and were only biding their time.

One beautiful warm summer's day, Anne, having finished her housework
early, took her knitting and went and sat in an arbour at the foot of the
garden, for she never could bear to be cooped up indoors if she could
possibly get out. She had not been sitting there very long when she heard
a rustling amongst the bushes, but she took no notice of it, for she felt
it was sure to be her lover, coming to have a talk with her; and now that
she was so possessed with the thought of a fairy lover, she had ceased to
care for poor Tom, and was extremely cool and off-hand with him.

So, at the sound of the rustling, even when it was repeated, she did not
even raise her eyes from her knitting, or turn her head.

Presently, though, the bushes were rustled more violently, and then
someone gave a little laugh. Anne moved this time, for the laugh was
certainly not Tom's laugh.

A lane ran along at the back of the arbour, a lane which one had to pass
down to get to the garden gate, and it was from here that the laugh came.
Anne peeped carefully out through the trellis-work and bushes to try to
see who it was who was laughing at her, but not a sign of any living being
could she see. She felt annoyed, for it is extremely unpleasant to feel
that someone is looking at you through a peep-hole, and making game of
you.

Anne grew so vexed she could not keep her vexation to herself.
"Well," she said aloud, feeling sure it was Tom who was trying to tease
her, "you may stay there till the moss grows over you, before ever I'll
come out to you."

A burst of laughter, peculiarly sweet and ringing, greeted her words.
"Oh," she thought to herself, "whoever can it be? I'm certain sure Tom
could never laugh like that. Who can it be, I wonder?"

She felt really nervous now, for there was something unnatural about it
all, but she tried to reassure herself by thinking that nothing could
happen to her in broad daylight such as it was then. Besides which, she
did not know of anyone who wished to harm her, for she was a favourite
with everyone in the village. She waited anxiously, though, to see what
would happen next.

She went on with her knitting, seemingly paying no heed to anything, but
her ears were strained to catch the least sound, and when, after a little
while, the garden gate was softly opened and closed again, she heard it
distinctly, and glancing up to see who was coming, she saw to her
astonishment,