Cover Art: Solace O'Autumn
Chapter 34
Seven billion.
That was the total amount that had been raised for Sun and his group of urchins – an amount so staggering that it would take each and every one of them from being homeless to being filthy rich.
It was obviously a good thing he'd raised so much. That wasn't in question. The shock came from the amount, because while he'd always subconsciously understood Guitar Cutie was a big deal from all the merchandise, he'd kind of assumed that meant a big deal within a very limited cluster. That Guitar Cutie was big with young teens who liked music, or even just musicians, in the same way a famous chess master would only be well-known to those in the sport.
Apparently, he'd been wrong.
So very, very wrong.
The Quest hadn't yet completed but that could have just been because he hadn't "saved" the orphans yet. He'd raised money, enough to absolutely take them off the streets, but that wouldn't mean much when it was stuck in a bank account waiting to be used. The kids were still starving.
Which meant he had to act. Or, rather, she had to act – and be seen again. Saphron and Terra could send the funds where he wanted, but Guitar Cutie would have to be seen using them or it'd all go wrong. Not to mention that he couldn't up and delay when Sun's little troupe needed this so badly.
It was with that thought and a forlorn sigh that Jaune donned the disguise once more, dressing up and curling his hair before slipping on a headscarf and catching himself, herself, in the mirror.
Stupid Charisma.
Why did he have to look so damn cute...?
/-/
It didn't take as long as he'd expected to buy a whole lot of food, and it turned out many stall owners in Vacuo were happy to sell without seeing a face, especially given the sand whipping up over the last day. Jaune pointed out what he wanted and exchanged money, sticking to not talking lest someone recognise her and hear his voice. None did, and the people didn't seem to mind his silent act.
They just collected the food, bagged it for him, and accepted his lien. Soon, Jaune had six full bags of food between his two hands and was faced with the rather different problem of not having room for more.
Maybe I should have gone to Sun first and asked him to buy food with the money.
But no, he'd wanted to arrive with some food to cheer everyone up. Make the kids smile. Even if they thought she was a girl, they were cute and impoverished and deserved to taste sweets and pastries, so Jaune hauled the bags up and trudged on, aware of the curious looks sent his way. It was the bags, mostly, or so he hoped. Though it was also possible people in the area knew Sun and therefore knew this was the exact part of the city Guitar Cutie had been sighted in.
There did seem to be a few more people than normal, though none were so obvious as to be holding pictures of her and asking if anyone had seen her.
Great, and now I'm even thinking of myself as a girl. My Charisma better not get so good I start fooling even myself!
But it was mostly just easier that way, easier referring to himself as he when he was a boy, and herself as she when she was dressed up. It also helped get in character, even if the only thing that character had was a lack of speech. No one ever pointed out he lacked feminine mannerisms or was too masculine.
Which said some unfortunate things, didn't it?
A consequence of growing up with seven sisters. Jaune knew how to paint nails, sew, cook and change a diaper – but then all of those had been indispensable back home. If for helping change Amber and Lavender when they were babies, then for painting Saphron's nails in apology after he bumbled in on her and Terra making out and basically outed her to the whole family.
That was something Saphron had been very upset about at the time, even if it turned out he'd been the only one to have not realised her sexuality. Turns out when two people retire to a room and turn the music on high, that meant they were up to something. He'd been the only one to not understand that code.
Jaune's thoughts were interrupted when he spotted the rundown and abandoned home Sun and his little group had overtaken. There were two boys lounging outside trying to look intimidating without looking suspicious. A small pan was before them with some lien thrown in by generous passers-by. They were thin, bones visible in their elbows and arms, and yet they looked happy – if a little bored.
"This place is abandoned, miss," said one of them when Jaune approached. "Sorry, but it isn't safe to go on inside when the roof could collapse—" Jaune teased his scarf down and the boy gasped. "Y—You! I—I mean, hi." He blushed, which somehow made Jaune both amused and horrified at the same time. "W—Why did you come back...?"
Jaune hefted one hand and the many bags in it.
The other boy's eyes widened. "Is that for us!?"
Smiling, she pointed inside.
"I meant for all of us!" he defended.
"I dunno, Slick. Looks like she's heard about how much of a glutton you are."
"Oh, sod off!"
Neither looked like they'd been gluttonous in their life, though that would soon change. The boys offered to carry the bags for her, not that she needed it but it was nice of them all the same. They actually struggled with them more than she had. Inside, the one called Slick – a nickname, Jaune assumed – shouted out that someone had brought gifts.
Within seconds, children poured toward them, appearing from alcoves and shattered woodwork like a horde of bees come to protect the hive. The youngest came first, the elder ones poking their heads out but looking too tired to get excited. That was, until they saw the amount of food being offered up, enough for everyone. Then they whooped and came running out as well.
"You came! You came back!" The small girl who had been on Sun's lap held her hands up, demanding to be carried. Jaune picked her up and cradled her against her chest, and the girl kissed her cheek. "I said you'd be back! But Sun said you were too busy!"
He must have been trying to soften the blow of her never returning.
Jaune smiled and shifted his arms so he could carry the girl with one arm. When Amber had been this small, he'd only been a child himself and had to carry her with two hands, mostly on piggy-back. By the time he grew bigger, she'd grown old enough to say being carried around by her big brother was uncool. And that he was uncool as well.
Savage. These kids thought he was cool.
Well, she.
"Sun is out doing the rounds, making sure there isn't any trouble," one of the older boys told her, after they'd finished sharing out most of the food. Some was being kept, presumably for Sun and others not here. "He normally swings back to beg some of the shops for food. Do you want me to go out and see if I can find him?"
It'd be helpful but he didn't want to interfere. Then again, Sun would never have to beg again if all went well, so Jaune smiled and nodded, and the boy blushed and mumbled something before running out with a dopey look on his face.
It saved Jaune having to go out and risk being seen.
/-/
"The Rooks have been getting a bit aggro lately."
"Don't call them that," Sun grumbled. "That's what they want to be called. They're just a bunch of entitled pricks who think they can get away with beating us up because we don't have parents to complain to."
Joss, one of Sun's oldest friends, shrugged. "Doesn't much matter what we call them, does it? Doesn't change the fact they've been pushing our territory since last night. I heard a rumour, you know."
"Yeah? Where from?"
"One of the store owners who's friendly to us. Good source." That sounded reliable, so Sun nodded for him to continue. "He said they were heard asking around about a pretty girl with blonde hair that came our way. No mention of a guitar, but how many other girls like that around here?"
"Blonde isn't uncommon, dumbass."
"Yeah but being pretty sure as hell is on the streets."
True. Sun liked to think he was handsome, and people had said so, but even the retired huntsman he'd managed to beg and pay for training commented he needed more meat on his bones, protein to build muscle. It wasn't easy to get in any great quantity though, and he wasn't about to hoard it for himself when everyone else was hungry as well. A single steak could be cut fifty ways and shared out. Barely a mouthful by the time it was done, but a rare treat for the younger ones.
"Maybe they saw whatever video she posted last night," Sun said. "Must think she comes here on the regular or something. Idiots."
"You don't sound worried."
Sun shrugged. "I caught her coming in from out our territory before she stopped to play by the wall and got robbed. I know for a fact she don't live around here, so far as I'm concerned us keeping them off her back is a good thing."
"Heh. True. Your face last night, though."
Sun blushed. Badly. "Piss off, Joss."
"No way, man. You were so in love it was funny. Never seen you so hopeless."
His fist lashed out but Joss knew him too well and rolled back, narrowly dodging it and sticking his tongue out in return. It hadn't been a very serious effort anyway. The two of them went far back, back to when they'd both been scrambling for coin in the gutter.
"You think—"
"SUN! Joss!"
The panicked voice had the two of them on their feet and turning back to see Rick, one of the younger lads just about getting into the street gang business, running up to them with a wild look on his face.
"SUN!"
"Yeah, I'm right here. No need to shout. What's happened? Is all okay? Is it the Roo—"
"It's her!" Rick gasped, face alight with adoration and awe. "She came back!"
Sun knew who.
How the hell was he meant to not?
"Well, well," Joss smarmed, the smarmy bastard managing to sound far too pleased with himself. "Looks like I'll get a second chance to see you make a fool out of yourself, eh? Must be my lucky month."
"Why...?" Sun gasped. "Why would she come back?"
"She brought food!" Rick said, showing a pastry in his open hands. A bad idea. Joss snatched and bit into it. "OI!"
"Shouldn't have presented it like that," Joss said around a mouthful. "I thought you were offering me some." He snorted at the boy's furious look, then swallowed. "Oh, relax. It sounds like there's more back home, eh? What you say, Sun? Should we head back? You feeling hungry?"
"YES!"
"Hmm. Hungry for food or hungry for—"
"Joss, I will knock you out."
"Heh. You're too easy, man."
Maybe he was, but it wasn't everyday you got to meet your hero for a second time – except today, apparently, because it had been two days in a row. Sun's brain struggled to process that as he sprinted back home, only realising halfway how desperate that'd make him look and so slowed himself to a jog. Running in like an excited child would... well, it'd make him look like an excited child. He had to be suave, sophisticated, cool.
With that in mind, Sun slowly walked in and saw her – sat on his seat with a girl in her lap, feeding her some sweets, her scarf down and beautiful hair framing a face so perfect it made his heart ache.
"You came back..." he whispered, like a child who thought his parents had left him.
Which was to say it probably didn't sound very suave, sophisticated or cool.
Damn it.
Cutie looked up at him, hearing his dumb words, and smiled so beautifully that he almost whimpered. He actually felt awful calling her "Cutie" because it sounded like an awful pet name from someone who didn't know how to flirt. But "Guitar Cutie" was too long and he couldn't refer to her as "Guitar" in his head. That was ridiculous.
So, Cutie it was, though he'd never dare say it out loud and embarrass himself. Either way, she looked so warmly content to be surrounded by happy children – and he was, too. He'd never seen the kids so over the moon. So, Sun slowly approached and sat in the seat beside his own, happy to surrender it to her for all she'd done.
But he had to say it.
"Thank you so much for this. It means... well, I guess you can see how much it means. We've never eaten this well before."
Cutie shook her head.
Sun was confused. "No...?"
She made a few more gestures, first to the bags she brought in and then she hefted her arms up as if carrying them, before wiping her forehead and bringing them here. Sun pieced it together as best he could.
"You're saying you were tired from lifting them?"
A smile and a nod. She then pointed to him and her and outside, before realising he didn't have any idea what she meant and pulling out her scroll. Sun waited as she typed into it, then held it out so he could read the unsent message.
I planned to buy and bring more but couldn't carry it all. I need your help buying more food.
"You don't have to!" he blurted out. "You've already done so much playing for us, and now this. You've made everyone so happy. You shouldn't have to spend your money on us."
Not my money anymore.
The message made no sense and Sun's face said it all, so Cutie, with a tiny smirk that made her look devilishly cute, quickly brought up a video on her scroll and let him see it. It was her own channel, and it was him and the kids – the video recorded yesterday that she'd mentioned putting on her channel. Sun hadn't bothered to check, a little too shellshocked and whimsical after yesterday to care about browsing stuff online.
But there was some written text on the screen talking about what he and the others did for the kids and asking for donations. Sun felt his eyes water. He'd called her an angel in his head before, but he'd admit it was just because she was so beautiful. He hadn't meant it literally.
He did now.
"You raised money for us...?" Sun's voice trembled. "That's... That's... Wow, I don't know what to say. Is that where this comes from? Do... Do we have enough for dinner tomorrow as well?"
Cutie's smile turned slightly evil. She reached over him and clicked on the fundraiser link, taking Sun directly to the page where the closed fundraiser merrily stood.
.
Guitar Cutie Fundraiser.
Status: Closed.
Target: 50,000 lien.
Congratulations! You have managed to break your target of 50,000 lien and earn 7,146,499, 101 lien!
.
It actually took Sun a full minute to piece the number together, because he'd assumed it read seven million and shut down – but that was before he noticed there were an extra three digits and no decimal point to be found.
Sun slid off his seat with a shocked squawk.
"What's that?" asked Joss. "What's got him so worked... up..." Joss stared at the screen, then squawked as well. "Holy fuck, that's a lot of money!"
"Language!" the girl in Cutie's lap chided.
"Sorry. Holy shit, that's a lot of money!"
"THAT'S STILL BAD LANGUAGE!"
That was, indeed, a lot of money. Too much. That would do more than just buy a home for everyone here – it could buy them a mansion. And with lien left over. Sun's head span dizzily as he tried to think of what they could even spend it on. He'd always dreamed of raising money for the kids, that was part of why he needed to become a huntsman – they took on dangerous work and earned the best money.
Or they had before guitarists took over the world.
Cutie smiled and pointed to the sum on the screen, then she pointed at him.
Sun's throat ran dry. "You're giving me seven billion lien!?"
She nodded.
"W—What am I meant to do with so much money!?"
She gestured to the children.
"T—That'll do a lot more than feed everyone here," Joss said. "A whole lot more. We could have a house each and still have several billion spare. We're suddenly rich beyond our wildest dreams. It's a good job you didn't bring the money here, miss, or we'd have every gang in Vacuo coming down on our heads."
That was going to happen anyway once they figured this out. Sun groaned. "That's why the Rooks were looking around our turf," he said. Joss swore. "They found out about the fundraiser and assumed we'd just have seven billion lien stashed around."
"We'll have to move," Joss said, and then he laughed. "As if we wouldn't anyway with this much. Damn, we can buy a mansion!"
"What would we even do with a mansion?" Sun asked.
Cutie tapped Sun's nose and pointed to the kids, slowly gesturing to include them as a collective before circling her finger to point out the home they were sharing. Their little den for abandoned kids.
Sun was too awestruck to catch on.
But Joss was smarter. "You want us to open an orphanage?"
Cutie nodded.
"That... That's not as insane an idea as I was about to say it was," Joss finished. "Huh. I mean, we're basically do that as is but... yeah, we could. I mean, money is no issue now. We could give the kids a proper life."
It made sense in Sun's head too. Why not buy a mansion and let all the kids live there? Why not take in more? They wouldn't hurt for food every again, and this money would surely last a lifetime.
Sun had always thought of her as an angel but now...
Now, he knew she was.
"I'll do it!" he shouted, earning a cheer from all the other kids. "We'll start an orphanage for everyone here and give them the best life possible! And anyone who wants to stay after they reach eighteen can join the staff and help!"
The crowd of children cheered. Sweets were shared, spirits rose high, and Joss, Sun and Cutie huddled together discussing the plans. Obviously, they couldn't take seven billion off her in a place like this. A human probably couldn't even carry that much without being burdened under the weight of it all. They'd have to go to a bank and open an account, something Sun had never had to do before, but which Cutie seemed convinced would be easy.
With seven billion lien, it probably would be. The bank wasn't going to turn her down.
And that meant they'd be able to meet tomorrow as well.
Somehow, in some way, that pleased Sun more than becoming one of the richest people in Vacuo did.
/-/
Jaune's good mood continued to the casino, and that infected his music even if he didn't use his Bardic Music to enhance it. He was just happier and so played more animatedly, drawing a healthy crowd and pleasing his employers.
After his first set, Carmine slipped over again.
"I hear your patron saint is in the city."
"My who...?"
"Guitar Cutie," she said, leaning back with her elbows on the bar. "Isn't she, like, a big deal to you musicians?"
"I guess..." Jaune shrugged as nonchalantly as he could.
"Don't you have the same guitar as her?"
Jaune tensed.
"Half of Remnant does," the barman said, coming to his rescue. "I bought one for my daughter for her birthday. Overpriced if you ask me. They've doubled the price since she appeared playing one of them."
Carmine glanced back. "Then why buy it? A guitar is a guitar."
"I said the guitar was overpriced. My daughter's reaction was totally worth it. She must have told me she loved me a million times, and that I'm the best dad in the world twice as many. Her music... eh, less so." He chuckled. "You offer lessons, Jaune?"
"I'm afraid I'm a little too limited on time for that," he replied. "Plus, I'm exhausted after working nights."
Carmine snorted. "Fair. You get used to the nightshifts after a while. You not interested in looking for her, then? Don't want to meet her?"
"I've met Weiss Schnee, so I figure I already know what it's like talking to a celebrity."
"And?"
"Not that different from talking to a normal person, though Weiss was a little... sharp..."
"That's a Schnee for you," she joked. "What were her family like?"
"Weird, messed-up, and just downright bizarre."
"Ha!" Carmine laughed. "I figured, you know? They always did look a little creepy."
"Tell me about it. Jacques thought I was sleeping with his wife."
Carmine almost spluttered on her drink. "What? Were—? No, of course you weren't. You're too much a virgin. Sheesh, what gave him that idea?"
"I played music for her a few times and she liked it. Apparently, he assumed that was a metaphor for liking a different part of me." Jaune put up with her raucous laughter as he finished his own drink. "But no, I wasn't doing that with her."
"Shame. I mean, she's kinda hot, no?"
"I'm not answering that one."
"Heh. Virgin. You know, my boss is interested in meeting Guitar Cutie..."
Jaune tensed, then reminded himself Carmine had no idea. "The one who runs the casino? I guess I can see why they'd want her. It'd push me out of a job, though."
"Nah. They'd have her on the main stage and do big events. You'd still be paid to work the restaurant. But it's not really in the casino they want her..." Carmine paused, seeming to realise that sounded suspicious. "Don't mind me. The boss is into politics is all."
"They're running for... whatever rules here?"
"Mayor, and yeah, I guess you can say that. Not running yet but soon. I guess they think having a famous and beloved celebrity endorse their campaign would help. Keep your eyes open, yeah? If you helped us meet her, I'd make sure you got rewarded." Carmine winked. "With money, of course. Unless you want to take a plunge with me..."
"I'm not going to blush when I know you're not serious."
"Oh?"
Something hot and wet dragged up his ear.
Jaune squeaked, blushed, and almost fell off his stool, catching himself on the bar.
"Looks like you'll blush even when I'm not serious!" Carmine said, laughing loudly. "You shouldn't write checks you can't cash, Jaune. Especially not to me. Ah, you're too easy. If you ever do come back here once you're eighteen, I might just tease you all the way."
"D—Don't say that!"
The man working the bar sighed and shook his head, already used to Carmine's antics by now, and Jaune's constant feeding of them by being so easily affected. They were interrupted by a cough as a large figure approached.
"Carmine." Bertilak's voice was gruff. "Jax and Gillian want to see us. We've got a job tomorrow in the city." He nodded to Jaune. "Good work today. You're popular."
"T—Thanks."
"Awww, but I was teasing Jaune." Carmine pouted but let herself be dragged onto her feet by Bertilak. "Boo. Guess we shouldn't keep the bosses waiting, though."
Jaune watched them go, returning to his own free drink once the barman went to serve customers. It was hardly a surprise someone in politics would want to have him – or her – on their side, especially now that Jaune knew just how far their reach really went. It wasn't the worst kind of thing he could be asked to do, but it was still just a little selfish.
He was content helping out Sun and the orphans. There was no need to take it further or get involved in a political situation he didn't know anything about. Besides, he had a quest to complete, and it wouldn't be completed until Sun and the kids had a place to call their own.
Next Chapter: 4th August
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