New York Royalty

By: PrinceOfNewYork

Chapter Three: Adult Matters

Summary: In the world people are viewed in several different ways. Some are leaders, some are followers, some are somewhere in the middle, and some just get power through possessions. The concept of royalty can take on more than just one form.

Disclaimer: Most of these guys are mine, except for the few that ain't. And, if ya don't know which ones those are then you better go watch Newsies again.

A/N: Alright, this is my first shot at a Newsie fic, but I've been messin' with this character for over a year now, and it's about time she had her story put down (before I completely forget it all!) Thanks a bunch to all of ya who read this!

Oh, and as a side note to answer one of the questions asked in a review from Gryffindor's Newsie (but not all of them. I don't wanna give too much away!) . She asked when this story takes place. Wouldn't ya know it, I don't state the year until chapter 4? So, I'll just tell you right now it's 1986 at the current point in time. Just an fyi… and sorry for not stating it earlier. Also, a big thank you to all who read and reviewed and I hope you continue to do so! This will pick up… I promise. Enjoy the chapter!

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March then came to an end, and April went by too. As more time went by the Snyders saw less and less of Nigel. At first he simply worked late, but it progressed from there. He would call and tell them not to hold dinner, and even not to wait up for him. However, when Mrs. Snyder woke the next morning, he was always asleep beside her. Until he called one night to say he would not be coming home, but he said it would just be for one night. Soon one night became two, then four. After that he stopped calling all together. When Nigel was home the young Princess would overhear her parents talking, though yelling was more like it. They didn't do it every time he was home, but it seemed to become a regular occurrence. She would usually just leave and go read, or make up more stories about the newsies. She didn't like to see nor hear her parents fighting. Then, the third week in May he left Sunday after church. By the time Saturday afternoon rolled around they hadn't heard a thing from him, nor seen him, and Amanda was not happy.

That Saturday evening the two ladies were sitting in the living room, each reading a book while Julia, the cook was finishing up dinner. That was when Mr. Snyder made his entrance.

The young Princess looked up from her book and glanced nervously at her mother who it seemed, hadn't noticed that Mr. Snyder had arrived.

He walked into the room and glanced at his daughter before looking at his wife. "Hello Nigel," she said obviously angry. "How was work?"

"Fine, it was fine, I got a lot done," he said with a nod.

"Good, glad to hear it. Tell me… what were you doing for seven days Nigel?" She was obviously even angrier than the Princes had originally thought.

"Well, you see, things kept coming up. Either a form was due, a child was causing trouble, or something else was wrong. They had everyone out looking for a… Derek Sullivan character one day. They never did find the man."

"And there was no telephone? You had no spare hour, or minute to come home to see the family who loves you!"

"Look, Amanda, can we please talk about this later? I've got a splitting-"

"No, we'll talk about this now. Sit!"

Mr. Snyder was not one to anger his wife, but that did not mean he had to take orders from her. "I will not. Now you listen to me Amanda, I'm sorry that I did not let you know."

"You had me worried sick! I thought you were lying dead in a gutter somewhere!"

"Then why didn't you call?" Nigel countered.

"Because I had faith that if you were alive and able you would tell me where you had been."

"What if I wasn't alive or able?"

"That was my dread Nigel!" As the conversation continued the volume and tone of their voices began to climb as the young Princess sat quietly by watching her parents scream at each other, neither one of them realizing that she was still in the room. "I did not want to call only to find that my husband was hurt or worse."

"Well, I'm neither, so can we drop it?"

"No. You are letting your job as Warden take over your life. Now, I don't mind you working over time, but this is ridiculous! What happened to the days where you would come home from work to take the evening off and spend time with a loving wife and daughter? Now you're overly tired, we hardly see you, it's like you're a different person Nigel!"

"I understand that I'm not around as much as I used to be-"

"And why is that?"

"Will you let me finish?" Amanda was quiet, but was most defiantly waiting for an answer. "It's just been a busy week."

"It's been getting busier all the time. I'm starting to think that you aren't spending the time at work at all."

The Princess felt that if she did not say something she would regret it later. "Mama?" she said trying to get her mother's attention as she stood up, and closed the book, setting it down in the chair.

"Of course I'm at work!" Mr. Snyder said. It seemed neither one of them had heard her. "Where else would I be?"

"That's what I'd like to know!" Amanda shouted.

"Papa, please-"

"I don't believe this!" Nigel was getting more outraged by the second. "Are you accusing me of being unfaithful Amanda?"

"It all depends, doesn't it Nigel? Are you being unfaithful? Have you got a mistress?"

"Mama, listen to-"

"Princess, you keep quiet, these are adult matters," Amanda said. Her face was not the beauty that it once was. It was angry, and didn't look kind or soft at all. It hardly looked like her mother. Mr. Snyder's features were just as jagged as ever, but his matched his wife's anger. The Princess would have given anything for one of her father's seemingly fake smiles.

"I most certainly do not, and I'm shocked that you would suggest such a thing Amanda. I love you."

"Then why are you never here?"

"You like this house don't you? You like having someone to cook the meals, you like the life we live, and you like the school that our Princess goes to. If I didn't work all this time we would have none of that!"

"Papa! Stop it!"

"Be quiet!" Mr. Snyder shouted at his daughter. Suddenly the side of the Princess' face was met with a forceful blow as she flew to one side, and she was knocked off balance. She gazed at her father in disbelief, and Amanda did the same. Mr. Snyder's face was unreadable. He was almost shocked himself, but the oddity was, there was no regret in his eyes.

"How dare you strike her?" Mrs. Snyder got down onto her knees beside her daughter. "Princess, you go up into your room." The Princess didn't look at her mother. "Did you hear me?" The Princess nodded tears pushing hard at her eyes. "Look at me," Amanda said taking her daughter's face in her hands.

"No!" the Princess screamed, and broke free from her mother's grasp. She ran at the stairs away from the yelling and fighting parents.

"Now look what you've done!" Amanda screamed at Nigel. The Princess didn't hear anymore before she closed the door to her room. She ran over to her bed and threw herself face down onto it. She began crying face down into her pillow, forcing hard sobs and screams past her lips. The Princess didn't know how long she laid there crying like that, but soon fatigue claimed her body, and she eventually drifted off into a restless sleep.

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So... there's that... see, the plot's pickin' up a bit. Hope you like it! But... now you're going to have to wait until friday for another one of these babies. In the mean time reveiw! Who knows, maybe if I get enough requests to update early I will? We'll just have to see!