1. A Light for the Picnic
Finn is a little fox with a very big lantern. Inside it is a small stone. The stone gives a soft yellow light. It is a magic stone, so it is never hot. Finn carries the lantern around his room. Its light makes his orange tail look like gold.
Tonight, the forest animals have a picnic beside the lake. Finn wants to take his lantern. He cleans its sides with a cloth. Then he looks at himself in the window. "I have the brightest light," he says. "Perhaps there is a prize!" He puts on his little blue bag.
Ruby the rabbit comes to his door. She carries cups in a basket. Moss the hedgehog waits by the gate with a small cake. "Are you ready?" Ruby asks. Finn lifts the lantern above his head. "Follow me!" he says. "My light can show us the way."
The friends walk between the trees. At first, Finn walks slowly. He hears the cups in Ruby's basket. He hears Moss behind them. Then he sees a bright star above the hill. "Come and look!" he calls. He runs up the path. Ruby follows, but Moss cannot run so fast.
At the top, Finn points to the star. "It looks like my lantern!" he says. Ruby puts her basket down. There are only two shadows on the ground. She looks behind her. "Where is Moss?" Finn turns. The path is quiet. His friend is not beside the last tree.
2. Back to the Blue Mark
Finn starts to run down the hill. Ruby calls, "Slowly! We must stay together." Finn stops. He wants to find Moss quickly, but Ruby's basket is heavy. He takes one side of it. They walk back along the same path. This time he looks behind him after every few steps.
Near a tree with a blue mark, Moss sits on a flat stone. He is safe. A little bird sits above him. "Hello," Moss says. "I wait here because I know this tree." Finn puts down the basket. "I am sorry. I go too fast," he says. "Can we walk together?"
Moss stands up and picks up his cake. "Yes. But look at these little lights first." Small fireflies move above the grass. One rests on a leaf, then flies away. Finn holds his bright lantern near them. Suddenly, he cannot see their tiny lights. He moves his lantern back.
"Now I can see them!" Finn says. The friends watch quietly. Then Ruby looks at the sky. "We have time for the picnic," she says. They walk on, with Moss in the middle. Finn carries the lantern low. It shows the stones on the path and the roots near their feet.
A wind shakes the branches. Wet leaves fall onto Finn's lantern. Its light becomes very small. Finn stops and looks at the stone inside. "Is it tired?" he asks. Ruby laughs gently. "Look outside it!" Finn lifts away the leaves. The yellow light shines across their shoes again.
3. The Longer Path
Soon they reach a small bridge. Water runs below it. Finn puts one foot on the first board. His foot moves a little on the wet wood. He steps back onto the path. Ruby holds her basket close. "I do not like this bridge tonight," she says.
Moss points to a sign near a bush. It has a picture of the lake and an arrow. "There is another path," he says. "It goes around the stream." Finn looks at the long path. He thinks about his prize. The other animals may already be at the picnic.
"Do we have to hurry?" he asks. Ruby looks surprised. "Why?" Finn tells her about the prize for the brightest lantern. "But there is no prize," Ruby says. "It is a picnic. We bring food and sit with our friends." Finn looks down at his big lantern.
Moss puts a paw on Finn's bag. "I like your light," he says. "Can it help me read this sign?" Finn holds it beside the arrow. They can all see the picture clearly. He smiles. "The lake is this way." He takes the longer path with his friends.
The path is wide and dry under the trees. Ruby tells them about the bread in her basket. Moss has an apple cake. Finn has three small spoons, but he forgets the plates. "I have plates!" Ruby says. They check their bags together. Between them, they have everything they need.
4. Small Lights on the Water
At the lake, the other animals sit in a circle. There are little lanterns on the grass. Finn finds a space beside a blanket. He does not put his lantern in the middle of the circle. He puts it near the path so the next friends can see where to walk.
Ruby takes the cups from her basket. One rolls under a bush. The grass is dark there. Finn brings his lantern and holds it low. Ruby finds the cup beside a white flower. "Thank you," she says. Finn carries the light back and sits beside Moss.
They cut the cake and pass the plates around. Finn gives a spoon to a young mouse. The mouse tastes the cake and asks for a second piece. Moss smiles. Finn is happy that they bring the cake together. There is even enough for the bird from the marked tree.
After the food, Ruby points to the lake. The moon makes a silver line on the water. Everyone moves the lanterns behind the blanket. Now the little stars are easy to see. Finn looks for the bright star above the hill. Moss finds it first and shows him.
When it is time to go home, Finn picks up his lantern. "Ready?" he asks. Ruby takes her basket. Moss folds the blanket slowly. Finn waits beside him. Then the three friends walk along the wide path. Their shadows move together, and the little yellow light goes with them.
