"It is increasingly looking like not pissing off House Thrune somehow is not an option available to us."

"Chelish noble houses infight all the time. You'll be safer in the Coins or the Docks than in the Foreign Quarter, I'd say."

"So we're back to the Coins versus the Docks. Both are crime-ridden, both have Chelish presence, but one of them has notable sources of support - the watch, the Firebrands, your tavern dedicated to Cayden, the Dockworker's Union - and the other does not."

"Told you so."

"It seems fairly clear that the Docks are the better option."

"I think that's settled, then. The Docks, likely near Besmarra's Boardwalk if we can find a storefront to rent."

"And we're settled that the basic form would be a brothel, yes?"

"I think so, given the location."

"In that case we'll have to get a license from the Courtesan's Guild. Which means dealing with Lady Dyrianna."

"Who is this Lady Dyrianna, and why is this an issue?"

"She's the high hetaera of Calistria's cult in the city, as well as the Guildmistress of the Courtesan's Guild and head of House Avenstar. She's... every inch the ideal Calistrian. She's a freedwoman and is rumored to be involved in the 'accidental' deaths of several prominent slavers."

Pen smiles slightly. "You could do a lot worse for an ally, I'd say."

"I have personal reasons to dislike her." Those being that she runs the higher-class courtesan's establishments as essentially her own personal information-gathering apparatus, but Kumi knows better than to state that out loud. 

Simon frowns. "She's likely to want to talk to you personally, as her potential competition."

That is absolutely not terrifying at all. 

"I don't think I can trust anyone else with that negotiation. It'll have to be high hetaera to high priestess."

"You'll have to go to her. She has you over a barrel, more or less. You can't operate a reputable establishment without her say-so in this city."

"I'll have to talk to my old madam, brush up on the process and the current political situation in the Guild. Present things as well as I can."

"Alright, so you'll reach out to the Courtesan's Guild. I'll see about talking to the Firebrands - they're unreliable, but they have their fingers on the pulse of the properties on the docks. They'll know somewhere we can buy out."

Pen picks up a sheaf of notes he's scribed during the meeting and puts them into his satchel.

"So the Dockworker's Union would be me and Rose together, then?"

"I've got the experience as a laborer to speak their language, and they'll respect someone with your scars. It makes sense to go together."

"You'll want to bring security on the Docks. The Firebrands can probably help with that."

"I'm capable of defending myself from ordinary threats," Pen says. "Hazards of the job. I'll see about getting a few Firebrands to escort Rose and Ember to the Dockworker's Union."

"I doubt there's anything I can do to protect myself against Lady Dyrianna if she wants me ruined or dead."

Simon frowns, but nods. "I doubt that anything would happen to you in her temple, in any case. She has a reputation to uphold."

"Comforting." 

She looks over at Simon. "Is the church of Shelyn willing to send a representative with me to see Lady Dyrianna?"