could tell by her voice
that she was smiling faintly. He glanced at her and saw her looking at
him; both smiled a little and glanced away again. He began to pile his
brushwood for the fire.

After a short pause she said timidly, "Are you sore, shepherd?"

"No, I feel nothing," said he.

"They beat you very hard."

"I did not feel their blows."

"How could you not feel them?" she said in a low voice. He looked at
her again, and again their eyes met, and again parted quickly.

"Now I'll strike a spark," said Young Gerard, "and you'll be warm soon."

He kindled his fire; the branches crackled and burned, and she knelt
beside the blaze and held her hands to it.

"I was never here by night before," she said.

"Yes, once," said Young Gerard. "You often came, didn't you, to gather
flowers in the morning and to swim in the river at noon. But once
before you were here in the night."

"Was I?" said she.

He dropped a handful of cones into her lap, throwing the last on the
fire. She threw another after it, and smiled as it crackled.

"I remember," she said. "Thank you, shepherd. You were always kind and
found me the things I wanted, and gave me your cup to drink of. Who'll
drink of it now?"

"No one," he said, "ever again."

He went and fetched the cup and gave it to her. "Burn that too," said
Young Gerard. Thea put it into the fire and trembled. When it was
burned she asked very low, "Will you be lonely?"

"I'll have my sheep and my thoughts."

"Yes," said Thea, "and stars when the sheep are folded. The stars are
good to be with too."

"Good to see and not be seen by," he said.

"How do you know they don't see you?" she asked shyly.

"One shepherd on a hill isn't much for the eye of a star. He may watch
them unwatched, while they come and go in their months. Sometimes there
aren't any, and sometimes not more than one pricking the sky near the
moon. But to-night, look! the sky's like a tree with full branches."

Thea looked up and said with a child's laugh, "Break me a branch!"

"I'd want Jacob's Ladder for that," smiled Young Gerard.

"Then shake the tree and bring them down!" she insisted.

"Here come your stars," said Young Gerard. Suddenly she was enveloped
in a falling shower, white and heavenly.

"The stars--!" she cried. "Oh, what is it?"

"My cherry-tree--it's in flower--" said Young Gerard, and his voice
trembled. She looked up quickly and saw that he was standing beside
her, shaking the tr