Page:A Menina do Narizinho Arrebitado (1920).pdf/41

 On the way back from this beautiful walk, the prince invited her to fly.

— There are even airplanes around here? asked the girl, amazed.

— They're safer than men's planes, you'll see," replied the prince.

Despite her fear, the little girl took courage and accepted the invitation.

Straight away, an aircricket came. It was a green cricket, carrying on its back a little wicker boat on the head of two insects, a beetle and a firefly. The firefly, with its large phosphorescent eyes, served as the plane's spotlight and the beetle was there to buzz, pretending to be the noise of the propeller. Narizinho found the ingenious invention very funny and got into the little boat without fear. The beetle buzzed and the airplane shot off into the sky like a bolt of lightning. They went up, up, up so high that the earth from there looked like an orange. They flew through clouds and came very close to the moon, which the little girl had the pleasure of touching with the tip of her finger. And they only came down when the sun was rising.



 

N THE night of that day, Narizinho was in the best part of her dream when she woke up to a knock on the window.

— Knock!... Knock!... 