At the busy riverside market, Momo spotted a string of bright river-pebbles glittering beside the fish stall.
Quick as a splash, Momo scooped it up before anyone stepped on it. Click, click, click went the pebbles in Momo's paws.
Then Momo heard voices beyond the baskets and barrels. "Did you see it?" someone called.
Momo tucked the pebble string close and padded past the stalls. Neighbors peeked under tables, lifted cloths, and searched between crates of apples and jars.
Clatter went a stack of lids. The air smelled of fish and wet rope. Momo slowed down and listened.
Instead of slipping away to the stream, Momo asked, "What are you looking for?"
"Something bright," said one neighbor. "It was tied in a loop," said another. A third pointed toward the winding stream.
Just then, a cheeky gull swooped down and yanked the string right out of Momo's paws.
"Hey!" cried Momo, splashing after it as the pebbles flashed like tiny stars over the water.
Momo ducked under a hanging net and kept going.
Plink! The pebble string dropped onto a flat stone, and Momo caught it at once.
Momo lifted it high. "Whose is this?"
The market went still. Only the awnings flapped and the water lapped at the bank.
Then the right neighbor rushed forward. "Blue wave, green leaf, sky stone, deep pool," they said, naming every pebble one by one.
Just then, the evening bells began to ring.
Momo placed the pebble string into the neighbor's paws, and the whole market let out a happy шум of voices.
Momo laughed when the gull landed on an empty basket and squawked as if asking for a prize. Someone tossed it a fish tail instead.
When Momo headed home beside the winding stream, the water sparkled, and the smiles at the market shone brighter than the pebbles did.
