"What shall I do about my diamond necklace," muttered the queen, standing near the cold fireplace. "Accursed Duke, accursed Cardinal, accursed ball."
At that moment, there was a soft knock on the door. The queen startled, awkwardly turned around, slipped and fell right into the fireplace. She felt dizzy and closed her eyes. And when she opened her eyes, she discovered that the fireplace somehow miraculously got several times bigger.
"I am going to smash the Floo Network Department to smithereens! This is an outrage, it is!" someone was fuming, but the queen didn't have the time to see who it was. An elegant gentleman in a frock coat took her hand and said,
"Welcome, dear Anna. Come and greet the queen."
She reared up in indignation. She was the queen here! But the gentleman lifted his hands in an appeasing gesture.
"I understand your indignation, but think for a moment-when else would you be able to attend a ball where nobody cares about your diamond necklace, or about who you are? Is it not worth it? Just this once, you'll be able to enjoy yourself as much as you want."
"True enough," thought the queen and headed up the stairs.