Is his mother really asking him how they met? Ivan squirms slightly, back to wishing to he could throw himself out that window. "The captains threw a party for the new arrivals one month. We met there." He kissed her hand and brought her ice cream. There's nothing about that that his mother might dislike. And he offered to carry books for her, later -- also completely normal and acceptable.

It's a mixture of both, Elizabeth. His mother is terrifying, he hadn't been kidding when he said that, even when he was just two years old to her.