The Iron Gate

       Straightaway Path was smooth and easy. The Lion’s Teeth would be back at LTHQ before the sun went down. This was good, thought Akina. The dark made her nervous.
       Suzy was in the lead. Akina was riding second. They were cruising along until Suzy put up the stop sign: right arm up, hand in a fist. Akina, Carl, Kimmy, Josiah, and Franky formed a line, all facing Suzy.
       “Why are we stopped?” asked Carl.
       Suzy gestured with her thumb, “Everwink!”
       “Everwink?’ asked Akina. “Did she just say Everwink?”
       “Yep, I think she did,” said Kimmy.
       Josiah agreed, “That’s what I heard.”

       There it was, the gate to Everwink. It was tall and black and made of twisted iron. Suzy jumped off her bike and walked it over. 
       “Look!” she cried. “Someone left it open!” With one hand she pushed on the gate. For such a large gate it opened easily.
       “Oh, this is good!” Suzy turned. “Now is our chance! Who’s with me?”
       Akina was not thrilled about it. “I don’t know.” She looked at Franky. “Franky?”
       Franky stared at the gate. They all stared at the gate. It was a gate they had passed many times. It was a gate they had never been through before. For weeks now they talked about going in. Every time they tried, it was locked. 
       Well, not this time.
       “Alright,” sighed Franky. “Let’s do it. We’ll follow your lead.” Kimmy, Josiah, Carl and Franky followed Suzy through the gate. Akina stayed behind, too afraid to move. Kimmy turned and put a hand on Akina’s shoulder, “come on, we’ll do it together!” 
       At first it was dark. A large canopy of bent-over branches made a tunnel. The tunnel was narrow, just wide enough for a 9-year old and her bike.
       “This is scary!” Cried Akina.
       “Don’t worry,” said Kimmy. “I’m right behind you.”
       Just beyond the tunnel was a wooden bridge. They were walking on it now. It was old and creaky and covered in ivy. A row of wind chimes hung off the side. When the wind blew, the sound was a mix of drums and bells and twinkling. 
       On the bridge above them was a sign. It read, Welcome to Everwink.

Everwink

       “Oh my,” said Franky.
       “This is amazing,” said Kimmy.
       All six of them were amazed. Even Akina was amazed. “What is this place?” she asked.
       The Lion’s Teeth stepped off the creaky bridge and stood there, marveling at what they saw. They had never seen a garden so big, so full of life and color. 
       They began exploring. As they did, they realized, this was no ordinary garden. Every stem on every plant, every petal on every flower, every bush or small tree, everything, every inch of Everwink, was carefully tended to
       Franky wondered out loud, “Who would care for such a place, so carefully?”
       “Look!” Cried Josiah. “There’s a path!”
       The stone path wound its way through the garden. This time, Josiah led the way. The path twisted and turned. One path turned into three paths. Still, they continued on, bikes by their sides. Somehow, Josiah knew just where to go. 
       Suddenly, the path spilled out into a clearing. What they saw took their breath away. There were dandelions, a whole field of them! Rows and rows of flowers were glimmering in the sunlight,  yellow as yellow could be.
       Kimmy spoke up and said the one thing they all were thinking, “Ha! Victor would not be happy about this.”
       In the middle of it all was a tiny stone house. On the front porch was an old woman relaxing in a chair. Next to her was a steaming cup of tea. It was dandelion tea (if you didn’t know already). The windy path went right through the dandelions, and they took it. 
       As the Lion’s Teeth approached, the old woman stood up. “Visitors? I haven’t had visitors since…well, I can’t remember when.” Then she smiled. The warmth of her smile would melt your heart. “Come in, come in, come in!” She said. 
       They leaned their bikes against the house, walked up the porch steps, and followed her in. Once inside, the front door closed behind them.
       The Lion’s Teeth were led to a room in the very back of the house. Once there, the old woman turned, her long silver hair turned with her. She had blue eyes and a short pointy nose. A light dusting of freckles covered her face, neck and arms. 
      “I am Jolina Everwink,” she said, smiling warmly again. “And you are?”