"Oh! shouldn't I like to be you," said Amanda to Pepitia, "you will be
queen, and have all these fine things."

After they had seen all that was in the palace, the fairy took them over
the other houses, all of which were elegantly furnished, but it would
take up too much time to tell you of all the beautiful things that were
in them. Just fancy how you would like to furnish a little house that
had drawing-rooms, dining-rooms, bedrooms, kitchens, and whatever you
fancy you would like to put there _was_ there, and even more than that.
No wonder the children were pleased.

After the fairy had shown them all the pretty things the houses
contained, and had allotted to each set of children the particular house
they were to inhabit, a crystal car, drawn by six white swans, was seen
to approach the shore. Then the fairy said, "Now, my little dears, I
must go, for here is my coach and six come to fetch me." So she kissed
them all round, bade them be good children, said she would come to see
them again some day, got into her car, and was soon out of sight, the
children shouting, "Good-bye, dear Fairy, good-bye," till they could see
her no longer.

Then they said, "What shall we play at first?"

"Let us go into that pretty dell, where the fawns are at play, and
gather some of the flowers," said Pepitia. To this they all readily
assented, and ran skipping and singing into the dell. Some pulled long
rushes and sat themselves down to weave little baskets; some gathered
nosegays, some played with the fawns. Presently one of them said, "Oh!
suppose we have a dance."