When the Aurum Janepoint pops up with the error message "error 99: bottles of beer on the wall" and will not respond to any sort of prodding or magic, Bella makes a general announcement to the majority of adults on the brainphone network.

[Jane has encountered a new and different form of error, and we are stuck here until someone finds a door or until further notice. Elspeth, please begin looking for doors.]

[Will do,] Elspeth replies into the conference call.

Author: luminous_regnant	When the Aurum Janepoint pops up with the error message "error 99: bottles of beer on the wall" and will not respond to any sort of prodding or magic, Bella makes a general announcement to the majority of adults on the brainphone network. [Jane has encountered a new and different form of error, and we are stuck here until someone finds a door or until further notice. Elspeth, please begin looking for doors.] [Will do,] Elspeth replies into the conference call.
Author: manofmyword	[Oh boy,] says the Joker, to a much smaller subset of the adults on the brainphone network.
Author: alicornucopia	"I guess that means I can't go home with you," muses Renata. "...But, but it means you can stay here with me!"
Author: pythbox	"...Yeah," says Nathaniel. He seems sort of ambivalent about this.
Author: alicornucopia	"Is that okay?"
Author: pythbox	He thinks about it. "...I don't know the world," he says. "Or have anywhere to stay."
Author: manofmyword	"I'll get you set, don't worry," says the Joker. "How would you like your very own asteroid?"
Author: pythbox	Nathaniel blinks at him.
Author: alicornucopia	"This would probably not be a good place for you to stay," observes Renata. "It's not designed for humans to live in."
Author: pythbox	"Neither are asteroids, usually," says Nathaniel. "But I guess Aedyt's was okay."
Author: manofmyword	"Yeah, that's the idea," says the Joker. "A nice little house on a nice little asteroid. Everything you could need, plus a teleportation power so you can go visiting if you wanna. Mm?"
Author: pythbox	Slowly, Nathaniel nods.
Author: manofmyword	The Joker snaps his fingers theatrically, and they are all three of them standing on a nice little asteroid, next to a nice little house. "Ta-daa."
Author: alicornucopia	"This is cute," asserts Renata.
Author: manofmyword	"Sure is!" says the Joker.
Author: pythbox	Nathaniel giggles.
Author: alicornucopia	"And you're cute," Renata tells Nathaniel. "Can I hug you?"
Author: pythbox	"...Okay."
Author: alicornucopia	She perhaps takes a liberty with the definition of "hug" when she lifts him off the ground and snuggles him like he's a teddy bear, but she looks deliriously happy about it.
Author: pythbox	... Nathaniel giggles again.
Author: alicornucopia	Snuggles! Grinning happy snuggles.
Author: pythbox	Giggly snuggles.
Author: alicornucopia	"I love you. You're my favorite thing."
Author: pythbox	"Awwwwwww," says Nathaniel, snuggling her. (She is not very snuggable. But he supposes she can't help that.)
Author: alicornucopia	(She is doing her very best!)
Author: pythbox	Anyway, he likes how she's all happy. And calling him her favourite person. Those are nice.
Author: alicornucopia	Good. She will pretty much just go on holding him happily forever until interrupted.
Author: pythbox	Nathaniel could be content to be held for quite a while! But eventually: "Put me down, please."
Author: alicornucopia	She sets him on his feet, and adjusts but does not automatically conclude the hug.
Author: pythbox	Hmm. "I want to go in the house," he says.
Author: alicornucopia	Renata unhugs. (But she holds his hand.)
Author: pythbox	Handholding is acceptable! He goes in the house.
Author: manofmyword	The Joker follows. It is a small, cute, comfortable house.
Author: alicornucopia	"Aww," pronounces Renata.
Author: pythbox	"Awwwwww," Nathaniel agrees.
Author: manofmyword	The Joker giggles and hugs him.
Author: pythbox	Nathaniel lets go of Renata's hand temporarily to hug back, and then picks it up again.
Author: alicornucopia	Handholding! Renata's thumb makes little circles on the back of Nathaniel's hand.
Author: pythbox	He is beginning to develop a blush again.
Author: alicornucopia	"You're so cute. You are the cutest ever," Renata declares.
Author: pythbox	Nathaniel grins a little.
Author: alicornucopia	Nuzzle!
Author: pythbox	Hug.
Author: alicornucopia	Hug hug hug. And again they have reached a state where Renata will comfortably remain forever unless otherwise prompted.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	It's a few minutes later when Elspeth brainphones Nathaniel, [As long as you're stuck in the middle of your trip intended to meet an alt of Micaiah, there are two of them in Aurum at the moment.]
Author: pythbox	[...That's true,] he says. [How old's the little one?]
Author: her_imperial_radiance	[Harley is one year, three months, and six days old.]
Author: pythbox	[Hmm.] Out loud, he says to the Joker, "Is it a good idea for me to go see the little you?"
Author: manofmyword	"Don't see why not," he says.
Author: pythbox	[Okay. When should I come visit him?]
Author: her_imperial_radiance	[Why don't you ask Nathan? He's better at that sort of thing than I am.]
Author: pythbox	[Well, you're the one I'm talking to about it right now,] he says reasonably. [And you're the one I'd be visiting, really.]
Author: her_imperial_radiance	[Well, anytime the day where we are, when I'm not working, will be fine.] And she supplies a summary of Harley's sleep habits and her work schedule.
Author: pythbox	[Okay,] says Nathaniel. [I'll come and visit you soon, then. Thanks!] And he goes back to snuggling his newly acquired vampire.
Author: alicornucopia	His newly acquired vampire is so happy about that!
Author: pythbox	It's nice when she is happy! He likes her being happy at him.
Author: alicornucopia	She will do it lots if he keeps being snuggly with her!
Author: pythbox	Hooray for snuggles, then!
Author: alicornucopia	Hooraaaaay!
Author: manofmyword	"You two are just precious," the Joker observes.
Author: alicornucopia	Renata has no comment besides to continue doing exactly what she is doing.
Author: pythbox	Nathaniel, on the other hand, has a blush.
Author: alicornucopia	It is cute. She wants to kiss it. She's not sure if she ought to. She is considering how best to ask, and this is clearly a challenging intellectual task.
Author: pythbox	Well, Nathaniel will be over here with his blush and his snuggle until she has figured it out.
Author: alicornucopia	Eventually she settles on, "Your face is cute and I want to kiss it, can I?"
Author: pythbox	Blush. Very blush. "Um, okay," he says.
Author: alicornucopia	Kisses! A swift rain of little affectionate kisses.
Author: pythbox	Blushy blushy blush!
Author: alicornucopia	See, the more he does that, the more she has to kiss him.
Author: pythbox	He giggles a little, too.
Author: alicornucopia	Awwww! Snuggles. Snuggles and little kisses all over his adorable face.
Author: pythbox	Giggly blushy snuggles.
Author: alicornucopia	Excellent. Renata is well pleased.
Author: pythbox	Nathaniel proceeds with snuggles. Eventually, the Joker goes away. Nathaniel goes to bed, and invites Renata to snuggle him then too. The next day, after breakfast and some more snuggles, he says, "I think I'm going to go visit Elspeth and the little Joker now. Do you want to come with me?"
Author: alicornucopia	"Mm-hm!"
Author: pythbox	"Okay." Hug! [Hi, Elspeth,] he says. [Can I come visit now and bring Renata?]
Author: her_imperial_radiance	[Sure, now is fine.]
Author: pythbox	Hug. Teleport!
Author: her_imperial_radiance	Elspeth is in a comfy chair in her quarters with Harley on her lap and a picture book in her hand; she appears to have just finished the story and is letting Harley behold the final illustrations. "Hello, Nathaniel. Hi, Renata. This is Harley."
Author: pythbox	"Hello, Elspeth. Hello, Harley," says Nathaniel. Harley cheerfully ignores his guests.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"Nathaniel is Micaiah's brother. Micaiah's one of your alts," says Elspeth to Harley.
Author: pythbox	Harley looks up from the illustrations and peers thoughtfully at Nathaniel. Nathaniel peers back. Harley grins and waves. Nathaniel smiles.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"And Renata mated to him," continues Elspeth. (Depending on how much Harley understands about mating, this might already be obvious from how she's sort of draped over Nathaniel staring at him like he's the only visible object in the room.)
Author: pythbox	Harley nods wisely. "Cute," he observes.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"Yes, it is pretty cute, isn't it? Nathaniel is from Samaria but he's stuck here until Jane comes back or someone can find a door to Milliways. Later today I'll try some more doors."
Author: pythbox	Nathaniel smiles at Renata. "Cuuuuute," Harley accuses, giggling.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"Harley has a refined sense of taste for cuteness," says Elspeth, petting the toddler's hair.
Author: pythbox	Harley beams and hugs her. "Takes one to know one," Nathaniel dares to observe.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	Elspeth laughs. "I think Nathaniel thinks you're cute, little nibbler," she tells Harley.
Author: pythbox	"He's right," Harley announces. Nathaniel laughs.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"Yes, he is. You are very cute." She puts the book she was holding down, and she hugs Harley back, and then she lets him go, in case he'd like to wriggle out of her lap and go investigate his alt's brother more closely.
Author: pythbox	He does that! He almost falls over on the way, but Nathaniel catches him by the hand. "You're tall," Harley observes. "You're short," Nathaniel counters. "I'm little!" says Harley. "I'm a little nibbler!"
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"You'll grow," laughs Elspeth. "You will get to be six foot one and then you will stop."
Author: pythbox	"How tall is that?" wonders Harley.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"A little bit taller than Nathaniel is."
Author: pythbox	Harley looks up at Nathaniel. "I'm gonna be a big nibbler." "Yes you are," says Nathaniel.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	Elspeth laughs.
Author: pythbox	Harley is still holding Nathaniel's hand. He looks speculatively at it.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"Harley, if you bite him, he will not like it, I will not put you back in biting distance of him or other humans again while you have that habit, and Renata will hiss at you and be very upset," says Elspeth.
Author: pythbox	Nathaniel gently takes his hand away. Harley scowls and sits down on the floor.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	Elspeth is unapologetic.
Author: pythbox	Well, Harley is just going to... sit there... and feel thwarted.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	He may do that if he chooses. "I hope you won't be stuck here longer than you'd prefer to stay," Elspeth says to Nathaniel, "but I didn't find any doors yesterday, and I tried for hours, which worries me. I used to find them very frequently."
Author: pythbox	Nathaniel shrugs. "The Joker gave me an asteroid. I don't really miss Samaria that much."
Author: her_imperial_radiance	Renata nuzzles his neck happily. "That's good then," says Elspeth. "At least this time everyone who lives here is here."
Author: pythbox	"I don't remember the beginning of the last time that well; I was just a kid," he says. "How long was this world cut off, that time?"
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"About a decade. I wasn't here, though, I was Downside and experienced less than two days of outage. And this was one of the harder-hit worlds. Rainbow only missed a few hours even though it has no special characteristics like Atlantis or Sunshine relative to Milliways doors."
Author: pythbox	"So I guess we just have to wait and see," says Nathaniel.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"Yes. By the same token Samaria could have a wildly divergent amount of time lost."
Author: pythbox	"I'll miss my nieces," he says thoughtfully. "But I'll see them again someday."
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"Yes. Although they may be full grown by the time you do."
Author: pythbox	Nathaniel shrugs. Harley crawls back to Elspeth and leans his head on her knee.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	Elspeth pets Harley's hair.
Author: pythbox	Harley snuggles her leg.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"Feeling better?"
Author: pythbox	"Meh," says Harley.
Author: her_imperial_radiance	"You'll bounce back from the disappointment soon," Elspeth assures him. Pet pet.
Author: pythbox	Snuggle. Siiiiiiiiiiigh. Nathaniel grins.