The Anne story about parties and their relative value rears its head for a moment, since Lily was so excited to hear that she'd resumed her plans for divorce that she last-second invited her again. Nate apologizes for screwing everything up about the Rhinebeck house and how it was secret romance, and Anne's like, "Listen, Kid. Halfway house or not, your father is a motherfucker. The truth is, I prefer going to parties over watching your father earn punches to the face." Then who should pop up but Minnie Mortimer, relative of Babe Pailey and Brook Shields, who has typos on her website but designs like a more palatable Proenza Schouler, and who is married to the Oscar-winning writer of Traffic and writer/director of Syriana. And I mean, you don't really need more proof than this to know that Anne is making the right call, no matter how great the Captain's looking these days.

Charles is introducing Lily to the assembled group -- Did I ever say why they are having a party? I think this one is Bass board people, but honestly it doesn't matter -- as Serena enters, with Juliet as her date. She stashes Juliet with Nate so she can go bitch out on her mother and it's tense and sort of amazing. Lily's giving some speech about how Chuck is family, and you gotta do what's best for your family, "It's the one thing that has always guided me," she says, and then S pops up and she goes into crisis mode. Serena hisses that they need to talk and Lily goes, "First let's take a few photos!" Good thing Serena looks neither crazy nor like she's overdosing on pills, or I don't know what she would do. One wild child on each arm, Lily's completely in her element -- and not just because both her outfits in this episode perfectly mimic the red walls and silver sconces she keeps being framed against.

Eric is not happy to see Damien, due to Jenny's drug-mule history, but as usual he's the only person who remembers what happens on this show so everybody just acts like he's being weird. "What, have you come to recruit another virgin to be your drug mule?" Damien, to his credit, goes, "Why, are you available?" And then abruptly bounces, because there was never really a reason for him to be in this episode at all and so having it confirmed by his point-blank departure almost feels like a respectful gesture from the show to us.