Dear readers... I cannot fully express just how thrilled I am to be able to say this. Here is the first chapter of my final story in The Door trilogy, The Key! It's been so long, and to be honest, I was a little worried that I wouldn't be able to pick back up where I left off. But, I pushed through, and now here we are! YAY! Updates will be slow, but they will be coming! I really, REALLY hope that you enjoy it!
One more thing! I am also going to start posting my story, Animal Kingdom Come soon as well! I still fully intend on making it into a comic, but while I work on my drawing skills, the story needs to come out, so in the written word it shall! When you're done reading chapter 1 of The Key, please consider giving Animal Kingdom Come a read! You can find it over on fanfiction's sister site, fictionpress. Or over at ArchiveofOurOwn, under the author name ShadowBunnyDragon. Thank you all so much to everyone who has stuck it out this long!
The Key (Chapter 1)
by
Elite Shade
"So, class," Mr. Furellis said, the middle-aged capybara smiling as he looked upon his class, "I know that you're all just excited and raring to get winter break started." He chuckled when he spotted more than one set of eyes looking at the clock above the door to the classroom. Being the last class of the day, Mr. Furellis was well-used to it. "And I know that this is the holiday season... but I have an assignment for you all."
He held back another chuckle at the chorus of groans and continued on. "I'd like for each of you to do research on a type of career you think you'd like to have as an adult. Finding out the ins and outs, what kind of education or degrees might be necessary, and maybe see if you can get some of the info from individuals in this potential career path. And then, I want you to write a two page essay for me, to be due back when we get back from break." He looked up at the clock and saw he had timed it perfectly, with only a minute of class left to spare. "And also, I want to wish you all happy holidays!"
The bell rang and many students spilled out of their desks and rushed out the door, the halls quickly becoming yet another stampede as adolescent mammals of multiple species made their ways to the exit. Hanging back a little and following at a much calmer pace were Eli, Isaac, and Mike, the latter of whom was resting on the human boy's head.
"So, what career are you guys going to pick for your essays?" Mike asked, hopping down to perch on Eli's shoulder.
"Alien hunter," Isaac said matter-of-factly. The coyote boy was wearing a black t-shirt with a flying saucer on it.
"What a shock," Mike said with a roll of his eyes.
"What about you, Mike?" Eli asked, looking over at the mouse on his shoulder.
"Entrepreneur." Mike puffed out his chest as he said it, looking pleased with himself.
"Huh?" Eli and Isaac both looked confused.
"Remember my cousin Vinny?"
"Ooooh! The one who owns the pizzeria?" Isaac's tail started to wag.
"Yup! I'm gunna shadow him for a bit and find out what it takes to run your own restaurant."
"That's so cool! Oh, and what about you, Eli?" Isaac looked over at the human boy in curiosity.
"Uh... well... maybe a police officer?" Eli blushed a little. "I figured, if my Mom and Dad are okay with it, that maybe they'd let me shadow them on some ride-alongs with them."
"That's pretty cool too," Mike said.
Heading outside into the afternoon sunshine, a slight chill on the breeze, the trio started to head towards their bus. Suddenly, for Eli, his vision went dark. Feeling a pair of fuzzy paws covering his eyes, he was quick to deduce to whom they belonged to.
"Oh, hi Kimi!"
"Gah! Didn't even give me a chance to say 'guess who'! How about a riddle instead?" Kimi purred, her tail swishing in excitement behind her. Mike and Isaac exchanged an eyeroll.
"A riddle?"
"What's black and white and red all over?" Kimi giggled.
"Uh... a penguin with pasta sauce spilled on it?" Mike and Isaac snickered, knowing that Eli was being sincere in his answer, instead of the sarcastic that most would just assume it was intended to be.
"Uh... maybe! But not this time!" Kimi pulled her paws away and turned Eli to face her. She was wearing a red sundress, a red poppy flower tucked behind her ear. "It's me, in my pretty new dress!" She gave a little twirl for emphasis.
"Oh! It looks great, Kimi," Eli said, just as he felt someone link their arm with his and start to tug him towards the bus. Turning his head, Eli started blushing when he saw a familiar zebra girl blushing and smiling at him. She was wearing a yellow t-shirt and khaki shorts, a sky blue backpack slung over her shoulder.
"Cute new dress, Kimi," Lyla said, Isaac with Mike now sitting on his head following along, The pair were electing to refrain from offering any comments from the peanut gallery. "I love how you put so much effort in to looking cute!" The tigress simply crossed her arms and pouted a little while Eli remained oblivious.
"Thank you so much, Lyla! I'm just so jealous how you can wear just any old thing and not think twice about your appearance." Despite the friendly smiles, the two were staring daggers at each other.
With a smile and a wink to Kimi, Lyla silently led Eli onto the bus.
"I wonder if those two are gunna keep it up during the party," Isaac grumbled, letting out a mostly silent yelp from the sudden tug at his headfur.
"We are so lucky that Eli's distracted right now," Mike leaned over to stare down into Isaac's confused face. The coyote boy realized what he had just said and his eyes went wide. He turned to look across the aisle where Eli and Lyla were sitting. The two were both now excitedly talking about how Mrs. Hornbert had assigned her class a similar project over the break as theirs. Kimi got on, still pouting, and took an available seat a couple rows behind. The drive to Eli, Mike, and Isaac's usual stop was a largely uneventful one, the young mammals just enjoying each others' company.
"You guys really don't mind getting a jump start on our group project for Mr. Moosler's class?" Eli looked to his friends as they headed in the direction of his house, the small patch of Savannah Central homes a stark contrast to the towering skyscrapers of the bustling city encircling them.
"Well of course we don't mind!" Lyla clapped a hoof on Eli's back, turning to look back and give the others a wink that Eli missed. "It's better to get this done as quickly as possible."
Eli blushed and smiled as he pulled out the keys to his front door and unlocked it.
"Mom? Dad?" Eli called out as he let his friends in, hearing only silence in response. He shrugged and turned to his friends. "They must be dealing with a tricky case. What do you guys th-" Eli was cut off when a giggling gray and yellow blur fell from above onto his shoulder. A very confused Eli saw a little bunny in a yellow dress sitting on his shoulder.
"Lena?" Eli immediately recognized his cousin. "What are you doing here?"
"SURPRISE!"
Eli jumped while his friends giggled and bunnies of all fur color combinations in a variety of ages started to pour from the cabinets of the medium-sized mammal home. Eli was swarmed by his cousins and his kit-aged aunts and uncles. Smiling wide as a kerfluffle climbed up into his arms to all try and hug him at once, Eli spotted a certain fox and bunny duo coming towards him.
"Happy birthday, sweetie!" Judy jumped in excitement.
"You didn't seriously think that we weren't gunna do something special for your birthday, didja Buddy?" Nick asked.
"W-well, I mean, you guys hadn't mentioned it, and I figured that you were probably busy with work anyway." Eli awkwardly started to rub the back of his neck in embarrassment, having to gently clear away from bunny kits there first.
"Oh no," Judy said with mock-sternness in her voice, handily leaping up onto the counter next to him. "I've told you before, honey, that no matter how busy we might be, we will emalways/em make time for you, got it?"
"Got it." Eli smiled. Hearing some snickering, the human boy turned to see Isaac and Mike looking out a window to the back yard, Isaac's tail an excited blur.
"That looks so good!" The coyote boy yipped in excitement. Looking out the window, Eli could see a horde of his uncles and aunts around Judy's age, along with some of his older and stronger cousins, tugging ropes to pull a large platform on wheels through the trimmed grass. He could hear his Uncle Jacob shouting "Heave! Ho!" as he directed them. On the platform was a pirate ship the size of Judy and Nick's cruiser. Looking closer, Eli's jaw dropped when he realized that it was a chocolate cake, with frosting carved to look like individual planks of wood. There were cannons and portholes, masts with actually billowing sails, lanterns hanging from hooks and flickering with lights inside, and an anchor that dropped onto the platform when they finally came to a halt.
"Excellent work, everyone," Marian said, the older vixen wearing a robin's egg blue blouse with khaki shorts and looking over some blueprints. She and Bonnie walked into view, the older bunny wearing a straw sunhat, a pink flannel jacket and jeans. Bonnie waved some of her kits over with a warm smile on her face.
"Alright, now, Kevin, Kassandra, and Kiernan, you three made sure that the candy canons were loaded and ready to fire before they were installed on the deck, correct?" Three bunnies jogged over and nodded to Bonnie, who after thanking them, began to help Marian in the directing of more of their workforce.
"Your grandma was excited to pull out all the stops for the cake, son." The boy in question looked down to see a grandfatherly arctic fox tod looking up at him through a pair of thick-lensed glasses.
"I'm just happy that you and grandma could come." Eli leaned down to accept the offered hug from Robert.
"Like we'd ever miss our grandkit's birthday," Robert said with a chuckle, his bushy white tail thumping against the floor. "And like Marian would ever miss an opportunity to rope in some more of Bonnie and Stu's kits for a labor force to bring some of her more... imaginative cake and confectionary designs to life."
"Y'know, Mom and Bonnie could probably go into business togeth-" As Nick spoke, a white paw reached over and clamped his muzzle shut. Looking over at his father in surprise, the older tod frowned at his son, and a number of other bunnies were giving Nick a half-lidded stare.
"Nicky, I thought you learned from that little slip-of-the tongue at the bake sale! Stu and I were just barely able to reign those two in."
"Alright, let's bring in the enemy ship!" Marian's voice carried over from outside.
Nick, with his muzzle released, gestured to the window, where what appeared to be either a vanilla or a white chocolate ship of equal size was being hauled over on a second platform.
"You call that reigned in?!"
"Compared to the two armadas that they were initially planning, it sure is," Stu said with a chuckle as he came over to look out the window, before offering Eli a hug as well.
"Happy birthday, son. And for the record, your grandmas both wanted to do something special. It's not every day that you turn 13."
"Eli," Isaac said, still looking excitedly out the window, now licking his chops. "Your grandparents are the COOLEST!"
Meanwhile...
"What did I tell you, Baily?" Sophia purred as she removed her lavender sweater, revealing a simple white tank top underneath. Baily looked up from where he was spreading the red and white checkered picnic blanket, setting the basket of food down onto the center. Looking around at the sandy dunes with a herd of camel joggers going by, the ginger-haired human grinned, enjoying the gentle cool breeze tousling his amber locks. His hair, which he'd let grow out, was tied into a ponytail.
"You were right, Sophie," Baily said, shrugging off his dark green coat and folding it up to set onto the blanket. "This section of the city is pretty nice on a chilly day like today."
"Well, the system will kick into overdrive when the cold front that's predicted to hit us actually does, and get all of Sahara Square back up to its usual comfortably scorching temperatures. All the different districts need to maintain their different environments, after all. Well, except the Nocturnal District, but then again, cave systems are pretty good at maintaining their usual temperatures."
"Says the spelunking lioness."
Sitting on the blanket, Sophia cuddled close to her human.
"I'm sorry that we haven't been able to see very much of each other lately." She frowned a bit upon saying that, but with the colder seasons upon them, things had, as usual, started to get more hectic for hospital staff.
"Please don't be," Baily assured, giving her paw in his hand a squeeze. "The hospital and the patients need you, and all the help that they can get."
"Yeah, but we still barely get any time to see each other when I get off my shift. Just setting today up required me making a couple deals with some of my coworkers to help cover their shifts."
Baily smiled and leaned over, his lips finding Sophie's. A few moments later, and with both of their hearts fluttering in their chests, they broke apart.
"And I appreciate that. Things like this just happen sometimes. But it'll calm down again."
Sophia giggled at that. "Did you read that in the new set of cards I got you?"
"I did, though that's also just my experience. I say, we just take the time we do have available to us to enjoy each other's company."
"My thoughts exactly." Sophia purred again and leaned into Baily's side, nuzzling the top of his head.
Over in the Rainforest District...
"Alright, everything checks out, Mr. Harcourt." Alex looked down at the beaver in the gray jumpsuit and holding a clipboard.
"So does this mean that we pass inspection?" The human man asked, fidgeting a little nervously.
emI survived, barely, out on the high seas, having to deal with pirates and starvation and a nasty infection, yet a city inspector has my palms sweaty. Oh the irony,/em he thought to himself.
With a chuckle, the beaver nodded and scribbled something down onto the paper on his clipboard, which he then passed up to the larger mammal along with his pen. The clipboard and the pen looked comically small for Alex, but he managed to sign it nonetheless.
"With flying colors, Mr. Harcourt. So many restaurant owners usually only stop at the bare minimum to pass, but I am pleased to find that everything is entirely up to code. You can expect to receive the proper certification in the mail in the next few days. You should be proud."
"Th-thank you, Mr. Flattail. And I am." Alex let out a pent-up sigh of relief, nudging his white hardhat a little as he wiped some nervous sweat from his brow.
"I look forward to when you've got everything up and running. I'll be sure to bring my kids with me too." Mr. Flattail waddled a bit towards the direction of the front double-doors, picking up his briefcase to put the clipboard inside. "I used to love this place when I was their age. A shame that it had such a dark history. And then the fire..." The beaver looked up and away wistfully. He looked around the pizzeria, with its newly constructed walls and the replaced flooring. "Do you mind if I ask, what made you think to go with an '80s motif?"
Alex nervously rubbed the back of his head. "Heh. Well, I had to do something to help me stand out from other pizzerias. Plus... I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a sucker for the look and feel of the period."
"Well, I know I'm not the only one around here that's excited that a breath of fresh air is being breathed into Matty's." Mr. Flattail smiled up at Alex and offered him his paw, which the human, having to bend down a little, gladly shook. "Good luck, Mr. Harcourt."
"Thank you, Mr. Flattail." Alex smiled as he saw the beaver out. Once again alone with his purchase, Alex took a deep breath, and rolled up his sleeves. The reopening was a week away and he still had work to do. Only half of the games in the arcade were installed, and he had to test out his pizza recipe in his newly installed ovens. Then there were more decals and designs for the walls that needed to be put up. And there was the act of actually setting up the main attractions on the main stage and having them do a performance.
Alex grinned, having to stop and adjust his prosthetic leg, as it had been feeling a little loose. It was a risky move getting a business loan, but he was certain it was going to pay out big time.
Elsewhere...
"Here ya go, squirt," Thomas said, handing Eli the big blue wrapped present.
"Thanks, Thomas." Eli smiled and blushed when the older bunny boy stood up next to where Eli was sitting on the couch to reach up and ruffle his human cousin's headfur.
Eli tore open the wrapping paper and opened the white box awaiting underneath.
"Woah... Bullder's Gate 3?!" Isaac leapt onto Eli's back to look over his shoulder, his tail thumping against the couch. There was some white chocolate smeared across the side of his muzzle. "So cool!"
"I-is it okay for me to play it, even though I-I've never played 1 or 2?" That got some chuckles from the gamers.
"You're fine, Squirt." Thomas gave Eli a hug before hopping down and making room for Nick and Judy, carrying their own gifts.
"Good news, sweetie! The small fire caused by the candy cannons has been put out, and we can just put in a new bush anyway."
"Still, you gotta admit, seeing two practically life-size pirate-ship-shaped cakes firing their canons at each other is a pretty cool design-OOF!" Judy discreetly elbowed her fox in the ribs, handing Eli his present. The wrapping paper Judy used for the rectangular shape was white with little carrots on it. Eli ripped it open, his eyes going wide at the sight of the book in his hands.
"The Bayou Dragons Rise?! B-but, this isn't even on shelves yet!" Eli turned to look at the bunny with a sense of wonder on his face. "How, Mom?"
"Your Auntie Fru-Fru knows the author and was able to get her to sign an advanced copy, just for you." Judy beamed as she watched Eli open the book and look inside.
emTo one of my biggest fans, Eli, thank you so much for reading, and may you have a happy birthday with many more to come.
-Lily Blackthorne/em
"Th-thank you, Mom," Eli said, choking up a bit as he and Judy shared a hug.
"Always, honey." Judy stood on her tiptoes to kiss Eli's forehead. She stepped back to let Nick give Eli his gift.
"Now be careful with this one. It's a bit... fragile." Nick smirked. Judy looked questioningly at him as he handed the gift to their son. She took note of the cherry red wrapping paper, the golden string tied in a bow across the top, and the holes cut into the sides around the top.
"Wait... why does it have holes... Nick, are those air holes?" She turned away from Eli, who was untying the bow, to look at the still-smirking tod. "Nick, you didn't!" He gave her a sly wink, and the insides of her ears started to redden. She leaned in closer to him and started whispering. "I thought we talked about this!"
Before Nick could respond, there were some coos, and a few squeaks. Judy looked to see that the paper had already been torn and the box opened. There, sitting in Eli's palms was a baby crocodile, biting down on a squeaky bone-shaped chew toy.
"OOoooh! He's so cute!" Kimi gushed, pulling out her phone and snapping a picture of the hatchling Eli was excitedly, yet gingerly, holding close to himself.
"He really is!" Lyla agreed, reading down to stroke the reptile's head with her hoof. It dropped the chew toy and gave a squeak of his own, his scaly tail thumping against Eli's chest.
"Got a name in mind?" Mike asked, perched on Eli's shoulder.
"Uhm... I think he looks like an Oliver, or Ollie?" Eli said, blushing now that he was put on the spot, and with Lyla leaning over his shoulder, the one not currently occupied by Mike. The baby croc chirped again, and resumed chewing the toy.
"I think Ollie's a great name for a crocodile," Nick chimed in, his tail giving a swish. Nick's ears perked at a thumping sound. Looking at Judy, he saw her standing there, her arms crossed, her foot thumping down on the hardwood flooring, clearly annoyed. Without saying a word, she grabbed him by his neck tie and pulled him outside. Looking back to see that Eli was too distracted, playing with the new addition to their household, and certain they were out of earshot for him, Judy looked at Nick.
"I can't believe that you got him a hatchling without discussing it with me first," Judy said with a huff, her foot resuming its tapping as she looked up at the sheepish tod.
"Sorry, Carrots. It's just, when I saw how much fun Eli was having playing fetch with the Stripers' gator... I thought he'd love to have one himself." Nick offered his mate a smile, to which she rolled her eyes.
"Nick, a crocodile is a big responsibility!"
"Well, c'mon, Fluff," Nick said, putting his paw around her waist and pulling the startled bunny in close. "I don't think there's any kit out there more responsible than ours. Plus, look at them."
Turning to watch Eli smiling down at the little reptile, who was now curled up asleep in his hands, Judy felt her annoyance fade at the sight of just how happy her kit looked right then and there. His eyes shining bright with excitement. Judy sighed, her ears flopping down.
"Okay... fine... but still, this was a big decision!"
"You're right, Carrots. How about I make it up to you?"
"Oh?" Judy asked, intrigued. "And how do you propose to do that?"
"I'll tell you later tonight," Nick said with a wink, and a quick kiss that left Judy breathless, and her ears almost red as a tomato.
In another location...
Alone in a darkened room, a single figure hunched over a gray desk scribbled away at some notes, different tv-sets up and showing live feeds of different humans. The figure, who was enshrouded in shadows, looked on at the screen in front of them. It showed Eli with his friends and family at home, zoomed in to look through a window.
"Almost time..." The figure's gravelly voice said, before they began to hack and cough, their shoulders shuddering as they did so. The fit subsided, and they returned to writing out their notes.
"Almost time..." they repeated to no one but themselves.
There it is, folks! Please consider leaving a review or comment! And I hope you all have a happy New Years!