stolen my pot of pinks, so I have nothing but my
silver ring; but I beg you to accept it as a proof of my gratitude."

"But if I take your ring, my pretty shepherdess," said the Queen, "you
will have nothing left; and what will you do then?"

"Ah! madam," she answered simply, "if I have your friendship I shall do
very well."

So the Queen took the ring and put it on her finger, and mounted her
chariot, which was made of coral studded with emeralds, and drawn by six
milk-white horses. And Felicia looked after her until the winding of
the forest path hid her from her sight, and then she went back to the
cottage, thinking over all the wonderful things that had happened.

The first thing she did when she reached her room was to throw the
cabbage out of the window.

But she was very much surprised to hear an odd little voice cry out:
"Oh! I am half killed!" and could not tell where it came from, because
cabbages do not generally speak.

As soon as it was light, Felicia, who was very unhappy about her pot of
pinks, went out to look for it, and the first thing she found was the
unfortunate cabbage. She gave it a push with her foot, saying: "What are
you doing here, and how dared you put yourself in the place of my pot of
pinks?"

"If I hadn't been carried," replied the cabbage, "you may be very sure
that I shouldn't have thought of going there."

It made her shiver with fright to hear the cabbage talk, but he went on:

"If you will be good enough to plant me by my comrades again, I can tell
you where your pinks are at this moment--hidden in Bruno's bed!"

Felicia was in despair when she heard this, not knowing how she was
to get them back. But she replanted the cabbage very kindly in his old
place, and, as she finished doing it, she saw Bruno's hen, and said,
catching hold of it:

"Come here, horrid little creature! you shall suffer for all the unkind
things my brother has done to me."

"Ah! shepherdess," said the hen, "don't kill me; I am rather a gossip,
and I can tell you some surprising things that you will like to hear.
Don't imagine that you are the daughter of the poor laborer who brought
you up; your mother was a queen who had six girls already, and the King
threatened that unless she had a son who could inherit his kingdom she
should have her head cut off.

"So when the Queen had another little daughter she was quite frightened,
and agreed with her sister (who was a fairy) to exchange her for the
fair