"How do you know all about it? You have
never been here before, have you? I couldn't quite understand Dudu--_he_
meant, I think, that it was only your thinking part or your fancying
part, that was away."

Jeanne laughed again, Hugh felt a little impatient.

"_Jeanne_," he said, "do leave off laughing and speak to me. What is
this place? and how did you come here? and have you ever been here
before?"

"Yes," said Jeanne, "I think so; but I don't know how I came. And I
don't want to do anything but laugh and have fun. Never mind how we
came. It's a beautiful country, any way, and did you _ever_ see anything
so sweet as the little carriage they've sent for us, and wasn't it nice
to see Houpet and all the others?"

"Yes," said Hugh, "very. But whom do you mean by 'they,' Jeanne?"

"Oh dear, dear!" exclaimed Jeanne, "what a terrible boy you are. Do
leave off asking questions, and let us have fun. Look, there are Grignan
and the little cochon quite eager to be off. Now, do jump in--we shall
have such fun."

Hugh got in, willingly enough, though still he would have preferred to
have some explanation from Jeanne of all the strange things that were
happening.

"_Isn't_ it nice?" said Jeanne, when they had both nestled down among
the delicious soft cushions of the carriage.

"Yes," said Hugh, "it's very nice _now_, but it wasn't very nice when I
was all alone in the dark in that long passage. As you seem to know all
about everything, Jeanne, I suppose you know about that."

He spoke rather, just a very little, grumpily, but Jeanne, rather to his
surprise, did not laugh at him this time. Instead, she looked up in his
face earnestly, with a strange deep look in her eyes.

"I think very often we have to find our way in the dark," she said
dreamily. "I think I remember about that. But," she went on, with a
complete change of voice, her eyes dancing merrily as if they had never
looked grave in their life, "it's not dark now, Cheri, and it's going to
be ever so bright. Just look at the lovely moon through the trees. Do
let us go now. Gee-up, gee-up, crack your whip, Houpet, and make them
gallop as fast as you can."

Off they set--they went nice and fast certainly, but not so fast but
that the children could admire the beautiful feathery foliage as they
passed. They drove through the forest--for the trees that Hugh had so
admired were those of a forest--on and on, swiftly but yet smoothly;
never in his life had Hugh felt a