A New Friend

  Contents

  Chapter 1: Spring Has Sprung!

  Chapter 2: A Perfect Day

  Chapter 3: School Surprise

  Chapter 4: First-Day Jitters

  Chapter 5: Snake Stories

  Chapter 6: Time Flies When You’re Having Fun!

  Chapter 7: One Stuck Mouse

  Chapter 8: To the Rescue!

  Chapter 9: Old Friends and New Friends

  Chapter 10: Better Late Than Never

  The Emerald Berries Excerpt

  About Poppy Green and Jennifer A. Bell

  Spring Has Sprung!

  Buzz, buzz, buzzzzzzz. Outside the Mouse family’s cottage, a bumblebee zipped from flower to flower.

  Sitting at her easel in the sunshine, Sophie Mouse put down her paintbrush. Her eyes followed the bee. Oh, to be able to fly, she thought. I could see every inch of Silverlake Forest—maybe even to the other side of Forget-Me-Not Lake! I wonder how fast a bee flies when he really gets going. What would it be like to fly to the schoolhouse for the first day of school tomorrow? What would—

  “Sophie? Sophie!” Her father’s voice called out, snapping her out of her daydream. He was in the doorway of their cottage, which was nestled in between the roots of an oak tree. “Are you done with your chores?” George Mouse asked. “When you are, you can go see Mom at the bakery. She’s making nutmeg popovers today!”

  Sophie’s little nose twitched. She was sure she could already smell the sweet scent. Nutmeg popovers were one of her mother’s specialties. At her bakery in Pine Needle Grove, Lily Mouse surely would have started making the batter at dawn, before Sophie was even awake.

  Sophie hated to stop painting. It was the first spring day warm enough to paint outside! But she had a little sweeping to do if she wanted to go to the bakery.

  Sophie hurried inside and found the willow-twig broom. She had already swept the three small bedrooms upstairs. Just the main floor was left: under the toadstool table and birch-branch stools, and around the spun-silk couch. Sophie swept all the corners of the kitchen. Then she swept the pile of leaf bits and dust right out the front door.

  “Dad! I’m finished!” she called. “I’m going by Hattie’s house on the way to the bakery!” Hattie Frog was Sophie’s best friend.

  Just then, way back in the rear of the cottage, a mouse’s head popped up through a hole in the floor. It was Sophie’s little brother, Winston. He was cleaning up the root cellar. “I want to come too!” Winston called.

  Sophie sighed. Winston was six. She had been stuck inside the cottage with him for most of the winter vacation. Now that the weather was warming up, he wanted to tag along with Sophie everywhere.

  “Have you finished your chores?” Mr. Mouse asked Sophie’s brother.

  There was a long silence. When Winston answered, his voice was quiet. “Not yet.”

  “Well, finish up, then,” Mr. Mouse replied. “You and I can go later.”

  Sophie leaned her broom against the wall by the front door. Then she was off with an extra spring in her step.

  It wasn’t that Sophie didn’t like her brother. They had fun playing together. But Sophie was two years older. And it was the very last day of vacation. She wanted to fill it with eight-year-old adventures! Halfway to the stream, Sophie heard a rustle in the tall reeds to her right. She stopped in her tracks.

  “Hello? Is someone there?” Sophie called out.

  She perked up her ears, listening carefully. But all was silent and still.

  Sophie’s eyes scanned the reeds. She thought she could just make out a shadowy shape among them. She squinted and took a step closer.

  Now Sophie was sure: Someone was in there.

  But who was it?

  A Perfect Day

  “Harriet Frog!” Sophie called, using Hattie’s full name. “Is that you in there?”

  There was no answer from the reeds. So Sophie called again. “It’s me—Sophie!”

  There was a rustle. The reeds parted slowly. A green eye peeked out. Then Hattie hopped out into the open. “Phew, it is you,” Hattie said. “I heard footsteps coming and—well, I’m glad it’s you!”

  Hattie was shy around strangers. But not with Sophie. They had known each other for as long as they could remember.

  Sophie told Hattie about the popovers. “Want to come to the bakery?” Sophie asked. “We could stop at the lake on the way!”

  Hattie giggled and shook her head. “Uh, Sophie. Forget-Me-Not Lake isn’t exactly on the way.”

  Hattie is always so practical, thought Sophie. But she was right. The lake was a bit of a hike. “Well,” said Sophie, “we have lots of time. And it’s our last day of vacation!”

  Hattie smiled. “I’ll tell my mom!” she cried, then hopped off toward home. Sophie followed and waited outside Hattie’s house. It was built on the bank of the stream, not far from Sophie’s. Half the house sat floating on lily pads, right on the water. The other half was built into the pebbly bank. Sophie knew that her dad, the town architect, had helped Mr. and Mrs. Frog design it.

  Soon Hattie was back and she and Sophie were running off toward the lake. “Please be home before dark!” Mrs. Frog called after them.

  The girls never got into too much trouble in Silverlake Forest. Now and then, Sophie came home with prickers on her tail or muddy clothing. One time she got lost exploring a mole tunnel. But she just asked one of the moles for directions, and soon found her way home.

  The path to Forget-Me-Not Lake was long, winding, and lined with berry bushes.

  “Oh, these make the best purple paint!” Sophie exclaimed, pointing to some ripe berries. She stopped to gather some. Sophie carried pouches in her pockets at all times—for exactly this reason. Both the pouches and Sophie’s pockets were always stained with berry juice.

  Finally, the girls arrived at Forget-Me-Not Lake. The water glittered in the morning sun.

  Sophie looked at Hattie. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” she asked.

  “Well,” Hattie said with a smile, “you do have one wild imagination, Sophie Mouse. But if you’re thinking we should go lily-pad hopping . . . hop on!”

  Sophie climbed onto Hattie’s back and held on tight. Hattie leaped out onto the lake. She jumped from lily pad to lily pad, hopscotching across the water. This was their very favorite thing to do at the lake.

  Later, the girls made flower crowns.

  They looked for four-leaf clovers. As usual, they didn’t find any.

  They skipped stones on the water, counting the jumps.

  They played hide-and-seek, then Sophie made stilts from sticks and tried to walk on them.

  When their tummies grumbled, it was time for popovers.

  The bell on the bakery door jingled as they entered. Mrs. Mouse was at the counter. Several animals were waiting patiently in line.

  Sophie and Hattie scurried behind the counter just as they always did. Lily Mouse took a moment to hug them. Then she whispered, “A fresh batch of popovers just came out. Help yourselves.”

  The girls smiled gleefully and hurried back into the kitchen.

  As they nibbled their popovers, Sophie sighed happily. It was turning out to be a great last day of vacation. Already she was thinking about the picture she would paint about it. She’d be sure to use her new purple berry paint!

  School Surprise

  The next morning, dressed in her best jumper dress and leggings, Sophie hurried to get her backpack ready. She was eager to see friends she hadn’t seen all winter. Plus, she thought, you never know exactly what will happen on a first day of school!

  Sophie zipped up her backpack. “Bye, Dad!” Sophie called as she hurried out the door.

  “Wait for me!” Winston cried. He ran out after her, his shoelaces still untied.


  Sophie had almost forgotten: Winston was starting school this year! Mrs. Wise’s one-room school, Silverlake Elementary, was for all students ages six to ten.

  Sophie bent down to tie Winston’s shoes. “Mrs. Wise will want you to learn to tie these yourself,” she said firmly. Then, in a gentler voice, she added, “Come on. I’ll show you the fun way to school.”

  Instead of taking the path into Pine Needle Grove—past the bakery, the library, and the post office—Sophie led Winston to a little-known trail. It cut behind the library and ran through a tunnel of honeysuckle branches. The flower buds were just opening. Sophie could hear Winston behind her, taking deep breaths of the scent.

  The trail came out in the schoolyard. Sophie led Winston up to the front door and inside the pine-bough schoolhouse.

  “Sophie!” Hattie’s voice rang out. Sophie turned and waved. Hattie was standing with her big sister, Lydie, and their friend Ellie the squirrel. Just then, Piper the hummingbird and Zoe the bluebird flew in through the windows. Willy the toad was already sitting at a desk next to Malcolm the mole.

  And Ben the rabbit and his little brother, James, entered the room behind Sophie and Winston. Winston knew James from preschool. So they went off to find two desks together—a mouse-size one for Winston and a bigger one for James.

  Sophie headed over to say hello to Hattie, Lydie, and Ellie. But just then, Mrs. Wise, a neatly dressed owl with glasses, stood up at the front of the room. “Class!” she said. “Please take your seats!”

  Sophie hurried to get a maple-bark desk by a window so she could see outside. She loved looking out the window—even if Mrs. Wise did catch her daydreaming sometimes.

  “Welcome back to school!” said Mrs. Wise when the students were seated. “I’m happy to see you all bright-eyed and ready to start another season.

  Now, I think we’re all here—” Mrs. Wise counted the students. “Oh! We’re missing our new student. His family has just moved to Pine Needle Grove. His name is Owen. I know you will all make him feel very welcome.”

  At that moment, the door creaked open.

  “Here he is now!” said Mrs. Wise. “Welcome, Owen.”

  All the students turned in their seats—and gasped. Ellie and Malcolm both let out little squeaks. Ben’s ears stood straight up. Sophie rubbed her eyes to make sure she was seeing this right.

  Owen was . . . a snake?!

  First-Day Jitters

  Sophie glanced at Hattie, who was sitting behind her. Their eyes met. Sophie could tell that Hattie was just as nervous and surprised as she was.

  A real snake . . . in real life! Sophie thought. She’d never seen one before. She bet none of her classmates had, either.

  “Come in, Owen,” Mrs. Wise said to him warmly. “Find a seat.”

  Everyone watched as Owen respectfully took off his brimmed cap. Then he slithered up the center aisle. He passed up an empty desk next to Sophie’s. She breathed a sigh of relief. She didn’t want to be rude, but she didn’t know if she wanted Owen to sit next to her, either.

  Some of Sophie’s ideas about snakes came from books. But most had come from stories—spooky stories that older animals told about poisonous sea snakes or hissing ghost snakes. Surely they couldn’t be true . . . could they?

  Owen found a desk in an empty row. Mrs. Wise began the math lesson. Other students took out their notebooks. Sophie got hers out, too. Okay. A snake in class, she thought. No big deal, I guess.

  Then, during quiet reading time, Sophie heard a “Pssst.” She looked up. Owen was leaning toward Zoe’s desk, which was in front of his. He was trying to get her attention. But Zoe was lost in her book.

  Owen said “Psssssst,” a little louder. Zoe didn’t hear.

  Owen tried one more time. “Psssssssst,” he said loudly. Startled, Zoe fluttered up and out of her seat, turning to glare at Owen.

  “Why are you hissing at me?” she demanded.

  Owen cleared his throat. “Your bookmark is on the floor,” he said. His voice was a little raspy, but gentle.

  Zoe picked up her bookmark and sat down. “Oh,” she said quietly. “Thanks.”

  At recess, Owen passed by the swing set and accidentally swatted the swing James was on with the end of his tail. The swing went flying way too high.

  “Whooooaaaa!” James cried out. “Help me!” he shouted.

  James’s brother, Ben, hurried over to help him down. As he did, Ben snapped at Owen, “You need to be more careful!”

  Owen looked very embarrassed. “Sorry,” he said quietly. “It was an accident.” He slithered over to a bench and coiled up, all alone.

  Sophie saw it all from across the yard. She was playing hopscotch with Hattie, Lydie, and Willy. “Hey!” Sophie said to them. “Should we ask Owen to play?”

  Willy shrugged, but said nothing. Lydie didn’t seem so sure. “Can snakes even hop?” she asked.

  Hattie patted Sophie on the back. “I think it’s a good idea,” she said. “But I’m afraid to ask him. You ask him.”

  Sophie took a deep breath. She started walking over to the bench. Then Owen looked up and saw her coming. Sophie lost her nerve and turned around.

  Silly Sophie! she scolded herself. Why are you so nervous?

  She tried to work up the courage to try again. But before she could, recess was over and it was time to go inside.

  After school, Sophie and Winston got ready to walk home together. “So what did you think of school?” Sophie asked her brother as they walked out the door.

  Winston replied excitedly, “It’s so fun! I get to sit next to James. I get my very own desk. I like Mrs. Wise. . . .”

  Winston went on, but Sophie didn’t hear the rest. Outside the schoolhouse, she saw Owen being greeted by another snake—probably his mom.

  Sophie imagined that Owen’s mom was asking Owen about his day at school.

  And Owen did not look happy at all.

  Snake Stories

  At dinner that night, Winston told Mr. and Mrs. Mouse about the new student.

  “Wow, a snake for a classmate?” Mrs. Mouse exclaimed.

  Sophie nodded. “Malcolm said that snakes can be sneaky,” she began.

  “And Ben said they’re scary!” Winston added.

  “And quick-tempered,” said Sophie. “At least, that’s what Piper told us.”

  Mrs. Mouse seemed surprised at their words as she passed the cheese biscuits. “Actually,” she said calmly, “I was going to say: ‘A snake for a classmate? How delightful.’ ”

  “Delightful?!” Sophie and Winston cried in surprise.

  Mr. Mouse nodded. “Have you or any of your friends ever met a snake before?” he asked.

  Sophie and Winston shook their heads.

  Mr. Mouse smiled. “Well, I have,” he said. “Your mother and I used to know a very nice snake.”

  “Yes,” agreed Mrs. Mouse. “And I thought you two knew better than to make up your mind before you even get to know someone.”

  All of a sudden, Sophie’s biscuit didn’t taste so good. She thought again about Owen sitting alone at recess, and how sad he looked after school. Now she really, really wished she had asked Owen to play.

  Later that evening, Sophie went to find her dad. George Mouse was at his design desk, working on a blueprint for a shrew family’s new house.

  “Dad?” Sophie said. “Would you tell me more about the snake you and Mom knew?”

  Mr. Mouse put down his pencil. He turned to look at Sophie, smiled, and ruffled the fur on her head. “Her name was Olivia,” he began. “Her family lived near here when your mom and I were young. We’d play together all the time—especially over in the buttercup patch. Then, one day, when I was maybe ten, she and her family moved away. I missed her a lot. Your mom did, too.”

  Sophie was quiet for a moment, then she said, “Sounds like she was a very good friend of yours.”

  Mr. Mouse nodded. “She was a very good friend,” he said.

  Sophie shuffled to her room. She got
into her pajamas, climbed into her bed, pulled up her quilt made of milkweed fluff, and turned off the light.

  As she lay in the dark, Sophie made a decision.

  Owen was brave enough to walk into a school full of strangers, she thought. Tomorrow, I can be brave enough to ask him to play.

  Time Flies When You’re Having Fun!

  At school the next day, the first thing Sophie did was look for Owen. But he wasn’t there.

  The students took their seats. Mrs. Wise called attendance. They started their lesson.

  Still no Owen.

  Sophie looked back at the door many times during the day. At every rustle or creak or whoosh of the wind, she turned to see if it was Owen arriving.

  But the day flew by, and Owen never appeared.

  The same thing happened the next day. Everyone was in school except for Owen. Where was he?

  At least it was library day, which took Sophie’s mind off of it. She loved library day! “Each of you may check out one book this morning,” Mrs. Wise told the students.

  The following day, the class went on a field trip to the beautiful Goldmoss Pond. Sophie was so excited that she didn’t even notice Owen was still missing.

  Before Sophie knew it, the weekend had arrived. On Saturday afternoon, she and Hattie went to help out at the bakery. Mrs. Mouse had a brand-new recipe to try out.