ight flash of it sometimes. In spite of timidity and shyness, every
now and then something made her forget herself, and then the sunlight
broke out; to be followed perhaps by a double cloud of gravity. But for
the rest, she worked like a docile pupil, as she always had done.

Apparently her teacher's thoughts had not been confined to the work, if
they had to her; for when all was done that could be done before
dinner, he made one of those sudden speeches with which he sometimes
indulged himself.

"Faith--I wish you would ask me to do half a dozen almost impossible
things for you."

What a pretty wondering look she gave him. One of the flashes of the
sunlight came then. But then came an amused expression.

"What would be the good of that, Mr. Linden?"

"I should have the pleasure of doing them."

"I believe you would," said Faith. "I think the only things quite
impossible to you are wrong things."

"The only thing you ever did ask of me was impossible," he said with a
smile, upon which there was a shadow too--as if the recollection pained
him. "Child, how could you?--It half broke my heart to withstand you
so, do you know that? I want the almost impossible things to make me
forget it."

Her lip trembled instantly and her command of herself was nearly gone.
She had risen for something, and as he spoke she came swiftly behind
him, putting herself where he could not see her face, and laid her hand
on his shoulder. It lay there as light as thistle-down; but it was
Faith's mute way of saying a great many things that her voice could not.

Very quick and tenderly Mr. Linden drew her forward again, and tried
the power of his lips to still hers.

"Hush, dear child!" he said--"you must not mind any thing I say,--I am
the last person in the world you ought to be afraid of. And you must
not claim it as your prerogative to get before me in danger and behind
me at all other times--because that is just reversing the proper order
of things. Faith, I am going to ask an almost impossible thing of you."

"What is it?" Faith was secretly glad, for afraid of his _requests_ she
could not be.

"You will try to do it?"

"Yes--certainly!"

"It is only to forget that 'Mr. Linden' is any part of my name," he
said smiling.

She had been rosy enough before, but now the blood reddened her very
brow, till for one instant she put up her hands to hide it.

"What then?"--she said in a breathless sort of way.

"What you like"--he ans