"And if I should have it, they would know how to get it out of me at the cadets' school. There is obedience--discipline--the Alpha and Omega of all things, and one finally learns it, too. Willy, have you never longed for wings?"
"I? Wings?" ejaculated Willy, whose full attention was again directed to hook and line. "Nonsense! who could wish for impossibilities?"
"I wish I had some," cried Hartmut, flaming up. "I wish I were one of the falcons of which we hear. Then I would soar high up into the blue air--always higher and higher toward the sun, and would never, never come back."
"I think you are crazy," said the young lord calmly; "but I have not caught anything yet; the fish will not bite at all to-day. I must try another spot."
He gathered up his fishing paraphernalia and went to the other side of the pond.
Hartmut threw himself upon the ground again.
How could he expect that the stolid, matter-of-fact Willibald should harbor thoughts of flying!
It was one of those autumn days which seem to charm back the summer for a few short hours--the sunshine was so golden, the air so mild, the woods so fresh and fragrant. Thousands of brilliant sparkles danced upon the water; the rushes whispered low and mysteriously as the air breathed through them.
Hartmut lay quite motionless, listening to this mystery of whispering and fluttering. The wild, passionate flame, which had flared up almost uncannily when he spoke of the bird of prey, had disappeared from his eyes. Now they were riveted dreamily upon the shining blue of the sky, with a consuming longing in their depths.
Light footsteps drew near, almost inaudible on the soft forest soil; the bushes rustled as if brushed by a silken garment, and parted; a female figure emerged noiselessly and stopped short, fixing an intent look upon the young dreamer.