Milliways Again

[her_imperial_radiance]

It lurks. Oh how it lurks.

Comments

[self_composed]

"We could probably fix a lot of your problems," Bella agrees. "But not right now, because we don't have any of our serious magic on us."

Bella wonders if it would be safe to turn Alice into a vampire. The idea that it might not appeal to him barely crosses her mind. It hurts like hell, and it's a thing. Besides, any unwelcome side effects can be patched with wishing. He'll probably love the idea.

[her_imperial_radiance]

"Well," says the Empress Regnant In This Section Of Multiverse. "That would be very kind of you. Have we got anything you'd like?"

[self_composed]

"Nothing that would be tricky for you to offer us," Bella says. "2030 technology - I'm doing a lot of stuff for my Martians with magic, but I don't want to be a bottleneck. Interesting magic for my friend Lazarus to study. If you've got a Lazarus or an equivalent the same can go the other way. Maybe some interesting media is going to come out in the next 25 years - I'd feel rude scooping anybody, but I wouldn't mind sneak previews, and I'm not averse to throwing around some magic for frivolous reasons. I might want someone turned into a vampire," she adds offhand. "Without your anesthetist, though, he's like that."

[prima_sequentem]

(Oh, Alice.)

"Lazarus would definitely like it here," says Libby. "And he is nice and fluffy and harmless and could probably help you study any magic you feel like studying."

[her_imperial_radiance]

"Do tell," says a vampire just entering the room. She is, tastelessly enough, wearing a PETA T-shirt even though her gold eyes indicate a very animalian diet. "And about these 'ingots' - I'm very curious - probably that Bella's no more transferable than this one even if ingots in general are, but what about you, are you an 'ingot'?" she asks Libby.

"Libby, Bella," says Resident Bella, "Addy, the Imperial Factotum."

[self_composed]

"...She does everything?"

[her_imperial_radiance]

"She can copy witches' powers by touching them. Except me. I don't like her enough to let her through the way I can sometimes with Elspeth and Edward," says the golden one, smiling thin-lipped.

[prima_sequentem]

"I am not an ingot," says Libby. "Lazarus is, though. He... I'll go with 'sees'... he sees magic."

[her_imperial_radiance]

"Interesting," hums Addy. "So interesting. And he'd be willing to visit? I would really like that. And... it's worth a try... after all, Elspeth works on you and you're still human... shake hands, Bella?" the Factotum says, approaching with a bright smile.

She gets her handshake. Her face falls.

[prima_sequentem]

"He would be willing to visit," says Libby. "Are you enthusiastic about magic? You could be enthusiastic about magic together."

[her_imperial_radiance]

"I am extremely enthusiastic about magic," Addy says.

"Understatement," mutters Elspeth.

[prima_sequentem]

"Definitely bringing Lazarus next time," says Libby.

[self_composed]

"Sounds like a good idea to me," Bella agrees. "Is there any known way to summon Milliways or does it just appear at apparent random?"

[prima_sequentem]

"There are people known to be able to summon Milliways," says Libby. "I'm not one of them."

[self_composed]

"Who can?"

[her_imperial_radiance]

"Nobody here, that I know of," Elspeth says, "but I met a lady who I think might have been a version of Addy in there once who said she could. And I think if she couldn't she would have just lived there all the time."

[prima_sequentem]

"I've met a few people who can," says Libby. "Or at least, they said so and I had no reason to disbelieve them. Nobody we know, though."

[self_composed]

"I don't suppose any of these people described developing this ability?"

[her_imperial_radiance]

"The Addy I met said she spent a while pleading first, but she did this the first time she ever found the bar, so she doesn't know if that had anything to do with it," Elspeth said.

[prima_sequentem]

"One of mine claimed it all started when she stole a salt shaker," Libby recalls. "And that she carries said shaker around as a good luck charm. The other two were less inclined to theorize."

[self_composed]

"How much would the bar be likely to mind if I stole a saltshaker?" Bella asks thoughtfully.

[her_imperial_radiance]

"I wouldn't do it," Elspeth says. "But that's less about me having expectations that she'd mind and more about stealing not being nice and the bar being nice."

[prima_sequentem]

"I've never tried. The petty thief in question didn't mention anything either way. At a guess, though, I'd say she wouldn't care much."

[self_composed]

"You are very well brought-up," Bella tells Elspeth, sounding self-congratulatory.

[her_imperial_radiance]

Her counterpart snorts. Elspeth smiles.