Disclaimer: All of the original newsies belong to Disney, and the chapter quotes are from the poem "If-" which belongs to Rudyard Kipling and was copied out of Read-Aloud Poems for Young People. I own Leprechaun, Sweetheart, Sketch, Demon, Refugee, Pepper, Jungle, Trickster, Newsprint, Sparrow, Switchblade, James McLaws, and Benjamin "Bricks" Saunders. Ruby and Ketchy's is an actual diner near Morgantown, West Virginia.
A/N: Thanks to Morning Dew for the reviews---please continue! To anyone else reading this story: REVIEW, please! Thank you. BTW, I'm sorry it took so long to update, but I have had TONS of homework, plus a band contest Saturday (and we got a 1 rating, so we had to go celebrate by climbing all over the play place at Burger King).
"Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;"
* This chapter takes place on the same day as chapter three. *
Leprechaun awoke early from her makeshift bed on the floor of an abandoned warehouse in Queens. The bed was really just a blanket that she had taken with her from the Manhattan Lodging House and some straw that she found in the corner of the warehouse. Maybe it had been a stable at one time.
Leprechaun could hear the Queens newsies outside her window, singing and dancing as they headed for the distribution office. She would wait until they were gone---a few of the older ones might recognize her---and then walk back to the Manhattan Newsboys Lodging House. By then it would be empty, and she could leave a note for Kid Blink, her best friend, before heading toward Brooklyn to talk to her brother. She was a little scared of what Spot would do if he saw her, but she knew Demon would be worried. By now, the newsies would have figured out that she was neither at the Manhattan lodging house, nor with Spot in Brooklyn.
As the newsies' laughter died away, Leprechaun sneaked out of the warehouse, tucking her folded blanket under one arm and pulling her newsie cap low over her eyes. She would have to be careful not to run into anyone from Manhattan. Finally, Leprechaun entered the door of the boys' lodge. She prayed that Kloppman was in his room in the back, and, luckily, he was and didn't hear her as she crept up the steps to the main bunkroom. She tore off the edge of a newspaper that was laying on the floor and scrounged up a pencil stub from under Specs's bunk.
"Blink,
It's me, Lep. I'm safe---don't worry. I've been staying in Queens for a couple days. Now I'm going to Brooklyn---"
Leprechaun heard footsteps on the stairs. Quickly, she placed the note on Kid Blink's bunk and ran for the fire escape. Just as she got out the window, Kloppman entered the bunkroom.
"That's strange," he muttered, "I was sure I heard a noise up here."
As soon as Leprechaun reached the street, she started running. She had to avoid the newsies at all costs. Manhattan newsies would demand an explanation of her absence, and Brooklyn ones would probably soak her for kissing their leader. Unfortunately, Leprechaun was too wrapped up in her worries to pay attention to where she was going, and she tripped on an uneven cobblestone and fell---straight into Demon's arms.
"Leprechaun!" he exclaimed. "Where have you been?"
"Uh...nowhere special," she murmured, avoiding his eyes.
Demon stepped back and tipped her chin up with one hand, forcing her to look at him. "Where have you been?" he demanded.
"In Queens," she finally admitted. "But Demon, I don't wanna see Spot. Can't we just go talk for awhile?"
"All right," Demon conceded. "Let's go to Ruby and Ketchy's."
Around noon on the same day.
Because of a surprisingly good headline, Kid Blink finished selling early in the day and returned to the lodging house to relax and deposit his hard-earned pennies. He was the first newsie done, so he was alone when he found Leprechaun's note.
"Brooklyn!" Blink exclaimed. "So Race was right---she IS going to stay with Spot! I've got to go find her. We're all so worried about her, and look what she's done to Race!" Automatically, he left the lodging house, almost colliding with Jack.
"Lep's in Brooklyn!" he exclaimed.
"What?' Jack asked. "When I went to Brooklyn this morning, she wasn't there. Spot sent all his newsies out to look for her."
"She left me a note on my bunk saying she was going there. You must have just missed her," Blink said. "But I'm going to find her and get this whole kiss thing straightened out." With that, Blink began running toward Brooklyn.
"Spot!" he yelled when he reached the docks. "Spot!"
"What the...shut up Blink, I'm right here." Spot said, appearing from behind a stack of wooden crates. "What are you doing here, anyway? You're supposed to be selling in Manhattan."
"Where's Leprechaun?" Blink demanded.
"How should I know? She left two days ago!"
"Oh yeah? Then how come I got a note from her saying that she's coming to Brooklyn? And why else would she come to Brooklyn but to stay with you?"
"I don't know...to stay with her brother, ya think?" Spot suggested sarcastically.
"She's never come to stay with her brother before," Blink pointed out, standing directly in front of Spot.
"Well, she's definitely not coming to stay with me!" Spot declared.
"Oh yeah?" Blink shouted. Before Spot could say anything, Pepper appeared on the docks and pushed Blink out of her way.
"Sorry, Kid," she apologized. "But could I speak to Spot for a moment? Privately?"
"But Lep said she was coming back to Brooklyn..." Blink whined.
"I know. I just saw her at Ruby and Ketchy's with Demon. I'm sure she'd be delighted to talk to you there," Pepper said. "If you would..." Kid Blink turned and walked slowly off the docks.
"I've been hearing a lot about you and Leprechaun," Pepper said, taking a seat next to Spot on his perch.
"It's not true!" Spot exclaimed. "None of it's true! She was telling me about breaking up with Race, and then Race came to the docks to talk to me about Leprechaun, and then Leprechaun was sitting next to me, so he thought she was cheating on him with me, and then she got mad so she started kissing me and then...it's all HER fault, not mine!"
Pepper laughed. "Don't worry about it," she said. "I'm sure Blink will bring her back to Manhattan with him tonight, and I'll talk to her. And convince her to tell the truth."
"You can do that?" Spot wondered. "Nobody else has been able to."
"Of course I can," Pepper said. "I'm not the leader of Manhattan for nothing."
A/N: Thanks to Morning Dew for the reviews---please continue! To anyone else reading this story: REVIEW, please! Thank you. BTW, I'm sorry it took so long to update, but I have had TONS of homework, plus a band contest Saturday (and we got a 1 rating, so we had to go celebrate by climbing all over the play place at Burger King).
"Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;"
* This chapter takes place on the same day as chapter three. *
Leprechaun awoke early from her makeshift bed on the floor of an abandoned warehouse in Queens. The bed was really just a blanket that she had taken with her from the Manhattan Lodging House and some straw that she found in the corner of the warehouse. Maybe it had been a stable at one time.
Leprechaun could hear the Queens newsies outside her window, singing and dancing as they headed for the distribution office. She would wait until they were gone---a few of the older ones might recognize her---and then walk back to the Manhattan Newsboys Lodging House. By then it would be empty, and she could leave a note for Kid Blink, her best friend, before heading toward Brooklyn to talk to her brother. She was a little scared of what Spot would do if he saw her, but she knew Demon would be worried. By now, the newsies would have figured out that she was neither at the Manhattan lodging house, nor with Spot in Brooklyn.
As the newsies' laughter died away, Leprechaun sneaked out of the warehouse, tucking her folded blanket under one arm and pulling her newsie cap low over her eyes. She would have to be careful not to run into anyone from Manhattan. Finally, Leprechaun entered the door of the boys' lodge. She prayed that Kloppman was in his room in the back, and, luckily, he was and didn't hear her as she crept up the steps to the main bunkroom. She tore off the edge of a newspaper that was laying on the floor and scrounged up a pencil stub from under Specs's bunk.
"Blink,
It's me, Lep. I'm safe---don't worry. I've been staying in Queens for a couple days. Now I'm going to Brooklyn---"
Leprechaun heard footsteps on the stairs. Quickly, she placed the note on Kid Blink's bunk and ran for the fire escape. Just as she got out the window, Kloppman entered the bunkroom.
"That's strange," he muttered, "I was sure I heard a noise up here."
As soon as Leprechaun reached the street, she started running. She had to avoid the newsies at all costs. Manhattan newsies would demand an explanation of her absence, and Brooklyn ones would probably soak her for kissing their leader. Unfortunately, Leprechaun was too wrapped up in her worries to pay attention to where she was going, and she tripped on an uneven cobblestone and fell---straight into Demon's arms.
"Leprechaun!" he exclaimed. "Where have you been?"
"Uh...nowhere special," she murmured, avoiding his eyes.
Demon stepped back and tipped her chin up with one hand, forcing her to look at him. "Where have you been?" he demanded.
"In Queens," she finally admitted. "But Demon, I don't wanna see Spot. Can't we just go talk for awhile?"
"All right," Demon conceded. "Let's go to Ruby and Ketchy's."
Around noon on the same day.
Because of a surprisingly good headline, Kid Blink finished selling early in the day and returned to the lodging house to relax and deposit his hard-earned pennies. He was the first newsie done, so he was alone when he found Leprechaun's note.
"Brooklyn!" Blink exclaimed. "So Race was right---she IS going to stay with Spot! I've got to go find her. We're all so worried about her, and look what she's done to Race!" Automatically, he left the lodging house, almost colliding with Jack.
"Lep's in Brooklyn!" he exclaimed.
"What?' Jack asked. "When I went to Brooklyn this morning, she wasn't there. Spot sent all his newsies out to look for her."
"She left me a note on my bunk saying she was going there. You must have just missed her," Blink said. "But I'm going to find her and get this whole kiss thing straightened out." With that, Blink began running toward Brooklyn.
"Spot!" he yelled when he reached the docks. "Spot!"
"What the...shut up Blink, I'm right here." Spot said, appearing from behind a stack of wooden crates. "What are you doing here, anyway? You're supposed to be selling in Manhattan."
"Where's Leprechaun?" Blink demanded.
"How should I know? She left two days ago!"
"Oh yeah? Then how come I got a note from her saying that she's coming to Brooklyn? And why else would she come to Brooklyn but to stay with you?"
"I don't know...to stay with her brother, ya think?" Spot suggested sarcastically.
"She's never come to stay with her brother before," Blink pointed out, standing directly in front of Spot.
"Well, she's definitely not coming to stay with me!" Spot declared.
"Oh yeah?" Blink shouted. Before Spot could say anything, Pepper appeared on the docks and pushed Blink out of her way.
"Sorry, Kid," she apologized. "But could I speak to Spot for a moment? Privately?"
"But Lep said she was coming back to Brooklyn..." Blink whined.
"I know. I just saw her at Ruby and Ketchy's with Demon. I'm sure she'd be delighted to talk to you there," Pepper said. "If you would..." Kid Blink turned and walked slowly off the docks.
"I've been hearing a lot about you and Leprechaun," Pepper said, taking a seat next to Spot on his perch.
"It's not true!" Spot exclaimed. "None of it's true! She was telling me about breaking up with Race, and then Race came to the docks to talk to me about Leprechaun, and then Leprechaun was sitting next to me, so he thought she was cheating on him with me, and then she got mad so she started kissing me and then...it's all HER fault, not mine!"
Pepper laughed. "Don't worry about it," she said. "I'm sure Blink will bring her back to Manhattan with him tonight, and I'll talk to her. And convince her to tell the truth."
"You can do that?" Spot wondered. "Nobody else has been able to."
"Of course I can," Pepper said. "I'm not the leader of Manhattan for nothing."