But after all Teddy found he was not the only one in the cave who was
not asleep. Sprawley, who was lying on the other side of Fatty, had
began to stir and sit up; he looked about at the sleeping bears, and
then very quietly began to edge himself toward the mouth of the cave.

Once the Mother Bear gave a low growl in her sleep and Sprawley stopped
still to listen, but she didn't waken.

Teddy wondered what Sprawley was going to do, and so, as soon as the cub
had disappeared through the mouth of the cave, he too crawled over to
the opening.

When he looked out he saw Sprawley shuffling over the fields of ice in
the distance, and already quite far away, so, led by his curiosity,
Teddy, too, crept out of the cave and set off running after the bear
cub.

He ran on and on until he was quite close to Sprawley, and then he saw
the cub pause at the edge of a strip of open water, and turn to look
behind him to make sure that he was not followed. He did not see Teddy,
for the fairy had hidden quickly behind a block of ice.

Sprawley turned toward the water again and gave a long, quavering cry
that sounded like a call. He listened, but everything was silent except
for the rumbling and cracking of the ice in the distance. Again he
called, and this time there was an answering cry, and another, and
another. Sprawley stood up and waved his paws, and then Teddy saw that
the open water was dotted with heads of ice-mermen; there must have been
ten or twelve of them at least.