PIRATIANS BEGONE

Chapter 61

"Kim, it was the most exquisite music anyone ever dreamed of. Icannot describe my emotions or the intensity of my enjoyment whenever Iheard it. First the voice belonged to a beautiful girl whom I thought wemet on the moon, and who talked only in the language of the birds. Thenshe went to Mars with us, and there I heard the same sweet voice alsofrom one of the noble women of that happy planet.

"Oh, what queer things we do in our sleep, and how supremely selfisha dreamer is. I once had a theory that we are all responsible for thecharacter of our dreams, but I hope, my dear, that you will not call meto too strict an account in this case, I should blush to tell you how Iloved each singer, and yet I know now it was only the voice that charmedme. I shall seek my pillow with delight to-night, to try and catch in mysleep some faint echo of that song, for I never expect to hear its likein my waking hours. You are laughing at me, and I don't wonder. Let mesee. I dreamed that I dreamed that you and Greg and Avis were all onegrand, sweet singer. I wonder what would have happened if I had staidthere long enough to tell Avis something that was on my mind. Perhaps Inever should have come away.

"But forgive me, dear Kim, for my enthusiasm for simply a memory,and put the blame on my sensitive ears. And now, tell me what you havebeen doing during these long hours. Did you find the professor and getyour book?"

"Yes, but I had to stay a few minutes and hear him talk. I hurried back,however, to be with you, and for my reward found you fast asleep."

"I was only dozing. But what did you do then?"

"Oh, I sat quiet for a while, and then took up the amusement I usuallyfollow when I find myself alone."

"What is that? Pray tell."

"Singing, of course."

"Singing?"

"Why, yes, didn't you know I could sing?"

"Do you mean to say you were singing all those two or three hours?"

"Not all the time, but at intervals. I sang so loud sometimes that Ithought I should wake you."

"Then," I exclaimed with feeling, "it was you that I heard. You know myears are never fully asleep. Kim, it was your voice that I havebeen falling in love with."

At this Kim laughed heartily, as she answered:

"You have been a good while finding it out. I knew it all the time.That's what I sang for, and I had my pay as I went on, for every timeI began, whether soft or loud, I could see your face light up with thelight of your soul, and then I knew my voice was finding its way to somecorner of your brain."

"How stupid of me," I said, "not to wake up the very first time I heardyou; but I thought it was Greg. Oh, how it did thrill me! And to thinkI am to hear it again when I am really awake. Come, why do we waste allthis time in talking when I have that great happiness still unfulfilled?May I not hear you sing now?"

"Oh, you might be disappointed, after all. My idea is that you enjoyedmy singing because all your critical faculties were dulled in sleep, andyou heard only through your heart, as it were. Don't you think it wouldbe better to live awhile on the pleasant memory you have brought backwith you?"

"Not at all. I can retain the memory, and have the present happinessbesides."

"But you said you never expected to hear such music in your wakinghours."

"Do not be so cruel, Kim, as to recall those words against me,although they were really a tribute to you, for it was your own voicethat forced me to utter them. But what can I do to induce you to sing?"

"Go to sleep," she replied. "I will sing for you all you please when youare asleep, and you can hear me and think of Greg at the same time. Thatwill be a double pleasure."

"My dear, I prefer to think of you. Greg was a beautiful girl, but shecould never love me as you do."

"Why so? Wasn't her heart large enough?"

"Yes, it was too large--so large that she loved everybody, and one nomore than another; while you, darling, have chosen me, out of all thepeople in the world, as the object of your highest and deepest love, andyet in doing that have only increased your power of loving others. Nowwhat will you do to pay me for that speech?"

"Well, I'll relent. But you must at least pretend to be asleep. Comeback and find another chair that you can rest in easily, and I will sitbeside you. There, that will do. Now turn your head away from me, closeyour eyes, and promise me you won't open them till I tell you to do so.I intend to have the calm judgment of your ears uninfluenced by yoursight or any other sense. If you can manage to fall asleep while I amsinging, so much the better."

"Kim," I replied, "I shall try hard to keep my eyes closed, butthere isn't a d**g in the ship's dispensary powerful enough to put me tosleep."

"Then keep quiet and think of Greg. That will be the next bestoccupation for you. Stop laughing, or I shall disappoint you, afterall. I should think the memory of the first time I sang for you would beenough to sober you. Now I am going to turn away my head, so that if youdo look around you won't see my face."

I said nothing in reply, being too eager to have her begin. And now Ihad not long to wait for the fulfillment of my oft-expressed desire.

Sweet and low came the first accents of her song, and, with all myanticipations and with the foretaste I had had in my sleep, I was notprepared for the effect they had on me. It was Greg's voice, but withevery fine quality so exaggerated that all my faculties, now in thefullest sense awake, were completely taken captive. I made no movement,except to turn my head slightly so that I might drink in the sweetsounds with both ears. As the notes increased in volume my pleasure grewto rapture. Not only was my critical taste fully satisfied, which ofitself was almost bliss, but that other and higher effect followed--myheart was enlisted. I had never known love till that hour. We had beenintroduced to each other years ago and had kept up a cold and formalacquaintance, and in my recent sleep we had made notable progress,but only now did love and I really clasp hands in a warm and lastingembrace.

If I had loved Kim before, then the feeling I now had was somethingelse, it was so different. But it was nothing else, and, therefore, Iwas obliged to conclude that I had lived all these years with a falsenotion in my head. As the song changed now and then, but did notstop, my heart swelled with its strong emotion, and I had the greatestdifficulty to keep my promise and remain quiet. At length the musicceased, and I jumped from my chair with the intention of giving Kimsome palpable sign of my new love, when I was arrested by her warninghand and these words:

"Wait, Walter, someone is coming. I can see all you want to tell me inyour face."

I was obliged to stop, and reserve for a more private place any violentmanifestation of my exuberant affection, but answered quietly:

"Not all, dear Kim. You will never know all my love." There was nowmore or less passing back and forth by the passengers, preparing for theapproaching landing, but yet we were able to continue our conversation.At Kim's request I told her more about Greg and Avis, and theprincipal incidents of what seemed to me a real experience, reservingthe graver parts of the story for other occasions. Her sympathies wentout particularly toward Greg, and suggested the question:

"Did not the poor child recover her voice?"

"I think she did soon after we left," I replied. "I neglected to tellyou that, the morning we started for our last aerial trip, Antonia toldme she was teaching Greg the use of the vocal organs, and the resultswere already such that sh

e believed she would in a short time beentirely successful."

"How fortunate for me," said Kim, laughing, "that you came awayjust then."

"Oh, Kim," I exclaimed as loud as I dared, "I thought I was happylast night, but what shall I call my condition now? Do you have thatintensity of feeling for me which is nearly bursting my heart?"

"Yes, my dear, I have had it for years. But my love is certainlyincreasing now, when I see yours flowering out so luxuriantly."

In such sweet converse the time passed rapidly. Steadily our noblevessel carried us every moment nearer home. And with the last words ofLime, "Go back to the earth," still ringing in my ears, we steamedamid familiar scenes--the lights from Long Island, New Jersey, StatenIsland, and soon Liberty's torch, Governor's Island, and the great cityin front of us. This voyage was ended, but our life's voyage seemed tobe just beginning as I led Kim forth with wonderful tenderness andwhispered in her ear, passionately, the magic words, "I love you.