TREE-TOP LAND
Where were you taught your song, little bird?
Who sent you to kiss us, you breezes of May?
There are secrets, yes secrets you never have heard,
Whispered breezes and bird as they fluttered away.
_Spring Song._
Where were they?
Why, sitting on the short thymy grass just behind the Castle, not a
stone's throw from the old tree trunk where they had found the little
door, which the golden key had opened.
They gazed at each other, then rubbed their eyes and gazed again.
'How did we get out of the panniers?' said Hildegarde. 'I never felt
anything, did you, Leonore?'
Leonore's reply was another question.
'Have we been dreaming?' she said. 'No, of course it couldn't be that,
people can't dream the same dream together; it is too funny and queer.'
'It's just what it is,' said Hildegarde laughing. 'We've been to
gnomeland, and now we've come back again. And after all, Leonore, we
haven't been two hours away. Look at the sun, it is not near setting
yet, but of course in gnomeland, as they told us, they don't count time
as we do.'
She got up as she spoke and gave herself a little shake.
'I want to be sure I have not been dreaming,' she went on. 'Even though
I _know_ I haven't. Pinch me, Leonore, just a nice little gentle pinch
to make me feel real, and I'll pinch you in return.'
The pinching made them both laugh, which took away the dreamy feeling
better than anything else.
'And now,' said Hildegarde, 'I suppose we had best make our way home--to
your home I mean, Leonore, as fast as we can. Grandmamma gave me leave
to stay out till sunset, and Aunt Anna will be expecting us back in time
for coffee.'
'Yes,' said Leonore. 'She hoped you would come back with me after our
walk; but, Hildegarde, what shall we say if they ask where we have
been?'
'Say?' repeated Hildegarde, 'why, that we have been up in the woods
behind the Castle. We mayn't tell anything more, and I don't believe we
could if we tried. That is always the way with people who have been to
Fairyland, or at least part of the way there--besides----' but she
hesitated.
'Besides what?' asked Leonore curiously.
'Oh,' said Hildegarde, 'I was only going to say that I am not sure but
what Aunt Anna understands a great deal more than she says. There is
something very fairyish about her sometimes. I don't think she'll
question us much.'
'Perhaps,' said Leonore, in her funny rather prim matter-of-fact little
way, 'she has been there herself when she was a little girl.'
'I shouldn't much wonder,' Hildegarde replied, and then they turned to
descend the hill towards the village street.
'Hildegarde,' said Leonore as they were walking on, 'how shall we know
when we are meant to crack the next two nuts?'
'I can't tell you just now,' her little friend replied, 'for I don't
know myself. But I am quite sure we shall know in good time. My fairy
won't forget about us, and she will tell us somehow.'
Fraulein Elsa was looking out for them at the gate. She welcomed them
with a cheerful smile.
'You are just in good time for coffee,' she said. 'Aunt Anna sent me out
to look for you. Have you had a pleasant afternoon?'
'Very pleasant indeed,' Hildegarde replied. The governess asked no more,
nor did Aunt Anna, who was seated at the table, where there was a
tempting display of the cakes which she knew to be Hildegarde's
favourites.
'I thought you would be punctual,' she said to the children; 'you have
been up in the woods behind the Castle, I suspect, and I hope you have
brought back a good appetite?'
'Very good indeed,' they replied together, and at the same moment a
funny thought struck them both. The 'collation' had not been of a kind
to prevent their feeling hungry now! And Aunt Anna was quite satisfied
with the way the cakes disappeared.
'I think I must be going home,' said Hildegarde a little later on.
'Grandmamma will like to find me there when she returns from her drive.
May Leonore come to the foot of the Castle hill with me?'
'Certainly,' said Fraulein, 'and to-morrow I hope you may meet again,
indeed every day, unless the weather should be very bad.'
'Oh in that case,' said Hildegarde eagerly, 'I hope Leonore will wrap
herself up well and come to spend the day with me. Of course I could
come here--I am not the least afraid of rain, or wind, or snow, or
anything like that--but the Castle is so big and such a splendid place
for playing in, when there is any one to play with, though it is rather
dull all alone. And about to-morrow,' she went on, 'may Leonore come up
immediately after dinner? Grandmamma would like to see her.'
To this request too, Fraulein willingly consented, and the two children
set off.
'You have your nuts quite safe?' said Leonore, as they kissed each other
in saying goodbye. Hildegarde nodded reassuringly.
'You needn't be afraid,' she said, 'after keeping them all these years,
since I was a little baby; it isn't likely that I should lose them now,
just when they've come to be of use. I should be more afraid of yours,
Leonore, except that, to tell you the truth, I don't believe either of
us could lose them if we tried.'
'Mine are quite safe,' said Leonore, slipping her hand into her jacket
pocket to feel them, 'and I certainly won't risk trying whether they
would find their way back or not.' And so saying she ran off.
Nothing came to interfere with their plans. The weather continued
lovely, and the children spent every afternoon together. For the old
Baroness, Hildegarde's grandmother, to whom Leonore was introduced the
next day, was just as pleased on her side, as were Fraulein and Aunt
Anna on theirs, that each, otherwise lonely little girl, should have a
companion. And for two or three weeks nothing special happened. They
searched in vain among the trees behind the Castle for the old trunk in
which was the little door. No trace of it was to be seen. But this
scarcely disappointed them.
'It wouldn't be a magic door,' said Hildegarde, 'if it was always there,
or at least, always to be found. No, Leonore, we must just wait till the
spinning-wheel fairy sends us some message or tells us somehow what we
are to do.'
To which Leonore agreed. Nevertheless, on many an afternoon they lay
down with their ears to the ground near the spot where they believed the
entrance to gnomeland to be, listening if no murmur of the queer
underground life, which they had had a glimpse of, could reach them. But
it never did.
At last one day Hildegarde appeared with a look on her face which told
Leonore that she had something to tell, and as soon as they were by
themselves she began eagerly.
'Leonore,' she said, 'I believe I have got a message at last from our
fairy. I am not sure if it was a dream or if she was really there. It
was quite early this morning before I was up, I thought I saw her
standing beside my bed--her real self, you know, not the little old
market-woman--she smiled and said, "You have been very patient children,
and now you shall be rewarded. Crack two more of your nuts this
afternoon when you are up in the woods. Throw high and throw together,
and you will see." And then, when I was going to speak to her and thank
her, and ask her to explain a little more, she was gone.'
'Of course it was a message,' said Leonore; 'let us hurry off as fast as
we can,' for it was already afternoon. 'I should think the best place
would be just where we cracked the first ones.'
'No,' said Hildegarde, '_I_ think, as near as we can guess to the magic
door, would be the best. Further up in the woods I mean, than where we
cracked the nuts.'
So thither they hastened, full of eagerness and excitement.
'You crack first this time,' said Hildegarde, 'as I did the last.'
Leonore obeyed her, and both little girls peered anxiously into the
nutshell. Their first idea was that it would contain some paper of
directions, as had been the case before, but it was not so. On the
contrary, the only thing they saw was a little mass of very, very fine
colourless thread or silk, so fine indeed as to seem almost like cobweb.
With the utmost care Leonore drew it out--it was stronger than it
looked, for at one end was attached to it a small, delicately-fashioned
silver hook, like the finest fairy fish-hook.
The children stared at each other.
'What can it mean?' they said.
Leonore gave the threads a little shake, one end dropped to the ground
and, in doing so, unravelled itself.
'I see what it is,' exclaimed Hildegarde. 'It is a rope ladder, a
fairy's rope ladder of course, for nothing stronger than a spider could
possibly climb up it. Perhaps my nut will explain.'
So saying, she hastened to crack it, but to their surprise and momentary
disappointment its contents were precisely the same as those of
Leonore's nut.
'Well,' said Hildegarde, after a moment or two's reflection, 'we're
evidently meant to find out for ourselves what to do with these queer
things.'
'But the fairy did say something to you,' Leonore reminded her, '"throw
high," wasn't that what she said?'
'Yes,' said Hildegarde, 'how stupid of me to have forgotten, we must be
meant to throw these little hooks which are at one end up into the air,
like the Indian jugglers I have heard about, and, as they are fairy
hooks, I suppose they will find something to catch on to. "Throw high
and throw together," was what she said, so here goes. Hold your hook
carefully Leonore, as I do. I will count, and when I get to three we
must throw--one, two----' And at 'three' both children flung up the tiny
missiles into the air.
Up, up, they flew, or seemed to fly, as straight as a rocket, till
nothing was to be seen but the quivering thread gleaming brightly in the
sunshine, which at that moment broke through the branches. And then, so
quickly that they could not watch the change, the fairy ladders grew and
swelled, till the threads of which they were made were as firm and
strong as tightly twisted fine rope. They grew taut too, the lower end
disappearing into the ground, as if held there by invisible hands.
Hildegarde's eyes shone with delight.
''Tis plain what we are meant to do,' she said; 'we are to climb up.'
Leonore, on the contrary, looked a little frightened. 'Up to where?' she
said timidly.
'Oh,' said Hildegarde, 'that remains to be seen, of course. Don't be
silly, Leonore. I think it was far more frightening to go down
underground than to climb up into the beautiful sky. Come along.'
And they set off on their strange journey.
It was not difficult after all. The rope felt firm and substantial, even
though soft to the touch, so that it in no way rasped their hands. And
when they got a little higher, they began to see that the hooks had
attached themselves to the very top of an immensely tall tree, which
somehow gave Leonore more confidence.
'I am not in the least giddy; are you?' said Hildegarde. 'I am beginning
to feel like a bird.'
And Leonore agreed that she too felt perfectly at ease.
'That's what comes of having to do with fairies,' said Hildegarde with
satisfaction; 'with a fairy like ours, at least. You see she plans
everything so nicely for us.'
A few moments more and their heads were on a level with the topmost
branches. Just as they were wondering what was coming next, they heard a
voice a little above them.
'Jump,' it said. 'First Hildegarde, then Leonore; don't be frightened, I
will catch you.'
Up they sprang fearlessly, for something in the voice made fear
impossible, though instinctively they closed their eyes, and----. When
they opened them again, there stood the spinning-wheel fairy, smiling at
them, as they lay together on a couch of something soft and blue, soft
yet firm.
'Are we on the other side of the sky?' asked Hildegarde. The fairy
nodded.
'You are in tree-top land,' she said, 'the country of the air-fairies.
When you have rested after your ascent, I will show you the way on, and
before long you will meet some old friends. In the meantime I will draw
up your ladders, for they may serve again, and we don't like wasting
anything. I spun them for you myself long ago. I have a spinning-wheel
up here as well as down below.'
She moved away, seeming to melt into the lovely blue which was all
around them. But in a moment or two she returned again and held out a
hand to each child, and, springing to their feet, Hildegarde and Leonore
gladly took hold of her.
Then just before them, to their surprise, if they had still been able to
feel surprise, they saw a little silver gate, which opened of itself as
they approached it, and passing through with the fairy, they found
themselves at the edge, of what they at first thought was a lovely lake
of water, sparkling blue in the sunshine. But there were no boats upon
it.
'How are we to cross it,' asked Hildegarde. 'Surely this is Fairyland
itself at last?' but their guide shook her head.
'No, not Fairyland itself,' she replied, 'though on the way to it. Real
Fairyland is still far away. I can only do as I promised you--show you
some of the countries that lie between your land and it. Boats are not
needed here. What you see is not water but air, and with these you will
easily make your way across the lake.'
So saying, she drew from under her mantle something white and fluffy,
which proved to be two little pairs of wings, one pair for each child,
which she slipped over their heads. They fitted as if they had always
grown there, and, light as they had felt themselves before, Hildegarde
and Leonore now seemed to themselves to be made of air itself.
'Off with you,' said the fairy laughing, with a little toss of her hand
towards the children as if they had been two balls of thistle-down.
'When you have seen enough and want to go home you will easily find me;
you have only to listen for the whirr of my spinning-wheel.'
And she was no longer there.
Flying or swimming, which was it? They could scarcely have told. For
though their wings kept them up as lightly as any bird, their feet too
seemed to move in time with their wings.
'Isn't it lovely?' said Hildegarde, and Leonore, who at first felt a
little breathless, laughed back in agreement. But this journey through
the blue soon came to an end. The wings seemed to be their guides, for
they suddenly dropped on their shoulders, and the children found
themselves standing in front of another silver gate, higher and more
imposing than the former one. It glittered so that for a moment or two
they were dazzled, but as their eyes grew accustomed to the brilliance,
looking up, they saw worked in, among the silvery trellis, some letters,
which with a little difficulty they spelt out.
'Singing-school,' were the words they read.
'Singing-school,' repeated Hildegarde, 'what can that mean?'
'And the fairy said we should soon meet some old friends,' added
Leonore. 'Oh, Hildegarde,' and she held up her hand, 'I think I
understand, listen.' They stood perfectly still and gradually sweet
sounds reached their ears--a soft warbling as of many little voices in
harmony. Then came a moment's silence, followed by the notes of a single
singer, then warbling again--and again another voice alone, trilling
high, high, till it seemed to melt away in the distance.
'That was a lark,' said Leonore, 'the last one, and the one before a
blackbird, I think.'
'Or a thrush,' said Hildegarde, 'yes, I rather think it was a thrush.'
But in the eagerness with which they had been listening, they had not
noticed that the high gates had opened gently inwards, and in the centre
between them stood two charming figures smiling at the children.
'Come in,' said one of them, 'we have been expecting you for some time.'
'Are you the air-fairies?' asked Hildegarde. She spoke with more
confidence than to the gnomes; there was something so sweet and gracious
about these pretty creatures that no one could feel afraid of them.
'Yes,' was the reply, 'and we are also the birds' singing-teachers. Here
you will see many of your old friends--nightingales, larks, blackbirds,
robins, all of them, even down to the poor little sparrows, whom we
teach to chirp and twitter.'
'How wonderful!' exclaimed the children.
'Are they all the little young birds?' asked Leonore; 'no, of course
not,' she added, 'they can't be, for this is autumn.'
'We have classes all the year round,' said one of the fairies, 'except
in the very middle of your summer, when we give them a holiday, that you
may all enjoy the bird concerts to perfection.'
They had been walking slowly onwards till now, through a wide passage,
the walls of which were like the whitest marble, though without its hard
coldness. And now the fairy opening a door signed to them to pass in,
and as they did so, the music they had heard grew clearer and louder.
For they were in the central hall of the great bird singing-school.
There they were, rows and rows of them, each family by itself, the
smaller birds higher up, the bigger ones nearer the ground, and at the
end of each row, perched a little apart from the others, was the head
bird of his tribe--these, as the fairies afterwards explained, being the
monitors of each class.
But the queerest thing was, that every kind of bird was there, even such
as we never think of as musical in any way, for down the central passage
were strolling some magnificent peacocks, long red-legged storks; and in
a large basin of water at the farther end, graceful swans, snowy ducks,
and even homely gray-plumaged geese were contentedly enjoying
themselves.
Hildegarde and Leonore gazed in surprise.
'Peacocks,' they exclaimed, 'peacocks and ducks and geese--why, none of
them can sing!'
The fairy smiled.
'Ah,' she said, 'the ears that hear have something to do with true
music; down below in your world it is not like here with us. Much that
is true music sounds to you harsh and unlovely. Wait a little and you
shall hear for yourselves.'