Aelise keeps Harley in her room, and allows visits - mostly Corona, sometimes Tima - but doesn't let him run around being obnoxious to anyone. Chelsa avoids him. Corona is home, after all, and he's just as warm and isn't horrible to her. And now she can invite more friends in. There's that girl she rotated out to make room for Tima, still alive, in Wales - there's that pleasantly sparky boy she met on her trip to Egypt - Chelsa is able to content herself with the situation.

Author: warmfeelings	Aelise keeps Harley in her room, and allows visits - mostly Corona, sometimes Tima - but doesn't let him run around being obnoxious to anyone. Chelsa avoids him. Corona is home, after all, and he's just as warm and isn't horrible to her. And now she can invite more friends in. There's that girl she rotated out to make room for Tima, still alive, in Wales - there's that pleasantly sparky boy she met on her trip to Egypt - Chelsa is able to content herself with the situation.
Author: pythbox	So is Harley, more or less. He hates it, but he doesn't hate it nearly as much as he hated having Chelsa working on him. He stays in Aelise's room. He reads Aelise's books, the millions and millions in her electronic library. He cuddles with Corona when Corona visits. And he torches, every time Aelise drains him, which is often. One night he goes to sleep, and he wakes up falling out of the air— in Milliways. He starts crying from pure relief, right there on the floor in front of the fireplace.
Author: alicornucopia	"Are you all right?" says a nearby old man with a glass of port. "Goodness, where'd you come from?"
Author: pythbox	With some difficulty, between sobs, he says: "I don't - I don't know -"
Author: alicornucopia	"Do you need some water?" the man asks.
Author: pythbox	He sniffles, and nods.
Author: alicornucopia	The man goes and gets him some water. "Whatever's happened to you?"
Author: pythbox	"I don't know," he says. "I keep randomly teleporting places, and the last place I ended up was this horrible world where they use mind control to make you love everybody."
Author: alicornucopia	"That's awful," says the man. "I've never heard of such a thing. Goodness."
Author: pythbox	"It was the nastiest thing," he says, hugging the glass. "Thanks for the water."
Author: alicornucopia	"You're welcome. Can you get home from here?"
Author: pythbox	"I have no idea," he says. "For all I know, I could end up back where I just was."
Author: alicornucopia	"And we can't have that," says the man. "Well. I suppose I could open the door for you? I don't rightly know what you'd do once you were there, but it doesn't have mind control like that going on, at least."
Author: pythbox	"I'll manage," he shrugs. "Your world doesn't have an empress named Aelise, right?"
Author: alicornucopia	"Nope," says the man. "I think she's called something else. I don't pay much attention to that kind of thing, but I'd remember if it were 'Aelise', sounds a little like my daughter's name."
Author: pythbox	"Then sure," he says, "fine, anywhere's better than there."
Author: alicornucopia	The gentleman knocks back the remainder of his beverage and gets up to show Harley to the door, and then out they go.
Author: pythbox	"Thanks!" says Harley, wiping his face and smiling. "You're nice. I like you."
Author: alicornucopia	"You're welcome," says the man. "So, this is Wilmington, Ohio. I can spot you a train ticket if there's somewhere you'd rather be, I think, poor boy."
Author: pythbox	Harley shrugs. "I'll be fine," he says. "I'll just... wander."
Author: alicornucopia	"All right then, if you're sure."
Author: pythbox	"Yeah."
Author: alicornucopia	The man shows him out of the house, and gives him a fun-sized candy bar out of a bowl on the windowsill, and bids him goodbye.
Author: pythbox	He is a nice guy. Harley eats the candy bar. And he picks a direction, and he walks. It's a little lonely. He misses those people, how sick is that? But he just keeps going. He walks for a long time. When he gets tired he sleeps. When he gets hungry or thirsty he torches. He's not even sure how long it's been, after a while. He's not even sure he's still in Ohio. He's sure that Chelsa isn't in this world, and that's good enough for him. Everything else, he can deal with when he's ready.
Author: temporal_affairs	After Harley's been on the road for a week, a confused vampire teleports to within a few hundred feet of him - flares his nostrils - says, "Babe? No, that's... Harley?"
Author: pythbox	"...Fuck me, I'm home?" he says incredulously.
Author: temporal_affairs	"This is Aurum. If you're some kind of parallel Harley whose world is not named Aurum, speak now," says Nathan, scratching his head. "You've been missing for nearly a year."
Author: pythbox	"I - no, it's me, I'm here," he says dazedly. "Fuck. Is - is everyone okay?"
Author: temporal_affairs	"Her Highness is worried, your wolf's been asleep in your room since you vanished, everyone else is carrying on more or less acceptably," says Nathan.
Author: pythbox	"Elsie." He rubs his face with both hands. "Fuck. I should - she's gonna cry, shit - I should see Elsie, will you take me to Elsie?"
Author: temporal_affairs	"'Course." Port.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"Harley," breathes Elspeth, when they appear. She's sitting with Jacob. This isn't the Québec house; this is her quarters in the Safesun capitol.
Author: pythbox	Harley bursts into tears.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	Elspeth promptly gathers him up into a hug as Nathan teleports away to update his mate. "Harley. What happened?"
Author: pythbox	"I went - to another world - I don't know how, I tried to come back and I couldn't, I tried every night - I met someone who is an alt of Chelsea and she has this horrible mind control empire run by an alt of your grandma."
Author: her_imperial_radiance	Elspeth's arms do-not-tighten in the manner of someone who is working very hard at not-squeezing. "Did she get you?"
Author: pythbox	He nods miserably.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"I should be able to undo anything she added." Elspeth swallows. "If you would like me to. I can't put back anything she took." She lets him go.
Author: pythbox	Harley grabs her and clings, sobbing.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	She hugs him again, instantly, as soon as it's clear that he wants the hug.
Author: pythbox	"Get rid of her, get rid of her," he whimpers. "Get rid of everything she did to me that you can."
Author: her_imperial_radiance	Elspeth tries. It's harder - Chelsa soaks in deeper than Chelsea ever did - but Elspeth does not let up. She keeps pushing until there is nothing to push against.
Author: pythbox	Harley curls up in her lap and cries.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	Elspeth - Holds him. And resolutely declines to cry. But she does, after a few minutes, ask: "Should I leave Zeus asleep?"
Author: pythbox	"I don't - I don't know," he sniffles. "I don't wanna hurt him."
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"Okay." Hugs.
Author: pythbox	Cuddly cuddly hugs. "I love you, Elsie," he whispers.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	She shuts her eyes tightly. "I love you too."
Author: pythbox	He wraps his arms around her and squeezes as hard as he possibly can.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	She doesn't squeeze him as hard as she possibly can. But she matches his own hug.
Author: pythbox	"That world was so fucked up," he mumbles.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"It sounds very much so."
Author: pythbox	He is pretty thoroughly too big for Elsie's lap. He stays there anyway. "I think... I think I wanna see Zeus," he says softly. "I don't know. Can I just... see him?"
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"Yes." She picks him up. He's awkwardly sized, but not hardly too heavy. And she teleports to his room in the Québec house, which, except for a handful of perishables that would have rotted away if they hadn't been picked up, hasn't been touched for nearly a year.
Author: floofcoaster	Zeus is sleeping, arms wrapped around Harley's pillow, tucked under Harley's blankets.
Author: pythbox	He gives Elsie a hug and a kiss, and then he crawls into bed with Zeus and snuggles up to him. "You're my best fluffy buddy," he murmurs, "and - I - " He starts crying again.
Author: her_imperial_radiance
Author: pythbox	Harley doesn't say anything more for a while.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	Elspeth waits.
Author: floofcoaster	Zeus, oblivious, sleeps.
Author: pythbox	Eventually, he says, "I... I want to sleep here. For a night. And then wake him up tomorrow."
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"All right," says Elspeth. "I'll tell everyone you're home again. Do you know how you disappeared?"
Author: pythbox	He shakes his head. "I was just falling asleep, and thinking about a kind of teleportation from a book I read - and then - " He shrugs. "But when I tried to do the same thing on purpose, it didn't work."
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"That sounds - maybe a little like what Sue does," she murmurs. "If he were accessible - but he isn't." She sighs. "Thank you. I'm sure Mama will want to talk to you tomorrow."
Author: pythbox	"Okay," says Harley. He snuggles up to Zeus again.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"Let me know if you need anything," Elspeth murmurs, and she runs her hand over Harley's hair, and she ports away.
Author: pythbox	Harley goes to sleep. When he wakes up in the morning, he says, [You can wake him up now.]
Author: her_imperial_radiance	[All right.]
Author: floofcoaster	Zeus stirs. When he meets resistance in the form of Harley cuddled up to him, his eyes snap open, and he abandons the pillow in favor of its owner. "Harley."
Author: pythbox	Harley bursts into tears and hugs Zeus as hard as he can.
Author: floofcoaster	"Harley, Harley, my Harley - what happened - where did you go, are you all right, you disappeared right out of my arms - how long has it been -"
Author: pythbox	"It's been like a year," he says, "a month or something for me, I went to another world, I dunno how I did it, I tried again and couldn't, and then I guess I managed it but I ended up in Milliways - lots of awful shit happened but I'm fine now, I love you - I love you," and he dissolves into incoherent sobbing.
Author: floofcoaster	"I love you," echoes Zeus, and he holds Harley tight.
Author: pythbox	Harley just cries.
Author: floofcoaster	Zeus wants to know what happened. But he will be cried on if that is what Harley wants.
Author: pythbox	"There was an alt of Chelsea," he sniffles.
Author: floofcoaster	Wolves react to the name "Chelsea" about like Jewish people react to the name "Hitler". "Harley."
Author: pythbox	"It was horrible," he says, "she had her whole world done up all lovey, she did it to me too - and the other thing - " He clings, pressing his face against Zeus's shoulder.
Author: floofcoaster	Zeus doesn't stop hugging him, but he's now much more confused about why he's doing it. "My Harley," he murmurs.
Author: pythbox	"I love you," he says helplessly. "But it's like - like she cut off all my feelings and now they're just growing back."
Author: floofcoaster	"Can you tell me how to help you?" murmurs Zeus, tucking his face in where Harley's neck and shoulder meet. "I'll do anything to help you."
Author: pythbox	"Just... be you," he says. "You're good at that, right?" He laughs shakily.
Author: floofcoaster	"I can be me," agrees Zeus. "I love you, I love you, I love you."
Author: pythbox	"I love you too," Harley says hoarsely. He curls up close and hugs Zeus some more.
Author: floofcoaster	Hugs. Silent teary hugs.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	[Mama would like to speak to you at your earliest convenience,] says Elspeth to Harley.
Author: pythbox	[If my earliest convenience can be cuddling Zeus, it's whenever,] he says.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	[Yes, you can bring him.]
Author: pythbox	"Elsie's mom wants to talk to me about the thing," Harley murmurs, "and I wanna snuggle you, will you come?"
Author: floofcoaster	"Yeah," says Zeus hoarsely, and he arranges himself to be carrying Harley, close and snuggly-like. "I'll go wherever you go if you want me."
Author: pythbox	[Then yeah, sure,] he says to Elsie, cuddling up in Zeus's arms.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	Elspeth pops into Harley's room, and then brings them all to the Safesun throne room.
Author: luminous_regnant	"Hello, Harley," says Bella.
Author: pythbox	"Hi," he sniffles.
Author: luminous_regnant	"Please tell me everything that happened."
Author: pythbox	"I was falling asleep and I fell out of bed and the next thing I knew I was staring at an alt of Chelsea," he says. "I didn't realize it really was until she said her name - it's Chelsa - and then she, she made me love her—" He bites his lip and presses his face against Zeus's shoulder, hugging him tight.
Author: floofcoaster	Zeus squeezes him, and kisses his forehead.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	Elspeth puts her hand on Harley's knee.
Author: pythbox	He takes a deep breath. "And there was an empress, named Aelise, she's an alt of Elsie's grandma. And Chelsa had a bunch of pets, one of them was a Joker called Corona. I asked him to kill me but I just torched. Aelise got curious, she came and asked me if I'd mind if she killed me some more - they've got superpowers there, they call them Gifts - that place is so fucked up, it's a fucking empire of dead babies and mind control, I hate it - " And he bursts into tears again, and hugs Zeus even tighter, and vanishes.
Author: floofcoaster	Zeus screams.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	Elspeth sends him back to sleep immediately.
Author: floofcoaster	Zeus collapses on the floor.
Author: luminous_regnant	"...I think we can tentatively conclude that he was dreaming," says Bella. "Someone let him back into Aurum - someone has been getting doors to Milliways from Aurum and I didn't know - Alice, keep an eye out for that, I want it prioritized over everything else you've been doing lately - and now he's woken up. I don't think there's - anything we can do, except continue to look for doors."
Author: her_imperial_radiance	Elspeth nods once, slowly, and picks up Zeus to put him back into the bed he only recently vacated.