At last they came to warm lands; there the sun was brighter and the sky seemed twice as high. The swallow flew down with Thumbelina, and set her upon one flower. But there, to her astonishment, she found a tiny little man sitting in the middle of the flower; he had the prettiest golden crown on his head, and the most beautiful wings on his shoulders; he himself was no bigger than Thumbelina. He was the spirit of the flower. In each blossom there dwelt a tiny man or woman; but this one was the Prince.
'How handsome he is!' whispered Thumbelina to the swallow.
When the Prince saw Thumbelina, he was delighted, for she was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. He asked her name, and then invited her to his castle. The Prince fell in love with her, so he asked her if she would be his wife, and Queen over all the flowers. This certainly was a very different sort of husband to the son of a toad, or the mole; so she said, “Yes,” to the handsome prince. She was gifted then with a beautiful pair of wings so she too could fly from flower to flower.
'You shall not be called Thumbelina!' said the Prince to her. We will call you May Blossom.'
So she married the Prince and became the Queen of the Flowers.
