Disclaimer: Don't own Skittery; don't own Snitch. Basically I don't own any of the characters that appear in this story. Though if you want to buy them for me my birthday is in May, and I hear they're quite expensive, so start saving your money.
More Than Brothers
By Hotshot
A/N: From Snitch's point of view. Ok, yeah, basically this is because I'm sick of the 'I wish I had a twin' point of view everyone has. And dear god, everyone has twins in their fics when they're really not that common.
Brothers, yeah, that's a load of crap. Ok, ok, so maybe people consider all of the newsies to be brother in a sense, because we're all so close. However, no one ever expects that any of us might even be related. Well, ok, maybe they expect it with David and Les, but then they're both so green when it comes to selling, and Les is the splitting image of Davey but ahhhh… who cares. I'm just rambling. Let's just say that no one expects us to actually be related, but we're all supposed to be one big happy family.
Where was I going with this? Oh, that's right; brothers being a load of crap. See my brother actually is a newsie here too. See over there, that's Skittery. We don't look like brothers, huh? No shit. But guess what I'm not even done yet. Lean closer, I don't want everyone to know. We're twins.
Ha! What do you mean we can't be twins? We don't look alike? You moron, of course not, we ain't identical. We're that other kind, umm… what is it… Yeah, what you said, fraternal. It means something about us being different but I didn't go to school that long so I don't know that much about it.
I know we look different, will you stop asking me why we look different; we just do. Skittery is of course wicked tall, and sort of on the scrawny side if you ask me. But then again most of us are pretty skinny if you ask me. I mean, we don't get that much to eat. And then there's me. I'm so gad damn short, compared to him anyway. And my limbs are sort of stubby. I guess I've got a little more meat on my bones. But look at that guy, all the girls love that handsome face and his hair, and those gorgeous brown eyes. I swear his pessimism turns girls on. He's had so many girls.
I'm not really that jealous. I mean if I had a girl I'm not sure I'd be able to stay here each night. He spends so much time on his girl nowadays. What's this one's name, Shelley or something. He buys her these little gifts. If I did that for some girl I wouldn't be able to stay at the lodging house at night. I'd be sleeping on the streets. And trust me kid, that ain't a good experience. I'm not really jealous, really. I just wish at least one girl would even look at me. But no, my curls are always a greasy mess, and my eyes are this mucky hazel color that no one likes.
Ok, so maybe I am a little bit jealous.
But has he ever told you where he gets all the money to buy his girlfriend gifts. Think for a minute. No, really think. Well maybe you actually are smarter than you look. That's right, me. He takes the money from where I hide it. I have no idea how he found out. The only person I've told it Itey and that's just so- Itey, I should've known. Of course he let's me know he's taken it, but I don't know where he hides his money. If I did, well, let's just say he would be very broke.
Not only that but I'm older than he is. Yeah, I'm the older one. What do you mean you don't believe me? You didn't believe me when I said we were brothers but now your starting to see the similarities aren't you. I really am older than he is. A full six minutes, though it doesn't seem to matter that much anymore. I mean look at him; he looks like he's got at least a year on me. That's why he gets his own bunk and I have to share with Itey.
And the trouble he causes, I'm so sick of it. I mean after all he is my brother and I don't want to see him out on the streets, no matter how much he gets on my nerves. The only problem is he knows that, and he uses it to his advantage. He'll complain that he didn't sell enough papers that day and he'll be sleeping on the streets if I don't help him out. So I do, being the good brother that I am. And then guess what I see an hour later. No, go on, guess… Not quite. I see him adding nearly a dollar to the pool of whatever card game Race is running that night. Which of course he loses, so he needs more of my money in the morning. Do you think I give it to him. Of course I do, because I'm just so incredibly nice. I mean, ok sure I'm Snitch so I steal, but as Jack puts it I'm really a 'good kid.'
And that's not all he does. Kloppman doesn't allow drinking or smoking, or anything of that nature in the lodging house. I mean sure Jack and Race can go outside to have a smoke, and Race can just shove all his cards and stuff under a bunk when Kloppman comes in, but sneaking in alcohol is a little bit tougher.
I mean there are two things Kloppman can't stand. And by that I mean that if you ever do either you're screwed. One is that he doesn't like people coming in late. Especially if they're drunk? Are you stupid, of course especially if they're drunk. And the second is if they bring alcohol into the lodging house.
Well Skittery wasn't there and it was well after curfew. So like the good brother I am I'd paid his lodging for the night and signed him in. What? Yes I forged his signature. It's not like anyone would care. Hey I'm a good kid, but no one's that good. So anyway I was waiting up at one of the windows, and well after midnight he finally comes stumbling back down the road. I ran down the stairs to let him in before he woke Kloppman up. Yes you can run down those stairs, you just have to know where they creak. And it was a good thing I did. Skittery has a tendency to sing when he's drunk, very loudly.
So I pulled him inside and told him to shut up. At least he listened to me for once. But there was this huge problem. He had half a bottle of god knows what left. So I snatched it from him and sort of shoved him toward the stairs so I could throw it outside. And that moron, well you can probably guess what he did… That's right, he just about fell into the stairs and there was this huge crash. Kloppman came running out but I didn't expect much less. I expected him to see that Skittery was completely drunk off his ass and kick him out. Does this conversation make you think that happened? I didn't think so.
He saw me with the beer and kicked me out. I mean it was very obvious that Skittery was the one that was drunk and I was just trying to help him. I was kicked out of the lodging house for a month and Skittery got off scott-free. Kloppman didn't even seem to notice he was drunk. Kloppman didn't even let me keep the alcohol, which would have at least kept me under the illusion that it was warm outside. Granted Skitts was drunk that night and couldn't have done much, but I would have expected him to confess the next day when Kloppman had calmed down, but no. Nope he just grinned when he saw me every day and said, "How ya doin' Snitch?" He wasn't even concerned. And he still brings alcohol into the lodging house. There's a bottle of something under my mattress because it's too risky to leave it under his. And of course being the caring brother I am I hide it there and make sure I sleep on that side of the bed so Itey doesn't find out. He'd kill me.
It's really sort off sad. He think I have this thing for Skittery and thinks I do all this stuff for him because I like him or something. That's just stupid.
I'm just really sick of being his cover for everything, but there's not much I can do about it. See this knife. I've seriously considered slitting his throat with it before. I bought it during that month where I was out of the street. I didn't need the money for lodging and trust me it was the best investment I ever made. But yeah, I want to kill him sometimes because he acts like he's so superior to me. He's not though. I mean he barely sells his papers and I refuse to take care of him after we leave here. If I can help it I'm never going to see him again.
This knife anyway, I'd slit his throat but then they'd have me for murder and I'm not willing to spend my life in prison when I could be rid of him by being patient. And then, y'know, he'll probably mess everything up for himself one day. He'll get dragged away by the bulls and get locked up. Ha, he thinks I'd bail him out. See, maybe I would, but I need money to do that, and as you know he continuously steals my money. He'd deserve it.
You've seen that hole in the door of the last stall in the washroom right? Yeah that's from the knife. When he pisses me off I sit in there and throw the knife at the door. I used to suck but now there's a hole in it so I guess I've improved.
It's just sort of dumb you know. I do all this for him and he's never done one thing for me. Not once. He won't even admit that I'm right when he knows I am. And he's the reason no one else knows we're brothers let alone twins. He didn't want them to know, and personally, now I don't either. I wish I wasn't related to someone that damn selfish.
What was that? You used to wish you had a twin? A lot of people do. All they see is two little kids that look exactly the same. They see the rare set of twins that actually do get along, and that's just not how it is in the real world. We're real brother's, we fight and he takes complete advantage of me. Every night I swear it's the last time, but I can't help it y'know? After all he still is my brother. Damn, see here he comes now. What d'you want Skitts?
"I raised the stakes to high with Race, I owe him a quarter."
Isaac, you promised.
"Hush, what if someone hears you. Please Danny, I'll never ask you for anything ever again."
It's a good thing you hid under the bed when you did. He would have flattened you if he'd known you heard me call him Isaac. See what I mean now. Yeah, now it seems really obvious? Now you can see all the family resemblances, huh? Don't worry, I won't hold it against you. See, most of these guys have lived here as long as me and Skitts and only two of them have ever questioned me about it. Two, out of what is it, forty or so. Y'know, you're alright for a squirt. Just promise me you won't breathe a word of this to anyone. Thanks. Can't have my secret out in the open. What would be the fun in that.
Listen, I'm gonna head out and go for a walk before it gets to be curfew. No, nothing's wrong I just want to clear my head a bit. Here, keep my knife with you though. Sometimes I get tempted to go at myself with it if I'm thinkin' about Skitts and me too much. Or coming back and attacking him with it.
Yeah, well anyway, I'll be back in about a half hour I guess. Just make sure someone leaves the window open so I can sneak in.
Thanks for listening.
A/N: oh, I like how that came out. It's good compared to some of the other stuff I think I've written. And this piece came out due to some severe anger I was feeling toward a certain person over the past week for all the stupid stuff she does. A lot of it is also to the people who are moronic and think all twins look alike and act the same, and have names that rhyme. There are way too many people who write newsie fics and made their characters have twins, even among the newsies. They just don't seem to get it and it pisses me the fuck off.
Also, if you read, leave a review with an honest opinion. Flames are welcomed, encouraged, and to be accepted by me with open arms.
~Hotshot~~~