Throwing her arms over her head and letting out a loud yawn, Harris followed her new travel companions off of the boat and onto the dock.  She drew a deep breath and lifted her face towards the sunlight, happy for the time being to be away from Besaid.  Crossing her arms over her chest as she listened to Chiron's request, Harris regarded both the warrior and the black mage with one dark eyebrow raised in suspicion.<br/><br/>Business?<br/><br/>Her lips turned upwards and her eyes narrowed when she noticed the way Amal turned her eyes to the ground in an attempt to hide the flush rising to her cheeks; either the mage hadn't taught her foreign friend about innuendo or they really were looking to 'be alone' together.  The thought struck a nerve with the Blitzer and she pursed her lips, subconsciously scrutinizing the black mage for the first sign of weakness she could find to exploit.<br/><br/>If Chiron wanted a wallflower, Harris realized her first inclination was to want to show him every reason why he should want exactly the opposite.  Because she was the opposite.  Clenching her biceps where her arms remained crossed until her knuckles turned white, the blonde wrestled internally for a moment as she waited for an idea on how to handle the situation to come to her.<br/><br/>She wanted to tease the pair of them; embarrass Amal to such a degree whatever business it was she and the warrior had found the need to conduct together would be forgotten entirely.  If the mage was no longer willing, the warrior would almost definitely become frustrated for the effort it would take to convince her otherwise.  But Ethan was still there and Harris could sense his patience was wearing thin where her curt interactions with the black mage were concerned.<br/><br/>When the priest agreed they could have a few hours to themselves, Harris was beyond furious but she masked the emotion with a deep breath and by releasing the tension in her fingertips.  The blitzer just rolled her good eye and let her attention fall to Ethan.  How would she best appeal to him?  There had to be a way to bring him around to her side of the fence where Chiron and Amal's free time was concerned.<br/><br/>After all, there had been three perfectly good cabins aboard the ferry and four sufficiently empty hours the two of them could have used while on their way to Killika.  Was there really a need to delay their Summoner from his temple?  Her eyes gleamed mischievously, or maybe it was pure malice, when she watched the way the warrior took the mage's arm and how easily she fell into perfect step behind him.<br/><br/>Her blood was positively boiling, so she decided to search Ethan's features for any sign of what he might be feeling.  He seemed… nonchalant and not overly bothered by Chiron's request or the delay he'd be made to suffer for it.  But if there was one skill Harris knew she could always rely on, it was her ability to ruffle someone's feathers.<br/><br/>"Chin up, Summoner," she smirked, letting both of her arms fall to her sides.  "I'm sure he'll quickly realize she's no good for what he's looking for.  You'll have your Guardian back and she'll be on the next ferry to Bevelle.  In any case, fifty Gil says it doesn't take Chiron three hours to figure it out."<br/><br/>---<br/><br/>Thankful when Chiron came to a halt for the opportunity to catch her breath, Amal quickly realized there would be little time to attempt to calm herself down.  The warrior was eager to help her select a weapon but she still felt tense about the way they'd parted from the other two members of their group.  Ethan hadn't seemed exactly happy to be left in the dark about their secret and Harris… Amal felt her heart start beating faster in her chest.  Harris had looked like she might murder someone.  Herself.  Chiron.  Herself and Chiron.  It probably wouldn't have mattered to her.<br/><br/>In a way, Amal was happy they hadn't waited around to find out what was bothering the blitzer.  But remembering their ferry to Besaid and the drinking contest Harris had challenged Chiron to, the mage thought she might have an idea why the other woman had been glaring daggers at her.  She felt a tinge of guilt for unintentionally misleading the other woman but swallowed it down in silence.  Without opening herself up to the blitzer's cruelty, there had to be a way to make her believe Amal was still teaching Chiron his spells.  A little lie wouldn't hurt Harris… and if it bridged something of the gap between them, it would be worth it to Amal to have some relief from her constant scrutiny.<br/><br/>Yevon knew Harris would manage to find something else to be frustrated with once she was sufficiently reassured Amal wasn't worthy of such attention.<br/><br/>When a new voice interrupted her thoughts, Amal practically jumped for her surprise.  She'd been caught in a halfway conversation with Chiron and tied up with her thoughts about Harris.  Narrowing her eyes in suspicion, the mage considered how this merchant had selected an interesting sort of back-alley location to set up his shop.  She couldn't suppress her feeling any reputable merchant would have cast his wares for sale on the main thoroughfare.<br/><br/>"I'm not sure if this is quite what we're looking for," Amal sighed, trying to hide how uneasy this merchant made her feel by waving an open hand over the disorganized contents of his backpack.  Pointing towards one of the busier areas of the village she suggested, "Perhaps we'd be better served looking out there."<br/><br/>Without waiting for his reply, she reached for the warrior's arm to lead him away but was stopped when the merchant grabbed the dark sleeve of her jacket to keep her in place, "Hold yer chocobos, lass.  Everything in me bag is worth two of anything you'd find out there!"<br/><br/>Frowning, the mage pulled her sleeve out of his grasp and quietly smoothed out the beginnings of wrinkles in the garment.  She hadn't managed to press her open palm against Chiron's bicep and steer him away fast enough.  O'aka had pulled a sword out of his bag and was reaching forward to show the duo how brilliantly the jewels in the hilt caught the light.<br/><br/>"Something as beautiful as the lady, perhaps?" he smiled at Chiron.<br/><br/>Amal rolled her eyes, looking into the merchant's bag of junk.  Different merchant, same old tricks as the ones in Bevelle.  If she had a Gil for every time one would try this ploy on Agustin when they went to market together, she'd have enough Gil to buy every piece of junk in this merchant's bag and then some left over to refill it for him.  O'aka the Twenty Second wasn't too clever for Amal and she doubted he would be for Chiron, either.<br/><br/>Her eyes settled on a pair of small daggers near the bottom.  They were small enough to fit down into her boots, one on either side, and remain hidden.  They were plain, nothing flashy compared to everything else the merchant seemed to be carrying around with him, but they looked sturdy and reliable.  Without understanding how or why she knew, Amal was certain these were the weapons calling to her.<br/><br/>"How much?" she asked O'aka, gesturing towards the sword he still held in both hands.<br/><br/>"Oh, I couldn't part with this one for less than 10, lass," the merchant ran his fingers fondly over a ruby set over the base of the sword.<br/><br/>"Seems fair," she nodded curtly.<br/><br/>"10,000."<br/><br/>She wouldn't entertain bartering with him if that was his starting offer.<br/><br/>"How about that one?" she pointed at a longsword, the blade of which had been wrapped in cloth which indicated the merchant must have carried it on his back.  There was no way it had fit in the backpack.<br/><br/>"Oh, let's say 7,000."<br/><br/>"Lower," the mage demanded, dropping both of her hands to her hips and meeting him with a pointed stare.<br/><br/>"5?" he seemed nervous now.<br/><br/>"Lower still."<br/><br/>"3, but that's the lowest I can go, lass," he had returned the shimmering short sword to the pack and pulled out another, albeit more plain, short sword.  "How about this one for 2,000?"<br/><br/>"That's not really to my taste," she said, starting to turn away and placing a hand on Chiron's shoulder as she did so.<br/><br/>"Wait, lass!" she could hear him shuffling behind her.  "What about a pair of daggers?"<br/><br/>Glancing over her shoulder, she shrugged as though disinterested in their bartering entirely, but O'aka was holding the exact set of daggers she'd set her mind on earlier, "150 even.  For the pair."<br/><br/>"What!" O'aka threw his face to the sky and shielded his mock grief from Amal and Chiron by placing his forearm over his eyes.  "Yer takin' the food right outta me boy's mouth, lass!"<br/><br/>"Two hundred," she countered politely.<br/><br/>"Five."<br/><br/>Amal turned around and gently pressed Chiron's shoulder to urge him forward.<br/><br/>"Two fifty!" the merchant cried out in desperation.<br/><br/>Neither of them had even taken a full step.  Setting her expression so she appeared calm and disinterested, she pulled 250 Gil out of a pouch from her waist and took the daggers from the exasperated merchant.  Her green eyes glimmered in triumph as she glanced up at Chiron, but to O'aka she simply nodded, "It was a pleasure doing business with you.  Chiron, shall we?"