Disclaimer: This is a non-commercial work of fanfiction. Anything recognizable from Newsies belongs to Disney and not to me.


Chapter 44: The Reunion

For probably the third time that day, Race selfishly wished that Davey hadn't decided to go back to school on his day off.

It would have helped to have at least one even-tempered leader at the lodging house meeting. Crutchie generally served as the stabilizing force between Jack's emotional volatility and Race's quick-flaring temper (though Crutchie himself could be feisty at times), but in his absence, Davey's level-headedness would have been the next best thing.

It was better that Davey wasn't there, though, for his own sake. Race knew that the heated confrontation with Jack the day before had been draining for the conflict-adverse newsie (who didn't know that Jack and Race had had several disagreements in the past, most of which had ended with fists being thrown, though yesterday's altercation had been by far the most heated of their verbal skirmishes). Today's meeting would no doubt be a tense one, and emotions would likely run high. Race had already prepared himself for the possibility of a small riot breaking out, but he hoped that it wouldn't come to that. If anything, Katherine's presence would hopefully be an effective deterrent from any overly-reactive behavior.

Katherine.

Race rubbed his temples, trying to massage away the beginnings of a headache. He hadn't shown much of a reaction when Jack had broken the news of the reporter's rather close connection with Pulitzer, but inwardly he had been surprised, though he'd instinctively understood why she'd done it. There was a time and place to keep one's cards close to one's chest, after all...and she wasn't the only one keeping secrets.

Race sighed. He could tell that his headache was the kind that wasn't going to leave, no matter what he did. The only cure for it would be to sleep it off, but he had a full day ahead of him, so he'd have to tough it out before he could seek relief (though even that was uncertain, given how persistently sleep had eluded him lately).

He'd hardly closed his eyes the night before, still on edge from the day's events. He and Jack had only talked for a few minutes more after Davey's departure, and once they'd settled on a time for the meeting, Jack had left as well, saying he'd spend one more night at Irving Hall before moving back to the lodging house for good the following day. Race had expected as much - Jack seemed to want to draw out his separation from the newsies as long as possible, probably wary of the confrontation that would inevitably take place - but after the meeting today, he'd have to find a way to re-integrate himself. Race had made it clear that he was more than ready to release his temporary authority back into Jack's hands, and he'd waited long enough. That son-of-a-gun was just going to have to find a way to make it work. After the lodging house meeting concluded that afternoon, Race was officially stepping back, and if Jack wanted someone to help him lead the strike from that point on, he would have to go to Davey; Race had a week and a half's worth of gambling and general bumming around to catch up on, and while he would certainly still participate in the strike with the rest of the newsies, he was going to take full advantage of the freedom that he'd been denied since the strike began, the freedom to come and go as he pleased without having to answer to anyone, the freedom to look out for no one but himself. He'd already served his time; Jack could take his turn being the responsible one, now.

Race grimaced, his thoughts quickly beginning to turn sour. He'd outwardly made peace with Jack, partially because he didn't want to deal with the other newsie's emotional disclosures, and partially to appease Davey, but they were far from completely reconciled, at least in Race's mind. Jack's claim - that he'd acted as he did to save the other newsies from being locked up in The Refuge - had seemed sincere (and in fact, it probably was). But Race had known Jack long enough to be acquainted with the latter's willingness to say anything that he had to in order to charm his way into someone's good graces (there was a reason why Jack was the best of the best at hawking headlines, after all).

Race wondered what kind of spin Jack would put on his explanation at the lodging house meeting that afternoon. He had expressed some regret for his mistakes in front of Race and Davey, but Race wondered how much ownership Jack would take for the fallout of the past week and a half in front of the other newsies.

The sound of approaching voices came within earshot, and Race slowly got up from where he'd been sitting at the bunk room table to greet the newsies at the door. They'd split up earlier that morning, one group heading to St. Peter's to see if they could procure some extra rations from the nuns, and the other group making their way to Jacobi's in search of a deal on the previous day's bread. Stomachs had gone empty these past few days more often than Race would have liked, but the boys were in high spirits, especially after the success of the rally, and with some luck, they wouldn't have to be scraping by with no income for very much longer.

He'd stayed back at the lodging house in case Jack decided to show up early, but he probably should have just gone with the rest of the boys, for there was still no sign of the newsie leader.

Race felt his head beginning to throb as the boisterous sound of the newsies' chatter filled the lodging house and the stamping of feet sounded on the stairway. The group from St. Peter's had returned, carrying a few sacks of food.

"Nice work, fellas." Race gave them a nod of approval. "Go ahead and eat some before we get started, but leave a portion for the fellas who went over to Jacobi's in case they came up short."

The newsies began to tuck into their food, chattering animatedly and teasing each other mercilessly as they ate. Race hadn't told them what the meeting was going to be about, or that Jack was going to be there - he'd only informed them that there were some important details they'd need to go over regarding the strike. No one had questioned him, though they certainly would have in the past, before the strike.

Morosely, he watched the group of boys finish up their food, shaking his head when Elmer offered him a portion. He didn't feel like eating at the moment; he just wanted to get the meeting over with. It was going to be hard for him to play the part of impartial moderator and to not let his residual frustrations with Jack show, but he knew that he had to portray an unwavering support for the newsie leader if the rest of the lodging house was to get on board.

It wasn't that Race couldn't work with Jack…he just wasn't sure if he could trust him right now. Eventually, he'd get there - probably. But it was still too soon, too fresh, and he needed his space. Usually having some time away from Jack helped things, but Race knew that he wouldn't get an opportunity to do so until after the strike was settled, so he resigned himself to holding back his irritation for the present and counting on his adeptness at bluffing to do the rest.

He missed Crutchie. The younger newsie seemed to be able to draw out the best in Jack, to get him to be a more straightforward and sincere version of himself. Race had never figured out how Crutchie managed to do it, but there was something about his steady optimism and unshakable spirit that Jack responded well to. And they desperately needed that steadfastness back at the lodging house...

Race was drawn out of his rumination by the sound of the rest of the newsies arriving. They, too, had managed to secure a modest amount of food from Jacobi's, though they'd had to spend all of the allowance that Race had given them from the Newsie Fund, and they soon sat down to join the rest of their brothers at their mid-day meal.

Race was again offered a share of food, and again he declined it, feeling more antsy by the minute. He probably ought to break the news to the boys first before Jack suddenly showed up and surprised them - someone was liable to choke on a piece of bread or something.

Massaging his temples in one last futile attempt to lessen the tension in his head, Race cleared his throat and was about to address the newsies, when suddenly they fell silent of their own accord, staring as one in the direction of the doorway.

Race didn't have to look to know what had caused the collective stillness, but look he did, and his suspicions were confirmed: Jack and Katherine stood there on the threshold.


Katherine had never been inside a lodging house before. The foyer area where she and Jack had entered appeared to be neat and well-kept, but once they'd ascended the narrow staircase leading up the bunk room where the newsboys resided, things had proved to be twice as disorganized as she'd expected: clothes hung haphazardly off of rows of bunk beds, the floor was littered with toiletries and miscellaneous items (a slingshot here, a deck of cards there), and the table and chairs at the far end of the room looked strangely situated, as though someone had gotten up from them in a hurry and hadn't bothered to put them back where they belonged.

"I shoulda told Racer to have the fellas pick things up a bit," Jack had muttered quietly, turning back to give her an apologetic look. "Guess he ain't observin' the normal cleanin' schedule."

"He's probably had other things on his mind," Katherine had responded. "It's understandable..." She'd trailed off then as the lodging house became suddenly silent, the previously-conversing newsies becoming aware of their presence.

For a moment, no one said anything.

Katherine, instinctively wanting to break the silence with a question, held her tongue with some effort. She was only here to help explain the plan that she and Jack had come up with; she wasn't here to play mediator between the newsies and their estranged leader, no matter how much she wanted to step in.

Accustomed to reading the nuances of nonverbal communication, she studied the newsboys' faces. A range of emotions were there, varying from hopeful excitement to wary disbelief to almost-sullen anger.

The only one with a completely neutral expression was Race.

"Hey Jacky, Katherine," the gambler greeted them cautiously. "I was just about to tell the fellas that you was gonna be stoppin' by."

He motioned them into the room, and Jack slowly walked forward to join the group, Katherine following behind him. It felt awkward to be standing there amidst the disarray with the rest of the boys squatting on the floor or lounging on their beds, and they must have sensed it too, for a few of them shuffled into sitting positions, and one of them (she'd really have to learn all of their names at some point, as she'd forgotten even the few that she'd managed to catch earlier in passing) hurried over to the table at the back of the room and came back with a chair for her. She thanked him quietly, and he responded with a little nod before returning to join the rest of the boys.

Jack remained standing.

"So, I guess you have a lot to catch the fellas up on," Race said, motioning for Jack to take the lead. "You, ah, wanna start from the beginnin'?"

Katherine looked over at Jack, and saw that he was struggling to keep his emotions under control. He'd read the expressions on his boys' faces too, she was sure of it, and the weight of their mixed feelings towards his reappearance was no doubt tearing him apart.

Nothing would get better if he didn't attempt to clarify the situation, though. She gave him a gentle pat on the arm, and it seemed to give him courage, for he cleared his throat and began to speak.

She'd encouraged him on the walk over to explain things as plainly as possible to the newsies, to try his hardest to give them the facts without getting defensive. (She knew that she was partially speaking to herself in that admonishment; they both could be passionate and reactive when misunderstood, but a humble approach would need to be taken if Jack was to win the trust of the newsies again).

So she was inwardly proud to note that he seemed to be putting her words into practice as he addressed the lodging house. He explained the dilemma that he'd found himself in upon finding himself caught in Pulitzer's trap, and the no-win option that he'd been forced to take. By prior agreement, he also explained Katherine's connection to the newspaper owner, a disclosure that caused more than a few surprised glances in her direction and several suspicious looks, but thankfully nothing more. Jack continued on, recounting his actions on the night of the rally (struggling through a few parts of it, but basically just giving the facts) and the ensuing conversation that he'd had with Katherine on the rooftop.

(She noticed that didn't say anything about his disappearance after Crutchie's arrest or his ambiguous mentions of Santa Fe, but perhaps the less said on either of those subjects the better).

Jack concluded by giving the newsies a run-down of the plan that they'd schemed up on the rooftop, modified slightly in keeping with Race and Davey's (mostly Davey's) suggestions. Katherine interjected a few times, adding a detail here and there or clarifying some of Jack's statements when she saw confusion begin to cloud the newsies' eyes, but for the most part, she let him speak.

And then, suddenly Jack had said all that he felt he needed to say, and it was over.

No one had interrupted - in fact, no one had even spoken. The newsies had all been eerily silent, sitting as though spellbound, and once Jack finished his rundown, Katherine wondered if anyone was going to react. She'd expected frustrated outbursts or angry accusations or at the very least questions from these boys who never seemed to stop talking and were always shooting off some smart remark or another. She hadn't expected complete and utter silence.

Jack was clearly unnerved by the stillness as well. He shot her an uneasy look, and Katherine was about to address the newsies herself to try to elicit some kind of reaction, when Race broke the silence.

"So, I'm guessin' you fellas might have some questions for Jack and Katherine," he said, sounding pained, though she wasn't sure why. "If you wanna say somethin,' now's the time. Otherwise, we move on Pulitzer's basement tomorrow mornin' and end this thing for good."

The succinct and authoritative statement clearly surprised Jack. He shot a look at the gambler, who declined to meet his eye, and she couldn't tell if Jack was thankful that Race had stepped in to dispel the awkward silence, or if he was off-put that his second-in-command was still speaking as though he was in charge of the newsies' future decisions.

Hadn't they talked about this? she wondered. From Katherine's understanding, Jack and Race had determined that after this meeting concluded, Jack would stay at the lodging house, resuming his role as the sole leader of the newsies (though Race and Davey would continue to act as advisors, the former as he had done before the strike began, and the latter until the strike concluded). But clearly they hadn't anticipated how clumsy that transfer of leadership might be.

"I got a question," a newsie spoke up, breaking into Katherine's thoughts. "How'd Pulitzer find out about where the rally was gonna be held, and about Racer and Davey leadin' it, too? That ain't exactly common knowledge. Pretty sure he would've had to learn that from someone on the inside." The question was accompanied by a pointed look in Katherine's direction, and she felt a tiny flare of irritation.

"My father has eyes and ears all over this city," she responded cooly, telling herself to stay calm. "He doesn't need me spying for him."

"She's on our side, Henry," Jack insisted, before Katherine could say anything more in her defense. "Remember the article? She's fightin' with us, not against us."

"Well how'd the old man get his information, then?" Henry pressed.

"It's like Kath said - Pulitzer's got people spyin' for him all over the place!" Jack exclaimed. "Anyone could've given him the tip off." His posture shifted just slightly, and Katherine could tell that he was bracing for an argument.

"We's just gotta take their word for it, Henry," another newsie broke in quietly, turning to look at his friend. "I ain't blamin' you for askin' the question - I had the same one myself - but we gotta trust each other, ya know? Otherwise we ain't gonna be able to get nowhere."

The statement seemed to mollify Henry somewhat, for he didn't say anything more, but Katherine could tell that he was far from convinced of her innocence.

She wondered how many of the other newsies felt the same.

"What are we gonna do about Crutchie?" came another question, this one spoken by a newsboy wearing glasses. "We gotta do somethin' to help him."

Jack and Race both answered at the same time.

"We finish the strike first so we have a better chance of gettin' the charges against him dropped."

"We bust him outta that place ourselves if this thing goes longer than two more days."

They looked at each other. Both were clearly irritated by the other's answer, and Katherine could feel the tension mounting...but before things could escalate, Race backed down.

"We finish the strike first," he muttered, giving a stiff nod in Jack's direction. "And then we bust Crutchie out."

Jack's defensive expression softened at the other boy's capitulation. "Yeah," he agreed, his voice quiet and determined. "We bust him out first thing." Katherine could tell that neither he nor Race had any idea how they were going to approach such a daunting task, but the loyalty and love that they had for their missing brother was clear in both of their voices, and she was thankful that, whatever differences still lay between them, at least they still had this much in common.

"Are you gonna be coming back to the lodging house for good now, Jack?" one of the younger newsies piped up hopefully. "Things sure haven't been the same without ya."

A half-smile stretched across Jack's face, and he looked as though he wanted to step forward and pull the boy into a hug right then and there. "You bet'cha I'm comin' back for good, Romeo," he said, sounding a little choked up. "I've been away from you bummers long enough."

Romeo did launch himself at Jack then, throwing his arms around the older newsie with a force that made Jack stagger back a little.

That seemed to break the tension, and suddenly the newsies were all moving and talking again, and some were smiling and clapping Jack on the back. A few hung back warily, Katherine noticed, but they didn't look quite as apprehensive as before. Race's expression was as unreadable as ever, but even he seemed to relax a little.

"All right, all right," Jack said gruffly, ruffling Romeo's hair and giving a few of the other boys good-natured punches in the arm. "You don't gotta crowd a fella. I missed ya, all right? There, I said it!"

The statement was accompanied by the biggest, brightest smile Katherine had ever seen, and while she knew that Jack had caught the cautious looks on the faces of those who hadn't joined in the celebration, she could tell that he had gotten his confidence back the moment Romeo had barreled into him with his unexpected hug.

Maybe things would take a while to completely return to normal, she reflected, but they were at least starting to get back on track, and time had a way of healing most wounds. Jack had done his best to explain himself, and if some of the newsies needed more time to come around, that was to be expected. At the very least, Jack was back at the lodging house and back with his boys - at long last right where he belonged.


A/N: And the long-awaited reunion is complete. :) Thank you for reading this chapter; I'd love to hear what you thought of it!