#so many people had their work straight up stolen and aren’t seeing a cent from it

[always-andromeda]

I always wondered how James Somerton could crank out such many well written video essays in such a short amount of time…

Because he’s stealing the words of literally dozens of writers who are better than him. 😀

[britishchick09]

Mr. Moneybags: A Wadlow Sibling Fan-Fic (part 1/2)

here’s another senpai-fic! this one took five days to write (from feb. 5th to the 9th) and although it’s changed a lot from the original idea, the final product turned out pretty great!

senpai and his siblings encounter a man named mr. moneybags who gives them some extra cash to spend at the store. but where exactly did he get the money? and is he as charitable as he seems?

On a sunny Saturday afternoon, Robert Wadlow and his siblings headed downtown to go to Woolworth’s. Unlike the area around them, the store wasn’t that busy,

“I wonder why no one’s here,” Helen commented, mainly to herself. “You’d think people would be pouring in.”

“I like it,” Robert said with a smile. “No one’s staring.”

The siblings smiled. Although Robert was used to being stared at all the time, the others didn’t enjoy their brother getting unwanted attention. Everywhere they went, someone was bound to have their eyes glued to the shy giant. Woolworth’s today was one of the rare exceptions.

As the siblings looked around in peace, Harold Jr. spotted something on one of the highest shelves.

“Train!” he called out, trying to reach the toy.

Robert instantly noticed and went over to his baby brother. “You want to look at that?”

Harold Jr. nodded.

With a smile, Robert bent down a little to grab the train and gave it to Harold Jr, who examined it closely.

“That’s really neat,” Eugene remarked. “I wouldn’t mind having one myself.”

“I won’t mind having this.” Betty ran over to the siblings, holding a set of paper dolls.

Robert turned to the man at the counter, who had been observing the whole time. “How much would this be?”

“The dolls would be ten cents and the train...” He furrowed his eyebrows. “I’d say about a dollar.”

Eugene frowned. “I take back what I said. My train’s staying in the station.”

“Well, that’s what happens when it’s made of metal and imported straight from Europe.”

Robert took a few coins out of his jacket pocket and counted them. “Five... one... ten...” His voice trailed off as he counted the rest in his head. “I have nineteen cents.”

“That’s enough for the dolls!” Betty grinned.

“What about the train?” Harold Jr. inquired.

Robert frowned. “I’m afraid I don’t have enough for it. I’m sorry.”

Harold Jr. seemed to wilt. “...No train?”

“Nope,” Robert shook his head and crouched down to console his baby brother. “I’m afraid you’ll have to wait until next time.”

“But... But I...”

“Are you in need of a few extra cents?” a voice asked.

The siblings turned around and saw a rotund man standing in the doorway of the store.

“Um... hello,” Robert greeted the man. “I’m-”

“Robert Wadlow, the eight foot tall mon- man?” The man blinked as he corrected himself.

Robert nodded. “It’s more like eight foot five, but yes, that’s me alright.”

The man smiled and sauntered over to Robert and his siblings. “I heard you need a dollar.”

“For my train.” Harold Jr. said.

“I have one I can give you,” the man replied before handing a dollar bill to Robert. “One dollar, I mean. You’ll have to get the train yourself.”

“Gee, thank, you… sir,” Robert’s voice trailed off as he looked at the dollar. “Um, this is five dollars.”

“It’s a bill, right?”

Robert nodded. “Yes, but I don’t need five. I only need-”

“Keep it. It’s from the moneybags. Mr. Moneybags, that is.” The man patted his round sides before leaving the store.

As he walked out the door, he left a trail of coins on the floor, which Eugene picked up eagerly.

“Well, would you look at that,” Eugene grinned as he presented a dollar and a half worth of coins. “We got rich in just a couple of seconds!”

“And I got my paper dolls!” Betty added.

Harold Jr. grinned. “Train!”

Helen looked up at Robert. “What are you going to do with the bill?”

Robert looked at the bill and smiled. “I’ll just keep it for now.” he said before folding it up and putting it in his pocket.

…

Robert took a quick peek at the dollar as he and his siblings walked down the sidewalk in their neighborhood.

“I still can’t believe he gave me that,” he commented. “Five dollars! That’s a lot!”

“Well, you’re a lot, so it makes sense.” Eugene said with a shrug.

Robert squinted at his brother as Betty asked, “Do you think he knew it was a five and not a one? Maybe he did it on accident and didn’t realize it until he gave it to you.”

Robert shook his head. “I doubt it. He didn’t seem perplexed by it or anything.”

“I’m wondering where he got the money,” Helen said. “Five dollars doesn’t come that easily to most people these days.”

“He’s probably some rich guy who hoards all his money in a shed and doesn’t think of all the poor people.” Eugene replied.

“Why a shed? A safe would be more likely.”

“He probably stores it in his safe, too.”

“...Then what’s the shed for?”

“Wouldn’t you want a shed full of money?”

“I’d prefer a piggy bank.” Betty piped up.

“Train!” Harold Jr. grinned.

“I’d prefer a wallet. It’s a lot more convenient than some big shed,” Helen rolled her eyes and looked up at Robert. “What about you?”

Robert shrugged. “I just have pockets.”

“Wouldn’t you like something else?”

“Pockets work fine.”

“Not even a wallet or anything?”

“Nope. Just pockets.”

“What about a shed?” Eugene asked.

“You can’t take a shed with you, now can you?”

Eugene shrugged. “You could try,” He paused for a moment. “Actually, I bet you could lift a shed.”

“I doubt it. If it was midget-sized, then sure.”

“An average-sized one would be spookier. There would be a lone pile of money near the back, with only a flickering light bulb illuminating the shack.”

Betty shivered. “That’s spooky.”

“But probable.”

The siblings approached the house and Betty skipped up the steps of the porch, with Harold Jr. following close behind.

“Are you going to tell Mother and Father about the bill?” Helen asked Robert as they walked up the steps.

Robert peeked at the bill in his pocket. “No. It’ll be our little secret.”

…

The next day, the siblings ran their soda stand. It was a little busier than usual, but the soda was necessary it was slightly warm out.

As they waited for another customer to show up, a voice asked, “Is this stand open?”

Robert instantly recognized the man. “You’re the guy who gave me the five dollars!”

Mr. Moneybags smiled. “Have you spent it already?”

“Oh, no, sir. I’m still appreciating it.”

The man chuckled and said, “I’ll have a soda.”

“That’ll be five cents.” Helen said as Eugene poured a cup of soda.

Mr. Moneybags put ten dollars on the table of the stand, making her gasp.

“What?” Eugene asked as he reached out to give the man his soda.

All Helen did was point at the dollar.

Eugene’s eyes widened and he dropped the cup, causing soda to spill onto the table and the ground. It narrowly missed the dollar, which Betty moved over with her finger.

She peered at the bill. “How much is ten dollars’ worth of soda?”

The siblings looked at Robert, who had been watching the exchange in fascination. He blinked and seemed to come back to reality.

“What?” he asked.

“How much soda can the man get with his ten dollars?” Betty repeated. Robert shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“You should know,” Eugene said. “You’re the smart one.”

With a roll of his eyes, Robert tried to do the math in his head.

“I’m not that good at doing math in my head. Paper, please.”

He held out a hand as Betty gave him the dollar bill.

“I’m not writing on that. It’s probably illegal.”

Betty frowned and spotted something down the street. She ran over to get it, returning with a piece of bark from a tree.

“That’s not paper.”

“Paper is made from it.”

Robert gave Betty a look.

“I’ll go get some.” Helen said with an exasperated sigh.

She ran into the house and returned with a scrap of paper.

Robert smiled. “I’d also like a pencil-”

Helen groaned and strode back into the house.

“…please.”

“Today just isn’t her day today.” Eugene remarked quietly as Helen returned with a pencil, which she put on the table in a huff.

“Thank you.” Robert smiled at his sister before calculating how many sodas they would have to give Mr. Moneybags.

The siblings watched as he wrote something on the paper, stopped for a long moment and continued writing. He stopped and smiled.

“That would be… two hundred sodas!” His mouth dropped as soon as he said the words.

The siblings were shocked as well.

“How much do we have left?” Betty asked Eugene in a whisper.

Eugene glanced in the pitcher. “Um… five.”

Helen turned to the man and asked. “Do you intend to buy two hundred of these?”

Mr. Moneybags smiled. “I’ll just take one.”

He poured himself a cup and strolled away.

“…Wow. We sure did make a profit,” Betty commented to herself. “Isn’t that a good thing?”

Eugene nodded. “And Robert didn’t have to stand up or anything.”

Usually when people came to the stand, they wanted to see Robert’s full height. It got annoying after a while, so Robert decided that if they wanted to see him, they’d have to get a soda. The plan worked like a charm and the stand’s profits grew.

Robert sighed and loosened his tie. “I’m going inside to cool off.  Are you alright handling the stand without me?”

“We get no almost sales when you aren’t around, so we’re fine,” Eugene smiled. “With going inside with you, I mean.”

The siblings abandoned the stand and went inside the house, where Robert sat down in his chair and turned on the radio. Helen turned the fan on, making a cool breeze flutter through the room.

For the next few minutes, the sound of music on the radio and the whirring of the fan made the siblings content and relaxed. They were jolted out of their ease when the music abruptly cut out and a voice said, “We interrupt this broadcast for a breaking news report.”

Robert turned the volume up slightly so they could all hear the report clearly.

“There have been many reports of money being stolen from the few remaining banks in the area. The robber has stolen five and ten dollar bills, all of which must be returned to the banks immediately. No one is sure of what the robber looks like, but a few claim he has a Clark Gable-like mustache. If you see this man, please report it to the police. Thank you.”

Betty frowned. “That sounds terrible. What will the banks do without their money?”

“If they lose anymore, they’d have to close like the rest of them,” Helen said. “Hopefully someone will find the robber.”

“What if we found him?” Eugene suggested. “We’d be like the Hardy Boys.”

“Or Nancy Drew!” Betty added.

“How could we stop a robber exactly?” Helen asked, crossing her arms. “Wait at the banks until he shows up?”

“That’s a great idea! I can read Nancy Drew while I wait and get some inspiration.”

“I don’t think it’s great. I wouldn’t want to get involved.”

“I think it is,” Eugene turned to Robert. “What do you think?”

Robert was looking down at the floor, seemingly lost in thought. The siblings waited for a few moments, waiting for him to snap back to reality. When he didn’t, Eugene went over to him and snapped in his brother’s ear.

Robert looked up in surprise. “I know who robbed the banks.”

“Did you do it?” Betty squinted at Robert, who frowned.

“Why would I illegally steal money?”

“In Nancy Drew, the culprit is the one you least suspect.”

“Would you suspect the man who gave us the money?”

“Wha- huh? How?”

“He gave me that five dollars yesterday and the ten dollars today. That must mean something.”

Eugene sighed. “Just because he gave us money doesn’t mean-”

“That actually makes sense,” Helen spoke up. “He’s rich, you know. And rich people love getting more money.”

“Then why didn’t he ask his rich family and friends to give him some?” Betty wanted to know.

“He probably wanted to find a way to get it quicker, so he robbed the banks. I don’t know why he’s been giving us fives and tens, but it’s helped out a lot,” A smile spread across Robert’s face. “He spoiled his own secret.”

Betty gasped. “I just remembered that he had a mustache just like that Clark guy! I think you might be onto something.”

Robert smiled.

“Let’s find him and report him to the police!” Eugene said.

“We’re not doing your plan,” Helen said. “It’s too risk-”

“A great idea,” Robert finished his sister’s sentence, taking her by surprise. “We can look for him near the area of the bank.”

“But we’ll be waiting forever.”

“Not really. It was about three in the afternoon when we first met him at Woolworth’s, right?”

The siblings nodded.

“And what time was it when he bought the soda?”

“About three-thirty.” Eugene replied with a shrug.

“See? We saw him at about three each time. I think he robbed the banks both of those times just before seeing us.”

“How far is the bank from Woolworth’s?” Helen asked.

“A few minutes. We can arrive there at two-thirty and wait for him until three.”

“But how do we know he was there?”

“We don’t. It’s just a guess.”

“So we’re going to wait at the bank for half an hour and hope he shows up?”

Robert nodded. “Exactly. It’s risky, but it just might work.”

“It sounds fun!” Betty grinned. “I’m in!”

“I’m in, too.” Eugene added.

Robert looked at Helen, who sighed.

“I don’t know if it’ll work, but I guess we can try.”