The small candles became brighter than before. Twenty little knights came into the hall in pairs and stopped near the gold chair. Then a little man in a long green dress and a crown on his head entered the hall. He looked very important. Twenty little boys in red dresses followed the man.
"This must be the king," thought Alyosha.
The King sat down on the gold chair. Then he said something to one of the knights. The knight came up to Alyosha.
"Please, follow me," he said.
Alyosha came up to the King.
"I know all about you," said the King. "You are a good and kind boy. You also did a very good thing. I want to thank you for that. You saved my First Minister."
"When?" asked Alyosha.
"Oh, it was the day before yesterday. It happened in the yard," said the King. "Please, meet my First Minister."
Alyosha looked at a small man in black. There was a little red hat on his head. He smiled at Alyosha.
"I think I know him. But I didn't save any man," thought Alyosha.
"Sir!" he said. "The day before yesterday I saved our little black hen. Not your minister."
"What are you saying?!" said the King angrily. "My minister is not a hen!"
The minister came up to Alyosha. The boy looked at him again.
"Oh! You're my dear Blacky!" he said in a happy voice.
to make me do something silly — заставить меня сделать что-то глупое.
at last — наконец.
fell to pieces — рассыпались на части.
in fact — на самом деле.
I like it here very much. — Мне здесь очень нравится.
in pairs — парами
the day before yesterday — позавчера.
1 Correct the statements.
1) In the first room Alyosha saw two beds and a cage with a parrot.
2) The people and animals in the pictures looked angry.
3) Alyosha stopped to look at the dolls.
4) The dolls jumped off the table and started dancing.
5) The knights came from the wall and smiled at Alyosha and Blacky.
6) Alyosha beat the knights with a picture from the wall.
7) The little people started singing and dancing.
8) The Minister was a man in a green suit.
2 Match the two parts of the sentences.
1) The King
2) Alyosha
3) The knights
4) The little people
5) The dolls
6) Blacky
a) put on his clothes.
b) went back to their places.
c) started walking around the hall.
d) looked sleepy.
e) beat the knights with her wings.
f) sat down on the gold chair.
3 Say why:
1) the people and animals in the pictures looked funny.
2) the knights fell to pieces.
3) the King wanted to thank Alyosha.
4 Fill in the words from the box.
dolls crown clothes metal
1) Alyosha took off his ____ and went to bed.
2) The knights were in fact some pieces of ____.