Volume 2: Book 9 - Chapter 20

Characters Present:

Natasha Rostova
Count Pierre Bezukhov
Uncle Shinshín
Natasha Rostova
Count Ilya Rostóv
Sonya Rostova
Countess Natalya Rostova
Petya Rostóv

Location: 

A small dinner party at the Rostóv home

Pierre arrives at the Rostóv's, and enters to find Natasha singing alone.  They have a conversation full of unspoken words and blushing.

They join the rest of the family, who are discussing the war. Petya, who is now 15, begs his father to join the army, but is told that he is too young.

Pierre becomes agitated by Natasha's stares at him, and leaves. Natasha follows him out, asking if she has upset him, and he only manages to kiss her softly before leaving, intending not to return. 

Book 1 - Chapter 20

Characters Present:

Sonya Rostova

Natasha Rostova

Location: 

At the Rostóv´s house.

The dinner party finished and the guests have moved into the two drawing rooms. Natasha notices that Sonya is missing and goes to find her.

She discovers Sonya crying, and upon asking why, finds out that Nicholas Rostóv has received his papers to leave for the army the following week. Sonya is also upset because she thinks that he is becoming keen on Julie Karagina , and that they will have trouble marrying because they are cousins. 

Natasha reassures Sonya that it shouldn´t be a problem, because their Uncle Shinshín´s brother didn´t have any problems when he married his first cousin.

Volume 1: Book 1 - Chapter 19

Characters Present:

Count Ilya Rostóv

Countess Natalya Rostova

Random Rostov children

Pierre Bezukhov

A German Colonel

Shinshín

Márya Dmítrievna

Other nameless guests.

Location:

 At the Rostóv´s - the dinner has begun

The colonel tells everyone that a declaration of war has already arrived in Petersburg and a copy had already been forward to the Commander in Chief. Shinshín asks why they would bother fighting Napoleon as he had already beaten Austria.

Pierre agrees with him and the youngest Rostóv daughter, Natasha, starts screaming for ice cream, which the guests find amusing.

Book 1 - Chapter 18

Characters Present:

Count Ilya Rostov
Shinshín (also called Peter Nikolávich)
Lieutenant Alphonse Karlovich Berg (German)

Other nameless guests.

Location:

Count Rostov´s drawing room.

The dinner party at the Rostóv´s will soon begin, only they are waiting on the attendance of one Márya Dmítrievna, who is also referred to as le terrible drangon on account of her sharp tongue.

The conversation in the drawing room is based solely around the upcoming war that had been announced in the manifesto, though nobody had actually seen the manifesto.

Shinshín, who is an older gentleman but dressed in a rather young fashion, is questioning Lieutenant Berg about his choice to join the guard instead of the cavalry. Shinshín puts forth that Berg´s career would be furthered more if he were to join the cavalry. Berg responds that he will get paid more being in the guard.