|
|
Post by reeves on May 29, 2009 22:41:55 GMT -5
Reeves frowned briefly. Politician, so like most rich, not a business but a title gave them their wealth. Reeves didn't let Thera get to him at all. He was slightly accustomed to the words filthy and such, not that he enjoyed being called those things, eventually you learned to just take it in stride. Reeves was calm and only tempered if something really got to him, he was stubborn yes, but not easily angered. And though his skin wasn't spotless like Thera's, it wasn't filthy. He let her have her own opinion anyways. He had nothing to prove to her.
"I'll be okay, if I get fired, I just find another job, s' how it goes. It seems everybody's been a little tight around the collar lately, air's tense like a storm. I don't know if you've been following the newspaper lately, but there's been some kidnappings of some of the kids in the city. Nobody knows where they vanished off to...I guess you're used to unpleasant though with your parents, maybe you'd suffer shock if things were suddenly happy. I dunno anything about my parents, but I know my brothers and sisters and they can argue a load too."
Reeves smirked at Bert good naturally, taking off his gray cap and letting it sit on the knob on his chair. He wore a trouser vest like Bert's, only Reeves' was a dark emerald color and hung open, where Bertrand's was neatly buttoned with a bowtie to finish.
"So what excuse did you tell this time to get you both out of the house to this fine establishment?" Reeves grinned widely, addressing the question to Bert, his dark blue eyes still twinkling merrily.
|
|
|
|
Post by Thera Noble on May 30, 2009 15:59:05 GMT -5
Bertrand nodded solemnly. "Yeah, I've heard about it. Dad's been at work almost around the clock lately because of it. He's trying to find a way that his office can do something about it but it’s pretty much futile. He has no grounds to even begin to get involved in it. It's completely out of his jurisdiction. I keep trying to tell him he should try to do something roundabout to light a fire under the asses of the people who can do something but he doesn't want to so far as to put his political career at risk." he rolled his eyes in frustration "It just seems like that's everyone's mantra when it comes to things like this. Nobody who can do anything about it is willing to spend the amount of money that it would take to launch the kind of investigation that something like this needs and all of the other politicians either don't care or aren't willing to put their political reputations on the line for the well being of a bunch of innocent women and children who need to be protected. I don't know if it makes me want to go into politics so I can be the one guy who gives a damn or to stay the hell away from it for fear of turning into them. The whole damn thing just makes me sick."
Thera scoffed at her brother's indignation. "Well, come now, Bertrand, what does it really matter? When it comes down to it, it's only a bunch of street rats who barely contribute to society as it is. Can you really blame people for not rushing to their aid so they can continue to occupy menial positions which any immigrant could take on straight off the boat? The people wouldn't stand for it and, frankly, I for one don't want father to sacrifice our family's well being for a dead end cause like that." she was so engrossed in having her opinion heard on the matter at hand that she failed to retort when Reeves slipped in a remark about her family dynamics.
Bertrand looked a bit disappointed that he hadn't been able to foster at least enough compassion in his sister that she could feel some compassion for kidnapped little kids but, other than that, he just ignored her. He knew by now that it was no use trying to contradict Thera. In the heat of the moment, there was just no getting though to her. It was difficult in any circumstances but when she felt strongly about something it was flat out impossible.
He perked up considerably when Reeves changed the subject by asking how he had managed to get the two of them out of the house this time. He let out a slight chuckle before answering "An excuse? Please, you underestimate the extent of my parents' lack of child rearing skills. I hardly ever have to use an excuse to get out of the house. mother's usually out shopping, in her quarters alone or out making small children cry or whatever it is that she does for fun and father was at work yet again, but Frankly, I don't think It would have made much of a difference if he had been home. When it comes to Thera and I, he has about the awareness level of a wet sponge, if that. We could probably be gone for about month before he even began to wonder why we weren't coming down for dinner. Anyhow, I just walked out the door, told Essie where we were going and came here." He explained, smiling broadly in unsurpressed amusement.
|
|
|
|
Post by reeves on May 30, 2009 16:45:15 GMT -5
Reeves was quiet as the two Noble children discussed the missing children. He didn't have much to say on the matter besides he felt awful for the people who were taken away from their homes. Like Bertand said, it was a pity that the only people who could do anything to help didn't care. These were people, people with families, emotions and needs. He and his brothers had taken to walking Alice to work lately, just to make sure nobody would take her. Alice was strong willed but she was still in danger. He sighed as he listened to Thera speak, shaking his head with a frown but didn't say anything. She was entitled to her opinion, even if it was quite arrogant for her to be so worried about her family's well beings when there were dozens of families being affected in so much worse ways by the kidnappings.
Reeves grinned back at Bert as he described his father's awareness of them as a wet sponge. No wonder Bert got out to explore the city so easily, it probably helped him to have Essie on his side too. It was kind of sad though, their parent's lack of attention to them. When they had so much money and other things, why should they pay attention to their kids? That seemed to be the motives of parenting society. Raise your children to love money and you couldn't go wrong. Reeves noted that when he got home he wasn't going to get mad at Alice for fussing about him being late anymore.
|
|
|
|
Post by Don't Ask on Aug 25, 2009 0:29:24 GMT -5
((New Day))
Don't Ask didn't do mornings well. He was slow to wake up, often sleeping right through dawn and not waking until Mr. Purdy came clomping into the forge and started stoking the fire. Iron clanging against iron could wake the dead.
Today had been one of those days. Don't Ask hadn't slept well, and woke with a jerk as the grate crashed open. He shoved his feet into his boots, pulled on a fresh shirt, and blearily climbed from the loft down into the heat of the forge. Mr. Purdy took one look at him, with his half-lidded eyes and hair stuck up at odd angles, and declared, "Boy, you ain't up yet!" In an unusual display of benevolence, he told his assistant to go off and find himself some coffee and breakfast and get back before the mid-morning rush.
Don't Ask, especially in his sleep-deprived state, was confused by his boss's kind behavior, but was still in his wits enough to take the opportunity before Purdy came to his senses.
Tibby's was the only place he could think of that he knew the way to well enough to walk in his sleep--which he practically was. He stumbled in the door, ordered himself a cup of coffee and a plate of eggs and tomatoes, then tripped his way to the corner booth.
Safely ensconced in the booth, he pawed the sleep from his eyes and raked his fingers through his hair, struggling to make himself come fully awake before he fell face-first into his plate and drowned in egg yolk.
|
|
|
|
Post by Prince on Aug 25, 2009 1:14:09 GMT -5
Prince had been in Manhattan. A kid in her borough had wanted to come visit a friend, he had gone to the Lodging House, and since Tibby's was very close, she hoped that nothin' would go wrong. She kept a sharp eye out, just in case. She was in getting some breakfast herself, hadn't eaten last night, hadn't been able too. She wasn't exactly feelin' one hundred percent. She walked through the door and ordered a plate of eggs herself, as well as some milk. She needed the food.
She glanced over at a kid in a booth. The heck? That was no place for a kid to be sleepin'... not with the streets what they were. He was... face down in a plate of food? What the heck was the kid doin'? Did he pass out? Prince walked over to him and poked him a little. Looking like a boy she tried to wake the poor thing up. "Kid," she said deeply, having perfected her boyish accent. "Hey kid... you okay?" she asked trying to get DA to wake up already!
|
|
|
|
Post by Don't Ask on Aug 25, 2009 13:14:21 GMT -5
"I'm up, I'm up," Don't Ask grumbled, pulling his face away from his fists. He looked up to see another kid--a newsie, judging by his ink-stained fingers--staring at him with an expression of mild alarm. He looked a little familiar; Don't Ask wondered if he had met him already...
"Just didn't sleep so well," he said, by way of explanation. "Kids gone missing, my friend lost a couple friends of his in it, he's worried about them, and his worry is my worry..." He waved his hand in a gesture to indicate that the list of reasons he hadn't slept well was never-ending. "So, sleep don't come easy anymore."
He pressed his fingertips against his eye lids and tensed up, bunching and relaxing his muscles, and forced the last of the fuzziness from his body. Stifling a final yawn, he stretched his arms along his side, and gestured to the seat across from him. "You lookin' for a place to sit? Don't mind sharing a table."
|
|
|
|
Post by Prince on Aug 26, 2009 1:59:36 GMT -5
Prince shrugged a little. Couldn't hurt her to have a seat, so she slid in across from the boy. "Yeah," she said nodding. "I know what cha mean." The kid didn't look like a newsie, but for the life of her she had no idea what he did do instead. She could only assume one thing or another. But on topic... "I've lost a few of my own kids... newsies from down in Queens," she explained nodding a little.
She chuckled. "Pardon me," she said in a low voice and offered her hand. "Name's Prince," she said introducing herself. "You a newsie around here, or... what?" she did figure the kid wasn't high class, he didn't look anywhere near having more than maybe 3 dollars to his name, so she was pretty sure she wasn't offending him.
|
|
|
|
Post by Don't Ask on Aug 26, 2009 17:37:39 GMT -5
Setting his fork down, Don't Ask reached across the table and shook Prince's proffered hand. "Nah, I'm a blacksmith. Well, apprenticing for it. I got a couple newsie friends I pal around with, though, so you may have seen me around. Don't Ask. That's my name, I mean, Don't Ask."
He scrubbed his hand over his face a final time before taking a slurp of his thick-as-mud coffee. The gruff demeanor was both a side effect of the early hour and an intentional ruse--he didn't often venture out into public before work, because the soot from the forge helped to rough up his face, marring his feminine brow line and delicate cheekbones.
|
|
|
|
Post by Prince on Aug 27, 2009 1:02:25 GMT -5
Prince chuckled a little. "Dun Ask huh?" she said deeply. Due to the nature of the name, she wasn't sure she should ask how the name was gotten... so... she just moved right along. "So what's got you so tired that you're fallin' asleep in ya breakfast?" she asked as her own eggs arrived. She gave a nod to the waitress and pretended to check her out as she walked away. "I dun mean ta be rude or nothin', jus think it ain't the best idea, fallin' asleep in public places with the things goin' on in this city. If ya friends with newsies, I'm sure ya know what I mean."
Prince was, of course, referring to the kidnappings going on around New York. For someone their age it wasn't safe to be venturing out alone, and being defenseless. Not that Prince wanted to be selfish, but it could be a disaster should they get a hold of her. After all, since she was trying to hide out, pretending to be a boy, should anyone discover different she would be in deep water. But since Medda helped her hide her figure, and she got some bigger shirts she found it to be less of a problem.
|
|
|
|
Post by Don't Ask on Aug 28, 2009 10:02:54 GMT -5
"Just a general lack'a sleep," Don't Ask answered, stabbing the center of his eggs with his fork and watching the runny yellow yolk pool out. "My friend Dutchy, he lost a couple friends in the snatchings. He's worried 'bout them, an' I'm tryin' to make him feel better and relax, but I'm really just takin' his worries and puttin' 'em on myself. And now I'm spendin' my nights too worried to sleep."
Taking another sip of his coffee, Don't Ask pulled a face at the bitter taste and grabbed for the sugar bowl, scooping several spoonfuls of sugar into the dark liquid. Stirring his cup, he contemplated Prince's face for a moment.
"Prince, you said your name was?" He mulled that over for a minute before realizing where he'd heard it. "Oh, you're one'a the leaders, aren'tcha? Queens, right? Styx was talkin' 'bout you..."
|
|
|
|
Post by Prince on Aug 31, 2009 18:20:47 GMT -5
She nodded with a small smile and leaned back. "Yeah, Prince. Styx is a good kid," she said nodding slightly and chuckling. "Smart one," she added. She picked up her fork and attacked her eggs for a moment, before saying, "Ya know, I'm sure there's a lot to worry about, but ya dun need ta be takin' on someone elses fears," she said. "Ain't right, and after all, if ya got too many people worryin' it just leads ta panic, and then nothin' gets accomplished as everyone fears the worst, and waits for someone to find a way to fix it all. If it were me, I'd say dun worry too much. I'm all for concern, but worry wun help a thing. Yeah, I know, it's hard ta turn off... so don't do that, just relax. That way when ya needed ya won't be in a panic runnin' around like a chicken with it's head cut off... and you can be helpful, that's the best thin' ta do," she said before eating her eggs again.
"So tell me, Don't Ask," she said, you live round Manhattan," which she assumed since all of his friends were in Manhattan, "or ya just come ta visit a lot?"
|
|
|
|
Post by Don't Ask on Aug 31, 2009 22:28:49 GMT -5
Don't Ask listened to Prince's advice, nodding gravely as he dragged his egg whites through the pooled yolk, leaving yellow smears on the plate. Prince was right, of course, and gave some pretty sage advice, there.
"Yeah," he agreed, nodding. "You're right. But it just ain't in me not to worry, you know? I'm a worrier, mijn moeder is a worrier, mijn papi is a worrier... I come from a long line of worriers." He studied his coffee mug for a moment before pushing it away with a sigh. A caffeine buzz certainly wasn't going to help him relax at all. "But I'll try."
"So tell me, Don't Ask, you live round Manhattan, or ya just come ta visit a lot?"
"Live here. I'm apprenticin' with the blacksmith by the harbor--the place that caught fire a few years back? He lets me sleep in the loft over the forge so I can watch out for fires durin' the night."
|
|
|
|
Post by Prince on Aug 31, 2009 23:55:38 GMT -5
Prince nodded with understanding as DA explained he came from a long line of worriers. That was just fine with Prince. She understood that some kids were just like that. But when he agreed to try, she smiled a little happy to hear of at the very least an attempt. Who knew, maybe he could even get some of the others to calm down too.
She listened to DA's place of residence. "Not a bad gig," she said nodding. "At least keeps ya off the streets, gives ya a bed, and a place ta be a night, a safe place ta at least call..." well home wasn't the word... "a job," that was more like it. "And ya get paid, make a semi-livin' offa it too. She finished her eggs and set down her fork before leaning back in her chair once more rather content. "Ya like it? Or... just tolerate it?" she asked chuckling.
|
|
|
|
Post by Don't Ask on Sept 1, 2009 13:47:54 GMT -5
Don't Ask chuckled back. "Nah, I like it okay. It's a good job. Honest work, at least. Purdy, he works me hard, but he's okay. And, ya know, job comes with a place to stay, so..." He dropped his fork onto his plate with a clatter and cracked his knuckles. "I figure I lucked out. I got it better than a lot'a kids out there, so I better be grateful."
He stopped for a moment to scratch his ribs. Don't Ask had slept in his chest binder the night before, and hadn't had a chance to re-wrap it properly this morning before Mr. Purdy came banging into the forge. The linen strips had bunched up in the night, and it was itching something fierce this morning.
"How 'bout you?" he asked, once he'd clawed the itch back down to a dull tingle. "How you like bein' a newsie? Bein' leader of the newsies, even?"
|
|
|
|
Post by Prince on Sept 1, 2009 23:40:37 GMT -5
Prince smiled a little and shrugged a little. "S'not bad. I mean... the only real perk is that I gets a room ta myself." She shrugged a little. "And even still I got little kids come banging on my door durrin' thurnder storms and when they had night mares to make sure lightning and monsters dun get 'em." She chuckled deeply. "But the kids are good mosta the time, and a lotta Queens has young'uns. So they need someone ta look after 'em."
She shrugged a little. "B'sides, a lotta people are expectin me, along with the other leaders, to come up with some kinda solution here pretty quick, and I dunno how that's gonna go," she said shaking her head. "Dun get me wrong the more info the better, and rallyin' the troops won't be too hard! But... at the same time, it's a lotta responsibility, ya know?" she said shrugging. "Not bad, just a lot... lotta people starin' at ya."
|
|
(c)Red