27

How the Blue Devil Became the Blue Tiger
Hiv and attend and listen, for this befell and behappened and became and

was, Oh, my best Beloved, when the Class Animals were wild. The Green

Sea Horse was wild and the Blue Fox was wild and all the animals in the
Time Before were wild and fought with one another in a dreadfully wild way.
But wildest of all wild animals was the Scarlet Moth, who had a ’Satiable curiosity
as well as a Horrid Temper. “UVhe Scarlet Moth had a ’Satiable curiosity to find out
what the First Singing of the Blue Fox’s Child meant, and sent the Big Ceaseless
One to find out. (For you must know, oh, Best Beloved, that the Big Ceaseless
One didn’t find out, but somebody did, and so the Scarlet Moth sang a song just like
the First Singing of the Blue Fox’s Child—only the words weren’t the same.)
Now the Blue Fox’s Child’s Beautiful Blue eyes were opened and it saw what a
Wild World it was in and how Wildest Wild the Scarlet Moth was, and it was
careful in all the Time-That-Came-After.

Later on in Time, the Blue Fox’s Child gave a party to the Scarlet Moth, and
the party was a nice party, with Songs about the Dream Palaces and about pretty
Bubbles and about the Valley-that-is-beyond-the-Moon and about lots of other
beautiful things. Oh, Best Beloved, it was a lovely party!

But the Wild ’Satiable curiosity of the Scarlet Moth couldn’t wait to see what
Wild Animal the Blue Fox’s Child would bring to the party; and so it called the
Ceaseless One to it again and said, “‘Oh, Ceaseless One, go down to the little Green
Hollow that is over the Hill and lie down and make believe you are a rock and
perhaps the Blue Fox’s child will sing a song about the Wild, Wild Animal that is
coming to the party to-night.”’ But you see, oh, Best Beloved, that the Blue Fox’s
Child’s Beautiful Blue Eyes were open wide. It only kicked the CeaselessOne when
it made believe it was a rock and told it to go home to its Mother.

* * * * * * * * * *

The night of the party came soon and all the wild animals were waiting for it
to begin. The Blue Fox’s Child was painting its face so that it would look most
beautiful of All, and Surprise the Scarlet Moth and the Blue Fox and the Green
Sea Horse. A Messenger came running in a great hurry with hardly any breath
left and said to the Blue Fox’s Child, “Go up to the Big-Hall-that-is-called-Pem-
broke and save the life of your Wild Animal from the ’Satiable curiosity of the
Scarlet Moth—and most 'specially save your Wild Animal from the Horrid Temper
of the Scarlet Moth.”’ So the Little Blue Fox’s Child ran as fast as its little short
legs would take it to the Big-Hall-that-is-called-Pembroke and the Blue Fox’s
Child’s Beautiful Blue Eyes opened wider at the dreadfully wild fight it saw. And
it knew even better than before that it must be wild too. It knew, oh, Best Beloved,
that if it wasn’t wild, it would go where all the little Dead Bunnies go. So it started
to fight and show its little white teeth and tried its very best to keep the Scarlet
Moth out of the Cave where the Blue Devil was hiding. (For you must know, oh,
Best Beloved, that that was the name of the animal that the Blue Fox’s Child was
going to bring to the Party.)

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