Nevertheless, they went bravely forward, shoulders touching; and when presently the Cloud descended and cloaked them so that he could not see Anne, he still held her hand, and they spoke to each other through the shadows. Then the Cloud lifted, and when Barnard looked down, he saw a little child walking by Anne’s side, holding her hand. He forgot The Threat in the air above them, and took the other hand of the child, and hurried forward.... V Thereafter, the threatening Cloud was never out of their sight. At times it hung low above them, at times its cold fingers touched them; and in the intervals it rode high above their heads, distant, but relentless. His dream was a constant apprehension; he kept a persistent vigil against The Threat, even while his heart told him it was a hopeless one. When the Cloud hung low above them, he cast his arms about Anne and the child until the mists lifted again. Once, when this happened, and when they started forward once more, he found that not one boy-child, but two walked between Anne and him. Their hands were clasped, and Anne held the hand of one, and he of the other, so that they four went forward together, each helping each. Their path was rocky and beset. The Threat never left them; and stones rose to trip them, and thorny bushes clutched at them from either side.... VI For a long time, in his dream, he always felt his father and his mother near at hand. Sometimes their fingers touched his. Sometimes, his father’s firm clasp lifted him over an obstacle in the way; and sometimes his mother’s smile tried to smooth away the bruises he encountered in the path. His mother and his father loved to cast their arms about the two children, while he and Anne watched proudly. While they all stood thus one day, The Threat descended upon them, lightly, gently; and thereafter Barnard was unable to find his father or his mother. He looked for them and could not see them; but at times he seemed to hear their voices, speaking to him.... The Threat in the air seemed to mock him; and he perceived that it would never leave him. He must walk forever in its shadow, till he should awake. A great throng of memories roared down upon him; their wings buffeted his head. They were memories of things he might have done and had not done; of things he had done of which there was no need. They concerned his father and his mother, and they tormented him. Then Anne’s hand lay lightly on his arm, and he was mysteriously comforted and reassured. VII Once another child came to walk with them. This child was very little, and it walked between his two tall sons, and they held it by the hands and guided its stumbling and uncertain steps. This child laughed easily, and when it laughed, they laughed with it, because they could not help themselves.