"It broke me," says Jane petulantly. "Aegis walked in and it just broke me. Worse than the time she torched."

"I've met him. He does. Although someone has installed magical censor bars, so that his religious prohibition and others' propriety can coexist."

Felicity giggles some more.

"He has an interesting aura," adds Elspeth. "Standard aura stuff, plus it sort of perpetually announces that he's a minor deity."

"I think I like this guy."

"I think you'll like all of you when you meet them."

He laughs again.

"In a few days, there's going to be a big interdimensional party," Elspeth says. "I'm not sure yet whether you should be at it. You'd at least catch glimpses of your alts, and maybe they'd talk to you a little - Sue met some others when he was close to your age - but they wouldn't hang out with you extensively, I imagine."

"I'll skip it," says Felicity.

"Okay. There will probably be other chances, assuming Jane remains up. There's a party every time another Bell is found."

"How come Jane's so sure she's staying up and you're so not?"

"I'm not because she's gone down twice. I got stranded in the afterlife, the first time."

"I'm not going anywhere because I have been thoroughly decanted from Aegis and my containing body now sits in the Belltower, collects dust, and encounters no superweapons and no horrible worlds."

Felicity looks thoughtfully at Elsie, for lack of a visible Jane to take a share of his glances, and then shrugs.

"I can't produce definitive truth either way," says Elspeth. "I'm just cautious."

"Yeah," says Felicity.

"There have been strandings both times. At the party, though, there will be Shell Bell, whose aura lets her open doors to Milliways, from which everyone will be able to get home."

"Lucky for whoever goes, I guess."

"Yep."

"And there's also that thing where I'm not going to break and even if I broke I have my new roomie syncing up time for everybody and she can pass messages," grumbles Jane, "so some judicious door-forcing and Jarvising could get everyone home anyway, and also I'm not going to break, I am done breaking."

"The way you keep saying that, I'm expecting you to explode any minute," Felicity informs her.

Elspeth laughs. "I definitely don't think she's going to explode."

He giggles. "You sure?"

"She's software. And heavily warded. It would be extremely difficult to make her explode."

"If you say so."