AAAAA first flashback chapter!!!!

Enjoy! :)

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"That's my cigar!" Racetrack glares at the kid in the bunk next to him. True, it's only a cigar, but this annoys him.

Snipeshooter glares at him straight on. "You'll steal another." He's pretty much asking for it.

"Hey bummers we got work to do!" Kid Blink jumps down from his bunk before anything can happen. He knows that Race and Snipeshooter will listen to him.

"Since when did you become me mother?" Specs teases.

"Ah, stop your bawling!" Crutchy cuts through them. Every day, the same stuff. Why don't they mix it up at all?

Mush joins the crowd as the call after him, "Hey! Who asked you?" 

And so the lodging house begins to wake up.

All around Race, people are talking.

He overhears Crutchy proclaim, "I need a new selling spot. I need to go somewhere where they ain't used to seein' me."

And boy, do the newsies know spots for him.

"Try Bottle Alley, or the harbor," Mush says.

"Try Central Park, it's guaranteed," Race adds.

"Try any bank or bum or barber," Jack contributes.

"They almost all knows how to read," Skittery finishes.

All around them, the morning routine begins.

"I smell money-" Blink walks out of the bathroom, confidence for a good selling day growing.

"You smell foul!" Crutchy exclaims and immediately goes another direction.

"Met this girl last night!" Mush announces in a sing-song voice. His eyes flash as he spins Blink around. They tease each other like this.

"Ah, MOVE YOUR ELBOW!" Crutchy yells at Boots. Boots, younger than a lot of them, and just doesn't care.

"Pass the towel!" Race wanders around a little ways with his face covered in soap, arms stretched in front of him, stumbling blindly.

Skittery jumps up on the table, towel above his head. "For a buck I might!"

Not like any of them have a buck.

But still...

"Ain't it a fine life, carrying the banner through it all."

It's not an easy life. But being a newsie is everything.

"A mighty fine life, carrying the banner tough and tall."

They make money and do whatever they want.

"Every morning, we goes where we wishes, we'se as free as fishes, sure beats washin' dishes, ain't it fine life? Carrying the banner home free all!"

They're free from nearly all adults. What more could they want?

Now they get out and about in the streets.

They love bragging about what techniques they use to sell more papers.

"It takes a smile as sweet as butter," Jack claims.

"The kind that ladies can't resist," Crutchy adds.

"It takes an orphan, with a stutter," Race tells them.

"Who ain't afraid to use his-"

"Fist!" Blink cuts in.

And everyone keeps on going.

"Summer stinks and winter's waiting, welcome to New York. Boy ain't nature fascinatin', when you'se got to walk?"

They run through the streets.

Still it's a fine life, carrying the banner with your chums. A mighty fine life, blowing every nickel as it comes.

"Ain't no snoozer," Crutchy claims proudly, "sitting makes me antsy, I likes living chancy--Harlem to Delancey"

"What a fine life, carrying the banner through the-"

That's when the Sisters come forward, bringing their kind words of you shall be saved, and most importantly: food.

As they all crowd around, eager for any food, a woman comes into the crowd.

"Patrick..."

Race dips his head respectfully to the Sisters. "Just give me half a cup." 

"Darling...."

"Something to wake me up." Louis gets a chunk of bread.

"Since you left me..."

"I gotta find an angle." Mush gets a piece of bread before going to catch up with his selling partner.

"I've come undone..."

"I gotta sell more papes." Crutchy goes his way after getting his bread.

"Mother,"

"Papers is all I got." Boots shares bread with Snipeshooter. "Wish I could catch a breeze."

"Loves you..."

"Sure hope the headline's hot." The rest of them get their food. "All I can catch is fleas."

"God save my son!"

"God help me if it's not." "Somebody help me please."

They leave her behind.

It's a heartbreaking story; but not an uncommon one.

And they keep moving forward.

"If I hate the headline, I'll make up a headline, and I'll say anything I have to."

And there's a reason for that: "'Cause it's two for a penny, if I take too many, Weasel just makes me eat 'em after."

They all look to the giant billboard.

"Look, they're putting up a headline-"

It better be good.

"What's it say?" It's not good. "You call that a headline?"

"That won't pay." "I got better stories-"

"So where's you're spot?" "-From the copper on the beat."

"God it's hot." "I was gonna start with twenty..."

"Will ya tell me..." "but a dozen will be plenty."

One thing that they can all agree on: "Tell me, how am I gonna make ends meet?"

There are many things that make a good headline: always things that are the most dramatic.

"We need a good assassination! We need an earthquake, or a war!"

"How about a crooked politician?" Snipeshooter suggests.

"Hey stupid, that ain't news no more!"

Of course that's not new. This is New York they're talking about.

They continue running through the streets. This is the best part.

Uptown to Grand Central Station, down to City Hall,

We improves our circulation--walk until we fall!

And they are having so much fun.

Still we'll be out there, carrying the banner man to man.

We'll be out there! Soaking every sucker that we can!

Now they're so close to the circulation center.

"See the headline, newsies on a mission, kill the competition, sell the next edition, while we're out there, carrying the banner through the-"

Suddenly, two people come up to them. The Delanceys. 

"Dear me, what is that unpleasant aroma?" Race jokes. "I fear the sewer may have backed up in the night."

"It's too rotten to be the sewers," Crutchy joins in, "It must be: the Delancey brothers!"

All the newsies laugh.

But then the Delanceys push Tumbler to the ground.

"It's not good to do that," Race tsks. "Not healthy."

Especially not with Cowboy, who gets right up in their faces.

Race sees a good betting opportunity. "Hey! Hey! Hey! Watch it! Five to one Cowboy skunks 'em, now who's bettin'?"

"Nah, bum odds," is the reply he gets.

Well, you can't blame a gambler for trying.

That's when Cowboy steals a Delancey's hat.

And the chaos ensues.

A chase through the streets.

This oughta be fun.

As always, Cowboy wins, the Delanceys run away, and the newsies keep on moving.

Race grins, watching it all.

It's a fine life!

Carrying the banner through it all!

A mighty fine life!

Carrying the banner!

"Go got 'em, Cowboy!" the newsies shout.

"What a fine life-"

"You get 'em, Cowboy!"

"A mighty fine life, carrying the banner, it's a-"

"Go!"

They all start shouting and yelling as the doors open, smiles wide.

Time to get their papes. 

Time for a new day of selling to begin.

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I wrote that very quickly with very little sleep so let's just see what everyone thinks.

Since Jack Kelly wasn't an actual newsie, I relied on Cowboy and there being a Jack to use in the story.

Yeah yeah, wasn't like the movie. Sorry, but I'm not going based off of 92sies or Livesies. Well. Not directly.

So.

The first flashback.

Setting up the characters.

Kind of.

What did you think? I need honest answers.

The next ones will be better.

This was just introducing the flash backs.

And a little Race-centric kind of because of the way the last chapter ended.

I love all versions of the song Carrying the Banner. It makes me so happy.

Can't promise for sure when the next update will be. Tomorrow at earliest/best, two-three days from now at latest.

Until then! :)

Please, no homophobia or transphobia, profanities, hate etc in the comment section.

Best,

~Your Beloved Author (who definitely, definitely, definitely should be sleeping right now)