where have you gone?

[small_magics]

Isibel likes being able to ask at any time that a mirror of herself, from another world but with the same soul, visit her and speak with her. She doesn't do it too often, not even every day, but it is soothing to have the other Bells behind her on the long and arduous project of figuring herself out again so that she can do as Bells are meant to do.

She asks Jane to send her whoever is taking their turn, one day, and Jane does not respond.

She broadcasts this information, and her alarm, to her beloveds.

Comments

[small_magics]

...Isibel does not see much reason to prefer the long way around.

[endragoned]

So he kisses the top of her head and hugs her and sends his magic through her body to learn of its functions.

[small_magics]

It has some! She is a physically healthy adult elf.

[endragoned]

And now he knows - not in words, not in a way made for explaining, but in a way made for doing - what sorts of things are good for it in a new context.

He shares this knowledge with Isibel. It's her body, after all.

[small_magics]

Isibel squirms some more and collects all the information. For reference.

One of the things that she could probably have predicted all by herself is that she will like it if she kisses her beloved. So she does.

[endragoned]

Her beloved kisses back. In a way she will like. And he is careful of his fangs.

[small_magics]

Isibel melts into him. She does indeed like.

Liselen will even still be able to visit.

[endragoned]

Although perhaps Isibel should not go among unmodified unicorns in the future. Even if they stopped right now - well. It's a matter of knowledge as much as anything.

[small_magics]

Isibel will be considerate of unicorn neighbors.

Later. When she is thinking about them again. She has stopped for the time being; she is thinking about her beloved instead.

[endragoned]

And her beloved is thinking about her, and he is thinking that he wants to do more things that she will like. Many more.

[small_magics]

Tautologically enough, Isibel would like that.

[endragoned]

Good!

In that case, they should do some of those. Right now.

[small_magics]

Now seems like an excellent time.

[endragoned]

And they have this lovely new village to go and be at home in, where they are very unlikely to be interrupted in the pursuit of liking each other.

[small_magics]

It would indeed be very surprising if they were interrupted.

And indeed,

they are not.

[endragoned]

They are not interrupted for a long time.

In fact, they are not interrupted until the demon discovers that he is tired, and should sleep soon. Which would make it... ah. A sennight and a half.

[small_magics]

Isibel doesn't have to sleep! It is a standard feature of once-pealed Bells that they do not have to sleep.

[endragoned]

Her demon is aware that she doesn't have to sleep. If she did, they would have paused somewhat earlier.

He decides that not needing to sleep is a fine idea, and gives himself the same power.

[small_magics]

Over the course of the next sennight, during which occasional - well, they could be called "breaks", but are more like "variations" - are spent enchanting, Sarion develops an aura.

It makes her elfier. If elves are ethereal and oddly perfect when observed by humans, she will now be ethereal and oddly perfect when observed by elves and something else entirely to others. (If there were anyone but her beloved here in her hidey-village to see her.)

And when she enchants, she notices her aura drawing itself around her mindscape - no longer a void of darkness, but full of motes of light - protectively, defensively. She can still send to her beloveds and they can still send to her. But if this aura had had the decency to bestow itself upon her earlier - it could have saved them all a lot of heartache.

[endragoned]

Her beloved cries a little when he learns of it.

[small_magics]

"Oh my love," she murmurs. "I'm all right now."

[endragoned]

"I know you are," he says, hugging her. "I'm glad. I love you."

[small_magics]

"I love you too."