Author's Note: This story takes place in the present, while my other one is about the past; therefore I'm separating them into different pieces. More chapters will be added to the last one as well. Anyway, I hope you enjoy reading this story. That is, you'd better enjoy reading it… Muaha—cough.

Oh, and since I've been seeing these disclaimers around, I might as well say that I don't own Neopets. Donna owns Neopets. I mean, Adam does. Or Snarkie, or Droplet. Or Lawyerbot. Or the Meepits. Actually, I'm not sure, but I'd go with the Meepits. Regardless, I don't own Neopets. Nor do I own anything else that I can get sued for. I just wrote the story. Moving on…

Nut floated on the surface of the sparkling water, enjoying the cool wetness that made up the NTAG ocean. It was a very peaceful day at the guild for the Belle doll. For a member as active as she was, it was rather surprising that she hadn't gotten into too many scrapes. Of course there was the whole Kiko-popping incident in the past, but that was done and gone now. Nut's alter species was a Kiko, but right now she favored the Belle doll. It was so nice to be able to swim. Water was so calming.

"Where's the cheese?"

"I STOLE IT! MUAHAHA, I will rule the world!"

"I-I'm going to die! Give it back!"

CRASH! BANG! "Missed me!"

"Someone get Nano to the hospital wing." The sound of a chainsaw being started up filled the air. RRRRRRR… "I'll take care of her."

"Roofle!"

BOING!

WHAM!

"The trampoline seems to have broken."

RRRRRR… "Another patient. Bring her over here."

"Meep."

"Ahh! RSM!"

CHOMP!

Nut smiled. It was a peaceful day indeed. She was the only one in the ocean. The other Belle doll of the guild, Luau, was busy working on a story for the Neopian Times, and the rest of the members of the Water Tribe were running around elsewhere in the guild. One of them, Heather, was quite busy with her duties as certified guild doctor; she stood in the hospital wing with her chainsaw at the ready. No doubt the others were occupied as well.

Nut arced her scaly body and dove gracefully below the surface of the water. But before she had completed her dive, she felt a claw take hold of her tail and start pulling her out of the water. Suddenly panicked, she began to wave her arms wildly and thrash with as much of her tail as she had use of with her bottom fin held in a tight grasp. It was of no use, and the Belle doll found herself being rather ungracefully hauled out of the water by her tail.

Who dares pay me this indignity? Nut thought angrily, immediately beginning to plot revenge on whoever her captor was. Blood rushed to her face, probably caused by her current position hanging upside-down by the offending talons.

"Come here, little Belle doll," a familiar voice cooed. Nut struggled to turn her head and see who was holding her in this most humiliating manner. She caught a glimpse of white feathers and realized that it was none other than Leah, a rather mischievous White Weewoo. Of course it would be her.

"Let me go!" Nut said, her tiny voice choked due to her uncomfortable position. "What do you think you're doing?"

Leah took no notice and flew up, carrying the struggling doll in her claws, and dropped Nut unceremoniously into her inventory. Nut threw her arms out to protect herself from the fall, but still landed rather hard. Standing up on her tail, Nut looked around indignantly. She found herself surrounded by blobs of partially eaten omelettes and chunks of wiggling jelly, along with various other items that Leah had recently grabbed during a restock.

"Leah, what on earth—" Nut began, and then stopped. She watched in surprise as the White Weewoo flew up to a podium and took a gavel in her claws. Leah faced the eagerly assembled members of NTAG, ignoring the non-assembled members who were still dealing with Nano and the missing cheese, and announced, "I have here a lovely, unique Belle doll! What am I bid?"

"I'll put my NP on her!" exclaimed Dragonfly. The elf eagerly eyed the bewildered Nut.

The Belle doll was in a state of utter confusion. It seemed to her that her fellow guild members were betting on her, as if she were a Poogle in a Poogle race. While she was honored that she would be considered worthy of betting, gambling had never been her thing. "Hey, what are you guys betting on me to do?" she asked.

Her question was ignored. Leah flew off the podium and went over to the elf. "How much?" she whispered.

Dragonfly winked and slid a small money sack into the Weewoo's wing.

Leah opened it and gasped. Returning to her podium, she announced, "An anonymous bidder has placed a total of 25 NP on Nut! Do I hear 50 NP?"

"I'd really like to know what you want me to do," Nut said nervously, edging away from the gooey chunk of green pepper omelette she was sitting next to. The egg was oozing off of it, and it appeared to be coated in saliva. She wondered who had last chewed on it.

"50 NP!" yelled Dragonfly.

"I have 50 NP. Do I hear 75? Going once…" Leah shouted, waving her gavel.

Nut saw it all now. Leah was auctioning off the Belle doll. "Ho hum," she yawned, leaning back against a plushie. "Wait a minute!" she exclaimed, sitting bolt upright. "Why do you want to buy me, you fiends? I'm alive!"

"I bid 75.3 NP!" cried Dragonfly.

"You do realize that you're bidding against yourself?" Nut mumbled.

"Don't tell her that," Leah hissed. In a louder voice she continued calling, "100 NP, anyone? 100 NP!"

The elf walked over to Nut and smiled sweetly at her. "Nice little Belle doll," she giggled, squeezing the doll gently.

"I'm Nut, and what you're doing is slightly creeping me out."

"100 NP!" the Weewoo broke into her thoughts. "100 NP, anyone? Going once… going twice…!"

"500 NP!" Nut yelled, shaking free of Dragonfly's grasp. She would get out of this situation if she had to buy herself back to do it.

"I have 500 NP. Do I hear 600?"

"Hello all!" shouted a slightly crazed voice. A Silver Lupess came prancing in, followed by a pack of Rabid Shadow Meepits. Meep waltzed up to Leah's podium and said sweetly, "I'll give you 2,000 for her." She danced away.

"3,000!" Nut cried.

"10,000!" Meep said in a singsong voice.

"25,000!" Nut said tearfully. To think that she would be forced to part with so many of her hard-earned Neopoints, all for her own freedom.

"I have 25,000 NP for the talking unbuyable Belle doll! Do I hear 50,000?" Leah shouted, swinging her gavel.

Dragonfly was already daydreaming about what she would do with the lovely Belle doll once purchased. "I'll have her be the kitty that the big evil boss is always stroking, except she's a Belle doll instead of a kitty."

"I just wanna hu-u-u-ggle her!" Meep exclaimed, jumping up and down in anticipation.

"Meep," said a RSM, throwing a glance at Nut. It seemed to be planning on what to do with her if it got her in its clutches. Even the Meepits, Nut's former allies, were turning against her in the race to win her from the auction.

Nut grated her teeth. "Shouldn't I have a say in this?" she screeched hotly. "I don't want to be auctioned off!"

Leah looked at her in annoyance. "You complain too much." She flew over and picked up the Belle doll in her talons.

"Not this again," Nut mumbled as she hung upside-down from her tail.

Leah dumped Nut into her Safety Deposit Box and locked the door. Nut found herself inside a dark, dank cubicle, surrounded by items of all kinds, from Tombola junk to rotting old Cheops Plants.

"That'll keep her quiet," Leah said to herself, returning to her podium. "The auction continues!" she bellowed. "Do I hear 50,000 NP for the talking, complaining, unbuyable Belle doll? Anyone?"

Shouts erupted from around NTAG, all calling out increasing amounts of Neopoints. Now many people wanted to own the Belle doll. No one heard the faint beating of tiny fists against the door of Leah's Safety Deposit Box, except for the Weewoo. But of course she wasn't going to let her out.

Nano, who was apparently on leave from the hospital, flew into the room and shouted, "150,000 NP!"

"200,000," Meep said dreamily.

"You outbid me!" Nano grabbed her cheese mallet and knocked the Lupess on the head. Meep fainted. The Rabid Shadow Meepits, horrified at the conduct employed against their leader, piled onto Nano. The blue Shoyru was soon lost in a mass of dark shapes.

"Two down!" Leah exclaimed. "Do I hear 250k?"

"300k!" Sage bid. He held up his pillow menacingly. "I'm the one getting her."

"Why do you want a Belle doll?" Leah asked with a grin.

"Why else? She was in on that whole male Belle doll thing!" Sage frowned. The guild still hadn't forgotten that incident. "She'll get her return for that."

"300k by the revenge-seeking human," Leah said in a bored voice. "Do I hear 400k?"

"500k!" exclaimed Meep, suddenly reviving. She ran over to Sage and threw a Rabid Shadow Meepit at him. "You won't hurt my wittle huggably-wuggably Belle doll!"

"Ahh!" screamed the notorious Meepiphobic, hiding behind his steel-plated pillow. The RSM snuck up behind and poked him in the back. Sage fainted from fright.

Leah held her gavel like a microphone and took on the role of sports announcer. "And Meep's back up! But Sage is down! 600k, anyone?"

"750k, I suppose." Nimras held up her cheesegrater. "I wouldn't argue with me if I were you."

"What do you want with a Belle doll?" Leah couldn't contain her curiosity. "I thought you only cared about Jeran."

"My shower gets lonely when I'm not there. But she'll feel right at home with all the water." Nimras grinned.

"Ohhkay," Leah said. "750k by the Darigan-Meridell clan member. Do I hear 900k?"

"1.5 million Neopoints!" exclaimed Heather.

The guild stopped silent for a moment. The amazing sum held them all in frozen awe.

"Sheesh, you're rich," Meep said. "Why do you want to waste it on a Belle doll?"

"If it's a waste, why are you bidding?" the Royal Korbat countered.

Meep shrugged. "She's worth it to me."

"She's more valuable to me. She supports Meepits; I need her for my ranks!" Heather declared.

"Oh yeah?" Meep threw a Rabid Shadow Meepit at Heather in frustration.

"Hey, I'm a Meepit leader too!" Heather protested. The RSM ignored her and opened its mouth to bite. Heather turned on her chainsaw. "I think I need to operate on you, Meepit. Don't worry, when I'm done, you'll be happy to be with me forever!"

A tap on the podium with the gavel distracted Heather before she could put the RSM through surgery. "I have 1.5 million," said Leah, smug with the knowledge that she would get what she wanted out of this auction. She would be satisfied to sell Nut for one and a half million Neopoints, but she couldn't resist trying for more. "Do I hear two million?"

"Five million!" said Nimras.

"Five million and one!"

Everyone turned to stare at the bidder who had put up that incredible amount. It was none other than the arrow-wielding elf, Dragonfly. The other bidders began groaning and grumbling to themselves. As much as they all wanted the Belle doll, they couldn't top that astronomical bid. Nimras sighed and wondered if a cheesegrater could beat a bow and arrows on the battlefield. She was distracted, however, by the sight of Jeran passing by, and gave chase, forgetting about the auction.

Leah was beside herself with glee. Five million Neopoints! That would certainly bolster her savings account. She tapped the podium with her gavel. "Going once…going twice…"

"Wait!" yelled Sage, suddenly jumping up. He looked around quickly to make sure that no Rabid Shadow Meepits were within his vicinity, and then crept over to the podium while using his pillow as a shield in case of a sudden strike from the enemies. "I bid five million and one Neopoints."

"Dragonfly already bid that much," Leah said. "You'll have to raise your bid."

"I can't," Sage said, staring the Weewoo firmly in the eye. "That's all I have."

Leah thought for a moment. "Throw in your pillow, and it's a deal."

Sage clutched said pillow protectively. "No way!"

"Okay, then, I hereby declare that Dragonfly and Sage will play three rounds of Super Smash Brothers Melee to decide who gets the Belle doll," Leah announced. "The winner takes Nut."

"You're on!" exclaimed Sage.

The elf and human were soon seated in front of the TV monitor, each with a game controller in their hands.

"Ready…set…" Leah said. "Fight!"

Fingers flew across the buttons like mad. Sage leaned towards the screen, straining to push Dragonfly's character over the edge. He almost had her…

"Come back, fuzzy!" Nimras ran in front of the screen, blocking Sage's view.

Dragonfly got back her edge and hurled Sage's character to his defeat.

"Noooo! Why do I always lose?" Sage wailed, pounding the floor with his fists.

"Face it, Sage, you're not that good at the game," Leah chortled.

"It was Nimras' fault! I would've won!" Sage clutched his forehead in frustration. The injustice was almost too much to bear at times.

"Excellent match, Dragonfly," Leah said with the grin of someone who was about to reel in five million-odd Neopoints. "As promised, you get the talking, complaining, stuck-up unbuyable Belle doll."

"Thank you!" Dragonfly said with a huge grin on her face.

Leah went over to her Safety Deposit Box and opened it. Before she had even gotten the door all the way open, the Belle doll came tumbling out. Nut looked dirty from being in the dusty safe for so long, but her appearance didn't stop her from being mad. She came out waving her arms and yelling, "Leah, how dare you! Let me at the ocean—I have to get back into the water!"

"Sorry. I just sold you to Dragonfly." Leah grabbed Nut by her tail and lifted into the air.

"What?" Nut cried, flailing wildly.

The White Weewoo dropped the Belle doll into Dragonfly's waiting arms. The elf whispered softly in Nut's ear, "You're mine now."

"I am not!" Nut screeched.

Leah folded her wings. "So, Dragonfly, where's my five million and one Neopoints?"

"Oh, I never had five million and one NP. I just said I did so I'd win the auction."

"What?" cried Sage. "I lost out to you and you didn't even have the money you were bidding?"

"What?" Leah yelled. "Give back that Belle doll!"

Dragonfly stuck her tongue out at them and ran off, carrying a struggling Nut in her arms. "She's mine! All mine!" she yelled maniacally, disappearing through a narrow door in NTAG.

"You still owe me for her!" Leah cried, taking up the chase. "You're going to pay me every Neopoint you have on you right now, and give me everything you earn until you make up the difference!"

Nut, in Dragonfly's arms, was fuming. You'd think that for selling my mortal body and human rights, I'd at least get a cut of the profits.

To be continued…