i might as well be the man on the moon

[truthwright]

Their Isabella having just gone to welcome a new Bell into the peal, Kas and Petaal snuggle up together and take a nap. They'll want to be well rested for the party.

When they wake up, she still isn't back.

[Jane?]

No response.

Kas teleports down to the Janepoint, Petaal wrapped snake-shaped around his shoulders.

The display reads: error 7788: lycanthropy

"...So that's new," he says.

"No shit," says Petaal. "Now what?"

He shrugs. She coils tighter.

"Hang around and wait, I guess."

Comments

[carillons]

"I will just have to hug you instead," says Helen, and she does.

[alicornucopia]

Hug!

[carillons]

"You are huggable like a manatee," says Helen.

[alicornucopia]

"Oh, I'm not sure I'm like a manatee. I think I'm differently huggable," laughs Ranata.

[carillons]

"But you are huggable and they are huggable! And you are out here where I can hug you! You're the best manatee ever," Helen declares.

[alicornucopia]

"I do seem to have a practical advantage, there!"

[carillons]

Beam!

Hug.

[alicornucopia]

Hug.

Here there are frogs. Brightly colored poisonous frogs.

[carillons]

"Ooh, pretty colours," says Helen. Kalavar turns into a dragon with many colours again, but a more rounded froggy sort of dragon.

[alicornucopia]

There are many pretty colors, and the frogs are cute, and tiny.

[carillons]

They are so tiny and cute! Kalavar flaps her colourful wings in glee, clinging to Helen's shoulder with her rounded froggy toes.

[alicornucopia]

"If Kalavar ever becomes something poisonous to touch," Ranata tells them, "she won't hurt you, Helen, but she can still hurt other daemons."

The question of her hurting other people is not mentioned.

[truthwright]

"And animals. And people," says Petaal.

[alicornucopia]

"Well," says Ranata. "Technically, but people wouldn't be touching Kalavar anyway. And if they did, and they didn't stop right away, she can turn into a poison frog and Helen can scream at the top of her lungs. Understand, dear? If anyone ever does that and it's not an accident they correct right away, you be poisonous or spiky or slippery and you get away. That's not ever okay until you are grown up and decide so."

[carillons]

Helen nods.

"Because it's bad," she says.

[alicornucopia]

"That's right. Everybody's daemon belongs to them and nobody else."

[carillons]

Helen hugs her rounded froggy dragon daemon.

[alicornucopia]

Next are water bugs, that skim across the surface of their water.

[carillons]

"Oooooooh," marvels Helen.

[alicornucopia]

Puffins!

These are swimmable-with.

[carillons]

Kalavar swims with the puffins as a magnificently colourful sea serpent with winglike fins.

[alicornucopia]

The puffins are rather friendly!

And now, they have seen everything, from anemones to zebrafish, and the aquarium will close in fifteen minutes.

[carillons]

"That was fun," says Helen, hugging Ranata again. "You're my favourite manatee."

[alicornucopia]

Ranata laughs, and picks her up for a properly snuggly hug. "I'm so glad."

[carillons]

It is snuggly and huggly!

"I love you, favourite manatee!"