Cam hunts for the time signature bug.

The Doom classifier can find a difference between Noldor in Endorë a few seconds before and a few seconds after the Valar were destroyed, and it seems impossible it's an emotional one, though he checks they weren't all around Huan or something.  He texts everybody who might be interested the news.

Cool, we can blame a lot of the stupid on that.

Not exactly cool but I guess better than innate stupidity. Also, if the Valar did mind-altering magic to hundreds of thousands of people who were going off to fight Melkor, intended it also to apply to their descendants - 'good riddance' is a bit callous but -

Yeah I want to bring back the Maiar but the Valar kind of not so much. Doom and also the summoning interdict, I don't have another way handy to get the humans and Dwarves immortal.

I do wish we could figure out how a summoning interdict is pulled off, in case we want a time-out dimension where it's prohibited. Maybe if there's an evil me there are, somewhere, nice Valar. Ours are at least a lot better than theirs.

Yeah, it'd be good to be able to replicate for that purpose. Nice magic Valar would be so handy!

I am pretty sure hoping for things just gives the landlords a chance to fuck with us, honestly. But yeah.

I'm not sure how to quit hoping for things.

I wanted to meet more alts and I got the evil one. Maybe just hope carefully.

I can probably do that.

And a while later, someone comes down to get dinner for two.

Lentils and flatbread and fritter things and mango frozen yogurt!

Cam looks up to see who it is but doesn't say anything.

"Thanks," he says to the bar, and then sits there for a moment, looking at the dinner.

You're entirely welcome.

And he looks around and then turns around and walks upstairs with dinner.

Findekáno got dinner. Exchanged no words with me.

He pulls up the most recent transcript.

Lots of chemistry, some computers, some reminiscing about some political problem back in their home world, then -

"I want you to go get dinner."

"Yes, my lord."

"Are you scared they'll try something or scared of them generally or nervous about the oaths I'm going to ask for -"

"All of those, I think."

"Speak freely -"

"Under my current oaths I could go down there and go ask about the oath-clearing you said they said they might have, stay down there. Or get another room. I don't think I'd be happier but on some level I feel like I should do it anyway, as a matter of principle. Or if I'm not doing it it should be because I've reasoned it out and decided this is the path that accomplishes my goals, rather than just - habit and terror and feelings about you I can't work through because they'll be more useful to you than to me - not that you're going to let me go down there, held this lightly, but I'd like to have a sense of what I'd do if you did - and I'm remembering trying to work under 'exactly what I think you'd want' and it was awful and it seems like you might enjoy that and I am debating whether to refuse if you ask me to swear that and I'm wondering who'll be downstairs and when exactly I developed this cringing terror of people, I don't like it, I want rid of it. I think I'm mostly terrified you'll want me to go down there and swear something, that'd - please don't do that, I'll be good - but I think I'm frightened around people even outside that -"

"People in general or specifically these ones, you do have some reason -"

"Want the full story. On the destroying Valinor. Want to know if it was quick, want to know if - what's going on now, want to know if there was anyone to sing for them - I'm not scared he'll hurt me, I'm not you but I spent a while with him and he's sensible and he didn't want to at all. Want to know if he's okay. He said his Maitimo was okay but of course he said that."

"Come here." Pause. "Swear you'll behave as if you'd resolved these internal confusions in favor of staying, until you next are alone in my presence."

He echoes it. 

"Speak freely -"

"That's significantly lighter, lets me discuss the considerations with someone if I frame it slightly differently, lets me tell them what oaths I'm under and entertain kidnapping attempts as long as I make it clear I've decided what I want. You're not expecting them to be very difficult - or are you checking whether I'll take openings when I give them - stricter is less stressful, sometimes, at least it's not a game and I don't feel as if I'm being prodded to be interesting. I'm really not looking forward to when you next get angry with me."

"I don't mind if you take a while to come back," he says. "I don't think they'll kidnap you and I don't think there's a set of oaths that protects against that except by damaging you if they try."

"Crossed my mind. Thank you for not -"

"'Please don't do that', you said, 'I'll be good.' Don't behave in a way that makes me regret being this conservative with your wellbeing."

"I'll come back to you."

"I know. Go get us dinner."

He went back up? he asks Cam.

Yeah, why?

Not sure. Did you read this afternoon's transcripts -

I'll catch up. He does that. I don't know how to predict what that oath would do - if it would have been too unlikely for him to resolve the dilemmas that way without having also decided not to talk to me -

Yeah, makes sense. 

Bright side: he can apparently refuse oaths! And is presumably tortured for this, but it's better than being under one that obliges him to say any others...