Anna Pavlovna's evening has been let go. Veretena was evenly and without silencing the noises from different sides. Except for ma tante, near which sat only one old lady with a flaky, skinny face, a little stranger in this brilliant society, the society was divided into three mugs. In one, more male, the abbot was the center; in the other, young, the beautiful Princess Hélène, daughter of Prince Vasily, and the pretty, blush, too young, little Princess of Bolkonska. The third is Mortemar and Anna Pavlovna.
Viscount was a lovely, with soft features and techniques, a young man who obviously considered himself a celebrity, but, in terms of good upbringing, modestly allowed to use himself to the society in which he was located. Anna Pavlovna obviously treated her guests to it. As a good maitre d' serves as something supernaturally beautiful that piece of beef that you don't want to eat, if you see it in the dirty kitchen, so this evening Anna Pavlovna served her guests first as a viscount, then an abbot, as something supernaturally refined. Mortemar's mug immediately started talking about the murder of the Duke of England. Vicomte said that the Duke of Engyensky died of his generosity and that there were special reasons for the bitterness of Bonaparte.
- Ah! voyons. Contez-nous cela, vicomte," said Anna Pavlovna, gladly feeling that something à la Louis XV responded to this phrase, "- contez-nous cela, vicomte 1.
Vicomte bowed down as a sign of humility and smiled politely. Anna Pavlovna made a circle near the Vicomte and invited everyone to listen to his story.
- Le vicomte a été personnellement connu de monseigneur 2," whispered Anna Pavlovna alone. - Le vicomte est un parfait conteur 3," she said to the other. - Comme on voit l'homme de la bonne compagnie 4," she told the third; and the Vicomte was served to the public in the most elegant and advantageous light, like roast beef on a hot dish sprinkled with herbs.
Vicomte wanted to start his story and smiled subtly.
- Come here, chère Hélène 5," said Anna Pavlovna to the beautiful Princess, who was sitting back and making the center of another mug.
Princess Hélène smiled; she climbed up with the same unchangeable smile of the beautiful woman with whom she entered the living room. Slightly noisy with her white bald robes, retracted ivy and moss, and shiny white shoulders, glossy hair and diamonds, she walked between the parted men and directly, without looking at anyone, But smiling to everybody and as if kindly giving everyone the right to admire the beauty of her camp, full of shoulders, very open, according to the fashion of the time, her breasts and backs, and as if bringing shine to the ball, approached Anna Pavlovna. Hélène was so good that not only was there not a shadow of coquetry in her, but, on the contrary, it was as if she was ashamed of her undoubted and too strong and victorious beauty. It was as if she wanted and could not diminish the effect of her beauty.
- Quelle belle personne! 6 - Everyone who saw her spoke. As if struck by something extraordinary, the viscount shook his shoulders and lowered his eyes as she sat down before him, illuminating him with a steady smile.
- Madame, je crains pour mes moyens devant un pareil auditoire 7," he said, tilting his head with a smile.
The Princess leaned her open hand full on the table and couldn't find anything to say. She waited, smiling. Throughout the story, she sat upright, looking at her beautiful hand that lay lightly on the table, or at the even more beautiful chest, on which she corrected the diamond necklace, corrected the folds of her dress several times and, when the story made an impression, looked back at Anna Pavlovna and immediately accepted the same expression that was on the face of the maid of honor, and then again calmed down in a shining smile. After Hélène, the little princess also came from the tea table.
- Attendez-moi, je vais prendre mon ouvrage," she said. - Voyons, à quoi pensez-vous? - she turned to Prince Hippolythe. - Apportez-moi mon ridicule 8.
The princess, smiling and speaking to everyone, suddenly made a rearrangement and, sitting down, recovered merrily.
- Now I feel good," she said, asking me to start, and started working.
Prince Hippolyte transferred the riddicure to her, followed her, and, having moved the chair close to her, sat down near her.
Le charmant Hippolyte 9 struck with its extraordinary resemblance to his beautiful sister and even more so because, despite the similarity, he was strikingly stupid himself. His face was the same as his sister's, but she was lit up with a cheerful, smiling, young, unchangeable smile and an unusual, ancient beauty of the body; on the contrary, his brother's face was overshadowed by idiocy and invariably expressed self-confident squeamishness, and the body was thin and weak. Eyes, nose, mouth - everything shrunk as if in one uncertain and boring grimace, and hands and feet always took an unnatural position.
- Ce n'est pas une histoire de revenants? 10" he said, sitting next to the princess and in a hurry to attach his lorgnette to his eyes, as if he hadn't had this instrument.
SEQUENCES SHOULD BE