Disclaimer: I don't own anyone from Newsies. Elisive and Slip are mine,
though, and that makes me oh-so-incredibly happy.
CHAPTER FOUR: Smile
Elusive walked out of the alley, wearing pants and an old shirt of Slipknots, braiding her hair and not paying attention to where she was going. She bumped into an old business-like man and grabbed his coat to catch her balance.
"I'm sorry sir." She said quickly. "It's my fault. I didn't hurt you or your wife, did I?"
"No." the man smiled. "We're quite alright."
She turned to walk away and a smile grew on her face when she heard the man's wife remark "What a sweet little girl."
Elusive opened her hand, revealing a bag of change in her palm. It was way too easy. She finished her braids and continued walking down the street as she pocketed the money.
"Extry! Extry! Read all about it! Ellis Island in flames!" she heard a newsie call out as she passed a fighting ring.
She rolled her eyes. She had read the paper this morning.there goes another newsie 'fixing' the headlines. She smiled. Sounds like something I'd do.
Of course, she couldn't do that. Newsies were boys, they only hired boys, and the girls went off to work in factories. What fun. Guys get to stand out in the sun, and girls crawled between machines and spun cloth, getting hair caught, fingers cut off and all having a fun ol' time.
Luckily, she thought to herself, I'm gifted. I don't need to work. I'm fine investin' in people's pockets. No one would hire me anyway, not a runaway orphan like me.
Her breath caught in her throat as she stopped and stared at a particular newsie. Her brain numbed and she lost thought of anything about investing or business, all she could think about was Wow.
"'Ey 'Lusive."
Elusive jumped, then turned and glared at Slipknot. "D'ya foind joy in scarin' me to death ev'ry day?"
"Ah, yas ain't dead, 'Lusive. Whatcha doin?" he said suddenly, changing the subject and looking where she had been staring just moments before.
"Oooooh." He grinned. "Little Elusive's gots a crush."
"No I don't" she snapped. "I don't ev'n know 'im. An' I don' get 'crushes'"
"Yes, you'se do." He grinned. "You had a crush on me when yas moved 'ere."
"Yeah," she growled, "Well then I gots ta know yas."
"Anyway, stay aways from 'im." Slipknot said, suddenly stern. "We'se don' loike newsies."
"We don'?" she asked. Well, that's news.
"No, we'se don'."
"An' why not?"
"Cause." Slipknot said as if he were speaking to a small child. "As long as they're out here makin' a livin' for themselves, we're frown'd 'pon an' nuddin'll ever changer fer us. As long as da newsies are bein' good, we's crooks just by keepin' ourselves alive."
"An' dat's my shirt. I told yas ta stay outta my stuff, kiddo."
He stalked off, leaving Elusive there. I don't like being told what to do, she growled inside her thoughts, I should go talk to him right now. She took a step towards the newsie, then stopped as butterflies sprouted in her stomach. Or maybe I'll just do it another day.
And she bolted in the other direction.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
She walked down the street an hour later, still berating herself. She kept her eyes on her feet and her hand on the pouch of money she stole- it wouldn't do any good to have another pickpocket steal it. She crashed into someone else, but this time it wasn't intentional.
She looked up into the blue eye of the newsie from before, and as he smiled she lost any coherent thought that ever flittered through her brain.
""Ey." He smiled sweetly at her.
"Uh..'ey." she said meekly, forcing out anything at all.
"Whatcha doin' 'ere?" he asked innocently.
"Uh.um..I.uh.hey." she stuttered.
He smiled wider and tried again. "They call me Kid Blink. Who are you."
"Uh..I..ummm." Say something, you stupid girl! Say anything! she screamed to herself.
"What happened to your eye?" she blurted out, then felt heat rise to her face as she blushed.
Anything but that.
Smooth move, Kelly.
"That's my little secret." He said, still smiling. God, he's have to stop doing that before she melted into a puddle. Turning her eyes away, she tried talking again.
"So. You'se a newsie."
Very observant, you bonehead.
"Yup. You'se work at a factory or somethin'?"
She turned to look at him again and got struck dumb once more. "Nah, I'm a pickpocket."
I am such an idiot.
"I mean." she started, turning redder than she was before
He just smiled sweetly.
"Stop it!" she snapped.
His smile left. "Stop what?" he asked, taking a step back.
"Stop yer smilin'! Oi can't think a stinkin' thought an' I'm gonna end up walkin' straight off da Brooklyn Bridge and wid'ot realizin' it! So please, stop smilin'!" She exclaimed, close to hysterics.
Perhaps that wasn't smart to say either, Elusive.
Damn, how does Hawkeyes talk to gorgeous guys without goin' ta pieces?, she cursed the unfairness of life.
"So you'se a flash-man- I mean, flash-woman.er.flash-poirsen." He corrected himself.
She was tempted to answer: No, my sister's a flash-woman, but bit her tongue before anything else stupid came out.
"Uh-huh."
"You'se don' woirk in a fact'ry?"
"Nope."
Great, stupid, you sound real intelligent. Why don't you mention to him that you have a foot or something. She thought dryly.
"Oi haf a foot." She blurted out.
Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.
He raised an eyebrow. "What?"
"Uh- I can't woirk at a fact'ry."
"Well, maybe if you wanna turn respectable or sumthin', maybe you'se would wanna come to da Woild Buildin' tomorrah and maybe sell papes.wit me.if you'se loikes."
She just opened her mouth, then closed it, then opened it again.
Great, Elusive, first you're an idiot now you'se doin' terrible fish impression. Real striking.
"Dey don' 'ire goils." She said.
"I didn' say apply foir a jub, oi said.'elp me. Keep me company, an' if anyone passes widout buyin' a pape, you'se can take dey're penny or somthin'" he said, trying to crack a joke.
"Ah.um.oi'll think 'bout it."
Good you're learning something.
She turned to leave but as her senses returned as Kid Blink left her vision, she felt something familiar in her hands.
"'Ere." She said, grabbing his hand and putting his money in. "Sorry. Reflex."
And she darted away down the street.
CHAPTER FOUR: Smile
Elusive walked out of the alley, wearing pants and an old shirt of Slipknots, braiding her hair and not paying attention to where she was going. She bumped into an old business-like man and grabbed his coat to catch her balance.
"I'm sorry sir." She said quickly. "It's my fault. I didn't hurt you or your wife, did I?"
"No." the man smiled. "We're quite alright."
She turned to walk away and a smile grew on her face when she heard the man's wife remark "What a sweet little girl."
Elusive opened her hand, revealing a bag of change in her palm. It was way too easy. She finished her braids and continued walking down the street as she pocketed the money.
"Extry! Extry! Read all about it! Ellis Island in flames!" she heard a newsie call out as she passed a fighting ring.
She rolled her eyes. She had read the paper this morning.there goes another newsie 'fixing' the headlines. She smiled. Sounds like something I'd do.
Of course, she couldn't do that. Newsies were boys, they only hired boys, and the girls went off to work in factories. What fun. Guys get to stand out in the sun, and girls crawled between machines and spun cloth, getting hair caught, fingers cut off and all having a fun ol' time.
Luckily, she thought to herself, I'm gifted. I don't need to work. I'm fine investin' in people's pockets. No one would hire me anyway, not a runaway orphan like me.
Her breath caught in her throat as she stopped and stared at a particular newsie. Her brain numbed and she lost thought of anything about investing or business, all she could think about was Wow.
"'Ey 'Lusive."
Elusive jumped, then turned and glared at Slipknot. "D'ya foind joy in scarin' me to death ev'ry day?"
"Ah, yas ain't dead, 'Lusive. Whatcha doin?" he said suddenly, changing the subject and looking where she had been staring just moments before.
"Oooooh." He grinned. "Little Elusive's gots a crush."
"No I don't" she snapped. "I don't ev'n know 'im. An' I don' get 'crushes'"
"Yes, you'se do." He grinned. "You had a crush on me when yas moved 'ere."
"Yeah," she growled, "Well then I gots ta know yas."
"Anyway, stay aways from 'im." Slipknot said, suddenly stern. "We'se don' loike newsies."
"We don'?" she asked. Well, that's news.
"No, we'se don'."
"An' why not?"
"Cause." Slipknot said as if he were speaking to a small child. "As long as they're out here makin' a livin' for themselves, we're frown'd 'pon an' nuddin'll ever changer fer us. As long as da newsies are bein' good, we's crooks just by keepin' ourselves alive."
"An' dat's my shirt. I told yas ta stay outta my stuff, kiddo."
He stalked off, leaving Elusive there. I don't like being told what to do, she growled inside her thoughts, I should go talk to him right now. She took a step towards the newsie, then stopped as butterflies sprouted in her stomach. Or maybe I'll just do it another day.
And she bolted in the other direction.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
She walked down the street an hour later, still berating herself. She kept her eyes on her feet and her hand on the pouch of money she stole- it wouldn't do any good to have another pickpocket steal it. She crashed into someone else, but this time it wasn't intentional.
She looked up into the blue eye of the newsie from before, and as he smiled she lost any coherent thought that ever flittered through her brain.
""Ey." He smiled sweetly at her.
"Uh..'ey." she said meekly, forcing out anything at all.
"Whatcha doin' 'ere?" he asked innocently.
"Uh.um..I.uh.hey." she stuttered.
He smiled wider and tried again. "They call me Kid Blink. Who are you."
"Uh..I..ummm." Say something, you stupid girl! Say anything! she screamed to herself.
"What happened to your eye?" she blurted out, then felt heat rise to her face as she blushed.
Anything but that.
Smooth move, Kelly.
"That's my little secret." He said, still smiling. God, he's have to stop doing that before she melted into a puddle. Turning her eyes away, she tried talking again.
"So. You'se a newsie."
Very observant, you bonehead.
"Yup. You'se work at a factory or somethin'?"
She turned to look at him again and got struck dumb once more. "Nah, I'm a pickpocket."
I am such an idiot.
"I mean." she started, turning redder than she was before
He just smiled sweetly.
"Stop it!" she snapped.
His smile left. "Stop what?" he asked, taking a step back.
"Stop yer smilin'! Oi can't think a stinkin' thought an' I'm gonna end up walkin' straight off da Brooklyn Bridge and wid'ot realizin' it! So please, stop smilin'!" She exclaimed, close to hysterics.
Perhaps that wasn't smart to say either, Elusive.
Damn, how does Hawkeyes talk to gorgeous guys without goin' ta pieces?, she cursed the unfairness of life.
"So you'se a flash-man- I mean, flash-woman.er.flash-poirsen." He corrected himself.
She was tempted to answer: No, my sister's a flash-woman, but bit her tongue before anything else stupid came out.
"Uh-huh."
"You'se don' woirk in a fact'ry?"
"Nope."
Great, stupid, you sound real intelligent. Why don't you mention to him that you have a foot or something. She thought dryly.
"Oi haf a foot." She blurted out.
Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.
He raised an eyebrow. "What?"
"Uh- I can't woirk at a fact'ry."
"Well, maybe if you wanna turn respectable or sumthin', maybe you'se would wanna come to da Woild Buildin' tomorrah and maybe sell papes.wit me.if you'se loikes."
She just opened her mouth, then closed it, then opened it again.
Great, Elusive, first you're an idiot now you'se doin' terrible fish impression. Real striking.
"Dey don' 'ire goils." She said.
"I didn' say apply foir a jub, oi said.'elp me. Keep me company, an' if anyone passes widout buyin' a pape, you'se can take dey're penny or somthin'" he said, trying to crack a joke.
"Ah.um.oi'll think 'bout it."
Good you're learning something.
She turned to leave but as her senses returned as Kid Blink left her vision, she felt something familiar in her hands.
"'Ere." She said, grabbing his hand and putting his money in. "Sorry. Reflex."
And she darted away down the street.