It was a full moon evening, and the sky was clear, white with stars. Outside Lily's living room window, the snow was falling slowly, like many white feathers dancing in the air. Inside the house, there was a special joy: it was the night of the secret pajama party.

Lily, in her flower pajamas with her blue eyes full of light, had set everything up. On the living room rug there were pillows, a soft blanket, a flashlight, a plate of cookies and a picture book.

"Tonight we all sleep here!" Lily said to her friends. "Under the big window, so we can see the moon!"

Ziggy, lively as always, jumped onto the couch in his rocket pajamas. "I'll be the moon guard!" he shouted, laughing.

Skye, tall and quiet, sat on the rug and hugged a pillow. "I'll watch the snow. It's beautiful."

Dash came running in his little-stars pajamas. "And I'll be the cookie chef!" he said, and ate one right away.

The four friends laughed. The full moon came through the big window and painted everything silver: the rug, the pillows, even the children's eyelashes. It really seemed that something magical was about to happen.

Then, suddenly, a noise came from Lily's bedroom.

BAM!

And then many angry voices.

"Me! I'm her favorite!"

"No, ME! She hugs me every night!"

"Vroooom! I lead the way!"

Lily jumped up. She had recognized the voices.

"It's my toys," she whispered. "They're fighting."

The four friends looked at each other and tiptoed to the bedroom. The door was half open. Inside, in the silver moonlight, the toys had woken up.

The brown Teddy Bear, fluffy, with a cloth heart sewn on his chest, was red with anger. "I am her favorite!" he shouted. "She hugs me every night before bed!"

The Doll, with yellow hair and blue button eyes, pushed him away. "No, ME! She brushes my hair every morning, dresses me, talks to me!"

The red Toy Car zoomed back and forth on the nightstand, shouting "Vrooom! Vroooom! I'm the fastest, and Lily plays with me every afternoon!"

And even the Puzzle, a box of colorful pieces, was banging on the table, saying: "When it rains, she only plays with me! So I'm her favorite!"

Lily curled up behind the door. Her heart felt tight.

"I love them all," she whispered. "Truly. Why are they fighting like this?"

Ziggy put a hand on her shoulder. "Maybe they don't know that you love them all."

Skye nodded. "Maybe they're scared."

Dash made a funny face. "Scared of what?"

"Scared of not being enough," said Skye, in her quiet voice.

Lily felt a tear rise to her eyes. But just then, from under the living room couch behind them, they heard a very funny sound.

POP! BLOP! POP!

And a laugh. A fresh laugh, like a little bubble popping.

"Hehehehe! Hohohoho! HAHAHAHA!"

The children went back to the living room and, under the silver moon, saw something strange: a sock that was hopping. A sock with yellow and blue stripes, a bit floppy at the tip, that rolled up and unrolled like a very funny caterpillar, and moved with little hops.

"What is that?!" Ziggy laughed.

The sock stopped in front of Lily and gave a little bow, unrolling until it looked like a very long snake.

"Hello, children!" he said, still laughing. "I'm Sockie! I'm a sock without a partner. I smell like lavender, because I slept a long time in the linen drawer."

Skye leaned down and sniffed. "It's true, he smells nice!"

Dash burst out laughing. "A talking sock!"

"And one that laughs!" added Sockie. "Hehehe! Do you know why I always laugh? Because I lost my twin a long time ago, and laughing helps me not feel alone. Laughter, dear children, is a light companion that holds your hand."

Lily was puzzled. "What's a light companion?" she asked.

Sockie gave a little hop. "It's when something, even small, makes you feel less alone. A laugh, a song, a good thought. It's a companion that weighs little, but fills you up a lot!"

Lily nodded. She liked that idea.

Then Sockie heard the voices still shouting from the bedroom.

"And those? Are they fighting?" he asked.

"Yes," said Lily, sadly. "My toys think they're not enough."

Sockie rolled up and unrolled twice. "Fighting to be the favorite? I don't even have my partner, and I still laugh! Children, I have an idea."

"What?" asked Ziggy, jumping.

"We must build something new," said Sockie. "Something that keeps them all together. So no one feels less loved. And maybe I'll find a place to belong too!"

Dash clapped his hands. "Something new! Wonderful!"

"But how do we do it?" asked Skye.

And just then, from the enchanted window came a distant sound.

CHUG CHUG!

The moon seemed to smile. Outside, the snow grew brighter. And on the living room rug, from who knows where, a silver track appeared. On the track, a tiny train, made of colored wood, with windows warm with light.

"Toby!" the children shouted, happy.

The magic train let out a big puff of steam and said, in rhyme:

"CHUG CHUG! Hop aboard, dear friends, let us go,
to a wonderful place where new things grow!
With boxes and ribbons and buttons and string,
even grumpy little hearts will sing!"

The children laughed. Sockie jumped on the wagon first, rolled up like a ring. Then Lily got on, with her toys in her arms: the Teddy Bear, the Doll, the Toy Car and the Puzzle, still a bit angry but curious. Behind Lily, Ziggy, Skye and Dash got on.

CHUG CHUG! The little train left through the window as if the window were a door, and outside there was no more snow, there was a sky of cloth with button stars.

Soon they arrived in a strange and beautiful place: the Workshop of New Things. It was a big meadow of cardboard boxes, with towers of cork stoppers, rivers of colorful ribbons, mountains of buttons of every color, and bushes of soft fabric scraps.

"Wow!" said Ziggy.

"How beautiful!" sighed Skye.

"It looks like a bakery, but of things!" laughed Dash.

Sockie hopped down and said: "Here, every forgotten thing can become something new. Children and toys, we must build something that brings us all together. All together. No one left out."

Lily knelt down in front of her toys. "Do you want to try?" she asked. "Together?"

The Teddy Bear crossed his paws. "Mmh."

The Doll gave a half smile. "Maybe."

The Toy Car gave a little honk. "Let's see."

The Puzzle wiggled a little piece. "Okay."

And so they began.

Ziggy grabbed a huge cardboard box and said: "This is the body!"

Dash came with a pile of stoppers. "And these are the scales!"

Skye chose a soft red fabric. "And this is the belly!"

Lily looked at her toys. "Now it's your turn. Each of you must give a piece of yourself."

The Teddy Bear, a little moved, took off his felt ears. "For the head," he said, in a low voice.

The Doll took off her two blue button eyes. "For the eyes," she said, and smiled.

The Toy Car rolled underneath and pulled out her four wheels. "To make him walk," she said, proudly.

And the Puzzle opened his box and pulled out the most colorful pieces. "To make him wings," he said.

And then they all turned to Sockie.

"And you?" asked Lily, sweetly.

Sockie rolled up, gave a little hop and laughed. "Me? Hehehe! I'm long, I'm a bit floppy, I have no partner. I'll be the tail! The softest, sweetest-smelling, laughing-est tail in the world!"

The children laughed.

All together they started to build. Ziggy glued the stopper-scales onto the box with the Workshop's magic glue. Skye sewed the red fabric belly. Dash placed the Puzzle wings. Lily attached the button eyes and put the Teddy ears on the head. The Toy Car wheels were placed under the belly. And at the back, standing straight and happy, they attached Sockie: the long tail with yellow and blue stripes, a bit floppy at the tip, that smelled of lavender.

When they were finished, they all looked at it, in silence.

"It's a dragon," whispered Skye.

"A huge dragon," said Dash, with round eyes.

"The dragon belongs to everyone," said Ziggy.

"The dragon belongs to everyone," repeated Lily, and her eyes shone. Not with tears, with joy.

The Teddy Bear came close to the dragon. "His ears... are mine."

The Doll touched the button eyes. "Those are my eyes."

The Toy Car gave a little PEEP-PEEP. "He walks with my wheels!"

The Puzzle wiggled a little piece. "His wings are made of me."

And Sockie, at the back, wagged the very soft tail. "And I'm not alone anymore. I'm part of the dragon, hahaha!"

Then the Workshop of New Things lit up silver, because the full moon had arrived there too. And they heard the whistle.

CHUG CHUG!

Toby the Magic Train was ready to take them home. The children, the toys and the brand new dragon climbed on. The little train puffed and said, sweetly, in rhyme:

"CHUG CHUG! Back to the couch we glide,
with a handmade dragon by our side!
When each one belongs to something we share,
the home grows sweet and warm with care!"

The journey was short like a dream. The enchanted window opened again, the snow kept falling, and the children found themselves in Lily's living room, on the rug, with the huge dragon between them.

The toys looked at each other. No one was shouting anymore. No one was saying "I'm the favorite".

The Teddy Bear said: "Now my ears are inside the dragon. But the dragon belongs to everyone. So I belong to everyone too."

The Doll smiled. "And I'm not alone with my eyes anymore. We share them."

The Toy Car spun in a little circle. "My wheels walk for everyone now."

And the Puzzle, content, said: "My pieces fly."

Sockie laughed quietly, and smelled even more strongly of lavender. "And I... finally I'm not alone. I'm part of the dragon. I'm part of you."

Lily hugged them all, one by one, and then hugged the dragon, very long, with blue eyes full of moon.

"You never stopped being mine," she whispered to the toys. "All of you. Truly."

Ziggy, Skye and Dash gathered around Lily and the dragon. Outside, the snow kept falling softer, and the moon, from the window, seemed to smile right at them.

The children fell asleep next to one another, under the blanket, with the dragon as a pillow, smelling of lavender. And in the living room, no one fought anymore. Indeed: each one had their little piece inside something bigger. And they all felt that the living room, on that full moon night, was the sweetest place in the world.