The late-afternoon sun stretched long amber shadows across Solmere's merchant quarter. The air smelled of spices, hot oil, and worked metal. Street vendors called out prices, wagons rumbled past, and banners flapped lazily in the breeze.
Bunny was excited to be on her date with Jax. She got dolled up in one of her more revealing summer clothes. Of the four, Bunny had curves that drew attention whether she meant to or not. She usually didn't try to look sexy, but it just happened naturally for her. She just didn't really notice that other men stare at her. She was oblivious to her own natural appeal.
But today was different.
Today, she wanted to be noticed.
Jax and Bunny walked side by side, weaving through the flow of people. She constantly looked for reasons to grab Jax's hand to keep them together.
Bunny hummed happily as she window-shopped — ears perked up in attention — which usually happened when she was excited.
Until a group of scruffy demi-human children emerged from a narrow side alley.
Fox ears.
Small horns.
Patchy wings.
Dust-smudged faces.
And hunger in their eyes.
"Spare a few coins?" the oldest asked, voice thin but polite. "Just a bit, sir."
Bunny's ears drooped.
Her hand went instantly to her pouch.
"I've only got a few bits on me, but—"
Jax's hand gently stopped hers.
His expression changed.
Firm.
Focused.
"No."
The children began backing away.
Disappointment.
Resignation.
The kind born from too many refusals.
But Jax crouched to their level, resting his elbows on his knees and offering a sly, conspiratorial grin.
"You kids," he said, lowering his voice, "look like workers."
They blinked.
Bunny raised a brow.
Here we go again.
Jax deepened his tone into a dramatic gravel.
"I'm going to make you an offer you can't refuse…" even going so far as to touch his fingers together in an impersonation of the original line.
Bunny snorted. She had no reference to what he was doing, but the act itself and with his voice change, she found it amusing.
The children leaned closer.
"What kind of offer?" asked a rabbit-eared boy, eyes sharp with curiosity.
"I need runners," Jax said. "Fast feet. Quick minds. Street-smart enough not to get caught. You'll deliver sealed packages. No peeking. No dropping. No letting anyone follow you."
He flicked a silver coin into the air and caught it with a snap that impressed the children.
"I can have her give you each one bit each. Maybe together you can buy 1 piece of candy."
He flicked the silver coin in the air again, and without taking his eyes off the kids, caught it in his hand without looking.
"But if you do this job for me today. And succeed. Then I will pay you 1 Silver Coin...each."
He opens the hand that the kids all witnessed him flipping a coin into, and inside were 5 Silver Coins.
They are shocked. 1 Silver coin could feed each of their families for a week. Maybe even two.
The system was great at making something so common like summoning a coin look magical.
They exchanged glances.
Suspicious.
Hopeful.
Excited.
A tiny girl whispered, "Is this… the underground market?"
Jax winked.
"You didn't hear it from me."
They huddled — whispering like a miniature tactical council — then nodded in unison.
"We're in."
Jax produced three tightly sealed scrolls — black wax pressed smooth.
"First mission."
They took the packages reverently, as if handling artifacts of state.
"What if someone stops us?" asked a boy with fur along his cheeks.
"I don't think I need to tell you what they will do, if you get caught."
Jax had to keep from smiling, knowing full well there is nobody after them.
They look really nervous.
Jax smirked. "But if you kids aren't ready to make some real coin," he gestures for them to hand back the scrolls.
The bunny boy stood up tall. He looked the oldest of the group at maybe 10 years old. "We got this"
They scattered — sprinting through crates, sliding beneath wagon axles, vaulting over road rails.
Bunny watched them disappear.
"You're turning them into your own little guild."
"I'm investing in the future," Jax said. "Buy low, train high."
Bunny rolled her eyes — but smiled.
And maybe…
admired him a little more.
They made a few quiet stops afterward. With the kids delivering the scrolls it freed up about 1 hour worth of work for them.
Their next stop:
A theater hall.
Crooked beams.
Faded curtains.
To Jax it looked really run down and decrepit.
But a balcony suite overlooking the stage — discreet and private, looked decent.
Jax purchased two high-box tickets for the performance that night.
Then he gathered boxes, paper, twine — and a small stack of envelopes. He placed each ticket in a box with a note and added a Silver Coin each for weight, and to imply that he was serious about the meeting.
By the time the children returned from the first round of errands, he and Bunny were waiting in a tucked-away alley.
The kids arrived one by one — breathless — triumphant — grinning.
"We delivered the scrolls for you?"
Jax stood there. Examining the children with exaggerated seriousness.
"Did you open them?"
The bunny boy was the first to reply and was stuttering. "Uh, Oh, No sir! We didn't open any of them."
Jax inspects the kids a little bit more.
"Were you followed?" Immediately after asking this, he looks past the kids to areas around them like he was looking for someone.
The kids start looking around. Everywhere they looked were people since they were on the street standing a short walk from the theater.
The bunny boy was first to answer again, but very unsure of himself. "Uh, I don't think so."
Jax's tone got serious. "What do you mean, you don't think so?"
In dramatic fashion he looks up from the kids and starts to look around.
More brave now and confident, "I know we weren't followed. We were cutting down alleyways and even went through Mr. Seaver's back door as a short cut. We would have seen if someone was trying to follow us."
Jax nods approvingly. He looks back at Bunny who was doing her best not to smile at the absurdity of the situation. "See? I knew these kids had smarts to pull this off."
Jax clapped his hands once.
"Round two."
He presented two wrapped packages.
Different sizes.
Weighted just enough to feel important.
Inside?
A single invitation.
A suite-level theater ticket.
A silver coin.
And a note.
To Brannic:
Play along. Act suspicious. Seal your reply.Meet me after the show. Bring your grumpy face and your best clothes.—Jax
To Merriweather:
Play along. Act suspicious. Seal your reply.Meet me after the show. Dress like you're about to steal the spotlight.—Jax
Both were bait.
And kindness.
And a bridge between two stubborn people who refused to work together. Jax's plans were hopefully coming together.
He handed the two boxes to the kids and told them which shops and people they were to deliver these to.
The kids nodded seriously.
Mission accepted.
They vanished again into the maze of Solmere.