noon
She all at once had ideas of tidiness . The truth was that she felt the necessity of moving about , of doing something , of exercising her stiff limbs . She went hither and thither all the morning , sweeping , dusting , cleaning the rooms , washing up the plates and dishes , doing work that would have disgusted her formerly . These household duties kept her on her feet , active and silent , until noon , without allowing her time to think of aught else than the cobwebs hanging from the ceiling and the greasy plates . On the stroke of twelve , she went to the kitchen to prepare lunch . At table , Madame Raquin was pained to see her always rising to fetch the dishes ; she was touched and annoyed at the activity displayed by her niece ; she scolded her , and Therese replied that it was necessary to economise . When the meal was over , the young woman dressed , and at last decided to join her aunt behind the counter .