I Became a Kindergarten Teacher for Monster Babies!

Chapter 651 651: Trip (9)

Drip.

Rocky's eyes snapped open.

"Boo? I heard a drip again!"

"It's your imagination."

"It sounded real."

"Imaginations sound real. That's why they're imaginations."

Drip.

"Boo."

"I'll check."

Boo floated down to the floor and pressed his ear against the wall.

"It's the stream," Boo said. "Outside."

Rocky listened. The faint sound of water trickling over rocks.

"Oh."

"Go to sleep, Rocky."

Rocky closed his eyes.

*****

The next morning, the sun was warm on their faces as the children finished their simple breakfast. The dishes were washed, the leftovers put away, and the cottage had that cozy, lived-in feeling that comes from good food and good company.

Lilith sat on Sable's lap, still rubbing her eyes. She had slept through the night, all the way until dawn, and now she was blinking at the sunlight like a small, confused owl.

"We should go exploring," Drake said, his wings stretching wide behind him. "There's a whole forest out there. We can't just stay inside all day."

"Says the dragon who ate seven peaches and complained about his stomach for an hour," Luna said.

"That was different. That was food-related suffering. This is adventure-related excitement."

Boo floated near the ceiling, his cap slightly tilted. "I support adventure! Adventure is where ghosts shine!"

"Ghosts shine everywhere," Vlad Jr. said.

"Exactly. So I should definitely come."

"You were already coming."

"I know. I'm just making sure everyone else knows."

Felix looked out the window, his sharp eyes scanning the treeline. "There's a path behind the cottage that leads into the forest. I've walked it before. It's safe."

"How safe?" Rocky asked.

"Safe enough."

"That's not very reassuring."

"There are no monsters, if that's what you're asking."

"Are you sure?"

Felix's tail swished. "I'm sure."

Rocky looked at Kelpie. Kelpie looked at Rocky. They both nodded.

Lucien stood up from the table. "Then let's go. We should bring water and snacks. And Lilith needs sunscreen."

"Sunswean?" Lilith said, wrinkling her nose.

"So you don't burn."

"Wiwwy not burn. Wiwwy is stwong."

"The sun doesn't care how strong you are."

Lilith pouted but let Sable rub sunscreen on her cheeks and nose. The white cream made her look like a small, determined ghost.

"Now Wiwwy weady," she announced.

The children gathered outside the cottage. The morning air was cool and sweet, filled with the scent of peach blossoms and pine. The path behind the cottage was narrow and winding, lined with ferns and wildflowers.

Vlad Jr. took the lead, his wings folded behind him, his posture perfect. "I'll navigate."

"You don't know where we're going," Drake said.

"I'll navigate us there anyway."

"That's not how navigation works."

"That's how I work."

Felix walked beside them, his furry ears twitching, his tail swishing. "The path splits about a mile in. Left goes to a small waterfall. Right goes to a meadow."

"Which one is better?" Luna asked.

"Depends on what you want to see."

"Everything," Kelpie said. "We want to see everything."

They took the left path first.

The forest closed in around them, tall trees with leaves that filtered the sunlight into gold and green. Ferns brushed against their legs. Small animals rustled in the underbrush, too quick to see.

Lilith walked between Lucien and Sable, her small hand in Sable's, her eyes wide.

"Wook," she said, pointing. "Fwower."

It was a small purple flower growing at the base of a tree. Its petals were soft and velvety, covered in morning dew.

"Pretty," Sable said.

"Wiwwy pick it?"

"Leave it. It's still growing."

"Wiwwy come back tomowwow?"

"If you want."

Lilith nodded and kept walking.

They reached the waterfall after about twenty minutes. It wasn't large, just a small cascade of water falling over moss-covered rocks into a clear pool below. But it was beautiful. The sunlight caught the spray, creating a tiny rainbow that arched over the pool.

Kelpie gasped. "Water!"

He ran toward the pool, his water droplets dancing around him. He knelt at the edge and dipped his hands in, and the water seemed to welcome him, rising up to meet his fingers.

"It's cold!" he said, laughing.

"Don't fall in," Vlad Jr. called.

"I won't!"

He almost did.

Rocky sat on a nearby rock and watched the water. His face was calm, peaceful. "This is nice," he said.

Luna sat beside him.

Drake dipped his tail in the water and shivered. "Cold!"

"That's what water is," Felix said.

"I know what water is. I just forgot how cold it could be."

Boo floated over the pool, looking at his reflection. "I look very handsome today."

"You look the same as always," Sable said.

"That's what handsome means. Consistency."

Lucien stood at the edge of the pool, watching the water. His red eyes were soft, thoughtful.

"What are you thinking?" Sable asked.

"About Mom and Dad. They would like this place."

"We should bring them here someday."

"Maybe."

Lilith tugged on Lucien's sleeve. "Wucien, wook! Wainbow!"

She pointed at the rainbow arching over the waterfall. Her crimson eyes were wide with wonder.

"It's beautiful," Lucien said.

"Wike Mama's eyes?"

Lucien smiled. "Like Mama's eyes."

Lilith beamed.

They stayed at the waterfall for a while, skipping stones and dipping their feet in the water and watching the rainbow shift and fade.

Then they took the right path.

The meadow was even more beautiful than the waterfall. It stretched out before them, a sea of wildflowers in every color imaginable, red and yellow and blue and purple. Butterflies drifted from flower to flower, their wings catching the light. The grass was soft and green, and the sky above was clear and endless.

They walked through the meadow, the flowers brushing against their legs. The air smelled sweet, like honey and sunshine.

And then Kelpie stopped.

"Wow," he breathed.

Everyone followed his gaze.

A bird was perched on a low branch of a tree at the edge of the meadow. It was pink, the soft, rosy pink of a peach blossom. Its feathers were fluffy and seemed to glow in the sunlight. Its eyes were bright and curious.

"That bird is beautiful," Kelpie said.

The bird tilted its head and chirped. The sound was like a small bell, clear and sweet.

"It's looking at us," Luna said.

"It's judging us," Drake said.

"It's admiring us," Boo said.

The bird chirped again. Then it flew.

It didn't fly away. It flew toward them.

It landed on Kelpie's shoulder.

Kelpie froze. His water droplets stopped falling. His eyes went wide.