"Boots!" Mr Kloppman screamed at the poor boy, causing him to jump awake.

"Skittery, Skittery, Skittery." He said trying to wake up the boy.

"What I didn't do it!" Skittery yelled as he sat up frantically.

"What do you mean you didn't do it?!" Mr. Kloppman yelled and lightly hit his face.
"When you get up, you have to get up." He yelled to everybody.

"Snitch! Get up, get up, get up!" Kloppman yelled at the boy sucking his thumb.

"Come on, everybody's sleeping here!" He yelled.

"Come on Lucy!" He said shaking her awake.

"Kloppman, it's too early for this sh-" she started, but the man gave her a stern glare, causing her to snap her mouth closed.

"They sleep their lives away, these kids! The ink is wet. The presses are rollin. Sell the pape! Sell the pape!"

As Kloppman went over to Jack and had a brief conversation with him, Lucy rolled her head, staring up at the bunk above her.

A devious smirk made its way onto her face as she kicked her legs up, pushing on the mattress.

"Ey, what's de big idea?!" Her brother, Racetrack pokes his head over the bed. His eyes squinted, as he had only just woken up.

"Alright carry your banner! Sell the papes!" Kloppman yelled exiting the room.

Racetrack then jumped down from the bed as Lucy got up. He gave her a light push, causing her to retaliate and push him harder.

Racetrack rolled his eyes at his childish sister and then started looking through his drawers frantically.

"Hey! That's my cigar!" Race yelled at Sniper who sat smugly on the bed.

"Eh, you'll steal another!"

Race swiped the cigar out of Sniper's mouth, hitting him as Kidblink rushed over, breaking up the fighting boys.

"Hey bummers! We got work to do!!"

"Since when did you become me mother?" Specs got right into Blink's face. His morning breath causing Blink to snarl, pushing his face away.

"Aw, stop your bawling!" Crutchie interjected.

All the boys got mad at the boy as Lucy simply laughed at the bickering. "Who asked you?!"

"So how'd you sleep, Jack?" Mush asked the cowboy - manhattans leading newsboy.

"On my back, Mush." Cowboy deadpanned. Trying to walk away from the conversation.

Mush found this funny, he started laughing hysterically, earning glares from the whole lodging house.

"Hear that, fellas? Hear what Jack said? I asked Jack how he sleep and he said 'on me back, Mush'." He laughed out, playfully punching his friend.

Lucy walked by, her hair all tangled and knotted, she yawned and slammed her foot down on Mush's.

"Ouch!" He yelled holding his foot in his hands.

"Can it." She grumbled.

"Geez, somebody woke up on the wrong side of the bunk." Mush snickered.

"You say something, Meyers?!" Lucy turned around, ready to start a fight. That was before crutchie stepped between the two.

He then approached Jack, starting a conversation, instead of listening, Lucy walked towards the bustling bathrooms.

"I gotta find a new selling spot where they haven't seen any." He said as he walked in with Jack.

"Try Bottle Alley or da Harbor." Mush piped up.

"Try Central Park it's guaranteed." Racetrack also joined the conversation.

"Try any baker, bum, or barber." Jack continued.

"They almost all knows how to read." Skittery commented, shaving his face.

"I smell money." Kidblink confidently exited a bathroom stall.

"You smell foul." Lucy - who was walking by the boy - gagged.

Kidblink turned towards Lucy and stomped closer to her. Mush stepped between them. Ready to break them up.

"Met this goil last night!!"

"Ow! Move your elbow." Crutchie whined from the water crank, where boots was trying to wash his hands.

"Pass the towel!" Race, who was blinded with shaving cream, ran around aimlessly shouting pleas.

"For a buck I might."
Lucy stuck out her tongue at Race as he chased after her blindly.

"Ain't it a fine life, carryin the banner through it all!"

Everybody started pulling on their clothes. Lucy stripped from her white nightgown and pulled on her white shirt and vest. She turned to see a handful of boys looking at her.

She smirked and pulled up her pants, tying her boots and pulling her cap over her head, starting to braid her hair messily and letting it fall on one shoulder.

"What? No free stalls." She shrugged, glad that Racetrack was still wiping his face.

"A mighty fine life. Carryin the banner tough and tall."

"Every mornin, we goes where we wishes. We's as free as fishes. Sure beats washing dishes."

"What a fine life. Carryin the banner home-free all."

Everybody made their way outside the lodge, hooting and hollering as they jumped around.

The boys - and one girl - started jumping on the barrels. Earning annoyed looks from passerby's.

"Summer stinks and winters waitin. Welcome to New York. Boy, ain't nature fascinating, when youse gotta walk?"

They all turn the corner and start dancing. Some boys spinning, some flipping.

"Ain't it a fine life. Carryin the banner through it all!"

"A mighty fine life, blowing every nickel as it comes."

"A mighty fine life, blowing every nickel as it comes."

Jack twirled Lucy as she laughed, the boys hooting in the back.

"I'm no snoozer. Sitting makes me antsy. I likes livin chancy." Crutchie stands still, not able to do much with the group.

"Harlem to Delancey. What a fine life. Carryin the banner through the slums."

The nuns walk out and start passing the group water and bread. They continue singing a hymn-like song to the children.

A frantic lady entered the crowd of newsies, searching each one thoroughly. She gave Lucy a sympathetic look.

"Patrick. Darling. Since you left me, I am undone. Mother, loves you."

"Papes are all we got. Wish I could catch a breeze. Sure hope the headlines hot. All I can catch is fleas."

"God save my son!"

Lucy felt bad for the woman and started walking towards her, only to be pulled back by her collar by Blink.

"Hey!"

"If I hate the headline. I'll make up my headline. And I'll say anything I'll hafta. Cause at two for a penny, if I take too many weasel just makes me eat em afta-look!"

"They're putting up a headline, what's up a headline. Call thata headline, wont pay."

"I get betta toured from the copper on the beat."

"So where's your spot?"

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

"But a dozen'll be a plenty. Will ya tell me how'm I gonna make ends meet?"

"We need a get assassination.
We need a earthquake or a war."

"How bouta crooked politician?" Snipe swung on a pole boredly.

"Hey stupid, that ain't news no more. Uptown to grand central station. Down to city hall. We improved our circulation. Walking till we fall."

"Still we'll be out there. Carryin the banner man to man."

"The idiot who wrote it must be workin for the sun."

"We'll be out there soaking every sucker that we can."

Kidblink put his arm over Lucy's shoulder as they make their way to the paper cart.

"Heard the toll was even higher. Why do I miss all the fun? See the headline. Newsies on a mission, kill the competition, sell the next edition. "

"While we're out there. Carrying the banner is the-"

All the newsies stopped in the middle of the street. Lucy in between Race and Blink. The Delancey brothers were weaving through the crowd.

"Dear me. What is that unpleasant aroma? I fear the sewer may have backed up during the night."
Race commented, causing Lucy to snort.

"Nah too rotten to be the sewers." She said with a smirk as the Delancey brothers came closer to her and her brother.

"Yeah yeah, it must be The Delancey brudders." Crutchy laughed out.

Everyone erupted into laughter.

"Hiya boys." Lucy smiled at them and tipped her hat. Flirtatiously waving.

"In the back, ya lousy little shrimp!" Oscar yelled throwing her to the ground.

Jack came over to help her up as Race cracked his knuckles.

"Oh that's not good to do that. Not healthy."

"You shouldn't be calling people lousy little shrimps, Oscar. Unless you're referrin to the family resemblance in your brudder here." Jack said, causing everybody to laugh.

"Hey, 5 to 1 our cowboy skunks em, huh?" Race said getting in their faces.
"Who's bettin?" Lucy pulled her brother back by his collar, saving him of any more embarrassment.

"That's right. It's an insult. So's this." Jack said taking Morris' hat off his head and running away.

That's when chaos erupted.

Jack was being chased down the street by the two ding bats. But in the end, Jack outsmarted them and won, once again.

But that wasn't a big surprise.

WC: 1473
Edited