Oh, well that was quite a delightful turn indeed — Ophelia had suspected Mr. Aldous Crouch to be too serious to seek external assistance on such a personal matter, but it seemed she had been mistaken.

"Oh, Nova, how delightful. Have you planned a party yet?" she asked eagerly. "A dinner party, I assume. You want me to review the seating plan and offer suggestions, is that it? I'd be delighted, of course," she continued, without giving her friend time to interject. "Perhaps we could even find a scheme to change the seating plan between fish and entree, to allow him to converse with as many suitable young ladies as possible. But does that seem too contrived? We mustn't appear to be too desperate," she cautioned.