plotting to unnerve her

[self_composed]

Bella finds Milliways in the moon palace instead of one of her balconies.

"Huh," she says aloud.

Then, to Alice, Libby, Elena, and Mary, and Lazarus except he autoreplies with a busy message, [Hey folks, Moonstone Palace grew a bar that I don't remember putting in, come check it out.]

Comments

[edgeofyourseat]

[Huh. I guess,] he says. Christmas isn't really a positive association; historically it's been a time when his parents give him a bunch of shit he doesn't want and then his dad gets mad at him for not wanting it.

[self_composed]

[Would you rather wait for your present until Boxing Day?] Bella asks, tucking her head against his neck so her face is turned in.

[edgeofyourseat]

[I dunno,] he says. [Was it gonna be for Christmas? It can be for Christmas. Or for now. I don't really care about the date, y'know?]

[self_composed]

[I was thinking Christmas. It will need to be an occasion when you don't have anything planned for a few days, possibly weeks.]

[edgeofyourseat]

[I don't really do plans,] he says, shrugging. [Whenever.]

[self_composed]

[It'll be Christmas somewhere on Earth in a couple days,] she says, kissing his neck.

[edgeofyourseat]

He smiles. [Okay.]

[self_composed]

[I'm glad that's okay. I'm pretty sure accelerating the spin of the Earth would be hazardous.]

[edgeofyourseat]

Alice giggles.

[I love you,] he says, kissing the top of her head. (Not fully on purpose, it's similar to the way the Joker kissed him when they were snuggling.)

[self_composed]

Little mannerisms like that are to be expected and do not bother her.

[I love you too.]

[edgeofyourseat]

Hearing that still gives him all kinds of warm snuggly lovey feelings.

[self_composed]

[I'm going to see if Lazarus is free to have another look at your ingot power now, unless you have some objection.]

[Lazarus?]

[edgeofyourseat]

[No problem,] says Alice.

[nonbird]

[Yes?]

[self_composed]

[Can me and Alice come visit? His ingot power is almost certainly not just a "touch-don't-change" mental defense, which we learned for reasons I would rather not explain right now. And I would like to know exactly what it is.]

There is, after all, a chance that ingots (like witches) may enhance their powers after turning.

[nonbird]

[...Sure,] he says.

[self_composed]

Alice's outfit is in a state; liquid nitrogen will do that. "You wanna not scandalize Lazarus?" she murmurs.

[edgeofyourseat]

He shrugs and squares some real clothes.

[self_composed]

Bella stands them up and teleports them to Lazarus's apartment on Mars. "Hullo," she says.

[nonbird]

"Hi," says Lazarus.

[ignorable]

Kolya is curled up on the couch with a book. He looks up when Bella and company teleport in.

If she has given herself the appropriate capacity, she will notice that his power is on.

[self_composed]

Bella gives him the briefest of looks, but she did in fact expand her illusion-seeing power to cover him, and politely neglects his presence. She checks Alice to see if he can see him, because that hasn't been discussed yet.

"Already got all your furniture up here, nice," Bella says.

[nonbird]

"Yeah, Kolya helped," he says, entirely ignorant of the named party's presence. "It was only slightly inconvenient to drag it all through the Moon."

[edgeofyourseat]

Alice does not, in fact, see Kolya.

[self_composed]

How interesting.

"So what're we looking at here?" Bella says, patting Alice's shoulder.