At times she could hardly contain herself for the longing to be back home again. She remembered that Dete had told her that she could go home whenever she liked. So it came about one day that Heidi felt she could not bear it any longer. She tied all the rolls up in her red shawl, put on her straw hat, and went downstairs. But just as she reached the hall-door she met Miss Rottermeyer, just returning from a walk, which put a stop to Heidi's journey. "What have you dressed yourself like that for?" exclaimed Miss Rottermeyer. "What do you mean by this? Have I not strictly forbidden you to go running about in the streets? And here you are ready to start off again, and going out looking like a beggar." "I was not going to run about, I was going home," said Heidi frightened. "What are you talking about! Going home! What would Mr. Sesemann say if he knew! And what is the matter with his house, I should like to know! Have you ever in your life before had such a house to live in, such a table, or so many to wait upon you? Have you?" "No," replied Heidi. "I should think not, indeed!" continued the exasperated lady. "You are an ungrateful little thing to be always thinking of what naughty thing you can do next!" Then Heidi's feelings got the better of her, and she poured forth her trouble. "Indeed I only want to go home, for if I stay so long away Snowflake will begin crying again, and grandmother is waiting for me, and Greenfinch will get beaten, because I am not there to give Peter any cheese, and I can never see here how the sun says good-night to the mountains; and if the great bird were to fly over Frankfurt he would croak louder than ever about people huddling all together and teaching each other bad things, and not going to live up on the rocks, where it is so much better." "Heaven have mercy on us, the child is out of her mind!" cried Miss Rottermeyer, and she turned and went quickly up the steps. "Go and bring that unhappy little creature in at once," she ordered Sebastian. "What, are you in trouble again?" said Sebastian in a pleasant voice, as he led Heidi back up the stairs. He tried to cheer her up by telling her he was taking good care of all the kittens. But she was too sad to care and silently crept away to her room. At supper that evening she sat without moving or eating; all she did was to hastily hide her roll in her pocket. Next day Miss Rottermeyer made up her mind that she would supplement Heidi's clothing with various garments from Clara's wardrobe, so as to give her a decent appearance when Mr. Sesemann returned. She confided her intention to Clara, who was quite willing to give up any number of dresses and hats to Heidi; so the lady went upstairs to overhaul the child's belongings and see what was to be kept and what thrown away. She returned, however, in the course of a few minutes with an expression of horror upon her face.