"It's no use stopping here like this," she decided at last; "we'd better go on," and not quite thinking what she was doing, she whistled to it, as she whistled to Towzer, and they moved slowly forward—Dulcie, red-eyed and dejected, and the Crab following her at a side-way amble.
The strange pair had not proceeded far when Dulcie musingly muttered—
"I wish I were a crab too, then of course I should know all that has happened!"
Strange to relate, she didn't turn into a crab, but remained a little girl as usual. She might have sought the reason of this had not a sight arrested her attention which caused her to run forward with a cry of joy. It was the sudden appearance of the Bird-Fairy, in whose outstretched hand there glistened a jewel—a catseye; but how different was its gleam to the one the poor Crab wore. "Take it," she said hurriedly in her pretty soft voice—"and listen: I have wrested it from the Wizard, whose magnetic power succeeded in recovering one unused, though he had tried for several."
She stroked it—actually stroked it
"Why did he do it?" interrupted Dulcie innocently.
"Because he wanted to confuse me, and also to add one more to his dreadful Zoological Collection. Now replace the stone quickly and give me the sham one—for it belongs to the red-haired young lady, and is stolen property."
The child busily and anxiously obeyed her directions.