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And old Nanny nodded in the bush,
and shouted 'hurrah!' with the rest."

"But that is no fairy tale," said the little boy, who was listening to the
story.

"The thing is, you must understand it," said the narrator; "let us ask old
Nanny."

"That was no fairy tale, 'tis true," said old Nanny; "but now it's coming. The
most wonderful fairy tales grow out of that which is reality; were that not
the case, you know, my magnificent Elderbush could not have grown out of the
tea-pot." And then she took the little boy out of bed, laid him on her bosom,
and the branches of the Elder Tree, full of flowers, closed around her. They
sat in an aerial dwelling, and it flew with them through the air. Oh, it was
wondrous beautiful! Old Nanny had grown all of a sudden a young and pretty
maiden; but her robe was still the same green stuff with white flowers, which
she had worn before. On her bosom she had a real Elderflower, and in her
yellow waving hair a wreath of the flowers; her eyes were so large and blue
that it was a pleasure to look at them; she kissed the boy, and now they were
of the same age and felt alike.

Hand in hand they went out of the bower, and they were standing in the
beautiful garden of their home. Near the green lawn papa's walking-stick was
tied, and for the little ones it seemed to be endowed with life; for as soon
as they got astride it, the round polished knob was turned into a magnificent
neighing head, a long black mane fluttered in the breeze, and four slender yet
strong legs shot out. The animal was strong and handsome, and away they went
at full gallop round the lawn.

"Huzza! Now we are riding miles off," said the boy. "We are riding away to
the castle where we were last year!"

And on they rode round the grass-plot; and the little maiden, who, we know,
was no one else but old Nanny, kept on crying out, "Now we are in the country!
Don't you see the farm-house yonder? And there is an Elder Tree standing
beside it; and the cock is scraping away the earth for the hens, look, how he
struts! And now we are close to the church. It lies high upon the hill,
between the large oak-trees, one of which is half decayed. And now we are by
the smithy, where the fire is blazing, and where the half-naked men are
banging with their hammers till the sparks fly about. Away! away! To the
beautiful country-seat!"

And all that the little maiden, who sat behind on the stick, spoke of, flew by
in reality. The boy saw it all, and yet they were only going round the
grass-plot. Then they played in a side avenue, and marked out a little garden
on the earth; and they took Elder-blossoms from their hair, planted them, and
they grew just like those the old people planted when they were children, as
related before. They went hand in hand, as the old people had done when they
were children; but not to the Round Tower, or to Friedericksberg; no, the
little damsel wound her arms round the boy, and then they flew far away

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