Page 150 - the-idiot

‘And how do you know that?’ she asked him, sharply.
‘I have never seen you before!’
‘Go on, announce me—what’s that noise?’
‘They are quarrelling,’ said the prince, and entered the
drawingroom, just as matters in there had almost reached a
crisis. Nina Alexandrovna had forgotten that she had ‘sub-
mitted to everything!’ She was defending Varia. Ptitsin was
taking her part, too. Not that Varia was afraid of standing
up for herself. She was by no means that sort of a girl; but
her brother was becoming ruder and more intolerable every
moment. Her usual practice in such cases as the present was
to say nothing, but stare at him, without taking her eyes off
his face for an instant. This manoeuvre, as she well knew,
could drive Gania distracted.
Just at this moment the door opened and the prince en-
tered, announcing:
‘Nastasia Philipovna!’

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