[written for a sick little 4-year-old]

Princess Addie leaned over the railing and shouted down to the courtyard. "Prince Liam, come on! I'm ready to go!"

Prince Liam ran up and up the spiral staircase to the top of the tallest tower. "What's that?" he asked, staring at a huge pink blob over Addie's head, bigger than a willow tree but puffy like a pillow.

"It's a hot air balloon," she said. "Climb into the basket with me and we'll fly away. Did you bring your magic box?"

Liam threw the magic box into the basket that hung from the humungous balloon, then climbed in after it.

"Off we go!" Princess Addie yelled, and untied the anchor ropes.

Balloon, basket, prince and princess – together they rose into the sky.

"Wow!" Prince Liam said, looking over the edge. "The ground looks a long ways away!"

"We're going higher and higher," Addie said. "And now the wind will blow us on an adventure!"

"Where are we going?"

Addie looked all around. "I think we're going west."

"That's the way the sun goes." Liam shielded his eyes against bright sunlight.

"That's how it looks," Addie said. "The sun doesn't really go flying into the west. Our whole world is spinning to the east!"

"I get dizzy when I spin," Liam said, hunkering down and closing his eyes.

"It takes all day to spin once around. You won't get dizzy," Addie said. "Open your eyes! Look, we're coming to the ocean!"

Water glinted bright in sunlight.

"I can hear the waves," Liam said. "Shhh, shhh, shhh."

"I can hear seagulls crying," Addie said.

The seabirds flew below the hot air balloon, but still far above the sea. "Ack! Ack!"

Liam jumped up and down, rocking the basket, and pointed. "I see a pirate ship! Can we go down closer?"

Addie pulled on a rope. The balloon hissed, and drifted lower.

"I see the pirate captain!" Liam said. "He's got bright feathers in his hat, and a black beard, and a parrot on his shoulder."

"Oh oh," Addie said. "Look, the pirates are pointing a cannon at us!" She twisted a knob. Flames shot up from a bucket overhead.

"What's that for?" Liam asked.

"It sends more hot air into the balloon." They started going up again.

Boom!

"Ha ha!" Liam cried. "Their cannonballs can't reach us!"

"I smell burning gunpowder," Addie said, looking at the cloud of cannon smoke below.

Something flew up through the smoke. A parrot! It flew fast and caught up and perched on the basket's rim. "Got crackers?" it squawked. "Violet wants a cracker!"

"Are you the pirate parrot?" Liam asked.

It ruffled its feathers. Red ones, yellow ones, green ones, even one long violet tail feather. "Arrr, I'm a pretty petty pirate parrot. Party-time!" She looked all around. "Unique party-place you've got here." She hopped into the basket and pecked at the magic box. "Violet wants crackers!" she screeched. "Lots of 'em!"

"It's not lunchtime yet," Liam said, grabbing the magic box away.

"We might have shared," Addie said, "if you had better manners. Shoo!"

"Shiver me timbers!" Violet squawked, "Don't want a shoe. Tastes awful." The parrot looked up at the pink balloon fabric overhead. "Wonder what that tastes like."

"Oh no!" Princess Addie yelled. "Don't you dare!"

~ to be continued ~