The next morning after Billy Bunny and Uncle Lucky had returned to the Old Brier Patch, as I told you in the last story, it rained and poured, and, of course, nobody could go out.
If it had been a gentle shower it wouldn't have made any difference, but it rained so hard that I really believe Billy Bunny would have been drowned if he had even hopped out of the front door and back again.
"Now the best thing for you to do," said Mrs. Bunny after breakfast, "is to go up into the garret and play with all your old toys. You've been away so long they'll all seem just like new."
So Billy Bunny hopped upstairs and Uncle Lucky sat down and read the Bunnyville "Bugle," and Mrs. Bunny washed up the breakfast dishes, and, of course, they all had a lovely time in spite of the rain.
Well, it turned out just as Mrs. Bunny had said. The toys in the garret all seemed just like new and some Billy Bunny had forgotten all about, so that he had a lovely time till lunch, and then the sun came out and dried up the wet places, and the Pleasant Meadow looked twice as green and lovely as before.
Now whenever it rained Uncle Lucky's leg hurt him-the leg you remember that was shot by the Miller's Boy-so he said to his little nephew, "You run out on the meadow and play and I'll stay home with your mother, for my leg hurts me and I don't want to do any hopping to-day."
Then the little rabbit hopped away by himself and by and by he came to the Babbling Brook. So he looked into the water and when he saw his face he began to laugh.
For Billy Bunny hadn't looked at himself for so long he had forgotten how he looked, and, anyway, he had grown so large that he wouldn't have known himself if he hadn't been sure that there was nobody else looking into the water at the same time.
And while he was laughing Mrs. Cow came along, the little bell tinkling at her throat and making such pretty music it seemed to say to the little rabbit:
"I'm just a tiny tinkling bell, But everywhere I go The people say I am so gay, They love to hear me so.
Tinkle, tinkle, dinkle, dell, Oh, I'm a happy little bell!"
"Did you hear what the little bell was saying?" asked Billy Bunny, but Mrs. Cow shook her head.
"It didn't say anything but tinkle, tinkle, did it?" But the little rabbit felt sure it did say just what he thought it did, so he asked the little bell to tinkle again, and it did, and the tinkles said the same thing all over again, and this made Billy Bunny very happy, even if Mrs.
Cow didn't understand.
And in the next story you shall hear how Billy Bunny made a call at the Old Farm.
STORY XXI-BILLY BUNNY AND MRS. WILDCAT
Well, after Billy Bunny had said good-by to Mrs. Cow he hopped across the Pleasant Meadow till he came to the Old Barn Yard. And as soon as the Weathercock saw him you should have heard him crow. Yes, sireemam.
He crowed like a regular old-fashioned everyday rooster, and this made all the hens and chickens look up, and then, of course, they saw Billy Bunny. And they were so glad to see the little rabbit they forgot to wonder how the Weathercock could grow.
I guess the only person who wasn't glad to see little Billy Bunny was Mr. Sharptooth Rat. He peeked out of his hole and scowled, but the little rabbit didn't care, for nobody liked Mr. Sharptooth Rat, anyway.
Well, by and by, just as little Billy Bunny was looking in Henny Jenny's nest to see what a lot of lovely eggs she had, who should come along but the Miller's Boy, and as soon as he saw the little rabbit he gave a yell and tried to catch him.
The chickens tried to get in his way, and Cocky Docky even tried to trip him up, but the Miller's Boy didn't stumble a bit. No, siree! He almost caught Billy Bunny, but as long as he didn't it's all right, although he scared the little rabbit nearly to death.
If the Miller's Boy had had his gun with him, or even his dog, I'm afraid there would have been no more Billy Bunny stories.
"Oh, pshaw!" said the Miller's Boy, as the little rabbit squeezed through a hole in the hen-house and hopped away. "I should like to have caught that little rabbit!" Then Cocky Docky began to crow, he was so glad he hadn't.
But Billy Bunny didn't stop for anything, he was so scared, and pretty soon he found himself in the Friendly Forest under the tree where Parson Owl lived. It was a long time since Billy Bunny had seen the old gentleman owl, so he stopped and looked up into the branches.
But oh, dear me! Instead of seeing the blinky-winky friendly face of old Parson Owl he saw a pair of yellow eyes and a big red mouth with sharp teeth. And then down from the tree jumped a wildcat and meowed in a dreadful way.
"Oh, please, Mrs. Wildcat, let me go," cried the little rabbit, and he looked around for a hollow stump to hide in or a hole to crawl into, but there wasn't anything like that in sight. So he turned to the cruel wildcat and said, "Please don't bite me!" And then he opened his knapsack and took out a big, round doughnut, the kind with a big hole inside, you know, and gave it to the wildcat.
"Take it home to your wild kittens instead of me, won't you please, Mrs.
Wildcat?" And would you believe it, she said she would, for it pleased her to think that little Billy Bunny would give her a doughnut for her kittens, for no one else had ever done that before, you see.
STORY XXII-BILLY BUNNY AT WINDY CAVE
You remember in the last story that Billy Bunny gave the Wildcat a doughnut to take home to her little wild kittens, and that was why she didn't take the little rabbit.
Well, as she walked off with the doughnut, Billy Bunny said to himself, "I'll never, never be without a doughnut in my knapsack!" And I guess you would have said the same thing, too, if a doughnut had saved you from a wildcat!
After that the little rabbit hopped along through the Friendly Forest, and by and by he came to the Windy Cave. Now I know I've never told you about this cave before because Billy Bunny never happened to visit it, but now that he has I'll tell you that it was strange sort of a place.
If you stood at the opening you could hear the winds moan and groan, and every once in a while a great gust would come out of the mouth of the great cave and almost blow you off your feet.
[Illustration: DOWN FROM THE TREE JUMPED THE WILDCAT.]
Well, sir, that's just what happened to Billy Bunny. He no sooner stood right in front of the cave than a great blast of air knocked him off his feet and rolled him over thirty-three times and a half, and he would have rolled over thirty-four times even if a big log hadn't been in the way.
And it was mighty lucky for the little rabbit that the log was there, for if it hadn't been he would have rolled right over the edge of the mountain. Just think of that!
And just then a voice began to sing:
Oh, I'm the king of the windy cave Where I have my windy throne.
And there I rule where it's nice and cool 'Mid the glitter of precious stone.
And when the autumn days are come I come forth with a lusty shout, And strip the trees of their whispering leaves And strew them all about.
And then all the trees began to shiver and shake, but the wind king only laughed, as he whispered to the little rabbit: "Don't be afraid, Billy Bunny. I won't hurt you. Come into my cave and I'll give you a present!"
"What kind of a present?" asked the little rabbit, for he wasn't going to be fooled, no sireemam!
"A big ruby pin!" said the wind king.
So the little bunny went inside the cave with the wind king, but he didn't go in very far, for he was afraid.
"What's the matter?" asked the wind king. "You're not frightened, are you?"
"Not exactly," said Billy Bunny, trying to keep his teeth from chattering. "I guess I'm cold!"
Then the king opened a door and, oh my! wasn't it beautiful inside! The sides of the cave were diamonds and rubies and emeralds, and little gold and silver bells swung back and forth making a sweet kind of music.
"The little breezes are ringing the bells," said the wind king, and then he took out of a moss cushion a beautiful ruby scarfpin and handed it to Billy Bunny. "Put it in your tie," said the king, "and don't you ever lose it."