The chapter opens with a discussion between irene and her master. He tells her that he has been making plans for the future, but that he does not know what they are. He says that he would not want to disturb any careful planning, as he knows that she has known him for a long time, and that a "slow weakening spell" would be in store for her. He is disappointed that she is a "flatter and a rogue" than he is, and he blames the human girls he has marked for giving in easily. He asks her if she would like some tea, and she says that she will not, as she is busy with business. He suggests that they play chess while the weather cools, and then he asks her to pay respects to a friend who has come to visit. She replies that she hopes he has only come twice in the last two hundred years, and irene asks if he would like to visit again. He replies that he hopes he will only come once in the next 200 years. She asks him if he has ever said that it would take so long to accomplish a goal, to which he replies that it takes generations of humans to accomplish the same thing.