Mistic Pets

Welcome to Issue 80
Created by The Mistic Pets Team

Character Spotlight: Lycoris
Written By Gemajgall

Late into the night, one of the most powerful noble imp families eagerly awaited the arrival of their heir. Someone to pass on their textile business, someone to lead their kind with a strong hand—and most importantly, someone to gain alliance with the young King Mephitic. It was a great sign; the sky was dark without a single star or moon shining. Clouds covered the heavens, and nightmares ran rampant.

However, the delivery proved to be difficult, and the early hours of the morning stretched on. The newborn imp daughter let out her first cry just as the sun lit up the sky, chasing away the rain-heavy clouds. Her family later said this was the beginning of everything going wrong.

Nonetheless, they did their best to instill in her the values and desires of imps. They even named her after deception; Lycoris, a beautiful but deadly flower that blooms in cemetaries. As as child, she was taught shrewd business practices and sneaky pranks, how to play the political field and manipulate the most hated enemies, the sprites. She grew in the shadows of Darkwood Hollow, awakening with the moon and sleeping at the first light of sun.

But her eyes could never adjust, and thus neither did her heart. All her peers traversed the shades with ease while she stumbled and fell. In the morning while they hid their eyes lest they be blinded, she saw the beauty in the sunrise. The black leather and chic, ripped clothing her parents designed and sold didn't make her look wicked; they made her look lovely. Even when jeered and bullied by her cousins, Lycoris never responded properly, with revenge. She merely returned the insults with a kind smile, even if she hurt for it.

As her parents worried more and more about their daughter's future and the future of their monopoly, Lycoris grew up a lonely individual. While she was expected to design dark, mysterious clothing for the business, she would save fabric scraps and secretly make her own, colorful outfits—as if she were trying to capture the sunrise itself on her skirt. Instead of tormenting others and backstabbing with her peers, she would take long walks in the Darkwood—even to the brighter outskirts of imp territory. During the day, her sleeping hours were filled with daydreams, and Lycoris could tell no one.

But it was as if the other imps could sense her good nature, and their bullying increased because of it. Her parents pushed her to fight back and take revenge; they didn't understand why she wouldn't. So, in order to stay away from the torment, Lycoris' walks grew longer and longer. Along the way, she met Misticpals. However, they wouldn't run from her like they would other imps. They'd come up beside her. Soon, Lycoris was able to feed them scraps of dried bread from her hand. The Misticpals trusted her more and more, even coming to her when injured. And Lycoris found joy in treating them back to health.

Like most secrets though, it didn't stay secret long. When her parents found out, she was severely punished in the worst way possible for imps. The forced her to stay in the sunny Meadow of the Shores for a whole day. Any imp would have gone insane from the light, but Lycoris found in enjoyable. In fact, it was a true eye opener. She realized she would never fit in with her own kind, and so she stopped trying. She boldly wore her own designs, looking as lovely as a butterfly's wing. She spoke with compassion and dignity and blatantly refused to harass any other living creature. No matter how cruelly she was treated, she responded with kindness. And the daydreams that danced while she slept grew more vivid.

Of course, she kept her Misticpal friends a secret. She knew they would become targets if other imps knew how she cared for them. But she continued to visit them and even started to sing with them on still days so the wind wouldn't carry her voice. To the small pals, it was as if her touch brought hope and beauty to the forest. And perhaps it truly did, as several of her Misticpal friends returned with the blessings of daydreams dyed across their fur and feathers.

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