The Lost Little Aurora

Read aloud, slowly and warmly. Stop often to let the children answer. There are no wrong answers here, only brave new ideas to try.

Read aloud, or let an older child read it themselves. Pause at each question so the heroes can decide together. There are no wrong answers here, only braver ideas to try.

It is winter in the fjords, and the long night should be full of colour. On clear nights the Aurora Spirits dance, and the sky glows teal and green and purple. But tonight the sky stays dark. Something is wrong.

The littlest Aurora Spirit has tumbled down from the sky. She fell into the snowy Whispering Pines, and she lost her colours. Now she is too shy and too cold to glow.

Edda the Saga-Keeper calls you to the warm Hearth Hall. "You two have bright ideas and kind hearts," she says. "Will you find the little aurora and help her shine again?"

She gives you three gifts: a little lantern, a ball of red yarn, and a warm honey bun. Then she smiles. "Up here we do not win by being the strongest. We win by being brave, kind, and full of ideas."

What is your hero name? Are you a hero of Imagination, of Courage, or of Heart?

In the deep of winter the night grows long in the fjords, and the long night is meant to be the most beautiful time of all. High above the snow, the Aurora Spirits dance, and the whole sky ripples with teal and green and purple light. But on this particular evening, the sky stayed dark and still, as if it had forgotten how to shine.

There was a reason. The littlest Aurora Spirit had tumbled down out of the sky and fallen into the snowy Whispering Pines, and in her fall she had lost her colours. Now she huddled somewhere among the dark trees, far too shy and far too cold to glow, and without her the others would not dance.

Edda the Saga-Keeper called the two of you in from the cold, to the firelight of the Hearth Hall. "You have bright ideas and kind hearts," she said, "and that is worth more on a night like this than any sword. Will you go into the pines and help the little aurora shine again?"

Into your hands she pressed three gifts: a little lantern to light your way, a ball of bright red yarn, and a honey bun still warm from the hearth. "Remember," she said, "up here we do not win by being the strongest. We win by being brave, kind, and full of ideas."

What is your hero name? Which quality will you carry: Imagination, Courage, or Heart?

You step out into the Whispering Pines. The snow is deep and soft. The tall trees stand dark and quiet all around you.

Somewhere in here, the little aurora is hiding. She is shy and cold and very, very small. You will have to look closely to find her.

How will you find her? Could you move softly and look for a tiny glimmer of light? Could you follow little footprints in the snow? Could you ask Nori the Tomte, the hearth sprite in the red cap, to help?

When you look gently, you spot a soft glimmer behind a tree. There she is, the littlest aurora, no bigger than your two hands, dim and shivering. "Hello," you whisper. "We came to help you."

You stepped out under the dark sky and into the Whispering Pines. The snow lay deep and soft and hushed, and the tall trees rose around you, still and quiet, with the wind carrying soft voices through their branches. Somewhere in all this stillness, one tiny aurora was hiding, shy and cold and no bigger than a pair of cupped hands.

She would be easy to miss. You would have to move gently and look with care.

How will you find her? You might walk softly and watch for the faintest glimmer of light, or follow small footprints pressed into the snow. Nori the Tomte, the red-capped hearth sprite, is somewhere nearby, and he loves to help. What do you try?

When you slowed right down and looked kindly into the shadows, you caught it: a soft, trembling glimmer behind a pine trunk. There she was, the littlest aurora, dim and shivering and very pleased to be found. "Hello," you whispered. "We came to help you." And she crept out to meet you.

The little aurora is happy you found her. But she cannot glow. "I lost my three colours when I fell," she says sadly. "Teal, and green, and purple. They are hiding in the world now."

Look around. The colours did not go far. They are all near you.

Can you find her three colours? Where is teal? Where is green? Where is purple? Look at the icicles, look at the pines, look up at the sky.

You find teal in a shining icicle. You find green in a dark pine branch. You find purple high up in the twilight sky. One by one, the little aurora gathers her colours back. She begins to glow, soft and warm.

The little aurora was glad beyond words to be found, but try as she might, she could not make herself glow. "I lost my three colours when I fell," she said, and her voice was small. "Teal, and green, and purple. They slipped away into the world, and I cannot shine without them."

But the colours had not gone far at all. Each one was hiding somewhere close, in a thing that wore that very colour, if only you knew where to look.

Can you find all three of her colours? Where in this snowy place might teal be hiding? Where green? Where purple? Think of the icicles, the pines, and the wide evening sky.

You found her teal in the heart of a shining icicle, her green in the deep needles of a pine branch, and her purple high up where the twilight sky was turning dark. One colour at a time, you helped her draw each one back into herself, and one colour at a time, the little aurora began to glow, soft and warm and brighter every moment.

The little aurora glows now, but she is still afraid. "The sky is so high," she says. "What if I cannot reach it? What if I fall again?"

She needs your courage to lend her some of her own.

How will you help her be brave? Could you climb a tall pine with her? Could you cheer her on? You have a ball of red yarn. Could you give her a gentle boost up?

You climb the tallest pine. You tie the red yarn so she can hold on. You count together, one, two, three. "You can do it!" you call. The little aurora takes a deep breath, lets go, and leaps up into the dark.

She glowed now, gentle and lovely, but when she looked up at the great dark sky her light wavered. "It is so very high," she said. "What if I cannot reach it? What if I fall all over again?" Being found was one thing. Rising back up into the night was quite another, and she was afraid.

She did not need to be braver than her fear. She only needed a little courage borrowed from friends, and a hand to help her up.

How will you help her find her courage? You might climb the tallest pine beside her, cheer her on from below, or use the ball of red yarn to give her a gentle boost up into the air. What is your plan?

You climbed the tallest pine, branch by snowy branch, and tied the red yarn so she had something to hold. Then you counted together, one, two, three, and called out, "You can do it, we believe in you!" The little aurora drew a deep breath, let go of the topmost bough, and leapt up into the dark.

Up she flies, higher and higher, glowing bright. The other Aurora Spirits swoop down to meet her, laughing. "You came back! You came back!" they sing.

Then the whole sky bursts into colour. Teal, and green, and purple, all dancing together over the snowy fjord. The long night is dark no more.

High among the stars, Freya the Kind looks down and smiles at you. You did it together. You were full of ideas, you were brave, and most of all, you were kind. Well done, heroes of the fjords.

Up she went, and up, glowing brighter with every length she rose, until the other Aurora Spirits came swooping down to meet her, laughing and singing, "You came back! You came back to us!" They gathered her in among them as if she had never been gone.

And then the whole sky woke. Teal and green and purple spilled across the night and began to dance, ribbon over ribbon, swirling above the snowy fjord and the warm amber windows of the longhouses below. The long night was dark no longer, and all the fjords looked up in wonder.

High among the stars, Freya the Kind looked down and smiled. You had done it, and you had done it together: with your ideas, with your courage, and above all with your heart. Well done, heroes of the Snowlit Fjords of the North.