🐭 Luna, Max and Nico - At The House of El Ratón Pérez 🐭

🐭 In Spain, the Tooth Fairy isn’t just a normal fairy at all, he’s a mouse - El Ratón Pérez!

El Ratón Pérez is Spain’s very own “mouse tooth fairy”, the tiny nighttime visitor who collects children’s lost teeth from under their pillows and leaves behind a coin, a note, or a little surprise. Some children swear they’ve heard his soft footsteps. Others say they’ve seen his shadow dash past the door. But everyone agrees on one thing.

El Ratón Pérez is real… in the way that all the best childhood magic is real.

Once upon a sunny day in the Axarquía, a little tooth wobbled in a little mouth. It belonged to Luna. Luna lived near the sea, where the waves never stopped whispering secrets to the sand. But today, Luna had a different secret.

“My tooth is loose,” Luna told Mum, trying to sound brave. Max, who was visiting after school, leaned in close like it was the most important news in the world. Nico lifted his ears too, because any big news might involve snacks.

Mum smiled. “Then you know what that means…”

“El Ratón Pérez,” Luna whispered, as if saying his name too loudly might scare him away.

Max’s eyes went wide. “He’s real? Like… Spain’s tooth fairy?”

Luna nodded seriously. “He’s a mouse tooth fairy. A very professional one.”

Nico gave a small “woof,” which could have meant, I respect professionals.

That night, Luna tucked her tooth safely under her pillow. Max stayed for dinner and kept glancing at the pillow like he expected it to wiggle. Nico lay at the end of the bed, pretending he was only resting, but really he was listening for tiny footsteps.

Luna tried to stay awake, just in case she heard them. But sleep came like a warm blanket, and the moon quietly climbed the sky.

In the morning, the tooth was gone.

In its place was a shiny coin… and a note.

It was folded very neatly, the way mice would fold things if mice wrote notes.

Luna opened it carefully. Max held his breath. Nico scooted closer and sniffed the air, just in case the note smelled like cheese.

It said:

“Hola, Luna.
Thank you for taking such good care of your tooth.
If you ever want to visit me, come to Moclinejo and follow my signs.
They will show you the way.
— El Ratón Pérez”

Luna’s eyes grew wide.

“Mum!” she shouted. “He has signs! In Moclinejo!”

Max nearly bounced off the sofa. “A mission!”

Nico barked once, which definitely meant, I am coming too.

And so, after breakfast, they set off inland, leaving the sea behind and climbing into the hills, where the air smells a little bit like sunshine and rosemary. Max pressed his face to the window and watched the landscape change.

“It’s like going from beach world to mountain world,” he said.

Luna nodded. “And somewhere in that world… a mouse has a house.”

When they arrived in Moclinejo, the village looked like it was made from white sugar cubes, stacked gently on the hillside. Pots of flowers sat on doorsteps. The streets curled and twisted like they were trying to hide something.

Nico trotted along proudly, blue bandana first, like the leader of the expedition.

Luna hopped out of the car and whispered,

“Okay. I’m ready.”

“Ready for what?” Mum asked. Max answered before Luna could.

“For the directions.”

At first, Mum didn’t see anything at all. But Luna did.

“Look!” she cried, pointing at a wall. “A plaque!”

It was fixed onto the whitewashed wall like a little message from a secret world. And there, clear as day, was an arrow, like a friendly finger pointing the way.

“This is it,” Luna said. “This is how we find him.” They followed the arrow.

Max leaned closer to the plaque. “Does it say anything else?”

“Not this one,” Luna said. “But it’s definitely a clue.”

They walked past a doorway with flowerpots, past a balcony with washing dancing in the breeze, past a sleepy cat who didn’t even open one eye. Nico stared at the cat. The cat stared back like it had seen a hundred dogs on important missions.

Then Luna spotted another plaque on the next wall. And that one had directions too.

An arrow. A clue. A little “this way” that made the street feel like a storybook. “Oh!” Luna said, spinning around. “He really wants us to find him.”

Max grinned. “Or he really likes giving instructions.”

Mum laughed. “Or both.”

They turned where the plaque told them to turn. They climbed where the plaque told them to climb. They crossed a little corner where the sunlight made bright squares on the ground. Nico’s paws made tiny prints like stamps in soft dust, and Max kept looking around, half expecting a mouse in a tiny hat to wave at them from a doorway.

And every time Max started to worry they might be lost, Luna pointed again.

“Another plaque,” she said calmly.

“This way,” the arrows seemed to say.

“This way.”

“This way.”

Luna’s feet went faster. Max’s heart went faster too. Nico trotted ahead, tail wagging, like he was leading them to the answer.

Then, just as the road curved and the village grew quiet, Luna stopped so suddenly Mum nearly bumped into her.

“There,” Luna whispered.

Max leaned in so close that his hair almost touched the wall. Nico sat down politely, as if he understood this was a serious moment.

Tucked into the wall, almost hidden unless you were looking with very curious eyes, was a tiny little house.

Not a big house like Luna’s. Not even a small house like Granny’s. A mouse house.

It had a little door and a tiny window, and the most wonderful part of all…

“You can peek inside!” Luna gasped.

Max whispered, “Do it. Do it. Do it.”

Luna pressed her face close and looked through.

Inside, it was like a doll’s house, magical. There were tiny ornaments and miniature decorations, and bags for collecting childrens teeth, carefully arranged like someone truly lived there. It looked cosy. It looked real. It looked like El Ratón Pérez might step out at any second carrying a satchel full of teeth and tiny letters.

Max took his turn to peek and went very still.

“Luna,” he whispered, “this is… real.”

Nico stood on tiptoes and tried to peek too, but his nose fogged the tiny window. He sneezed once and then looked extremely proud of himself.

Luna went very still.

“Mum,” she said softly, “he’s not just a story.”

Mum smiled. “No. Sometimes stories leave directions.”

The village was quiet. The sun was warm. The air smelled sweet and clean.

And then, for one second, Luna thought she heard it.

A tiny sound.

A soft shuffle.

A squeak?

Max froze. Nico froze too — ears up, tail still, like a statue.

Or maybe it was only their imagination… but in Moclinejo, imagination feels like part of the real world. Luna took the coin from her pocket and held it gently.

“Thank you,” she whispered toward the tiny house.

Max copied her quietly. “Gracias.”

And because you should always be polite when visiting someone’s home, even if they are a mouse, Luna left something behind.

Not a tooth this time.

Just a little gift.

A tiny smile.

And a promise to return.

Nico placed one tiny pebble beside the mouse house, like a guard dog offering.

That night, back by the sea, Luna climbed into bed. Max stayed over and kept touching his own wobbly tooth just in case. Nico curled up nearby, warm and satisfied, like the official protector of magical places.

Luna touched the gap in her teeth and giggled. Because now she knew something very important.

El Ratón Pérez doesn’t only visit in the night.

Sometimes, if you follow the signs… You can find him in the daytime too. 🐭

Magic Mini Lesson:
Want to invite a little Ratón Pérez magic? Before bed, Luna’s rule is: thank your tooth. Hold it gently (or touch the wobbly one) and whisper: “Thank you for helping me chew and smile.” Then put it safely under the pillow and imagine a tiny mouse with a tiny bag tip-toeing in, very carefully, very kindly. Magic works best when you’re calm, cozy, and ready to dream. 🐭✨

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The Adventures of Luna, Max & Nico is a Nerja Amigos original series. All related frameworks, visuals and templates are proprietary intellectual property of Nerja Amigos / Niina Strobel. Please do not copy, reproduce, or use without permission. © 2026 All rights reserved.