"Ah, thou dear Dragon of my soul!" cried the King, "I swear to you, and to all your dragon-kind, that I will feed you to your heart's content, and still remain your humble servant." "Do not pledge your word," replied the Dragon, "if you do not intend to keep it; for such terrible evils will befal you, that you will rue it for the rest of your life." The King redoubled his protestations: he was dying with impatience to release his dear Queen; he mounted on the Dragon's back as he would have done upon the finest horse in the world. At the same time the monsters advanced to intercept him. They fought. Nothing could be heard but the sharp hissing of serpents; nothing could be seen but fire. Sulphur and saltpetre came down pell-mell! At length the King reached the castle. The monsters redoubled their efforts,—bats, owls, ravens, all attempted to prevent his entrance; but the dragon, with his claws, his teeth, and his tail, tore in pieces the boldest of them. The Queen, on her part, who witnessed this great battle, broke her prison walls by kicking at them, and armed herself with the pieces, to assist her dear husband. They were at last victorious. The King and Queen reached each other; and the enchantment was ended by a thunderbolt, which fell into the lake, and dried it up.
The kind Dragon had disappeared with all the others; and without the King being able to guess by what means he had been transported into his capital city, he found himself there, with the Queen and Moufette, seated in a magnificent hall, with a banquet table before them, covered with delicious dishes. Never was there astonishment equal to theirs, nor greater rejoicings. All their subjects ran to gaze on their Queen and the young Princess, who, by a succession of miracles, were so superbly dressed, that the crowd was completely dazzled by the brilliancy of their jewels.
It is easy to imagine that this fine court was speedily occupied with every sort of pleasure. They had masquerades, runnings at the ring, and tournaments, which attracted thither the greatest princes in the world; and Moufette's lovely eyes riveted them all to the spot. Amongst the handsomest and most skilful, Prince Moufy was particularly distinguished. Nothing was heard but his praises: everybody admired him, and the young Moufette, who had passed all her previous
