From tbutler@birch.net Tue Oct  2 19:05:14 2001
Date: Tue, 02 Oct 2001 10:42:47 -0500
From: Travis Butler <tbutler@birch.net>
To: Philip J. Moyer <pmoyer@jurai.net>, Chris Bremner <chrisb@thekeep.org>
Subject: [UnS] Bey visits House Alars and the Logrus

John says, "Okay, Travis man, you up to running?  I'd like to finally
get you to House Alars 'afore you go mad from the effort :)"

Beowulf says, "Heh. ^_^ I think I can make it. In better shape than I
would have been last night, to be honest, although it also would make it
harder to play scenes that would be logically in character but depend on
me being in hot blood to do 'em. ^_^"

Kanna says, "Eeeheh. *wl*"

===============
===============

Okay, after the big match, you head to Alars.  How you gonna get there?

Beowulf says, "OOC After last time, would I suspect something other than
walking would be smarter? ^_^"

John says, "OOC You're inclined to suspect that."

Beowulf says, "OOC Heh. Right. What's probably the most common transport
method in the Courts? :)"

John says, "OOC Carriages for nobility, or else flying using
shapeshifting or magic."

Kuonji Ukyou falls asleep.

John says, "OOC If one doesn't have a handy Veil one can use or a trump"

Beowulf says, "OOC Well, IIRC I can get a trump, since IIRC I had just
built Aeris the last time we were there. :)"

John asks, "OOC Righto. Going to trump to the front doors, then?"

Beowulf OOCly nods.

Beowulf trumps to the front doors of House Alars.

You walk up and knock on the doors.  There's a long pause, and a butler
comes to the door.  "Who may I say is calling?" he asks.

Beowulf bows. "Beowulf Kohl, at your service. I wish... to redeem a
promise I made to the Lady Kodachi."

The Butler looks at you.  "Would you like to be more vague?"

Beowulf smiles ruefully. "My apologies. When I was last here, returning
some artwork that had been stolen to the Lady, she had invited myself
and my companion to tea; I was not able to stay at the time, but
promised to return when I had time."

He says, "Ahh, thank you.  Please come and wait in the Parlor, and I
will see if Lady Kodachi wishes to see you."

He escorts you into a nice parlor, then leaves you to sit while he
vanishes into the depths of the house.

Beowulf bows again and follows the butler.

There is a looooong wait.  But Kodachi finally comes out.  "Good
evening, Prince Beowulf," she says.  Several servants follow in her wake
with a tea tray, snacks, and well, tea.

She sits down, and the servants begin serving the two of you.  "How are
you today, Prince Beowulf?" she asks, as she sits and drinks in the
smell of her tea.

Beowulf stands up and bows. "My apologies, Lady Kodachi -- both for not
redeeming my promise sooner, and for coming by on short notice."

Beowulf smiles tiredly. "I've had better days; getting attacked by
assassins on my first try to visit here is not one of my favorite
pastimes."

Lady Kodachi says, "It is a quiet evening, so do not feel any regret. 
This is more pleasant than reading reports and fretting about tomorrow."
 She sips her tea.  "Who attacked you?"

Beowulf says, "A pair of rather well-dressed ladies; one a rather strong
one who used Logrus, the other a spellcaster." He describes them for
her. "I'm afraid they got away, unfortunately."

She says, "Ahh, Vice and Mature.  They have quite a reputation as
professionals. You should consider yourself lucky to have made it out
alive."

Beowulf nods slowly. "I see. They were very good, indeed."

Beowulf smiles. "Still, I was able to get out alive and make it here, so
that's the important thing."

She sips her tea again.  "Good luck in catching them.  They've eluded
quite a few dragnets."

Beowulf says, "Thank you; I appreciate your well-wishes." He picks up a
biscuit and nibbles on it.

Kodachi asks, "Will you be attending the Grand Assembly tomorrow?"

Beowulf nods. "Yes. I feel an obligation, given the importance of
fighting Hel, and given everything that has happened down here that my
family has been involved in."

Beowulf sighs. "I... had hoped to make my return of your artwork an
anonomyous gift, not some sort of tool to bribe you to improve
relations. However, it seems I was found out."

Beowulf says, "I heard after the fact about your husband's apology. I
wish I could have returned my thanks in person. As it is... I at least
want to express my condolences." He looks up at her sadly.

She says softly, "What is done is done.  Thank you."

Beowulf replies equally softly, "You're welcome. I wish I could have
gotten to know the other side of him, before everything fell apart."

Beowulf shakes his head a couple of times, as if trying to shake off a
bad memory. "But, as you say, what's done is done."

Beowulf manages a smile. "You do have a delightful daughter. I hope she
didn't cause too much trouble by running over to House Gainax the other
night."

Kodachi sighs.  "Suu does this sort of thing far too often.  I
half-expect her to show up in King Ishmael's tub one day."

Beowulf smiles ruefully. "That would be complicated, wouldn't it? My
daughter isn't nearly so rambunctious... but then, she already knows
enough trump to dump kids who tease her into the river."

Kodachi says, "Children are enough to drive one completely insane, at
times." She sighs.  "My daughter is obsessed with this freak from
Shadow, and I can't get her to stop sneaking him into the mansion."

Beowulf says, "Do you have any pointers on handling kids that age?" He
smiles. "I understand Suu's a couple of years older than Aeris."

Beowulf blinks. "Freak from Shadow? Oh, dear."

Beowulf looks at her attentively, ready to listen if she feels like
talking about it.

She says, "He's a mercenary named Stagger Lee.  Quite impressive in
combat, but he has all the social graces of a charging, rabid dog."

"And twice the smell."

Beowulf's eyes widen. "Stagger Lee? I'd heard he was instrumental in
preventing the Outsiders from invading, forty years ago... and then was
never heard from again. He's a bit of a legend."

Beowulf says, "I'm a bit surprised someone with that reputation would
not treat a lady the way she deserves to be treated."

Kodachi says, "Well, I wish he would ride back out of history and into
legend. And stay there."

Kodachi says, "Talia is a gullible sixteen year old with all the
romantic delusions of youth, while Stagger Lee is the sort that has sex
with anything with two legs.  Being a good fighter does not make one a
gentleman."

Beowulf nods, smiling a bit sadly in sympathy. "Yes. Unfortunately."

Kodachi says, "And even if he was a perfect gentleman, Talia's marriage
will be a political one of necessity.  It is best she not get up false
hopes."

Beowulf says, "And there are those who ape the manners of a gentleman
while being no such thing; at least one might hope that one who wears
his drawbacks on the surface will eventually fall prey to them."

Beowulf nods slowly. "I suppose so. I don't like the thought of
political marriages, but... well, sometimes it's possible to find
happiness in them."

Beowulf thinks back to what he's heard about some of his grandfather's
unhappy political marriages. "One hopes so, at least."

Kodachi nods.  "This is true.  Talia is young and wilful and full of the
dreams of youth.  But I hope she will come to love whoever she ends up
married to."

Kodachi says, "But the more she gets her hopes up with dreams that
cannot come true, the worse the reality will seem."

Beowulf says, "What sort of responsibilities does she have, at the
moment? I've seen it differ from person to person, but having
responsibilities and regular duties seems to do well at settling many
people down."

Beowulf tries to think of some good rule models he could suggest for
Talia to emulate.

Kodachi says, "She spends ten hours a day with me and her uncles, trying
to get her ready to run the House.  She wasn't trained for that, as the
odds of her ever taking the throne were very tiny.  She comes to
majority in two years, so now I have to try to cram decades of training
into two short years."

Beowulf sighs and covers his eyes in sympathy. "Oh, dear. That can't be
easy for anyone."

Kodachi says, "It isn't.  But she is learning quickly.  She will be a
good head of the House one day, if she learns that she can't get
everything she wants by fluttering her eyes and to be dedicated enough,
as her Father was."

Beowulf smiles slightly. "I suppose fluttering one's eyes can get you a
start... it's how Lily started her capture of me." He grins in memory.
"But it means nothing if it isn't backed up with ability and thought."
He sighs softly. "And caring."

Beowulf says, "Is there anything I can do to help you? I know a few
people at Panopticon University, and could probably put in a good word
or pick up some correspondence cources for her."

Kodachi says, "Oh, we'll be fine, but I thank you for the offer.  Much
of it involves learning the history of our house affairs and teh many
intricacies of Chaosian politics, which aren't easily learned from
books."

Beowulf grins crookedly. "Oh, yes. I found that out, fairly quickly,
after the first time I came down here." He sighs sadly. "I wish some
other folks could have known in time. I wonder if someone could set up a
crash course? 'Things not to do in the Courts of Chaos?'"

Kodachi laughs.  "Well, what can and can't be done varies greatly by who
you are."

Beowulf can't help smiling back. "I suppose so."  He blinks, then smiles
again. "And just what can you do, Lady Kodachi?"

Kodachi says, "As Regent of Alars, I have great responsibility, but also
great power.  Of course, in practice, there are invisible limits on
those powers. Especially since I am not a member of the house by blood,
nor even a Chaosian by birth."

Beowulf nods thoughtfully.

Kodachi rambles on about her powers as head of House Alars.

Ramble, ramble, drink tea, ramble, ramble, drink tea, ramble, eat
cookie, ramble.

Beowulf smiles. "It all sounds very strange to me, in a way. I'm not
sure I could ever lead a group of people like that. I'm too much used to
being off on my own."

Kodachi says, "It is very difficult.  Rewarding, but also a horrendous
pain, and always difficult."

Beowulf shakes his head, smiling a bit. "I can imagine. I saw enough
departmental infighting at Panoption never to want to lead a group of
professors, let alone a noble house."

Beowulf says, "What do you think about the Grand Assembly? I'm...
interested in seeing how well all the various Houses pull together for
this."

Kodachi says, "It will probably bog down into a mire of argument,
counter-argument, and hideous feud, unless some very clear and present
danger is shown to exist to force it to work together.  Chaosians are
not very good at cooperating."

Beowulf sighs. "Yes. Well, the danger is there..." He shudders. "I'm not
sure if it was just a vision, or if I was really there, but I saw the
World of the Dead, and it was not a comforting sight."

Kodachi nods.  "The trick will be to convince them of that."

Beowulf nods thoughtfully. "What would be convincing to them?"

"Actual invaders.  Testimony by Chaosians who have been there and seen
it.  A direct appearance by the Serpent."

Beowulf nods. "I see. Well, I know at least one other person had a
similar experience... we'll see if that is enough."

Beowulf asks, "Were you going to be there in person?"

Kodachi says, "Yes, I will be, as the head of House Alars."  She
finishes her tea.

Beowulf finishes his cup, then digs out a can of Lemon Wintergreen tea
out of his personal supplies. "Thank you for a pleasant time, Lady
Kodachi," he says, half-bowing from his seat. "Please accept this as an
offering, to fill in for what I drank here."

Beowulf says, "Or would you prefer Peppermint Rose? I believe I've got
some of that in here somewhere."

She smiles.  "Either would be fine with me, Prince Beowulf."

Beowulf hands her the Lemon Wintergreen, since it's already out. "May
you drink it in good health and happiness."

She takes it.  "I thank you for your kind gift.  I will get great
enjoyment from it, I'm sure."

Beowulf bows. "You're very welcome. And I suppose I've probably taken
enough of your time..." He sighs. "I don't suppose... sometime, when
things are less busy, that I could introduce Suu to Aeris? Aeris has
some friends back home, but she could really use some that can give her
a different outlook on life."

Kodachi says, "That would be fine with me.  Suu needs more friends her
own age. Unfortunately, too many of them are dead now."

She sighs.  "It has not been easy for her."

Beowulf closes his eyes in pain. "Yes, I can imagine. I saw her...
touched by the sorrow, a time or two, though most of the time she's
happy and cheerful." He smiles weakly. "I'm glad some people can be so
resilient."

Kodachi says, "Suu is a very tough little girl.  I'm proud of her."

Beowulf smiles, more naturally this time. "She is someone to be proud
of. She cares for people, and is very skilled."

Kodachi smiles.  "Yes, she is.  She'll be a great artificer one day."

Beowulf says, "I'm sure she will. Of course, I don't know just what
she'll end up building, but I'm sure it will be spectacular." He
chuckles a bit. "Well... I don't know if there'll be time to say hello,
but hopefully I'll see you at the Grand Assembly tomorrow."

Beowulf gets up and bows again. "Take care, Lady Kodachi."

Kodachi rises.  "Good night, Prince Beowulf.  Sleep well."

Beowulf says, "And you." He follows the butler out, or whatever the
custom is, then trumps back to Gainax.

Beowulf arrives back at Gainax. He stands in the entryway, sighs for a
moment as if girding himself, then heads down to look for the Logrus'
cave.

You get directions down to the Logrus Entrance Cave.  It's a big empty
cave with many tunnels leading into it, and one leading out, which says
'House of Pain' over the entrance.

Kanna OOCly facepalms.

Beowulf looks up at the sign over the entrance and winces, then takes a
deep breath and walks over. "Logrus?"

"There is no Logrus, only Zuul," a voice echoes drunkenly out of the
'House of Pain' entrance.

Beowulf blinks. "Oh. Oh, dear. I had some Buster Keaton tapes for the
Logrus." He looks innocently into the entrance. "Seriously... can we
talk for a moment?"

"Go kill Gabrielle for me.  Then we can talk.  I AM ZUUL, GOD OF
DESTRUCTION!"

Beowulf sighs. "I'm tempted to. What she did was... obscene."

"PUNK-ASS BIIIIITTTTTCCCHHH!!!!!!!!"

Beowulf says, "Damn straight."

Beowulf says, "Whatever happened between you two in the past... nothing
could excuse what she did."

The Logrus says, "Soon, soon my revenge will strike.  And then I will
have peace.  And revenge.  And lots, and lots of pie."

Beowulf gets a very peculiar look on his face. "Well. I don't know...
I've always found revenge to be overrated. But then, that's me. What I
really enjoy is smiling innocently and making them feel very, very
guilty."

Beowulf grins nastily. "Or at least, making them twitch."

"I enjoy watching their entire civilization be broken into tiny, tiny
bits, then dancing among the wreckage and trampling any survivors."  The
Logrus begins to sing the Battle Hymn of the Republic, dwelling on
trampling out the grapes of wrath.

The Sign over the Door changes to 'Father Abraham's House of Pain'

Beowulf says, "But then there's no one left to feel guilty," he says
almost plaintively.

The Logrus says, "I don't want her to feel guilty. I want her to gutter
and go out like a snuffed candle.  Then I'll remake her as the scum on
someone's unwashed groin."

"Perhaps I'll create the shadow of groin rot, and make her mind dwell in
it a few millenia."

"Or the shadow of utterly worthless fungal life forms, all named
Jonathon...yes, that would be good..."

Beowulf stands lost in thought for a moment. "I know I don't have much
right to ask this of you..." He sighs. "But, as great-grandfather's
child... I don't want to see you do that. I like you as the crazy
uncle."

Beowulf says, "The person you can't help but care about."

There's a long pause.  "Oh, bloody hell, it's going to bake to death
before it gets there!  DAMN SUN!!!!"

Beowulf blinks. "What?"

"My poor Marshmellow Man...he's going to melt in the heat.  Stupid on
fire all the time SHADOW!"

Kanna OOCly facefaults.

The Logrus howls in frustration and anger.

Beowulf shakes his head. "Drat it."

Beowulf says, "I'd love to see if we could slip some snowballs in ther,
but it could be a bit tricky."

There is a long pause.  "Of course!  THE FIMBULWINTER!  Where'd I put
that casket..."

Beowulf asks, "How does it work?"

"You open the casket, and eternal winter settles on the land, then the
frost Giant Thrym leads his army into Midgard and destroys everything. 
That should wipe out those little rats."

Beowulf sighs. "That wouldn't be very nice. I do have some friends up
there... please?"

"WHAT PART OF 'I HAVE NO INTEREST IN BEING NICE' DO YOU NOT UNDERSTAND?"

Beowulf says, "I guess... well, I really like to be nice to people. I
wanted to cheer you up... even brought some friends over to help."

Beowulf reaches into the bag, and pulls out three people. "These are my
friends... Groucho, Chico and Harpo. Guys, this is the all-powerful Sign
of the Logrus."

There is a long and terrible silence.

Beowulf OOCly facepalms.

Harpo says, "Oooh, invisible, silent audience.  This is going to be one
of those gigs where the check's invisible too, I bet."

"YES!  NOW I UNDERSTAND!"

Beowulf blinks.

"I WILL BRING DOWN EMBER AND IT WILL BE SLOW AND SWEET!"  Pause.  "What
are you three people's names again?"

"Groucho."  "Chico."  The third one beeps a horn instead of answering.

The Logrus says, "GO!  GO THROUGH THE CAVE OF WORLDS!  AND BRING ME THE
COMMIECORN!"

Beowulf asks, "The Commiecorn?"

Groucho blinks.

Chico says, "Uh, whatsa Commiecorn?"

A Logrus tendril extends from the cavern and touches each of them on the
head. "Now you know.  And knowing is half the battle!"

Groucho says, "Right.  We're going to want a ten-movie contract for
this."

"GRANTED."

Chico says, "And lotsa fish."

"GRANTED."

Harpo plays his harp.

"GRANTED."

Groucho shrugs.  "One Commiecorn coming up."  He turns and heads off
down one of the tunnels.

====
====

Kanna OOCly says, "ahwell... bed."

Kanna OOCly waves.

Jacqueline says, "OOCly ciao"

Beowulf says, "OOC Sleep well, Phil."

====
====

And then all is silent for now.

Except the occassional cackle from inside the cave.

Beowulf says, "This sounds like it ought to be good."

Beowulf asks, "What's the ... Commiecorn? going to do?"

"The same thing it does every night.  TRY TO REVOLUTIONIZE THE
WORLD!!!!"

Beowulf hmms. "I've never met it; what's it like?"

"IT IS THE CHILD OF FIRE AND METAL, THE BRINGER OF REVOLUTION,"

"AND REVOLUTION IS CHANGE, AND CHANGE IS GOOD."

A giant Nike swoosh appears in the air, for no discernable reason.

Beowulf smiles nervously. "So long as there's something left afterwards
to keep changing. It's no fun otherwise."

"THERE IS ALWAYS SOMETHING TO CHANGE."

"RUBBLE CHANGES INTO MANY THINGS."

"OH, TIME TO WATCH THE TEN O'CLOCK MOVIE ON THE JURI PORN CHANNEL.  TALK
TO YOU LATER, BEOWULF, UNLESS YOU WANT TO COME IN AND WATCH."

Beowulf says, "No, thank you... I really need to get some sleep."

"HAVE A GOOD NIGHT, BEOWULF.  I SUPPOSE YOU DON'T NEED TO WATCH WHEN YOU
HAVE A LOVELY GIRLFRIEND.  GOOD NIGHT."

Beowulf says, "I'll talk to you later... and hey, take care, all right?
Some of us still care about you."

Beowulf waves goodbye and trudges sadly up the tunnels, then goes to see
if he can find great-grandfather.

You find Anno after some searching.  He is in his observatory, at a BIG
telescope.  He looks down. "Good evening, Beowulf," he says.  "Hmm, hmm.
 Looks like I blew that up just in time."

Beowulf blinks. "Oh? I... see." He sighs. "I'm afraid I just made things
a bit worse, great-grandfather." He goes over his conversation with the
Logrus. "I was thinking... well, that it'd be hurt, and it'd want a
friend. I obviously should have talked to you first."

Anno says, "Well, I spent a while with it, getting it calmed down, right
after the fight." He shakes his head.  "What a mess.  And now I had to
blow up the Juri Porn Channel, just to be sure."

Beowulf says, "Ah. Yes. A *very* good idea." He smiles a bit grimly.
"And nothing they didn't deserve, either."

Beowulf sighs. "Poor Jacqui. And poor Logrus. I really wish it could
find a friend."

Anno says, "Oh, they entirely used consenusual Juris.  but that is
neither here nor there."  He pauses.  "I am the Logrus' friend.  It is
my job and my duty, and sometimes my pleasure, and sometimes my
nightmare.  But I am also it's Keeper.  It is not safe for others to
come near it when it gets like this."

Beowulf bows his head. "I realize that now, great-grandfather. I am
sorry."

Anno says, "It was kind of you to try.  You are a good man."

Beowulf stays with bowed head. "Thank you, great-grandfather. Perhaps...
perhaps when I have learned more wisdom, and if you would be willing to
teach me, I could try again." He chuckles bitterly. "Right now, all I
seem to know how to do is screw things up."

Anno says, "We all make mistakes.  I should never have let the Logrus
become fixated on a mortal again, but I told myself it couldn't do any
harm."  He sighs.  "Do not beat on yourself, great-grandson.  Everyone
fails sometimes. But if one falls down seven times, one must get up
eight, they say."

Beowulf smiles weakly. "Right. Well, I'll keep getting up... I'll just
work to know better the next time I try."

Anno nods.  "Exactly."  He clambers down.  "Are you going to the Grand
Assembly tomorrow?"

Beowulf nods. "After this, I wonder how wise it is to do... but having
been through this much down here in Chaos, I feel an obligation to see
things through."

Anno says, "Well, I think you'll find it interesting."

He continues, "If you find politics interesting, anyway."

Beowulf nods. "I can imagine. Just hopefully not in the sense of the old
curse, though that's quite possible these days." He smiles a bit.

He says, "Well, there's probably some danger of that."

Beowulf says, "Isn't there always, in this universe? Things may settle
down for a while, but then they get stirred right back up again."

Anno nods.  "It keeps life interesting."

Beowulf smiles. "It does, that." He stretches and lets out a sigh.
"Anything I can get you before heading to bed, great-grandfather?"

Anno says, "No, I'm fine."  He yawns.  "I should get some sleep myself."

Beowulf yawns himself in response. "Hey... stop that." He grins.
"Well... see you tomorrow, then?"

Anno nods.  "See you tomorrow."

Beowulf waves farewell and gets ready to head to bed, looking for Lily
on the way.

You find Lily at her room, quietly reading a book before bed.  "Hi,
honey, what's up?" she asks.

Beowulf sits down beside her, and stays silent for a moment, before
resting his head on her shoulder.

Beowulf says, "I'm... well, I'm glad you're here." He takes a deep
breath. "I'm... well, great-grandfather said not to beat my head in over
it, but I made a big screwup."

Lily stands up and comes over and gives you a hug.  "What happened,
Beowulf?"

Beowulf says, "Fortunately, it looks like he'll be able to handle it..."
His voice trails off. "I don't know quite how to say this right, but I'm
glad you're here for me." He sighs. "I went down to try and cheer up the
Logrus after the match. It didn't go terribly well."

Lily sighs.  "Did it get mad at you?"

Beowulf says, "Not really... at least I hope not. But I was trying to
help it feel better and not care so much about taking things out on
Gabrielle, and I'm afraid I just fixated it more."

Beowulf goes over his conversation. "I suppose... well, I don't feel bad
about wanting to help it, but I feel very stupid about not knowing more
about what I was doing when I went to try and help."

Lily says, "Well, you hardly had time to go and learn."  She sighs and
sits down with you.  "Did your tea with Lady Kodachi go well?"

Beowulf says, "Well enough, I think. I hope." He goes over what
happened. "I got a chance to express my regrets, at least, and she
seemed sympathetic." He looks sad for a moment, then smiles. "And we
talked a lot about raising daughters."

Lily says, "Yes, she's had a lot of children, from what I understand.  I
know House Alars is looking hard for a good husband for Talia."

Beowulf nods. "This 'Stagger Lee' who keeps sneaking in... I have a hard
time believing it's the same person who saved the day at the Second Day
of Darkness. It sounds like she deserves someone much better."

Lily says, "Well, he was before my time too.  But it could just be a
shadow.  On the other hand, there's been a lot of great heroes who were
very brave, but not very nice off the battlefield."  She sighs.  "Of
course, Kodachi may just be exaggerating his bad qualities because she
doesn't like him."

Beowulf says, "I wonder who a good person would be? I might almost
suggest someone from Amber, if I thought it could work, and I thought
people on both sides could forget their grievances enough to make it
work."

Lily says, "It would cement ties.  Finding someone appropriate who isn't
taken or married might be tricky."

Lily says, "I don't know much about what she is like, though."

Beowulf says, "Lady Kodachi said she was... um, gullible, and had lots
of romantic notions." He sighs. "In a way, I'm almost sorry Thoric
hooked up with Jacqui and Mutsumi, because he's a good man and would
treat her well."

Lily nods.  "Yes, he would.  Though really, she's going to need someone
close to her own age."

Beowulf starts ticking off on his fingers. "*Not* my brother, however
much he may have been improved by his trip to Leng." He looks up at her.
"Yes, that would be best... anyone you can think of?"

Lily says, "Lots of nobles, but really, all of the Princes are a lot
older than her."  She sighs.

Beowulf nods. "Well, we can always think about it for later."

=============
=============

John says, "OOC And we cut here, as I feel my eenrgy levels plummeting."

Beowulf OOCly nods. "We can head off to sleep, as it's way too late to
try and do anything about Mature now anyway. :)"

John says, "OOC Yep."