The girls were much flattered by the success of their efforts , and exerted themselves to be very entertaining , consulting Dan 's moods with the feminine tact most women creatures learn before they are out of pinafores . When he was gay , the room rang with laughter ; when gloomy , they read or worked in respectful silence till their sweet patience cheered him up again ; and when in pain they hovered over him like ' a couple of angels ' , as he said . He often called Josie ` little mother ' , but Bess was always ` Princess ' ; and his manner to the two cousins was quite different . Josie sometimes fretted him with her fussy ways , the long plays she liked to read , and the maternal scoldings she administered when he broke the rules ; for having a lord of creation in her power was so delightful to her that she would have ruled him with a rod of iron if he had submitted . To Bess , in her gentler ministrations , he never showed either impatience or weariness , but obeyed her least word , exerted himself to seem well in her presence , and took such interest in her work that he lay looking at her with unwearied eyes ; while Josie read to him in her best style unheeded . Mrs Jo observed this , and called them ` Una and the Lion ' , which suited them very well , though the lion 's mane was shorn , and Una never tried to bridle him . The elder ladies did their part in providing delicacies and supplying all his wants ; but Mrs Meg was busy at home , Mrs Amy preparing for the trip to Europe in the spring , and Mrs Jo hovering on the brink of a ` vortex ' -- for the forthcoming book had been sadly delayed by the late domestic events . As she sat at her desk , settling papers or meditatively nibbling her pen while waiting for the divine afflatus to descend upon her , she often forgot her fictitious heroes and heroines in studying the live models before her , and thus by chance looks , words , and gestures discovered a little romance unsuspected by anyone else . The portiere between the rooms was usually drawn aside , giving a view of the group in the large bay-window -- Bess at one side , in her grey blouse , busy with her tools ; Josie at the other side with her book ; and between , on the long couch , propped with many cushions , lay Dan in a many-hued eastern dressing-gown presented by Mr Laurie and worn to please the girls , though the invalid much preferred an old jacket ` with no confounded tail to bother over ' . He faced Mrs Jo 's room , but never seemed to see her , for his eyes were on the slender figure before him , with the pale winter sunshine touching her golden head , and the delicate hands that shaped the clay so deftly . Josie was just visible , rocking violently in a little chair at the head of the couch , and the steady murmur of her girlish voice was usually the only sound that broke the quiet of the room , unless a sudden discussion arose about the book or the buffalo . Something in the big eyes , bigger and blacker than ever in the thin white face , fixed , so steadily on one object , had a sort of fascination for Mrs Jo after a time , and she watched the changes in them curiously ; for Dan 's mind was evidently not on the story , and he often forgot to laugh or exclaim at the comic or exciting crises . Sometimes they were soft and wistful , and the watcher was very glad that neither damsel caught that dangerous look for when they spoke it vanished ; sometimes it was full of eager fire , and the colour came and went rebelliously , in spite of his attempt to hide it with an impatient gesture of hand or head ; but oftenest it was dark , and sad , and stern , as if those gloomy eyes looked out of captivity at some forbidden light or joy . This expression came so often that it worried Mrs Jo , and she longed to go and ask him what bitter memory overshadowed those quiet hours . She knew that his crime and its punishment must lie heavy on his mind ; but youth , and time , and new hopes would bring comfort , and help to wear away the first sharpness of the prison brand . It lifted at other times , and seemed almost forgotten when he joked with the boys , talked with old friends , or enjoyed the first snows as he drove out every fair day . Why should the shadow always fall so darkly on him in the society of these innocent and friendly girls ? They never seemed to see it , and if either looked or spoke , a quick smile came like a sunburst through the clouds to answer them . So Mrs Jo went on watching , wondering , and discovering , till accident confirmed her fears . Josie was called away one day , and Bess , tired of working , offered to take her place if he cared for more reading . '
I do ; your reading suits me better than XXXXX 's .
Dan Europe Jo Josie Meg Princess Una first heroines sunburst