we are invariably pleased to welcome tourism

[cross_and_bow]

Sherlock is usually very puncutal. He's only one minute late, but that's still not quite as punctual as usual. Bella peers out the window, not yet allowing herself outright concern.

Comments

[pythbox]

He removes his glasses, cleans them, and puts them back on.

[dark_light]

"You weren't kidding about him having nervous habits," snorts Amariah. She sits down and goes back to looking through Juliet's books.

[cross_and_bow]

Juliet doesn't answer aloud, just goes back to her own reading and notetaking.

[pythbox]

"Would you mind answering a question for me?"

[cross_and_bow]

"What is it?" Juliet asks, twisting around in her chair.

[pythbox]

He gestures to Amariah.

"Who or what followed you here, and are you on friendly terms with him, her, or it?"

[dark_light]

"You can see me?" demands Amariah. Not loud enough to break the spell; someone else might walk in.

[cross_and_bow]

Juliet holds very still and waits for Mr. Giles to answer Amariah's question.

[pythbox]

"I have no idea what you just said," he says in Amariah's direction.

[cross_and_bow]

"...But you can tell that she's there and that she said something," Juliet says slowly.

[dark_light]

"I'm sure I cast the spell right. I'm sure," exclaims Amariah. "I was following you around all day, no one saw me -"

[pythbox]

"Yes," he says. "Should I not be able to? Who is it? It seems to me that if you know someone who can summon invisibility that well, you have no business applying to a, a dusty old librarian for lessons in magic."

[cross_and_bow]

"Is there somewhere less - accessible - we can go so she can take the spell off and we can explain?" Juliet says. "Your office maybe?"

[pythbox]

"I don't have one," he says.

[cross_and_bow]

"Do people ever come in here after hours besides me...? I guess I'd know better than you would, I've been here longer. Okay. Amariah, do you know any kind of spell to - you know what, nevermind, this is Sunnydale and everyone here has their certificate in advanced rationalization. But please don't break your notice-me-not by screaming this time. Do something else."

[dark_light]

Amariah shrugs and walks up to Giles and pokes him in the chest, hard enough that he can't shrug it off as irrelevant.

"Hi," she says sheepishly.

[pythbox]

He blinks at her.

"...Hello."

[dark_light]

"Don't touch the owl," Amariah adds. (This has become its own word, all strung together, she's been in Milliways warning people away from her daemon enough now.) "Um, so, I'm an alternate of the Bella you know from another dimension. I can't teach her magic because my kind only works for my species, but I came here to help her out by casting a few blessings on her, and now I'm hanging around until I can get back home."

[pythbox]

"It's... good to meet you," he says cautiously. "How do you two... know each other?"

[cross_and_bow]

"Amariah, I hope it goes without saying that this should not turn into a story about who exactly you picked up at a bar," says Juliet dryly.

(This is code for don't tell him about Sherlock.)

[dark_light]

"Okay, I'll spare your librarian's sensibilities and omit the fine details," snorts Amariah. (This is code for okay, I won't.) "But in the non-fine-details department - the interdimesional hub collects alts of lots of people. I've met three others of us and heard about a couple more beyond that. This isn't even the first one I've visited at home."

[pythbox]

"My sensibilities are very grateful," says Mr. Giles. "I've never heard of this interdimensional hub, but I'm well aware I don't know everything."

[dark_light]

"If you ever open a door and it appears to lead to a bar, instead of whatever you were expecting," says Amariah, "that's probably Milliways. Right now, no time is passing in my home world at all. When me or Juliet finds a door back in, I'll just visit the room our template shares to make some notes in the guestbook and let myself out, and my boyfriend'll be waiting for me at home like no time has passed."

[pythbox]

"That sounds convenient," he remarks.

[dark_light]

"It is! So that's what I'm here and why I was following - well, we can just call her Bella, since there's only two of us and I don't even go by that when I'm home. She can see through my notice-me-not just fine. How did you do it, though?"