Disclaimer: I don't own Newsies.
A/N: This is a HUGE AU thingie here, and it involves slash and newsie deaths. And annoying OCs- *points at Katie* Sadly, she has a point and I can't just toss her.*sighs* Luckily she isn't in much ^_^
-----
The school bus lets us off at the usual corner, then turns left at the fork in the old country road.
We go right- we being Katie Bridges, her mute sister Kristen and myself- Kevin Li.
Normally we'd cut across the fields. But life ain't normal now.
We wear those masks like doctors wear on those old Emergency Room reruns that are on the television every so often. We can't walk on the grass or the soil. The stream that we used to swim in as kids is completely blocked off.
"Kristen. Come on." Katie snaps, bringing me back from my thoughts.
"Stay away from there." she adds, grabbing the young blonde and pulling her away from the side of the road. "You know you're not supposed to go there."
Kristen gives no sign of hearing her sister, and just stares at the green pastures and begins to follow us.
"Bear died last night, the stupid dog." Katie remarks, acting as if she didn't care- though everyone knows she loved that thing. "He ran off yesterday. Guess he ate something contaminated, I dunno, but it killed 'im. Killed 'im deader than your da's prize colt, Kev."
"You mean Swifty?"
She laughs. "Yeah. Ha, Swifty. You da loved that thing, eh?"
"Said he could probably keep us from losing the farm." I mutter, jamming my deep into my pockets.
"I'd be surprised if he don't start callin' you that ta ease his pain. " She laughed, then grinned. "Swifty."
I roll my eyes, and she's quiet for a while.
"What kind of name's Swifty, anyway? That's not even a word."
"It was short for Swift Machete."
"That's still not a great name, I mean machete is a cool word and all- KRISTEN! God damn it, get the hell away from the grass!"
Kristen jumps back quickly and looks sheepish.
Katie growls and turns back to me. "I don't know what wrong with that girl. She ain't stupid, can't she realize that the grass's contaminated? We've told her so many times. I don't know what's wrong with that girl, her brain cells must be fried or something, she's probably turning mutie-"
"Katie. She's mute. Not deaf."
Kate turns a slight shade of red, but shrugs it off.
"Ya know." she says, turning to walk backwards so she could see my face as she speaks. "Micheal Pritchett, he's been talking about how the government is getting all the muties to clean off the roads and stuff- ya know, get rid of the grass an' leaves an' puddles of water 'cause they're already contaminated. Radioactive, ya know. I hear they glow."
"They don't glow, Katie."
She shrugged. "It's just something I heard."
"Didja hear it from the same person that toldja about the green cow in Rudiger's heard."
She shook her head, bouncy brown curls flying all over the place. "Nah. Heard it from his brother."
I snorted.
"Ya know, they've run outta places to store the muties. Now the poor fools are just wandering aimlessly. Ain't got nowhere to go."
I just nod.
"I wouldn't take one in, would you?"
I shrug.
"You'd get all contaminated. It'd kill ya. I hear everyone in the city's just dropping dead on the streets."
"That's what you heard, 'ey?"
She nods. "Yeah. I heard."
I shake my head. What she hears isn't the exact truth, and most of the time just pointless. But since the nuke plant leaked a couple months ago, it leaves me wondering whether some of what she says had some truth in it.
Like I said, the world's gone insane.
A/N: This is a HUGE AU thingie here, and it involves slash and newsie deaths. And annoying OCs- *points at Katie* Sadly, she has a point and I can't just toss her.*sighs* Luckily she isn't in much ^_^
-----
The school bus lets us off at the usual corner, then turns left at the fork in the old country road.
We go right- we being Katie Bridges, her mute sister Kristen and myself- Kevin Li.
Normally we'd cut across the fields. But life ain't normal now.
We wear those masks like doctors wear on those old Emergency Room reruns that are on the television every so often. We can't walk on the grass or the soil. The stream that we used to swim in as kids is completely blocked off.
"Kristen. Come on." Katie snaps, bringing me back from my thoughts.
"Stay away from there." she adds, grabbing the young blonde and pulling her away from the side of the road. "You know you're not supposed to go there."
Kristen gives no sign of hearing her sister, and just stares at the green pastures and begins to follow us.
"Bear died last night, the stupid dog." Katie remarks, acting as if she didn't care- though everyone knows she loved that thing. "He ran off yesterday. Guess he ate something contaminated, I dunno, but it killed 'im. Killed 'im deader than your da's prize colt, Kev."
"You mean Swifty?"
She laughs. "Yeah. Ha, Swifty. You da loved that thing, eh?"
"Said he could probably keep us from losing the farm." I mutter, jamming my deep into my pockets.
"I'd be surprised if he don't start callin' you that ta ease his pain. " She laughed, then grinned. "Swifty."
I roll my eyes, and she's quiet for a while.
"What kind of name's Swifty, anyway? That's not even a word."
"It was short for Swift Machete."
"That's still not a great name, I mean machete is a cool word and all- KRISTEN! God damn it, get the hell away from the grass!"
Kristen jumps back quickly and looks sheepish.
Katie growls and turns back to me. "I don't know what wrong with that girl. She ain't stupid, can't she realize that the grass's contaminated? We've told her so many times. I don't know what's wrong with that girl, her brain cells must be fried or something, she's probably turning mutie-"
"Katie. She's mute. Not deaf."
Kate turns a slight shade of red, but shrugs it off.
"Ya know." she says, turning to walk backwards so she could see my face as she speaks. "Micheal Pritchett, he's been talking about how the government is getting all the muties to clean off the roads and stuff- ya know, get rid of the grass an' leaves an' puddles of water 'cause they're already contaminated. Radioactive, ya know. I hear they glow."
"They don't glow, Katie."
She shrugged. "It's just something I heard."
"Didja hear it from the same person that toldja about the green cow in Rudiger's heard."
She shook her head, bouncy brown curls flying all over the place. "Nah. Heard it from his brother."
I snorted.
"Ya know, they've run outta places to store the muties. Now the poor fools are just wandering aimlessly. Ain't got nowhere to go."
I just nod.
"I wouldn't take one in, would you?"
I shrug.
"You'd get all contaminated. It'd kill ya. I hear everyone in the city's just dropping dead on the streets."
"That's what you heard, 'ey?"
She nods. "Yeah. I heard."
I shake my head. What she hears isn't the exact truth, and most of the time just pointless. But since the nuke plant leaked a couple months ago, it leaves me wondering whether some of what she says had some truth in it.
Like I said, the world's gone insane.