Milliways Again

[her_imperial_radiance]

It lurks. Oh how it lurks.

Comments

[her_imperial_radiance]

"Well," says Elspeth, "I'll see you around. I can send this far from anywhere in the main part of the capital and I'll let you know if I find Milliways again. It's most likely to be me; if it's someone else Dwi will tell you - or someone who can tell you in person if he doesn't work on you like Mama. You'll probably get a note within an hour or two about a formal meeting time for tomorrow when there's more flexibility in the schedule, to talk about trade and stuff. Bye!"

She and Jake go back down into the tunnel.

"You want the blue house, the green house, or the white house?" Elena asks.

[prima_sequentem]

"I like blue," says Libby. "Blue's nice."

[her_imperial_radiance]

"Blue house it is. Follow me," Elena says. "HEY GUYS!" she shouts as they meander through the village. "We got human visitors! Their names are Libby and Bella! They're from the princess's funky alternate universe bar thing!"

Heads poke out some of the windows. There are waves.

[self_composed]

Bella waves back, finding the whole thing terribly charming.

[prima_sequentem]

Likewise Libby! Elspeth's entire universe is kind of cute, apparently.

[her_imperial_radiance]

A door bursts open. Someone trips throwing himself out of it, then quickly rolls over and stands up and makes it down the porch steps to approach rather near Libby and stop there and stare at her.

"Hi," he says.

"...Orfeo," says Elena. "Orfeo. She's not even from here!"

[prima_sequentem]

"...Hi."

She laughs. She can't help it. One, the coincidence is hilarious, and two, all of a sudden she is in an inexplicably great mood. Does this guy have a witch power? That is an awesome witch power. It's like the universe is giving her a hug.

[her_imperial_radiance]

"I'm Orfeo," he says, grinning at her. "I guess you're Libby? It's really nice to meet you, Libby." If he had a tail right now, boy would it ever be a-wag.

"Orfeo, she's not from here," hisses Elena. "She doesn't live here."

[prima_sequentem]

"It is very nice to meet you too, Orfeo. In fact I suspect it's magically nice."

[her_imperial_radiance]

"Yeah. I'm not an especially useful witch but I'm kinda a witch," Orfeo says, ignoring Elena.

"Orfeo, if you try to go with her, you won't have a pack," sniffles Elena. "You can't do that, that's not how we work. Quitting takes years to get all the way done. What are you going to do?"

Orfeo looks up at Elena briefly. "Bring you?" he asks hopefully.

[prima_sequentem]

"Thih seems to be a logistical problem," says Libby. "And it's a problem I'd rather solve indoors."

[her_imperial_radiance]

"...Blue guest house is this way," says Elena, and she leads the group off through a silent final minute or so of walk.

The blue house is blue. It's a cute little bungalow sort of a thing, and not locked; Elena holds the door for everyone.

[prima_sequentem]

Libby spends the walk smiling at Orfeo, and when they reach the house, she steps inside and finds somewhere to sit.

[her_imperial_radiance]

There are chairs, and couches; Orfeo is faster than her and picks half a love seat, not expectantly, just in case. Elena throws herself into an armchair exasperatedly.

[self_composed]

Bella, not involved much in these proceedings, decides to scope out the kitchen.

[prima_sequentem]

Libby takes the middle of a different couch.

"So," she says. "There was a pamphlet, but it didn't go into the kind of detail I'd like. Does someone want to explain the situation?"

[her_imperial_radiance]

"Orfeo imprinted on you," says Elena wearily. "I keep telling Jake to tell Her Majesty to put imprintable guests somewhere else, that it's not sufficient leeway that people can just change packs if they don't want to be mixing with imprintable people, but no one listens to me. And Orfeo looked out the window, and, well. He's like Elspeth except with how he feels about people instead of facts. So you can tell what that did. And wolves are not meant to be all by themselves, so unless you want to move here, or someone - realistically me - can come back with you to wherever you're from, Orfeo's choices are feeling like he's got a few big holes in him or feeling like he's been put through a shredder."

[prima_sequentem]

"I don't plan on moving here," she says. "I have a lot of friends and it would be impractical to bring them all. How would you feel about coming back with me?"

[her_imperial_radiance]

Elena digs the heel of her hand into her eye. "Well," she says witheringly. "If you make me decide between sending my brother to another world packless - packlessness having driven the occasional determined lone wolf to suicide - and staying home, obviously my friends, and our parents, and our half-sisters, and my job, and so on, cannot begin to rate."

"Elena," says Orfeo soothingly. "It wouldn't be that bad. No one else who's gone lone had an imprint, that's got to change things."

[prima_sequentem]

"It's also possible that this is the sort of problem that could be fixed by throwing sufficient magic at it," she says thoughtfully. "Most problems can, in my world. But you'd have to apply to my empress for that; I don't have the resources. And I don't know that it would help, it just seems likely."

[her_imperial_radiance]

Elena frowns at her knees. "Imprint bonds are immune to magic. The problems with packlessness might not be. I don't know what kind of magic you or your empress have to throw around."

[prima_sequentem]

"Short version: Some people from our world can generate coins that grant wishes. Coins come in power levels from 'get that stain out of the carpet' to 'terraform Mars'. Bella has a hundred or so of the most powerful kind and can easily get more; I've got one."

[her_imperial_radiance]

"Good for Bella. This the kind of thing she's likely to spend time on?"

"I'm sure I'll be fine either way," says Orfeo.

[prima_sequentem]

"If I ask nicely, then yes."

[her_imperial_radiance]

"Okay. That's good. But unless she can do it now, or, you know, before you go home, I still have to come along at first. Packlessness is not a joke."