I DO NOT LIKE IT
“Scared of the dark?” Seymour teased. “Aw, poor lil’ scaredy-shop.”
MOCK ME AGAIN AND I WILL CRUSH YOU
“Do not mock him,” Sariel said urgently.
“My bad, Izba.” Seymour didn’t want to know how a talking flower shop who was also a talking Rolodex would crush him, but he wasn’t going to ignore Sariel’s obvious concern.
Shiloh was busy pulling more items out of his seemingly endless bag.
A bottle of purple liquid.
A rubber chicken.
A black vinyl bra.
He tried using each one, but nothing appeared to be happening.
“Care to share with the rest of the class what you’re doing?” Seymour asked.
“Okay, so, someone definitely came through from Faerie here. They also went back this way.” Shiloh gestured at the crack. “It’s sealed up tight as shit. I usually got my ways for, you know, sneakin’ in, but none of them are working.”
Seymour got his keys out. “Uh, so… this may be a fuckin’ stretch, but?—”
“Son of a bitch!” Shiloh cackled. “Clancy’s key!”
Seymour blinked. “You know what this is?”
“Yup. Tried to get him to tell me for years how he got it, but he never would.” Shiloh laughed heartily. “That right there is a skeleton key. The most powerful one I’ve ever seen. Might evenbe Hecate’s. Maybe even Saint Peter’s! Gods only know. But that right there will open just about anything.”
“Even a crack flowery thing into Faerie?”
Shiloh bowed his head as he stepped aside. “Only one way to find out.”
I CAN OPEN THINGS
I CAN DO LOTS OF THINGS
Seymour smiled sweetly. “Yup, and right now, you can cheer me on while I figure out where to stick a damn key in a bunch of floating dirt.”
Day hopped down. “Here! I will hold him.”
AH YES
MEOW MEOW MEOW
Seymour passed the Rolodex down to Day. “Don’t eat him.”
SHE WILL NOT
I WOULD NOT TASTE VERY GOOD
I AM FUELED BY SPITE
Seymour felt very silly holding the key out toward the crack. He had no idea what he was supposed to do, but then he was startled by the sensation of being drawn to a particular spot next to a big sprig of bluebells, like they were two powerful magnets dying to connect.
The key went right in, so he turned it.
