Rilen knocked on the door and peeked into the library, "Avlora?" he called but there was no answer, though she sat in her desk chair, but her back was toward the door. "Avlora?"
"She's asleep, don't wake her please..." replied Seacil from the cage on the white gold chain around Avlora's neck.
"Oh... I just wanted to know if I could go outside and play with Pete and Sam..." Rilen was twelve and getting older fast.
"On second thought, wake her and help her to the bed, in a chair is not the best of places to sleep..." Seacil imagined himself saying and gave the image to Rilen, his only way of communication.
Rilen walked into the room, stopping when he reached Avlora's side, "Avlora?" he nudged her shoulder, her head flopped forward and she snorted, waking.
"What?" she grumbled as she rubbed her neck.
"Seacil told me to wake you up. Can I go play now?" Rilen asked, impatient. Seacil gave Avlora the memory of him coming into her library. "Uh- sure, go, get..."
Seacil gave a glittering flash-laugh from his cage caught in Avlora's cleavage. She looked down at him but didn't move him. Rilen ran out of the library, headed for what was left of the field across the road from Avlora's temple.
She and Seacil had figured out how to make a spell that would tell at least two generations back and the siblings of the person they were casting the spell on. They had tested it on herself and were happy to know that it worked, they had also tried it on Rilen and found he was the only son of Silena and Rian directly, as Seacil had suspected.
Beep! Beep! Beep!... Avlora jumped and answered her comm. "What?"
"It's an all Emelet call, Tnemelelives are gathering and attacking," Seacil's replacement said. The man's name was Gren and he was competent but Seacil didn't like someone else doing his job.
"Seacil! You behave! That's not nice..." she frowned down her cleavage at him. He hadn't noticed that he'd sent to her.
Gren laughed, "He's saying nasty things again, huh?" Gren privately thought Avlora was insane talking to a piece of jewelry but he didn't say that to her, she was, after all, an Emelet and very pretty. He just as privately hoped to seduce her someday.
"Yes, he is. I'll be there in a moment," she smiled brightly at him and he cut the connection, returning her smile.
"I'm sorry, generally I keep things like that to myself, I don't know why I sent it to you..." Seacil apologized, embarrassed.
Avlora laughed, "Don't worry, I thought it was funny!"
Flash, "Of course you would..."
Avlora dialed Pete's mother on her comm and waited for the young woman to answer.
"Hello?"
"Hello, Heny, I've gotta go, I'm not sure if I'll be back for a while, could you take care of Rilen?" Avlora asked.
Heny smiled, "I'd love to and Pete would be ecstatic."
"Thanks, I owe ya'..." Avlora said good bye and cut the connection and sent a thought message to Rilen, telling him where he'd be staying then disappeared.
*~**~*
The Emelets met in the circle room and they agreed to meet on Gibberson-3. Avlora loosened herself and started her stretches, bending down to touch her toes.
Seacil glittered with laughter, "Did you hear about the old woman and the doctor? No? Well, she goes to the doctor and say, "Y'see, Doc, I've got this really bad gas but it don't smell. I've passed it at least five times in the past few minutes..." The doctor nods and gives her a prescription, telling her to come back in a week. She comes back and says, "Doc, I've still got that gas but LORD! It stinks!" and the doctor says, "Now that we've gotten rid of your sinus infection we'll see what we can do about your gas...""
Avlora burst out laughing tucked up and rolled to the ground. Falthnna gave her a strange look. "Seacil just told me the-" she started laughing again. "He told me the worst joke ever," she finished when she calmed down some.
"I don't even want to know, you can just keep it to yourselves..." Falthnna answered.
Gren watched as Avlora picked herself off the ground and brushed the dirt off her cloths. "A joke? I wouldn't mind hearing it..." he said to Avlora.
Seacil accidentally sent his thoughts about Gren to Avlora, she doubled up laughing. Falthnna sighed, "Is he making nasty comments again? I would have thought that he could teach you some manners, Avlora, instead I find he's lost his!"
Flash, "I haven't lost my manners, Falt, I'm just not using them! There's no one here to use them on!" Falthnna glared.
"Seacil!" Avlora whined at him.
Flash, "Sorry Av, wasn't talking to you. Kisses."
She smiled and saw Gren's face. "Hey, Sel. I think your broadcasting is getting better, Gren heard you."
Flash, "Oh damn, now I can't say nasty things about him..."
"It's not all that nasty, Sel, just really funny." Avlora snickered.
Flash, "Thanks... Really boosting my ego here..."
Falthnna laughed lowly, "You don't have an ego, what are you talking about?" Seacil didn't reply.
"If it makes you feel better, I still love you," Avlora said and smiled down at him. He sent a memory of him kissing her to her alone. A smile spread across her face.
Gren was stunned, "You mean to tell me that this Seacil thing-guy actually exists?" he looked around.
Flash, "Oh-me-god! It's a Thing-guy! Wonder if it's something like fungi..."
"Seacil! Behave yourself," Falthnna said and glared in his direction. Next, she looked at Gren "Yes, he exists, much to my annoyance."
Avlora put her hands protectively around his cage. "He exists, and you've hurt his feelings!"
Flash, "Actually, you haven't but you've hurt hers..."
Gren coughed, "Well, I'm glad to know you both aren't completely insane..." He suppressed a frown, "Can he read minds?"
Flash, "Ha! Dumbest question I've ever heard... And stop talking about me like I'm some thing. I do have feelings. Even if you didn't hurt them with your last comment..."
"He can't," answered Avlora.
Seacil sent to Avlora alone, "Though you wish I could so I would know about some of the things you think of... Am I right?"
She laughed, "I'm not going to comment on that in front of people..."
Flash, "I'm right, I knew I was."
"You hush. We have a fight to do. And don't go telling me jokes when I'm casting or something!"
Flash, "Now, would I do that?"
"You have before and it cost me a hand..." Avlora started her breathing exercises and Seacil didn't comment.
The Tnemelelives appeared, there were nine this time. Flash, "They're all clowns! The whole damn bunch of them!"
Avlora coughed and eventually started giggling, "Seacil! Stop it!"
The Tnemelelives wore two different expressions, some were amazed and the rest were confused.
"I'm sure I don't wanna know..." mumbled Falthnna. "Let's get on with this." She drew her sword and saluted the Tnemelelives with it.
Flash, "Okay, I'll stop, but you have to admit, they do look like clowns..."
Falthnna shook her head. "Just shut up, Sel."
Flash, “Humph.” Avlora drew her sword and also saluted the Tnemelelives.
