lf, and
pulled her hair down about her eyes, that no one might know her. As they
would not tell her, she went on farther, and presently asked again,
and this time the people answered that to-morrow she might see the King
driving through the streets with the Princess Turritella, as it was said
that at last he had consented to marry her. This was indeed terrible
news to Fiordelisa. Had she come all this weary way only to find
Turritella had succeeded in making King Charming forget her?

She was too tired and miserable to walk another step, so she sat down in
a doorway and cried bitterly all night long. As soon as it was light
she hastened to the palace, and after being sent away fifty times by the
guards, she got in at last, and saw the thrones set in the great hall
for the King and Turritella, who was already looked upon as Queen.

Fiordelisa hid herself behind a marble pillar, and very soon saw
Turritella make her appearance, richly dressed, but as ugly as ever, and
with her came the King, more handsome and splendid even than Fiordelisa
had remembered him. When Turritella had seated herself upon the throne,
the Queen approached her.

'Who are you, and how dare you come near my high-mightiness, upon my
golden throne?' said Turritella, frowning fiercely at her.

'They call me the little kitchen-maid,' she replied, 'and I come to
offer some precious things for sale,' and with that she searched in her
old sack, and drew out the emerald bracelets King Charming had given
her.

'Ho, ho!' said Turritella, those are pretty bits of glass. I suppose you
would like five silver pieces for them.'

'Show them to someone who understands such things, Madam,' answered the
Queen; 'after that we can decide upon the price.'

Turritella, who really loved King Charming as much as she could love
anybody, and was always delighted to get a chance of talking to him, now
showed him the bracelets, asking how much he considered them worth. As
soon as he saw them he remembered those he had given to Fiordelisa, and
turned very pale and sighed deeply, and fell into such sad thought that
he quite forgot to answer her. Presently she asked him again, and then
he said, with a great effort:

'I believe these bracelets are worth as much as my kingdom. I thought
there was only one such pair in the world; but here, it seems, is
another.'

Then Turritella went back to the Queen, and asked her what was the
lowest price she would take for them.

'Mor