in which the narration is suggestive, yet vague

[subtly_artistic]

Neckrubs become a more regular part of Bella's life. And she does not tell him to stop until she is good and done. There is hugging. There is snuggling. There is kissing. There are some impressively sappy looks from his end, some fascinated mindreading from hers. The semester wraps up, Bella goes home for a week, and she comes back (now signed up for Utility Psionics 2, Intro to Mental Healing, Arcane Defense, Intro Cognition, and her survival credit, a lecture entitled "Wilderness Triage" (subtitled: Quick And Dirty Mechanisms For Identifying The Lesser Of Several Evils).

She missed Celo! She seeks him out at once. Hugs.

Comments

[dark_light]

[I'll take a spot too - what's a good welcoming committee size? Three, four?]

[withmypowers]

[I'm not in,] says Tilly, to Cam and Jellybean. [You guys have fun.]

[autokinetic]

[I'll come though.]

[lifes_sake]

[Me, Jellybean, Amariah, Aegis - has new Bell got a Joker?]

[mind_game]

"Hey new Bell," Jane says, interrupting Bella's read of the Bellbook. "Have you by any chance got a boyfriend who looks like so?" And a series of images of Jokers appears.

[subtly_artistic]

"...Yes. He can't come in here, though."

[mind_game]

"Oh, no worries, a welcoming committee of three of you and one of him is gonna come to you," says Jane brightly.

[subtly_artistic]

"...Awesome."

[mind_game]

"There's more of both of you than that, but they don't want to overwhelm you right away."

[subtly_artistic]

"Can they come home with me? I feel bad about Celo not being able to come here when there are apparently," she gestures at the book, "interesting people to meet."

[mind_game]

"Sure, we can skip to that," says Jane cheerfully.

[Everybody ready?]

[pythbox]

[Sure thing! I wanna meet her Joker,] says Jellybean.

[mind_game]

Yoinking, one two three four!

[autokinetic]

"Hi!" grins Aegis. "Us three are Bells like you. That's a Joker. Me and Amariah have ones of our own at home too but they're not joining us today. Why can't yours come here?"

[subtly_artistic]

"He's a nymph, he'd get busted by Security," says Bella, putting down the partially-read Bellbook. "Nymphs don't wear clothes - is that going to be okay? My door leads to his dorm room, and he's in it."

[dark_light]

Amariah glances around at the Bells chosen for this landing party. "This is probably the best-chosen set of three Bells for not caring about a Joker being naked. Maybe Rose or Sarion, but I don't know how they generalize beyond their respective ones. Lead the way. I'm Amariah, my entry's one of the first so you know about me; that's Cam, he's the boy one; that's Aegis, she's Jane's mom; that's Jellybean, he's Cam's Joker."

[pythbox]

Jellybean gives Cam a demonstrative hug and Aether a friendly wave.

[subtly_artistic]

"And you're all okay to come through my door? I don't know when I'll get another."

[autokinetic]

"Oh, Jane does interdimensional travel!" says Aegis proudly. "We can pop in and out whenever."

[subtly_artistic]

"...Okay, great, let's go then," laughs Un-Nicknamed Bella.

She leads her alts and Jellybean to the door, opens it, leads them all through.

[pythbox]

"Hi, everybody!" says Celo from his blanket nest.

"You are super hot," says Jellybean.

"I know, right?" giggles Celo. "I love that skirt, did you make it yourself?"

Jellybean twirls. "You betcha!"

[lifes_sake]

"Did we somehow manage to not be the first alts you guys met?"

[subtly_artistic]

"Last semester Celo found the bar - it was on holiday, he was allowed to be naked - and we met Etty and Nona," says Bella, shutting the door. "Do you know them?"

[dark_light]

"Nope, not yet. You didn't go up to the bar, or was this due to time-screw-uppedness before the founding of the Belltower?"

[subtly_artistic]

"I went up to the bar. I guess you hadn't been there - 'yet'," shrugs Bella.