“Sorry Markus, I know I’m a bit late!”

“There you are, Selena! I was beginning to wonder when’d you show. You’re normally a few minutes earlier than this.”

“Yeah, I was on the other side of town running another errand. You won’t believe how bad the gangs have gotten lately!”

Kyle tried to not drop open his jaw as he saw the girl walk into the store. She wore black leather, high-heeled boots that reached past her shin, their soles a dull bronze, but even in those shoes, she was a few inches shorter than him. Her black skirt extended just past her knees, and the apron atop it was tattered and covered in dirt and soot, with old oil stains splattered around the edge on her right. 

She wore a utility belt that hung a little loosely down the left side of her hip, its one pocket bulging as if ready to burst open. A few inches above her waist, she wore another belt that held her outfit tight against her body. Between the belt and her moderate chest, the apron hugged her and stopped just short of a frilly looking ascot that protruded from her collar. The sleeves of her outfit were short, and had similar frills along their ends and along the shoulders. Kyle could see a white bandage wrapped around her right forearm, and another around the wrist of her left, and momentarily wondered if she was injured or needed help. 

The girl’s flowing, raven-dark hair reached halfway down her back, and while complementing her similarly dark outfit, contrasted beautifully with her fair skin. She wore a white headpiece that was tied down by a black band, its frills matching her shoulders and collar. In front of that, she had some brown leather goggles with bronze rims, and two gold-colored hair clips kept her hair out of the way of her purple eyes. Kyle’s eyes met hers, and he noted how their cool sharpness accentuated her beauty. Shifting his gaze to the left, he also noticed a strand of hair sticking upwards, like a cow-lick.

Is that an ahoge? On a gorgeous maid chick around my age? Is this… heaven?

The girl didn’t let his gaze go unnoticed. “Can I help you?”

“I, uh… I’m Kyle. Or KC, whichever you’d prefer.”

“Right…” She slowly nodded, turning to Markus. “Are you busy then, I take it?”

Markus looked from her to Kyle, a smile revealing his slightly yellowed teeth. “Oh Selena, you’ll love this. C’mere and see what this lad brought in, it’s quite the trinket.”

“Oh, no! That’s fine!” Kyle said, holding a hand to cover the anime figure. “No need to waste your time with this!”

Ignoring his pleas, Selena walked over and rested her elbows on the countertop, peering closely at the maid twins. She tilted her head as she studied them, raising an eyebrow to Markus. “Don’t ask me! He’s the one who knows all about it. Ain’t that right, Kyle?”

Kyle shook his head and shrugged. “I mean, I guess, yeah, but you know, it’s just…”

“Oh give it a rest, Markus,” Selena said with a sigh. “This is why you never have any repeat customers. You’re a hardass on the people who can’t satisfy your curiosity, and you tease to no end the ones that bring in something you know you’ll make a profit on.”

“Selena!” Markus said sternly. “I’m just trying to show him my… affability, is all! You don’t gotta run your mouth like that!”

“Affable? That’s laughable,” Selena said, chuckling. She turned to Kyle. “So, what’s with the mini-mes? You make them yourself?” Kyle’s voice caught in his throat as he tried to respond. Come on man, don’t screw this up now, of all times!

“It’s a country from the ‘far-east,’ he says,” Markus explained. “Considering there’s only the Terr Alliance out North or the East Imperial Union, I imagine it’s the latter.” 

“Huh, no kidding?” Selena sounded impressed.

“Uh, yeah!” Kyle said with a nod. “For sure! It wasn’t an easy find at all. I went a long way from here to find and get it before other fans could buy it. Or like, you know, other collectors, I mean. It wasn’t cheap either! Cost me about a quarter of what I had, but as you can see, it was clearly worth it.”

“Oh? Sounds like he went through a lot of trouble, huh Markus?” Selena smiled as she turned to the shopkeeper, but he just shook his head. She just rolled her eyes, continuing. “So? What’s their deal?”

“Ah, well, they’re... maids. Combat maids, who fight to keep their master safe.” Kyle couldn’t help but feel his heart race at the thought she might be showing an interest. “They come from this story about a guy who goes around trying to protect or save people, and when he rescues these girls from an abusive owner, they pledge themselves to helping him in his quest to aid as many people as he can.”

Selena’s eyes grew wide as he finished, a smile creeping on her face as she turned to Markus. “Wow Markus, you were right for once. I think I do love this!”

“Oh for the love of–” Markus started, holding his face in his palm. “That’s not what I meant and you know it! I’m not trying to encourage you to–”

“I don’t need your encouragement, or your permission! I’ve been doing just fine on my own, thank you.” There was a tense silence between them for a few seconds. Kyle couldn’t make out what they were referring to, but whatever it was, they were clearly opposed.

“I brought the shipment, like you requested.” Selena jerked a thumb towards the door. “Give me a hand, will you? Or is your back giving you trouble again?”

“I’ll manage,” Markus said with a dismissive wave. “Excuse me, Kyle. I need to deal with this real quick.”

“Oh, yeah sure. Take your time.”

Markus walked around the counter and joined Selena outside. Making sure that neither of them were near the door or looking through the window, Kyle quickly took out his phone and turned on the camera. He adjusted Shiroshi and Kuroshi to be looking in his direction and pushed them towards the end of the rubber mat, not noticing as the pocket watch Markus had left there tumbled onto the carpet floor. He looked over his shoulder once more, and took several pictures of the girls in vertical and horizontal mode, getting them from multiple angles. He looked around and the room once more, trying to find any trinkets or antiques he might have missed. He walked over to the rack of lighters he'd seen earlier and picked one up. It was a typical box lighter, the kind he'd seen in a noir film. It took all his willpower to not make an attempt at lighting it. 

Instead, he settled for flipping the cap open and shut, the clink of the metal just satisfying enough. He put it down after playing with it several times, and waltzed back to the middle of the room. He took a panoramic shot of the room before putting his phone away, silently waiting only a few more moments for the owner and maid to come back.

When the bell jingled again, he saw Markus come in carrying a crate of bottles. Selena was right behind him, carrying a sealed cardboard box of miscellaneous items that jingled inside. Markus gestured to the counterspace off to the right of where the figure sat, placing the container down with a heavy thunk. Selena did likewise, letting out a deep breath.

“Those drinks had better sell,” she said, sounding almost accusatory. “I spent the last two weeks going around town and checking every store, corner, and alleyway for those. Same with the repaired trinkets. I’ll be checking in every day to collect our cut!”

“Relax, Selena. Have I ever cheated you out of a payment?”

“You cheat your customers pretty regularly, don’t you?”

“I do no such thing! I just do my best to turn as much of a profit I can on everything that passes through my hands. And besides, you’re not a customer are you?”

“Ah, no,” Kyle said, raising his hand, reminding them he was still there. “But I am?”

““Quiet.”” The two snapped at him at the same time, before turning back to each other and continuing.

“Listen Selena, if you’re that concerned about payment, you should be doing something more secure or stable! Running around town, doing odd jobs here and there, picking fights nobody is asking you to, it just doesn’t make sense! Why not help your uncle and brother out more at the shop? Heck, I could pay you to stand in and help once a week.”

“I’m perfectly fine taking care of myself, Markus. I have for the last couple years, haven’t I? I don’t need your pity or concern. And for payment, I haven’t been shorted what I’ve asked for since my first year when I was still putting my name out there. And sure, I’ll admit that includes any cash coming from you, too.”

“Then what are you–”

“But when it comes to Eli!” she said loudly, putting a finger in Markus’s face. “He still doesn’t know how to stand up for himself! You know that, and that’s why, when he asks me to bring you a box of stuff that didn’t come through our repair shop, I know you keep going around my back to ask for his help directly, and then pay him on the cheap! That’s dirty, Markus. I thought better of you.” Markus’s face turned sour at that last comment.

Oh, he did not like that…

“You should watch your tone with me, Brimworks. You don’t know the half of it. I’m helping the both of you, more than I should have any business to. But I knew your parents, and watched them raise you. You should know better than to accuse someone like that!”

“Yeah, well they’re not here anymore are they? What happened, Markus? You wanna tell me where you were that day?” Selena shouted, slamming a fist down on the countertop. Her shoulders heaved, and if looks could kill, Kyle was sure Markus would have been eviscerated beyond recognition.

A few moments of silence passed. Selena took a deep breath, standing up straight and patting her apron. “There’s one last box for you. Let me grab it.” Neither Kyle nor Markus said anything as the maid of fury stormed out of the building, the loud clicking from each step of her high heeled boots echoing throughout the shop.