The girl rose and made her way rather slowly to the stairs. Somehow
she felt less light-hearted than she had done a few minutes before.
What was it? She could not understand. The world had seemed all joy
and sunshine to her a quarter of an hour since, and now there was a
cloud over her heart that dimmed for her even the radiant prospect of
her father's return.

"I feel just like sitting down and having a good cry--if I ever did
such a thing," she said to herself as she fastened on her new hat and
tried to be glad that it was so becoming.

But as she and Miss Blake walked along the streets in the midst of a
crowd of happy, chatting church-goers her spirits rose, and she nodded
gayly to the Buckstone girls and Harley Morris, and broke into quite a
ripple of laughter as John Gardiner overtook them and asked if the
wheel he had brought her the night before had proved a good one.

"Oh, it was immense!" answered Nan, merrily.

The services were beautiful, and Nan entered into them heart and soul,
listening to the sermon with rapt attention and letting her fresh young
voice swell out jubilantly in the dear, familiar carols as she had
never done before.

As they went out of church Miss Blake said to her softly:

"You won't mind going on without me, will you, Nan? I have a little
errand to do before I go home. Tell Delia I'll be back in time for
dinner."

[Illustration: "I have a little errand to do"]

"But why can't I go with you?" demanded the girl.

"Because it--it wouldn't be best. I will explain it to you later. Now
I must go. Tell Delia what I said. But if I should happen to be
delayed don't wait, and don't--that is, tell Delia not to worry.
Good-bye!" and she was around the corner before Nan could say another
word.

Ruth Andrews joined her and they walked along together, falling at once
into the easy terms of familiarity that had sprung up between them the
night before.

"O Nan!" began Ruth abruptly, "you aren't going to be such a goose as
to back out of joining the skating club just because--well, because
Mary Brewster's such a prig? She isn't the whole membership, not by a
good deal, and the rest of us count on your coming. Why, you'll be a
tremendous acquisition. And the first meet is to-morrow. Won't you
come?"

Nan hesitated. "It isn't because I'm a goose," she said at length.
"That is, I mean--oh, I can't explain it, but really, Ruth, I'd rather
not join. I wouldn't have a good time