looked around and tried
to smile. It was a pitiful attempt, because the fox face was new and
stiff, and Dorothy thought his expression more stupid than before the
transformation.

"I think we ought to be going now," said the shaggy man, uneasily, for
he didn't know what the King might take into his head to do next.

"Don't leave us yet, I beg of you," pleaded King Renard. "I intend to
have several days of feasting and merrymaking, in honor of your visit."

"Have it after we're gone, for we can't wait," said Dorothy, decidedly.
But seeing this displeased the King, she added: "If I'm going to get
Ozma to invite you to her party I'll have to find her as soon as
poss'ble, you know."

In spite of all the beauty of Foxville and the gorgeous dresses of its
inhabitants, both the girl and the shaggy man felt they were not quite
safe there, and would be glad to see the last of it.

"But it is now evening," the King reminded them, "and you must stay with
us until morning, anyhow. Therefore I invite you to be my guests at
dinner, and to attend the theater afterward and sit in the royal box.
To-morrow morning, if you really insist upon it, you may resume your
journey."

They consented to this, and some of the fox-servants led them to a suite
of lovely rooms in the big palace.

Button-Bright was afraid to be left alone, so Dorothy took him into her
own room. While a maid-fox dressed the little girl's hair--which was a
bit tangled--and put some bright, fresh ribbons in it, another maid-fox
combed the hair on poor Button-Bright's face and head and brushed it
carefully, tying a pink bow to each of his pointed ears. The maids
wanted to dress the children in fine costumes of woven feathers, such as
all the foxes wore; but neither of them consented to that.

[Illustration]

"A sailor suit and a fox head do not go well together," said one of the
maids; "for no fox was ever a sailor that I can remember."

"I'm not a fox!" cried Button-Bright.

"Alas, no," agreed the maid. "But you've got a lovely fox head on your
skinny shoulders, and that's _almost_ as good as being a fox."

The boy, reminded of his misfortune, began to cry again. Dorothy petted
and comforted him and promised to find some way to restore him his own
head.

"If we can manage to get to Ozma," she said, "the Princess will change
you back to yourself in half a second; so you just wear that fox head as
comf't'bly as you can, dear, and don't worry about it at all.