Riley the Raccoon and the Nighttime Noodles
Large text for little eyes.
In the middle of Piney Woods, under a blanket of stars, lived Riley the Raccoon, a clever, kind, and terribly worried little raccoon.
Every night, Riley would tuck into their leaf bed, fluff their pine-needle pillow, and say, “Okay, tonight I’ll sleep early.”
But as soon as they closed their eyes—whoosh!—their brain filled with thoughts.
“What if the moon falls out of the sky?” “What if I forget how to climb trees?” “What if my tail’s too fluffy?”
Their thoughts tangled up like spaghetti!
Riley groaned. “I’ve got nighttime noodles in my head again!” They tossed, turned, flopped, and fluffed. No luck.
Finally, they sat up and sighed, “I’ll never sleep.”
That’s when a soft voice floated down from the trees. “Can’t sleep, little one?”
Riley looked up. It was Olive the Owl, glowing silver in the moonlight, eyes calm and wise.
The Owl’s Calming Call
“Too many thoughts,” Riley mumbled. “My brain’s a bouncy ball.”
Olive chuckled softly. “Ah, the mind is a tricky nest. But I can help you weave it neatly again.” “Really?” asked Riley, eyes wide. “You mean… like an anti-noodle trick?”
“Exactly,” said Olive. “Let’s start with my first nighttime ritual, The Deep Forest Breath.”
Olive spread her wings and demonstrated.
“In through the beak… hoo… out through the beak… hooo.”
Riley copied, puffing their cheeks. “In through the nose… snort… out through the nose… honk!”
Olive laughed. “Close enough!” “Now,” said Olive, “the second ritual—Star Counting.”
Riley blinked. “Is that like sheep counting but shinier?” “Precisely!” said Olive. “Every star you count, let one worry go.”
So Riley pointed their paw. “One—stop thinking about falling moons. Two—tails are fine. Three—trees are friends.”
By twenty stars, Riley’s tail had relaxed, and their whiskers drooped sleepily.
The Giggle-and-Growl Game
But just as Riley began to yawn… a cricket chirped loudly nearby.
“EEE!” yelped Riley, jumping. “Something’s out there!”
Olive hooted. “That’s just Cricket practicing her lullaby. She never stops rehearsing.”
Riley sighed. “I guess the forest is full of noises.”
“Indeed,” said Olive. “But that brings us to ritual number three—The Giggle-and-Growl Game!”
“The what?” Riley asked.
“Whenever you hear a scary sound, you copy it and make it silly!” said Olive.
Just then—ribbit!
Riley puffed up and said, “RIBBIT-RIBBIT-RIBBON!”
They both burst into laughter. Next came hooo-hooo from another owl.
Riley replied, “Who-hoo-hoo’s got cookies?”
Olive clutched her feathers, laughing so hard she nearly fell off her branch. Soon, every sound in the forest became funny instead of frightening.
Riley giggled, hiccupped, and finally sighed happily.
“Olive… my noodles feel less twisty.”
The Sweetest Sleep
As the night grew quieter, Olive said softly, “Now for the last ritual—The Gratitude Glow. Before you close your eyes, think of three things that made you smile.”
Riley thought hard. “Hmm… giggling with you, counting stars, and… oh! That my tail is extra fluffy—it makes a great blanket.”
Olive smiled. “Perfect.”
Riley curled up, tucking their tail under their chin.
“Goodnight, Olive.”
“Goodnight, little raccoon,” whispered the owl. “Dream gentle dreams.”
As the stars shimmered above, Riley’s eyes fluttered closed for the first time in days.
No more bouncing thoughts. No more nighttime noodles.
Just calm breaths, cozy fur, and the sound of the forest’s lullaby.
And if you listen closely on quiet nights, you might still hear Riley whispering in their sleep—“Who-hoo-hoo’s got cookies…”
The End !
