When One Door Opens

Hello, long time no see. I apologise for the extended break; a lot has happened over the last few months. A slump and life slowed down my writing, and because of that, I felt I couldn't publish.
Now, I hope I'm back, but I'm going to be starting slow. For right now, I'm going to commit to a once-a-month publish, but I'm hoping to up that to once a fortnight at some point in the future. I can't say when that will be; it could be, and I wouldn't want to make promises.
As it has been so long, I have made a chapter which you may have already seen and read, a recap of the story from the beginning up to chapter 205, I'd suggest if you haven't checked it out to go give it a look just to refresh your memory.

John handed Lani and Lumi their keys before pressing his own into the wall around the hot spring. A seam began to form as the door cracked open.

“Ooh, me next!” Lani shouted, darting forward and excitedly slotting her key into the wall. Like with John’s, another doorway appeared.

“Wait-” John began, uncertain what might happen when multiple doors were opened to the same pocket space. Despite his protest, he turned in time to see another door unlocked with Lumi’s hand still touching the manifested handle.

Distracted by something new, both women hurried through their doors. Agni, spurred by the wake of excitement, bounded after them. “Lani, wait for Agni,” she called.

Robin chuckled. “I’m gonna follow Lumiara so she’s not on her own,” he said, while leaning out from the other door, then vanishing.

John groaned. “Everyone should be going through one door. We don’t know what’d happen when they’re all active at the same time…”

“Hurry up, slowpoke, don’t fall behind,” Violet teased, giggling as she pushed him through his door.

Annoyance bubbled as he stumbled forward; interest quickly took over as he got his footing and got his first look at the new pocket space. Inside was a vast indoor park, enclosed by a great circular wall which rose high into a glass-domed ceiling, pale clouds drifting lazily above. Arched alcoves broke the wall every few metres, and the sections between were littered with plant-life, vines and clusters of wisteria brightening the space.

Looking back, the door he’d entered through sat at the centre of one of the alcoves; two more doors sat to his left, though the other alcoves seemed bare. A short distance away to his left, a willow tree hunched over a pond, its waters feeding a stream which cut across the park. From his vantage point, it seemed there was only a small wooden bridge, making it easy to cross.

Within this boundary, winding paths spread across the grass: some laden with stone, a couple covered in moss, and others seemed to be worn down by foot traffic. Following one such path with his eyes led to a pergola, its wooden frame latticed, enclosing the interior, giving it a comfortable yet private vibe. Despite the distance, he could make out something inside, maybe low seating, though it was hard to be sure.

The park felt alive. A mysterious breeze stirred the air and carried the sound of water, rustling leaves and birdsong, all culminating in a natural atmosphere despite being indoors.

Finally, he took notice of Lani and Agni, who were clearly enjoying the open space, the door furthest from him slightly ajar, making it clear that the keys opened to different locations within the pocket space.

Something was missing, though; the two tallest members of the current group were absent. Despite Lumi and Robin stepping through their door, the middle door wasn’t open, and they were nowhere to be seen.

Without thought, John took Alison and Ellie’s hands, while Violet quickly made herself comfortable on his back, draping her arms over him. He walked deeper into the park, the murmur of babbling water growing as he felt the sun's rays tickling his skin.

“It’s pretty incredible in these private spaces,” Ellie murmured, leaning into John. “This place isn’t as big as the outdoor space in my lab, but it feels furnished, if that makes sense, like the lab garden is more like a blank canvas, while this place is already finished.”

John nodded, understanding and agreeing with Ellie’s sentiment. “W-where do y-you th-think R-Robin a-and Lumiara are?” Alison asked.

Thinking for a minute as he looked around, he let out a hum. “Well, this place is big, and it’s not exactly an open field. They could have decided to sit down for a little while. Robin did say he wanted to get to know her a little.”

As they walked, Lani and Agni flitted nearby, effectively following them as they played. But when the sound of laughter rang ahead, both girls bolted towards it.

John felt curious, though something told him it wasn’t anything to worry about, and he maintained a steady pace.

The girls looked at each other. “I’m sure it’s fine,” John reassured them.

Ellie looked at him as if he were an idiot. “Uh-huh, and how many times have you said that since we met?”

Violet hummed. “There’s life here,” she noted. “Birds, butterflies, dragonflies… Probably some small animals. Leilani is a faerie queen. Maybe some faeries were brought in here, too? Lots of places to hide, and a large enough space to stretch their wings.”

Lani and Agni’s giggles joined the others and grew louder, quickly easing everyone’s worries. Suddenly, John stumbled as something latched onto his ankle. Looking down, a small, green, plant-like creature peered up at him with a wide grin.

“Qwest!” piped Sprout’s high-pitched voice.

The girls jumped, and Ellie took a step back, looking down. “Sprout?” she asked. “What are you doing here? And how?”

Sprout released John’s leg, summoning a tiny wooden sword, raising it high. “Qwest!” he declared again before hurriedly scampering off in the direction of laughter. At that moment, Ellie’s wyrmlings decided that it was playtime and chased after him.

Ellie smiled, letting them have a little fun, when a thought came to her. “Wait… if Sprout is here, does that mean-”

“Derp!” came a familiar call. Mimi appeared and seized Ellie’s hand.

Everyone looked down at Mimi, dripping wet in a cute little bathing suit with a bright smile plastering her face. Ellie laughed as one of Mimi’s snakes’ tongues flickered out and tickled her skin. Crouching down, Ellie met Mimi’s gaze. “Hey again, Mimi, it’s good to see you, but how did you get here?”

Mimi paused, puckering her lips like a duck while she thought, humming. “Okay, so me and Yaya are playing, then Sprout goes poof right in front of us and shouts ‘QWEST!’ then poofs again, so we looked at each other and derped and went poooooooof and then we were here! And there was a fountain, and then the faerie lady and jiggly orange jelly lady told us you were here, so I just derped my way over!” Mimi explained in one breathless stream.

Violet leaned into John, her breath brushing his ear. “Who’s the kid, and why’s she so darn adorable?” she whispered.

John let out a laugh and managed to rub the back of his neck. “Uh, well, I suppose it’s a long story. Alison, Violet, this is Mimi,” he started, struggling to summarise the whirlwind that was her last appearance. “She’s… uh, special and not just because she’s… got snake hair.”

“SNEKS!” Mimi cheered, patting the larger snake.

Alison quickly fussed over the girl. “Awww,” she squeaked, reaching out and gently scratching the chin of the closest snake. “Th-they’re s-s-so cute. I-it’s nice t-to m-meet you, M-M-Mimi”

Mimi beamed, her hands reaching up to play with Alison’s hair. “Green! We’re like twins!”

Before Alison could think of responding, Mimi took both Alison and Ellie’s hands, tugging them eagerly and leading them off.

Violet giggled, kissing John on the cheek. “Little miss steal your girls. Well, I’m not getting left behind… Coming?” she asked, floating after them.

John chuckled, but didn’t rush. “Mmmh, this is all fun, but I really do want to know where Robin and Lumi are. Maybe they’re with everyone else? If not, I might go back and head through Lumi’s door. I can’t imagine a reward leading to something dangerous.”

Drawing a deep breath, John let it out slowly before quickening into a jog to catch up with the others.

I want to thank those who joined my Buy Me A Coffee; I extremely appreciate all your support. I won't be continuing the memberships going forward. I may consider support again in the future, but I'd like to get back to consistently publishing before that happens.