“Stand here,” said Florrie, and she and the other two fairies placed Merrimeg in the middle and turned their backs to her.
Their wings began to flutter gently, and then began to move faster and faster, making a strong breeze which blew all over Merrimeg. Fanned in this way by the great butterfly wings, she was soon dry.
“Good-by, Merrimeg,” said Florrie.
“Good-by, dear Merrimeg,” said each of the others.
“Thank you for my star,” said Winnie. “You must think of us whenever you look up at the stars.”
“Indeed I will,” said Merrimeg.
The starlight fairies stood on tiptoe for a moment, and fluttered their wings; and then they rose quietly in the air, and flew straight up. When they were above the tree tops, they began to circle round and round, going higher and higher; far, far up through the night they went on circling; and long after Merrimeg could see them no more, she could see the star, bright as a diamond, go circling up and up....
She ran away home, and crept in quietly at the front door, and lay down in her bed and snuggled under the covers. Her mother was still asleep. She must have gone to sleep herself presently; she woke up and thought of the lost star, and remembered that she had not waited to see if it was in its place. She got out of bed and tiptoed to the window, and putting her head out looked up.
A star was sparkling just overhead, where there had been none before. The star was in its place.
“I’m glad of that,” she said out loud.