The driftwood was just beginning to float as Oxeye pushed his friend aboard. The enemy was now in the shallows, racing toward them through the rippling waves. Sapwood turned and grabbed Oxeye’s free paw.

“I haint goin’ anyplace without you, Ox!”

Big Oxeye shook his head and laughed. “No no, Sap, you sail away. I’ll hold ’em off. Have a good trip!” He whacked Sapwood beneath the chin with the butt of the spear he had taken from Feadle. The Sergeant lay stunned on the dead tree limb as Oxeye pushed it out into the current and the waves began to recede, carrying the makeshift craft into deep water.

A skinny ferret had outdistanced the rest. He waded out, swinging a sword. The big hare disarmed him with a single spear thrust. Grabbing the ferret, Oxeye pushed his head beneath the waves as he called out to the advancing foebeasts, his anger renewing the warrior spirit of his strength: “Come on, chaps, who’s next for a jolly good bath?”

Sapwood was out of reach of the enemy as the water bore him on a southerly curve. Far behind him Big Oxeye threw himself spear in paw at the foe crowding forward through the waves.

“Eulaliaaaaaaaa!”

36

Dumble sat on the edge of little Droony’s bed. The mole listened wide-eyed as the baby dormouse described his flight in great fictitious detail.

“Wizooooo! Right up inna sky we was, anna heagle was frightened, but Dumble wasn’t, me laughed, haha! like that.”

Brother Hollyberry opened his eyes slowly. “Who’s that I hear laughing? Woke me up from a lovely sleep.”

Thrugann was caught by surprise. She almost dropped a beaker of Icetor Flower mixture, juggling it in the air as she hooted, “Mercy me! Look, Furgle, it’s Brother ’Ollyberry, an’ he’s waked!”

Furgle clasped his paws together gratefully. “Oh joy! He was first to go into that deadly sleep and the last to come out. Aren’t old mousewives tales wonderful? Flowers of Icetor boiled in springwater—who’d have ever thought it?”

Mrs. Faith Spinney trudged up from the Infirmary. She was carrying a trayful of hot hazelnut scones, each one with a blob of buttercream and chestnut on top of it.

“Dearie me, bake, bake, bake! I’ve done nothing the livelong day but bake since you sleepyheads woke up. Friar Bellows, when d’you think you’ll be fit for kitchen duties again, sir?”

The fat friar hopped nimbly from his bed. “Right now, marm. Are those hot hazelnut scones? Very good, very good. I’m quite partial to a well-baked scone.”

Faith rapped his paws. “Then get along wi’ you an’ bake some, you idle mouse. These are for the big bird. I’m afeared greatly of it meself. Here, Dumble, take these to your friend.”

Abbess Vale and the two mousemaids Turzel and Blossom watched chuckling from the dormitory window as Dumble and Droony fed the Wild King MacPhearsome on scones.