She did not live in a cave, as did the one in Hans, but held her court far above the clouds, which is more airy, and also more fitting for a queen.
She wore a necklace of stars, and a sun was set in her signet-ring.
When she went out, the nebulæ flew up like dust, and she scattered the firmaments with a stroke of her fan.
“HER NAME WAS A—OO.”
Her children played with planets for marbles, and complained that they were so hard to find when they rolled away among the furniture. This made Prince Upsilon—the queen’s little son—very cross, and he kept asking for some other kind of toys.
The queen had a box full of Sirii given him, but in a little while these too were lost. But that was Upsilon’s own fault. He ought to have taken better care of his playthings. People did what they could to content him. But whatever was given him, he kept calling for something else—something more and bigger. This was a fault in the little prince’s character.
His mother, who, as Queen of Spirits, was a very sensible woman, understood that it would be a good thing for the youngster to get accustomed to doing without for a little. So she said that Upsilon was to be left without any playthings at all.
This was done. They took away everything from him,—even the comet with which he and his little sister Omicron were playing at battledore and shuttlecock.
Prince Upsilon was of a passionate temper, and so far forgot himself as to say something very disrespectful about his mother.