab on the fins.

     "The bay is very calm here. Perhaps we should try to use that to help your fins heal?" Ember suggested one morning.

     Weston looked out at the bay and saw gentle waves licking the shore. He nodded. With his cane, he carefully slid out to shore. Ember watched cautiously. She had only intended to intervene should Weston have trouble. She waited patiently until he reached the water. Dasher and Benni followed the two of them out.

     "Wait, aren’t you a fire faerie? Should you be stepping into the water with him?" Dasher asked.

     "No worries, Dash; I can handle a little bit of water. After all, I play Gormball," she replied. She helped Weston into the water and held him a bit.

     "I’m not going to let go this first few times. I just want you to move your fins as if you are swimming though," she instructed Weston.

     Weston splashed around and got water all over Ember. Ember could sense the fire magic quickly draining from her, but she did not let that bother her.

     "Good, very good. I’m gonna let go now."

     "Ok."

     Weston paddled a bit and swam slowly. Ember swam behind him. Dasher and Benni stared in awe. "Wait, are we just seeing a fire faerie swimming now?" Benni asked.

     Weston swam for 100 meters before tiring out. Ember took him out of the water and then the two of them quickly flew to pick up a towel to dry off.

     After drying off, Ember sat still and closed her eyes.

     "Are you ok?" Dasher asked.

     "Yes, I’m just recharging my fire magic."

     "Oh ok, how long does that take?"

     "Not too long. Can you both walk Weston back? I’ll be back in a minute."

     After about a week or so, Weston swam more on his own and could move around well with his cane. Ember continued to get into the water with him, taking care not to exhaust her reserves of fire magic.

     The other residents also swam with Weston, encouraging him every step of the way.

     "Come on, Weston!"

     Soon after, he began to swim long distances and play Gormball. So, they played again. Benni served the Gormball to Weston who booped it over to Dasher with his fin. Dasher knocked it over with his fist to Sunny. Sunny sent it over to Janner who bounced it with her head over to Ember. At that moment, a large wave crashed ashore and swept Ember off her feet.

     She struggled to swim ashore. A strong current threatened her endeavour though. Recognizing Ember’s predicament, Weston and Dasher swam towards Ember. The current raged furiously and made life difficult for the two of them.

     Weston’s fins protested as he tried to push against the current. Dasher also struggled but willed his way across. Janner, Sunny, and Benni all dove in as well, giving Weston a push so he could get across to Ember.

     They took a hold of Ember’s arms as Floee looked on with concern. The Fire Yooyu stood far from the shore.

     The others slowly pulled Ember back to shore. She laid there in the sand for a bit, clearly dazed from the water sapping all her fire faerie strength.

     "Is there anything we should do?" Dasher asked. "Like faerie stuff?"

     "Uhhh… no, thanks for pulling me out. Is Weston alright?" she said softly.

     The Faerie Flotsam slid over to Ember’s side with help from his cane as Floee rolled over to her. She sat up and gave Weston a hug.

     "Oh hi! I’ll be fine soon. I just need to sit here in the sun for a while."

     "Thanks for teaching me Gormball and helping me heal," the Flotsam said.

     After a few hours, Ember had absorbed enough of the sun’s energy to get up and head back inside. After a few more days of playing Gormball, she realized that they had gotten the hang of the game.

     "Well, I think you folks are going to enjoy playing Gormball now," Ember told Dasher.

     Dasher shrugged. "I suppose it’s fun enough. I still like Yooyuball better."

     "Only if they allow faeries to play in the Altador Cup!" Ember said, folding her arms.

     "I’ll try to appeal to the committee again about that." "Nah, no worries, I’m just messing with you."

     She began to pack her things, when Weston came into the room.

     "Leaving so soon?" he asked.

     "I think I've taught you all I know about Gormball."

     "You could always stop by; don’t be a stranger."

     "Ah you know, this is a great place to go relax during the offseason!"

     "We’d be glad to have you, and again, thanks for all of your help!"

     "No problem!" Ember said as Floee grinned.

     Thus, after every Yooyuball season, Ember now has new friends to play Gormball with... at a slower pace. While she enjoys all the accolades and attention from being a champion, she also needed some time off from all of that. Time off from signing autographs and the pestering questions from a certain Neopian Times Faerieland reporter. Dasher, Benni, Sunny, Janner; her heart desired to see them again after each Gormball season.

     The End.