Disclaimer- I OWN MUSH!!! HE IS MY VERY OWN PERSONAL PLAY MATE!!! Haha, along with Sprite. He's her's too. Yeah. You know what's what.

Shouts-
Spark- Ya know, I bet that Sprite -will- be too caught up in Aaron and Mush to worry 'bout Race. Whahoo.

Priscilla- That's quite interesting... I wonder if they -are- trustworthy... *grins*

Soaker- Glad you like it! Yeah, I tried to write what she meant said in English as well... I'll try to make it more clear. *smiles* Just for the record- "Ha chiudeto su"= Shut up. "Ciò è che ho pensato"= That's what I thought. "Sedici"= Sixteen. Hope that helps a bit.

Firecracker- DAMN SPRITE!! (haha, just kidding hun.) But, yeah, uh... yeah.

Sprite- YOU NEED TO UPDATE!!! I'm so very very ansy! Haha, c'mon goil!!

*passes around flourless chocolate cake*

So... Hold on tight, cause here we go!

-L'Amo-

1898. Benna stifled a laugh. She would have never thought, in a million years, that anyone, let alone her, could warp time. Time warp. 'Let's do the time warp, again...'

"Watcha thinkin' 'bout?" Benna looked up and saw Sprite staring at her expectantly. Apparently Benna had had that dreamy, dazed look on her face, which she got when her mind was off in thought. She smiled.

"Nothin' really. Just..." she looked around, thinking of something. "...Where you got that dress," she finally said, looking at the very plain blue ensemble Sprite was wearing. Sprite smiled and pulled at her dress.

"Oh, this ol' thing? It's one old me old ones." She leaned in towards the table, motioning Benna to do the same. She did. "I try to wear me old stuff when I come ta see the boys. I feel so outta place wearin' all that frilly garbage." Benna nodded in understanding, leaning back. "I like yer clothes, though. I wish me fauda would let me wear those kinds a clothes. But, he don't like the thought a me still bein' a newsie. Say's it's bad fer 'is image." She looked down at the table. Benna realized what was wrong. She missed being a newsie. She thought it better to change the subject.

"So I hear ya like Mush," she said, motioning to the boy sitting near her, deep in talk with Racetrack, Cowboy, and all the others. Sprite smiled.

"Well, I wouldn' say 'like' e'zacly... Wese just real good friends. He's the first newsie I met when I bacame one. He showed me what ta do, and how ta do it." She moved her gazed over to the boys strong body. "But I dunno... Maybe wese gonna grow ta be more than just friends. I know I wouldn' mind." She smiled and looked back at Benna. Benna smiled back. 'That's so sweet...' she thought, seeing the bright smile on Sprites face. "So wudda 'bout you, you keen on any one a these blokes in particular?" she asked, grinning. Benna sat for a moment, figuring that Mush would have told Sprite about 'her and Fowl'. 'Wait, that make Mush seem like a pansy. 'Course he wouldn't tell the girl he liked about that.' She shrugged through a small smile.

"I've only been here a few hours," she said, laughing slightly. Sprite shrugged.

"But still, ya gotta 'ave a preference..." She gave her those 'come on...' eyes. Benna shrugged.

"I don't really know 'em all that well. 'Cept Fowl an' Snipe," she said, motioning her elbow towards the two, who were both talking to one another. Sprite sat up in her chair more.

"You like one a dem?" Benna raised her eyebrows.

"Well, Snipes a little young for me. And Fowl... I dunno, I never gave it much thought. I like him a lot, that's for sure. He's real sweet 'n all. " she said, looking over at Fowl, on her right. Sprite raised her brows as well..

"Yeah? So? Ya gonna get wid' 'im?" she asked anxiously. Benna smiled.

"I don't think so. I don't think I'll be getting with -anyone- in reality." Sprite made a face.

"Well, why not?" Benna shrugged. Could she really tell her that she was from the future and that she had no idea as to when she would be going back? 'Haha, yeah right. She'd think I'd inhaled one too many ink fumes.'

"I dunno, I just don't. I'm... I'm not the kind of girl that guys go for." Sprite made yet another face.

"What makes ya say that?" Benna shrugged. She really didn't feel like having this conversation. Mainly because, guys had never looked her way before. She wasn't pretty, she wasn't popular, funny, smart, or anything that would get people to notice her. She was just a one of a kind, 15 year old dreamer. Nothing special. Or, so she'd always believed. "Well?" Benna looked up from the table.

"Cause, I'm... I'm not. That's all there is to it. Hey, are you gonna finish those?" she said, turning to Fowl. He had a few chips still left on his plate. He smiled at her and handed them over. Benna ate them, concentrating on them alone, ignoring the voices and small talk around her.

Sprite sighed and turned to Mush, to join in their conversation.

After everyone was finished with their dinner, most of them headed back to the lodging house. As Benna walked in the door, she smiled at Kloppman, who had waved. He smiled back, but was soon blocked from Benna's vision by Cowboy, Racetrack, Boots, Sprite, Mush, and a few other older newsies, rushing up to talk to him. Benna shrugged and followed Fowl and Snipe up the stairs.

"So, dis is wheah wese all sleep," Fowl told her, holding his arms out around him. Benna smiled at the quant bunkroom, strewn with clothing and spare shoes. She walked into the bathroom, which was almost as messy as the previous room. The sinks were still wet and filled with old shaving cream and soap, and there was an odd smell to it that Benna decided not to try and figure out the source of. She walked back into the bunkroom, followed closely by the other two, who seemed to be waiting for her approval. She smiled at them and looked around once more. 'It mush be so nice, having so many friends, and people to hang out with all the time...' she thought to herself. She had never had that thought before, which shocked her. She had never cared whether or not she had a posse. She didn't care if people liked her. Why was she suddenly?

'Fermarlo,' she told herself. She paused for about the fifth time that day. 'I guess I better get used to me speaking Italiano, it seems to be quite clear that I'm not gonna stop...' Once again, she had meant to say something, and it had come out in Italian. She sighed.

"So, whatcha t'ink?" Fowl asked, snapping her out of another trance. She smiled at them and nodded.

"I like it," she told them, grinning. They smiled and turned, heading back downstairs.

As soon as she entered the lobby, all the boys in the room, who were still congregated around Kloppman, turned around and smiled abruptly. Benna lowered her eyebrows, a little confused, and gave a small smile back. 'Whats up with all 'a them?' Befrore she could ask this, Kloppman said something to all of them, that she couldn't quite hear, but she was sure it was along the lines of 'Wait till later.' She looked at Fowl and Snipe, who both had the same look of confusion as well. She shrugged as all of them parted, heading up to the bunkroom for, as they mumbled, a game of poker. Benna walked over to Kloppman, who smiled again.

"You stayin' heah tanight, den, Miss?" he asked, his eyes gleaming. She smiled at him.

"Yeah, I guess so." 'I guess I'm not going home tonight...' Kloppman smiled and nodded.

"Same bed alrigh' witcha?"

"Yeah," Benna replied with a smile. "Thank you."

"Any time." Benna was about to ask him about the others, and if he knew why they were acting so strang, but decided not to. 'You know what, I really don't care. Whatever they want to know, they can ask me themselves.' "Why dun ya go up ta bed now, eh? You still look real beat." She smiled at him, nodding.

"I guess I will. See you tomorrow." She turned to Fowl and Snipe, who had heard the whole conversation. "G'night," she said, walking to the guestroom she had slept in a few hours ago. She layed down on the bed, forgetting everything. 'This is crazy...'

Well, that's that. Oooh, suspense. Muahaha. Flourless chocolate cake to reviewers.

Translations:
Fermarlo- Stop it.