> As for the problem of trusting Cally, I think that that arises from Avon
> seeing her as being akin to Blake: ready to fight, die, and sacrifice
> others as necessary in pursuit of the greater good. If Avon could be
> convinced that his own well-being has become of prime importance to
> her.... How, I leave as a exercise for the writer. One possible angle:
> Cally chooses some action that harms the rebellion simply to save Avon.
>
Interesting and likeable.
> Another: somehow Avon's life becomes crucially important to the success of
> the rebellion, perhaps he has to do some computer magicking on an on-going
> basis to allow other things to happen undisturbed by the Feds.
>
This would give the writer a chance to make him the initiator of the
relationship, if they wanted to go that way, whereas in most other
writing situations I would see him waiting to see how *she* feels. If he
was doing some vital, *well-guarded* steady job, he would be more
inclined to take an emotional risk than when they are running around
nearly getting blown up each week.
Another possibility, of course, is a telepathic link being created. He
would have the assurance of being able to communicate with her in
near-absolute privacy, she would have the telepathic companion she
needs, leaving her less vulnerable to outside influences, and one tends
to assume lies would be a bit more obvious mind-to-mind (although
Cally's tricking of the Thaarn would be evidence against it)-- still, it
might make Avon more inclined to trust fully.
The other nice thing about a telepathic link is it would allow the
author to indulge in a bit less restraint in the dialogue; the mind may
be harder to censor than the mouth.