Nolan the Great was a little magician with a big blue hat. His hat was too wide. It flopped over one eye.
“Peekaboo!” said Nolan, lifting the brim.
He lived beside the Spirit Garden. The garden had round pink flowers, tiny silver paths, and a pond that went plip, plop, plip.
Every morning, Nolan said hello.
“Hello, tulips!”
“Hello, pond!”
“Hello, sleepy snail!”
One soft morning, the Spirit Garden was very quiet. No pink flowers. No silver paths. No bright pond.
Everything was gray.
“Oh,” said Nolan. “The colors are gone.”
From behind a blue mushroom came Ghost. Ghost was a little white ghost with kind round eyes. He liked to float upside down. He also liked to say “Boo!” but only in a tiny voice.
“Boo?” whispered Ghost.
Nolan gave him a gentle smile. “Not boo. We need help.”
Ghost floated close. “The flowers feel sad,” he said.
Then they heard a grumbly voice near the tall hedge.
“I took the colors!” said Spellcaster.
Spellcaster wore a purple cloak and had a long, twisty wand. He was not a very happy spellcaster. His own little garden was gray too.
“I wanted pretty colors,” he said. “So I used a grabby spell. Zip! Zop! Colors, hop!”
His wand sneezed. “Achoo-spark!”
A yellow puff flew out and landed on Ghost’s head.
Ghost was yellow now.
“I look like a banana!” he giggled.
Nolan laughed, but only a little. “Spellcaster, colors are for everyone. The garden needs them.”
“I do not know how to put them back,” said Spellcaster. His shoulders went down. “My spell was too big.”
Nolan was small, but he was brave. He held his star-tipped wand with both hands.
“We can try together,” he said.
First, they found a red color hiding under a ladybug’s leaf.
“Red, red, come and play!” said Nolan.
The red color zoomed to the roses. Pop! The roses became red again.
“Pretty!” said Ghost.
Next, they found blue inside a raindrop on a spiderweb.
“Blue, blue, bright and new!” said Ghost.
The blue color splashed into the pond. Plip! Plop! The pond shone like the sky.
Spellcaster found yellow in a sleepy bee’s fuzzy coat.
“Yellow, yellow, warm and mellow,” he said, very carefully.
The yellow color danced onto the daffodils.
But the biggest color was still missing.
Green.
Without green, the grass looked tired. The trees looked tired. Even the little snail looked tired.
“Where is Green?” asked Nolan.
Ghost floated high. Higher. Highest!
“I see it!” he called. “It is stuck in your wand, Spellcaster!”
Spellcaster looked at his twisty wand. A green light blinked inside.
“I was holding too tight,” he said.
Nolan nodded. “Open your hand. We will help.”
Spellcaster took a deep breath. Nolan put one hand on the wand. Ghost put his tiny ghosty hands on top.
Together they said, “Kind magic, gentle magic, let Green go home!”
The wand gave a small hiccup.
“Hic-spark!”
Green swirled out like a happy ribbon. It flew over the trees. It rolled across the grass. It tickled the leaves.
The Spirit Garden became bright again.
Pink flowers nodded. Silver paths twinkled. The pond went plip, plop, plip, and even made a rainbow bubble.
Spellcaster smiled. It was a new smile. A small smile, but a real one.
“I am sorry,” he said. “Next time, I will ask before I use magic.”
“That is good magic,” said Nolan.
Ghost spun in the air. “Boo-hooray!”
Then a big flower in the middle of the garden opened. Inside was a treasure box made of gold petals.
For Nolan, there was a shiny new wand with a rainbow star.
For Ghost, there was a silver bell that went ting-ting when he floated.
For Spellcaster, there was a packet of rainbow seeds.
They planted the seeds together. Soon, Spellcaster had his own colorful garden beside the Spirit Garden.
Nolan put on his floppy blue hat. “I am Nolan the Great!” he said.
Ghost rang his bell. Ting-ting!
And under the warm, bright sky, three friends watched the flowers dance.