A Girl and Her Firefly Friend

Night Lights

Piper lived in a small house at the edge of a big forest. Every night when the sun went down, she would sit by her window and watch the fireflies dance in her garden. She loved how they made little lights in the dark. One summer night, Piper saw a firefly that shined brighter than all the others. The special firefly flew to her window and stayed there, its light blinking on and off. Piper opened her window very slowly. The firefly did not fly away. Instead, it landed on her hand! Piper was very happy. She named the firefly Spark and put it in a small jar with air holes. She promised to let it go in the morning.

Forest Friends

The next day, Piper took Spark to the forest. She opened the jar to let Spark go, but the firefly did not want to leave! It flew around Piper’s head and then back to her hand. Piper smiled. It seemed that Spark wanted to be her friend. As they walked deeper into the forest, Piper saw more fireflies. They all came to greet her and Spark. The fireflies made a path of light through the trees. Piper followed them to a small clearing. In the middle was a very old tree with a hollow in its trunk. The hollow was full of fireflies! Piper had found their home.

Magic Messages

Piper visited the firefly tree every day. She would sit and watch as the fireflies blinked their lights in patterns. Soon, Piper began to understand that the fireflies were talking to each other with their lights. Spark taught her how to read the light messages. The fireflies told Piper about the forest and its animals. They showed her hidden places and secret paths. When Piper had problems at school, she would tell Spark. The firefly would blink light messages that made her feel better. By the end of summer, everyone in the town knew about the girl who could talk to fireflies. But only Piper knew what they really said.