“Wheeeeeeeeeeee!” Sophie squealed with delight. Her voice echoed off the curved wooden walls of the giant tunnel slide. Sophie slid through the darkness. The slide twisted to the right. Then it turned to the left. Sophie grasped the fern she was sitting on. The slide track spiraled around and down, down, down, until—
Sophie came shooting out of the bottom end. Fwomp! She landed in a soft pile of green leaves.
High above, on a birch branch, Sophie’s best friends cheered.
“Whoo-hoo!” cried Hattie Frog.
“Wow!” Owen Snake called out. “That’s a long way down!”
Birch Tree Slide was a hollow, twisted branch. It leaned up against the trunk of a huge birch tree. To get to the top of the slide, Sophie, Hattie, and Owen had first climbed way up the tree using its knotholes. Sophie had been excited to go first.
Hattie came down next. She disappeared into the tunnel. Sophie could hear her whooping all the way down. At the bottom, Hattie landed next to Sophie in the leaves. They both laughed.
Sophie and Hattie had found Birch Tree Slide together when they were six years old. It felt like their secret place. Sophie had shown it to her brother, Winston. Hattie had shown it to her big sister, Lydie.
Now they had brought Owen. He and his family had moved to Pine Needle Grove a while ago. But there were still lots of fun places Owen had never been.
“Come on, Owen!” Sophie called up. “Your turn!”
Owen didn’t look so sure. He stayed coiled up, not moving. He seemed to be measuring the slide in his head.
“It’s so much fun!” Hattie shouted. “We promise!”
Finally, Owen disappeared into the slide. Sophie could hear an “Aaaaaaaaah!” that sounded far away but grew louder and louder.
And then—whoosh!—there was Owen, jetting out of the bottom of the slide. His face looked panicked as he flew through the air. But when he hit the leaf pile—
Owen burst out laughing. “That is so fun!”
“Isn’t it?!” Hattie cried.
Sophie patted Owen on the back. “Told you we’d have fun this weekend. Didn’t we, Owen?”
The three friends had decided on a project for the weekend: to take Owen to as many new places as possible.
Just then, a blue butterfly fluttered out of the trees. It circled Owen’s head once, then flew on.
“Wow, what kind of butterfly was that?” Owen asked.
Hattie’s brow wrinkled. “Probably a blue morpho.”
“That reminds me,” Sophie said with a gasp, “Owen hasn’t been to Butterfly Brook!”
Hattie jumped up. “Oh yes!” she cried. “We have to take you there. It’s the prettiest spot. And lots of different kinds of butterflies live there!”
“Sometimes,” Sophie said, “if you are very still, they will land in your hand.” Sophie glanced at Owen and quickly added, “Or on your head!”
Owen laughed. “I want to see it! Why don’t we go tomorrow? Right after breakfast?”
Sophie frowned. She had chores to do after breakfast. “You two go on together in the morning. I’ll do my chores fast and meet you there.”