<h2>CHAPTER V</h2>
<div class='chaptertitle'>THE PRINCESS LETS WELL ALONE</div>
<div class='cap'>WHEN she woke the next morning, the first thing she
heard was the rain still falling. Indeed, this day was
so like the last, that it would have been difficult to
tell where was the use of it. The first thing she thought of,
however, was not the rain, but the lady in the tower; and the
first question that occupied her thoughts was whether she should
not ask the nurse to fulfill her promise this very morning, and
go with her to find her grandmother as soon as she had had
her breakfast. But she came to the conclusion that perhaps
the lady would not be pleased if she took anyone to see her
without first asking leave; especially as it was pretty evident,
seeing she lived on pigeons' eggs, and cooked them herself,
that she did not want the household to know she was there.
So the princess resolved to take the first opportunity of running
up alone and asking whether she might bring her nurse.
She believed the fact that she could not otherwise convince
her she was telling the truth, would have much weight with
her grandmother.</div>
<p>The princess and her nurse were the best of friends all dressing
time, and the princess in consequence ate an enormous
little breakfast.</p>
<p>"I wonder, Lootie"—that was her pet-name for her nurse—"what
pigeons' eggs taste like?" she said, as she was eating<span class='pagenum'><SPAN name="Page_30" id="Page_30">[30]</SPAN></span>
her egg—not quite a common one, for they always picked
out the pinky ones for her.</p>
<p>"We'll get you a pigeon's egg, and you shall judge for yourself,"
said the nurse.</p>
<p>"Oh, no, no!" returned Irene, suddenly reflecting they
might disturb the old lady in getting it, and that even if they
did not, she would have one less in consequence.</p>
<p>"What a strange creature you are," said the nurse—"first
to want a thing and then to refuse it!"</p>
<p>But she did not say it crossly, and the princess never minded
any remarks that were not unfriendly.</p>
<p>"Well, you see, Lootie, there are reasons," she returned,
and said no more, for she did not want to bring up the subject
of their former strife, lest her nurse should offer to go before
she had had her grandmother's permission to bring her. Of
course she could refuse to take her, but then she would believe
her less than ever.</p>
<p>Now the nurse, as she said herself afterward, could not be
every moment in the room, and as never before yesterday had
the princess given her the smallest reason for anxiety, it had
not yet come into her head to watch her more closely. So she
soon gave her a chance, and the very first that offered, Irene
was off and up the stairs again.</p>
<p>This day's adventure, however, did not turn out like yesterday's,
although it began like it; and indeed to-day is very
seldom like yesterday, if people would note the differences—even
when it rains. The princess ran through passage after
passage, and could not find the stair of the tower. My own
suspicion is that she had not gone up high enough, and was<span class='pagenum'><SPAN name="Page_31" id="Page_31">[31]</SPAN></span>
searching on the second instead of the third floor. When she
turned to go back, she failed equally in her search after the
stair. She was lost once more.</p>
<p>Something made it even worse to bear this time, and it was
no wonder that she cried again. Suddenly it occurred to her
that it was after having cried before that she had found her
grandmother's stair. She got up at once, wiped her eyes, and
started upon a fresh quest. This time, although she did not
find what she hoped, she found what was next best: she did
not come on a stair that went up, but she came upon one that
went down. It was evidently not the stair she had come up,
yet it was a good deal better than none; so down she went,
and was singing merrily before she reached the bottom. There,
to her surprise, she found herself in the kitchen. Although
she was not allowed to go there alone, her nurse had often taken
her, and she was a great favorite with the servants. So there
was a general rush at her the moment she appeared, for every
one wanted to have her; and the report of where she was soon
reached the nurse's ears. She came at once to fetch her; but
she never suspected how she had got there, and the princess
kept her own counsel.</p>
<p>Her failure to find the old lady not only disappointed her,
but made her very thoughtful. Sometimes she came almost
to the nurse's opinion that she had dreamed all about her;
but that fancy never lasted very long. She wondered much
whether she should ever see her again, and thought it very sad
not to have been able to find her when she particularly wanted
her. She resolved to say nothing more to her nurse on the
subject, seeing it was so little in her power to prove her words.</p>
<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><SPAN name="Page_32" id="Page_32">[32]</SPAN></span></p>
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