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Post by Administrator on Apr 15, 2010 0:28:41 GMT -5
In the Alleyway that runs astride Caprice Hall, you can find the stage entrance.
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Post by Prince on Feb 4, 2011 23:52:31 GMT -5
((New Day: For Collin))
Oxygen was a wonderful thing. Prince couldn't stop coughing as she crash landed at the door of Caprice Hall. It was in a back alley off of the street and a place she knew she'd be safe until she could make it all the way back to the lodging house. She sat down on the stoop and just tried to breathe... which was a lot harder than it should have been.
She put her elbows on her knees and her head in her hands. She was in the middle of public, but in a back alley around the corner, no one was around. She tore her hat off of her head and threw it on the ground if just to run her fingers through her hair, let her hair see the light of day if nothing else. She could go on and on about how life wasn't fair and how things should not be this way... but things should be that way, that was the point. She was safe now... so why did she want to cry so badly, but she didn't want to. She was stuck, lost in her own head and didn't want to move.
Poor Red... she hoped he was okay. Looks like she owed him another one.
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Post by Collin Russiani on Feb 5, 2011 0:14:32 GMT -5
Collin had been chasing her all through Queens, sometimes doubling through places at a dead run but he knew her well enough to know where she might go. Not to the lodging house. Not yet, not the way she was, and eventually he found her, skidding to a stop a few steps into the alley, his chest rising and falling hard, hat crooked on his head and eyes wide. His face was a little red from the cold and the exercise, and his hands clenched at his sides as he took her in. To think, if Snyder had been a little quicker, if she'd been a little slower.... It scared him. It scared him quite a bit and he'd never felt like this before. They'd had close calls before, but he'd never felt so afraid in his life.
And when he moved, he barely registered his own movement, his footfalls the only sound, echoing off the walls. By the time he stopped he almost had his breath back, though his eyes were still a little wide as they looked down at her. A little blown, a little dilated. "You..." His voice was rough, and he swallowed thickly before he reached out, fingertips just brushing through her hair, a quick slide through all those silken strands. He turned his hand so that the backs of his fingers slid against the side of her face and he'd barely curled them around the nape of her neck before he was pulling her to her feet, bending his head and kissing her. It was a risky move, gusty, but he wasn't thinking about anything other than the feeling of her, safe and sound in his arms, and what could have happened back there. What might have happened back there. And it just made him kiss her more.
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Post by Prince on Feb 5, 2011 1:03:56 GMT -5
There were sounds, but Prince didn't know who it was, so her heart skipped a beat. She took a deep breath and looked up to face whatever fate was walking down the alley way towards her. She blinked and realized it was Red. She sighed and looked down again, going back to the position she'd been in, head in hands simply trying to compose herself. She hadn't seen the warden in at least 4 years, thanks to Avalanche and Red. And here she was a half a block away from the one person who could completely ruin her life. She didn't even want to look at Red. Chances were good he was just going to scold her for not thinking or not realizing, or not running when she had the chance, and she couldn't blame him.
She sighed as he spoke. She knew where this was going. What she was not expecting was him to touch her hair, so maybe she didn't know where this was going. As his hand came down the side of her face she looked up at him, nearly on the verge of tears. She looked at him very confused as he raised her to her feet. She glanced down at the ground, where her hat was still sitting, but she hardly had a second to think of anything else.
The next thing she knew was Red's lips against hers. She panicked for half a second as she put her hands on his shoulders thinking she should push him away but froze them there... and relaxed as she realized what was happening. She breathed in slowly and smiled into the kiss. Her arms gripped him tighter not wanting to let go ever again. Her tears disappeared, her entire body relaxed, as she forgot where she was, what she looked like, and how much danger she was in and simply focused on Red. It was wonderful, it was beyond wonderful, it was sublime.
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Post by Collin Russiani on Feb 5, 2011 7:01:56 GMT -5
Collin had been planning on it, actually, when he'd started off after her. He'd been planning to shake her, ask her what she was doing sticking around when she knew she should have been halfway home before the Warden had even turned around. But when he saw her like that, whatever anger he had in him disappeared, replaced by fear. A deep set fear that was so rare to him. He got scared, everyone did, but this was different. This was so deep that his heart actually hurt at the thought of what could have happened back there. It took him a second to realize he felt this way... because he had something to lose. He'd never really had that before. Sure he had people he cared for, people he loved like siblings, people he would fight tooth and nail for, but he'd never been like this before.
He'd been expecting her to push him away, ask him what the hell he thought he was doing. He didn't expect her to lean into him, to grip him tight. He could feel the smile against his lips and he mirrored it, even as he pulled her close, free arm wrapped around her waist, the other moving from the back of her neck up into her hair, tangling just a bit. Had she been wearing her hat he would have knocked it off just to do this, just to feel the strands against his fingers. And sure, they were in public, but they were hidden and besides. This was Queens. If anyone did happen to pass by, the worst it could be would be her kids. And the worst they could do was gossip. As it was his own hat was about to fall, perched so crookedly on his head, a good shake away from falling to join hers on the ground.
One thing was for sure, though. He hadn't expected their first kiss, because there would have been one, eventually, to be in an alley after running from Snyder, but... It fit. It was them to a T, and when he pulled back to let her breathe he was still smiling, resting his forehead against hers, green eyes sparkling at her. "You scared me, mavourneen." It was barely even a whisper, voice low and a little rough. But he didn't let her go, didn't even attempt to pull away.
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Post by Prince on Feb 5, 2011 14:32:15 GMT -5
There was only one problem... any time she'd kissed anyone it hadn't been anything. A kiss on the forehead, the hand, the cheek, not a big deal. But a real kiss wasn't something she could recall ever doing, or enjoying so much. She just prayed she was doing it right. But she loved the feel of being in his arms be it in a hug... or a kiss. Her eyes had closed long ago and she felt his hands run through her hair which was such a strange feeling. Considering no one ever saw her hair... having someone other than her touch it sent chills down her spine.
As she looked at his face, and she didn't really have a choice considering his forehead was pressed against hers, she was stunned. She heard his words though it took it a second to process in her head. ...she had scared him? She scared Red? How had she scared Red? She didn't think that was possible. Suddenly she realized she wasn't breathing, so she exhaled slowly and started breathing again. After a few seconds of silence as she breathed she barely whispered, "sorry..." She backed her face up a little and threw her arms around him. She never wanted to let him go again. "Sorry I..." she swallowed, "scared you." She was sort of stuck in her brain. Since she'd never done these before, she didn't know where to go from here.
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Post by Collin Russiani on Feb 5, 2011 14:49:27 GMT -5
That wasn't a problem. That was just experience, and she could get it easily enough, Collin certainly didn't mind. As long as it was him she was practicing on he didn't mind at all. And, for the record, she was absolutely perfect. Collin didn't care about technique, couldn't care less, actually, because it was Prince kissing him back and that wasn't something he was completely sure he was going to get. Oh she better get used to it, Collin was going to be de-hatting her every chance he got, especially when they were kissing. He liked her hair, wanted to play with it every time it was down but he'd never really had the chance. But you can bet he'd start taking advantage now.
Oh it was possible. He'd been scared more times than she would probably believe. He was only human. Previous Brooklyn leader or not, it didn't make him invincible, and it certainly didn't keep him from getting afraid. He'd just gotten better at hiding it. Had gotten better at forcing courage when he needed it the most. Like everyone else in the world. He caught her around the waist with both arms, chuckling lightly as he pressed a kiss into her hair. "It's all right. Just... Let's not go taking the Warden on just yet, kay?" It was a joke, he'd never seen her run so fast in his life, but at the same time, he knew she had the courage in her somewhere to face that man one day. Face him and beat him. She could do anything she wanted, she was Prince.
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Post by Prince on Feb 5, 2011 14:58:56 GMT -5
She smiled. She'd rather not face him ever. Why not just run forever? She was scared that the fact of the matter was that if he ever caught her, he'd never let her go. He'd know to find her in Queens, he'd know her friends, he'd know how to get to her, he'd know everything if she ever got caught, and God forbid it happened because if it did, she knew that everyone would be in danger. "Okay," she said quietly to his question. "I think I can be ok with that."
She sighed deeply very content at where she was and who she was with, she just wished it didn't have to be this way. She wished they didn't have to hide in back allies to take her hat off, that they didn't have to run around pretending to be something. When had Prince started referring to herself as they? It suddenly hit her, that if she was going to be with him, then he was in more danger too. And she didn't want to do that to him. "Ya gonna hafta be more careful now," she warned him. If her father had a bounty on his head now as well then she'd have to help protect him. She took a deep breath as she slowly let him go and looked at him. Because now they were hiding, now they were pretending, now they had secrets to keep. Prince never meant for anyone else to get involved so heavily in her life. "Promise?" she asked him as she moved his hair out of his face, grabbed his hat and then placed it on her head. She smiled at him sweetly and blushing ever so slightly.
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Post by Collin Russiani on Feb 7, 2011 14:45:09 GMT -5
Because she shouldn't have to. Just as Collin had to leave Red behind, she would eventually need to leave Prince behind. They would always be a part of them, but adults had different responsibilities, different rules and codes and she was closer to it than she'd ever like to admit. But it wasn't just her growing up that gave him such an opinion. It was time they all stopped running and faced the Warden down. He was all threats now, all bark and no bite. Once the newsies got older... he ceased being able to control them. Sure he might be able to take down one or two with false testimonies, but how many do you think he could stick in jail before the government started noticing? "Good."
Who said it had to be this way? Sure, in public they had to be careful, but around the newsies? Around her newsies? They already knew, and sure they might blink at seeing them together, but most of them weren't that slow or that stupid and Collin had probably already alerted a few of them just by the way he'd tricked her at the fountain and that night at the lodging house. He wasn't all that subtle when he didn't want to be, and he didn't see the reason to be. "Me?" He snorted, grinning at her. "I'm always careful." It was the biggest, most blatant lie ever, and he smiled, raising her hand to his lips gently. "I promise, mavourneen. I'll be more careful from now on." After all, it looked like he had a reason to be.
Collin had always been involved in her life, even before they'd officially met. She'd grown up hearing about him, after all. That red haired leader from Brooklyn, the one the Warden chased all over the place and never seemed to catch. That thief. That newsie. Said with all the hatred Snyder could muster. Those were her bedtime stories. He smiled, surprised, right back at her before he bent down and picked her hat up from the ground, brushing it off reverently and placing it on his own head. "What do you think? Suit me?" He laughed, reaching out to tip her face up to the light, looking at her standing there in his hat, her hair down and blushing. Blushing. "I honestly think you'd look beautiful in anything." He had half a mind to let her keep it on, see if anyone noticed.
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Post by Prince on Feb 7, 2011 16:33:08 GMT -5
Sure, the warden may not be able to control Red, but Prince had at least two years before she could claim the same fact, and she wasn't even fully aware of the reasons why. If they took down the warden now, and tried to get him out of her life, it wouldn't work. He had something a little stronger than government on his side when it came to Prince, and Collin knew it too. Though not even Mary Ann knew what was in store for her should she be caught.
When he lied about always being careful about twenty things went though Prince's mind including, but not limited to ,"liar," "if that was laying low before... I'd hate to see you step it up a notch," and "oh God we're doomed." Saying none of these things out loud she simply sighed until he promised her and called her what was quickly becoming one of her new favorite nicknames... of course she wouldn't let anyone else call her that, but from the right person, it could make her heart melt.
She looked up at the boy she'd known for years... and years beyond that. How was it possible that a fairy tale had come to life right in front of her? She'd never been a fan of the Princesses from the old books who needed a man to come to their rescue every time. She couldn't understand why Rapunzel couldn't climb out of the tower on her hair herself. Why little Red riding hood didn't learn how to fight wolves before going into a dangerous forest. Most importantly, why Cinderella couldn't simply run away from the family that was holding her back. And yet, here was her fabled Knight in Shining armor, come to rescue... well she was no Princess by any means, but she was someone who could use a place to hide.
As her head was tilted toward the light she listened to him and the blush on her cheeks darkened. "I dunno about that hat," she said clearing her throat a little before hand. "I think you're new one looks a little better on you." She wasn't used to this kind of flattery, these compliments, being told she looked... anything but handsome really. So the fact that she could look beautiful? Was so far beyond her imagination that she had a hard time believing it. After all, she couldn't believe thread bare pants and old white shirts look good on her scrawny boyish figure.
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Post by Collin Russiani on Feb 7, 2011 19:06:44 GMT -5
Of course it wouldn't. And Collin did know it, but it bothered him something awful that she couldn't feel free in her own city. That she always had to be looking over her shoulder, always watching her steps and making sure her disguise was perfect. And it was perfect. He'd watched her for years, fooling those that didn't know any better, playing the role as easily as if it were a coat to slip on and off. And in many ways, he really thought it was. There were times when she was nothing but the boy she was pretending to be, and times like now when she was herself, the girl in men's clothes, bright eyes and a beautiful smile. And no matter what she thought, the truth of that matter was that she was beautiful.
Inside and out and Collin had been enchanted by her since the very beginning when she was just a little girl, lost on the streets of Brooklyn. Enchanted enough to remember her when Avalanche came to talk to him, and enchanted enough to keep her safe, secret and all. He tried to look out for everyone, tried to protect everyone, but she'd been different from the start and he wondered if perhaps it was always meant to come to this. Always meant to come down to the two of them in a nameless back alley in Queens. Cinniúint. Fate. He didn't know the word in Italian, because he'd always felt more drawn to the Irish side of his heritage. But it was the same, and he had to wonder. Really had to wonder.
Of course she was that girl. There was always one. Always one that wasn't satisfied with sitting back and letting the men take the lead, always one that wasn't happy with being in the shadows. It made sense, but those bedtime stories of hers weren't meant for romanticizing, weren't meant to be a fairy tale. And yet? That was exactly what they were for the little girl that had wanted to be more than just a princess stuck in a tower. And Collin, if he really was her knight in shining armor, well, he couldn't let her down now could he? "It looks better on you." He grinned, a little crookedly, knowing exactly what he was doing to her as the blush darkened across her face. And he couldn't help but laugh and draw her close, wrapping her in his arms because it was quickly becoming his favorite thing to do.
"Hey." It was a whisper, his head bent and resting against hers, lips near her ear. "Stay with me, yeah? Be mine? Please?"
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Post by Prince on Feb 7, 2011 19:29:49 GMT -5
The truth of the matter was an annoying one. Prince was going to have a hard time taking those compliments about her beauty for a while, mostly because beauty had never been what she was going for... so when that's what someone saw her mind told her she was doing it wrong. But when Red saw it, suddenly beauty didn't seem like such a crime anymore.
As far as Fate was concerned, Prince didn't believe in it really. Was it fate that she was lucky sometimes? Was she destined to run away from home? It all seemed a little too silly to her that a life could be laid out before it was even lived. So she preferred rather to live her life not assuming things that happened to her were what was always going to happen to her. Why she hadn't gone to Brooklyn to ever see a fortune teller on Conney island. Silly things.
She couldn't help it however, as he mentioned the hat looking better on her. Maybe a size too big, but it meant more than just the hat looking good on her, she believed. She turned a bright shade of Red, nearly matching the elder's hair color before she played it off like a child and shook her head attempting to knock the hat off. Unfortunately, being a couple of sizes too big all it did was bring the brim down over her eyes, making her chuckle slightly before she flicked it back up to it's natural position with a finger. Allowing her to look up at him again and smile once more. Her blush now more or less gone due to acting so childish. She wasn't going to stop him as he wrapped his arms around her again.
She did nothing but breathe as he spoke to her. And as she listened, even that seemed to get quieter and quieter. At first it occurred to her she wasn't going anywhere... and then she slowly realized that, that wasn't what he meant. When was the last time she heard that? Or something even close to that? She'd... done things that resembled flirting (she thought) over the years, and even told her life story Jack Kelly once... but when had this really happened? It's quite possible that this was the first time anyone ever asked her opinion of it. Now comes the question, what does she say back?
It was the please that caught her attention in the end. When did Red ask for anything with a please on the end? Ever? The man didn't say it in restaurants to a waitress. He didn't say it to anyone unless the situation was next to dire. Which meant, in her reeling mind the one thing she could grasp onto was the fact that... he must really want this. No, he must really want her. And when had THAT ever happened. As she tried to get her mind wrapped around all of this she suddenly heard the words come out of her mouth, "Of course. You didn't even need to ask." And then her mind stopped. Because she knew it was true, and there needed to be no more thought on the subject. For once Prince didn't have to think hard to put the puzzle together, it was already complete, with the last piece firmly in place with him in her arms.
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Post by Collin Russiani on Feb 8, 2011 12:41:32 GMT -5
It wasn't something she'd been going for because it wasn't something she needed to work towards. There were a few truly beautiful women in Collin's life, many of which didn't need any help whatsoever in being absolutely stunning, and Prince had to take the cake when he thought about it. It was probably due to the fact she tried so hard not to be a girl and despite it all, she was gorgeous. Completely gorgeous, and he wouldn't want to change a single thing about her. She didn't need skirts or dresses to impress him, he thought she was beautiful in pants and a shirt, hair tucked up under her hat or flowing around her face. No matter what she thought.
Maybe. But maybe some things were always meant to be, and the way their lives had worked around to this point... was oddly fortunate. In a way none of this should have happened. Too many things had happened for things to have realistically worked out this way, but it had and here they were. Wasn't that a bit of fate itself? Working miracles. And luck was just another name for it; was she lucky for falling asleep in Brooklyn so many years ago? Was she lucky that Collin had just been around to find her? If you thought of it that way... they'd both been uncharacteristically lucky with each other.
Oh it did, and he laughed himself nearly silly watching her try and shake it off. She reminded him of a kitten with a new collar, and he grinned as she fixed the hat back on her head, her own forgotten on top of his. He didn't push her to answer, or even to answer the way he wanted her to, he just held her close and breathed, the world narrowed down to just the two of them. He wasn't Jack Kelly, and he wasn't just childishly infatuated either. He'd left those days behind him. What he felt for her was very adult, and very real. And of course he asked, he wasn't one of those men that assumed relationships. He knew he wasn't perfect, knew he wasn't everything gossip sometimes built him up to be, and Prince knew him in and out. There was a very real possibility she might say no.
But she didn't, and the smile that spread across his face was wild and bright. "Of course I did." He tightened his arms around her and pulled back to give her that bright smile. "I wasn't sure you'd even want me." And he sounded beyond relieved that she'd said yes. If she hadn't he would have had to do something drastic like work on changing her mind.
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Post by Prince on Feb 8, 2011 18:30:13 GMT -5
Luck is something different all together from fate in Prince's mind. She'd believe in being Lucky (after all the girl had a good right hook, you better believe in her). But luck could come and go on any given day. Would it be considered luck that she'd fallen asleep in Brooklyn simply because she didn't know where she was? She would say that she was VERY lucky to be found by the newsies and Red particularly. Had anyone else found her she could have been dead. So he had her there.
However, with this so called "luck" she had with Red and all the time she'd spent with him through the years, she had to admit, but only to herself, that she possibly had developed a small crush on the boy. She could even remember missing him last winter when he was still out seeing the world. She always missed him when he wasn't around. No pun in tended, but he was a bright ray of sunshine in her world. True, she had others, but Red was one that seemed to outshine them all. Of course, their timing had never been perfect. He'd been other wise occupied, she'd been infatuated with the Manhattan leader, he'd been gone. But there is something to be said for timing. Can't appreciate the ends without getting past the road blocks on the way. As for Prince saying no? In her mind, she would have had to be the dumbest girl in the world to turn down those loving green eyes.
She looked at him and tilted her head slightly to the side like the confused kitten that she was apparently pretending to act like today. "Why on earth," she said looking a little astonished, "would I not want you?" Her mind started listing off the possibilities in her head, but she turned it off very quickly because she didn't want to jump to conclusions, she wanted the right answer from the source for once before she started making assumptions. All she could do in the mean time was look up at him and smile.
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Post by Collin Russiani on Feb 12, 2011 16:12:43 GMT -5
Things had been stable, but crazy back then. It wasn't really unusual to come across a child curled up in the streets, but it was unusual to find them unharmed. Especially in Brooklyn. Those that the newsies didn't find first were usually victims of crime or sweatshops, lured in with a sense of security and then forced to essentially slave away to survive. The newsies weren't like that, and she had been very lucky Collin had found her while Brooklyn was still waking up around them. It could have been so very different and on top of it he'd had the forethought to send her to Avalanche rather than to the Bronx or even back to Manhattan.
Their timing had always been horrible, but at the same time, it wouldn't have worked any earlier. She hadn't been in the right mindset, or even receptive to the idea. He remembered her infatuation with Jack quite well, having seen it happening from the sidelines. Besides... she'd been young. She didn't know what she wanted and Collin hadn't either. He was still wandering, trying to find a place to fit in, trying to find a home he could keep the way he couldn't have kept Brooklyn. Add Shiloh and everyone else in his life, and it hadn't been the right sort of atmosphere for them. But now it was, and here they were. Like they'd always been working towards it. What was that if not fate? Just plain luck?
"Well...I..." He paused and shook his head, smiling at her and cupping her face with his hands. "Mavourneen, you're far too good for someone like me." He kissed her, softly, sweetly, and when he pulled back he was still smiling. "You could have anyone in New York if you tried for them, and you want me."
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(c)Red
