And there it is, perhaps, one of the major personality traits that draws Barcus to Bel, and maybe vice versa. The gnome laughs, delighted, and nods at him. "I understand completely. It was hard to get used to that at first, for me. I left home to take care of home, not because they'd done me wrong." Except maybe they did, a little bit, because he's been living for them ever since and it's not healthy.

"But it still felt like getting away with something, doing things I'd never have had the chance or freedom to do in Spindlehollow."

And this? This is more like thumbing their noses at the natural order of the Underdark. Neither master nor slave, but equals, trusting one another because there's no one around to tell them not to. He stands up on the rung of his stool, because that's the only way he could reach, and gives Bel a gentle kiss on the cheek.

Then, before he gets the urge to bite again, he hops to the ground. "I'll get you a drink, handsome. Wait here. We'll get well and truly marinated, shall we, and see what happens?"