“I’ll, uh, just…”

Markus glared at Kyle as he tried speaking up. Kyle felt so forgotten about in the moment, he wasn’t sure whether or not he should have excused himself or if that would have drawn attention back to him being there and making things worse. Now, the elderly man shook his head and sighed, walking over to Kyle and his figurine.

“Sorry you had to witness that. She normally doesn’t lose her cool.”

“No, it’s fine,” Kyle said, unsure how to respond. “I just… Okay, I won’t lie, that felt awkward as hell. Like, was what she said true? How badly do you cheat your customers?”

Markus rolled his eyes. “I don’t cheat anyone! I keep people from cheating me, and I make sure I can earn a profit. That’s how pawn shops work, duh! I can’t sell used items at full price, so the best I can do most of the time is offer half of what any seller originally bought their stuff for. If it’s a collectible, I’ll see what I can offer, but it’s gotta be something in demand that people will want, and I still need to be able to turn around and sell it at a higher price than I bought it for if I want to make a living.” Markus pointed at the figurine sitting between him and Kyle. “And for something like this, I genuinely have no clue where I’d put it, who to sell it to, or how much I’d try to sell it for. No offense, I don’t know if anyone would want to buy it in the first place! Not from somewhere like here, especially.”

Markus gestured around his shop. The accessories and jewelry, the tools and weapons, the instruments and china; nothing felt out of place, and everything either served a purpose or had a function that would give cause for someone to buy it in the first place. Looking at the twins, Kyle realized there might not be any value in something like this without an appreciation for who they were, or where they were from.

“Do you remember how much you paid for this?” Markus asked, stroking his beard again. “As long as you're honest, I can see about taking it off your hands for half. But all things considered, that’s a risky investment on my part, so depending on how much it was, I can’t do much better than that.”

Kyle’s mind raced as he took this in.

So my only chance at earning any serious amount of money right now… is over. He’ll give me half, assuming it’s not too risky an investment? I don’t even know how much to say! He wouldn’t understand if I said I used the foreign currency from earlier, and that wouldn’t mean anything without a way to convert it to this nation’s money, anyways!

‘I, uh… I think it was, like…”

“It doesn't have to be exact. Just a rough estimate.”

Rough is putting it kindly. Think, Kyle, think! Just then, he felt his stomach grumble once more. The oat bar from before clearly hadn’t been enough. He wished he’d had a chance to grab something else to eat earlier, whether a bag of crisps from the corner store or from the vending machines in the park. 

Wait, how much did those cost? It said 250 cents for a burger-sandwich thing, right? Let’s see, if the figurine cost me seventy-five excluding tax, that’d be roughly fifteen burgers on their own, give or take. So if I exchange based on that…

“I think it would have been about three thousand, seven hundred fifty? Give or take?”

Markus blinked at him several times. “Excuse me?”

“Huh?”

“I mean run that by me one more time. Did you say that it cost you less than four thousand Avalonian cents?”

“Well, after exchanging what I paid for originally for Avalonia currency or whatever, yeah, I think it’s about three thousand, seven hundred and fifty. Probably a bit more after taxes. I don’t actually know the conversion rate but that’s my best guess. Is it too much?”

“For something of this quality and make? The amount of time it would take the crafter to gain the experience to form something like this, the artistic ability to mold the material in such a fashion, and then to paint it with such precision and care… I'll be honest, I was expecting double that.”

“Wha– seriously?”

 “Do I look like the kind of man to joke about this?”

“I suppose not. I mean, no offense! Just, you don't.” Kyle said honestly. He heard the ringing of the door once more.

“That was my point, kid. I think I’d be willing to part with that much, especially since there is one person I’ve got in mind who could be interested…” Markus said, nodding slowly. “Alright, how about I pay you four thousand then?”

“Markus!” Selena marched up to the counter, carrying a cardboard box. Whatever was inside made a metallic crashing sound as she plopped it down on top of the box she’d brought in earlier. “What did I just say about you cheating customers?”

“I’m not cheating anyone, girl!” Markus said, raising his voice in turn. “I’m offering him more than he asked for!”

Selena’s mouth opened to respond, but slowly shut as she took in his words. She turned to Kyle, squinting as she looked him up and down. “Are you stupid?”

“Excuse me?”

“Four thousand? If I had that kind of expendable money, I’d buy it in a heartbeat! It’s easily worth way more!”

“Well excuse me for not knowing conversion rates!” Kyle said, trying to grasp why the two of them were so taken aback by his price. He’d simply done quick math for how much food he could have bought for the same amount of money it’d cost to buy the figurine. He tried running the calculation in his head once more to see if he had been off at all.

Excluding tax, I get about the same thing. And I'm just thinking of the cheapest burgers for reference, too! Is there something else I’m missing here?

“Selena,” Markus said, his voice back to a level for conversing normally. “Try not to demean the boy too much, and let me do my job.”

“Would you let me do mine, first?” she asked, smacking the top of the box she’d just brought in. “I still got other errands to run, you know.”

Markus rolled his eyes. “Yes, yes, I know. I’ve got something for your uncle, now that I think about it, so remind me to grab that for you before you leave.”

“Don’t worry, I’m not leaving till I get paid.”

Markus scrunched his face in frustration, then turned from Selena to Kyle and relaxed. “So? Four thousand work for you?”

Kyle pondered for a moment before answering. “Could I push you for four thousand, two hundred?”

“No,” Markus said, without missing a beat.

“And what about the United States money?”

Markus paused for a moment, pursing his lips. “Four thousand one hundred. Should be glad I’m taking that off your hands, more than anything.”

“...One fifty.”

“Fine.” Markus threw his hands in the air, seemingly eager to get this over with.

Yes! Just like haggling with stall owners at conventions when I buy in bulk.

“Congrats. I think that’s the first time in a while I’ve seen Markus take a deal like that,” Selena said from off to the side. She turned to the shop owner as he retreated to the back of the store. “Although, if nobody buys it off you for the next two months, I want you to save it for me, got it? I’ll give you four and a half for it!”

Markus hollered back something about her paychecks as he went through a door to a room in the back. Kyle, having just secured himself some funds, was doing everything he could to keep himself from bouncing in place. I did it! This should be able to tie me over for a few days, at least food wise. Gotta find somewhere to crash for the night, now. Maybe the hotel?

As he thought to himself about his next course of action, Kyle couldn’t help but steal a few glances at Selena. She was clearly dressed as a maid, but her outfit was unkempt. Nothing about how she talked or acted indicated anything of the sort of training or mannerisms that a normal maid would be accustomed to.

“So, uh, Selena is it?” Kyle asked, trying to look casual as he leaned against the counter. “What's with the cos- err, uniform? It sounds like you're a delivery service?”

“When I have to be,” she said with a solemn smile. “I’m a maid-on-the-go. The uniform is cute and makes my job look better. As for the jobs themselves, I’ll do any odd tasks that someone needs help with for the day. Whether it’s delivery, cleaning, house or child sitting, stocking a store, serving customers, just keeping company for some elderly folk who need attention. My preferred service is providing protection, though, but that only ever happens on accident…”

“Protection? From what?”

“Whoever you need protection from. Thugs and muggers, thieves or robbers, a stalker ex, your slighted sibling. Anyone, really,” she shrugged. “If I can, I try to extend my protection to retrieving stolen goods, but I can only go so far by myself.” She paused and looked him up and down again. “Are you new around here by any chance? I know most of the more affluent folks and their more permanent servants, but you’re a new face. Not sure how you can put up with the way you get treated, sometimes. I’ve never been able to stomach working for them for more than a day.”

“Oh, um, yeah. Yes, actually, it’s our first, uh, week in town. My… Master was kind enough to give me the day off to run my own personal errands, get used to town and all that.”

“Really?” Selena asked skeptically. “That’s far more kind than I’d given them credit for. But if that’s the case, you’d best be aware then. The gangs in particular have been bad lately, causing a ruckus everywhere. The worst of them is based on the other side of the city, near the factories and warehouses. Call themselves the Mad Hatters gang. You can tell by their purple hats, complete with goggles and a red pip from a deck of cards, depending on their rank. If you ever see one with a spade, you run your ass off! Even I don’t want to pick a fight with those guys.”

“You like picking fights often, then?”

“Only if it’s to protect someone, or to stop someone from committing a crime.” She responded without hesitation or batting an eye. To Kyle, the determined look on her face was almost enchanting.

Oh wow, she’s serious…

“Pretty… uh, that’s pretty remarkable,” Kyle stuttered. Don’t act creepy now, man! He tried to compose himself with a deep breath as he continued. “I don’t know if I could do that, if I didn’t know the person I was trying to help. I’ve been in a tussle once or twice, but nothing too extreme.”

“Don’t feel bad,” she replied. “That’s how most people are. You cry for help on a busy street, and hardly anyone bats an eye. You gotta pray that a friend or neighbor is nearby to lend a hand, or you gotta grow strong enough to stand up on your own without them…” Her voice drifted off as she turned to look out the window. Kyle couldn’t see if she was looking at anything in particular, but at that moment, Markus returned.

“Sorry for the wait,” he said, walking over to where Kyle waited at the counter. “Here you go. Four thousand, one hundred fifty cents as agreed.” Markus handed over a number of coins: four with a square hole cut in the middle, one with a round hole, and a slightly smaller coin than those two. They each had a number engraved on them: four with one thousand, one with one hundred, and one with fifty. So this is what the money looks like here…

“And here’s for you, Selena. As well as a letter for your uncle.” Markus walked over and handed Selena her payment and an envelope. She glanced at it for a couple seconds before putting it in the pouch on her belt. “Now,” Markus said, returning to the anime figurine, “I just gotta figure out how to store and display this thing…”

“I’d recommend just leaving them as is, and carefully placing them back in the box,” Kyle said. “It should fit just right, and it’d probably sell more being in the original packaging even if it’s been opened, right? Plus, you don’t want to take them apart and put them together too much. It’s not like they’re toys.”

“I mean, I can see my grandkids playing with them,” Markus replied, tilting his head. “Not that I’d let them, of course.”

“Please,” Kyle said, shaking his head vigorously. “Please don’t do that.”

“I’m not stupid, kid. Now you’re both done, time for you to get going. I gotta close up for today.”

“Right, thanks so much!” Kyle said, making his way to the door. Selena followed close behind and bid her farewell as well. Just as the door jingled open–

“Huh? Where’d it go?”

Markus was looking around the countertop. He picked up the box for the figurine and peered inside, then leaned over the counter before double checking the countertop once more. “The pocket watch I’d been fixing. I don’t see it.”