Guys I have been working on this story for so long. I think for at least a few months now. I've written it and rewritten it so many times but I think I finally wrote this first chapter right. I hope you guys think so too. I really do. This story is so much fun for me to write. But, ya know... you all might hate me a little bit. It's fine.
I really hope you guys like this!
Please enjoy!
"C'mon ya stupid stove. Work faster!" Jack muttered to himself as he stood, slaving over a breakfast he so desperately wished he could devour. But it wasn't for him. Of course it wasn't. It never was. Why he was doing this, he had to remind himself everyday. But he would do it. Till the day he died if he had to.
"What the hell is taking so long?" The boy cringed at the voice. He felt a chill go through him at the roughness and demand of the question. But he shook his head and hid all signs of nerve or fear when he was able to look up and glance around the room. He wasn't the only one in there. And to show weakness now would only cause a panic he wouldn't be able to handle. So he just shook his head and called back into the other room.
"Just another minute!"
Jack Kelly was a rare one, indeed. The politeness and carefulness he could hold for the three people just beyond that door to the kitchen was thought to be impossible. But he did it. After all, they were his family.
Well... stepfamily, that is.
The boy rolled his eyes at the thought.
"Boys, no runnin' in the house! Ya know what the masters'll do if they find ya in here lookin' like that!" Jack didn't have to turn around when he heard a group of footsteps running towards him and a woman's voice warning them against it. He knew who was there and his heart hurt to think of the things the woman had just spoke of, but he just put on a smile and turned to them, ready for anything at that point.
"Oh let 'em be, Kaitlyn. They ain't got the smarts ta come back here. I's pretty sure none of 'em 'ave seen a kitchen in their life." Jack waved off one of the three women in the room. The young master of the house's smile became real and genuine when he saw three kids running to him, dressed in rags and worn shoes. They were covered in dirt and grass and their pants were dripping with murky water, letting Jack know where they'd just come from. But even with the worry filling up in him, he couldn't help but chuckle a little at their appearances. "What's the word today, fellas?"
There was one that stood in front of the group. He was short, with soft blond hair that looked to be a mess atop his head. His green eyes had a certain sparkle in them that Jack prayed would never be lost to him. And under his right arm stood a proud, old, wooden crutch.
"They's all doin' okay, Jack..." The kid's voice was so innocent. He couldn't be a day over fourteen. And Jack, being at least three years older than him, couldn't help but want to just protect him from the world, along with the other boys around him. "Got in a little wata' fight this mornin'," Jack laughed at that, relieved at the words. But the kid wasn't done yet. It could never just end there. "But..." The boy hesitated, "somethin' happened last night n' they won't say what."
That was what Jack had been waiting for. The news that made his stomach roll in anger. Anger he couldn't show. So he sighed instead and nodded. "Alright," he turned back to the cooking meal, quickly trying to plate it and balance three glass plate's in his two arms. He was no stranger to the routine. "Get a few chores done, yeah? I'll meet ya ova' there in a few minutes." And he turned to leave as the maids began to clean up the mess he'd left for them. "JoJo, why don't ya help these lovely ladies? They's been havin' a long mornin'." It was all worth the extra minutes of fear growing in him to see the maids blush and smile at him. The boy with the brown hair and energetic aura around him sweetly walked up to the women and began to wash some dishes. "Finch, no bird shootin', got it?" the boy asked, addressing the other boy with a slingshot stuck in the waist of his old, rag like pants. "I need ya ta do the feedin'."
And just as Jack was about to push the door open, he gave one last look at the people in the room. The maids with their hair tied back in messy ponytails and buns, dresses old and dirty, wiping the sweat from their foreheads. The boys who were already rushing off to do work first thing in the morning, having had no sort of meal beforehand. And his eyes landed on the boy with the crutch. "Go back to them and make sure they's okay. Take some a' the rolls from dinner last night and make sure they all eat. Don't let none of 'em fight with ya, ya hear?"
The crippled kid winked and a grin spread across his face. "They's won't fight with me, Jackie. They's love me too much," he replied with complete and total confidence. And no one could argue. After all, that innocent smile could suade anyone. Well... almost anyone. Jack was sure he knew three very specific people that were completely blind to any good in the world.
Finch chuckled on his way out the door. "Whateva' ya say, Crutchie," he agreed, ruffling the blond boy's hair. But as he opened the door, he stopped with a smile on his face as he turned back to the kid. "Hey, what's the leg say?" he asked, shivering a bit as a cold wind flew past him. "Gonna rain?" The sky was full of clouds. Though they were little boys who would've loved a time outside getting wet and playing in puddles, they knew rain would only get them working outside in the harsh conditions, or beaten for hesitation to do so.
Crutchie made a face, like he was thinking real hard. "Eh... no rain. Partly cloudy, clear by evenin'," he answered with a smile.
Jack snorted. He couldn't help himself. He quickly set down the plates and wrapped his arm around the boy, ruffling his hair and smiling as he did so. Then he pressed a quick kiss to the kid's temple in a brotherly fashion before he was running back to the meals on the counter. "I'll be right behind ya!" His last shout was a bit muffled as he was rushing out of the room and the boys' smiles fell as they watched him go.
"God bless that boy," one of the maids sighed as they held the door to the farm open for the boys. "If it was my job ta serve the masters breakfast everyday, I'm afraid I'd not be able ta hold my tongue." Then she smiled at the young boy hard at work by the sink, happily cleaning up some dishes in his soaked rags, dirt smeared across his innocent face. "Joseph, why don't you go get us some fresh rags to dry, hm?"
JoJo smiled. "Anythin' fer you m'lady."
The woman nodded. "Takin' lessons from Mr. Kelly, I see," she laughed. "And then maybe some from little Romeo?"
The boy began running out of the room, opposite of the way Jack had gone, in his pursue of the towels he'd been requested to grab and he smiled at them, sheepishly. "Well maybe I's just know when ta compliment such amazing women, such as yourselves." And he winked before he was off, a certain bounce in his step.
Crutchie rolled his eyes as he stopped at the door. "He sure is takin' lessons from one of 'em," he chuckled at the teen who must've been about the same age as him.
A rare moment of peace passed before a bang was heard from the other room. All four occupants of the kitchen jumped in surprise. But none of them were as wide-eyed and afraid as the small boy with the crutch under his arm. And one of the women sighed. "I thinks the masters need ta go inside the church, 'stead a' refusin' ta give 'em a few free pieces a' fruit for the poor."
At this, Crutchie laughed quietly, shaking himself from his state of shock and fear as the adrenaline rush he'd been experiencing only a moment ago began to fade. "Oh Meredith... that'll be the day."
The women nodded and shooed the boy out. "Go take care of those boys. Be sure ta bring 'em back here if they need help!" And the boys nodded, hurrying off into the fields.
"Beth, make sure you have some fresh rags ready," Meredith ordered to the maid that was by the stove. "Last night I was hearin' some screamin'." She carefully closed the doors and moved back over to the other maids. "Pleasure I get sleepin' next ta that blasted window. I'm sure it was that Italian boy," she sighed with remorse. "He's been gettin' it the worst lately."
"Well, with that mouth a' his, and little Romeo what did ya expect?" Beth replied. They all began washing the dishes they'd used to make the breakfast. "Albert and Specs can only keep him quiet for so long."
"They shouldn't have ta be keepin' him quiet." Kaitlyn shook her head as she grabbed the driest rag she could find and began to wipe away the water off of the dishes. "None of those boys should be in this mess. Bein' sold off as slaves is every child's worst nightmare. I can't believe their parents did that ta them."
"It ain't always a choice, Kaitlyn," one of the others quickly corrected.
Kaitlyn sighed and nodded. "I know..." she agreed. "The poor things... Either way, they're lucky ta have the young master to be lookin' out for them like he does. Otherwise I'm 'fraid they'd a' been sold and dead years ago."
The room became quiet at that. The boys would be gone. Their boys. "Like ya said," Meredith sighed, "God bless that boy."
"Well what on earth was taking so long?" The man that sat at the head of the table was as cruel as they come. It didn't take much to see it. Upon entering the same room as him, the temperature seemed to drop and a cold chill filled in the large space. He had such dark eyes. They matched the color of his heart that had hardened over time. His lips were hidden by a mustache, however, they did not hide his scowl as he looked to his stepson. "You look exhausted, Jack," he commented, not with concern. More with irritation.
"Out with the rats again, Jackie?" Jack resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He may have been raised to be kind and to protect but he wasn't inhuman. He had feelings. And he had instincts that he had to constantly ignore. He, instead, looked up at the boy who sat to the man's right. He had thick, dark brown hair. His eyes almost matched the cruel ones of his father. They were only a bit lighter.
Jack only sighed as he continued preparing their meals for them. "I'm sorry, Mr. Snyder." The way he addressed his stepfather was so formal. The man never allowed anything else other than sir. And Jack hated it. But there was nothing he could do about it. This man practically owned him. He was barely above the status of a servant in the house that was once his.
"Tell us where you were, Kelly," the other boy demanded with a smirk. He looked just like his brother, only older and taller. But when Jack didn't answer, he got impatient. "Now."
Jack ground his teeth together for a moment as he finished setting the table. He was so ready to bolt from the room, leaving their majesties with their food that they might as well be taking out of the mouths of the starved.
"Well, Jack?" his stepfather urged. "Out with it."
Jack swallowed his initial, unfiltered, respond. He grabbed the tray and started over to the door. "I was with my friends, sir," he finally answered, facing the door, afraid to look back at the man when he heard an annoyed sigh.
Jack felt a pang of fear rush through him when a fist came down on the table. "What have I told you, boy?" Jack could hear his stepbrothers snickering behind his back. He didn't move as the man continued. "Slaves are not friends. They are property. And they are not yours." The words made Jack sick.
"They won't be around forever, Jackie-boy. What are you gonna do when they're all gone?" one of his stepbrothers smirked. But the boy of the house was too busy to figure out which one.
Jack couldn't barely keep up right. The words hit him hard, for the boys he held so dearly were being treated as objects and not as they were. They were Jack's brothers. Nothing less. "Ah yes... or have you forgotten that that stupid cripple is absolutely worthless? We could sell him right now if we wanted to." The boy grabbed the doorframe at his stepfather's words. They fished for panic that was now swirling around in Jack's head.
"Please don't, sir. Please... he does his work and he's a good kid..." Jack could barely whisper it out. The very thought of that innocent little boy being taken from him made him feel lost and alone. "Let them stay... they're good kids..."
The man only scoffed and suddenly Jack wanted nothing more than to strangle him. Anger rolled in him, adding to the collection Jack had been locking away for years. But he soon found that it would get him no where. Only with lashes on his back and a little boy slaving over him while trying to clean them out. Or worse. Without the people he'd come to love so dearly. "Get to work, Kelly. Maybe the gimp can stay another day."
Jack was out of the room faster than he could comprehend. And his stepbrothers laughed at him.
"That boy needs to learn his place," concluded the cruel man of the house. "He's lucky we didn't throw him out on the streets the the minute I lost his mother. Now he makes us the laughing stock of the kingdom. Some boy." His two sons chuckled in agreement. As Snyder continued with his meal, he gave the two boys a glance. "Oscar, Morris, what are you two doing today?"
Oscar, the younger of the two, gave his brother a look of mischief. Morris only smirked. "Oh, we'll just be taking care of some... vermin, today."
Jack ran. He ran through the fields of the farm that held so many precious memories of a life he sometimes wished he could forget. A life when everything was so perfect it hurt to think it was gone. He pushed every feeling he had as far away from him as he possibly could. He blinked away the tears in his eyes as he passed by animals and crops growing. The finest crops in the entire kingdom.
That alone made Jack even more frustrated with more memories he couldn't forget. A lost friend, a lost childhood, a lost life. He was a slave now. Or as close as they could make him to one.
But none of it mattered when he reached the trees growing above the fields. None of it mattered when he entered the forest and found the creek. None of it mattered when he followed the little stream of water and saw them. A whole bunch of boys. Boys playing in the water, looking to the naked eye like they hadn't a care in the world. But Jack knew them. And they had the weight of the world riding in their shoulders. It wasn't fair.
There were at least ten of them there. Finch and JoJo were still out doing chores. Jack hated to keep them from coming here, but he was just trying to do right by all of them. Keep them all safe. He did make a mental note to make sure they ate something later. And then he put on a small smile as tired eyes found him and almost everyone greeted him with a grin.
"Hiya, fellas." He watched so many of them smile and wave at him before they continued to play in the water and tease each other and laugh with each other and just be little boys.
"They's all ate," Jack turned his head to see Crutchie limping up to him, away from a boy with the specs and another with fiery red hair. The kid looked like he'd just gotten over some stress and frustration. "Some was harder than others." The kid sighed. And he stood by his friend as they watched the boys. Their boys.
Jack knew what Crutchie was talking about. It was a never ending battle. One that Jack had tried to put a stop to for years. But his eyes zeroed in on two kids. One looked to be only a year or two younger than Jack. Older than Crutchie. His curly blond hair sprouted off of his head and looked to be filled with dirt and soot. His blue eyes were tired. Far too tired, Jack reasoned. Rimmed with red and standing above dark circles. They were carefully guarded. The older boy knew why, but the boyish charm they held was ever present in them.
The other kid was very small. Possibly around nine or ten years old. Though, he could pull six or seven if people didn't know him. His dark brown hair was growing a bit long on his head and the locks were draped over his equally brown eyes, filled with so much curiosity and wonder for the world.
It was dangerous. Jack knew that much. The world was dangerous. But maybe it was worth a shot after this hell.
The boy with the blue eyes stood near the creek, carefully scooping the younger boy up and bringing him into his arms like a toddler, letting the kid wrap arms around his neck and legs around his waist as they smiled and laughed with each other in the fresh morning air. But right when the kid looked back down at the water, the blond boy winced.
They were brothers. By blood. Sold to pay a debt two parents could not pay. Their oldest had been ten, leaving their youngest a mere four years old. The parents chose to sell them over the land they had worked so hard for. They'd left two children to fend for themselves in a cruel world where they would become slaves and at the mercy of their masters who did not see them as such. They were property. To all but one Jack Kelly.
Jack walked up to the pair, Crutchie walking back to some of the other boys and striking up a light conversation. It was what the kid did best. Optimism. Something not many of them still had.
"Racer... you okay?" Jack asked the question very quietly, trying not to grab the attention of everyone there. But, for a split second, Race looked like he'd just been caught red handed in the middle of a full fledged lie, before he quickly scoffed and held his brother close to him.
"What the hell are ya talkin' about, Jackie?" Race shook his head, confused. Or, at least pretending to be confused. Jack shook his head too. His boys should know well enough that he could read them all like a book.
The brunette held out his arms. "Come here, Romeo." The little kid, youngest of anyone there, climbed off of Race and onto Jack instead, causing Race to wish he could just run away for a moment. But he couldn't. And before he could stop it, Jack lightly hit him in the chest, causing him to flinch and groan in pain.
"Dannazione..." The boy cursed in his native tongue. One that he grew up speaking. One that he had to partially abandon to speak English when he'd been beaten for not understanding. But he still spoke it enough. After Romeo woke up after a nightmare, or had been given a strike for doing something wrong. Or when he needed to scream something that no one could understand. Or when he cried to Jack that he wasn't good enough or that he just wanted Romeo to have it better. But Jack always hoped to hear it when the boy was happy. Excited.
Jack held Romeo closer when Race stood there in pain. The little boy gasped at the sight of his big brother like that. "Race? Did he hurt ya 'gain, last night?" Jack's eyes widened.
"Again?"
Race's eyes shot up to Jack. "It ain't nothin'!" he insisted, giving his kid brother a look. A look that said to shut up.
"No, no, no," Jack put one hand out to Race, telling him to hush before he turned to the boy held up in his other arm. "What happened, Rome?"
The small boy was held to Jack's side. He opened his mouth but he was stuck, looking back and forth between the two boys he looked up to more than anything. But overall, he had to do what was best for his big brother. "Masta' yelled at Race the otha' day fer fallin' down... and then..."
Race shook his head but Jack nodded, wrapping his other arm around the boy and bouncing him up on his hip a little bit. "It's okay, kid. Race don't know what's good fer him." He ignored the glare and the arm cross when Romeo started speaking again.
"He hit Race in the chest with somethin'... an'..." The little boy looked over to his brother who was looking at the ground in shame. "You was so tired yesterday, Race! Esausto! I knows he hit ya ancora!"
By now, they'd gotten the attention of every boy there. The boy with the glasses and the kid with the red hair were staring with their eyes wide. Specs and Albert. Jack looked over to them and Specs ran over.
"What happened?" Jack asked, immediately.
Specs wasted no time carefully wrapping an arm around Race's shoulder. "He passed out. Romeo was sleepin'."
Jack sighed. Race was still looking down at the ground. "Lemme see, kid," he demanded. And when the boy didn't move Jack gently set the little boy on the ground. Romeo ran to his brother and hugged him around his leg. Immediately, Race's arms were loose and his hand was in the boy's hair. And Jack walked up to him and grabbed the bottom of his shirt.
"Hey!" Race tried to back away but Specs and Romeo held him still. And his eyes were wide when Jack gasped at his now exposed chest.
"Jesus Racer, what the hell happened?" There were three marks on the boy's chest. Almost black. Burns. Long and big.
Race shoved Jack's hands away. He defiantly pulled his shirt down and Jack knew why. It was because he couldn't be defiant anywhere else. With anyone but the people he was with. So Jack didn't fight with him. But he gave him a hard glare. "He used an iron. A hot one."
"Does it hurt?" Race glanced over to Crutchie who had walked up to them. The crippled boy placed a hand on Romeo's back as Race bit his cheek. He looked around at all the boys who could pick out his lies anywhere. So he sighed.
"Like hell..." he finally muttered out.
Jack saw Romeo clutch onto his brother tighter. "It's okay, fratellino..."
"But ya ain't okay, Gara... you's hurt!" Romeo cried and Race couldn't help but bend back down and pick him back up, despite the pain it brought him. And he smiled through the burning of his chest, ignoring Jack's silent pleas for him not to hurt himself any further. A gesture seen by his hands reaching out to take Romeo back.
"Rome, I am okay. I'll be okay. Everything is gonna be fine. Perché siamo insieme e lo saremo sempre." This was a sentence said many times by Race. Jack still didn't know what it meant, only that Romeo would place a hand over his big brother's heart while Race did the same to his and then Race would press a kiss to Romeo's hairline.
Jack shook his head. He wanted to tell Race to take more care of himself. He wanted to tell Race how it wasn't only affecting him. He wanted to tell Race how many nights Crutchie would sit awake at night, asking Jack if he thought Race would be at the creek the next morning. Or how many nightmares he woken up from where Romeo came running to him sobbing, Albert and Specs lagging behind, carrying a body of a boy once filled with life and witty comebacks.
But he couldn't do that. Not when Race smiled like that. Not when he was content to hold his baby brother like that and so happy to be there with all of the boys from the house next door. The one that Jack could practically see a dark, ominous cloud looming around. So he didn't say anything else. Only gave Race a stern look when their eyes locked. It was a look that conveyed an entire conversation in a single second. A conversation that ended with "Stop hiding things from me because I care about you..."
Race broke eye contact with the boy who had been nothing short of a big brother to him from the day he'd found them. Since the day that they'd been hiding from their master after he'd threatened to whip the youngest of them. Since he'd threatened to hurt Romeo.
Race remembered that day so vividly. He remembered screaming out in his native tongue when a strange boy he'd never met before had gathered up his baby brother in his arms and began to walk away with him. He remembered Albert's arms encircling him when he tried to run after them as Specs quietly whispered to him that there was nothing he could do. And then that boy had turned back with wide eyes. Eyes that said he was only trying to help. That was the very first time Race had met the boy next door. The one and only Jack Kelly.
Jack walked closer to his boys. The ones who were more his brothers than the ones that took over his own home. The ones he wished he could get out of this damn place. He ruffled Romeo's hair as Race set him back down. He watched Albert wrap an arm around Race's shoulders. And Specs and Crutchie started to joke around with him, making him smirk as a natural cockiness seemed to fall into place.
Jack wrapped an arm around Romeo. The little boy was a so full of joy. The oldest of them still found it a mystery how. After all, the master next door was known as a devil. Equally or even more cruel than his own stepfather. But he kept them together. He kept Jack's boys, his brothers together. And that was okay for now.
"Well, well, well, what do we have here...?"
Jack bit back a groan at the voice that he'd so intently come to hate. The friendliness and happiness and peace from a moment ago was gone in a split second, only to be replaced with a tense, dark panic that Jack could feel around him. He saw Race out of the corner of his eye grab Romeo who had been at Jack's side, and he pulled him behind him. The little boy then stood, peaking out from behind his brother as the Delanceys stood tall, stupid smirks on their faces when the boys cautiously moved away and fell into a terrified silence.
Crutchie was careful not to make too much noise. He limped closer to the boys, letting the redheaded kid that was closest to him wrap an arm around his shoulders when they saw the two kids who had done nothing but torture them from the day they'd followed Jack to their little hideout. Even before that, Crutchie, JoJo and Finch never had it easy with them. So the boys stood close, trying their best to protect each other without getting themselves hung.
Jack stepped in front of them all, a barrier between his brothers and his... stepbrothers. "What the hell are you doin' here?" The boy of the house tried his best to keep his voice from becoming annoyed and bitter. But that was hard when he was talking to two of the people on the planet that made his skin crawl.
Morris took a step closer to him, his chest puffed out and his chin held high in a sign of important. In a way of telling Jack that he was above him. But Jack didn't mind. Only stood tall in front of the boys they all called slaves. In front of the boys who deserved so much more. "I think the better question is, what are you doin' here, Jackie-boy? Last I checked, you wasn't a piece a' property. This ain't your place."
Jack rolled his eyes. This wasn't his place. He'd heard it before. His place seemed to be no where. Not at the table that he grew up sitting and laughing at. Not playing around and having fun during the day, without a care in the world. Not alone in his room. Not with the people he loved. Sometimes, Jack really did wonder where his place was. He wished he could see it. He wished he could live it. But he couldn't. Instead, he did the best he could to keep the people he loved from being harmed and he stood with them, stubborn and ready to put up a fight.
"Leave 'em alone. Go back ta the house. This ain't none of you's business." He was about to turn back to the boys when he heard a cocky laugh that came out as a loud huff. And he turned back to the two boys, his hands over his chest and his jaw clenched.
Oscar stepped up, level to his brother and he glared at every boy standing there. Then his cold eyes landed on the smallest kid, a hand in his dark brown hair as he stood - terrified - behind his big brother, grasping onto the older boy's shirt so tightly his tiny knuckles were turning white. "It is our business when you're makin' us the laughin' stock a' the whole kingdom."
Jack scoffed. "I'd rather be a laughin' stock than hurt my boys. Leave 'em alone, Oscar."
Morris shoved Jack in the shoulders. The boy stumbled a bit but made no move to shove back, only put a hand up in front of the blond boy to his right when he clenched up the fist that wasn't resting in his little brother's hair. Race gave a him a glance before he seemed to relax a little bit. But not enough in Jack's opinion.
"We could have 'em all hung fer bein' on our land." Jack still wasn't intimidated. After all, it was his land. Not theirs. "And fatha' would give you a good whippin' if he caught ya out here givin' the slaves our food!" Morris smirked at Jack when he winced at the thought.
"This is his land." Everything froze at the voice. Jack always tried his hardest to keep the loudmouth Italian from putting in his two sense. It never ended well. But Race didn't care. In his mind, he had the right to speak. He wouldn't when Jack wasn't around, but when the boy who willingly let them call him a big brother was there, Race knew he wouldn't let the worst happen. And that was all that mattered to him. But to Jack, hearing any of the boys screaming out in pain made him go crazy.
Oscar and Morris glared. It was clear they expected him to speak. And Jack felt the rage begin to build up inside of him. "Race..." Crutchie had tried to pull him back, but Race shook him off. He carefully loosened the tight grip that had been around him and pushed his brother into Specs. He knew what might happen. And he wasn't gonna let someone else get in the way.
Oscar scoffed and took a step closer to the slave boy in front of him, only a few inches behind Jack. "Learn you place, slave," the boy hissed. "Last time I checked, I don't have ta be your owner ta punish ya fer speakin' outta turn."
Jack put an arm out to shove Race behind him as best he could. Then he was practically nose to nose with Oscar. "He didn't say nothin' that wasn't true."
The younger boy rolled his eyes. "He has no right ta say it."
"He has my permission, Delancey," Jack stressed, using the name as a way to try and distract them from the boy they loved to tease, torment and hurt. He was their easiest target. Him and Crutchie, Jack discovered. A boy that always gave them means to do awful things and another that couldn't use both of his legs to get away.
The name definitely got their attention for a moment. They claimed their name was Snyder. Just like their father. It was a lie. Delancey was their mother's name. They'd been found as children, their mother dead. She'd written a note. A note that confessed their father was Snyder. She'd been a disgrace. She was poor. Disowned. And Snyder had left his kids with her until she died, and he was forced to take them back and make them into mini versions of him. When the name was spoken, they were reminded that their father wouldn't even care about them at all, had their mother not killed herself and forced them upon him. Snyder only cared about forcing his views and opinions and ways upon his own offspring. That's what they were. His legacy. One Jack wished he could stop.
"Careful, Kelly!" The boy glared at Morris.
"Guardalo, Delancey," Race spoke in a mocking tone. And suddenly, all hell broke loose.
Morris grabbed Jack and held his arms behind his back for just long enough to let his little brother firmly strike Race across the cheek before shoving him to the ground. A swift kick to the stomach made sure to knock all the air out of the kid.
"Hey!" Crutchie cried out, dropping beside his friend, letting his crutch fall to the ground beside him. A small gasp was heard as a little boy stood from behind Specs, watching his brother be beaten right in front of him.
"My God, boy..." Oscar shook his head as Jack struggled in the Delancey's hold. "If you was my property, you'd be dead where ya stand."
Race clutched into his sides as he tried to get all the oxygen back into his lungs. "Then its a damn good thing I ain't your property, ain't it?" the boy rasped.
Crutchie glared up at the boys, just in time for Jack to break free and for Morris to grab onto his own crutch and raise it above his head. "Ya want some a' this too, ya lousy crip?!" Jack caught the thing just before it could break into his soft skull.
"That ain't nice, Morris!" Jack shoved him backwards and raised the wooden crutch in his hands as Oscar tried to step to him again. "Beat it!"
Race breathed heavily as he watched the scene. Oscar smirked and Morris scowled. The older of the two had to take the other by the arm and begin to drag him away. "This ain't ova', slave!" Race knew the boy was addressing him. He'd always been his least favorite. Everyone knew it. "Ya can't keep 'em all togetha' fer long, Jackie-boy! Someday they'll all be gone and you'll all know what it's really like ta be what you are!"
The silence that passed while they watched the two hated brothers leave was heavy. All that was heard was a few groans from a doubly hurt Racetrack and a few quiet whispers of encouragement from Crutchie. Other than that, Romeo just stared at his brother with wide eyes at what he'd just heard. What he'd just watched. And Specs held onto him tightly, keeping him from Race, trying to let him recover before the smaller boy was weeping onto his chest.
Jack sighed and gently set his friend's crutch on the ground once again, kneeling next to the two boys on the ground. Race was curled into Crutchie, slightly. The younger helped him somewhat sit up as he coughed and refused to meet Jack's eyes. He could feel the look of disapproval looming over him. His lips wanted to form a sentence. It was more a reflex than anything else, but when he could see Jack step right in front of him he opted against it. He simply let himself breathe as he tried to comprehend why his mouth always moved without his own consent. He tried to understand why he couldn't stop it. But then he remembered.
"They's can't just talk ta ya like that, Jack," he muttered finally, still unable to move his gaze from the ground. Then he felt something that had happened a million times. Something he would never be used to. A finger that clipped his chin and forced him to look up. The look he'd expected was there. Disapproval. But there was more to it than that. There was concern and sorrow. Sorrow for not being able to stop it. Sorrow from not being able to get them out of here to begin with. And Race blinked back his tears as he gently shied away from the touch of his friend, letting his chin fall from the hand and back down to his chest.
"Are you okay, Race?" Jack ran a hand through the blond curls and then quickly gave Crutchie a kiss on the head after he asked that question. Nothing else mattered. They just had to be okay. And when Race gave a soft nod, he sighed in relief and lifted his hand, gesturing for a teary eyes Romeo to come over. The boy did, with no kind of hesitation.
Race didn't look up until a bundle of his baby brother was in his arms. And then he was glancing up at Jack who gave him a small, sad smile. But Race couldn't find it in him to smile back. And Jack understood that. He just held Crutchie close and then enveloped the other two boys in a tight hug.
"Did he mean that, Gara?" Romeo's question was so quiet as all the other boys began to close in on them too, all holding onto each other for dear life. Holding onto their family like a lifeline. "Are we gonna get separated?"
Race looked up at Jack with pleading eyes. They'd all known the likelihood of the two blood brothers being together their whole lives was not high. They knew that. Admitting it and talking about it was a different story. As much as all these boys loved each other, they couldn't always be together. They were slaves. Property. A means of trade and work. And Race began to tear up as both Jack and Crutchie looked down at the boy, wide eyed, not knowing what to say. So all he could do was press his lips to the boy's forehead, leaving a lingering kiss on the dirty skin of the boy he would do anything for. "Ti amo, fratellino..."
Jack heart broke at the tiny whisper. He felt Crutchie's arms wrapping around his waist to hold onto him tighter. Suddenly he felt so useless. These boys from the master next door needed to be set free. The slaves from his own home needed to be set free. No one deserved this. Especially not these boys. Not these children. But for now, holding onto them was all he could do. It was the only thing that kept them close and safe and secure and together.
But one day, he'd get them away. Somehow, he would set his brothers free. Little did he know exactly how soon his life would begin to change. Little did he know that somewhere far away, there was a girl who also had a passion brewing inside her. A girl who lived in a beautiful palace with anything and everything anyone could want. At least... that's what everyone thought. A girl they called The Princess.
So basically, a very long time ago while I was writing The Spider's Revenge, I was also simultaneously watching "Ever After". And then my mind just started working and I came up with this story. This is the only chapter I have done and I really hope you guys like it! If you don't, Well... I guess there would be no need to continue it, but I really hope you guys like this one!! I do. I love it a lot and I have a lot of ideas for it.
As always, thank you guys so much for reading! Make sure to tell me what you liked, what you didn't, what you'd change or what you'd improve by leaving me a review! Love ya babes!
