who will be coming?

[small_magics]

Aianon has made a plant in the open airless space above the surface of Thilanushinyel. It is a very, very large plant - some dragons will be attending the party, after all, even if Ansharil in particular is going to be assorted small things and stay on Sarion's person the bulk of the time.

The locals will be Sarion, her beloveds, their other beloved, the five conjured dragons (and their Bondmates, where applicable: Virgivere and Lissa), and Liselen - Magania has, as usual, declined, and so far no Bell party has featured Bell parents.

Amariah is bringing her boyfriend and spontaneous daughter and two of the spontaneous daughter's friends, as well as an Alethian instance of the Rupert template.

Shell Bell is bringing Pearl and Screwdriver.

Golden is bringing her usual large contingent, as usual not including her husband but including her daughter and daughter's grown fosterling (the other remaining at home) and his wolf, both mothers-in-law and one father-in-law, adopted siblings, staff members including the Joker and Nathan, and the children of the aforementioned.

Glass is bringing both wives, all three daughters, Kanim, and her cat. She invited Icarin and Valeria, but their parents are not willing to let them gallivant into other worlds unsupervised and had a scheduling conflict.

Stella's bringing a smattering of people including Alice, Anna, Sandy, Libby, Bridget, her college roommate Janine, and Lazarus.

Tab is bringing Aelise (but not Kers) and Luhan.

Etty is bringing only Nona.

Aether, likewise, brings no one but Celo.

Pattern comes with Ripper, Slipstick, Queenie, and Ghosty.

Aegis is accompanied by her four-bodied boyfriend, Merryweather, Whitlock, and Howlett.

Aurora comes with Brilliance, Lexi with her Device Persica, Agent Honey with her Device Adularia, and Beth.

Rose brings her husband and three children and her former apprentice, Luc.

Angela brings her husband, her four children, several of her friends, and some of those friends' children and grandchildren with and without wings. Keziah also brings a friend.

Juliet shows up with Soph, Minus, Red, Giles, James, Virginia, Minnie, Ike, and Val.

Cam brings Jellybean and Tilly and stops there.

And from unBelled worlds hail additional Sherlocks and Tonies, Darcy, Matilda, Pepper, and Eights.

Comments

[growcrooked]

"If I'd just met you today and you wanted to have sex with me I'd say no," she says. "But I didn't. I know you and I love you. It's a different thing."

[mute_pen]

Snuggle. "I guess Cam isn't enough like me to count but the Jokers are enough like you to count?"

[growcrooked]

"To be enough like you to count for what you count for he'd have to be you. Jokers are enough like me to count for something else. I understand them, and they understand me, and we all know how to make each other feel good and not hurt each other except in ways we like. And if there's anything going on that someone might not notice we can just pass it through War. So fucking them is just... not even a little bit scary, in a way I didn't even know could happen until I got used to them, and even then I didn't really notice until Jellybean said Cam wanted to fuck me and I thought about whether or not I wanted to."

[mute_pen]

Didn't even know could happen.



"Am I scary?"

[growcrooked]

...Nona sighs. "Words are hard. You're not scary. Having sex with you is a little bit scary, because I already know I can hurt you by accident and I think you could probably hurt me by accident too. But it's okay, because I love you, and we try not to hurt each other, and if we did we could just stop. It's not worth it just to have fun with somebody like Cam when I could wait until I feel better about things instead, but it's worth it with you."

[mute_pen]

"Okay." Snuggle. "I'm not dying for you to go have sex with Cam, it just - didn't make immediate sense. Can I help you feel better about things?"

[growcrooked]

Nona giggles and cuddles up. "I think I just need to wait and get used to knowing more than three people at a time," she says.

[mute_pen]

"Have you met anybody at the party besides the other Jokers, so far?"

[growcrooked]

"Not really. Not to have long conversations with. It's nice, though, just being here and knowing there are all those people around having fun."

[mute_pen]

"I've mostly just been talking to other Bells. Apparently I'm proof that we come in states intermediate between 'broken' and 'not broken'."

[growcrooked]

Snuggle. "Did no one else do that before?"

[mute_pen]

"Not really. There were times when most of them had bad things happen, but they didn't impede their functionality. Golden was broken for a few years but didn't have much in the way of residual effects when she unbroke. Shell Bell - well, Shell - was broken and patched it with her merge. Sarion was broken and the others put her in a position to heal. I don't need anything specific and dramatic to happen to me before I'll be able to do anything, but I'm not up and running like it was minor either."

[growcrooked]

"Can I help you feel better? Any ways I'm not already doing?"

[mute_pen]

Etty shakes her head. "Nothing specific and dramatic. Just - like you have been."

[growcrooked]

"Okay."

Snuggle. Snuggles are a thing she has been!

[mute_pen]

Snuggles! They are!