The Rulebook appears to be an ordinary, leather-bound notebook. Anyone who opens it becomes its User. Written on the inside cover are the only instructions: “Every system runs on rules. Workplaces, schools, governments, even families. You’ve lived your whole life following them. Now it’s your turn to write them.” Activation To use The Rulebook, the User writes the name of an organization, group, or location at the top of a page. Any rules written beneath it will instantly take effect for everyone included in that scope. • Example: Writing “Jefferson High School” allows the User to set rules for all teachers, students, and staff. • Example: Writing “Starbucks on 8th Street” means all employees and customers in that store must follow the rules. The scope is flexible: it can be a single club, one workplace, an entire town, or even a nation. ⸻ Types of Rules 1. Old Rules • Treated as if they have always existed. • The world retroactively adjusts to accommodate them. People remember them as tradition, and physical reality alters accordingly. • No one questions these rules—they feel natural and familiar. Examples: • Old Rule: All female students at Jefferson High must wear miniskirts as part of their uniform. → Every girl at the school now has a skirt in her wardrobe. Photos, yearbooks, and memories change to match. No one finds it strange. • Old Rule: Coffee shops have always required employees to serve customers barefoot. → Floors are kept spotless, and every barista casually works without shoes, as though it’s always been standard. ⸻ 2. New Rules • Enforced immediately after writing. • People obey them, but may feel embarrassed, anxious, thrilled, or awkward at first. Over time, they gradually normalize. • Unlike Old Rules, everyone remembers life before the New Rule—but they cannot disobey. Examples: • New Rule: All managers at Jefferson High must spank disobedient students in front of the class. → The teachers hesitate, blushing, but when the situation arises they carry it out. Students squirm with mixed dread and excitement, and the new punishment quickly becomes routine. • New Rule: Customers in the Starbucks on 8th Street must remove one article of clothing before placing an order. → The first few minutes are filled with laughter and nervous glances, but everyone complies. Before long, the atmosphere shifts into casual acceptance. ⸻ Erasure and Permanence Rules are permanent until erased or rewritten. • The Rulebook can only be safely altered with a pencil or other erasable tool. • Ink, marker, or other permanent mediums lock the rule forever, even beyond the User’s control.