The 下一个 day, Belle and Bartok took a walk in the gardens. It was about six o’clock in the morning but Belle hadn’t been able to sleep and so Bartok had suggested a walk, 或者 in his case, a fly. So, they were out, strolling around the grounds. Belle’s mind was still reeling with the revelation of the night before. Anya was in love, with a man who had once been a rogue and was now one of the Empress’ bodyguards. And she didn’t like the special treatment their parents gave her. Poor Anya, she thought to herself.

“What’s on your mind?” Bartok asked, fluttering onto her shoulder.

“Just Anya,” Belle replied, thoughtfully. “I wish there was some way she and Shan could be together.” She had told Bartok of what Anya had told her, but no one else. “And I wish I could figure out what Mama and Papa seem to be grooming her for in life. I’ll bet they’ve arranged for her to marry a prince 或者 something on her 下一个 birthday.”

“Betrothed since birth, 你 mean?” Bartok nodded. “Sounds likely.”

They passed 由 the spot where the strange 花 that had survived many a frost grew; only now...

“Belle,” exclaimed Bartok, suddenly. “Look at that!”

Belle turned her head and saw that the blossom was glowing a faint pinkish colour. She frowned. “That’s odd. I don’t know much about flowers, but I’m sure that’s not meant to be happening.”

Together they made their way towards it, approaching with caution, in case the thing suddenly exploded 或者 something. In fascination, they watched as the petals slowly began to uncurl and as Belle reached out a hand to them, they revealed an enormous red 罂粟 in full bloom. And, curled up in the very centre of this 罂粟 was a tiny girl.

“Oh...boy!” exclaimed Bartok, staring down at the tiny, sleeping form. The girl looked, age-wise, to be about fourteen. She had long ginger hair tied up in a fat ponytail and lithe limbs. Her dress was simply cut; a white short-sleeved 紧身胸衣 with a blue 短裙, 裙子 and green cummerbund and she wore dark green shoes on her tiny feet.

“This is impossible,” Belle whispered, stroking the petals of the flower.

At that, the girl blinked, sat up and stretched with a cute yawn before looking up at the pair of them. “Oh, hello.”

“Hello,” Belle greeted her, stunned 由 this miracle. “Who are you?”

“My name is...” The girl faltered and looked confused. “Oh, I don’t think I have one.”

“Oh, that’s tragic,” Bartok replied, fluttering down beside her. “You wake up in the middle of a magical 花 and 你 can’t remember your name? That’s terrible.”

The girl smiled. “I don’t remember anything much, really. All I know is that I’m awake and I know a lot of things but nothing about me.”

“Like you’ve just been born?” Belle asked. The girl nodded. “Well, I’m Belle, and this is my family’s garden.”

“And I’m Bartok,” Bartok replied. “Now you’ve got to have a name; we’ve got to give 你 one.” He glanced at Belle. “Think. You’ve read books; think of some names.”

“Um...” For some reason Belle’s head didn’t want to work; she was still marvelling over how this had happened. “Well...”

Bartok, losing interest in Belle’s inability to pick a name, now picked up the girl’s foot and compared it to his own. “Heck, you’re smaller than me! And that’s quite an achievement, I can tell you! I’ll bet you’re no bigger than Belle’s thumb.”

The girl smiled, politely. “I know,” Belle said, suddenly, her brain forming a name of its own accord. “How about Thumbelina?”

“Thumbelina?” Bartok tried it out. “Hey, that works!”

“I like it,” the girl smiled. “Thumbelina it is, then.”

Belle held out her hand, and, dainty as a doll, Thumbelina stepped into it. “Yeah, I was right,” Bartok said, landing beside her and measuring her against him. “No bigger than Belle’s thumb!”

“I wonder how 你 got in our garden, though,” Belle mused. “By magic of some kind, surely...”

“I sort of remember being inside the flower, being warm and comfortable and sleeping,” Thumbelina said, “and I think I remember moving about a little, but nothing else.”

“Well, 你 can’t stay here in the garden forever,” Bartok pointed out.”It’s dangerous for someone as small as you; there are giant bugs and people’s feet and stuff.”

“No, I suppose I can’t stay somewhere so dangerous forever,” Thumbelina agreed, innocently, “but I have nowhere else to go.”

“You can come with me,” Belle smiled. “I have an idea.”

With a merry spring in her step, and Bartok in tow, Belle made her way back to her room and, once inside, placed Thumbelina down on the desk, carefully and opened up her old doll’s house. “Here; the furniture is just your size, after all.”

“Oooh!” Thumbelina clapped her hands together. “A house just for me? Thank 你 so much!”

“If 你 ever see me 栖息, 鲈鱼 on the roof, don’t worry,” Bartok told her. “Being a bat I need somewhere to sleep upside down.”

Belle picked Thumbelina up and carried her to the doll’s house. She placed her down in the 最佳, 返回页首 bedroom and Thumbelina hurried all around, testing everything out. Belle smiled as she watched the tiny girl try out the soft little bed, just the right size for her, the chair, the tiny desk, and the wardrobe, which really opened, and which had real 玩偶 clothes hanging inside. Thumbelina pulled out a small blue and green checked dress, but it was cut for a larger doll and would swamp her if she pulled it on.

Belle smiled. “Don’t worry; I can adjust them to your size if 你 like.”

Thumbelina was like a child in a playground, running around and trying out this and that in the little house until she had tried just about every room in the place. “This is all so wonderful, Belle, thank 你 so much!” she exclaimed.

“That’s alright,” Belle replied. Their family was expanding 由 the minute; first Bartok and now Thumbelina. She wondered whether she ought to tell her siblings about her; not her parents, not that they’d ever listen 或者 understand, but maybe Derek, Ferdinand and Anya would take to Thumbelina like Thumbelina had taken to the doll’s house.

“Can I see the rest of the house, please?” Thumbelina asked.

“You have done, sweetie,” replied Bartok, gesturing to the house. “That’s it.”

“Oh, no, I mean this great big house 你 live in.”

Belle hesitated, and then nodded. “Ok. Let’s go down to the dining room.”

“Is this such a good idea?” Bartok muttered to her. “Your parents might freak seeing a girl her size!”

“Bartok, it’s six o’clock; no one else will be up for hours yet.” Belle picked up Thumbelina and together the three of them went downstairs to the dining hall.

“This is a big table,” Thumbelina observed. “Do 你 have a very big family?”

“Not really,” Belle admitted, sitting down on one of the chairs. “It’s just me, my sister Anya, my two brothers Derek and Ferdinand and my parents. Oh, and a whole load of pets. And Bartok, now, of course. But we do sometimes have a lot of guests for dinner.”

“And royal guests too,” Bartok added, as Thumbelina twirled about the table. “Just last night they had the Empress herself for dinner.”

“Oh!” Thumbelina squeaked as she twirled too far and nearly fell of the table. Automatically, Belle sprang to her feet, banging her knees painfully on the 表 as she did so, but Bartok quickly swooped underneath Thumbelina, caught her and brought her back to the centre of the table.

“Careful!” he chided. “You could have been hurt!”

“Oh, thank you, Bartok!” squealed Thumbelina, flinging her tiny arms around him for a hug which he wasn’t ready for.

Bartok looked flustered and then flattered. “Eeh, well, no harm done,” he said, as she released him. “You ok, Belle?”

Belle smiled, the pain in her knees dying down now. “I’m fine, but I was worried. This muct be what it’s like having children.”

“Yeah!” Bartok laughed. “You can’t take your eyes of them! I had to babysit thirteen cousins once and let me tell you, it wasn’t easy!”

Thumbelina sat down on the table, her skirts puddling around her. “Thirteen? Do 你 come from a big family?”

“Huge!” Bartok laughed. “We bats breed like rabbits!”

Belle laughed. “And yet, really, you’re 更多 like mice! With wings!”

“Oh, yeah?” Bartok straightened up. “Can mice dance?”

“Can you?” Thumbelina asked.

“Can I? Watch this!” And Bartok quickly launched into a series of suave dance moves. “If I can lean to do it,” he sang, waltzing around the table, “You can learn to do it. Pull yourself together and you’ll pull through it. Tell yourself it’s easy, and it’s true; 你 can learn to do it too!”

“Very good,” Belle smiled, applauding his performance as he took a bow.

“Now me, now me!” exclaimed Thumbelina, with childish eagerness, and she began to copy Bartok’s moves.

“Elbows in and back straight!” Bartok instructed her. “Toe, heel, toe, heel; follow me and turn!”

Belle laughed as her two new 老友记 performed a mini dance 显示 especially for her. She decided that she simply must tell Anya about them at some point, but at this point she was too busy giggling at the sight of a tiny girl and a little white bat waltzing around the table.

“See?” Bartok laughed. “You can learn to do it too!”