Swan seemed to sense her question, "We got the whole thing to ourselves. This is definitely better than the way we came out, ain't it Kit?"
Kit shrugged before turning her attention out the window. She watched the other passengers board, every one seemed excited to leave the City. Kit wondered where they were going and how anyone could bare to leave the City she had grown to feel was her home.
Mills was putting some of the luggage in the rack above Kit's head when some of it slipped. "Kit watch out." She ducked her head, covering it, which broke her attention from the window as two people, boarded the train in the car ahead of them. "Kit youse okay?" Mills sat down next to her friend.
"Yeah nothing broken. Here let me help you get those up there, I am taller." Kit pasted a fake smile on as she stood up taking the boxes from the shorter girl and placing them on the rack and securing them, "I don't need them to come down on my head now do I?"
"Nope," Kit sat back down, but Mills remained standing. The train moved and Mills ended up falling into Cray's lap. "You know hun, if you wanted to sit in my lap you only had to ask." Cray teased Mills as he leaned over and kissed her.
"Hey there are two other people in this compartment. Please refrain from the kissing." Swan spoke mischievously. Kit smiled but it didn't reach her eyes. She went back to looking out the window as she watched the City she called home pass. Mills did get off Cray's lap and went to sit by Kit again. She pulled out some yarn and a needle from the bag she had purposefully left on the floor and began to work on something. Cray and Swan started to talk between the two about the prospect of going home. Kit continued to stare forlornly out the window wishing to be back on the street selling her papes for a penny a piece.
Spot and Tack didn't move a muscle as they slept. The conductor came by and woke Spot for their tickets about an hour into their trip but didn't bug them afterwards. They slept through the most of the stops in New York. Waking only when the conductor came through calling out the first of many Pennsylvania stops. They both got up to stretch their legs and walk around a bit.
"So what are we going to do Spot?" Tack said after they had gotten resettled.
"Well this here train only goes to Chicago. Wes gonna have to figure out a way to get more money. Wes don't have much more."
"The twins don't know the trains only go to Chicago. They is gonna get lost and wes never gonna find them." Tack started to panic, Spot looked at her.
"Tack wes gonna find them before that. What wes gotta do is get off at every stop and ask if anyone seen 4 little kids get off any trains. And then leave them this Jeremy guy's name and have them telegram us if they find them." Spot tried to calm the girl. "But right now wes need money and Ise got no idea how to get it."
Tack sniffled, "Well...we could always play poker with men or something."
"Nah that would get us kicked off quicker than youse could say papes. That won't work."
Tack sat and thought, till she remembered the bag that Kosei had given them. "Spot what's in the bag Mr. Kosei gave to you?"
"Ise don't know...maybe some food or something." Spot shrugged as he reached for the bag, "Here youse open it." He gave it to Tack then looked out the window.
Tack opened the bag and looked inside. She pulled on Spot's sleeve to get his attention. "Spot look at this." She held open the bag and Spot looked inside. Neither had been prepared for what they saw and both looked into the bag shocked and just a bit happier than the moment before.
The children slept comfortably for a long time. They were the only ones in the car and what ever was being transported wasn't going to any of the stops that the train had made so far. It was Two Bit who woke up first. She slowly crawled over to Jolly and shook him. When he opened his eyes she said "I hungry."
Jolly stared at her stupidly, "Go tell Tack."
Two Bit shook him again, "Tack not here. I hungry." Her voice was annoyingly cheerful.
"Go tell Spot then." Jolly said turning over to his side and tried to fall back asleep.
"No Spot. No Tack. No anyone. I hungry." Two Bit went and knelt down in front of him. She took his cheeks in her hands and began to push them together. "I hungry I hungry I hungry." The sing song tune combined with the pushing on his face caused Jolly to finally sit up.
He took the small girl into his arms and set her on his lap, finally remember where they were. "Listen Two Bit Ise don't got any food. Youse just gonna have to wait till wes can get some `kay?"
Two Bit pursed her lips, "`Kay. Play with me?" She looked at him with her eyes saddened.
"Fine what youse want to play?" Jolly asked trying not to wake the other two kids, he didn't need them asking for food too.
"Horsie. Play horsie." Two Bit clapped her hands together.
Jolly tried not to groan as he got down on his hands and knees and Two Bit climbed on. She dug her heals into his ribs causing him to wince. He walked around on his hands and knees trying to entertain the little girl and also wondering why they had brought her along.
After a couple trips around the boxcar Jolly's knees were getting tired, it was time to move onto something else. He gently dropped Two Bit to the straw covered floor where she laid giggling. "More Jolly."
"No, lets wake up Bait and Lacy `kay?" Two Bit sat up and nodded.
They softly went over to where the other two were sleeping. Two Bit went over to Bait and began to shake him, "Up Bait. Time to get up. I hungry." She started her mantra over again. Bait groaned but sat up. Lacy some how had slept through all the noise and mayhem. The boys decided to let Two Bit wake up her sister in that she had already woken them up. They went over on the other side of the boxes to talk.
"So what's youse plan Jolly?" Bait asked rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
"Ise guess wes go as far as we can. Hopefully wes can get out of here to get some food."
"Yeah food would be good." Bait agreed.
"Hey Bait, what is in these boxes?" Lacy came around the stack of boxes.
"How am Ise gonna know Ise can't see through wood." "Yeah but there is something written on them." Lacy pointed to the stamp mark on the side she was looking at.
Both Jolly and Bait looked at the box. "So what does it say?" Lacy looked at them expectantly, Two Bit was at her side with her thumb in her mouth.
"It says crackers. Hey wes can eat those." Bait's eyes lit with joy, they had found food.
"Yeah but who wants to eat them when wes don't got anything to drink." Jolly pointed out.
"Don't ruin it Jolly wes got food." Bait shot a pointed look in Jolly's general direction, "Wes got half of our problem solved. Wonder what's in the rest of these boxes." Bait began climbing on the boxes reading the sides.
"Hmm this is cloth, this one's some sort of containers. Well if it rains we got something to collect it in." He pulled at the top of the crate but it wouldn't come up. "Jolly is there something down there Ise can use to pry the lids off?"
Jolly searched around shuffling his feet under the hay. He finally hit something, and pulled it up. It was a piece of metal with a sort of sharp tip. "This work?" He held it up for Bait to examine.
"It'll do. Here give it too me and Ise get us our crackers and something to collect rain in for water." Bait reached down for it. He took it and began prying off the lids and taking out a couple of the milk cans, which is what they were. He put the lid back on and then went to the crate with the crackers. He repeated the procedure with that box. When he climbed down they now had food and something to drink from if it ever rained. They all sat down munching on the crackers pondering their next move.