i'm just that fascinating i guess

[self_composed]

The first day Bella spends out and about with her new who's-watching-me powers, she is rather alarmed.

Maybe she's just mistaken about how much time people spend looking at reasonably pretty eighteen-year-old girls. She kills a pentagon to try it on a nearby control - who's looking at that girl over there?

Fewer people. Fewer people are looking at that random girl, and less intently. They're looking at her familiarly - they know her - or casually - they're checking her out.

[I have a spy problem,] Bella says. She makes a faintly exaggerated show of snapping her fingers in frustration and turning around. She's going back to her room to get a mirror and bobby pins and barettes, so she can spy back on the pretense of checking her hair, without making it overwhelmingly obvious that she knows what's going on.

Comments

[nonbird]

[That sounds ominous,] says Lazarus.

[self_composed]

[She clearly already knows where I am. This way I will learn something about her, too.]

[nonbird]

[Still ominous,] says Lazarus.

[self_composed]

[Somewhat. I don't think Bridget knows that Libby-or-someone-related kidnapped you.]

[nonbird]

[Good for Bridget, I guess.]

[self_composed]

[If I ever urgently need to deplete Libby's resources or get Bridget helping me it's something I can try telling her, at least.]

[nonbird]

[Is there any reason to think she'd care?]

[self_composed]

[The fact that she doesn't know,] Bella points out. [Is some reason, although not a definitive one. She seems basically decent and strongly does not expect that Libby does nasty things to get people to cooperate with her.]

[nonbird]

[Well, good.] He sighs. [I hate being suspicious. Why can't the world be full of nice people who don't do things like kidnap me?]

[self_composed]

['Cause I haven't fixed it yet,] says Bella, predictably.

[nonbird]

[...I'm not sure you can actually do anything about the existence of not-nice people as a whole,] he says. [And if you can I'm not sure you should.]

[self_composed]

[Well, fair enough, but I can make a dent in 'em by arranging not-completely-screwed-up resources for people to bring up kids with,] Bella says. [And figure out how to identify and contain the not-nicenesses of the ones I cannot dent in this way.]

[nonbird]

[Okay,] he concedes. [That's better, I guess.]

[self_composed]

[I am rather smart,] Bella points out.

[nonbird]

[You do give that impression.]

[self_composed]

[So as long as you're trapped in a warehouse with nothing in particular to do, wanna meet my font-of-hexes?] Bella inquires. [He's endlessly amusing.]

[nonbird]

[Sure,] he says. [Why not.]

[self_composed]

[Conference call,] Bella says musically, including Lazarus and Alice both. [Alice, this is Lazarus, he who may perform sinister experiments on you if we can ever get him out of the box. Lazarus, your would-be test subject if you can ever get over your squeamishness.]

[nonbird]

[Hi,] says Lazarus, cautiously.

[edgeofyourseat]

[Hi!] says Alice. [Good to meetcha. Don't worry, I don't bite. Unless you're into that.]

[self_composed]

Bella's amused. [Try not to discomfit him overmuch, please.]

[edgeofyourseat]

[No promises,] he chirps.

[nonbird]

[I don't discomfit quite that easily,] says Lazarus, amused.

[self_composed]

[By Alice's standards, you absolutely do,] Bella says.

[nonbird]

[And what are Alice's standards?]