Third floor common room, Wednesday Morning

[future_sandworm]

In this weather Leto was thankful for the hooded cloak, made for cold desert nights, that he had brought with him. Apart from that, he didn't mind the weather - he remembered snow of course, but he hadn't actually experienced it, and now he had made himself comfortable on the common room couch, looking out the window and letting the fireplace and a large cup of spice coffee warm him.

In front of him was a chess board and he moved the pieces quickly, playing both sides. He missed Ghani, but when she wasn't here he could at least try to emulate one of her games.

[open!]

Comments

[notyourpawn.livejournal.com]

Another smile. "I was Queen there. On the other side of the looking-glass, once the knight so kindly escorted me to the eighth square. Though I think the Red Queen was having me on. I never did trust her."

[future_sandworm]

It sounded like a vision or hallucination. Leto watched her. "And Fandom is like that?"

[notyourpawn.livejournal.com]

She nodded, smiling. "Logical, but it follows its rules. You only have to learn them. If something doesn't fit those rules, you don't ignore it or call it an exception. You realize that you weren't looking at the entire picture, just yet."

Which made her re-examine the chessboard with some scrutiny.

[future_sandworm]

It sounded like a description of any place in the world. "You seem good at seeing the logic of rules," he said. Perhaps she would have made a good Mentat.

[notyourpawn.livejournal.com]

She laughed. "That isn't to say that I always follow them," she said. "Nonsense has its place. Perhaps nonsense has its own rules. The first rule is that all rules must be disobeyed. Which of course means that obedience is now required, from time to time, so that that rule may be disobeyed, as well."

[future_sandworm]

He wondered what she would come up with should she be the advisor to an emperor. "And what rules do you most of all enjoy to disobey?" he asked with a grin.

[notyourpawn.livejournal.com]

Her eyes were dancing, now. "The ones that say I should be a very proper young lady," she grinned. "That I should wear pretty dresses and fold my hands in my lap and never speak out of turn. Never ask rude questions, be seen and not heard. Those ones."

[future_sandworm]

Leto laughed, thinking that she would drive Irulan crazy. "I can understand that. Do you ever obey those rules?"

[notyourpawn.livejournal.com]

"Only when the consequences seem very great, indeed," she said solemnly. "One should take care never to rebel just to rebel. That's as much following rules as obeying them to start. The perfect inverse isn't quite an opposite, not really."

[future_sandworm]

He moved a rook. It was now threatening her queen. "No, sometimes we have to obey the rules set upon us by others," he said.

[notyourpawn.livejournal.com]

A knight charged forward. Protect the queen at all costs.

"And ourselves," she said simply. "There are always alternatives. They may be unpleasant, they may have dire consequences, but that doesn't mean we mayn't pick them. That's just our explanation for not doing so. There is a subtle but terribly important difference."

[future_sandworm]

"I agree," Leto said. A rook took the knight.

[bedtime!]

[notyourpawn.livejournal.com]

"So then," she asked, her fingers resting on a bishop and considering her options, "what sorts of rules do you disobey? Or obey, regularly. Either one is illuminating."

[future_sandworm]

"I disobey my stepmother because her reaction is amusing. I believe this expresses my affection for her," Leto grinned. "I disobey the rules that say I should not venture out into the desert alone as often as I do. But I have not fought against my destiny."

[notyourpawn.livejournal.com]

"What's in the desert?" Alice asked, moving the bishop forward and leaving her fingers on it while she considered all angles. "Or are they simply concerned that you'll get lost?"