By now the direct sunlight was passing from the mouth of the cave, and though it was hot enough, both of them shivered a little.  They spoke together in some language of which we could not understand a word, as though they were debating what their course of action should be.  The dispute was long and earnest.  Had we known what was passing, which I learned afterwards, it would have made us sufficiently anxious, for the point at issue was nothing less than whether we should or should not be forthwith destroyed—­an end, it appears, that Oro was quite capable of bringing about if he so pleased.  Yva, however, had very clear views of her own on the matter and, as I gather, even dared to threaten that she would protect us by the use of certain powers at her command, though what these were I do not know.

While the event hung doubtful Tommy, who was growing bored with these long proceedings, picked up a bough still covered with flowers which, after their pretty fashion, the Orofenans had placed on the top of one of the baskets of food.  This small bough he brought and laid at the feet of Oro, no doubt in the hope that he would throw it for him to fetch, a game in which the dog delighted.  For some reason Oro saw an omen in this simple canine performance, or he may have thought that the dog was making an offering to him, for he put his thin hand to his brow and thought a while, then motioned to Bastin to pick up the bough and give it to him.

Next he spoke to his daughter as though assenting to something, for I saw her sigh in relief.  No wonder, for he was conveying his decision to spare our lives and admit us to their fellowship.

After this again they talked, but in quite a different tone and manner.  Then the Glittering Lady said to me in her slow and archaic Orofenan: 

“We go to rest.  You must not follow.  We come back perhaps tonight, perhaps next night.  We are quite safe.  You are quite safe under the beard of Oro.  Spirit of Oro watch you.  You understand?”

I said I understood, whereon she answered: 

“Good-bye, O Humfe-ry.”

“Good-bye, O Yva,” I replied, bowing.

Thereon they turned and refusing all assistance from us, vanished into the darkness of the cave leaning upon each other and walking slowly.

Chapter XII

Two Hundred and Fifty Thousand Years!

“You seem to have made the best of your time, old fellow,” said Bickley in rather a sour voice.

“I never knew people begin to call each other by their Christian names so soon,” added Bastin, looking at me with a suspicious eye.

“I know no other,” I said.

“Perhaps not, but at any rate you have another, though you don’t seem to have told it to her.  Anyway, I am glad they are gone, for I was getting tired of being ordered by everybody to carry about wood and water for them.  Also I am terribly hungry as I can’t eat before it is light.  They have taken most of the best fruit to which I was looking forward, but thank goodness they do not seem to care for pork.”