CROSSING OVER

CHAPTER 2: TO SEE

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Although surprised that he had not followed, Maggie was still somewhat uneasy about her conversation with the man known as Madison Crowley. Safe to say, the words 'prostitution,  ring of kidnapped children' had crept into her mind more then once, much to her chagrin.

Of course, that didn't necessarily mean the man was some sort of crazed kidnapper.

Crazed, maybe....but maybe not in a dangerous way.

Other then that, he was definitely off his Neopian rocker. Someone who had hit Punchbag Bob once too many and finally snapped. Clearly taking what was a harmless (albeit addictive) internet game and turning into some sort of deranged little fantasy.

So for the rest of the school day, Maggie had watched with a weary eye, making sure just in case the man was lurking behind some dark corner waiting to pounce on her. Yet nothing happened, and by the end of that day, she had dismissed it as a harmless incident with a cracker, or maybe even some sort of prank.

As she boarded her school bus home, she went over the things she had to do for the remainder of the short day. Complete her homework, compete in the usual monthly battledome championship, watch Drew Carrey (while drooling over Craig Ferguson), and sleep.

Not necessarily in that order.

When she got home, the house was silent. Her mother had already left to pick up her sister at the elementary school, a rough five minute drive. Extend the entire event to half an hour with her sister's enthusiasm to annoy the hell out of her mother.

So she would have the house to herself for a while.

"Please don't be alarmed Maggie!"

The familiar voice sent Maggie whirling around to face the man behind her, a movement which affected her balance temporarily and sent her stumbling against the door. Her hand immediately went to the doorknob, with every intention of bolting out of her house, to her neighbors, and phoning the police from there.

"Please, just hear me out for a moment, I don't mean you any harm!" The man raised his hands as a sign of peace, and Maggie paused momentarily.

"You got one minute before I find something blunt to knock you out with!" She said through gritted teeth, keeping a safe eye on him from a distance.

"Very well, but can we perhaps sit down while I explain?"

Maggie nodded, and pointed to the living room. He took the cue and went first, sitting down on a large couch against the wall. Maggie sat down on the same couch, safely on the other end.

"Well?"

The man nodded, and reached into his pocket, making Maggie tense momentarily before he pulled out a small white business card.

Reaching for it, she read his name, along with the words 'OFFICIAL BATTLEDOME TRAINER' in the center. She re-read it, then handed it back to him sporting a familiar skeptic look.

"That doesn't prove much, it's just a card! I could make the same thing using my WordPerfect program and a pair of scissors!" Maggie scoffed.

"Ms. Griffin, as I said before and the offer still stands! You are being given a very rare opportunity, one that is given only to the most dedicated of Neopian player, and not very often either! Now if you give me a chance, I can prove to you that what I say is true!"

Maggie considered what he had said, rolling it around her mind and dissecting it like a cheap science project. The idea that the actual Neopia was real was of course ridiculous. Nothing like that could ever exist.

But how do you know? It could, and he says he has some sort of proof! Her mind rationalized, weighting her options.

"Alright look, what sort of proof are we talking about here?" She asked.

Mr. Crowley smiled, and reached into his pocket again. This time however, instead of a cheap business card, he brought out a palm-sized black box. It was metallic, with a dark purple border. It was roughly rectangular shaped, and had various dark purple buttons on the top.

Pointing it to the center of the room, he pushed some random buttons, and Maggie yelped as she watched a thin stream of extremely bright light issue forth from the machine, and into the room.

There in the center, once her eyes had adjusted, was a sight unlike anything Maggie had ever seen.

"Fashir?"

It was her own Neopet, in all his werewolf glory. Completely unlike anything she had ever imagined at that. He stood a good two feet above her own 5'5 while upright, but hunched down on his forepaws to be with her face- to-face. His fur was a dark brown colour and slightly shaggy and long. He wore a pair of tattered blue pants, cut off in messy cuts just under the hips. His paws ended in long, dangerous-looking claws, and Maggie noticed the rows of incisors that lined the inside of his mouth as he watched her with a dark gaze.

"It's good to finally meet you in the flesh!" his voice startled her so badly, she took a few steps backwards, falling back onto the couch as she did so. It was deep, and aged, just as she had predicted it would have been in real life. As it apparently truly was.

"God..oh my god.."

The gigantic Lupe began to slowly pace around the living room, his large claws leaving scar marks in the green carpet. Then, he slowly made his way towards her.

Maggie meanwhile, had scooted onto the couch as high up as she could, staring at the wolf-creature in fear.

"Don't be frightened Maggie...you are his owner after all! He is completely loyal to you," she heard Mr. Crowley exclaim through the haze of confusion that had become the last five minutes.

For a moment, Maggie tried to convince herself the large furry creature in front of her was some sort of illusion, but when she felt his head nuzzle her arm, she realized that everything this strange man had been telling her up until now was the truth.

"He's real...," she whimpered, daring to slowly raise her hand and let it rest gently on the Lupe's large furry head.

"Yes I am, and so is Neopia! Come with us, and you'll see for yourself," Fashir00 spoke once more, and Maggie was suddenly seized with a whole new feeling. One of adventure, of anticipation, and of leaving behind a life and starting a completely new one all on her own.

"So you are convinced now?" Mr. Crowley asked.

Maggie nodded, not taking her eyes off of her Neopet.

"So you will agree to the offer?"

Another moment went by, but when it was over, Maggie found herself nodding once more. Knowing somehow, that what she had agreed to do would affect her for the rest of her life.

Indeed, it would be her life.

"Excellent! Now I must explain a few things to you! Firstly, in coming with us, you and you alone are permitted. No friends, no family. Just you! You may pack a small suitcase of your belongings to take with you. Have no fear however, you do have a bank account ready in Neopia central, and a sizeable amount of cash to help you start anew. The first thing I can help you with when we arrive is setting you up in your Neohome!" Mr. Crowley exclaimed casually.

"Wait.you mean I'll have my own house?" Maggie asked, astounded.

"Well of course you will," Mr. Crowley replied. "We don't let out owners live on the streets you know. You will live in the same location you selected previously, and move in with Fashie00 as well as any other pets you may decide to add later! Of course, four pets per owner is our limit."

"Of course.," Maggie trailed off, nodding dumbly.

"Anyway, I'll give you the grand tour of Neopia when we actually get there!"

"When exactly.do you expect me to be ready to leave?"

Once more, Mr. Crowley wiped his spectacles, and looked back at her.

"Preferably before your parents arrive home!"

"Wait. you mean I can't even say goodbye to my parents?" There was a hint of sadness in her voice.

"I'm afraid not! No one must know where you are going! I cannot stress this enough! Neopia is a hidden, safe place. If the real world were to find out about it, it would be overrun and no doubt destroyed. You must leave in absolute secrecy, leave no trace behind!" Mr. Crowley spoke, his eyes incredibly serious as he talked. "I know it seems harsh, but Neopia's preservation depends on the secrecy of its citizens!"

Maggie nodded in understanding, and despite the idea that she would have to leave without any explanation it was logical. Still, it pained her to know she would never see her family again.

"Well, does that mean I can never ever come back? Like I have to stay there forever once I get there?"

"Not necessarily," Mr. Crowley shook his head. "When you get there, you may return home again if you do not like it after any period of time. However, once you return to the real world, you will never be able to gain access to Neopia again!"

"Like a two way ticket," Maggie muttered.

"''Fraid so!"

"Alright, so what do I do once I'm done packing?" She asked.

"Here!" Mr. Crowley handed her the same black rectangular box, and motioned to an assortment of the purple buttons. "This is the Dark Faerie's transmit box! She donated it at the very beginning for us to be able to bring potential owners back with us! When you are done and ready to go, simply push the top three buttons at the same time, and you will be on your way! Fashir will stay here and accompany you when you arrive! I will be waiting at the National Neopian Bank!" With that, he turned and another doorway of light appeared in front of him.

"Wait! How will I find the bank?" Maggie asked quickly.

"Don't worry, your pet will help you!" Mr. Crowley answered as he stepped through, and vanished.

Maggie was left alone in her house, with a seven-some foot high Lupe standing there with her. She felt somewhat akward, but the Lupe's surly gaze softened slightly as he turned his massive head to look at her.

"Are you alright Kitty?" He asked, his brow furrowing in concern at her confused gaze.

"Uh. yeah! I just…didn't expect you to be so huge! Why did you call me Kitty?" She asked.

"That will be your new name once you arrive in Neopia! Well respectfully speaking, your new full name will be Dead_Doll00, but most citizens prefer to use their Neo-names! All new owners change their names to the user hangers they chose when they signed up! As for me being bigger then my internet counterpart, you'll see that a lot of things will be different when you arrive. We can't very well be as big as we truly are on your monitors. we wouldn't fit!" He smiled thinly, and motioned to the staircase with his head. "You better start getting ready, your parents are on their way home!"

Maggie glanced at the clock, and was shocked to discover she had roughly five minutes to pack everything she wanted before her parents arrived home. Despite her sadness, she didn't want to be caught. It may have seemed selfish of her, but she wanted to leave. Maggie knew that if her parents found out, they would never let her go, and would no doubt call the police and have Fashir killed or worst. But that was natural in a grim sort of way. Humans feared what they didn't understand.

They would never understand anything that had just happened.

So she darted up the stairs, and made short work of grabbing a black and purple duffel bag from her closet. She began to throw various clothing inside, along with a photo album, some cash (even though Fashir assured her she didn't need it since NeoPoints were used in Neopia) and random other items like hair brushes, gels, and the like.

"Damn it, my jacket is downstairs!"

Maggie ran to the window, and let out a yelp when she saw the familiar red van pull into the driveway. Her father, mother, and sister began to pile out.

"FASHIR! GRAB MY JACKET OFF THE COUCH!" No sooner had the words left her lips as the Lupe pounced down the wooden stairwell, crushing a small part of it underneath his massive weight. He grabbed the black leather jacket gently in his teeth and was up the stairs again just as the front door swung open.

"Maggie, we're home!" Her mother's voice was clear from downstairs as Maggie grabbed the coat from Fashir, and slung the bag over her shoulder.

"HURRY, They must not see!" Marius exclaimed, pushing her bedroom door shut with such force the sound reverberated loudly around the house.

"My God, what happened to the stairs...MAGGIE, ARE YOU OKAY? MAGGIE?"

Maggie heard her father's voice this time, and footsteps coming up the broken stairs to her room.

"NOW!" Fashir yelled as she grabbed the box off her table, positioning her fingers over the three buttons.

There was a momentary hesitation, and at 17 years old, Maggie wondered if she would ever see anyone she knew from this world again.

"PUSH THE BUTTONS!" Fashir roared as the doorknob to her room began to turn. With that, Maggie's hand came down on the button, and a bright light enveloped both her and Fashir. It blinded Maggie, who felt herself steadied as she held onto her Lupe. There was complete silence, and in the next instant as the door opened, they had vanished into thin air.

With the door opening, her parents rushed into the room, finding it in a mild disarray. They had seen the bright light from beneath the door, and had heard the yell of a deep male voice. But as they looked about the empty room, they found no one.

"Maggie..," her mother exclaimed hopelessly, turning to look around once more. "Where…what happened?"

Yet no one was able to answer that.

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Next, Maggie arrives in Neopia with Fashir, and tries to settle into a new life.