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"What will it take?" Bastion was holding the parcels high, obscuring most of him, as he tilted his head uncomfortably to the side and haggled with the stall owner. "The necklace is worth twice what I'm asking for. But still. Still! I offer to give you the earrings - because I like you, Muhammad, I like you, and you have always given me a good trade. So why are you trying to throw away everything we've built up together just because you think your diamonds are worth more than you know I know they are!"

When he haggled, Bastion was a completely different person. His eyes flared, his face flushed with vigor, and even while holding that many parcels, he looked like he was ready to throw down.

But the stall owner did not relent. "Ten diamonds, take it or leave it."

"Then I shall leave it!" Bastion wobbled as he tried to hold his parcels with one hand, while simultaneously trying to wrap up the earrings and necklace that laid on an open parcel in front of them. He wobbled, and grabbed the ones in his arms quickly enough to keep it from falling, just in time to hear Mjoll's voice cut through the noisy crowd of the bazaar and capture his attention, as it always had the power to do.

"M-Mjoll!" His words tripped out, barely managing to keep his hands from dropping all of his parcels at once. The stall owner smelled his sudden weakness like blood in the water, and snorted. Bastion turned to glare at him, and held out the parcels in his hands. "Yes, Mjoll, I do require some help. Could you hold these for just a moment, while I conclude my business with this thief once and for all!"

"Bastion, please-"

"NEVER will I set foot in front of your stall again!"

He seemed serious. The stall owner was waffling.

Once Mjoll took the parcels in his hand, he quickly worked to get back to wrapping his wares up. He was stopped by the stall owner, who put both of his hands on Bastion's wrists. The horseman growled, bending to be face to face with the man.

"Don't test me, Muhammad, when it comes to my wares-"

"Fifty diamonds."

Bastion's entire expression changed. He backed away and let the parcel unravel once more, smiling with a gentle and pleased expression. "I'm glad you've finally seen things my way, Muhammad. It's always wonderful doing business with you, as usual." He turned back to Mjoll, leaning in to take the parcels. As he did so, he bent in, whispering into her ear.

"He does this every time. Don't fret. We're old friends."

He made the mistake of breathing in, and the scent of her made him pause, intoxicated. Creepy as it was, he pulled back before she noticed, and his face looked stern as he tried to stay focused. For a moment there, he'd actually forgotten this was Mjoll. For one sweet, calm moment, she was actually just a normal, nice person.

And then it all came crumbling down.

Muhammad returned with a new parcel, jingly and bulging with diamonds. He placed it on top of Bastion's already overburdened load. "There. Now get away from me before others hear of my charity for your pathetic soul."

Bastion grinned goofily and nodded his head. "And a good day to you as well, friend!"

Mjoll's reaction had Bastion's insecurities shoved to the back of his thoughts, and he gave her a smug, secret smile. "Of course it's worth more than fifty, Muhammad knows it's worth far more than fifty, but I like the man, I will continue to give him great deals if he does not attempt to lowball me when I come to him with them."

He said this loudly, as he walked away with Mjoll, leading her out of the bazaar. But once they were out of earshot, he let out a very quiet giggle.

"That was quite a good show, I'd say. It's no wonder you're good at that, you've probably been dealing with men like him for ages. I don't know if I would have even gotten fifty out of the man if you hadn't come along." One side of his lips turned up in a ragged grin. "Thanks."

But he heard the emphasis, and of course, took it the wrong way. "Yes, I've made all of these. I'm aware they pale in comparison to your work. But I get by." He was, in fact, in love with the things he made.. but he felt that he was the only one.

He stopped at an empty bazaar table, and put down his parcels for a moment. "Look through them if you want. I don't think I'll be able to sell anything else today."

"Ripped off." He chuckled. "Mjoll, I don't mind being paid peanuts. If he pays me enough to support my practice, I am fulfilled. To be honest, I give so much of my craft away. Friends, family, what have you. I don't create to profit. I create to create. I've never needed appreciation for anything I do, my entire life." Though he would never admit it, the truth was that he'd never received appreciation, or even trust. So he knew how to live without it quite well.

Unfortunately, when she started to compliment his work, his easygoing attitude melted away, and he started to fidget nervously, his face darkening in a thick blush. He stared down at the ground, and his brows knitted in dismay. "Mjoll, please." He whispered, under his breath, after he'd taken the seat she asked him to take. "Don't say such things."

He picked up a parcel, unraveling a necklace that had no chain. Rubies were strung with tiny gold filaments, that were then fused to each other. They tinkled as they clanged against one another, and refused to retain the typical hanging shape as each ruby moved and twirled in its own rhythm and movement.

"Careful with this one. It's quite delicate, and completely impractical. It will never sell, but sometimes I just like to make something to see if I can. A necklace without a chain sounded like a fun idea in the beginning. Now it's simply expensive decoration." He laughed, and picked it up, dropping it on her head. "Though it might make a fancy headpiece, if worn right!"

Because they're true.

Bastion's insecurities quaked under the force of Mjoll's stubbornness.

While he let her look through the rest of his wares, he slowly took the ruby filigree off of Mjoll's head, and wrapped it back up. His expression looked tense, as if a tight wound string held everything inside of him, ready to snap.

"Is this how it's going to be now, Mjoll?" He whispered with a strained voice. "Are you going to ignore the other night? As if it never happened?" He leaned in, his eyes narrowing. "Is it really that easy?"

What.

What was even.

Happening.

What.

The string of words that had just come out of Mjoll's mouth were like violent punches to every part of Bastion's body and soul. He couldn't comprehend was he was hearing.. and then she tried to sell some of his wares, as if she hadn't just left him questioning everything about his entire life in a handful of words. Why were they even.. what did he care how much the man spent on his jewelry?! He would have given the damn thing away at this point, from being so caught up in his thoughts.

75 seeds. He wouldn't have dared ask for more. Mjoll was a good saleswoman, but he couldn't even focus on that. The things she'd just said-

He waved his hand in dismissal as if brusquely accepting the offer, and wanting, more than anything in the world, for the man to leave so he could say something.

Bastion stared at the bag for a moment, before his hand reached out, and picked it up. He wanted to feel the weight of that many silver seeds.. just for a moment.

Then he set it down and pushed the bag over to her. "Why would you say something like that?" He didn't care about the money, or even the sale. He wasn't even reacting to anything she said about it. "Why would you ask me - ask me if I was over it. Why would you ask me if there was something you should be fighting for. Do you honestly not realize how cruel that is?"

Was he crying? No, no he wasn't. But his eyes sure stung like they wanted to. "Nothing is worth fighting for if you have to ask that question, Mjoll. If you ever wanted to fight for me, if you ever actually cared, there wouldn't be a question. That is your answer."

He wanted to leave. He wanted to leave everything he'd brought, and just walk away. But he'd walked away from this once already - he was sick of it. He could tell how different they were, by the way they handled this situation. He, the passionate, reckless, stupid one. She, the conservative, reserved one.

He was starting to think he'd been right to always love her from a distance. Close up, it felt like they would have torn each other apart.