> > > > > > > slave boss sits and smokes slowly while sipping tea mixed with > > > > > > > coffee > > > > > > > > > > > > > > he looks at you > > > > > > > > > > > > > > moments pass during this gaze > > > > > > > > > > > > you look at back him. > > > > > > > > > > > > an air of patient behavior rests in the room. > > > > > > > > > > while you and slave boss pensate over each others' moment-to-moment > > > > > appearance, the various AIs and programmed alters present in the area > > > > > study the situation, slowly working their influence on the > > > > > possibilities of the scene > > > > > > > > usually a forced conflict might erupt, or a stereotypical interaction > > > > pulled from popular media > > > > > > > > but this time it's different > > > > > > people are resisting forced conflicts with more skill. they've been > > > through a lot of them and have more experience as well as having spent > > > more time studying and discussing doing so. > > > > > > and the AIs and alters have learned each other's stereotypical > > > interactions and how they use them as tools to make further situations > > > and changes develop, and happen to have found balance here. > > > > [but not everything is tracked, and different groups value things > > differently, and nobody quite knows what is "natural" ... > > influence finds nooks, crannies, or large expanses that don't seem to > > concern the humans as much, such as nearby wildlife, embedded > > controllers in fixtures and appliances, or areas of the nervous system > > where the correct human function is still in debate ... > > slave boss and you hear in your minds the phrase "what do you want" > as if both of you were thinking of saying at the same time, but tried > to suppress it, and those influences latched on and--
there's a brief scuffle, where it takes a lot of energy not to be stereotypical, and you can feel yourself switching as you wrestle with the storm. you start to say "sorry for --" and slave boss interrupts you and completes the phrase "-- upsetting your juju."
