is some gossip about it with some saying that Professor Auerbach had fired her. Harry is very glib with Lucy whenever he meets her. She feels depressed, and her only solace is to sit in the orchard. When her sister Pauline wants to remove it to make more money growing onions and potatoes, she throws a tantrum, Pauline gives in, and it is not cut down. Later she visits Mrs. Alec Ramsay, an elderly lady and old friend, who has been asking after her and plays the piano there. At night she sometimes has nightmares. She then goes into the bank in another attempt to talk to Harry, but again he sends her away glibly. Mr. Gayheart has bought tickets for the opera. The performance seems humdrum to Lucy, but she is very impressed with the soprano's performance. The soprano had obviously seen better days and a better opera company than her present traveling opera company, but yet she gave a wonderful performance. "The wandering singer had struck something in her that went on vibrating; something that was like a purpose forming, and she could not stop it." The day before Christmas, the thought comes to her -- "What if -- what if Life itself were the sweetheart? It was like a lover waiting for her in distant cities -- across the sea; drawing her, enticing her, weaving a spell over her." This cheers her up and the next day, she writes to Professor Auerbach and inquires about returning to her job with him in Chicago again. He replies that she can come in March, when her replacement, the current teacher, leaves. Meanwhile, Pauline has heard that Lucy may have had a love affair with a singer who died. In late January, Pauline announces that she has two piano students for Lucy. Lucy refuses to teach them. In the ensuing argument, Pauline indicates that their father has made financial sacrifices and gone into debt to finance Lucy's musical education in Chicago. She also indicates that she has heard talk about Lucy and Sebastian and that the gossip is that Harry threw Lucy over when he found out about the two. After this, Lucy leaves the house carrying her skates. She finds it hard going due to a recent snowfall and decides to catch a ride with whoever passes so that she can return. However, Harry is the person who appears.