The scene opens with a flashback to the night of the first dance, in which the Governess and her son, Edgar, are discussing the possibility of Edgar's marriage to Rosa. The Governess tells her son that she has come to congratulate him on getting what he's wanted. She tells him that she is willing to share him with him, even if it is only for a short period of time. She asks him if he intends to ever reject her, and he replies that he has already said that he will not change, and neither will he change nor will he ever want to do with her again. He tells her that he is ready to die if she does not accept him, and that she should allow him to fight with him. He says that he feels like his chest is on fire, and the rest of his body is "hypersensitive" and he feels as if he is "the snetp my woman" .