There was once a night so bright that even the stars seemed to hide in embarrassment.

It was not the sun’s doing, nor was it magic from any wizard I knew.

No—this was the work of a mischievous little Moonbeam, one that had escaped the sky and decided to play tricks on the world below.

And of course…

It found me.

The Night the Moon Misbehaved

There are many things I can tell you about the night sky.

The stars? They are older than even I am.
The comets? They have whispered secrets to me in the past.
The moon? Oh, the moon is a quiet, watchful friend.

But I must tell you…

Not all moonbeams are well-behaved.

One night, long ago, one little Moonbeam decided it no longer wished to stay in the sky.

It wanted to play.

And play it did.

A Light That Wouldn’t Listen

I was resting near a quiet little village, enjoying a peaceful evening when I noticed something strange.

The shadows of the trees were moving on their own.
The rooftops shimmered like they were covered in silver dust.
And worst of all…

The moonlight was giggling.

I turned my head sharply and saw it—

A bright little beam of light, no larger than my hand, hopping and bouncing across the village square.

I narrowed my eyes.

“Oh no.”

I had read about this before.

This was no ordinary moonbeam.

It was a runaway.

And runaway moonbeams were mischief-makers.

A Village in Chaos

Before I could grab my staff, the little Moonbeam had already begun its tricks.

• It zapped a cow, turning it bright purple.
• It tickled a windmill, making it spin backward.
• It jumped onto a tree, which immediately decided it would be more comfortable upside down.

The villagers woke up in panic.

“What’s happening?!”
“Why is my cat glowing?!”
“Why is my house floating?!”

I sighed.

“This,” I muttered, “is why the sky has rules.”

The Chase Begins

I swung my cloak over my shoulders and stepped into the village square.

“Alright, you little troublemaker,” I called out, “enough fun. Back to the sky you go!”

The Moonbeam giggled and zig-zagged away, darting behind buildings and bouncing off walls.

It was fast, slippery as a drop of water on glass.

But I had dealt with tricky things before.

I raised my staff, whispered a few words of sky magic, and—

WHOOSH!

A net of starlight snapped into existence.

For a moment, the Moonbeam paused, considering its options.

Then, it did something I did not expect.

It split into three.

“Oh, come now!” I groaned.

The villagers, now fully awake, watched in fascination as I began chasing after three bouncing Moonbeams, waving my staff like an old man trying to catch fireflies.

I would grab one—it slipped through my fingers.
I would trap another—it turned into mist.
I lunged at the third—it looped around me and tied my beard in a knot.

The children laughed, pointing as I struggled to untangle myself.

A Deal with the Moon

This would not do.

I needed to outsmart the light.

And so, I took a deep breath and called to the sky itself.

“Old friend,” I murmured, looking up, “your child has gotten away. Would you like it back?”

The moon, watching from above, winked.

And suddenly—

All three Moonbeams froze midair.

They wobbled.

They wiggled.

And then, ever so slowly…

They began to float upward.

I smiled.

“It’s time for bed, little one.”

The Moonbeams gave one last playful flicker, and then—WHOOSH—they shot back into the sky, merging once more with the soft glow of the full moon.

The village fell still.

The cow turned back to normal.
The windmill stopped spinning in reverse.
The upside-down tree decided to be a tree again.

And just like that…

Everything was peaceful once more.

Merlin’s Final Words

The villagers thanked me, though a few still gave me strange looks as they fixed their homes.

“Does this happen often?” a small child asked.

I chuckled. “More often than you’d think.”

He smiled. “Will the Moonbeam come back?”

I glanced up at the moon, where the little runaway twinkled mischievously.

“Maybe,” I admitted. “But next time, I’ll be ready.”

And with that, I wrapped my cloak around me, and walked off into the quiet night, listening as the stars whispered their laughter across the sky.