The Front Steps

[Administrator]

There are a few steps here that the newsies hang around.

[Street]

Street hovered on the front steps on the Bronx Lodging House. Sure, Queenie had invited her to stay here, but would the offer stand with the others? Would they accept a pickpocket? Street was pulling on her ear, a sure sign of nervousness. Her stomach rumbled, she was hungry and on the other side of the door was food. Sure, it was not cinnamon buns, but it would do. At this point, anything would do.

She lifted one bare foot to scratch the back of her leg. She knew she needed to wash her hands, they were dirty, but the rivers were starting to freeze over. Street knew that if she wanted to survive the winter, she's have to stay in the Lodging House. But she had watched the place carefully. There were kids everywhere. Always yelling and running around. Queenie was right, the Bronx newsies were crazy. She bit her lip and retreated down a step. She now stood on the sidewalk. She looked around, scared that someone might chase her away.

Well, she would not let that happen. She would run before someone made her run. She tensed her legs, turned away and was about to run when she heard something that made her stumble and fall to the ground. "Ow!" She cried out in pain. She had cut her knee open and ripped her dress more. "Perfect." She muttered, holding her leg painfully.

[Tootsie]

Tootsie

Tootsie was quite focused, placing make up on her face. It was a splurge, one she only bought once she had paid for her expenses. Her food, rent, papers, and candy (which is a totally different thing than food) all came first. Then, lip stick, or blush, nail polish. She was building up a stash, and though she usually saved it for special occasions, today she felt like getting dolled up. Today happened to be one of those days. Tootsie had visited the pawn shop, getting some things for cheap. Tweezers, a nice strong brush and comb set, and some curling rollers. And today, she was putting use to them. She already had placed in her curlers, taken them out, and was now she was putting the finishing touches on her appearance. A pinch of lipstick here or there. She finally finished, twisted a flat curl and stretched, just to knock over a glass of water that she used to getting hair to stick to the curlers knock over and break. "Just great Toots! Just great," she muttered as she picked up the glass.

From her spot, she heard a yelp form the street, and rushed down the stairs, opening the door. There sat a girl. She looked roughed up, she was on the ground, clutching a hurt knee. Her dress was ripped, and it looked like rags. her hands were dirty, her hair was a mess. Tootsie placed her hand on her hip in shock. "Who are you? Where'd ya come from? Why ya outside the Bronx Lodge... You know what, doesn't matter. Come on inside. Ya look a sight."

She smiled at her, and held out a hand for her to pull herself up with.

"Name's Georgia. But everyone who knows me calls me Tootsie Pop. If ya know me and i like ya, you can call me Tootsie. Otherwise, don't call me out, or yell at me, and ya fine!" Her face had a warm smile on it, and she was pleasant. Curious, nosey, but pleasant.

[Street]

"Who are you? Where'd ya come from? Why ya outside the Bronx Lodge... You know what, doesn't matter. Come on inside. Ya look a sight."

Street practically jumped at the loud voice. She looked around wildly, sure that a bull had found her. Her eyes came to rest on a pretty girl with dark hair. It looked soft. Street was not jealous, she did not know the emotion or even the concept. On the streets, there was nothing to be jealous of. "I-I'm Street." She said meakly, imtimidated by the girl's boldness. "I live unda the Brooklyn bridge mostly, but I met Queenie and she said I could come and stay her sometimes..." She took the girl's offered hand and pulled herself up. She brushed her hands off and blew on her knee, trying to relieve the pain. "Not bleedin' too bad. Seems like every time I meet someone, I'm fallin' down. Queenie, Chance, and now ya."

"Name's Georgia. But everyone who knows me calls me Tootsie Pop. If ya know me and i like ya, you can call me Tootsie. Otherwise, don't call me out, or yell at me, and ya fine!"

"I knew a girl named Georgia once! Or she came from Georgia, I don't know, it's hard ta remember." She smiled. "So, what can I call ya? Tootsie or Georgia? Or Poppy? Ya know, ya look like a Poppy." Street said, smiling. "It's hard ta remember me own name sometimes. Hmm... Ah! Yes, Rosalind Lexeme, at yer service." She looked at her in admiration. "Ya must be real important, and a real heartbreaker, yer so pretty!" Street chuckled. "Honestly! Like one of them... Um what-ja-ma-call-its... The girls in da dance halls. They'se always pretty." Street idolized the dance hall girls, because they were so pretty and their hair was always shiny and perfectly arranged, even when they were jumping around. Street touched her own hair unconciously.

"So... Do ya know Queenie? I mean, personally. Even knows Queenie! She's one of da leaders, after all." Street said knowingly. She was proud to know something this vitally important. "Are ya one of her friends?" She asked excitedly.

[Tootsie]

Tootsie

"I-I'm Street. I live unda the Brooklyn bridge mostly, but I met Queenie and she said I could come and stay here sometimes..."

Tootsie smiled, of course Queenie said she could stay here. Queenie was a saint, wouldn't turn away a thief. She smiled and opened the door. "Well if Queenie said you could stay, then you have ta stay." She smiled, tucking a ringlet behind her ear.

"I knew a girl named Georgia once! Or she came from Georgia, I don't know, it's hard ta remember. So, what can I call ya? Tootsie or Georgia? Or Poppy? Ya know, ya look like a Poppy. It's hard ta remember me own name sometimes. Hmm... Ah! Yes, Rosalind Lexeme, at yer service."

"Oh no one calls me Georgia anymore, so ya can call me Tootsie, or if ya want to, ya can call me Poppy. And I think I'll call ya Rosa, 'less you got another name you'd rather go by?" Tootsie smiled at the girl. She seemed to be kind enough. She opened the door a bit wider, and beckoned the girl in with a quick wave of the hand and stepped inside of the lodge, closing the door and indicating to the couch for the girl to sit down. Tootsie walked into the bathroom, pulling out some bandages and walking back into the living room where the couch was.

"Ya must be real important, and a real heartbreaker, yer so pretty! Honestly! Like one of them... Um what-ja-ma-call-its... The girls in da dance halls. They'se always pretty."

"Your so sweet! Nah, I just got dolled up today, figured it was time to get dressed up, just cause." Tootsie examined the girl. "I could do it to you. I've got my stuff upstairs." She smiled wide, the idea was perfect to do something with.

"So... Do ya know Queenie? I mean, personally. Even knows Queenie! She's one of da leaders, after all." Are ya one of her friends?"

Tootsie giggled. "I'm Queenie's second. I know her all too well!"

[Street]

"Oh no one calls me Georgia anymore, so ya can call me Tootsie, or if ya want to, ya can call me Poppy. And I think I'll call ya Rosa, 'less you got another name you'd rather go by?"

Street grinned. "I do! Everyone mostly calls me Street, I mean they would if they ever needed ta. I even call meself Street, 'cause me given name's a mouthful. Don't know what me parents were thinking..." She shook her head, sighing with the injustice of her name. "But me middle name's Love, Rosalind Love Lexeme, real pretty, ain't it?" She said cheerfully, she loved her middle name. She followed Tootsie into the living room, feeling slightly awkward int he boarding house. She sat on the couch uncomfortably, not sure how one sat on a couch exactly. She sat on it as she would a park bench.

When Tootsie came back with the bandages, Street looked at them. "What're those for?" She asked suspiciously, the strips of cloth looked like ropes. Was the girl going to tie her up? Street felt panicky. This is what she got for walking into a strange place and trusting a strange girl she did not even know!

"Your so sweet! Nah, I just got dolled up today, figured it was time to get dressed up, just cause.""I could do it to you. I've got my stuff upstairs."

Street touched her face uncertainly. "Ya would do that for me?" She asked, amazed. She was mentally smacking herself for ever doubting this girl. "I-I would be honored." Judging by the awe in her voice, she'd found yet another person to hero-worship. "That'd be real nice, but I don't wanna trouble ya."

"I'm Queenie's second. I know her all too well!"

Street's jaw dropped. "Really? Then ya are important! Yer right up der with Queenie and they others. Now I'm sure yer a heartbreaker!" She said excitedly, practically bouncing with excitement. She was the luckiest girl on earth, meeting a leader and her second! She did not know what she did to deserve this...

[Tootsie]

Tootsie

"I do! Everyone mostly calls me Street, I mean they would if they ever needed ta. I even call meself Street, 'cause me given name's a mouthful. Don't know what me parents were thinking... But me middle name's Love, Rosalind Love Lexeme, real pretty, ain't it?"

"Why it's amazingly gorgeous! I wish my middle name was Love. Then I'd be so glamourous!" She twirled around and smiled, the bandages flying in her hand like ribbons. She grinned big, and stopped abruptly, shoving her face into Street's. Her shoulders rised up to her cheeks and she squealed in joy, jumping a bit into the air before wrapping Street's knee in bandages.

"Ya would do that for me?"

"I'd love ta! I can go get them, and then wash your hair, and then curl it, and put some lipstick on it, and then some blush! And then some eyeshadow! And ohhhhhhh!" She couldn't contain herself and she danced around the couch, before throwing herself on the couch and smiling, kicking her legs in the air in excitement.

"Really? Then ya are important! Yer right up der with Queenie and they others. Now I'm sure yer a heartbreaker!"

Tootsie's eyes welled with tears. "Your my new favorite, you know that!" She squeezed Street into a hug, and ran upstairs to get the makeup.

[Street]

"Why it's amazingly gorgeous! I wish my middle name was Love. Then I'd be so glamourous!"

Street smiled. "Thank ya." She watched Tootsie bandage her knees. She suddenly felt choked up. "Yer so kind." She choked out, looking at the bandages. Street leaned back in alarm as Tootsie came so close.

"I'd love ta! I can go get them, and then wash your hair, and then curl it, and put some lipstick on it, and then some blush! And then some eyeshadow! And ohhhhhhh!"

Street laughed and clapped her hands in excitement. She bounced on the couch with Tootsie. "Yer fun!" She said happily. "I'm ready anytime ya are!" She said.

"Your my new favorite, you know that!"

Street stiffened in the hug, but returned it briefly before the girl took off. Street waited patiently on the couch, whistling and twiddling her thumbs. She looked around the living room. "Nice place... I think I'm gonna like it here..." Street murmured to herself.

[Tootsie]

Tootsie

Tootsie collected herself for a moment, and smiled at the girl. She was excited, because beside robin and queenie, she was the only girl, and she could not get them to put on any of it, no matter what she said. All the same, tootsie now could put on makeup on Street. She ran upstairs, pulled out the drawer labeled "tootsie girl stuff" in Eddie's neat scrawl. She ran back down and slammed it down by the sink.

"your gonna love this! Honest you are. And your already so pretty, this will just make ya prettier." She pulled her up from the couch and moved her over to the kitchen sink, and tapped her neck to warn her, before puhing her head down. Immediantly she turned on the water and began to wash Streets hair. She poured in shampoo, but when light brown foam came us, she poured morebin, a bit rough in her methods, but having all good intentions. She continued the scrubbing, and then pulled her head back to wash out everything, and then took a towel and wrapped it out streets hair quickly and then pulled it off with the speed of a expert. "big or little curls?" she squealed

[Street]

Street barely had time to inspect the mantle over the fireplace when the girl was bag with lots of things. Things Street had never even seen before. She could not identify any of it, nor did she have a clue what they were for. Street followed Tootsie to the sink and began pulling on her ear, a sign of nervousness.

"your gonna love this! Honest you are. And your already so pretty, this will just make ya prettier."

Street smiled at her, "Yer really nice. Yer the only one besides Chance ta tell me that." She barely got that sentence out before the girl tapped her neck and Street found her face in a sink. She closed her eyes and felt the girl washing her hair. It was quite odd, having her hair washed for the first time since she left the orphanage. The only time Street got her hair wet was when it was raining and she was trying to get out of it.

The girl rubbed Street's hair roughly, but Street found it relaxing almost. Tootsie was good at her job. Soon, the washing was down and her hair was up in a towel and down in another instant. Tootsie's speed was almost dizzying.

"big or little curls?"

Street looked at her. "There's a difference?" She asked dumbly. She shrugged. "Yer the expert here. What do ya think?" She asked quietly, suddenly very nervous. What if Tootsie said there was no hope for her?

[Tootsie]

Tootsie

Tootsie took her hand, delicately lifting Street's face. She turned her own head to the side and stared for a while. he smiled suddenly, rummaging to get her curler. "Big! They'll bring attention to your face, and you've got lovely jaw structure." She placed the towel back on her head, placed the curlers in her hair. She smiled as she began to work, and she began to make small talk.

"The Brooklyn bridge huh? What a place to live. You sell papers, or ya got a different career?" She continued her work, her hands wet and slippery. She wrapped the hair around the large hot pink curlers and smiled as she continued her work. To be honest, Tootsie felt she could do this for the rest of her life. She was always excited at the thought of a makeover, and she loved dances and wedding for the exact reason. She could place make up and gorgeous dresses on a person, and they'd look completely different than one would think they would.

Tootsie finally finished curling the hair. "Now while that's drying, you dry off you face and then we put on makeup. But that's a completely different story." She was ready for the next part.

[Street]

"Big! They'll bring attention to your face, and you've got lovely jaw structure."

"Bone structure?" She asked softly, amazed that anything about her could be acceptable. She touched her cheek bones. They were rather nice, she thought to herself. She turned her attention back to Tootsie. "Of course, I'm good with anythin' ya are." She said, nodding.

"The Brooklyn bridge huh? What a place to live. You sell papers, or ya got a different career?"

Street nodded. "Yeah, it can be nice. Especially when there are other kids there. It's rare when there aren't any. Usually after a raid by the bulls it quiets down, but not for long. There's clean water, some shelter, it's a better place then the streets, I can assure ya." She waved a hand dismissively. "I have one of da best places 'cause I'm one of da longest residents der." She smiled. "Eight years now." She said proudly.

She sat still as Tootsie curled her hair expertly and swiftly. She looked at the girl when she was done. "Yer good at this." She said, smiling sweetly at her again.

"Now while that's drying, you dry off you face and then we put on makeup. But that's a completely different story."

Street nodded and began to wipe her face on her dress sleve. She neither knew nor cared what a towel was. "Alright, I'm ready for anythin'!" She said, chuckling.

[Tootsie]

"Alright, I'm ready for anythin'!"

Tootsie loved people who agreed with her. And Street was agreeing with her, exactly what she liked. She could see Street getting even happier, cheerier. Tootsie knew that this was why she did this. People felt good about themselves when they got a makeover, and she felt that she had done something good whenever people felt good about themselves, the way they look and are.

Tootsie took a thin pencil, and squatted in front of Street and held her chin. She poked her cheek. "Look upward." She took the pencil and outlined around the lids, then taking a light brown shadow, rubbing over the lids. Her hands put down those two tools, and then grabbed a tissue and dropped it in a light powder and dabbed at the sides of her cheeks. She stood back, adn then pulled out her mirror and handed it to Street. "Wow."

[Street]

Street sat quietly, well, as quietly as her grumbling stomach and already distracted mind would allow her too. She did everything Tootsie told her too. Looking up when she said so, staying still. She did not know about these kind of things, but she guessed that you should not move during them, lest you wanted to get hurt. She felt Tootsie rubbing the stuff in and using something to draw it on with, A stick? Street thought wildly, never seeing a regular pencil and not knowing anything about make-up.

She then dabbed Street's cheeks and a little got up Street's nose. She tried not to sneeze, but her nose was so itchy, she could barely stand it. Then, Tootsie pulled back and held up the mirror. Street took it gently, in awe of what she saw. Was that her? It could not be. It looked like one of those girls she saw in the dance halls, only classier looking. She softly touched the mirror, trying to see if it was an illusion. It was not. Tootsie was a magician, she was sure of it. Maybe... Just maybe... She would find someone like Tootsie and Doll and every other girl had... Street looked at Tootsie, her eyes filling with grateful tears.

"Thank ya, yer a genius. A magician! Ta think that's me in there." She said, pointing at the mirror. She stopped her tears, she had overheard crying girls complaining about make-up running before to know that crying was not good. "Thank ya, so much, Tootsie!"