Disclaimer: ((sigh)) I do not own "Newsies"…it's really very obvious…

Okay, so here's the final cast list. The casting call is now officially closed.

Here's the order: Name/nickname – significant other – Power

Riley "Dodger" Sullivan – Kid Blink – Teleporting

Samantha "Ace" Mulligan – Spot – Technopath

Aurora "Shooter" O'Brien – Skittery – Ice

Kacie Danae "Gloves" Moretti – David – Flying

Alex "Pyro" Coatts – Mush – Fire

Dani "Betchya" Tate – Racetrack – Read Minds

Jenn "Styx" Morelli – Bumlets – Shapeshifting (humans)

Isabel "Cheater" Clark – Crutchy - Invisibility

Ashley "Roxy" Greco – None – Speed

Ally "Pepper" Sawyer – Boots – Walk Through Walls

Emelia "Cheerio" Hudson – Tumbler – Shapeshifting – animals

LaTasha "Action" Stevens– Jack – Invincibility

Mikayla "Psych" Harrison – Dutchy – Control Minds

Alright, without further ado, chapter four!

Chapter 4: Not Safe

Seth and Adam walked through the lobby of the fancy apartment complex and made their way out the glass doors to Seth's car. Once inside the car, Seth leaned his head back and let out a sigh. Adam looked over at him and spoke.

"So, what was all that about when she first saw you?"

Seth smiled humorlessly. "Remember that drama camp you forced me to go to with you, back in high school? Well, she and two of her friends, Gabe and Trey were there. They stuck together like glue, I never saw them without each other, except in a few classes where they were separated…and they hardly ever spoke to anyone else. I had a crush on her that week and kept trying to talk to her…but she kept disappearing every time I got near her, it was seriously weird, how fast I could lose sight of her." Seth furrowed his brow and thought about that for a while. He saw that Adam was still waiting for him to continue. "Anyway, that guy, Gabe? At the beginning of the week in that one class we had, a guy and girl would pair up to rehearse a scene the entire week and then perform it at the end of the week at the competitions. Trey wasn't in the class, and I could tell that he and Riley had been dating or something. Well, I really wanted to pair up with Riley, but of course Gabe ended up pairing with her. I was annoyed that last night when they performed for everyone and ended up winning the competition."

Adam whistled. "Wow…jealous much?"

Seth glared at him. "Shut up. Anyway, that doesn't matter anymore, what matters is that we figure this case out as soon as possible, whether Riley and her friends cooperate or not."

"Did you feel like there was something, well…strange about them?" Adam questioned.

"Are you kidding? Of course I did…there's definitely something about them that I don't like…and I have a feeling they know more than they're letting on as well. No matter what it takes we have to keep an eye on them, I think that would be the best way to figure out this case, actually." Seth started up the engine and began driving through the busy streets of Manhattan, back to the Agency.

Meanwhile, Dodger, Spot, Ace and Blink climbed into Spot's car and were making their way toward the "Boarding School," or boarding house. Actually, it was more like their headquarters, where they would get together for meetings, or to just hang out with each other or eat meals and such. Kloppman, the manager of the boarding school, was the only one who knew their secret, and he had kept quiet ever since they had first received their special abilities and needed a place to hide. In some ways, it really was a school…those of them still in high school would stay there, since it was too dangerous for them to go to a public school. So in a way it wasn't lying when they called it a boarding school.

"So, what's all this about?" Blink asked. He and Dodger were sitting in the backseat while Ace was in the front and Spot drove.

"Let me sum up," Dodger replied. "Before you arrived, two FBI agents came over to ask a few questions about Jack, and especially about his killer. Spot, Ace and I have decided that it would be best if we meet everyone at the boarding school and make arrangements for the kids to stay with us in our respective lodgings. Hopefully Race will be there tonight, so he can let everyone know to meet us there. I'm afraid that Oscar's threat, along with these two FBI agents, has given us no other choice but to do this."

They had been driving along an old, deserted street, almost hidden from everyone else in the city…just perfect for over thirty people needing a place to hide. They had found an old, run-down apartment building a few years back, when they were all middle to high school age, fixed it up to have suitable living conditions, and all lived there until the oldest ones, like Pie Eater, Snoddy, Shooter, and Skittery were old enough to go to college and get respectable jobs, and were able to mingle with the rest of society without drawing attention to themselves accidentally. Some of those younger than them, who felt a little more comfortable with their powers, were able to do other things they enjoyed as well, like Blink, Spot, and Dodger when they went to drama camp, and some of them got jobs to help pay for college when they were old enough. They all lived at the boarding house for a long time though, until they were all working and could support themselves. The younger ones still lived at the boarding house, with Kloppman still keeping his watchful eye on them, making sure they were safe.

Spot parked his car next to the curb of the street, and they all stepped out. Old, abandoned apartments loomed over them, unused and abandoned for years now. Even their own apartment looked worn out…only the inside was refurnished. They all looked around subconsciously before Blink opened the door leading to their old home and they quickly stepped inside. They walked through the door on their right to the lobby area, which also served as the manager's office. Kloppman was sitting at his desk, and Tumbler, Les, and Cheerio were also sitting around him, textbooks open and listening intently to him. "So, you see kids, the equation is really very simple when you look at it that way. Just do the problems I assigned you in the books and let me know if you have any more trouble. Do you think you understand it now?" They all nodded as they closed their books and stood up. "Thank you, Mr. Kloppman," Cheerio smiled at him.

"My pleasure," Kloppman replied. Then they all noticed the four young adults standing in the doorway.

"Heya, guys!" Les greeted them. Tumbler and Cheerio waved at them.

"Hey, Les, how's it going?" Dodger said, trying to sound cheerful.

Les shrugged. "Okay, I guess." He walked past them and out the doorway, Tumbler and Cheerio following behind. Ace closed the door behind them and they went and sat in the chairs that had been previously occupied by the teenagers, Spot standing behind the other three.

"How's he doing?" Blink inquired, "Les, I mean."

Kloppman sighed. "He's taken it pretty hard. He really looked up to Jack. But I think he'll be doing better soon. It's been hard on all of us." The four others nodded, understanding. "So, kids, how can I help you?" Kloppman asked. Even though they were in their early twenties, Kloppman still called them 'kids.'

"Well, Kloppman," Dodger began. "I had a visit from two agents this morning, asking me a few questions about the, er, incident."

"Ah, I see. And?"

"And well, we've decided that the kids aren't safe here anymore…I don't trust the agents and I have a feeling it's only a matter of time before they find this…or worse, if Oscar finds it first."

Kloppman looked at them for a few minutes. "Well, what do you suppose you're going to do about it? You think I can't handle it? I am perfectly capable of keeping the kids and myself safe!"

Dodger hid the smile that was forming on her lips. It was just like Kloppman to get defensive. "Yes, Kloppman, I know. But we don't want to take that chance. We're thinking of splitting the kids up, so they're not in a big group if they're found. We don't want you to stay here, either," Kloppman opened his mouth to protest, but Spot spoke first.

"We'd rather you stay with one of us, Kloppman," he said, indicating himself and Blink. "We've both got homes with lots of space."

"I don't want to be a bother," Kloppman muttered.

"You won't be, Kloppman!" Blink said. "What we want most is for you to be safe! Can't you see that?"

Kloppman sighed, and finally nodded. "Alright, I'll go with you four on this. How're you going to tell the others, though?"

"We need everyone to meet here tonight. We'll tell everyone then. Is Race here?" Dodger asked.

"Nope, you just missed him. He came by here earlier for lunch, but left for home just ten minutes ago."

Dodger sighed and pulled out her phone, and called Race.

"Talk."

Dodger rolled her eyes. "Hey, Race."

"Dodge! What's goin' on?"

"You already know what's going on, with that sneaky mind of yours."

"Hehe, sure do. I was just gonna be polite and ask though…thought you'd appreciate the gesture…but apparently not."

"Sure, Race, whatever. I was just callin' to ask –"

"If I'd let everyone know to meet at the boarding house at seven o'clock, and to either walk or drive here, if possible, so they don't bring attention to themselves, right?"

Dodger sighed. "Right."

"Alright, will do! See ya then."

"Bye."

At six thirty, people started showing up. Dodger, Blink, Ace, and Spot had set up chairs in the lobby, enough to fit everyone. Already present were the six kids who still lived at the boarding house: Pepper, Les, Slider, Snipeshooter, Tumbler, and Cheerio. They had all just come to the lobby after the dinner Kloppman had fixed for them and visited with the older ones until the rest showed up. The first to arrive were Boots, Itey, Jake, and Snitch, who had driven over together from their college dorm. Soon after, Skittery, Shooter, and Snoddy arrived, followed by Bumlets and Styx.

Swifty came after that, muttering, "Walking! Seriously, that is the longest time it's taken me to get anywhere!"

Dodger just smiled. "Hey there, Swifty." Swifty only grunted in reply. Specs and Pie Eater arrived next, Crutchy and Cheater right behind them. Roxy came in after them, and like Swifty was muttering about the length of time it took her to get there.

Racetrack arrived with Betchya, and Dodger immediately walked up to Race. "Finally! Do you know where the others are?"

Betchya spoke before Race did. "Dutchy and Psych are comin' next."

Dodger looked surprised. "How do you know?" As far as she knew, Betchya could control things with her mind, not read other people's minds.

Betchya just shrugged. "I saw 'em drive up as we were walkin' in."

Dodger chuckled. "'K, thanks. Race?"

Racetrack paused and closed his eyes for a few moments, then opened them. "Mush and Pyro should be here in a couple of minutes, they stopped and picked up Action on the way."

"Okay, and that just leaves…" Dodger tried to count everyone in her mind, trying to figure out who else was missing. "David and Gloves, where are they?"

Race smirked. "They're on a date."

"Well, tell them to get over here!" Dodger growled.

Race closed his eyes, opening then again a few second later. "Just kidding, they were on a date, but they should be here in five minutes."

"Thanks…go find a seat," Dodger told them.

The chairs were set up in a circle of two rows, Dodger in the center. Mush, Pyro, Action, David, and Gloves arrived a few minutes later, sitting down in the last available chairs. Dodger nodded to Skittery and the room immediately grew silent, as every pair of eyes turned to the girl in the middle of the room.

"Thank you, Skittery," Dodger smiled at him. "Now, we're all here because I feel we all need to take a few precautions now that…we aren't as safe." She was going to say "now that Jack's dead," but one look at Action's forlorn face and she thought better of it. Action was Jack's fiancée, until Jack was killed.

"Now, this apartment building has been our home for many years now, but it's not safe. You all know about Oscar's threat two days ago. He'll be looking for us, along with everyone else who works for him and his brother. Also, this morning, two agents from the FBI came to my home to ask me some questions. They're looking for Morris, of course. They don't suspect me, or any one of you. But they could suspect us later on, if they found this place. If they found the "headquarters" of thirty plus people, all friends of Jack Kelly, they could very well bombard us with questions and we would all be in danger then."

There was silence as everyone thought over all this information. "What's the plan, then?" David asked.

"Well, for right now, I think we need to split everyone up into two's and three's, at least in people's homes, so we're not clumped into large groups, in case something happens."

There were nods of approval from everyone as she announced this plan. She continued.

"So, Skittery and Shooter," she spoke to the only married couple in the room. "Do you think you could let someone stay with you?"

"Sure," Shooter replied, as Skittery nodded.

"Good. So Slider, you'll stay with them."

"Okay," Slider replied.

"I've got room for two," Spot spoke up. There was silence before anyone answered him. Jack had been Spot's roommate before he died.

"Alright," Dodger said quietly, and everyone seemed to relax again. The rest of the meeting was spent deciding who was living where, and quickly helping the younger ones pack up so they could leave as soon as possible. Dodger and Blink helped to move everything to everyone's respective homes, and with everybody's help the whole apartment building was empty within two hours.

"I'm sure gonna miss this place," Ace told Dodger as they waved goodbye to the last few people to leave. Dodger closed the door to the building behind them and they got into the car where Blink and Spot were waiting.

"Me too. But who knows? We might be back someday," Dodger said, trying to be cheerful. Will we? She thought to herself as they drove away. It was only a matter of time before Oscar tried to put his plan into action. Who knew what would happen after that?