//------------------------------//
// Book Time 
// Story: House of Doors 
// by Devela 
//------------------------------//

I set Trixie in her bed before heading back through the door. It closed silently behind me as the selector reappeared. Though with how much time I spent in her past. It was almost to the point where Trixie appeared in Ponyville. 

I had grown to love that place and those ponies, even going as far to date a few. It was fun while it lasted but biology didn't do me any favors in that regard. So with a bit of a heavier step I walked towards the kitchen, looking around before just making some instant chicken flavored ramen. It wasn't the best meal but it was something. 

The smell of food brought out the floating from of Spike, his eyes still closed as he slept. I sighed and pushed the bowl across the table before tossing another in the microwave. 

The little dragon seemed to grab the bowl and a girl before floating back into his room, the door closing behind him. I sighed as my impromptu son was weird. It had started as a sort of treatment for being used to beat at my door. I didn't think much as he had hid himself away for fear of being eaten. Eventually he did come and find me after he raided my fridge and ate all my lunch meat. That'd turned into a grounding and a good snap of my hand against my own hand. Never before would I think to see a dragon cry for someone hitting their own hand to scold themselves. 

After that he sorta just lived in my house and I let him go out as long as he was back by sundown. He never went back to his own timeline or place though, said he was done being a sidekick and forgotten. I eventually talked him into going back for a bit. He got a job at the library after I sued Twilight for abusive child labor. That case was actually kinda quick even with the counter lawsuit of property damage 'I' caused. It was the Elements who trashed my lawn and made me have to fix it via proxy timed payments. It was fun to see the reaction of ponies who I just paid to fix my lawn mere moments ago. Then suddenly they appear at my front door years later. 

Regardless of a son I have there was a knock coming from a door somewhere in my house. It wasn't the front simply because it wasn't loud or echoing, just a simple timid three knock set. I eyed the pantry door for a moment before it seemed to shiver and change color and shape. It opened on its own before I saw the mark on it. Beyond the threshold stood a nervous looking mare with a two tone purple and red mixed mane and tail. Her mane was wrapped up in a stylish bun with two sticks forming an X through the base of it. A set of glasses rested on her muzzle, taping holding the bridge together as she shyly looked inside before stepping through. Her sweater covered the majority of her body and almost threatened to slip down over her forehooves. 

I blinked for a moment before looking towards the clock above the sink. 9:30 AM. Now that was one part of my house that seemed odd and kinda freaky. I could step through a door and then step back at the same time as when I left, or up to any amount of time I spent in the door. The first time it through me for a wild loop because I had been gone for a whole day before checking the calendar. That's why I always keep track of the date in my house. 

The mare scuffed her hoof on the floor for a moment before coughing to draw my attention. Her horn glowed softly as she pulled a stack of books from her room and set them on the table. Sitting before me were no less than twenty manga volumes, all different, and all in Japanese. I raised an eyebrow before turning to look fully at the mare. "Yes Moondancer?"

"W-well I finished them all and was hoping you'd take me to get more." She was rubbing one hoof behind the other and looking at me between the gap of her glasses and her face. 

I clutched my chest as I could feel the cuteness become weaponized before my very eyes. Slowly I leaned to the side before falling out of my chair with a solid thud. It made Moon squeak and start to rush over, her hooves scuffing the floor before starting to slide. She tried to stop in front of me but just slide past all the way into the hallway wall with a thud. I winced a little and peaked through the doorway at her. 

She was upside down with her hooves dangling in the air and her glasses askew. After a moment she called out. "I'm okay..." 

I sighed before standing up and walking over to pick her up and set her the right way. I fixed her glasses and smiled before patting her head lightly. "Silly, how many times do I have to tell you. Don't run in my house." Her ears folded back as she looked towards the floor. "Now go grab your clothes and backpack." 

Her reaction made my heart seize up as she gave an adorable squee before skipping down the hallway. I held my chest for a moment before taking a deep breath before letting it out. I smiled before heading back into the kitchen, grabbing the books and taking them to the library. 

Now some may wonder if the library was normal like some rooms in my house, well you'd assume wrong. The library was through a special door, a stack of books on the front. Opening the rather plain thin wooden door lead into a small foyer. I set the books on a table to the side, knowing they'd be taken and filed away. My eyes were drawn to the glass doors at the other end of the room, I eyed the books through it as one seemed to walk closer towards the door. I never went through the door for a good reason. Harry Potter stood on the other side, his entire body made out of nothing but pages covered in the words from his book. A shiver ran down my spine before I quickly walked back into my home. 

Moondancer was waiting for me, standing before her favorite door. She had added a pair of socks and a skirt to her ensemble. It had taken a while to explain that my world wore clothing all the time. Socks were the hardest part to make her wear them, she kept blushing every second. Now though she took it all in stride. 

The door before us was made of several bamboo reeds tied together with strands of itself. The symbol was a single red circle in the center. She seemed a bit eager so I turned the handle and ushered her through. We stepped out a doorway a bit away from the main road in Kyoto. I smiled as I walked through first, checking the area before waving her with a hand. Moondancer quickly stepped through before closing the door. 

I wanna say she just turned into a normal person, but that'd be a lie. No she always performed a sort of magical girl transformation. Literally she glowed and shifted into a human shape with a dance and glitter... Gods I had been a foot too close the first time and glitter had gone everywhere. I mean EVERYWHERE. It took me a month to stop finding it in my shower.  So after her explosion she stood about five foot even, but she didn't have fur, digitigrade legs, a horn, or even a tail. She was just a normal human now. 

So without further ado, we went shopping. Quickly finding our favorite store as she began browsing and talking to the clerk in perfect japanese. I didn't understand a word and let them talk as I browsed the English section. 

It took her an hour to find the next book in the series she read and pay for them. It was actually quite easier  to pay for them then you'd expect. See my money exchanged equivalently to whatever currency of the door I went through and let me tell you a bit is worth a lot of US cha ching. The rate is like one bit to fifty US. After finding that out I had quickly gotten a job in Manehattan and started earning a good bit of bits. I wasn't rich by Equestrian standards but when you can go three weeks in my house then opened the door and find it only be the next day for your job. It's pretty nice. I have gone a few days in a row at my job before taking a month my house time off just to appear like it was the next day of work. My house is funky with time dilation but I enjoy always being when I need to be. 


So after grabbing a quick lunch with Moondancer we went back to my house. She returned the clothes back to her cubby before happily going back into her room through my pantry. I smiled and waved to her before sitting down and thinking of what to do next. 

I had tempted the fate of Murphy. I wasn't sure which one was worse because my front door echoed with a massive knock before repeating a few seconds later. 

I checked the clock and saw it was 6:00 PM and wondered who needed me at this hour. So I wandered to the front door, noticing that red and green were flashing. I turned to the green first, opening the door to reveal Trixie standing there, she was covered head to hoof in a mixture of pie and toilet paper. I raised a brow before stepping out of the way as she ran inside crying. 

I didn’t even bother looking outside as I slammed the door. I switched to the black color quickly before opening the door. Standing before me was a large red skinned man, his body mostly covered by a rather from fitting black suit. Beyond him I spied a rather voluptuousness purple woman in a white dress to match. Behind her stood a twig of a man, his arms seeming slightly longer than his legs. He was adorned in a rainbow striped zoot suit. Finally a rather large rotund man rounded out the group in a simple suspended and vest combo, the color was a bright neon green with dark yellow jacket. It took me a moment to recognize them before smiling. 

“Oh hello gentleman, and lady. I’m sorry to say this but I have to postpone tonight's game. A matter has come up requiring my immediate attention.” I told them as I performed a slight bow, having forgotten that tonight was game night. Though the four seemed a bit upset, the red man most so as he growled deeply. His teeth seeming to grow and elongate as his maw became filled with jagged fangs. Horns grew from his forehead and curled backwards before bursting aflame. 

“Well what is so important that you abandon us then Richard?” He asked, leering over me as he grew in height.

Before I could respond the wails of a mare filled the hallway, I knew just where they were coming from. She’d gotten the freezer open and was in the ice cream again... I simply sighed before looking towards the man. “Well Khorne I have a surrogate daughter to comfort and those who pied and toilet papered her to scold. Now if you will excuse me, I again apologize Tzeentch, Slaanesh, Nurgle, and Khorne. We shall pick up the tale of your adventures next week.” I didn’t even give them time to respond before I closed the door. I turned the knob to green before walking towards the kitchen. There’d be retribution for this.