do anything for it with your will. You always seem to think you can FORCE the flowers to come out. People must love us because they love us — you can’t MAKE them.’

‘I know,’ he said. ‘But must one take no steps at all? Must one just go as if one were alone in the world — the only creature in the world?’

‘You’ve got me,’ she said. ‘Why should you NEED others? Why must you force people to agree with you? Why can’t you be single by yourself, as you are always saying? You try to bully Gerald — as you tried to bully Hermione. You must learn to be alone. And it’s so horrid of you. You’ve got me. And yet you want to force other people to love you as well. You do try to bully them to love you. And even then, you don’t