Ah! I know it's been long. But I'm in a slump... And this is my attempt at getting out of it. I really hope it works, because I love this story, and I don't want it to end so soon. Ah. Alright, then.
-The Second-Story Man's Guild
Artemis wasn't really much of a morning person. She woke slowly, glaring at Aqua and Nova, two of the young'ins. They were running around the mess of girls on the floor, laughing and talking loudly as they played.
Artemis was muscular sixteen-year-old with choppy, dark brown hair and gray, almond-shaped eyes. She stood at about 5'5, a bit taller than the other girls in the Guild. Artemis was another one of the oldest members of the Guild. She'd met the Kat on a crowded street in the Bronx about two years ago, and Kat took her to the Thief Lord straight away. Artemis was the best pick pocket out of the whole Guild, only second to the Thief Lord.
Holding herself up on her elbows, Artemis scanned the brightening room. To her left sat Mayfly, still sound asleep despite the noise. To her right was a mess brownish red hair, with one green eye scanning the room. Artemis smirked.
"Have a good night, Empress?"
The mess of hair looked over at Artemis. Slowly, Empress pulled her long hair back into a pony-tail, groaning at Artemis.
Empress was a newer member of the Guild, though her and Artemis had instantly become friends. Empress Had a bit more education than some of the other Guild members, which meant that she knew how to read and write. She didn't much like to talk about her past. She would often times be seen writing letters to people, but no one knew, or even bothered asking who they were for.
Milkshake crossed the room and sat down beside Mayfly, nudging her with her hand. "Wake up, you," she mumbled.
Mayfly looked up at Milkshake with sudden wide-eyes and sat up. "Sleep well, ladies?" she asked the other three, smirking at them.
Kat threw her pillow at Mayfly from the other side of the room.
After a few laughs, the girls tossed their blankets and pillows to the side as they changed for the day. Milkshake walked over to Miracle and pocked her in the side. "You wanna go out together today?" she asked, raising a brow.
Miracle swatted her hand away. "Don't poke me," she said, kicking her blanket away.
Milkshake glared at Miracle. "What the Hell is your problem?" she said loudly, causing the other girls the look over at the two.
Miracle straightened up, facing Milkshake. "I just said, don't poke me. So don't."
Artemis could see the fury building up in the two girl's faces. She walked over and stepped in between them, her eyebrows low in all seriousness. "Hey, you two need to cut it out," she said, looking from one girl to the other.
Miracle scoffed at Artemis. "Oh, shut up, Little Miss Can't-We-All-Just-Get-Along." She turned, heading out the window and down the fire escape.
Milkshake made a move to attack her, though Artemis held her back. "Milkshake, just let her go. Forget about her," she said, shaking her head, though she gave Miracle a quick glare as she left.
The young'ins seemed frozen in fear. They stared at Artemis and Milkshake, as though expecting the two of them to start fighting. Mayfly smirked and walked over to them, patting them on the head and talking cheerily to them all.
The other four girls finished getting around, then headed over to the window. Just as the first pair, Kat and Mayfly, started heading out the window, the Thief Lord walked down the stairs, and everyone looked over at her. "Where's Miracle," she said at once, scanning her eyes over the group of girls.
Mayfly sighed. "She and Milkshake had a row. She stormed out about ten minutes ago."
The Thief Lord's eyes landed on a somewhat scared-looking Milkshake, who bit her lower lip as she looked back. "What about?" the Thief Lord asked, raising a brow at her.
Milkshake shrugged. "I asked her to pick with me. She snapped cause I poked her..." she mumbled, looking at her hands.
The Thief Lord nodded. "You're not going picking today," she said, stepping off the stairs and onto the floor. "Any of you." The girls looked confused.
"Wha... why not?" Empress asked as they all moved more into the room, away from the window.
The Thief Lord paused for a moment. "I'm going to meet someone. And I want you all to stay here, in the Appartamento," she said, referring to their 'code name' fo their tenet.
All the girls stared at her. Then, finally, "Who're you meeting?" Artemis asked, voicing everyone's thoughts.
"A friend of mine," uttered the Thief Lord, pulling her hood over her head.
"Where?" Kat asked.
The Thief Lord thought for a moment, as though reluctant to tell them. Then she said, very quietly, "Central Park."
All five of the younger girls let out pouts at the thought of staying in all day while the Thief Lord was at a park, though they stopped abruptly when the Thief Lord glared.
"Thief Lord..." Mayfly said quietly, walking over to the Thief Lord. "Massimo, they haven't had fun in a long time. The park would be good for them..." she whispered, glancing over at the younger ones. "There's six of us; one can watch over them. We can't keep 'em locked up in here."
The Thief Lord looked at Mayfly, considering. She looked over at the girls, who were watching her expectantly. She sighed, looking back at Mayfly. "Fine. You take them to the park in three hours time," she said, and the girls let out excited cheers. "But you all better stay unnoticed. And you better not come near me at all if you see me. And you'd better stop calling me Massimo," she hissed at Mayfly.
Mayfly stood, slightly taken aback. The Thief Lord have never spoken to her so sternly before. It was a bit unnerving. Mayfly shrugged it off and walked over to the others, nodding to them.
The Thief Lord walked over as well. She stepped out of the window and looked back at the girls. "Remember, don't leave for another three hours." She pulled a mask out of her cloak and pulled it ofer her face, making her look like a great black bird. And with that, she made her way down the fire escape and out of sight.
Kat glanced over at Mayfly. "Boy, she sure is acting strange lately..." she said, biting her lip.
Mayfly nodded. "Yeah..."
-Back in 'Hattan...-
All the boys stood in the Lodging House, saying good-bye to Spot, who was getting ready to head back to Brooklyn.
"Hey, don't worry fellas, I'll be back next week to take s'more of your money," he said with a smirk as he headed out of the Lodging House. The guys laughed and waved, then headed back into the Lodging House as he left.
On his way to Brooklyn, Spot suddenly remembered something. "Oh, shit... I'm supposed to meet Daft in Central Park..." he thought aloud, turning down a street and heading towards the park.
When he reached the park, some ten minutes later, he walked over to a bench near a boulder, his hand fondling the change in his pocket happily. He looked around the park, waiting.
Finally, Daft showed up.
Daft was a we'll build seventeen-year-old, standing at about 5'8. He had shaggy black hair and bright green eyes, and a cocky smirk much like Spot's that played on his face constantly.
He had with him three other guys that went by the names Slightly, Crusoe and Sometimes.
Slighty was Daft's twin brother, though the didn't look much alike. Slighty was small, only standing at about 5'6, with gray eyes rather than green and short, sleek black hair.
Crusoe was a tall blonde with dark brown eyes and a thin build. His eyes were focused and intense, and he looked as though he could see right through you.
Sometimes had the same shape as Daft, with thick brown hair and dark skin. His eyes were a deep brown, they almost looked black. He had an intimidating stance that made him look rather frightening.
These boys were not newsies. They, along with about five other guys, made up the Wilkins Clan. The Wilkins Clan were the guys you went you needed forceful help, in any situation. They were tough and intimidating, and were not ones you wanted to cross.
Spot stood from the bench and spit into his hand, shaking it with Daft's. He then rested his hand on his cane, eyeing the four boys. "So, whatcha want, Dafty?" he asked with a smirk, raising a brow at Daft.
Daft smirked back at him. "Me an' the guys conspired, and we all agreed that we need your assistance today," he said slowly. Daft had a thick British accent, though it'd been roughened up by living in New York. Spot had to contain a laugh every time he heard Daft speak; it was so foreign to him.
"With what?" Spot asked, already interested.
Daft looked back at the other guys and nodded. They nodded back, then left in opposite ways, heading down the sidewalk and out of sight. Daft walked over to the bench and sat, motioning for Spot to do the same. He pulled out two cigarettes and handed one to Spot, taking his time in lighting them.
Finally, he spoke again.
"I've got a business deal with this guy. Calls himself the Thief Lord." Daft shrugged, rolling his eyes at Spot's smirk. "Yeah. Anyway, this guy wants me and the Clan to keep watch on someone."
Spot raised a brow at Daft. "Who?"
"Racetrack Higgins," Daft said, blowing smoke into the air.
Spot made a face. "What's he want with Race?"
Daft shrugged. "He's letting me know today. Anyway–" he took a quick puff, "he says he'll pay handsomely. But see..."
Spot knew where this was going. "'Hattan hasn't let you into their Lodging House since Sometimes stabbed Blink in the eye three years ago..."
Daft nodded slowly. "They know who every member of the Clan is." He blew out some more smoke. "So, that's where you come in."
Spot looked over at Daft, thinking.
"You're a good friend of mine, Spot. You know that you've always got a place in my Clan if anything were to happen to your position as the King of Brooklyn." Spot smirked at this, while Daft rolled his eyes with a grin.
"So... what, you want me to just, spend a week or so in 'Hattan, watching Racetrack?" he raised a brow at Daft, who shrugged.
"More or less. We're willing to pay you two thirds of what this guy gives us."
Spot bit his lower lip, nodding slowly. "I see..."
Daft bit his own lip, smirking slightly at Spot. "So... will ya do it?"
Spot looked at Daft, still thinking. After about a minute, he nodded slowly, a smirk spreading across his face. "Yeah, I'll do it."
Daft smirked. "Excellent." He extinguished his cigarette standing up. "You can head back to Brooklyn for now. After I meet this Thief Lord, I'll catch up with you at the Lodging House and let you know all the details. Then we'll get you over to Brooklyn." He looked around.
Spot nodded. "Alright. See you soon, then, Daft," he said. They exchanged another spit-shake and then he headed off, making the long trek back to Brooklyn.
Daft sat down on the bench again and lit up another cigarette, waiting.
Spot headed down the street, his hands in his pockets as he ran over everything that had just happened. He was going to spy on one of his friends for money... Funny thing is, he didn't feel bad. "Just another day of being a Brooklynite," he though with a smirk, looking around.
To his right, he noticed a figure in black heading down the street in the opposite direction. The figure wore a mask over it's face, with a long beak-like nose and a dark luster. Spot raised a brow at it, watching it for a moment, then shook his head, continuing down the street.
-End Chapter 3-
Alright! I know that was short, and seemed a bit unimportant, but now I have the characters explained and whatnot, and I can just use their names without having to tell all about them... So, yeah. It sucked. Heh.
Shouts!
C.M.- Heh heh heh... Race DOES know something... But what?! Mwahaha.
Daydream- Awesome! I never go camping... I used to with my friend Chela, but she stopped going. Heh, me and my other friend Jeebes went camping in her yard a few weeks ago, that was mundo funo. Heh. I don't think I update fast... but I know what you mean... It's just so hard to think of things to write! I really hope this gets me out of the slump. Heh.
Lucky- Could be! And as for Mush... Could be! Heh.
Rach- Git! I'm in love with the British. Heh. So I made Mush a bit British. HA! I don't mind having it spouted back at me... heh.
Miracle- Goooober. Ha, that's so weird... I call my friend Jeebes SCHNITZEL! How ironic.
Dreamer- Ha, yeah, Mush is cute. That was the only way I could see doing it, splitting 'em up... But, what's this!??! They're coming together! Oh yeah, oh yeah. Heh.
Thanks a lot guys! I'll try to write more as soon as I can.