Scenario

NARRATOR: Beneath glowing ferns, the Fernlight Circle went boom-boom, swish. Little Dodo listened from behind a tree, holding a smooth green leaf against his chest.

Dodo: Those are very big sounds. My feet only know little ones.

NARRATOR: Pippa spotted the tip of his tail and hurried over with her forked collecting stick tucked beneath one arm.

Pippa: Hello, Dodo. I always say hello twice to a new friend. Hello again.

Dodo: Hello, Pippa. And hello again to you, too.

NARRATOR: Together they entered the circle. Moss sat beside a flat gray stone, tapping the welcome rhythm with his tail. When he saw Dodo, he made the booms soft enough to feel like a heartbeat.

Moss: We saved the ferny spot beside Pippa for you.

NARRATOR: Moss brushed berry juice across Dodo's leaf until his name shone red and curly. Pippa leaned her stick beside the low branch that held the other name leaves.

Dodo: It smells like rain and berries. Mostly berries.

Moss: Add any sound you like, then set your leaf with ours.

NARRATOR: Dodo looked around at the stomping feet. He lifted one knee as high as his nose and tried to make the biggest boom of all.

Dodo: Here comes my enormous stomp!

NARRATOR: Thump! His foot landed, his tail twitched, and the leaf sailed from his claws. It spun once and plopped into a shallow muddy rain pool.

Dodo: Oh, crumbs. My name went swimming without me.

NARRATOR: The leaf floated beneath a curled fern at the far edge. Dodo stretched from the slippery bank, but his toes skidded and a ripple nudged it farther away.

Dodo: Stop, please. Leaves are not good swimmers.

NARRATOR: Pippa held out her collecting stick. Its forked end was still dotted with rain.

Pippa: Try this. It has two wooden toes and absolutely no idea how to stomp.

NARRATOR: Plip, plip went the drops. Dodo watched one slide between the two prongs. Then he looked at the thin stem on his leaf.

Dodo: The fork can catch the stem. I don't have to squash the leaf.

Moss: Good eye. Kneel on my tapping stone so your feet won't slip.

NARRATOR: Moss pushed the flat stone to the pool's edge. Dodo knelt on it and lowered the stick while Pippa held the dry end steady.

Pippa: I've got this end. You steer the toes.

Dodo: A little left. A little lower. Now curl around.

NARRATOR: The prongs slipped around the stem. Dodo turned the stick gently and lifted. Up came the leaf, dripping three brown drops onto the stone.

Dodo: My name is still there. It just has muddy freckles now.

NARRATOR: Dodo laid the leaf on a warm patch of stone. Plip, plip went the stick again. He tapped its end beside the drops and let his tail brush the grass.

Dodo: Plip-plip, tap, swish. That's my sound.

NARRATOR: He played it once more. Pippa answered with two light toe taps.

Pippa: Plip-plip, tap, swish. And hello again.

NARRATOR: Moss added one low, gentle boom. Around the circle, every dinosaur joined Dodo's rain-soft rhythm.

Moss: Your turn to lead us, Dodo.

Dodo: Then keep your tails ready. The swish is the best part.

NARRATOR: Dodo stepped into the center and tapped. A ring of tails swept through the silver grass. He laughed so suddenly that his next tap came out crooked, and everyone copied that one too.

Dodo: Mine sounds like rain with dinosaur feet.

NARRATOR: Beside him, his muddy leaf dried in the fernlight. The circle played more softly, until the last plip, tap, and swish melted into the sleepy rustle of the trees.