12 Suns

--- Jon ---

“Hey, since you’re heading to the station do you think you can do me a favor?” He asked his ma as they sat down for breakfast.

“What do you need, kid?”

“I made these muffins for everyone down at the station and in the apartment building.” He started, gesturing towards a basket of wrapped goods. “I was just wondering if you’d mind passing them off for me.”

“I can.” His ma shrugged. “How much you want me to sell ‘em for?”

He shook his head. “Oh, no, I don’t want you to charge anyone. I just want you to pass them around to whoever wants them.”

“Gotcha.” His ma nodded in understanding. “First tastes free then when they’re hooked you price gouge them.”

(Or not.)

“No, I…” He sighed rubbing at his eyes. “I’m just giving them out to the station as an apology.”

His ma frowned. “An apology for what exactly?”

“Things.” He answered diplomatically.

His ma gave him a dry look before shaking her head. “Fine, it’s your thing I guess…”

“Thank you.” He smiled, thinking if his ma delivered the muffins that would make the kind gesture actually mean something, since he was more apologizing to the station for the fact that his ma ruled them with an iron fist.

---

Given how he had a few hours of free time before, after, and during school he figured now was a decent time to get a bit of reading done. And given his frequent pursuit of self-improvement, he decided to ask the librarian if there were any popular books about teenage relationships, since that was a topic he felt he was still struggling with in life.

At first she’d given him an odd look as if it was odd for him to be asking about that kind of thing, -(Which I get, I know most guys aren’t willing to talk about their feelings.)- before handing him a book claiming to be a best-seller.

(This… doesn’t look like what I was going for…) He realized after a few pages, where the female protagonist had gone about feelings of listlessness in her life. (Maybe this is one of those, find meaning in the people in your life type of stories?)

Only that didn’t fit either, given how rather than talking with her single father or childhood best friend, she seemed to obsess over some new kid in town to the point of overlooking some particularly disturbing behavior.

(I mean why is she flattered by the fact that he broke into her house and was watching her sleep?!) He couldn’t help but wonder with a disgusted grimace. (That’s breaking and entering as well as clear stalker behavior! This girl should be giving him a restraining order not blushing!)

What’s worse was he knew every woman in his life would have a better handle on that situation, after all his ma would break every bone in the intruder’s body. Ying would electrocute anyone who broke into her room. Miss Edna would hex them into sterility before tossing them to the quartermaster. Jill was liable to shoot them six different ways. And if someone pulled that with little Rosalind? Well, (they deserve whatever De Sade does to them.)

He closed the book with a shake of his head wondering how the librarian thought this nonsense was supposed to help him learn anything about relationships. (Or maybe this is one of those depressing cautionary tales, where they tell you what you shouldn’t do?)

(Yeah that makes sense. This poor girl probably dies at the end.) He decided, before frowning. (Though why she’d give a cautionary tale for women to me I don’t know…)

Either way even if the book’s lesson didn’t apply to him, it did make him appreciate the fact that the women in his life were more sensible than this garbage. (Which is nice to know.)

Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

Scene Consequences

-Jon’s opinion of the women in his life has increased.

---

“Oh, hi Jon, did you need something?” Ms. Valentine asked as she opened the door.

“No, I just, I made all of these baked goods and I’m going through the apartment giving them out to everyone.” He explained, holding up one of the baskets he’d spent the night before making by hand with summers of arts and crafts skills. (Because everyone smiles are worth it!)

“Oh, that’s sweet of you.” Ms. Valentine smiled accepting the basket.

“It’s no problem.” He promised. “I was baking anyway, and figured why not?”

“Still.” Ms. Valentine told him, before pausing to think about something. “Hey, when you were watching Kenneth last week, he wasn’t too much trouble was he?”

“No, he’s a very sweet kid. Was quiet and playful the whole time through.” He assured her. “Why? Is something wrong?”

“No.” Ms. Valentine shook her head. “It’s just… something came up with my usual babysitter, and I sort of need to find a new one.”

“I thought the Jeffersons watched Kenneth for you?”

“That’s only when I need a sitter on short notice, normally I pay my co-worker’s kid, but…” Ms. Valentine shook her head with a sigh. “She says she’s not going to be able to watch Kenneth anymore, and I don’t feel right asking the Jeffersons to watch him all the time when they have their own kids to deal with.”

“So, you’re hoping I can watch him instead?” He figured.

“Not every night.” Ms. Valentine promised. “I’ve got a few people I can cycle through who won’t mind watching him every now and then, but that still leaves a couple nights a week where I need someone to keep an eye on him. And I remembered you said something about watching kids at your summer camp thing?”

“Yeah, I was a counselor.” He admitted with a touch of pride. “And if you need me to watch Kenneth, I don’t mind. Like I said, he’s a sweet kid.”

Ms. Valentine gave him another smile. “Thank you, Jon, you have no idea how much this helps me.”

“And like I told you last time, it’s no trouble at all.” He assured her once more.

Scene Consequences

-Jon’s grown a bit closer to his neighbors.

-Ms. Valentine will now occasionally ask Jon to babysit Kenneth.

---

“Hey, ma.” He greeted his mother as she entered the apartment.

“Hey, kid.” She nodded back before snapping her fingers and digging in her jacket. “Wait, I just remembered something. Here you go.” His ma tossed him whatever she’d been searching for, and he snatched it out of the air before frowning as he caught sight of it.

“Why are you giving me… fifty-five dollars?”

“That’s how much I got from selling those muffins around the office.” His ma explained as she made her way towards the kitchen.

“But… you were supposed to give those away.” He reminded her with a pained grimace.

“I know,” His ma admitted, “but then I realized that if I just gave them away that would cause them to think I was going soft.”

(Kind of the reason I was doing this.) He thought dryly.

“And since I want to keep everyone in line, was kind of a no go.” His ma continued, unaware of his true motives. “So, I figured I’d go ahead and net you that profit instead. That way I can still pass them out, without anyone losing their fear and respect for me.”

“Uh, thanks?”

“No problem kid,” His ma assured him. “You’ve got a marketable talent, and as your parent it’s my job to try and help you make a living with it, if that’s what you want.”

(That wasn’t what I wanted though!)

With another pained sigh, he looked at the small roll of bills in his hand, and admitted it was a decent amount for a first day of work, especially if he added a possible profit from his neighbors. Though when compared to the money De Sade had paid him for a bit of assistance with a couple of non-magical problems, it was barely a drop in his actual funds.

(Then again, ma actually knows where this money came from, meaning I don’t have to hide it…) That was something worth considering, and like Miss Edna had told him while he was helping around her shop, it was always a smart idea to have a side income where it was difficult to prove your numbers wrong.

He couldn’t help but wonder what it said about his life that it wasn’t the ‘dark lord who literally owns his own city’ mentor who taught him about money laundering, but rather the ‘works in childcare as a hobby’ one.

(Interesting things.) He thought with some amusement, before remembering something. “Actually, that reminds me there’s something I wanted to run by you.”

His ma gave him a curious look. “What’s up?”

“Ms. Valentine was asking if I minded watching Kenneth a couple of nights a week. She said her usual sitter had to quit for some reason, and that she wasn’t comfortable asking everyone else given how many kids they’ve already got to take care of.” He explained.

“Well, they’re your nights kid, so if you want to spend them babysitting and helping out a friend that’s on you.” His ma reminded him with a touch of fondness. “That said, you just let me know if you need a hand taking care of the tyke and I’ll see what I can do.”

“It’s one kid, and I can handle twenty tried and tested.” (And that’s while hiding a corrupted corpse from said kids.) “Whatever he needs I’ve got it taken care of.”

Scene Consequences

-Quest Complete: Muffin Man- Jon has made and delivered muffins to his neighbors as well as the cops at his mom’s station, and may continue to do so as a cover for any oddly obtained money or to make something extra.

--Jon now has a way of laundering his funds up to a point.

--Jon can now bake and sell muffins for additional funds.