Hello my dear friend and welcome back to Drift Off.
I'm your host Joanne.
And tonight,
We're returning to part two of The Golden Key by George McDonald.
But before we continue tonight's story,
Let us gently remember where we left our travelers.
Young Mossy discovered the mysterious golden key at the foot of a rainbow deep within the forest of Fairyland.
While a young girl named Tangle,
After being led away from her lonely home,
Found refuge with the beautiful and magical grandmother.
There their paths came together,
And with the golden key in hand,
They began a journey into the unknown.
Seeking answers neither of them yet understood.
And so tonight,
We pick up right where we left off.
Now,
I don't know what kind of day you've had or where in the world you're listening from right now,
But for the next little while,
None of that needs to matter.
This is your time.
So dim the lights if you can.
Sink into your pillow.
And let's begin to set the day down.
Let's take a slow breath together.
Breathe in.
And breathe out.
Feel your body grow soft and heavy where it rests.
Let your shoulders drop a little further than they did yesterday.
Let your hands go still and loose.
There's nothing to hold onto right now.
Not a single thing.
With every breath out.
Picture the day quietly closing behind you.
Like a door easing shut at the end of a long hallway.
You don't need to look back at it.
It's all done.
You did enough.
You are safe here.
You are healthier.
And there is nowhere else you need to be but exactly where you are.
Let your eyelids grow heavy.
Let your thoughts grow slow and far away.
And let my voice be the only thing left to follow.
So when you're ready close your eyes And let's begin.
They wandered thus a long way,
With endless amusement from the talk of the animals.
They soon learned enough of their language to ask them necessary questions.
The squirrels were always friendly and gave them nuts out of their own hordes.
But the bees were selfish and rude,
Justifying themselves on the ground that Tangle and Mossy were not subjects of their queen.
Even the blinking moles would fetch them an earthnut or a truffle now and then.
Talking as if their mouths as well as their eyes and ears were full of cotton wool or their own velvety fur.
By the time they got out of the forest,
They were very fond of each other,
And Tangle was not in the least sorry that her grandmother had sent her away with Mossie.
At length,
The trees grew smaller and stood farther apart,
And the ground began to rise,
And it got more and more steep,
Till the trees were all left behind,
And the two were climbing a narrow path with rocks on each side.
Suddenly,
They came upon a rude doorway,
By which they entered a narrow gallery cut in the rocks.
It grew darker and darker till it was pitch dark and they had to feel their way out.
At length,
The light began to return,
And at last,
They came out upon a narrow path on the face of a lofty precipice.
This path went winding down the rock to a wide plain,
Circular in shape,
And surrounded on all sides by mountains.
Those opposite to them were a great way off.
And towered to an awful height.
Shooting up sharp.
Blue,
Ice enameled pinnacles.
An utter silence reigned where they stood.
Not even the sound of water reach them.
Looking down,
They cannot tell whether the valley below was a grassy plain or a great still lake.
They had never seen any place look like it.
The way to it was difficult and dangerous.
But down the narrow path they went.
And reach the bottom in safety.
They found it composed of smooth,
Light-colored sandstone undulating in parts but mostly level.
It was no wonder to them now that they had not been able to tell what it was.
For this surface was everywhere crowded with shadows.
It was a sea of shadows.
The mass was chiefly made up of the shadows of leaves innumerable.
Of all lovely and imaginative forms,
Waving to and fro.
Floating and quivering in the breath of a breeze,
Whose motion was unfelt,
Whose sound was unheard.
No forest clothed the mountainsides,
No trees were anywhere to be seen,
And yet the shadows of the leaves,
Branches,
And stems of all various trees covered the valley as far as her eyes could reach.
They soon slide the shadows of flowers,
Mingled with those of the leaves,
And now and then the shadow of a bird with open beak,
And throat distended with song.
At times would appear the forms of strange,
Graceful creatures running up and down the shadow bowls and along the branches to disappear in the wind-tossed foliage.
As they walked.
They waded knee-deep in the lovely lake.
For the shadows were not merely lying on the surface of the ground,
But heaped up above it like substantial forms of darkness,
As if they had been cast upon a thousand different planes of the air.
Tangle and Mossy often lifted their heads and gazed upwards to describe whence the shadows came,
But they could see nothing more than a bright mist spread above them,
Higher than the tops of the mountains,
Which stood clear against it.
No forests,
No leaves,
No birds were visible.
After a while,
They reached more open spaces,
Where the shadows were thinner and came even to portions over which shadows only flitted,
Leaving them clear for such as might follow.
Now a wonderful form.
Half bird-like,
Half human,
Would float across on outspread sailing pinions.
After a while,
The shadows began to thin and patches of open light came through.
Some places had only the softest flicker of shade drifting across them,
Like clouds passing over a quiet afternoon.
And through that light.
The most beautiful shapes floated by.
A graceful figure,
Part bird and part human,
Glided past on wide,
Slow wings.
A group of playful children skip through in shadow.
Followed by a lovely gentle woman.
And then a tall and powerful figure striding softly on.
Each one faded away into the trees as quietly as it had come.
Sometimes,
A beautiful face would appear for just a moment,
Then slip away.
Sometimes two fingers pass by hand in hand like people very much in love Sometimes it was a father and a child,
Or two brothers side by side.
Our sisters walking so close together,
They almost seemed one shape.
Now and then,
A herd of wild horses would sweep through,
With great and noble riders on their backs.
But some of the things that move them most deeply they could never quite find the words for.
About the middle of the plane,
They sat down to rest in the heart of a heap of shadows.
After sitting for a while,
Each,
Looking up,
Saw the other in tears.
They were each longing after the country whence the shadows fell.
We must find the country from which the shadows come,
" said Masi.
We must,
Dear mossy,
Report a tangle.
What if your golden key should be the key to it?
Ah,
That would be grand,
" returned Mossie.
But we must rest here for a little.
And then we shall be able to cross the plain before night.
So he lay down on the ground and about him on every side and over his head.
Was the constant play of the wonderful shadows.
He could look through them and see the one behind the other.
Till they mixed in a mass of darkness.
Tangle,
Too,
Lay admiring and wondering,
And longing after the country whence the shadows came.
When they were rested,
They rose and pursued their journey.
How long they were in crossing this plain I cannot tell,
But before night,
Masi's hair was streaked with grey.
And Tangle had got wrinkles on her forehead.
As evening drew on The shadows fell deeper and rose higher.
At length,
They reached a place where they rose above their heads and made all dark around them.
Then they took hold of each other's hand and walked on in silence and in some dismay.
They felt the gathering darkness.
And something strangely solemn besides,
And the beauty of the shadows ceased to delight them.
All at once.
Tangle found that she had not a hold of Mossy's hand,
Though when she lost it she could not tell.
Marcy?
Masi,
She cried aloud in terror.
But no,
Masi replied.
A moment after.
The shadow sank to her feet and down under her feet.
And the mountains rose before her.
She turned towards the gloomy redan she had left and called once more upon Masi.
There the gloom lay tossing and heaving,
A dark storm,
Foamless sea of shadows,
But no mossy rose out of it,
Or came climbing up the hill on which she stood.
She threw herself down and wept in despair.
Suddenly,
She remembered that the beautiful lady had told them if they lost each other in a country of which she could not remember the name,
They were not to be afraid,
But to go straight on.
And besides,
She said to herself.
Masi has the golden key,
And so no harm will come to him I do believe.
She rose from the ground and went on.
Before long she arrived at a precipice,
In the face of which a stair was cut.
When she had ascended halfway,
The stair ceased,
And the path led straight into the mountain.
She was afraid to enter,
And turning again towards the stair,
Grew giddy at sight of the depth beneath her.
And was forced to throw herself down in the mouth of the cave.
When she opened her eyes,
She saw a beautiful little creature with wings standing beside her waiting.
I know you,
" said Tangle.
You are my fish.
Yes,
But I am fish no longer.
I am an Eoranth now.
What is that?
Asked Hangle.
What you see I am,
Answer the shape.
And I am come to lead you through the mountain.
Oh,
Thank you,
Returned Tangle,
Rising.
Thereupon.
The Aoranth took to his wings.
And flew on through the long narrow passage.
Reminding Tangle very much of the way he had swum on before her when he was a fish.
And the moment his white wings moved,
They began to throw off a continuous shower of sparks of all colors,
Which lighted up the passage before them.
All at once he vanished,
And Tangle heard a low,
Sweet sound,
Quite different from the rushing crackle of his wings.
Before her was an open arch.
And through it came light mixed with the sound of sea waves.
She hurried out and fell,
Tired and happy,
Upon the yellow sand of the shore.
There she lay half asleep with weariness and rest,
Listening to the lull,
Clash and retreat of the tiny waves,
Which seemed ever enticing the land to leave off being land and become sea.
And as she lay,
Her eyes were fixed upon the foot of a great rainbow standing far away against the sky on the other side of the sea.
At length,
She fell fast asleep.
When she awoke,
She saw an old man with long white hair down to his shoulders,
Leaning upon a stick covered with green buds and so bending over her.
What do you want here,
Beautiful woman,
He said.
Am I beautiful?
I'm so glad,
Answered Tangle,
Rising.
My grandmother is beautiful.
Yes,
But what do you want?
" he repeated kindly.
I think I want you.
Are you not the old man of the sea?
I am.
Then Grandmother says,
Have you any more fishes ready for her?
We will go and see,
My dear,
" answered the old man.
Speaking it more kindly than before.
And I can do something for you,
Can I not?
Yes,
Show me the way up to the country from which the shadows fall,
" said Tangle.
For there she hoped to find Masi again.
Ah,
Indeed.
That would be worth doing,
Said the old man.
But I cannot.
For I do not know the way myself.
But I will send you to the old man of the earth.
Perhaps he can tell you.
He is much older than I am.
Leaning on his staff.
He conducted her along the shore to a steep rock.
That look like a petrified ship turned upside down.
The door of it was the rudder of a great vessel.
Ages ago at the bottom of the sea,
Immediately within the door was a stair in the rock,
Down which the old man went,
And Tangle followed.
At the bottom,
The old man had his house,
And there he lived.
As soon as she entered it.
Tangle heard a strange noise,
Unlike anything she had ever heard before.
She soon found that it was the fishes talking.
She tried to understand what they said,
But their speech was so old-fashioned and rude and undefined that she could not make much of it.
I will go and see about those fishes for my daughter,
" said the old man of the sea.
And moving a slide in the wall of his house.
He first looked out.
And then tapped upon a thick piece of crystal that filled the round opening.
Tangle came up behind him and,
Peeping through the window into the heart of the great deep green ocean,
Saw the most curious creatures.
Some very ugly,
All very odd,
And with especially strange mouths,
Swimming about everywhere,
Above and below,
But all coming towards the window in answer to the tap of the old man of the sea.
Only a few could get their mouths against the glass,
But those who were floating miles away yet turned their heads towards it.
The old man looked through the hole-flop carefully for some minutes,
And then,
Turning to tangle,
I am sorry,
I have not got one ready yet.
But I will send some as soon as I can.
He then shut the slide.
Presently,
A great noise arose in the sea.
The old man opened the slide again and tapped on the glass,
Whereupon the fishes were all as still asleep.
They were only talking about you,
He said.
And they do speak such nonsense.
Tomorrow,
He continued.
I must show you the way to the old man of the earth.
He lives a long way from here.
Do let me go at once,
Satangle.
No,
That is not possible.
You must come this way first.
He led her to a hole in the wall,
Which she had not observed before.
It was covered with the green leaves and white blossoms of a creeping plant.
Only white blossoming plants can grow under the sea,
Said the old man.
In there you will find a bath,
In which you must lie till I call you.
Tangle went in and found a smaller room or cave,
In the further corner of which was a great basin hollowed out of a rock,
And half full of the clearest sea water.
Little streams were constantly running into it from cracks in the wall of the cavern.
It was polished quite smooth inside,
And had a carpet of yellow sand in the bottom of it.
Large green leaves and white flowers of various plants crowded up and over it,
Draping and covering it almost entirely.
No sooner was Xi'an dressed and lying in the bath.
Then she began to feel as if the water were sinking into her,
And she was receiving all the good of sleep without undergoing its forgetfulness.
She felt the good coming all the time,
And she grew happier and more hopeful than she had been since she lost Mossie.
But she could not help thinking how very sad it was for a poor old man to live there all alone and have to take care of a whole sea full of stupid and riotous fishes.
After about an hour,
As she thought,
She heard his voice calling her and rose out of the bath.
All the fatigue and aching of her long journey had vanished.
She was as whole and strong and as well as if she had slept for seven days.
Returning to the opening that led into the other part of the house,
She started back with amazement,
For through it she saw the form of a grand man,
With a majestic and beautiful face waiting for her.
Come,
He said.
I see you are ready.
She entered with reverence.
Where's the old man of the sea?
She asked humbly.
There is no one here but me,
He answered smiling.
Some people call me the old man of the sea.
Others have another name for me and are terribly frightened when they meet me taking a walk by the shore.
Therefore I avoid being seen by them,
For they are so afraid that they never see what I really am.
You see me now,
But I must show you the way to the old man of the earth.
He led her into the cave where the bath was.
And there she saw,
In the opposite corner,
A second opening in the rock.
Go down that stair,
And it will bring you to him,
" said the old man of the sea.
With humble thanks,
Tangle Took Her Leave.
She went down the winding stair,
Till she began to fear there was no end to it.
Still,
Down and down it went,
Rough and broken,
With springs of water bursting out of the rocks and running down the steps beside her.
It was quite dark about her,
And yet she could see.
For after being in that bath.
People's eyes always give out a light they can see by.
There were no creeping things in the way.
All was safe and pleasant,
Though so dark and damp and deep.
At last,
There was not one step more,
And she found herself in a glimmering cave.
On a stone in the middle of it sat a figure with its back towards her,
The figure of an old man bent double with age.
From behind,
She could see his white beard spread out on the rocky floor in front of him.
He did not move as she entered,
So she passed round that she might stand before him and speak to him.
The moment she looked in his face,
She saw that he was a youth of marvelous beauty.
He sat entranced with the delight of what he beheld in a mirror of something like silver,
Which lay on the floor at his feet,
And which from behind she had taken for his white beard.
He sat on.
Heedless of her presence,
Pale with joy of his vision.
She stood and watched him.
At length,
All trembling,
She spoke,
But her voice made no sound.
Yet the youth lifted up his head.
He showed no surprise,
However,
At seeing her,
Only smiled a welcome.
Are you the old man of the earth?
" Tangle had said.
And the youth answered,
And Tangle heard him,
Though not with her ears.
I am.
What can I do for you?
Tell me the way to the country whence the shadows fall.
Ah,
That I do not know.
I only dream about it myself.
I see its shadow sometimes in my mirror.
The way to it I do not know.
But I think the old man of the fire must know.
He is much older than I am.
He is the oldest man of all.
Where does he live?
I will show you the way to his place.
I never saw him myself.
So saying,
The young man rose,
And then stood for a while gazing at Tangle.
I wish I could see that country too,
" he said.
But I must mind my work.
He led her to the side of the cave and told her to lay her ear against the wall.
What do you hear,
He asked.
I hear,
Answer tangle.
The sound of a great water running inside the rock.
That river runs down to the dwelling of the oldest man of all,
The old man of the fire.
I wish I could go to see him,
But I must mind my work.
That river is the only way to Him.
Then the old man of the earth stooped over the floor of the cave,
Raised a huge stone from it,
And left it leaning.
It disclosed a great hole that went plumb down.
That is the way,
He said.
But there are no stairs.
You must throw yourself in.
There is no other way.
She turned and looked him full in the face,
Stood still for a whole minute as she thought.
It was a whole year.
Then threw herself headlong into the hole.
When she came to herself.
She found herself gliding down fast and deep.
Her head was underwater.
But that did not signify.
For when she thought about it.
She could not remember that she had breathed once since her bath in the cave of the old man of the sea.
When she lifted up her head,
A sudden and fierce heat struck her,
And she sank it again instantly and went sweeping on.
Gradually,
The stream grew shallower.
At length,
She could hardly keep her head under her.
Then the water could carry her no farther.
She rose from the channel and went step for step down the burning descent.
The water ceased altogether.
The heat was terrible.
She felt scorched to the bone,
But it did not touch her strength.
It grew hotter and hotter.
She said.
I can bear it no longer.
Yet,
She went on.
At the long last,
The stair ended at a rude archway in an all but glowing rock.
Through this archway,
Tangle fell exhausted into a cool mossy cave.
The floor and walls were covered with moss,
Green,
Soft,
And damp.
A little stream spouted from a rent in the rock and fell into a basin of moss.
She plunged her face into it and drank.
Then she lifted her head and looked around.
Then she rose and looked again.
She saw no one in the cave.
But the moment she stood upright,
She had a marvelous sense that she was in the secret of the Earth and all its ways.
Everything she had seen or learned from books,
All that her grandmother had said or sung to her.
All the talk of the beasts,
Birds,
And fishes.
All that had happened to her on her journey with mossy.
And since then in the heart of the earth with the old man and the older man all was plain.
She understood it all and saw that everything meant the same thing.
Though she could not have put it into words again.
The next moment,
She noticed,
In a corner of the cave,
A little naked child,
Sitting on the moss.
He was playing with balls of various colors and sizes,
Which he disposed in strange figures upon the floor beside him.
And now Tangle felt that there was something in her knowledge which was not in her understanding,
For she knew there must be an infinite meaning in the change and sequence and individual forms of the figures into which the child arranged the balls,
As well as in the varied harmonies of their colors.
But what it all meant,
She could not tell.
He went on busily.
Tirelessly playing his solitary game without looking up or seeming to know that there was a stranger in his deep withdrawn self.
Diligently,
As a lacemaker shifts her bobbins,
He shifted and arranged his balls.
Flashes of meaning would now pass from them to tangle.
And now again,
All would be not merely obscure,
But utterly dark.
She stood looking for a long time,
For there was a fascination in the sight.
And the longer she looked,
The more an indescribable vague intelligence went on rousing itself in her mind.
For seven years she had stood there watching the naked child with his colored balls,
And it seemed to her like seven hours.
When all at once,
The shape the balls took,
She knew not why,
Reminded her of the Valley of Shadows,
And she spoke.
Where is the old man of the fire,
She said.
Here I am,
Answered the child,
Rising and leaving his balls on the moss.
What can I do for you?
Child's face was so perfectly still and peaceful that Tangle couldn't say a word.
He wasn't smiling,
But his large grey eyes held a love so deep and quiet,
It was almost impossible to look away.
His face had a soft glow to it,
Like moonlight resting on still water,
And something about it made you feel that if he ever did smile,
It would be the most beautiful thing you'd ever seen.
But the smile never came.
The soft light simply stayed,
Calm and unmoving,
Because whatever he held inside his heart was too deep and too quiet to ever find its way to his face.
Are you the oldest man of all?
Tangle at length,
Although filled with awe,
Venture to ask.
Yes,
I am.
I am very,
Very old.
I am able to help you,
I know.
I can help everybody.
And the child drew near and looked up in her face so that she burst into tears.
Can you tell me the way to the country the shadows fall from?
" She sobbed.
Yes,
I know the way quite well.
I go there myself sometimes.
But you cannot go my way.
You are not old enough.
I will show you how you can go.
Do not send me out into the great heat again,
Pray tangle.
I will not answer the child.
And he reached up.
And put his little cool hand on her heart.
Now,
He said,
You can go.
The fire will not burn you.
Come.
He led her out of the cave and through another low archway into a vast open place made entirely of sand and rocks.
The sky above them was rock too,
Heavy and dark,
Like storm clouds frozen in stone.
All around her,
The rock was so hot that the rivers of melted gold and silver and copper trickled slowly down in bright glowing streams.
But no matter how fierce the heat was,
Not a trace of it touched her.
When they had gone some distance.
The child turned up a great stone.
And took something like an egg from under it.
He next drew a long curved line in the sand with his finger and laid the egg in it.
He then spoke something Tangle could not understand.
The egg broke,
A small snake came out,
And,
Lying in the line in the sand,
Grew and grew till he filled it.
The moment he was thus full grown.
He began to glide away,
Flowing softly like a sea wave.
Follow that serpent,
Said the child.
He will lead you the right way.
Tango followed the servant,
But she could not go far without looking back at the marvelous child.
He stood alone in the midst of the glowing desert,
Beside a fountain of red flame that had burst forth at his feet.
His naked whiteness glimmering a pale rosy red in the torrid fire.
There he stood,
Looking after her,
Till,
From the lengthening distance,
She could see him no more.
The serpent went straight on,
Turning neither to the right nor left.
Meantime,
Mossy had got out of the Lake of Shadows and,
Following his mournful,
Lonely way,
Had reached the seashore.
It was a dark,
Stormy evening.
The sun had set.
The wind was blowing from the sea.
The waves had surrounded the rock within which lay the old man's house.
A deep water rolled between it and the shore,
Upon which a majestic figure was walking alone.
Mossy went up to him and said,
Will you tell me where to find the old man of the sea?
I am the old man of the sea,
The figure answered.
I see a strong,
Kindly man of middle age,
" returned Mossie.
Then the old man looked at him more intently and said,
Your sight,
Young man,
Is better than that of most who take this away.
The night is stormy.
Come to my house and tell me what I can do for you.
Mossie followed him.
The waves flew from before the footsteps of the old man of the sea,
And mossy followed upon dry sand.
When they reached the cave,
They sat down and gazed at each other.
Naumasi was an old man by this time.
He lived much older than the old man of the sea,
And his feet were very weary.
After looking at him for a moment.
The old man took him by the hand and led him into his inner cave.
There he helped him to undress and laid him in the bath.
And he saw that one of his hands Masi did not open.
What have you got in that hand?
He asked.
Marcy opened his hand.
And there lay the golden key.
Ah,
Said the old man.
That accounts for your knowing me,
And I know the way you have to go.
I want to find the country whence the shadows fall,
" said Mossie.
I dare say you do.
So do I.
But meantime,
One thing is certain.
What is that key for,
Do you think?
For a keyhole somewhere.
But I don't know why I keep it.
I never could find the keyhole.
And I have lived a good while,
I believe,
" said Mossie sadly.
I'm not sure that I'm not old.
I know my feet ache.
Do they?
" said the old man.
As if he really meant to ask the question.
And mossy who was still lying in the bath.
Watched his feet for a moment before he replied.
No,
They do not,
He answered.
Perhaps I am not old either.
Get up and look at yourself in the water.
He rose and looked at himself in the water,
And there was not a gray hair on his head or a wrinkle on his skin.
You have tasted of death now,
" said the old man.
Is it good?
It is good,
Said Masi.
It is better than life.
No,
Said the old man.
It is only more life.
Your feet will make no holes in the water now.
What do you mean?
I will show you that presently.
They return to the outer cave.
And sat and talked together for a long time.
At length,
The old man of the sea rose and said to Mossy,
Follow me.
He led him up the stair again and opened another door.
They stood on the level of the raging sea,
Looking towards the east.
Across the waste of waters,
Against the bosom of a fierce black cloud,
Stood the foot of a rainbow glowing in the dark.
This indeed is my way,
" said Mossy,
As soon as he saw the rainbow,
And stepped out upon the sea.
His feet made no holes in the water.
He fought the wind and climbed the waves and went on towards the rainbow.
The storm died away.
A lovely day and a lovelier night followed.
A cool wind blew over the wide plain of the quiet ocean.
And still mossy journeyed eastward,
But the rainbow had vanished with the storm.
Day after day he held on.
And he thought he had no guide.
He did not see how a shining fish under the waters directed his steps.
He crossed the sea and came to a great precipice of rock,
Up which he could discover but one path.
Nor did this lead him farther than halfway up the rock,
Where it ended on a platform.
Here he stood and pondered.
It cannot be that the way stopped here.
Else what was the path for?
It was a rough path.
Not very plain,
Yet certainly a path.
He examined the face of the robber.
It was smooth as glass,
But as his eyes kept roving hopelessly over it,
Something glittered,
And he caught sight of a row of small sapphires.
They boarded a little hole in the rock.
The keyhole,
He cried.
He tried the key.
It fit.
It turned.
A great clang and clash,
As of iron bolts on huge brazen cauldrons echoed thunderously within.
He drew out the key.
The rock in front of him began to fall.
He retreated from it as far as the breadth of the platform would allow.
A great slab fell at his feet.
In front was still the solid rock with this one slab fallen forward out of it.
But the moment he stepped upon it,
A second fell,
Just short of the edge of the first,
Making the next step of a stair,
Which thus kept dropping itself before him as he ascended into the heart of the precipice.
It led him into a hall that felt right for such a moment.
Uneven and rough in the way only natural things can be,
Yet every surface glowed with color.
The floor,
The walls,
The pillars,
The arching roof above.
All of it was one great mass of shining stone,
Catching every color that light knows how to make.
In the center stood seven columns,
Arranged in a slow sweep from deep red all the way to soft violet.
And at the base of one of them sat a woman.
Very still,
Her face resting down against her knees.
She had been sitting there for seven years waiting When she heard Masi draw near,
She slowly lifted her head.
It was Tangle.
Her hair had grown all the way down to her feet,
Falling in long gentle waves,
Like a calm sea over wide open sand.
Her face was beautiful,
Like her grandmother's,
And as still and peaceful as the face of the old man of the fire.
She held herself with a quiet kind of grace,
And yet Masi knew her the moment he saw her.
How beautiful you are,
Tangle,
He said in delight and astonishment.
Am I?
She returned.
Oh,
I have waited for you so long.
But you,
You are the old man of the sea.
No,
You were like the old man of the earth.
No,
No,
You were like the oldest man of all.
You are like them all.
And yet,
You are my very old mossy.
How did you come here?
What did you do after I lost you?
Did you find the keyhole?
Have you got the key still?
She had a hundred questions to ask him,
And he a hundred more to ask her.
They told each other of all their adventures and were as happy as man and woman could be.
For they were younger and better and stronger and wiser than they had ever been before.
The cave began to grow dark around them.
More than anything they long to reach the country where the shadows come from.
So they looked for a way out.
But the door Mossie had come through had closed itself again.
And there was half a mile of solid rock between them and the sea.
Tangle searched for the opening in the floor where the serpent had once let her in,
But she couldn't find it either.
They kept looking until the darkness grew so thick they couldn't see a thing.
And finally,
They gave up.
But after a while.
.
.
A soft light began to fill the cave again.
It came from the moon.
Yet it didn't quite look like the moonlight.
It poured in through the seven pillars at the center of the hall,
And spread out into every color,
Washing gently over the walls and floor.
And that's when Mossy noticed something he had missed before.
Beside the red pillar stood another one,
A color he had only ever seen once,
In the rainbow on the day he first found it in the fairy forest.
He stepped closer.
There,
Catching the light,
Was a small sparkle of blue.
It was the ring of sapphires around the keyhole.
He took his key.
It turned in the love.
And as it did.
A soft music rose up,
As though carried on the wind.
A door swung slowly open,
And behind it was a winding stair.
The key faded quietly from his fingers.
Tangle stepped up first.
Mossy followed.
The door closed gently behind them.
They climbed up out of the earth and kept climbing,
Rising higher still,
Until the ground fell far away beneath them.
They were inside the rainbow.
All around them,
Through its soft and glowing walls,
They could see the wide world below.
The ocean,
The land,
The quiet earth they had wandered for so long.
Other stairs wound up alongside theirs,
And all along them,
Beautiful beings of every age climbed together in the same soft light.
They knew,
Without having to say it,
That they were on their way at last to the country where the shadows come from.
Sweet dreams my friends.
Sleep well.
You
