The lady murmured some inarticulate words, and the priest then left
her and went outside. He there spent some little time in gathering
some brush for himself, which he spread upon the grass, under the
castle wall; after which, he seated himself upon it, and pulling out
his pipe, he filled it and began to smoke.
Hitherto he had been too much preoccupied to pay any very close
attention to the world around; but now, as he sat there, he became
aware of sounds which arose apparently from the interior of the great
castle on the other side of the chasm. The sounds did not startle him
in the least, however, and he was evidently prepared for something of
this sort. Between this tower and the great castle there intervened
the deep chasm; and though no doubt the two structures had once been
connected, yet all connection had long since been destroyed, and now
there was no visible way of passing from the one to the other. The
priest, therefore, felt as secure as though he were miles away, and
listened serenely to the noises.
There came to his ears sounds of singing, and laughter, and revelry,
with shouts and cries that rang out upon the air of night. There
seemed to be no small stir in the castle, as though a multitude had
gathered there, and had given themselves up securely to general
merriment. But all this troubled not the priest one whit, for he
calmly finished his pipe, and then, laying it down, he disposed his
limbs in a comfortable position, still keeping a sitting posture, and
in this attitude he fell asleep and slept the sleep of the just.
Very early on the following morning our good priest opened his eyes,
and the first object that they rested upon was the lady, who stood
there full before him, and greeted him with a gentle smile.
The priest had not seen her very well on the previous evening, and
now as he saw her face in full daylight, it seemed different from
that which had met his view under the moonbeams. The lady was of
slender form, a trifle over the middle height, and of marked dignity
of bearing. Her face was perfectly beautiful in the outline of its
features, but this was as nothing when compared with the refined and
exquisite grace, the perfect breeding, the quick intelligence, and
the womanly tenderness that were all expressed in those noble
lineaments. It was a face full of calm self-possession, and gave
indications of a great and gracious nature, which could be at once
loving and brave, and tender and true. Her hair, which was very
luxuriant, was closely bound up in dark auburn masses; her lips were
full of sweet sensitiveness; and thus she stood looking at him with
dark hazel eyes that seemed to glow with feeling and intelligence,
till the good priest thought that never in all his life had he seen
anything half so fair. In fact, so overcome was he that he sat
staring at her for some time without one word, and without giving any
response whatever to the pleasant words of greeting which she spoke.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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