"Yes, goods and services!" Karst sighs. Finally, getting somewhere with the money issue, but if only she'd stopped to think about it earlier! As it was, she felt humiliated-- Alphonse had been quicker and cleverer than she had. "If we can find some way to trade, we should be able to acquire some of the local currency. Perhaps I can find some way to trade on my skills, as well-- in my experiences, precious few Southerners have quite the way with fire that I do..."

She didn't mention that her "talents" with fire usually had to do with combat, nor that she wasn't quite sure how to handle her Psynergy in circumstances outside of battle. Alphonse had taken the leadership position of their awkward group, and this made him as much a potential enemy as it did an ally.

Marona was saying something, only to suddenly break off and cover her mouth with her hand, a terrified look crossing the Southern girl's face. Karst had distinctly heard the word "phantom".

"Phantom" was another word for "ghost". A ghost was the spirit of a dead person. Karst's sister was a dead person. If nothing else, Karst suddenly had some interest in Marona for personal reasons.

"You can talk to ghosts?"