Child of Stone and Metal (Open)

[Savnarae]

Savna was lucky this time. At this point, the slavers knew what kind of a slave she was and what sort of allowances they could give her to attract the most attention. Rather than locked helplessly behind bars, she stood out in the open, on a raised pedestal with a small banister to separate herself from buyers, both feet and her left arm chained loosely to a peg behind her, her right arm free for inspection.

And she dazzled. The slavers had let her clean herself up well this time, actually giving her half an hour in the reptile shifter section where it was warmer to mold herself pristine and re-jewel herself. Her skin was flawless, and the spotlights were warm on it to highlight its shimmer and keep it softer and more malleable. She had been told that she would get a chance to show off her right arm only, and had placed a spiral of emeralds twisting its way down her arm, ending in fine topaz spiderwebs across the back of her hand and fingers, and starting from a starburst of rubies at her bare shoulder. It looked like a stained glass flower with roots had been set into her skin.

The left side of her face was a mosaic masquerade. An amethyst outline of a butterfly's ring circled her left eye from her temple to her nose and across her cheek and down to the bottom of her ear. She had had a lot of fun taking an old log out back and redecorating herself with it. Her left leg was studded a burst of white diamonds, thin shards arranged in a firework fashion, spreading out from her knee in all directions, wrapping around the back of her leg and spreading up her thigh and down her shin, joining with other diamond colors such as rose and pale yellow and spring green at the burst's fringes.

Her feet were bare on the floor, and her right foot's toenails had been replaced with chips of black onyx. She wore extremely short black booty shorts to show off as much skin as possible, and a superficial, thin, white spaghetti strap top folded up that looked clearly stretched over her metallic frame without digging into it, and no visible bra beneath. Despite her obvious surface beauty, her torso turned many off. She had no curves to speak of beneath that tank top, and her chest actually looked fairly masculine. The stretch of skin revealed by her folded tank also revealed no true belly button, though there was a small set of rubies arranged in a circle radiating from where her belly button might have been, in much the same fashion as a beach tattoo might look on a human.

There was a sign beyond the edge of the spotlights warming her that declared her name, species, and price. The price was the second major turn-off. She was perhaps one of the most expensive things in the entire warehouse. A few simple facts about her were below the price, such as her strength, tenacity, and ability to create precious metals and gems from garbage. Over her shoulder, set on a small pedestal hung from the wall, was her ancient goblet, looking a little worse for the wear but still intact.

There was a great crowd around her, standing at the edge of the small railing set between her slightly raised platform and their walking surface, and she was standing right against her side as well, her arm reaching over for the curious potential buyers to touch and inspect closely. She herself was busy answering their many questions about her. What she was, what she did, how she worked, what she could offer, what she was made off, all manner of things. One might think she was a professional at this sort of thing, except there was not a smile to be found on her glittering features. This was not entertainment for her, as entertaining as she clearly was. This was strictly business.

[Decimus Aemilius Lepidus]

Decimus didn't come to the trading rings often. His slaves usually came from breeding farms, far more sanitary places than the filthy ring he was standing in now. The misery coming from the slaves was almost enough for him to smell, if it hadn't been overpowered by the stench of too many people forced to live in such a small space. Even the traders themselves were no more than scum, lured towards him by his crisp suit that probably cost more than most of the slaves they were selling. Their greed was apparent, and after a quick study of their wares he moved on.

He had come here for a change of pace, deluded himself in to thinking that there could be something here worth his time. He'd be more likely to find a diamond in a turd with this group though, he hadn't found anything worth his time. The ones with any intelligence were too ugly, and all the pretty ones seemed well and truly broken, a state he himself found unsavory. What good was a slave that forgot how to think for itself?

He was just thinking about leaving when he caught a glimmer from the edge of his vision. He paused, instinct making him turn to see what the source was... And he nearly hissed in pleasure. A slave decorated in gemstones! She seemed to be made out of metal too, though he immediately saw it wasn't a particularly good metal. No matter, he didn't want her for a meal after all. But something so decorated in gems, the hoarding part of his brain demanded he obtain her.

He stalked forward, forcing the crowd to part around him as he moved up to the railing, looking her over with greedy eyes before his eyes flicked to the sign beside her. The sum didn't make him flinch, but it rarely did these days... Ever since currency had turned towards paper and unfavorable metals he had been far freer with his money. He had never owned a Homunculus, but he was sure he could provide adequate care for her easily enough... Would do what he had to to make sure this new shining slave would be comfortable.

His eyes scoured the area for her seller and once he caught sight of them, lifting a finger towards Savnarae. "Get her down from there, would you? I'll be purchasing her." His fingers dove in to his coat, pulling out his checkbook as his eyes turned again to his new slave, a satisfied smirk on his face. She was perfect...

[Savnarae]

Savnarae was entirely too focused on pleasing the crowd before her to notice the sudden interest of the newcomer until he was making a commotion right in front of her. Her silver, almost alien eyes turned to him with an impassive curiosity, and she offered him the back of her hand for inspection, but he wasn't interested in inspecting her. As he read her plaque she started to ask if he wanted to ask her any questions, but before she could get much of a word in edgewise, he was snapping around for a slaver. Decisive. Was he really going to buy her based on her plaque and appearance alone? This could either be good or very bad.

Either way, it would be interesting. She watched as half the crowd dispersed immediately, having never intended to buy, only watch, and the other half hung around a bit angrily that their potential new slave had just been taken from them in their extended moment of indecision.

"Y-yes sir!" The slaver didn't recognize the man--he wasn't a regular--but he did recognize the sharp style of that suit. "Keys are right here, sir." he was in charge of this section of the display, and carried about two dozen keys of various sizes and shapes on two keyrings at his right side. He jogged his way around the railing to the wall and up the small stairs next to the platform that held Savnarae's goblet, eager to make one of the biggest sales of his career. He pulled her key from the second keyring and began to unlock her wrist.

"So, uh, sir...Have you handled homunculi before? You're in for a real treat with this one..Don't be deceived that she's a woman, she's a vicious fighter and guard." He smiled at his client, his teeth kind of yellow and crooked. he was every bit as slimy as the rest of them. Savna herself didn't particularly care to be near him, and she rubbed her wrist meticulously as it was freed, inspecting it for any sort of mark left behind by the steel, and smoothing it with her thumb.

The slaver knelt down and unlocked both of her ankles, then stood again. Savna crouched down and inspected her ankles in much the same way as she had her wrists, and began smoothing the lines down with her thumbs. The slaver hurried back to the goblet and took it down from its pedestal. Immediately, the homunculus looked up and straightened up, watching the slaver carefully.

"Come on," he ordered, and she followed him across the platform, down the stairs, and back towards the man with the checkbook.

[Decimus Aemilius Lepidus]

Decimus could feel the anger of those around him, but he couldn't find it in him to care the slightest. He had a habit of stepping on toes, but his wealth and power was quite the safeguard against any notions of revenge. Who wanted to fight with someone who might end up swallowing you whole? He ignored them completely, more than happy to watch his new purchase and ignore the smile the slaver sent his way. The man was beneath him, so he declined to answer the slaver's question; he wasn't about to show any ineptitude now, first impressions with his new slave were important.

Besides, watching her buff marks out of her skin was more interesting than some ratty slaver. He wasn't in any big hurry so he wasn't offended by the way she took care of her appearance instead of paying attention to him. If his scales were in disorder he'd be doing the same thing, appearances were important. Perhaps she wished to make a good first impression as well...

He wrote the total purchase down as the slaver approached, ripping the check neatly from his book and offering it to the man. His eyes weren't on him though, instead inspecting his slave in closer detail. The gemstones did look rather pretty in her skin, and the dragon couldn't help but imagine how nice she would look covered in them. He had an abundance of the precious stones in his hoard, and he didn't mind the idea of giving them to her- after all, he owned both things, so why be possessive?

"Hello, Savnarae. Or do you prefer a nickname?" He gave a slight smile to her, feeling quite friendly after such a find. When they were alone he would have to remember to ask about her diet and any needs she had, but not here in the middle of everyone. He finally flicked his glance towards the trader, expression shifting a bit with his distaste. "Are we all settled then?"

[Savnarae]

Savnarae inclined her head obediently in a small bow as she was addressed.

"Pleasure to meet you, master," she greeted formally with an equally formal smile. "I have also been called Savna. The choice is yours, but Savna is shorter and more easily called." Best to be cautious.

The trader didn't seem to mind the obvious difference between his client's treatment of himself and his merchandise. He'd been treated worse. He smiled his slimy smile as he took the check with an almost reverent gentleness, and offered the goblet.

"If you have no questions...then she is all yours. Of course, she can also answer any questions you have, she is most obedient...This is her life-force though, keep it safe, and she will serve you for as long as you live. Damage it...and she will understand the term 'punishment'."

He was pretty creepy, especially in the way he articulated that term. Savna eyed him and the goblet with a quiet dislike, but not quite an anger or hatred. He bothered her. That was about as strong of an emotion as she could feel. She wanted her goblet out of his hands, though. She didn't like it being held in fragile, earthly fingers that could drop it at a moment's notice. It didn't take much to dent pewter, and it was already soft and very warm from the spotlights.

[Decimus Aemilius Lepidus]

Hmn, at least the slave was well behaved, if a bit distant. Not that that was in any way uncommon, Decimus had just been hoping for a little more spark. If she was little more than a shiny hollow shell, he wasn't sure how long his interest would stay on her. "Savna sounds fine to me then. My name is Decimus Lepidus, Master or Master Lepidus are both fine to call me." He decided to keep himself formal for now, going along with the slave's behavior. Hopefully with time she would warm up to him... No pun intended.

He took the goblet carefully, examining it. It looked old and rather damaged, but apparently it was important for his slave as the seller soon pointed out. He'd never cared too much for pewter, especially the alloys containing high qualities of lead- it didn't kill him, but the taste was foul. Nothing in his hoard was pewter, but it seemed like he'd have to make an exception. He looked to Savna again as he held the goblet carefully, once again ignoring the slaver. He had no further use for the man since his slave would be able to answer all his questions.

"Come on Savna, let's depart. The stench in here is getting to me." He turned and started for the exit, keeping one eye on his slave as he went. He doubted she would try anything with him holding her life force quite literally in his hands, but watching her wouldn't hurt either. He led her outside and took a moment to take a deep inhale of air, ridding himself of the smell of the ring. It only took a moment for his driver to spot the dragon standing outside and pull the limousine up to the pair. It wasn't too gaudy of a car, smaller than most limousines- Decimus just preferred his privacy when riding, and had never really gotten the hang of driving an automobile himself anyways. He opened the door and gestured for Savna to get in, eager to get some seclusion so he could ask all the questions he had.

[Savnarae]

Savna's eyes never left the goblet as it transferred hands, and she shifted her weight slightly as her new master turned it over, straightening up an inch as if he was examining her directly. Her attention darted back to him as he spoke to her again, and she smiled slightly at the mention of the stench. Yes, she didn't care much for the place either.

"Yes, Master Lepidus," she said formally, following him quite closely at his right shoulder, her pewter feet grinding slightly like stone-on-stone against the smooth concrete. She wouldn't have been so close had he not been holding her goblet, but she always felt very slightly on edge whenever the cup was in the open. She had imagined once that it must be like a human's heart, if that was put on display and carried around. They might walk a bit more gingerly if someone else was holding that.

When they reached the limousine, she hesitated only in the beat in which he opened the door.

"Thank you. Shall I get the door for you next time, Master?" she asked as she slipped inside and sat in the center of the bench to allow her master as much choice as possible. She wondered what sort of man he was. Extremely rich, by the way he dropped that check without a thought. Maybe he'd give her more jewels. Or maybe he was miserly, and would take them from her as soon as he found out they were removable. She couldn't hide such a thing from him if he asked; lying to her master was a very very dangerous thing to do.

[Decimus Aemilius Lepidus]

Ah, he got a smile from her at least, a rather small one. He had no doubt that she disliked it here, couldn't imagine what kind of person could enjoy it in the rings- no one he ever wished to meet to be sure. She followed him with complete obedience which he enjoyed, off to his right as was appropriate. Her feet scraped a bit against the ground but he didn't find it an offensive sound, more concerned about whether it could damage her or not. Concrete wasn't the gentlest of materials after all, and he made a mental note to buy her some shoes when he found out her size.

"Yes, opening the door for me is fine. I tend to like to do other things myself though, so don't bother unless I ask you to if you'd be so kind." He settled down on the seat beside her, leaving enough space between them to hopefully keep her comfortable. He closed the door and the car took off smoothly, allowing him to turn his attention back to Savna. "So, you are a homunculus. I admit I've never owned a homunculus, so I do have some questions for you. Your diet and any unusual needs you may have is important, so do not feel shy about voicing them. Also, can you put more gems in your skin or is there a limit?"

He tilted his head, eyeing her arm. She seemed to have quite the artistic skill, so she would probably be able to make quite the masterpiece if she was provided the materials. "And your skin... Does it have to be pewter, or is that just what was available to you?" Adding different metals to go with the gems would be nice to look at, though he figured if she couldn't replace her skin, perhaps he could work around it... Having a slave that could be decorated was quite an exciting concept to him.

[Savnarae]

Questions questions. Right down to business with this one, Savna liked that. She'd been a bit concerned when he hadn't presented the trader with any questions, but she saw his strategy now, or so she thought, and she felt better. She made the mental note about not doing things unless asked, but didn't comment on it. Just another good thing for her.

She was glad he'd asked about her diet, it was unusual and expensive and many of her masters didn't believe her until she started to look sick and frail from eating whatever they tried to force her to have in their sight.

"What I eat, first, is gems. I can make them, though, from other sorts of materials. It's a homunculus' power called alchemy, so you don't need to directly buy me jewels. The best things to feed me are what can be found on my chalice." She indicated it with a hand. "Rubies, emeralds, sapphires, diamons. The four precious gems. I can also eat things like topaz, amethyst, but they're not the best."

She smiled more widely at the next part. She was pleased at how he'd worded his question - it wasn't "can they be removed," but "can more be added."

"I can add as many gemstones to my skin as will fit. My skin is actually made of pewter, kept soft by my body temperature, which is higher than a human's. The pewter holds it in place, and the gems keep the pewter more flexible." The smile faded slightly as she continued. "I can technically place other metals in my skin like I can gems, but I can't blend them."

She paused in thought. "Well...Perhaps with high heat they could be mixed, but it would be painful, and it's never been done. If you would like, I will be willing to let you try, but..." But the expression on her face suggested it wouldn't be her most preferred plan of action. "To actually embed the metal would be just a similar process to placing gems, just warm and press. Softer metals would probably work best."

Here she paused. It would probably be better to let him ask more questions rather than narrate everything about herself, and if she'd missed anything along the way, he could reiterate. She looked up at him.

"Does that make sense?" she prompted quietly.

[Decimus Aemilius Lepidus]

Huh, she ate gems like he did. And she could make them as well, what a useful slave he had picked up! "We share a bit of our diet then. I have to eat gems and metals as well, to keep my scales hard. I prefer diamonds, since they give the hardest scales, but I have plenty of others around in case you cannot make them yourself. And what exactly do you make them out of, are there specific materials that work and others that don't? I never heard too much about alchemy really."

He was pleased at her next words, though as she continued he lost some of his enthusiasm. He didn't plan on injuring her just for appearances, she would look just fine as she was now. "I understand you. Harming you for such reasons is unacceptable, but there are alternatives. There are even paints made with metals, if that sounds alright with you I can always provide some of that for you to use as decoration. I myself just like the shine of metals."

It was then he realized that his new slave didn't exactly know what exactly she was dealing with for a master, and he decided there was no reason to leave her in the dark. "I myself, by the way, am a dragon if you didn't already guess. I own a mansion out in the suburbs, which is staffed with slaves. There isn't too many responsibilities since I do tend to like to do things myself, but I'll be sure that you are given a job that suits you." Probably as his guard, he had already decided- he didn't really need one, but having such a beautiful slave by his side would definitely earn him respect. Still, he wanted to get to know her a bit better before he decided.

"Do you have any weaknesses? Other than your goblet." He hadn't released the goblet since receiving it, holding it lightly on the seat next to him. "Once we arrive, I'll have someone take your measurements for clothes. Your own preferences will be fine for casual wear, though if I have you accompany me somewhere your clothing will be influenced by me." Probably as revealing as possible to show off the jewels, but she didn't seem to mind what she was wearing now so he was confident that that would be fine. "And do your feet wear down if you walk on rough ground? We can get you some footwear when we arrive I'm sure."

[Savnarae]

Savna was a bit confused for entire stretch between her master mentioning his "scales" and his revelation that he was a dragon. That made much sense. She'd heard of shapeshifting dragons, and had made a trek while she was still living with her creator into an old, abandoned dragon's den and picked up a single scale in relatively decent shape for him. It had been made into one of her "brothers," but he'd been killed when the castle was stormed after Dr. Orwell's death. He had always been aggressive, and had put up a marvelous fight against many demons. She had never seen a dragon before, and wondered what he looked like in his true form. It would be a pleasure and an honor to see the form of the beast whose plate armor her comrade was born of.

She listened to the rest of his conversation, though. She had by now decided that she liked him, and he would be a good master for her. She was quite pleased by their new pairing, and especially if she had a lot of fellow slaves in a large house outside the main city, it would be almost like home.

"About alchemy, any object will work, but objects that are closer in properties are easier to transmute into one another. Metal to metal, crystal to gem, gem to gem, such like that. Wood is a common source people like to give me. It's very porous so yield is low, but it's cheap. Living things are difficult for me personally, my specialty is metals and gemstones." That they both ate gems she found amusing. She'd never heard of anyone else sharing her diet save for other homunculi, and to have a master who understood her food source was very interesting.

"I'll be happy with whatever you'd like of me, Master. My creator was much the same way, a human who created many of us as experiments and left us mostly on our own, leaving simple things such as housework to us and calling on us occasionally to assist in experiments. I think I'll fit in very well in your home.

"I don't have many weaknesses," she continued, "but I am sensitive to temperatures. I have a wide range of comfortable temperatures, and my own body heat helps to stabilize me, but temperatures too warm or too cold will do adverse things to my skin. Pewter is soft in warmth by nature, but temperatures too warm will soften it to the point of stickiness, and it can stick to itself and pull apart, damaging me. A high enough temperature will cause it to melt, as well. It's repairable, unlike human skin, but I do bleed if it melts too far or sticks to itself and pulls away from my arm, and blood loss will weaken me very greatly, possibly to the point of inability to move." She didn't say death, because blood loss would not technically kill her. Her life force would remain in the body, however unusable it was, until her goblet was destroyed.

"Alternatively, temperatures too cold--and by this I mean something along the lines of being bare in an ice storm--will harden my skin beyond mobility, and I won't be able to force it to bend, or it might tear if I try too hard. However, you mentioned adding more gems before, and more gems in my skin will widen my temperature range. They will trap the pewter in place and prevent it from sticking to itself or melting off if it gets too warm, and they weaken it and give me points to work around if it becomes too stiff in cold. And they're harder than pewter in general, so they provide a level of defense."

And she paused again here to let him absorb this. This was good. This was excellent. She was getting everything out right from the get-go. He'd be an expert in pewter gem homunculi by the time they got to his mansion.

[Decimus Aemilius Lepidus]

"Wood huh? Well, I have plenty of trees around the mansion." He gave a light shrug, figuring that they could figure out what materials she could use later. It wasn't like he was terribly in need of any gemstones or metals after all, though he wouldn't complain if she went ahead and made them anyways.

He relaxed back against the seat as he listened, eyes watching her as she talked. Her species was quite the interesting one and he was beginning to wonder how common they were- a creature that could create gems and metals would be a precious thing for any dragon, but he had never heard of them. Perhaps it was simply that those who knew of the homuculus kept them secret, he wouldn't be terribly surprised.

"Well, you won't have a problem with cold- I'm a reptile at heart, even when I'm in a form like this. Just can't stand the cold, I like my heat. Part of why I settled down in this city, actually... I think you'll be quite comfortable in my home, especially when we get you more gems. If you're willing, I think there is plenty of housework to be done, but whenever I go out I'll call for you to accompany as a guard. There are many building where shifting is impossible for me, and this form is quite weak... Someone to protect my back would be nice."

He paused as the car came to a halt and the door opened from the outside by his driver. He gave the man a nod and slipped out of the vehicle, waiting for Savna to follow him out and allowed her a moment to take in her surroundings. They had pulled right up to his mansion, a rather ridiculously large building that sprawled out on both sides of the driveway. Tall hedges around the driveway gave the yard privacy and made the view rather limited, so the dragon soon moved up the steps to the front door, expecting Savna to follow.

"The mansion can be a bit confusing at first, but I'll be sure to assign another slave to you for the first week to help show you the ropes. They'll tell you where all the necessities are, the few rooms you aren't allowed in to without permission, everything you need to know. I encourage my slaves to come to me if there are problems, so don't hesitate if you are being harassed or uncomfortable." He considered the door for a moment, lips pursed as he thought about where to house his new slave. The basement level was the barracks where most of his slaves stayed, but he didn't want to house his new prize there... But there were plenty of spare rooms. "If you'd like, I can show you the way to your room and then we can get you some gems." The dragon imagined that being without her gemstones would be much like being without his scales, and secretly wanted to see the results of when she was fully bejeweled.

[Savnarae]

Warmth, just the way Savna liked it. It was almost as though they were made for one another, a dragon and his treasure. Terrezen had liked her very much, too. That had been the dragonscale homunculus' name. He'd liked her and her gems. Based on how Master Lepidus was acting, it made much sense.

When the car rolled to a stop and the door was opened, Savna followed her master quietly out, eyeing again the goblet as he changed positions with it. She took the moment he gave her to look around when she was sure it would not be dropped accidentally. What a magnificent place to live. Just like the mountainside laboratory, it was big and expansive. Probably bigger than the lab, actually. Made sense, it housed a dragon. She wondered how big his dragon form was. That scale she'd brought back wasn't tiny. How could this be so perfect for her? She was actually beginning to feel a faint touch of excitement, and Savna was not one to get riled about much of anything. Large crowds serving one man, specialized treatment she needed, a giant living space...The only difference was the rock. She would have liked the rock over the woods. Easier to transmute. And she might have liked less foliage in general. Those hedges were a bit secluding. But she wasn't complaining. In fact, she was smiling. He mentioned guarding. To be a personal guard of her master again...!

She followed him as he made his way to the front steps, still smiling. She didn't know if she should look quite so happy--granted, she wasn't beaming, but still, some masters didn't like their slaves to look too happy--but everything just looked so promising and felt so familiar. He sounded like he would take most excellent care of her. Assigning her a fellow slave to help her find her way around, allowing her to come to him with complaints, allowing her to come out with him when he made public appearances...She knew she'd feel at home in a matter of days. She greatly looked forward to this.

"I would appreciate that very much, Master," she said politely, turning her smile on him. "Are the gems to wear or to eat?" She worried about that distinction often. Appearance was a large part of her appeal, obviously, and she'd gotten on some masters' very bad sides when she'd unknowingly eaten gems that had been meant for decoration.

[Decimus Aemilius Lepidus]

Decimus didn't mind that she was happy with the situation- in fact he was quite pleased with his purchase. Happy slaves did better work than sad ones, and most weren't exactly thrilled the first few days after being bought. But Savna seemed different than that, which delighted the dragon. She was even smiling at him again as she spoke, and he gave a shrug. "Both, if you are hungry. There's plenty of gems to go around. Now, follow me. The route to your room isn't too difficult to remember as long as you can find the main hall."

He opened the door for them both before he strode forward in to a large room. "This is just the mudroom, the door to the left leads to a supply room. You'll find all sorts of cleaning supplies in there when you're cleaning, there are other supply rooms around the house as well. Door to the left leads to my library, which you are welcome to use in your spare time if you enjoy reading." He gestured as he spoke before he walked forward and pulled open the door he had left out, walking in to a lavish hall.

"This is the main hall, you'll learn more about this later I'm sure. We're going upstairs now." He guided her towards one of the twin staircases on either side of the room and through another pair of doors until they were in a hallway lined with doors. "These are the guest rooms, they're all decorated differently so feel free to look around before you decide which one you wish to have." He rarely ever had guests, so the rooms were pretty much just decoration- better she put one to use than have them all just staying empty.

"You'll be responsible for keeping your own room tidy of course. But I'll rarely interrupt you here so do whatever will make it more comfortable for you. That sound alright with you?"

[Savnarae]

Savna followed carefully and paid close attention to directions, trying her best to remember certain landmarks, doors, relations to one another, etc. Navigation wasn't particularly a strong point of hers, but she wasn't concerned. Give it a day or so of exploration, and she'd have a decent handle on the important locales.

Cleaning, okay. Library...alright. Savna wasn't a particular fan of reading, she much preferred hands-on work to sitting around idly and scanning a book, but she imagined others might be found there at times and still tried to commit it to memory.

She kept close as they moved through rooms and up stairs, looking often in multiple directions to try to remember more landmarks, paintings, floor patterns, walls colors, anything to help her find her bearings more quickly.

Guest rooms. My, there were a lot. This was one thing the lab did not have. Dr. Orwell didn't accept guests in his home, preferring to instead be the visitor. His lab wasn't exactly easy-access for horse teams and carriages of the day, and his homunculi didn't need lavish beds or personal space. Often they slept where they pleased, when their personal clocks called for it, so long as their chosen location wasn't a tripping hazard.

She had had personal rooms since, though, and while it hardly mattered where she was housed, she wasn't afraid of being alone. She didn't particularly need a space of her own, but she understood that it was a sort of luxury, and appreciated the gesture as such, even more so because she was being given a choice. This was an even rarer luxury. She briefly wondered if she was expected to be something more than a slave. Master Lepidus wouldn't have been the first to fall for her on sight if this was the case. She'd keep an eye on any advances he might make.

"That sounds wonderful, Master," she replied politely, looking from door to door, already deciding on the one closest on the left, if it was unoccupied. She assumed several other slaves had already claimed some of the rooms. She didn't mind. She turned her eyes to Decimus. "Do I designate a room now, or is there more to see?" she asked. She imagined there was. Kitchens and studies and such, and maybe his own room as well.

It was a nice mansion, though, even as far as mansions went. Cozy. More homely than the utilitarian lab complex. Hard to say which she preferred. Well, of course she preferred her first home, but there was nothing here that would be to her distaste, it seemed. She could get used to this very easily.

She cast a glance down the halls again, half-listening for any sounds of movement from other rooms. Not that her ears were particularly keen, though.