`` Honour bright ? '' said the king at last . `` Honour bright ! '' answered the prince , and , for the first time in many months , the royal father and son shook hands . `` For you , madam , '' said Prigio in a stately way to Lady Molinda , `` in less than a week I trust we shall be taking our vows at the same altar , and that the close of the ceremony which finds us cousins will leave us brother and sister . '' Poor Molinda merely stared ; for she could not imagine what he meant . In a moment he was gone ; and having taken , by the king 's permission , the flying carpet , he was back at the ambassador 's house in Gluckstein . CHAPTER XVII . The Black Cat and the Brethren ! Who was glad to see the prince , if it was not Lady Rosalind ? The white roses of her cheeks turned to red roses in a moment , and then back to white again , they were so alarmed at the change . So the two went into the gardens together , and talked about a number of things ; but at last the prince told her that , before three days were over , all would be well , or all would be over with him . For either he would have brought his brothers back , sound and well , to Falkenstein , or he would not survive his dishonour . `` It is no more than right , '' he said ; `` for had I gone first , neither of them would have been sent to meet the monster after I had fallen . And I should have fallen , dear Rosalind , if I had faced the Firedrake before I knew you . '' Then when she asked him why , and what good she had done him , he told her all the story ; and how , before he fell in love with her , he did n't believe in fairies , or Firedrakes , or caps of darkness , or anything nice and impossible , but only in horrid useless facts , and chemistry , and geology , and arithmetic , and mathematics , and even political economy . And the Firedrake would have made a mouthful of him , then . So she was delighted when she heard this , almost as much delighted as she was afraid that he might fail in the most difficult adventure . For it was one thing to egg on a Remora to kill a Firedrake , and quite another to find the princes if they were alive , and restore them if they were dead ! But the prince said he had his plan , and he stayed that night at the ambassador 's .
Next morning he rose very early , XXXXX anyone else was up , that he might not have to say `` Good-bye '' to Lady Rosalind .
So as at before if in into of than that