Not quite a Dickens story

[minitreiver]

Eliot slipped between the stalls. It'd be a lot easier to grab an apple or something from somewhere than to steal a wallet without getting caught. Especially with all the people around. He reached between two women for the smallest fruit he could see.

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[knowntohisfriends]

A hand reaches out to gran Eliot's arm, another going around his shoulders and leading him away from the stall.

"What you up to? Tryin' to give us all a bad name?"

sorry about the late tag

[minitreiver]

Eliot freezes as the hand grabs him before he can reach the apple.

"Us? Who's us?"

[knowntohisfriends]

"Any pickpocket in the city what you're disrespectin' with your pitiful attempts at nabbin'" Dodger answers in a low tone, so he can't be overheard by anyone else.

[minitreiver]

Eliot's eyes grow wide. "I... Sorry. I didn't know."

[knowntohisfriends]

The Dodger gives a snort. "Like that weren't obvious," he says. He brings his other hand forward, showing the apple he managed to grab and tosses it in Eliot's direction. "Reckon you're needin' that."

[minitreiver]

Eliot blushes. He's going to have to work on being so obvious. It's... uncomfortable. He catches the apple easily. "Yeah, I..." He shrugs. "So not making everyone else look bad...?"

[knowntohisfriends]

"It's an art, you got to learn it right," the Dodger said, with the air of one who knows he knows what he's doing. "Can't just be reachin' yer hand our when you think there ain't nobody lookin'."

[minitreiver]

"An art." He resists the sudden urge to laugh. "Don't seem like an art with many teachers."

[knowntohisfriends]

"The best kinds don't have many," Dodger grins back, widely. "Course, you're in luck. You just happened on the most artful of them all. Even part of my name: the Artful Dodger."

[minitreiver]

Eliot really does laugh now but it's happy, not nearly hysterical like earlier. "Eliot Spencer. That's really your name?"

[knowntohisfriends]

"The only one worth havin'" Dodger replied, glancing around them. He was always keeping one eye on the people who passed them and if you look closely it was like his pockets were getting ... bulkier?

[minitreiver]

"It's a little... odd for a name," Eliot couldn't resist pointing out. He certainly didn't miss the other boy's growing pockets. He couldn't help but expect someone else would notice, too. "Maybe we should go somewhere else?"

[knowntohisfriends]

"We're goin' somewhere else," the Dodger pointed out, gesturing to their walking feet. "An' the only name worth havin' is the one you make for yerself."

[minitreiver]

Eliot nodded warily. They were but it seemed a bit slow and he had no idea where they were actually going. "Ain't it better to have a name that don't stand out?"

[knowntohisfriends]

And there's a stare of not being able to understand what's just been said