Carnival Chaos

by Shannon Penney

  “Bow wow!” Flash cried. “That was totally pawsome!”

  Twinkle had to agree … but she was so overwhelmed and excited that she could hardly bark! These animals hadn’t even set paw (or claw or hoof ) on Puppypaw Island yet, and already it was clear that they were all completely different—from the pups, and from one another. Just the thought of it made Twinkle’s snout spin a little.

  A trumpet sounded, and Twinkle heard her mom’s bark, amplified with her magic so that it sounded like she was using a megaphone. “To all our honored guests: Welcome to Puppypaw Island and the first annual Cutiecorn Carnival!” The crowd barked wildly, and the Cutiecorns on the boats all cheered. “We’re ter-ruff-ically excited to have you join us. Now, if you’re ready to disembark, you can head straight out that way for the Welcome Parade!”

  The pups at the docks all began to step aside, lining the sides of the walkway and leaving the center clear for the parade. Twinkle, Sparkle, Flash, and Glitter got a spot right up front so they could see the Cutiecorn visitors clearly without having to peek around grown-ups’ heads and horns.

  First up were the birds, who darted and swooped overhead, wowing everyone along the parade route with their fancy flying. At times, they just looked like colorful blurs against the brilliant blue sky. The cats pranced proudly along the street, holding their heads and tails high. The hamsters ran behind them, their tiny legs moving extra-fast in order to keep up.

  “They’re so cute and fuzzy!” Glitter whispered to Twinkle.Next were the bunnies, hopping cheerfully and waving to the pups on the sidelines. Twinkle spotted a skittish little gray bunny near the back of the pack. She wasn’t waving, and seemed to be ducking behind some of the bigger bunnies. As the others continued bouncing along, the little bunny fell farther and farther behind, until she was back among the goats, who clip-clopped along loudly.

  Twinkle could see the look of panic on the little bunny’s face, but no one else seemed to have noticed. Without another thought, Twinkle raced out onto the parade route.

  “Hey, where are you going?” Twinkle could hear Flash bark behind her, but there was no time to reply.

  Twinkle wound her way carefully through the goats until she reached the little bunny. “Hi,” she said gently. “I’m Twinkle. Would you like some help getting back to your mom?”

  Wide-eyed, the bunny nodded quickly.

  “What’s your name?” Twinkle asked.

  The bunny whispered, “Fluff.”

  Twinkle crouched down. “Climb onto my back, Fluff, and I’ll bring you to your mom in two shakes of a pup’s tail.” She winked and gave the bunny a reassuring smile. She knew that asking Fluff to climb onto her back was risky. After all, this little bunny had never seen a pup before, never mind ridden on one! But Twinkle also knew that the other animals in the parade were moving too quickly. Fluff would never be able to catch up on her own!

  After a moment’s hesitation, Fluff scrambled onto Twinkle’s back. Twinkle could feel her trembling.

  “Don’t worry,” she said. “I’ll take it nice and slow, pup’s honor!”

  Twinkle walked out to the edge of the parade route and trotted along carefully, light on her paws. She passed the goats and caught up with the bunnies. She was about to ask Fluff which bunny was her mom, when she felt her horn begin to glow. Her seeing magic was kicking in! Suddenly, she noticed a larger gray bunny near the front of the pack. Twinkle knew, without a doubt, that it was the bunny she was looking for.

  She approached slowly, not wanting to spook anyone. “I’ll let you off right here,” she whispered to Fluff. “You can head back to your mom, and she’ll never know you were gone!”

  Fluff slid down to the ground and gave Twinkle a sheepish grin. “Thanks,” she said, wiggling her tiny pink nose. She fell into line behind her mom, hopping happily and even waving a little paw to the pups on the sidelines.

  Twinkle trotted back to her friends just in time to see the hedgehogs go rolling by. They had curled up into spiky little balls! All the pups clapped their paws and giggled.

  “It was really nice of you to help that bunny,” Glitter said quietly to Twinkle, patting her paw as they watched the parade move on down the street.

  Twinkle blushed, but a smile stretched across her snout. “I could tell she was scared, being all alone in this strange new place. If I’m feeling nervous about the carnival, just imagine how our visitors are feeling! It was like my magic told me what to do.”

  Glitter smiled sweetly. “I have a feeling your seeing magic is going to be working overtime today!”

  As the visiting Cutiecorns continued along the walkway to the Furmusement Park, the pups on the sidelines fell into step behind them. Everyone was barking with excitement!

  “Did you see those spiky hedgehogs?” Flash cried, running circles around her friends. “I’m not sure I want to go near their quills, but maybe they’d let me use my shifting magic to move them around!”

  Glitter’s eyes grew wide, and she stopped in her tracks. “Flash, you can’t just start moving our guests with your magic!”

  Sparkle grinned and nudged her friend. “I think Flash was joking. Right?” She gave Flash a pointed look.

  Flash shrugged. “I guess. But, you guys, I could use my magic to juggle the hedgehogs! Wouldn’t that be puptastic?” The smile on her snout stretched from ear to ear.

  “Flash!” Glitter barked indignantly.

  “Don’t forget,” Twinkle said with a wink, “each of our guests has magic of their own. Who knows what they might do if you try to juggle them?”

  Flash looked thoughtful. Then she cringed. “Pawsome point, Twinkle. I’ll keep my magic to myself!”

  Twinkle, Sparkle, and Glitter exchanged relieved looks as Flash bounded on ahead.

  Before long, the pups spotted the bright lights of the Furmusement Park. Cheerful music played as they stepped under the archway and set paw into the park. Bow wow, what a sight!

  “I’ve never seen the Furmusement Park so crowded before!” Sparkle barked.

  Twinkle nodded in agreement. The carnival was already in full swing—and it was packed! The rides and game booths were all full of Cutiecorns, and the lines were long. Everywhere Twinkle looked, there was something new to see. Bunnies were chatting with hedgehogs. Goats and hamsters were telling jokes. Pups were giving kittens a paw up onto different rides. Birds were looping and swooping overhead.

  How pawsitively exciting … and over-whelming!

  “What should we do first?” Twinkle asked, turning to her friends.

  Glitter woofed up. “I’d love a chance to chat with some of these other Cutiecorns.”

  “Now you’re barking!” Flash said. “After all, Twinkle already got to meet a bunny. I want to meet a bunny! Or a hamster! Or a goat! Or—”

  Twinkle laughed. “We get it, we get it!” She pointed a paw. “Let’s get in line for the carousel. It’s right in the middle of the park, so we’ll be able to see everything while we wait. And there are lots of other Cutiecorns in line already!”

  The four friends walked over to the carousel and stood at the back of the line. A pair of little golden hamsters with blue horns turned and glanced at them shyly.

  “Hi,” Glitter said sweetly. “I’m Glitter, and these are my friends Twinkle, Flash, and Sparkle. Welcome to Puppypaw Island! Are you having fun so far?”

  The hamsters nodded, their little heads bobbing up and down quickly. When they squeaked up, their voices were high … and impawsibly fast! “Oh, yes! It’s furbulous here! There’s so much to see!” one remarked.

  “We’ve never been away from Fur Hollow before, and our boat ride was such an adventure!” the other hamster squeaked.

  “They talk so fast that it’s kind of like talking to Flash,” Twinkle muttered to Sparkle with a grin.

  Just then, Flash jumped in. “We’re so glad you’re here!” she barked. “I’m Flash, and I have shifting magic. That means I can use my magic to move things. What does your magic do?”


  The hamsters both sat up on their back legs, wiggling excitedly. “We use shifting magic, too!” one cried. “Watch this!” Within seconds, his horn began to glow, and he lifted the other hamster into the air overhead. She wiggled and giggled, waving down at them.

  Flash’s eyes lit up.

  “Don’t even think about it!” Twinkle whispered. “We’re not juggling our guests, remember?”

  Flash wrinkled her snout and sighed. “Oh, fine. It would be a barking good trick, though!”

  As Flash, Glitter, and Sparkle continued chatting with the two little hamsters, Twinkle gazed around the busy carnival. There were so many smiling faces! Different Cutiecorns were having friendly conversations, while laughs and happy squeals rang out from the rides. But as she continued to peer around, Twinkle began spotting problems. Woof!

  Over on the Tilt-A-Whirl, a group of birds was too small to fit under the safety bar. The pup in charge couldn’t start the ride until the birds were secured, but no one could seem to figure out how to keep them safely in place.

  The walkways were so crowded that the poor hedgehogs kept accidentally poking other animals with their quills. Ouch! Twinkle winced as a hedgehog bumped into a cat. The cat leaped into the air, yowling with surprise.

  The lines at the food stands were long, but the Cutiecorns all seemed to be enjoying the hot dogs, cotton candy, fried dough, and other treats. Then Twinkle noticed that the goats were eating all sorts of things that weren’t food! At one game booth, a goat scarfed down a mini basketball. Another ate a string of ride tickets. What a mess!

  Twinkle felt that familiar lurch in her belly. It was just as she’d feared. Barking bulldogs, things were getting out of control!

  As she peered around the carnival, Twinkle could feel her silvery-blue horn begin to shimmer. So many things were going wrong—she needed her seeing magic to figure out how to fix them!

  Twinkle felt the magic course through her, from ears to tail. Then she shook her snout. Even if her magic showed her how to fix all the different Cutiecorns’ problems, she couldn’t possibly solve everything all at once … could she?

  She felt a paw on her shoulder and turned to see Glitter looking at her carefully. “Is everything okay?” Glitter asked. “Your horn is really glowing!”

  Twinkle nodded, frowning. “I’m trying to use my seeing magic to work something out, but I just don’t know if—”

  At that moment, Twinkle spotted her mom in the distance, ambling through the crowd. She chatted with a black cat and a group of fuzzy hamsters, then waved and stepped over to a friendly pair of goats. She looked cool, calm, and completely in control—fur real! Just then, she glanced down at her clipboard and gestured for another adult pup to help her with something. The pup, a wrinkly Sharpei with an orange horn, nodded and trotted off toward the roller coaster.

  “That’s it!” Twinkle barked, jumping to her paws. She might not be able to fix all of the problems around the carnival by herself, but she could ask for help and delegate—just like her mom!

  Glitter, Sparkle, Flash, and their two new hamster friends all turned to look at Twinkle.

  “I’ve figured out how to juggle everything,” Twinkle said quickly.

  Flash’s face lit up. “Juggle?” She glanced at the hamsters with a huge smile on her snout.

  Twinkle held up a paw. “You’re barking up the wrong tree, Flash. Not that kind of juggling!” She gestured for her friends to move in closer. “There are things going wrong all around the Furmusement Park right now! It looks like the different Cutiecorns are having trouble understanding one another, and things are starting to get out of control. I think we can fix it, but I need your help.”

  Sparkle, Glitter, and Flash nodded. They were all ears! (Even Flash, who seemed to have forgotten about juggling hamsters … for the moment.)

  Once Twinkle had talked through her plan, the four pups said goodbye to their new hamster friends and left the carousel line. They walked out to the central causeway, which was lined with food trucks, game booths, and ride entrances.

  “Okay, team, you know what to do,” Twinkle said. She put a paw in, and Sparkle, Flash, and Glitter did the same.

  “Cutiecorn crew!” they all woofed, raising their paws into the air.

  Twinkle followed Flash over to the Tilt-A-Whirl, which still wasn’t moving. The pup in charge looked frazzled as he tried in vain to get the little birds secured under the lap bar. “I’m afraid you just may not be able to ride on this one, friends,” he said sadly.

  “I think we can help!” Flash barked up, waving a paw.

  Twinkle nodded. “The birds need something that will go under their wings, not just across their laps. Otherwise, they’ll fly right off the ride!”

  Before anyone could twitch a tail, Flash’s horn began to glow. A long piece of rope coiled nearby rose into the air, wove gently under the birds’ wings, and secured itself to either side of the Tilt-A-Whirl cart.

  “Epic shifting magic!” the littlest red bird chirped, flapping her wings in excitement.

  Flash grinned. “Thanks!” she said, giving the bird’s wing a high five. “Enjoy the ride!”

  Twinkle glanced over at Sparkle, who was chatting with the ticket-eating goat. As her golden horn glowed, Twinkle knew she was using her feeling magic to find something better for the goat to eat. The next minute, she was pointing a paw over at some hay bales lining the edge of the park. The goat galloped over excitedly, bleating for his friends to join him.

  In the opposite direction, Twinkle could see Glitter’s pink horn shimmering in the sunlight. She had a paw on the shoulder of the cat who had been poked by the hedgehog and was speaking softly to her. The hedgehog stood nearby, looking nervously down at his paws. After a moment, the cat smiled and held her paw out for the hedgehog to shake. Glitter’s caring magic had done the trick!

  The four pups met up back by the carousel. “Pawsome work, pups!” Twinkle congratulated them. “The carnival seems to be running much more smoothly now.”

  “Thanks to you,” Glitter said. “We wouldn’t have known what to do if it hadn’t been for your seeing magic.”

  Sparkle giggled. “Hey, our hamster friends finally made it onto the carousel!” Behind her, the two little hamsters bobbed by on a carousel horse. They squeaked loudly, waving their tiny paws!

  “So now that everything is back under control, is it finally time for us to try some of that cotton candy?” Flash asked with a grin.

  “Furbulous idea, Flash!” Glitter said. “I think we’ve earned—”

  But Glitter didn’t have a chance to finish barking before a cry for help cut through the air.

  “Help! Help! It’s the Ferris wheel!”

  Without another bark, Twinkle raced over to the nearby Ferris wheel as fast as her paws would take her. Her friends were right on her tail!

  “What’s—” Twinkle began. But she didn’t have to finish woofing. She could see exactly what was wrong, right in front of her snout.

  The Ferris wheel was spinning much faster than it should! The animals on board were holding on tightly. Twinkle saw frightened face after frightened face move by in a blur.

  Barking bulldogs, someone had to do something! But what?

  Twinkle, Sparkle, Glitter, and Flash dashed up to the pup in charge of running the Ferris wheel. They could see that he was in a panic. “What happened?” Twinkle asked.

  The pup, a Boston Terrier with a silver horn, turned to her with wide eyes. “I don’t know!” he barked. “The wheel suddenly picked up speed—and I can’t seem to slow it down or stop it!”

  Glitter clapped a paw over her mouth. Sparkle covered her eyes. Flash bounced nervously. What a puptastic disaster!

  Twinkle took a deep breath. “We have to do something.”

  “But there are Cutiecorns everywhere,” Sparkle said. “Surely one of them will know what to do. We should leave this to the grown-ups.”

  Twinkle shook her snout. “There’s no time. The walkways are crowded, and t
he music is loud. Most of the other Cutiecorns don’t even realize that anything strange is happening!” She looked up at the Ferris wheel. “We can stop this, but we have to stay calm and work fast.”

  Glitter, Sparkle, and Flash straightened up and nodded. Twinkle knew she was lucky to have such pawsome friends. They were always ready to help!

  “We’re all going to have to work together,” Twinkle instructed. “Glitter, we need your caring magic to keep the Cutiecorns on the Ferris wheel safe. Flash, can you use your shifting magic to keep the ride from moving any faster? Sparkle, your feeling magic can tell us what’s making the ride spin out of control.” She frowned. “And maybe my seeing magic can help us understand why.”

  Without another woof, the four friends stood still and concentrated hard. At once, their horns all began to glow—blue, pink, gold, and purple!

  The four pups blocked out everything: the noise, the crowds, the yummy smells, the bright lights. It wasn’t easy, but they each focused all of their attention on the Ferris wheel.

  Glitter and Flash stood side by side, using their magic together to protect the riders and keep the wheel from speeding up. Sparkle and Twinkle scanned the Ferris wheel, letting their magic course through every piece of their fur. What could be causing this chaos?

  “I’ve got it!” Sparkle barked suddenly. “Up there, the hamster in the blue passenger car. Look!” She used her magic to mark the car with a swirl of golden glitter.

  Twinkle squinted up at the car, looking for the hamster. Focusing hard on her magic, she could suddenly see the animals on the Ferris wheel as if in slow motion. They all looked terrified … except for the hamster in the glittering golden car. He had his paws in the air!