If my
death, which I feel to be nigh, will cause you any pleasure, then I
implore you to kill me: I dare not hope for any other kindness from you. But do not condemn me to the sadness of a life-long separation from my
husband.' But the Lion-Witch merely laughed at her, bidding her dry her tears, if
she would be wise, and do her part to please her. Otherwise, she
declared, her lot would be the most miserable in the world. 'And what must I do to soften your heart?' replied the queen. 'I have a liking for fly-pasties,' said the Lion-Witch; 'and you must
contrive to catch flies enough to make me a large and tasty one.' [Illustration: '_The approach to it was by ten thousand steps_']

'But there are no flies here,' rejoined the queen; 'and even if there
were there is not enough light to catch them by. Moreover, supposing I
caught some, I have never in my life made pastry. You are therefore
giving me orders which I cannot possibly carry out.' 'No matter,' said the pitiless Lion-Witch; 'what I want I will have!' The queen made no reply, but reflected that, no matter how cruel the
Witch might be, she had only one life to lose, and in her present plight
what terror could death hold for her? She did not attempt to look for
flies, therefore, but sat down beneath a yew tree, and gave way to tears
and lamentations. 'Alas, dear husband,' she cried, 'how grieved you will
be when you go to fetch me from the castle, and find me gone! You will
suppose me to be dead or faithless; how I hope that you will mourn the
loss of my life, not the loss of my love! Perhaps the remains of my
chariot will be found in the wood, with all the ornaments I had put on
to please you: at sight of these you will not doubt any more that I am
dead. But then, how do I know that you will not bestow on some one else
the heartfelt love which once belonged to me? At all events I shall be
spared the sorrow of that knowledge, since I am never to return to the
world.' These thoughts would have filled her mind for a long time, but she was
interrupted by the dismal croaking of a raven overhead. Lifting her
eyes, she saw in the dim light a large raven on the point of swallowing
a frog which it held in its beak. 'Though I have no hope of help for
myself,' she said, 'I will not let this unfortunate frog die, if I can
save it; though our lots are so different, its sufferings are quite as
great as mine.' She picked up the first stick which came to hand, and
made the raven let go its prey. The frog fell to the ground and lay for
a time half stunned; but as soon as it could think, in its froggish way,
it began to speak. 'Beautiful queen,' it said, 'you are the first
friendly soul that I have seen since my curiosity brought me here.' [Illustration: _The Friendly Frog_]

'By what magic are you endowed with speech, little Frog?' replied the
queen; 'and what people are they whom you see here? I have seen none at
all as yet.' 'All the monsters with which the lake is teeming,' replied the little
Frog, 'were once upon a time in the world. Some sat on thrones, some
held high positions at Court; there are even some royal ladies here who
were the cause of strife and bloodshed. It is these latter whom you see
in the shape of leeches, and they are condemned to remain here for a
certain time. But of those who come here none ever returns to the world
better or wiser.' 'I can quite understand,' said the queen, 'that wicked people are not
improved by merely being thrown together. But how is it that you are
here, my friendly little Frog?' 'I came here out of curiosity,' she replied. 'I am part fairy, and
though, in certain directions, my powers are limited, in others they are
far-reaching. The Lion-Witch would kill me if she knew that I was in her
domain.' 'Whatever your fairy powers,' said the queen, 'I cannot understand how
you could have fallen into the raven's clutches and come so near to
being devoured.' 'That is easily explained,' said the Frog. 'I have nought to fear when
my little cap of roses is on my head, for that is the source of my
power. Unluckily I had left it in the marsh when that ugly raven pounced
upon me, and but for you, Madam, I should not now be here. Since you
have saved my life, you have only to command me and I will do everything
in my power to lessen the misfortunes of your lot.' 'Alas, dear Frog,' said the queen, 'the wicked fairy who holds me
captive desires that I should make her a fly-pasty. But there are no
flies here, and if there were I could not see to catch them in the dim
light. I am like, therefore, to get a beating which will kill me.' 'Leave that to me,' said the Frog, 'I will quickly get you some.' Thereupon the Frog smeared sugar all over herself, and the same was done
by more than six thousand of her froggy friends. They then made for a
place where the fairy had a large store of flies, which she used to
torment some of her luckless victims. No sooner did the flies smell the
sugar than they flew to it, and found themselves sticking to the frogs. Away, then, went the latter at a gallop, to bring their friendly aid to
the queen. Never was there such a catching of flies before, nor a better
pasty than the one the queen made for the fairy. The surprise of the
Witch was great when the queen handed it to her, for she was baffled to
think how the flies could have been so cleverly caught. The queen suffered so much from want of protection against the poisonous
air that she cut down some cypress branches and began to build herself a
hut. The Frog kindly offered her services. She summoned round her all
those who had helped in the fly hunt, and they assisted the queen to
build as pretty a little place to live in as you could find anywhere in
the world. But no sooner had she lain down to rest than the monsters of the lake,
envious of her repose, gathered round the hut. They set up the most
hideous noise that had ever been heard, and drove her so nearly mad that
she got up and fled in fear and trembling from the house. This was just
what the monsters were after, and a dragon, who had once upon a time
ruled tyrannously over one of the greatest countries of the world,
immediately took possession of it. The poor queen tried to protest against this ill-treatment. But no one
would listen to her: the monsters laughed and jeered at her, and the
Lion-Witch said that if she came and dinned lamentations into her ears
again she would give her a sound thrashing. The queen was therefore obliged to hold her tongue. She sought out the
Frog, who was the most sympathetic creature in the world, and they wept
together; for the moment she put on her cap of roses the Frog became
able to laugh or weep like anybody else. 'I am so fond of you,' said the Frog to the queen, 'that I will build
your house again, though every monster in the lake should be filled with
envy.' Forthwith she cut some wood, and a little country mansion for the queen
sprang up so quickly that she was able to sleep in it that very night.