At noon, instead of going home to dinner, she went and took an ice, trying to feet very gay and festive all by herself.

It was rather a failure, however, and after a tour of the picture shops she went to give Maud a lesson, feeling that it was very hard to quench her longings, and subside into a prim little music teacher.
Fortunately she did not have to do violence to her feelings very long, for the first thing Fanny said to her was: "Can you go ?" "Where ?" "Did n't you get my note ?" "I did n't go home to dinner." "Tom wants us to go to the opera to-night and" Fan got no further, for Polly uttered a cry of rapture and clasped her hands.
"Go?
Of course I will.

I 've been dying to go all day, tried to get tickets this morning and could n't, been fuming about it ever since, and now oh, how splendid!" And Polly could not restrain an ecstatic skip, for this burst of joy rather upset her.
"Well, you come to tea, and we 'll dress together, and go all comfortable with Tom, who is in a heavenly frame of mind to-day." "I must run home and get my things," said Polly, resolving on the spot to buy the nicest pair of gloves the city afforded.
"You shall have my white cloak and any other little rigging you want.
Tommy likes to have his ladies a credit to him, you know," said Fanny, departing to take a beauty sleep.
Polly instantly decided that she would n't borrow Becky's best bonnet, as she at first intended, but get a new one, for in her present excited state, no extravagance seemed too prodigal in honor of this grand occasion.

I am afraid that Maud's lesson was not as thorough as it should have been, for Polly's head was such a chaos of bonnets, gloves, opera-cloaks and fans, that Maud blundered through, murdering time and tune at her own sweet will.

The instant it was over Polly rushed away and bought not only the kids but a bonnet frame, a bit of illusion, and a pink crape rose, which had tempted her for weeks in a certain shop window, then home and to work with all the skill and speed of a distracted milliner.
"I 'm rushing madly into expense, I 'm afraid, but the fit is on me and I 'll eat bread and water for a week to make up for it.