Kitty stood beside her husband, evidently awaiting the end of a

conversation that had no interest for her, in order to tell him

something.

"You have changed in many respects since your marriage, and for

the better," said Sergey Ivanovitch, smiling to Kitty, and

obviously little interested in the conversation, "but you have

remained true to your passion for defending the most paradoxical

theories."

"Katya, it's not good for you to stand," her husband said to her,

putting a chair for her and looking significantly at her.

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"Oh, and there's no time either," added Sergey Ivanovitch, seeing

the children running out.

At the head of them all Tanya galloped sideways, in her tightly-

drawn stockings, and waving a basket and Sergey Ivanovitch's hat,

she ran straight up to him.

Boldly running up to Sergey Ivanovitch with shining eyes, so like

her father's fine eyes, she handed him his hat and made as though

she would put it on for him, softening her freedom by a shy and

friendly smile.

"Varenka's waiting," she said, carefully putting his hat on,

seeing from Sergey Ivanovitch's smile that she might do so.

Varenka was standing at the door, dressed in a yellow print gown,

with a white kerchief on her head.

"I'm coming, I'm coming, Varvara Andreevna," said Sergey

Ivanovitch, finishing his cup of coffee, and putting into their

separate pockets his handkerchief and cigar-case.

"And how sweet my Varenka is! eh?" said Kitty to her husband, as

soon as Sergey Ivanovitch rose. She spoke so that Sergey

Ivanovitch could hear, and it was clear that she meant him to do

so. "And how good-looking she is--such a refined beauty!

Varenka!" Kitty shouted. "Shall you be in the mill copse? We'll

come out to you."

"You certainly forget your condition, Kitty," said the old

princess, hurriedly coming out at the door. "You mustn't shout

like that."

Varenka, hearing Kitty's voice and her mother's reprimand, went

with light, rapid steps up to Kitty. The rapidity of her

movement, her flushed and eager face, everything betrayed that

something out of the common was going on in her. Kitty knew what

this was, and had been watching her intently. She called Varenka

at that moment merely in order mentally to give her a blessing

for the important event which, as Kitty fancied, was bound to

come to pass that day after dinner in the wood.

"Varenka, I should be very happy if a certain something were to

happen," she whispered as she kissed her.




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