midnight
And now the great ridge on the north rose steeper and steeper , and their crossing it seemed not to be thought of ; but their half-blind track failed them not . They rested at even , and ate and drank what little they had left , save a mouthful or two of wine , and then went on again by the light of the moon , which was so bright that they still saw their way . And it happened to Hallblithe , as mostly it does with men very travel-worn , that he went on and on scarce remembering where he was , or who his fellows were , or that he had any fellows . So at midnight they lay down in the wilderness again , hungry and weary . They rose at dawn and went forward with waning hope : for now the mountain ridge on the north was close to their path , rising up along a sheer wall of pale stone over which nothing might go save the fowl flying ; so that at first on that morning they looked for nothing save to lay their bones in that grievous desert where no man should find them . But , as beset with famine , they fared on heavily down the narrow track , there came a hoarse cry from Hallblithe 's dry throat and it was as if his cry had been answered by another like to his ; and the seekers turned and beheld him pointing to the cliff-side , and lo ! half-way up the pale sun - litten crag stood two ravens in a cranny of the stone , flapping their wings and croaking , with thrusting forth and twisting of their heads ; and presently they came floating on the thin pure air high up over the heads of the wayfarers , croaking for the pleasure of the meeting , as though they laughed thereat .