Richard had arrived early and was waiting for Mrs K. outside the playroom. He was very silent and serious, looking paler than usual, but was friendly. His mood was very different from that of the previous day when he had strongly expressed his love for Mrs K. and his trust in her. He put the battle-fleet out. Rodney was steaming out by herself, but Nelson soon followed. Nelson seemed uncertain whether to come quite close to Rodney, which meant courting her, or not. Then Richard pointed out a destroyer with a bent mast, saying that it was Paul. Richard's play was hesitant and listless. He asked Mrs K. haltingly whether she had heard the news today. (On the previous days he had ignored the attempted invasion of Crete, which was striking, since he took such a lively interest in every detail of the war situation. For instance, he had previously expressed his dismay about Vichy.)