Of course , if the eagle himself was there to protect them even the lindworm , big and strong as he was , knew that he could do nothing ; but when he was absent , any little eaglets who ventured too near the ground would be sure to disappear down the monster 's throat . Their brothers , who had been left behind as too young and weak to see the world , knew nothing of all this , but supposed their turn would soon come to see the world also . And in a few days their eyes , too , opened and their wings flapped impatiently , and they longed to fly away above the waving tree-tops to mountain and the bright sun beyond . But that very midnight the lindworm , who was hungry and could not wait for his supper , came out of the brook with a rushing noise , and made straight for the tree . Two eyes of flame came creeping nearer , nearer , and two fiery tongues were stretching themselves out closer , closer , to the little birds who were trembling and shuddering in the farthest corner of the nest . But just as the tongues had almost reached them , the lindworm gave a fearful cry , and turned and fell backwards . Then came the sound of battle from the ground below , and the tree shook , though there was no wind , and roars and snarls mixed together , till the eaglets felt more frightened than ever , and thought their last hour had come . Only Wildrose was undisturbed , and slept sweetly through it all . In the morning the eagle returned and saw traces of a fight below the tree , and here and there a handful of yellow mane lying about , and here and there a hard scaly substance ; when he saw that he rejoiced greatly , and hastened to the nest . ` Who has slain the lindworm ? ' he asked of his children ; there were so many that he did not at first miss the two which the lindworm had eaten . But the eaglets answered that they could not tell , only that they had been in danger of their lives , and at the last moment they had been delivered . Then the sunbeam had struggled through the thick branches and caught Wildrose 's golden hair as she lay curled up in the corner , and the eagle wondered , as he looked , whether the little girl had brought him luck , and it was her magic which had killed his enemy . ` Children , ' he said , ' I brought her here for your dinner , and you have not touched her ; what is the meaning of this ? ' But the eaglets did not answer , and Wildrose opened her eyes , and seemed seven times lovelier than before . From that day Wildrose lived like a little princess . The eagle flew about the wood and collected the softest , greenest moss he could find to make her a bed , and then he picked with his beak all the brightest and prettiest flowers in the fields or on the mountains to decorate it . So cleverly did he manage it that there was not a fairy in the whole of the forest who would not have been pleased to sleep there , rocked to and fro by the breeze on the treetops . And when the little ones were able to fly from their nest he taught them where to look for the fruits and berries which she loved . So the time passed by , and with each year Wildrose grew taller and more beautiful , and she lived happily in her nest and never wanted to go out of it , only standing at the edge in the sunset , and looking upon the beautiful world .
For company she had all the birds XXXXX the forest , who came and talked to her , and for playthings the strange flowers which they brought her from far , and the butterflies which danced with her .
From So below beyond for in like on than that