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 favourite with the servants.