Angeclass="underline" And Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee are twins.
These were two dumpy, unattractive girls, with pigtails and identical blue pinafore dresses. Their feet didn’t quite touch the floor, and their legs swung free, like bored children.
Angeclass="underline" But only in Second Life. In real life they are lesbian lovers, each victims of child abuse at the hands of male relatives.
Chas shifted uncomfortably. This was clearly a group of very disturbed people, and it disturbed him to think that he was included among them.
Chas: Hi
No one replied.
Angeclass="underline" So where were we? Ah, yes. The question of betrayal. I think that everyone accepts that by taking an RL lover, Laffa is betraying her husband, and compounding that betrayal by lies and deceit. Now, here is the moral question which has been testing us. Is she commiting the same act of betrayal by taking a lover in SL? Betraying, in fact, not only her husband, but her RL lover as well?
Dark: How can you betray someone in the real world by humping a cartoon in the virtual one? It’s patently absurd.
Demetrius: No, it’s not. Betrayal is in the mind. Betrayal of the flesh is only an extension of the mental treachery. So to take an SL lover is just as much of a betrayal as having an illicit partner in RL.
Dark: Crap!
Angeclass="underline" No, it’s an interesting point, Dark. It could be argued that all betrayal begins in the mind. Long before it ever turns to flesh.
Tweedle Dum: Depends whether you want to call it betrayal, or not. Just because you fall out of love with someone doesn’t mean you’re betraying them. It happens, that’s all.
Tweedle Dee: Up to a point, maybe. But the betrayal begins, surely, when you start to lie. The betrayal is the deceit.
Dark: Oh, gimme a fucking break!
Chas was startled by this sudden lapse from the intellectual to the profane.
Dark: Take it to a fucking court, for Chrissake! What do you think they’d say? That she’s been commiting adultery with a bunch of electrons on a computer screen? I don’t think so. The fact that she’s fucking some guy in RL, that’s a different story. That’s cheating, plain and simple, and if I knew who the poor husband was I’d fucking tell him.
Angeclass="underline" One of Dark’s not so hidden fantasies, Chas, is his desire to one day construct an entire sentence made up only of profanities. What do you think about it, Laffa?
Laffa: If I could stop crying for a moment, I might tell you.
Dark: Jesus Christ!
Tweedle Dum: Oh, grow up, Laffa. If you go around fucking everything on three legs then you gotta expect to field a bit of flak.
Laffa: Okay, since you’re all so frigging perfect, let me tell you what I think. I think the only reason I’ve taken a lover in SL is because I’m so unhappy in RL. And because my SL lover makes me happy, I am able to carry some of that happiness with with me back into RL. And both my husband and my lover benefit. So they should be grateful.
Dark: Yeh, like you’re doing them such a favour.
Laffa: Why do you always have to be so negative? You’re a sarcastic bastard, Dark. Always happy to talk about others. Never about yourself. And your secret fantasies. You’re probably just some perv child molester!
Chas felt the tension in the group ratchet up another few notches.
Angeclass="underline" What do you think, Chas?
Chas was startled. He had not expected to have to contribute.
Chas: Er... I don’t know. To be honest, it’s not something I’ve ever given any thought to.
Demetrius: You don’t have to think about it. You hear an argument. You get a gut feeling. What’s yours?
Chas: Well, probably I’d be with Angel on this. The first betrayal is always in the mind.
Tweedle Dee: That is just so much shit. So you’ve got a lover, right? And you’re out on your own somewhere for the night without her. And some chick hits on you. Your hormones kick in, you fuck her. You never see her again. It’s a one-night stand. You never thought about it beforehand, you never think about it again. Means nothing to you. Purely physical. But do you think your lover’s going to see it that way? Will she, hell! Betrayal’s just as much physical as it is mental. It can be one, or the other, or both. It all counts.
Tweedle Dum: So is that what happened with you and that girl at Twinkle’s?
Tweedle Dee: What?
Tweedle Dum: What was her name, Rachel? The one with the implants.
Tweedle Dum: Aw, for Chrissake, don’t start that again!
Angeclass="underline" No, let’s not. I’m not sure that we’ve exhausted the subject, but maybe we should come back to it another time. Chas, why don’t you tell us why you’re here?
Chas stiffened. Immediately tense, and glad that no one could see his discomfort beyond the screen.
Chas: I’m here because you asked me to be.
Dark: LOLOLOL! Good avoidance technique, Chas. Almost as good as mine.
Angeclass="underline" Okay, let me kick this off for you. Chas is having difficulty dealing with the death of his wife.
Demetrius: How long since she died?
Chas: A little over six months.
Dark: Oh, for Chrissake, man! Get over it.
Laffa: Yeh, who’re you grieving for? Her or you?
Tweedle Dee: People die, Chas. Didn’t you know? Happens to us all someday. Nothing we can do for the ones who’re gone, except get on with the living.
Chas was startled by the brutality of this response. Angel had always trodden gently around the subject, getting him to explore his feelings, suggesting ways that he might be able to come to terms with his loss.
Demetrius: I never did hold with this grieving thing. The death of a loved one is always a shock. But we get over shocks. Personally, I think the Irish have got it right. Hold a wake. Have a party. Celebrate the life that’s gone. Grief, in the end, is nothing more than self-pity.
There was a long silence then. And Chas felt that all their eyes were on him.
Angeclass="underline" Well, Chas. Was that the kind of response you expected?
Chas: I didn’t know what to expect. Not abuse, certainly.
Dark: Well, you won’t get much sympathy from this lot. We’ve all got our own problems, bud. And there probably isn’t anyone here who hasn’t lost a loved one. So get your head out of your butt and get on with your life.
Angeclass="underline" Okay, okay. I think you’ve made your views clear enough. We have all, at one time or another, had the opportunity to tell our own stories. So next time, we’ll listen to Chas. And he can tell us exactly why he’s having such difficulty coming to terms with his wife’s death.
But Chas knew there was no way he was going to tell these people anything. Exposing his soul to them would be like throwing meat to a flock of vultures. It was clear that they would simply pick over the remains of his love for Mora without any regard for his feelings or any attempt at understanding them.
He told Angel as much when the session drew to a close. The others had drifted off, and he was left standing with her in the arena on his own. She shook her head.