“Sounds like a plan,” Elvis replied. “Back down the mountain!”
“Actually,” Mei began, “look at this.”
Everyone followed her finger as Mei traced a different route, one that climbed the tall mountains and took a shortcut through them.
“What do you see? Is that a passage over the mountains?” Amirah asked.
Mei shook her head. “It’s a cave that seems to be a tunnel. It’s called Candle Cave.”
“A tunnel right through the mountains?” Elvis asked.
“Yes,” Mei replied. “Yes, look! Candle Cave seems to run through the Party Hat Mountains, just like a tunnel. See how much quicker it will be? We’re not too far from the entrance. Then we zip right through the tunnel and climb down the other side of the mountain and we’ll be at the forest.”
“I get it,” Amirah said, nodding her head. “This way, we don’t have to go all around the mountain. It really does look like a shortcut. I’m in.”
“Me too,” Elvis announced.
As the B-Buds stood up, Amirah shook the container of sprinkles. “I almost forgot,” she said. “You guys want some?”
“Sure,” Mei said, holding out her hand. “Do you, uh, just carry sprinkles with you wherever you go?”
“Absolutely, I do,” Amirah said, laughing. “I mean, first, they’re delicious.”
“You can say that again,” Elvis said as he popped a handful into his mouth.
“And second, I just happen to believe that sprinkles make everything better,” Amirah continued. “If the weather is gloomy . . . if I’m having a bad day . . . well, I just remember my sprinkles and maybe eat a few and I know it sounds weird, but I feel better instantly. That’s the power of sprinkles!”
“I know what you mean. It’s not weird,” Elvis replied as the trio set off along the path. “Music is kind of like that for me . . . but it’s not as easy to carry around in my pocket.”
“No, I guess not,” Amirah said.
“But you do carry music with you,” Mei pointed out.
“What do you mean?” he asked.
“Like humming, or snapping your fingers, or drumming on stuff,” Mei said.
“I never thought about it like that,” Elvis replied.
“What about you, with gymnastics?” Amirah asked Mei. “Do you do little moves all day to keep it with you?”
Mei nodded. “I guess I do, when I can. It’s hard for me to sit still all day at school! But mostly I just think about gymnastics a lot. I’ll plan routines in my head, or imagine what it would be like to win a medal in the Olympics.” Mei paused to hop gracefully over a large rock on the path. “I guess that sounds pretty wild, imagining myself at the Olympics, but it’s my biggest dream.”
“I think that sounds amazing,” Amirah said. “I hope you make it there. I’ll cheer for you!”
“Me too!” Elvis added.
Finally, they reached a shadowy opening in the mountain. It was so dark inside that Amirah couldn’t see more than a few feet ahead of her.
“Well,” Mei said, a note of doubt in her voice. “This looks like the, ah, tunnel.”
“Did anybody bring a flashlight?” Elvis asked.
The other B-Buds shook their heads.
“I hate to state the obvious,” he continued. “But it’s really dark in there. I mean, really dark. How will we know where we’re going?”
“That’s a good point,” Mei admitted. “I know it’s a cave, but I thought Candle Cave wouldn’t be so dark inside!”
“We came all this way, though,” Amirah said. “We should at least go inside. Maybe there’s a light source somewhere and we just haven’t spotted it yet.”
When no one replied, Amirah knew that her B-Buds needed a little extra encouragement. “Come on, B-Buds! It’s our birthday and this has the potential to be the greatest birthday adventure in the history of the world!”
“Or the greatest birthday misadventure,” Elvis cracked.
Amirah could tell Elvis was a little scared, which she definitely understood, yet she felt deep down that they had absolutely nothing to be worried about. She just had to convince him of that without making him feel bad about being scared.
She marched over to Elvis and Mei and linked arms with them. “Safety first,” she smiled. “We’ll just go in a little ways. And we’ll stick together at all times.”
Mei nodded. “Okay,” she said. “I’m in!”
Elvis took a deep breath. “Let’s do this!”
With their heads held high, the B-Buds bravely marched into the dark, shadowy cave. Their footsteps echoed in the darkness.
“Okay it’s really dark in here.” Inside the cave, Elvis’s voice echoed. “Maybe we should go back now.”
“Just a little farther.” Amirah pushed on. “If only we could see—”
Whooosh!
A sudden sizzling sound zipped through the air, followed by the smell of smoke. Amirah grabbed Elvis’s and Mei’s arms tighter. If there was a fire somewhere in this cave, they’d have to get out—fast!
But an instant later, two soft flickering lights appeared. Amirah was so relieved that she laughed out loud. “Torches!” she exclaimed.
Sure enough, two torches on the cave wall gleamed with warm light.
“Those aren’t torches,” Elvis said, pointing. “They’re overgrown birthday candles!”
“I think you’re right,” Amirah replied. “That’s why this is called Candle Cave! Those are definitely jumbo birthday candles! Look at the colorful swirls on their sides.”
“Look at everything!” Mei cried. “Have you ever seen anything like it? Ever, in your whole life?”
Amirah took a moment to look around the cave in astonishment. Overhead, the ceiling was made of rainbow glitter; it sparkled and glowed from the light of the torches. The ground below their feet was covered in confetti. A trickling stream caught Amirah’s eye and she walked over to check it out. Next to the stream she saw what appeared to be oversized bubble wands.
“I wonder what happens when I dip one of these in the stream,” Amirah murmured. She decided to find out. She dipped the wand in the stream, waved it, and laughed in delight as a group of bubble bats skittered overhead.
“Are those bats?” Mei cried.
“It’s okay!” Amirah said quickly. “They’re bubble bats!”
Elvis ran over and grabbed a wand and dipped it in the stream to create more bubble
