Fortunately, Maggie Masters, her former ally, was no longer at school, having left the neighbourhood, so that Lily had every opportunity of making a fresh start, and she took advantage of it. As the days passed, the change in her was very noticeable--even those who had always felt an aversion for her could no longer find any complaint to make; she was painstaking and persevering, and being by no means wanting in ability, she bade fair to rival the most clever in the class. But she kept aloof from the girls; she felt, instinctively, that in spite of Miss Buckingham’s expressed wish, they were not willing to let bygones be bygones. They did not twit her, or indeed make any allusion to the past, but they simply let her alone. All but Monica Beauchamp and Elsa Franklyn, who from the very first day of the term had tried their best to be friendly. But she repulsed them, feeling convinced that they were only patronising her; it was an impossibility for a nature like Lily Howell’s to realise that both those girls were actuated by the same principle, that of "loving one another." "I can’t think what you did it for," she remarked to Monica, referring to the letter of intercession the latter had written on her behalf, "unless it was to make Miss Buckingham think a lot of you. Weren’t you mad when she never even mentioned your name?" And the girl looked curiously at Monica, who was a complete enigma to her. "Oh, Lily! I never once thought of such a thing," she replied, in a pained tone. "Well, what _was_ it for, then?" persisted Lily. "I don’t think you would understand if I told you," was the reply. "Why not, pray? Ma said it was because you had turned religious lately. Is that why?" And Lily’s light blue eyes scanned the other’s face inquisitively. "I have not turned ’religious’ as you call it, Lily," said Monica gently, although a flush rose to her cheek; "I have only given myself to Jesus Christ, and I am trying to follow Him. I _do_ wish you would, too, Lily," she added earnestly. "My gracious goodness!" ejaculated Lily, inelegantly, for she was completely taken aback. "I guess I’ll just watch _you_ a bit, and see the effect before I go in for it." Monica had to bite her lip hard to keep back the tears that would spring to her eyes, for she was tremendously in earnest, and Lily’s mocking words jarred cruelly. "I am afraid you will see more failures than anything else," she said, in a low tone; "but you must not judge of Jesus Christ by me. He is the One to copy, He never fails or makes mistakes." "Pa always says Christian people are far more often ’libels’ than ’Bibles,’ and that’s why he doesn’t believe in them," said Lily, to herself, as Monica and she separated; "but if I’m not mistaken, Miss Monica will prove an exception to that rule. All I know is, _I_ wouldn’t have done for _her_, what she did for _me_! So there must be something in it!" *CHAPTER XXII.*