The Warm Round Stone

"Why is this stone warm?" Nel asked. Mo looked at it a long time. The stone sat in the wet ferns. It was round. It was warm as milk. Warm rain fell on Nel's head. Nel picked the stone up with both hands. "The stone is warm. Let's take it home."

Mo walked slow. Nel walked slow too. The rain was soft and warm. Big ferns brushed their knees. Footprints filled up with water. Plip. Plop. The stone stayed warm in Nel's hands. "Where does it live?" Nel asked. Mo blinked his slow eyes and kept walking.

They came to a puddle. Nel put one toe in. Cold. Not here. They came to a mossy log. Nel put one hand on. Cool. Not here. Mo sniffed the air. Nel held the stone close to their chest. It was still warm. Warm, warm, warm.

Then Nel saw a hill of leaves. Nel touched the leaves. Warm. Very warm. There was a hollow in the top. In the hollow sat three round stones, all warm. One space was empty. The empty space was round too. "The stone is warm. Let's take it home."

Nel climbed up slow. Mo waited below. Nel put the stone in the empty space. It fit. Click. Four round stones now, all in a row. Nel patted the leaves over them. The leaves were warm. The rain was warm. Nel came back down to Mo.

A big dinosaur came through the ferns. She was green and slow and wide. She looked at the leaves. She looked at Nel. Then she lay down around the warm hill and sighed. Her sigh was warm too. Nel sat by Mo and watched her.

The rain stopped. The valley went quiet. Nel leaned on Mo's warm shell. "The stone is warm," Nel said. "Let's take it home." The big dinosaur breathed in. The big dinosaur breathed out. Mo breathed slow. Nel breathed slow. In. Out. In. Out.