"Gosh! Preferences, too? Entire vistas of possibility open up to me."

"They do, I'm quite disappointed that no one's told you before, they're somewhat important."

"I have fallen through the cracks in the system."

"You have. But it's all right. I'm here. In my fortress of books."

"It's quite a fortress. How far along in your project are you?"

"Researching, still, but I've almost got it entirely planned out."

"Cool. I don't have a prototype yet - well, I have the chassis, but not instructions."

Aydanci nods. "I can probably help with instructions, but." He motions to his own books for his project, then adds wryly, "And also, I have no idea what your instructions are. Something of a damper on helping write them."

"What a pity 'do whatever Aly has in mind for you' isn't a legitimate instruction. It'd speed things up tremendously."

"Just a bit," snickers Aydanci. "But, that would make them mind readers, and that would have all sorts of horrible effects that we've already gone over. So maybe it's worth it."

"Well, it would only matter if it was a smart golem. I wouldn't mind a really dumb one being able to figure out what I wanted of it. But the underlying principle would probably adapt to other situations."

He nods. "Dumb golems being able to do it would be fine. Just not the smart ones."

"And as far as I know there's nothing dumb golems can do that more sophisticated ones can't. So better all around if they can't mindread."

"Yeah. If annoying because it makes things a bit more difficult in the short term."

"But in thirty years when we have conducted our lives in the total absence of sinister mindreading golems," she says, "we'll be glad of it."

"Yes. Yes we will. Actually, I'm glad of it now."

"So'm I," she grins.

Having successfully waited in her hotel room for a few days, Lu turns up at Kidan's hotel room, a notebook under one arm, fretful.

"R-really? That's - thank you."

"It's all right, I - understand."