Morning Routine

Creative Daniel Tiger stretched his orange arms as sunlight streamed through the massive windows of his penthouse. The ten-star hotel towered beneath him, and Make Believe City sprawled out like a colorful carpet below. His black and blue supersuit hung neatly on a hook beside his red cape.

"Good morning, Make Believe City!" he called out, adjusting his stylish black goggles.

His phone buzzed on the marble counter. A text from his friend Katerina Kittycat appeared: "Daniel! Something weird is happening at the bakery. The door seems smaller than yesterday!"

Daniel Tiger tilted his head. "Smaller door? That's strange."

He slipped into his supersuit and fastened his cape. The city looked perfectly normal from up here—buildings reaching toward the sky, streets bustling with morning activity, citizens heading to work.

Another text arrived, this time from Prince Wednesday: "My castle feels bigger inside today. Really big. Like giant-big."

Daniel Tiger frowned. Two odd messages in one morning felt like more than coincidence. He grabbed his cape and headed for the elevator.

The Cricket's Warning

The elevator dinged as Daniel Tiger stepped into the marble lobby. Citizens hurried past—foxes in business suits, rabbits carrying briefcases, bears chatting on phones. Everything looked normal sized.

Outside, morning air filled his lungs as he jogged toward the bakery district. His cape fluttered behind him while his goggles caught the sunlight.

"Daniel!" Katerina Kittycat, an orange tabby cat in a pink apron, waved from across the street. She stood outside her family's bakery, hands on her hips. "Look at this!"

She pointed at the wooden door. Daniel Tiger squinted. The door handle sat exactly where it always had—at normal height for Katerina.

"It looks fine to me," he said, crossing the street.

"That's the problem!" Katerina's whiskers twitched with worry. "Yesterday I had to reach up for this handle. Today it's right at my shoulder level."

Daniel Tiger touched the brass knob. Normal size, normal height. But if Katerina had to reach up yesterday...

A cricket hopped onto the sidewalk beside them, chirping frantically. The tiny insect was unusually large—nearly the size of Daniel Tiger's thumb.

"That cricket," he whispered. "It's huge."