Pauper Princess

Chapter One

I made a face at John as my fingers easily slid out of the pouch of the man walking by us- his pocketwatch now in my grasp. John hid his smile as he looked up at the man- just as the gentleman harshly brought his walking cane down upon poor John's lower-back, demanding he get out of the way.

John scrambled for cover, but not before the man landed another lash to his rear.

I ducked behind the barrel of pickles just outside of a general shop, scooting back to make room for John. He was rubbing at the place on his back that had been struck- his shirt was torn up far enough that I could make out the raised welts forming from the cane that had landed upon him.

"I should get more than half of what we steal, Meli!" He griped under his breath, glaring after the man. "I'm the one who has to take all the beatings!"

"Well, I'm the one who is actually good at it," I reminded him. "You limp too badly to sneak up on people without being noticed. And I am the one to take the risk of being punished for the stealing. Besides, you're a crippled. You get more money by stepping in front of them to beg."

John scoffed, muttering something about a wide-eyed peasant girl such as myself being able to make more than any boy begging on the streets, and watched as I counted our score for a day.

"Not as much as two pence!" I shook my head, angry with myself. Truthfully, though, I wasn't at fault. Nobody seemed to be carrying much of value on them today.

Nudging me, John nodded towards the pocketwatch still gripped in my hand. "Someone will buy that, though- I'll bet its worth at least twenty pence, first offer!"

I just shook my head. "I think not. It is a common sailor's watch. It's cheap. And the initials engraved in will just make it harder to sell. I doubt we'll even get an offer on it today."

Seeing the disappointment on John's face, I quickly glanced around. No eyes were on us, but I knew that could change at any moment. Still, I didn't hesitate as I reached up, shoving open the container of pickles just behind us. My arm had only been in the barrel for a moment before I heard someone shout at me.

"Run!" I urged John, but he was already on his feet, taking off towards the river. He knew to leave me behind- I was faster than him, and would lead our pursuers away. Though it put me in a bit more danger, it was the only way to save John from being caught when such things happened- he would never be able to outrun someone with his limp.

That was another reason I always used him as the distraction, rather than letting him learn the pickpocket trade. If he was caught, he would never be able to outrun the law. But I could.

Securing as many pickles in my hand as possible, I took off, running in a different direction than John had. The streets weren't all that crowded today- the weather was rather poor- and that made it difficult to simply disappear into the crowd, or use my small size to my advantage by ducking between feet and slipping between bodies.

So instead, I focused my sights on a horse-drawn carriage further down the street. Hearing a man still hollering from behind me, and footsteps nearing, I moved even faster. The horses were at a walking pace rather than a trot, so instead of taking hold of the back of the carriage to gain a free ride, I pulled myself onto the chests tied to the tailboard and then hoisted myself onto the top-drop.

I didn't heed the gasps from within the carriage as they realized I was above them, stomping against the wood. Leaping from the top of the carriage, I caught hold of the arch above the doorway of the bank, and then reached for the metal railing outside the balcony of the second-floor window. Luckily, the window was open ever so slightly, and I was able to pull myself in.