The sun streamed through the windows into the wooden cabin beneath the great baobab tree, where the “Animal Detectives” Agency was located. Lion Kuba stretched lazily, putting on his favorite detective hat – a brown one with a wide brim.
„Wake up, team! Time for morning exercise!” he called, clapping his paws.
From the neighboring rooms came sleepy desert mouse Patrycja with a notebook under her arm, giraffe Zofia yawning widely, and anteater Alfred, already sniffing the air.
„Good morning, everyone!” said Zofia, stretching her long neck. „Who’s leading the warm-up today?”
„My turn!” squeaked Patrycja, jumping onto the table. „First bends to the right, then to the left!”
The detectives moved briskly – Kuba swayed his hips, Alfred stretched his back, and Zofia reached her neck up to the ceiling. After a few minutes, everyone was awake and ready for a day full of mysteries.
After exercise, the four sat down for breakfast. Kuba settled comfortably, waiting for steak cookies. Patrycja set the table, laying out cheese cookies for herself, palm cookies for Zofia, and ant cookies for Alfred.
„Something’s not right…” murmured Kuba, looking around the kitchen. „Where are our treats?”
Alfred lifted his nose and began sniffing intensely.
„I smell a trail! Someone’s been here!” he announced, following the scent to the cupboard.
Zofia opened it and sighed loudly.
„Empty! All our treats are gone!”
Patrycja immediately grabbed her magnifying glass and began examining the kitchen.
„Look! Small paw prints on the counter! And… what’s this?” she pointed to crumbs scattered on the floor.
„This will be our first case today,” decided Kuba, adjusting his hat. „But first, we must take clients. In five minutes, the morning advice session begins!”
On the veranda, the first guests were already waiting. Tiger Tymoteusz was nervously hopping.
„Detectives! Help! Someone keeps stealing my favorite mangoes from the tree by my house!” he explained anxiously.
„Calm down, Tymoteusz,” said Zofia gently. „Did you notice any tracks?”
„Only strange prints on the ground, like someone was jumping very high…”
Alfred wrote everything down in his notebook, while Patrycja searched her archive of similar cases.
The second client was Parrot Piotr.
„My mirror is missing!” he cried desperately. „Without it, I can’t check if my feathers are perfectly arranged!”
„When did you last see it?” Kuba asked.
„Last night before I went to sleep. It was in its place!”
Lastly, Owl Sara shuffled in, very tired.
„Detectives, I have a serious problem,” she said quietly. „My journal with notes is missing. I kept observations of the jungle’s night life in it, and this morning I noticed it was gone from my hollow.
Patrycja immediately perked up.
„Notes? I keep a journal too!” she showed her notebook. „What exactly was in your journal?”
„All my observations, including recipes for various treats I watched animals prepare in the jungle.”
The four detectives exchanged glances.
„I think our cases might be connected,” Alfred stated. „Our treats disappeared this morning too.”
After seeing off the clients, the detectives gathered for a meeting.
„We must find Sara’s journal,” decided Kuba. „The key to the mystery of our missing treats might be there.”
„Let’s start by examining the traces in our kitchen,” suggested Patrycja, ready with her magnifying glass.
Zofia leaned over the counter.
„These crumbs… it’s flower pollen! And from a rare orchid that grows only in one place in the jungle!”
„At the Whispering Waterfall!” Alfred exclaimed. „I also smell a faint scent of honey. Whoever took our treats must have gone there.”
Kuba stood up energetically.
„Team, we’re setting out! The Whispering Waterfall awaits!”
The path to the waterfall led through dense jungle. Zofia watched for trails and dangers from above.
„I see something strange at the fork in the path!” she called. „Some colorful marks on the trees!”
Patrycja looked closely.
„These are clues! Someone left a trail!” she squeaked excitedly, taking notes.
Alfred sniffed intensely.
„I smell… paper! And ink! Sara’s journal must have passed this way!”
Following the signs and scent, they reached a clearing near the waterfall. Suddenly, they heard quiet giggles.
„Someone’s there!” Kuba whispered, hiding behind a bush.
Behind a large rock, they saw… Monkey Maciej, surrounded by a pile of treats and flipping through Owl Sara’s notebook.
„Got you!” roared Kuba, jumping out of hiding. Maciej jumped, dropping the journal.
„It’s not what you think!” squeaked Maciej, trying to hide.
„You stole our treats and Sara’s journal!” Patrycja accused, waving her magnifying glass.
„And Tymoteusz’s mangoes!” added Zofia, seeing the pile of fruit.
„And probably Piotr’s mirror too!” Alfred chimed in, pointing to a shiny object.
Maciej sighed.
„I’m sorry… I just wanted to organize a surprise! Tomorrow is Jungle Day, and I wanted to prepare a party for all the residents. From Sara’s journal, I learned what treats everyone likes…”
„A party?” Zofia was surprised. „But why didn’t you tell anyone?”
„I wanted it to be a surprise! I borrowed Piotr’s mirror for decoration, and Tymoteusz’s mangoes were going to be part of the cake!”
Alfred sniffed the prepared dishes.
„I must admit, it smells wonderful,” he murmured appreciatively.
Patrycja looked through Maciej’s notes.
„Party plan… guest list… decorations…” she read. „You really worked hard!”
Kuba took off his hat and scratched his mane.
„We appreciate your intentions, but you can’t just take others’ things without asking. Everyone was worried!”
The monkey lowered his head.
„You’re right. I’m sorry. I should have asked.”
Zofia suggested,
„How about we finish preparing the party together? We’ll help you, and you return everything and apologize to the owners.”
Maciej brightened.
„Really? You’d help me?”
„Of course!” roared Kuba. „But first, breakfast! I’m as hungry as… well, a lion!”
Everyone burst out laughing. Alfred was already reaching for ant cookies, Patrycja arranged cheese treats on a plate, and Zofia crunched palm cookies.
The next day, the whole jungle enjoyed a wonderful party. Tiger Tymoteusz admired the mango cake, Parrot Piotr admired the shiny decorations, and Owl Sara proudly watched everyone enjoying treats from her recipes.
„See?” Patrycja whispered to her friends, noting something in her journal. „Sometimes the biggest mysteries have the simplest solutions.”
„And the tastiest!” added Alfred, licking his nose stained with cake.
Lion Kuba raised his hat in a toast.
„To Jungle Mysteries! There’s no secret we can’t solve!”
And so ended another adventure of the detectives who knew that true friendship and cooperation are the best tools for solving even the most mysterious puzzles.Konto@Austria2021