CHAPTER XIV
SPRING COMES
One morning when Ivra woke up she knew spring had come before her eyeswere open. But Eric had to go outdoors to make sure. He was sure enoughwhen he smelled the ground, a good earth smell. Snow still clung to thegarden in spots here and there, but the warm sun promised it would notbe for long. Something in the sky, something in the air, a smell ofearth, and a stirring in his own heart told him it was true. Spring hadcome!
Ivra had felt and known it before her eyes were open, and now that theywere open, those eyes of hers looked like two blue spring flowers justawake. She hopped about in the garden poking and prodding the earth witha stick, looking for her violets, her anemones, her star flowers. Not agreen leaf was pushing through yet, but oh, how soon there would be!
Suddenly she stopped and stood still looking away into the forest. Thenshe ran to Eric on the door stone. She cried, "Mother will come now.Don't you feel it? She will come with the spring!"
Eric did feel it. For there was magic in the day. The magic came to himin the air, in the smell of the earth, in the new warm wind and said,"Everything is yours that you want. Joy is coming." And Mother Helma waswhat he wanted. So he felt sure she was on the way.
"She must have found the key,--or do you suppose she climbed the graywall?" wondered Ivra.
"Shall we go to meet her?" asked Eric.
"No, no. We must get the house clean and ready for her. We must hurry."
And then such a house-cleaning was begun as you or I have never seen.The Forest Children had been up at dawn to greet the spring, and nowthey came running to tell Ivra and Eric about it. When they heard thatHelma was at last coming back and the house was to be cleaned theywanted to help. First it was decided to wash the floor. Pail after pailof water from the fountain they splashed on it. Streamlets of waterflowed into the fireplace and out over the door stone. Out and in ranthe Forest Children trying to help, and with every step making footprints on the wet floor, muddy little foot prints, dozens of them andfinally hundreds of them.
Then the windows were washed. And because the Forest Children could notrun on those they were made bright and clear. But soon the ForestChildren pressed their faces against the panes to watch for Helma, andas the minutes passed breath-clouds formed there, spreading anddeepening until the glass sparkled no more. But no one noticed. No onecared. For now they were shining up the dishes, polishing them withcloths, and setting them in neat rows in the cupboard.
Then Wild Star appeared, his hands full of spring flowers that he hadfound deep in the forest in the sunniest and most protected place, thevery first spring flowers. "Helma must have gotten past that wall, nowit's spring," he said; "and here are some flowers to greet her. See, Ileft the roots on, the way she likes them. Let's plant them by the doorstone."
They dug up the earth with their hands, Forest Children's hands, WildStar's hands, Eric's and Ivra's,--and planted the flowers all about thedoor stone. Then Wild Star flew away a little languidly.
Ivra looked after him. "He'll soon find the deepest, darkest, coolestplace," she said, "make himself a nest of smooth leaves and dream awaythe summer. Fall and winter are his flying times. We shall see him at nomore parties for a while."
"And the Snow Witches? What will become of them?" asked Eric.
"They will get into hollows of old trees and under rocks, draw in theirskirts and their hair, curl up and sleep."
"Good news!" thought Eric. But he did not say it for he knew Ivra likedthe Snow Witches almost best of all to play with and would miss them.
Now the Tree Girl came through the gap in the hedge. She was wearing agreen frock, green sandals, and pussy willow buds made a wreath in herhair.
"Spring, spring!" she cried as she came up the path. "We heard the saprunning in our tree all night. Father has gone on a spring wandering,and I shall stay within tree no longer for a while."
"We know, we know!" crowed Ivra. "_I_ knew before my eyes were open thismorning. Eric had to smell the ground first. Imagine! We have beencleaning house. Mother will surely come now. Don't _you_ feel it?"
The Tree Girl lifted her face up in the new warm wind. Her soft hairfloated feather-like. "Yes, I feel it. She is on the way. Spring bringseverything."
A bird flashed from the trees. It lighted on the hedge for a second andwas away again. But Eric had had time to recognize the beautiful bird hehad seen caged in the Witch's fir.
"The caged bird!" he cried to Ivra. "It is free! It is flying away."
The Bird Fairies were flying away, too. They were going to meet thebirds corning up from the south and teach them their songs as they flew.They came to say good-by to the children.
"Look for us next winter," they called back, as they fluttered off in asilvery cloud.
And finally, at high noon, just as Ivra had known she would since earlymorning, Helma came,--running through the forest, jumping the hedge, andgathering Ivra and Eric into her arms.
They three knelt on the ground by the spring flowers embracing eachother for a long, long minute.
"Did you find the key to that gate?" Eric asked when his breath cameback, "Or did they let you come at last."
"I didn't have to find the key, and they didn't let me come. They wouldnever have done that. But the minute I had on a light spring frock Ifound I could climb the wall easily enough, and so I came running allthe way. And now they shall never get me back behind doors again. I amfree! I am as free as you, my children!"
She held them off and looked into their eyes.
She was dressed in a brown silk gown, all torn and stained from herwall-climbing and rush through the bushes. Her feet were bare, for shehad kicked off her funny high-heeled city boots the minute she hadreached the forest. Her hair had grown to her shoulders and looked morelike flower petals than ever. But her face was not brown and serene, asEric had first seen it. It was pale and wild.
"They don't believe in you, children," she said. "They don't believe inme, not the me that I am. And from morning to night they made me aslave. They made me wear such ugly, hurting things, and then they mademe dance! Every night we danced in hot rooms and ate strange bad-tastingfood. They called dancing like that a _party_. But I could only rememberour forest parties, and our dancing here under the cool moon.
"The only glimpse of the forest I had was your Snow Witches, Ivra.Sometimes I saw them from my bedroom window, 'way out in the fields,whirling and scudding in mad games. And then at last one morning someWind Creatures flew by, above the garden wall! But when I called WildStar back and tried to ask him about you, children, as he perched on thewall, they came rushing into the garden and dragged me away. They saidit was time for luncheon, and I must change my frock. But let us forget.I am here! It is spring!"
She jumped up and stood just as the Tree Girl had stood earlier thatmorning, her face lifted in the wind. Slowly that face grew calm andwarm color flooded it.
"How nicely cleaned the house is!" she exclaimed when at last they wentin. For she did not see the tracks on the floor nor the clouded windows.All she saw was that the children had worked there to make it fit forher home-coming.
Ivra was proud and glad that she noticed. "I have made you a springfrock too," she said, bringing it out. "And Eric has made you somesandals. He makes fine sandals now!"
The frock was a brown smock with a narrow green belt.
The sandals were well made, and very soft and light.
Helma stripped off the tattered silk frock, the funny thing with itslong sleeves and stiff lace collar, and hid it away out of sight. Onwent the new smock over her head in a twinkling. She stepped into thesandals. And there was their mother, the Helma Eric had first seen.
"The garden now, we must see about that," she said in her old quiet way.Then they went out into the garden, and Helma began to plan just wherethere should plant seeds and just what must be done. The children clungto her hands, looking up into her face, and would not let her take astep away from them. When she stood still they leaned against her,
oneagainst either side, and wound their arms about her.
In mid-afternoon, Spring came--not the spring of the year, but Springhimself, the person the season is named for. He was a tall young man,with a radiant face, and fair curls lifting in a cloud from his head.Where he walked the earth sprang up in green grass after his bare feet,and flowers followed him like a procession. Helma ran to him, swifterthan the children, and he kissed her lips. He lifted Ivra nigh on hisshoulder for one minute where she thought she looked away over thetreetops hundreds of miles to the blue ocean. But it may have been onlyhis eyes, which were very blue, that shee was looking into.
With him came two Earth Giants. They were huge brown fellows withrolling muscles and kind, sleepy eyes. They crouched down at the openingin the hedge and waited for Spring to go on with them.
"Shall we plant the garden, Helma?" asked Spring.
"Yes, yes," cried the children, and Helma said, "Yes, yes," as eagerlyas they.
So the Earth Giants came in and plowed it all up with theirhands,--hands twenty times as large as an Earth Man's! When they weredone, the garden was a rich golden color, and right for planting. ThenHelma pointed out to Spring where she wanted the seeds to be, violetshere, roses there, lilies there, pansies there and daisies there. Springgave some seeds to the children and sowed some himself. Helma sat on thedoor stone and joyously directed the work.
By twilight the garden was done, and Spring went away with his EarthGiants.
As he went out through the forest, flowers and green grass followedhim--and the next morning even the dullest Earth Person would know thatSpring had come.
As for Helma and Ivra and Eric, the house would not hold their joy, andso they dragged out their beds and slept that night in the new-plowed,sweet-smelling garden.