Page 71 - Adventures in shadow-land

changed him, and that was the reason why he
tried to annoy her in every possible way. He

knew how uneasy she was when he was not with
her ; yet, knowing this, it was his greatest delight

to hide himself behind some large stone, and after
she had looked for him for a long time without

finding him, afraid that his enemies had carried
him off, he would jump out upon her with a loud

mocking cry; he would pull her hair, he would
try to soil her white dress, by throwing mud and

dirt upon it, to make it, as he said, like his own,
which was all stained and soiled, and then, when

he found that he could not discolor its whiteness,
he would throw himself down on the ground, and
kick and scream, and tell Eva that he hated her,

and that he wished th ey would come and carry
her away*

One day, when Aster had been worse than ever,
and the way had been stonier and harder than it

had ever been before, Eva began to think that it
was of no use to go on, or to look for the flower lost

so long ago by the imp-like boy, whose powers
of annoying her seemed to increase as he grew

smaller with the moon. She sat down upon one