Loptica Valley

From the very beginning I knew there was something quite odd about this house I had been living in, but I could not figure out exactly what it was. Until late this summer when I discovered something that I never would have imagined, something not even my great grandfather who was a study of all magical worlds could have believed when he was alive. It all started in July when I was sorting through all the junk in the attic that I came across a chest that was sealed shut with a brass lock and was too heavy for me to bring it out of cellar. Almost as if it was bolted to the floor underneath. That night, as I was cleaning up after dinner, I heard a thud upstairs and paused to listen. Though no sound followed, and I went back to what I was doing without a thought of what it could be. When I went to bed that night, I heard something scurrying upstairs and my eyes shot open. “What could that be?” I wondered aloud and listened for anymore noise but heard nothing. A few days passed and I had heard nothing strange from the attic again, going back to my daily routine of writing a bit of my book: The Lost Valley of Loptica and cleaning up the house. Writing my book was the only solace I had over the summer because no one else was around, my husband had passed away in January and I was still mourning over his loss, trying desperately to keep my mind busy and away from his study, which I left completely as it was the day he died. I refused to go in there even though at one point in the future I would have to clean it out. Anyway, weeks passed, and I found myself not returning to the attic, just because I did not want to find myself face to face with a squirrel or whatever was up there. Though, a few days later I decided to check out that chest again and see if I could open it with pliers or something to cut through the brass lock. When I opened the door to the cellar, I looked up into the dust filled air and found myself staring at a round pair of bright blue eyes. I gasped and the animal let out a squeak of surprise. When I took a closer look at the animals I realized it was not anything I had ever seen before, it was rather furry with two large sets of ears that fell forward over its face, almost like its head should have been big enough to handle such a set of ears, although the animals didn’t seem to mind. In fact, I watched it bring itspaw up and push back its ears while taking a step back. It was the size of a raccoon but looked very much like bunny of sorts. We stared at each other for a few seconds before the animal did the most bizarre thing, which made me almost tumble back down the ladder to the floor. “I’m sorry to be of a bother to you but I was hoping you could help open this trunk here.” It said, in a manner of a well-educated English gentleman. I nodded not sure what else to do. “Sure,” I said meekly staring wide eyed at the animal before me. “But can you first explain to me how you’re able to talk?” I ask and the animals looks at me puzzled “well, yes, I was born and raised to talk miss, it’s exactly my role in Lo…” the animal paused, thought for a second and then continued “where I’m from, miss, it’s what I do.” I tilted my head perplexed and the animal sighed exasperated. “Well?” it prompted, and I suddenly remembered what he had asked “right, sorry. Give me one moment please,” I said as I climbed back down the ladder and went downstairs to find the pliers or something to open the lock with. When I came back the animal was combing its fur with a brush that he seemed to have found somewhere in the attic. “Aah, yes, that will work perfectly.” It said stepping aside “may I ask your name perhaps?” I replied and the animal looked at me like I was crazy “miss, I don’t have a name?” it responded, and my only reply was “oh.” It hmphed and stepped aside. I went up to the chest and tried to open it with the pliers, but the lock wouldn’t budge. “Oh for all of our sakes,” it said and I frowned at. This animal was starting to sound like a character out of my story and I realized slowly that it was a character out of my story. Its name was Lolleratand it was a mix of a bunny, a rat and a raccoon all mixed into becoming one fuzzy animal with four ears and small bunny-like body. Suddenly as the realization was dawning on me the animal, or as I should say Lollerat just stood on top of the chest, tapped his foot on the top three times and fell right through. I stood their amazed and baffled by what just occurred, but I didn’t know what to do. So I did what anyone else would do, I myself, stood on top of the chest, tapped my foot three times and waited. Though nothing happened and I became confused. So I left the attic and went back downstairs to where my office was and sat down with my manuscript and started reading the chapter I previously finished. 

It was at that moment that Lollerat just about vanished through the chest in Winnie’s attic, it was there and then it was gone. Winnie looked around the chest not knowing what to and tried herself to get through the chest by doing exactly as Lollerat had done. Though when she attempted it, it did not work. So, in a fit of anger she grabbed the nearest sharp thing she could find, which was an old sword from her father’s ancient set of swords and threw it at the lock. She heard a quick ping and the lock snapped open. Winnie just sat there perplexed but slowly made her way over to the lock, which she took out of the holder and slowly and cautiously opened the chest. As Winnie slowly kneeled to have a look inside, she found herself tumbling down inside the chest and falling headfirst through a sparkling blue portal. It seemed to go one forever and her head was spinning faster and faster. Until she fell face first into a hedge of some sort of plant, with her feet up in the air. As she maneuvered herself out of the hedge and looked around Winnie realized she was in another world entirely, and to her right was a sign that read Welcome to Loptica Valley. 

I stopped reading and paused for a second, then it dawned on me, Winnie had opened the chest with a sword so I would have to do the same. So, I went around the house searching for something to use to open the chest with and came back to the attic with a crowbar. When I stood in front of the chest, I felt more and more bizarre and worried about what I was about to do. But I did it anyway. I applied the crowbar to the look and pushed and as I pushed all my strength into it, it snapped and popped right off, just like in my story. So I kneeled down and peered inside and saw not the floor of the chest but a sparkling blue surface that glimmered and made blue light cascade over the ceiling and around the room. Feeling giddy I put my hand through the blue surface, and it disappeared. Then I put my whole arm in and it also disappeared. Feeling as though I could not waste anymore time I stepped over the edge of the chest, feet first, sitting on the ledge and dropped myself in. Just like Winnie I fell straight down for a long time my head spinning faster and faster until I found myself lying on my back in a grassy valley and looked up to see that same sign that said Welcome to Loptica Valley.