The Princess Star was really a very pretty little princess, though she did not look particularly cheerful nor even remarkably good-tempered; and her room itself was a marvel of gorgeous disorder. Flowers and jewels and splendid stuffs were flung about as though the Princess had been venting her temper upon them. There was a parrot on a perch, a yellow cat on a cushion, a big green lizard on the end of a gold chain, a little silver cage of queer birds, and a big crystal basin full of beautiful fishes of all sorts swimming about in rose-coloured water. In the centre of everything sat the Princess on a little gold stool with three legs (for all the world like a milking-stool!), dressed in some very magnificent robes and gems and with her crown somewhat awry. When she saw Dick, she pretended to fly into a rage and to try to box his ears; but finally she very cleverly pretended to calm down, and declared that he wasn’t a bad-looking little boy—for a thief! And then she said that she needed a page to look after her pets, and announced that she would keep him. The head man-at-arms objected, of course, saying that he must take the thief to prison to await the pleasure of the Wicked King. But at that the Princess flew into another rage,—real, this time,—and threw things at him—beginning with a jewelled hour-glass and ending with a mandolin—until he was very glad to leave the royal young lady’s apartments on any terms. So they all backed away as fast as they possibly could, and shut the door very tight behind them. And Dick was left alone with pretty, bad-tempered, disorderly Princess Star. “There!” she exclaimed, flinging herself into a sort of throne-like chair that was made of silver and inlaid with gold. “Now we can talk sense at last! Tell me at once who you are and why you are here!” So Dick told her obediently, and she listened with the deepest attention. “You’re a dear little boy,” she said at last, “and you may sit on my lap if you want to.” Dick did not want to, for he thought it babyish; but he hated to seem rude. So he accepted her invitation, and found that a Princess’s lap was very much like other people’s; it reminded him a little too much of his mother’s, and made him homesick. So he got down just as soon as he could politely. “And now,” said the Princess, “what are we to do next? I wish we knew where the spell can be found that can move my poor Humpty Dumpty from his dreadful place on the top of the city wall.” “So do I—” Dick was beginning, when there was a sudden sound outside, the door flew open, and they saw— [Illustration] XIII “_Harness the Reindeer!_” [Illustration] [Illustration] CHAPTER XIII “_Harness the Reindeer!_”