Love and Openness.

"As you have seen, Madosin is a place where people are free to have their love go unchallenged, regardless of the form it may take," Mr. Gottlieb continued, his brow furrowed. Whether his focus was upon the topic of conversation or the ministrations under his desk, I will never know. "What have you heard of this humble Commune, Mr. McKay?"

"In truth, Mr. Gottlieb, unfavourable things," said I. "I have heard that Madosin was a place of Debauchery and Devilry. Where people have strayed from the sight of God and devote themselves purely to pleasures of the Flesh. Even upon the Ship here, the sailors told me to expect Abominations and Monsters."

"And do you think this is true?" he asked, his eye twitched.

"I cannot say. I have only been here an hour," was the truthful answer.

"Quite. As such, I have prepared some documents of notable persons I think you should speak to," he says, looking about his desk. Unable to locate what he was looking for, he excused himself for a moment and addressed his desk. "Beatrice, have you seen the- Ah! Thank you." A woman's hand appears from under his desk, holding aloft several papers. Mr. Gottlieb took the papers from it and the hand disappears down below again.

Checking through the papers, he nodded and handed them to me, as though he had just taken them out of his drawer. Not wishing to be rude, I took the papers from him and placed it upon his desk, unsure if I would dare even read the names upon them. He sat and smiled at me. "Mr. McKay, I do beg a favour from you. For the duration of your stay in my Madosin, I urge you to keep an open mind on the concepts of Love, and to keep whatever reservations you may have to yourself." Leaning forwards, he narrowed his eyes at me and spoke firmly. "I am fully aware that what you will see and hear will indeed, challenge your preconceptions of Society as a whole. But here, we have all learned to keep our tongues still, lest we lose our little slice of Paradise on God's Earth."

I nodded understanding, collected the papers and took my leave. But my interest was piqued. Pressing my ear against the door, I listened to Mr. Gottlieb release a loud grunt and a pleased sigh. "Not a drop wasted, Beatrice. Well done." I heard him say. Red faced, I quickly finished the drink that Mrs. Gottlieb had prepared for me before leaving their house in a huff.

I wandered aimlessly for quite some time before their man had caught up to me. He brought me to the house that I'd been provided for the duration of my stay and introduced himself as Howard, my interim valet and the only other person in the house, a lovely young woman by the name of Gloria, who would serve as my housemaid. I thanked them for their service but retreated to my rooms, unable to look Gloria in the eye, for concern that her duties would be similar to Ms. Beatrice's.

And so, after the evening's meal and the assistance of ****, I sit at a desk, my curiosity demanding satisfaction. With another swallow of my drink, I pulled the oil lamp closer and began reading through my potential interviewees.