It was a windy afternoon. The dry leaves were flying in the garden like little brown butterflies. Ale, Viola, Eletta, and Lori were inside the house, nice and warm, and they were building a big castle with the blankets from the sofa.

"I'll put this blue blanket up here!" said Ale, jumping from one side to the other with his usual energy.

"No, it'll all fall down like that!" exclaimed Viola with her decisive voice, while she arranged a cushion to hold up a corner.

Eletta, with her calm eyes, held the green blanket steady. Lori ran to get more cushions, super fast as always.

Ale's four cats were nearby. Sophie, the black kitten, was sleeping on an armchair. Dora, the brave tabby cat, was watching everything carefully. Poldo, big and soft, was purring while lying on the carpet. Milo, the most agile one, had jumped on top of a piece of furniture and was watching the children from above.

"There, the castle is ready!" said Lori, all happy.

But right at that moment, from outside came a sound that everyone knew well.

"CHUFF CHUFF!"

The children looked at each other with sparkling eyes. Even the cats pricked up their ears.

"It's Toby!" shouted Ale, and ran to the window.

Outside, among the flying leaves, there was the magic train. It was small and colorful, with a lovely smokestack that puffed out little blue clouds.

Toby the Magic Train whistled and said:
"Hello children, friends so dear, today I'll take you somewhere new, have no fear! Shining mirrors and hidden lands, get ready now, join hands in hands!"

The children didn't quite understand what he meant, but they were too excited to think about it. They ran out into the garden. The four cats followed them too: Sophie walked elegantly, Dora ran ahead, Poldo trotted along with his tummy swaying, and Milo made big leaps through the bushes.

Everyone climbed onto the magic train. The children sat on the little red velvet seats, and the cats curled up at their feet.

"CHUFF CHUFF!" went Toby, and off they went.

The train went through a tunnel of colorful light. Outside the window, the children saw stars and rainbows spinning around. Then, everything turned white.

When the train stopped, the children's jaws dropped.

In front of them was a forest, but it was all covered in snow! The trees looked like they were made of cream, with white branches that sparkled. In the sky there was an enormous moon, round and bright, that made the snow shine like it was made of diamonds.

"How beautiful!" whispered Eletta, her eyes full of wonder.

"But where are we?" asked Viola, looking around carefully.

In the middle of the forest there was a strange little house, all made of mirrors. The walls were mirrors, the roof was a mirror, even the door was a shiny mirror.

"Let's go see!" said Ale, and he started running toward the little house. Dora, the brave cat, ran with him.

When the children entered the little house, they were speechless.

Inside there were lots and lots of mirrors, but they weren't normal mirrors. Each mirror showed a different world! In one you could see a meadow full of purple flowers. In another there was a sea with blue waves. In yet another there was an orange sky with colorful birds.

"Look at this one!" said Lori, pointing to a mirror that showed a mountain made of crystals.

But right at that moment, they heard a noise. It was a strange noise, like someone crying without making a sound.

Behind a big mirror, sitting on the ground, there was a dwarf.

Dwarves are very small little men, shorter than children, with long beards and pointy hats. This dwarf had a red beard, a green little hat, and wore around his neck a small crystal that sparkled like a little star.

The dwarf saw the children and stood up, hopping toward them. He smelled of honey and cinnamon, a lovely smell. He opened his mouth to speak, but no sound came out. Nothing. Silence.

The dwarf touched his throat and shook his head, sad.

"He can't speak!" said Viola, understanding right away.

The dwarf nodded strongly. Then he began making gestures with his hands, trying to explain something. He pointed to a mirror, then to his heart, then made the gesture of something flying away.

"Did he lose his voice?" asked Eletta quietly.

The dwarf nodded again, and a little tear rolled down his cheek.

Ale went up to the dwarf and took his hand. "Don't worry, we'll help you!"

The dwarf pulled out a little piece of paper and a pencil from his pocket. He wrote something and showed it to the children. It said: "My name is Taddeo. I'm a dwarf from the mine. I loved to sing while I worked. But the witch of the black mirror stole my voice because I sang too much. To get it back, I must find someone with an INDOMITABLE heart."

"What does indomitable mean?" asked Lori, scratching his head.

Viola and Eletta also looked at the paper, confused.

The dwarf Taddeo wrote again: "Indomitable means brave, someone who never gives up, even when things are hard."

"Oh, I understand!" said Ale. "Like when I fall and hurt myself, but then I get back up and keep playing!"

The dwarf Taddeo smiled and nodded strongly.

"And where do we have to go?" asked Viola, always practical.

Taddeo pointed to a mirror at the back of the room. It was different from the others: it was all black, like a night without stars. It was a little scary.

Ale's cats approached the black mirror. Milo hissed at it. Dora positioned herself in front of the children, ready to protect them. Sophie hid behind Ale's legs. Poldo stayed back, but kept his eyes wide open.

"Do we have to go in there?" asked Eletta, squeezing Viola's hand.

The dwarf Taddeo wrote: "Yes. In there is the witch. Only a strong heart can win."

Ale looked at his friends. "I'm not scared. Shall we go together?"

Viola nodded with determination. "Together we're stronger!"

Lori took a big breath. "I'm fast, if we need to run, I'll run!"

Eletta smiled softly. "I'm coming with you."

All together, children, cats, and the dwarf Taddeo, they went through the black mirror.

On the other side, everything was dark. You could hardly see anything. There was only a faint light in the distance.

"I'm scared," whispered Eletta.

"Let's hold hands," said Viola, and everyone held hands.

They walked toward the light. The cats stayed close, with Dora in front and Milo watching behind.

Then they saw her.

The witch was a tall woman, dressed in black, with eyes that shone like the moon. She held in her hand a glass bottle, and inside the bottle there was a small golden light that trembled.

"Taddeo's voice!" Ale realized.

The witch laughed. It was a cold laugh that gave you shivers.

"Have you come to take back the chattering dwarf's voice?" said the witch. "To do that, you must prove you have a strong heart. But true strength isn't in the muscles. True strength is in the heart. Solve my challenge, and I'll give you the bottle."

"What challenge?" asked Viola, her voice steady even though she was a little scared.

The witch pointed to three doors that appeared from nowhere. "Behind each door is something scary. You must go through all three rooms without running away. If you run away, the dwarf's voice will stay mine forever."

The children looked at each other. They were scared, but they thought about poor Taddeo who couldn't sing anymore.

"We can do it," said Ale. "With our hearts."

They opened the first door.

Inside was total darkness. You couldn't see anything. Eletta started to shake. But Sophie, the black kitten, rubbed against her legs, and Eletta felt less alone.

"Let's keep going," she said. And they crossed through the darkness holding tight to each other.

They opened the second door.

Inside was a very loud noise, like thunder that never stopped. Lori covered his ears. But then he saw Poldo walking calmly, without fear, and he thought: "If a cat can do it, so can I!" And he went forward.

They opened the third door.

Inside was a giant mirror that showed the ugliest things: monsters, storms, scary shadows. Viola clenched her fists. She was very scared, but she looked at her friends, looked at Ale who was smiling at her, and thought about a strong heart.

"These are just images," said Viola. "They're not real. My heart is stronger!"

And she crossed the room. Everyone followed her.

When they came out of the third door, the witch was there. But she didn't look mean anymore. She was smiling.

"You have passed the test," she said. "You have shown that true strength comes from the heart. You didn't run away, even though you were scared. This is true strength."

The witch gave the bottle to Ale.

Ale opened it, and the golden light flew toward Taddeo. The dwarf opened his mouth and...

"HOORAY!" shouted Taddeo with his recovered voice. "I can speak! I can sing! Oh, thank you wonderful children! You were so brave! You have a big heart!"

Taddeo was so happy that he started hopping and singing a cheerful little song. His voice was beautiful and clear.

The witch disappeared like smoke, and the children found themselves back in the room with the shining mirrors.

"CHUFF CHUFF!"

Toby the Magic Train was outside, waiting for them.

Taddeo hugged each child and each cat. "I will never forget you! I will always sing a song for you!"

The children climbed onto the train. The cats jumped on too.

Toby the Magic Train said:
"Through darkness and thunder's roar, you used your hearts even more. The strength that's great and true, shines like an evening star for you!"

"CHUFF CHUFF!"

The train departed, went through the tunnel of colorful lights, and brought everyone back home.

When the children returned to the garden, the wind had calmed down. The leaves weren't flying anymore.

That evening, Ale told everything to Max and Grace. His parents listened carefully.

"Do you know what I learned?" said Ale, while Grace held him tight in a warm hug. "That true strength isn't in the muscles. It's here." And he put a hand on his heart.

Max smiled with his usual calm and said: "That's exactly right, Ale. A brave heart can do things that muscles cannot do."

Ale fell asleep that night thinking about the dwarf Taddeo singing, happy to have found his voice again thanks to the strength of the heart.

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**The moral of this story is:** True strength isn't in the muscles, but in the heart. When we're scared, we shouldn't run away. If we stay brave inside, even if we tremble a little outside, we can do wonderful things. A strong heart is more powerful than any big muscle!

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