"It's a most singular coincidence, Selina," he said, "but I've been dreaming much the same sort of thing myself!" The others looked at one another, but none of them ventured to express just yet what was in all their minds. "Have you?" said his wife languidly. "I suppose it was telepathy or something of that kind. Ring for Mitchell, Clarence--I hope dinner has not been allowed to get cold. And--and Miss Heritage seems to have left the drawing-room. Run up, Ruby, and tell her to come down." "I don't believe she's upstairs at all, mummy," said Ruby. "No, of course she _can't_ be. We left her in the Palace--don't you remember? _She's_ Queen now, you know?" "Queen! Miss Heritage! Why, you don't mean to tell me you've been dreaming that too?" "So have I, as far as that goes, mater," said Clarence. "If it _was_ a dream, and not--not----" "How could it be anything else? Besides, here we all _are_, exactly as we were!" "We've got our cloaks and things on, though," said Ruby. "_I_ know how it was! We've been brought here in the stork-car while we were fast asleep. We sat up ever so long waiting for it." "It can't be! I won't believe anything so absurd. Draw the curtains, somebody, and pull up the blinds.... It's odd, but it certainly looks more like early morning than any other time. Clarence, go out and strike the gong. Perhaps the maids haven't finished dressing yet." Clarence went out accordingly. The gong bellowed and boomed from the hall, but there was no sound of stirring above. "I say," he reported, "I've just looked into the dining-room, and all the chairs are upside down on the table. That looks rather as if we'd been away for a bit--what?" "Clarence! You're not beginning to think that--that all that about our having been a Royal Family may be _true_?" "Well, Mater," he said, "if we haven't been in Maerchenland, where _have_ we been? Oh yes, we've been Royalties right enough--and a pretty rotten job we made of it!" At this time there was a deprecatory knock at the drawing-room door. "Mitchell!" cried her mistress, "don't you know better than to--?" However, it was not Mitchell that entered--but a person unknown--a respectable-looking elderly female, who seemed to have made a hasty toilette. "Askin' your pardons," she said, "but if you were wishing to see the family, they're away just now." "We _are_ the family," replied Mrs. Wibberley-Stimpson. "We have been--er--abroad, but have returned. And we should be glad of breakfast at once." "I can git you a cup of tea as soon as the kittle's on the boil," she said, "but I'm only put in as caretaker like, and I've nothink in the 'ouse except bread and butter. The shops'll be opening now, so if you don't object to waiting a little, I could go out and get you a naddick and eggs and such like." "Yes, buck up, old lady!" said Clarence, "and I say, see if you can get a _Daily Mail_ or a paper of some sort."