Ruth must try and bear up.

And at Lady Deyncourt's age it was quite to be expected.

And Ruth must remember she still had a sister, and that there was a happy home above.

And now, if she would get that green wool out of the red plush iron (which really was a work-box--such a droll idea, wasn't it ?), Ruth should hold the wool, and they would have a cosey little chat till luncheon time.
And so Mrs.Alwynn did her duty by her niece; and Ruth, in the dark days that followed her grandmother's death, took all the little kindnesses in the spirit in which they were meant, and did her duty by her aunt.
But after a time Mrs.Alwynn became more exacting.

Ruth was visibly recovering from what Mrs.Alwynn called "her bereavement." She could smile again without an effort; she took long walks with Mr.Alwynn, and later in the spring paid a visit to her uncle, Lord Polesworth.