Marsha! How Could You!?

'Can he read minds? Was it pure coincidence that he chose that particular phrasing?' Was Shiv's first thought, followed by, 'This guy is going to cheat me any way he can.'

"I see that you're a man with poor judgment." Shiv sighed dramatically. "If you would be so kind as to- carefully- please give me my rose back, I'll be leaving shortly." He didn't want to deal with a man who would cheat him. Shiv was on thin ice as it was, not having any idea how the people in this world handled monetary matters.

"What makes you think it's worth anything?" The man leaned back on his couch and made no move to hand over the rose.

"I've been a farmer all my life. You could say that I've developed a sense for these things." Shiv continued holding his hand out, waiting for his property to be returned.

"How much do you think it's worth?" The bifocaled man smiled.

'I have no idea, man. I just got here! I didn't have time to worry about how much expensive plants are worth.' In reality, he knew that he'd had plenty of time, and that he should have at least asked Fran about it before coming here.

Instead, he was going to have to bluff and glean as much information from this guy as he could, then take his stuff to someone else.

He pulled his hand back and scowled. "You know exactly how much it's worth." He put as much confidence and derision into his voice as he could muster.

"Of course I do. My question wasn't about whether or not I knew its worth. It was whether or not you knew its worth." The old geezer grinned.

"I don't have time for stupid questions. Either quit stalling and pay up, or give the rose back." Shiv didn't have to fake the anger that bled into his voice. He hated being taken advantage of, and figured that was exactly what was going to happen if he stayed too much longer.

Then, something unexpected happened. Marsha, the girl who had led him there in the first place, entered the scene. She dramatically threw the door open and ran past the group to the back door, disappearing through there for several seconds before reappearing and looking at the old codger with a frantic expression. "Where is the zombie vine!?"

"I sold it to some man from the castle yesterday." Came the wary reply.

Instantly, she breathed a huge sigh of relief, her hand on her chest. "I thought I had lost it." She sounded like she was about to cry from relief from the stress that had been eating her.

Then, her eyes fell upon the rose in the old man's hands. "Master Holly, that's a fire-eating rose! I thought they were extinct!"

'So his name is Holly. Where have I heard that before?' At the mention of the old man's name, Shiv also saw that he looked strangely familiar.

Marsha walked forward excitedly and took the plant from the reluctant man, who kept glancing between her and Shiv nervously. She examined it closely, muttering to herself the entire time.

Blaze spoke up for the first time to inform Holly with a somber expression, "Daddy and the old geezer both know how much to pay for it, but I don't."

"Of course they know! This flower is infamous the world over. It's worth at least three hundred tetradrachms, and this one is especially vibrant, so I wouldn't be surprised if the price were to inflate even more." She started out loudly and with passion, then slowly settled into muttering again.

"Marsha!" Holly looked mortified.

She looked at him with a raised eyebrow, then returned to her examination. He shook his head in disbelief at her blunder.

Shiv wasn't sure if the entire thing was staged, or if he was just that lucky. He patted Blaze's head while he considered his options. Back when he'd been receiving money from Fran for medicinal plants and then spending it on stuff at the general store, he'd never seen a coin worth more than a drachma, which was worth about a fourth as much as a tetradrachm (Hence the 'tetra'). By his estimation, he'd be able to buy half of the general store with twelve hundred drachma. Add that to the twenty two flowers he had in his inventory… and he'd be kinda rich.

Shiv fought to keep the grin from his face. "So… pay up or give it back."

Holly gave him a fierce glare. "How many do you have?"

"More than you can afford." Shiv couldn't fight the grin anymore, and it spread smugly across his face.

"Don't push me, brat. I can afford it. Now what have you got- five? Six?"

"Sure, sure. I've got twenty-three, including the one she's holding." Shiv sat back with his hands behind his head after wiping some sweat off his forehead. The stuffy room was containing the heat far too effectively, making him feel as if he were in an oven.

"How did you get your hands on so many!?" The old man asked, then put his hand up with a tired shake of his head. "Never mind. How you got them doesn't matter. Just promise me no one will come hunting me down in search of these."

Shiv assured him that he was perfectly safe, and went on to display each of the plants. They argued back and forth for several minutes about the price, then settled it with a shake of the hands. During that shake, the funds and plants were simultaneously transferred from one to the other. Shiv, of course, muttered, "abracadabra."

After they had concluded their business, Holly stood up with a contemplative look. "When I first saw you, I thought you were an idiot. Guess I was wrong. That was unfortunate. It was nice doing business with you." He turned to leave, but stopped at Shiv's call.

"Hold up, you old codger. I've got another plant I want you to take a look at." Shiv pulled out the plant that he'd stolen from the experimenters, and activated his Heroic Appraisal.

[Plant: Modified Dandelion - A unique specimen found nowhere on the planet aside from right here. When consumed, it gives a severe stomach ache. When used in the correct recipe, creates a potion that, when poured upon an item, dramatically increases the XP gained when using said item.]

'Hah! So you don't ingest it!' Shiv scowled at the memory of the arrogant experimenters.

"Where did you get that?" Holly took the plant and sat back down, scratching his head. He opened his mouth to say more, but froze with it hanging open. He gently put the plant back onto the table and got up. "Marsha, check the backroom and make sure no one is there." He walked to the front door and opened it. He stuck his head out the doorway then shut and locked the door. He walked back to the couch with a serious expression and sat down.

"I can't buy that plant. And you shouldn't go showing that to anyone."

"I'm not." Shiv answered. 'Just what is this plant?'

"Hmmm." The old man rubbed his chin. "Alright. You seem like a sharp enough lad. Go to the Wells' mansion. Tell them that Holly sent you, and that should get you through the door. Lord Wells is much better suited to dealing with plants of this… nature. He's an stupi- er, honorable man, unlike myself, and will give you a good price from the start. It's not like he can't afford it." He added the last sentence in a growling tone of voice.

Shiv thanked him and got up to leave.

"How do you get to the well mansion?" Blaze asked, still sitting down.

"Wells' mansion." Shiv corrected her. 'That's twice now that she's saved my butt today… or is it three times?' Shiv laughed awkwardly and listened to the directions.

"Oh, and one last thing." Holly said. His voice dropped to a whisper, "There's an evil looking wolf sleeping outside. I would be careful not to wake him up, if I were you."

"He doesn't like it when you wake him up." Blaze agreed with a serious nod.

"Right." Shiv finally left the stuffy building, walking back into the pouring rain. Just as the old man had said, Uriel was sleeping beside the door, supposedly unbothered by the fact that he was soaking wet.

Shiv looked at the wolf for a long moment, then turned to leave, perfectly content to abandon the wolf.

"Brother Uriel!" Blaze had other plans. She immediately jumped on the wolf, bursting out with wild giggles.

The wolf jerked to his feet with a growl, only to relax and yawn when he realized it was just Blaze.

***

The mansion was massive. It sat upon a hill, surrounded by weird looking trees that were hard to make out in the pouring rain.

The strange trio walked all the way up the winding path, mostly ignored by the guards, till they reached the front door to the mansion. Shiv stepped forward and knocked firmly with the large brass knocker.

There was a thought just out of reach that Shiv couldn't quite pin down. He struggled with it while they waited for the door to be answered. Then, just as the door opened, he caught it. 'Oh, this is where Lucille said she was staying.'