Sophie chomped at cake she was not really tasting. “But whatmade you want to do this?”

Martha rocked on her stool, grinning all over Lettie’s face,twirling her thumbs in a happy pink whirl. “I want to getmarried and have ten children.”

“You’re not quite old enough!” said Sophie.

“Not quite,” Martha agreed. “But you can seeI’ve got to start quite soon in order to fit ten children in.And this way gives me time to wait and see if the person I want likesme for being me. The spell’s going to wear offgradually, and I shall get more and more like myself, yousee.”

Sophie was so astonished that she finished her cake withoutnoticing what kind it had been. “Why ten children?”

“Because that’s how many I want,” SaidMartha.

“I never knew!”

“Well, it wasn’t much good going on about it when youwere so busy backing Mother up about me making my fortune,”Martha said. “You thought Mother meant it. I did too, untilFather died and I saw she was just trying to get rid of us— puttingLettie where she was bound to meet a lot of men and get married off,and sending me as far away as she could! I was so angry I thought,Why not? And I spoke to Lettie and she was just as angry and we fixedit up. We’re fine now. But we both feel bad about you.You’re far too clever and nice to be stuck in that shop for therest of your life. We talked about it, but we couldn’t see whatto do.”

“I’m all right,” Sophie protested. “Just abit dull.”

“All right?” Martha exclaimed. “Yes, you proveyou’re all right by not coming near here for months, and thenturning up in a frightful gray dress and shawl, looking as if evenI scare you! What’s Mother been doing toyou?”

“Nothing,” Sophie said uncomfortably.“We’ve been rather busy. You shouldn’t talk aboutFanny that way, Martha. She is your mother.”

“Yes, and I’m enough like her to understandher,” Martha retorted. “That’s why she sent me sofar away, or tried to. Mother knows you don’t have to be unkindto someone in order to exploit them. She knows how dutiful you are.She knows you have this thing about being a failure becauseyou’re only the eldest. She’s managed you perfectly andgot you slaving away for her. I bet she doesn’t payyou.”

“I’m still an apprentice,” Sophie protested.

“So am I, but I get a wage. The Cesaris know I’m worthit,” said Martha. “That hat shop is making a mintthese days, and all because of you! You made that green hat thatmakes the Mayor’s wife look like a stunning schoolgirl,didn’t you?”

“Caterpillar green. I trimmed it,” said Sophie.

“And the bonnet Jane Farrier was wearing when she met thatnobleman,” Martha swept on. “You’re a genius withhats and clothes, and Mother knows it! You sealed your fate when youmade Lettie that outfit last May Day. Now you earn the money whileshe goes off gadding—”

“She’s out doing the buying,” Sophie said.

“Buying!” Martha cried. Her thumbs whirled.“That takes her half a morning. I’ve seen her, Sophie,and heard the talk. She’s off in a hired carriage and newclothes on your earnings, visiting all the mansions down the valley!They’re saying she’s going to buy that big place down atVale End and set up in style. And where are you?”

“Well, Fanny’s entitled to some pleasure after all herhard work bringing us up,” Sophie said. “I supposeI’ll inherit the shop.”

“What a fate!” Martha exclaimed.“Listen—”

But at that moment two empty cake racks were pulled away at theother end of the room, and an apprentice stuck his head through fromthe back somewhere “Thought I heard your voice, Lettie,”he said, grinning in the most friendly and flirtatious way.“The new baking’s just up. Tell them.” His head,curly and somewhat floury, disappeared again. Sophie thought helooked a nice lad. She longed to ask if he was the one Martha reallyliked, but she did not get a chance. Martha sprang up in a hurry,still talking.

“I must get the girls to carry all these through to theshop.” She said. “Help me with the end of thisone.” She dragged out the nearest rack and Sophie helped herhump it past the door into the roaring, busy shop. “You must dosomething about yourself, Sophie,” Martha panted as they went.“Lettie kept saying she didn’t know what would happen toyou when we weren’t around to give you some self-respect. Shewas right to be worried.”

In the shop Mrs. Cesari seized the rack from them in both massivearms, yelling instructions, and a line of people rushed away pastMartha to fetch more. Sophie yelled goodbye and slipped away in thebustle. It did not seem right to take up more of Martha’s time.Besides, she wanted to be alone to think. She ran home. There werefireworks now, going up from the field by the river where the Fairwas, competing with the blue bangs from Howl’s castle. Sophiefelt more like an invalid than ever.

She thought and thought, and most of the following week, and allthat happened was that she became confused and discontented. Thingsjust did not seem to be the way she thought they were. She was amazedat Lettie and Martha. She had misunderstood them for years. But shecould not believe Fanny was the kind of woman Martha said.

There was a lot of time for thinking, because Bessie duly left tobe married and Sophie was mostly alone in the shop. Fanny did seem tobe out a lot, gadding or not, and trade was slack after May Day.After three days Sophie plucked up enough courage to ask Fanny,“Shouldn’t I be earning a wage?”

“Of course, my love, with all you do!” Fanny answeredwarmly, fixing on a rose-trimmed hat in front of the shop mirror.“We’ll see about it as soon as I’ve done theaccounts this evening.” Then she went out and did not come backuntil Sophie had shut the shop and taken that day’s hatsthrough to the house to trim.

Sophie at first felt mean to have listened to Martha, but whenFanny did not mention a wage, either that evening or any time laterthat week, Sophie began to think that Martha had been right.

“Maybe I am being exploited,” she told a hatshe was trimming with red silk and a bunch of wax cherries,“but someone has to do this or there will be no hats at all tosell.” She finished that hat and started on a starkblack-and-white one, very modish, and a quite new thought came toher. “Does it matter if there are no hats to sell?” sheasked it. She looked round at the assembled hats, on stands orwaiting in a heap to be trimmed. “What good are you all?”she asked them. “You certainly aren’t doing me a scrap ofgood.”

And she was within an ace of leaving the house and settling out toseek her fortune, until she remembered she was the eldest and therewas no point. She took up the hat again, sighing.

She was still discontented, alone in the shop next morning, when avery plain young woman customer stormed in, whirling a pleatedmushroom bonnet by its ribbons. “Look at this!” the younglady shrieked. “You told me this was the same as the bonnetJane Farrier was wearing when she met the Count. And you lied.Nothing has happened to me at all!”

“I’m not surprised,” Sophie said, before she hadcaught up with herself. “If you’re fool enough to wearthat bonnet with a face like that, you wouldn’t have the wit tospot the King himself if he came a begging— if he hadn’t turnedto stone first just at the sight of you.”

The customer glared. Then she threw the bonnet at Sophie andstormed out of the shop. Sophie carefully crammed the bonnet into thewastebasket, panting rather. The rule was : Lose your temper, lose acustomer. She had just proven that rule. It troubled her to realizehow very enjoyable it had been.

Sophie had no time to recover. There was the sound of wheels andhorse hoofs and a carriage darkened the window. The shop bell clangedand the grandest customer she had ever seen sailed in, with a sablewrap drooping from her elbows and diamonds winking all over her denseblack dress. Sophie’s eyes went to the lady’s wide hatfirst— real ostrich plume dyed to reflect the pinks and greens andblues winking in the diamonds and yet still look black. This was awealthy hat. The lady’s face was carefully beautiful. Thechestnut brown hair made her seem young, but…Sophie’seyes took in the young man who followed the lady in, a slightlyformless-faced person with reddish hair, quite well dressed, but paleand obviously upset. He stared at Sophie with a kind of beseechinghorror. He was clearly younger than the lady. Sophie was puzzled.