Fedwie nearly jumped out of his soft little pelt when the crow spoke to him!
"Deaf in one ear?" said Fedwie to himself. "Who would have thought it? Well, then it's off to the other!"
The mouse scampered across the iron collar from one side of the oliphaunt's massive neck to the other. It was already getting hot in the burning sun, and must have been terribly uncomfortable for the great beast.
Fedwie reached the other ear and shouted as loudly as his squeaky little voice could manage, "I say! Hello there! I'm Fedwie, a mouse! I fell off the wall and wanted to know..."
Magda the oliphaunt did not care to supply answers to Fedwie the mouse. A mouse behind her ears!
The old girl trumpeted loudly in startlement, for this was a most disagreeable surprise on a most disagreeable day! All she wanted was a good back scratch! Now she was bound with hot iron, pestered by a crow, and infested with a rodent!
The leader of the men shouted sharply and threatened Magda with his long sharp hook. She swallowed her terror of the mouse and tramped along docilely.
"Oh goodness gracious me!" said Fedwie. "I am most sorry! I didn't mean to startle you! I won't hurt you, I promise!"
"If you come near my trunk, I'll squash you like jelly!" whispered Magda.
"Oh, I'll be oh so very good! I promise!" promised Fedwie.
Fedwie was not unaquainted with the rather ridiculous fear of pachyderms for small rodents, such as himself, and he had laughed at many a cruel jest about this unusual frailty in the great beasts. But he felt extremely sorry for Magda, and was quite worried about himself as well, and so spoke kindly to the old girl. By the time they reached the oliphaunt enclosure, Magda had gotten over her fear of the little mouse and they began a long friendship that would last for the rest of their lives.
Corvu the crow, was less than amused, still tasting a dusty film in the beak. There would be little to eat that a crow would relish in the oliphaunt compound. The carrion bird flapped off to observe the cook tents and to see if it could pick up something choice meant for the people or their dogs. There would be time later to check in on the ridiculous little mouse and the obtuse old oliphaunt.
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