After the rain, Deer found a bright round moon in the shallow puddle beside the path. She stopped so suddenly that Fox nearly bumped her. “The moon has fallen. We'd better help.”Fox folded a broad leaf into a little bowl. “We'll scoop it up.” He slid the leaf beneath the bright circle. The water wobbled. The moon broke into silver ribbons.When the puddle settled, its moon was round again. Fox lifted his leaf bowl. Another little moon shone in the water he had scooped. “Now we've got two.”Deer brought a fallen twig. Perhaps they could guide the larger moon toward the bank. But wherever the twig touched, the bright shape wrinkled and slipped apart. “It's very difficult to carry.”Owl landed on a low branch. “What else can you see down there?” Deer looked. A pair of wings spread across the puddle. She glanced at Owl. He was spreading his wings too.Fox put his face above the leaf bowl. His nose appeared where its moon had been. He moved aside. The little moon returned. “It's making pictures!” Deer followed Owl's gaze into the sky.There was the moon, high above the trees, round and safe. “We weren't carrying the moon.” “Only its picture in the water.” Fox looked from his tiny bowl to the enormous sky.“Then nobody needs rescuing.” He tipped the water gently back and floated the leaf on the puddle. Deer nudged it with her twig. It sailed through a trail of silver light.A breeze brushed the water. Their moon-picture shimmered into pieces, and the leaf turned in a slow circle. Deer watched the sky. The real moon hadn't moved with the ripples.Fox made a tiny wave from the edge. Deer steered the leaf around a stone. Owl stretched one wing overhead, and its shadow became a great dark bridge for their boat.At the fork in the path, they found another puddle shining between the roots. Deer looked down, then up. “Hello again.” Fox carried the leaf home. This time, it was just the right size for a boat.
