"There was a time when I couldn't bear to be idle," Claudius says with amusement. "Often when I appeared to be idle, drinking and laughing in company, I'd be busily making contacts and connection, furthering all sorts of machinations. Now I'm happy to be a housewife, and save the machinations for when they're of the utmost necessity. I have to keep myself sharp, however. Say, do you happen to know Tress's real name?"