Disclaimer-I didn't steal the newsies! I swear I would never take Gabriel
Damon captive and hide him in my closet! Who would do that? ::suspicious
face::
A/N-Oh my God! It's an update!
Tease was sitting up in a bed in Brooklyn Lodging House. Everyone was dead. Her mother, Mary...the fire took them...her father had never come home. Samuel was in Manhattan and always had been. How many times had she looked at those boys as they bought papers and never noticed her brother? Now that she thought about, she blamed herself. She had shut down the day of the fire. She didn't even remember it anymore. She knew she had left...walked away, and ended up in Queens.
Hush little baby, don't say a word.
Mama's gonna buy you a mockingbird,
And if that Mockingbird don't sing...
Mama's gonna buy you a diamond ring.
Memories of her mother singing that to Sam as he fell asleep haunted her mind. 'How could I have left Sam?' She thought. 'I left him all alone with a dying Mary.'
Elizabeth closed her eyes and lay back down. She had to sell tomorrow and Spot would be angry if she couldn't.
"Get up Tease!" Spot grabbed her by the arms and pulled her out of the bed. "Ya gotta sell!"
She groaned and smacked at him until he let go. "I'm up!"
Spot rolled his eyes. "Sure ya are. Get ya ass up!"
She stood and slipped her suspenders back over her shoulders. Then she grabbed her gray cabby hat and ran down the steps, out the door to the distribution office.
Tease had seen the boys sell before so improving the truth was really no problem for her. There was a story about a girl being kidnapped which she turned into, "Brutal Murder on da train tracks. Girl's rottin' corpse found!"
Her fifty papes were gone by lunch and that left her time to see Snap. He was sitting on a crate focused intently on a man strolling through New York traffic. "Snap? You awright?"
His head shot up and he smiled. "Yeah I'se fine Beth. Just watchin'."
"Who was dat?"
"Who? Who was who?"
"Dat man you was watchin'!"
"Don't know what ya talkin' 'bout."
She frowned. He knew what she was talking about but he didn't want to say it. "Awright Sam. If you were in trouble ya'd tell me right?"
"Yeah, yeah sure..."
She sat down next to him. "So how'd ya end up a newsie, Sam?"
He smiled. "Aftah Mary died I got da neighbors an' told 'em dere was a fire at me house an' dat I'd meet 'em dere but I nevah did. I just left, walkin' in da same direction you did. I ended up in Queens and Jacky boy was a newsie dere before he was here. He found me an' I been a newsie since den."
His sister smirked. "Sounds like life has treated ya pretty good?"
"It was bettah wit Mama..."
"Everything was."
"Elizabeth...I nevah found Mama's body."
Tease's eyes widened. "What do ya think happened? It couldn't a' burned all da way, could it?"
"I don't think so...I mean, Beth, dere was nothin'! Only Mary cryin' in da frame of da closet. I picked her up an' her skin stuck ta my clothes when I put her down on da grass..."
Tease gagged. "Oh Sammy..."
"Listen Beth! She was sayin' somethin 'bout Dad bein in da city. She was babblin' 'bout Mama too. Said she wasn't dere. I thought she was crazy even though she was older den me."
"So Mama wasn't in da house? Where was she?"
"I don't know Beth! She ain't dead...she wasn't dere...she nevah was..." He ran his hands through his hair. "Why'd she leave me?"
"I don't know..." She tried to put her arm over Sam's shoulder but he stood up.
"No! Why'd you leave me?! Ya just ran off when ya saw Mary! Ya didn't even stop ta see if she was alive! Ya didn't care! You killed Mary!"
Elizabeth took a step backward. "I nevah touched Mary! I nevah killed no one!"
Snap was backing away. "Ya set da house on fire! You were playin' wit Mama's candles an' ya set da house on fire!"
"I nevah touched Mama's candles! I nevah killed no one..." Elizabeth was crying by then and she took one last look at her younger brother before running to Brooklyn.
Spot was on the porch of the Lodging house when she ran up the steps and past him. He saw the tears on her cheeks and followed. "Tease! Tease wait up!" He caught her arm.
"Let go a' me, Spot!"
"What happened? Why ya cryin'?"
"Nothin' happened!"
"Somethin' did an' I'm gonna find out from me boidies anyway so ya bettah just tell me."
"Sam said I caught da house on fire when it killed me family."
"Why would ya do dat?"
"He said I was playin' wit candles. My Mama's candles because she wasn't home. He said she ain't dead. She an' me faddah ain't dead. I didn't kill no one Spot!"
His head was spinning. "No, of course ya didn't." He placed an arm over her shoulders. "Ya didn't kill no one." But a headline from his first day as a newsie burnt in his mind. 'House fire kills 10-year-old girl. Arson suspected.'
Elizabeth was shaking and it was beginning to annoy Spot. He lean forward and kissed her. She froze. "Y-y-you just kissed me!"
"Yeah I did. So what?"
Elizabeth turned around and locked herself in her room without a word. Spot smirked. It wasn't something you got to do everyday...kiss a murderer.
Tease was sitting up in a bed in Brooklyn Lodging House. Everyone was dead. Her mother, Mary...the fire took them...her father had never come home. Samuel was in Manhattan and always had been. How many times had she looked at those boys as they bought papers and never noticed her brother? Now that she thought about, she blamed herself. She had shut down the day of the fire. She didn't even remember it anymore. She knew she had left...walked away, and ended up in Queens.
Hush little baby, don't say a word.
Mama's gonna buy you a mockingbird,
And if that Mockingbird don't sing...
Mama's gonna buy you a diamond ring.
Memories of her mother singing that to Sam as he fell asleep haunted her mind. 'How could I have left Sam?' She thought. 'I left him all alone with a dying Mary.'
Elizabeth closed her eyes and lay back down. She had to sell tomorrow and Spot would be angry if she couldn't.
"Get up Tease!" Spot grabbed her by the arms and pulled her out of the bed. "Ya gotta sell!"
She groaned and smacked at him until he let go. "I'm up!"
Spot rolled his eyes. "Sure ya are. Get ya ass up!"
She stood and slipped her suspenders back over her shoulders. Then she grabbed her gray cabby hat and ran down the steps, out the door to the distribution office.
Tease had seen the boys sell before so improving the truth was really no problem for her. There was a story about a girl being kidnapped which she turned into, "Brutal Murder on da train tracks. Girl's rottin' corpse found!"
Her fifty papes were gone by lunch and that left her time to see Snap. He was sitting on a crate focused intently on a man strolling through New York traffic. "Snap? You awright?"
His head shot up and he smiled. "Yeah I'se fine Beth. Just watchin'."
"Who was dat?"
"Who? Who was who?"
"Dat man you was watchin'!"
"Don't know what ya talkin' 'bout."
She frowned. He knew what she was talking about but he didn't want to say it. "Awright Sam. If you were in trouble ya'd tell me right?"
"Yeah, yeah sure..."
She sat down next to him. "So how'd ya end up a newsie, Sam?"
He smiled. "Aftah Mary died I got da neighbors an' told 'em dere was a fire at me house an' dat I'd meet 'em dere but I nevah did. I just left, walkin' in da same direction you did. I ended up in Queens and Jacky boy was a newsie dere before he was here. He found me an' I been a newsie since den."
His sister smirked. "Sounds like life has treated ya pretty good?"
"It was bettah wit Mama..."
"Everything was."
"Elizabeth...I nevah found Mama's body."
Tease's eyes widened. "What do ya think happened? It couldn't a' burned all da way, could it?"
"I don't think so...I mean, Beth, dere was nothin'! Only Mary cryin' in da frame of da closet. I picked her up an' her skin stuck ta my clothes when I put her down on da grass..."
Tease gagged. "Oh Sammy..."
"Listen Beth! She was sayin' somethin 'bout Dad bein in da city. She was babblin' 'bout Mama too. Said she wasn't dere. I thought she was crazy even though she was older den me."
"So Mama wasn't in da house? Where was she?"
"I don't know Beth! She ain't dead...she wasn't dere...she nevah was..." He ran his hands through his hair. "Why'd she leave me?"
"I don't know..." She tried to put her arm over Sam's shoulder but he stood up.
"No! Why'd you leave me?! Ya just ran off when ya saw Mary! Ya didn't even stop ta see if she was alive! Ya didn't care! You killed Mary!"
Elizabeth took a step backward. "I nevah touched Mary! I nevah killed no one!"
Snap was backing away. "Ya set da house on fire! You were playin' wit Mama's candles an' ya set da house on fire!"
"I nevah touched Mama's candles! I nevah killed no one..." Elizabeth was crying by then and she took one last look at her younger brother before running to Brooklyn.
Spot was on the porch of the Lodging house when she ran up the steps and past him. He saw the tears on her cheeks and followed. "Tease! Tease wait up!" He caught her arm.
"Let go a' me, Spot!"
"What happened? Why ya cryin'?"
"Nothin' happened!"
"Somethin' did an' I'm gonna find out from me boidies anyway so ya bettah just tell me."
"Sam said I caught da house on fire when it killed me family."
"Why would ya do dat?"
"He said I was playin' wit candles. My Mama's candles because she wasn't home. He said she ain't dead. She an' me faddah ain't dead. I didn't kill no one Spot!"
His head was spinning. "No, of course ya didn't." He placed an arm over her shoulders. "Ya didn't kill no one." But a headline from his first day as a newsie burnt in his mind. 'House fire kills 10-year-old girl. Arson suspected.'
Elizabeth was shaking and it was beginning to annoy Spot. He lean forward and kissed her. She froze. "Y-y-you just kissed me!"
"Yeah I did. So what?"
Elizabeth turned around and locked herself in her room without a word. Spot smirked. It wasn't something you got to do everyday...kiss a murderer.