Chance Encounters

[oncedevil]

There was a certain art to picking pockets, one needed a delicate touch, quick fingers and a mastery of performance to pull it off without alerting the mark. The act was the biggest part, amateurs ran, alerting everyone around them and foiling themselves. That was the issue Tony had with purse thieves. It was nearly impossible to swipe a purse subtly, and then what did you do with the rest of the contents? Everyone knew purses were more black hole full of old receipts and gum wrappers than actual cash. No, it took more skill to slip away with just a wallet, a little more intimacy. Perhaps that was part of why he liked it so much, the adrenaline rush of knowing that if he didn't pull off his act just right he was liable to end up with a broken nose. Or worse.

Now, by no means did he believe himself the best pick pocket ever, he knew better, he wasn't that arrogant. But he'd refined his art over time and learned how to pick out who would make a good target in a crowd. Not a large man, for one they tended to hit first ask questions later, and for another a fourteen year old kid was not going to be big enough to budge him. Women were out as well, but for more personal reasons. Besides, the purses always proved to be irritating. The absolute best choices he'd found were closer to his age, teenagers with cash and easily distracted. Rich kids could spare a twenty here or there, they rarely paid much attention to their surroundings, and a properly disarming demeanor could serve to be just the ticket to getting out scott-free.

Of course the problem with being so picky meant that opportunities were infrequent, but every now and then just the right mark turned up and Tony wasn't about to let it get away. It didn't help that he was getting pretty hungry, and a warm meal sounded mighty tempting at the moment.

When he spotted the boy he knew he'd be perfect, and made his move. Casual lazy stride, hands loose at his sides as he moved in at just the right moment to crash his shoulder heavily into the boy, aiming to fluidly extract the wallet from his pocket as he spun aside from the force.

"Woah, sorry man, didn't see you there."

Flawless.

Comments

[bronographic]

Dirk of course wasn't exactly expecting to be the target of pickpocketing, but then again, who usually is? So when he got himself ran into mid stride, he nearly didn't catch the fact his wallet was no longer in his back pocket.

Almost, but not quite.

When Tony spoke up with his apology, Dirk's first reaction was to tell him it was alright, no harm done. But the emptiness of his back pocket struck him before he could even open his mouth to speak. Brow furrowing, his hand slid back behind him to feel at his own empty back pocket.

"You certainly saw my wallet. I'll take that back." He said cooly, his hand extending forward expectantly, palm upward.

Of course, he sounded far more calm than he actually felt. Dirk was never one prone to anxiety, but with the scenario before him, he couldn't help but feel a bit nervous. This kid looked about his age, though a bit on the scrawny side. But if he was a thug? That meant he could very well be dangerous, who knew if he had a knife on him or maybe even a gun. Dirk was hoping this could be resolved peacefully.