Nothing was inside the clock, of course, but the brass works. "It seems to me you both have very vivid imaginations, young ladies," chided Dame Drusilda. "After this I would let Welsh rabbits alone." "It's not there now, but it was there," persisted Violet stoutly, "and it was the most dreadful looking thing you ever saw." "It was worse than that," added Daffodil. "It was the most dreadful looking thing you never saw." [Illustration] "Well, even if there was such a horrid creature, it's gone," said Queen Titania comfortingly, "so why should we trouble ourselves about it any longer? It's time for our revels to begin, and if we don't hurry up the ice cream will all melt, and remember there's angel-cake, charlotte russe, and lemonade besides!" The tiny Cupids, whose hearts were going pit-a-pat, for they believed implicitly every word that Violet and Daffodil had said, hastily gathered up Her Majesty's train. All started from the palace, the portcullis being raised to let them pass, and from his hiding-place in the urn the Human Octopus with his big, gloating, goggle eyes noted every movement that they made. But they had no suspicion that he lurked among the palms and ferns. [Illustration] After they had disappeared from sight he flopped down, and keeping his eyes close to the earth followed the wee footprints that they made. His sleuth-like, sneaky search led him straight to where the fairies sported on the green, and as he drew nearer to them he exercised more caution. He compressed himself more closely to the ground, and picking out a luxuriant clump of peculiar rainbow roses whose leaves afforded a most effective screen he crawled to it to wait and bide his time. As he watched the innocent, happy fays garlanded with fragrant, many-hued flowers pose and pirouette he could not deny to them with a certain grace that many enthusiasts would have pronounced most exquisite. But he had never been to dancing school, and he did not trip the light, fantastic tentacle himself. He was greatly interested in all he saw, however, and even more so when at last he noticed Queen Titania, the Cupids, and several of the fairies leave the lithe, flushed, happy group. For Queen Titania had spied the rainbow roses, different from all the rest, and ran with eager, sparkling eyes to fill her arms with them. Little she dreamed of the danger that lurked in all their perfumed radiance. Swiftly she came, outdistancing the others, and as she bent over in sweet, innocent pillage the mean, contemptible nature of the Human Octopus manifested itself. Forgetful of his diplomatic mission, he wound his tentacles around her until she looked like a mesh-bag. When she began almost instantly to scream he grimly increased the pressure. The fairies and Cupids, horrified beyond measure by what they beheld, and helpless to aid their beloved queen, fled with wild cries.