[Was Hubert seriously this stubborn? Perhaps-- but this was also ultimately Hubert's project. While Lorenz was busy acclimating his cat to a lead so they could walk safely outside of the home, not every cat owner had the patience for such matters. Likewise, no two rodent keepers were the same.]
If you insist then, maybe try copper wire in the future. I've heard tales from farmers suggesting that the little things don't like it, for whatever reason.
[Then again, copper was a curious compound. Liquids stored in copper vessels tended to stay clearer for longer than in other kinds of containment.]
Nodding, Lorenz took the suggestion and gently deposited the little rat back into the cage with it's partner, taking a moment to watch the two creatures sniff at each other after the escapade before returning his attention to Hubert.]
Perhaps you should come to dinner at my place, to make up for this inconvenience.
[Lorenz said suddenly, smiling.]
Not now, of course. Unless you wish to get your laughs out at my expense tonight.
[He leveled a brief Look at Lorenz as he wrapped the cage's latch shut with the wire. The sudden bright tone has Hubert suspicious.]
Listen to yourself—offering recompense for a distraction with more lost time. What reason do I have to accept that? Besides the fact, I can laugh at your expense at any time.
[Food and fresh air carried about as much weight with Hubert as sleep did. Which was... uh, not much. It's not a hard guess to make, considering the man had perpetually persistent eyebags that he'd lacked five years ago.]
[Those persistent eyebags were a worry, like everything else about Hubert.]
Is it a crime now to try to understand someone with whom I am to be working with? You're an interesting man, Hubert, but there is a certain imbalance here which I find... frustrating.
[He has not forgotten his debts, and he planned to hold to them--but he wanted to get to better know the man to whom he was indebted.]
[Those debts, and Lorenz' ingrained (abusable) sense of honor, were the only reason Hubert allowed him so close so casually. The debt itself was more valuable than whatever it might be traded for. He couldn't forget that this was not the Lorenz he knew; that he stood across enemy lines, as much as Lorenz spoke of his new knowledge.]
[Hubert shouldn't even be permitting him this close. He's silent for a long moment, then shakes his head.]
Such are the dangers of the wolves of noble society. You show your teeth, but such a smile is indiscernible from fangs. Even if your intentions are honest, that does not exclude you from using such knowledge of me to leverage something—a duality befitting an Alliance aristocrat of Adrestian lineage.
[Satisfied that the cage door was wrapped tightly shut, Hubert turned back to his experiment.]
If you must ceaselessly insist on doing something, go weed the garden.
[Lorenz could be useful. Insightful. He held a diplomatic skillset Hubert lacked. It really could be a beneficial allaince.... but Hubert's inscrutability, honestly, was one of his greatest assets. Outsiders could expect him to be reasonable, and to always work in Edelgard's best interest. Beyond that... letting such mystery go could be costly.]
[Quiet settled over them at Hubert's cold dismissal, and Lorenz frowned in a visible show of his continued frustration. While it was a rarity for anyone to call others out on their heritage within the Alliance, there was truth to Hubert's words. Duplicity was an inherent factor in both of their natures.]
... Wolves are also community creatures, much like deer. Their hunting style is only effective because they work in tandem with each other.
[stepping backwards to allow some physical distance between them, Lorenz shook his head.]
In the Alliance, we function by compromise. There are a great deal of disagreements and divisions, but we survive by making agreements and making good on our dues.
I do not know what it will take to have you see my as someone to rely upon here, Hubert, but know that I will not yield to Edelgard as my Emperor if that is on your list. I will work with her and support her in her work for the grander cause, but my family foreswore our subservience to the crown generations ago.
... Compromise isn't something I expect of you. You are an Adrestrian aristocrat, that isn't what you do. But, I do hope that you would one day see that I have no reason to leverage anything on you, nor do anything to put yourself nor who and what you represent in jeopardy. Even if I did, there's no reason to follow through because such acts are useless and would be nothing but a wasted effort.
[Frustration's rising on both sides as exasperation starts to crack Hubert's statuesque veneer.]
Compromise is not my privilege to offer—it never was. You have your cooperation already; I will not stand in the way of that lest you hand me a good reason why.
[Hubert glances over his shoulder.] Rational or not your actions, purposeful or not your efforts, I bear the burden of remembering exactly what is at stake on the other side of those mirrors—for each involved. For every danger, every possibility of it.
Or do you mean to tell me, when you return to the other side of the glass, you mean to lay down your spear? To abstain from the war, and accept amnesty with your treasured cooperation?
[Hubert didn't expect so, with that bit about the crown.]
[Running a hand through his hair, Lorenz peered at Hubert with a careful, calculated distance.]
We cannot predict whether or not we will even recall these conversations when we arrive back in Fodlan; making such vows is beyond foolish.
And, I did not ask you to compromise... but I am compromising quite a bit in order to get to better know you in a manner that I never would have in the Fodlan I hail from. It would be much appreciated if you would at least recognize that much.
[He turned his gaze back to the worktable, shaking his head.]
Compromise. You keep using that word. To settle a dispute by mutual concession; to weaken something by accepting standards that are lower than is desirable. I don't recall offering anything for you to accept, other than my occasional aid. This—[Hubert spreads his arms vaguely at the lab, since he can't really gesture to Lorenz with his back turned.]—Is this not ceaseless wheedling your way into a distraction?
You know what I stand for; I should think that speaks for itself. What else would you need to know?
At this very moment? No, it isn't distraction-- for you.
[Folding his arms, Lorenz canted his head to the side and regarded Hubert with every ounce of the condescension he could summon from the depths of his person. If the man really was this dense, Lorenz wondered why he was even bothering.]
You told me just earlier to focus on which sentiments were only my own. This conversation-- as frustrating a conversation partner as you are-- I know for certain is entirely my own.
[He shook his head, at a loss for what else to say in that moment.]
...Neither of the Witches I am Bonded to have asked for my input in their work. Their reasons, whatever they are, I likely understand-- but after a while biding my time and lying in wait while I gather the threads of rumors and gossip I hear while on shift at DiplomaTea grows rather tiresome. Plants only go so far-- I was never a gardening aficionado.
[He was frustrated and bored, Hubert. At least give him something.]
[He doesn't even sound angry with the emphasis—just utterly baffled.]
You are a faun; that is their reasoning. Could you provide input on why a selective ward affects one subject you never intended it to? Can you point out the singular instant of lapsed concentration over a spell? Find the flaw in a conjured working that produced something eight times the size of one thing, instead of eight separate items?
[Hubert shakes his head.]
They are not discounting you, Lorenz. Even alchemy is defined by the one single thing that sets it apart from mere chemistry—magic. A Witch would be hard-pressed to include you, short of harvesting your person for components. [Like his antlers or their velvet, and blood. But it really did sound gruesome, phrased like that. Maybe busywork like weeding wasn't suddenly so dismissive.]
[Hubert scoffed quietly, a sound directed more at himself than anything, and gave a larger shake of his head.] Or perhaps Gautier is discounting you. I don't pretend to know how his hedonistic mind churns.
[He did appreciate his rapport with Sylvain for everything it was worth-- but that didn't mean he entirely understood the man's lack of manner and discretion regarding certain matters.]
Odds are that neither have thought overmuch about those matters either. Their focuses lie elsewhere.
[Who was he to break propriety and figure out where that 'elsehwere' was?]
...While I am not a genius on the matter like Lysithea or yourself, not having access to the skills we had in Fodlan has been a bigger frustration than I anticipated. I beg pardon if I've overstepped any boundaries here-- speaking with you, here and now, is simplest way to keep my focus away from what Sylvain and Lapis are doing behind closed doors.
[Still with his back to Lorenz, Hubert sighed, teeth clenching. It wasn't his strong point by any stretch, but he truly did empathize with the man—Hubert simply couldn't express such. That would be revealing matters that weren't his right to speak of.]
[After a moment of gruff silence, Hubert crossed his arms.]
Don't expect much. I was not making light of being hard-pressed to include you.
[Hubert moved to a cabin to take out a rattling dish. It's a box filled with half a dozen forks, spoons, and knives each, which he sets on the far end of the work table along with a little jar and a rag.]
Polish those. Do not get it on your skin.
[The Witch moves back to his own project, watching the bubbling liquid.]
Alchemy is utterly precise. You are creating something greater than the sum of its parts—something that has no right to be made from those parts. It is not merely transformed, as in the culinary arts, nor merely created, as in conjuration. Some undertakings are so delicate, it might fail for the extra air you breath into this room.
[Is he launching into a lecture? He's launching into a lecture. Maybe this way Hubert didn't have to listen to Lorenz' whining anymore. The liquid in the little jar provided would alter any silver or iron in the silverware into a much safer metal for Monsters.]
[Lorenz could see clearly that this was busywork-- something to do with his hands, and not ultimately be a waste of the time he was taking from Hubert by his mere presence in the quiet laboratory-- but he also heard Hubert's words and appreciated not being merely sent away due to the circumstances. Casting Hubert an inquiring look while he wondered how, exactly, Hubert intended for him to polish the flatware without touching the liquid while not having any gloves to protect his hands. He wisely kept his tongue still, instead listening to Hubert's impromptu explanation while he gingerly opened the jar to examine it's contents.]
...Is that what you were working on with your helpers?
[He asked, in reference to the rats. Looking up from the jar, Lorenz watched Hubert work for a moment before he busied himself with the rag and flatware with a fastidiousness that was well above the normal care he took with his every day affairs.]
The Alchemy, that is. It sounds so fickle that even a change in the weather might influence the outcome.
I can't entirely disprove that. The phases of the twin moons can influence some projects, and some scholars on the matter purport that other planets do, as well; though, I do not put weight in such.
[A shake of his head.] That is why I need the vermin. The grade of the material must be exact, or it will contaminate the whole thing.
[Hands stilling, Lorenz looked up from his work to regard Hubert at those words, his mind quickly latching onto the severity of the situation Hubert was in-- and the larger scale ramifications of it. If alchemical materials were suspect, what other items in the trade were tainted?]
...there was a similar situation within the bounds of the Alliance about a decade ago, [Lorenz began, taking on the pedantic tones of an accountant while he returned his attention to the flatware.] Frost had hit the orchards and vinyards outside of Daphnel far earlier than the farmers had expected, since the harvest season was still underway. Acres of grapes were affected by this and, rather than destroy the product or sell it as feed for a much lower profit, the vintners decided to take a unique approach:
They decided to try to make the frost damaged grapes into wine.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2020-03-24 03:29 am (UTC)If you insist then, maybe try copper wire in the future. I've heard tales from farmers suggesting that the little things don't like it, for whatever reason.
[Then again, copper was a curious compound. Liquids stored in copper vessels tended to stay clearer for longer than in other kinds of containment.]
no subject
Date: 2020-03-24 04:12 pm (UTC)[The one in the fauns hand looked up, eyeing this antlers.]
I'll take that under consideration.
[He gestures to the cage. The other one, please.]
no subject
Date: 2020-03-26 03:09 am (UTC)Nodding, Lorenz took the suggestion and gently deposited the little rat back into the cage with it's partner, taking a moment to watch the two creatures sniff at each other after the escapade before returning his attention to Hubert.]
Perhaps you should come to dinner at my place, to make up for this inconvenience.
[Lorenz said suddenly, smiling.]
Not now, of course. Unless you wish to get your laughs out at my expense tonight.
no subject
Date: 2020-03-29 01:23 am (UTC)Listen to yourself—offering recompense for a distraction with more lost time. What reason do I have to accept that? Besides the fact, I can laugh at your expense at any time.
no subject
Date: 2020-03-29 02:12 am (UTC)[Clearly, they were not high priorities on Hubert's list. Lorenz could hardly imagine what a life like that would be like.]
How about an extra pair of hands, then? Clearly, an extra set might benefit you more immediately than a hot meal.
no subject
Date: 2020-03-30 03:55 am (UTC)Are you truly that desperate to be useful?
no subject
Date: 2020-03-30 02:17 pm (UTC)Is it a crime now to try to understand someone with whom I am to be working with? You're an interesting man, Hubert, but there is a certain imbalance here which I find... frustrating.
[He has not forgotten his debts, and he planned to hold to them--but he wanted to get to better know the man to whom he was indebted.]
no subject
Date: 2020-03-31 04:54 am (UTC)[Hubert shouldn't even be permitting him this close. He's silent for a long moment, then shakes his head.]
Such are the dangers of the wolves of noble society. You show your teeth, but such a smile is indiscernible from fangs. Even if your intentions are honest, that does not exclude you from using such knowledge of me to leverage something—a duality befitting an Alliance aristocrat of Adrestian lineage.
[Satisfied that the cage door was wrapped tightly shut, Hubert turned back to his experiment.]
If you must ceaselessly insist on doing something, go weed the garden.
[Lorenz could be useful. Insightful. He held a diplomatic skillset Hubert lacked. It really could be a beneficial allaince.... but Hubert's inscrutability, honestly, was one of his greatest assets. Outsiders could expect him to be reasonable, and to always work in Edelgard's best interest. Beyond that... letting such mystery go could be costly.]
no subject
Date: 2020-03-31 02:11 pm (UTC)... Wolves are also community creatures, much like deer. Their hunting style is only effective because they work in tandem with each other.
[stepping backwards to allow some physical distance between them, Lorenz shook his head.]
In the Alliance, we function by compromise. There are a great deal of disagreements and divisions, but we survive by making agreements and making good on our dues.
I do not know what it will take to have you see my as someone to rely upon here, Hubert, but know that I will not yield to Edelgard as my Emperor if that is on your list. I will work with her and support her in her work for the grander cause, but my family foreswore our subservience to the crown generations ago.
... Compromise isn't something I expect of you. You are an Adrestrian aristocrat, that isn't what you do. But, I do hope that you would one day see that I have no reason to leverage anything on you, nor do anything to put yourself nor who and what you represent in jeopardy. Even if I did, there's no reason to follow through because such acts are useless and would be nothing but a wasted effort.
no subject
Date: 2020-04-01 04:57 am (UTC)[Frustration's rising on both sides as exasperation starts to crack Hubert's statuesque veneer.]
Compromise is not my privilege to offer—it never was. You have your cooperation already; I will not stand in the way of that lest you hand me a good reason why.
[Hubert glances over his shoulder.] Rational or not your actions, purposeful or not your efforts, I bear the burden of remembering exactly what is at stake on the other side of those mirrors—for each involved. For every danger, every possibility of it.
Or do you mean to tell me, when you return to the other side of the glass, you mean to lay down your spear? To abstain from the war, and accept amnesty with your treasured cooperation?
[Hubert didn't expect so, with that bit about the crown.]
no subject
Date: 2020-04-02 02:13 am (UTC)[Running a hand through his hair, Lorenz peered at Hubert with a careful, calculated distance.]
We cannot predict whether or not we will even recall these conversations when we arrive back in Fodlan; making such vows is beyond foolish.
And, I did not ask you to compromise... but I am compromising quite a bit in order to get to better know you in a manner that I never would have in the Fodlan I hail from. It would be much appreciated if you would at least recognize that much.
no subject
Date: 2020-04-02 05:42 am (UTC)Compromise. You keep using that word. To settle a dispute by mutual concession; to weaken something by accepting standards that are lower than is desirable. I don't recall offering anything for you to accept, other than my occasional aid. This—[Hubert spreads his arms vaguely at the lab, since he can't really gesture to Lorenz with his back turned.]—Is this not ceaseless wheedling your way into a distraction?
You know what I stand for; I should think that speaks for itself. What else would you need to know?
[What else was there?]
no subject
Date: 2020-04-02 11:51 pm (UTC)[Folding his arms, Lorenz canted his head to the side and regarded Hubert with every ounce of the condescension he could summon from the depths of his person. If the man really was this dense, Lorenz wondered why he was even bothering.]
You told me just earlier to focus on which sentiments were only my own. This conversation-- as frustrating a conversation partner as you are-- I know for certain is entirely my own.
[He shook his head, at a loss for what else to say in that moment.]
...Neither of the Witches I am Bonded to have asked for my input in their work. Their reasons, whatever they are, I likely understand-- but after a while biding my time and lying in wait while I gather the threads of rumors and gossip I hear while on shift at DiplomaTea grows rather tiresome. Plants only go so far-- I was never a gardening aficionado.
[He was frustrated and bored, Hubert. At least give him something.]
no subject
Date: 2020-04-05 04:57 am (UTC)[He doesn't even sound angry with the emphasis—just utterly baffled.]
You are a faun; that is their reasoning. Could you provide input on why a selective ward affects one subject you never intended it to? Can you point out the singular instant of lapsed concentration over a spell? Find the flaw in a conjured working that produced something eight times the size of one thing, instead of eight separate items?
[Hubert shakes his head.]
They are not discounting you, Lorenz. Even alchemy is defined by the one single thing that sets it apart from mere chemistry—magic. A Witch would be hard-pressed to include you, short of harvesting your person for components. [Like his antlers or their velvet, and blood. But it really did sound gruesome, phrased like that. Maybe busywork like weeding wasn't suddenly so dismissive.]
[Hubert scoffed quietly, a sound directed more at himself than anything, and gave a larger shake of his head.] Or perhaps Gautier is discounting you. I don't pretend to know how his hedonistic mind churns.
no subject
Date: 2020-04-05 10:32 pm (UTC)[He did appreciate his rapport with Sylvain for everything it was worth-- but that didn't mean he entirely understood the man's lack of manner and discretion regarding certain matters.]
Odds are that neither have thought overmuch about those matters either. Their focuses lie elsewhere.
[Who was he to break propriety and figure out where that 'elsehwere' was?]
...While I am not a genius on the matter like Lysithea or yourself, not having access to the skills we had in Fodlan has been a bigger frustration than I anticipated. I beg pardon if I've overstepped any boundaries here-- speaking with you, here and now, is simplest way to keep my focus away from what Sylvain and Lapis are doing behind closed doors.
no subject
Date: 2020-04-06 01:40 pm (UTC)[After a moment of gruff silence, Hubert crossed his arms.]
Don't expect much. I was not making light of being hard-pressed to include you.
[Hubert moved to a cabin to take out a rattling dish. It's a box filled with half a dozen forks, spoons, and knives each, which he sets on the far end of the work table along with a little jar and a rag.]
Polish those. Do not get it on your skin.
[The Witch moves back to his own project, watching the bubbling liquid.]
Alchemy is utterly precise. You are creating something greater than the sum of its parts—something that has no right to be made from those parts. It is not merely transformed, as in the culinary arts, nor merely created, as in conjuration. Some undertakings are so delicate, it might fail for the extra air you breath into this room.
[Is he launching into a lecture? He's launching into a lecture. Maybe this way Hubert didn't have to listen to Lorenz' whining anymore. The liquid in the little jar provided would alter any silver or iron in the silverware into a much safer metal for Monsters.]
no subject
Date: 2020-04-07 01:26 am (UTC)...Is that what you were working on with your helpers?
[He asked, in reference to the rats. Looking up from the jar, Lorenz watched Hubert work for a moment before he busied himself with the rag and flatware with a fastidiousness that was well above the normal care he took with his every day affairs.]
The Alchemy, that is. It sounds so fickle that even a change in the weather might influence the outcome.
no subject
Date: 2020-04-07 04:42 am (UTC)[A shake of his head.] That is why I need the vermin. The grade of the material must be exact, or it will contaminate the whole thing.
no subject
Date: 2020-04-08 02:06 am (UTC)...there was a similar situation within the bounds of the Alliance about a decade ago, [Lorenz began, taking on the pedantic tones of an accountant while he returned his attention to the flatware.] Frost had hit the orchards and vinyards outside of Daphnel far earlier than the farmers had expected, since the harvest season was still underway. Acres of grapes were affected by this and, rather than destroy the product or sell it as feed for a much lower profit, the vintners decided to take a unique approach:
They decided to try to make the frost damaged grapes into wine.