"A one Mommy in can't pronounce world do a party for when Jane come back and she get married! My Mommy do the marrying them. And party all in a plant she make. In space."

"...How many of your mother are there?"

"Ummmm." Pen starts counting on her fingers and runs out. "Paper?"

"Which one of these was recently married in a space plant?"

Pen taps "elf one". "Her ones Daddies are in two parts! One tall red one with wings but not angel wings. One a dragon."

"How'd they manage that?"

Shrug. "Magic I guess."

"Sounds like a reasonable explanation."

"Yeah. Lot of magic for can't pronounce world." She toes her shoes off and wades a little into the lake.

And that seems a reasonable childhood activity. Of course, what does Miles know? Come on, Mother... he hopes she's not too busy to check her messages. This isn't exactly an emergency and he didn't advertise it as such, but it's not a situation he's going to be comfortable handling by himself indefinitely.

She doesn't go in far enough to get even her wingtips wet. "There a lot of daddies too. Maybe more if counting the soul animals. Shell Bell has one soul animal and the boy one has one too and also the owl one who had owl first of everything. But some daddies also, and! And when a one Daddy gets one, it can turn shapes."

"Do they not normally turn shapes?"

"Little kid soul animals do, not usually grown ones."

"Are - ones of your father - unusually childish? Or does it not work that way?"

Giggle. "Dunno. My one Daddy not having any soul animal, and Jane broke for most of me being alive, so only met most party people at space plant party one time!"

"Yeah, she pick up thing or person and put it. Places she see. Mommy bracelet have a gem but not me."

"Which has turned out to be awfully inconvenient for you."

"Yeah." She sighs, then says philosophically, "But, Jane break because putting her one Mommy or maybe gems or both I dunno in the bad Jane breaking world. This one not magic, but door not going home dunno how it pick where going!"

"What do you know about how the door works? Maybe we can figure it out."

"Well, for Shell Bell is special. But usually, it eat a regular door. Like, door to room, something - poof, now goes Milliways. Go in, go out back where coming from! Jane do time too and she have part in back yard of bar, but, without Jane do time, time only go if door open. So stay longest while come out still whenever. Shell Bell stayed weeks sometimes when she little to find stuff for bring home. Now she have enchantress aura and can make door eat any door she want, and when going out again can go other place. Home or Downside or anyplace. Jarvises can make door in them whenever wanting to also, if practice."

"Hmm. When it eats a door, does it look and work just the same as the door it ate? If it ate, oh, the door to my house," he waves thereat, "it'd open and close just the same way?"

"Yeah. Some people can make a door be even if not Shell Bell but not Shell Bell people can't every time doing it for sure. Doors like Elspeth but not always. And the door is alike itself."