Blue Rocket Day

Kaya had a blue rocket. It was small enough to hug and shiny as a new lunchbox. It wore bright red fins and a round green button that said GO.

Flip, her pocket robot, sat on her shoulder. Flip looked like a bird made of spoons. Its eyes blinked yellow. Click. Click.

"Ready?" Kaya whispered.

Flip peeped, "Ready!"

Kaya tapped the green button. The rocket went whooosh like a big sneeze. Up they floated, past the tall tree, past the clouds, into the wide, glittery quiet of space. It was daytime-bright and full of colors like paint spun in water.

A river of light curled ahead. It swished and swirled like ribbons in the wind.

"The Ribbon River!" Kaya gasped. "Let’s explore!"

They dipped and danced along the river’s bends. Flip flapped tiny metal wings. Kaya steered with both hands.

Then they heard it—a tiny "help!" like a squeaky toy.

Kaya peered out the window. A puffball alien bobbed by, the color of lilacs and marshmallows. Its smile was friendly, but its eyes were worried. Beside it, a bubble scooter sagged. It had a hole the size of a cookie.

"I’m Ploof," the puffball said. "My scooter popped near the Prickle Clouds. I’m drifting toward the Sticky World. If I land there, I’ll be stuck for a week."

"We can help!" Kaya said.

Flip zipped open a little door in its tummy and pulled out a silver rope. Kaya leaned out and tossed the rope to Ploof. The rope looped the scooter. Kaya pulled. Flip pulled. Ploof wiggled and hummed.

The rocket tugged and tugged—and then, uh-oh. A sweet, syrupy breeze whooshed by. The rocket’s fins got coated in shiny goo. The engine went "glub glub."

"We’re sticky!" Kaya said.

"My friend runs a cleaning station," Ploof said. "The Bell Stop. It shakes off goop. It’s just past those peppermint stripes."

Kaya steered gently. The rocket glided to the Bell Stop, a floating place shaped like giant bells and spoons. A sign said: SING TO START.

Kaya grinned. "We can do that."

She sang, "La-la-la!"

Flip chirped, "Beep-bee-beep!"

Ploof went, "Ploooooof!"

The bells answered, bong-bing-bong. The whole station shivered like a happy dog. Shiver shiver! The sticky goo fell away in sparkly flakes and drifted into a net. The rocket wiggled free.

"Clean!" Flip cheered.

"Thank you, singers," said a voice from the speaker. "Have a bright day!"

"Now we fix your scooter," Kaya said.

They parked near a bench made of warm light. Flip opened another door and pulled out Bubble Tape, Patch Dots, and a tiny pump. Ploof held very still.

Kaya stuck a round Patch Dot over the hole. Flip pumped the bubble until it felt bouncy again. Ploof’s scooter sat up like a happy cake.

"Try it," Kaya said.

Ploof bounced. Boing. Boing. The scooter buzzed in a friendly way. Vrrrr.

"It works!" Ploof clapped all its little hands. "Will you come to the Color Parade to celebrate?"

"Yes, please!" said Kaya and Flip together.

They followed Ploof back to the Ribbon River. Other friendly aliens lined up in a swishy path—long ones like noodles, short ones like gumdrops, a fish with tiny wheels, and a giggly cube with a hat. Everyone held bright kites. Music swirled around them. Drums went tum tum. Flutes went too-doo.

Kaya’s kite looked like a blue lemon. Flip’s kite looked like a metal feather. Ploof’s kite was a puff of rainbow soap.

"Ready?" Ploof asked.

"Ready!" the parade called.

They zoomed through loops and under bridges of color. Kites streamed behind them. The Ribbon River glowed and sighed. Kaya waved to a snail in a shiny helmet. Flip spun a loop-de-loop. Ploof twirled and made confetti out of bubbles. Hooray!

When the parade ended, Ploof floated close. "Thank you for the rescue," it said. "Do you need a souvenir?"

Kaya nodded. "Something small."

Ploof pressed a tiny bell sticker onto the rocket near the green button. It chimed with a whispery ding.

"For brave singing," Ploof said.

Kaya smiled. "We’ll visit again."

They waved goodbye. The blue rocket hummed. It zipped along the Ribbon River, curved toward the blue, and swooped home. They landed softly in the warm afternoon.

Flip yawned a little robot yawn. "Best day."

Kaya patted the bell sticker. It went ding. The rocket’s fins still smelled like peppermint. "Blue Rocket Day," she said. "Tomorrow, let’s find the Giggle Forest."

Flip peeped, "Ready."