Secret Admirer
Riddle Four: Here, There, and Everywhere In Between
.nachzes black-rider
Dedication: To Willowwind Adurois, who has been my best friend for six years. May you continue to bless my life with your presence for six years to come, and more.
"What about this one, Téa? Says here it's scales are green to help it blend in with the leaves of the trees it lives in."
"No no," Téa said distractedly. "The riddle said search high or low. It has to blend in with the ground, too." She chewed at a lock of hair frustrated, looking around at the many glass-walled exhibits surrounding them. "Which one is it?" she muttered. "Which one are you?"
"Téa?"
The brunette snapped to attention, blue eyes focussing on Yugi, who was standing next to a brass plaque on the wall. "Yeah?" Téa asked.
"What about this one?" the teen gestured to the plaque behind him.
"Can it blend in with the ground and the trees?" Téa asked.
"No, but this snake never truly existed," Yugi said, turning to face the plaque so that he could read it. "'The mythical Kukulkan, a god of the ancient Mayans, was thought to take the form of a serpent with wings, and represented both good and evil. Kukulkan ruled the four parts of the earth, and could renew the world after it had been destroyed. It was referred to as Quetzalcoatl by the Aztecs of South America."
"That would work as an answer to the riddle…" Téa said, then smiled. "So what does the note say?"
Yugi looked up at her. "That's the thing, Téa," he said. "…There is no note."
"What?" Téa blurted before she could stop herself. Shaking her head, she briskly crossed the room to where Yugi stood, frowning. "There has to be a note!" she insisted, peering at the wall the plaque rested on. Giving up, he made an angry noise and allowed her hands to drop to her sides. "This doesn't make any sense!" she huffed, glaring at the plaque. "We found the subject of the riddle, so why isn't there a note?"
"Because we haven't found the snake?" Joey asked, he and Tristan having joined the group.
"But we have—"
"No…we know what it is now, but we must need to find the actual thing," Yugi said. Téa stared at him incredulously.
"But it doesn't exist!" she exclaimed.
"I'll bet you there'll be a statue of one at the museum, though," Yugi told her.
"I don't think it'd be that close to the last clue, man," Tristan said.
"Where else would we find a statue or a picture of it?" Yugi asked frustratedly, frowning. Téa, Joey and Tristan followed suit, the four beginning to pace up and down the length of the reptile house, until Téa suddenly stopped and snapped her fingers, a grin breaking through the moody expression on her face.
"I've got it!" she said, the other three halting in their pacing and turning to face her. "The Domino Library," Téa said, "has one of the best—and largest—sections on mythology and religion in all of Texas." She grinned wider, and went on, Yugi, Joey and Tristan looking at her curiously. "In fact, the section on Mayan and Aztec myths and culture alone is nearly as large as the average classroom, and includes several modern works of art which are based off of certain myths, and donated by patrons. Boys," Téa said, "let's go hit the books." Joey, Yugi and Tristan all groaned simultaneously, earning themselves stern glances from Téa. "Something wrong with that idea?" she asked.
"No, mother," Joey quipped. In response, Téa clipped him one on the shoulder, glaring. "Oww," the blond grumbled, then, once Téa had turned away, he leaned over to whisper to Tristan, "I told you it wasn't a treasure hunt."
to be continued…