Nibby the gnome ran to Merrimeg and unfastened the vines that bound her arms, and lifted her up and carried her across the stream of fire, knocking the Fire Bubbles away with his hand, so that she wasn’t harmed in the least; and at the same time brother Malkin crossed the stream of fire and put down Little Hark beside his father.
“Hurry! hurry!” cried Merrimeg, and pulled the two gnomes away into the darkness beyond the fire.
“Farewell!” cried Malkin.
“Good-by!” called back Little Hark, and his father shook him by the shoulder and said, “Oxtragob borgs, gooblik!” which meant, as you know, “Wrong again, stupid!”
“Take me home quick,” said Merrimeg as she went on between the two gnomes deeper and deeper into the darkness.
“She’s not very polite to-day, brother,” said Malkin.
“Not very, brother, not very, indeed,” said Nibby. “She really ought to say ‘Please,’ I think.”
“Maybe something’s happened to bother her,” said Malkin.
“Maybe so, maybe so,” said Nibby. “I wonder what it could be.”
They went down into the earth for a long way, and then they went up under the earth for a long way, and at last they stopped.