Author's note: Here's the Red Omega's request, won though the riddle contest! Please enjoy, and watch for my next riddle contest! This one will be a bit harder. And, on a completely different note, YAY! THE NEW SEASON CAME OUT! WOHOO!

*Ahem* Enjoy.

As Zoe turned around, she held her breath. This could be the most romantic moment of her life! What if she made a fool of herself? Calm, even breathes. Beret straight? Check. Posture? Check. Okay, no use putting it off in longer. Just be casual. But don't over do it! What if she did? With a nervous feeling in the pit of her stomach, Zoe walked into Littlest Pet Shop.

"Hey Russell." "Hi Zoe."

Swoon!

It had been a while since Russell said hi to her, but Zoe still had that happy feeling of love that she felt when ever she saw him. At the moment, she was laying on Blythe's bed. Zoe was writing in her diary. She started the diary because when she becomes a famous movie star/singer/model/actress/ celebrity/ reality TV star, then the diary will be very important. And it helped her vent out her feelings, not that she would admit it.

Entry #219

OMG! I passed Russell by this mourning, and he said hi! I'm pretty sure I looked good, as I did a posture and accessory check before I came in, but did I forget to brush my teeth? What if my breath smelled? Am I making too big of a deal about this? Oh, I feel like I'm in one of those romance stories! What do they do in those anyway? I hope

Zoe stopped writing suddenly. She flipped to one of her past entries. It was about Russell. She flipped again, and again Russell. Flip, Russell. Flip, Russell. Flip, Russell. Flip flip, flip, Russell, Russell and Russell!

This was going to keep on going, Zoe realized, unless she did some thing about it. She would keep on dreaming about Russell, but she would never know whether he actually liked her. She was going to have to make the first move. It was the only way she would ever know.

Determinedly, she climbed down the dumbwaiter. "Hey Russell! I have… what the huh?" Russell, Pepper, Penny, Vinnie, and Minka were putting anything they could find on top of a cardboard box with several small holes in it. The box was hopping a little, like something in it was trying to get out.

"What's going on?" Zoe asked Penny. "We're trying to keep Sunil from going crazy. Two cobras are visiting soon! We're going to hide before they get here, but Sunil wouldn't hide. It's a mongoose thing." Penny explained.

Russell spoke to the small group. "Okay, I don't think he can get out. Let's hide before-" The pet shop door's bell cut him off. "Hide!" Pepper yelled.

Vinnie jumped into the food and dug down to the bottom. Penny ran up to the box above the slide. Pepper dove into her box of props. Minka jumped behind the curtains. Zoe climbed into the dumb waiter. And Russell climbed in also.

Zoe's heart began to beat faster, and it wasn't because of the cobras.

"Mummy, are you sure that we have to stay here? " A young voice said from outside. Zoe resisted the urge to look to see who was speaking. "Shush Nadia. I can sense them. Their fear is overwhelming. Soon we will have what we want." An older voice said frighteningly coldly. "But Mummy, just what do you want?" Nadia asked.

"Are you questioning me, my daughter?" Asked the older one. "Of coarse not Mummy! It's like you always say, we're cobras. The masters of all!" Nadia replied. It sounded like something she had said many times before, but still fervently believed in.

"Good. They've already trapped the mongoose up. That makes it all easier. Now to find the prey…." The older voice said, completely ignoring Nadia. The almost silent rasp of a pair of scales slithering seemed to fill the whole pet shop to the hiding pets. Zoe was painfully aware that Russell was hugging her and she was hugging back, as his quills were sticking in her paws. But she didn't dare move (and probably wouldn't have even if she did dare)

"This will bring them out…" The older one said. "If you do not show yourselves, I will kill the trapped one. These holes for breathing you put on the box? I will attack though one. He will not know in which one I will strike, and we all know what the result will be." The older cobra threatened. Zoe almost thought she heard Nadia fearfully muttering, "She won't really do it, she's just trying to scare them…" But Nadia didn't sound so sure.

With a shaky breath, Zoe stepped out.

"No Zoe, don't! I'll do it!" Russell yelled, but it was too late.

Quickly, the older cobra slithered to her and wrapped tightly around her. Once the cobra stared into Zoe's frightened but defiant eyes, Zoe could Zoe wasn't the only one who stepped out, but she was the fastest. "Nadia, let the mongoose out now. He won't dare attack!"

Nadia, who looked rather scared (and not just at the mention of the mongoose) asked "Mummy, must we really do-" "NOW!" The older cobra hissed, squeezing Zoe even harder. For one terrifying moment, Zoe couldn't breath. It was one of the worst feelings in the world. It felt like she was going to die, right then, helpless to do anything about it. Then the cobra loosened her grip somewhat. Zoe greedily sucked in as much air as she could.

"Yess, Mummy." Nadia said as she slithered over to the box. Swiftly, she used her fangs to tear a large hole in the box. Sunil jumped out and pounced on Nadia. Pure instinct took over both of them.

Nadia started hissing fiercely as she twisted and turned and even rolled around. She repeatedly slammed Sunil (who was growling with an equal amount of ferocity) into the ground. But the crazed mongoose refused to let go, until the older cobra yelled, "STOP! Beast, look at what I have here!" Sunil looked, and for a scary minute it looked like he was on the border between instinct and insanity, far to deep to think rationally or recognized Zoe or anyone else. But then his eyes widened and he jumped off and slowly backed away from Nadia. He growled in frustration and helplessness, but otherwise stood stock-still.

Nadia did an undignified retreat to her Mom, and even when her Mom gave her a disgusted look of disapproval she stayed there (although she did look considerably more uncomfortable) but aside from that, nobody else moved. That is, until the older cobra spoke.

"You, mongoose, will give me exactly what I want, or this little dog will be the one who has to face the consequences, understand?" Sunil nodded slowly. "Good. Now, about my … payment, I would like the Rose Star." Sunil gasped, and immediately went into an attack position.

"I'll never give that up to you!" Sunil spat. The other pets glanced nervously at each. They never knew that Sunil had this in him! And it was actually kind of scary. "You're forgetting what I have here, beast. You will give me the Rose Star, or this one dies. And no, I will take you instead."

Sunil obviously loathed the cobra but had no choice but to do what she asked. He walked over to the hole in between Sweet Delights and Littlest Pet Shop. "If you are not out in five minutes, I will kill this dog." The older cobra threatened. Sunil nodded before walking in.

The other pets could hear thumping coming from the walls around them, and in what seemed forever (but was in truth 3 minutes) he came out holding a thick light brown book. Some of the pages were yellowed with age, while others looked like they had just been printed. Many of the pages were folded and there were a couple pressed flowers.

"Here it is." Sunil spat, eyes burning hatred. "Release Zoe and I'll give it to you." The older cobra shook her head. "No. I think I won't. You give Nadia the Rose Star, and then we'll leave. Once we reach the lamppost, we'll let you dog friend go. If any one of you follows me, then this dog dies. Anyone interferes? Dead dog. Anyone moves? Dead dog. Nadia! Get the book!"

Nadia looked as pale as the rest of the pets. "Yes, Mummy." She muttered in almost a daze. She slithered over to Sunil and, without looking him in the eye, collected the book.

The two cobras slithered out together, and as soon as they were gone Sunil said "Everyone to the window! I'll do a camouflage spell, they won't be able to tell!" They all gathered around the window and, as soon as Sunil said the magical chant, they were invisible to prying eyes.

They watched as the cobras slithered to the lamppost. The older cobra hissed something to Nadia, and she said some thing back. The older cobra turned around to glare and said it more fiercely. Nadia seemed to refuse. The older cobra was in an attack position and was yelling at Nadia, who at first quelled. Then Nadia began to talk and she looked as though she was gaining strength as she went on. And anger,

The older one laughed and said something that caused Nadia to pale. With a hiss, the older one turned around and bit Zoe. Right before she was bit, Zoe turned and mouthed "I love you Russell." All the pets screamed at once, and Russell could feel hot tears pouring down his face. "No!" He screamed again, fist pounding the window. "Zoe!"

Then Nadia at first reeled back, but then she attacked her mother, and soon they were a wriggling mess of scales and hissing.

What happened outside…

The two cobras slithered over to the lamppost. "Give me the Rose Star, Nadia." The older one hissed. Nadia hesitate. "Mum? If I give you the book, will you really let the dog go? Becaussse I think you were lying." The older one turned around and glared. "It doesn't matter! Give me the Rose Star!"

Nadia stared at her mom, and then said, "No," The word enraged her mom. "I should have abandoned you when you were an egg! Many times in your miserable life I was tempted to do just that, but I let you stay with me. I raised you to be a true cobra, and now you turn on me for some mangy dog! Sometimes I think you're worse then your worthless brother Ian was!"

Nadia, who had quelled under her mother's furious rant, started to talk. "Mum, ever since you met that awful Gordon snake you've been acting horribly mean! You have to stop obsessing over everything she tells you! H-he made you kill Kia! And I won't let you give him the book!" Nadia yelled, gaining courage as she spoke. Then Nadia heard something that made her blood run cold, something she had never heard before.

Her mother was laughing. It was a cold, cruel sound.

"Fool!" Her mother hissed. "I killed Kia before I met Gordon! I've always been this mean, but you have been blind as a bat! Your brother could see though. That's why I had to get rid of him." Nadia paled horribly. But her mother went on. "He wasn't a true cobra. But are you? Are you willing to do whatever it takes to achieve your goal? Would you do your best to honor our cunning warrior ancestors? More importantly, do you have the courage and the guts to look out for yourself? Let's find out!"

Zoe felt the cobra tensing up, and she knew what was coming. She looked back over at Littlest Pet Shop. If she was going to die now, she wanted LPS to be the last thing she saw. Maybe she could even see Russell though the window. She just wanted him to know before she died.

"I love you Russell." She mouthed, and then the fangs sunk into her.

Inside LPS

All the pets rushed out the door. They ran up to Zoe, and Penny checked Zoe's heart beat. "She's still alive! But it's so slow." Penny whimpered. "Can't you do a healing spell or some thing?" Pepper begged Sunil.

"I-I-I… I can't. If only we had the Sage Star… It has all the healing spells!" Sunil said. Russell held Zoe's head in his lap. He loved so much it hurt now… If only it had been him! He leaned down to kiss her before she died.

"No Russell! The venom might spread to you." Sunil warned. Russell almost didn't care. A life without Zoe was unimaginable. The pets sat in a grim silence for what felt like an eternity.

"I think I can help." A quiet voice said behind them.

Sunil growled and threw himself on top of Nadia. Nadia did nothing to resist. She let Sunil push her to the ground and only flinched as he clawed her. "How could you!?" He screamed, tears pouring down his face. A few tears landed in Nadia's wounds, and the pets realized with a jolt that they weren't Sunil's. Nadia was crying too.

"It wasn't me, but it might as well have been. I could have stopped her at any time!" Nadia answered. Slowly, Sunil got off her. "Where's 'Mum'?" He asked suspiciously. Nadia answered half whimpering. "S-she fell into a lake. At a park. The book fell in and she went after. S-she said something about immortality? She didn't come out."

Sunil nodded. "Many think that if you gather all the Major spell books together, you'll gain immortality. It's wrong. There just books with all the spells in them, and if one spell offered immortality then everyone would know about. I can retrieve the book with a simple fetch spell. But how can you help Zoe?"

"She may be too far gone, but me and Mum and.. a couple others are a breed of cobras that humans have yet to discover. Mum's bragged about that enough. Anyway, ay venom is like an anti venom to all of my family's venom, and vice versa. It doesn't always work, if it's too deep in the blood stream, but it can't hurt..," Nadia trailed off as she saw the other pets (besides Russell, who was still looking at Zoe) glaring at her.

"You expect us to believe that?" Vinnie asked incredulity. "But it's true! I can-" Nadia's protests were cut off by Minka. "Why would we ever believe you?! Now Zoe isn't ever-"

"Do it." Russell interrupted, surprising everyone.

"Are you sure Russell?" Penny asked. "Well what's she going to do? Make it worse? We have no choice but to trust her." Russell answered, eyes full of despair. Reluctantly, Sunil let Nadia pass.

Nervously (and uncomfortably aware of both the fact that the pets trusted her just because they had no other choice and of the fact that all of the other pets were glaring at her with hard eyes) Nadia slithered up to Zoe. Inserting her fangs gently into Zoe's wound, she injected her venom.

Everyone held their breath. "It will take, um… 5 to 6 minutes, I think." Nadia said uncertainly. Then, after a heart stopping 4 minutes, Zoe's eyes fluttered opened. "Russell…" She said weakly.

"Zoe! You're alive!" Eyes alight, Russell hugged Zoe and kissed her on the cheek. Zoe smiled and would have kissed him back, but she was still weak, as Nadia's venom hadn't taken full effect..

"You did it Nadia!" Minka yelled joyful. "Oh, thank you thank you thank you!" Penny added, hugging her. "You saved her!" Vinnie added. For a while, they were all filled with pure joy.

After the initial celebration, Nadia spoke up. "Well, uh, I guess I ought to be going now." "But don't you have to wait for your owner to pick you up?" Penny asked.

"Me and Mum don't actually have owners. She just hypnotized a girl to make us an appointment. And Ms. Twombly probably doesn't even remember us. Mum hypnotized her too, after she tried to put us in a separate place. So…"

It was Sunil who broke the awkward silence. "So what? You can still stay for a while. In fact, you can stay as long as you need to." The other looked at each other in surprise. A mongoose inviting a cobra in! Who would have guessed?

"Yay! I love happy endings!" Minka yelled. "So do I." Zoe said, laughing. "And I know what will make it even better." Zoe added slyly. "What is it?" Russell asked. Without another word, Zoe sat up and kissed him on the lips.

And that, thought Russell, made this the happiest ending he could ever hope for.