And the bear beneath the table smiled to itself , and muttered : ' I am the beautiful stranger ; oh , how I have taken you in ! ' The next evening there was a second ball , and , as you may believe , the prince was determined not to miss it , for he thought he would once more see the lovely girl , and dance with her and talk to her , and make her talk to him , for at the first ball she had never opened her lips . And , sure enough , as the music struck up the first dance , the beautiful stranger entered the room , looking even more radiant than the night before , for this time her dress was woven out of the rays of the sun . All evening the prince danced with her , but she never spoke a word . When the ball was over he tried once more to follow her carriage , that he might know whence she came , but suddenly a great waterspout fell from the sky , and the blinding sheets of rain hid her from his sight . When he reached his home he told his mother that he had again seen the lovely girl , and that this time she had been even more beautiful than the night before . And again the bear smiled beneath the table , and muttered : ' I have taken him in a second time , and he has no idea that I am the beautiful girl with whom he is so much in love . ' On the next evening , the prince returned to the palace for the third ball . And the princess went too , and this time she had changed her bear 's skin into a dress woven out of the starlight , studded all over with gems , and she looked so dazzling and so beautiful , that everyone wondered at her , and said that no one so beautiful had ever been seen before . And the prince danced with her , and , though he could not induce her to speak , he succeeded in slipping a ring on her finger . When the ball was over , he followed her carriage , and rode at such a pace that for long he kept it in sight . Then suddenly a terrible wind arose between him and the carriage , and he could not overtake it . When he reached his home he said to his mother , ' I do not know what is to become of me ; I think I shall go mad , I am so much in love with that girl , and I have no means of finding out who she is . I danced with her and I gave her a ring , and yet I do not know her name , nor where I am to find her . ' Then the bear laughed beneath the table and muttered to itself . And the prince continued : ' I am tired to death . Order some soup to be made for me , but I do n't want that bear to meddle with it . Every time I speak of my love the brute mutters and laughs , and seems to mock at me . I hate the sight of the creature ! ' When the soup was ready , the bear brought it to the prince ; but before handing it to him , she dropped into the plate the ring the prince had given her the night before at the ball .
The prince began XXXXX eat his soup very slowly and languidly , for he was sad at heart , and all his thoughts were busy , wondering how and where he could see the lovely stranger again .
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