I’m sorry, but they wouldn’t let me in. But I got the following answer from her handmaid. Olivia’s not going to show her face for the next seven years—not even to the sky itself. She’s doing this out of love for her dead brother, whom she wants to keep fresh in her memory forever.
Oh, if she loves her brother this much, think how she’ll love me when I finally win her over and make her forget all her other attachments!
Please—and I’ll pay you plenty for this—help me conceal my identity, and find me the right disguise so I can look the way I want. I want to be this Duke’s servant. You’ll introduce me to him as a eunuch. You won’t be wasting your time, because I really can sing and talk to him about many different kinds of music, so he’ll be happy to have me in his service.
I won’t say a word. You can be a eunuch, but I’ll be mute. I swear on my life I won’t tell your secret.
Listen, I’m going home tomorrow, Sir Toby. Your niece is refusing to see anyone, and even if she saw me, ten to one she’d want nothing to do with me. That duke who lives nearby is courting her.
She’s not interested in the duke. She doesn’t want to marry anyone of higher social rank than her, or anyone richer, older, or smarter. I’ve heard her say that. So cheer up, there’s still hope for you, man.