Page 900 sur 3800

"And I did not know... Nicholas... My darling!..."

"Here he is... our own... Kolya, * dear fellow... How he has

changed!... Where are the candles?... Tea!..."

* Nicholas.

"And me, kiss me!"

"Dearest... and me!"

Sonya, Natasha, Petya, Anna Mikhaylovna, Vera, and the old count

were all hugging him, and the serfs, men and maids, flocked into

the room, exclaiming and oh-ing and ah-ing.

Petya, clinging to his legs, kept shouting, "And me too!"

Natasha, after she had pulled him down toward her and covered his

face with kisses, holding him tight by the skirt of his coat,

sprang away and pranced up and down in one place like a goat and

shrieked piercingly.

All around were loving eyes glistening with tears of joy, and all

around were lips seeking a kiss.