"Oh, I hope not," said Bee. "Do you really think I shall, Rosy?"
"I shall like you just as well if you do," said Rosy, "at least if you do a little. Anyway, it would be better than setting up to be better than other people, or pretending."
"But I don't want to do that," said Beata. "I want to be good. I don't want to think about being better or not better than other people, and I'm sure I don't want to pretend. I don't ever pretend like that, Rosy. Won't you believe me? I don't know what I can say to make you believe me. I can't see that you should think it such a very funny thing for me to want to be good. Don't you want to be good?"
"Yes," said Rosy, "I suppose I do. I do just now, just at this minute. And just at this minute I believe what you say. But I daresay I won't always. The first time Colin teases me I know I shall leave off wanting to be good. I shall want nothing at all except just to give him a good hard slap—really to hurt him, you know. I do want to hurt him when I am very angry—just for a little. And if you were to say anything to me then about being good, I'd very likely not believe you a bit."
Just then Martha's voice was heard calling them in to breakfast.
"Be quiet, Martha," Rosy called back. "We'll come when we're ready. Do leave us alone. Just when we're talking so nicely," she added, turning to Bee. "What a bother she is"
"I think she's very kind," said Bee, "but I don't like to say anything like that to you, for fear you should think I'm pretending or 'setting up,' or something like that."
Rosy laughed.
"I don't think that just now," she said. "Well, let's go into the nursery, then," and, as they came in, she said to Martha with wonderful amiability, "We aren't very hungry this morning, I don't think, for we had each such a big hunch of bread and some milk before we ran out."
"That was quite right, Miss Rosy," said Martha, and by the sound of her voice it was easy to see she was pleased. "It is never a good thing to go out in the morning without eating something, even if it's only a little bit."