As usual, I do not own anything related to The West Wing, Hamilton, or Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure. All characters except for my OCs belong to Aaron Sorkin.

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Sam walked into his office and hung up his coat and scarf. "HAAAAA-ugghhh." He sighed as he turned around. 'What's that?' *ti-CHOOOO.* He clicked on the lamp and he picked up one of the black pieces. 'It's a …. chess set. … It's beautiful.'

Bartlet appeared in the doorway. " 'Scuse me."

Sam looked up and smiled. "...Mr. President, welcome back."

"Thank you. How are ya?"

"I'm fine, sir….." He looked down. "I was jus'... someone gave me this chess set."

"Yeah, it's from me."

'What?' "...You're kidding."

"Nah, … The Prime Minister gave me a few different sets, and I wanted to give'em as gifts."

"I'm really overwhelmed by this, Mr. President."

"The State of the Union was really something else." He nodded with his eyebrows raised.

Sam nodded. "...Thank you again, sir."

He approached the desk. "This one's a Lotus set, hand-carved camel-bone. She told me it came to her from a direct descendent of Tansen. ... Ya know who that was?"

"No." 'Now I'm intrigued.'

"The greatest musician of his time."

"What time was that?"

He glanced between the chess set and Sam. "Sixteenth century. He'd go to the human chess matches at the Mogul Court of Emperor Akbar, … and that began the family obsession with the game. …. Y'wanna play?"

"You?" Sam asked.

"Yeah."

"I'll get killed."

"Why?" Bartlet held a white piece and a black piece behind his back.

'Because I've had my ass handed to me by a bunch of eight year olds.' "You're a Grand Wizard …. or a Grandmaster…. or something."

"No, I'm none of those things…. I'm just grand." He held out both of his hands and Sam tapped the right.

He opened his hand. "You're white," Bartlet pointed at Sam. "but don't ever touch me."

'Oh shit. Sam's body tensed up. "I'm sorry, sir."

'If only China were that easy.' Bartlet chuckled. "I was kidding."

He spun the board around as Sam sat down and then he sat down.

Sam studied the board and then moved his pawn. *plop*

"Ah, ….. the Fibonacci opening. ... Very interesting." Bartlet said.

"You're just gonna mess with me this whole time, right?"

"Yeah." He moved his pawn. *plop*

"So India went well?"

"Yeah."

Sam moved another pawn. "Standing ovation on the floor of the Stock Exchange." 'That's no small feat.'

"The billion dollars at the Export-Import Bank didn't hurt." He moved a knight.

"I suppose." Sam studied the board.

"Three billion in direct foreign investment to the forty-four billion China gets. ... You're an American, where'd you rather put your money?"

Sam moved a bishop. "India."

'Good.' "Why?"

"They're Democratic... English-speaking... There's the rule of law. … Better sense of humor."

'Very good.' "That's right." Bartlet moved a bishop.

"D'you mind my asking how bad it's getting out there tonigh'?"

"….It's bad." He glanced down and then up at Sam. "...If Kashmir's the most dangerous place on earth, the second most dangerous is the Taiwan Strait. Taiwan's got four hundred thousand troops on high alert. The size of China's war games is unprecedented."

"Have you thought about asking Taiwan to call off the Patriot tests?" Sam asked.

"You think I should?"

Sam shook his head. "No, sir."

"Why not?" Bartlet asked.

" 'Cause China's got three hundred missiles pointed at Taiwan. Why shouldn't they be able to defend themselves?" Sam made his move.

"That's right…. Plus, guess what?" Bartlet moved a rook.

"What?"

"Patriot tests aren't why China's showing its teeth." Bartlet said.

'What?' "They're not?" Sam asked.

"No." Bartlet said.

"Why are they?" Sam asked.

"Are you ready to come inside?"

Sam nodded. "Yes, sir."

"By the end of the week, Taiwan's gonna announce they're holding their first free elections." Bartlet said.

'What?' "You're kidding." Sam's jaw dropped.

"Defend your queen."

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Ainsley and Bartlet sat across from each other at her desk as they played chess. "So the Republicans're gonna to nominate Ritchie."

'Unfortunately.' "Yup." She moved her bishop.

"I'm gonna ask you a question Ainsley, an' I want ya ta be honest with me."

'Are you sure?' "Okay." Ainsley looked at Jed.

He moved his knight and sighed. "Toby thinks that I let 'the pitch go by'."

"What do you mean, sir?" Ainsley asked.

"I try too hard to appeal to the masses." Bartlet said.

Ainsley pondered. "...I think he's right."

"You do?"

Ainsley took his bishop. "I think you would do better to be authentic. Don't wear cowboy boots when you go to Texas and flip flops when you go to San Diego…. But it's not that simple."

"You think I am trying too hard?" Bartlet furrowed his brow.

"Why d'you think they nominated Ritchie?"

"Because he appeals to the 'I'm plain-spoken, just like you.' demographic'." He imitated Ritchie.

'And that right there is why we could lose this election.' Ainsley sighed. "...Yes."

"An' you think he's a good candidate?"

'Haha… no.' Ainsley suppressed a chuckle. "I didn't say that."

"I'm not a snob." Bartlet said.

"I know, but that's 'cause I know you personally."

"If a guy's a good neighbor, … if he puts inna day, … if every once in a while he laughs, … if every once in a while he thinks about somebody else and, above all else, … if he can find his way tuh compassion and… and tolerance, then he's my brother. I don't give a damn if he didn't get past finger-painting! What I can't stomach are people who're out to convince people that the educated are soft an' privileged an' out to make them feel like they're less than. … You know, 'He may be educated, but I'm plain-spoken, just like you!', especially when we know that education can be a silver bullet. … It can be the silver bullet, Ainsley! … For crime, poverty, unemployment, drugs, hate…"

Ainsley sighed. "I know that, but it's not that simple. Even right there, you come across as a bit-"

"A bit what?"

"Patronizing." Ainsley said.

"How?"

"The Americans who vote for Ritchie don't like being talked down to. They don't like the notion that someone having a degree who plays by the Marquess of Queensberry rules of debate in everyday conversations is inherently more capable of making policy decisions and having valid political opinions."

"Don't you need an education to understand policy?" Bartlet asked.

"In a way, yes…. But you need life experience to understand the real world consequences of policies."

"An' Ritchie has that, but I don't because I've got a PhD and a Nobel Prize in Economics?" He asked.

"Heavens no. He'd think he was rich if you gave him two nickels for a dime… That said, he doesn't make Middle America feel like he's talking down to them…. Mr. President, this country was founded on the idea that the government's only job is to protect our rights and the country."

"As opposed to….?"

"The idea that our rights come from the government." Ainsley said.

"Then where do the People's rights come from?" Bartlet asked.

"God."

"We have separation of Church and State in this country." He said.

"We have freedom from government-mandated religion. That doesn't mean that we get our rights from the government. The Declaration of Independence says we are 'endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable Rights'."

"And Roger Williams said, 'Forced worship stinks in God's nostrils.' And he was a Puritan minister who founded Rhode Island."Bartlet said.

"I never said anything about promoting forced worship. Neither did Thomas Jefferson."

"Then what's your point?"

"Only God has the power of giving rights to the people, not the government. The government should not solve society's problems." Ainsley said.

'Then why have a government?' "What about the Preamble?"

"The Preamble says the government should 'promote the general welfare', not provide for the general welfare… The difference is akin to the 'teach a man to fish' philosophy."

"And how are we supposed to teach anyone how to fish without public education?" Bartlet asked.

"I never argued against public education. All I'm saying is that the focus should be for the People to be self-sufficient." Ainsley said. "But that's not the point."

"What's the point then?"

Ainsley paused. "Let me tell you a little story about a retired senator named George McGovern….. He invested the money he earned on the lecture circuit in Connecticut's Stratford Inn. He later said that he wished he knew what running a small business took before he pushed for legislation that made it nearly impossible to run a small business."

'Thank you.' Bartlet thought.

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Bartlet raised his eyebrows. "Take your time." Sam rested his chin and jaw in his hand. "... See the whole board. … Think happy thoughts."

Sam shot up in his seat. "Sir…" His chin and jaw returned to his hand.

"Sure." He moved chairs and started to eat popcorn. "The Spanish brought chess to the court of Charlemagne in 760 AD. ... Charlemagne is French for Charles the Great. … The Charles is a river in Boston. The Hudson River is actually not a river at all…"

'It's not?' "I'm taking your rook."

Bartlet moved back towards the desk to make his move. "Now take your time." He put his hands in his pockets. " ... See the whole board."

Sam's forehead scrunched. "The Hudson …. isn't a river?"

"It is in the Catskills, but once it gets to Manhattan, it's a tidal estuary."

'Oh yeah, that's right.' "Cause it's deeper than the body of water it flows into." Sam said.

"Yeah….. Y'know, Ainsley's giving me one helluva run for my money."

'Daaaammmmnnnn, my girlfriend is a badass.' Sam smiled. "Yeah?"

"She's around …8, 12 moves away from checkmate."

Sam smiled. "I'm not surprised."

"She's also not afraid to call people out."

Sam chuckled. "No, … she most certainly is not afraid to do that."

"But it's interesting…. She's always so polite about it. There was one instance where I almost thanked her."

Sam laughed. "She's good at that. And if she wants to, she knows how to utterly slay me with her words and wit. … I'm also pretty sure that she could hurt me physically too."

"Women seem to have that wonderful and mysterious power over us poor sods."

"That they do, Mr. President." Sam looked up at Bartlet. "You mind my asking how the meeting with the Chinese ambassador went?"

"Well, how d'you think it went?"

Sam took a deep breath. "... I think they said if Taiwan tests the Patriots, they'll start their exercises."

'Close.' "That's right, except they didn't call them Patriots. … What'd they call'em?" Bartlet scrunched his brow and folded his arms. 'You got this.'

'US-made Patriots.' Sam looked up. "... US-made Patriots." 'They don't want Taiwan armed."

"Right."

"They want us to say we're gonna roll back our sale of arms to Taiwan." Sam said. "But that's not gonna happen. And certainly not when they're tryin' to hold free elections."

"Good."

"But we're not goin' to stop arming Taiwan."

"No." He shook his head as he glanced down. 'He's on a roll.'

"Especially not now when they're trying to hold free elections." Sam added.

"Right."

"Plus it's the law." 'So we sell'em the Orions and AMRAAMs.'

Bartlet nodded. "Yeah."

"So we sell'em the Orions, we sell 'em the AMRAAMs…"

He glanced at the board. "You're gonna move?"

"Hang on….. You've got two carrier groups headed to the Taiwan Strait…"

"Move." Bartlet repeated.

"Plus, the Carl Vincent in the South China Sea... Beijing wants you to scale back the weapons, an' you're not gonna do it…" Sam moved a piece.

"Right." Bartlet took Sam's rook.

Ginger poked her head in. "Mr. President, Ainsley called. She said 'Knight to King's bishop 4'."

Sam stared at him for a moment 'I don't….'

"I gotta go back to Ainsley in the other room. She's now 14 moves away from checkmate." He walked out of Sam's office.

'She went from 12 moves away from checkmate to 14?' "How does it work?" Sam asked.

He looked back. "See the whole board!"

'As if it were that simple.' Sam leaned back in his chair. 'Of course.' "...The Aegis Destroyers."

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"Sir, if you don't mind me asking, how's everything with China going?" Ainsley held a pawn.

"How d'ya think it's going?"

"I reckon that they're trying to push us around."

'She's not wrong.' "And what d'you think about our situation with China?"

"I think we're too soft on China, both economically an' militarily."

"Free trade has allowed us to continue to open China up to the Western world."

"I know that the popular opinion is we'll bring them into the modern age if we befriend China. … The idea is that they'll adopt Western values, but I don't think we are going to get the intended result. The road to hell is paved with good intentions. …. Rather, I think our biggest achievements have been to give our manufacturing infrastructure to China and to allow for China to become the world's next superpower….. Mr. President, I'm not interested in popular opinions. I'm interested in truth."

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Sam looked up as he saw Bartlet headed towards his office and swung his feet off the desk. "Sorry, I got tied up."

"No, it's fine." Sam placed his folder on the table behind him.

"Let's get back to it."

Sam leaned forward. "You know, sir,… I looked something up while you were gone…. Eisenhower,... it seemed, ... at all costs … wanted to avoid sending ships to resupply Quemoy and Matsu, … 'cause they'd be less then a mile from the Chinese army. A private could... well, everybody was a private in Mao's army, but a private could fire on a ship and that'd be it. … We'd be at war. We'd have to be."

President Bartlet raised his eyebrows. "Yeah."

"Eisenhower wouldn't do it."

"No." Bartlet shook his head.

Sam hesitated. "Why are you?"

'I'm not.' Bartlet's forehead creased. "Look at the whole board."

'You keep saying that.' "I am."

"You're not." Bartlet said.

"I'm trying!" Sam said.

"Sam…" Bartlet tilted his head and furrowed his brows.

"Why were the carrier groups in the Taiwan Strait?"

Bartlet raised his eyebrows. "Are they… in… the Taiwan Strait?"

"They're on their way." Sam said.

"Is that the same thing?

Sam pondered. 'But…. if they're ...Oh.' He scrunched his eyebrows. "How does this end?"

Knock knock* Bartlet looked over his shoulder at Leo standing in the doorway. "Sir."

Bartlet turned back to Sam. "Like this." He walked towards Leo and put on his glasses as Leo handed him a note. Bartlet read the note and looked up at Leo. He tapped the note with his pen and took off his glasses. "Turn'em around. I'll make some calls and thank people."

"Yes, sir."

"Thank you, by the way."

"You, too." Leo left.

Bartlet walked back to Sam to hand him the note. "I'd like to try it without lookin' at the note." Sam said.

Bartlet sat down. "Okay."

Sam leaned forward. "China agrees to stand down the war games."

"Right."

"An' they agree to let Taiwan test the Patriots. ... One Patriot."

"Yes." Bartlet said.

"And we... Please, I wanna be right abou' this. …. We agree not to sell Taiwan the Aegis Destroyers... for a period of... I dunno... five years."

"Ten years, but you've got it." Bartlet said.

"Sir, the Aegis... the Aegis radar technology isn't something that... I mean, … what if Taiwan did fall to China? Now they have ... an' plus … these ships cost something like 800 million apiece. Buying four of 'em would eat half of Taiwan's defense budget." Sam said.

"And so…"

'Oh.' "…. You never were gonna sell'em the destroyers." Sam said.

'Exactly.' Bartlet shook his head. "But everybody wakes up alive in the morning an' saves a little face."

"I dunno how you... I don't know the word, I... I don't know how you do it."

"You have a lotta help. You listen to everybody and then you call the play." Bartlet stood up and looked at the chessboard. "That's checkmate." He looked Sam in the eye. "D'you know why I'm telling you this, Sam?"

"No sir."

"Because one day, Ainsley'll run for President. And if you don't screw up the best thing that ever happened to him, you'll be the one by her side. Are you ready for that when the time comes?"

"Yes sir."

"Good. Then you need to understand that your role will be to support her in ways that no one else can, while understanding that she has to make the big decisions alone.… As Abbey will tell you, your role will be by no means easy. And I can also tell you that I wouldn't be here today if it weren't for her."

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Sam snored on the couch in Ainsley's office as Bartlet and Ainsley wrapped up their game. Only a handful of pieces remained on the board. "Checkmate." Bartlet looked up. "Ainsley, you're gonna run for President one day. Don't be scared. You can do it. I believe in you."

Ainsley bit her lip. "Sir… I don't wanna run for President anymore."

Bartlet furrowed his brows. "Why not?"

"It comes with a lot of power and it often means getting involved in the less than savory aspects of politics….. and I know that's part of the appeal for many, but it makes me feel uneasy… We have the illusion that the People and the Electoral College decides who is elected, but the reality is that corporations and the Party establishments are kingmakers. Or at least they have a lot more say than I would like."

"Then do something 'bout it." Bartlet stood up. "And that, my dear, is why you run for office. ….. You know, Washington didn't want to run either and he only served for two terms when many wanted him to keep going for similar reasons." He left her office.

Ainsley packed up her chess set and then gazed over at Sam as he continued to snore. She stood up and placed a gentle hand on his arm and bent to kiss his cheek.

"Babe, are you ready to go?" He mumbled.

"Yes, sweetheart." She kissed his cheek again.

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Did Ainsley surprise you in that last scene?