it was just as doctor rabbit had expected. he had not told jack rabbit about it, but that very night ki-yi coyote came prowling around, just as doctor rabbit thought he would.
doctor rabbit was in bed, but he had not gone to sleep, when he heard a noise out in his front yard. very quietly he put his head out of an upstairs window.
sure enough! there was slinky ki-yi walking around out there and mumbling to himself. he was saying, “i know well enough he lives here. i can smell his tracks, and i can smell rabbit, too, as plain as anything. he’s gone to bed now, no doubt, so i’ll hide out here and pay him a call in the morning.”
[pg 39]“he, he, he!” ki-yi chuckled softly to himself. he was so tickled to think he had found where doctor rabbit lived. he thought now it would be easy to surprise doctor rabbit and make a breakfast of him.
only a little distance away flowed the murmuring brook, where doctor rabbit went every morning for a drink.
there was a path that led from doctor rabbit’s house to the brook, and ki-yi coyote thought he would hide right beside the path in the bushes. then when doctor rabbit came along in the morning, he could pounce upon him and have him for breakfast.
so sly ki-yi picked out a good place near the path and lay down to wait until morning.
“i suppose i’ll get pretty tired waiting,” he said, “but a big fat rabbit for[pg 40] breakfast is worth waiting for.” and he smacked his lips at the very thought of it. then he said, “my! i haven’t tasted rabbit for two whole months. yes, indeed, i’ll wait right here until morning!” and again ki-yi smacked his lips.
now it so happened that downy screech owl was in the tree right above ki-yi coyote, and heard what he said.
“get out of my woods!” downy screech owl cried, in his strange voice.
old ki-yi jumped, he was so startled. then he looked up and saw who it was. “never mind, screechy,” he said, in his smoothest voice, “i just came in for a cool drink at the murmuring brook and a little nap here.”
“you can’t fool me!” downy owl cried back in his very strange voice. “you’re after something, and i know it![pg 41] i know whom you are after, too. you are after—”
right here downy screech owl stopped talking. he happened to think he might say something that would get doctor rabbit into trouble. so he made up his mind to keep still for the present, and slip over in a little while and tell doctor rabbit where ki-yi coyote was. you see, downy owl didn’t know that doctor rabbit was awake. he didn’t know that ki-yi coyote had even been seen by anybody else.
downy screech owl waited until ki-yi coyote curled himself up, as if for a nap, and then flew around to doctor rabbit’s back door and knocked very gently.
doctor rabbit opened the door only a very little crack, but when he saw who it was, he let downy owl in. and downy began right away, for he was[pg 42] very much excited: “ki-yi coyote is right out there, hiding by the path, waiting for you!” he said.
but to his surprise, doctor rabbit answered, “i know it. i’ve been watching him all the time!”
“my, i’m certainly glad you have,” said downy screech owl; “but what are you going to do?”
“don’t talk so loud!” doctor rabbit warned. “i’m going to do this: i’m going to fool old ki-yi worse than he ever was fooled before in his life. the first joke i play on him will be funny. but the second joke i play on him will take him clear away from the big green woods and the wide prairie for good and all.”
“my goodness me!” was all downy screech owl could say, he was so puzzled. “how are you going to play the jokes on[pg 43] sly ki-yi, and what are the jokes?” he wanted to know.
“never mind now,” doctor rabbit whispered; “you just slip back and see if ki-yi is still there. if he is, try to keep him there.”
