All of a sudden Neddie awakened. He sat up with a jump, and looked all around in the dark. Of course he couldn’t see anything, for it was all black.
Then, hardly knowing where he was, Neddie rubbed his eyes with his paws, but still he could scarcely see. Then he noticed a little light from the street lamp outside, shining in through the window, and he could tell where he was.
“Why!” he exclaimed, “I’m home, in my own house! I fell asleep in the big chair. Huh! I guess I’d better go up to bed!”
Neddie stretched himself, and was wondering if he could find his room in the dark, without waking every one up, including Mr. Whitewash, who was asleep on a cake of ice, when, all of a sudden, Neddie heard a noise. It was right under the window, near which he had been sleeping, and he listened to a voice, saying:
“Now we’ll break in through the back door, and we’ll take Neddie and Beckie and carry them off to our den and never let them out again.”
“Yes, that’s just what we’ll do,” answered another voice, and then Neddie tiptoed to the window, and looking out he saw two bad old lions that had run away from a circus. They were coming to get Neddie and Beckie.
“Oh, what shall I do?” thought Neddie.
“Those lions can easily break into our house. And if I call out to papa and mamma now the lions will hear me and they’ll jump in through the window and get me before I have a chance to run.
“Oh, what can I do? How can I scare those lions away?”
Just then Neddie heard a tiny mousie run up and down on the piano keys, making a little tinkling sound. This made the little bear boy think of something.