“But wasn’t she still Lentala in those silly clothes?”
“She was as much less Lentala as her effort to be something else succeeded in making her.”
Beela looked puzzled exactly as Lentala had.
“But her heart is broken!” she cried. “She says that you laughed at her, and spoke in riddles!”
“I laughed with her, Beelo, not at her; and the riddles were a bit that I put in my mouth.”
“Why?”
“The temptation to say beautiful things to Lentala that might sound insincere is strong.”
She rose, with a confusion that was half amusement, and tried to hide the light in her eyes.
“Come, Choseph! There is much to do today.”
“I must see Lentala first.”