TYLTYL Dolls?... That"s too silly; there"s no fun in dolls....
MYTYL And what"s that all round the table?....
TYLTYL Cakes and fruit and tarts....
MYTYL I had some once when I was little....
TYLTYL So did I; it"s nicer than bread, but they don"t give you enough....
MYTYL They"ve got plenty over there.... The whole table"s full.... Are they going to eat them?...
TYLTYL Of course; what else would they do with them?...
MYTYL Why don"t they eat them at once?...
TYLTYL Because they"re not hungry....
MYTYL (_stupefied with astonishment_) Not hungry?... Why not?...
TYLTYL Well, they eat whenever they want to....
MYTYL (_incredulously_) Every day?...
TYLTYL They say so....
MYTYL Will they eat them all?... Will they give any away?...
TYLTYL To whom?...
MYTYL To us....
TYLTYL They don"t know us....
MYTYL Suppose we asked them....
TYLTYL We mustn"t.
MYTYL Why not?...
TYLTYL Because it"s not right.
MYTYL (_clapping her hands_) Oh, how pretty they are!...
TYLTYL (_rapturously_) And how they"re laughing and laughing!...
MYTYL And the little ones dancing!...
TYLTYL Yes, yes; let"s dance too!... (_They stamp their feet for joy on the stool_.)
MYTYL Oh, what fun!...
TYLTYL They"re getting the cakes!... They can touch them!... They"re eating, they"re eating, they"re eating!...
MYTYL The tiny ones, too!... They"ve got two, three, four apiece!...
TYLTYL (_drunk with delight_) Oh, how lovely!... Oh, how lovely, how lovely!...
MYTYL (_counting imaginary cakes_) I"ve got twelve!...
TYLTYL And I four times twelve!... But I"ll give you some....
(_A knock at the door of the cottage_.)
TYLTYL (_suddenly quieted and frightened_) What"s that?...
MYTYL (_scared_) It"s Daddy!...
(_As they hesitate before opening the door, the big latch is seen to rise of itself, with a grating noise; the door half opens to admit a little old woman dressed in green with a red hood on her head. She is humpbacked and lame and near-sighted; her nose and chin meet; and she walks bent on a stick. She is obviously a fairy_.)
THE FAIRY Have you the gra.s.s here that sings or the bird that is blue?...
TYLTYL We have some gra.s.s, but it can"t sing....
MYTYL Tyltyl has a bird.
TYLTYL But I can"t give it away....
THE FAIRY Why not?...
TYLTYL Because it"s mine.
THE FAIRY That"s a reason, no doubt. Where is the bird?...
TYLTYL (_pointing to the cage_) In the cage....
THE FAIRY (_putting on her gla.s.ses to examine the bird_) I don"t want it; it"s not blue enough. You will have to go and find me the one I want.
TYLTYL But I don"t know where it is....
THE FAIRY No more do I. That"s why you must look for it. I can do without the gra.s.s that sings, at a pinch; but I must absolutely have the blue bird. It"s for my little girl, who is very ill.
TYLTYL What"s the matter with her?...
THE FAIRY We don"t quite know; she wants to be happy....
TYLTYL Really?...
THE FAIRY Do you know who I am?...