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CHAPTER IV.

When he woke he found himself still afloat upon the broad palm-leaf. He was alone in the middle of a lake, with flowers and trees growing in and out of it everywhere. The sun was just over the tree-tops. A drip of water from the flowers greeted him with music; the mists were dissolving away, and where the sunlight fell on the lake the water was clear as glass. Casting his eyes downward, he saw, just beneath him, far down at the bottom, Alice drowned, as he thought. He was in the act of plunging in, when he saw her open her eyes, and at the same moment begin to float up. He held out his hand, but she repelled it with disdain, and swimming to a tree, sat down on a low branch, wondering how ever the poor widow’s son could have found his way into Fairyland. She did not like it. It was an invasion of privilege.

“How did you come here, young Richard?” she asked, from six yards off.

“A goblin brought me.”

“Ah! I thought so. A fairy brought me.”

“Where is your fairy?”

“Here I am,” said Peaseblossom, rising slowly to the surface just by the tree on which Alice was seated.

“Where is your goblin?” retorted Alice.

“Here I am,” bawled Toadstool, rushing out of the water like a salmon, and casting a summersault in the air before he fell in again with a tremendous splash. His head rose again close beside Peaseblossom, who being used to such creatures only laughed.

“Isn’t he handsome?” he grinned.

“Yes, very. He wants polishing, though.”

“You could do that for yourself, you know. Shall we change?”

“I don’t mind. You’ll find her rather silly.”

“That’s nothing. The boy’s too sensible for me.”

He dived, and rose at Alice’s feet. She shrieked with terror. The fairy floated away like a water-lily towards Richard. “What a lovely creature!” thought he; but hearing Alice shriek again, he said,

“Don’t leave Alice; she’s frightened at that queer creature.–I don’t think there’s any harm in him, though, Alice.”

“Oh, no! He won’t hurt her,” said Peaseblossom. “I’m tired of her. He’s going to take her to the court, and I will take you.”

“I don’t want to go.”

“But you must. You can’t go home again. You don’t know the way.”

“Richard! Richard!” cried Alice, in an agony.

Richard sprang from his boat, and was by her side in a moment.

“He pinched me,” cried Alice.

Richard hit the goblin a terrible blow on the head; but it took no more effect upon him than if his head had been a round ball of india-rubber. He gave Richard a furious look, however, and bawling out, “You’ll repent that, Dick!” vanished under the water.

“Come along, Richard; make haste; he will murder you,” cried the fairy.

“It is all your fault,” said Richard. “I won’t leave Alice.”

Then the fairy saw it was all over with her and Toadstool; for they can do nothing with mortals against their will. So she floated away across the water in Richard’s boat, holding her robe for a sail, and vanished, leaving the two alone in the lake.

“You have driven away my fairy!” cried Alice. “I shall never get home now. It is all your fault, you naughty young man.”

“I drove away the goblin,” remonstrated Richard.

“Will you please to sit on the other side of the tree? I wonder what my papa would say if he saw me talking to you!”

“Will you come to the next tree, Alice?” said Richard, after a pause.

Alice, who had been crying all the time that Richard was thinking, said “I won’t.” Richard, therefore, plunged into the water without her, and swam for the tree. Before he had got half-way, however, he heard Alice crying “Richard! Richard!” This was just what he wanted. So he turned back, and Alice threw herself into the water. With Richard’s help she swam pretty well, and they reached the tree. “Now for the next!” said Richard; and they swam to the next, and then to the third. Every tree they reached was larger than the last, and every tree before them was larger still. So they swam from tree to tree, till they came to one that was so large that they could not see round it. What was to be done? Clearly to climb this tree. It was a dreadful prospect for Alice, but Richard proceeded to climb; and by putting her feet where he put his, and now and then getting hold of his ankle, she managed to make her way up. There were a great many stumps where branches had withered off, and the bark was nearly as rough as a hill-side, so there was plenty of foothold for them. When they had climbed a long time, and were getting very tired indeed, Alice cried out, “Richard, I shall drop–I shall. Why did you come this way?” And she began once more to cry. But at that moment Richard caught hold of a branch above his head, and reaching down his other hand got hold of Alice, and held her till she had recovered a little. In a few moments more they reached the fork of the tree, and there they sat and rested. “This is capital!” said Richard, cheerily.