Aodh Plot 507: New Digs

Laneus was tired, and not just the “I didn’t get good sleep last night” sort of way. He was tired in the visceral, “the wind might blow be over and I would welcome death” way. Three months to rebuild the Pearl, from the ground up, was unreasonable to say the least. At first Laneus had thought it a wonderful opportunity. Help build an establishment everyone knows and loves, one way or another. Move up in the word with a big commission. Maybe get a discount on the goods once it was done. But then he had to work under Lilith’s “supervision,” deal with Addie’s steely gaze, and live up to Donovan’s expectations, when Laneus was fairly certain he was well known for sleeping through Donovan’s classes. While Donovan seemed to understand Lilith was being unreasonable, they still expected Laneus to do everything nothing less than perfectly. At least they gave him coffee. That was all that kept Laneus on his hooves. That and the recently-developed eye twitch.

But now building was in the past, and Laneus stood with Addie on the steps of three months worth of no sleep. The courtesans mingled below them. Excitement danced with anticipation, but there was an underlying darker current. They all knew why the Pearl had moved. Laneus shifted nervously, remembering the day all to well as he pulled the gilded scissors from his bags.

With a quick glance at the mistress Addie, Laneus tossed his forelock back and raised his voice for the gathered horses, “Welcome all! We’re gathered here today for the opening of the new and improved Pearl,” Laneus inclined his head towards the still sealed doors who’s velvet ribbon fluttered in the light breeze as Laneus sent his gilded bridle swinging, “We lost much with the old Pearl, but now is a time for new beginnings and celebrating life to its fullest. So without further ado, I give you the new jewel of the city; your new home away from home: the Pearl!” Laneus shot the crowd one last dazzling smile. Then, he turned towards the door and cut the ribbon in one quick snip. The pieces slid to the ground with sinuous grace and he swung the doors open wide on well-oiled hinges.

The transition had been tumultuous. Then again, any event that started with a wyvern wrenching its way out of the ground and through a business establishment was bound to have tricky methods of succession. The same unfortunate circumstance that created an opening beneath the prior location of the Pearl provided an opening in the management chain as well. Adler recognized a favorable opportunity and tailored herself to fit it.



She was aware of Lilith’s particular brand of ethics and had correctly guessed that mild--or, she suspected, major--nepotism was not beyond the Emin. Addie wielded her mother’s connections easily and got an audience and employment in one day. If Lilith ever did think to check the strength of Adler’s own connection to Cyndane, it would only be after.



Since then, Adler had been in a flurry of preparation. Surveying sites with Lilith and arguing passionately in favor of a location in the Artisan district, meeting with Laneus and Donovan to approve designs and, finally, outfitting the house in its furnishings. From now on, this establishment would be her professional domain and Adler was always one for appearances.



As Laneus slid the doors open to the entrance hall, she heard the employees filter in. Stepping from the shadows, both literal and metaphorical, she strode out to meet them. “Welcome, to the New Pearl of Valore!” Her smile was wider than the doorway that had been thrown open.



The white marble that made up the building had been cleverly treated with a high gloss shine and focal points actually were edged in mother of pearl opalescence. The fabric trimmings were burgundy and gold, just a shade off from the official colors of Lilith’s ancestral family. A sweeping staircase led up and away from the wide room, presumably to thoroughly private rooms. Along the edges of the grand hall, however, there were several semi-secluded alcoves to negotiate potential business within. A door from the hall led to the accompanying opium den.



“Thank you for coming to our own private party before we welcome the public again,” she glanced at each in attendance. “I can’t wait to get to know each of you better.” Truth be told, there was a few Pearl workers she knew already. She’d been a patron herself before taking the post.

Laneus sought other company tonight and that was perfectly fair. He’d probably had a stomach full of her over the past months. Adler surveyed the crowd with a gentle smile, internally skeptical as always. With the Pearl’s movement from the Merchant’s district to the Artisinal, she predicted a wider range of repetitive clientel and had decorated to suit. The fact that Lilith’s colors were so close to her own was a happy coincidence, or at least she’d pretend it was in public. With her work done with the actual place, she could begin on the workers.

Shrewdly she analyzed each from reputation and presentation tonight. Some people thought rumors an unfair assessment but as service providers in a customer service industry, rumors were often the only information a potential customer had to decide before patronizing. Rumors were reviews. Adler had been gathering a few, hoarding them up to help her manage them. A few were more pressing--Hancock’s substance use, for instance, could be a problem while on the clock.

All could wait until tomorrow, however.

She scanned the group before tossing her head and welcoming them to follow her through to the opium den where a feast masqueraded as a buffet. Alcohol, opium and hors d'oeuvres were laid out in dazzling arrays in the lounging room. Arranged with leisure in mind, the room relied more on the burgundy trappings to close out the sunlight and make a cozier space to invite patrons to recline on the low, plush chaises and stay a while--a long while.

“Shots, anyone?” Adler asked. “I’m pouring.”