You purse your lips, considering Yuki's less-than-stellar opinion of your haggling skills.
You know what?
You're OK with that.
You want to
help. And in this instance, it means being a bit more generous with money. You're not especially attached to said money, after all, though you may have to spend a bit of time getting more. Perhaps more legitimately, this time.
A matter for a bit later, though perhaps you could brainstorm methods of acquiring money in the meantime.
"Yeah," you say, grinning at Yuki. "You know what? You're right. I
am haggling badly - but I'm not
trying. Look at it this way. Doing the math, I'm paying you below the average wage, setting aside the value of the antimagic enchantments. Which I don't know how to value, anyway. But it's a bargain at that rate, even if I weren't trying to help."
Speaking of the enchantment, you really need to thank Kirika, and do something nice for the two of them.
"That's not how haggling works," Yuki says, looking faintly disgruntled.
"It is if you want it to!" you say, grinning. "By the way, do you want the gold shaped in any particular form? I can press it into rings and jewellery and stuff. Speaking of, why don't you just manufacture stuff to sell, since you've mentioned Miss... uh, Miss Shinobu being capable of that?"
"Her name is Nanami Shinobu," Yuki supplies, and waves her hand. "There's only so much gold you can fence at a time before it becomes suspicious. Even more so for other items - we can't exactly sell in bulk with no visible paper trails."
"Ah," you say, frowning and tucking your hair back behind your ear. "Hm. I see. Then
is gold an acceptable payment?"
"It is," Yuki says, nodding. "I was simply presenting reasons that we aren't absolutely flush with money. Gold is... hard for Shinobu to make, in any case, so it's more than welcome."
"Right," you say, raising a hand and summoning your gold storage sphere to you. Absently, you account for all the stuff stored in your Grief cloud. Uploaded to the cloud, even. Assault rifle stolen from yakuza, check. Katana also stolen from the yakuza, check. Gold bars, right here. Stacks of yen notes... over there. Homura's little book of Witches, safely wrapped and secured.
Feather... check. At least it hasn't done something
spooky, like disappear on you when you weren't paying attention.
You peel the Grief back from the sphere, revealing the stacks of little gold bars.
"So, jewellery?" you say, pulling out two of the little bars for a solid kilogram of gold and setting them down on the sofa armrest. If you're sneaky about it, perhaps you can overpay them. You
do have a fair few gold bars, just not that much actual
money. "Rings, necklaces, bracelets? Mind you, this is twenty four karat gold, so make sure you get full value when you sell these."
"Of course," Yuki says, eyeing the stack. "Earrings as well, if you can do patterns."
"Sure," you agree, sealing up the storage sphere. You mould Grief around the two bars set out,
crushing it into shapes. Perfect, cold-forged rings and seamless necklaces are easy, albeit without any settings.
Well, actually.
"Can Miss Nanami produce gemstones, actually?" you ask. "I could do empty gem settings fairly easily."
"Nothing that..." Yuki shakes her head. "I feel I should explain in more depth - Shinobu has little problem creating something that behaves as it ought. She can
easily create sheets smooth as silk and soft as a cloud.
But they're not
real material. Creating gems that stand up to inspection is
significantly taxing."
"Miss Tsuruya," you say, raising an eyebrow and easing off on the pressure for a second so that you can give her an appropriately smug grin. "I am giving you a Clear Seed. Don't crash the economy."
"... Touché," Yuki says, blinking. "I... forget that that's a possibility. And there shouldn't be any fear of that - not terribly easy to do without clear lines of distribution."
"So, empty gem settings?" you say, smushing all the gold back together into a big blob to start anew.
You turn your attention to the moulding. It takes focus, but not
that much that you can't spare the attention to check in with your friends.
"
Hey, Homura? Got a question," you say telepathically.
"
Yes, Sabrina?" Homura asks.
"
So... I'm bringing Miss Tsuruya back with me to meet everyone, right?" you say. "
What do you think about... well, if we're meeting after school, then Madoka and Hitomi will be there, right? Is that OK with you?"
"
I-" you can hear the hitch in Homura's thoughts. "
No. She- she should be kept away from this."
"
OK," you say. Rings are the easiest, empty gem settings not too much harder. "
If that's your opinion, I will
respect that, Homura. I promised to do better. But... just one thought? It might be good to let them see we're taking measures to face Walpurgisnacht?"
"
It- tell them afterward," Homura mutters.
"
OK," you say, trying to send her soothing reassurance. Necklaces you can form seamlessly, pressed into links with simple, unyielding pressure. "
Then I'll leave them at a cafe or something and then come meet you at school, alright?"
"
That's fine," Homura says.
"
Alright then," you say. And bracelets... you could leave them with gem settings, but you have an idea. "
One moment? I need an opinion on something else from both you and
Sayaka."
You expand the call to include Sayaka.
"
Yo!" Sayaka says. "
What's up?"
"
So I'll be bringing Miss Tsuruya back to Mitakihara to meet after school," you say. "
About the defense pact, yeah?"
"
Yup?" Sayaka says.
"
I... would like to put Oriko and Kirika on speakerphone so that they can listen in," you say. "
If that's OK with the two of you?"
"
... For what?" Sayaka asks. "
Why the hell do they have to listen in?"
"
To keep them in the loop," you say. "
And honestly, I was thinking they could help negotiate things in our favour."
"
How're they gonna negotiate over the phone?" Sayaka asks.
"
I mean... they can listen in?" you say. "
And speak."
"
We're meeting Miss Tsuruya face-to-face
, aren't we?" Sayaka says. "
I... she burned my house
down."
Which twigs a memory in your mind. When you'd rescued Sayaka from the fire... her door had been shut. Her parents', too. And a closed door is
exactly what you're supposed to do in the event of a fire - it reduces the smoke seeping into the room, reduces the heat, increases how long it takes for a fire to reach your room.
Overall a good thing. It doesn't mitigate the fact that Oriko
had set fire to Sayaka's apartment, but... it's something.
"
I guess... I can see why you wanna keep her in the loop," Sayaka says, grudgingly. "
Make sure she knows the new order and stuff. I dunno why would you ask them to negotiate
on our behalf?"
"
I agree with Sayaka," Homura says.
"
I..." you keep your expression blank, intent on the Grief. You've resolved to listen to your friends, and you promised Homura to do better. Hell,
Homura is
agreeing with
Sayaka, and they're agreeing on a
compromise. You're certain both Sayaka and Homura would rather Oriko and Kirika be cut out of the loop.
"
Yeah, OK," you say. "
Makes sense. But we'll let them listen in, right?"
"
Yeah, sure," Sayaka says.
Homura makes a non-committal noise.
"
Right. Thanks, guys," you say. "
So, uh, I have a very bad habit about this, but one last thing?"
"
Yeah, sure?" Sayaka says.
And you expand the conversation to include Mami. "
Hey, Mami," you say warmly.
"
Sabrina!" Mami says. "
Are you coming back soon?"
"
Yup, and bringing Miss Tsuruya with me, as agreed," you say. "
We'll meet you outside of school!"
"
Alright," Mami says. "
I- good."
"
I'll be there, Mami," you murmur. "
I promise."
"
Alright," Mami repeats. You can feel her gathering herself. "
What did you want to talk about, Sabrina?"
"
Well - I don't know how much you know about Miss Tsuruya's powers, but it seems to be some kind of... sanctum claiming. She can take a building and essentially enchant it, turning it into a stronghold," you explain. "
She suggested she could form a nexus in Mitakihara, as part of the defense pact. It allows her to teleport between buildings, you see, something like a Nydus network?"
"
That sounds interesting," Mami says. "
Maybe we should discuss that later, though? When we're all face to face?"
"
Ah... that's true," you agree. "
Oh, and uh. Um. Well, Miss Tsuruya seems to be a bit of a fan of yours, Mami?"
"
... oh?" Mami says.
"
Yeah, just an impression," you say. You probably sound rather
distinctly sheepish right about now. "
She just seemed really pleased with the opportunity to go to Mitakihara and meet you."
"
I... see," Mami says, sounding mystified.
"
Yeah," you say again. "
Just thought you should get a headsup. Um. Well. See you soon? I'll be headed back in a few minutes, just finishing up the payment and so on."
"
See you soon!" Mami says.
"
See you," Homura echoes.
Sayaka's the last to sign off. "
See you, but- the hell's a Nydus network?"
"
Gah. Come on, I thought you of all people would get it," you say. "
You know, Starcraft. The zerg's transport system?"
"
Oh, Sabrina," Mami says, warm and fond.
"
Eh," Sayaka says. "
Never played it much. Not really my thing?"
"
Fiiiine," you grumble. "
Anyway yes. Later, all!"
You end the conversation and nod to yourself, splitting the Grief to reveal the fruits of your work: an array of rings, some of which with empty settings, some necklaces, and of course, the bracelets. Decorated with the same delicately beautiful patterns that are on Mami's muskets.
On Mami's muskets, they bely the deadly power of Mami's skill. Here, they're just decorative, but they
look good.
"Careful, they're hot," you warn as you float them over to Yuki. "Pressure, heating and all that."
"Understood," Yuki says, leaning in close to inspect the jewellery.
"I hope that's satisfactory?" you ask.
"More than," Yuki says, nodding. She stands, walking over to extend her arm to you.
"Pleasure doing business with you, then," you say, standing to take her hand.
"Indeed," Yuki says, shaking. She's got a nice, firm grip, for all that she has to reach
up to take your hand.
"Right then, Clear Seed," you say. "Do you have a spare Grief Seed I can empty out?"
"Certainly," Yuki says, holding her hand out. A hole opens in the floor and a Grief Seed bounces out with a faint
ping, landing in her upraised palm. "How long will this take?"
"Eh, just a few minutes," you say, accepting the Grief Seed. "By the by, what's your opinion on Kyuubey?"
You're already turning your attention to drawing the Grief from the Seed, deep purple torrents surging thick and roiling into the air in eye-twisting whorls. But you're not so focused that you don't catch the way Yuki's attention snaps from the Grief Seed to your face, grimace flickering across her expression.
"He's a disgusting little rat," Yuki says, tone even.
"Excellent," you say, smiling. "That said, you don't mind if I call it in for a moment? I'll need to dump off this Grief before we teleport off."
"Be my guest," Yuki says, eyeing the Grief Seed in your hand.
The dark, smoky crystal ebbs and wanes, the colour bleeding away rapidly as you bring your will to bear. You dissolve the Grief into fog, letting it drift away into the cloud - time enough to handle it.
"So Miss Tsuruya," you say. "You mentioned the group of magical girls living at the volcano?"
Yuki huffs out a faintly amused snort, shaking her head. "They're not
actually villainous, if that's what you're asking," she says. "Perfectly pleasant girls, but we don't have much contact with them. They just so happen to be living in a rather lovely grotto, and one of them has volcanic powers of some kind. They have a hotspring backlit by glowing magma."
"... that's kind of cool, gotta say," you note. "So... hm, maybe I'll drop in on them sometime, see how they're doing."
Yuki shrugs.
"How about the Iowa group?" you ask as the torrent of Grief from the Grief Seed slows to a trickle. "I don't actually know much about them."
"Ah," Yuki says. "An excellent question. They are raiders, from America, as you might guess. They move into areas and demand Grief Seeds from the locals by dint of their powers. The locals typically do not have the firepower to fight back - the Iowa group knows to pick their targets. They stay for weeks to months before moving on."
"Gunboat diplomacy, ugh," you mutter, scowling. Yuki's face twists, and she nods, grimacing.
"Precisely," Yuki says, tone even.
You sigh, offering the completed Clear Seed to Yuki. "It's done. I'll be calling Kyuubey now, if you don't mind?"
"Certainly," Yuki says, accepting the Clear Seed. She holds it up to her eye-level by the point, inspecting it closely.
"
Kyuubey," you cast the call out telepathically. "By the way, Miss Tsuruya - a warning, don't let it come into contact with normal Grief Seeds. They'll suck the Grief out from them, practically hatching them instantly. Also, uh, I'd like to check in on the Clear Seed every now and then."
"
I am here," Kyuubey's voice echoes inside your head. The alien stalks out from behind the sofa you'd been sitting on, tail waving slowly. "
What do you need, Sabrina?"
Yuki scowls, folding her arms and taking a step back. "Noted, Miss Sabrina."
"Just to be sure that all's going well with them," you continue smoothly before turning to Kyuubey. "I need to dispose of Grief."
"
Of course!" it says in that unchanging, faux-cheerful tone. It turns around and plunks itself down like a cat, the marking on its back sliding open to reveal empty void.
You immediately start feeding Grief in, coalescing it into a single, continuously formed rod and ramming it down the hole. The faster you can get this done the better.
"I shall pass the Clear Seed to my friends for safekeeping, and contact Miss Mori and Miss Tachibana to inform them we are readying to leave," Yuki announces, giving you a polite nod before heading for the door.
"Sure," you say. "Do me a favour and let Rin know I'd like a word before we leave?"
"Certainly," Yuki says, nudging the door shut behind her.
"Doesn't like you much, huh," you tell Kyuubey, almost amused.
"
Unfortunately not!" Kyuubey responds.
"Right," you say, monitoring the capacity of your cloud and starting to slow the feed. You'll keep two Grief Seeds' worth of Grief, you think. One, plus what you'd just drained, and it takes you just a few minutes to reach that point. "That's about it. You may leave."
"
Thank you for the Grief," Kyuubey says, and stalks over to the window, hopping fluidly up before vanishing into the great outside.
You nod to yourself, just as Yuki pokes her head back into the room, giving the window a narrow-eyed look of suspicion.
"Sorry about that," you say. "Had to get rid of some Grief before the teleport."
"I'm sure Sakura appreciates it," Rin says, entering the room behind Sakura. "You wanted a word, Sabrina?"
"I'll leave you to it," Yuki says, half-bowing and stepping out of the room again. Which leaves just the three of you: Rin, yourself, and a glowering Sakura.
"
I'm not going anywhere," Sakura bites out. "If y' wanna say anything, you can say it with
me here, Witch girl."
[] Rin and Sakura
- [] Share the University Group's improved situation
-- [] In what context?
- [] Ask if Sendai is interested in a similar agreement?
- [] Thank them
-- [] For what?
[] Back to Mitakihara
[] Oriko and Kirika
- [] Confirm putting them on speakerphone
[] Mami
- [X] Hugs
- [] Write-in
[] Madoka and Hitomi
- [] How much do you tell them?
[] Oriko and Kirika
- [] Confirm them on speakerphone
[] Defense pact
- [] Light touch, let everyone else discuss
- [] Suggest...
-- [] Write-in
[] Write-in (word count limit: 150 words)
=====
Bah. I meant to get back to Mitakihara with this update, but you guys wanted to talk to Rin and Sakura - this deserves a bit more detail.
