Early next morning, immediately on coming out of her bath, she went in to Doda. She opened the door softly and she distinctly saw the lids of Doda’s eyes flash up and close again. “Doda!” Doda pretended to be asleep. Rosalie had sat up for Doda the previous night but had said nothing to her either of her discovery or of going to an invitation without having told her. Doda wasn’t pretending to be asleep because she feared trouble. She was pretending to be asleep just because she had no wish for an early talk with her mother. There was a little pang at the heart of Rosalie. But it was just that the child wasn’t demonstrative of her affections. None of them were. Even Benji not really what you would call demonstrative. How beautiful the child was! Her Doda! How little she ever saw of her! She called her again. Doda opened her eyes. “Hullo, mother.” Just that. No more. They were different, the children. She sat down on Doda’s bed and began to talk to her. Tidiness! “Doda, your room as you left it last night when you went out was simply terrible. How can you?” “Oh, I can’t be tidy,” said Doda. “I simply can’t. It’s no good trying.” “Darling, you ought to try. It’s so odd. I’m so fearfully tidy. It’s almost a vice with me. One would have thought you’d have had it too.” Doda said indifferently, “I don’t see why.” She said, “Oh, I am sleepy. It’s a matter of teaching when you’re a kid, that sort of thing. You’re tidy, but you never taught me to be tidy.” Rosalie said some more of encouragement to tidiness. She then said, “And there’s another thing, Doda. I think you ought not to have rushed off like that to the Trevors last night without telling me.” “Mother, you knew where I was. I told the maids.” “You should have consulted me, Doda.” The child assumed the Huggo look. “Mother, how could I? They only asked me on the telephone at tea-time. How could I have consulted you?” “In the same way as you were invited. On the telephone.” “Well, I never thought about it. Why should I if I had? I knew you’d have agreed. You wouldn’t have stopped me, would you? It’s dull enough, goodness knows.” “Doda, what I’ve come in to talk about is this. When I was tidying your room last night--” Doda sat up. “Did you tidy my room?” “I couldn’t possibly leave a room like that. Well, I went to tidy your box--” “I’ll get up,” said Doda. She jumped very quickly out of bed and put on a wrapper and her slippers. “Yes, well?” “Are you writing to men at the front, Doda?” “Every girl is. It’s a thing to do. It helps them.” “Are they friends of yours, dear? Personal friends.” “They’re brothers of girls I’ve stayed with.” “All?” “Practically all. There’re not more than two or three. Lonely soldiers, they’re called. They used to advertise. It helps them. There’s no harm in it, is there?” “I haven’t suggested there is, Doda.” “I can see you’re going to, though. If you ask me--” She stopped.