Kayleigh is a little girl by the ocean. The waves go shh-shh. The sky is blue.
Kayleigh holds her Doll. The Doll is soft and brave. “I will stay close,” says Doll.
A Flower grows in a sandy pot. The Flower is gentle and smells sweet. “Hello, Kayleigh,” it whispers.
A Monkey swings on a rope by the pier. Monkey is silly and quick. “Ooh-ooh! Adventure!” he giggles.
Kayleigh looks for her shiny seashell. She loves it. It is round and pink.
But now it is gone.
Kayleigh’s eyes get wet. “My shell…”
Doll hugs her. “We can find it.”
Flower nods. “Breathe slow. One… two…”
Monkey points. “Look! Tiny footprints!”
They walk by the ocean. Step-step. Splash-splash.
They see a cold mist. Brrr.
A Frost Mage stands on a rock. His cloak is icy. His hands glow like snow.
“I like shiny things,” he says. “I froze the beach. I kept the shell.”
The sand turns hard. The water near the shore gets little ice bubbles.
Kayleigh feels small. Then she stands tall.
“I want my shell,” she says. “Please.”
The Frost Mage frowns. “No.”
Doll whispers, “Kayleigh, you are kind and clever.”
Flower whispers, “Warmth helps.”
Monkey claps. “We can do a warm trick! Ha!”
Kayleigh thinks. She has a warm scarf in her bag.
She wraps the scarf around Flower’s pot to keep it cozy.
Flower’s petals open wide. “Thank you,” says Flower.
A sweet smell floats out, warm like sunshine.
Kayleigh waves the smell toward the icy rock. “Warm breeze, go!”
Monkey fans it with his tail. Whoosh-whoosh!
Doll pats Kayleigh’s hands. “You can do it.”
The Frost Mage blinks. “What is that?”
The warm smell tickles his nose. “Achoo!”
His icy glow flickers. The beach ice cracks. Crack-crack.
A little pink shine pops out from under the frost.
“There!” Monkey yells. “Shell!”
Kayleigh tiptoes. Careful, careful.
She picks up the shiny seashell. It is cold at first.
Kayleigh holds it close. “Warm up,” she whispers.
Her hands are warm. The shell turns cozy again.
The Frost Mage looks surprised. “You didn’t shout. You didn’t hit. You asked. You warmed the beach.”
Kayleigh nods. “Cold can be lonely,” she says.
Doll adds, “You can play with us, but no stealing.”
Monkey grins. “No more swipe-swipe!”
Flower says softly, “We share.”
The Frost Mage’s shoulders drop. “I… can share,” he says.
He lifts his hands and makes tiny snow stars, not scary ones.
They fall into the ocean and melt into sparkles.
Under the melting frost, more treasures appear: three extra seashells and a smooth blue sea-glass heart.
“For you,” says the Frost Mage. “A sorry gift.”
Kayleigh gasps. “A heart!”
They sit by the waves. Shh-shh.
Kayleigh puts the sea-glass heart in her pocket.
She holds her shell tight.
Doll cuddles in her lap.
Monkey makes a funny face and everyone laughs.
Flower sways and smells sweet.
The ocean feels safe again. And Kayleigh has her shell, plus a new shiny treasure to keep.