“Yes,” said Grannie. “I thought some cave bear or tiger had got you. You were always so bold and venturesome. And as for these worthless ones,” she added, patting Firetop on the head, “I didn’t know whether they had gone with you, or had stolen away into the woods and been eaten by old Sabre-tooth.”
“Well, you see,” cried Limberleg, laughing, “it pays to be bold and brave.” When she said “bold and brave,” she looked right at Hawk-Eye. She thought he was the boldest and bravest man in the world.
“There aren’t any sabre-toothed tigers on this island, and there’s plenty to eat every day. Didn’t the others want to come too when you told them about it?” she said to Hawk-Eye.
“They all wanted to come,” Hawk-Eye answered, “but the boat would not hold so many. So I stayed to show them how to make boats for themselves. Long Arm and Big Ear and Grey Wolf are all at work on them now, and they will come in the spring or summer if they get them done.”
“How will they know the way?” asked Firetop.
“I told them just how to follow the river and the coast, and where to cross,” said Hawk-Eye. “They can’t help finding the island, and if they find the island, they can’t help finding us. I told them we were on the side where the sun rises out of the water.”
It had grown very dark as they talked. There was only firelight in the cave, but just then Limberleg saw a bright streak on the edge of the water toward the east.
“Look, Grannie, look,” she cried, pointing to it. “We have discovered the secret of the sun and the moon! They both sleep in the water!”
The children and Grannie and Hawk-Eye and Limberleg all watched together until the white streak grew brighter and stretched in a silver path across the water to the beach below. They saw the pale disk of the moon slowly rise into the deep blue of the night sky, and the stars wink down at them.
“I suppose no one else in the whole world knows the secret,” said Limberleg solemnly. “You see this is the end of the world. You can’t go any farther.”