‘Argentum’. Therefore, Mr. Silver. [Wow that’s rude he thought it was clever, okay.

But fine, he won’t make another pass at the name, not when he’s been requested to recite something a second time. And so V continues to lean forward, this time placing a hand on the hilt of his cane and balancing it there, fingers curling gently.

He starts from the beginning, since he had left out a line initially.]

‘I have no name 
I am but two days old.’

[(What he had told Dante that day he visited him as a new client, a proffered introduction rooted in irony.)]

‘What shall I call thee? 
I happy am 
Joy is my name,
Sweet joy befall thee!’