“Have they a queen bee?” asked the little boy, for he knew that the real
bees had a queen.
“To be sure they have,” said the grandmother. “She is flying there where
the swarm is thickest. She is the largest of them all, and never remains on
the earth, but flies up to the dark clouds. Often at midnight she flies through
the streets of the town, and looks in at the windows, then the ice freezes on
the panes into wonderful shapes, that look like flowers and castles.”
“Yes, I have seen them,” said both the children, and they knew it must be
true.
“Can the Snow Queen come in here?” asked the little girl.
“Only let her come,” said the boy, “I’ll set her on the stove and then
she’ll melt.”
Then the grandmother smoothed his hair and told him some more tales.
One evening, when little Kay was at home, half undressed, he climbed on a
chair by the window and peeped out through the little hole. A few flakes of
snow were falling, and one of them, rather larger than the rest, alighted on
the edge of one of the flower boxes. This snow-flake grew larger and larger,
till at last it became the figure of a woman, dressed in garments of white
gauze, which looked like millions of starry snow-flakes linked together. She
was fair and beautiful, but made of ice-shining and glittering ice. Still she
was alive and her eyes sparkled like bright stars, but there was neither peace
nor rest in their glance. She nodded towards the window and waved her
hand. The little boy was frightened and sprang from the chair; at the same
moment it seemed as if a large bird flew by the window. On the following
day there was a clear frost, and very soon came the spring. The sun shone;
the young green leaves burst forth; the swallows built their nests; windows
were opened, and the children sat once more in the garden on the roof, high
above all the other rooms. How beautiful the roses blossomed this summer.
The little girl had learnt a hymn in which roses were spoken of, and then
she thought of their own roses, and she sang the hymn to the little boy, and
he sang too:-
