Toby the Arke

"Okay Meagan, we don't have time for this, thankfully you don't need powers to open the door, and you wanted answers right? Well the answers are in the other side of the door"

After a minute of uncomfortable silence passed, Mahalia went to Meagan's side and held her hand, giving her an encouraging nudge, and staring at her with pleading eyes.

After a stubborn sigh, Meagan walked towards the door. "I am just doing this to show you that I am no Portal or whatever it is you guys are confusing me for" Meagan placed her hands on the entrance, and waited, holding her breath.

You had better stay closed up you damn door! Or else? Meagan bit her lips nervously as she thought. 

When nothing happened in thirty seconds, she turned with an "I told you so gaze' as she turned to look at sister Emma. But the nun seemed to be holding in her laughter. 

"Yeah, I knew it, you just wanted to make fun of me, but I don't find this any funny!" Meagan stared daggers at sister Emma. 

"Oh my world! Toby will have a field day with you silly, it won't open of course, you laced your hands on the wrong place, you need to place it, on that smaller stone by the side" sister Emma pointed to a smaller stone that sat beside the great wall. 

Meagan angrily placed her hands on the rock, frowning, ready to yell an "I told you so" at the nun. But to her shock, the rock made a loud cracking sound and began to slide open. Meagan's jaw dropped, her eyes wide with wonder. She looked like a child experiencing an amusement park for the first time.

Meagan was stunned to silence, her gaze still fixed on the opening rock. The girls seemed equally shocked, their faces pale. Sister Emma, however, remained calm, a hint of a smile on her face.

"Is Meagan okay? Meagan! Meag—" Ryan burst into the room, his voice laced with concern.

"Ryan? What are you doing here? And how did you know that we were here? Mahalia's voice conveyed shock, surprise and she asked the exact questions Meagan and her sisters wanted to ask . 

When Ryan didn't speak for a while, sister Emma spoke up on his behalf. "I called him here, he… has a huge part to play, and I don't know what went wrong". Sister Emma trailed off, as Ryan sent her a warning glare. 

"Ryan, what is this? Did you follow me here to see if I was meeting up with someone?" Meagan asked suspiciously.

"I don't have to do that, I trust you, you do not have it in you to cheat on me" 

Meagan hoped that her face conveyed how incredulous she felt at his words. "Cheat? One moment of barely kissing doesn't automatically mean we are in a relationship Ryan"

Sister Emma cuts the conversation as she saw that it will be long, if left to the stubborn couple. 

"We don't have time for this. Come in, let's get the girls to safety first," Sister Emma urged, her voice low and insistent.

Meagan shut the door behind them, ensuring everyone was safe. As she turned to inspect the quiet place, her breath caught in her throat. The space was magnificent, with so many books than Meagan had ever seen. 

She walked with the others, noticing that the girls were also in awe as they took in the library. 

Her gaze snagged on a chair turned away from her, its occupant hidden. Suddenly, a low, raspy voice filled the air, sending shivers down Meagan's spine.

"I have long anticipated this day – the day I meet the Portal that would alter destinies."

********

The chair creaked, slowly swiveling to reveal a human-sized toad with a wide, toothy grin.

Meagan's face twisted in a mix of horror and fear, her eyes wide with disgust. As the toad leapt towards her with open arms, Meagan froze, her heart racing. Then, unleashing a high pitched scream, she fainted.

Meagan's eyes fluttered open, the gaze was unfocused, like she was trying to get a grip on herself, or remember where she was. 

After realizing that she saw a terrific creature earlier she sat up quickly, and saw her daughters watching her with worried expression. 

"Girls, I think I was affected more than I thought by those Echo things, I thought I saw a disgusting creature!" Meagan's eyes went huge as she talked to the girls. 

"Ouch! Now I am hurt!" A rough voice called out. 

Meagan turned immediately, she recognized that voice, her relaxed features tensed up again. 

She saw the man frog rolling it's huge, scary eyes, and trying to be dramatic, and Meagan screamed again, and fell weekly as the girls shook her. 

With a frown on his face, Toby, the Portal librarian pointed a swollen finger towards Meagan.

 "Okay that actually hurts my pride, are you really going to faint again? I mean… " Toby shrugged and shook his hands. 

"What are you!" Meagan asked in panic, and at that moment, sister Emma who had been holding in her laughter, burst out laughing. Till she wiped the tears that escaped from her eyes. 

"That's Toby, he is your guide, among other things, and he is an Arke, he is like your wisdom lord, so you can ask him anything" sister Emma's eyes sparkled as she suppressed her laughter. 

"That introduction didn't really help, why are creatures turning into men, and why does he have to be a frog?" Meagan's eyes were slit, her cheeks were still flushed from earlier.

"Oh my… Emma darling… we got ourselves a broken portal don't we?" As sister Emma nodded, Toby gave an exaggerated sigh of shock, his eyes going wider.