Joy
Jack don’t you sometimes just burst to share the joke?
What joke ?
Joy
Well here's your friends thinking we're unmarried and up to all sorts of wickedness, when all along we're married and up to nothing at all.
Which friends?
Joy
God, you can be so hard work sometimes. So what do you do here? Think great thoughts?
Teach mainly.
Joy
What do they do? Sit at your feet and gaze up at you in awe?
No, not at all.
Joy
I bet they do.
Joy
We have some fine old battles in here, I can tell you that.
Joy
Which you win. Must be quite a boost for you, being older and wiser than all of them. Not to mention your readers.
What?
Joy
Your readers and that gang of friends of yours. All very well trained not to play out of bounds.
What are you talking about?
Joy
Of course there’s Warnie. Not much competition there.
That’s nonsense. And what about Christopher Riley. He never let’s me get away with anything, you know that.
Joy
Except doubt and fear and pain and terror.
Where did all that come from?
Joy
I’ve only now just seen it how you’ve arranged a life for yourself where no one can touch you. Everyone that’s close to you is either younger than you, or weaker than you, or under your control.
Why…why are you getting at me? I thought..I thought we were friends?
Joy
I don’t know that we are friends not the way you have friends anyway. Sorry, Jack.
I don’t understand.
Joy
No, I think you do. You just don’t like it, nor do I.
