"Miss Vizard," she said, "excuse my receiving you so; but you may have heard I am very poor. My last candle is gone. But perhaps the landlady would lend me one. I don't know. She is very disobliging, and very cruel.""Then she shall not have the honor of lending you a candle," said Zoe, with one of her gushes. "Now, to tell the truth," said she, altering to the cheerful, "I'm rather glad. I would rather talk to you in the dark for a little, just at first. May I?" By this time she had gradually crept up to Rhoda.
"I am afraid you _must,"_ said Rhoda. "But at least I can offer you a seat."Zoe sat down, and there was an awkward silence.
"Oh, dear," said Zoe; "I don't know how to begin. I wish you would give me your hand, as I can't see your face.""With all my heart: there."
(Almost in a whisper) "He has told me."
Rhoda put the other hand to her face, though it was so dark.
"Oh, Miss Gale, how _could_ you? Only think! Suppose you had killed yourself, or made yourself very ill. Your mother would have come directly and found you so; and only think how unhappy you would have made her.""Can I have forgotten my mother?" asked Rhoda of herself, but aloud.
"Not willfully, I am sure. But you know geniuses are not always wise in these little things. They want some good humdrum soul to advise them in the common affairs of life. That want is supplied you now; for _I_ am here--ha-ha!""You are no more commonplace than I am; much less now, I'll be bound.""We will put that to the test," said Zoe, adroitly enough. _"My_ view of all this is--that here is a young lady in want of money _for a time,_ as everybody is now and then, and that the sensible course is to borrow some till your mother comes over with her apronful of dollars. Now, I have twenty pounds to lend, and, if you are so mighty sensible as you say, you won't refuse to borrow it.""Oh, Miss Vizard, you are very good; but I am afraid and ashamed to borrow. I never did such a thing.""Time you began, then. _I_ have--often. But it is no use arguing. You _must--_or you will get poor me finely scolded. Perhaps he was on his good behavior with you, being a stranger; but at home they expect to be obeyed. He will be sure to say it was my stupidity, and that _he_ would have made you directly.""Do tell!" cried Rhoda, surprised into an idiom; "as if I'd have taken money from _him!"_"Why, of course not; but between _us_ it is nothing at all. There:" and she put the money into Rhoda's hand, and then held both hand and money rather tightly imprisoned in her larger palm, and began to chatter, so as to leave the other no opening. "Oh, blessed darkness! how easy it makes things! does it not? I am glad there was no candle; we should have been fencing and blushing ever so long, and made such a fuss about nothing--and--"This prattle was interrupted by Rhoda Gale putting her right wrist round Zoe's neck, and laying her forehead on her shoulder with a little sob. So then they both distilled the inevitable dew-drops.