“See,” cried Limberleg, “even the fire dances with joy at your coming.”
She took Grannie into the cave and showed her the piles of warm skins, and the heaps of nuts: then she showed Grannie how to cook clams.
The Twins had taken Blackbird and Squaretoes the very first thing to see the rabbits. Then they came back for Grannie and made her go and see them too, and when every one had seen everything there was to see, it was dark, and Limberleg had a real feast ready for them to eat.
She had killed a deer the day before, and so they had broiled venison, seasoned with sea salt. They had clams steamed with seaweed, and they had nuts and wild plums.
When they had all stuffed themselves full, Limberleg said to Hawk-Eye: “Now tell us all about your journey. When you went away, we watched you from the hill-top until you were a mere speck on the water. We knew nothing more of you until we heard your shout to-day. There were many weary days between.”
“They were not weary to me,” said Hawk-Eye. “I reached the other shore in safety, and then turned my boat toward the sunset. I kept in the shallow water near the shore, and followed the coast around the end of the point of land which we crossed when we came here.
“I knew our river must empty into the big water not far away, and so I paddled up the first stream I found. I slept in the boat at night. The first night I was awakened by the howling of wolves. But I had only to push my boat out into the stream. They would not follow me there.
“For two days I paddled up-stream. The second day I began to see things that I knew, and on the morning of the third I reached the river path just as Grannie was coming down for water.”
“Yes, yes,” cried Grannie. “I thought I was dreaming! The boat frightened me. I thought Hawk-Eye was dead and that I saw his spirit. I started to run to the cave.”
“Did you think we were all dead?” asked Limberleg.