Vianne tries to accept Ptain’s surrender as necessary, even as shortages and restrictions spread through occupied Carriveau. While queuing for food with Sophie and Isabelle, Vianne watches German troops and vehicles take over town, replace the French flag with a swastika, and fire shots nearby. Isabelle openly seethes, and Vianne forces her to leave rather than draw attention.

At home, Isabelle refuses to feel helpless and decides to prepare for looting or hiding. While Vianne and Sophie are away, Isabelle gathers the family’s valuables and stores them in a concealed cellar beneath the barn, stocking it with food, blankets, medical supplies, a shotgun, and wine; she also disables the car covering the trapdoor to keep the hiding place secret. Vianne is angry Isabelle neglected food shopping, but Isabelle then hears a BBC broadcast in which Ge9ne9ral de Gaulle calls on the flame of French resistance not to die, strengthening Isabelle’s resolve.

Two days after occupation, the Germans summon everyone to the town hall. Rachel arrives with her children and unexpectedly apologizes to Isabelle for ignoring and mistreating her in the past, leaving Isabelle briefly speechless. Inside, Sturmbannffchrer Weldt of the Gestapo announces new rules: all radios, guns, ammunition, and explosives must be surrendered; vehicles will be impounded; blackout materials and a 9 p.m. curfew are mandatory; food will be controlled; and any resistance will be punished by execution. He also states that prisoners taken by Germany will remain there, alarming the crowd and undercutting Vianne’s belief that Antoine will soon come home.

Back at Le Jardin, Vianne insists they obey and turn in the radio, while Isabelle argues they must hide it and follow de Gaulle. A knock interrupts them, and Captain Wolfgang Beck enters with a requisition order: because the house is near the airfield, he will be billeted there. Vianne, prioritizing Sophie’s safety, reluctantly assigns Beck the downstairs bedroom despite Isabelle’s demand that they flee.

Beck notices the radio and offers to take it to the authorities, heightening the sisters’ panic. Isabelle provokes him by cutting off her long blond hair and handing it to him as a bitter symbol of what occupation will take. Afterward, Vianne confronts Isabelle upstairs, admits past family failures, and warns that Isabelle’s defiance could get them killed; Vianne moves Sophie into her own room and orders Isabelle to hold her tongue to protect Sophie.