Chocolate Dreams (4 page)

The five fairies found Princess Lolli in the throne room watering a multiflavored jelly bean plant. She looked up and smiled at her guests.

“Hello,” Princess Lolli called. “What a nice surprise to see you all here today.” She lifted the heavy leaves of the plant. Gently, she plucked
a few ripe beans. “Would you care for some fresh jelly beans? The green apple and grape are especially tasty.”

Cocoa stepped forward. “No, thank you,
Princess Lolli,” she said. “We're here with some very bitter news.”

Looking concerned, the princess placed the golden watering can down. She waved the fairies into her chamber. There was a pink throne bejeweled with little pieces of dazzling sugar candies, and there were pink velvet couches for visitors. “Come inside,” she told them. “Tell me what has happened. You all have such sour faces!”

The fairies followed the princess into the
room. Before they even sat down on the princess's
regal couches, Cocoa blurted out, “The chocolate eggs have been stolen from the nest in Choco-late Woods!”

“Stolen?” Princess Lolli asked. She sat in her throne. Her face no longer showed a smile, but
a frown.

“Yes, princess,” Berry said. She moved closer to her. “Raina and I saw a bunch of Chuchies taking the eggs across the river.”

The princess touched her wavy strawberry-colored hair. “Mogu,” she whispered.

“That's what we think,” Dash piped up.

“Oh, princess!” Raina cried out. “Cocoa wants to cross the Frosted Mountains! I told her that it wasn't safe, but she still wants to go!”

Cocoa smiled at Raina. She knew her friend was just nervous for her. “The eggs were my responsibility,” Cocoa said bravely. “I made a promise to protect the eggs. I want to go get them back.” She stood up and walked closer to the candy throne. “The chocolate eggs mean so much to all of Candy Kingdom,” she pleaded.
“The Egg Parade is in two days!”

Princess Lolli looked thoughtfully at Cocoa. “Traveling across the Frosted Mountains is a dangerous journey,” she warned.

“I know,” Cocoa replied. She lowered her head. “But I need to go. The eggs were my responsibility. And now the kingdom is in great danger!”

“Your magic may not be as strong on the other side of the mountains,” Princess Lolli went on. She looked into Cocoa's sad brown eyes. “As we head over the Frosted Mountains, our magic gets weaker.”

“I understand,” Cocoa told her. “But I want to get those eggs back. We need to put a stop to Mogu's stealing.”

The five fairies waited for the princess to respond. They gathered around Cocoa, holding
hands. They stood in silence as they watched the princess decide.

The beautiful fairy princess looked out the large window of her chambers. She was deep in thought. When she finally turned back to look at them, she chose her words carefully.

“Mogu can't get away with stealing our candy,” Princess Lolli said, full of determination. “We have to put a stop to this.”

“I was hoping you'd say that,” Cocoa said. She smiled at the princess.

“We will go together,” Princess Lolli told her. “Just the two of us. The trip is too dangerous to take you all.”

Cocoa's friends looked worried. They wanted to help too. But Princess Lolli's decision was final.

Cocoa clapped her hands.
“Choc-o-rific!”
she
cheered. “Wait till I get my hands on Mogu. …”

Princess Lolli held up her hand. “Wait,” she said. “You will need to follow my every word. The only way to get what we want is to trick Mogu. Tricking an old troll like Mogu is sticky business. We will have to be clever and wise.”

Cocoa nodded her head. “I understand,” she told the princess.

“Mogu has tried to steal candy before,” Princess Lolli said. “But he has never stolen chocolate eggs.”

“I guess now he's got the Chuchies to do his dirty work for him,” Berry said.

“All the more reason to teach him a lesson before the Chuchies become a bigger problem,” Princess Lolli told them.

Raina took a map from her bag. “Here,” she said. She gave the old scroll to the princess. “It's a map
I drew of the Frosted Mountains. I memorized the locations from the Fairy Code Book. I hope it helps you reach Black Licorice Swamp safely.”

Princess Lolli touched Raina's head gently. “Thank you,” she said. “That map will be very useful.” She looked each fairy in the eye. “I don't want all the fairies in the kingdom to panic,” she explained. “This needs to remain a secret for now. Can I count on all of you to keep this quiet?”

The fairies all nodded their heads solemnly.

“We will be back before Sun Dip,” the princess said. “And, hopefully, we will return with the chocolate eggs.”

Cocoa wanted to believe the princess. She hoped that by going on this journey, they would get the eggs back. And stop Mogu from stealing more from the fairies. It was a dangerous plan. Now more than ever she knew she had to be brave.

Black Licorice

Are you ready, Cocoa?” Princess Lolli asked. She stood at the back chocolate gate of the Candy Castle.

Cocoa nodded her head. She had no idea what the journey would be like, or what would happen. She hugged each of her friends.

“Be safe,” Raina told her.

“Watch your wings,” Berry advised. “Trolls are sneaky.”

“Thanks,” Cocoa said. She turned to Dash. “I'll see you soon.”

“You better!” Dash called out.

Melli stood off to the side. She was trying to be brave like her friends. She didn't want to get all gooey; Cocoa wouldn't like that. Still, it was hard for her to be strong as she watched her friend fly into danger.

“We'll be all right,” Cocoa told her. She gave Melli a tight squeeze. Cocoa didn't like to see her upset. “Save some of your caramel sticks for me,” she said. “We'll be back for Sun Dip.”

Melli managed to smile. “Sure as sugar,” she whispered.

Princess Lolli reached out for Cocoa's hand.
Together, they flew off over the Royal Gardens to Red Licorice Lake. Cocoa watched as a bunch of fairies cared for the licorice growing around the cherry-red lake. They were all laughing as they trimmed the thick, sweet stalks.

As she flew, thoughts raced through her head.
What if we can't get the eggs back? What if something happens to Princess Lolli?

When Peppermint Grove came into view, Cocoa tried to push those thoughts out of her head. She had to be strong. Chocolate River was up ahead. She had only been on the other side of the river once, last winter. She had gone to Marshmallow Marsh to gather filling for chocolate squares. The marsh was sticky, but not a scary place at all. Not like Black Licorice Swamp! Cocoa could feel her heart beating faster.

The rumbling of the river interrupted her thoughts. The flight over the river was quick. Cocoa looked down on the fluffy white peaks of Marshmallow Marsh. In a few quick wing strokes, they would be sailing up over the Frosted Mountains.

Cocoa looked at the princess. “What is the plan?” she asked.

Princess Lolli smiled and winked at the Chocolate Fairy. “We just need to stay true to our hearts. Salty old Mogu might be sneaky, but he isn't always wise.”

Cocoa wanted to believe the princess. Still, she was unsure how the two of them could battle the old troll. In the stories she had heard as a young fairy, the troll was sneaky and strong. How could two small fairies be a match for him?

“Have you ever met Mogu?” Cocoa asked.

“Once,” Princess Lolli replied. “I was a young fairy working with a crop of marshmallow blossoms at the edge of the marsh. Mogu thought he could trick me into giving him my basket of candy.”

Cocoa flapped her wings to get closer to the princess. “Were you scared?”

“No,” the princess said. “I knew I could outsmart
him.” She grinned and adjusted the silver crown on her head. “And I did!”

The Frosted Mountains were straight ahead. Cocoa took a deep breath.

“Remember,” Princess Lolli told her, “our
powers are not as strong on this side of the mountains. We will need to use our magic wisely.”

Suddenly Cocoa felt dizzy. She closed her eyes for a second.

“Cocoa, hold on,” Princess Lolli said, gripping
Cocoa's hand tighter. “I know this trip is very difficult.”

Feeling the princess's hand squeeze hers made her feel much better. All at once Cocoa had a burst of energy. When she opened her eyes again, she saw that the princess was smiling.

“The air here makes it hard for fairies to breathe,” Princess Lolli said kindly. “But stay calm and you'll be fine. Come, let's head down to the swamp and find Mogu. Raina's map says this is the right direction.”

Cocoa held tight to Princess Lolli's hand as
they sailed over the Black Licorice Swamp. The smell of the thick, gooey swamp made her nose twitch. Everything around the swamp was black. Not at all like Red Licorice Lake. She longed to see the bright red stalks and wild berry candy bushes
blooming along the Red Licorice Lake shores, and the happy Red Licorice Fairies harvesting the ripe stalks. Here at the dark, gloomy swamp there was no one in sight.

“Look over there!” Princess Lolli said, pointing.

The princess was pointing to a small bridge at the far end of the swamp. The bridge's black licorice bricks were covered in salt and didn't look very sturdy. Surrounding the bridge were tall, thin pretzel sticks. It looked like no one had cared for the pretzels—or the bridge—in years.

“There it is,” Princess Lolli declared. “Mogu's bridge. He's probably in his cave under the bridge.”

“Let's go see,” Cocoa said. She felt a new wave
of energy and was ready to go.

“Wait,” Princess Lolli told her. She held Cocoa back. “Remember, anything that is under the
bridge cannot be removed without the troll's permission. We will need to be clever, and quick.”

Cocoa nodded her head. “Yes, I remember,” she said. She thought of her friends back in Sugar Valley, and tried to be as brave as Princess Lolli. “I'm ready.”

Her head was still feeling strange, and Cocoa wondered if she could fly one more inch. But she knew that she had to keep going.

They flew down and hid behind a large black licorice stalk growing near the bridge. Carefully, they stepped over the rough salted pretzel sticks to get a better view of Mogu.

Cocoa gasped and drew her hands quickly up to her mouth. There was Mogu! His skin was wrinkled and dirty, and his clothes were torn. Just as all the stories described him, he was short and stout with white hair in a rim around his round head. And his large nose was sniffing one of Cocoa's chocolate eggs!

Chocolate Dreams

Princess Lolli and Cocoa stood together in the shadows of Mogu's bridge. The air was misty and cold, and the two fairies huddled close. Quietly, they peered around the salty old licorice bricks.

Cocoa couldn't believe how close she was to the troll! She found that she was less scared now that she saw him. She clutched her fists close to
her side. She had to get those eggs back home!

Mogu was lying lazily on a hammock strung up under the bridge. The eggs were laid out in a black licorice basket before him.

Cocoa wanted to reach out and take the eggs, but she knew that she had to wait for Princess Lolli's instructions. She leaned closer to hear what Mogu was saying.

“Ah, I've missed the smell of chocolate,” he grumbled. He rolled over and put his large nose next to the eggs and breathed deeply. “Ahhhh,” he sighed.

Four Chuchies were sitting around the basket. Their round pom-pom bodies shook as they jumped up and down on their short, thin legs. “Meee, meee, meeeeeeeee,” they chanted in a high-pitched squeal.

“Yes,” Mogu said, petting one Chuchie. “I know you want to eat one.” He grinned, showing off his black teeth. “You did a great job of getting these eggs over the mountains.”

“Heee heee heeeeeeeeeeeeee,” the Chuchies cried out together.