Acorns for Orphans - The Amazing Magnus's Gift
Summary
The Amazing Magnus tells a young Strombolio the story of how one orphan sitting in front of the capital building of Grimberg melted the ice in his heart.
Strombolio stared out the window of his trailer. The sun was setting in the distance, giving the world its last dazzling efforts before sinking below. A soft breeze kicked up some dry leaves from the grass below. Autumn had arrived in Altairus, and with it came the Dark Carnival. Once the sun had completely set, Strombolio knew, it would be time for he and the other performers at the Circus of Shadows to get to work. They had many shows to get through in the next few months, and with that came a lot of rehearsal.
Strombolio sighed. He loved his role as the star of the show, but it wasn't always easy. Especially when it involved hours and hours of grueling practice. Still, he understood why it was important. Wouldn't do at all to fall off the trapeze and end up in the hospital because you didn't practice, Magnus had always told him. So despite everything, Strombolio took his lessons to heart.
Speaking of Magnus, where was he? Strombolio's rehearsal was supposed to begin as soon as his ringmaster got back from the village. The sun would be gone any minute now, but Magnus still hadn't arrived. Strombolio glanced around nervously, searching for any sign of the elder harlequin gremlin.
Finally, Strombolio heard a series of footsteps in the grass. He turned his head to the right, catching sight of Magnus running up to the trailer, beads of sweat dripping down his face. "Whoa! Sorry about that! Those kids would just not let me leave!"
Strombolio knew what his boss had been up to. For some reason, he insisted on getting up extra early every evening to give a bunch of gold and other stuff to the orphanages in every single town that they stopped at. The younger harlequin gremlin wondered how Magnus could keep being so generous when the Circus of Shadows didn't have that much money to begin with. The patched and weathered circus tents they used were a testament to that fact.
"Um, sir?"
Magnus stopped in his tracks. He turned towards Strombolio.
"I... not to be rude... but..."
"Yes?" Magnus was listening.
"You know... we don't really have that much money in the first place... why do you keep giving it away?"
Magnus paused for a moment, his expression unreadable. Strombolio's antennae flattened to his head. He worried he'd said the wrong thing.
"I-I didn't mean to disappoint you. I just..."
"Wait." Magnus motioned for Strombolio to come outside. The younger harlequin gremlin obeyed. The two of them walked some distance to a pair of tree stumps and sat down. "I think it's about time I told you this story..."
Acorns for Orphans
Back in the Silver Era, before the Great Strombolio took the helm of ringmaster, there was another by the name of Magnus Sunders. Everyone called him the Amazing Magnus, for his talent and magical prowess was unrivaled in the Circus of Shadows. Everywhere he went, people would stop and stare. When they would ask for his autograph, he would stop and smile, obliging them their wish. He would host great shows where the most fantastical sights could be seen, the most daring acts admired, and where all felt welcome. Surely, there was no one in Altairus as generous or beloved as the Amazing Magnus.
Unfortunately, he was very different behind the scenes. Truth be told, he didn't really like his fans all that much; outside of work hours, he would purposefully avoid them. It even got to the point where he was snapping at them at times, and he once almost spat on one of them. His employees suffered, too. He was riding them harder and harder every day, insisting that everything had to be absolutely perfect. Morale began to drop in the Circus of Shadows.
All this only added more stress to the pile. Nothing Magnus did was ever right; no matter how much he nagged and strove and sacrificed, the circus was somehow losing business. At this rate, he'd have to shut the whole thing down before the Winter Solstice. What could he do?
He decided to take a walk to clear his mind. He made his way to the town of Grimberg. The full moon shone overhead as Grimberg's residents, harlequin gremlins and nekomata, made their rounds. To Magnus's relief, none stopped to talk to him. He was in no mood for conversation right now.
He made his way to Grimberg's central square when something caught his eye. Or rather, someone. Someone sitting on the steps of Grimberg's impressive capitol building. A young kitsune dressed in a ragged cloak, waving around what looked to be a wooden doll. Magnus wouldn't have even noticed her if it hadn't been for the shouts that filled the air. "Give an orphan a home! Wooden orphan dolls, only for an acorn! Acorns for orphans! Get yours now!"
Magnus was intrigued by this sight. He wanted to step closer, but decided against it. He had no time to meddle with street urchins. He continued making his way through town.
But something about that kid had stuck in his mind. Acorns for orphans... An acorn was worth nothing in Grimberg. Just an acorn to buy one of those dolls... She was asking for so little. Would it really kill him to just give her an acorn?
He was so lost in thought he didn't realize he'd already walked quite a distance from Grimberg. Standing in front of him was the edge of the Forest of the Young. Despite the cool autumn air around him, the forest was still in the throes of spring. The soft chirps of crickets could be heard from deep within.
An idea struck his mind. There were plenty of oak trees in the Forest of the Young. All he'd need to do is grab any random acorn from off the ground, and he'd be set! He made his way into the forest's underbrush.
Magnus found more than just one acorn. He found entire droves of them, scattered across the dirt like confetti. Without even thinking, he scooped them all up, forcing as many as he could into his pockets. That would be enough for all the orphan dolls the kitsune girl was selling.
But even that wasn't enough for him. He made his way out of the forest, dashing back to his trailer as fast as he could. He stepped inside, grabbing a sack of gold he'd carefully hidden in one of the cabinets before making his way to Grimberg once more.
He made his way back to the capitol building. The same orphan from before was now sitting beneath a street lamp, trying to warm herself. The sack full of orphan dolls sat beside her. She didn't even notice Magnus until the harlequin gremlin began taking out entire fistfuls of acorns from his pockets, spilling them all over the road in the process.
"Here... I'll take them all... just have... everything I've got!" The kitsune could only stare in shock as the acorns piled up on the street as Magnus continued to rip them out of his pockets. Then, he dropped the sack of gold right at her feet before turning and bolting away.
Magnus ran all the way back to his trailer. He collapsed on his bed as soon as he got back. The same question kept running through his mind:
Why did I do that?Eventually, his mind stopped spinning. He sat up on his bed as he thought about what had just happened. What in his right mind drove him to spend the night stuffing an unreasonable number of acorns into his pockets and giving them and an entire sack of gold to some random street urchin? He must have lost his mind for a moment.
But... he didn't really regret it. No. In fact, it felt good. Better than he had in ages. Somehow, that little orphan had awakened something within him. Something that he thought he'd lost a long time ago.
Magnus stepped outside his trailer a changed man. He told everyone in the circus the story of the little kitsune and the acorns, and of course, they all wanted to help, too. No longer did they only work for the circus and the Dark Carnival; their mission extended to the rest of Altairus as well. Slowly, as they did their part to make the world a better place, conditions at the circus began to improve, too. Magnus was still stern, but he no longer snapped at his employees. Morale rose. And despite what Magnus would have believed, money started pouring in. Things were better than ever.
And it was all thanks to one little orphan.
Epilogue (Companion to Prelude above)"So, now do you understand?"
Strombolio nodded. He couldn't believe Magnus's story. He never would have guessed that one so caring as him would have been such a selfish person in the past. Or that such a thing would be enough to turn his heart. "I... I do, sir. Sorry if I disappointed you."
"No need to worry," Magnus reassured him. "I see what you were getting at. You're right; we don't really have a lot of money. But I've found that the world tends to take care of you when you give of yourself."
"I... I guess so..."
"I think you'll see what I mean when you get older." Magnus stood up. "Come now. We have a lot of work to do."
The two harlequin gremlins made their way to the big tent in the center of the clearing. Story time was over. Strombolio's rehearsal was about to begin.
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