Flurries of snow were coming down upon the city. It was too cold for anyone to be out on the streets of New York City. Even the bums and the rats were hidden away under whatever shelter they could find. Suddenly, there was a change in the air, a change in the way the snow fell to the ground. A small girl went sprinting down the middle of street, her hair trying to catch up. She kept running, never slowing down, until she got to the Brooklyn Bridge.
She came to a halt before she could set foot on the bridge. Minutes passed, but she didn't even notice. Finally, with a tentative look behind her, she stepped on to the bridge. Then she began to fly again.
10 Years Later, July 1900
The same girl was running again. She had a smile on her face this time, and laughter in her eyes.
"Maddy! Will ya slow down? Ya know I can't run as fast as you!"
"Well that's your problem Spot Conlon, not mine!"
Spot sighed in frustration and slowed to a leisurely walk, all while trying to catch his breath. Maddy was already out of sight, running down the bridge and into Brooklyn. He paused, looking over the railing to see if he could catch a glimpse of her on the docks below. He heard a faint yell from below and watched a figure leap into the water of the Hudson River. Spot let a grin overtake his normally stony face and shook his head.
Ever since Maddy had been found on the steps of the newsboy lodging house 10 years ago, Spot had never left her side. Spot had been the newest addition to the Brooklyn newsies and was fascinated by her presence. He was also relieved he wasn't the most recent kid to take up the job of a newsie anymore. The older boys always picked on the newest addition to their clan, to see if they were tough enough for Brooklyn. Paddy Conlon had been the 'leader' of their borough then. Even though Paddy was Spot's brother, it had taken quite a while for the younger Conlon to become a newsie. Not until Paddy said he was allowed could Spot step up to the window of the distribution center. Paddy was always the first out the door to the distribution center in the morning. He had tripped right over Maddy, who was fast asleep in the doorway. She didn't even stir as his cursing trailed off and he realized what had caused his fall. Spot was the next out the door, stopping right before he could face the same fate as his brother had moments before.
Spot had not fallen for Maddy then. Since that moment, he had taken plenty of bruises, bumps and slaps meant for her, but he had never fallen for her. All the boys thought it was inevitable that the best friends would end up with each other, but Spot and Maddy would just laugh at them, telling them they were all getting soft. Paddy got all the boys to call them lovers, even though Spot and Maddy were only seven and really had no idea what that meant. It was only after Paddy disappeared six years after Maddy's sudden appearance that the boys all stopped calling them a couple. That was when Spot had to take care of the whole of Brooklyn's newsboys, and the boys decided collectively not to disrespect him anymore. It was fun with Paddy, but Spot was different. Harder and more demanding. There was still fun, but Brooklyn gained a reputation as fearsome and scary. But Spot always had Maddy to keep him grounded and to loosen him up.
By the time Spot reached the docks, Maddy was lying on the wooden planks of the dock, with her eyes closed. Grinning, Spot nudged her with his foot. She didn't move. Spot planted his foot underneath her lower back and her eyes flicked open widely and she started to struggle. It was too late. In the next second she was in the river again, the boys on the dock and in the water laughing at her misfortune. She kicked back up to the surface, spitting out water and cursing at the leader of Brooklyn.
"Damnit Spot! Why ya always gotta be so jealous? Just 'cause I can run faster than you'se doesn't mean ya gotta take it out on me!" she said with a grin, pushing her straggly blonde hair out of her eyes.
"Doll, you'se been runnin' since the day you was born. I'll never catch up with ya."
"Damn straight ya won't." Maddy shimmied up the rope ladder and shook her head, letting the water fly everywhere. When she looked up, she caught a glimpse of Spot wiping water off of his face.
"Thanks Maddy. I can always count on ya to make me look less than presentable, can't I?" Spot said, smirking at her. Maddy started walking towards the lodging house, Spot alongside.
"Presentable? Ya never look presentable Conlon, despite all the time ya spend looking in the mirror. You're like a girl or something."
Their bickering could be heard all the way down the dock. Some of the newer boys didn't understand why their fearless leader had to choose a girl to be his second in command, but the older boys knew they were in good hands. Most girls didn't pay attention to them at all, so they figured they were lucky to have a girl to listen and clean up after them. Most of them had also grown up with Spot and Maddy, and could think of no other people suitable for the job of leading the newsies. And it made Spot seem more human, when Maddy was around. She brought out a side of him that would've disappeared along with his brother if she hadn't been there.
Inside the lodging house, Spot flopped down on his bunk. Maddy went into the bathrooms to dry off and change. Their conversation had lost steam as they reached the door, so they continued about their business in silence.
In the bathrooms, Maddy looked up at herself in one of the cracked mirrors. Opinions differ of beauty, but it was safe to say that Maddy was reasonably good looking. She had blonde hair that never seemed to get dingy, no matter how much time she spent in the streets. It wasn't a remarkable blonde, just a regular straw coloured blonde. Her eyes were hazel and—just like everyone else's—got darker or lighter as her mood changed. She had a light smattering of freckles that appeared with summer and disappeared into the winter months. She blinked at herself owlishly and then gave herself a huge smile. She heard a chuckle from behind her. Spot had walked in out of boredom and stood leaning against the doorway.
"Spying on me again, I see?"
"Acourse. I gots nothin' better to do with me time." Spot walked up beside her and looked in the mirror at himself as well.
"I told ya. Just like a girl. Can't stop looking at hisself." Maddy stuck her tongue out at Spot in the mirror, and moved off into the bunkroom. Spot grinned and watched her retreat in the mirror.
"So what are we doin' to pass the time 'fore the evening edition?" Maddy yelled from the other room.
"It's too hot to do much o' anything. All that runnin' tired me out anyways." Spot yelled back.
"Hah! I did all the runnin', don't try to take the credit!"
Spot appeared in the doorway of the bathrooms again. He watched Maddy as she went rummaging through a small dresser beside his bunk. He knew what she was looking for, since he didn't have many personal possessions. Anything that he did own resided in his pockets or around his neck. Finally she turned around with a grin on her face and little metal box in her hand.
"I knew keepin' stuff in your dresser was a good idea. Nobody's gonna go through your stuff, they're all afraid you might soak 'em." She took her mornings pay from her pocket and dumped them on the bed. She started sorting through the dirty coins. Spot grinned, then walked over and kneeled beside her.
"How much ya make today?" he asked.
"Eh. Headlines were shitty, but some guy asked me to open my shirt for him and offered fifty cents."
"Ya do it?"
"Nah. I just grabbed the coin and ran."
"Acourse."
"Acourse. I don't understand rich people. He coulda bought some high class whore, an' instead he offers fifty cents to a dirty girl in boys clothes? Weirdos, the lot of 'em." Maddy shook her head, and slipped the coin into the box she took from Spot's dresser.
Spot didn't understand it either. But he couldn't see the appeal in buying a prostitute either, no matter how high class they were. Why buy something that someone somewhere is willing to give for free?
Spot was not one who had to pay for girls to sleep with him. They were awed by his status and his looks. He rarely let a girl know him that way though. All the girls he attracted weren't good enough. Too slutty, too ugly, too stupid. There was a multitude of reasons. Although it wasn't like he'd never been with a woman. He'd had his share of drunken nights that he considered mistakes. No one could even think of a girl that Spot liked enough to sleep with twice. Maddy was always secretly relieved when Spot told her about his night and the girl he shouldn't have slept with. It wasn't that she hoped for a chance. She just didn't want to share her best friend. And as loyal as Spot said he was to the newsies, to Brooklyn, to Maddy; she knew that a girl could ruin everything their friendship stood for.
One time, when Maddy and Spot were only nine years old, she made him promise he would always stay with her. It was Christmas Eve, two years to the day that Maddy had run blindly through the snow to Brooklyn. The lodging house was packed to capacity and Spot and Maddy were so small that Paddy made them share a bunk for a few days, to open up some room. Boys were all over the room, some sleeping, some sitting up playing cards and some just staring into space. Christmas was always a hard time in any place full of abandoned children. Orphanages were worse, because none of those kids had a choice. Many of the newsies had run away from their lives and didn't regret it a bit. But even those kids cracked a little bit at Christmas time.
Spot and Maddy sat in their bunk playing old maid in silence. After Spot had won, like usual, they sat back against the bed frame and watched the clock slowly count to midnight. When the second hand made its way past the 12, the two children turned to each other and embraced, whispering 'Merry Christmas' to each other. Murmurs of the same were heard around the room. Spot leaned down into the dresser beside his bed.
"I have a present for you." He said, emerging from the dresser with a tiny package in his hand.
"Oh. But I didn't get you anything."
"Dat's okay." He handed her the package, his grey eyes shining with excitement. Her child's fingers unwrapped the newspaper that was tied around the box. She got the paper off and took out a metal box, a slot in the top and a key tied to it. Maddy gave Spot a strange look.
"You said ya wanted ta start savin' whatever you could. I figured you could put 'em in here, instead of under your pillow or in your sock or somethin'." Spot didn't meet her eyes. He had never given anyone a present before, so he didn't know if it was stupid or not.
"You remembered? Thank you Spot." she said sincerely, "I only wish I had something to give…," her voice trailed off. Her eyes landed on the key and the string that lay discarded on the bed. She quickly took the key and threaded the string through the top. She looped it around Spots neck and tied it in a tight knot at the back. "There. Now ya can be in charge of my 'vestments." She said with a nod. Spot laughed and gave her another hug.
"Thanks." They finally gave in to the night and lay down together, both facing the bunk above them.
"Spot?"
"Yeah?"
"You're not gonna leave me, are ya?"
"Never."
"Promise?"
"Acourse." They both smiled slightly.
"Merry Christmas Spot."
"Merry Christmas Maddy." With that, they turned their backs to each other and fell asleep.
Back in the present day Maddy had finished sorting out her money. She had enough left to buy 50 papes of the evening edition and a couple cents extra to get some food. She looked covertly at Spot, and they both looked around to see if any of the other boys had joined them. Finding none, she replaced the box in Spot's dresser and closed the drawer. They both stood up, silently deciding to get some food and walked out of the bunkroom to the stairs that would take them out of the lodging house. At the bottom of the stairs was a small figure, hunched over and wheezing. Maddy quickened her pace and kneeled down in front of the boy. Spot followed slowly with some trepidation in his step.
"Hey, ya alright kid? What happened?" Maddy asked concernedly. The boy just sniffled and choked. He raised his head to look at her, and caught sight of Spot leaning in the doorway behind her. His eyes widened before he shoved his head back down and tried to stifle the sounds of his sobs. Maddy looked over her shoulder at Spot. He shrugged, pulling out a cigarette and a box of matches. She exhaled loudly through her noise and clenched her jaw. "C'mon, just tell me. What happened to ya?"
"I ain't sayin' nothin', cause there ain't nothin' that happened!" the boy cried, standing up quickly and running up the stairs to the bunkroom. Maddy sighed, then whirled around to face Spot.
"Your newsies beat him up, didn't they?"
"Aw c'mon Maddy, they do it to all the new ones! Let 'em have their fun." Spot looked out the front of the lodging house, smoking calmly. This was clearly a fight they'd had before.
"They should not be fighting within themselves Spot! If they wanna fight, tell 'em to go sign up for a boxing match or go visit some place that hates Brooklyn! They don't gotta beat up their own kind."
"Maddy, they've been doin' it this way for years. They ain't gonna stop now."
"Not if you just sit there like a good fer nothin' commonplace newsie! You're the leader! Ya gotta tell 'em to stop Spot!" Maddy was in his face now, inches away.
"Maddy, get outta me face and calm down. I ain't tellin' 'em nothin'. They just wanna make sure the new ones can handle Brooklyn. It's for their own good, y'know?" Spot held her angry gaze and pushed her back a bit. She crossed her arms and glared at him. "Mads, you know that don't work on me no more. I know you can't stay mad at me. Now c'mon, let's go get some food, alright?" He slung an arm around her shoulder, ushering her down the front steps and into the street. Her arms remained crossed over her chest and an angry look stayed on her face. But she let herself be taken through Brooklyn to a tiny restaurant called Nancy's. The food wasn't so great, but it was cheap and the newsies weren't picky. Spot and Maddy slid into a booth, Maddy still glaring at the leader of Brooklyn. Nancy came by to ask if they wanted their usual, but thought better of it by the look on Maddy's face.
"You gotta be a leader Spot."
"I am a leader. And I'm done with this fight. I ain't tellin' 'em nothin'. Would ya gimme a smile so that Nancy will come give us our food. Ya scared her off already." Spot said with finality in his voice. Maddy's stomach rumbled loudly and Spot smirked at her. She gave him a look that he knew meant the discussion was far from over and, without smiling, called for Nancy. Spot sighed and put his feet up on the bench beside Maddy. He continued smoking and looked out the window beside him.
"Manhatten doesn't have this problem. Their newsies all like each other."
"Well guess what doll. We're not in Manhatten. Whatever they do wit' each other is their business. And it's the same wit' us. They'd never get involved wit' our affairs unless I asked. 'Sides, they don't got nothin' to do with us, but if you want, why don't ya go on ahead and ask Cowboy if you can live in Manhatten. I'm sure they'd love a goil like you takin' up space in their bunkroom."
"A goil like me? What is that s'posed ta mean?" Maddy said, a different type of anger flooding her face. Spot sighed.
"I didn't mean it like you was a whore or nothin' Maddy, I just meant that there ain't no goils in Manhatten and those boys fawn over ya everytime we go there. Ya'd have ta sleep wit' one eye open to make sure they kept them hands to themselves."
"Better than havin' people think I'm a boy just 'cause I sell in Brooklyn." Maddy muttered under her breath.
"Ya want attention now Maddy, is that it? Why don'tcha wear a dress or somethin' then?" Spot said, exasperated. Maddy muttered something that Spot didn't catch. "Wha? What was that?" Maddy looked up at him.
"Dresses are uncomfortable." She said. Spot chuckled and tried to remember the last time she wore a dress.
"I can't even remember you eva' wearin' a dress, how would you know they're uncomfortable?"
"I wore them when I was a kid. Anyway, that's not the point!"
"Then what is the point?"
"Well… Christ, I don't even remember no more." She said, a smile growing on her face. Spot laughed at her openly, reaching over and ruffling her hair. She smiled sheepishly as Nancy came over with their food.
Spot knew how to deal with Maddy when she got like that. You just had to keep changing the subject until she forgot what the original point was. She had a forgetful mind and couldn't keep up with Spot when he tricked her. He learned that the day he almost tripped over her. She was getting mad at Paddy for kicking her, and Paddy seemed dumbfounded that a little girl was yelling at him. So Spot just kept changing the subject on her, asking her questions about who she was and where she was from. She got so caught up in yelling at Spot about being nosy, she forgot all about her anger at Paddy.
It had taken Maddy a while to answer those questions. She only told Spot her name, because she figured a boy her age wouldn't report her to the police or anything.
"Elizabeth. Elizabeth Madden."
"And where ya from?" That question had taken her much longer to answer. A couple of weeks after her appearance in Brooklyn, she finally confided in him. Soon after she told him, Spot ran to find his brother and tell him what he had found out. Paddy had let out a low whistle.
"Hell's Kitchen eh? That's a long way away, and a mighty rough place for a runt like her. Why'd she leave?"
"She wouldn't tell me. But she said she had to leave her little brudder behind an' everythin'. She mentioned her parents, I guess they're still alive."
"Alright, well you lemme know if you find out anything else."
And so word had spread throughout the Brooklyn newsies. Their newest addition, their little girl who outsold Paddy within the first few weeks was an escapee from Hell's Kitchen. Most of the boys stopped picking on her for being a girl, knowing that it was tough to last in that part of town. No one even sold newspapers there, it was so rough. It did at least, solve the mystery of what ethnicity she was. She was definitely Irish, though the boys could figure that out by her looks. She never spoke about where she came from to any of the boys, except Spot. Maddy knew that he would go and tell his brother, but she figured that was alright, seeing as Paddy was the leader of Brooklyn and all. She knew that was a big deal. Brooklyn was huge. It wasn't yet a part of New York City officially, but anyone who read the newspapers knew it would be. Because Brooklyn was so big, there had to be lots of different groups of newsies all over the place. Paddy and his newsies were situated right at the Brooklyn Bridge, in Brooklyn Heights. They covered the area from Greenpoint in the north, to Fort Hamilton in the south and Prospect Park to the east. There was another lodging house and another leader in Coney Island and another group of newsies in Cypress Hills. Although they were huge groups in their own right, they all reported back to Paddy. He really was the king of Brooklyn. Well. Until he disappeared. That was a mystery in its own right.
No one knew exactly what happened, just that one day he didn't come back from selling the evening edition. Maddy heard the news from the other boys before Spot did. He was still sleeping in his bunk when she came clattering up the stairs, hitting the tops with her hands to keep her going. She ran into the bunk room, hair flying behind her and stopped in front of Spot's bunk. Still half asleep, he glared at her for awakening him.
"Ya ain't got no manners, Maddy. Wakin' me up all rude like that."
"Spot, it's Paddy. He ain't here. The otha boys are sayin' he's gone for good." She said breathlessly. Spot sat up quickly, careful not to bang his head on the bunk above him. He reached for his shirt and put it on and then grabbed his boots and shoved them on his feet. He wordlessly pushed past Maddy and went down the stairs to the large group of boys congregating on the street outside the house. She scampered after him, not wanting to miss what happened next.
"Where is he?" Spot demanded.
"We dunno Spot. He neva' came back last night." Paddy's best friend Little Joe spoke up.
"Is he havin' problems with any of th' otha leaders? Maybe one of 'em soaked him and he can't get back." Spot asked calmly.
"Nah, everyone's real happy right now. No problems anywhere. But Spot… he mentioned somethin' tha otha day… About leavin'. He said he wanted you in charge of Brooklyn if he ever got killed or… neva came back." Little Joe had taken his hat off and was talking quietly only to Spot now. Maddy was standing beside Spot, holding his arm for support. The other boys were leaning in close, straining to hear what was going on. Maddy looked up at Spot and he looked down at her. She stood on her tiptoes, being a short girl and whispered in his ear.
"You can do it." He nodded slowly, not wanting to believe his brother was gone.
"Alright. If that's what he wanted."
And that's how Spot Conlon became the leader of Brooklyn. There was no ceremony for him and no funeral for Paddy. The boys just slapped Spot on the back and went about their business, selling newspapers and playing cards. There wasn't a palpable change to Brooklyn. The same boys were still there, doing their job as newsies. Spot had never said anything about Paddy since then. Since no one was talking about the disappearance, it took a while for news to spread around New York and when the other leaders dropped by to pay their respects and find out some details, Spot thanked them for being kind enough to come by and that was it. Never told a soul what he thought happened. Little Joe came down with pneumonia a few days later and died silently in his bunk. He never told anyone else what Paddy had said to him about leaving either. Maddy tried for a few days to help Spot out with what he was feeling, but this was one thing he never let her in on. It was something he had to deal with himself, and although he knew Maddy was frustrated with him for not telling her, he just had to keep this feeling to himself. At thirteen years old, Spot Conlon had to be in charge of all the newsies in Brooklyn. He accepted the challenge with a fervor no one had seen out of him. When things started getting tough between the different sections of New York City, he gained himself a reputation as a fearsome, no holds barred leader. Most were scared of him, and those that weren't were his friends. And even they were scared of him sometimes. There was one person in the world who wasn't scared of Spot Conlon, and that was Maddy. She believed he could run Brooklyn for the rest of his life if he wanted and she wanted to be there every step of the way. She became his second in command and the only girl newsie in New York City.
Back in Nancy's diner, Spot had finished his meal and was waiting for Maddy. She was always the last done her food, no matter how little food they had. He jiggled his feet and tapped the table, impatient as always.
"How's everythin' been lately in Manhatten anyways? Pulitzer treatin' 'em right?" Maddy said around a mouthful of food.
"Yeah, it's almost getting boring again. I'd die for a good fight or somethin'."
"Or someone else would." She muttered, bringing a smile to Spot's face. "Spot, they don't fight ya 'cause they know they won't win. 'Specially after the strike. You might as well be the king of New York City or somethin'." Spot laughed.
"Da King of New York City eh? I like the sound of that."
"Well. Let's not get too carried away, alright? Now c'mon. Let's go sell some papers." Spot and Maddy stood up, leaving money for their food on the table. As they walked out the door and into the streets of Brooklyn, Spot offered his arm to Maddy and they walked silently to the distribution center.
Alright, this is my first piece of fanfiction ever. I know not much happened in this chapter, but I can't help this love of background detail that I have. Hopefully things will pick up soon.
