“Go on, Pole, do your stuff, ” whispered Scrubb.
Jill found that her mouth was so dry that she couldn't speak a word. She nodded savagely at Scrubb.
Thinking to himself that he would never forgive her (or Puddleglum either), Scrubb licked his lips and shouted up to the King giant.
“If you please, Sire, the Lady of the Green Kirtle salutes you by us and said you'd like to have us for your Autumn Feast.”
The giant King and Queen looked at each other, nodded to each other, and smiled in a way that Jill didn't exactly like. She liked the King better than the Queen. He had a fine, curled beard and a straight eagle-like nose, and was really rather good-looking as giants go. The Queen was dreadfully fat and had a double chin and a fat, powdered face—which isn't a very nice thing at the best of times, and of course looks much worse when it is ten times too big. Then the King put out his tongue and licked his lips. Anyone might do that:
but his tongue was so very large and red, and came out so unexpectedly, that it gave Jill quite a shock.
“Oh, what good children! ” said the Queen. (“Perhaps she's the nice one after all, ” thought Jill.)
“Yes indeed, ” said the King. “Quite excellent children. We welcome you to our court. Give me your hands.”
He stretched down his great right hand—very clean and with any number of rings on the fingers, but also with terrible pointed nails. He was much too big to shake the hands which the children, in turn, held up to him; but he shook the arms.
“And what's that? ” asked the King, pointing to Puddleglum.
“Reshpeckobiggle, ” said Puddleglum.
“Oh! ” screamed the Queen, gathering her skirts close about her ankles. “The horrid thing! It's alive.”
“He's quite all right, your Majesty, really, he is, ” said Scrubb hastily. “You'll like him much better when you get to know him. I'm sure you will.”