DISCLAIMER:  I don't own the newsies.  They belong to Disney.  I don't own my friends either, but I do own myself, so don't steal me!

AN: Thanks to my friend Liz for writing part of this chapter with me.  As usual, please review!

HAVE TIME MACHINE: WILL SELL PAPES

CHAPTER 6

            The girls spent the entire morning tagging along with Crutchy.  Natalie and Crutchy peddled their 40 papes together, while Moni, Liz and Eronn pitched in to sell their 100 papes.

            They stood on opposite corners, Natalie and Crutchy selling the traditional way, while the other girls took a less conventional standpoint.

            First, they sold Liz's silent way.  She would approach a person and try to sign to them.  When they gave her a confused look, she would gesture to her ears and shake her head "no".  Eventually, they would be convinced that she was deaf and that she really needed money.  Almost everyone she approached bought a pape, and Liz hugged each one in feigned gratitude.

            Then, making sure that all the people who had bought papes from Liz were out of sight, they sold Moni's way.  She got up on a bench, holding her papes, then cleared her throat to get the attention of the people walking nearby.  Then she began reciting in a loud, clear voice:

            "Double, double, toil and trouble;

            Fire burn and cauldron bubble.

            Cool it with a baboon's blood,

            Then the charm is firm and good.

            O, well done!  I commend your pains;

            And everyone shall share in the gains;

            And all who stand and gape,

            Come now and buy a pape!"

            When they handed her their money, she told them "By the pricking on my thumbs, something newsworthy this way comes."  Moni bowed when she received a standing ovation, then began to recite again:

            "Out, damned spot!  Out I say!  One: two: why, then 'tis time to do it.  Hell is murky.  Fie, my lord, fie!  A soldier, and afeard?  What need we fear who knows it, for those who read the papers?"

Then they finished off the papers by selling Eronn's way.  She would approach a person, usually a middle-aged man who looked like he was not around children often, and would launch into a mile-a-minute one-sided conversation, beginning by introducing herself.  "Hi there!  My name is Eronn.  See those girl's over there?  They're my friends.  Their names are Liz and Moni.  We're selling newspapers.  It's our second day of selling.  Would you like to buy one?  No?  It's only a penny.  Oh, pleeeeeaaaassssse buy one?  Pretty please?"  Becoming more and more agitated with each word, Eronn continued, "Pretty please with a cherry on top?  You know you want one."  Stopping abruptly, Eronn then began again, this time at the top of her lungs.  "WHY WON'T YOU BUY A PAPE?  YOU'RE A MEANIE!  YOU'RE A BIG POOPIE-HEAD!  I THOUGHT WE WERE FRIENDS!  BOOOOO-HOOOOO!"

Finally, the unfortunate person would give in, buying a pape to shut her up.  Once she received their money, Eronn immediately quieted down, thanked the person and walked off.

By noon, the three girls had managed to sell all their papes, while Crutchy and Natalie still had about half of their papes to go.  Liz, Eronn and Moni spotted Irving Hall about a block away, and informed Natalie and Crutchy that they were going to hang-out in front of the theatre for awhile.

"After all," Eronn pointed out, jabbing Liz with her elbow, "David should be arriving soon."

They stood in front of the theatre, near the boys shining shoes.  Eronn managed to position everyone so that Liz was closest to the street, while Eronn and Moni held back near a large, leafy plant.

Soon enough, David, Jack and Les came running down the street.  David ran straight into Liz, sending her crashing into Eronn, who crashed into Moni, who landed in the potted plant.

"Sorry," David said quickly, not realizing whom he had run into.  "I'm not running any further," he told Jack.

Jack just pushed David aside and reached down to help Liz up.  Eronn moved away from the wall she had just been pushed against, and helped Moni extricate herself from the big, leafy plant, taking a few branches with her.

"One more accident like that," Moni noted, "and that plant will be bald!"

Jack, as usual, ignored Moni and asked Liz if she was all right.

"I'm fine," Liz told him, trying to ignore David's profuse apologies.

"Gee," Les said, breaking through Jack and David, "what an ugly tree!"

"Actually," Liz pointed out, turning on her 'teacher' voice, "it's not a tree.  It's a big, leafy plant that looks like it is related to a Florida palm tree.  Is Florida a state by now?" she whispered to Eronn.

"Yes," Eronn whispered back.  "Someone should have paid more attention in history class."

"C'mon you guys, follow me," Jack told them, heading through the door behind Liz.

When they reached the backstage area David, no longer concerned with Liz's welfare, remembered how mad he was at Jack.  He slammed the door behind him, and had just opened his mouth, when Liz said "You want some answers, right?"

David gave Liz an odd look, then agreed loudly.

"Shh," Jack told them, putting a finger to his lips.

Moni glanced over at Les, whose mouth was gaping open.  "Are you trying to catch flies in that trap of yours?" she asked him.

"What trap?" Les asked.

Moni closed his mouth for him.  "Your trap – it's your mouth.  Next time someone tells you something you don't like, tell them 'shut your trap'!"

"Neat!" Les said.

"Say 'cool', not 'neat'," she instructed him. 

"OK, cool!" Les said.

David spoke up again.  "Who is he, why was he chasing you and what is this refuge?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Eronn teased him.

"Refuge is this jail for kids," Jack explained in a quiet voice.  "The guy chasing me is Snyder.  He's the warden."
            "You were in jail?" Les asked, suddenly interested in their conversation.

"Yeah."

"Why?" Les asked, full of curiosity.

"I was starving so I stole some food," Jack shrugged it off.

"Right, food," David scoffed.

"Yeah, food," Jack replied, annoyed.

"He called you Sullivan," David accused.

"Yeah, my name's Jack Kelly.  You think I'm lying?" he asked in an icy tone.

"Well you have a way of improving the truth," David said, meeting Jack's eyes squarely.

"Can we talk about something else?" Moni asked.  "Because frankly, Jack's life just bores me!"

Jack shot Moni a dirty look, but David merely pulled Les away from where he was standing near Moni and asked Jack "Why was he chasing you?"

"Cause I escaped," Jack told him.

"Oh boy, how?" Les asked, excited.

"Blink said you got a ride out in a carriage," Liz piped up.

When Jack nodded, David said sarcastically "I bet it was the mayor, right?"

"No, Teddy Roosevelt.  You ever heard of him?"

"Of course we have!" Moni said, completely ruining the moment.  "I bet he'll be president someday."

"That's nice," Jack said, obviously not caring.

Suddenly a woman came down the stairs, trying to shoo them out.  Moni groaned in frustration.  "Do you mean to tell me that we're going to have to listen to her sing again?" she asked Liz.

Liz sighed.  "Get used to it Moni.  She sings later in the movie too."

"Ugh, kill me now, will you?"

"You wouldn't kick me out without a kiss good bye, would you Medda?" Jack said with a huge smile on his face.

The girls all rolled their eyes.  "Oh,Kelly.  Where you been kid?  Oh, I miss seeing you up in the balcony."

"Hanging on your every word," was Jack's reply, although how that answered Medda's question was beyond the girls.

"So Medda," Jack continued.  "Let me introduce you here.  This is David and Les, and these three ladies are Liz, Eronn and Moni.  They all just became newsies recently."

Right as Jack was finishing up, the door opened and Natalie came rushing in.  "Hi everybody," she said a bit too loudly. 

"And this is Natalie," Jack concluded.

"Hello," Medda said politely.

"And this is the greatest star of the vaudeville stage today, Miss Medda Larkson, the Swedish Meadowlark," Jack said with a swagger in his voice.

"Welcome gentlemen and ladies," Medda said in what was obviously a fake accent, and dropping a curtsey.

The girls gave each other skeptical looks.  The best?  They highly doubted it.  Maybe if someone had poisoned all the other theatre entertainers in the city.

"Medda owns the joint," Jack told them.

"That explains why she's the main singer," Natalie whispered to Moni.

Medda didn't hear them however, but caught sight of Les.  "Oh what do we have here?" she said in a fake-sweet voice.  Oh, aren't you the cutest little thing that ever was? Yes you are," she said, holding his face as if he was a baby.

Les bore it bravely, then gave one of his pathetic coughs, looked Medda straight in the eye with a heart-breaking look on his face and said "Buy me last pape, lady?"

Medda saw right through Les' act and merely said, "Oh, you are good. Oh yes, this kid is really good. Speaking as one professional to another, I'd say you have a great future." 

"Don't look so proud of yourself Jack," Moni piped up, seeing the proud look on his face, since he had taught Les the entire routine.  "Anyone with half a brain would see through that."

"I guess all those people Les sold to have half a brain then," Jack countered.

Moni shrugged.  Les stuck out his lower lip and pouted.  "You think it seemed fake?" he asked.

"It's not you," Liz said to him in an audible whisper.  "She just likes to annoy Jack.  I'm sure she thought that you were great."
            Moni then winked at him, and Les finally said, "Oh," comprehending.

Eronn looked at Moni strangely.  "You do realize that you just implied that Medda has more than half a brain, right?" she whispered.

Moni shrugged again.  "It was a necessary evil."

Jack glared at the girls for about the fiftieth time, and then turned to Medda.  "So, is it alright if we stay here for a little while, Medda? Just until a little problem outside goes away."

"Sure, stay as long as you like. Toby, just give my guests whatever they want," Medda said, heading over to the stage to perform."

Les and the girls grabbed as much candy from Toby as they could, stuffing food in their mouths, as well as in their pockets for later.  Jack and David, however, moved over to watch Medda sing as the announcer said "And now gents, the moment you've all been waiting for. The sensational songbird, the Swedish Meadowlark - Miss Medda Larkson."

"Why don't they want any candy?" Natalie asked stumped. 

"Because they're going to go gape at Medda like the mindless drones that they are," Moni said, not very nicely, as Les went over to join his brother and Jack.

They heard Medda start to sing "Lovey-Dovey Baby" onstage, and all of the girls exchanged looks. 

"Why did we come in here again?" Liz asked.

"I always fast-forwarded this part of the movie," Eronn wailed.

Moni merely put her fingers in her ears and started humming a tune to herself. 

Natalie looked at the three girls.  "Crutchy's probably still outside, selling the rest of his papes.  We could go join him so that we could meet with the other newsies tonight."

"Great idea," Liz and Eronn said together.  Moni's finger-in-ears technique was working so well, she didn't hear what Natalie said.

"Go tell Jack and David that we're going," Eronn said to Liz.

Liz rolled her eyes.  She knew she was the one going because the other girls thought that David liked her.  "Fine," she sighed.  She walked over to where they were.  "We're going," she told the two older boys.  "We'll catch you guys later."

"Oh, you're going?" David said, disappointed, tearing his eyes away from Medda for a second. 

"OK, bye," Jack merely said, not even looking at Liz.

"But maybe we could-" David started to say, but Liz cut him off.

"We have to go.  See you tomorrow."

"Alright – bye!" David called to her retreating back.

"Let's go you guys," Liz said to her friends.  "Before David follows me."

The girls headed out the door, pulling Moni behind them.  Once outside, Moni unplugged her ears.

"There's Crutchy!" Natalie said, excited.  "C'mon you guys," she said, rushing down the block.

"Why aren't you selling too?" Liz asked.  "I thought you two were selling together."

"Well, we weren't getting very far, so we split up the rest of our papes and sold separately.  I finished long before him."
            "How'd you do that?" Eronn asked suspiciously. 

Natalie chucked a little.  "Oh, just burst into tears over the fate of leaves in autumn."

The other girls looked at each other.

"Don't ask," Natalie said.

They shrugged and continued walking.  Eronn giggled, breaking the silence.  "What is it?" Natalie asked.

"Oh, just thinking of 'Santa Fe'.  Aren't you glad we left when we did?  We might've gotten stuck listening to Jack sing it if we'd stuck around him long enough."

"Let me guess," Liz said.  "That's another part you fast forward through?"

Eronn nodded.  "I'm what you call a selective watcher."

They reached Crutchy at that point and stopped talking.  Moni looked at his arms, and noticed that he still had at least ten papers left.  "Oh, give me some of those," she said, taking some and selling them quickly the people nearby.

"Yeah, me too," the rest of the girls chorused.  They grabbed the rest of his papes and quickly finished them off.  Within fifteen minutes, the four girls returned to Crutchy and handed him the money they had just made.

Crutchy looked at them, dazed.  Natalie looked at him with an innocent expression on her face and asked, "So where do you all go for dinner?  I'm starved."

TBC…