When Lucy did wake again, it was after all the newsies had fallen asleep. She thought she might have died and gone to heaven; there was a pillow under her head, and she had a blanket all to herself! The lodge beds may have a few broken springs, and the sheets weren't the warmest (or cleanest for that matter) but Lucy couldn't remember being as comfortable as she was just then in that sleepy haze.
She almost rolled over and fell back to sleep, but she was struck with the disturbing thought that she didn't actually have a bed. She didn't have a building of any form to be in. Lucy shot up looking around the room in a complete panic. The room was much bigger and tidier than the Refuge so she couldn't be back there, at least there was that. Where was Crutchie? She was sure she'd been with him just a moment ago. Looking around there were quite a few bunks, all of them with sleeping strangers in. It was… calm? The anxiety was certainly still niggling away, but compared to normal it was calm. Peaceful. Too good to be true. Lucy went to take a step out of bed but almost stood on Crutchie when she did. Crutchie was a good friend, Lucy supposed he'd slept next to her so that there'd at least be a familiar face for her when she did wake.
They hadn't had too long in the refuge together, but days felt like weeks inside and it's not so hard to make strong bonds with those who've already seen and accepted you at your most vulnerable point. The rest of the kids had been there long enough to cut off everyone and everything, or else they were just scared of anyone different. Snyder was really good at sharing his attention. He went after the newbies and the "freaks". If there were any flickers of friendship forming between any of his prisoners he'd make sure to snuff it out. Lucy and Crutchie's time was made that much worse for that very reason, but neither of them had left each other in that lonely place. They'd just gotten better at hiding it.
"Staring at his face ain't gonna wake him up."
It was a curly haired blonde boy on the bunk opposite. He was still lying down, his attention on the cigar he was twirling between his fingers. Lucy jumped, "I-" she slapped a hand over her mouth. What accent? What was right? Why couldn't Crutchie wake up and save her from having to say anything, she had no clue what to do. Still. Lucy didn't want to give up who she was, how she spoke. It was the one thing she had. She was lonely though, and she thought it could be worth it to mimic their strange accents, to show them she could fit in. She wasn't weird, she wasn't too 'hoi polloi', whatever that even meant! But... would she do anything to be safe and warm? Did she want people to look out for her or did she just want to be alone? Alone was safer, but together filled the dark caverns and shrunk the black hole that swallowed her voice, that swallowed her whole.
Lucy had been watching the boy like a hawk, ready to fight or flee. When the blonde boy first came over her eyes grew wide as saucers and she pushed her bruised back into the wall wishing it would swallow her up. The boy held his hands out for her to see, and ever so slowly moved closer until he could rest a hand on top of hers which had been scratching at her throat.
She flinched and meekly batted the boy away, but he had such a certain and calm look in his eyes, "'S okay Mouse I ain't gonna hurt ya." She could see the understanding in his face. She saw herself in the defeated slump of his shoulders, the sad smile and tired eyes that would only meet hers for a moment before flitting away. He covered it quickly with a splitting grin, "Jist don't step on Crutch an' I won' have ta fight ya." And just like that Lucy took her first real breath, resting her skinny hands in those of this stranger.
Crutchie, half awake, mumbled, "Fight ya self Racer, youse is sat right on me." He (unsuccessfully) rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, and gave Lucy a bleary wink while attempting to shove Race off the bed. Her laughter was soft and clear, pearly. The only sign right then to give away that there was a sweet girl in there behind her bloodied and muddy exterior.
"Ay would you look at that, Mousey has a voice." Race smirked, Crutchie smiled on proudly, "Course she does, count ya self lucky she's sharin' it with the likes a you, right Mousey?" Crutchie sat up continuing to try and rub the sleep away from his eyes. "Hey Race, youse okay to goes up and git Jack?"
Lucy sucked in a breath, there was her voice, sucked back into the black hole lump in her throat. Race shrugged and tipped his hat, showing a last cocky grin, before walking off to climb out the window onto the fire escape. Crutchie pulled himself up onto the now empty bunk opposite and smiled shyly at Lucy. He looked so uncomfortable and she felt so guilty. He'd slept on the floor because she'd taken his bed. This kind boy had ended up having to look after her. Again. Lucy could feel the lump rising, making her lips quiver and she ducked under her blanket grasping the threadbare material close to her. Lucy felt a gentle prodding in her back.
"Lucy? You okay? Youse don't have ta hide here ya know. No one's gonna hurt ya" Crutchie whispered. "The others are gonna wake up soon, youse can speak ta me youse can speak ta any a them." Oh God. Time to speak. Speaking time. She didn't know what to do. Would he judge her for faking her accent? It sounded funny to her ears, it would probably be obvious and fake to anyone else who heard her. When they heard her voice though, they'd laugh like all the others. She rolled around and peeked an eye out at her friend. "Cat got ya tongue?" Lucy nodded. Crutchie sighed, "Tha's okay too, youse our Mouse after all."
Just then Race came back, followed by another boy. "Mornin', how are ya feelin'? Name's Jack by the way." The boy spat in his hand and offered it out to Lucy. She looked back and forth between Jack and his proffered spit handshake; Crutchie had to demonstrate that the shake was alright before Lucy spat in her own palm and shook back. Jack knelt down next to her bunk, next to Race with Crutchie sitting just to the side giving her a reassuring smile. Jack continued on, "Now Kloppman's gonna come round real soon with the morning bell and I'se pretty sure half the boys are awake anyways, they's probably jist didn't wanna scare ya. That or they's curious and rude but I'se gonna give them the benefit of tha doubt an' assume tha's not it." At this a few of the boys chorused their hello's and waved sheepishly. "So youse wanna get up and git some breakfast with us?"
Lucy had to admit, breakfast did sound good. Now that she thought of food she realised she was starving hungry still. The other boys were starting to get up, and curious they all found a way to wander past or otherwise hang about. The small safe circle made of Crutchie, Jack, and Race, quickly became an overwhelming large group of strangers. She tried to swallow the sudden rush of fear, but all she swallowed was her hunger. That empty space was no longer painful and eager, just hollow. It didn't take long for Lucy to disappear beneath her blanket again.
A knowing look was passed from Crutchie to Jack, and straight away Jack was up telling the boys to move off if they wanted to get some grub from the Sisters before work. Crutchie grabbed onto the bed and lifted himself up to sit beside the bump in the covers that was Lucy. They sat in silence for a while; Crutchie thinking things through, Lucy trying to focus on breathing normally. When the room was clear and quiet again, and Lucy had had time to take it all in, she crawled back out to face Crutchie and offered him a thankful smile.
It took a couple of tries to get her words out, but eventually Lucy whispered to Crutchie, "Th-thank you. Again… I, um, I don't know h-how to..." Her voice was small, soft and lilting, if a little rough from going for so long without a drink of water. "Thank you, Crutchie. I'm sorry, um, I... I messed up. Again."
Crutchie ruffled her hair, "Don't worry about it Mouse, I'se just glad youse okay." The girl was already falling asleep again, leaning against Crutchie's shoulder. Lucy may be almost nine, but she was so small and frail that she looked to be only six or seven. "Sleep well Mouse." He gently moved her to be lying down once more. Crutchie could remember when he first met Lucy at the refuge. Her face hadn't been so shallow, her bones had become much more prominent in the six weeks they were apart. Her dress once a tailored fit now seemed too big despite the fact she must have grown since. He may not know her as well as his brothers, but it hurt to see his friend withering away. Crutchie would put a stop to that, and he was sure Jack would help.
That evening a meeting was held in the Lodgehouse, Crutchie speaking for Lucy without any need to ask if she'd be up to speaking or not, they both knew the answer. Most of the boys thought to make Lucy out to be a boy and have her join them as Newsies, some of them were more taken with their cards than with offering solutions. She herself joined the card game in the corner after a while of observing the three at the table with such determined looks on their faces.
The game they played seemed to involve half the hand being played open on the table, and the other half hidden by the players that owned them. The aim to get rid of all cards, playing the hidden hand before the open hand. Lucy guessed there might be some trick to some of the cards as every time she thought she'd worked out the rules to play an uncommon card would be played and the three would react in triumph or distress, and presently the rules seemed to change.
Lucy was quickly more concerned with working out the secret of this game, trusting whatever decision Crutchie and his friends might come to in their meeting. She determined that whatever the decision, she would adapt as she always had. She hovered a while by the card playing boys, subconsciously moving closer and closer to their circle. She didn't realise how close she'd gotten until the game ended and, with a tip of the dealers newsie cap, she was dealt in to the next round.
The meeting, meanwhile, was not going so well. None of the newsies wanted Lucy to end up as a matchgirl to get her pay. They'd heard stories about what the bosses did to their 'employees', and they were in agreement that no one should have to live that life. At least as newsies they had a little freedom. They weren't in close contact with adults that couldn't be trusted. They couldn't pass her off as a Newsie though; her hair was too long, her eyes were too feminine, and she would never realistically be able to make her voice sound low enough. The newsies were starting to come up empty on ideas and had resorted instead to staring at the ground in bitter concentration.
Cards was quickly becoming Lucy's favourite thing. She had a natural knack for the game once she was certain of the rules. Sure, there had been a couple of times where she messed up starting out, but the boys would make casual comments to each other, and if Jojo used scratching his nose to subtly point out the direction the game was going in had changed, no one said anything. It wasn't the most direct way to learn, but it meant Lucy wasn't forced out of her bubble before she was ready. The boys knew well enough that would only frighten her the way they had in the morning.
The game was all about strategy; just because you had a trick didn't mean you needed to play it and brag about the small hit someone may have taken as a result. That was Romeo's downfall, and his loud cries of defeat started to bring a crowd to their game. The all important meeting was out the window. Jojo, Albert, Henry, and Lucy were down to their last few cards. Albert and Henry were each down to their face ups. A stressful amount of cards had accumulated in the middle, waiting for someone to mess up. Romeo was still crying over the rather large amount of cards he was attempting to sort into his hand. Jojo and Lucy each had two cards left hidden.
You could hear a pin drop in the lodge as everyone waited for Lucy to make her move. Albert had used his three face up cards, and all that was left were the unknown ones that were face down beneath. Race had quietly started taking bets with a nudge and a nod. It was the last leg, and as much as Albert told himself he could work out what card Lucy might play, it was all a game of luck from here on out. If she would only play an eight, let him play a card with less value than the smug Queen of Diamonds looking up at him. Hell, she could clear the monstrous pile of cards with the ten he was pretty sure she had. Lucy took a deep breath in, and with quick confidence lay down an Ace.
The lodge was in uproar as coins were passed and teams started to form behind each player, their supporters smack talking each other. Crutchie was beyond proud, Race was suddenly much richer than before, and Jack had a brilliant idea - he just had to find her.