friendly door

[her_imperial_radiance]

Elspeth gets a door.

It's been so long she reels for a moment, and then she throws herself forward and almost lands in a peal of Bells. Yes, there's Shell Bell, there's Juliet and Aurora, there's Glass, there's some Matilda she hasn't seen before.

"Elspeth!" exclaims Glass.

"How long has it been?" Aurora asks.

"Seventeen years. Shell Bell - I need you to help me find Harley," says Elspeth.

Comments

[cross_and_bow]

"We ready to leave?" Juliet asks everyone.

[pythbox]

Harley pets his nameless poof.

Corona says, "Sure! Hell if I'm going back where I came from, though." To Elspeth, he says, "You're not either, right? Can I come wherever you're going?"

[her_imperial_radiance]

Elspeth is deprogramming Corona again. "I'm going back to Aurum. I think my door-friendliness is back to normal, so even if Mama turns out not to want arbitrary numbers of Jokers in her world it should be relatively straightforward to send you to Origin instead."

[pythbox]

"Okay," says Corona. "Count me in, then." He gives Brilliance a goodbye kiss.

[thaumobabble]

"Jarvis, if you would?"

[poeticterms]

"Of course."

He opens a door to Milliways.

[thaumobabble]

Through go Bells and Jokers and Elspeth.

[her_imperial_radiance]

Elspeth opens the door once it has closed, and lo, it is Aurum.

Before she goes through, she looks over her shoulder at Glass.

"Is that attractor done with Harley yet?" she asks softly.

[thaumobabble]

"...Yeah," says Glass, after a long stare. "He's not - safe exactly, but it's not pulling on him, any more."

[her_imperial_radiance]

"Thank you."

Elspeth holds the door for Corona, then follows, carrying Harley.

[pythbox]

"Bye, everybody!" says Corona. "Thanks for raising me from the dead!"

And the door closes behind them.

[incanted]

[Agent Honey, you still lurking in here?]

[withmypowers]

[Yep! Why, did you need me for something?]

[incanted]

[Nope, we're just going back to Gift if you want to come.]

[withmypowers]

[No, thank you.]

[incanted]

[Okay.]

"Agent Honey's staying here. Brilliance, you following us or going to Rainbow or hanging out in the bar or what?"

[cardistry]

"Back to Rainbow, I think," he decides. And gives Aurora a hug and a kiss. "See you later. Grab me if you find more Jokers."

[incanted]

"Will do," laughs Aurora.

[giftedandtalented]

When Brilliance has gone, Tab opens the door, and they're back in Aelise's office. Her aura's out, bright as the other unflavored sorts, but she comes up short when she gets within a few feet of Aelise's desk. "Uh, Aelise, I automatically slurp up books I get near enough now and I don't know if it works on computers. Do you want me to stand back from yours or am I cleared?"

[salus_populi]

"Go right ahead," she says, with an inviting gesture.

[giftedandtalented]

Tab waves her hand over the computer. "Does slurp, doesn't decrypt," she laughs.

[salus_populi]

She smiles. "Well, that doesn't sound very useful."

[luminous_regnant]

"A square, maybe a pentagon, will probably do decryption, and that's before Jane's back online," says Golden, glancing at Tab's new bracelet.

[salus_populi]

Aelise raises her eyebrows slightly.

[prima_sequentem]

"Should I explain Jane?" wonders Lizzie.