- Benny Watts: You should see the places they play in the Soviet Union.
- Beth Harmon: I'm planning on it.
- Benny Watts: You have to get past me first.
- Beth Harmon: I'm planning on that too.
- [first lines]
- Alice Harmon: [a remembered conversation] Dark's nothing to be afraid of. In fact, I'd go as far as saying there's nothing to be afraid of. Anywhere. The strongest person in the world is the person who isn't scared to be alone. It's other people you got to worry about. Other people. They'll tell you what to do, how to feel...
- [scoffs]
- Alice Harmon: Before you know it, you're pouring your life out in search of something other people told you to go look for.
- Alice Harmon: Some day you're gonna be all alone. So you need to figure out how to take care of yourself.
- Beth Harmon: You think I'm a prima donna, don't you?
- Harry Beltik: It's chess. We're all prima donnas.
- Beth Harmon: [slowly brushing the frontal locke of Benny's hair aside] I like your hair
- Benny Watts: [scoffing at Beth and giving her an incredulous look] Yeah, sure you do
- Benny Watts: You can sleep in my living room, and you can leave for Paris from there.
- Beth Harmon: That very nice of you, but I'm not even so sure I wanna go to Paris anymore.
- Benny Watts: What are you gonna do instead, huh? Get drunk?
- Beth Harmon: Now that you mention it, yeah, sounds pretty good.
- Harry Beltik: Okay, tell me, what was your endgame?
- Beth Harmon: You just saw it.
- Harry Beltik: What was your plan?
- Beth Harmon: To beat you?
- [pause]
- Beth Harmon: I don't know what it was.
- Harry Beltik: Exactly, you're still just improvising.
- Beth Harmon: I just wiped you out five times.
