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Post by Smarty Jones on Aug 13, 2009 13:19:34 GMT -5
(New Day - for Soothsayer)
Spot had just told them not to go off on their own. Not only had Smarty done just that, she was also lost. Not that she was afraid of what Spot would do. She kept herself distant enough from Spot not to especially care about him. But she couldn't believe she'd been so stupid. She had just spoken to Danny about everything that happened to Tate, and by the end of the conversation Smarty just had to get away. So she took off walking, and didn't stop until she realized she had no idea where she was. Standing on a corner, she searched for a streetsign in the waning light of evening. She found them, but they were unfamiliar and of little help.
As the beginning of nerves began to set in, Smarty pulled her fingers through her hair and chewed on her bottom lip. She had no idea how many turns she had taken, what borough she was in...she hadn't crossed the bridge, so Manhattan was out. Queens? Or was she still in Brooklyn? God damn it. No sense in sugar-coating it. She was lost.
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Post by soothsayer on Aug 13, 2009 13:39:37 GMT -5
Soothsayer whistled as he walked down the street towards the girls lodging house. He'd just finished selling for the day and was looking forward to going back and bugging some of them into cooking him something for dinner. As he turned a corner he spotted something he hadn't seen in what felt like forever, the best ass in Brooklyn. He bit back a snicker at the thought knowing that if she ever heard him say it aloud she'd probably try to kick his ass. "Well, well I knew if I thought hard enough about you, you'd eventually pop up right in front of me."
Giving Smarty a grin, he walked over and threw an arm around her shoulder. He knew it would probably instigate her to hit him but honestly he didn't care. Something about her pulled him towards her like a moth to a flame. "What are you doing so far away from home? Don't you know it isn't safe for ladies to be out at night?" Okay, so maybe he was instigating a little bit, but she was so damn adorable when she was all riled up.
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Post by Smarty Jones on Aug 13, 2009 13:49:31 GMT -5
"Well, well I knew if I thought hard enough about you, you'd eventually pop up right in front of me."
Smarty spun around to a very unwelcome sight. "Oh no," she sneered. "No way in hell. You better keep walking, you bastard." She fixed him with a glare and hoped he would get the hint that she wasn't in the mood to be messed with. She was upset, she was lost and agitated, and the last--the last--thing she felt like dealing with at the moment was men.
"What are you doing so far away from home? Don't you know it isn't safe for ladies to be out at night?"
He tried to sling an arm around her. Shocked she shoved him hard in the other direction and punched him in the chest. "It won't be safe for you, either, if you don't leave me the hell alone. I have had enough of you."
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Post by soothsayer on Aug 13, 2009 13:53:57 GMT -5
Soothsayer grinned and rubbed his chest where she punched him, "Aw, come on I'm starting to think you're actually trying to really hurt me." It would take a lot more than a hit to get him to walk away though. One thing that can definatly be said for Sooth is that he is one persistant son of a gun. "So what has you in such a mood?"
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Post by Smarty Jones on Aug 13, 2009 14:09:31 GMT -5
"Aw, come on I'm starting to think you're actually trying to really hurt me."
"Boy, aren't you a sharp one..." Smarty sneered. "Look. I'm not in the mood, all right? So leave me the hell alone if you want to keep your head on your neck, all right?" She turned and started to walk away. It didn't matter where she was going, as long as she was away from him.
"So what has you in such a mood?"
She stopped in her tracks and sent a sneer over her shoulder at him. "Like you care," she spat. Why did everyone pretend they cared when they really didn't give a shit?
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Post by soothsayer on Aug 14, 2009 10:48:43 GMT -5
Soothsayer ignored her comment to leave her alone and fell into step beside her. He smirked at her response to his question. It seemed all Brooklyn girls were prickly when it came to men especially men who were outsiders. "If I didn't care I wouldn't ask. Besides I thought no one was supposed to be out on their own these days. Even you Brooklyn girls. I know you can take care of yourself but it couldn't hurt to have someone walk you home."
Giving Smarty a toothy grin he tucked his hands in his pockets. "Besides if your trying to head to Brooklyn we wanna turn around. If not I don't mind just going for a walk with you."
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Post by Smarty Jones on Aug 14, 2009 11:34:06 GMT -5
"Yeah, couldn't hurt. Know anyone?" Smarty would hope that this kid knew she would rather walk home with that maniac Finnie Jinker than with him. "Doesn't matter. I don't care if I get nabbed. Worst that happens is they kill me..."
"Besides if your trying to head to Brooklyn we wanna turn around. If not I don't mind just going for a walk with you."
"I can take care of myself! I don't need any man to escort me anywhere, ever! And who says I want to go back to Brooklyn, anyway?" she spat heatedly. "Why are you still talking to me, you ass? Don't you get it? Shove off!"
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Post by soothsayer on Aug 14, 2009 12:14:47 GMT -5
Soothsayer shook his head but a grin was still plastered on his face, this girl was so feisty. He absolutely loved it! "You're looking at him." He knew she didn't exactly care for him, but he wasn't going to leave her alone. "Well yeah they could kill you and I don't want that to happen. Besides I'd hate to see a pretty face like yours get worked over."
He held back a laugh at her next statement inherently knowing it wouldn't endear him to her. "I know you can take care of yourself, but if something does happen two people are better than one. If you don't want to go back to Brooklyn, that's fine, I just thought I'd let you know."
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Post by Smarty Jones on Aug 18, 2009 13:59:15 GMT -5
This guy must have been stupid or something. Either that, or he was just one of those men. No, not "one of those". He was a man, period. He didn't know the meaning of the word no and played around with you until you believed him and then brought everything crashing down around your ears. Danny had not misled her by seduction. He had made her believe in something she hadn't believed in for a long time--unsolicited kindness. Through just a few kind gestures, he made the hardened tomboy believe in her own heart again. And then, oblivious of how much his small efforts had done for her, he had told her he would kill her if he had the chance. That was what men did. That was why Smarty Jones hated herself for concerning herself with one, and she would not make the same mistake again.
"Let 'em kill me," Smarty said. "I've never cared if I live or not. And what do you care about me anyway? I hate your guts, you fink..."
"Nothing is gonna happen to me. And if it does, see if I care." Smarty clenched her fists, a gesture that had become a habit when she was irritated (her two eldest brothers had done the same thing for as long as she could remember) and heard a soft snap. She looked down to see the cigarette she'd been holding when she spoke to Danny. She had snapped the thin paper, and now the brown tobacco spilled across her palm like the ashes of a dream.
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Post by soothsayer on Aug 18, 2009 14:46:10 GMT -5
Soothsayer couldn't help it this time he let out a little chuckly and shook his head at her. Honestly he didn't know what the draw was about angry women, but for some reason all their fire and spunk just drew him in like a moth to a flame. "I'm sure more people care if you live or die than you may think. And me...well I care because who else would tear me apart every time they see me? I mean I have to have someone around to deflate my ego at some point."
He gave her a genuine smile, but figured at this point it wouldn't make much headway with her. He raised an eyebrow when she said she didn't care what happened to her but for some reason he didn't believe she truly meant it. Something had gotten under her skin, he wondered what or who it was. "Wanna talk 'bout what's bothering you? You don't have to worry 'bout me running my mouth. Who'd believe you'd talk to me after I grabbed your arse?" He laughed slightly and studied her as he waited for her answer. He truly expected her to ignore the question altogether or punch him for bringing up the fact that he'd grabbed her butt. Part of him wanted her to hit him, he loved her feistiness.
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Post by Smarty Jones on Aug 18, 2009 16:24:28 GMT -5
Smarty scoffed and kicked at a stone on the sidewalk. "Shut up. No one cares about me. No one ever will." What was to care about? She was just a girl who had established herself in many ways as a boy. In all ways, it seemed, but two. One she had no power over. The other she had no control over. Who could care about a girl like that? Even Lucky and Smalls were still somewhat feminine...they would flirt and whatever else a real girl did around boys. Smarty had been accepted by them, but she knew she would never be like them. They were as tough as boys, and they were still girls. Smarty had to make herself become a boy before she would be as tough as one. When her father had been looking for a husband for her, eons ago, every man in town with an eligible son would say, "Sorry, Mister Ashby, but the answer is no. My son wants a wife, and your girl would make more of a husband." She wasn't feminine enough to be a girl, and she would never be a boy. She was Smarty Jones, Mildred Ashby, a street rat, a newsie, a girl, a tomboy, a degenerate. Who would ever care about a girl who didn't even know who she was? "You're impossible," she snapped at Soothsayer.
When he asked her if she wanted to talk, she was at first wary. "What--? What are you tryin' to do here?" Typical Queens kid, she thought defensively. In Brooklyn, you didn't try to make other people's problems yours. You had your own things to worry about, and you didn't go around asking people to tell you about theirs.
"You don't have to worry 'bout me running my mouth. Who'd believe you'd talk to me after I grabbed your arse?"
Smarty gasped, then cried out in disgust. "Ugh! You bastard! Just leave me alone. You're all the same, for God's sake." Not wanting anything more to do with him or anyone else, Smarty turned on her heel and hurried away. In her haste, she tripped over to curb and fell hard into the street. She swore loudly as she scrambled to her feet. Her knee was cut by the stone pavement, and blood blotted her trousers. The heels of her hands were also skinned. Her dignity gone (would he have the guts to laugh at her?), she glanced at Soothsayer before dejectly lowering her head and sitting down on the edge of the curb. It didn't matter if he still stood there. It didn't matter that it would be dark before she got back to the lodging house. Nothing really mattered.
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Post by soothsayer on Aug 19, 2009 10:53:35 GMT -5
Soothsayer raised an eyebrow when she said no one had ever cared about her and no one would. It seemed like she honestly believed it but he didn't believe for a minute that that was true. He'd seen how Brooklyn was, they might be made up of teeth and claws but when one of their own was hurt they fell into rank and took care of their own. It was hard for him to believe that she honestly thought no one gave a damn about her existence. He didn't think he'd be a very pleasant person if he felt the way that she did. He smirked when she said he was impossible, "I heard it's a good trait to have."
"I'm honestly not trying to pull anything. I just thought you seemed like someone who needed to talk. But I won't push ya." He sighed when she told him to leave her alone and turned to walk away. He wanted to get to know her but he wasn't used to having to work hard for something he wanted. He supposed though that he'd done this to himself and he still found her reaction amusing even if he was a bit put off by it.
When she fell though it took him less than a minute to make his way over and scoop her up. He gave her a crooked grin and began walking back to the Queens Lodging House. He held on tight because he knew she was going to fight him on it. "I always wanted to be a knight in shining armor." He winked at her and picked up the pace a little. "I'm sure it's just a little bump but better safe than sorry." Plus since the last time she'd been in his arms he'd been looking for any excuse to have her there again.
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Post by Smarty Jones on Aug 19, 2009 15:51:49 GMT -5
The moment Smarty realized what he was doing, all hell broke loose.
"What the hell are you trying to? Put me down! Let go of me, I'm fine, for God's sake, I can walk! Put me down, damnit!" She cried over and over, thrashing all the while. She couldn't believe he would have the guts to do this, and to be so cool about it even while she cried out in protest and kicked her legs, trying to get him to drop her. If she fell to the sidewalk, the fall wouldn't kill her, and it would be easier to suffer through than to be carried to...wait a second...
"Where are you taking me?" she demanded. "Put me down before I break your nose, you fathead!" She attempted to slide from his arms, but his grip was tight. What was worse, to stop struggling and suffer the indignity in silence, or to continue to fight a losing battle?
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Post by soothsayer on Aug 19, 2009 15:59:38 GMT -5
Soothsayer laughed and gave her a toothy grin, not loosening his grip in the slightest. "Fight all you want, my lovely, I'm still going to carry you. Besides you may not be seriously hurt by why risk it when I'm perfectly willing to carry you." He grinned widely and knew that the instant he set her down she was going to beat the hell out of him. But honestly he didn't care. He laughed again when she called him a fathead, "You know I'm going to have to start writing down all these names you call me they're actually pretty funny. And I'm taking you to the lodging house so you can get your knee cleaned up and then I'll walk you home if you want to go."
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Post by Smarty Jones on Aug 19, 2009 16:23:04 GMT -5
Smarty stared at him angrily, incredulus. "What do I have to do to get you away from me?" She had done everything she could think of doing, but for some reason he refused to leave her alone. Did she try hitting him? At this point she couldn't even remember everything she had done. Why was he so relentless? Could she believe him when he said he was honestly trying to help her? Why should she believe anything he said? He could easily forget all about her once something better came along. As soon as she started to trust him, she would be let down. Why even bother with him, or anyone?
Smarty tried to move out of his arms again, and there was a pain in her knee sharper than before. She glanced over (it was difficult in her current position) to see that the would was still bleeding, and her trousers were speckled with blood from the inside. Her palms stung as well, and she noticed the dirt in the scrape. Maybe getting cleaned up wasn't a horrible idea. "Look," she snapped through grit teeth. "Just put me down, and I'll go to your lodging house to get cleaned up," she said it like she was consenting to throwing herself into the Hudson.
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