NIETZSCHE; DEAD PHILOSOPHERS' INBOX

[explosivecombat]

[TEXT; LOCKED TO doitrockapella]

The offer for conversation is always open, should you desire to take me up on it; I can't guarantee that I'll respond immediately, nor will it necessarily be the response you want, but I'll always respond in some way.

In the name of enlightened discourse.

Comments

[explosivecombat]

[...well, to his credit, Kimblee is going to actually not be a jackass about it. For once in his miserable life.]

What are you suggesting?

[doitrockapella]

I'm too far afield to make it to you in one night, or I'd offer to give you a more interesting challenge than a hill of insects.

Other than that, I won't know what you think would help unless you tell me.

[explosivecombat]

[There's a rather long pause before he replies; in all blunt honesty, he has no idea what to do with any of that.]

...they really will say we're in love, you know.

[...other than perhaps "re-engage Jackass Mode", though at least he won't leave her with that.]

You're doing enough, however; consider it appreciated.

[doitrockapella]

How different would that be, from just being important to you?

There are plenty of ulterior motives for why I wouldn't want you going on a rampage. Most of mine are ulterior. But some of them...aren't.

[explosivecombat]

Are you interested in finding out the answer to that question for yourself?

[doitrockapella]

Are you offering?

[explosivecombat]

Not this soon, no.

[doitrockapella]

Then I really must be special. Once, your answer was "never".

[explosivecombat]

Circumstances change.

Although you're just making me wonder - would you have accepted, if I was offering?

[doitrockapella]

That depends entirely on the means you would've used to answer it.

Would you have told me the difference, or shown me?

[explosivecombat]

I've already given you the answer, actually.

[doitrockapella]

'Circumstances change'?

[explosivecombat]

No.

Your memory is incredibly selective, you know.

[doitrockapella]

Maybe I'm just baiting you into saying it yourself.

Figuratively speaking.

[explosivecombat]

Let me direct your original question back toward you, then.

How different do you believe it would be?

[doitrockapella]

I don't think you'd level cities for me.

[explosivecombat]

But you think I would love you.

[doitrockapella]

No. Not by my definition.

By yours? I think that's a question of degree.

[explosivecombat]

Is that so? Go on, then; I'm curious.

[doitrockapella]

You told me yourself, you don't feel love the way I'd define it. And I wouldn't want you to tell me so just because you thought it would make me happy, or because it'd be true enough.

I think you understand love as a series of values and degrees. You gauge how important someone is to you; you measure how upset or conflicted you'd be if they were gone. You note dips and spikes of sentiment along your baseline, and you add those all up into a conclusion founded in reason and analysis, where most people would judge it by emotion and introspection.

I'm important to you. That already puts me ahead of the curve; farther ahead than most people, maybe. But you're the only one who knows all the values you're taking into consideration, and where the threshold lies to tip that sentiment over the line into the category you've defined as love.

I don't think I've hit that degree for you, yet. Maybe someday I will. But I wouldn't mistake that for love, either.

And frankly, I think that given the choice, you'd rather have me understand you than love you, anyway.

[explosivecombat]

You know, I'm rather flattered that you think I would be so complex; that's so admirably overcomplicated that I'm reluctant to shatter what a lovely image you have of my inner workings.

Do you want me to tell you where you're wrong?

[doitrockapella]

To say nothing of the fact that if you loved me, you wouldn't take such pleasure in treating me like I'm an idiot.

[explosivecombat]

Yes and no; we're more able to be ourselves around those we're close to, aren't we?

Most people are under the unfortunate impression that I'm a gentleman, believe it or not.

[doitrockapella]

Being a gentleman has nothing to do with whether or not you treat me like I'm stupid.

You'd waste a lot less time on me if, rather than prompting me to answer questions just so that you can have the pleasure of telling me I'm wrong, you'd just tell me things outright.

[explosivecombat]

I'll tell you two things outright, then.

1. My fondness for asking you questions has very little to do with whether you're right or wrong in the end (though I admit that my sense of humor is often incredibly mean, and I never said it wasn't); I just like to see how you answer the question. Your mind is what interested me in the first place; why wouldn't I want to see how it works?

2. I would much rather you understand me than love me.