A/N: This story is taking forever to write, I actually have to plan it out
instead of just throwing a bunch of words together like in my Mary Sue
parody, lol.
Shout outs:
Madison- Thanks so much! I really appreciate it ^_^
Dizzy- Thank you! I hope I got your character right, lol.
Stress- Poor Oscar and Morris. Thanks again!
`*`*`*`*`
Weasel's face held it's usual sour expression as he waited for the newsies to come barreling in for their daily round of papers.
The gates swung open with a rusty creak, the boys were right on time. They gathered around on the platform like usual.
Weasel handed a newsie his papes with a strange expression on his face. His eyes narrowed in confusion, he slowly started to count heads. '. 39 . 40, hmm.' He thought, recounting once more. There seemed to be less newsies than usual.
Finally it hit him, the girls were nowhere to be seen. He smacked Oscar and told him to count the newsies. Oscar shrugged and went back to tying bundles of papers.
"Where are da goils?" Morris asked Weasel, staring dumbly out into the sea of shouting boys. The newsies grimy faces held no answer to his question.
"Da goils? Hmmm.. Well, dey could be at da lodgin' house, or dey could be in Brooklyn. or, dey could be on strike." Jack mused, collecting his papers from Weasel.
Weasel snorted, "Da goils? On strike? Outta ya mind Cowboy. Outta ya mind!" he continued laughing, thinking they would show up sooner or later. It wasn't his fault if they didn't want to sell that day.
At a quarter past twelve, the gate swung open once again. Weasel smiled to himself, he knew the girls would be there. He motioned to Oscar and Morris to bundle more papes.
Weasel was right. It was the girls. But not how he had expected.
They marched in holding signs; he squinted to read them as they drew nearer. The signs read slogans like: 'No respect, no papes!' 'Strike!' and 'Respectt for all!'
Oscar and Morris tripped over each other laughing; the stack of papers behind them toppled over and spilled onto the floor. Weasel jeered, laughing along. Girls on strike? That wouldn't last long.
Weasel breathed in slowly, suppressing more laughs. He grabbed a stack of papes and flung them in front of Diamonds.
Diamonds didn't reach in her pocket for money, nor crack a wise comment. She slung her sign over her shoulder and remained expressionless. Oscar and Morris picked themselves up off the ground and came to the window, smirking.
"No papes today, Weasel." Prairie said, resting an elbow on Diamond's shoulder.
"No papes, right. How many, kid?" Weasel rolled his eyes.
"You'se deaf or jus' plain stupid?" Stress yelled, holding her strike sign high so Weasel could see it. Someone behind her shouted, "I t'ink we knows da answer to dat!"
The boys crowded around behind them, eager to see something happen. Weasel's face was starting to grow red with anger. Oscar and Morris moved towards the door, looking for trouble to start.
"We'se on strike, Weasel," Diamonds said, accentuating his name, "We ain't buyin' papes unless you'se treat us fairly." The rest of the girls nodded and exclaimed their agreement.
Weasel eyed the signs, he hadn't expected them to be serious when he first saw them coming in.
"How much harm could dey do? Da boys ain't on strike, da goils ain't gonna mattah." Oscar rolled his eyes at his uncle, then glared at the girls. Weasel nodded silently, it was probably true, but with the price of things always on the rise, Weasel needed as much profit as he could get.
Weasel leaned out the window and sneered loudly, "Eh, den dat's your choice. You ain't buy papes, you ain't make any money. We'se got the boys still, dey give us more profit den all of youse combined!" and with that, he slammed the blind down.
But inside his mind, the thought of the strike wouldn't go away. If the girls continued their strike, he would lose profit. The boys brought in enough money, but not enough to satisfy him. 'I'll wait it out.' He thought.
Everyone turned to each other. "Now what?" the question hung in the air like smog. The boys moved in closer, wanting to hear what was next as well.
Diamonds stood on the platform, "We'll wait. Dey ain't gonna like losin' money. So, we'se wait and see what happens. Dey can't hide forever." She finished.
The others agreed without words, but knew something had to happen before the newsgirls either ran out of money or starved. Or Weasel gave in.
"I t'ink we'se should get help. From Denton or someone." Dizzy said, sitting on a barrel looking thoughtful.
Poem swung her sign like an axe, "How 'bout Roosevelt?" She jabbed her sign at Selley, who pretended to fight it.
They all groaned, Poem laughed and threw her hands in the air. "Jus' throwin' ideas around."
"Look, we'se ain't gonna be taken seriously yet. There ain't much we can do until Weasel finally gives up. He ain't gonna last long, trust me." Diamonds took out her pocket watch and glanced at it, "It's only been fifteen minutes and you'se all are losin' faith already?"
"We'se ain't losin' faith, we just wanna get a fair deal!" Lit'l Bit exclaimed.
"And we'se will! Give it time, besides, maybe Denton'll help us." Diamonds said, a sweep of her hand indicating there wasn't anything left to say about it.
The boys backed up, letting the girls go through. They still had papers to sell, while the girls had a day of freedom.
Skittery poked Specs on the arm, "T'ink it'll woik?"
Specs shrugged, watching the newsgirls step onto the street. The newsies stood for a moment, then continued to their selling spots. The headlines reached the ears of the citizens.
Tibby's felt emptier without everyone squished inside. Cake and Poem sat at a window table with Dizzy and Stress. Derby and Selley sat one table over, trying to get Denton to buy them lunch.
Denton gave Selley a one dollar bill, telling her to buy her friends lunch. Selley grinned at Derby, they'd succeeded.
With a tug at his bow tie, Denton leaned on Cake's table and pulled out his notebook, pen in hand, ready to write.
"You'se gonna help us, Dents?" Stress said, looking slightly hopeful. Denton bit into a chicken wing, clearing his throat before answering. "Well, I, um, I don't know what I cab do," The girls tried to hide their disappointment, "BUT, we'll see I suppose." Denton concluded, quickly picking up another chicken wing to avoid any more questions.
Derby put her head in her hands, "What about an article on the strike?"
Denton showed her the notes. He had been writing down quotes and observations, the strike was a big fear to newspaper big shots, not just to Weasel. If the girls didn't sell, less papers would be sold, that worried the newspaper staff.
"It could be a big story, but I just don't know yet. I think you can all do it if you try though. Girls are starting to play a more dominant role in today's society. You might even be able to vote one day." Denton smiled at them, receiving looks of disbelief in response.
"Vote.Girls'll vote when Pulitzer stops liking money." Cake scoffed. Dizzy and Stress laughed, while Selley looked perplexed. She didn't understand too much about voting yet.
Prairie and Lit'l Bit burst into Tibby's. The wind gusted in, howling like a ghost. Unusually windy weather for the summer.
"Dave t'inks he knows someone who can help us get our strike known." Prairie said breathlessly, as though she'd been running.
Everyone stared at her, if Denton wasn't that interested in them, who would be?
"He said dere's a journalist who t'inks he could get our story in da papes, Dave said he's meet us here tomorrah and let us know." Lit'l Bit finished for her, pulling up a seat.
Denton raised his eyebrows; he was skeptical about the idea of another journalist wanting to help the girls with the strike. Most journalists were serious about their work; a story about newsgirls wanting rights wasn't a big issue.
Denton quietly left while the others yelled questions at Prairie and Lit'l Bit, he knew they'd been looking for a chance to get help and finally it was there. He was still wary about the journalist wanting to help, although he wasn't about to interfere.
But something felt wrong.
---From the demented desk of Derby: Dun dun dun! Stay tuned to find out what happens next! (By the way, I go the name Cake from thinking about Pie Eater. just in case you were wondering lol)
Shout outs:
Madison- Thanks so much! I really appreciate it ^_^
Dizzy- Thank you! I hope I got your character right, lol.
Stress- Poor Oscar and Morris. Thanks again!
`*`*`*`*`
Weasel's face held it's usual sour expression as he waited for the newsies to come barreling in for their daily round of papers.
The gates swung open with a rusty creak, the boys were right on time. They gathered around on the platform like usual.
Weasel handed a newsie his papes with a strange expression on his face. His eyes narrowed in confusion, he slowly started to count heads. '. 39 . 40, hmm.' He thought, recounting once more. There seemed to be less newsies than usual.
Finally it hit him, the girls were nowhere to be seen. He smacked Oscar and told him to count the newsies. Oscar shrugged and went back to tying bundles of papers.
"Where are da goils?" Morris asked Weasel, staring dumbly out into the sea of shouting boys. The newsies grimy faces held no answer to his question.
"Da goils? Hmmm.. Well, dey could be at da lodgin' house, or dey could be in Brooklyn. or, dey could be on strike." Jack mused, collecting his papers from Weasel.
Weasel snorted, "Da goils? On strike? Outta ya mind Cowboy. Outta ya mind!" he continued laughing, thinking they would show up sooner or later. It wasn't his fault if they didn't want to sell that day.
At a quarter past twelve, the gate swung open once again. Weasel smiled to himself, he knew the girls would be there. He motioned to Oscar and Morris to bundle more papes.
Weasel was right. It was the girls. But not how he had expected.
They marched in holding signs; he squinted to read them as they drew nearer. The signs read slogans like: 'No respect, no papes!' 'Strike!' and 'Respectt for all!'
Oscar and Morris tripped over each other laughing; the stack of papers behind them toppled over and spilled onto the floor. Weasel jeered, laughing along. Girls on strike? That wouldn't last long.
Weasel breathed in slowly, suppressing more laughs. He grabbed a stack of papes and flung them in front of Diamonds.
Diamonds didn't reach in her pocket for money, nor crack a wise comment. She slung her sign over her shoulder and remained expressionless. Oscar and Morris picked themselves up off the ground and came to the window, smirking.
"No papes today, Weasel." Prairie said, resting an elbow on Diamond's shoulder.
"No papes, right. How many, kid?" Weasel rolled his eyes.
"You'se deaf or jus' plain stupid?" Stress yelled, holding her strike sign high so Weasel could see it. Someone behind her shouted, "I t'ink we knows da answer to dat!"
The boys crowded around behind them, eager to see something happen. Weasel's face was starting to grow red with anger. Oscar and Morris moved towards the door, looking for trouble to start.
"We'se on strike, Weasel," Diamonds said, accentuating his name, "We ain't buyin' papes unless you'se treat us fairly." The rest of the girls nodded and exclaimed their agreement.
Weasel eyed the signs, he hadn't expected them to be serious when he first saw them coming in.
"How much harm could dey do? Da boys ain't on strike, da goils ain't gonna mattah." Oscar rolled his eyes at his uncle, then glared at the girls. Weasel nodded silently, it was probably true, but with the price of things always on the rise, Weasel needed as much profit as he could get.
Weasel leaned out the window and sneered loudly, "Eh, den dat's your choice. You ain't buy papes, you ain't make any money. We'se got the boys still, dey give us more profit den all of youse combined!" and with that, he slammed the blind down.
But inside his mind, the thought of the strike wouldn't go away. If the girls continued their strike, he would lose profit. The boys brought in enough money, but not enough to satisfy him. 'I'll wait it out.' He thought.
Everyone turned to each other. "Now what?" the question hung in the air like smog. The boys moved in closer, wanting to hear what was next as well.
Diamonds stood on the platform, "We'll wait. Dey ain't gonna like losin' money. So, we'se wait and see what happens. Dey can't hide forever." She finished.
The others agreed without words, but knew something had to happen before the newsgirls either ran out of money or starved. Or Weasel gave in.
"I t'ink we'se should get help. From Denton or someone." Dizzy said, sitting on a barrel looking thoughtful.
Poem swung her sign like an axe, "How 'bout Roosevelt?" She jabbed her sign at Selley, who pretended to fight it.
They all groaned, Poem laughed and threw her hands in the air. "Jus' throwin' ideas around."
"Look, we'se ain't gonna be taken seriously yet. There ain't much we can do until Weasel finally gives up. He ain't gonna last long, trust me." Diamonds took out her pocket watch and glanced at it, "It's only been fifteen minutes and you'se all are losin' faith already?"
"We'se ain't losin' faith, we just wanna get a fair deal!" Lit'l Bit exclaimed.
"And we'se will! Give it time, besides, maybe Denton'll help us." Diamonds said, a sweep of her hand indicating there wasn't anything left to say about it.
The boys backed up, letting the girls go through. They still had papers to sell, while the girls had a day of freedom.
Skittery poked Specs on the arm, "T'ink it'll woik?"
Specs shrugged, watching the newsgirls step onto the street. The newsies stood for a moment, then continued to their selling spots. The headlines reached the ears of the citizens.
Tibby's felt emptier without everyone squished inside. Cake and Poem sat at a window table with Dizzy and Stress. Derby and Selley sat one table over, trying to get Denton to buy them lunch.
Denton gave Selley a one dollar bill, telling her to buy her friends lunch. Selley grinned at Derby, they'd succeeded.
With a tug at his bow tie, Denton leaned on Cake's table and pulled out his notebook, pen in hand, ready to write.
"You'se gonna help us, Dents?" Stress said, looking slightly hopeful. Denton bit into a chicken wing, clearing his throat before answering. "Well, I, um, I don't know what I cab do," The girls tried to hide their disappointment, "BUT, we'll see I suppose." Denton concluded, quickly picking up another chicken wing to avoid any more questions.
Derby put her head in her hands, "What about an article on the strike?"
Denton showed her the notes. He had been writing down quotes and observations, the strike was a big fear to newspaper big shots, not just to Weasel. If the girls didn't sell, less papers would be sold, that worried the newspaper staff.
"It could be a big story, but I just don't know yet. I think you can all do it if you try though. Girls are starting to play a more dominant role in today's society. You might even be able to vote one day." Denton smiled at them, receiving looks of disbelief in response.
"Vote.Girls'll vote when Pulitzer stops liking money." Cake scoffed. Dizzy and Stress laughed, while Selley looked perplexed. She didn't understand too much about voting yet.
Prairie and Lit'l Bit burst into Tibby's. The wind gusted in, howling like a ghost. Unusually windy weather for the summer.
"Dave t'inks he knows someone who can help us get our strike known." Prairie said breathlessly, as though she'd been running.
Everyone stared at her, if Denton wasn't that interested in them, who would be?
"He said dere's a journalist who t'inks he could get our story in da papes, Dave said he's meet us here tomorrah and let us know." Lit'l Bit finished for her, pulling up a seat.
Denton raised his eyebrows; he was skeptical about the idea of another journalist wanting to help the girls with the strike. Most journalists were serious about their work; a story about newsgirls wanting rights wasn't a big issue.
Denton quietly left while the others yelled questions at Prairie and Lit'l Bit, he knew they'd been looking for a chance to get help and finally it was there. He was still wary about the journalist wanting to help, although he wasn't about to interfere.
But something felt wrong.
---From the demented desk of Derby: Dun dun dun! Stay tuned to find out what happens next! (By the way, I go the name Cake from thinking about Pie Eater. just in case you were wondering lol)
