Evelyn skipped down the sidewalk, her pigtails bouncing. "Come on, Lily!" she giggled. Lily the goldfish trailed behind, swimming in her bowl. Evelyn was off to see Nana, who lived in a very special place! Nana was a witch, but not a scary witch! No, Nana was a giggly witch with a hat full of cookies. Today, Nana was teaching Evelyn all about empathy!
"Empathy means being a good friend," Nana said, standing before a bubbling volcano. Yes, you read that right – a volcano! Nana's house was right inside! "It means you use your heart to understand how others feel."
The volcano rumbled, and red-hot lava bubbled. "Wow!" Evelyn gasped.
"Just like the volcano feels hot," Nana said, pointing to a shivering snowflake she pulled from her pocket, "this snowflake feels cold. Can you understand how they both feel?"
Evelyn nodded. "The snowflake feels sad because it's cold. But the volcano feels happy because it's warm!"
Nana clapped. "That's right! You're a natural!" She gave Evelyn a warm hug.
Suddenly, a loud grumble echoed through the volcano. A tiny dragon, no bigger than Lily's fishbowl, peeked out from behind a rock. He was covered in soot and sniffling.
"Oh dear," Nana whispered, "that's Cinder. He's sad because he can't breathe fire like the big dragons."
Evelyn felt sad for Cinder. She knew how it felt to want to do something she couldn't. Evelyn couldn't tie her shoes yet, no matter how hard she tried!
"Don't worry, Cinder," Evelyn said, walking up to the little dragon. She held out her hand. "I'll be your friend."
Cinder looked up, surprised. He sniffed again, and a tiny puff of smoke came out of his nose. He giggled. "You want to be my friend?" he squeaked.
Evelyn nodded. "Of course!" She took Cinder's hand, his scales rough and warm.
"How about we play hide-and-seek?" Evelyn asked. "You love to hide, right?"
Cinder's eyes lit up. He nodded eagerly. "I'm the best hider ever!"
Evelyn, Cinder, and even Lily had a wonderful time playing in the volcano. Evelyn used her imagination to pretend she was a brave explorer, discovering hidden caves and sparkling lava rivers.
As the sun began to set, painting the sky with beautiful colors, Evelyn knew it was time to go home.
"Thank you, Nana," Evelyn said, giving her grandma a big hug. "I learned so much about empathy today."
"You were a wonderful friend to Cinder," Nana said, winking. "You have a kind heart, Evelyn."
Evelyn, with Lily swimming happily beside her, skipped all the way home. She knew that even though she couldn't breathe fire like a dragon or tie her shoes yet, she had something even more special - a heart full of empathy and kindness. And that, she knew, was the greatest superpower of all!
