Something Lurks in the Dark UFLI Foundations Lesson 83
Practice Words
Nib sits on her rug with her red yarn. She spins and spins at her rig. Her brother calls in at the gap in the wall. 'Nib, we must go far up the hill. Turn the lock!' 'I am fine,' says Nib. She never turns the lock.
The brothers march far up the path. Then a big furry thing slips from the forest. It has dark fur and a tuft of hair on top. It lurks by the bushes and it grins.
The Troll slips up to the hut. He looks in at the gap in the wall. A girl! Nib sits at her rig with her red yarn. She has her back to him. 'A small girl,' he says with a smirk.
The Troll shoves in at the gap in the wall. Smash! But he is stuck fast. The gap is small, and the Troll is so big! Nib yelps and falls back. The Troll grunts and pulls hard. Pop! 'Fine,' he snarls. 'I will find another path in.'
The hut is not locked. A large furry arm darts in. It holds Nib by her top and lifts her up. Nib yelps. But she hugs her ball of red yarn to her chest.
The Troll lifts Nib up into a tall plant. He rests in the dirt under her. But Nib is smart. She fixes her yarn to a branch. The thin red line falls to the dirt and runs far off past the plants. 'Find the yarn,' she says. 'Find me.'
The brothers stop on the path. 'Look at that!' A thin red line turns past the huts and into the forest. 'That is Nib's yarn!' says her brother. 'Hurry! Run!'
The red yarn runs up the rock and into a dark cave. 'Nib is in there,' says the first brother. The other one nods. They step into the dark.
In the cave, the Troll sits at the wall, snoring hard. A big gold key hangs from his belt. One brother steps up, slow and soft, and lifts the key. 'Hush,' says the other. 'Not a word.'
Small kids press at the bars. The brother slides the key into the lock and turns it. Click! The gate swings open, and the kids burst from the cage.
The Troll wakes up with a jerk. His cage is open! Where is his key? 'That is my supper!' he snarls. 'Run!' yells a brother. 'Run fast!'
The Troll charges after them, from the cave and into the sun. But red yarn is on his legs and his belly, ring after ring of it. Nib's yarn! He turns, he whirls, he trips. Boom! He falls hard on the rock.
Nib stands with a big grin. Her brothers clap. 'Smart girl, Nib!' says one brother. 'That yarn trick saved us all. But next time, turn the lock!' Nib just grins more.
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