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

[she_sells_seashells]

"Oh, well."

[keyed_up]

"My Bella's from a whole dynasty of semilegendary figures," snorts Soph.

[pythbox]

"Oh?" says Sherial. "How's that?"

[keyed_up]

"Oh, she's the Slayer - well, was the Slayer, now James is the Slayer. It's this thing in our world where she's supposed to... slay... things. Demons and vampires."

[pythbox]

"You have demons? What are your demons like? Ours are all either dead and evil or Aianon," says Tianthonet. "I've never met one, even the one who's not evil or dead."

[keyed_up]

"We have more kinds from more places. And some of them are pretty nice, just not most of them. Bella - Juliet I mean - has some of them being her gardener-minions, she accidentally inherited them. Minus and Plus are both our kind of vampire but Plus is from a different world that's only like ours."

[pythbox]

"Does she have a lot of gardens, or something, that she needs minions for?" wonders Tianthonet.

[keyed_up]

"Nah, she got the minions, and then made the gardens to keep them busy. She was going to make them self-containing originally."

[pythbox]

"...In that case I have to wonder how and why she acquired the minions," says Sherial.

[keyed_up]

"Well, they like to be minions, and the last person they were minioning for was bad news and Bella had to slay her. Or rather send her Downside for the admin to put in stasis or something? But basically slay her, and then she found the minions and they were like 'so do you want some minions'."

[pythbox]

"...Your world is bizarre," Sherial concludes.

[keyed_up]

"Yeah, Glass says it and the worlds like it are really really mean."

[pythbox]

"And yet, minions," says Sherial.

[keyed_up]

"What d'you mean, and yet?"

[pythbox]

"It's not historically been common for the losing side's loyal followers to spontaneously convert on the death of their leader, around here."

[keyed_up]

"Oh. Yeah, that was kinda weird. Bella kept offering to set them up an independent colony but it turns out they have to have someone to be minions of to have baby minions."

[pythbox]

"Ah," says Sherial. "And now it makes sense."

[keyed_up]

"So there are going to be ugly-cute wrinkly babies soon!"

[pythbox]

Sherial snorts.

"I've never even seen a baby," says Tianthonet. "Of any species."

[she_sells_seashells]

"Weren't you and the other conjured dragons babies at the same time? Do you just not remember it?"

[pythbox]

Tianthonet shakes her head. It's an odd gesture on a dragon, but recognizable.

[keyed_up]

"There are some little kids here but not baby little."

[she_sells_seashells]

"I think Hyacinthe is the youngest. Peninnah's next and she's like eight."

[pythbox]

"...Are human children a lot smaller than humans?" says Tianthonet, looking down at her feet as though she is afraid a small child could have snuck under one without her noticing, although she stops short of actually picking them up to check.

[keyed_up]

"They start yea big," says Soph, gesturing. "They're about full size by the time they're in their mid-teens."