The Distribution Center -- Crates

[Administrator]

Take a seat and see if there are any good headlines!

[Fighter Mallory]

NEW DAY - DAVEY

Fighter took a drag of her cigarette as she leaned against the edge of the Brooklyn Bridge, her gaze wandering between the river and the people walking into Brooklyn. It took but a moment for her to notice two boys her age picking on a kid who couldn't be more then nine or ten. A scowl twisted across her face as she crushed the cigarette between her clenched fingers. Fighter didn't notice the slight burn that caused though because her attention was focused entirely on the rapidly escalating situation. In five long strides she was behind the tallest of the boys, her hand reaching up to grasp his hair tightly before yanking backwards and stepping to the side, sending him tumbling to the ground. She glanced at the other boy, her eyes narrowed before she pulled her leg back and kicked the one on the ground in the ribs without even looking at him. The warning clear in her eyes that what he was getting was light compared to what she'd do to the other one if he came for her. "Don't you know who this territory belongs to, dumbass?"

The boy at her feet groaned, but she didn't spare him a glance as she stepped towards the boy they'd been hassling. "You alright, kid?" When he gave her a firm nod, she gripped his shoulder in her hand and steered him away from Brooklyn and towards Manhattan. She'd noticed him on the bridge earlier and figured he'd come from there. "What're you doing wandering so far from home? Brooklyn ain't no place for a 'hattan kid." Fighter took a closer look at the kid and noticed the smudged fingers and chin. She shook her head and didn't bother waiting for him to answer her question before mumbling under her breath about a stupid cowboy. The boy gave her an indignant look. "Jack isn't stupid. He's the smartest guy I know... besides my brother."

Fighter snorted at that and pulled out another cigarette before pausing to strike a match and light it. She inhaled deeply before giving him a serious look. "Smartest dumb guy you mean." He looked like he was about to retort so she held up a hand to stop him. "Just jokin' kid. What's your name anyway?" She steered him through the crush of people crossing the bridge as she waited for an answer and when he gave it she had to stop herself from rolling her eyes. She knew who he was, of course. He belong to the Mouth and she'd see that he got his brother back, maybe box his ears while she was at it. Who let their little brother get loose long enough to find their way to Brooklyn? It wasn't a safe place for a kid his age who wasn't familiar with the streets. Hell, even the kids his age who were shouldn't go around Brooklyn by themselves. That was how half of them ended up dead or missing.

She heaved a sigh of relief when they finally made it to the World building. The kid was as much of a mouth as his brother but she didn't mind it. Fighter couldn't count the number of conversations she'd lost herself in with Gwennie where the little one would talk her ear off for hours on end. Fight absently brushed a curl off her head as she leaned against the crates at the distribution center. "Alright, kid, point out your brother to me. Never had the pleasure of meeting him and I ain't leaving you alone to find your way back to Brooklyn again." He looked like he was about to pout and a small smirk tugged at the edges of her lips. It was always nice to see a kid who was actually that, a kid. It was why she acted like such a mother hen to the ones in Brooklyn. She hoped that they'd have that spark for as long as they could before the streets snuffed it outta them or life did. Les glanced around before smiling and pointing towards a boy standing at the window buying papers with dark hair. He and Les had a similar look about them so she knew the kid wasn't lying. "Well, lets get this over with." She whistled loudly, holding up a hand to get his attention, not caring that half the other boys waiting in line had turned to stare at her. A few who recognized her began to elbow their friends and whisper to them. "Mouth! Got something that belongs to you." She raised her voice slightly so he could hear her, the smirk full blown on her face at this point.

[David Jacobs]

David heard the murmuring from the crowd gathered behind him before the sharp whistle and the sound of his name being called over the din and bustle of mornings at the World Building. But when he turned he never envisioned seeing a slight girl with a fiery look about her to be standing with her brother, who looked a bit dubious despite the smile on his face. "Les?" David said, pausing to hand his papers to one of the younger newsies, deciding that this was probably something that needed his attention more than that day's morning edition. He wasn't sure who the girl was, though the look of her screamed Brooklyn in a way that David couldn't quite explain - that and the hushed sort of whisper that had fallen over some of the kids gathered behind him. He jogged down the last few steps and crossed over towards the crates thinking he heard the name Fighter bouncing around behind him and his blue eyes found the girl and studied her with more interest now.

He knew her by reputation, of course, it would be impossible not to with Jack always talking about the kids in Brooklyn and word got around on the street, whether you wanted it to or not. And while the line between Brooklyn and Manhattan was as clearly defined as any in the city, somehow it still occasionally got blurred and crossed, as evidenced by the dark haired girl's presence beside his guilty looking brother. "Les?" David repeated again once he was in front of them and he pushed his cap up on his head slightly to get a better look at his brother, smudged chin and a scrape that had come from who knows where on his cheek. Great, his mother was going to have David's hide for this one. "What did he get into now?"

"I didn't get into nuttin'!" Les insisted, his eyes wide as they looked up at David almost pleading with him to believe him and for half a moment, David considered letting him off the hook but another glance at Les' unorthodox companion told him that probably wasn't the best idea. Les was notoriously slippery for a Jacobs - David didn't recall getting himself into nearly as many scrapes when he was that age - and had a knack for sneaking off when no one was looking and one of these days it was going to get him in a world of trouble. His blue eyes found Fighter again and he slipped off his cap and ran his fingers through his hair as he ignored his brother's insisting plea and directed his question to her. "What'd he get into?"

[Fighter Mallory]

Fighter ignored the whispers around her, all too used to hearing them when she traveled to other boroughs. Her usual smirk danced across her face as she eyed the other kids. Part of her couldn't help but enjoy the sense that she was unnerving them. She was all too used to the fact that some (probably more then some) newsies were intimidated by her. Not just because she was from Brooklyn, although that was part of it. But because she had a reputation when it came to getting into messes and then beating her way outta them. It was part of who she was and the fact that people knew she could not only defend herself but also make a mess out of them kept them from bothering her for the most part which is what she wanted. She had all the friends she needed in Brooklyn and they knew her as well as any one person could really know another when they lived in Brooklyn. That was all she needed. As Davey approached, she crossed her arms a bit defensively because she could tell by the look on his face that he wasn't exactly comfortable with find his brother in her company. Fight almost snorted at the thought. Better her then half the other kids in Brooklyn who would've just told him to beat it and left him to his own devices.

Her eyes slanted towards Les when he spoke and the smirk made another appearance across her face. Course the kid said he didn't do anything. What else was he gonna say? That he was making his way towards Brooklyn like it was a trip to church or something. When the Mouth directed his question at her, her eyes darted back towards him and she gave him a shrug. "Nothin' really. Just found his way across the bridge." She left out the bit about the two boys intent on bullying the kid and probably snagging whatever money he'd happened to have on him. She wasn't the type to tattle on anyone. Not even a kid without the sense to stay where he belonged. Fighter laid a hand on his shoulder and gave him a gentle push towards his older brother. "Well, now that I've returned yours I'll be heading out. Missed the edition so I gotta check and see if any of the others grabbed extra papes."

Fighter stuck her hand in her pocket searching for another cigarette, her smirk widening into something almost resembling a smile when she came up triumphant. She turned and struck a match on the crate lighting it up before giving Davey and his brother a salute. "Stay outta trouble, kid." She paused, her face hardening a bit. "When I say that, I mean stay outta Brooklyn. It isn't no place for you to go walkin' about cause your bored." She glanced at Davey and gave a slight shrug before turning to head back towards Brooklyn, already trying to figure out how many pockets she was going to have to pick to make up for missing the morning edition. If she was lucky she'd find a fat wallet. Seeing as she was in Manhattan she had a better chance of that here.

[David Jacobs]

"Across the bridge?" David repeated, cocking his eyebrow first at Fighter and then down at Les who was suspiciously refusing to meet his eyes and he had a feeling there was a little more to the story than either one was saying. He couldn't say he was surprised at the revelation of Les' early morning activities, because despite his protestations and even the occasional explanation from Jack - whom Les idolized and David was fairly certain found way neater than his older brother - that warned about the dangers of wandering into Brooklyn unaccompanied it just didn't seem to get through the ten year old's rather thick head. "How many times...?" David began and then ended in a sigh, deciding it wasn't worth having the conversation here and certainly not in front of Fighter who appeared ready to move on with her day now that Les had been delivered safely back to Manhattan. She gave Les a warning word and then with a glance at David started off in the direction that she and Les had come and David watched her go for a moment before turning and touching Les' shoulder.

"Les, you gotta stop runnin' off like that," He began, reaching down with his other hand to catch his brother's chin in the palm of his hand and gently tilt it up so he could get a better look at his brother's face. The scratch would heal up well enough and he was mostly in one piece and he already looked almost green with guilt now as he looked glumly up at David. "You ain't gonna tell mama, are you?" Les asked quietly, biting on his lower lip as he looked at David with wide eyes and David fought the smile that tugged at the corners of his mouth. Damn kid was going to run him ragged. "I don't know, let me think on it," David said, giving Les' shoulder a squeeze before nodding over towards the crowd that had dispersed a little as Fighter had gone on her way. "Go on, over there with the others," He motioned with his hand in the direction of where a group of his friends had gathered and David knew they'd keep an eye on Les, and presumably out of trouble for a few minutes.

Then he turned and jogged after the girl who had delivered his brother, nearly out of sight now as she moved with a graceful sort of quickness that almost mystified David and he would have admired if he hadn't been trying to catch her. "Fighter!" He called, knowing her name and seeing no reason to avoid using it, especially if he had any hope of catching her before she disappeared into the thickening morning crowd. David managed to fall into step beside her after a few dodgy minutes and he looked over at her and smiled. "Shouldn't make it so hard for someone to say thank you," He said, tugging his hat down a little lower on his head as he kept pace with her. "Which is what I want to do...thank you for bringing him back. I know you didn't have too."

[Fighter Mallory]

Fighter weaved between the ever growing crowd of people on her back towards the bridge, her eyes deftly sweeping each person for a conveniently located wallet that she could snag on her by. Manhattan was full of fat wallets for the most part and she planned on finding herself one to take with her back to Brooklyn. Who knew? Maybe she'd find one with enough money to hold her over for a few days. If that turned out to be the case Fight just might make her way to the boxing ring today or the track instead of heading straight back for Brooklyn. It was always nice to take a break from the monotony of selling papes. Not that she really minded that that's what she did for a living. Had to earn her keep someway and that was one of the more convenient ones. It wasn't as though she could fight for money. Although she could probably find a couple of underground fights between women that men paid to watch and such but it wouldn't be worth the effort on her part. Added to that that she would likely attack any man who made a sideways comment at her and there were bound to be a ton of them flying around. Fighter would never be able to keep her head in the game. It would end bloody all around.

As she was lifting her cigarette to her lips to take a drag she heard someone call out her name. Heaving a sigh, she paused and turned to glance over her shoulder at the form of the Mouth trying to follow her between the crowd. Part of her wanted to keep going and ignore him but he was nearly caught up at this point. Fight slipped the cigarette between her lips to rest there as she stuck her hands in her pockets and gave him a questioning look when he stepped up next to her. She began walking again, offering him a shrug. "No reason to say thanks. Don't like to see the young ones get hurt. And a kid like that wandering around Brooklyn is asking for trouble." Her head was forward but she glanced out of the corner of her eye as she spoke. "He usually the type to find himself in trouble?" He certainly seemed like it from what she'd seen. Jumping into things without thinking them through. Then again she could understand a quality like that considering she had it in abundance. The difference though was that she could take care of herself in almost any situation. Her uncle had made sure of that as soon as she came to stay him. He knew the kind of trouble someone could find themselves in Brooklyn without trying and it was apparent that Fighter excelled at finding trouble or causing trouble.

Fighter tilted her neck slightly so she could look up at him as she came to a stop once more. "Sure, I didn't have to, but just because I'm from Brooklyn doesn't mean I'm so detached I'm gonna let some kid get hurt." The scowl that began to twist across her face showed that his thanks wasn't going over to well in her mind. Fighter let out a breath, the hair hanging in her face lifting slightly at it before settling back down across her right eye. "No thanks needed, Mouth." The nickname had a bitter twinge to it as she glanced around at the potentials before deftly slipping her fingers into one mans back pocket as he stepped around them and lifting his wallet without her face betraying a thought to what she was doing. She tucked it into her pocket, her eyes still swinging about the crowd as though she hadn't just lifted that mans wallet. A small smirk pulled at her lips as the man disappeared around the corner, none the wiser. After a few moments her eyes finally settled back on Dave, feeling less wound up about what he said. She was prickly, something that couldn't really be helped but it usually didn't take long for her to soothe her anger over something so unintentional.

[David Jacobs]

"More like tussling with the possibility of danger," David assessed with a long suffering sort of sigh that suggested this was the routine sort of occurrence that kept him more than on his toes. Les was an energetic little boy whose eyes had been wide during the entire strike, taking everything in and savoring the big adventure of it all. He had been younger than and more willing to listen to David and not run off with adventure on his mind and determination to find it, but now he didn't so often heed David's warnings and David was worried that one day Les wouldn't be so lucky. "He's ten, thinks he can take on the world," He explained as he shook his head, the smile on his face fond as he thought of how Les threw himself into nearly everything with an energy and vigor that David had to admire. "Don't try to tell him he can't either," David laughed and then shrugged, knowing that Fighter probably didn't care about the inner workings of the Jacobs family nor the habits of it's youngest member.

She stopped suddenly and he took half a step forward and then stopped to, turning to look at her and watching as she gazed up at him with surprising blue eyes that caught him a little off guard as she leveled him with a gaze that was hard as granite. "I didn't think you were detached," David said, raising his hands and shaking his head as he realized that he had misconstrued his apology as some sort of twisted attack on her character. "Or that you were incapable of caring about my brother or that you had no heart," He continued, dropping his hands to his sides and meeting her eyes and quirking his mouth in a little smile as her lightening quick hands snagged the wallet of a passing man. For some reason the action on the tail of his words struck him as amusing and instead of being horrified he merely shook his head a little and chuckled.

"So thank you, for spending your morning dragging my single minded and hard headed brother back from Brooklyn and no doubt out of some kind of trouble that you are both keeping from me." Because the truth was, David did know that it had taken a good chunk of her morning to do just that and considering they both peddled papes he also knew that the good deed had cut into her selling time and though she seemed more than adept at finding other ways to fill her pockets, he felt badly about it. And though it probably went against better judgement and Jack would probably tell him he was a fool for saying it later, David quirked another smile at her and tilted his head as he spoke, "I owe you, okay?"

[Fighter Mallory]

Fighters smirk lost some of it's icy demeanor before contorting briefly into a slight smile. "Kids," She said with a shrug as if that explained everything. Fighter supposed for most kids who didn't grow up on the streets that might be an easy enough explanation for the reckless things they did. That's part of the reason Fighter took so much care with the little ones at the lodging house. She wanted them to be able to have a childhood and think they were invincible even if she was part of the reason they were left alone for the most part. Fighter would have killed to have had a childhood where the worst thing that had happened was a nightmare or hell a paper cut. Unfortunately it hadn't been in the cards for her but she wasn't the type to cry over it. She'd just picked herself up and dealt with the lot life had handed her. Obviously, the Jacobs lives weren't perfect even if they did have a roof over their head. Hell, she figured they should both be in school or something. Not out selling papes to make ends meat. Whatever the reason behind their venture into newsiedom she was sure it wasn't something either liked to talk about and it sure as hell wasn't something she was going to ask about.

At his words, her gaze lost some its heat and she patted the pocket she slipped the wallet into absently. "Gotta eat." It was the only explanation she was going to give for her actions. He didn't seem anything more then slightly amused that she'd snagged the wallet and that was a good thing because if he'd looked affronted she was sure she'd have punched him straight in the face. The last thing Fight wanted was someone judging her. It wasn't as though she were judging him for probably being the cleanest newsboy she'd ever set her eyes on. Not that that was something she could particularly mock. At least not seriously since it was a nice change. She swore the boys in Brooklyn weren't all that familiar with what a bar of soap was. Fighter only had a few changes of clothing and she made sure she took care of them since she couldn't afford to buy more. Maybe she was the weird one but call her crazy she'd much rather smell like soap then like dirt. Plus, she was more likely to be tipped well if her customers weren't crinkling their nose at her appearance. She made sure she wasn't too well kept though because then they'd be less likely to feel sorry for her. It was something she'd perfected early on.

Fighter gave a shrug when he thanked her, not really feeling the need to respond. Or what to say to him even if she did respond. She wasn't used to people expressing their thanks. In Brooklyn they didn't talk about stuff like this if someone did something for someone else you just repaid the favor without ever really acknowledging it. When he said he owed her she tilted her head slightly, quirking her brow at him. "You sure you want to owe a Brooklyn newsie? What if I need help burying a body one day?" The smirk that played at the corner of her lips was more playful now and her tone of voice had taken on a teasing quality. There was something about Davey that both raised her hackles and set at her at ease. It was a weird feeling, one she really wasn't used to.

[David Jacobs]

"Yeah, kids," David agreed with a shrug and an understanding smile because in most ways it really did explain everything. The Jacobs were luckier than most of his friends, David knew it and he wasn't the sort to go on about it around others, but they had their problems and his father's injury had driven both David and Les onto the streets to help cobble together enough dollars to keep the precious roof over their head. It wasn't ideal, but it was enough and that's all that mattered to David. And if it meant he had to keep an extra eye on his notoriously curious and energetic younger brother, then that was just part of the deal and as many times as Les was likely to give him a headache with his wild notions of adventure, David couldn't deny him a childhood that he very easily could be robbed of.

Fighter's guard seemed to lower just a touch at his words, her voice turning teasing as she questioned his offer and he grinned with a little shrug. "Pretty sure if you're askin' me to help you bury a body, you've got bigger problems," David began, shoving a hand into the pocket of his pants as he looked down at her and decided that rumors of her did a disservice to the pretty way her mouth quirked when she smiled. "So I figure in that situation it's probably the least that I could do to give you a hand." David was well aware of his reputation in Manhattan and beyond, the loyal, practical Mouth who had been there for the strike and lived in Jack Kelly's back pocket. He didn't know how fair it all was, he'd crossed a few lines, broke a few rules and found bits of himself he hadn't even known existed during the strike - but rumors were rarely fair and even less often were they favorable, so the fact remained, it was safe to say that David Jacobs wouldn't necessarily be the first name that jumped to mind if you had a body to bury - literally or figuratively.

In some ways David was surprised that this was the first time he'd ever met Fighter, at least up close and face to face, there had been a few times when he'd seen her talking to Spot when Jack had business in Brooklyn that he'd cajoled David into attending to with him. She was softer up close - like hell he was going to tell her that though - and the way that legendary Brooklyn hardness twisted into those blue eyes and settled into feminine features was downright intriguing. "So...body burying, fight intervention, protection on the mean streets of Manhattan, I'm your guy," David said, grinning widely so she'd know he was joking and obviously well aware that Fighter Malloy could take just fine care of herself.