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    The World Beyond the Door
    The World Beyond the Door
    The World Beyond the Door
    Ebook117 pages1 hour

    The World Beyond the Door

    By Steven Larson and Margaret Larson

    ()

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    About this ebook

    Telah is a gnome, and pixie parties in her garden and garments woven from light are not uncommon. But even her first Harvest Gala can’t distract Telah from her grandfather’s book. It tells of his travels to a giant world. When she and her friend Travis find a secret door, they enter our world and are followed by pixies. They find adventure and danger, but can they find their way home?

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherSteven Larson
    Release dateMay 3, 2009
    ISBN9781452302140
    The World Beyond the Door
    Author

    Steven Larson

    Welcome to our middle-grade fantasy stories. Our writing started with the picture of a gnome house. The tale grew into The World Beyond the Door. Other books followed. Here you will find those adventures. Travel across time, visit magical worlds, and step into cyber realms. Join the adventure. Let the story unfold.

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      Book preview

      The World Beyond the Door - Steven Larson

      THE WORLD BEYOND THE DOOR

      Copyright 2006 by Steven & Margaret Larson and Clive Moore

      Smashwords Edition

      Published by Margaret Larson at Smashwords

      Special thanks to Clive Moore for first recognizing the enchanted tree, helping to visualize what lay beyond the door, and for his collaboration, editing, and encouragement throughout this work.

      This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This book may not be resold. Thank you for respecting the work of the authors.

      Other books available by these authors

      CHILDREN’S FANTASY BOOKS

      Murky Manor

      Cave of Discovery

      Worlds Within

      A COLLECTION OF WRITINGS

      Thoughts on the Wind

      Print versions available at www.lulu.com/larsonworlds

      Visit us at our web site www.home.earthlink.net/~larsonworlds

      CONTENTS

      1 A Garden Party

      2 Cleaning and Spinning

      3 A Pixie Melody

      4 All in a Dream

      5 The Pixie Woods

      6 The Cave

      7 Lyte Spinning

      8 Old News

      9 The Party

      10 Poetry and Plans

      11 Riddles and Old Poems

      12 Opening the Door

      13 Exploring Beyond the Door

      14 Berries and Belvedere

      15 Back from the Herb Garden

      16 Honey and Hiding

      17 Pixie Brouhaha

      18 Danger in the Dark

      19 Unexpected

      20 Fox Hunt

      21 Out of the Bag

      22 Tooth or Talon

      23 Thunder and Pixie Dust

      24 Lost World

      CHAPTER 1 - A GARDEN PARTY

      Just off the main highway, away from the noise and bustle, a side road branched off and led to houses that were spaced far enough apart to give some privacy to the residents. Nestled in a group of apple trees sat a one-story brick house with red leaves scattered on the newly shingled roof.

      Many more leaves were strewn at the feet of two enormous oak trees that towered over the home. The trees had provided shade all through the long hot summer. Now that winter was approaching, their large branches still offered a shield for the house. A winding driveway made a path through the apples trees. Apples hung on branches just out of reach, waiting to be picked and turned into pies, cobblers, cider, and apple butter.

      A fence encircled the back yard offering the perfect place for the family’s dog to romp and chase squirrels. A quaint herb garden in the back corner was surrounded by flowers and separated from the rest of the yard by a short wrought iron fence.

      Just beyond the fence, the trees grew close together. Thick undergrowth and fallen leaves from past seasons gave an unkempt feeling. A gate opened onto a path of stepping stones spotted with moss. The branches of a red maple tree formed a natural trellis over the entrance. Climbing vines had grown up the trunk and covered the arch. Just on the other side of the opening stood a stone figure about three feet tall. He had a long beard and was dressed in a flowing robe. On his head was a tall pointed hat with an owl perched on the brim. In one hand he held a staff, and with the other hand he gestured invitingly into the woods.

      Down the path the air was cool and crisp with a deep earthy aroma of decaying leaves and pine needles. Squirrels scampered briskly through the underbrush carrying horse chestnuts and acorns, which they were busily storing for the coming winter. There were numerous finches, sparrows, chickadees, and an occasional cardinal or robin. Many of the branches hung down across the path. Here and there a pine sapling was trying to grow in the center of the trail. A light breeze brought the faint hint of a wood fire, perhaps from someone’s fireplace.

      Deep in the woods, and just a little off the path, brambles grew in profusion. The thorns and branches were thickly interwoven, and reached several feet high forming a natural hedge. An open area near the ground was just large enough for a rabbit to squeeze under.

      On the other side of the hedge was a small clearing with a giant oak. It was very old and very large – a grandfather among trees. The lower limbs started close to the ground, and the massive branches reached up, up, past all the other trees, until it looked as though it were holding up the very sky. The roots were bent and twisted from growing for many years around the rocks in the hard ground. It was a perfect tree for climbing. Its roots and footholds were within easy reach for all but the smallest child.

      Long ago lightening had struck the tree leaving a scar that ran from one of the large branches all the way down the trunk to the ground. Lightening storms have an aura of fear and awe, and there was an air of magic and mystery about the tree and the clearing. Lightening often appears out of nowhere with a FLASH and a BANG, lighting up the sky and sometimes changing what it touches forever. Strange things can happen when opposite forces of nature are brought together suddenly, and this was one of those rare and extraordinary examples of when two worlds collide and leave behind a lingering magical residue.

      At the bottom of the tree sat a small man who was about six inches tall when standing. He might have been considered extraordinary, but other than his size, his appearance wasn’t that unusual. He was sitting comfortably in the hollow of one of the roots with his back against the trunk.

      Just behind him in the tree was a door, and it looked very much like he was sitting on his front porch. In one hand was a cup full of water and some herbs. In his other hand he held a small shimmering bead between his thumb and finger. Squeezing the bead gently he held it for a couple of seconds until it began to get hot, and then he dropped it into the water. In a few seconds the water began to steam. He settled back and took in the evening air as he sipped his mint tea. He was very fond of mint tea.

      The door behind him led through the tree to his home. It was a door that he had journeyed through many times. Just that morning he came for an herb gathering expedition. He made the long journey to the edge of the woods, slipped past the stone figure, and entered the herb garden to harvest what he considered to be unusual and rare herbs. The tea he was now enjoying was made from mint leaves he had gathered that morning. The herbs he collected had a richer and more exotic flavor than those he could grow at home. He suspected this was due to their size and to the peculiarities of the soil.

      After finishing his tea, he packed up his cup, and gathered up his sack of herbs and his backpack. Touching the door in several secret places, it opened, and he passed through.

      He experienced the familiar dizzy feeling that always accompanied traveling through the door, and found himself once again in the cave located behind his house. He spread the new herbs on the shelves in the back of the cave to dry, and hung his backpack on a hook.

      Unpacking his gear, he carefully cleaned his tools and put them away, ready for the next trip.

      As he left the cave, the sun was just setting. A gentle breeze stirred the bush that grew around the mouth of the cave, flooding him with the smell of lilacs. The breeze shifted and he caught the whiff of a wood fire, and knew that dinner would be waiting. He hurried down the path through the trees to the stone house where he had lived all his life.

      Kendra Wordsmith, a slim, lady gnome, met him at the door. The sleeves of her dark green dress were rolled up. Her face was framed by wisps of dark red hair that had escaped from the long braid down her back. She drew him into the warm inviting kitchen where the delightful smell of her hot stew filled the room. She and Morley had shared the secret of the door for many years.

      When her grandfather, Axel, was young he had discovered the door on property owned by Morley’s family. Axel had written several books on his discoveries and adventures, though he never revealed the

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