Setting up for a trade was easy, if you had the right equipment. Unfortunately, Drakien didn't. So he was left scrambling for whatever he could get to set up his own little stall, and finally simply laying things out on the insides of his cloak. Shortly after getting everything situated, however, he traded a ring for a blanket, and was able to take his most prized possession off the ground. He folded it up over his bags instead, and laid everything out on the ratty blanket, arranging the rings and the necklace carefully. He didn't have much else to trade, although he promised himself he would, soon.
He pulled his colorful Romani cloak around his shoulders, and wrapped the bandanna about his head so that his pierced ears were still visible, but held back. His ram skull sat over to the side, and drawn in the dirt beside his 'stall' was the Eye of Horus, to protect his trades and watch over him. He looked for all the world like he belonged there, his hands folded in his lap and his gaze distant as he went over what supplies he needed.
There wasn't much, really. He couldn't do much other than scavenge, and what he scavenged was enough to last him; he'd most likely only be trading for pelts. Pelts...and alcohol, if he were lucky.
Amy had taken a brief break from her wagon, leaving Hadley to serve potential customers and keep them entertained. Nothing was to be sold without her though, something she emphasized with a threat. If anything of hers was found missing when she came back, Hadley would be sorely punished. Moving along Amy winced at the bright welcoming displays, perfect designs for drawing in customers. It was disgusting how well this was done, taking away her customers, and invading her lands.
Near the end of the line of colorful stalls were some loners, not part of the traveling merchants, but trying to barter their few possessions anyway. Some Amy had dealt with in the past. Depending on the outcome, they nodded to her or pulled away in fear. It drew curious looks from those who didn't know of her. She almost laughed as she spotted one of the most poor ones though. Despite the wolf's skill in trading, as demonstrated by their bartering, it was a simple layout on the ground, resting on a blanket. She stopped at the edge of the sketch, unable to get closer. Hello again.
People passed most of the loners by, and he saw that many of them had better displays than he did. Well, that was alright; there was no need for flash, anyway, not like the colorful signs the traders who were hosting the festival had. He could have whipped something up, he was certain, but what was the point? They could see what he had simply by walking past, and he could tell if he'd trade with them based on what they offered. He wasn't one to turn down trades; he'd take anything he could get, really, and since there was so much here, he knew he'd get lucky and find something he wanted among them all.
When a blonde dog stopped in front of his layout, he glanced up at her, and then raised a brow. It was the merchant he'd tried to get the horse from, only a few weeks earlier; seeing as she had no horse now, he could only assume the poor thing was dead. A pity, really; it was a waste to kill useful animals, and he thought her quite stupid for doing so. Nonetheless, he replied dryly, "So it seems," and tilted his head toward the blanket, subtly telling her if she wasn't going to buy anything she should walk away.
He didn't particularly want to deal with her again, and judging on the fearful looks the other loners were giving her, she was quite the terror. He could feel his lip curling and put a stop to it, but his disdain was obvious; she drove a hard bargain, too hard of one, and she'd lose too many customers that way if she didn't learn she couldn't always have the last word. Perhaps he'd teach her that this time, if she decided to trade.
It was annoying, but for some reason Amy couldn't reach over and examine the items properly. Her hand moved to her stomach, pressing against the hardness there. It was too soon to tell how many there were, but they were already getting in the way of things. She couldn't shift, she couldn't get closer. At least she was pretty sure the pups were the source of her discomfort. Shaking her head she looked at the male. What do you have?
Amy was still interested in trading, and wanted to see if the one who had given her such an ingenious source of meat had anything worthwhile for her. Unable to get closer Amy could only stand on the edge and hope that the wolf would comply and reveal what he had. I have several pelts. It's been a good season for them. At least on her end of things. She wasn't too sure how it was for typical canines.
She attempted to bend to look at his wares, but couldn't, and held a hand to her stomach. His brows went up at that; was she pregnant? That would certainly explain things, and he felt a twinge of sympathy where there should be none. She must be frustrated, unable to trade properly this way. He knew what it was like, at least second-hand--he'd had his fingers nearly broken several times for attempting to help a pregnant member of the caravan with her wares. He hesitated a moment at the memory, but only a moment, and then lifted the rings and held them out on his paws, shifting to his knees so that he could hold it up higher and allow her to see them properly. His quick reflexes wouldn't allow her to take any of them from his palm, as it was all too easy to steal them from there, but she could see them well enough. "This human jewelry, mostly; but I can get something else upon request." He added, just to be safe.
At her mention of pelts, he paused, tilting his head curiously. Pelts? Yes, perhaps he could sew a new cloak and trade it for something more valuable, or keep it safe for whatever children he had. After a moment, he nodded his consent, and rose, gathering up his wares. "I could use pelts. Shall we go and see?" He asked, tying the blanket up into a bundle and holding it by the knot, ready to follow her to wherever it was she'd parked her wagon.
With them lifted up Amy could get a good view of what he was holding. Beautiful rings, gold and silver, a couple inlaid with jewels. Her breath caught slightly, enchanted by the beauty, before her merchant mind kicked in. She was no longer a child, able to revel in trinkets. It was reality for her, where everything had a price, even life. Amy already held the prices in her mind, knowing that they were worth at least ten quality pelts, more if he wanted. She wouldn't go higher than fifteen though, as they were small items.
Relieved that he gathered his bundle together Amy walked back to her wagon. The canopy stretched ahead, providing shade for them to sit and talk in. Again Hadley came out, this time bearing strips of jerky. It was near noon, and such small meals would be appreciated as they talked, leaving the wine to stay cold buried in the snow and be served in the afternoon. Amy sat down, and gestured for him to do the same. Deer pelts, bear pelts, I think I even have a fox pelt here somewhere. Her sharp eyes studied the wolf, ready for another hard session of trade.
He followed her back to her wagon, raising an appreciative brow at the canopy stretching over some patches of cleared grass. A younger male came to serve them strips of jerky, and Drakien eyed him curiously as he took one, allowing himself no more, and then reached into his bundle to pull out the rings. He'd noticed she seemed rather entranced by them, as most of the women he'd come across were, though that was perhaps because they were such shiny baubles. He himself rather liked the silver ones, un-decorated though they were.
Perhaps it was their resemblance to Moonshine that attracted him so.
As they sat themselves and she listed what she had, he hummed in his throat, taking a bite of his jerky and thinking it over. He could make a single cloak out of a bear pelt, of course, depending on how well-skinned it was, and based on their previous encounter, despite the failure they'd met there, he could be certain that they were of good quality. He was just as certain of the fact that he didn't want deer pelts; despite it not being as cold here as he was used to, deer fur simply wasn't thick enough. The fox sounded promising, though, and he let his mind wander for a bit before he met her gaze.
"I would like to look over your bear pelts. And the fox, perhaps. No deer." He added, and reached into his bundle, counting out the two diamond rings and three out of the five plain gold, as well as one silver. He laid them all out in front of him, and then lifted his gaze to her again and held his hand out, palm up, as a gesture of welcome; she was free to look over the rings and choose the ones she was willing to trade for. He wasn't going to try and drive a hard bargain this time, considering nothing of his future was at stake; it was merely goods, and those were always easily obtained.
Word Count → 000 :: Terra looks kinda foxy. Almost identical fur pattern to a fox, cept instead of black tip dark red runs down back to tail
Never rushed, this one was. He took his time bargaining for the horse, and it looked like he'd take his time bargaining here. Amy listened, slightly irritated by the tune, though not an expression crossed her face. She waited until he stated what he would like before standing. Amy selected a bear pelt, a regular brown though gleaming. Moving over she also removed the fox pelt, a glistening red. It had been removed very carefully, making sure that every part of the fox was captured, even it's face included.
She handed them over to the waiting wolf, and took the rings from his hand. Amy removed a plain gold, the diamond ring, and the silver one. All were beautiful, though she knew that they were worth more than the pelts she'd handed over. Amy moved again, this time bringing out a deep black pelt, and another one ringed with cinnamon threads. Hopefully he would like them, allowing Amy to take the beautiful rings she'd selected, poor bargain or not.
I love Terra's fur pattern lol. And the ref on her profile is gorgeous. <3 :: Word Count → 293
She rose with no expression, the sort of look that meant she was hiding something, and he rested his head in his palm, watching as she picked out a gleaming brown bear pelt and the carefully removed fox. The skinning was nicely done, and he took both in his hands, feeling for himself their softness. He was occupied with the pelts while she selected the rings she'd like, taking only one of each, though he kept a close ear on the sounds of clinking metal to make sure he wasn't going to be robbed. When he glanced down, however, he saw that his ears had not betrayed him, and she'd only taken the three rings.
The two pelts weren't worth all three, and they both knew that, but he didn't expect her to rise and grab two more--a deep black, and a glistening brown, ringed with cinnamon. Both were quite beautiful, and he accepted them, pausing thoughtfully. The rings were still worth quite a bit more, at least back home, but he was willing to trade in her favor. There was just one more thing he'd need for this project, and it was something he'd already deduced he wouldn't be able to get from one of the Festival's hosting merchants.
"Would you happen to have blade, as well? For cutting the pelts. I can offer more rings, or something else," He added, in case she wanted to charge a bit more for a weapon. He'd never measured jewelry against weapons, though he supposed since his own prices were based on the metal composition of his wares, the blade would be worth quite a bit more. Then again, festivals were meant for more relaxed trading; perhaps she wouldn't demand too much of him.
Amy's ears perked as he extended the trade, asking for a blade as well. The rings were beautiful, but certainly not worth four pelts and a dagger. Three pelts and a good weapon was their worth. Still, she had decided to be fair, and give good bargains this time, promising more customers in the future. The wolf had been difficult last time, and soft trading here would probably not repair the damage done last time. Amy could still hope that he would remember though, as her items were guaranteed quality and she was fair in her bargains. Unless she thought she could get more. Then she milked it for all it was worth.
Stepping back to the wagon Amy removed one of the daggers that was worth less. It was still fairly ornate, the picture of a wolf silhouetted against the moon with writing Amy couldn't read carved on it. It was some gypsy language, the source of the dagger. It had been a difficult bargain, with both of them ending up getting the exact worth and neither gaining the upper hand. It had been frustrating for both parties, but the challenge had been enjoyable enough that they drank together afterwards, though Amy had made sure her goods were kept far away from thieving hands. Here. Deal?
Drakien didn't expect her to agree, and was rather pleasantly surprised when she did, rising again to bring him a familiar blade. He'd not seen this particular blade before, but many like it, as was made obvious by the Romane writing on the side. He accepted it reverently, and nodded his agreement, tucking the blade into his waistband and gathering the pelts he'd traded for to himself. He folded the larger ones over the small fox pelt, and tucked the whole pile into the blanket, tying the bundle securely. Once that was done, he turned back to her, holding out a hand to shake.
"It was a pleasure doing business with you." He said, choosing to put their previous encounter aside. This one had been more favorable, at least on his part, and he felt perhaps that she was not so harsh a merchant after all, so long as he wasn't attempting to drive a hard bargain. He didn't do that much, though, preferring his trades to be more relaxed, and had he had something of more worth to trade for that horse--one that he didn't see, now, proving she must have eaten it as she'd threatened to do--instead of gambling with his future as he'd attempted, he would have found their last encounter more pleasurable as well. Still, what was done was done, and he couldn't change anything now. Lifting a hand as he turned away, expecting their encounter to end, he added as he had not the last time, "Bahtalo drom, eh? Perhaps we meet again."
He hoped the Goddess looked favorably down on her as she traveled, and that they did meet again, perhaps not to trade, but as fellow travelers. Gypsy she was not, but the road took all kinds.
The trade agreed upon Amy's hands closed around the rings she was given. They were hers, with all their beauty and art. Pleased with the trade Amy reached out her other hand, the one without poison in the ring. Even if he didn't realize it that was a sign of respect granted to few, as it showed she wasn't thinking about killing him. She gripped it strongly before letting go, letting him get his stuff and head out. The blessing he gave her was unfamiliar, though he said he'd like to meet again.
It was his parting words that pleased her the most though. The damage was indeed healed, with the wolf asking to meet her again. That was the best praise he could have granted her, satisfying her with her efforts and the fact that it was indeed worth it, to gain someone who trusted her services and would deal with her. May we meet again. Buoyed by her success Amy took out a sign, closing the wagon for a little while, and went out to get something to eat. This was something worth celebrating.
