The Story of a News Girl

W.A.R.

"So....remind me again how ta play." The news girl was currently sitting in front of him with her legs folded as she took off her vest and threw it to the side due to the warmth of the bunkroom. He didn't blame her of course, he had taken off his own button up when it began to get too hot.

"It's real simple. Whoever's card is the highest is the winner and takes both cards for their pile. If it's the same then we's go ta war. Which is where we's place down three cards while sayin' 'W-A-R spells, war!' an' whichever one higher, wins," Mush explained the simple game as he dealt the deck of cards evenly between the two of them.

"Alright, got it," Feister said as she gathered up her cards and waited for Mush to give the go. She's played War once. Back on the fourth of July in Brooklyn, but since then she had forgotten and was kind of excited to pick it back up again. It seemed a lot easier than whatever game Race wanted to teach her, though that was setting the bar pretty low since she found anything Race did confusing.

"Ok...ready...and...GO!"

With that they both placed down a single card, and luck would have it, they had the same number So of course the two newsies went into war, and Feister ended up coming out on top. She smiled happily while Mush mumbled how it was beginner's luck. There was no denying Feister caught this and simply stated that maybe he was just bad at this game. The two of them continued to playfully banter with one another as they went on with the card game.

In the past few months they've known each other, they seemed to be on good terms. There were times where they'd have a little disagreement. But after going off to cool down for a bit, they're back to being friends again. The two newsies knew exactly how to push each other to the very limit, while also having some unspoken understanding for each other. But that didn't mean Feister wasn't closed off at times, or that Mush seemed distant every now and again. They still had a long way to go before fully trusting each other. Though they're definitely a lot closer than they were when Feister first arrived.

Odd as their friendship was, it was also interesting to watch.

Mush always seemed to have this sweet side to him. He always played it safe and wasn't much of a risk taker. He definitely has the calmer personality compared to Feister. No one has seen him get really angry in the time he's lived there. Which is a good thing. It was one less hothead to worry about. Then, on the other hand you've got Feister who's more of the 'suck it up, you'll be fine' type. Though on the inside she's actually sweet...in her own special way. She mostly has a hard time showing it though. She's more of the risk taker between the two of them. She isn't afraid to throw hands if messed with on any level. When you put the two of them together....it could go either way. Sometimes it's Feister's wild nature leading the pack, other times it's Mush's calm ways, and the rest of the time they're personalities will mix and cause nothing but pure chaos. However, as of right now, they were getting along while playing the simple game of War and traded playful insults with each other. Which was good considering both leaders didn't have the energy left to break up yet another Mush and Feister argument.

Those two could go at it for days without giving up. Granted, nothing serious happened between the two of them. It never went further than a few buttons getting pushed one too many times. Though there were a few occasions where it seemed like a brawl would break out. But, Mush's good sense would kick in and he'd always mention how Feister is so lucky she's a girl. To which Feister would usually reply with how his punches are weak anyways. They usually continue to go at it before one of the leaders tell them to zip it and go cool off. It always seems to work and the next thing you know, they're doing something trouble worthy. But hey, it's better than fighting for hours on end.

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"Three rounds. H-how did ya win that many times?" Mush asked in shock. His eyes were wide and his mouth was slightly gaped open at the fact she had just won three times in a row. Like...how?! They've only played the game once together. And that was back in Brooklyn a month ago! Was she hiding extra cards up her sleeve or something? Mush wouldn't be surprised if that were the case. But then again, only Race - with the exception of a few of the other boys - knew how to pull a fast one. Plus, Feister may be a quick learner, but it takes her a few tries, sometimes days, to finally get it right. So, that possibility was out the window.

"Maybe it was beginners luck." Feister smirked as she piled the cards back up in a neat little stack. "So, ya wanna get yer sorry bum beat by a little goil again? Or did ya have enough of that for one night?" she asked. Her smirk seemed to grow as a little gleam sparked into those innocent little eyes.

Now, this could go either way. Mush could play another round and either win big. Though there is the chance of possibly getting beaten for the fourth time in a row. Or, call it quits and let Feister constantly tease him for the rest of the night. Either way, Mush lost if he played or not, all because she always found a way to get under his skin. Whether she was aware of it or not. It was something he didn't understand, and in all honesty, Mush had a good gut feeling that he would never truly understand Feister and her annoying ways.

"Let's call it a night," Mush answered. He decided it'd be better to let her brag about beating him three times in a row rather than four. Say he were to win if they played once more. She'd still have bested him in the game. So it was better to let tonight die out and start fresh the next.

"Afraid ta lose ta a goil again?" Feister asked while handing him the deck of cards back. "I woulda gone easy on ya if that was the case."

"I's ain't afraid of some little goil." Mush rolled his eyes as he put the cards back into its box and tucked it under the mattress for safekeeping until next time.

Upon hearing this statement, Feister didn't hesitate to punch Mush's shoulder and yelled, "I's ain't a little goil Mush for brains!" she huffed and slumped back with arms crossed over her chest. She didn't like being called "little girl". She was just as tough as any of the boys in that room. Who knows, maybe she's even tougher. She'd just have to keep proving herself until she was finally taken seriously around here.

"Relax, would ya?! Don't go gettin' yer braids in a twist," Mush grumbled while rubbing the shoulder. Did he look like a punching dummy or some - actually scratch that thought. Knowing Feister, that's probably what she saw him as.

"Lights out boys! An' Feisty!"

"Already on it!" Mush and Feister yelled while glaring at each other. They stayed like that for a few seconds before Feister jumped over to her bunk and angrily plopped into bed.

"Good night ya bummer!" she snapped.

"Sweet dreams loudmouth!" he replied.

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Author's note

Ignoring the fact I've been MIA for the past few weeks.....I really am close to finishing that last draft. (Yes, that means any request for this book is now closed). Of course there's still the dreaded editing part. But the time to cross that bridge hasn't come just yet. I really enjoy writing little Mush and Feister fighting. Especially how they said "good night" to each other at the ending. It seemed like something they would do to insult the other one more time at this age. To me, there's sort of an innocents to it rather than tight tension from when they're older. I also enjoyed forming a whole chapter around a game they play that gets mentioned throughout the stories. I'm not sure why W.A.R is "their game", yet, here we are. Off topic recently I mentioned doing a possible Brooklyn backstory, so far I've gotten three votes of "yes", so I guess that means once I recharge from this book, that'll go into the works. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed, thanks for reading, and I'll see you soon!