In Neon Metropolis, the lights went blink-blink all night.
Memphys was a girl. She was small, kind, and very curious. She wore a tiny backpack and shiny shoes.
One morning, Memphys looked up.
“Uh-oh,” she said.
The big city sign was gray.
No pink. No blue. No green.
The streets looked sleepy.
A Princess came down the steps of a tall glass tower.
She had a soft cape and a bright smile.
“Hello, Memphys,” said the Princess.
“Hello,” said Memphys.
The Princess pointed to the gray sign.
“Our colors are gone,” she said.
Memphys blinked.
“Gone?”
“Yes,” said the Princess. “We must bring them back.”
Memphys held the Princess’s hand.
“I can help,” said Memphys.
She felt a little shy.
But she felt brave, too.
They walked past neon shops.
They walked past a fountain that went splish-splash.
They heard a street robot go, “Beep-beep!”
Memphys giggled.
They came to a small door under a rainbow bridge.
On the door was a sticker that said: COLOR BOX.
The Princess whispered, “Maybe the colors are inside.”
Memphys nodded.
“Open?” she asked.
The door was stuck.
Memphys pushed.
“Mmnn,” she said.
The Princess pushed.
“Mmnn!”
Still stuck.
Memphys looked around.
She saw a button shaped like a star.
It was dusty.
Memphys blew: “Pfff!”
She pressed it.
Click!
The door went, “Whoosh.”
Inside was a room of jars.
So many jars.
A red jar.
A yellow jar.
A blue jar.
But the jars were quiet.
No glow.
Memphys touched one jar.
It felt sleepy-cold.
She frowned.
“Wake up,” she said softly.
The Princess said, “Try a happy sound.”
Memphys thought.
Then she clapped.
“Clap-clap!”
The Princess clapped too.
“Clap-clap!”
A tiny spark popped in the red jar.
Pop!
Memphys smiled wide.
“Again!”
They stomped.
“Stomp-stomp!”
They hummed.
“Hmm-hmm.”
They laughed.
“Ha-ha-ha!”
The jars began to glow.
Red went warm.
Yellow went sunny.
Blue went cool and bright.
The room turned shiny.
But one jar stayed dark.
A purple jar.
Memphys looked at it.
She felt a little scared.
The jar was big.
The Princess knelt down.
“I am here,” she said.
Memphys took a deep breath.
“In… out,” she said.
Memphys whispered to the purple jar.
“Hello, purple. We need you.”
She gave it a gentle hug.
The jar went…
Glim.
Glim-glim!
Purple woke up!
A rainbow wave rolled out of the room.
Whoooosh!
It ran through Neon Metropolis.
The sign lit up.
Pink! Blue! Green!
The streets looked happy again.
The Princess twirled.
“You did it, Memphys!”
Memphys bounced.
“I did!”
The Princess opened Memphys’s backpack.
She placed inside a small treasure.
A glow sticker star.
It shimmered in seven colors.
“For you,” said the Princess.
“It will shine at bedtime.”
Memphys held it.
Warm. Safe. Bright.
“Thank you,” she said.
They walked home under the blinking lights.
Memphys waved to the city.
“Good night, colors,” she said.
And the neon lights blinked back, blink-blink, just for her.