Night came to the meadow, and Ash spread out the blankets. Eevee stayed standing, looking at the dark grass. "I'm not lying down without a little light," said Eevee. Pikachu twitched his ears and got up.
Ash hung an empty glass lantern on a low branch. "Shine, Pikachu, shine," said Eevee. Pikachu let out a spark, and the meadow turned white for one second. Then everything was dark again.
"Sparks are over in a blink," said Ash. "Fireflies aren't." Pikachu took down the lantern and ran off into the tall grass. Eevee and Ash went after him.
The tall grass was full of tiny green dots. "Shine, Pikachu, shine," said Eevee. Pikachu let out a huge spark, and every last dot disappeared. "Little lights hide from big ones," said Ash.
Pikachu sat down by the stream and kept very, very still. Little by little, a firefly drifted down to his nose. "My name is Lucy," she said. "I'm looking for my family."
Lucy called, and two came, and then six, and then a great many. They settled on the glass like tiny dots of gold. Ash closed the lid very carefully.
Back at the blankets, the lantern shone like a little yellow moon. Eevee turned around three times and lay down. "There we are," said Ash. "Good night."
But Lucy kept tapping on the glass with her wings. "My family is looking for me out there," said Lucy. "In here, nobody can see my light."
Eevee sat up. She looked at the lantern, and she looked at the black grass. "Open it," said Eevee. Ash lifted the lid, and all the little lights flew off into the meadow.
Pikachu kept very still, his cheeks warm and low. One by one, the fireflies lit up: first Lucy, then a hundred more over the grass. "Shine, Pikachu, shine," whispered Eevee, "softly, softly." And with the whole meadow for a lantern, the three of them fell asleep.
