Summary

On May Day Eve in 1847, after the uproarious celebrations the young girls under Old Anastasia's watch get ready for bed. They call old Anastasia a "maga" (54), similar to a witch or magician, and feign fear of the old woman, "shrieking with terror, scrambling over each other" (54), playing into their own festive excitement as they get into their beds. One of the girls, Agueda, asks Old Anastasia who she will marry. Anastasia replies that she "may learn in a mirror," (55) meaning to ask who she might marry while facing a mirror and the man's face will appear beside her. However, Anastasia warns that if it does not "g[o] right" (55), then she will see the devil. Agueda does not believe in devils, and decides to tiptoe down the hall to find a mirror. Once Agueda finds the mirror, she follows Anastatia's instructions for...