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The royal cheque-book, bound in red morocco, was brought in by eight pages, with ink and a pen. His Majesty then filled up and signed the following satisfactory document:
_________________________
"There!" said His Majesty, crossing his cheque and throwing sand over it, for blotting paper had not yet been invented.
"There, take that, and be off with you!"
Prince Prigio was respectfully but rapidly obeying his royal command, for he thought he had better cash the royal cheque as soon as possible, when His Majesty yelled: "Hi, there!
Come back! 1 forgot something; you've got to many Moiinda!"
Chapter XVI
A Melancholy Chapter The Prince had gone some way when the King called after him. How he wished he had the seven-league boots on, or that he had the cap of darkness in his pocket! If he had been so lucky, he would now have got back to Gluckstein. and crossed the border with Lady Rosalind. A million of money may not seem much, but a pair of young people who really love each other could live happily on less than the cheque he had in his pocket. However, the King shouted very loud, as he always did when he meant to be obeyed, and the Prince sauntered slowly back again.
"Prigio!" said His Majesty, "where were you off to?
Don't you remember that this is your wedding day? My proclamation offered not only the money (which you have), but the hand of the Lady Moiinda, which the Court chaplain will presently make your own. I congratulate you, sir; Moiinda is a dear girl."
"I have the highest affection and esteem for my cousin, sir," said the Prince, "but-"
"I'll never marry him!" cried poor MoHnda, kneeling at the throne, where her streaming eyes and hair made a pretty and touching picture. "Never! I despise him!"
"I was about to say, sir," the Prince went on, "that I ca
"The family gallows, I presume, is in good working order?" asked the King of the family executioner, a tall gaunt man in black and scarlet, who was only employed in the case of members of the biood royal.
"Never better, sire," said the man, bowing with more courtliness than his profession indicated.
"Very well," said the King. "Prince Prigio, you have your choice. There is the gallows, here is Lady Moiinda. My duty is painful, but clear. A king's word ca
Molly, or be hanged!"
The Prince bowed respectfully to Lady Moiinda.
"Madam, my cousin," said he, "your clemency will excuse my answer, and you will not misinterpret the apparent discourtesy of my conduct. I am compelled, most unwillingly, to slight your charms, and to select the Extreme Rigour of the Law. Executioner, lead on! Do your duty; for me, Prigio est pret!"-for this was his motto, and meant that he was ready.
Poor Lady Moiinda could not but be hurt by the Prince's preference for death over marriage to her, little as she liked him. "Is life then so worthless? and is Moiinda so terrible a person, that you prefer those arms." and she pointed to the gallows, "to theseT'-here she held out her own, which were very white, round, and pretty; for Moiinda was a goodhearted girl, she could not bear to see Prigio put to death; and then, perhaps, she reflected that there are worse positions than the queenship of Pantouflia. For Alphonso was gone- crying would not bring him back.
"Ah, madam!'* said the Prince, "you are forgiving-"
"For you are brave!" said Moiinda, feeling quite a respect for him.
"But neither your heart nor mine is ours to give. Since mine is another's, I understand too well this feeling of yours'.
Do not let us buy life at the price of happiness and honour."
Then, turning to the King, the Prince said: "Sir, is there no way but by death or marriage? You say you ca
And here the Prince fluttered in the air the cheque for Ј!,000.000.
For a moment the King was tempted; but then he said to himself: "Never mind, it's only an extra pe
"And so is that of a crown prince," answered Prigio, "and mine is pledged to a lady."
"She shall be a mourning bride," cried the King savagely,
"unless"-here he paused for a moment-"unless you bring me back Alphonso and Enrico, safe and well!"
The Prince thought for the space of a flash of lightning. "I accept the alternative," he said, "if Your Majesty will grant me my conditions."
"Name them!" said the King.
"Let me be transported to Gluckstein, left there unguarded, and if, in three days, I do not return with my brothers safe and well, Your Majesty shall be spared a cruet duty. Prigio of Pantouflia will perish by his own hand."
The King, whose mind did not work very quickly, took some minutes to think it over. Then he saw that by granting the Prince's conditions, he would either recover his,dear sons, or, at least, get rid of Prigio, without the unpleasantness of having him executed. For, though some kings have put their eldest sons to death, and most have wished to do so, they have never been better loved by the people for their Roman virtue.
"Honour bright?" said the King at last.
"Honour bright!" answered the Prince, and for the first time in many months, the royal father and son shook hands.
"For you, madam," said Prigio in a stately way to Lady Molinda, "in less than a week I trust we shall be taking our vows at the same altar, and that the close of the ceremony which finds us cousins will leave us brother and sister."
Poor Molinda merely stared; for she could not imagine what he meant. In a moment he was gone; and having taken, by me King's permission, the flying carpet, he was back at the ambassador's house in Gluckstein.
Chapter XVII
The Black Cat and the Brethren Who was glad to see the Prince, if it was not Lady Rosalind?
The white roses of her cheeks turned to red roses in a moment, and men back to white again, they were so alarmed at the change. So the two went into the gardens together, and talked about a number of things; but at last the Prince told her that, before three days were over, all would be well, or alt would be over with him. For either he would have brought his brothers back, sound and well. to Falkenstein, or he would not survive his dishonour.
"It is no more than right," he said, "for had I gone first, neither of them would have been sent to meet the monster after I had fallen. And I should have fallen, dear Rosalind, if I had faced the Firedrake before I knew you."
Then when she asked him why, and what good she had done him, he told her all the story; and how, before he fell in love with her. he didn't believe in fairies, or Firedrakes, or caps of darkness, or anything nice and impossible, but only in horrid useless facts, and chemistry, and geology, and arithmetic, and mathematics, and even political economy. And the Firedrake would have made a mouthful of him then.
So she was delighted when she heard this, almost as much delighted as she was afraid that he might fail in the most difficult adventure. For it was one thing to egg on a Remora to kill a Firedrake, and quite another to find the princes if they were alive, and restore them if they were dead!
But the Prince said he had his plan, and he stayed that night at the ambassador's. Next morning he rose very early, before anyone else was up, that he might not have to say "Goodbye" to Lady Rosalind. Then he flew in a moment to the old lonely castle, where nobody went for fear of ghosts, ever since the Court retired to Falkenstein.
How still it was, how deserted; not a sign of life, and yet the Prince was looking everywhere/or some living thing. He hunted through the castle in vain, and then went out to the stable yard; but all the dogs of course had been taken away, and the neighbouring fa
"Well," said the Prince at last, "he could not live long anyway, and it must be done. He will feel nothing."
Then he drew the sword of sharpness, and with one turn of his wrist cut the cat's head clean off.
It did not at once change into a beautiful young lady, as perhaps you expect; no, that was improbable and, as the Prince was in love already, would have been vastly inconvenient. The dead cat lay there, like any common cat.
Then the Prince built up a heap of straw, with wood on it; and mere he laid poor puss, and set fire to the pile. Very soon there was nothing of old black Frank left but ashes!
Then the Prince ran upstairs to the fairy cupboard, his heart beating loudly with excitement. The sun was shining through the arrow-shot window; all the yellow motes were dancing in its rays. The light fell on the strange heaps of fairy things- talismans and spells. The Prince hunted about here and there, and at last he discovered six ancient water vessels of black leather, each with a silver plate on it, and on the plate letters engraved. This was what was written on the plates:
"Thank Heaven!" said the Prince. "I thought they were sure to have brought it!"
Then he look one of the old black leather bottles, and ran downstairs again to the place where he had burned the body of the poor old sick cat.
He opened the bottle and poured a few drops of the water on the ashes and the dying embersUp there sprang a tall, white flame of fire, waving like a tongue of light; and forth from the heap jumped the most beautiful, strong, furry black cat that ever was seen!