“Indeed I have,” answered Lucie briskly, “and next year my hair is to be plaited.”
She shook her rich, brown locks that hung down to her waist, and were tied half-way with a bright scarlet ribbon, and Paul thought in his heart it was a shame to hide such beautiful hair in a plait, such as little Denise Duval wore, and the tailor’s children; and he much preferred Lucie’s hair hanging free, with the scarlet bow bobbing up and down. And then, the dancing scarlet bow seemed, in some way, to match her eyes, which had a gleam of fire in them and which were always dancing and full of life, and her little, sensitive mouth, which was always smiling.
“I hear you have been to boarding-school,” said Lucie.
“Yes, Mademoiselle,” answered Paul, quite timidly, as if he were the young lady, and Lucie the bold and ardent suitor.
“I suppose you think yourself quite a man.”
“Oh, no, Mademoiselle, I am only a boy yet.”
“I don’t go to school—I have masters,” said Lucie, “and a visiting governess who comes to the Château Bernard to teach me geography and history and things—but let me tell you, Paul,”—here Lucie dropped into a confidential tone and came quite close to Paul, and put her rosy lips to his ear, “I don’t like to learn anything except English and music. English is no trouble at all, because Sophie always spoke English to me, and I love music, although it is very hard work, but Sophie made me practise on the piano until I can play it quite well, but for the other things—I don’t care whether I know them or not. My governess goes and complains to grandmama that I won’t learn, and then grandmama sends for me and scolds me, and then I kiss her and tell her I will do better, and that makes grandmama happy—but I don’t care to learn out of books, Paul—that is the truth—I like to read stories, but they won’t let me read stories, not even Sophie.”
Paul looked at Lucie and sighed heavily. Was she another Toni, masquerading in girls’ clothes? He could not understand, to save his life, these children who did not like to study and learn, and why they would not try to please their governesses and parents by trying, nor could he understand why the two beings destined to be nearest to his soul should be so different in these respects from his ideals. Paul could not fathom this, but it troubled him very much indeed, and forthwith he said a few words to Lucie something like those he had said to Toni.