Sophomore Summer Vacation in Paris

Altclair is Naomi's campaign, set at the college of Altclair, which is somewhere in Minnesota, although modeled on the University of Chicago between the years 1987 and 1993. Think Pamela Dean's Tam Lin, GURPS Illuminati IOU, or Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Other source material (that Naomi's not familiar with) might include Elizabeth Hand's Waking the Moon and most of Charles de Lint. Players are me (Justin Thorne) and Josh (Michael Conoway). Manny (Jim Gaffney) dropped out, and Beth (Diometra) lives in Chicago, and is only an occasional player.

Naomi moved to Chicago, but I'm behind in my write ups, and she's run a few sessions since moving and hopes to run a few more via phone, email, and visits before I have exhausted my supply of material.

What Has Gone Before

Michael Conoway has a busy life, trying to raise his children, run his farm, be a land king, give the siren Sarah Lacey her due as land queen while avoiding the wrath of her grandfather Poseidon, court Delilah Morgan, learn how to shapeshift, and deal with a malevolent dragon on his land named Griaule. So, he asked his friend Justin to retrieve his daughter Ashleigh from 1949 Paris.

How did she get there? Glad you asked. Ashleigh's mother, Jennifer, was married to Ash Wednesday, Michael's mentor in magic. When Michael learned that Ash was dying of cancer, he arranged to bring Genovieve Monequin, sensation-seeking healer with whom Ash had been in love with when younger, from 1940 to the present (2000), hoping she could cure Ash's cancer. She was unable to do so, and instead helped Ash die peacefully, explaining that this was what he asked of her. She then took Ashleigh and returned to her own time. Since the past can't be changed, and it is known that Genovieve had a "war orphan" she called Madeleine until she was nine, no one could retrieve her before then.

Justin, while annoyed at the loss of his summer vacation, recognized that he was the best choice to go. Shortly after he agreed, Griaule, the dragon Michael needs to deal with (not to be confused with the weredragon Jido, adopted by Jennifer), got a foothold in Justin's mind, and Justin tried to strangle his lover, Ken. Various mages supplied Justin with ways of keeping clear of Griaule's influence, including staying out of range for a few weeks. 1949 France is pretty far out of range.

So, while Ken worked on a project involving whale watching on the west coast and Michael dealt with his many interests, Justin traveled to the past on the Train Called the City of New Orleans, accompanied by Antoine Tobriani, a young mind mage who also happens to be a postal mage. The plan was to locate Genovieve, Ashleigh, and a younger Ash using a magical compass Justin created, and try to convince Genovieve to let them bring Ashleigh home, unless the child is clearly better off where she is. At Justin's suggestion, Antoine created an emotional bomb, an item containing a magical recording of what Jennifer felt about the loss of her child, especially coming on top of her husband's death im the arms of another woman, one he'd never stopped loving. Since Jennifer was too psychologically screwed up to come along, Justin figured bringing her emotions was the next best thing, and he agreed that Antoine would be the one to decide when, if, and how to use it.

All of the following was written after Justin's return to present day America.

From the Desk of Justin Thorne:

Correspondence to Antoine Tobiani

Antoine

--Please give Michael the list I made for him

--Bring him up to date on what he needs to know

--Remind Jido when he's helping Madeleine that he has to remember that she left a place where she was happy

--Madeleine can also talk to Delilah, who knows about being a stranger in a strange land, (1) but warn her that Delilah's French is Quebecois, not Parisian or Vietnamese.

--In certain moods, Sarah would also be a good person to talk to, since she is essentially an exile herself. (2)

--Iris and Mary can help too. Sooner or later, Madeleine will figure out who they are, but this may be a bit much weirdness for her to deal with just now. (3)

--I don't know if it would help or hurt for her to learn about what happened in Paris after she left, but Jido and Jennifer should probably show her how to use the computer and the web. (4)

--In theory, Madeleine can make a return trip. She can't have her old life back, but this is something we should bear in mind in case it comes up. Hopefully, it won't.

--Tell Jido about my having to make the nightingale in Byzantium. (5)

--I'm counting on Delilah to make sure that Michael's still around after autumn and winter. Please don't get in the way of that. Anything else is none of my business. (6)

--My wallet's in the drawer of the night table in my room at Ash's.

--If you haven't already, deal with what you got from Genovieve's mind. One of us has to be able to think clearly, and I doubt it will be me.

--If either you or Madeleine has trouble sleeping, feel free to borrow my cap. It's in the same drawer as my wallet. Or talk to Lauda about setting your dreams. (7)

--Make sure this list doesn't sprout wings.

--I apologize if I've said anything offensive or idiotic.

--Remind me that I make too many lists.

--Be careful. Burnham County's not exactly the safest place to be.

Correspondence to Michael Conoway

Michael

You might want to show this to Jennifer, as most items apply to her as well.

--Do not insist on calling your daughter "Ashleigh" when she knows that her name is "Madeleine".

--Do not make her call Jennifer "mother". Do not even ask her to do so.

--She will miss her mother terribly. Do not fight this.

--Genovieve treated her well.

--Kill that dragon. If possible, and if it's safe, I want the skin and bones.

--Get a bitch for Sligo. I want to see his puppies. (8)

Correspondence to Annmarie Browning

July 2000

Dearest Annmarie, (9)

I'm at the Chicago train station, but I'm heading for the West Coast, not the East. Ken's boat capsized, and while he is alive, he hasn't regained consciousness yet. So, I'm heading out to San Francisco.

I have no idea if this was just a natural occurrence or not, but the last time something like this which might have been natural, but the timing suggested that it was not, was over Winter Break of my freshman year, so I'm inclined to be skeptical. No, I don't know if that's paranoia or grasping at straws. (10)

I have no idea what I can do in San Francisco, if anything. But Ken needs me to be there, and Michael and Sarah need me not to be in Burnham County, so travel plans are easy to figure out. (11) I won't know until I get there whether I'm heading into the eye of the storm or out of it.

Antoine's bringing Madeleine to Canada, along with most of my luggage. He's offered to join me on the West Coast, and I suspect I'll take him up on this. I need someone I can use as a reality check. (You can probably ignore the last four words of that sentence.)

Madeleine's not precisely thrilled. I'm sticking a quarter in this letter--want to try an experiment? See if you can make a phone call to the farm. (12) I don't know how Madeleine would react to you, but you can ask if you can help. If nothing else, you can talk to someone. I'm betting another quarter that no one's had a chance to stop by and say hello. From what I've heard, the farm's a busy place.

Also, in case I lose track of things, I picked up some perfume in Paris. I don't know if you want to use it, but if you put it on the outside of the ghost cloth, I don't think it will soak through. I'll double check when I get back.

I've been making several lists, as I'm sure you've guessed. If I'm very lucky, I'll fall apart on the train to San Francisco and arrive in the city with something that can pass for sanity. I don't know if this is a compliment or not, but on the whole, I'd rather fall apart at the forge and cry on your shoulder.

Antoine figured something out which he'll pass on to Michael. Poseidon's goals of conquering land, sky, and underworld are not so different from Griaule's goals of conquering Heaven and Hell. Keep your head down--the logical thing to happen is for Heaven and Hell, and Hades and Zeus to join forces. I'd rather you not attract unwanted attention.

Be careful--I'm still planning that Halloween party.

Justin

What I Did On My Summer Vacation

It's been quiet for a while, and I'd like it to stay that way for the rest of the summer. Paris was about as awful as my best-case scenario, and I came back to more excitement than I really wanted. I'm in San Francisco, working in a restaurant, rather than in New Orleans, hauling crates. And I think I know how to get an audition out of Michael in the Fall. (13)

Antoine and I arrived in Paris late enough that the first order of business was finding a place to stay. The city was every bit as depressing as I'd been told. Antoine still found the best parties, though. He made us lots of friends, aided by the cigarettes and chocolate. (14)

The next day, I got a fix on Ash, Genovieve, and Madeleine. Antoine went to befriend Genovieve, while I went to talk to Ash. The conversation went about as well as I could expect. Ash didn't forget he as a pacifist and didn't assume I was insane. He did take me to see Madeleine. (15)

Ash was very careful, since there were many people who'd like to see him dead. He checked for weapons and harmful intentions; fortunately, I had neither. (16) As for Madeleine, she was happy where she was. She and Iris were at a school that was extremely progressive by the standards of 1949. True, Genovieve was not always looking after them, but she did take steps to make sure that someone was.

As Ash pointed out, Madeleine's situation in Paris was no more unstable than it would be in Burnham County. I could not precisely sing Michael's praises as a father, and while Jennifer does her best, she isn't the most stable person around. Ash was willing to concede that Jennifer was probably as good a mother as I said, but I had to concede that Genovieve was no worse. So, as Ash pointed out, the only difference was that if we took Madeleine, we would be uprooting her for no perceptible gain.

As I pointed out, however, one way or the other, she -was- going to be uprooted before the summer ended. But who was to say whether that meant present day Burnham County or 1949 Switzerland? (17)

I left Ash to think, and spent the next few days seeing Paris. Notre Dame was in disrepair, but the gargoyles seemed happy enough. (18) And, I should have some interesting material for Professor Hillary's exam, thanks to Antoine. (19) He'd charmed Genovieve, of course, but told her nothing of why we had come to Paris.

After we'd spent a week in Paris, Antoine was sick of it, though you'd never have known it from his performance. He suggested pushing Ash, which made sense, so we went over to his place. (20) Both he and Genovieve were there, and I explained to Genovieve why we had come.

She protested that she loved Madeleine, which was clearly true, and that Madeleine had been neglected when she was Ashleigh, which I honestly don't know whether it is true or not. I pointed out that Jennifer had nearly died giving birth to Madeleine, and that she had been shattered when Genovieve took her.

Genovieve sent Ash out of the room and asked if I'd told him the rest of it--what she had done in our time. She was relieved to learn that I had not. (21) I suppose, in theory, I might have threatened to do so, but it did not occur to me, and if it had, I still wouldn't have done it. So it seems that there are limits to how nasty I will allow myself to get. (22)

Ash came back as soon as he could, and Genovieve proposed that, since I knew Madeleine didn't stay with her, she be sent to Switzerland. I don't know if that would have been so bad. Michael would not have been happy, but he would have accepted it. I don't know what it would have done to Jennifer.

Antoine handed me our bomb, deciding, for some reason, that I was capable of better judgement than he was. (23) He described the situation as a duel with seconds. It was a rather odd one.

I handed the bomb to Genovieve, and I told her precisely what it was. She hadn't been happy to hear about what state Jennifer was in, but I found that I could not bring myself to throw this at her under the circumstances. So I left the choice to her.

She opened it, and Ash took it from her at once, and he took most of it. This was not what I had ever wanted, but I had made one mistake and one--well, it wasn't an error in judgement, precisely.

As Ash pointed out, I was handing a new sensation to a woman who sought out such things. Genovieve, being who she was, could not have resist the bait.

This does not mean that I was wrong to offer it to her; however, if I am going to play mind games, it would be better if I were conscious of what I was doing.

Ken pointed out the other problem: I should damn well have known that Ash would not sit idly by while the woman he loved hurt herself. I should not necessarily have known what he'd do, but I should have taken into account the fact that he would do something. (24)

I panicked, I suppose. As Ken said, while the decision was sound, there was no reason it had to be implemented on the spot. We could have waited a couple of days and arranged to meet Genovieve alone. We had the time.

Genovieve hovered over Ash, and Antoine asked if she'd caught any of the blast. She said that she'd just got the leading edge of it. Antoine smiled cheerfully, and told her to take the rest. It seems that he'd made a back-up copy of Jennifer's emotions--just the ones about Ash and Madeleine--and had been carrying it around all this time, handling it far better than I'd handled my mental baggage. (25)

So, Genovieve collapsed, and Ash hovered over her, just barely remembering that he was a pacifist. Antoine and I agreed that it would be prudent for him to wait for me outside. (26) Ash told me that I should keep my pit viper under better control. Let's not even begin to count the ways that this suggestion is futile.

When Genovieve had recovered a little, she decided that she couldn't let Jennifer suffer all of that, and she agreed that Madeleine would return with us. She asked for us to wait until the following afternoon so that she could explain everything, and Ash agreed to write it all down in words that Madeleine would be able to understand.

There was one more thing I wanted to do. I asked Genovieve to walk me out, and called Antoine. At that point, as I explained, I did believe that Genovieve had been carrying out Ash's request, nothing more, when she came to our time, but I wanted to know, so that there would be no doubt. Antoine said that if Genovieve were willing, she could tell us what had happened, and he could confirm her story. (27)

Genovieve told us that when Ash had asked to die, he had been very close to the line, and he had no doubts when she pushed him over. It is possible, I suppose, that if he had waited an hour, he might have had second thoughts, but the decision to die, as well as the decision not to wait, was his, and she did not attempt to influence him in this matter. Antoine confirmed that she was telling the truth.

We left Genovieve and went back to where we were staying. On the way, Antoine explained that he'd thrown the back up copy of Jennifer's emotions at Genovieve because he thought it would make her feel better about what happened to Ash, since she was paying too, and it would help her convince herself that she wes doing the right thing letting Madeleine go. And they say I'm manipulative. He was right, though--it helped Genovieve to react, and it helped Ash to have to take care of her.

Even so, as soon as the door to our room was closed, Antoine started crying. He said that he hadn't thought it was possible, but what he had gotten from Genovieve hurt more than what he had gotten from Jennifer. I suppose there was no way of knowing this in advance, but the possibility should have crossed my mind. I don't mean that I should have known precisely what he'd find, but it ought to have occurred to me that I was asking him to leave himself vulnerable to whatever was there. I know that the decision was his, and I doubt anything would have changed, but one ought to know what one is asking, just as it would not have changed my strategy, but I ought to have known how I was manipulating Genovieve.

Antoine decided to get drunk, of course, so we had one more night on the town. He was back in showman mode, so he made sure everyone had a wonderful time, and he gave me what I asked, which was that he remain sober enough to carry his own weight back to our room.

I brought Madeleine from her school to her home the next day. She had already been told what was going on. She and Genovieve said their good-byes, and I talked to Ash.

I told him that I understood why Antoine had acted as he did, although I wasn't sure I agreed with his reasoning. Ash immediately spotted the first lie I'd told him. (28) I suppose I should learn to do it better. He said that he didn't understand why Genovieve would steal a child, unless perhaps it had something to do with recognizing neglect or a probability of future problems. He also said that Genovieve had changed during the war--that something had hurt her badly, and he wished he knew what.

I didn't tell him. But as near as I can guess, this is what happened: Genovieve was being eaten up inside knowing that she would be the one to kill Ash. This may have been one reason to take Madeleine: a living child to fight off thoughts of death. Or perhaps, as Ash chooses to believe, Genovieve saw signs of neglect--or somehow sensed that if she did not take Madeleine, the child -would- suffer neglect. This is not likely to happen now that her parents have been properly frightened.

Killing Ash poisoned the last years of Genovieve's life, I suspect, worse than any drug with which she may have experimented. It may explain some of her flaws as a mother; it certainly explains in part, at least, why she never allowed Ash to get as close to her as he would have liked. (29) Antoine said that he hoped Ash would realize, before her death, how much Genovieve loved him.

I don't know. This is a relationship based on far too much pain, and, as Ash pointed out, the part we added was there from the moment Genovieve took Madeleine.

He and Genovieve walked us to the train, and Antoine and I did what we could to make her less miserable. Then I got a letter on the train, giving me what I think was probably the worst scare of my life. Ken's boat had overturned, and he was one of three survivors. However, he was still unconscious. (30)

Antoine got what must have been an unpleasant introduction to my coping mechanisms, but he agreed to bring Madeleine to her parents while I went on to San Francisco. (31)

Ken's brother Jack was there. He wasn't comfortable with me, but he was kind enough to insist that the hospital staff let me into Ken's room. I tried to keep from being more of a problem than I had to be, keeping contact with Jack focused on practicalities.

The most important of these was the financial: Life support is expensive. One of these days, I should do enough research to write an article on that. In any case, we went over the figures. My goal here was to buy the rest of the sumeer, since Antoine said that he'd see what he could do once the dragon situation was dealt with. If he couldn't do anything and there was no change by the end of the summer, I wasn't sure what the next step would be, but first I needed that summer.

Jack agreed to do what he could, and I made a list of people I could borrow money from, if it became necessary. It didn't; Michael was able to deal with Griaule quickly, and he sent Antoine to San Francisco. (32) Antione told the hospital staff that he wasn't the droid they were looking into, got into Ken's room, and woke him up. (33) He said that there wasn't any sign of magic or divine wrath there, just water. The doctor explained to Jack and me that sometimes these things just happen, and no one knows why one person will wake up, but another won't.

As for the dragon, Michael managed to enlist, among other people, the woman who is the land queen of the world, just as Sarah is the land queen of Burnham County. It seems that she was visiting incognito, until her daughter blew her cover. When I found out about all of that, it blew my mind. (34)

I gather that Michael and the others killed the dragon by planting a tree in his brain to hold him still, while Michael managed to get himself swallowed so he could cut his way out from the inside. And I've been told I live dangerously.

So, we hope that Griaule is dead. He is no longer in my mind, and Jennifer's memories have their own little corner. I'm enjoying being just one person. (35)

Sarah mollified Poseidon's wrath by killing Michael's bull. This did not please Michael, who, I gather, was obnoxious enough that Sarah seriously considered killing and planting him. He got her to agree to torture him sexually for the rest of the summer instead. When I heard about that, any doubts I had about staying in San Francisco, half a continent away from them, vanished. (36)

Ken's working as a math tutor since his boat's gone. I decided to get a taste of my probable future career, and asked Sarah if she knew of a restaurant that needed a waiter. As it turned out, she did. I'm working in a Vietnamese restaurant run by a couple who knew Sarah from years ago. Sarah refuses to teach me how to swear in French while I'm working for them, and I can see why. They are nice old and old fashioned people.

I know it's unlikely, but I hope things will stay quiet until I go back to college. (37)

Correspondence to Matt Denkla #1

August 2000

Dear Matt,

It's been a quiet month!

--Thorne

Correspondence to Matt Denkla #2

October 2000

Dear Matt,

I should have brought you up to date sooner. I'm sorry about that, but I was enjoying the quiet, and I figured you might be, too. (38)

Ashleigh's back, though her name is Madeleine now. Genovieve was telling the truth about Ash.

The dragon's out of my head, so I'm less likely to turn into a homicidal maniac. I also learned to set my dreams. (39)

The dragon is probably dead. If not, it's at least mostly dead. Folks seem to think it's totally dead, but we're being a bit paranoid.

I'm sure Daniel's brought you up to date on Cyrano. (40) I'm trying not to drive the cast too crazy. We all need an impossible goal.

--Thorne

Footnotes

(1) Delilah was created by Michael's magic, something that still freaks her out.

(2) Justin's half sister Sarah Lacey is a siren choosing to side with Michael against her grandfather Poseidon. Since she long ago decided she disapproved of his plans for world domination, she's even more of an exile than Justin realizes.

(3) Iris was Madeleine/Ashleigh's foster sister, i.e., Genovieve's biological daughter. Mary is Michael's aunt, and played with Madeleine when they were both children.

(4) Justin's referring to the fact that Genovieve died in 1955.

(5) Jido asked Justin to make a mechanical nightingale. Antoine decided that such a thing had to be made in Byzantium.

(6) Antoine made it clear to Justin that he thinks Delilah's too good for Michael. While Justin would normally figure it was none of his business whether anything came of that, there are vague plans to make sure that Michael doesn't die on Halloween, as would normally be the case for a land king. Since no one wants another Wild Hunt, the vague plans involve Delilah playing Janet to Michael's Tam Lin, something Justin isn't certain will work if she has sex with someone else. Nevertheless, he is being blunter (or ruder) than he probably would if he weren't worrying about something else.

(7) The cap keeps nightmares away.

(8) Michael owes two puppies from Sligo's next litter to the Dioscuri, Castor and Pollux. Justin's comment before he left was, "Michael needs a bitch for Sligo, and I do not mean Sarah."

(9) Annmarie is the ghost of Altclair's Theater Department. Justin made her gloves that she can use to touch the living world. This means they can correspond.

(10) Justin is wondering here if Poseidon had anything to do with the boat getting wrecked.

(11) Since Justin is susceptible to Griaule's influence, everyone's better off if he's out of range.

(12) Justin wrote the number in the letter, but we never made one up, and I don't want to do it now.

(13) Justin hopes to direct the play Cyrano during the Fall quarter of his Junior year. Michael said he'd audition if Justin would make him a bullet-proof shirt. Naomi and I figured that a tie-dyed t-shirt made in San Francisco's Haight Ashbury District (sp?) would do the trick.

(14) Travelling with Antoine was interesting. First of all, he's a mind mage. He doesn't generally peek into folk's minds without permission, but sometimes, he can't help overhearing a strong or obsessive thought. On the trip to Paris, Justin spent a lot of time wondering to himself who the father of Sarah's child (the one she's currently pregnant with) is.

Antoine: Well, I don't know. It's not me!

Justin: I'm sorry--was I thinking that loudly?

Antoine: I'm afraid so.

Justin: How can I turn down the volume?

The problem was that Justin's mind kept circling back to the topic. I think Antoine suggested nursery rhymes and other distractions.

Justin never actually asked Antoine if he was a postal mage, but it wasn't that difficult to figure out given that Antoine, while he didn't exactly say he was, for a while, at least, had dropped hints, and he answered questions on the way to Paris about postal magic. He and Justin have a similar take on such things (I was going to use the term "romantic streak", but am not sure it means what I think it means). Justin would never have considered asking Antoine outright because that would spoil the mystery. He did ask Antoine why bad mail happened to good people, and Antoine rolled his eyes and said, "We don't -do- politics", which was the first actual admission of being a postal mage.

Antoine made a not unexpected pass at Justin their first night in Paris, which Justin turned down. Actually, determinedly ignored might be more accurate. Antoine was surprised, intrigued, and clueful enough to take "no", even unspoken, for an answer.

Throughout the trip, Justin worked on his sculpture of The Little Mermaid. He would get up early to worship Apollo and chip stone. Antoine would try to sleep off his hangover. After a few days of this, Antoine pointed out that he had been quite forbearing, and asked Justin to desist. Justin figured he had a point and did.

(15) Ash wanted to see how Justin would act around her. Justin didn't tell her anything about why he was there. Madeleine was curious about Justin's French, as his accent was picked up from his sister, who was born in Vietnam. She was also curious about Arabic, and asked Justin to say something in that language. Justin said, "I've come a long way to see you."

(16) Justin had brought his sword to Paris to keep it from causing trouble while he was gone, but saw no reason to bring it along for a social call. Ash had been unpopular since refusing to fight in World War II. He was imprisoned by the British government for the duration of the war, something Justin mistakenly assumed would have kept him safer than fighting. Justin had no objection to Ash's pacifism; he was just being clueless. Ash enlightened him, explaining that most of his fellow prisoners didn't care for someone they considered a traitor to his country. Ash survived and kept his pacifism intact, using methods Justin recognized, having used them himself, albeit probably in less dangerous circumstances.

(17) Since history can't be changed, and since Madeleine isn't with Genovieve after the summer, she has to be somewhere else.

(18) Justin freed the gargoyles that had been trapped at Altclair, and they returned to Notre Dame. Since he was in the neighborhood, he dropped by to say hello.

(19) Professor Hillary teaches History. Justin had been hoping to get school credit from her for his trip to the past. She agreed to consider the idea, but warned Justin that he'd have to take an exam when he got back.

Antoine took Justin to a brothel on their second night in Paris. Antoine was amused that Justin didn't take full advantage of this, saying that he hadn't thought of Justin as the faithful type. This doesn't mean Justin was bored, quite the contrary. While Antoine was otherwise occupied, Justin chatted with folks at the brothel, gathering research material for the exam.

Antoine: You'll admit to this?

Justin (without hesitation): If it will get me extra credit, yes!

(20) Antoine suspected Ash was procrastinating because this wasn't something he really wanted to have to deal with.

(21) Genovieve did not want the young Ash to know she would one day assist in his suicide. Neither did Justin.

(22) Justin gets a lot of comments on how nasty he is. He wouldn't mind them if he were more effective, but it seems that folks like Antoine and Michael are better at nasty, when they want to be.

(23) I suspect this was a matter of the GM quite properly putting the power to affect the plot in the hands of the PC, i.e., the player, something far too many scenario authors fail to do. Just as Chris Claremont asked at Marvel, "Is there any reason this character can't be a woman?", GMs and authors of RPG scenarios and uber plots should ask, "Is there any reason this character can't be a PC?"

This isn't to say that an author shouldn't give NPCs cool things to do. But she should allow for the possibilty of a PC doing many of them, and even suggest as much to the GM. Too often, scenario authors relegate PCs to the position of audience to NPCs, or stick them in a story where, no matter what they do, he ending will be the same. (Hm, there's a "Little Boxes" filk in there...."And they all end just the same.")

(24) Especially since Justin once did something similar for someone he didn't care that much about.

(25) To make the bomb/recording of Jennifer's emotions about the loss of her daughter and husband to Genovieve, Antoine used Justin as a filter. This means that Antoine and the item that was the "bomb" got the material intended for Genovieve, while Justin got a copy of several of Jennifer's memories and emotions about other things. Some of these emotions were extremely unpleasant. Jennifer's been through a lot in the last couple of years.

(26) Relevant whispered gamequotes while Ash and Genovieve were distracted:

Justin (in Arabic, forgetting Antoine doesn't speak the language): You should leave before Ash forgets he's a pacifist.

Antoine (simultaneously, in English): Perhaps I should wait outside.

(27) By reading her mind.

(28) This made Justin feel especially foolish as the reason he told the lie about not agreeing with Antoine was to spare Ash's feelings. Ash is a mind mage, and Justin is a lousy liar.

(29) Ash wanted to be Genovieve's lover, but she never allowed this.

(30) The letter was written by the person with whom Ken was staying when he was on land. Justin got the letter by way of the postal mages. It began something like, "This sounds really crazy, but Ken said that if I needed to reach you, I should address the letter this way." Since Antoine was there, he used his postal magic to send letters back and forth to Michael's farm, learning about the situation there. As he told Justin, "There are advantages to travelling with a postal mage." Antoine tossed the letters out the window of the train, and responses flew through the window into his hand.

(31) Among other things, Justin makes even more lists in a crisis situation.

(32) Michael used transportation magic and a picture of a San Francisco landmark to teleport Antoine to the West Coast.

(33) Again, using mind magic.

(34) The daughter of the land queen of the world turned out to be none other than Kristi Kattapong, Altclair's Theatsr Department's favorite stage manager (who had graduated that Spring). While a fairly normal person, according to Naomi, this explains why she had the clout to ask one of the Good Folk to be gentle when collecting a debt from Michael.

(35) Antoine helped Justin put Jennifer's memories in a corner of his mind. He still has them.

(36) Michael was actually grateful to Sarah, but felt that he couldn't be seen to condone animal sacrifice to pagan gods. Sarah considered this hypocritical and ungrateful. Justin got a bit annoyed himself.

Michael: Do you know how much a prize bull like that costs?

Justin: Life support costs sixteen hundred a day--I don't want to hear it!

Sarah didn't try sacrificing the bull earlier because she didn't want to have to deal with dragon and Poseidon at the same time. I think this was Naomi's way of wrapping up a plotline she wanted the PCs worried about, but which also was a bit of a red herring for the main plot, the Griaule problem.

(37) Actually, for once, things did stay quiet.

(38) Matt had loaned Justin some old money for 1949, which Justin repaid, and he'd been the one to recognize that Ash might be ill. He was also one of the mages helping Michael destroy Griaule.

(39) Justin knows Matt occasionally has terrible nightmares. This is his way of being subtle about asking Matt if he wants to learn to set his dreams. When Justin got around to asking Matt outright, Matt said yes.

(40) Justin is indeed directing Cyrano de Bergerac for Fall Quarter.