cheated

[mute_pen]

The castle is livable indefinitely. Etty flies over the space around it, but she's not as fast as the Baron was in his owl form, and she can't fly for very long if she's hungry and can pack nothing if she travels as a swan; she doesn't range farther than she can travel in a half-day, and she doesn't find Astgabels or anyone who knows where it is. (Not many people are willing to talk to a girl in a feather dress from out of nowhere, but a few are.) She flies home to Nona after each failed journey. They feast on what appears on the dining table. They snuggle. They pick through the library. Etty writes her thoughts. They sleep, curled up together in Nona's bed.

One morning they wake up together and are lying there in comfortable silence when Etty scoots up and kisses Nona.

Comments

[mute_pen]

She does like it!

[subtly_artistic]

Bella can't keep this up for long.

She falters; the bounce stops.

[growcrooked]

Nona hugs Etty, then turns to Bella and holds out her arms.

[subtly_artistic]

Bella shakes her head. They are not hugging friends.

[mute_pen]

Etty will take another hug! If Nona wants!

[growcrooked]

Okay!

Hug.

[mute_pen]

Hug.

Then Etty goes and re-reads her notes, and then she carefully tears those pages out of Bella's notebook and offers it back, with the pen.

"It'll be okay," Etty says to Nona.

[growcrooked]

More hug.

[mute_pen]

Plenty of hug.

[subtly_artistic]

This is really cute. Celo gets a picture, too.

[growcrooked]

So much hug!

[pythbox]

Awwwwwwww.

[subtly_artistic]

Bella goes back into the bar to ask someone relatively unoccupied for more information about how this place works. She comes back armed with the results, shares with the group, and budgets a few more hours to stay and talk to Etty before it'll be ruinous to her sleep schedule - the holiday will be over soon and Celo will thereafter be in violation of Milliways rules, anyway. Any of them may find a door again in the future, so it's not necessarily goodbye forever; even if they aren't there at the same time they'll be able to leave notes at the bar.

[mute_pen]

Etty and Nona have clothes and no pressing obligations at home, but Etty thinks she'll probably leave when Bella does.

[pythbox]

Celo thinks that if there's going to be rules about him not being naked in a little while, he's going to make the best of the time he's got. He goes back inside.

[mute_pen]

Etty and Bella start writing down things about each other to take home. They fill most of the notebook in the hours left of the bar holiday, and then they hug each other, and they head for the door.

Etty leaves first.

[growcrooked]

Nona finds Celo to say goodbye to him, and then she leaves too.

[pythbox]

Which leaves Celo standing by the doorway with Bella.

"Guess we should head out too, huh?" he says.

"Guess you should," agrees a voice from behind them.

[subtly_artistic]

...Bella looks over her shoulder.

[pythbox]

Coach Callahan grins.

Celo rolls his eyes.

[subtly_artistic]

"What is going on?"

[pythbox]

"Meet anybody interesting?" inquires the coach.

[subtly_artistic]

"Besides you?"

(One of the things Bella learned about the bar is that it is very safe. To a first approximation, you don't get in here if you're going to be violent to other patrons. To a second approximation, there is very good security.)

[pythbox]

"I'm a sweet, harmless little girl and don't let anybody tell you different," says Callahan.

Celo snickers.

[subtly_artistic]

Bella will be busy restraining the urge to unethically mind-read Callahan over here.