noons
He did not remember clearly whether the milk was warm or cool at his last feeding or how the days passed -- there was only his crib and Nana 's familiar presence . And then he remembered nothing . When he was hungry he cried -- that was all . Through the noons and nights he breathed and over him there were soft mumblings and murmurings that he scarcely heard , and faintly differentiated smells , and light and darkness . Then it was all dark , and his white crib and the dim faces that moved above him , and the warm sweet aroma of the milk , faded out altogether from his mind . Running footsteps -- light , soft-soled shoes made of curious leathery cloth brought from Ceylon setting the pace ; thick flowing boots , two pairs , dark blue and gilt , reflecting the moonlight in blunt gleams and splotches , following a stone 's throw behind . Soft Shoes flashes through a patch of moonlight , then darts into a blind labyrinth of alleys and becomes only an intermittent scuffle ahead somewhere in the enfolding darkness .