The tunnel seemed to stretch endlessly before them, its darkness pierced only by faint glimmers of that distant light. Leslie glanced back up at the trapdoor.

  Should I just play along? I can be brave too! Don't be a scared little girl he thinks you are.

  She looked longingly at the thin sliver of daylight streaming impossibly above.

  There’s not even a ladder… I guess there’s no choice.

  She moved in front of her brother, tugging at his sleeve and pulling him further into the tunnel, “Let's go!”

  Jaimes followed, looking at her with surprise scrunching his nose, “Who are you and what have you done with my sister?” His blue eyes sparkled mischievously, “Just kidding, last one there's a rotten egg!”

  He yanked himself free from her dainty grip and took off down the tunnel. His excitement, finally contagious, effected her and she bounded after him.

  Her instincts screamed at her to climb back up, to return to the dusty old house and pretend they’d never found the trapdoor at all. But the tunnel ahead—it was calling to her as laughter bubbled up and out of her mouth.

  The tunnel sloped downward, the ground uneven underfoot. Their shoes crunched against the dirt. Jaimes led the way and Leslie followed his steps in case there were obstacles. After what felt like forever, Jaimes stopped suddenly, nearly causing Leslie to crash into him.

  “Ow! What are you doing?” She peered around to see a door in the dirt at the end of the tunnel. Strange symbols were etched into the wood, the same swirling patterns they’d seen on the trapdoor upstairs. The handle was made from the same polished brass, “Another door? Where do you think it goes?”

  Jaimes stepped closer to it, tilting his head to study the carvings. “It’s the same symbols, right?” He traced his finger over one of the spirals. “It’s like they match…” He trailed off, staring at something in the corner of the doorframe. Leslie followed his gaze.

  A key hung there, suspended on a hook. It wasn’t dusty or rusted like everything else in the tunnel. It looked perfect—polished matching brass with an ornate swirl design. Jaimes didn’t hesitate and reached for it.

  “Wait!” Leslie blurted out, “You don’t know what it does.” She held his arm, trying to pull him away from it.

  I thought I was going to be brave! What am I doing?

  The key was inches from his fingertips, “It’s a key. There’s a door. Keys open doors, dummy.”

  She blushed, “Of course I know that!” She let him go and he swiped the key before she could stop him. The moment his fingers closed around it, the symbols on the door began to glow. Soft blue light traced the carvings, spreading across the wood like veins of lightning. Jaimes and Leslie froze, staring as the door came to life before their eyes.

  “Jaimes…”

  “I didn’t do anything!” Jaimes fought defensively, but his voice was filled with awe. He held up the key, which now pulsed faintly with the same blue light, “I think it wants us to use this.”

  “Well duh, it’s a key,” She giggled and Jaimes pushed the key into the keyhole under the handle. It slid in effortlessly. For a moment, nothing happened. Then, a deep rumble echoed through the tunnel. The door shuddered and swung outward.

  Light began to fill the tunnel. It moved like mist, curling and shifting and eating away the darkness. They stood at the doorway with eyes wide. She looked behind them but the tunnel was gone, replaced by more light. It was just them and the doorway.

  “What do we do now? I can’t see anything.”

  “I don’t know, but I think we’re supposed to go through the door.”

  She held his hand and they looked at one another.

  “Ready?”

  “What if we can’t come back?”

  “Then we’ll find another way home. For now, let’s go explore!” He winked and gripped her hand.

  “Okay, but we stick together. And if anything feels wrong, we come straight back here.”

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

  Jaimes grinned, “Deal.”

  Together, they stepped through the doorway.

  The light engulfed them. It felt like they were falling and being carried by an invisible current. Leslie squeezed Jaimes’s hand tightly, her other hand shielding her eyes. The colors swirled and rushed around them, faster and faster, until she couldn’t tell which way was up or down.

  And then there was grass beneath their butts.

  Leslie blinked repeatedly, still holding her brother’s hand. When her eyes adjusted, her jaw dropped.

  They were sitting in a forest, but it wasn’t like the forest behind their neighborhood. The trees were impossibly tall and their trunks pulsed faintly with a soft blue light. Leaves shimmered with hints of purple, catching the sunlight that poured through the canopy in thick, golden beams. The air smelled sweet and fresh, tinged with something floral, like the honeysuckle their mom has along the fence at home. Flowers with petals like glowing gemstones grew in clusters at the base of the trees and climbed upward like vines, their colors so vivid they looked unrealistic.

  “Whoa!” Jaimes whispered softly, “Where are we?”

  She could barely breathe. The world around them felt fantastical. Leaves rustled gently but she didn’t feel wind. Strange little sparks of light drifted through the air.

  Are those fireflies?

  “It’s a dream,” Leslie said faintly, more to herself than to Jaimes. “It has to be. We must still be in that old house.”

  Jaimes ran his hand through the grass. “If it’s a dream, it’s the realest dream ever.”

  Something moved nearby, rustling the bushes. They froze, her brother's head snapping toward the sound. “Did you hear that?”

  Leslie huddled up close to him, “Maybe we should go back---”

  The bushes parted and a small creature stepped into the clearing. It looked like a fox, but not quite. Its fur was a brilliant orange-red, but its ears were slightly too large, pointed and tufted with gold. Its tail was long and bushy, streaked with silver, and it had sharp green eyes that were far too intelligent than a simple animal. It sat back on its haunches and regarded them curiously.

  Jaimes whispered. “Is that… a fox?”

  It tilted its head, its mouth unexpectedly moving like their own, “Well, well, well. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen your kind here.”

  Leslie yelped, shuffling back on her butt. Jaimes’s eyes went as wide as saucers, “It talks!”

  The fox-like creature snorted, its whiskers twitching angrily, “Of course, I talk. What do I look like, a common beast?”

  “Um. Kind of?”

  The creature narrowed its green eyes, “Rude.”

  Leslie’s thoughts whirled, “You… you can talk,” she said faintly, her voice shaking.

  “Yes, we already went over that,” it sounded exasperated, “And you’re humans, aren’t you? I thought so. Humans never know anything.”

  Jaimes stood and took a step forward, his fear seemingly forgotten, “What are you? Who are you?”

  The creature was pleased by the attention and puffed its chest out, “My name is Finn. Guide, mischief-maker, and resident-expert on almost everything in this world.”

  “This… world?” Leslie repeated.

  Finn flicked his tail, “You’re not in your world anymore, humans. This is Eldaria—a land of magic and mystery. And if you’ve found your way here, it means trouble is already brewing.”

  “Trouble?” The siblings both looked at eachother worriedly.

  Finn’s green eyes glimmered, “Oh, yes. Nothing good ever happens when humans come to Eldaria.”

  Leslie’s heart thudded in her ears, “We didn’t mean to come here. We didn’t even know this place existed.”

  “Didn’t you?” Finn purred slyly, “Doors like the one you found don’t just open. They’re old magic—very old. And magic always has a reason.”

  Jaimes frowned thoughtfully, “What kind of reason?”

  Finn stood, stretching lazily, “Now that is the question, isn’t it? Come along. If you’re here, you’ll want answers, and sitting here won’t get you any.”

  “Wait!” Leslie stood and stumbled forward, “Where are you taking us?”

  “To safety,” Finn was already trotting into the bushes, “If you want to survive here, you’ll need my help. And I’d rather not explain things twice, so hurry up!”

  Jaimes grinned at Leslie, his face flushed with excitement, “This is exactly what we needed this summer. A talking fox! And a magical world!”

  Leslie bit her lip, her chest tightening. She looked up at the glowing trees, the strange flowers, the flickers of light in the air. The world was beautiful—breathtaking, even—but Finn’s words echoed in her mind.

  Nothing good ever happens when humans come to Eldaria.

  “Jaimes,” she spoke softly, “I think we’re in way over our heads.”

  Jaimes just smiled, “Maybe. But don’t you want to see what happens next?”

  Leslie glanced toward Finn, his head bobbing up and down in the shrubbery. The itch in her chest was impossible to ignore.

  “Come on!” Jaimes poked her in the side and ran after their strange guide.

  With a deep breath, Leslie followed.