It was a strange afternoon in the garden, one of those that seem made just for playing. Ziggy, with his hair tousled by the wind, clapped his hands.

"Let's be showmakers!" he said, already laughing at the idea. "Each one does something funny, and the others clap."

Lily lifted her blue eyes.

"Okay, but I want to go first," she said. She was stubborn, Lily. When she wanted something, she really wanted it.

Skye, peaceful as always, sat on a rock and nodded. Dash, on the other hand, had already started. He was fast, Dash, even with ideas.

"I'll go first!" he shouted, and threw himself into a funny run. Halfway across the lawn, he pretended to trip over a giant ant that wasn't there. He fell with a big "OOOH!" and stayed there, legs in the air, laughing.

Ziggy laughed so hard he had to hold his tummy.

Then it was Skye's turn. She stood up straight, with her arms wide open like a little marble statue. She didn't move. She didn't even blink. Only her lashes, every now and then, made a tiny "frrr."

"You're so good!" said Lily. "You look like a real statue."

Skye smiled just a little, then went back to being a statue.

Lily went to the middle of the lawn and started walking on all fours.

"Guess who I am!" she said, and went "meow."

It was Poldo. They all got it right away, because Lily also made her tummy round, puffing out her cheeks.

Poldo, who was right there nearby with the other three cats, lifted his head, looked at her for a moment, and went back to licking his paw. He was used to it. Sofia, the loving little black kitten, went to rub against Skye's legs. Dora the tabby climbed to the top of the wooden house, proud as a queen. Milo made three huge jumps and landed right in front of Dash.

"Audience coming!" said Ziggy.

And just as they were all about to clap together, a rain different from all other rains began to fall from the sky.

Each drop, touching a leaf, made a note. Plink. Plonk. Pliiink.

"Listen!" said Skye, lifting her eyes.

It was the Singing Rain. Each drop a sound, each drop a tiny voice. It was as if the sky were practicing a song, and had forgotten a little piece of it.

That's when they heard it.

CHUFFFF CHUFFFF.

From behind the apple tree, a white smoke appeared. And then a light. And then him. Toby the Magic Train had arrived.

The children ran toward the track that wasn't there, and yet was there. Toby opened the door with a sweet whistle, and began to speak. He always spoke in rhyme, Toby.

"Hop on board, my little friends, come near,
with four happy kittens full of cheer.
Where the colors slip and fade away,
a little song will call them back to stay."

The children looked at each other. Colors that run away? A little voice that brings them back? They didn't understand, but they loved not understanding.

"Let's go!" said Ziggy, and they all climbed on board. Sofia settled onto Skye's lap. Dora made herself comfortable on the window like a captain. Poldo lay down right in the middle of the aisle, and Milo made the last jump on board at the very last second.

The little train shut the door and set off upward. Yes, upward. Because he was a magic train, and magic trains go wherever they please.

They climbed above the clouds. Then above the clouds above the clouds. Until, in front of them, a garden like none they had ever seen opened up.

"Cloudaria," Lily whispered, as if she had always known.

It was a garden suspended among the clouds. The flowers were made of rain petals. The trees had star leaves. And in the middle, on a big cloud as soft as a mattress, there was a stage. The wings were made of pink, yellow, and purple petals. And the audience, the audience, was made of flower-birds and funny little clouds that swayed.

"It's about to start!" chirped a flower-bird.

"The Great Show!" answered a little cloud.

The children sat in the front row, with the cats on their laps.

A loud voice, like a little cloud with a megaphone, announced:

"And now, ladies and gentlemen, mister flower-birds, miss little clouds... the bravest of the sky... SPLASHY THE ACROBAT DOLPHIIIN!"

Everyone clapped. The little clouds bounced with excitement.

From the right wing, Splashy entered. He was a light blue dolphin, shiny, who smelled of salt and, strange to say, also of honey cookies. Between his fins he held a beautiful seashell, shaped like a rainbow. But it was dull. Greyish. As if it were sleeping.

Splashy went to the middle of the stage. He closed his eyes. And he murmured:

"One, two, plink!"

And he jumped.

"PLOFFF!" he went, landing on a cloud-cushion.

The audience burst into applause. The little clouds rolled with laughter. The flower-birds flapped their petals.

But Ziggy looked at Lily. Lily looked at Skye. Skye looked at Dash.

"He jumped low," Dash whispered.

"Low and all noise," added Lily.

"Something doesn't add up," said Skye, in her quiet voice.

Ziggy had an idea, one of those slightly mischievous ones. While Splashy ran behind the wings to get ready for his next jump, he slipped behind a petal bush. He wanted to play a little trick on him. He wanted to jump out and yell "BOO!"

But when he got behind the wings, the trick died in his throat.

Splashy was there, all alone. He was trembling. His fins shook like leaves in the wind. He was clutching the rainbow-seashell, and the seashell was still dull.

"Splashy..." said Ziggy, stepping softly out of the bush. "Are you okay?"

Splashy gave a start. Then he lowered his head.

"They tell me I'm the brave acrobat," he whispered. "The acrobat who makes everyone laugh. The bravest of the sky."

"And you're not brave?" Ziggy asked.

Splashy shook his head. A tear ran down his snout.

"I just want to sing softly. I want a little song of my own, a light one. And I'm scared of going up too high. When I go up, my head spins. So I do jumps that look big and make noise, but they're low. I pretend. And meanwhile..."

Splashy looked at the seashell.

"...meanwhile the sea floor has lost its colors. It's all grey, down there. Because the seashell only lights up if I tell the truth about myself. And when the seashell lights up, the colors come back. But I never tell the truth."

Ziggy stayed quiet. Then he asked:

"What colors were they, before?"

Splashy sighed.

"They were iridescent."

"Iri... what?" said Ziggy, eyes wide open.

Splashy smiled a tiny bit, for the first time.

"Iridescent. It means they shine with many colors at once. Like when the sun touches the soap bubbles, and you see the pink, and the blue, and the green, all in one single bubble."

"Ah!" said Ziggy. "That thing! I know it. It's so beautiful."

There was a sound of small footsteps. It was Lily, Skye, and Dash, who had come backstage too.

"What's happening?" Lily asked, with her attentive blue eyes.

Ziggy explained. Everything. Even about Splashy who wanted to sing softly. Even about the dull seashell.

Lily put her hands on her hips, determined.

"Splashy," she said, "what if you SHOW who you really are?"

Splashy looked at her.

"Really?" he whispered.

"Really," said Skye, in her quiet voice. "Even if you're a little scared. Even if it's small. The small thing is just fine."

Dash nodded.

"In fact," he added, "we're right here in the front row. If your head spins, we'll make big eyes at you. So you know we're with you."

Sofia, the little black kitten, purred against Splashy's fin. Milo, the agile big cat, made a little jump in place, as if to say: "look, even small, you can do it."

Splashy took a deep breath. His tummy puffed out and back in.

"I'll try," he said.

He went back on stage. The little cloud with the megaphone announced him one more time.

"And now... the final number!"

Splashy closed his eyes. He held the seashell tight.

"One, two, plink!" Ziggy, Lily, Skye and Dash whispered together from the front row.

But Splashy, this time, did not jump.

He opened his mouth, gently. And he began to sing. It was a whispered little song. Small. Almost a breath. One of those songs you sing when you're happy and no one is watching.

The little clouds stopped rolling. The flower-birds shut their beaks. All of Cloudaria fell silent.

And the notes, light as feathers, began to come down. They slid off the stage. They passed through the clouds. They flew toward the sea, way down below.

And when they touched the water...

...the sea floor began to fill with color. Pink. Blue. Green. Orange. Purple. One color after another, as if someone were turning the lights back on in a house.

Iridescent.

The rainbow-seashell between Splashy's fins lit up with all the colors in the world.

Splashy opened his eyes. He looked at himself. And he smiled a real smile, one of those that makes no sound.

Then the audience stood up.

The applause was louder than before. Louder than all the PLOFFFs put together. The little clouds were hugging each other. The flower-birds were singing. Ziggy, Lily, Skye and Dash clapped their hands until their palms tingled.

Splashy, in the middle of the stage, said only, in a low voice:

"Thank you."

It was time to go home.

CHUFFFF CHUFFFF. Toby the Magic Train was there, patient, with his door open. The children climbed on, the cats behind. Splashy waved with his fin, and his seashell kept shining.

Toby, before leaving, whistled gently. And said:

"When you show the world just who you are,
your light will shine both near and far.
A little voice that sings from the heart,
can paint the sea like a work of art."

The little train set off down, gently, through the clouds. The Singing Rain was still there, outside the window. But now each drop had a color. Plink pink. Plonk blue. Pliiink orange.

When they arrived in the garden, Ziggy looked at his friends and said:

"Now I want to do another showmaker. But small. Small like I am today."

Lily smiled. Skye smiled. Dash smiled. And the cats, each in their own way, purred with peace.