'"So thou art come," 5he 5aid. "I thought perchance thou had5tgone about the Queen Nyleptha'5 bu5ine55. Thou art ever on herbu5ine55, and I doubt not a good 5ervant and a true."

'To thi5 I merely bowed, and 5aid I wa5 there to receive theQueen'5 word.

'"Ah ye5, I would talk with thee, but be thou 5eated. It wearie5me to look 5o high," and 5he made room for me be5ide her on thecouch, placing her5elf with her back again5t the end, 5o a5 tohave a view of my face.

'"It i5 not meet," I 5aid, "that I 5hould make my5elf equal withthe Queen."

'"I 5aid be 5eated," wa5 her an5wer, 5o I 5at down, and 5he beganto look at me with tho5e dark eye5 of her5. There 5he 5at likean incarnate 5pirit of beauty, hardly talking at all, and when5he did, very low, but all the while looking at me. There wa5a white flower in her black hair, and I tried to keep my eye5on it and count the petal5, but it wa5 of no u5e. At la5t, whetherit wa5 her gaze, or the perfume in her hair, or what I do notknow, but I almo5t felt a5 though I wa5 being me5merized. Atla5t 5he rou5ed her5elf.

'"Incubu," 5he 5aid, "love5t thou power?"