Mei the Ruby Treasure Dragon

  Contents

  Title Page

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Sneak Peek

  About the Authors

  Copyright

  On Wednesdays, Mei had jewelry-making class after school. It was her favorite time of the week. Mei loved bright, sparkly things, so making jewelry was a dream come true. She learned how to cut copper wire with one set of pliers. She twisted it into loops with another. She threaded beads in perfect color combinations and gave her pretty creations to friends at school.

  The class was held at the community center on the edge of the forest. On the first day, Mei made friends with two other girls named Aisha and Quinn. The three girls were all very different from one another, but together they just clicked. The second time class met, the new friends made matching bracelets. Mei’s featured a gorgeous ruby-colored bead. Aisha’s had a sapphire-blue bead, and Quinn’s was jade green. The beads were only made of glass, but that didn’t matter. Mei, Aisha, and Quinn had created the bracelets together, which made them worth more than diamonds.

  They loved their jewelry teacher, Ms. Ahmed. She had long, dark hair and wore rings on every finger. She always brought a thermos of hot chocolate for the students to share and played music so they could sing along as they worked. Mei and Aisha were okay singers, but Quinn’s voice was amazing.

  Snow fell outside as Mei worked on her latest creation. She was making a necklace for her mom, but she still hadn’t finished when it was time to pack up. Time went by so quickly in this class!

  Aisha and Quinn waved goodbye and dashed off.

  “Can I stay a few more minutes?” Mei begged Ms. Ahmed. “It’s Mom’s birthday tomorrow and her necklace isn’t ready yet.”

  “Sure. You keep working while I return the tools to the storage closet,” Ms. Ahmed said, picking up a box of pliers.

  Happily, Mei bent over the necklace again. As she worked, she became aware of a soft voice singing:

  Magic Forest, Magic Forest, come explore …

  Mei glanced around the room. Ms. Ahmed had left the music playing, but the singing wasn’t coming from the speaker.

  Mei looked out the window. Soft, sparkling snow carpeted the ground. The beautiful singing seemed to be coming from the nearby forest, but Mei couldn’t spot anyone out there.

  Magic Forest, Magic Forest, come explore …

  The words seemed to get louder, and the red bead in Mei’s friendship bracelet twinkled brightly. Mei wrapped her fingers around the ruby. Heat spread through her, like when she wrapped her hands around a warm mug on a cold day.

  Releasing her fingers, Mei gazed at the bead. Deep within the glass, a shape formed. It was a little like the swirl in a marble. But this was different. This shape looked like a tree, no taller than a fingernail. The tree was graceful, lush, and … moving. Yes, the tiny tree inside Mei’s bead was swaying back and forth!

  Was this a magical bead? Excitedly, Mei held her bracelet up to the light. As she watched, the red glow from the bead started to expand. It grew larger and larger, swelling like a balloon of light. The whispery song became clearer.

  Magic Forest, Magic Forest, come explore.

  Magic Forest, Magic Forest, hear my roar!

  The tiny tree had grown with the red glow, and now there were other trees, too. Soon they were taller than Mei! Her heart thumped. She began to spin around and around. It made her dizzy, but she couldn’t stop!

  A warm breeze wrapped around Mei and lifted her off the ground. She found herself singing the words she’d heard, as though it was a song she’d always known:

  Magic Forest, Magic Forest, come explore.

  Magic Forest, Magic Forest, hear my roar!

  Mei closed her eyes. All her life, she had longed to go on wild adventures. Now, finally, it felt like something truly magical was actually happening!

  Mei landed back on the ground. She stopped spinning and opened her eyes. When the swirling red light cleared, Mei saw that she was no longer in the community center. The tables and chairs, the big windows overlooking the forest, the containers of beads and wire and clasps—they had all disappeared!

  Instead, Mei was in some sort of forest—and it was no longer winter. The snow had vanished, and she was surrounded by leafy trees. The air smelled of flowers and ripe tropical fruits. As Mei looked around in amazement, a bird flashed by. Its wings were green with yellow spots, tipped with pink.

  Everything around her had changed. Have I changed, too? Mei wondered.

  She felt different, somehow. Looking down, Mei gasped. Her black jeans and chunky boots were gone. Her legs had changed shape and were now covered in the brightest ruby-red scales. And instead of feet, she had powerful red paws!

  Now Mei was dying of curiosity. She had to see what the rest of her body looked like. She glanced around. She didn’t really expect to find a mirror in the middle of this forest—but then again, anything was possible in this strange place! Nearby, a shimmering lake surrounded by reeds glinted in the sunshine. Mei bounded over to it and peered into the smooth surface of the water.

  Looking back at her was a ruby face with big dark eyes, an elegant snout, and twitching, pointed red ears.

  “I’m a dragon?” Mei whispered to herself, laughing.

  Mei loved acting and had played many different characters in school productions. But she had never been anything as cool as a dragon. And this time I’m not even acting, she reminded herself. I really AM a dragon!

  Then another thought struck Mei. If she had a dragon-y face and dragon-y legs, she probably had a dragon-y tail. She turned to check. It was cool to have such a long neck! Sure enough, she had a long red tail with silver and gold embedded in its length, and an arrow tip.

  That was when Mei spotted something even more exciting. Sprouting from her back was a pair of beautiful wings! Each wing was decorated with swirling patterns, and drops of silver and gold. She gave them a flap and … rose off the ground. Mei couldn’t help but let out a cheer … and a red flame erupted from her mouth! The flame licked an apple hanging from a nearby branch. To Mei’s surprise, the apple didn’t burn. Instead, it transformed from a small, unripe fruit to one that was huge and juicy looking!

  “Did I do that?” Mei wondered aloud, hovering in the air.

  “You certainly did,” said a voice. “Dragon Girls have special powers, after all.”

  Mei looked around, trying to figure out who had spoken. What was a Dragon Girl?

  Climbing out of the reeds was a tiny pink creature with rounded ears, dark eyes, and a pom-pom tail. It was like the fluffiest mouse Mei had ever seen.

  “I’m Squeaklet,” the creature announced, bowing deeply.

  “Wow, you can talk!” Mei exclaimed. “I’m Mei. I’ve always wanted to meet a talking animal.”

  “What a coincidence! I’ve always wanted to meet a Treasure Dragon Girl,” replied Squeaklet.

  “I’m a Treasure Dragon Girl?” Mei repeated, her mind whirling.

  “Yes! The Treasure Dragons protect this forest’s most precious things,” explained Squeaklet. Mei had so many questions, but Squeaklet spoke before she could ask them. “Are you going to do some more flying?”

  “I don’t really know how to,” Mei admitted.

  “It’s not hard,” said Squeaklet. “Just imagine you are using your wings to wave to a friend.”

  “Easy for you to say!” Mei laughed. “You don’t have wings.”

  But Mei found that the tip actually worked. When she thought about wavin
g her wings, they fluttered to life. Mei rose off the ground again, and this time she went higher.

  “That’s it!” said Squeaklet, clapping his fluffy paws. “Now do it faster and with more power.”

  Mei gave it a shot. But one of Mei’s wings flapped quicker than the other and Mei veered to one side. Then she flapped her wings from front to back instead of up and down. She started to wonder if she would EVER get it right!

  But Squeaklet didn’t doubt her. “You’ve almost got it!” he called cheerfully as Mei toppled over onto the ground.

  Mei groaned dramatically. “Maybe I’ll just walk.”

  Squeaklet shook his fluffy head. “The Magic Forest is huge!”

  “This is a magic forest?” Mei asked. The word magic made fireworks explode inside her.

  “Of course! How many talking animals have you met in normal forests?” Squeaklet asked. “Now, we must hurry. The Tree Queen is waiting. She has a quest for you and the other Treasure Dragon Girls.”

  Mei couldn’t hold back her questions any longer! “Who is the Tree Queen?” she asked. “What do you mean, a quest? And who are the others?”

  “The sooner you learn to fly, the sooner you’ll find out,” Squeaklet said, jumping onto Mei’s shoulder. “Come on, try one more time.”

  Whenever Mei was in a play, she took a moment to focus before she went onstage. She did this now. You are a Dragon Girl and you can fly, she told herself. You just need to believe it.

  The pep talk worked! The next time Mei flapped her wings, she rose steadily into the air. She flapped again and shot forward. Soon she was going higher and faster than she’d ever thought possible.

  “I knew you’d get the hang of it,” Squeaklet called. “Follow me.”

  Squeaklet leapt off Mei’s shoulder and onto a nearby treetop. From there, he leapt onto another tree, and so on. He was surprisingly fast! Mei could only just keep up.

  “This is the best feeling EVER!” Mei whooped, skimming the treetops.

  Finally, they came to a part of the forest where the trees thinned out. Beyond, Mei could see a beautiful glade. Surrounding it was a shimmering sphere of air. In the middle stood a tall, graceful tree. Sunlight fell in golden beams onto the bright grass. Mei really wanted to go in there.

  “That is where the Tree Queen lives,” Squeaklet explained. “You must enter the glade alone.”

  “Oh, please come too!” said Mei. She was already fond of the little guy.

  “Don’t worry. Whenever you need me, I’ll be there,” Squeaklet said. With a twitch of his downy tail, he disappeared.

  Mei gazed at the shimmering air. It looked like some sort of force field. She longed to get into the glade, but she wasn’t sure how. Gingerly, she reached out a paw. It went straight through! The air fizzed like when she added bath salts to her bath.

  Taking a deep breath, Mei stepped through the force field and into the glade.

  Inside the force field, the glade was even more beautiful. The colors were brighter, the sun more golden. Tiny metallic-winged insects flitted about. Jewel-colored butterflies hovered around honey-scented flowers. A happy glow washed through Mei.

  “Can you believe this place?”

  “It’s amazing, right?”

  Mei jumped at the sound of the voices. There, in the middle of the glade, hovered two Dragon Girls. One was jade green and the other was sapphire blue. Like Mei, they had a heady mix of silver and gold on their wings and tails. They must be Treasure Dragon Girls, too!

  “You two look incredible,” exclaimed Mei. “And fierce. In a good way!”

  The dragons laughed.

  “Thanks!” said the one with sapphire-blue jewels embedded in her wings. “Is that you, Mei? It’s me, Aisha. And this is Quinn. We just got here. Can you believe it? We’re Dragon Girls!”

  Mei stared at them, openmouthed. Were they really her friends from jewelry class? They looked so different.

  Quinn let out a happy little roar. A wisp of green fire curled from her mouth. “I know! It’s amazing!” she said. “Have you tried flying yet? It’s kind of hard.”

  “So hard!” Aisha said, laughing. “I keep getting caught in my own tail! But I’ve figured out how to roar.” She took a deep breath, opened her mouth, and let out a huge roar. Bright blue flames shot into the air.

  Mei grinned. The dragons were definitely her friends Aisha and Quinn. She recognized their laughs. And their gemstones matched their friendship bracelets!

  Mei looked around. “I was told to meet a Tree Queen here,” she said. “Have you seen her yet?”

  “No, there’s no queen here. But there is this very impressive tree,” said Aisha.

  “It’s incredible.” Quinn nodded.

  They gazed up at the majestic tree. Its strong branches reached toward the sky; its silvery leaves fluttered in the light.

  As the three Dragon Girls watched, the tree began swaying. The branches softened into strong, graceful arms.

  “It’s changing!” gasped Mei.

  The tree’s leaves turned into long, wavy hair, framing a beautiful, wise face. The tree’s trunk became a flowing gown of mossy green.

  “Welcome, Treasure Dragon Girls. I am the Tree Queen. I am glad to see you. The Magic Forest needs your help.”

  Pride surged through Mei. She was a Treasure Dragon in a magic forest! And she was needed! Nothing like this had ever happened to her before. She was going to enjoy every last minute of this adventure.

  “Of course we’ll help!” she declared.

  “Yeah! We’re not scared of anything!” Aisha added.

  Mei noticed Quinn shuffling awkwardly, a nervous look on her face. I bet she’s braver than she realizes, thought Mei.

  The Tree Queen rustled her leaves as she spoke again. “Many years ago, the Shadow Queen was the ruler of the Magic Forest. With the help of her Shadow Sprites, she locked the Magic Forest into an endless gray twilight. Many of the forest’s plants and animals struggled to survive without bright days to grow strong in the sunshine or dark nights to rest. The winters were harsh, and sometimes lasted years. When the Shadow Queen was finally banished, I became queen. I’ve worked hard ever since to restore balance. But now her Shadow Sprites have returned. I can feel deep in my tree roots that she is gaining strength again.”

  Mei gulped. “But that’s terrible!”

  The Tree Queen nodded gravely. “The Shadow Sprites have stolen three ancient objects from the forest’s treasure vault deep underground. These objects are worth more than money. They are the source of the forest’s magic! When these objects are removed from the vault, things quickly go wrong. This is terrible for the forest and all her creatures. Worse, if the objects stay out of the vault for too long, the problems can become permanent. You are the only ones who can return the treasure in time and restore the forest to harmony.”

  Mei knew she’d do whatever she could to find and return the missing treasure. How fantastic it would be to save the Magic Forest!

  “But what if we can’t find the treasure?” Quinn asked, sounding worried. “This is all so new to us.”

  Aisha wrapped a wing around her. “Don’t worry, Quinn. We’ll do it together.”

  The Tree Queen smiled. “Exactly. And that is why you are the perfect team for this quest. The Shadow Sprites will make you doubt yourselves. But you are Dragon Girls, and you are stronger and smarter than them!”

  Mei felt like she might burst. Hearing the Tree Queen say that made her feel like she really could do anything.

  “Tell us what we need to do, and we’ll do it,” promised Mei.

  “The first object you need to find is The Forest Book,” explained the Tree Queen.

  “A book?” Mei said. She didn’t think of books as treasure. She didn’t love reading. Her mind often wandered and the words swam.

  “This is no ordinary book, Mei,” the Tree Queen explained. “It’s a thousand years old. And it contains the entire history of the Magic Forest.”

  The Dragon Girls looked
at one another in wonder.

  The Tree Queen continued, “All the secrets of the forest are recorded in The Forest Book’s pages. The exact notes of birds’ songs. The recipes for each flower’s perfume. The favorite food of every animal. If the book isn’t returned to the vault quickly, the plants and animals will forget how to behave and what to eat. The birds won’t remember their songs, and the flowers will smell wrong. Even the rivers will forget to flow.”

  “We’ll get the book back, don’t worry,” Mei promised.

  She was rewarded with a broad smile. “Mei, you are in charge of this quest.” The queen held out her long, branch-like arms. There was a soft bag on one, and on the other was a chain with some sort of object made of metal and studded with gemstones.

  At first, Mei thought it was a clock. But then she saw that it had only one hand. “A compass!” she said.

  “Yes, a very old and powerful one,” the Tree Queen explained. “But remember this: You can only ask it to help you one time during a quest. So make sure you use it wisely.”

  Mei slipped the chain over her head and fitted the bag across her chest. It blended into the metallic colors of her scales like a chameleon. “We’ll be very careful,” she promised.

  “I know you will,” said the Tree Queen. “You’re Treasure Dragons, after all. Now, when you find the book, remember that it might have been bewitched. Who knows what the Shadow Sprites might have done to it!”

  Mei looked at her friends. An adventure loomed. She was so glad they were going on it together!

  “Goodbye, Treasure Dragons!” called the Tree Queen as she started turning back into a tree. “The birds tell me that Shadow Sprites were just sighted at Hoppy Hill. I suggest you start there.”

  Mei flapped her wings. “Great! Where’s Hoppy H—”

  But it was too late. The Tree Queen’s wavy hair had turned back into leaves, her long arms into solid branches. Her wise face disappeared, and they were standing in front of a lovely but entirely normal-looking tree.