She should have brought Angie. Or Dory. Or Zelda, or Delight, or anyone else. She should have brought someone with her given the interaction she had last time, but she had to be completely and absolutely mad to have done this alone. That was the only reason. Rowan felt rooted to the spot as she looked up at the very three faces she'd confronted last time. Their eyes, glassy and watery peered down at her, pinning her where she stood. It was a wonder the room wasn't filled with the pounding of her heartbeat as she clenched her fists and glared at them.

Since deciding to keep her job, Rowan had also been able to come across some extra pocket money - the debutante she'd pricked in the ankle at the Sanditon had been somehow made to pay her for the work she did. And so with the smallest sliver of hope, she'd entered the shop in hopes someone else would be at the counter. Of course, she'd been sorely mistaken. One by one, they'd made their way up to the counter, and of course, one by one, customers had left with their purchases and soon she was the only one in the shop.

Of course, when she'd asked they'd laughed in her face and said they'd sold it. But given that she could see the pearl earring in the case right there in front of her she was not going anywhere. As if she could, given she felt like someone had just cast a body bind curse on her.

She'd finally found her voice and flung a desperately coated, "You lie I know you have it!" at the great oafs when the bell on the door behind her rung and she turned, half relieved, half annoyed at the intruder.

---

There weren't many reasons he, a Malfoy, needed a pawn shop. He might not have been in line to inherit the family estate like his cousin Gaius, but his father had not allowed his second-son status to affect his lifestyle or prospects for his children.

In short, he had plenty of money.

What pawn shops could offer him was treasure he could keep for himself—or in today's case at this particular pawn shop, help better identifying the treasures he already possessed. The magical pawn shops in London were known for their lowballing practices and inconsistencies in their evaluations, but there was one gentleman in Hogsmeade that he would have trusted to keep stock of his entire inheritance, not only because he cultivated trust with his clients, but because he had a certain expertise in the kinds of objects families like the Malfoys kept at their disposal and, when he didn't, knew people who did.

And in some ways, he did. Mr. Splitters knew his greatest treasures and greatest frustrations; he knew the portraits that had been in his family so long their subject and painter were no longer known, knew the jewels that his grandmothers had left for his line rather than his sisters or cousins, knew the little trinkets that had very little monetary value but great sentimental value. More than anything, Mr. Splitters knew how protective Raphael was of his belongings, on one tense occasion likening him to a goblin. (Apologies had been given. Raphael allowed it to remain unmentioned in every meeting since.)

Raphael had left two objects at the shop the last time he'd been there, more of an excuse to return to see what additions the shop had made at a later date than anything. He hardly expected for anyone to be around at the time of day, but when he opened the door not only was there someone there, but there was someone familiar there.

"Lie is a strong word, Yaxley," he said smoothly, joining her at the counter as if he'd been intending to join her from the moment he decided to visit the shop. He leaned his side against the counter and crossed his legs. He wasn't sure how to regard her, really—a smile hardly seemed fitting, but he couldn't be icy or dry. They'd been through too much, been too close. Instead he gazed down at her with a look of curiosity, one brow slightly arched.

---

No. Her gaze locked on him as he entered the shop and her stomach did an uncomfortable turn as he approached, looking for all the world that he owned this very establishment. Merlin, from the way the Malfoy's threw around their money he might as well have done that. Rowan's jaw clenched as she felt the heat rise in her cheeks, and she immediately whirled back to face the counter as she ground out, "It's also quite an accurate word, I would say."

Clearly, he had come in for something - an appointment, given how suddenly the shop owner's lackey's spines seemed to straighten immediately as he walked through the door. Rowan would certainly not be staying to join him lest something magical happen to the street outside and they find themselves knee-deep in water again. And she certainly did not care for how she'd almost sighed with relief as she'd seen him step into the shop. For all the anger she held toward the three men in front of her, she was gripping her wand so tightly in her pocket she was surprised her pocket hadn't burst into flames yet.

She thought he would have stood behind her to wait his turn in line, but of course, he came straight up to the counter, leaned against it, and peered down at her. She broke her glare at the shop owner to meet his gaze, surprised to find an inquisitive one staring back at her. Her own defiant look faltered, and she looked from Malfoy to the shop owner. What? she wanted to snap at him; having four people stare at her expectantly wasn't doing much for her nerves which were wound as tightly as clock gears. Instead, she took a breath and addressed the man in front of her behind the counter. "Are you going to give me my earring, or will you continue to be insufferable liars?"

---

His knowledge of Yaxley's character was at odds with his understanding of the man behind the counter's. He'd been around them both for a decent length of time—the gentleman's more often, but he felt he knew Yaxley better. On any other day he might have been inclined to take the gentleman's side (she was being irrationally angry, he thought, and rude) but the subject of the earring piqued his interest.

Once upon a time, on a day long, long ago, he'd taken one of Yaxley's earrings. He hadn't remembered it until just that moment, like her speaking the word aloud brought back a memory buried deep in the back of his mind, and suddenly he found his eyes gazing down at the counter in search of the object in question. He didn't want to look too interest, though, so he allowed his gaze to flicker back and forth between the gentleman, the counter, and Yaxley herself, as if he was trying to make out for himself what was going on.

"Don't tell me you're buying stolen goods now, Splitters," he said intentionally warily, adding a little tsk tsk noise for emphasis, "You know very well how women are with their jewelry. And I'll tell you, this one's unlikely to abandon the cause." He looked at her when he said this, his eyes playful, teasing. He couldn't be sure how she'd take it, but it wouldn't be the end of the world if he was able to push her buttons.

---

So Malfoy did know these thugs and was on a name basis with them, it looked like. Rowan's color rose in her cheeks as she clenched her hands into fists. Why was she not surprised.

"How perceptive of you, thank you." Rowan replied for the shop owner - Splitters, what a horrid name - and her gaze snapped to Malfoy. "It couldn't be because Splitters —" Here she glared back at the shop owner pointedly before looking back at Malfoy. "— promised me more than twice what he originally offered, then refused to follow through so I had to find the money for a new wand through other means."

For a moment, she looked back at him, wondering if she should disclose how the last time she was here they had implied she sell something else in order to get the money she needed. Now knowing that there was a pre-existing relationship between Malfoy and Splitters, and knowing how the owner took advantage of people...Rowan wasn't entirely sure she wanted to know if Malfoy would back the owner up.

---

Raphael's eyes narrowed slightly, not at her, but at what came out of her mouth. He'd never thought Splitters a dishonest man; he'd never paid Raphael a sickle less than what Raphael thought an item was worth, nor did he sell him anything for ridiculous prices. He might have refuted her if only because he didn't want to admit he'd been wrong about the man, but he couldn't—not when Splitters stood there quietly, looking back and forth between him and Yaxley with a look of uncertainty on his face, as if he wasn't sure whether or not it would be smart to say whatever was on his mind.

"The wand you broke in the shipwreck?" he questioned. His instinctively wanted to chastise her for not asking him for the money for a new wand; they'd gone through the shipwreck together and he hated to think she was pawning off objects to be able to afford to do magic. It seemed so undignified—once again an image that didn't align with his own image of Yaxley.

"What did he promise you?" he asked, his gaze sliding from Yaxley to Splitters and then back to Yaxley.

---

The minute his blue eyes cooled even further, Rowan was tempted to take a step back, but she held her ground as her fist brushed against her pocket and she felt her wand in there, a reminder that if she needed to apparate out, she still could. Unlike last time. This reassurance saw her jut her chin up defiantly. "The very one." She said, her free hand on the case as her finger came to rest over the pearl earring that winked softly in the light. The tag that now hung off the earring was labeled for no less than 20G.

Rowan scowled at the price tag, throwing another glare at Splitters before turning to answer Malfoy's question. "15 galleons." She replied. Which would have been more than enough for a wand and a new coat to replace the one that Malfoy had - er - torn off of her. She cast her gaze back to the pearl earring again, the color rising in her cheeks. "Isn't that right, Splitters?" She turned to the great lump of a man with a sour tone coating her tongue.

---

His expression softened at the confirmation, but that was the extent of his display of sympathy. Fifteen galleons for a single pearl earring? Perhaps for the set of them, but unless there was underlying value that he wasn't aware of—and he did hope, just for a second, that there was, given his possession of the other one—it shouldn't have been sold for more than eight, maybe nine.

And yet, looking down in the glass, it was being sold for a whopping twenty galleons. Raphael cast a dubious look at Splitters, who was already looking at him. "I said I might be able to get he fifteen," Splitters refuted indignantly, "But she took accepted the final offer of seven when it was presented to her."

Even if Raphael had actively thought Yaxley was lying he would have thought he sounded uncertain and defensive.

"And yet you sell it for twenty," Raf challenged, brows raised.

---

She’d thought that perhaps the man would have enough shame to tell the truth of what he’d really told her, but of course no such words were heard out of his mouth, thus pushing Rowan’s temper to new heights. Her nose wrinkled in disgust at the weak argument. Spurred on by the fact that Malfoy seemed to doubt Splitters, Rowan leaned forward over the counter, her jade pendant swinging from her neck like a pendulum. ”Another lie.” She hissed relentlessly.

The man’s face darkened, his beedy eyes momentarily dropping the slick act he’d put on for Malfoy to eye the pendant at her chest before quickly slipping easily into his salesman persona and shaking his head. ”I do not know what this one’s told you, sir,” He stated, clearing his throat. ”But I can assure you we offered her the best prices that we could.”

His eyes darted down to the case and he shrugged again. ”We are in the business of selling for a profit.”

”Is that so?” Rowan shot back. Her shoulders tensed as tears threatened to prick at her eyes. Don’t cry, don’t cry… ”Because if memory serves me correctly, you also offered to business of a different sort didn’t you?” It was only when she felt a prickling at her palms that she realized she’d drawn her wand - kept it by her side, but drawn it nonetheless, her knuckles white as she gripped it tightly.

She swung her gaze back to Malfoy, unable to keep the accusatory expression off her face. ”Is this the type of man you do business with, then?”

---

Raphael watched the exchange between Splitters and Yaxley, feeling as though he'd intruded on something deeper than a mere transaction gone wrong. Yaxley had a temper, sure, but she'd drawn her wand seemingly without realizing, and he found his gaze caught on it as she argued with Splitters. He couldn't remember ever having to fight with someone at a pawn shop—disagreements, sure, but never had he been driven to hysterics. The little voice in the back of his mind told him that she was being irrational, that they probably only gave her a hard time because she'd demanded too high a price or didn't know how things worked around here, but there was a change of tone to her voice that brought his gaze back to her face.

Not only did she look angry—she looked moritified. Her cheeks were tinged pink and her eyes glassed over with unshed tears, and he found himself so caught on the words that left her mouth that he merely stared at her blankly when she turned and spoke to him.

"you also offered to business of a different sort didn’t you?" she'd said to Splitters. He wasn't stupid; his experience told him it could only mean one thing, but in this case he had to second-guess. Yaxley was a woman, so there was a chance she didn't know what she was saying, and despite the accusations against Splitters Raphael didn't want to assume that he'd tried to buy a woman who, while not wealthy, was no whore.

Irritated, he couldn't even let her finish. "—What do you mean, business of a different sort?" he interrupted.

---

Try as she might, she wasn't able to look at Malfoy once he'd interrupted her. Tears threatened to spill onto her cheeks and she simply could not break in front of them. She instead, whipped her gaze towards Splitters who seemed to be pinned to the spot once Malfoy had demanded clarification. But even though she wanted to glare at the man who'd made such a lecherous comment to her, the look in his eyes saw her immediately want to take a step backward. Merlin, she should have asked Angie to teach her a few good hexes, for that was all she wanted to hurl at this man in front of her.

"I think you know exactly what business he meant." She replied, her cheeks hot. Despite Malfoy being the person with whom she felt most comfortable in this entire store, she still knew that it was likely he'd not only known what kind of business but also engaged in that sort of business before. It was now that she sorely wished she was wearing one of her cloaks instead of the simple jacket she'd donned before leaving that evening. Something she could pull around her to make her feel at least remotely safe.

The longer she stayed here, the more turning on her heel and leaving seemed like a good idea. She'd tried and failed to get her earring back and what was more, had humilated herself in the process.

---

He did know, and it made him sick. His stomach flipped and he felt the uncomfortable bubbling at the base of his throat, the same nauseating sensation he felt when he'd gone too long without eating. It was impossible to avoid the brief image of Yaxley on her knees in front of Splitters, but his mind refused to go into any more detail. A grimace already on his face, he found himself forcing his eyes shut to force the image out of his head, but the sickening feeling remained.

What could he even say to that? He would not undermine her by telling Splitters that he hoped what she said wasn't true, because although he really wished it wasn't, there wasn't an ounce of doubt in his mind that it was. He trusted her enough, he supposed, or maybe it was the way she looked as though she was about to dissolve into tears.

"The earring," he said to Splitters, swallowing the growing lump in his throat, "Ten galleons and not a knut more."

---

She hadn’t realized how fast her heart was beating until Malfoy laid the offer on the table and everything went quiet. Her breath hitched and she turned to stare at him, half horrified, half relieved. She couldn’t determine if this was the best outcome or the worst. She’d finally have the earring back in her possession, but at what cost? Malfoy surely wouldn’t ask of her the same lecherous favors that Splitters did, but the price to pay might have still been her pride.

She opened her mouth to say something but closed it immediately, as she caught Splitters’ expression. It had darkened considerably as his gaze landed on her, glittering and promising vengeance all the same. Rowan’s body tensed and this time she really did take a step back. “You heard him.” She said, her voice shamefully uneven.

But there wasn’t much the shop owner could do, and they all knew it. Rowan watched as the man’s giant hand scooped up the tiny pearl with his thumb and forefinger, holding it up to the light. For one horrible moment, Rowan thought he would crush it - it certainly seemed like he was thinking of it. But then he set it on the counter and held his hand out to Malfoy.

---

What else was there to say? There were plenty of things he wished he could say, but none of them were suitable in the presence of a lady whether or not she was already acquainted with the subject. Eyeing Splitters disdainfully he reached into his coat pocket and fished out a velvet pouch. The clattering and clinging of coins filled the silence as he sifted through it until he’d removed all but ten galleons.

It was a good amount of money—more than her family probably had in her dowry if she’d been willing to take seven for it in the first place. He plucked the little earring out of Splitters hand and, grabbing Yaxley’s wrist and forcing her hand open, placed it in her palm.

“We’re done here, I believe,” he said quietly, passing a dark look at Splitters over his shoulder before moving towards the exit.

---

She could only watch as both men exchanged goods, marveling as Malfoy easily counted out ten galleons. A wave of nausea overcame her at the humiliation that eased up her spine. Glancing at the shop owner’s lackeys made it worse - their stares bored into her and she wrenched her gaze away.

She had been so focused on avoiding eye contact that she hadn’t noticed the transaction was over; it was only when she felt his grip hot on her wrist that she looked down to see the pearl placed in her hand. She had it. She finally had it. So why was she suddenly feeling faint? Malfoy’s voice broke her out of her trance and she snapped her palm shut as if Splitters would dare grab her and wrestle it out of her palm. Turning on her heel, she yanked the door open, the bell ringing sharply in the air as a gust of wind blew into the shop. It was easy to step out, but Rowan immediately regretted looking back. Splitters and his partners glowered at her and she knew she hadn’t seen the last of them yet.

The cold of the night air hit her cheeks, but Rowan didn’t stop walking until they were at least two blocks away. Turning left, she wrenched open the gate to a nearby park, not bothering to see if Malfoy had followed her. Her only thought was to get as far away as she could from the shop.

---

He didn’t so much as say goodbye to Splitters and his employees as he turned to follow Yaxley out the door. He had more important things to deal with than berating a few salesman for ungentlemanly conduct—the more important thing apparently being Yaxley, who hadn’t even thanked him before stomping away.

At first he followed her at a walking pace, certain she would stop or slow down to let him catch up, but it soon appeared she intended to leave. To where, he wasn’t sure, but by the time she’d flung open the gate he was already exasperated. He held out a hand to stop the gate from opening any further, reached out, and gripped her arm at the inside of her elbow..

“What? Can’t be bothered to say thank you?” he asked, sounding mildly peeved. Which he definitely was, but more than that he was confused.

---