"How can I? You are so small, Lady Bug."

"Just watch me," said Lady Bug.

Verotchka watched and wondered more and more. Lady Bug stretched out her strong upper wings and doubled in size; then she opened her thin cobwebby lower wings and grew still larger. She grew under Verotchka's very eyes and she became so large--large enough for Verotchka to sit comfortably upon her back between her red wings.

"Are you comfortable, Verotchka?" asked Lady Bug.

"Very," said Verotchka.

"Then hold on tight," said Lady Bug.

Then they flew. At first Verotchka was afraid and closed her eyes. It seemed to her that it was not she who was flying, but as if cities, woods, rivers and mountains were flying beneath her. Then it seemed as if she had grown small--as small as a pin head and as light as the down of Dandelion.

Lady Bug flew fast and faster, so fast that the air whistled through her wings.

"Look down, Verotchka," said Lady Bug.

Verotchka looked down and clapped her hands.

"Oh, how many Roses--red, yellow, white, pink," exclaimed Verotchka.

The world seemed to be covered with a carpet of swaying Roses. "Let us descend," begged Verotchka of the Lady Bug.

They descended and Verotchka grew big again, as big as she was before, and Lady Bug grew tiny again.

For a long time Verotchka ran about in the rose-field and gathered a huge bunch of Roses. How beautiful they were! Their perfume made one faint. If one could only carry the rose-field to the North, where Roses were mere visitors!

"Now, let us go further," said Lady Bug, stretching out her wings again. Again, Lady Bug grew large and larger and Verotchka grew small and smaller.

IV

Again they flew. It was all so nice. Above, the sky so blue; beneath, the water still bluer. They flew over a steep rocky sh.o.r.e.

"Will we really fly across the sea?" asked Verotchka.

"Yes. But you must sit still and hold me tight," said Lady Bug.

At first, Verotchka was afraid, but after a while she wasn't. There was nothing but sky and sea. On the sea sailed ships like huge birds with white wings. The little boats looked like flies.

Everything was lovely--so nice. Way yonder was the sh.o.r.e, low, yellow, sandy. It was the mouth of some huge river and near it gleamed a city all white, as if built of sugar. Still beyond, one saw a dead desert, where stood the Pyramids. Lady Bug descended upon the bank of the river. Upon it grew tall Papyrus and among them were Lilies, wonderful, delicate.

"Your home is very lovely," said Verotchka to the Lilies. "Does winter never come here to you?"

"What is winter?" asked the Lilies, wonderingly.

"Winter is the time snow falls," said Verotchka.

"And what is snow?" asked the Lilies.

The Lilies even laughed at Verotchka. They thought the little northern girl was making fun of them. It is true that every fall huge flocks of birds from the North visited them and told them about the winter. But these birds had never really seen winter. They were only repeating what they had heard and Verotchka could not believe that there was no winter, for that meant no need of warm coats or warm shoes.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

They flew further. Verotchka wondered no longer at the blue sea, the mountains, the sun-kissed desert and the Hyacinths.

"I'm too warm," complained Verotchka. "You know, Lady Bug, I don't think it's nice to have summer all the time."

"It all depends upon what one is accustomed to," said Lady Bug.

They flew towards high mountains, the tops of which were always white with snow. There it wasn't so warm. Beyond the mountains, stretched deep, dark forests. Under the forest trees, it was dark, for the rays of the sun never penetrated beyond the thick tree tops. Monkeys swung from bough to bough. The woods were full of birds--green, yellow, blue. But the most wonderful of all were the flowers growing directly from the tree trunks. There were flowers like fire, flowers of all colors, flowers that looked like birds and b.u.t.terflies. The whole forest seemed to blaze with many-colored living fires.

"These are Orchids," explained Lady Bug.

Here it was all a tangle. It was impossible to walk.

They flew further. Beneath them, a huge river spread between green banks. Lady Bug alighted upon a huge white flower that grew in the water. Verotchka had never before seen a flower so large as this.

"This is a holy flower," explained Lady Bug. "It is called 'Lotus.'"

V

Little Verotchka had seen so much that she finally grew tired and wanted to go home. Home is best.

"I love white snow," said Verotchka. "It isn't nice without winter."

Again they flew. The higher they flew, the colder it grew. Soon there appeared beneath them white fields and only the pine woods were green.

Verotchka was so happy when she saw the first fir-tree.

"Little Fir-Tree! Little Fir-Tree!" called Verotchka.

"h.e.l.lo, Verotchka," answered the Little Fir-Tree beneath her.

This was a real Christmas tree. Verotchka knew her at once. That dear Christmas tree! Verotchka bent down to tell her how lovely she was and all of a sudden she felt herself going down, down, down.

It was frightful. She turned somersaults in the air several times, and then fell right into the soft white snow. Verotchka closed her eyes with fear and didn't know whether she was dead or alive.

"How did you get here, Little One?" asked somebody.

Verotchka opened her eyes and saw a bent, old man, all gray. She knew him at once. It was the same old man who brought Christmas trees and golden stars, boxes of candy and wonderful toys, to the good children.

He was so kind, this old man; he picked her up in his arms and covered her with his fur coat, asking her again:

"How did you come here, Little Girl?"

"I travelled on Lady Bug's back, and I saw so much, Grandfather!"

"So, so."

"I know you, Grandfather. You bring Christmas trees to children."