The Very Hungry Skeith
(part two : Yin and Yang)
by Emminou
Lily landed in a shady alley that snaked between Neopian Fresh Foods, Inc., and a large factory. The brick walls of the factory were covered in graffiti, much of it words that no young skeith should ever know. Oily puddles oozed across the concrete space between the two buildings. There was a strong stench of fish in the alley, which seemed to come from a dumpster leaning against the wall of the food shop. It was behind this dumpster Lily landed.
Unfortunately, it was also on top of an aisha. The cat-like creature hissed a few of the choicer words from the wall as he scrambled out from below Lily.
"Sorry," she mumbled, shame-faced. "S-s-s-sorry."
The aisha made no effort to reply; instead, he simply sat down on a small pile of newspapers and glared at Lily, his eyes narrow slits in his dirty ivory-coloured face.
Lily shivered. Something about this aisha was frightening her. She shrugged at him, apologetically, and turned to go.
She was halfway down the alley when something hit her in the back. Lily whipped around, still nervous, but the white aisha was nowhere to be seen. Scooping her orange backpack out of the puddle she'd dropped it into, she continued on her way.
Seconds later, a rock smashed into her tail, hitting the bruise Sandra had made the day before. With a yelp of pain, Lily turned to face the place she'd last seen the aisha. There was nothing there. Cautiously, Lily took a few steps forwards.
And suddenly, the aisha was there. He'd appeared out of thin air; or so it seemed to Lily, who blinked and rubbed her eyes. He took a few steps closer, and sat down. He seemed to be considering something.
"What do you want?" Lily knew she sounded like a spoilt skeithling, but she didn't care. This aisha was giving her the creeps. "I said sorry."
"Oh, I know you did," the aisha purred.
"Then what do you want?"
The aisha hesitated before he answered. "To, ah, help you."
"Sure you do," Lily said sceptically.
Nodding earnestly, the aisha added, " I really think it would be best if you'd follow me. I'd be able to explain things so much better in more... decent surroundings."
Lily took another look at the alleyway. The aisha was right; a place like this was not a good place to hang around for long. With a sigh, she nodded.
***
The aisha's name was Yang, he told Lily, as they made their way through the dirty backstreets of Neopia. He refused to tell her anything more, insisting he'd explain in the "decent" surroundings of home.
"And where's home?" Lily asked.
Yang paused before an abandoned shop. Lily stopped too, and stared through the filthy window. What she could see - and that wasn't much - was not an encouraging sight. Two bookshelves were huddled together in the middle of the cramped space, surrounded by a mess of footsteps; a service counter, complete with a shop till, was pushed against one wall, and a poster, bleached almost colourless, hung from the other, advertising "The Space Station: A whole new galaxy of fun!" Beyond that, Lily could see nothing but darkness.
She jumped as the door creaked open. Yang slipped into the shop. Wondering what she'd let herself in for, Lily followed him.
"Yin?" the white aisha called.
There was a rustling noise, followed by the appearance of a lithe black shadow from within the bookcase. Yang rubbed himself against the shape, purring. She - somehow, Lily knew the black aisha was female - nipped him affectionately on the earstalk, before turning to Lily.
"What have we here, Yang?" Her voice was deep, a little husky.
Yang, still purring, sat down beside the shadow. "Yin, this is... I'm sorry- What did you say your name was?"
"Lily," she said, more than a little puzzled. Why would they want to help me if they don't even know who I am?
"She's a skeith," Yang continued.
"I can see that," the black aisha replied, irritated. She stared at the skeith Yang had brought to their home: small, plump, a nondescript shade of blue. "I'm not sure about your so-called great idea, Yang."
"Sure about what?" Lily whispered.
The black aisha smiled broadly. "Never you mind. Say, Lolly, dear, are you hungry?"
Lily didn't bother to correct Yin's pronunciation of her name. "Umm... yeah," she muttered. Her stomach rumbled in agreement.
Slitted eyes dancing, Yin turned to Yang. "Get us something to eat while I entertain our guest."
***
By the time Yang returned, carrying a pair of chicken wings, Lily was starting to feel quite uncomfortable. There was something in the way Yin talked; the way she smiled, too often and too wide. So Lily was very relieved when the door creaked open, announcing Yang's return.
"Nrrg... I found some chicken wings," he mumbled through a mouthful of meat. "Only slightly rotten, too."
Yin leapt up from the story she'd been telling Lily. Crossing the room, she snatched a chicken wing from Yang's mouth. She sat down and began to eat ravenously.
Lily watched her, unsure of what to do next. The black aisha looked up and jerked her head at Lily. "Eat something, Laurel," she ordered, "Or aren't you hungry?"
Lily's stomach answered for her. Blushing, Lily scuttled across the room to take a piece of chicken from Yang. He had been right. The chicken was covered in flecks of green mould. Lily dropped it, disgusted.
Yin was still watching her. "Why, Lola, is there something wrong with your chicken?"
Determined not to embarrass herself even further in front of Yin, Lily shook her head. She picked up the piece of chicken and, ignoring the mouldy spots, ate what she could.