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

[alicornucopia]

"I can come pick her up wherever you are," says Ranata. "I don't have a lot of demands on my time, and she's important."

[truthwright]

He shakes his head.

"I don't mean it would be hard to get here, I mean I'd only ever have her to myself for three weeks at a time and that's not okay. Why not one week every other month? And one month every year."

[alicornucopia]

Ranata nibbles her lip. "...For now. If she likes magic, when she gets old enough to do it, she may want more lessons than that, to keep up with the other little witches."

[truthwright]

Kas shrugs. "That'd be up to her."

[alicornucopia]

"All right then," says Ranata. "There's really no good place for a mortal in the enclave, but Charlie's house isn't far, I live there most of the time anyway. Shall we go introduce Helen to her grandpa?"

[truthwright]

"Sure."

[alicornucopia]

Ranata leads the way through the air to the house in Forks where Isabella grew up.

Inside, there are pictures of her everywhere.

Charlie's sitting at the kitchen table with a jigsaw puzzle, and apparently Ranata's already briefed him about Helen, because he says, "This must be Helen."

[truthwright]

"Yep," says Kas.

Helen yawns.

[alicornucopia]

"Lemme have a look at her," says Charlie, holding out his arms, and his wolverine Kesathi sits up attentively at his side.

[truthwright]

Kas hands over the baby.

[alicornucopia]

Charlie rocks her. "Hi there, Helen. I'm your grandpa. But that's a secret. You can just call me Charlie. Your mommy did that too when she thought I couldn't hear her."

[truthwright]

Kas giggles.

[alicornucopia]

Kesathi wants to nuzzle Kalavar. Where is Kalavar?

[truthwright]

Petaal has Kalavar!

[alicornucopia]

Kesathi trots up to them and nuzzles grandbaby-daemon as is right and proper. Kesathi can be fierce and toothy, but right now she just looks like a fuzzy critter.

[truthwright]

Petaal is being a smallish dragon. Kalavar is being a duckling. Kalavar makes excited noises and bops her beak against Kesathi's face.

[alicornucopia]

"Hey little fuzzy one," Kesathi says to Kalavar.

[truthwright]

Kalavar bops Kesathi's face with her beak again.

Petaal giggles.

[alicornucopia]

Charlie chuckles and goes on holding the baby. "Thanks for bringing her by. Will we get to see much of her?"

[truthwright]

"Yeah, once in a while," says Kas. "Grandma wants her with the clan a lot."

[alicornucopia]

"Gonna learn to be all witchy like her mommy," murmurs Charlie. "Just - mind she doesn't get into anything too big?"

"Kas says Isabella's coming back. I told you."

[truthwright]

"Yeah," says Kas.

[alicornucopia]

"It was still too big," says Charlie.

"You're back," Ranata murmurs.

"So," Charlie says, "I can say that."

Everyone thinks the disappearance was related to the afterlife; it's a natural thought.

[truthwright]

A natural thought and a rumour Kas started.

"If Helen wants to do something that impressive, I'm not stopping her," he says with a shrug.

[alicornucopia]

Charlie grits his teeth, and he doesn't tighten his grip on Helen, but he looks like he'd like to. The hackles on the back of his daemon's neck rise a bit.