Shuffling Feet [Open]

[「 Thane 」]

Leo. Quite the common name, but somehow it seemed awkward to associate the woman with the (allegedly) missing left eye.

Then again, there was the other, who quite extravagantly introduced himself. A one man circus show... A more sarcastic Thane could see why, though our Thane here did not deign to think so negatively.

"Yes, a pleasure indeed. I'm but a well-dressed blacksmith; I make Munny here and there selling the odd sword or spear, but a smith's practice isn't as valued as I would have expected around these worlds..."

Of course, he had only been born on a world where there was no other main practice besides smithing. There was a wee bit of bias to be had.

[Beaver Dude]

Leo's good eye widened.

"A blacksmith? Truly?"

Up to this point, even at Callix's rather fanciful introduction her tone and expression had been rather distant, as if her continued presence merely a common courtesy and her mind was in other places. Now, however, her entire attention focused upon Thane with an expression that was oddly studious.

No, perhaps alert was a better word for it.

Numbers flickered around her left arm, glowing green with a greater and lesser intensity as it circled about it. Inside the cylinder of light, a rather cracked and damaged sword pommel appeared from her palm - and she pulled it out as if it were inside a sheathe. It'd clearly been of superior craftmanship at a certain point, but was now in rather poor shape.

"How much to repair him?"

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[lysander]

Lysander nodded. A blacksmith then. That appreciated the well-deserved appreciation of fire and warmth. They say that the hearth is where the heart is. And if that were true, then shouldn't it hold true, that all things leaving a hearth a fragment of a heart? Then, he'd be carrying his own fragments every which way, as most warriors were these days.

Lysander tucked a long lock of midnight hair behind one ear, which had sharper points than most. His red eyes flitting then to the woman. He was, in a sense, offended that she'd not been impressed, or at least humored, by his show. Everyone had something unique they liked to show others. It just so happened that Lysander's lies, were his uniqueness. His presence, and facade. His fake name. Lest they know the horror of his self, and cast him aside. No, no, of course not. But even so.

[「 Thane 」]

Thane's brow twitched, orbs of jade and garnet staring intently as Leo's left arm began to crackle and glow, numerals whirring around it. Her tone had taken a sudden shift when he mentioned his trade; it was the cause of the green glow, for sure. Perhaps she had business with him?

His thoughts were confirmed when a sword's pommel was extracted from... her palm? Ignoring that, he assessed the emerging sword, eyes twitching as he leaned forward to get a better look.

"Hm, something like this must've been made in a fine forge... The materials used to craft the handle alone would have cost a hefty pouch of Munny... Hm!" A certain glint reflected the light from his eyes as he straightened up, stepping back to a reasonable speaking distance.

"A repair for such a genuine blade would cost more in time than currency. I'd say about three days on the anvil, and a fee of ___ Munny would do." The relaxed tone that had been expressed the whole night before had trickled off, replaced by the superior accent of an expert smith. The day's fatigue was more than gone; the rush from thinking about being at the forge once again was starting to fill Thane's veins.

((OOC: Lawl, I just left Munny blank there. Maybe we can discuss costs on cbox? :3))

[Beaver Dude]

"Three days..."

The swordswoman did some mental math. Considered the gummi ship, her schedule, her mission... it'd definitely be a tight fit, but while not a legendary blade this one was of a certain sentimental value. Call it a weakness of sorts. She'd taken it out in the heat of the fight, but had only realized that after the fact.

Her eye flicked over to Callix. During the exchange he'd remained entirely silent. Clearly he'd been inured to the oddities of travel between worlds. Or was there something else going on beyond those red orbs?

"_____ munny would do..."

She winced at the figure but it wasn't that far from regular rates. And three days was rather quick for such a delicate job. "Fair enough."

"I am, however, low on currency. Is there some task that you'd like performed...?"

[/size]

[lysander]

When Leo's eye flicked over to Lysander, he was deep in thought, and not studious thought, but the thought of truth. He saw, for a brief moment, a reflection of himself. She wore her hood, and he wore his pretty face, and they both wore them to conceal. Except maybe, she concealed herself for the comfort of others. Lysander was selfish. He had kept up with the conversation, and reached into the back of his coat, to pull out a large pouch of munny, which he tossed to Leo. Or was he selfish? What a walking contradictory? Perhaps this was him buying off karma.

"That oughta help out a little bit." In truth, there was more munny in that one pouch than was necessary payment for the blacksmith. But Lysander had become distant since introducing himself. Maybe because he felt scorned by their lack of acknowledgment? Oh well. He didn't seem to notice one way or another.

[「 Thane 」]

"Low on Munny?" Thane replied, frowning a bit. While he wasn't opposed to generous free smithing, he too needed some coin (or orb, whatever those things were D8). He considered his options; he could lower his price (something he did quite often, actually), but Leo had also offered alternative means of paying. Hmm...

It was then that a sack of Munny flew past his face to the woman. Ah, Callix. He turned his attention back to the shorter man, having forgotten him for the most part as the sword was presented. He felt a bit bad for his rude behavior in that department, but he was pretty sure the circus man wasn't a smith himself, else he'd have mentioned so earlier.

"I don't really need much, other than Munny. It helps me buy armaments that I cannot craft on my own. I have become something of an avid fighter in the Olympus Coliseum to garner some coin, and I occasionally go out to gather materials for my ship and such..."

He shrugged. "If you are pressed for Munny, I don't have a problem lowering my rate. Your gaze is pressed to this blade; although it is a fine sword, it is still just a sword, and nothing of fame and fable. Something draws you to this sword, like a connection of sorts, does it not?" Thane could tell one's attachment to their weapons quite simply; a bearer and creator of arms would be foolish not to be able to discern such a fact.

[Beaver Dude]

Leo blinked as the pouch of munny flipped into her reach and awkwardly caught it with her mechanical arm, careful not to spill its contents or rip the bag. Was this pity...? Fire that would have once blossomed at even a hint of pity for the one-eyed, one-armed woman vanished into embers before they could even flare high enough to affect her expression. She had lived long enough to stop jumping to conclusions and assuming that every giggle was directed at her, every laugh provoked by a snide comment on her appearance.

She held the bag lightly though. She'd have to return it - charity from a stranger was no way to operate.

"I don't really need much, other than Munny..."

Fair enough. Although Leo had half-expected to go off on a wild goose hunt for some metal from the stars or something equally illustrious and end up finding gentleman Reilonde as well as the star metal, that would have been rather unlikely not to mention illogical. Not that it was impossible, but definitely improbable. She listened carefully to the smith, ratcheting her appreciation of his skills up several notches.

"It was my teacher's blade." Leo admitted. "It served me well when no other could." She had forgotten how frail it had grown with the passing of time. She considered her options carefully. But first...

"I cannot accept your charity, Callix. If you are in need of some job or service, however..."

[/size]

[lysander]

Lysander's eyes didn't move from the two before him, and although he paid them both their due attention, for obvious reasons Leo was his current focus. When she began to talk of charity, he lifted his hand as though to stop her, but did not interrupt. "It's not charity, nor do I want a good or service. . ."[/color] Lysander stepped away from the two. Turning his back and looking up in the sky. "I'm interested in. . . Playing a game."[/color] With a wave of his hand the four cleavers slipped one by one out of the duffel bag on his back, and twirled about him. "You have until the night is over to find my blades, and bring them back here to me."[/color] The blades shot up into the air and each flew in a different direction. His attention turned to the blacksmith. "You might want to assist her, if she's without a sword."[/color]

Lysander produced a piece of paper from thin air, a simple magic trick, and flicked it at them. Making his way over to the bench, he threw himself across it. "I demand appropriate compensation, should you lose."[/color] Then, pulling his hat over his face, he refused to speak anymore.

"Get thee to a haberdashery."

[/size]

[「 Thane 」]

A warm smile graced Thane's face, and he nodded in understanding. "Teacher's blade... I wish I could have kept my master's hammer. I understand." He stepped forth, preparing to take the blade and offer a free service. Leo had responded to Callix's generosity as normal, but...

"Eh?"

What a sudden turn of events. Now the cowboy had challenged them to a game, with reparations attached should they fail or choose not to participate. Thane sighed; he certainly wasn't expecting something like this to happen tonight. However, he did not refuse the invite. "I guess we can play your game... Especially since you don't seem to be taking no for an answer with that body language."

The paper fluttered by, its inky statement embedded into the Bezirkian's mind. "Haberdashery?" He turned to Leo then, who he assumed would participate with him. "A cloth man's venue... Ah!" Images of the bright neon signs over the world's Item Shop flashed into his head; he knew there were clothes being sold along with all the accessories at the store.

He grinned, jerking his thumb over his shoulder to the large gates he himself had entered 3rd District from earlier. "The Item Shop in 1st District should be a good place to aim for. Shall we?"

He didn't really wait, though; his feet took him to the gate, where he shoved the doors open leading to their current destination and then waited at its entrance.

[Beaver Dude]

Leo regarded Callix curiously with her good eye. Although flippant and crude, he was still remarkably powerful for one so young. His style of speech and body language reminded her of a petulant child with some self-control.

She supposed it took all sorts.

Leaning forward, she put her hands together, left hand gently clasping her right fist, head bowed. It was an old mark of respect from her world. Not that there was a world there anymore.

"I hope you find what you're looking for."

Gauntlet absorbing the sword once more, she rushed to follow the blacksmith. She couldn't help but think of an old joke...

A knight, a blacksmith and a jester walk into a bar...

v.v.v.v.v.v

"You think there'll be a cleaver here?" Leo asked carefully. There didn't appear to be any broken windows or alarmed townspeople about which she would have normally associated with flying weaponry. "What is a haberdashy, anyway?"

[/size]

[lysander]

Lysander silently thanked Leo for her acknowledgment, though it wouldn't be right of him to show it off or anything. Maybe it would've been more appropriate if Lysander had even given her a hint of acceptance, but now, he just lay there like a child in a tantrum. He had known from the very start that she wouldn't accept his munny right away, and Lysander just couldn't have her working it off in any other manner. No, no. He'd taken the page out of. . . Someone important's book. A game, a game. Everything can be solved in a game.

~~~

Upon the racks of weaponry on display, there were many and varied stabbing utensils, but none like the silver cleaver, embellished with cloud markings that Lysander had flaunted before. Strangely, the shopkeep seemed to be out, which was a very rare occurrence. On the counter was a sign, with a chicken-scratched little drawing of a man running. The numbers 10-6 are scrawled in the corner.

Would they stay and check around a little bit more while the shopkeep was out, or would they set out to look once again in a different area?

Went to Second District for errands. Be back soon.

22 Turns Left

[「 Thane 」]

"Haberdashery," Thane corrected lightly as they walked. "It's basically a men's tailor shop. The closest thin to something of the sorts in Traverse Town would be the Item Shop in the center of First District."

When they arrived, however, they were met by silence, and worse, none of the cleavers. "Hm." The blacksmith's eyes turned to the sign at the counter. "Out for errands... It wouldn't be good to wait for him and see if they saw Callix's blade. Huh?"

10-6

"Numbers drawn at the corner, would this be a clue?" Thoughts whizzed about Thane's mind as he considered the sequence of numbers. 'Ten six? Ten dash six? Maybe ten minus six...' What would those numbers mean, anyway?

"There's no point in staying here then..." he muttered, turning back to the door and walking outside. The bottom level of First District was clear from the vantage point outside the shop. Looking from the right, he could easily see the other Item Shop, the Cafe, the world gate, the Mailbox, and the door to Third District. "Ten six... What could it...!" Twin-hued eyes snapped their attention back to the Mailbox.

'When I first entered this world, someone directed me to that Mailbox. 'Mail ten Postcards and win ten prizes!' he'd said. If I'm right... Then that ten six was ten minus six... The fourth Postcard!'

Now came the time for some thinking. Thane had played the Mailbox's game long, long ago, so remembering where he'd found each Postcard. "The first one had peeked out from the top of the shop, while he'd found another wedged between the ceiling and the other shop's fan. The third one was in the Second District... And the fourth... Aha!" Making sure Leo could see him, Thane ran around the large shop to the highest level of First District, vaulting himself over a raised wall into a secluded area where only a metal safe stood.

"This is where the first one should be," he remarked, cautiously opening the safe's door.

[Beaver Dude]

This blacksmith certainly thought on his feet. Leo watched him with growing puzzlement as he conferred to himself over the squiggles. She was about to suggest that they go ask someone if they had seen a flying cleaver (weapons that flew, in her estimation, were rather rare events, even in a world with talking ducks) but having deduced something to his satisfaction he flew off into a different direction, leaving her more than a little confused and concerned.

Was the blacksmith alright in the head? Hoping that she wasn't leaving her teacher's sword's revival in the hands of a madman, she soon followed him off to wherever he chose to run to.

[lysander]

Lysander lay upon the bench, folding and throwing paper airplanes as if the world in it's entirety bored him.

~~~

The blacksmith had gotten colder, it seemed, forgetting the primary clue. While searching for postcards seemed like a perfectly legitimate venture, it was not the game that Lysander was playing. 10 - 6. Maybe he'd been better if he had stuck by the 10 dash 6 policy, but now that time was wasted. And so, the safe was empty, for but a postcard with a strange phrase. To leave them scratching their heads. But maybe Leo was onto something. A madman indeed. She showed a common line of thought with the cowboy.

Three clues obtained, no more remain:

Get thee to a haberdashery.

Went to second district for errands. Be back soon. 10-6.

Trust in the judgement of a madman.

21 Turns