We deserve it, don't we?

[lost_and_foundry]

Barcus lives in a well-appointed home in the Upper City, which is a surprise to most of the people who know both him and the political and social structures of Baldur's Gate. It's a swanky neighborhood, is the thing, and Barcus has never been the sort of man to admit he's well off. It's not something he thinks about; he measures his wealth in the time he has to pursue his private projects, and in that sense he's...comfortable, yes, but there's always going to be something he wants to learn that he can't get around to. Ah, well. Life is too short.

In any case, his home is very nice indeed, though it isn't one of those ridiculous patriar mansions like Cazardor's gothic monstrosity. Three stories, one of which is entirely underground and which houses his equipment. The ground floor is a living area. The top floor is a library, with a collection that impressed Gale the first time he saw it. (Not a tenth the size of his own shelves in Waterdeep, naturally, but a good piece of work nonetheless, never knew you had it in you, Barcus!) Outside is a small walled garden, which he never bothered to grow anything in before, but now that he's "home" again, ostensibly with the ability to travel to and from Caldera as he likes, he's set a few potted plants in place, trying to decide how much care he can remember to give them.

Satchel, to her great credit, has settled into the place like it was made for her. Mornings, she can be found sunning on the patio. At night, she prowls the upper-floor library, as if patrolling for mice. Or bookworms.

Should a visitor from out of town arrive, it would not take much effort to find him. The Ironhand-Gondian alliance has picked up steam fast, gathering immense influence in a short amount of time. His name is known, as is his work, and--perhaps to his detriment, in the long run--his address.

Do come visit!

Comments

[lost_and_foundry]

Once Bel has set down his gear, Barcus takes him by the hand and leads him gently through a rather cushy living room (at least twice the size of their own place in Caldera) and into a kitchen that still smells of fried mushrooms. There's a table with four chairs, and the drow is welcome to any one of them.

"Hmm, well perhaps breakfast and then a bath or a nap until evening, then. This city never sleeps anyway. There's nothing happening in the day that you can't see just as well after dark, except perhaps a few ships at the dock."

"It might be for the best to introduce you to the Ironhands sooner rather than later, just to clear the air. I have attempted to explain Caldera, and the idea that I was snatched across planes is less shocking to them than it should be, but I don't think anyone would believe I was gone for over a year. Well...not amongst the Ironhands. Zanner and Obelia Toobin have been supportive."

He puts the kettle on and starts getting things out of the pantry to cook. "I would introduce you to them first, except I fear Thulla would get jealous. She likes to be consulted about things."

[lettersfrombel]

Bel nodded as he took a seat. "Breakfast sounds wonderful. And I won't need much rest, but a bath sounds heavenly. You're welcome to join me," he grinned.

"Any advice on meeting the Ironhands? I'm an old hand at appearing harmless, but that's usually more for people who have only heard of drow, not people who have encountered us before."

[lost_and_foundry]

"Well, my bathtub is a little small," Barcus says archly, smirking over his shoulder. "We'd have to get very close in the water to make it work."

You wanted to bathe with a gnome in your lap, right? Or vice versa.

Thoughts of washing Bel's hair while sneaking in little bites to his neck and shoulders are, sadly, derailed by the question. "You'll have to be a little delicate with the ones who were held in the Grymforge," he says. "The Duergar there were more physically vicious to us than Nere, but he was in charge in the end."

Perhaps it's lucky that Welso has left for home. It's not fair, but it's hard to lose a sister like he did and then live comfortably amongst people who resemble her murderer. "I think the most important thing to remember, though, is that we are a practical people. Take no offense at sharp comments, because there will be sharp comments, and appeal to rationality."

[lettersfrombel]

Dang. Bel will have to redirect back to Barcus helping him bathe, but this is a serious matter. "I'm good at letting insults roll off me," he admitted. "Well, most insults. I admit I'm a bit sensitive about ones calling out drow men in particular, but I can deal with ones about drow being horrible demon-worshipping slavers."

It might be for the best that Nere wasn't too personally involved. Bel's impression of duergar was that they were absolutely willing to use violence to make sure their slaves got as much done before they inevitably died of exhaustion, but that they were less inclined towards psychological nastiness. Or maybe that was just reserved for followers of Lolth, not drow slavers in general -- it wasn't like there was much of a difference in the Underdark.

"But appealing to rationality is something I can do, as long as no one expects me to not also be a bit frivolous because it is the surface. I suppose that also means employment for myself, unless you intend to keep me as your consort."

Bel didn't have a good word for the concept in Common, so he used the drow word, a bit teasingly. Because in that context, it would imply 'a man largely kept around for sex and the social status of having his undivided attention', and wouldn't be what Bel actually wanted, though it was something Bel didn't mind playing at for a short time.

He really should stop getting distracted from just focusing on Barcus, but some of this is because Bel is still adapting to the idea of a new stage of his life, living in a human city with Barcus, and trying to get some footing.

[lost_and_foundry]

"Might not be direct insults," Barcus says. "More like banter with a sting in the tail of it. When deep gnomes feel powerless, we divert our energy into passive-aggression, and many of us do feel powerless in the face of an adult drow. We're all too aware of the power balance in the Underdark, and where we would be on the food chain."

"They'll test you, and it will be subtle because they don't want me to give them a talking-to," he says, and drops butter into the pan so it sizzles. "To see if you'll lash out openly, or try to maneuver around them, or neither. But in the end, deep gnomes respect industry, intellect, and loyalty. Being charming and playful won't hurt you with them, but it won't win you points in particular, either. Not beyond a moment of laughter or a drink at the Elfsong, anyway, which is valuable but not long-term. What will win them is when they see you actually do love me, and that you're capable of far more than stabbing people in the dark."

"I think that's what turned them from Wulbren to me, in the clutch. I was there in the Grymforge with them. He wanted me to be the outsider, the one who was there by his leave, but they knew better. I suffered with them, and when he turned on me and ordered my death, he broke faith with them, too."

"I have faith in them, and in you. It may take time, but you'll get there. In the meantime, the Gondians will warm to you faster, but be careful not to get so embroiled amongst them that you become one of them in the Ironhands' eyes. Zanner and Obelia and Featherweight will be safe enough to befriend. The Ironhands like them very much."

He turns to look at Bel as the omelette starts to cook, and gives him a softer look. "...I won't lie, playing at one of us being the other's kept consort sounds like a fun bedroom game. We could switch off with that. But I think we're both far too practical to let that be our permanent existence. I can help you get work easily enough. You could assist in the forge if you wanted, but there are textile shops about, too. You might find that more intuitive, with as much knitting as you've been doing."

"I suppose we could call you my bodyguard, instead, but I don't know. That might muddy the waters, if people think you're paid to protect me and we just sort of let it become sexual."

[lettersfrombel]

"Loyalty is something I am good at," Bel commented. He wanted to go up and take Barcus by the waist, but that wasn't smart while Barcus was cooking. "It was a mixed blessing growing up, but has paid off on the surface." Loyalty without an obvious reason was seen as suspicious when growing up; the people around him were more likely to trust self-interest. At least as a man, many female drow were willing to dismiss Bel's loyalty as marking 'a safe but boring and unamibtious choice'.

"And I imagine having a job that isn't stabbing people or looking intimidating in shadows would help. It would help me as well. I like being good at more than sex and violence... not that I object to being good at those as well. Which rules out being your hot bodyguard. Especially since it would suggest you have something that needs my full-time protection, not just your own abilities and the people around you's."

Given some of the politics Barcus mentioned, Bel isn't sure that Barcus is entirely safe, but Bel generally trusts that most people don't know about Barcus's Caldera-granted powers, which is enough of an edge that even someone preparing for a gnome artificer might be caught off-guard. And Barcus is also surrounded by loyal people, which means anything Barcus can't deal with himself will have backup.