But there was finally hope. His faith in their cause had been reignited by Davey and Katherine, and his motivation was in full swing. The other newsies had been overjoyed to see him back at the lodging house, and with an upcoming rally in three days time Jack had helped with the preparations, lending his artistry to a representative sign for Manhattan, as well as several picket signs.

The evening edition was being rolled out, scabs were no doubt still selling, but the Lower Manhattan newsies stood fast in their decision. Some of the older boys went out to try and convince scabs to join the cause, whilst the rest were laying low at the lodging house. Jack doubted there were many scabbers left, now that Brooklyn had voiced their support, but he was well aware Pulitzer and Hearst both had hired strikebreakers.

Davey, Racetrack, Albert, Mush and Specs were out, everyone else was supposed to be in: Smalls, JoJo, Mike and Finch were playing cards, Buttons was patching up Ike’s vest, and most of the other boys were dozing or talking softly. Sniper and Splasher, still recovering from their injuries from the riot, were sat by the window on watch.

But Jack had noticed two more absences. Two that worried him.

“Where are Elmer and Romeo?”

A few boys mumbled vague uncertainties, glancing between each other and shrugging. Even JoJo, Elmer’s closest friend, shrugged helplessly when Jack turned to him for an answer. He saw a look of guilt flash across Splasher’s face, and without even needed to ask Jack figured they weren’t in the lodge.

He stood up, straightening his vest and putting his hat on.

“M’gonna go look for ‘em.”

“Be careful, Jack.” Smalls said, not looking up from his cards.

Jack climbed out onto the fire escape, making his way down to street level. He wracked his brains, trying to think where the kids could be. They wouldn’t be selling, so it was no use checking their usual corners. If any of the protesting boys had found them, they would’ve brought them home.

Maybe Elmer had gone to visit his siblings? But why go without telling anyone? He doubted Romeo would’ve gone with him... and he knew Romeo would rather be dead than see his family again.

They were in trouble, Jack concluded. No other explanation added up. Heart quickening, he made his way down every street with haste, hoping to find them before things got too serious.

He’d expected to find the youngest boys in trouble. Not to find them being the ones causing it.

Romeo had another boy pinned to the ground in an alley, whilst Elmer paced back and forth by the boy’s head, a newspaper bag clutched in his fist. Ripped papers littered the ground around them. Jack felt frozen, not quite believing what he was seeing.

“We told ya we ain’t sellin’ anymore!” Elmer’s voice was louder than usual, and Jack could tell he was trying to put on a tough facade, “Not until Mr. Pulitzer and Mr. Hearst stop, uh.. stop...” 

“Screwin’ us around?” Romeo suggested. He readjusted his hold, pushing the scab harder against the ground. “Quit squirmin’!”

“Yeah, yeah! Til they stop screwin’ us around! So why’re you still sellin’?” Elmer emphasised his last word with a sudden kick to the boy’s shoulder. Their captive let out a squeal of pain.

“B-But I gotta feed my family!” He protested. Elmer’s eyes flashed angrily.

“And y’think the rest of us don’t?” The younger boy’s voice was steadily growing angrier, his fists clenched so tight his knuckles were white.

“I ain’t the guy to be talkin’ about feedin’ a family to.”

“We’re doin’ this so we can afford to look after ourselves and our families!” Romeo snapped, his tone colder than Jack ever thought possible for a twelve year old, “You scabs are messin’ everything up!”

And all at once, the two kids pounced. There was a shriek from the scabber, his legs kicking furiously in an attempt to get away. Jack heard a crack and felt a sick feeling in his gut; Elmer and Romeo were sweet kids, he’d never seen them act so ruthlessly violent.

“Alright, enough!” He barked, marching forward. He hauled the younger boys off the scab -careful not to grab them too tight or be rough- and knelt down. A SoHo newsie from the looks of him. His elbow was scraped and his nose bleeding; his eyes were blown wide in fear.

“Hey, hey... s’okay kid.” Jack soothed, “I’m sorry ‘bout my coworkers.”

He pulled out one of his old painting rags from his pocket, finding a clean corner before carefully dabbing at the other newsie’s bloody nose.

“Go on, get outta here.” He helped the younger boy to his feet, watching as he tore out of the alley and down the street. A sharp blow to his side made him wheel round, the next making contact with his stomach. He grabbed Elmer’s fist before he could throw another punch, and the kid let a wordless, agitated shout through gritted teeth.

“Don’t hit me.” Jack said softly.

“You messed everythin’ up-!”

“Don’t hit me, Elmer. You’re old enough to know better.”

Elmer made a few clumsy swipes at him, still making those angry little half-shouts he made when he was stressed or frustrated, but he very quickly seemed to lose heart. Jack released the boy’s hand, satisfied when Elmer let his arm drop to his side. He hated reprimanding the younger boys over anything, usually the younger kids could do no wrong in his eyes, but he had to nip this behaviour in the bud before it got his brothers in serious trouble.

Romeo’s kept his gaze fixed on the ground, fiddling with his hands. Elmer now looked on the verge of tears. Jack immediately felt his usual instinct to pull them close and soothe them, but he stood firm. He needed to figure out what had caused this.

“Naw, no tears an’ no lookin’ away.” He kept his tone firm, but was careful not to sound too angry, “You guys have got some explainin’ to do. We told you guys to stay inside, and you not only snuck out, but went to go attack some poor kid-”

“He was scabbing!” Elmer interjected shrilly. Jack raised a hand to silence him.

“-You guys attacked a kid, and at a time where the cops are more on our asses than ever. A bull catches you soakin’ some guy and you two would be joinin’ Crutchie in the Refuge.”

Jack ignored the sob caught in his throat, the pain in his chest when he thought of Crutchie.

“I already got one brother locked up, ain’t no way I’m havin’ you two taken away as well.”

Both boys had the decency to look suitably ashamed, although Jack could still see Elmer’s fists were clenched tightly.

“You wanna talk ‘bout anythin’, El?”

Any composure Elmer had kept until then suddenly exploded all at once.

“I’m angry, Jack! I’m angry at the scabbers, I’m angry at the bulls, I’m angry at the Delanceys an’ Mr. Pulitzer and Mr. Hearst and- and...” He paused to catch his breath, physically shaking with the emotion of his outburst. Jack saw his hand reach up to his head, and he swiftly -but gently- grabbed the younger boy’s fist before it made impact.

“We’s just trying to survive, and it feels like everyone’s against us.” Romeo finished. 

Jack couldn’t deny it. They were right, he hated how right they were. He felt a weight against his shoulder; Elmer was slumped against him, his breathing ragged and shaky. Jack instinctively wrapped an arm around him, inviting Romeo into the hug with his free arm. He didn’t agree with what they’d done, not at all. But his kids were scared and very rightfully angry, he couldn’t stay mad with them.

They stayed there for some time, holding each other tightly and surrounded by the scabber’s ruined papers.

“C’mon, we’re goin’ home.”

Romeo seemed content to walk beside him (although he kept a death grip on Jack’s hand), but Elmer seemed to have exhausted himself. Jack hoisted him onto his hip, and Elmer instinctively wrapped his arms around his neck. They walked in silence for the first block or two, before Jack had to have another question answered.

“Splasher looked like I’d caught him with his hand in someone’s pocket when I asked where you two where. D’you tell him where you’d gone?”

“We asked him,” Romeo said, still struggling to make eye contact, “Well.. Elmer did. He said he didn’t wanna come though, said it was dangerous an’ we weren’t s’posed to.”

“And he’s damn right on both accounts.” Jack said, “Shame on you for askin’ him to go out when he’s recoverin’ from a head injury. And so’s you, in fact!” He jostled Elmer slightly, making sure the eleven year old was listening.

“No wonder you got the idea to go out soakin’ scabs, your brain’s still all rattled after that knock you took.”

Elmer made a strange little noise, halfway between tired and agitated. He’d no doubt overwhelmed himself with this little escapade, and for once Jack hoped it would be one of the times he was exhausted for the rest of the day; at least he’d stay put if he had to rest. 

“We were tryin’ to help, Jack.” Romeo’s voice was very quiet, barely more than a whisper.

“I think what really happened is you kids are stressed t’your limits and don’ know how to cope. Y’knew the scabs were a problem, so you saw a chance to both get out some’a that pent-up anger and get a couple more scabs on our side.”

The silence from the younger boys was all the answer he needed. Maybe they didn’t know how to verbalise it quite that articulately, but he was fairly confident he’d hit the nail on the head. Romeo’s grip on his hand tightened a little, and he felt Elmer’s head push further into his shoulder.

Jack started humming to himself as they walked, one of the piano tunes they played at Medda’s theatre. It seemed to put the kids at ease.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“You found them!”

JoJo shot forward as soon as Jack entered the room, quickly scooping up Elmer and carrying him over to his bunk. Jack let him fuss for once; tensions were high enough, and the kids’ unauthorised venture had stretched everyone’s nerves to the breaking point. Romeo let go of Jack’s hand, heading for his own bunk and curling up into a ball.

“Yeah, found ‘em tryin’ to crack some kid’s head open.” Jack said, sitting beside Tommy Boy.

“Why?” Sniper asked, looking concerned. 

“They say they though they were helpin’. I reckon they‘re just gettin’ overwhelmed by the whole strike. Ro said he felt like everyone’s against us.. he ain’t exactly wrong.”

The room fell into an uneasy silence. Tommy Boy bumped his head against Jack’s shoulder, a rare sign of affection for the younger boy. Jack paused, before wrapping his arm around Tommy’s shoulders. 

The boys playing cards were hardly focused on their game anymore, tossing down and picking up cards at random. Ike was humming agitatedly, rocking back and forth, whilst Buttons kept unraveling and rewinding the same spool of thread. This latest incident had clearly unsettled everyone.

Jack glanced over to Elmer, already asleep beside JoJo. The whole idea seemed to be more his plan than Romeo’s, and that worried Jack somewhat. Elmer was usually a sweet, happy kid, but there was a lot of anger in the little guy, and he didn’t always have the healthiest ways of releasing it. He’d been in a lot of fights in the past.

“Once all’a this is over, m’gonna ask Spot if I can the kids over to Coney.” Jack announced to nobody in particular, “They need a break most outta all of us.”

There was a scattering of murmurs and grunts of agreement. Jack started running his fingers absentmindedly through Tommy Boy’s hair, suddenly feeling a swell of pride in chest. Despite everything, his boys still stuck together.

He made a mental note not to let a repeat of today happen again. At the rally, perhaps he could mention something. He doubted Elmer and Romeo’s attack was an isolated incident, and it wouldn’t do any good for newsies city-wide to be fighting amongst themselves. 

Brugran was just a pup during the many wars. He’d only heard of the tales of Varok Saurfang’s great battles. He was here to honor a hero but the look in Bear’s eyes said this affected her more than him. His steel blue eyes searched hers as she looked at him. A tear rolling down her pale creamy fur. She didn’t wince as the salty tear spilled into an angry wound on her cheek.

“Not as personal as Thrall…” She said looking up at Jaina. It was odd, to say the least, seeing the Alliance within Orgrimmar. But their show of respect gave her hope. “I served under him in Northrend. In the Borean Tundra… Fighting those damn bugs… His son was a fine warrior too…” Silence fell a moment between them. “Never thought I’d see the boy king in person. Let alone in Orgrimmar.” Bru’s voice lifted in a light chuckle.

Bear smiled. “I imagined him to be shorter to be honest.” She mused. Brugran scoffed a chuckle. “I bet if you asked him nicely, he’d bring you some dwarven ale.” She added. Bru laughed at this. Happy for a fleeting moment that her humor was not lost on this somber day. But Bear didn’t let this last long. “One person tore down everything I nearly died for… What he died for… The Horde is all but… Shattered…”

Deep sorrow laced the old warrior tauren’s voice. Anger shaded her eyes as tears welled from them. “Mama Bear don’t you start talkin’ like this.”  Brugran replied laying a heavy hand on Bear’s arm. “The pieces are still there. I know… I’m still a young pup and… I’ve not seen what you have… but I know we’re tough as kodo hide. The Horde is tough... “ She looked at him, almost as if the great tauren had given up hope.

“Look I’m not very good at this sorta thing. The whole comforting thing. But… Well look.” He motioned to both Horde leaders and Alliance conversing with one another. “That’s something right? We will rebuild. We will survive. We’ll take those shattered pieces and mold something new.” He thumped his heavy fist against his chest. “Lok’tar, Mother Bear. Lift that cloud of dark thoughts because young pups like me are looking to old veterans like you… For guidance and strength.”

Bear smiled, which caused more tears to well from her eyes. Before Brugran could protest she untucked her lame left arm from its sling and tugged the young orc into a hug. “Oh. no, no. This-This did not warrant a hug… Please stop… Bear… You’re embarrassing me…” but she ignored his pleas and hugged him tight. “Owachi, little lion cub.” Bru’s cheeked flushed with embarrassment at the childhood name his own mother called him. “Please don’t… call me that... I’m dying inside... Let me go…” Brugran was visibly distraught but only fought against her mothering gently. 

Tick tock

Tick tock

Tick tock

The second hand ticked away oh so slow. The redhead waited, not so patiently, for the bell to ring. The next class was his final for the day and also the one he got to see the beautiful raven haired boy. The only thing even keeping him in the damn concrete prison they called school. His foster brother Killer dropped out the year before and he would have been right behind him if not for Mr. Tall Dark and Handsome.

Ring

The second the bell rang he was gone. He didn’t even bother to wait for the homework. It wasn’t important anyway. He was the second to arrive in his final class, English. There before him, sitting on a desk in the back of the room was the one who made his heart skip a beat. The raven haired heartbreaker turned and smiled.

“Eustass-ya,” he said seductively with a knowing smirk.

“Trafalgar,” Kid greeted, making it across the classroom in three strides.

“How has your day been?” he questioned.

“Shitty. It’s school. Let’s go back to my place,” the redhead suggested.

Law glared at him. “It’s just one more class. We can go after this.”

“Or we can go now,” Kid smirked, kissing Law.

The slender youth tried to playfully push him away and Kid complied, for a second. He just needed that second to pick up Law and kiss him again. He didn’t even fight, instead playfully nipping his lip in response.

“That’s enough you two,” the teacher scolded, neither of the two even realizing the bell had since rang.

They pulled away and took their seats next to each other. No sooner had the teacher turned his back, Kid pulled out his notebook and ripped out a sheet of paper.

Let’s ditch and go back to my place

Really? A paper note? What is this, the stone age?

Wow. So cynical. I didn’t hear a no though

I already told you no Eustass-ya. Can’t even keep it in your pants for a whole school day.

Here I was trying to be all romantic and shit with the love note..

I think you have it a bit twisted. This isn’t a love note. This is a grade school passing note.

Whatever. Just have to shit on all my efforts

This is your best effort? Please remind me again why I agreed to date you?

Because of my charming good looks and dashing personality?

Law actually laughed out loud, causing the teacher to glare at them.

“What’s so funny back there?” he asked.

“Apparently Eustass-ya’s dashing personality just swept me off my feet,” Law said, straight faced.

This of course caused the whole class to laugh, pissing off Kid. Before he could defend himself the teacher kicked both of them out of his class to go to the office. Of course Kid had other plans and kidnapped Law. Of course it wasn’t too hard because the raven haired boy went willingly. It wasn’t like he was going to fail the class anyway.

Plus it was the norm for the two since they started dating. They would end up in class together, form some sort of interruption, get kicked out, skip and go somewhere. Law stayed a straight A student and Kid scraped by with straight D’s.

The carbuncle was quick to jolt, giving a bark and a growl. The young woman quickly looked up and her green eyes seemed to shine like emeralds, leaving Jonae with no words in his mouth. “You cheeky little… Bugger...” Raz cooed. The lady’s round face shifted to a scowl as she closed her book, and quickly smacked Raz’s hand with it. He ripped his hand away in pain. “You startled her and you have the audacity to say such vile things about my precious.” She retorted. 

“Ol’right… Calm yer tits m’lady.” She sat back and stared at him incredulously. “You bloody idiot. Way to get her all narky an’ ruin this.” Jonae said as he still stood, expecting this woman to tell them off. “I just takin’ the piss outta her. Lina know I meant nuthin’ by it.”

She smiled at Jonae and gave an even more threatening smile to Raz as she clasped her hands together under her chin. “I’ll remember this when we’re deep in some ruins and you need healing.” She snarked. “Sit. Raz has already accepted my bounty. We just need to finalize the bargain. Which, might I add, he refused to speak of until I met with you.” Jonae blinked but then sat down. She now gave her full attention to Jonae, which the shy boy almost couldn’t handle. Words failed him and he could only look at her awkwardly.

“Now. To explain, I wish to explore Amalj’aa ruins. Which, obviously, will be in their territory. I need protection for this expedition. Because of… my age, no one but Raziax’a took me seriously. I assure you, I am serious and I do have to gil to pay. Name your price.” She said in a resolute voice. There was silence but a nudge from Raz jolted some jumble of words to form on Jonae’s lips. “I er… usually… escort? Honestly? I mean-”

“I go or find another who will take me.” Damn she was not messing around. “No-no! I mean. Aye, that’s fine I just… Amalj’aa are-”

“Dangerous. I’m well aware.” There was sass in her voice as she narrowed her eyes at Jonae. “Will five hundred gil do?” She said. Once coin was mentioned some sense came back to Jonae. “Far more dangerous than five hundred gil, aye? Where do ya want to go, exactly?”

There was a pause. “Zanr’ak.” Jonae’s eyed widened and he looked at Raz, whom nodded and smiled. Smacking his fist into his hand as a non-verbal way of saying ‘we got this’. “Those are not ruins. That’s where the Amalj’aa worship their primal… We’ll do it for no less than two thousand gil.”

“Oh-” She started to say in happy surprise.