"Thorns!" cried Father Owl. "How did they get in there?"

"That's more than I can tell," said the Mother Owl. "Perhaps it's old
Granddaddy Thistletop's doings. I thought those fairies had gone away,
but they must be down there still. I'll just fly down and see, and if
they are, I'll make them sorry enough."

With that, down flew the Mother Owl, and putting one big yellow eye at
the kitchen window, she looked in. "Who-o-o! you fairies," she cried,
"are you in there still?"

At first, her eye looked so very big and yellow that Teddy was
frightened. Then he remembered that he was a gamblesome elf, so he made
a face at her, and began to hop up and down and twirl about on his toes,
singing:

"I won't go away! I won't go away!
I'll stay all night, and I'll stay all day.
Oh, my cap and toes! I'm a gamblesome elf.
Old owl, you had better look out for yourself."

The old owl looked in for a moment, and then without a word she flew
back to her nest as fast as she could. Teddy ran over to the chimney and
listened. He heard the old owl brush into the hollow above, and then he
heard her saying in a frightened voice: "Husband, husband, what do you
think! A gamblesome elf has come to live in old Granddaddy Thistletop's
house."

"Oh, my tail-feathers!" cried old Father Owl aghast. "This is bad