oom might be secured from Miss Ardsley. Patricia was to move in
the next day and, most alluring of all, Rosamond Merton told her that
she should have regular hours of use of the fine grand piano which stood
in the sitting-room, thereby taking a great load off Patricia's excited
mind.

"I've been wondering how I was to get a piano in that little scrap of a
place," she confessed, "and I didn't see how it could be done, unless I
slept on it at nights and practiced by day. A bed and a piano both
simply couldn't be crammed in."

They parted in great good humor and Patricia felt that she was treading
on air as she went down the winding stair to the courtyard.

"This certainly is my lucky day," she said exultantly, as the gate
closed behind them. "Here I am, a pupil of Tancredi and a member of the
illustrious band of inmates of Artemis Lodge--all at one fell swoop.
Elinor, you've made me tremendously happy by sticking to the point like
you did. I'd never have got the room if it hadn't been for your hanging
on so."

"I tell you what it is, Miss Pat," said Judith with sudden decision in
her tone. "You need somebody to take care of you. If Elinor hadn't
insisted on paying, you'd have lost that room, and if I hadn't stopped
you after you did get it, you'd have thrown away most of the good of it
by making yourself a perfect door-mat."

Patricia gazed with astonishment at this amazing young sister of hers.
"A door-mat?" she repeated blankly. "A door mat?"

"For Miss Merton to walk in upon as often as she liked," retorted Judith
with calm finality. "She's a very encroaching sort of person, Miss Pat.
I can see that. And you want to be sure you are going to be real friends
with her before you let her get too chummy with you."

Patricia burst into a merry peal and even Elinor rippled with amusement
at this way of looking at the matter.

"'Chummy' isn't exactly the word that fits Miss Merton, Ju," she said
gayly. "It sounds suspiciously like unimposing me, rather than the
elegant young lady of the three-room apartment. The only thing I'm
afraid of is that she'll get tired of her bargain before the week is
out. I may be an awful nuisance with my scales and strummings."

Then Judith was scandalized in earnest. The idea of anyone finding Miss
Pat a nuisance was beyond her powers of thought, and she could not even
find words to express her scorn of such an impossible state of things.

Patricia rippled again at the sniff of disgust