The Golden Cage II: Off the Page with a Clever Firebird Rescue

Secret Keeper by Tommy D.
Pipecleaner and felt

The first adventure of the season featured our youngest detectives taking on the challenges of Koschei the Deathless and his Skeleton Knights. Our team used some clever magic to escape the clutches of Grubach the Skeleton Knight--they shrank him to the size of ant. They showed both courage and kindness when they stopped to help an old skeleton woman--and gained her help in the form of dolls. To see the dolls visit the Dragon's Eye Ventures Facebook page.

My favorite off-the-page moments: Drew's fire water sheep that drove away the skeleton knights but forgot to rescue the detectives from their bone cages, the ID's that transformed into IPhones for quick calls to Perun the god of lightning, and Thomas' idea to offer Baba Yaga alternative foods to her daily diet of children. She's eating pizza, brownies and black bean soup these days, thanks to our culinary wizards.

The adventurer's favorite games of the week: The dandelions Baba Yaga sent them to collect (They weren't just flowers ... ) and the flying foam Frisbee games (bone cage spells from the Skeleton Knights). The Vermilion Bird of Life (also known as the Firebird) was saved from the Golden Cage, and Koschei the Deathless has been sent packing. Even the witch Baba Yaga is happy--the Detectives left her with money for pizza, a gift certificate (for more pizza), and the cell phone number for pizza delivery to the Thrice-Ten Lands.