"Did you hear what he's thinking of, your Pavel Vassilyevitch?" she said. "Come with me into the drawing-room and don't you dare to laugh. I will ask you in their presence and don't you dare say 'yes.' Do you understand?"
"Oo-hoo," blurted out Misha, and stuck a corner of his handkerchief in his mouth to stop his laughing, but with little success.
"Cover your face with your handkerchief when you want to laugh," his sister advised him, and led him by his shoulder into the drawing-room.
There she placed him in an arm-chair and sat down on a chair at his side. Volodin looked offended and lowered his head like a little ram.
"You see," she said, pointing at her brother, "I've barely dried his tears, poor boy! I have to be a mother to him, and he has a sudden idea that I'm going to leave him."
Misha covered his face with his handkerchief. His whole body shook. In order to hide his laughter he uttered a protracted moan:
"Oo-oo-oo."
Nadezhda embraced him, pinched his hand secretly and said:
"Well, stop crying, my dear, stop crying."
Misha for a moment unexpectedly felt touched and tears came into his eyes. He lowered his handkerchief and looked angrily at his sister.