(1) But he knows what he is up to (the page-long sentence perfectly reflects the procrastination, Richard's, which it's describing), and even the occasional archaic-seeming idiom ("bethought", "betake", "smallened") has its place, if only to remind us that, contemporary though the setting is, the author has a respect for old-fashioned ways, in language and in life.
(2) It was then I bethought me for the first time that it was Christmas Day.