At nightfall, the girl's parents were worried sick, but the curious child found herself in a new and strange realm.
She stepped through the magic door and was immediately immersed in a shimmering forest full of shades and sparkling sensations.
Coloured birds with jewelled plumage danced above her head and sang ethereal songs.
Taller mushrooms flickered like rainbow-lit lanterns under towering trees twisted into fantastic shapes.
Along a moss-covered path, crystals sang in the breeze and flowers whispered secrets.
The girl whirled in wonder, enraptured by the splendour, but as the darkness deepened beneath the flickering forest canopy, there was an eerie stillness.
The singing ceased; even the breeze held its breath; from the shadows emerged twin orbs, like flaming opals, supported by invisible wings.
A sibilant voice drifted through the stillness:
-Welcome, child... you have come so deep, now you will never leave.
She trembled, lost in a realm where daylight might never find her again.
