It was a chilly morning, one of those when the wind nips at your nose a little. Outside the window, the garden grass sparkled as if someone had scattered lots of glitter. It was frost! Frost is like a fine icy powder that settles on everything during the night: on the grass, on the leaves, on the benches. And when the sun touches it, it sparkles like the stars.

Ale, Viola, Eletta, and Lori were inside, sitting on the soft living room carpet. They were playing with colorful buttons that Mum Grace had found in an old box. There were red, blue, green, yellow buttons, and even some that sparkled like little gems.

"This is my treasure!" said Ale, putting a little pile of buttons in front of himself.

"I want the sparkly ones too!" said Viola with her determined little voice, reaching her hand toward the shiny buttons.

"There are plenty for everyone," said Eletta softly, with her calm voice. She had made a neat row of buttons, from the biggest to the smallest.

Lori instead was running back and forth, rolling a big button as if it were a wheel. "Look how fast it goes!"

Sofia, Ale's black kitten, was curled up near the warm radiator. Dora, the brave tabby cat, watched the buttons with curiosity. Poldo, the big fat cat, was sleeping blissfully, while Milo, the tall and agile cat, occasionally jumped to try to catch a rolling button.

Suddenly, from outside came a sound the children knew well.

"CHUFF CHUFF!"

The four friends all raised their heads together. Ale ran to the window so fast he almost tripped on the carpet.

"It's Toby the Magic Train!" he shouted with sparkling eyes.

Toby the Magic Train was there, in the frost-covered garden. He was a small colorful train, with a big smile painted on the locomotive. He puffed little white steam clouds that mixed with the cold morning air.

The children quickly put on their coats and ran outside. Ale's four cats followed them, slipping out the door.

"Good morning children, what a lovely group!" said Toby the Magic Train. "Today we're going where gold is hidden away, in a secret place no one has found to this day!"

"Where are we going?" asked Viola, pulling up the hood of her jacket.

But Toby the Magic Train didn't answer. He just puffed again and opened his colorful little doors.

Everyone climbed aboard: first Ale, then Viola who wanted to sit by the window, then Eletta who settled in gently, and finally Lori who jumped inside with a leap. The cats came in too: Sofia sat on Ale's lap, Dora sat near the door like a guardian, Poldo took up a whole seat with his big tummy, and Milo perched on the windowsill.

"CHUFF CHUFF!"

The little train departed. It crossed the garden, then a forest, then a hill, and then... everything went dark! They were entering a cave!

"I'm scared of the dark," whispered Eletta.

"Don't worry," said Ale, taking her hand. "We're all together!"

After a few moments, the train stopped. The little doors opened and a golden light lit up their little faces.

The children stood with their mouths wide open.

They were in an enormous room, full of wonderful things! There were chests overflowing with gold coins, crowns with colorful gems, pearl necklaces, and jewels that sparkled more than the frost in the garden. The walls themselves seemed to shine!

"A treasure room!" exclaimed Lori, running toward a pile of coins.

But something was moving among the treasures. Something small.

"Who's there?" asked Viola in a loud voice, she wasn't scared.

From behind a chest poked out a furry little snout with two round ears and two black little eyes. It was a little mouse! But not a city mouse that lives in houses. It was a country mouse, the kind that lives in barns where seeds and grain are kept. He had light brown fur, a round tummy, and two little paws that never stayed still.

"Oh, have you come to take the treasures too?" said the little mouse in a thin little voice. Then he sniffed the air and rubbed his tummy. "Do you have anything to eat? I'm always terribly hungry!"

"What's your name?" asked Ale, crouching down to look at him better.

"My name is Pip," said the little mouse. "And I'm here because I'm hoarding everything!"

Eletta tilted her little head. "What does hoarding mean?"

Pip sat down on a little gold coin. "Hoarding means putting together lots and lots of things. I take everything I find and put it here! So I have lots and lots and lots!"

Indeed, the room was full of everything. But looking carefully, the children saw that there weren't only treasures. There were also acorns, seeds, dry leaves, pebbles, and even old cheese rinds that smelled a bit stinky!

"But..." said Viola looking around. "There's too much stuff here! There's not even room to sit!"

It was true. The room was so full that you had to be careful where you put your feet.

Pip the little mouse sighed. "I know. My friends don't come to visit me anymore. They say there's no room for them."

"You've filled everything up!" said Lori, who had tried to sit down but had only found piles of things.

Ale looked at the little mouse. He who loved running and jumping understood how awful it was not to have space to move.

"But do you really need all these things?" he asked.

Pip scratched an ear. "Well... I took them because I liked them. Or because maybe one day I would need them. Or because..."

"But the cheese is all moldy," said Eletta, holding her nose. "You can't eat it!"

"And these acorns are broken," said Viola, picking one up. "They're no good anymore."

Pip lowered his little eyes. "It's true. I took everything without thinking. And now..."

Suddenly there was a very loud noise! CRAAAACK!

A pile of chests began to shake. They had been stacked one on top of another, too many, too high! And now they were about to fall!

"Watch out!" shouted Dora the cat, who was always ready for danger.

CRASH BANG!

The chests came tumbling down with a tremendous clatter! Gold coins rolled everywhere, gems bounced on the floor!

Ale grabbed Eletta by the arm and pulled her away just in time. Viola threw herself behind a column. Lori took shelter under Toby the Magic Train. The cats jumped high: Milo made an incredible leap, Sofia hid, Poldo rolled away like a furry ball!

When the noise ended, everyone looked at each other. No one was hurt, fortunately.

But Pip was trembling all over. "Did you see? This happens because I have too much stuff! It's dangerous!"

"We have to help you," said Ale, getting up and dusting off his trousers. "We have to create a place where everyone can be comfortable."

Viola nodded decisively. "We need to put away the things that aren't needed!"

"But how do we do it?" asked Pip. "There are so many!"

Ale had an idea. "Let's play a game! We'll look at each thing and decide: is it really needed, or not?"

And so they began. Ale picked up an object and showed it to Pip. "This blue gem?"

"It's pretty!" said Pip. "I'll keep it!"

"All right. And this old bone?"

Pip thought about it. "Actually... I'm not a dog. I don't need it."

"Away!" said Lori, tossing it into a basket.

Eletta found a pile of dry leaves. "And these?"

"I took them because they were colorful," said Pip. "But now they're all brown and broken."

"Then they're not needed anymore," said Eletta gently.

They went on like this. Viola was great at deciding quickly: "Needed!" or "Not needed!" Eletta put things away delicately. Lori ran to fetch faraway objects. And Ale coordinated everything, jumping from one part of the room to another.

Sometimes Pip made mistakes. Once he wanted to keep a mountain of moldy seeds, but the children explained that they would give him a tummy ache.

"It's not easy!" said Pip, a bit sad. "I've lost... I've lost so many things."

Ale sat down next to him. "You haven't lost, Pip. You're winning!"

"How winning?"

"Look!" said Ale, pointing to the room.

And Pip looked. Now there was space! Lots of space! A cozy corner with the most beautiful treasures, nicely arranged. A soft little spot for sleeping. And most importantly, there was room to walk, jump, and let friends in!

"It's... it's beautiful!" squeaked Pip.

"See?" said Viola, with her hands on her hips. "With fewer things you're better off!"

Pip did a somersault from happiness. "Now I can invite my friends! There's room for everyone!"

At that moment Toby the Magic Train whistled softly.

"It's time to go," said Eletta, who already felt her little eyes getting a bit heavy.

The children said goodbye to Pip with lots of hugs. The little mouse smelled a little bit like toasted seeds, now that the smell of old cheese was gone.

"Thank you friends!" said Pip. "I've learned something important: I shouldn't take everything, but only what I really need!"

They climbed onto the train. The cats settled in: Sofia in Ale's arms, Dora on guard, Poldo lying down, Milo perched.

Toby the Magic Train looked at them and said in his gentle voice: "Keep little but good, that's the secret indeed! Who never wastes anything lives happy, guaranteed!"

"CHUFF CHUFF!"

The little train crossed the cave, the forest, the hill, and brought the children back to their home garden. The frost had melted and the sun was peeking out between the white clouds.

When they got off, the children were tired but happy.

"I liked helping Pip," said Ale.

"And now he has a nice tidy home," said Eletta with a smile.

Viola nodded. "And he understood that you don't need to have everything!"

Lori ran toward the house. "I'm going to see if I have too many toys!"

And everyone laughed.

Mum Grace came out into the garden and picked up Ale, hugging him tight.

"How was the adventure, my darling?"

Ale smiled. "We learned that you should only use what you need, without wasting. Because if you take too many things, there's no more room for the important things... like friends!"

And this is the moral of the story: we shouldn't waste. Take only what we really need, without hoarding too many things. Because the most beautiful things in life aren't treasures, but the space to play, friends to be with, and the love of the people who care about us.

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