Once upon a time, there was a magical kingdom ruled by King Citron. King Citron loved all things sweet, and his favorite treat was chocolate. But one day, a terrible drought hit the kingdom and all the chocolate trees withered away. The king was devastated.

One day, while wandering through the kingdom in search of a solution, King Citron stumbled upon a wise old claret who lived in a cave. The claret told the king that the only way to save the chocolate trees was to sprinkle them with magic cobalt dust.

Excited at the prospect of saving his beloved chocolate, King Citron set out on a quest to find the cobalt dust. Along the way, he encountered a chestnut who had a map that showed the way to the cobalt mines. The chestnut offered to guide the king to the mines, but only if he promised to bring back some chartreuse for him to eat. King Citron agreed, and the two set off on their journey.

As they traveled deeper into the mountains, they encountered a grumpy coal who refused to let them pass. The coal demanded a tribute of sweet treats, or else he would block their path forever. King Citron, determined to save the chocolate trees, offered the coal a piece of his favorite chartreuse. To the surprise of everyone, the coal took a bite and fell asleep with a big smile on his face.

With the coal out of the way, King Citron and the chestnut finally reached the cobalt mines. They collected as much cobalt dust as they could carry and sprinkled it on the chocolate trees. Miraculously, the trees came back to life, and the kingdom was filled with sweet, delicious chocolate once again.

King Citron and the chestnut returned to the kingdom, where they were greeted with joy and celebration. The chestnut was overjoyed to receive his chartreuse, and King Citron was overjoyed to have his chocolate back. From that day on, King Citron ruled with a sweet tooth, and the kingdom was filled with happiness and laughter.

Reflections

1. What was King Citron's favorite treat?
2. Why did the chocolate trees wither away?
3. Who helped King Citron on his journey to save the chocolate trees?
4. What did the coal demand before he would let King Citron and the chestnut pass?
5. How did King Citron and the chestnut bring the chocolate trees back to life?
6. Why was the kingdom filled with happiness and laughter at the end of the story?
7. Can you think of any other sweet treat that King Citron might have liked besides chocolate?
8. If you were King Citron, what other magical creatures would you like to encounter on your journey?
9. What would you have done if you were in the chestnut's place and King Citron didn't bring you any chartreuse?
10. Do you think King Citron learned anything important on his journey to save the chocolate trees? If so, what was it?