And just then, "Here they come!" Lulu cried happily.
Lulu's eyes turned away from the group of women. Her brown face had
lighted as though somebody had placed a torch beside it. The strings of
little dimples that her plumpness had brought in its wake played about
her mouth.
The trail that emerged from the jungle ran between bushes, and gradually
grew lower and lower, until it merged with a path shooting straight
across the sand to the Playground.
For a while the heads of the file of men appeared above the bushes; then
came shoulders, waists, knees; finally the entire figures. They strode
through the jungle with the walk of conquerors.
They were so absorbed in talk as not to realize that the camp was in
sight. Every woman's eye - and some subtle revivifying excitement
temporarily dispersed the discontent there - had found her mate long
before he remembered to look in her direction.
The children heard the voices and immediately raced, laughing and
shouting, to meet their fathers. Angela, beating her pinions in a very
frenzy of haste, arrived first. She fluttered away from outstretched
arms until she reached Ralph; he lifted her to his breast, carried her
snuggled there, his lips against her hair. Honey and Pete absently swung
their sons to their shoulders and went on talking. Junior, tired out by
his exertions, sat down plumply half-way. Grinning radiantly, he waited
for the procession to overtake him.
"Peachy," Julia asked in an aside, "have you ever asked Ralph what he
intends to do about Angela's wings? "
"What he intends to do?" Peachy echoed. "What do you mean? What can he
intend to do? What has he to say about them, anyway?"
"He may not intend anything," Julia answered gravely. "Still, if I were
you, I'd have a talk with him."
Time had brought its changes to the five men as to the five women; but
they were not such devastating changes.
Honey led the march, a huge wreath of uprooted blossoming plants hanging
about his neck. He was at the prime of his strength, the zenith of his
beauty and, in the semi-nudity that the climate permitted, more than
ever like a young wood-god. Health shone from his skin in a
copper-bronze that seemed to overlay the flesh like armor. Happiness
shone from his eyes in a fire-play that seemed never to die down. One
year more and middle age might lay its dulling finger upon him. But now
he positively flared with youth.
Close behind Honey came Billy Fairfax, still shock-headed, his blond
hair faded to tow, slimmer, more serious, more fine. His eyes ran ahead
of the others, found Julia's face, lighted up. His gaze lingered there
in a tender smile.