The adorable fox cubs bounded excitedly around the girls. The girl cub had a pretty bow around her neck, and the boy had a baseball cap on.
“Do you remember us?” the girl fox asked eagerly.
“Of course we do, Ruby,” said Lily. “And you too, Rusty!” She gave them each a big hug.
The brave cubs had helped Goldie and the girls defeat Grizelda in their adventure with little Bella Tabbypaw the kitten.
“Could you tell us about the thing you saw in the sky?” Goldie asked Mr. and Mrs. Fuzzybrush.
“It was a black shadow, as big as me,” said Mr. Fuzzybrush in a gruff voice, “and it glided over the forest.”
“It was spooky!” said Ruby. Rusty nodded in agreement.
The girls and Goldie exchanged glances. “This must be something to do with Grizelda,” Lily whispered.
Mrs. Fuzzybrush glanced up at the darkening sky. “The sun’s almost set, children,” she called, “so it’s—”
“Star dance time!” cried Ruby.
Jess was puzzled. “What’s a star dance?” she asked.
“Come with us,” said Mr. Fuzzybrush kindly, “and we’ll show you!”
Everyone followed him inside the lighthouse. On the ground floor were a comfortable living room and three cozy bedrooms.
“That one’s mine!” said Ruby proudly, as they passed a pretty, round room decorated in red and pink.
“It’s the color of rubies!” said Lily.
Rusty rushed them past his bedroom. “Mine’s a little messy,” he said. The girls peeked inside and smiled as they saw a building set and little toy foxes scattered messily all over the bedroom floor.
They went up a spiral staircase right to the very top of the lighthouse. In the middle of the floor was a wooden star-shaped table. Sitting on top of it was a smooth, white stone the size of a watermelon. It glowed with a soft, pretty light.
“That’s so beautiful,” breathed Lily. “What is it?”
“It’s the magical moonstone,” Mr. Fuzzybrush explained. “We need it for our star dance. Every evening we dance around it, to wake the stars. Then at dawn, we dance again to put them back to sleep.”
“The star dance is a special dance that only foxes know,” said Goldie. “It takes a really long time to learn.”
“It’s getting dark now,” said Mrs. Fuzzybrush, “which means it’s time for our star dance! Come on, children, let’s go to the clearing!”
Mrs. Fuzzybrush carefully picked up the moonstone and raced down the spiral staircase.
Lily and Jess followed the foxes as they hurried into a clearing next to the lighthouse. Mrs. Fuzzybrush put the magical moonstone down in the center and gave it a brush with her tail.
Ruby tugged at Lily’s skirt. “Rusty and I know all the steps now!”
The Fuzzybrushes took up their positions around the magical moonstone and began to dance.
Goldie, Jess, and Lily watched in delight. The foxes stepped, dipped, glided, and turned around the moonstone, weaving complicated patterns. Each time they swept past each other and their bushy tails touched, the glow from the moonstone grew brighter.
Lily glanced up at the night sky. “Look, Jess!” she whispered. “The stars are coming out.”
Jess gazed at the sky. “It’s so beautiful!” she cried. “Oh! The brighter the moonstone becomes, the more stars appear.”
The girls stared in delight as hundreds—no, thousands—of stars winked and blinked in the darkness. Soon it was almost as bright as daytime, as the forest lit up with sparkling silver starlight.
Suddenly, Rusty cried out, “Look, Mom, Dad! Up there in the sky!”
Everyone stopped dancing and turned to stare.
A dark shadow, just as Mr. Fuzzybrush had described, was flying through the night sky.
Jess and Lily watched as it came closer.
“That’s not a shadow,” Lily said shakily.
“You’re right,” cried Jess. “It’s one of Grizelda’s dragons!”
Chapter Three
Smudge the Dragon
The black dragon zoomed closer.
“He’s heading right toward the lighthouse!” cried Jess.
As he flew, the dragon’s long, scaly tail tangled around his back legs. He beat his black wings harder as he tried to swerve aside, but it was too late.
Crash! He bashed into the lighthouse roof and skidded on the tiles.
Ruby scooped up the moonstone and the foxes ran toward their home, followed by Goldie and the girls. As they got to the lighthouse, everyone gasped.
Long curved claws scrabbled at the roof. A cloud of soot puffed over the lighthouse, blocking out the night-light that shone through the windows. Immediately, the forest went darker. The dragon scrambled over the roof and Ruby ducked as a tile crashed down.
The dragon peered down at the foxes. Then he took off from the roof and circled around, lower and lower, until his tail caught around his wing and he bump-bump-bumped to the ground, sending up another puff of soot.
“He’s so clumsy!” said Lily.
“And dirty!” said Goldie. She pointed to the lighthouse, which was smeared with black soot. “What a mess! Grizelda called him Smudge, remember? No wonder!”
Smudge spotted something and grinned. Then he shook his wing free from his tail and swooped down toward Ruby Fuzzybrush.
“Raargh!” he roared, as he grabbed the magical moonstone out of her paws.
Jess heard Ruby start to cry and knelt down to stroke the cub’s soft, furry head.
“No more night-light and no more stars.” Smudge laughed. “The night should be the darkest dark.”
Mr. Fuzzybrush folded his paws crossly. “Give that back,” he said to Smudge. “We need the moonstone to make starlight so all the nighttime animals can find their way.”
Smudge stumbled over his tail as he landed and waddled over to Mr. Fuzzybrush. “Grizelda wants the forest to be dark, and so do I,” he said. “So there!” He took a deep breath and huffed a great sooty cloud all over the foxes.
Lily and Jess expected them to start coughing. But they didn’t. When the sooty cloud cleared, Mr. and Mrs. Fuzzybrush and Rusty had completely vanished!
“Hee hee!” Smudge giggled. He flapped his wings and took off. There was a sound of snapping branches as he crashed through the trees on his way back up into the night sky.
Beside Jess, Ruby stared in horror at the place where her family had been. “Mom! Dad! Rusty! They disappeared!” she cried. “Where are they?”
“I don’t know,” said Jess, looking around desperately.
“Oh, no!” cried Lily. “The stars are disappearing, too!”
“The moonstone!” Ruby wailed. “The stars are fading because Smudge has the moonstone and we didn’t finish the dance!” The little fox cub sniffled miserably. Then her eyes widened. “What’s that?”
Lily and Jess looked, and groaned.
A familiar yellow-green orb was flying toward them. With a cra-ack! it exploded in a huge shower of nasty-smelling, yellow-green sparks and Grizelda appeared. Her long green hair snaked around her thin, bony face.
“Grizelda!” said Jess. “What did Smudge do to the Fuzzybrushes? Tell him to bring them back right now!”
The witch threw back her cloak, revealing her shiny purple tunic and pants, and her pointy-toed boots.
“Ha haaa!” she cackled. “No more starlight! The nighttime animals will get lost and fall down holes and bump into things, because they won’t be able to see. Then they’ll have to leave the forest! Ha ha haaa!”