The Name Broker

You sit down across from the Fae. "I'm here to buy a name."

Foreword: Another r/WritingPrompts-inspired piece.

I approached the table slowly. Despite the beams and strobes of the club, light did not seem to reach it, leaving the further half of the table in deep gloom. I could just make out the shape of a person reclining back in the booth seat, arms stretched back to the sides, head dangling over the back. Everything else was just vague, from the shape of the body, to the cut of the clothing. Even looking at the figure was difficult, and I could feel the pulse of the music and the draw of the dance behind me, trying to pull me away. Glamour. 

I stood firm, and the figure behind the table stirred. Even though that head hadn't lifted, I had drawn attention now. Anyone that can resist the effects of glamour usually holds some interest. I raised my voice over the din behind me. "Can I have a few minutes of your time?"

The figure gave something like a sigh and flicked some fingers dismissively. "No, you may not. I need all of the time I can get." The voice was a whisper, but quite audible despite the noise around me. It resonated with a tenebrous sibilance that set instincts off, but I kept down the urge to run away. Just another attempt of the glamour to drive me off.

I hadn't expected my opening gambit to work, so I rephrased my intent. "Ah, perhaps I misspoke. I meant to say, may I speak with you for a few minutes?"

There was a sound that might have been a chuckle, and the figure's head lifted. I could just make out the dual glint of eyes, above the gleam of a smile. "You have good manners." A roll of fingers and a gesture. "Pray, sit and speak." Or maybe it had said Prey.

I sat down at the table, resting my palms on it as I faced the figure opposite. "I'm here to buy a name."

The head cocked quizzically, arms shifting to drape across the back of the booth now. "Are you now? Such cheek. I guard my collection most jealously." Fingers curled and knuckles popped. There might have been the suggestion of claws on the ends.

"I am not asking you to give me one," I stated, more calmly than I felt. "I know there must be a trade in value."

A lip curled in disdain and claws flexed dangerously. "One name is not equal to another."

"Ah-h-h," I raised a finger, "then we're negotiating over value, as your statement implies a trade is sound in principle."

There was a stillness from across the table, the pinpricks of eyes almost flaring in a fury. Then arms slid off of the booth and two pale palms rested on the tabletop. There weren't any claws now, but the fingers seemed longer than they should be, maybe an extra knuckle in place. The figure leant forward, the equally pale lower half of a face emerging from the gloom, lips thin, a dark tongue flicking out to wet them briefly. This was a being that had prowled the periphery of mankind's awareness since time immemorial, since before even that. Those in the know knew well enough to tread carefully, as nothing lives that long without potent defenses. It had a Reputation.

"I know you, now." The voice affected a more modulated tone, less sibilant, less inhuman. It sounded amused, but there was a wariness behind it. It stood to reason, since I had amassed a Reputation of my own. "And what name do you seek to acquire?"

And I answered. The figure opposite went still again. "A dangerous one to know. For what purpose?"

"That," I shook my head, "is not germane to the negotiations, is it?"

A shake of the head in return. "It is, indeed, given the name in question. Answer the question before value may be discussed."

Names have power. Anyone who moves in these circles realizes this early, and takes steps to protect their own. As times passed, it's become more difficult for modern practitioners to do this, as technology progressed. If you know a being's name, it affords a means of power over that being. Demonologists and their ilk often tried to use it to compel various entities from across the realms, to varying degrees of success and failure, usually the latter.

The name I'd asked for was for something especially dangerous. Asking the purpose for knowing It wasn't unsurprising, considering what It was notorious for being. Less experienced practitioners than I had tried to conjure It, and while It hadn't gotten loose completely, dealing with those incidents took some doing.

So I explained the need. The figure on the other side of the table was silent. Fingers drummed thoughtfully. "The most valid of reasons," came the judgment. "We may discuss value. For this, I will require something nearly as equal."

I arched an eyebrow. "Nearly as?"

A shrug. "There is nothing in this plane of existence which could equal the value in question." Thin lips pulled back at the corners as the figure smiled. That is, teeth were being shown. More than you'd expect, and not shaped at all like you'd imagine. Gleaming, keen, and hungry. "I will, however, accept yours."

Now it was my turn to go still. "Mine?"

A nod. "A name with a history like yours? I think that could hold pride of place in my collection." Those pale hands lifted from the table and spread open. "What say you?"

Giving my name over would place me in thrall, until and unless the holder let it pass from the collection. Names have power. All that I am, all that I know, all that I have, in the control of a capricious, covetous creature such as this. The ramifications were unspeakable.

So were the stakes if I did not make the trade.

"Do I have your word that I may make use of the knowledge given to the purpose for which it is needed?"

The smile stretched wider. "Indeed. After that purpose is fulfilled, I will claim it immediately." One hand reached over the table. "Do we have an accord?"

"We have reached an agreement." The palm I grasped was colder than you might think, the strength of the grip stronger than words. I allowed a smile of my own. "We are agreed on the terms?"

"Indeed. The terms are most agreeable." The smile opposite had frozen slightly. I could almost swear a brow was furrowing.

I kept hold of the hand grasping mine. "Our bargain is struck, yes?"

"Yes..." The sibilance had crept back into the figure's voice. I got the impression of narrowing eyes. "What--"

I clasped the other's hand in both of mine. "Thrice spoken, thrice agreed, we are sworn, our deal is decreed."

"Wait!" The hand was snatched back sharply. "What trick is this?!"

"Exactly as spoken," I replied. "I have bought a name from you. You have agreed to take mine in exchange after I have used the purchased name for the purpose I need." I smiled. "You merely forgot to ask how it will be used. I intend to seal away the danger, but to do so will seal me away with it." I held my hand out expectantly. "I'll need that name from you now."

The shadows on the other side of the table darkened, and the teeth that showed in the mouth lengthened subtly. "Why should I part with it without equal value given!?"

"Thrice agreed," I intoned, and a choking noise came from the other side of the table. "To break your bargain will break your power," I chided. "You daren't risk it. Give me the name I paid for."

"I do not deal in credit." The voice was petulant now. "I want your name first."

"That wasn't the agreement. You cannot claim me until after I've finished. If you dare claim me by then." To do so would break the seal, and thus bring the horror along with me. And that facing down that kind of danger was something too risky to contemplate.

Faster than a snake, a pale hand lunged from the shadows and clasped my hand, claws curling under and into my palm. The figure leant forward into the light completely, inhumanly fine features twisted into a scowl. "Take the name, then, and be damned." And as the dreadful knowledge began to flood my mind, the Fae's coal black eyes glinted with something like respect. "A shame I won't be able to claim you properly for my collection. Most who bargain with me do not win."