"I'm sure you've seen worse. It just needs a little polish." Erin smiled, an act that belied his fear.
"Hm, well. A little late for that, isn't it?" The shopkeep frowned back. He placed the object on his dark wood counter. It rested with a heaviness uncharacteristic of its size.
"Not from what I hear."
The shopkeep looked up sharply. An eyebrow raised.
"Then you have heard wrong, my friend. It is past time you parted with this. I don't know what you want me to give you for it."
Panic was on the verge of setting in, but that eyebrow had given Erin a ray of hope. He turned slightly, and started running his eyes over the various curios in the shop. Bizzare, antique, and... painful to the mind, each of them. But Erin let it wash over him, for effect.
"Have I though? I know it's not really unique, and a little... tarnished, as you said. But I also happen to know it's just the kind of thing you like." He let his eyes drift back to the shopkeep. The skinny, darkly dressed man was stonefaced. "And while you may not have the time or inclination to patch it up yourself, I think, if you let me, I can do it for you."
"If you think you can sell it to me for more time, I'm afraid you're mistaking me for someone else." The shopkeep rolled his eyes.
"Oh no no no, I apologize. I don't want to pay you for it..." Erin let his hands drift over a pair of dice that were sitting on a shelf, before folding his arms before his chest. "I want to play you for it."
The shopkeep's appearance was stoney for a moment more. But then it cracked, and a smile shone through like the grin of a skull.
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