The old Cobbler and his wife treated her very harshly after David left. They made her work twice as hard, for in a way they held her responsible for his disappearance. She grew very, very unhappy; for she was very lonely, and she longed to know what had become of her dear friend and playmate. One day--it must have been at least a year from the time David left her, and it may have been several years; it seemed so to her, anyway--she knew that the same _season_ had come round again, for the forget-me-nots in the meadow were in bloom, and the air was filled with the soft light and gentle fragrance that she had always remembered as belonging to that last sad, beautiful day that they had spent together. She had left her work unfinished and had wandered through the fields and meadows to the hillside where they had rested and David had shown her the Blue Bird. She sat down on the soft grass. A bunch of forget-me-nots that she had gathered in the meadow drooped and faded in the heat of her hand. But even as they faded and their frail breath went from them, their odour filled the air; and as Ruth closed her eyes in thought, it seemed to her that David must be near. This happened, as it chanced, at the very moment when David found the faded forget-me-nots in his hunting-case, and their thoughts really were together, though at the time neither realized or knew it to be so. All at once a great, deep, pure desire came over Ruth. She opened her eyes and listened. There was no Blue Bird singing for her. She lifted the drooping flowers to her lips. “Dear Flowers,” she whispered, “can you not help me? I will leave this spot where all is sadness; I will go in the direction David went; perhaps I can find and help him. Anyway, I will seek and strive.” She rose, stretched her hands toward the great bright sun, and prayed that her footsteps might be guided aright. She stooped to lift the tiny blossoms that lay beside her and, searching among them for the largest flowers, tucked a spray into her dress. Then she started down the hillside in the direction David had taken so long ago. She followed his trail faithfully as far as she could recall it. But when she reached the point where he had disappeared, her mind became confused and bewildered. Her trail was to be a hard one indeed, for she was following only a vague memory, whereas David had followed an ideal so clear and vivid that it had expressed itself in living song. She pushed bravely on, though, for she was not one to turn back after starting out. She longed to find David, or at least to know of his welfare; and she had no desire to return to the Cobbler’s cottage again. The sun set, and it grew dark save for the stars overhead, which gave little light in the depth of the forest. At last, exhausted, she [Illustration: SHE ROSE TO HER FEET, STRETCHED HER HANDS TOWARD THE GREAT BRIGHT SUN AND PRAYED]