, mercy forgive us!" whimpered a new voice.

There was Mistletoe at the door of the passage, a candle lifted high
above her head and wobbling, so that it shook the grease all over her
night-cap. With the other hand she clutched her camisole, while
beneath a yellow flannel petticoat her fat feet were rocking in the
raw-wool foot-mittens she wore.

"Oh, dear: oh, Sir Godfrey! Oh, me!" said she.

"Saint Charity! What do you want? Holy Ragbag, what's the matter? Is
everybody in my house going stark mad?" Here the Baron fell over the
stool in the dark. "Give me my candle!" he roared. "Light my candle!
What business have either of you to come here?"

"Please, sir, it's Miss Elaine I came for. Oh, me! I'll catch my death
of cold. Her door shutting waked me up-stairs. Oh, dear! Where are we
coming to?"

"You old mattrass!" said Sir Godfrey. Then he turned to his daughter.
But this young lady had had a little time to gather her thoughts in.
So she cut short all awkward questionings with excellent promptness.

"Papa!" she began, breathlessly. "There! I heard it again!"

"Heard it? What?" cried the Baron, his eyes starting.

"It waked me up-stairs, and I ran to get you in your room, and
you----"

"It--it? What's it? What waked you?" broke in Sir Godfrey, his voice
rising to a shriek.

"There it is again!" exclaimed Elaine, clasping her hands. "He's
coming! I hear him. The Dragon! Oh!"

With this, she pretended to rush for the passage, where the squeaks of
Mistletoe could be heard already growing distant in the house. Away
bolted Sir Godfrey after her, shouting to Elaine in terror
undisguised, "Lock your door! Lock your door!" as he fled up-stairs.

So there stood Miss Elaine alone, with the coast clear, and no danger
from these two courageous guardians. Then came a knock from outside,
and her heart bounded as she ran through the cellar and undid the
door.

"You darling!" said Geoffrey, jumping in with legs all covered with
snow. He left the door open wide, and had taken four or five kisses at
the least before she could stop him. "The moon was out for a while,"
he continued, "and the snow stopped. So I came a long way round-about,
that my tracks should not be seen. That's good strategy."

But this strange young lady said no word, and looked at him as if she
were going to cry.

"Why, what's the matter, dear?" he asked.

"Oh, Geoffrey! I have been deceiving papa so."

"Pooh! It's not to be thought of."

"But I