Lucy Longwhiskers Gets Lost

Chapter Two The Magical Tree

Lily and Jess ran outside. The golden cat sprinted across the Harts’ lawn toward Brightley Stream, which ran along the bottom of the yard.

“That’s weird,” Jess panted as the girls followed. “Cats usually keep away from water.”

Lily’s dad had put stepping-stones in the stream so people could cross safely. The cat sprang onto the first stepping-stone. Then she looked over her shoulder at the girls and mewed.

Lily’s dark eyes were wide. “She isn’t running away,” Lily said. “I think she wants us to follow her!”

With a flick of her golden tail, the cat leaped onto the next stone. The girls quickly jumped after her. On the other side of the stream, in Brightley Meadow, stood a huge oak tree. Even though it was the middle of summer, the tree had no leaves. Jess’s dad was a science teacher, and he’d told them it was dead.

But as the cat ran to the tree, something amazing happened. Leaves sprang from every twig, bright green and shimmering in the sunshine, as if they had been speckled with gold dust. Birds swooped down to the branches and began singing, and bumblebees and butterflies danced among the yellow flowers below.

“It’s come back to life!” Lily said with a gasp. “How is that possible?”

Jess rubbed her eyes. She couldn’t believe what they were seeing!

The golden cat was rubbing around the tree trunk, pawing at some strange marks.

Jess kneeled to stroke her silky fur. “I know this sounds crazy, but I think the cat has something to do with this!”

Lily nodded, her eyes wide. “Look! There’s writing carved into the trunk.”

Jess crawled around the tree, reading the letters. “Friend... ship... For... est...”

The cat meowed and pawed at the letters once more.

“Maybe she wants us to say it louder?” Jess guessed. “FRIENDSHIP FOREST!” she shouted.

But the cat just meowed again. She first rubbed Lily’s leg, then Jess’s, and pawed at the letters.

“I know!” cried Lily. “She wants us to read it together!”

Both girls said, “Friendship Forest!”

Instantly, a small door appeared in the trunk! It was as high as the girls’ shoulders and in the center was a handle shaped like a leaf.

“Wow!” said Jess. Her eyes shone as she gripped the handle.

Lily reached toward it, too, then hesitated. “Do you think we should open it?” she asked warily. “We don’t know what’s on the other side.”

“Exactly!” said Jess with a grin. “Let’s find out!”

Lily twisted the handle, and the little door swung open. A shimmering golden light poured out of the tree.

The cat looked up at the girls. Her green eyes seemed to beg them to follow, then she bounded inside the tree.

Jess held out her hand to Lily. “Ready?” she asked with a smile.

Lily grinned and took Jess’s hand. “Let’s go!”

Taking a deep breath, they bent down. As they squeezed through the door, their skin tingled all over.

The girls blinked as the golden glow faded. They were standing in a clearing in the middle of a sunlit forest.

The leaves on the tall trees shimmered, and flowers nodded their colorful heads in the gentle breeze. The ground was covered in soft, springy moss.

“This is impossible,” Jess said. “How can all this fit inside a tree trunk?”

Lily took Jess’s hand again. She was trembling with excitement. “There is an explanation for all this...”

Jess nodded. Together, both girls cried, “Magic!”

“This is amazing!” Jess said, grinning. “But why did the cat bring us here?” She glanced around. “Where’d she go?”

Lily peered behind some pink flowers with petals like tissue paper, hoping to catch a glimpse of golden fur. A familiar scent drifted up from the blooms.

“These smell like cotton candy!” she exclaimed. “Even the flowers are magical!” Then something odd caught her eye.

Inside a hollowed-out tree trunk stood a little cottage.

“Look!” Lily cried.

“Sweet!” said Jess. “But what’s a playhouse doing here?”

A curtain at one of the windows twitched. Jess shook her head. Surely there couldn’t be anyone inside the cottage... Could there?

As the girls gazed around, their eyes widened. More little cottages were dotted around the clearing. Some were nestled among tree roots, and one was half underground, with a mossy roof. Tables and chairs as high as the girls’ knees stood outside a wooden cabin with white spots on the roof. A sign said TOADSTOOL CAFÉ.

A door at the side of the café suddenly slammed shut. From inside came the sound of worried voices.

Lily gasped. “Someone’s living in these little buildings,” she said. “But who?”