Jaune(FD) Charisma B1C10

"Here," I held the bow out for her to take, purposefully not naming the price at that moment. Mom had always said it was better to let people build up their desire first. The only difference between a low and a high price was how much people felt they needed the item. Anything could look affordable if you wanted it badly enough.

"It's nice," the Archer mused, turning it over in her hands. She must have known what to look for better than I, for she held it up and drew the string, pushing it against her side for a second. "Where'd you find it?"

"It dropped from an Elder Grimm," I smiled at her surprise, "We fought it at the end of a Dungeon nearby."

"You sure this guy's a first year, Lain?"

"He sure is," Ellayne – or Lain I supposed – laughed.

"We got lucky," I shrugged. "Or unlucky considering none of us could use a bow."

"Lucky for me," Coco grinned, "It's good, I'll give you that. How much you looking for it?"

"How much are you willing to pay?" The girl frowned at my response, likely knowing why I phrased it like that. If she offered low I could refuse. If she offered high then I was going to benefit.

"Two thousand."

"I'll use the auction," I sighed, making to take the bow back. She didn't let go.

That was her first mistake.

"Three." Her glasses fell down, revealing focused brown eyes. Her interest was clear, which meant I had a position of power in the exchange. My mother was the kind of woman to get offended if someone didn't haggle, which made her equal parts the most respected and feared person in Ansel.

"It took eight of us to clear that Dungeon, not to mention we nearly died for it. I want eight thousand." Ellayne whistled at my demand, which in all honesty was just a number I'd thrown out there. I didn't expect her to ever agree to it.

"Eight!?" the girl gasped. "You're a funny guy – I'm not paying that much for a weapon, at least not this early in my career. How high a Level do you think I am? I'll give you three and a half."

She wasn't bad, all things considered. She didn't just say no, but instead tried to reason and wheedle, to explain why the lien was out of her reach. It was just a shame I'd grown up with eight Shopkeepers.

"If you don't have the money then I'm sure someone else will. This is more than just a weapon, it's an investment. Someone is going to use this bow to kill stronger Grimm, to get into Dungeons and be the best Archer in Beacon." I shrugged and glanced away. Features and benefits; give her a reason why it's good and then explain the benefit. On a whim I decided to throw out a challenge, "Someone good enough would just use it to earn back the lien."

"Ain't no Archer in Beacon better than me," she growled, "You're looking at the best Archer in the Mercenary's Guild."

"The what?" I asked, blinking slightly.

"The Merc's Guild?" she repeated, sighing when she saw my confusion, "TMC? Mercs? Anything?"

"I've only been here for a little while," I shrugged, "I grew up amongst the Labour Caste."

"That explains the haggling," the Shopkeeper giggled.

Coco sighed and held up a strip of cloth for him to see. I'd noticed it, of course, hanging from her belt on the left-hand side, and falling down to her shins. It was a rich, royal purple with gold weave, detailing a stylised image of a castle surrounded by feathers. "This is the tabard of the Mercenary's Guild," she explained, "of which I'm a part of. We're the biggest Guild in Beacon… at least in terms of members."

There were Guilds in Beacon? That was new. I made a mental note to ask later, once I'd managed to sort this all out.

"Look," she sighed, "That doesn't matter. Basically, you're not going to find an Archer better than me in the entire school." I glanced to Ellayne but she could only nod. "So when you say someone will pay more, well trust me, you're not going to find someone who can earn more – and even I can't afford eight thousand."

"Then how about seven?" I offered. She seemed to writhe in pain.

"I can't even pay that, not with Guild tax and my own amenities to cover. Come on kid, be reasonable here. How about four – that's a damn sight more than I was prepared to pay."

But it wasn't as much as I wanted to earn. My eyes closed as I considered the offer. Ellayne had said I could maybe get four thousand for it on the auction earlier, which was what Coco was offering. Getting that immediately would be nice, but didn't I owe it to the others to try the other route and see if we couldn't earn more? Since Coco offered four, I could set the buy-out to five and see if she caved in.

But what if she was right? What if no one else could afford to beat her and she instead took it at three or less? The Auction would also take their own cut, digging into the profits further.

"Four is the most you can pay?" I asked, opening my eyes and watching her expression. She nodded, and for the life of me I couldn't detect any deceit there. "I think I can get four on the auction," I apologised. The girl looked like she wanted nothing less than to reach over and throttle me. "Can't you do anything to sweeten the deal?"

"You're neither old nor hot enough for that bucko," Coco scowled. It took me a second to realise what she meant, and when I did I spluttered out a denial. I hadn't meant sweetening it in that way! She either ignored or didn't hear my protests, however, too busy scratching her chin. "Tell you what though…" she grinned. "I suppose there is a way for me to cover the rest. Perhaps with a little bit of service from the guild, eh?"

"Guild service?" I asked. "I'm not sure what that means…"

"Tell me, Jaune," the way she caressed my name had my throat going dry, "Have you ever heard of a little thing called… boosting?"