Trapped Sparrow

Escape

Victorian London, Circa 1890, The Albertian Time Ring

It was a low and dusky day with the distant sunset threatening darkness upon its inhabitants. Berdita was tired, bored and wished for to be anywhere but here. She hated being a newsie. All you did was yell or try to out yell your fellow newsies, and there was no true way of telling how the public would perceive you. Today had been a hard and trying day she thought as she leaned against her still large stack of newspapers. She was so bored of her life. It was monotonous and it was the same thing every day, over and over again. She would give anything to have a little excitement in her life. Her curly dark auburn hair fell down over her stormy gray eyes but Berdi was too tired to push the hair out of her face. 

 "Oi! Berdi, your goin' git in trouble by the bossman if ya don' look lively." yelled her partner Tom. 

"Yeah, Yeah, I know. It's not like we are going to sail through all of these, there is not a single person in the streets and we have an hour left of our day. Come on, give a guuurrrllllll a break!" she drawled out in her best cockney. 

 "Ah! Don' try that on me, I'm smarten than that!' he responded. Tom stopped, gave Berdi a look down and gave a disapproving look. "Naw, ya knew the bossman is goin git mad at ya if ya change the uniform!" 

 "Awww, come on Tom, don't tattle on me. You know that I think these blasted things just look boring, I mean who would want to buy a newspaper from me, in that drab thing." She said as she pointed out the mandatory uniform of a newsie. The usual off white cream Victorian ruffle shirt that was cut short by a pair of knickers that cut off right at the knee where the horrid boots of no cushioning started. To top off the whole outfit was the plain plaid newsie hat. Since Tom and her both worked for the Moores, their plaid was a dirty red and grey.

"Berdi, ya knew that Mz. Moore hates anything that isn't regulation. Ya knew that she would blow a gasket if she saw all of those baubles on ya." He said pointing out all of her dangling necklaces and jewelry, "And what about yer hat? Whatcha do to it?" 

 "Oh, This? I just cut up an old one and made a fabric rose out of it. And then sewed it onto one of my nicer looking ones. Do you like it?" 

 Before they could get further into the debate, there was a loud bustle in the street as the rush of afternoon commuters broke into the square. "Hear ye! Hear ye! Queen Victoria marries the Pope! Prince Albert Embarrassed!" screamed out a voice. 

 "Ah! Crap! How did the Barely brothers get hold of that tidbit! The Moores aren't going to be happy about it!" Berdi exclaimed as she jumped up and started to try to sell, their old news. "Hear ye, hear ye! Air Pirates seen in the Sky! The Constable Stumped!" Berdi started to scream.

 "Hear ye, Hear ye! The Dreaded Captain Standage sighted in London!" Tom screamed behind her. 

 The once very quiet street now bustled to life with patrons, newsies, and merchants running about making a living. The insults began. It was a ritual that after catching an audience, that newsies would throw insults at each other. The one with the best wit and charm would usually have the most customers. 

 "Oi! Barely Brothers! Did ya forget that ya belong in the Farmer's Market?"

 "Hey! Tom! Where'd ya learn to talk? The gutter?" 

 "Ooohh, original Dickey! Can't think of what is worse than bombing your own insult, or that you think it actually worked!" yelled another newsie.

"Hey Charlie! Don't forget, your mother was asking about you! She said she wouldn't want her "ittle pumpkins" to get hurt!" Berdi yelled at another newsie.