Lulu and the Hamster in the Night (2 page)

The cage was beautifully clean by the time Lulu's father came home from work. He laughed at the hamster's name and said he had once known a dog called Tiger.

“But he's not the best-looking beast in the world, is he?” Lulu's father asked.

“I'm glad he's not mine,” agreed Mellie. “I don't like his teeth and I don't like his tail.”

“He needs something to gnaw,” Lulu said. “His teeth won't look so scary when he's worn them down a little. And soon you won't notice his tail.”

“If Nan sees him she will notice his tail,” said Mellie. “And she'll scream.”

“She won't see him,” said Lulu.

Chapter Two

Taming Ratty

Lulu wanted to put Ratty's cage in her
bedroom, but her mom and dad did not
like the idea.

“Why not the shed?” they asked. “He
could make friends with the guinea pigs.”

“They'd never let him,” said Lulu. “Guinea pigs are only ever friends with other guinea pigs. You let me keep my old hamster in my bedroom.”

“He was very small,” said her mum. “And he didn't smell.”

“He did,” said Lulu. “He had a lovely hamster smell! It's nice having an animal living in your bedroom. Lots of people do. I've got a friend at school whose big brother has three snakes and a big lizard living in his!”

“Not really?” asked Lulu's horrified mom.

“Yes, and what will they do with them when they go on vacation?” asked Lulu. “That's what they are trying to work out!”

“Lulu, have you offered to look after three snakes and a big lizard for your friend's brother while the family goes on vacation?” demanded her father.

“Not yet,” said Lulu.

“Well, don't! Do you know what snakes and big lizards eat?”

“What?”

“Hamsters!” said her father. “So you'd better choose! Which do you want? Ratty or three snakes and a big lizard, one of them with a bulge!”

“Ratty,” said Lulu, and so Ratty went to live in her bedroom with no more fuss from her parents.

“I thought they said no,” said Mellie when she saw him there.

“They changed their minds.”

“What made them?”

“Oh, some snakes and a lizard,” said Lulu.

Ratty did not become tame very quickly. Perhaps he had been poked too many times by Emma Pond's pencil for that. For days he tried to bite Lulu whenever she reached a hand toward him. He scuttled out of sight at every unexpected noise.

But he stopped running on his wheel so much. Lulu let him out so often that he didn't have to, with Lulu's bedroom to explore. Mellie's maze was there, and there were cushion mountains to climb and rugs to burrow under and delicious slices of carrots in unexpected places.

Ratty loved carrots. He would grab the carrot slices, hurry back to his cage with them, and put them safely under his bed.

Even his bed was a much cleaner bed than he had ever had before.

And his wheel didn't squeak because it had been oiled, and the bars on his cage did not make him furious because Lulu opened the door whenever she came in.

Ratty began to be pleased when Lulu came in.

He didn't hide quite so often.

He didn't try to bite quite so quickly.

“He's getting much friendlier,” Lulu told Mellie proudly when Mellie came to visit one day after school.

“Never mind about Ratty,” said Mellie, after one quick look. “Guess what I've been doing!”

It was easy to guess what Mellie had been doing because she was dabbled all over with pink paint and glitter.

“Making something!” said Lulu.

“A birthday present for Nan!” said Mellie, bouncing onto Lulu's bed. “Because guess what again? Her birthday's on Sunday! And guess what she's having for her birthday treat? You and me to come and stay! For all day Saturday and spending the night, and then on Sunday will be her birthday party with Mom and Dad and all of us! And that weekend the fair will be coming to the park and Nan says on Saturday we'll go!”

“But …” began Lulu.

“Don't say
but
!” ordered Mellie. “Why'd you want to say
but
? Staying at Nan's is wonderful! It's ten million times more interesting than staying at boring home!”

“I know, only what …”

“Mom's bought Nan a new pink robe for her birthday,” said Mellie, “so I've been making her a pink crown to match. What if you make her a throne?”

“Yes, I could. That's a good idea. But I don't know …”

“I'll help you. It'll be easy. I can't think of anything easier to make!”

“No, listen, Mellie! That's not the problem. It's …”

“If you think our moms and dads will say no, you're wrong! They think it's a really good idea. My mom's downstairs now, talking about it to yours …”

“LISTEN, MELLIE!” shouted Lulu.

“What?”

“It's Ratty. He's just getting tame at last. I can't leave him alone for a whole weekend.”

“Well, you can't take him with you!” said Mellie.

“Can't I?”

“To Nan's? Take Ratty to Nan's? Nobody would let you!”

“They might not notice. They wouldn't mind if they didn't notice.”

“Nan would notice!” said Mellie.

“Not if she didn't see him.”

“How could she not see him?”

“She wouldn't see him because she wouldn't know he was there. And so she wouldn't mind. Like … like …” Lulu gazed around her bedroom, searching for something that would help her explain. “Like if there was a spider living in my curtains, and you didn't know it was there. You wouldn't mind, would you?”

“Yes, I would!” said Mellie, jumping up very quickly.

“But you didn't before I said it!”

“Because I didn't know,” said Mellie, beginning to walk backward to the door.

“Well, it's just the same,” said Lulu. “Nan doesn't know about Ratty. She doesn't even know there is a Ratty. She's never seen him. So she doesn't mind him. And if she never does see him …”

“I've never seen a spider living in your curtains!” interrupted Mellie suddenly, and she looked suspiciously at Lulu.

“I know you haven't!” said Lulu.

“
Is
there a spider living in your curtains? Is there?”

“Go and look if you like!” said Lulu, rolling around on the floor laughing.

“There isn't!” said Mellie, hitting her with teddy bears. “Ha! You're pretending! Do you really think you can take Ratty to Nan's without her knowing?”

“If you help.”

“I always help,” said Mellie. “Don't I?”

“Yes, you do,” said Lulu.

“So we're all going to Nan's,” said Mellie. “You and me and Ratty. So, presents! That's what I came here about. Especially the throne, because I think that's an excellent idea. Let's start it now!”

“But we have till Friday!” protested Lulu.

“You know about animals,” said Mellie. “But I know about making things. I especially know how long glue takes to dry! Ages! So we'd better start now!”

Making Nan's throne took the rest of the day. It used all the rest of Mellie's pink paint and all the tinsel from the Christmas decoration box, and all the foil in Lulu's mom's kitchen and all the beads in Lulu's bead-threading kit and Mellie's mom's silver scarf. It also used all of Lulu's mom's patience and all of Mellie's mom's patience and some peacock feathers that had been hanging around for ages and the folding chair from the garden shed.

But in the end it was done, and Mellie and her mom staggered off home to bed, and Lulu went to find hers.

“Ni' night!” she murmured to her tired mom and dad and the rabbits in the hutches and the guinea pigs in the shed and the tortoise and the dogs and the parrot and Ratty.

And the spider who lived in the curtains, who nobody minded, because no one ever saw him or knew he was there.

In the night, in her dreams, Lulu worried about something. In the morning she woke up and forgot what it was.