ealous of my visiting Tarawali.
Danger! And I laughed in derision, that was mixed with intoxication,
as if the very notion of danger from a rival added, somehow or other,
to the sweetness of anticipation, by stamping me as a claimant to the
affection of Tarawali who was greatly to be feared. And all at once,
light broke in, as it were, upon my soul. And I cried out in ecstasy:
Danger! Ha! at last, all the mystery is solved. It was danger that
prevented my Tarawali from sending me any message or bidding me to
come. And all the while she knew it, and she had to be very careful,
fearing for my life. And suddenly, I struck my hands together, and I
cried: Ha! what a fool I am! Why, she told me so herself, when I saw
her for the second time, and yet I had forgotten it. And all this
while, in the peevishness of my own oblivion and presumption, I have
been blaming her, expecting things utterly unreasonable, and loading
her extraordinary sweetness with miserable suspicions arising from my
own imagination, and the blindness of my insatiable passion. Ah!
Tarawali, forgive me if I wronged thee! But I will make it up to thee
to-night, and beg for thy divine forgiveness at thy feet. And all this
hesitation was all the while only on my account: and yet, brute that I
was! I never guessed it, till Chaturika gave me, as it were, a hint,
and put me upon the scent. And what else was her delay but an
irrefutable proof of her affection, showing that she chose even to
allow herself to be misinterpreted rather than let me run on her
account into the danger that she knew.

And instantly, all the clouds of darkness and desolation rolled away
in a body from my soul, leaving it bathing in the ruddy glow of
sunset, and passion, and emotion, exactly as it was before. And I
waited, plunged in the ecstasy of reminiscence and anticipation, till
at last the sun began to sink. And then, once more I went, on feet
dancing with agitation and delight, to the palace gates, and saw the
_pratihari_ standing waiting as before. And as I entered, never
doubting that she had instructions of my coming, she barred the way,
saying: What is thy business? And I said: I have come by appointment
to see the Queen. Then said the _pratihari_: Thou must come another
time, for the Queen is not here.

And I stopped short, as if she had suddenly run a dagger into my
heart. And I said in a low voice: Not here? It cannot be. Thou art
mistaken. And the _pratihari_ said: There is