You all know exactly what that title means! :)

Oh, am I going to have fun with this one. I've been looking forward to it.

Enjoy! :)

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"They jacked up the price." Kid Blink throws his arms up in the air. "Sixty cents per hundred." He throws his head back in disbelief. "Can you believe that?"

"This'll bust me," Skittery comments glumly. "I'm barely making a living as it is."

"I'll be back sleepin' on the streets," Boots adds.

Every newsie has something to say. It's affecting everyone. They may say it's a fine life, but it really isn't. Life's already stressful enough, money is already tight, and then you throw something like this into the mix. It has everyone on edge.

"It's bad enough that we have to eat what we don't sell," Kid Blink continues, fuming. "And now they jack up the price!"

"It don't make any sense," Mush agrees, althought notably much calmer than Blink. "I mean, all the money Pulitzer's making? Why would he gouge us?"

"'Cause he's a tight wad, that's why!" Race mutters, pacing back and forth. This is not good for him--at fifty cents a hundred, he could still have bad gambling luck and still get by. But now that it's sixty cents per hundred, he can get into real trouble real soon. Whether that means gambling down to his last penny ... or just stopping gambling in general.

The clamour continues.

David and Jack exchange glances. Absolutely nothing is getting done.

This still isn't sitting right with Jack. He goes up to the counter. Weasel is smirking, as usual. Now there's more triumph in his eyes.

"So why the jack up, Weasel?" Jack asks.

"Why not?" Weasel sneers. "It's a nice day."

Jack just shakes his head and walks away. Of course that attempt wouldn't go anywhere.

"Why don't you ask Mr. Pulitzer?" Weasel calls after him. The Delanceys are laughing. The three of them are enjoying this.

"It ain't fair," Boots complains to Jack. "We got no rights at all."

"They can't do this to me, Jack," Blink says, equally ticked off.

"They can do whatever they want, it's their stinkin' paper," Race argues pessimistically, just as riled up as both of them, and everyone else for that matter. 

"Hey hey hey! World employees this side of the gate only!" Weasel shouts at them. Everyone starts shouting back, indignant, nerves still high.

"Jack, the prices ain't gonna go back down, so why don't we get our lousy papes while we still can?" Mush asks, tired.

The clamour starts up again, with plenty of mixed opinions on what they should do next.

"Hey! No one's going anywhere until we figure this out!" Jack shouts, finally getting everyone to settle down, at least a little.

That's something David's always admired about Jack: how much influence he has on others.

Jack sits down on the steps, wanting to think this through.

Race gives him approximately three seconds. "Jack, you done thinkin' yet?"

Jack just glares at Race, no true malice behind it. You're not helping. Race just returns the glare. They could go back and forth like this all day.

Finally, Jack has an idea of what to say. "Without us, the city knows nothing. If we don't sell papes, no one sells papes. No one's gonna come put the prices right back where they were unless we give 'em reason to."

"What, you mean like a strike?" David comments, careless with his words.

That creates a spark. "Yeah, exactly like a strike!"

David's eyes widen in horror as he realizes what he's just done.

Luckily, others are laughing it off.

"Are you out of your mind?" Race asks incredulously.

"It's a good idea!" Jack responds reproachfully.

"Jack, I was just joking," David tells him, hoping to burst this bubble before it gets too big. "We can't go on strike."

"And why not?" Jack asks.

"Because we aren't a union."

"Yeah, well, why can't we say we'se a union?"

"Because we're not," David emphasizes. "We're just a bunch of angry kids with no money."

"Well yeah, but what if we make ourselves a union?" Jack asks. "The newsies union!" He stands up. "And anyone who doesn't join, we bust their heads together!"

Ah, yes. Violence. The thing that gets newsies excited.

Jack walks into the square, every newsie following. Including David, trying everything he can to convince Jack that this is a bad idea.

"Jack, this isn't a joke!" David tells him. "You can't just rush everyone into this."

"You're right," Jack gives in. He stops in front of the Horace Greeley statue and faces all the newsies. He shouts, "Hey listen! Davey's right! Are we just gonna let them rich fellas do what they want? Or are we going to do something about it? The choice has to be yours."

No one is speaking up.

"So what'll it be? Are we just gonna take what we're given? Or are we going to strike?" He challenges.

Still, no one speaks up--much to David's relief.

"Strike!" Les shouts enthusiastically, hand raised over his head, nearly giving David a heart attack.

That was notsupposed to happen.

Too late; more newsies are considering the idea. They seem convinced.

"Come on, Jack!" Boots urges. "Tell us what to do!" Others are agreeing with him. They all want this.

Jack smiles, and turns to David. Then, so only David can hear, he murmurs, "I can't do this without you."

David doesn't say anything. Just sees Jack's serious expression, just looks into Jack's earnest eyes.

"I think we can be great together," Jack tells him.

I think we can be great together.

And so David considers it. He really does.

Seeing David's changed expression, Jack's face grows more hopeful. "So. What'll it be?"

Yes. A small part in David's head is saying yes. Externally, though, he acts like he's more chill. He shrugs. "Okay."

A huge grin spreads on Jack's face--one of his contagious smiles. And David can't help smiling too.

"So what do you want us to do?" Jack asks.

"Me?" David asks, not entirely believing Jack would let David decide on something this important.

"Yeah, you," Jack responds. "We'll make a great team, you and I. I can't do this without you. I know you got some good ideas in that head of yours. Ya see, if I was makin' all the decisions, it'd probably be foolish, and we won't last a week. You, however, can properly make sure that we see this through."

For a moment, David doesn't respond. How could he? All those words ... they're making his heart flutter. Making him see what can happen in the future. 

Jack's right. He would do more foolish things than efficient things.

He probably said that because he knew how I would respond to it.

The thing is, though, I think it's working.

"Tell them..." David begins. Jack focuses all his attention on David, and only on David. So what does David want to say? How will they be successful? What can he say to convince the newsies to band together to form a union and go on strike? "Tell them that Pulitzer and Hearst and all the others have to respect our rights."

"Hey listen!" Jack shouts to the crowd. "Pulitzer and Hearst, have to respect the rights of the workin' kids of New York!"

That gets a good reaction from the crowd. Jack smiles, satisfied.

He turns back to David. "Well, that went pretty well. What else should we do, Davey?"

Davey.

The nickname makes his heart flutter.

"Tell them that we can't just be treated like we're nothing."

Jack gets up on the statue. "Pulitzer and Hearst, they think we're nothing," he shouts. "Are we nothing?"

"NO!" the crowd shouts back.

"Pultizer and Hearst, they think they got us, do they got us?" Jack continues.

"NO!"

"We're the newsies' union!" David adds enthusiastically. "We need to stick together and start acting like a union!"

"Even though we ain't got hats or badges, we're a union, just by saying so..." Jack pumps his fists in the air. "And the World! Will! Know!"

That gets more newsies excited.

Everyone is clamouring under the statue, asking Jack questions.

"What's to stop others from selling our papes?" Boots asks.

"We'll talk to 'em," Jack answers confidently.

"What if they don't hear so good?" Race asks.

"Well, then we'll soak 'em!" Jack responds. That gets the crowd excited.

"NO!" David cuts in. "We can't beat up people in the streets! It'll give us a bad name!"

"Can't get any worse!" Crutchy counters.

"What's it going take to stop the wagons?" Jack asks the crowd. "Are we ready?"

"YEAH!"

That goes against everything David just said. "NO!"

But everyone is too excited to hear it.

"What's it gonna take to stop the scabbers? Can we do it?"

"Yeah!"

"We'll do what we gotta do until we break the will of mighty Bill and Joe..." Jack declares.

"And the World will know!" everyone shouts enthusiastically. "And the Journal too!" They turn to face the building. "Mr. Hearst, and Pulitzer, have we got news for you!"

They're excited now. "Now the World will hear what we got to say. We've been hawkin' headlines, but we're makin' 'em today."

"And our ranks will grow..." they murmur. Mush pats David on the back, noticing how unsure he looks.

"And we'll kick their rear!" Crutchy adds enthusiastically.

"And the World will know that we've been here!"

Jack jumps down from the statue, taking the lead again, Race and Crutchy by his side, David trailing a little behind.

"When the circulation bell starts ringin', will we hear it?" Jack shouts.

"NO!"

"What if the Delanceys come out swingin', will we hear it?"

"NO!"

All together, "When you got a hundred voices singing, who can hear a lousy whistle blow?

"And the World will know! That this ain't no game! That we got a ton of rotten fruit and perfect aim!

"So they gave their word? Well, it ain't worth beans! We're gonna see what stop the presses really means."

They all gather around. "And the day has come ... and the time is now ... and the fear is gone!"

"And their name is mud!" Boots interjects enthusiastically.

"And the strike is on!"

"And I can't stand blood!" Boots adds.

"And the World will-"

"Pulitzer may own the World, but he don't own us," Jack says.

"Pulitzer may own the World, but he don't own us!"

Jack puts his hands on David's shoulders, looking him right in the eye. This will all be okay. I promise. "Pulitzer may crack the whip, but he won't whip us!" 

"Pulitzer may crack the whip, but he won't whip us!"

Jack suddenly gets an idea. He dashes off while the newsies keep going, leaving David wondering what he's doing.

"And the World will know! And the World will learn! And the World will wonder how we made the tables turn!

"And the World will see, that we have to choose! And the things we do today will be tomorrow's news!"

Jack climbs the ladder up to the chalkboard where they get their headlines.

The newsies gather around close again. "And the old will fall! And the young'll stand tall!"
"And the time is now!" "And our ranks will grow!" "And our ranks will grow and grow and grow!"

Jack picks up the chalk as the newsies make one last declaration.

"And the World will feel the fire and finally know!"

Jack finishes writing the word STRIKE.

Everyone starts cheering.

Jack climbs down, smiling. He immediately runs up to David. "So how was that for a start?"

"We shouldn't soak scabs," David returns, a little coldly. "I thought I would have a say in that."

Jack's face falls a little. "Right. Sorry 'bout that." He grins sheepishly. "Newsies love a good fight, y'know?"

That's not a good justification.

"No, I don't know," David retorts.

"How 'bout this then?" Jack suggests. "We only-"

Whatever he was about to say, whatever he thought was going to make the situation better, is put on hold by everyone crowding around, ready for Jack to tell them what to do next.

"We gotta spread our message to other boroughs now!" Jack tells them, whole demeanor changing, to the charismatic, smiling, Jack Kelly that everyone looks to, the one everyone is in awe of. The Jack who takes things seriously and listens to David has evaporated.

I can't believe this guy. How did David ever think that Jack could change?

"You guys gotta be..." Jack taps on David's shoulders, bringing him back to the present. "Whaddaya call 'em?"

David has next to no context at all. His guess is as good as the next. But they were talking about spreading the message... "Ambassadors?" He offers.

I love Davey and his big words, Jack thinks with a smile. "Yeah! You guys gotta be ambastards for the other boroughs!"

That gets some people snickering at his pronunciation. David looks down, failing to conceal a smile. Yes, Charismatic Jack can be a jerk sometimes, but he can also be cute.

"We'll take Harlem!" Kid Blink and Mush say first, then leave together.

"I got the Bronx!" Crutchy says next, going off in his own direction.

"I got Midtown!" Race tells Jack.

Wait, that doesn't sound right to Jack. Why would Race want to go to Midtown...?

"Wait, what about Brooklyn?" Jack calls out to Race before he goes too far. Come on, Sheepshead is basically Race's second home. And now he's not looking for an excuse to go to Brooklyn?

Race stops and turns around. "Ah, yeah, well, you see, Spot and I ... right now ..." He shakes his head. "Not good."

Although David didn't understand most of that, Jack seems to.

Jack glances at David. "Yeah, I get that." He turns back to Race. "We'll send someone else to Brooklyn then."

With a nod of relief, Race goes off to Midtown.

"Itey, Snipeshooter, Specs, you go to Queens," Jack starts assigning people to more boroughs. "Skittery, Bumlets, Tumbler, you take East Side." 

He turns to David. "Am I missing anyone?"

David racks his brain for any other borough that would be important. He does know one thing though. "You forgot to assign Brooklyn to someone."

"Oh, that's right!" Jack faces the crowd again. "Brooklyn! Who wants Brooklyn?"

Absolute silence.

"Come on, Spot Conlon's territory!" Jack says.

Spot Conlon. Spot. 

Spot and I ... right now...

It starts making sense.

How many newsies are in and out of relationships? David wonders. Does everyone just get together at some point? Is this just a thing? Am I a part of this constant cycle?

Still, nothing from the crowd. It would appear that whoever Spot Conlon is, no one wants to mess with him.

Luckily, Jack knows how to get a response out of people. "Don't tell me all you guys are scared of Brooklyn."

"Hey! We ain't scared of Brooklyln!" Boots pipes up indignantly. He shuffles his feet. "It's just that Spot Conlon ... makes us a little nervous."

"Well, he don't make me nervous," Jack responds. "So you and me, Boots, we'll go to Brooklyn." He puts an arm around David. "And we'll have Davey to keep us company."

That gets a couple of ooh's from the crowd.

David looks at Jack, unimpressed, face burning. However, Jack is smiling at him. And because it wouldn't look good for the two leaders to fight, David can't say anything against it.

"I'll go as soon as you take our demands to Pulitzer," David says, catching Jack offguard. He resists smirking. Got 'em.

"Me? To Pulitzer?" Jack asks.

"Yeah, you're the leader," David pushes on. "And that's what leaders do." His eyes narrow. "Don't tell me you didn't think this through when you pushed for us to strike."

Jack swallows. He's obviously conflicted.

Now he has a choice: to back down and show David that he really isn't ready for this, or go take their demands to Pulitzer as David asks, proving that he is a competent leader.

Jack squares his shoulders. "Alright." He walks right up to the door. Then hesitates. He grabs Les. "Maybe a kid'll soften 'im up."

Newsies cheer as the pair goes behind the door and into the building. 

"Strike! Strike! Strike!" everyone cheers happily. 

"What strike?" a man asks David. "What's going on?"

David eyes the guy warily. Should he trust him? So he chooses words to make them sound more professional and less childish. "We're taking our demands to Pulitzer."

"What demands?" the guy asks.

"The newsies' demands. Pulitzer and Hearst need to respect our rights."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah." David is going to stand his ground. But it doesn't seem like this guy is challenging him.

"You seem like a guy in charge," the man tells him. "What's your name?"

Flattery to get what one wants. Still, David goes with it, no reason to distrust him yet. "David," he responds.

The man sticks his hand out. "I'm Bryan Denton. Reporter for The Sun."

Press coverance. 

This could work well for them.

They shake hands

"I want you to keep me posted," Denton tells David. "Everything that happens."

"Are we really an important story?" David challenges, but he truly is curious.

"I don't know," Denton responds. "What is important? Last year, I covered the war in Cuba." He pauses before continuing. "So, is the newsies' strike important? That's up to you."

David's going to think about that a lot.

Suddenly, the doors open as Jack and Les are literally thrown out.

"You tell Pulitzer that he needs to make an appointment with me!" Jack shouts at the closing doors.

"Yeah!" Les adds.

David sighs. This is going to be a long day.

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I was looking forward to writing that.

I love how in the movie throughout this whole scene Jack is just obviously in love with David while David is just. Not impressed with Jack haha.

Yeah, there's Sprace :)

It's dysfunctional Sprace right now, but that's gonna change.

I'll include Blush whenever and wherever I can.

Okay, the thing about Bryan Denton is that he says a lot of smart things. I'm going to include as much of them as I can.

Also the war and Cuba and 1898 are all historically accurate details just putting it out there.

"Can't get any worse!" -one of my favorite 92sies Crutchy quotes haha.

Speaking of Crutchy ... I considered spelling it Crutchie, because I really don't care about the spelling, but since this story is specifically 92sies (sorry Livesies fans, I truly have nothing against you though), I'm going with the 92sies spelling.

Also, I really like writing brotherly Jack & Crutchy just like brotherly Jack & Race.

I can't wait for when they're in Brooklyn.

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

Best,

~Your Beloved Author (who is constantly torn between writing and reading, but is always listening to good vibe music no matter what else they're doing)