Vronsky, after his luxurious and coarse life in Petersburg, finds a "great and delicate pleasure" in the affection of this "sweet and innocent girl," though he feels no urge to marry and sees nothing wrong in paying attention to Kitty. The next day, waiting at the train station to meet his mother, he meets Oblonsky, whose sister is arriving on the same train. When Stiva explains that Levin's depressed mood last night was the result of Kitty's refusal, Vronsky feels like a conqueror and a hero.
When the train arrives, his mother introduces him to her traveling companion, the charming Madame Karenina; something peculiarly "caressing and soft" in the expression of her face catches his attention. Countess Vronsky explains this is the first time Anna has been away from her eight year old child and is somewhat anxious. "Yes," Anna smiles, "the countess and I have been talking all the time, I of my son and she of hers." Vronsky unable to take his eyes from Madame Karenina watches her walk lightly and rapidly with her brother to their carriage, carrying her "rather full figure with extraordinary lightness."
A sudden accident at the station draws a crowd. A guard, not hearing the train move back, has been crushed under the wheels of the car. Anna is horrified and even more impressed to learn that the man is the only support of an immense family. "Couldn't something be done?" she asks, and learns a few moments later that Vronsky had given 200 rubles for the benefit of the widow. Suspecting that this gesture has something to do with her, Anna frowns: It is something that ought not to have been.
