"These things normally go on for multiple rounds. Four is common."

"I don't think I approve of this component of the justice system."

Shrug. "It's not ideal, but it's convenient for me at the moment. Something to deal with later."

"Mmm." Shrug. "Dinner?"

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeee! "I love you."

Food. ...Annie is going to sell a lot of bicycles to humans and make her own money so she doesn't feel weird about eating so much imported surface food, but she's so sick of cave meat and mushrooms so she's taking an advance on her bicycle profits. "...I can think of a rune that means 'light'. Does it not work for growing plants underground?"

"...I conclude that it doesn't because nearly all our plant-based foods are imported and it's frequently expensive and we wouldn't do that if we could grow our own," says Stalas. "Most of the lamps in the Diamond Quarter are rune-based these days, I think they still use torches in a lot of other places..."

"Maybe it's to do with the frequency of the light, or something... can the rune lamps be different colors?"

"You've exhausted my expertise, I'm afraid, I don't remember whether I've seen coloured rune lamps and wouldn't have paid enough attention to tell whether they were making coloured light or just putting it through coloured glass anyway... unless coloured glass would work just as well? What do you mean by frequency?"

"I don't think colored glass would do it. Um, I'm absolutely not an expert on this and the explanation is going to be hopelessly mangled and probably wrong. But light is kind of a spectrum, and the visible colors are part of it but then there's heat off on the red end and ultraviolet off on the purple end - ultraviolet causes sunburns, if you've ever heard of those - and maybe there's more stuff in there too that I don't know about. White light has all the colors in it. If light runes make, say, yellow light, that might not be good enough for plants? Or it might just not be bright enough, or plants are allergic to magic light, I don't know."

"I don't know either, but we can get someone to find out..."

"And then there can be underground potatoes. Well, more underground than usual potatoes."

Stalas giggles and kisses her.

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeee she will never cease to eeeeee whenever he does that. Kiss!

That is good. It is important that Annie be happy. He still feels that deep and resonant satisfaction, the everything-is-going-right feeling, every time she smiles this much.

Yes. Yes, they can do that. That is a thing they can do.

Yay! Annie's life is really great considering she is stranded in a universe that hasn't invented plastic!

Stalas intends to give Annie the best stranded-in-a-universe-that-hasn't-invented-plastic life he can possibly give her. Starting, at the moment, with kisses.

Many kisses. Also she still hasn't been to a tailor and it's pretty easy to get out of these clothes, they are so loose on her.

Tailor. Right. Yes. Stalas is reminded. He will find a tailor the next time he's out. Right now, however, it's just as well.

...Stalas's clothes don't fit either! Look at them just falling off like that at the slightest provocation.

Yes. Definitely in need of a tailor. Later.