Chapter 10 MAY THE GODS GIVE US TWAIN A GOOD DAY.

When they arrived there it was as Yaspard had said. Signy was on the beach waiting for her brother, and great was her surprise to see Fred in the Osprey.

But when her brother explained, and told her of the part they expected her to play, the little girl's heart began to beat with the wildest hopes and fears that ever stirred in one so young.

The shadow of that terrible family feud had early fallen on her gentle spirit, and the vivid imagination which made her almost realise many merely ideal fancies had exaggerated that inherited enmity into something too dreadful to put into words. Such thoughts had been fostered, of course, by the inconsiderate way in which Mr. Adiesen had spoken and acted, never thinking, as he ought to have done, of the tender years of one who marked his words-never caring that his sentiments were the reverse of Christian. I think he rather "prided himself" upon the feud as a thing pertaining to his family tree, and to be cherished along with the motto on his crest! No one had dared to tell the Laird of Boden plainly that he was acting as no civilised-far less God-fearing-man should act, and he had never taken himself to task upon the subject. Consequently he had put no restraint on his speech, nor cared who heard him, when denouncing the Lairds of Lunda and all pertaining to them!

Signy would, of her own free will, as soon have put her hand into a red-hot fire as have asked Uncle Brüs to receive Fred Garson in a hospitable manner; but she was made of fine metal, and would carry out Yaspard's wishes, although all the thunders of Thor and Odin were ready to burst on her little head.

She put her hand frankly into that of Fred and walked up to the house, soon followed by Yaspard, who had only lingered a moment to give some instructions to the Harrisons before they left, with Gloy, for their home.

When Moolapund was reached Yaspard said to Signy, "Take Mr. Garson to the parlour, and I will go and tell Aunt Osla he is here."

The parlour, you may remember, was being used as a study while the Den was undergoing renovation; and Mr. Adiesen was sitting at a table examining some pieces of rock which greatly delighted him, for he was saying to himself, in tones of extreme satisfaction, "I knew it! I was convinced of it! I always believed it was to be found in those islands! and I am the discoverer!"

"Uncle!" said the soft little voice, and the scientist turned round to face his hereditary foe!

He had never seen Fred, but some striking traits peculiar to his race, made it easy for Mr. Adiesen to recognise a Garson in the bold youth who stood there smiling and holding out the hand of good-fellowship.

The old man was completely taken aback. The instinct of hospitality, which is held like a sacred thing among Shetlanders, bade him receive with a measure of courtesy whoever chanced to come under his "rooftree," but another instinct, as deeply rooted, and more ready to exhibit itself, was also moving within him.

Fortunately no time was given him to choose between two courses. Signy caught his hand between her own, kissed it with quick fervency, and laid it in that of Fred, saying as she did so, "Dear Uncle Brüs, for my sake, for your own little Signy's sake."

They did not give him a single moment to recover himself-not a single demon of hatred, jealousy, or pride got a chance to reassert its power in time to prevent that hand-clasp; and before he could speak either, the ground was half cut from under him!

As if they had been meeting every day, and were old friends, Fred said, as their hands met, "How do you do? I see you have triumphed where even the famous geologist Congreve failed. We have chipped the rocks for years, and Mr. Congreve has searched high and low, in Lunda and Burra Isle, in every skerry and locality where that" (pointing to the beautifully veined bits of mineral) "ought to be found, but without success. Allow me to congratulate you on such a discovery. You are to be envied, Mr. Adiesen. May I take a near view of your specimens?"

How it came about no one could ever tell, but a few minutes later Yaspard and Aunt Osla, coming in much trepidation to the parlour, found Fred and Mr. Adiesen in amicable conversation over the stones, while Signy stood between her uncle's knees, with his arm around her, and his fingers lovingly twined among her bright curls!

Aunt Osla was nervous and tearful, and would have made a scene, no doubt, but for Fred's admirable tact. He addressed her, as he had done the Laird, just as if they were ordinary acquaintances meeting in the most matter-of-fact, every-day kind of manner. Wrath and sentiment alike collapsed before such commonplace salutations, and both Mr. Adiesen and his sister felt they would only make themselves ridiculous if they met young Garson's simple civility with any expression of deeper feelings.

So the conversation glided smoothly into the well-worn and useful channels of ordinary talk about the weather, and the crops, and the fishing, and "the South," until Miss Adiesen was at her ease enough to say, "I hope your dear mother is well?"

"She is regaining strength and a degree of cheerfulness, thank you," said Fred; and then quite naturally, as if he knew he were talking on a subject interesting to his hearers, he went on to speak of the trial they had passed through in the loss of his father; and when he had said just enough about that he quietly glided into Mr. Adiesen's favourite themes, surprising the old gentleman considerably by his knowledge of natural science and his intelligent appreciation of the scientist himself!

Yaspard sat near, a delighted listener, while Fred, using his utmost powers of fascination, talked Uncle Brüs into good humour, and so paved the way to an amicable adjustment of some of the differences between the rival Lairds.

It was not till tea had been served, and the day was far spent, that Fred asked the loan of a boat, and his young friend Yaspard's crew, to take him back to Lunda. Permission was given, of course; and when our Viking-boy went off to get the Osprey ready Signy went too, and Aunt Osla disappeared to indite a letter to her old friend, Fred's mother. Thus the two men were left alone, which was exactly what Fred desired, and he was not long in taking advantage of an opportunity he had been devoutly desiring would come.

"What a fine lad that is!" he said, speaking of Yaspard. "He is quite the ideal Hialtlander!"

"He is rather too fond of romance and the like," answered the old man; but he smiled, for he was fond of his nephew, and liked to hear him praised.

"Yes, I think with you that there is an excess of romantic sentiment in his character; and that kind of thing is apt to become exaggerated into eccentricity or foolishness. I suppose he can't help it, living so much within himself, as it were."

"Possibly-that is-so!" Mr. Adiesen replied slowly.

"I hope," Fred resumed, and he smiled very pleasantly, "that this Viking fancy he has taken up may be of service to him in bringing him into contact with boys of his own age and rank. The young Mitchells are capital fellows, and you know better than most folk what sort of companions he is likely to find in Dr. Holtum's family."

"The Doctor is a man in a thousand. He did me a service I am not likely to forget on this side the grave. I don't see him as often as-might be under different circumstances. But I respect him. Yes, young man, I respect Dr. Holtum!" And the frown which had gathered on the old man's brow at mention of the Mitchells cleared up more rapidly than Fred had dared to hope for.

"I don't know how we should get along without Dr. Holtum-we young ones, I mean," he remarked. "He enters so much into all our fun, and then he is so very clever too, a first-rate scientist. They have a 'menagerie,' as large and interesting as your own, at Collaster. And the twins-they are a little older than your lovely little niece, but she would find them companionable, for she is older than her years, I think. I suppose it will be with her as it is with Yaspard in some respects?"

"Signy is quite contented without girls' society, and she can never become either eccentric or foolish," Mr. Adiesen said hurriedly; but all the same he suddenly had a vision of his pet growing up to be peculiar, and an old maid perhaps resembling Aunt Osla, or some other of the many spinster ladies whose insular life had doomed them to that fate.

"My sister Isobel and I," said Fred, "always feel that we are more fortunate than the greater number of Lairds' families in having so many companions in our island. It has been desperately good for me, I know, to have such clever chaps as Eric Mitchell and Svein Holtum for my chums."

"And your sister? Dr. Holtum's girls are younger?"

"Yes, and Isobel suffers in consequence. We all make a great fuss over Isobel, and she thinks a little too much of her own consequence. But still she has advantages-from the society of ladies, for instance-which your Signy cannot have."

The entrance of Signy herself put a stop to the conversation, but Fred was satisfied that he had sown good seed which would produce the right kind of fruit by-and-by. When he left Boden his heart was light within him. He took Mr. Adiesen's insolent note from his pocket and tore it to bits, scattering them on the sea, and saying within himself, "A soft answer turneth away wrath;" then to Yaspard he said, "Now, Sir Viking, for your letter. You want the answer, don't you?"