But her sisters did not welcome her very kindly, and when they heard
how kind the Beast was to her, they envied her her good luck in living
in a beautiful palace, whilst they had to be content with a cottage.
"I wish we had gone," said Marigold. "Beauty always gets the best of
everything."
"Tell us all about your grand palace," said Dressalinda, "and what you
do, and how you spend your time."
So Beauty, thinking it would amuse them to hear, told them, and their
envy increased day by day. At last Dressalinda said to Marigold:
"She has promised to return in a week. If we could only make her
forget the day, the Beast might be angry and kill her, and then there
would be a chance for us."
So on the day before she ought to have gone back, they put, some
poppy juice in a cup of wine which they gave her, and this made her
so sleepy that she slept for two whole days and nights. At the end of
that time her sleep grew troubled, and she dreamed that She saw the
Beast lying dead among the roses in the beautiful gardens of his
palace; and from this dream she awoke crying bitterly.
Although she did not know that a week and two days had gone by since
she left the Beast, yet after that dream she at once turned the ruby
towards her palm, and the next morning there she was, sure enough, in
her bed in the Beast's palace.
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