It at once flew away but only as far as to the next tree.
There it perched and looked at them very hard as if it understood all they had been saying.
Almost without noticing that they had done so, the four children went a step or two nearer to it.
At this the Robin flew away again to the next tree and once more looked at them very hard. (You couldn’t have found a robin with a redder chest or a brighter eye.)
“Do you know,” said Lucy, “I really believe he means us to follow him.”
“I’ve an idea he does,” said Susan.
“What do you think, Peter?”
“Well, we might as well try it,” answered Peter.
The Robin appeared to understand the matter thoroughly.
It kept going from tree to tree, always a few yards ahead of them, but always so near that they could easily follow it.
In this way it led them on, slightly downhill.
Wherever the Robin alighted a little shower of snow would fall off the branch.
Presently the clouds parted overhead and the winter sun came out and the snow all around them grew dazzlingly bright.
They had been traveling in this way for about half an hour, with the two girls in front, when Edmund said to Peter, “if you’re not still too high and mighty to talk to me, I’ve something to say which you’d better listen to.”
“What is it?” asked Peter.
“Hush! Not so loud,” said Edmund; “there’s no good frightening the girls.
But have you realized what we’re doing?”
“What?” said Peter, lowering his voice to a whisper.
“We’re following a guide we know nothing about.
How do we know which side that bird is on?
Why shouldn’t it be leading us into a trap?”
“That’s a nasty idea.
Still—a robin, you know. They’re good birds in all the stories I’ve ever read.
I’m sure a robin wouldn’t be on the wrong side.”
“If it comes to that, which is the right side?
How do we know that the Fauns are in the right and the Queen (yes, I know we’ve been told she’s a witch) is in the wrong?
We don’t really know anything about either.”
“The Faun saved Lucy.”
“He said he did.
But how do we know?
And there’s another thing too. Has anyone the least idea of the way home from here?”
“Great Scott!” said Peter,
“I hadn’t thought of that.”
“And no chance of dinner either,” said Edmund.
SEVEN A DAY WITH THE BEAVERS
WHILE THE TWO BOYS WERE WHISPERING behind, both the girls suddenly cried
“Oh!” and stopped.
“The robin!” cried Lucy, “the robin. It’s flown away.”
And so it had—right out of sight.
“And now what are we to do?” said Edmund, giving Peter a look which was as much as to say
“What did I tell you?”
“Sh! Look!” said Susan.
“What?” said Peter.
“There’s something moving among the trees over there to the left.” They all stared as hard as they could, and no one felt very comfortable.
“There it goes again,” said Susan presently.
“I saw it that time too,” said Peter.
“It’s still there.
It’s just gone behind that big tree.”
“What is it?” asked Lucy, trying very hard not to sound nervous.
“Whatever it is,” said Peter, “it’s dodging us.