The little cloud churned through the blue sky. His belly rumbled like a storm far away. He stomped his fluffy edges hard, sending out sharp cracks of lightning. The sparrows scattered, then fell silent.
He spun and rolled, grumbling louder still. Another crack — bright and sudden — split the air. The sparrows cried and flew away, leaving the sky empty. He kept rolling, fast and restless, unable to settle.
A gentle breeze wrapped around his shoulders. It whispered soft secrets into his ear. He tried to shake it off with a rumble, but the air felt cool against his damp surface. The frantic spinning began to slow.
The breeze nudged him downward, toward the sleepy haystacks below. The scent of dried grass rose up to meet him. Nimbus hesitated, then let the current carry him. His loud crackles faded into a quiet hum.
He settled gently between two green hills. His form shifted from jagged gray to pale white. The countryside town slept below, wrapped in a soft blanket of twilight. Crickets began to chirp.
The hills whispered around him, and the breeze slowed to a hush. Above, the last sliver of sun dipped below the horizon. The cloud watched the sky change color, bright blue fading to deep violet.
Below, the little town lay quiet and still. Chimneys released thin ribbons of smoke into the cooling air. Lanterns blinked on one by one along the narrow streets. The world seemed to breathe slower.
The cloud drifted a little lower, close enough to hear the crickets clearly. Their song rose and fell in steady rhythm. He listened, and his own drifting slowed to match their pace. Everything felt still.
The breeze settled around him like a light blanket, warm and familiar. The first star appeared, bright and steady in the darkening sky. The cloud looked at it and did not move at all.
More stars appeared, one by one, until the whole sky sparkled. The cloud hung there, pale and quiet, between the hills. The crickets sang on, and the breeze hummed a lullaby.
The countryside slept soundly beneath him. The little cloud drifted higher, slower now, painting thin white streaks across the moonlit sky. His grumbling was gone. Only peace remained.
The little cloud drifted on through the starlit sky, light and calm and free. Below, the hills held the night quiet. The crickets kept their steady song. And somewhere in the dark blue above, the breeze whispered: rest now.
