Section 4: A Segue I Suppose & The Viper's Nest Summary

In "A Segue I Suppose," CB continues his letter to his pen pal, describing how he heard a simple song as he passed the music room. He suggests that maybe Fredric Chopin had a dog and wrote the song because his dog died too. CB gets lost in the song.

In "A Viper's Nest," CB is mesmerized as Beethoven plays Chopin's "Prelude No. 4 in E Minor, Op. 28/4," but Beethoven objects to CB's presence when he notices him. As Beethoven resumes playing, CB launches into a monologue about his dead dog and his recent fascination with the afterlife, causing Beethoven to fly into a rage that CB would dare turn to him after not talking to him for years. Beethoven tells CB about how he has been bullied and tormented...