[Frostfawn Hold] Haggle Properly! (open)

[Ronan Dugal]

Ronan stood silent at the newcomer's intervention, a rare sight indeed. Where did this grandmother part come from? And how was a kick towards a dog in any way equal to a club to someone's grandmother? Not that Ronan had any particular feelings about someone taking a club to his grandmother. He never had one so the word was just that, a word. No special sobby feelings connected to it, no meaning other than a few letters after one another forming a word. So the reason for his silence was mostly his confusion at the imagery the man had woven with his words. He hardly noticed the two men leaving as his mind tried to wrap around what was said. He looked up from his thoughts in time to see one of the men look back at him. He'll be back? What for? To insult him some more? Ronan smiled to hide what other feelings were starting to boil up. The smile vaporized as soon as the man looked away again. Keep calm. He's a potential customer. You don't want angry potential customers. Smile. Smile. Smile. As his little shop stand emptied of customers, who all either came to just glare at him or to complain about his high prices, which weren't high at all in Ronan's mind, Ronan sat himself down on the one of the crates, empty now that he had sold the contents. Here he was, trying to make a living and because these people had some sort of weird love for animals, he had lost out on potential sales. Apparently, the book he had read when he had arrived, hadn't been informative enough as it hadn't mentioned anything about this connection to animals the Frostfawn had. Ronan felt strange. He had never blundered like this before. At least not without having been able to talk himself out of it or escape from it in some way. It didn't feel like defeat, no, it was completely different from defeat. Yet, he felt like he had lost somehow, even though it hadn't really been a battle or anything. At least not to these people. To Ronan, trading and haggling was a game. An aggressive game of persuasion, lying and truth which he enjoyed immensely. But when outside factors started interfering with the game then there was no more fun in it. With a sigh, Ronan started packing away his goods, slowly stacking them in his crates. Unlike most merchants, Ronan kept his best goods on the bottom. Not that the top goods were scrap but the difference was there. With one potential client base lost, there was still 6/7th of the city left to sell his goods to. Sure, rumors and gossip would spread and he would lose some more customers to it but all in all, Ronan did not see the end of it yet. And as long as the end wasn't in sight, he would keep selling. It occurred to him that this was probably the longest time he had been quiet for since he had arrived in Avanthal. The thought made him smile as he carried the first crate out and towards the wagon. "Dog, Horse. Time to go." Sure, his naming skills were lacking but both creatures seemed to react in some way to their names. As he walked back in to pick up the next crate, Ronan could feel the Frostfawns staring at him, pointing and whispering. It didn't bother him in the slightest as he picked up the next crate. At this speed, it would take him quite some time before he was finished. Not that he had any other pressing matters to attend to today. OOCWanker is so english...And rude.

[Nikomas]

As the foreign merchant finished up the last of his packing, Nikomas approached. "Hello," the young Vantha began somewhat sheepishly, "I just wanted to come back and apologize for earlier. I shouldn't have been so judgmental. I hate it when people do that to me, as they so often tend to do, thinking that I'm nothing more than a unruly, mouthy kid. So, I just wanted to say, I'm sorry." He gave the man a moment to reply, be it good or bad, before launching into the real reason he had returned, "So, my friend, Garran, couldn't stop talking about your dog. I'd like to buy him from you, however, I only have 30 mizas. So, I was thinking, I could pay you the difference in trade. I'm a pretty talented leatherworker and, I could be mistaken, but you are probably going to be around for a few more days. Let me take a look at your harnesses and the straps you use to keep your wares in place, or whatever other leather items you may have, and see if any of them need repair or reinforcing. Worst case scenario, I give everything a polish, which will really help catch the eye of the casual shopper. I'll even throw in a few pointers on how to handle the other Holds." Nikomas paused once more, giving the man not only a moment to think about his offer, but to reply. He really hoped he would take him up on it, since he was clearly getting the better end of the deal. The young Vantha wanted to repay his new friend, Garran, for recently helping him procure a job, and what better way than with the purchase of something he clearly wanted, but was too frugal to buy on his own.

[Ronan Dugal]

Ronan put the last of the crates away and was about to cover up the wagon when he was approached. At least the voice didn't seem outright hostile, so Ronan stopped what he was doing and turned around. He was faced with the Avanthalian from before, who had walked away with the guy who had been interested in Dog. But had offered the most ridiculous of prices. Ronan sighed to himself, a little too loud perhaps. From up close he could see that the boy was much younger than him, probably barely an adult. From his hair, which was a mess, unlike Ronan's, he deducted that the young man must have just gotten out of bed. "That's quite alright. It's mostly my mistake, really. I guess I should have done more than just the quick read I did in your library... So, it's all water under... Well, I guess in Avanthal it's all ice under the bridge, correct?" Stupid joke. He listened quietly to the offer. It was a very good one, actually. The price the man offered in Mizas was already more than he had paid for the dog back in Syliras and the addition of the leatherwork he promised could be quite interesting as well. Although he claimed to be pretty talented, Ronan figured that that would remain to be seen. "How talented is pretty talented?" Ronan asked, raising his eyebrow ever so slightly as he looked pensive at the young Avanthalian in front of him. Not that it mattered, really. Ronan had already made his decision on the matter. It was definitely true that all of his equipment was in dire need of repairs and maintenance after the long trip from Syliras. And since it was offered as part of a good deal, Ronan had really no reason to deny it. So, Ronan gave the man his counter offer. "25 Golden Mizas and the dog is yours. You give me some pointers on the other holds, you have a look at my leather equipment and give them what they need and you help me to turn some of this leather that I have into useful items? Depending on your skill and the price I can fetch for them I'm willing to pay a small fee to the creator of them." The offer was slightly different, except for the price and the leatherwork request, no different from what the man had requested. "That's you... the creator, I mean." Ronan wasn't quite sure if that had been clear or not. He quickly wiped his hand on his pants and held it out, palm angled slightly upwards for a handshake. It was clean, lacking any and all saliva or blood, like some people he had met used to do to seal a deal.

[Nikomas]

"We have a deal!" Nikomas beamed as he firmly shook the man's hand. "Oh, and, as for how talented I am, I did help in the construction of this coat. So, you have a pretty good idea of what I'm capable of," he added in response to the question from a chime earlier as he proudly modeled the garment that hung from his shoulders. "Wh...what breed is the dog?" he then questioned as he looked around for said animal. "Is there anything I need to know about what he likes or doesn't like? Do you have any routines that you do with him?" he continued to question, growing more and more excited by the chime. Dog?

[Ronan Dugal]

Ronan looked at the man's coat, inspecting it without invading the man's personal space. He scratched his chin somewhat as he leaned forward, looking at the piece of clothing the man was wearing. It did seem well made, not at the level he had seen some people in Syliras do it but he wasn't in Syliras anymore. The young leatherworker would do just fine. What breed is the dog? Ronan had no idea. Ronan peeked out, looking at the wagon, horse and dog outside in the snow. Dog was sitting, looking inside, his tongue dangling from his mouth. "Well, I can say for sure that he is a dog breed and that he is quite big." Ronan looked from Dog to his customer and back to dog. "He likes to sit and watch and he doesn't like to... I'm not sure what he doesn't like, really." It seemed like Frostfawn hold was a breeding ground for trader failures today. Ronan hadn't intended to sell Dog when he had bought him and as such, hadn't bothered to find out these things. Dog was a dog, that was all the Ronan needed to know. A big dog bred and trained to guard others. "I do take him everywhere I take my wagon and he seems to understand that, automatically staying with the wagon and the horse to protect them when I'm not around." That's all Ronan could tell the man. Ronan took up a writing board and a piece of parchment, quickly scribbling down some words on the paper, the quill moving quite fast, before handing the entirety of the paper and tools to the leatherworker. "If you could just write your name here and here and sign here, next to it and confirm the date. Thank you." I, Ronan Dugal of Syliras, trader by trade, hereby sell my dog, named Dog, to ............... for the price of 25 Golden Mizas and the promised information. In addition the signer of this contract will also keep to his promise of repairing and maintaining my leather equipment and will, if desired by the signee, help out in his or her own tradecraft for a possible commission based on the work delivered. Signed: ..................... Frostfawn Hold, Avanthal, Spring, 10th, Year 513 Ronan had been tricked in the past, cheated out of hundreds of Golden Mizas of profit because he hadn't had anything binding, or hadn't read it properly. He just wanted to be sure about the Avanthalian's promise. If he refused to sign, for some reason or the other, Ronan could be rather sure that the man didn't have very good intentions in mind. He would add his seal to it later, once he got his hands on some molten candle wax. "Just making sure. Would you like a copy?" OOCI never created the dog in any way, shape or form so go ahead and design him as you would want him.

[Nikomas]

"Oh, uh, sure. Not a problem," Nikomas replied as he took the board and writing implement. I, Ronan Dugal of Syliras, trader by trade, hereby sell my dog, named Dog, to Nikomas Frostfawn for the price of 25 Golden Mizas and the promised information. In addition the signer of this contract will also keep to his promise of repairing and maintaining my leather equipment and will, if desired by the signee, help out in his or her own tradecraft for a possible commission based on the work delivered. Signed: Nikomas Frostfawn Nikomas Frostfawn Frostfawn Hold, Avanthal, Spring, 10th, Year 513 "There we go!" he exclaimed as he handed everything back to the man. "Oh, and, yeah, a copy would be great. While you do that, I'll sort out the coins." Reaching inside one of his deep coat pockets, he began to remove the mizas needed to pay the man. Thankfully, he had just enough on him. "Okay. Here ya go," he warmly stated as he placed the stack of coins on a crate next to where the man was working on a second copy of the contract. "I'll go fetch the dog named Dog now." This is going to be such a great surprise for Garran, he thought as he made his way toward the shaggy white dog. I can't wait to see the look on his face when I drop him off! Maybe I'll stop by his arvinta this evening...that is, if I can figure out which one he lives in.

[Ronan Dugal]

Ronan looked at the parchment, reading it upside down as his customer wrote his name twice and signed it. Ronan accepted the board back. "Thank you very much." Ronan quickly took up another piece of parchment and started writing. The quill scribbled over the parchment, the familiar scratching sounding around it. As he wrote, he looked up from his board for a moment. "Do you have a candle I can borrow? I need some wax to seal the deal." On a first glance, Ronan did not see a random candle standing on one of the tables. He assumed the large fires in the hold provided enough light for its members. Ronan continued to write as he heard the sound of coins being put down. A smile trickled onto his lips as he finished the second contract. He put the quill down, together with the contract. As he waited for Nikomas, that's what the name on the contract said, he started counting the money. 25 Golden Mizas. Not a bad deal considering all the extras he was getting on top of it. Satisfied, he let the coins slide into his pocket and watched as Nikomas and Dog got acquainted. With the contract on top of the last crate, Ronan carried it out towards the two. He slid the crate onto the wagon, closing it afterwards. "So? Where do you work?" Ronan asked as he tied down his wares. Dog didn't seem to mind the attention from the Frostfawn. Ronan stepped towards the two and scratched Dog behind his ear before pointing at Nikomas. "You go with him now, alright?" Not that Dog would understand. But Ronan was sure that the Frostfawn knew how to handle a dog and that he would take at least equally good care of it as Ronan had done.

[Nikomas]

"No, I'm sorry, but I don't tend to travel around with a spare candle in my pocket," Nikomas replied as the man glanced around. "I'm sure it's legitimate. It doesn't need a seal of approval," he added with a motion of his hand toward the contract. "You'll have your coins and additional perks. No need to worry. I'm a man of my word. I may be young, but I'm not stupid. I would never do anything to soil the reputation of the Frostfawns." Looking around for Dog, he finally spotted him as the man pocketed the coins. He was a handsome pup with bright white fur, floppy ears, and a fluffy tail. He was also a responsive pup as he came trotting over once Nikomas called to him. "I recently started working at Laria's Furs," he informed the man as he finished packing his things. "Well, actually, to be perfectly honest, I'm still trying to win her over. She's using me on a trial basis. It's a long story, but one that I think will have a happy ending. So, when you are ready for me to look over your wares, you should be able to find me there." Standing once more, having crouched to play with Dog, Nikomas watched as the man spoke to the pup. There was something almost heartwarming in the way he said, "You go with him, alright?" Maybe the trader wasn't so bad after all. "Okay, well, I guess that just about finishes this up," the Vantha remarked as Dog began to circle the wagon, thinking he was most likely going off with the trader. "No, Dog. Come," he firmly instructed the pup who, to his surprise, actually listened. "That's a good dog, uh, Dog," he awkwardly added with a pat to the pup's head. "So, I guess I'll be seeing you in a day or two?" he questioned as Dog sat and proceeded to lean against the Vantha.

[Ronan Dugal]

Ronan ignored the remark about the lack of spare candles in the young man's pocket. He gave it a mental shrug. Nikomas seemed to get along well with Dog, which was always good. At least it ruled out the possibility of having to have to pay the boy back. Nothing worse than that. Satisfied customers were the way to go. He listened to the young man as he explained where he could be found for the rest of their business. He was glad the young man left it at 'a long story' as Ronan put the crate down and grabbed the copy of the contract on top. There had been a mention of Laria's fur somewhere. Probably in one of the books he had read on his arrival here. Or perhaps he had overheard it in a tavern. Either way, at least he had a certainty of the place. The boy was not lying, as far as Ronan knew. He handed over the copy of the contract. Ronan watched as Dog listened to the young man. "I will try my best to come by tomorrow but I'm not sure if I'll have time. I will come by as soon as I can. Any days you're not working, perhaps? So I know?" Ronan noticed the quick bond that had shaped between the two and was glad he had been able to make such a good deal out of it. Before leaving, he walked towards Nikomas and held out his hand, intent on shaking the young man's hand. A good deal should always be accompanied with a good handshake. Ronan smiled his trader smile before he got up on the cart and started maneuvering his way through the snow, away from the hold and the people inside it who disliked him now. Well, you know what they say about making omelets. Ronan's mind wandered over the events of the day again and again as he made a mental note of paying more attention to big groups of new customers before doing business with them. And to research more. He would have to get a notebook.

[Noblesse]

Garran Frostfawn :

Experience:

• Observation +5
• Bodybuilding +1
• Socialization +1

Lores:

• Identifying a Foreigner Among the Vantha
• Four Reasons Why Men Brawl
• Stupidity of an Ignorant Foreigner
• Concern for an Underappreciated Dog

Ronan Dugal :

Experience:

• Rhetoric +2
• Negotiation +3
• Intimidation +1
• Persuasion +3
• Observation +1
• Writing +1

Lores:

• Drawing the Attention of a Busy Crowd
• A Taste of Defeat
• Frostfawns Treat Animal Like Family
• Contact: Nikomas Frostfawn, Vantha Leatherworker
• Good Deals Are Sealed with Good Handshakes

Other:

• Ledger: You received 12 gm for the furs, 2 gm for five pounds of leather garment, 7 gm for five pounds of leather armor, and 25 gm for the sale of Dog. Ronan Dugal received a total of 46 golden mizas during his visit at the Frostfawn Hold.
• Inventory: You no longer have Dog the guard dog in your possession. However, you received the contract signed by Nikomas Frostfawn as proof of his purchase.
• Misc: Ronan gained negative reputation among Frostfawns. He will now find himself mostly unwelcome within the Hold and its animal loving members.

Nikomas Frostfawn :

Experience:

• Observation +2
• Negotiation +1
• Persuasion +1
• Rhetoric +1

Lores:

• Rebuking a Foreigner for Threatening an Animal
• Apologizing for Earlier Misapprehensions
• A Special Gift for Garran
• Contact: Ronan Dugal, Trader

Other:

• Inventory: Nikomas bought the guard dog named Dog. He received a contract that binds him to pay for the rest of what he owe to the trader.
• Ledger: Nikomas paid 30 gold-rimmed mizas for the purchase of Dog.

Additional Notes: :

Guys, I must say I really enjoyed this thread! Even though it was very straightforward, I loved how the three of you were able stay true to your characters' personalities. It's fascinating to see the differences between their culture and how it contributed to the disagreement between visitor and Vanthas.

I hope to see more on how Nikomas will pay off the rest of what he owes to Ronan. Also, I'm looking forward to seeing Garran's reaction upon receiving Dog!

True nobility lies in being superior to your former self

If you have any questions or concerns regarding your grade, please send me a PM and we can figure it out. Heehee.