Percinet?' said Graciosa gratefully. But
still she could not quite make up her mind to go with him and leave her
father's kingdom for ever; so she begged him to give her more time to
think of it, and he had to go away disappointed once more.

When the wicked Queen came at sunset she was amazed and infuriated to
find the task done. However, she complained that the heaps of feathers
were badly arranged, and for that the Princess was beaten and sent back
to her garret. Then the Queen sent for the Fairy once more, and scolded
her until she was fairly terrified, and promised to go home and think of
another task for Graciosa, worse than either of the others.

At the end of three days she came again, bringing with her a box.

'Tell your slave,' said he, 'to carry this wherever you please, but on
no account to open it. She will not be able to help doing so, and then
you will be quite satisfied with the result.' So the Queen came to
Graciosa, and said:

'Carry this box to my castle, and place it upon the table in my own
room. But I forbid you on pain of death to look at what it contains.'

Graciosa set out, wearing her little cap and wooden shoes and the old
cotton frock, but even in this disguise she was so beautiful that all
the passers-by wondered who she could be. She had not gone far before
the heat of the sun and the weight of the box tired her so much that she
sat down to rest in the shade of a little wood which lay on one side of
a green meadow. She was carefully holding the box upon her lap when she
suddenly felt the greatest desire to open it.

'What could possibly happen if I did?' she said to herself. 'I should
not take anything out. I should only just see what was there.'

And without farther hesitation she lifted the cover.

Instantly out came swarms of little men and women, no taller than
her finger, and scattered themselves all over the meadow, singing and
dancing, and playing the merriest games, so that at first Graciosa was
delighted and watched them with much amusement. But presently, when
she was rested and wished to go on her way, she found that, do what she
would, she could not get them back into their box. If she chased them
in the meadow they fled into the wood, and if she pursued them into the
wood they dodged round trees and behind sprigs of moss, and with peals
of elfin laughter scampered back again into the meadow.

At last, weary and terrified, she sat down and cried.

'It is my own fault,