(retroactive)

[her_imperial_radiance]

It is after the very first Bellparty.

"Dad never comes to these," Elspeth tells her grandma. "Too many strange Bells. If there were strange Edwards, Mama might have trouble with them too, but there aren't so far. But I can reintroduce you now, if you'd like."

Comments

[alicornucopia]

"Yes. She was just - incandescently furious."

[prima_sequentem]

Personally, she doesn't run to the incandescent. She is very room-temperature about it. But Chelsea is an intolerable threat and needs to be erased as thoroughly as possible. So it's nice that Bella took care of that for her. She is a good empress and can have a cookie.

[alicornucopia]

"She doesn't eat cookies, anymore," Edward says, smiling slightly.

[prima_sequentem]

"A metaphorical cookie. A bronze cookie on a plaque to hang on her wall."

[alicornucopia]

Edward glances at the wall. "I don't think it would improve the decor, much. Perhaps she'd disagree."

[prima_sequentem]

"Hmm, not sure what I'm hoping for there. If she did, I'd have to find a bronze cookie."

[alicornucopia]

"If she wished to hang a bronze cookie from the wall I'm sure she'd conjure one."

[prima_sequentem]

"In that case, we should definitely suggest it."

[alicornucopia]

He laughs. "When she's through with the mess around the people Elspeth already somewhat resurrected, I expect she'll come here and we will be able to do so."

[prima_sequentem]

"Who gets the job of explaining what it's for?"

[alicornucopia]

"It was your idea," he says mildly.

[prima_sequentem]

She laughs. "Fair enough."

[alicornucopia]

"Do you want the rest of the history lesson, while we're waiting for her?" Edward asks. "The twentieth century, the eventful few years after Bella appeared on the scene, the fledgeling empire."

[prima_sequentem]

"Go for it."

[alicornucopia]

Edward proceeds with a summary. He pauses to go into more detail whenever she wonders about something, steering between "global historical summary" and "the story of his life" depending on what interests her; let it never be said that mindreading is not convenient.

[prima_sequentem]

It's so convenient!

She wants the story of his life, mostly; global history is useful context.

[luminous_regnant]

It's been a few hours of guided summary when Bella slips into the room. She doesn't interrupt, just goes up to Edward and slips her hand into his.

[prima_sequentem]

Awwww. She smiles at them.

[luminous_regnant]

Edward brings his recitation up to the present day. And then he kisses his wife, and says, "Sasha and so on?"

"Appropriately rearranged, and the hosts returned to their original states, and Elspeth is talking to them now."

[prima_sequentem]

"Good empress. Have a bronzed cookie."

[luminous_regnant]

"A bronzed cookie?"

[prima_sequentem]

"You wouldn't get much use out of the edible kind," she says reasonably.

[luminous_regnant]

"Is there some use to the bronze kind which is unclear to me?"

[prima_sequentem]

"You can hang it on the wall on a little plaque and then look at it and bask in the memory of my approval."

[luminous_regnant]

"I believe I will find your approval sufficiently memorable absent the cookie. Are you approving of me for anything in particular?"