In July Cindi is providing the prompts, but has asked that they appear on Elephant's Child's blog. This week's prompt is:
There is a door with a single keyhole - it will open regardless of what key you use to unlock it. All keys will open this door. What's on the other side, however, depends on the type of key. What key will you use, and what is on the other side of the door.
Thank you Cindi for this prompt. The earlier ones have quite honestly been more than a bit trying, but this last one is just right.
This door sounds to me a bit like the Room of Requirements at Hogwarts. Of course I had to place it somewhere at Unicorn Farm.
We go back to the day after the broom-racing. after the punitive lessons. It's late.
The five apprentice wand-singers. Susan, My, Anna, Aamu and
Rósa were very tired after the dinner had been eaten. They sat together with Thora near the lower end of the table.
"Are you still sleeping in that small room in the attic?" Rósa asked My. " I envy you. The road home feels terribly long tonight. I'm so tired."
"Why don't you all go up there and see if you can find a room?" Thora suggested, "but don't try to blame me for anything that might happen. We are at the Unicorn Farm after all."
The five girls dragged themselves out of their chairs, and yawning broadly slipped out through the door to the yard, over it, in through the blue door and then they followed My up the narrow, worn stairs. My opened the door to her room with a small, silver key. Then she turned to the sunshine yellow door at the opposite side of the stairs. "There might be another guest room behind that door," My said. "Let's have a look."
Susan tried the handle. "It's locked." she said, sounding very tired and disappointed.
"Let me try." My said and put the small, silver key in the simple keyhole. It turned with a loud snick and the door opened. Inside was a lovely room, two bunk beds stood opposite them on each side of an open window with friendly blue curtains billowing slightly in the wind caused by their opening of the door. The all went in and looked around. At the right end wall a single poster bed with gossamer thin hangings in silver and white greeted them. All the bunk beds had different covers and trappings. And at the left hand wall stood five small cupboards with matching trappings, a water pitcher and a soap dish. They drew a collective sigh.
"Oh, look!" My said, "I always dreamt of sleeping in a poster bed, and it looks so like it's made out of snow and cob webs. Just right for me!"
Susan smiled: "And that green upper bunk to the right looks like it was made for me! It even has small trees and branches cut out on the headpiece. It's beyond lovely."
And "Oh!" Aamu exclaimed, "look at the bunk below. It's made out of willows, even the covers have willow patterns. It's for me!"
Rósa went and sat on the lower bunk bed to the left. The golden sheen of the covers shone as she sat slightly bouncing up and down. "It's so soft!" Rósa whispered. "It feels more like an evening cloud than a bed."
"And that last one is obviously for me," Anna said. "Red was always my colour, and the bed looks so inviting."
"This room is so made for us, that I get suspicious," My said.
"Oh, bosh," Anna said. "It was Thora, that suggested we go here. She would not let something bad happen to us."
"No, nothing bad," Susan said slowly, "but she might put us to a test. Aamu, you're one of those strange red divination ones. Could you somehow check the room's disposition ... or something," she added hesitantly.
"I see what you mean," Aamu said. "And yes I can." She drew her wand and spoke a sentence in Finnish, very quickly. Two silver-green sparks left her wand, soared upwards and chased one another out through the open window. "This room is filled with magic, big, big magic," Aamu said, "But as far as I can tell, it 's nothing malevolent, only strange. And now, I want to sleep." She pulled off her red tunic and striped skirt and discovered a night gown with red wands and stars in the tiny cupboard.
For each of the girls there was a nightdress to their liking in the cupboard - and a toothbrush. Susan found a green pyjamas in her cupboard. "Just what I always wanted," she thought, "cotton, and not a long night dress that crawls up an bundle under my arms."
They all dressed in the wondrous nightwear, brushed their teeth and crept under the covers. After good night wishes were exchanged, it lasted all of five minutes until everybody slept well and long.
***
In the morning they arose refreshed and hungry. They dressed, left the beds to air and went down to get some breakfast in the small dining room below.
"Ugh," Aamu said. "I forgot my pencil case up there. I'll go get it immediately." She got up and left before any of the others could say something.
"She did not get my key," My said. "You did not lock the door, did you?"
Nobody remembered locking the door. Aamu came running down the stairs even faster than she had left. "Hey, come and help me. I think I'm going crazy or something. It's not there!"
"What's not there?" Anna asked. "Your pencil case? Are you sure you had it with you?"
"No, not the pencil case. The room! It's gone!"
"Nonsense!" Rósa said. "A room can't just disappear."
"Come and see," Aamu said. "True, the room is there," she said heading up the stairs once again, "and yet it is not."
She unlocked the door, using her own key and opened the door. They all looked surprised. An ordinary school room was behind the yellow door, where they had slept.
"And we are in the right place?" Susan asked, rather stupidly, but she could not seem to grasp what has happened.
"Yes we are." My said. "My room is right there," and she pointed to the green door across the corridor.
A draught slammed the door to the strange room. My grasped the handle. "It's locked once again," she said and pulled out her small, silver key. As she opened the door, the room they had slept in, was back.
"It's back!" Aamu said, "and there's my pencil case, at the nigthstand, where I left it!"
"The key," Aamu said slowly. "It's the key that decides what's inside. I have heard of such rooms, but I never ever dreamed of seeing one." She shook her head. "Now it's almost time for lessons, and we have to leave. But we've got to explore this further when we get a chance. Let's collect all the keys, we can get our hands on and meet up here sometimes later."
They all agreed, as they went down to the classrooms one flight of stairs lower.
