LA & AE - Thank ¥ou.

-- loanedAllegiance [LA] began pestering aspirantExegesist [AE] at 12:36 --

LA: H€££o £amia.

LA: How ar€ ¥ou?

AE: {Hello, Aascam.}

AE: {I am a little busy, actually -- I am in the field, slaughtering imps.}

LA: I $€€. I'££ ¢ut to th€ ¢ha$€ th€n.

AE: {No no, no need to cut any chases.}

AE: {Perhaps you could initiate a conversation with me a little later on, when I am less busy?}

LA: I wou£d pr€ƒ€r w€ ta£k now though.

LA: ¢an't ¥ou ƒind a $aƒ€ $pot to r€$t?

AE: {I am not inclined to tailor my schedule to your preference. You may wait while I dispatch these imps, and I may tell you when I am done. Unless choosing the most inconvenient possible moment for your chase-cutting is some absurd character quirk of yours.}

AE: {In which case, while I am certainly no more inclined to pander to it than otherwise, I will at least endeavour to be more accommodating of your curious disability.}

LA: £amia I am not h€r€ to antagoniz€ ¥ou. I ju$t want an an$w€r to a $imp£€ qu€$tion.

LA: I think I ma¥ hav€ mad€ a t€rrib£€ mi$tak€.

-- aspirantExegesist [AE] Lamia sighs, and decisively decapitates an imp into a grist windfall with a quick flick of her Red Miles wielding wrist. --

AE: {Okay, I'm done. What's happened?}

LA: I don't want to g€t into th€ $p€¢iƒi¢$, ju$t...

LA: How tru$tworth¥ wou£d ¥ou $aw Mi$$ Tau£a i$?

LA: *$a¥, m¥ apo£ogi€$

AE: {That -- is an interesting question. By what metric are we measuring trust?}

LA: £€t$ $aw on a $¢a£€ oƒ 1 to 10, wh€r€ 10 i$ paragon oƒ tru$tworth¥n€$$ and 1 i$ ¥our av€rag€ $€adw€££€r.

LA: No on€ $aw an¥thing, wh¥ do I k€€p t¥ping that?

-- aspirantExegesist [AE] Lamia winces. --

AE: {Aascam...}

AE: {I know you want things to be one way or the other, immediately, with no nuance or qualification. But would you permit me to question your premises before I endeavour to answer this question?}

LA: V€r¥ w€££. I am ¢urr€nt£¥ in m¥ r€$pit€b£o¢k.

LA: Wh¥ do ¥ou a$k?

-- aspirantExegesist [AE] Lamia blushes. --

LA: £amia?

AE: {Er -- no, no. Those are not the premises(1) I meant.}

AE: {(1)A word which here means the logical underpinnings of your question.}

LA: Oh.

AE: {Let me explain.}

AE: {When you ask me whether a person is trustworthy, you seem to assume that trustworthiness is a constant. It is not, Aascam. Trustworthiness is a variable.}

AE: {I may consider a given person trustworthy based on their relationship to me, for instance; it does not logically follow that they will prove worthy of YOUR trust, for you and I are not similar.}

AE: {Further -- surely you can trust people in different ways.}

AE: {You might, for instance, trust a Moirail differently than you would trust a Kismesis. }

AE: {You might trust a Moirail with your vulnerabilities, but trust a Kismesis to betray those same vulnerabilities at the most satisfying opportunity.}

AE: {But -- your Moirail might be someone else's Kismesis. Your Moirail might be trustworthy so far as you are concerned, but not so far as someone else is. Do you see?}

LA: A v€r¥ int€r€$ting £€¢tur€ £amia, but $ur€£¥ with ¥our $ki££$ ¥ou ¢an d€t€rmin€ how tru$tworth Mi$$ Tau£a i$ in r€£ation$hip toward$ m€.

LA: And ¥ou $ti££ hav€n't an$w€r€d m¥ qu€$tion.

LA: Wh¥ do ¥ou want to know th€ "£ogi¢a£ und€rpinning$" b€hind m¥ ƒir$t qu€$tion?

AE: {I did not want to know them -- I was trying to make them plain to you, to show you that they are problematic and likely to lead you astray.}

AE: {Aascam -- I confess I am somewhat baffled by your question. Why would you ask someone you've hateflirted with to gauge the trustworthiness of a third party?}

AE: {Why, in short, should you trust anything -I- say?}

AE: {Think this through!}

LA: I gu€$$ ¥ou'r€ ju$t th€ mo$t hon€$t oƒ a££ oƒ u$.

LA: At £€a$t *I* think $o.

-- aspirantExegesist [AE] Lamia executes a x2 facepalm combo. --

LA: And b€$id€$, thi$ i$ r€a££¥ mor€ oƒ a $€¢ond opinion.

AE: {Oh?}

LA: I'v€ b€€n to£d Mi$$ Tau£a i$... "tri¢k¥," and I ƒind m¥$€£ƒ r€gr€tting a r€¢€nt d€a£ I mad€ with h€r.

AE: {On a scale of 1 to 10, how much do you trust the source of that assessment?}

LA: ...I'm not $ur€ hon€$t£¥. But I don't $€€ wh¥ th€¥ wou£d £i€ in thi$ r€gard.

LA: Wh¥ do ¥ou a$k?

AE: {Curiosity. You seem to be in the proverbial brined vegetable as a result of a mistake where trustworthiness is concerned, and yet you seem intent on compounding the situation by approaching various parties of dubious trustworthiness about the initial subject of your mistake.}

AE: {As strategies go, I suppose I've seen better.}

LA: A££ I want i$ ¥our an$w€r, £amia. Not ¥our opinion.

AE: {Excuse me, you have asked me FOR my opinion. }

AE: {Specifically, my opinion on Taula's trustworthiness where you are concerned.}

AE: {Very well. Here you are.}

AE: {I do not think you should trust Taula. Or rather, I think you should trust her to be cleverer and swifter and altogether more devious than you are, and behave accordingly.}

LA: Thank ¥ou. Now wa$ that $o hard?

AE: {For me? Not at all. Why do you assume I should make anything easy for you?}

LA: Hon€$t£¥?

LA: I'm not $ur€ ¥ou r€a££¥ hat€ m€.

LA: Romanti¢a££¥ that i$.

AE: {I don't, Aascam. I told you as much.}

LA: I know, I know, £€t m€ ¢ontinu€.

LA: I a£$o think that mix€d in with that hat€ i$ a h€aping $poonƒu£ oƒ pit¥ and oh wh¥ am I €v€n t€££ing ¥ou thi$?

LA: It'$ ju$t wh¥ wou£d ¥ou want to ¢ontinu€ to antagoniz€ m€?

AE: {I ... Don't. There was a moment where -- it was a spark. And sparks need to be carefully fanned into a hate-blaze, Aascam. But you ... You just blew it out. In your haste. So, no. I have no desire to antagonize you. I ... Do pity you. I'm sorry.}

LA: Thank$.

LA: I $uppo$€.

AE: {May I ask what led you to this conclusion?}

LA: A ta£k with Ar€thu$a.

LA: W€££, that ¢ompund€d with a ta£k with Mi$$ Tau£a and a bit oƒ intro$p€¢tion.

AE: {If I'm not mistaken, Aascam... I don't think you're entirely feeling hatred towards me either, are you.}

LA: I don't £ik€ ¥ou, but ¥€$, I don't think I r€a££¥ hat€ ¥ou an¥mor€.

LA: Am I that mu¢h oƒ an op€n book?

AE: {Don't take it personally. Seeing people as open books is sort of my default setting.}

AE: {It's even a pun in my game title. >>:) Page of Mind.}

LA: How ¢£€v€r.

AE: {I imagine you're feeling a little sore over how this has turned out, but ... Would I be wrong in suspecting that your hate hasn't entirely vanished? That it has, perhaps, merely shifted objects?}

LA: Wh¥ wou£d that b€? I m€an, I do di$£ik€ $om€ oƒ th€ tro££$ h€r€, but not €nough to hat€ an¥ oƒ th€m.

LA: ...Wh¥ do ¥ou a$k?

AE: {Come on, Aascam. Are you honestly going to pretend you haven't been hateflirting with Taula even a little?}

LA: Hahaha, ha$ $h€ b€€n $a¥ing that? Iƒ that w€r€ tru€ th€n both Ar€thu$a and I ar€ both ¢urr€nt£¥ ¢omp€ting ƒor h€r b£a¢k ƒ€€£ing$.

AE: {Really? Do tell!}

LA: $h€ ju$t brought u$ into a m€mo and I wa$ g€tting tir€d oƒ h€r $pook¥ hooƒb€a$t $hit, $o I tro££€d Ar€thu$a an a $€p€rat€ ¢hat and ¢o-ordinat€d $om€ a¢¢u$ation$ oƒ b£a¢k ƒ€€£ing$ ƒor u$.

AE: {I see.}

LA: $h€ got ƒ£u$t€r€d and w€ had $om€ ƒun.

LA: I $€€ $h€ took it a bit $€riou$£¥ though.

LA: W€££, that'$ on€ $ma££ vi¢tor¥ ƒor m€, I $uppo$€.

AE: {Aascam, you said you regretted a deal you made with her. Are you honestly going to sit there in your respiteblock and ignore the fact that you, an aspirant Businessassin, did not completely dominate a business transaction to your satisfaction?}

LA: W€££ I am obviou$£¥ p£otting $om€thing to g€t ba¢k $om€ pow€r, but a$ ¥ou ma¥ hav€ noti¢€d m¥ tra¢k r€¢ord i$ not th€ b€$t, and hon€$t£¥ $h€ ha$ quit€ a bit oƒ b£a¢kmai£ing pow€r ov€r m€ right now.

AE: {Does she?}

-- aspirantExegesist [AE] Lamia surrrrreptitiously opens another window, in which to play the curiously addictive Blackmailing Power for the umpteenth time. --

LA: Iƒ an¥on€ $€€$ what $h€ ha$, it might ruin m¥ who£€ r€putation a$, iƒ not a $u¢$€$$ƒu£ on€, a ¢o£d, $€riou$ bui$n€$$a$$in. I wou£d not b€ $upri$€d iƒ I got $€v€ra£ d€mand$ ƒrom h€r in th€ n€ar ƒutur€ that I wou£d hav€ to ¢omp£¥ with iƒ on£¥ to $av€ ƒa¢€.

AE: {I see.}

AE: {Well.}

AE: {If your reputation did prove to be so ruined, at least you could pursue an alternate career in provocative dance manoeuvers.}

-- loanedAllegiance [LA] freezes. His eyes have have caught the words on his husktop screen but his mind is still having trouble processing it. --

-- aspirantExegesist [AE] Lamia bops along to the song, smiling. --

LA: What do ¥ou know?

AE: {Quite a lot! You'll have to be more specific.}

LA: $h€ wou£dn't hav€. $h€ ¢ou£d hav€ had $o mu¢h pow€r and $h€ wa$t€d it ju$t to...

LA: Mo¢k m€.

AE: {You know what my favourite part is? When you throw your hat.}

AE: {I feel like somewhere during your ridiculous torrent of useless acquisition, you saw that hat, and thought, "one day, I must create a dance routine around the throwing of this hat."}

AE: {And then that day came, and the moment for its deployment was handed to you on a silver nutritional plateau.}

AE: {You are very good at throwing hats, Aascam. I commend you. Although the choice of your blood colour for a carpet in your respite block is somewhat disturbing. Perhaps your Lusus chose it to remind you of your place beneath its feet?}

LA: £amia, in ¥our proƒ€$$iona£ opinion what wou£d ¥ou $a¥ i$ th€ mor€ €ƒƒ€¢tiv€ bu$in€$$ $trat€g¥? Th€ manipu£ation oƒ an oppo$€d part¥ through b£a¢kmai£, or th€ d€mora£ization oƒ $aid part¥ through $imp£¥ r€v€a£ing th€ ¢omprimi$ing inƒormation to €v€¥on€?

AE: {I suspect that would depend entirely on what one wanted to achieve. Strategy is goal-oriented, Aascam. Do not mistake the means for the end.}

LA: ¥€$, ¥€$, oƒ ¢our$€. How ¢ou£d I ƒorg€t?

LA: What wou£d ¥ou $a¥ i$ Tau£a'$ goa£ th€n?

AE: {You keep making assumptions. Why, for instance, would you assume that she has shared this compromising information with everyone?}

LA: Who know$?

LA: An$w€r m€ £amia, who know$ about thi$?

AE: {I am not going to make this easy for you, Aascam. Stop expecting people to give you honest answers to questions just because you want them to. Grow up. Think things through. Make plots of your own. Make TAULA tell you how many she has shared this with. Understand that blackmail is not an all or nothing proposition. She can humiliate you selectively AND keep extorting things from you to prevent FU

AE: RTHER humiliation.}

AE: {She has the power here. You, at present, have none.}

AE: {The question is not "who knows." The question, my dear Mr Capita, is what are YOU going to do about it?}

LA: I think I'££ go now. Thank ¥ou ƒor th€ £ov€£¥ ¢onv€r$ation, £amia.

AE: {This was, in fact, sincerely my pleasure.}

AE: {Goodbye, Aascam.}

AE: {Good luck!}

LA: Thank ¥ou.

-- loanedAllegiance [LA] ceased pestering aspirantExegesist [AE] at 14:07 --