A very short walk brought them to the house. It was a very cunning little house, with a door and windows just about large enough for a large child.
Ellen went up to the door and knocked. She could hear some one rattling about inside and moving things around, but there was no answer to her rap, so she knocked again.
A moment's silence followed, and then the door was suddenly and violently thrown open. There stood a little dwarf holding a great wooden spoon in his hand as though it were a club. His eyes had a scared look.
"Who are you, and what do you want here?" he cried, in a voice that he tried to make very big and bold, though it trembled in spite of him.
"I am Ellen," answered the little girl, "and I stopped here to ask if you could tell me the way to the Queerbodies' house."
"Oh, is that all," said the dwarf with a sigh of relief. "I was afraid when you first knocked that you might be one of those bad underground dwarfs. But come in; come in. I don't know the way myself, but maybe one of my brothers may. They'll be here soon if you'll come in and wait a bit. I'm just cooking dinner for them."
"Thank you," said Ellen. "May my gander come in too?"
"Yes, yes; bring him in."