ers, straight on to the
palace; and, as he passed the threshold of his own rooms he became
visible again. Then he lay down upon a couch and waited for Dorani's
arrival.

[Illustration: THE INVISIBLE PRINCE GOES WITH THE LADIES]

As soon as she arrived she took a seat and remained as silent as
usual, with her head bowed on her knees. For a while not a sound was
heard, but presently the prince said:

'I dreamed a curious dream last night, and as it was all about you I
am going to tell it you, although you heed nothing.'

The girl, indeed, took no notice of his words, but in spite of that he
proceeded to relate every single thing that had happened the evening
before, leaving out no detail of all that he had seen or heard. And
when he praised her singing--and his voice shook a little--Dorani just
looked at him; but she said naught, though, in her own mind, she was
filled with wonder. 'What a dream!' she thought. 'Could it have been a
dream? How could he have learnt in a dream all she had done or said?'
Still she kept silent; only she looked that once at the prince, and
then remained all day as before, with her head bowed upon her knees.

When night came the prince again made himself invisible and followed
her. The same things happened again as had happened before, but Dorani
sang better than ever. In the morning the prince a second time told
Dorani all that she had done, pretending that he had dreamt of it.
Directly he had finished Dorani gazed at him, and said:

'Is it true that you dreamt this, or were you really there?'

'I was there,' answered the prince.

'But why do you follow me?' asked the girl.

'Because,' replied the prince, 'I love you, and to be with you is
happiness.'

This time Dorani's eyelids quivered; but she said no more, and was
silent the rest of the day. However, in the evening, just as she was
stepping into her palanquin, she said to the prince:

'If you love me, prove it by not following me to-night.'

And so the prince did as she wished, and stayed at home.

That evening the magic stool flew so unsteadily that they could hardly
keep their seats, and at last the fairy exclaimed:

'There is only one reason that it should jerk like this! You have been
talking to your husband!'

And Dorani replied: 'Yes, I have spoken; oh, yes, I have spoken!' But
no more would she say.

That night Dorani sang so marvellously that at the end the rajah Indra
rose up and vowed that she might ask what