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"D'YOU MEAN WHAT YOU WROTE HERE?" Jack questioned, holding out a piece of paper as soon as Denton opened his door. Davey, Les and Eleanor stood behind him.
"'Bout all these ... sweatshop kids listenin' to me?" He waited for an answer.
"I don't write anything I don't mean." Denton told them, "well, come on in. I was just packing a few things." He smiled at the teens as they walked in.
Dave shut the door behind him, Les walking around with ellie as they looked around.
"So yes, I meant it. This city thrives on child labour. A lot of people make money that way. They're terrified that the newsies' strike will spread." The man explained to the girl and three boys.
Eleanor leant against the wooden dresser against the wall, "well there's really not much chance of that as long as they got the power."
"Sometimes all it takes is a voice. One voice, that becomes a hundred, and then a thousand, unless it's silenced." Denton walked over, picking up a picture and moving it into a box.
"Why can't we spread the strike? Have another big rally and get the word out to all the sweatshop kids? Why not?" Jack got confused, Davey speaking up to him questions.
"What are we gonna do? Put an ad in the newspaper?"
"Won't people be sayin' well that's a waste of space in the papers aint it?" ellie asked, handing something to Denton that was behind her.
"No, we'll do better than that. We'll make our own paper." Denton looked at him like he had three heads. "We tell 'em they gotta join us, ain't that a good idea?"
"Yeah it is" Eleanor replied, turning to Denton. "But what do we know about printing a newspaper?" Hinting them that he could help as Denton stood up straight and looked up knowing what she was saying.
"Nothin', but our man, Denton ..." jack trailed off, standing next to ellie.
"Yeah, but I think our man, Denton, has something more important to do." Dave patted his arm, "I mean, he's going to be an ace war correspondent. Right, Denton?" He said sarcastically.
The man began chuckling as Davey looked up at him with a smile, Jack watched with eagerness, Les ignored whatever was happening and Eleanor pouted at him.
"All right, where do we start?" He finally answered. Jack smiled down at Ellie, kissing her cheek saying thank you and all of them taking a seat at the table.
"Alright we gotta move fast. Now, we're gonna need the newsies to circulate." Jack patted Davey's shoulder telling him that's his job.
"There's something else we need. We need a printing press." Denton spoke.
Jack shrugged, "so it happens I know a guy with a printing press."
The group made their way down to the basement of the newspaper factory, where Jack had been staying. "You've been living here?" Ellie whispered to him, watching her step and trying not to make a noise.
"Shhhh! They're right above us." Jack shushed her, taking her hand to help her over the last squeaky step. "If Weasel catches us, we're all in the slam."
Jack pulled the string, turning the dusty light on. He set the lamp down on the counter at the side and pulled the sheet off of the old printing press.
"Oh, right. A platen press." Denton laughed under his breath, "looks like old man Pulitzer never threw anything away."
"This will work?" Davey asked. "It better, we have a deadline." Eleanor commented
"This is the story you wanted to write. Well, tonight is the night that you can."
"Just get this done and by dawns early light you can finish the fight you began."
"This time we're in it to stay. Think about seizing the day"
"Think of that train as she rolls into old Santa Fe ... tell 'em I'm on my way"
"See old man Pulitzer, snug in his bed he don't care if we're dead or alive"
"Three satin pillows are under his head while we're begging for bread to survive"
"Joe, if you're still counting sheep wake up and read 'em and weep!"
"You got your thugs with their sticks and their slugs yeah, but we got a promise to keep!"
"Once and for all something tells me the tide will be turnin'"
"Once and for all theres a fire inside me that won't stop burnin'"
"Now that the choices are clear, now that tomorrow is here. Watch how the mighty can fall for once and for all!"
"This is for kids shinin' shoes in the street with no shoes on their feet every day"
"This is for guys sweatin' blood in the shops while the bosses and cops look away"
"This is to even the score, this ain't just newsies no more, this ain't just kids with some pie in the sky. This is do it or die, this is war!"
"Once and for all well be there to defend one another"
"Once and for all every kid is our friend every friend, a brother"
"Five thousand fists in the sky! Five thousand reasons to try!"
"We're going over the wall, better to die than to crawl. Either we stand or we fall"
"For once... once and for all."
Denton pressed the papers, ellie put them in order and tied the pieces into piles, Davey went and got the newsies while jack handed them out of the window to Les.
Denton then climbed out of the window, "it's awfully nice of Mr.Pulitzer to let us use his press."
Jack laughed softly and whispered back "yeah just hope I get to thank him for it someday."
"I'll see you at the circulation gates?" Eleanor stepped up the small book shelf under the window.
"You'll see me then" jack kissed her cheek, helping her up as Davey and Denton helped her from the other side of the window.
The newsies began running around and climbing up places to throw the papers all over the streets.
"Hey, kid?" Race tapped a kid that was standing with a horse on the shoulder, "can you read?" The kid nodded and he handed him a paper. "Read that."
On the cart they had used, Eleanor jumped up, jack sitting with herd Davey and some other newsies who sat on it.
Newsies, kids and people all over the streets were reading the papers.
THE NEWSIES , J.KELLY
NOVEMBER 23RD 2021