Agi—You must have known.
Alexandra—That you would forget?
Agi—I . . . must forget, and your highness must deny it . . . and . . . he must not remember it.
Alexandra—He shall remember it, and I don't deny it. But I see that what I gave you was too precious. More precious than you deserve. Perhaps . . . a kingdom.
Agi—That is not so precious. I know of one that was offered in exchange for a horse.
Alexandra—You even insult me! You speak like a sullen child.
Agi—No, your highness . . . what I am saying, what I am doing, my departure to-day . . . these are my answer to your highness' kiss.
Alexandra—I hadn't expected you to utter that word.
Agi—Uttering it doesn't hurt. The kiss itself was much more painful.
Alexandra—[Cuttingly.] More painful for you than for me?
Agi—Oh, yes. It made me feel your profound pity for me, and also your utter contempt. It was a supercilious thing to do. It implied that I was not a human being at all . . . that I could be treated . . . like a child or a pet animal.
Alexandra—Is that the way you took it?
Agi—If I hadn't taken it like that
