CHAPTER I.
CAROL CASTLE GARDEN.
It will be remembered that after fairy Moon Queen had put the vegetables back to sleep in their beds, she quickly vanished to her home in the moon. But she didn't remain there very long. You see, she had planned to entertain the flowers next, so on the following night we find her in Carol Castle garden.
She had selected this particular garden because it was known to contain the most beautiful flowers in the world. Princess Patricia and her brother, Prince Philip, lived in the quaint old castle that nestled snugly in this wonderful place of beauty and fragrance. The boy and girl were twins, and they especially enjoyed their daily walks among the flowers. Each flower seemed so much alive to them that they had pet names for the different blossoms, and little "Penelope" Pansy and "Allen" Aster were special favorites, although the other flowers were also loved and noticed.
But when Moon Queen came from her far-away home in the sky, both the Prince and Princess were sleeping just as soundly as the garden blossoms that nodded so contentedly in the gentle breeze. They were dreaming of the many things which they expected to enjoy on the following morning.
The kind fairy first touched a sleeping pansy with her sparkling wand-star and something very wonderful happened. The blossom immediately dropped from its stem and became an odd little person - a REAL Penelope Pansy, whom anybody would recognize because of her smiling pansy-shaped face. And while little Penelope stood gazing about in a bewildered sort of manner, for she could scarcely realize what had happened to her, Moon Queen touched each of the other different blossoms with the wand-star and they also became real people.
"My, my, what on earth has happened to us!" exclaimed Rufus Rose, as he looked at all the curious little people that still stood around as if they were afraid to move, although they had legs and arms that could move just as well as those of any girl or boy. "Why, I can hear noises of every kind so much louder than when I was in the flower bed, and I can see, oh, so much better. Really, I believe that I can run and jump, or even ride a bicycle!"
"Certainly you can," said the fairy. "You are just as much a person as anybody in the world, although a boy or girl might think you to be a rather funny one."
She became a REAL Penelope Pansy
"And am I a REAL person, too?" asked Dora Daisy. "Why, of course you are, and so are all the rest of your garden friends," laughed Moon Queen. "You are now real Flower Folks and before the night is over you shall think yourselves to be the happiest people in the world. I have come down to entertain you in a manner that you never could enjoy while only a flower, so follow me and see what happens. But before we leave for our adventures I must ask another little friend to accompany us. He is already very much alive and I'm sure that all of you also will recognize him as a friend when he answers my call." The fairy then lowered her wand until the glistening star touched the surface of the ground and said:
- "Ixy, ixy, trixy, tree!
- Little friend, please come to me;
- See how quickly you can stir!"
The last word was scarcely out of her mouth when the nearby earth was scattered in every direction as a curious little fellow in a dark-gray coat thrust his still more curious nose above the surface and said, cheerily: "Hello, folks, did I get here quick enough?"
His funny pink nose was so near Mary Marigold that she leaped aside and screamed when she heard a voice that seemed to be right under her feet. Then all the Flower Folks joined in a hearty laugh as she bumped against Rufus Rose so hard that he, in turn, bumped against Caleb Cactus. Of course, Caleb didn't mind the bump very much, but the sharp stickers on his body gave Rufus Rose several scratches that, luckily, didn't go through the skin.
Mary Marigold bumped into Rufus Rose and he bumped against Caleb Cactus.
"Oh, please excuse me, Rufus," said Mary, after she had recovered her balance.
"Why, certainly, it wasn't your fault," he replied. "But I don't know whether to ask Caleb Cactus for his pardon or not. That sticky fellow must have scratched me much worse than I bumped him, so maybe he owes me an apology! How about it, Caleb?"
"You bumped into me, not I into you," laughed the big fellow whose green-colored body is covered with sharp spines that are not pleasant to touch.
"I think that it is about time that we give our friend Matthew Mole a rousing welcome," suggested Moon Queen. "He has been waiting here for some time and not one of you have spoken to him. That isn't a very nice way to treat a friend, is it?"
"A FRIEND!" exclaimed Nell Nasturtium. "Why, that fellow almost scared me out of my wits by running one of his tunnels so near me that I almost tumbled over."
"But you should consider that I was only chasing several Cutworms which would have eaten you to death," spoke up Matthew. "If I happen to tunnel too near any of you flowers, you may be sure that I'm just trying to save you from your enemies. Sometimes I may give any of you a little scare, yet it seems to me that it's much better to be shaken a little by my digging than to be chewed up by a destructive Cutworm or other insects which I delight to catch."
"Oh, then I beg your pardon for being so rude to a real friend," said Nell Nasturtium, tenderly. "Of course, everybody makes a mistake sometimes, although I'm very sorry that I misjudged you. It shall never happen again, and we'll continue to be friends, I hope."
"Everybody should be friends," replied little Matthew Mole.