The First Acorn-Tea Party

Nutmeg the squirrel carefully places her tiny acorn-shell teapot right in the middle of the smooth stone table. The warm glow of the acorn-cap lamps catches the polished sides of the little pot. Pip the mouse and Bramble the hedgehog scurry back and forth, rolling round, smooth pebbles from the corner of the library trunk to make little seats around the table. They laugh softly so they will not wake the sleeping beetles outside in the great oak bark. Nutmeg pours pretend clover tea into three microscopic cups, and the three friends sit together in their cozy new hiding place, enjoying the quiet afternoon.

While Pip, Bramble, and Nutmeg enjoy their tea party inside the secret room, Clover the rabbit hops into the quiet library. She is looking for a lost story scroll about the big autumn migration. As she passes the old storage trunk, she hears soft giggles and the faint clink of porcelain coming from behind the open brass archway. Curious, she stops right at the edge of the doorway to see what her friends are up to, wondering what kind of secret game they are playing.