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

[lifes_sake]

[Is there any way to interpret that which doesn't make it sound like she wants to meet us?]

[pythbox]

[Yeah, there's the interpretation where she's yanking my chain because she knows something I don't know she knows,] snorts Celo.

[autokinetic]

[Was Jellybean there when you talked to her? Did she notice him?]

[pythbox]

[I am not even slightly interested in going down that road,] says Celo.

[dark_light]

[How are you even alive, Aether, how did this world not drive you to take your own life when you were five,] despairs Amariah.

[subtly_artistic]

[I can still do things! Just not - big things!]

[autokinetic]

[I am giving this world three days to present us a door before I go talk to Callahan, if one of you better-than-me-at-socializing types wants to preempt me you're welcome to it.]

[subtly_artistic]

[No - no, please don't,] exclaims Aether, [that is such a bad idea, please, this is not just your life you're playing with.]

[pythbox]

[Yeah, for fuck's sake, if one of you guys is gonna talk to Callahan don't send the extra cocky one,] says Celo. [Unless you think getting nailed in the face with an axe will tone her down a little.]

[autokinetic]

[I don't know what happened to Jane! This world might've killed Jane and I don't even know! I know we don't usually act like she's my kid but she kind of is, and she might be dead!]

[dark_light]

[I know, I know, but - Celo's right, you are not the best Bell ambassador, not to anyone besides more Bells or Jokers. And putting yourself in possible physical danger is not the best way to keep Jane safe if she's not dead.]

[lifes_sake]

[Yeah. Let's - not do anything nuts, okay, let's find our bearings, and if we're desperate after a few days me or Amariah can go talk to this person.]

[pythbox]

[Thank you,] says Celo. [Fuck. And let me introduce you, okay? If she fucks you up she might let me heal you afterward.]

[lifes_sake]

[Rose says her aura does healing, but the rest of us have never had cause to test that aspect.]

[subtly_artistic]

[Don't trust it. Local healing is pretty good, though. And if anything complicated goes wrong with you that Celo can't handle, Amariah and Aegis at least could borrow my student ID and get into the healing center.]

[pythbox]

[Yeah. Anybody want cookies?] says Celo. [They just came out of the oven.]

[subtly_artistic]

[I could definitely use a cookie.]

[dark_light]

There is general Bell agreement on this point.

They congregate, 75% of them invisible, and have cookies.

[pythbox]

Celo snuggles his one.

Jellybean cuddles his.

[lifes_sake]

Cam hugs Jellybean back, pensive.

[subtly_artistic]

Aether appears to be feeling clingy.

[dark_light]

Amariah and Aegis will be over here, Aegis floating weightlessly and Amariah sitting in the air, eating cookies, missing their own boyfriends.

[pythbox]

Jellybean feeds his invisible boyfriend an invisible cookie.

Celo kisses the top of Aether's head and produces a strawberry tart out of nowhere in particular, which he offers to her.

[lifes_sake]

[So, Celo,] says Cam, just to Celo and Jellybean, [in the interest of distracting myself from being stranded on an unfriendly world, I feel inclined to mention that you are currently the only Joker I have met and not had sex with.]

[pythbox]

[We should fuck!] says Celo, cheerfully. [How much did Aether explain about nymphs, anyway?]

[I didn't hear her say anything about the sex thing,] Jellybean volunteers. [Or the other sex thing, actually. Maybe I forgot.]