Morning Routines

Crayon Chris stood on the highest tower of Crayon Box Fortress, watching the sun paint the sky orange and pink. His blue mask caught the morning breeze as he stretched his arms, ready to start another day protecting Fairy Tale Land.

"Good morning, world!" he called out, his voice echoing across the colorful kingdom below.

He summoned his giant glowing blue crayon, feeling its familiar weight in his hand. The crayon sparkled with electric blue light, casting dancing shadows on the fortress walls. Chris had planned to spend the morning creating new artwork for the village square.

But something felt different today. The usual chatter from the village seemed quieter than normal. He squinted his bright blue eyes, using his x-ray vision to peer through the morning mist.

"That's odd," Chris muttered, noticing Red Riding Hood walking slowly down the forest path. Her cape looked strangely dull, almost gray instead of its usual vibrant red.

The Fading Colors

Chris leaped from the tower, his blue cape fluttering as he soared through the morning air. He landed softly beside Red Riding Hood on the cobblestone path.

"Good morning, Red!" he called out cheerfully.

The young girl turned around, her basket swaying. "Oh, hello Crayon Chris. I'm afraid it's not such a good morning."

Chris noticed her cape up close now. The fabric looked completely drained of color, like someone had washed all the red right out of it.

"What happened to your beautiful red cape?" he asked, kneeling down to her level.

Red Riding Hood's brown eyes filled with worry. "That's just it - I don't know! When I woke up this morning, it looked like this. And it's not just my cape." She pointed toward the village. "Look around!"

Chris stood and used his x-ray vision to scan the area. His jaw dropped. Every crayon in every house had turned gray and lifeless. Children sat crying over coloring books filled with nothing but bland, colorless scribbles.

"The crayons have stopped working everywhere," Red whispered. "All the color is disappearing from Fairy Tale Land!"