The initial meeting of these two groups was probably not as calm and easy as Mormon makes it sound. If Gideon’s men were bent on killing the king, they would be ready for a fight. The returning men would be tired but apprehensive, perhaps not sure immediately whether they were seeing Nephites or Lamanites. As the distance narrowed, however, at least some in each party would recognize men in the other party, although it is less clear that they would have assumed friendship.
Clearly the returning men would be anxious about their abandoned families. After the unmentioned means of reconciling the potentially violent anxieties, Gideon’s party removes another anxiety by informing the men of the fate of their families and city.