Thanks to all the people who've been reviewing this sugary piece of crap! ;)
UPDATE: My internet finally works. So, expect more up quicker. The sooner i'm done with this, the sooner I'm starting with the next story and then on to the sequel to this one. Yay....or something.
And to the girl who asked (sorry I forget your s/n), no that's not the order in which these happen. Actually only Race and Mush get stories, but those are the newsies that are taken.
CHAPTER FOUR
Christmas
Winter was coming up fast in New York in 1894, a time of year all the newsies dreaded. They dreaded it not only for their insufficient winter clothes that kept them cold and wet all season, but for the entire Christmas season in general. Not many of them had ever celebrated a decent Christmas, much less had a visit from Santa Claus. More so than any other time of the year, watching families pass by together made them wish they were apart of one even more.
Fiona and Racetrack were out selling one afternoon near Christmas when the first snowflakes began to fall.
"Race! Its snowing." Fiona squealed excitedly, sticking out her tongue to catch a flake. Race merely smiled and pulled her coat more tightly around her so her thin frame wouldn't become too cold.
The snow conjured up images of Christmas with her mother for Fiona. It was never anything fancy, no presents, just a warm candle in the window to light Mary and Joseph's way and a long church service. On Christmas day, her mother always made her something special to eat and even Michael seemed happy that day and his gift to her was always letting her have Aine.
"What do you guys do around heah for Christmas?" she asked, looking at the rich kids pass by in their warm winter coats and the rich little girls asking their fathers for that beautiful doll in the window. "Does Santa Claus come visit you or does he fahget?"
Race looked down at his feet. In the orphanage, each orphan got one gift that had been donated to the establishment and the nuns told them Santa Claus brought them, always adding to Race that he was a lucky little boy for even getting a present because he "killed his mother". After he left the orphanage, Santa seemed to have abandoned him.
"Naw, he fahgets." He answered, squeezing her hand as he watched her green eyes drift to a beautiful, porcelin doll in the window.
Her eyes moved to his, knowing it was fruitless to even look at the doll. "He always fahgot me too. I wondah why he comes to some kids and not uddahs. We couldn't have been dat naughty."
He smiled a little. "I'm not shoa he even exists. Or maybe just rich kids see him 'cause dey get everything anyway."
She nodded in agreement and they began walking a few blocks in silence, selling a few newspapers on the way.
"Race? Whattaya want for Christmas?" she asked.
"Nothin'. I stopped thinkin' about it yeahs ago. What about you?"
"I nevah got presents befoah, so I'm used to it." she told him shrugging.
"We don't need Christmas anyway." Race told her confidently, but more for her benefit. He was aching just as much as she was to see a real Christmas.
She nodded and they walked along the road, selling and talking quietly. As Fiona sold a paper to a rich looking little girl, the girls father gave the little girl a quarter and she put it in Fiona's hand.
"Merry Christmas." she told her smiling and walked off with her father.
Race, who had seen the whole exchange looked at her seething mad.
"She only gave it ta me 'cause its Christmas." she told him flaring her nostrils and touching the quarter like it was dirty.
"Christmas should be moah dan once a yeah." Race said angrily. "Let's get rid of it somehow."
Fiona nodded and turned to her left seeing some graceful and some not so graceful people on rented ice skates, making circles on a frozen pond. She had never been able afford such a luxury and always wondered what it would be like to whizz by everyone, as light and feathery as a real angel.
"I know," she told him excitedly "we'll rent some skates and ice skate and then when we're done we can buy some hot chocolate."
Race smiled and nodded, liking the idea himself. Fiona proudly gave the lady her shiny quarter renting two pairs of skates. After she took them, she and Race sat down on the bench provided and tied the skates onto their shoes.
"Race...do you want anything from me for Christmas?" she asked double knotting her last lace.
"Naw...except sing for me on christmas. I love ya voice." he told her smiling.
"Aight, but you shoa you don't want somethin' real inexpensive?"
"Make me a card. I know you don't know how to write, but you could draw Christmas pictuahs on it and I'll know its from you 'cause I nevah got a card befoah. Da only time I evah did was in da orphanage and I didn't even know da poisin. I always wanted one from someone who meant somethin' to me." he answered, standing up unsteadily and holding her as well, making sure she didn't fall.
She nodded as she started out not feeling as graceful as she thought she would. "I'll throw in a suprise too."
"What can I get you?" he asked skating awkwardly himself.
"I dunno, I nevah got a present befoah, except Aine."
"I know just da thing." he told her, skating off.
They skated in silence for a few more moments, resembling more robots than graceful angels. The wind nipped at their faces, making their cheeks rosy and their noses just as red. After about 15 minutes, Fiona and Race decided to call it quits and sat down to remove their skates.
After removing her pair, Fiona laid down in the snow and made a snow angel, marking it hers by writing her name with a nearby twig. Her name was one of the few things she knew how to write.
"Did you evah get presents from Specs?" she asked adjusting Aine and turning in her skates.
"Naw, we can't afford shit, angel."
"I know. It would just be nice for something good to happen once to us." she answered tightening her scarf and heading towards Tibby's.
"Maybe somethin' will dis year." he offered, before entering Tibby's.
They ordered their hot chocolates and chit chatted about everything before Race volunteered that he was warm enough to leave. Fiona immediately wrapped Aine in her own coat.
"Can we sit here for a little longer? Her coat's real thin."
Race smiled and nodded. "For as long as Aine wants."
"Good." Fiona replied rocking the doll. She was covered in goosebumps and kept the doll closer to keep warm. "She gets cold real easily and she's got goosebumps. She's got thin Irish blood, just like me."
After a good hour, Fiona offered that she was warm enough and ready to trek back out into the cold. She replaced her hat, scarf and mittens and took his hand, holding her doll close as ever. As they narrowed the turn to the LH, a bundled up Dutchy appeared causing both of them to shrink in terror.
"Heya Fi! Can we talk to Race alone for a little bit?" he asked the thin framed child.
"Y-y-yeah." she stammered, scared as hell they would harm her best friend. She stepped away, watching from a distance just to make sure.
Dutchy grinned at Race for the first time in years.
"Heya Race...we were thinkin' about gettin' somethin' special for Fiona because we've been big joiks to her and you." he began, handing Race six dollars in change. "And so you don't think we'll take da money and run, you can buy her whatevah you want and say its from all a us. We all chipped in. We'll take her home for you."
Race smiled from ear to ear putting the money in his pocket.
"Thanks guys...she'll love it. Poor kid, she desoives a present too." he told them starting off to buy her that big warm coat he saw in the window of a fancy store. It had cost a whole $5 and he was sure he had caught her staring at it and imagining how warm it was.
*****
Race stole into her room on Christmas Eve. The boys had all made apologies to Fiona and being so desperate for someone to like her, she forgave them right away, even though their apologies were genuine. Race smiled at her and got in bed. It was a nightly ritual for him to read to her until she fell asleep, and tonight she had selected the first few chapters of St. Luke, the way her mother read to her every Christmas.
Smiling, Race put his arm around her and pulled the covers to their chins and read aloud the story of Mary and Joseph and the baby Jesus. As he read it, Fiona could almost hear the soft tones of her mother's voice as she tucked her in on Christmas night and reread the ancient tale. A few tears escaped the child's eyes and Race wiped them away without hesitation.
*****
The next morning, the two awoke in each other's arms, feeling like brother and sister. As soon as Fiona's eyes opened wide she smiled and jumped up pulling Race's presents from under her bed; a "special present" wrapped in newspaper and the card with random Christmas associated designs and on the inside a heart with the name "Fiona" scrawled messily.
After he was fully concious, she handed him his presents.
"Fi! You shouldn't have done this." he smiled ripping open the newspaper and finding a red homemade scarf.
"My mom taught me how to knit and I knew red was your favorite colah." she smiled hugging him.
He grinned and put it around his neck pretending to look dignified.
"I think everyone else is up, you wanna go down?"
She nodded and put on her coat as he smiled to himself. After being treated to a good breakfast for once from the nuns, Skittery looked to a large package on the hearth.
"Fiona...Santa left you somethin'."
Fiona's jaw dropped as she went over the package and teared it open. By then she knew full well it was the boys and not Santa, Santa didn't know she existed. She pulled out a beautiful ivory and maroon coat and almost started crying.
"Dis must've cost five dollahs! Thank you so much." she told them all, hugging them but not before putting it on and modeling it.
"Don't thank us, thank Santa." Dutchy said with a smile and a rare twinkle in his eye. "But dere is a special present from me and Skitt in dere."
Fiona nodded and pulled out another wrapped gift...it was a dress for Aine...a perfect fit and it just matched her coat. Underneath it was a note that she couldn't read, but Race read it for her. "We're sorry fah da way we acted. You ain't a baby. We hope dis makes up for it."
She smiled huge, dressed Aine in the dress and hugged them both. She finally fit in someone and had people who loved her.
UPDATE: My internet finally works. So, expect more up quicker. The sooner i'm done with this, the sooner I'm starting with the next story and then on to the sequel to this one. Yay....or something.
And to the girl who asked (sorry I forget your s/n), no that's not the order in which these happen. Actually only Race and Mush get stories, but those are the newsies that are taken.
CHAPTER FOUR
Christmas
Winter was coming up fast in New York in 1894, a time of year all the newsies dreaded. They dreaded it not only for their insufficient winter clothes that kept them cold and wet all season, but for the entire Christmas season in general. Not many of them had ever celebrated a decent Christmas, much less had a visit from Santa Claus. More so than any other time of the year, watching families pass by together made them wish they were apart of one even more.
Fiona and Racetrack were out selling one afternoon near Christmas when the first snowflakes began to fall.
"Race! Its snowing." Fiona squealed excitedly, sticking out her tongue to catch a flake. Race merely smiled and pulled her coat more tightly around her so her thin frame wouldn't become too cold.
The snow conjured up images of Christmas with her mother for Fiona. It was never anything fancy, no presents, just a warm candle in the window to light Mary and Joseph's way and a long church service. On Christmas day, her mother always made her something special to eat and even Michael seemed happy that day and his gift to her was always letting her have Aine.
"What do you guys do around heah for Christmas?" she asked, looking at the rich kids pass by in their warm winter coats and the rich little girls asking their fathers for that beautiful doll in the window. "Does Santa Claus come visit you or does he fahget?"
Race looked down at his feet. In the orphanage, each orphan got one gift that had been donated to the establishment and the nuns told them Santa Claus brought them, always adding to Race that he was a lucky little boy for even getting a present because he "killed his mother". After he left the orphanage, Santa seemed to have abandoned him.
"Naw, he fahgets." He answered, squeezing her hand as he watched her green eyes drift to a beautiful, porcelin doll in the window.
Her eyes moved to his, knowing it was fruitless to even look at the doll. "He always fahgot me too. I wondah why he comes to some kids and not uddahs. We couldn't have been dat naughty."
He smiled a little. "I'm not shoa he even exists. Or maybe just rich kids see him 'cause dey get everything anyway."
She nodded in agreement and they began walking a few blocks in silence, selling a few newspapers on the way.
"Race? Whattaya want for Christmas?" she asked.
"Nothin'. I stopped thinkin' about it yeahs ago. What about you?"
"I nevah got presents befoah, so I'm used to it." she told him shrugging.
"We don't need Christmas anyway." Race told her confidently, but more for her benefit. He was aching just as much as she was to see a real Christmas.
She nodded and they walked along the road, selling and talking quietly. As Fiona sold a paper to a rich looking little girl, the girls father gave the little girl a quarter and she put it in Fiona's hand.
"Merry Christmas." she told her smiling and walked off with her father.
Race, who had seen the whole exchange looked at her seething mad.
"She only gave it ta me 'cause its Christmas." she told him flaring her nostrils and touching the quarter like it was dirty.
"Christmas should be moah dan once a yeah." Race said angrily. "Let's get rid of it somehow."
Fiona nodded and turned to her left seeing some graceful and some not so graceful people on rented ice skates, making circles on a frozen pond. She had never been able afford such a luxury and always wondered what it would be like to whizz by everyone, as light and feathery as a real angel.
"I know," she told him excitedly "we'll rent some skates and ice skate and then when we're done we can buy some hot chocolate."
Race smiled and nodded, liking the idea himself. Fiona proudly gave the lady her shiny quarter renting two pairs of skates. After she took them, she and Race sat down on the bench provided and tied the skates onto their shoes.
"Race...do you want anything from me for Christmas?" she asked double knotting her last lace.
"Naw...except sing for me on christmas. I love ya voice." he told her smiling.
"Aight, but you shoa you don't want somethin' real inexpensive?"
"Make me a card. I know you don't know how to write, but you could draw Christmas pictuahs on it and I'll know its from you 'cause I nevah got a card befoah. Da only time I evah did was in da orphanage and I didn't even know da poisin. I always wanted one from someone who meant somethin' to me." he answered, standing up unsteadily and holding her as well, making sure she didn't fall.
She nodded as she started out not feeling as graceful as she thought she would. "I'll throw in a suprise too."
"What can I get you?" he asked skating awkwardly himself.
"I dunno, I nevah got a present befoah, except Aine."
"I know just da thing." he told her, skating off.
They skated in silence for a few more moments, resembling more robots than graceful angels. The wind nipped at their faces, making their cheeks rosy and their noses just as red. After about 15 minutes, Fiona and Race decided to call it quits and sat down to remove their skates.
After removing her pair, Fiona laid down in the snow and made a snow angel, marking it hers by writing her name with a nearby twig. Her name was one of the few things she knew how to write.
"Did you evah get presents from Specs?" she asked adjusting Aine and turning in her skates.
"Naw, we can't afford shit, angel."
"I know. It would just be nice for something good to happen once to us." she answered tightening her scarf and heading towards Tibby's.
"Maybe somethin' will dis year." he offered, before entering Tibby's.
They ordered their hot chocolates and chit chatted about everything before Race volunteered that he was warm enough to leave. Fiona immediately wrapped Aine in her own coat.
"Can we sit here for a little longer? Her coat's real thin."
Race smiled and nodded. "For as long as Aine wants."
"Good." Fiona replied rocking the doll. She was covered in goosebumps and kept the doll closer to keep warm. "She gets cold real easily and she's got goosebumps. She's got thin Irish blood, just like me."
After a good hour, Fiona offered that she was warm enough and ready to trek back out into the cold. She replaced her hat, scarf and mittens and took his hand, holding her doll close as ever. As they narrowed the turn to the LH, a bundled up Dutchy appeared causing both of them to shrink in terror.
"Heya Fi! Can we talk to Race alone for a little bit?" he asked the thin framed child.
"Y-y-yeah." she stammered, scared as hell they would harm her best friend. She stepped away, watching from a distance just to make sure.
Dutchy grinned at Race for the first time in years.
"Heya Race...we were thinkin' about gettin' somethin' special for Fiona because we've been big joiks to her and you." he began, handing Race six dollars in change. "And so you don't think we'll take da money and run, you can buy her whatevah you want and say its from all a us. We all chipped in. We'll take her home for you."
Race smiled from ear to ear putting the money in his pocket.
"Thanks guys...she'll love it. Poor kid, she desoives a present too." he told them starting off to buy her that big warm coat he saw in the window of a fancy store. It had cost a whole $5 and he was sure he had caught her staring at it and imagining how warm it was.
*****
Race stole into her room on Christmas Eve. The boys had all made apologies to Fiona and being so desperate for someone to like her, she forgave them right away, even though their apologies were genuine. Race smiled at her and got in bed. It was a nightly ritual for him to read to her until she fell asleep, and tonight she had selected the first few chapters of St. Luke, the way her mother read to her every Christmas.
Smiling, Race put his arm around her and pulled the covers to their chins and read aloud the story of Mary and Joseph and the baby Jesus. As he read it, Fiona could almost hear the soft tones of her mother's voice as she tucked her in on Christmas night and reread the ancient tale. A few tears escaped the child's eyes and Race wiped them away without hesitation.
*****
The next morning, the two awoke in each other's arms, feeling like brother and sister. As soon as Fiona's eyes opened wide she smiled and jumped up pulling Race's presents from under her bed; a "special present" wrapped in newspaper and the card with random Christmas associated designs and on the inside a heart with the name "Fiona" scrawled messily.
After he was fully concious, she handed him his presents.
"Fi! You shouldn't have done this." he smiled ripping open the newspaper and finding a red homemade scarf.
"My mom taught me how to knit and I knew red was your favorite colah." she smiled hugging him.
He grinned and put it around his neck pretending to look dignified.
"I think everyone else is up, you wanna go down?"
She nodded and put on her coat as he smiled to himself. After being treated to a good breakfast for once from the nuns, Skittery looked to a large package on the hearth.
"Fiona...Santa left you somethin'."
Fiona's jaw dropped as she went over the package and teared it open. By then she knew full well it was the boys and not Santa, Santa didn't know she existed. She pulled out a beautiful ivory and maroon coat and almost started crying.
"Dis must've cost five dollahs! Thank you so much." she told them all, hugging them but not before putting it on and modeling it.
"Don't thank us, thank Santa." Dutchy said with a smile and a rare twinkle in his eye. "But dere is a special present from me and Skitt in dere."
Fiona nodded and pulled out another wrapped gift...it was a dress for Aine...a perfect fit and it just matched her coat. Underneath it was a note that she couldn't read, but Race read it for her. "We're sorry fah da way we acted. You ain't a baby. We hope dis makes up for it."
She smiled huge, dressed Aine in the dress and hugged them both. She finally fit in someone and had people who loved her.