Mia and the Sparkly Sneezing Dragon

Little Mia loved her garden. It was full of bright flowers and buzzing bees. One sunny morning, Mia spotted something amazing. A tiny, speckled egg lay hidden under a rose bush. It was so colorful! Mia gently picked it up. She took it inside and placed it on her windowsill.

Days turned into nights. Mia checked the egg every day. She talked to it softly. She sang it little songs. Then, one morning, something wonderful happened! The egg cracked open. A tiny dragon popped out! It was smaller than Mia's hand. It had scales like emeralds and rubies. Its wings were the color of a sunset.

Mia named the dragon Pip. Pip was a sweet little dragon, but he had a problem. Every time he sneezed, tiny sparks flew out! At first, it was fun. The sparks were like little twinkling stars. But, Pip sneezed a lot. The sparks started to get bigger. Mia worried. The sparks could start a fire!

"Oh dear," Mia whispered. "What can we do?"

Mia tried everything. She gave Pip honey. She gave him water. She gave him little bits of flower petals. Nothing worked. Pip still sneezed sparks. Mia looked in her books. She looked online on her mom's tablet. All the books showed big, scary dragons. None were helpful.

Mia started to feel sad. Her new friend might be dangerous. She hugged Pip gently. Pip nuzzled his head against her cheek. He looked sad too. Pip's tiny sneezes were getting stronger now. Small flames were starting to appear with each sneeze.

Mia looked closely at Pip. She noticed something. Pip’s scales looked dull. They were less shiny than before. Mia remembered her grandma’s stories about garden gnomes and their love for glittering dewdrops. Maybe Pip needed something to shine his scales again.

Mia rushed outside. She collected the biggest, shiniest dewdrops she could find. She carefully placed the dewdrops on Pip’s scales. The dewdrops shimmered and sparkled. Pip wiggled happily. Then, he sneezed. But this time, it wasn't sparks. It was dust! Just a little puff of sparkly dust. Pip's scales were bright again. The sneezing sparks were gone. Mia cheered!

From that day on, Mia and Pip were the best of friends. They played in the garden together. Every morning, Mia would collect dewdrops so Pip's scales would gleam! Mia learned that even a sparkly sneezing dragon just needed a little extra care and love.