So the Princess decided to go to the dragon, for she loved him and wanted him to be fulfilled, even if that required some discomfort on her part. Just as a girl might sing her most private secret song for a friend who needed it, when she had never done such a thing before.

Then mean men and a mean cloud tried to hurt the dragon, and the Princess cried warning to him, and he destroyed the mean men and carried her away to a distant and lovely isle. Because neither could go home again, they used magic to change themselves to unicorns and lived happily ever after. She had never seen a unicorn before either, but somehow in her fancy it didn't matter; she knew exactly what it was. She had no trouble recognizing the cloud, of course; that was Fracto, whom she had met.

It was a lovely fancy, and it made her feel warm all over, and she knew that it had calmed Che, even if he didn't know exactly what was in it. Yet she thought he did know, for he had been in it, and she was glad he had turned out good, and married the Princess instead of eating her, for all that none of it was real and they were only pretend parts.

She continued singing and humming, finding it easy now that she had worked into it. Che listened, and then he was asleep, and then she was asleep. She had done it, despite the horror they were in.

Steps approached the hut again. Jenny woke, hearing them, fearful. This time they did not pass; the door was jerked open, and a goblin showed against the declining fire beyond.

"What, weren't hungry?" the goblin demanded. "All the more for the rest of us!" He picked up the meat and took a big bite as he slammed the door shut again.

Jenny relaxed. She was glad to have the awful meat gone. She had never eaten meat, because she liked animals too well and she knew that it came from them.

But before she managed to sleep again, there were more and heavier steps. The door was yanked open, and Chief Grotesk was there.

"Not eating, huh?" he demanded. "Well, we'll just see about that. Come on out of there, you malingerers. We'll make you do your thing right now."

Jenny's heart sank down to her left foot. It was still the middle of the night, and they hadn't been rescued, and now there would be no chance! All because they had left the awful meat untouched.

They were led out to the subsiding fire. It seemed that some hours had passed, because most of the brush had burned down, and the monstrous cheese moon had traveled to another part of the sky. The goblins must have used up all their fresh meat, and now were ready for more.