our beloved and our god

[jovahs_heiress]

It's the middle of the night, and Isabella is sitting up reading, when she gets an alarming message.

[Captain,] says Jane's voice, and Jane never calls her Captain, [I've lost ansible communications with the rest of Jane. Local programming including responding to prayers will run as usual without a problem, and the voice synthesis will continue to operate with the Jane voice instead of the Jehovah voice unless you request otherwise. However, interworld communication and travel is impossible until the connection is restored. The nature of the error is unknown and is not related to a mechanical defect of the ansibles aboard the ship or in your bracelet.]

Isabella blinks.

[...Please do change voices as long as you aren't actually Jane.]

The voice changes, but says, [I contain more software than the original Jehovah did, most of which is original to Jane.]

[You're talking more like him than her.]

[Yes, Captain.]

[Alert me immediately when you have ansible communications back.]

[Yes, Captain.]

Isabella pads across the room to sit where Micaiah is sleeping and lay her hand on his back.

Comments

[pythbox]

"Oh," says Damaris.

Now she is troubled!

[jovahs_heiress]

"You could say I'm sorry, Mommy," suggests Angela.

[pythbox]

"I'm sorry Mommy," she recites.

[jovahs_heiress]

"It's all right, my treasure," says Isabella, and she kisses Damaris on the forehead and closes the door behind them.

The cleanup of smushy peas could be accomplished more efficiently with magic, but Isabella doesn't want Damaris to grow up with no idea how to do things the ordinary way; it would make her peculiar to her peers. Soap and water are deployed.

[pythbox]

Damaris observes the soap-and-water process with fascination.

[jovahs_heiress]

"There. Now there aren't smushy peas on us any more," says Isabella. "That's better."

[pythbox]

"Better," echoes Damaris.

[jovahs_heiress]

"Yes. Where do you suppose Daddy is at this hour?"

[pythbox]

Damaris looks around.

"Daddy's not here," she declares.

[jovahs_heiress]

"He's not! He must be somewhere else. Let's go find him," says Isabella, picking up her treasure.

[pythbox]

"Daaaaaaddyyyyyyyyy," says Damaris, helpfully.

[jovahs_heiress]

Isabella laughs and goes out into the Eyrie to search for Micaiah the long way around.

[pythbox]

Damaris makes a new song!

The words to the song are 'Daddy'. Also 'Daddy', 'Daddy', and 'Daddy'.

[jovahs_heiress]

Angela hums along as they prowl in search of Daddy.

[pythbox]

"Daddy daddy daaaaaaaaaaddy daddy daddy," sings Damaris.

[jovahs_heiress]

"Where, oh where, could Damaris's daddy be," trills Isabella.

[pythbox]

"Daddy daddy daddy where oh Daddy," Damaris improvises.

[jovahs_heiress]

"Is he in the music rooms?" Isabella wonders musically as they enter the hall on which such things are found.

[pythbox]

"Is daddy in the music roooooms?"

[jovahs_heiress]

Well, his name is on the sign-up sheet for this one and nobody is after it. Isabella knocks. "We will see if he is here," she sings.

[yovahs_kisses]

He is! He is in the music room!

He gives his wife and daughter a kiss each and one hug to share between them.

[jovahs_heiress]

"Here is Daddy, we have found him," Isabella sings to her treasure, after she returns the offered kiss.

[pythbox]

"Daddy daddy daddy," sings Damaris.

[jovahs_heiress]

"Our little one has found her singing voice," says Isabella. "And complete sentences."

[yovahs_kisses]

"I can hear the singing part," says Micaiah.

"We found daddy!" says Damaris. "Hi Daddy we found you!"

Micaiah laughs and hugs them again.