<div align="center"><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>The Fuchsia Fox and an Artifact Absent</strong></span></div><br/><div class="floatleft">(https://i.imgur.com/rrbvOfC.png)</div><strong>NAME:</strong>Nerissa<br/><strong>DAY:</strong>December 26th, 2018 |<br/><strong>LOCATION:</strong>The bank > The Pawnhouse Zaisan<br/><strong>TAGGING:</strong>Toshiro<br/><strong>EXTRA:</strong><br/><strong>WEARING:</strong><br/><br/><hr/><br/>“Why you look at me like that? I’m doing my best to help you, so meet me at the half-way and try to trust in me. I can see that it will be a long and rough road, but let’s try our best anyway. I guess that life savings means that it’s all you got and it’s meant for your future, right? This money I’m using to buy the statue back isn’t all I got, so why shouldn’t I help you when it’s in my power to do so? Wouldn’t you do the same for someone else? Maybe not for me, but for your friends. I’m not sure if you know how hurtful it’s to hear that you think I would ask something like that from you. I know I’m not perfect, but I’m not someone who enjoys from pain and suffering of others. That’s why it’s so hard to see you… like that.” Nerissa paused and poured tea for herself. She glanced at Toshiro. “Do I pour for you too?”<br/><br/>“Pay the favor back with a favor. I don’t know what it will be. Right now I have nothing I want from you, but that day might be. Someday I might need a favor from you, and when that day comes you will return the favor without hesitation. Will you accept these terms Toshiro?” The golden eyes stared deep into the researcher’s eyes. It was possible that she might not ask a thing from him, or it would be something quite harmless like doing some academic task or a task, that required physical strength, instead of her. But Nerissa was a Calder demon. It could be anything.<br/><br/>The girl waited patiently for his answer. It took more time before two clerks returned to the room, with the money and apologies for making them wait. Nerissa assured that it wasn’t a bother at all while she packed the stacks of money into her backpack. Her little red car was waiting at the side of a street for another adventure.<br/><br/>The Pawnhouse Zaisan was at the Gate. The more questionable part of Tokyo, where both humans and demons hid their crimes under a not so polished front. The pawnshop was on a narrow alley. (https://i.pinimg.com/564x/86/70/46/8670464620bface086dd073f1e5676ce.jpg) It was in a old, partially rundown building, at the street level. There were several colorful signs of all the small shops in the street. The place made Nerissa nervous. This was the part of city she shouldn’t come to. And in all the honesty, coming here with Toshiro didn’t make her feel any safer. Maybe they should have took someone more… capable with them.<br/><br/>Nerissa locked the doors of the vehicle before she ventured inside the pawnshop. The lightning there was dim. Most of the demons didn’t like bright lights because they were more used into darkness and light made their eyes weary. The place was cramped. There was stuff everywhere. Behind glass on display, in shelves and hanging from the ceiling and walls. And the variety of items in the pawnshop was amazing. There were more common items, like jewelry, music instruments, small antique items, art, collectibles, electronics and guns. But there were also things of more peculiar sort. Old dusty books, in both human and demon languages, body parts of different kind of creatures, ingredients (which hopefully weren’t meant for cooking), bottles and jars of different sizes containing who knew what. Some had labels and some didn’t. It was a lovely and terrifying mix of a normal pawnshop and a magic shop.<br/><br/>At the end of the a small path among everything the space was filled with was a wooden counter. When they stepped in the only thing they could see was some purple feather sticking above the counter. The door hit a bell attached to the ceiling, informing from arrival of new customers. A small demon, not much taller than 3”2, climbed up on the top ladder of his wooden step ladder and looked at the pair. The Papayo (https://i.imgur.com/2jXJoxq.jpg) was a odd looking one, with a thick purple fur covering his body, yet his head was like a skull of a bird, with a long peak. Long feathers stuck out of the demon’s back of the head and top of head he had even longer pointy and fluffy ears. The demon was wearing a simple black robe.<br/><br/>“Hi. You know that I sold you a statue today. Now I have been thinking about it and I started to regret it. I want the statues back. I will pay you…” Nerissa started. The Papayo demon narrowed his eyes as she looked at the fox demoness.<br/><strong>^Come closer^ </strong><br/><br/>It was a weird request, but Nerissa obeyed. Maybe the demon had poor hearing? Instead of taking a closer look at the girl the purple demon sniffed her.<strong> ^You aren’t Rina. Which one are you?^</strong>There was a suspicion in his voice.<br/>“Okay, you got me. I’m Nerissa. I can pay you more than what you gave to Rina so how about…?”<br/><em><strong>^You are such a disgrace to your kind! Speaking their language, working for them, against your own kind!^*</strong></em>The papayo spoke now in a demon language.<em><strong>^You even brought a human with you! Or is he part of the deal? You want to sell him? If that’s the case I’m reconsidering my opinion of you. Even though this human is in poor condition.^</strong></em><br/>Not this again, Nerissa thought. Why was he even complaining about bringing Toshiro when this place obviously served both races?<em> “No! I’m not selling him. Just… I will pay for the statue with human money. I have 300 000 dollars. In cash. That’s more than the statue is worth, and way more than what you paid to Rina.”</em><br/><em><strong>^You are both stupid, but in different ways^</strong></em>the little demon said with a grumpy tone, shaking his head in disappointment.<em><strong>^You fool around with the humans and she doesn’t understand the value of things she gets in her hands. That statue isn’t just a lump of gold and some gems. It has a great magical power held within.^</strong></em><br/><em>“I will pay you more and…”</em>Nerissa glanced back at Toshiro. He really wanted the statue back, right?<em>“...and you can rent him. For a short period of time, as long as he returns back in the same condition he was given or better”</em>Nerissa tried to bargain, knowing she should have asked Toshiro’s opinion on this first.<br/><strong><em>^I have a buyer already. Now, stop wasting my time unless you are going to sell me something or buy something else.^</em></strong>The papayo said rudely and ushered them towards the door with his hand.<br/>“He doesn’t want to sell it” Nerissa mumbled to Toshiro, speaking japanese again.<br/><br/><hr/><br/><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 8pt;">*The demon uses street language in both japanese and demon language. It's not written as such, because the writer herself is unable to do that.</span>