"You know what she'll want," he counters, as gently as he can. "If you won't be an ally for her she'll want you to ally against something she doesn't like. At the moment, that's Islington. You can't have something for nothing, but..."

Lancelot hesitates, tilts his head slightly as he thinks.

"You could try and force the terms to be temporary. Make it about Harris specifically, if you wanted, since I doubt he'll survive in this climate. Or... make it less about who you're allying against and more about protecting her students, since you're edging into their territory."