The Messy Hair Detective

Lily was NOT a morning person. Especially on Tuesdays. And especially especially when her crazy curly hair looked like a squirrel had built a nest in it overnight.

"PFFFFT!" she said to her mirror, grabbing her favorite sparkly hair tie. "You're going to behave today if I have anything to say about it."

But something SCURRIED past her window. Something small and fuzzy and VERY suspicious.

Lily's eyes went wide. "Aha!" she whispered. "Today I'm not just Lily with the messy hair. Today I'm a SECRET SPY!"

She grabbed her magnifying glass (the one shaped like a cat) and tiptoed outside in her polka-dot pajamas. Down the street. Past Mrs. Higgins' purple mailbox. Around the corner where the old oak tree waved its branches HELLO GOOD MORNING.

There he was.

A dog. But not just ANY dog.

This dog had one ear that stood up like a triangle and one ear that flopped down like pancakes. He had spots shaped like little hearts. And he was wearing a TINY red bandana around his neck.

"Excuse me, Mr. Floppy-Ears," Lily said in her most serious spy voice. "But you seem to be on a VERY important mission."

The dog sat down and let out a small WOOF that sounded suspiciously like laughter.

Lily's magnifying glass revealed something AMAZING. Clutched gently in the dog's mouth was a beautiful golden envelope with sparkly stars on it.

"You're DELIVERING something?" She gasped. "But... but who's it for?"

The dog stood up, wiggled his whole body like a bowl of jelly, and started walking. He kept turning back to make sure Lily was following.

They went past the playground. Through the tiny forest behind the school. All the way to the big house where NEW kid lived—the one with the wheelchair ramp and the rainbow wind chimes.

The dog trotted right up to the door and sat there, tail thumping HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY.

The door opened. A girl about Lily's age looked out. She had the kindest eyes Lily had ever seen, and hair even wilder than Lily's—flying every which way like she'd caught a cloud and worn it on her head.

"Buster!" the girl cried. "You FOUND it!"

The dog—Buster—proudly delivered the golden envelope.

"I'm Mia," the girl said, smiling at Lily. "This is my very best friend in the whole universe. He's a delivery dog for the Secret Smile Society. We send letters to people who need them."

"The Secret Smile Society?" Lily repeated, feeling something warm and wonderful bloom in her chest.

"We look for kids who sit alone at lunch," Mia explained. "Or who look sad. Or who just moved here and don't know anyone yet. And we send them secret messages that say YOU ARE AMAZING."

Lily's messy hair suddenly felt like a crown.

"Can I join?" she asked.

Mia's grin was brighter than sunshine. "Only if you promise to keep the biggest secret ever."

"Pinky swear," said Lily, holding out her finger.

Buster let out the HAPPIEST woof in the history of woofs.

And that's how Lily became a spy. Not the kind who catches bad guys. The better kind. The kind who sneaks around leaving sparkly golden envelopes that say things like YOUR LAUGH IS MAGIC and YOU MAKE THE WORLD BRIGHTER.

Her hair was still messy. But now? She didn't mind one bit.