At their end of the town Paulette, Odette and Lucie worked feverishly. They were sure of food and shelter; the rest did not matter. Their energies were bent upon restoring the home so far as possible. First the débris around the shed was cleared to give them free exit and entrance, then the free space was enlarged by degrees. It was not easy to get helpers, for all were occupied in restoring their own, yet Miss Lowndes more than once came to the rescue by sending young Marcus, who loaded up his sturdy machine and carried off a lot of stuff in order that garden space might be had. Nothing could be done with the house at present, but it was found possible to enlarge the shed, construct some rough furniture and install a small stove. As all three lived mostly out-of-doors, they considered themselves not badly housed. By degrees shell holes in the garden were filled up, the earth uncovered and a late garden planted. It was a red-letter day when Lucie discovered that the cherry tree was sending up shoots from its roots and that there were some pale, greeny white sprouts around the grape vines which had been uncovered. But the biggest surprise of all occurred one morning when she went out and saw sitting on a section of the wall, serenely washing his face, who, but Mousse! For an instant Lucie stared, scarcely believing her eyes. “It couldn’t really be,” she whispered to herself. “It must be some other cat like him.” Then she called: “Mousse, Mousse!” The cat paused in his ablutions, regarding her with a wary eye. She went nearer. The cat ran along the wall a little way, then sat down again to continue his morning toilet. Lucie watched him for a few moments, but fearing to drive him away did not move nearer. Presently she went cautiously to the shed where Paulette was getting breakfast. “Paulette, come out here,” she said; “I am sure that Mousse has returned.” Paulette smiled. “But that is impossible.” “I don’t see why. Come and see for yourself.” “If it be Mousse he had a peculiar mark on one of his hind legs,” said Paulette. “Odette, watch the pot while I go to convince this imaginative child.” They went out again, Pom Pom following closely at their heels. At sight of the cat Pom Pom gave one quick, sudden bark, but stopped short and with wagging tail approached the wall. With clasped hands Lucie watched the two creatures breathlessly. The cat on the wall did not stir, but gazed down with a blandly tolerant expression at the little dog. Pom Pom began to whine. The cat got up, stretched himself, exhibiting a diagonal line of white across one of his hind legs, and took a position where he could better observe the dog.