To Baldur's Gate

Chapter 40

The night before last was strange.

After I suggested to Astarion that we go to bed, his entire demeanor had changed. I wasn't comfortable with continuing our escapades knowing that he was drunk on the blood, and as much as I had felt the need myself, I wanted every time with him to be remembered. 

I had laid awake all night, hoping he would move closer, or at least graze me with a soft touch, but there was nothing.  

The very next day passed with silence. Astarion had been gone when I woke and absent all day. It wasn't until the evening when I saw him and by then, I was too weary to speak. 

Now, it was the next day, and there was still nothing. I semi-demanded to be taken through the city and, Astarion, true to his word, showed me around in a dull and monotonous tour. Gone was his excitement and love for the city, replaced by some brooding strangeness. I followed him from dress shop to dress shop. Visited each bay and harbor. I felt so depressed by the time we had reached the real estate portion, that I dragged along behind Astarion's lead, staring at the ground as we trudged on. 

"Watch it, lady!" A rough shove brought me back from my moping, but I nearly fell backwards with the sudden impact. 

"Tav!" Astarion's arms shot out to catch me and he twirled me up against him, shielding me from the source of the force. 

"Watch where you're going!" A pale dwarf shouted up at us.

"Yes, yes, apologies, sir," Astarion waved the man off and ushered me off the stone cobblestone street, pushing me to the side of a shaded building. "What is the matter with you? You could get yourself hurt if you don't pay attention around here, Tav," he lectured me, waving a finger in my face. The hurt from the past thirty-two hours twisted like a knife in my gut. I smacked his hand away and marched ahead of him. 

"Tav? Hold on just a moment -"

"You must me Master Szarr!" A lovely and melodic voice interrupted Astarion. "And you! You must but the lady of the manor. Oh, wonderful to meet your acquaintance, Lady Tav."  A young dragonborn woman stood before us, her rows of viscous teeth bared in a smile. 

"Ahem. Tav, this is Cera. She's going to show us another possible studio," Astarion muttered through a false grin. 

"Oh. Wonderful," I rolled my eyes and refused to meet his piercing gaze. 

"Yes! Wonderful!" Cera could sense the animosity between us but wasn't about to blow this sale. 

We were led around the corner and into a small building carved into the seaside mountains. The outside was a pale sandstone that matched its surroundings. I stepped inside first, and although I didn't want to give Astarion the satisfaction of finding possibly the most perfect place, I had to admit, this might have been the one. The walls were painted in coral pinks and sunshine yellow, with a few large windows that went around the entire room, which was only about the size of our current bedroom. It would be the perfect amount of space for just my artwork and me. 

"As you can see, we have some glorious windows looking out to the sea, with the sun setting in your view every night for the next hundred years! Isn't it gorgeous?" 

"It's fine," I commented, crossing my arms and taking a step toward the windows. Seeing the small cottages and entire fleets of boats out along the shore, seeing the people mill about their day... it felt like this was where I was meant to be. 

"Well, not everyone is a sucker for a good view," Cera laughed nervously. "We also have the newest thing - indoor plumbing! No more pots left to stink up the washroom." 

"We have that at home, don't we?" I asked Astarion, smirking at the frustration in his eyes. He had hoped I would like this one, and my distasteful remarks were smacks to his ego.