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The antique shop Seth had heard about was finally within sight as the young man stopped underneath a street lamp's reddish glow. Under the light, the black-grey haired man was dressed in a white button-down dress shirt, black slacks secured by a suede belt, and waterstained dress shoes which barely retained their original shine. His silvery eyes blinked twice as he got a better look at the storefront: It seemed the store was still open for at least another half hour to a full hour, and so Seth approached the building. Oil-fed lamps from a bygone era hung from one of the windowsills, a faint amber flame still flickering away into the late night hours as Seth stepped up to the double entrance. Brushing through the double door entrance, Seth's pupils contracted quickly as they adjusted to the superior indoor light: An assorted collection of grandfather clocks, heirloom paintings, bowls of fake fruit, and decades-old books lined the shelves along the northern wall.

"Hello sir! We are closing in forty minutes, but please make yourself at home!"

"Thank you, ma'am," Seth responded quietly, giving the receptionist little more than a nod before he took a glance down a staging area. "Are there any refurbished mirrors? I need to replace a broken mirror, preferably sooner than later."

"Go to the far end, and you shall find all the furniture we have in stock."

"Thank you," Seth smirked, walking past a fire iron set besides a dusty bookshelf. Jewelry boxes, brass furniture accents, rolled-up oriental rugs, and more paintings greeted the mysterious figure. Continuing deeper into the store, Seth gave cursory looks to the other furniture. A broken sword's electrum hilt laid atop a stack of crates, glittering underneath the flickering oil lamp above Seth's head. A history book regarding the city's origins sat on a bookshelf besides a claw-like cast iron bookend. Three scrolls of unknown origin were laid out haphazardly on a dresser.

Seth stopped where he last stepped foot. There were no fewer than twelve mirrors lining the walls at first sight, and there were undoubtedly more behind the collections of resold hand-me-downs wherever they came from. A makeup booth with three sit-down mirrors, makeup stains along the desktop, and incandescent bulb receptacles lined the wall nearest Seth while a standup mirror stood on his other side, blocking part of Seth's side view.

I will need to return tomorrow, the curious man sighed, shuffling his feet as he took a closer look of a stack of chipped mirrors laid on an oaken table.

- - -

Mood: Restless
Company: None
Outfit: Casual dress clothes

Seth looked away from the stack of broken mirrors. Another stack of books on yet another mahogany table caught the man's attention, the topmost book bearing gold runic inscriptions on its black leather-bound spine and front cover. On the front cover, gold foil-covered letters spelled out "A Modern History of Fantaisie" in a classy typeset. Picking up the codex, Seth opened the cover to an older illustration of what appeared to be the city decades prior. This could be useful. May as well get myself oriented with this region's heritage, the man thought as he closed and tucked the book under his right arm. Stepping past the book pile, Seth surveyed a column of framed photographs when he settled his gaze on a portrait-oriented mirror besides an ancient family photo. A thin layer of dust had settled around the mirror's edges, and rings of mineral deposits suggested that this had perhaps been a shower mirror. However, the mirror was perfectly sized; in Seth's mind, enough buffer space existed between the mirror's edges and what would be the tiny bathroom's walls that, with periodic cleaning, would give his customers plenty of space to examine themselves after a long night of, say, poker tournaments. Speaking of which..



Flecks of red around Seth's irises appeared more numerous than they had even just six hours ago. A sense of queasiness from an hour or two earlier had been confirmed: "I need to pay a visit to the clinic," he uttered under his breath, securing his fingers around the mirror's wooden frame. Lifting it up and out from the mounting nail, Seth lugged it underneath his free arm, turned, and started walking to where the older woman had greeted him twenty-five minutes ago.

"Sorry for the wait. A book caught my curiosity."

"Take your time."

Seth rested the wooden frame-bound mirror on the floor against his left thigh while he dug around for his wallet. "How much will this mirror cost?"

"I will have to take a closer look," said the bespectacled woman, taking a second worried look at the stranger's face. "Are you all right? You look pale."

s**t. "I am fine. Just need to kick back when I return home," Seth lied, forcing himself to smile. I really need another pack when I get home. "One moment, ma'am." Setting the history book aside on the checkout counter, Seth lifted the mirror with both arms onto the table, giving both the merchant and customer a better look at its condition. The wooden frame was chiseled to appear as though the left and right sides were Greek columns supporting a chiseled roof over a stone base. The woman shifted her glasses as she brushed off a layer of dust from what had been the barcode.

"For you, it seems this is worth three hundred bucks."

Are you shitting me? For this bathroom mirror? "How about two hundred?" Seth proposed, but a glimpse into the receptionist's eyes did not lend encouragement.

"Sorry, but the best I can do is two seventy," the woman said, flatly. "If we go lower, we will lose money on that mirror."

"Hm.." Seth paused. "How much is this book worth?"

"Fifteen bucks."

"How does two hundred and eighty bucks for both the mirror and book sound?" Seth inquired, suppressing a slight jolt of pain as he bit his tongue. The woman stared at the book for a moment... and smiled at Seth.

"You have yourself a deal."

- - -

Mood: Embarrassed
Company: None
Outfit: Casual dress clothes

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Cho-Cho Twain

"Then we have a deal!" Seth reached for his wallet. Inside, the man counted out three 100-denomination notes and laid them on the countertop. The woman took the cash, opened the brass-trimmed register, and counted out four five-denomination notes.

"Will that be all?"

"That should be it. Thank you."

Taking the cash in his hand and slipping the four bills behind the sole remaining 100-denomination note, Seth put his wallet back in his front left pocket. The proprietor began wrapping two layers of bubble wrap around the mirror, starting with the left edge

"Would you like a complimentary bag to carry your merchandise?"

"Yes, please. Could you double bag it as a matter of fact?" Seth asked, watching as the proprietor finished the first wrap.

"Sure thing," the woman said, taping the free edge of the bubble wrap sheet to the underlying layer before pulling two large paper bags from under the countertop. "What kind of room shall it occupy?"

"It is for my business. When I purchased the property two weeks back, the previous tenants shattered the old mirror." Seth shrugged.

"Just so you know, young man, this mirror once belonged to a family. You would do well to take care of it."

"Noted. The premises will be under constant surveillance," Seth said, taking the thick bag in one hand and tucking the book under his free arm. "Thank you for your help." With a final nod, Seth turned to the entrance and began to leave the premises, taking a final cursory glance of the surrounding goods: With so many codices and parchments laying about, the man knew he would return soon with more cash to expand his personal library. He brushed through the exit when he saw the lights go out in his peripheral vision. The store was now closed.

The mysterious man with his book and mirror turned left towards an intersection on the sidewalk, his white shirt and black slacks contrasting under the moonlight.

- - -

Mood: Satisfied
Company: Unaware
Outfit: Casual dress clothes
OOC: To be continued at the 11th Dimension Arcade & eCafe.