The Mystery of the Missing Moonbeam

Maya and Zoe loved the Whispering Pages Library more than any place in the world. It smelled like old paper and warm honey, and if you sat very still, you could hear the books whispering secrets. They were the best fort builders, using big, colorful books to create cozy castles. They would giggle and make funny faces, their laughter echoing softly between the shelves.

One evening, just as the sun was setting, a tiny mouse in a silver space suit hopped right out of a picture book! He was Squeaky, the Moon Mouse. But he wasn't happy. He pointed a shaky paw at his book. "The moonbeam," he whispered, his voice trembling. "It's gone! Gone, gone, gone!" Maya and Zoe looked. The page was dark and empty where a big, bright moon should have been.

"I'll build a new moon!" declared Maya. She grabbed a pile of shiny bookmarks and started to stack them. Zoe tried to help by telling the bookmark moon her funniest joke, hoping to make it laugh and glow. But the bookmarks only glittered dimly. The page stayed dark. Squeaky the mouse just shivered. "Not bright... not bright... not bright," he whimpered, and Maya and Zoe felt their shoulders droop.

Just then, Zoe remembered their librarian's favorite saying: "Two heads are better than one!" She looked at Maya. "We tried our ideas separately! Let's try them *together*!" A spark lit up in Maya's eyes. She found a small, round mirror from a science book, while Zoe grabbed a tiny flashlight from a camping adventure story. Together, they aimed the flashlight at the mirror, and *WHOOSH*! A perfect, round moonbeam bounced onto the page, glowing brightly. "Bright! Bright! Bright!" Squeaky cheered, doing a little dance.

The happy Moon Mouse zipped back into his story, which now glowed with beautiful moonlight. Other characters from nearby books peeked out, whispering, "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" As Maya and Zoe packed up, they gave each other a high-five. They weren't just great builders or problem-solvers on their own; they were an amazing team, and they knew that working together could make even the darkest page bright again.