Locked Doors Do Not A Prison Make

It was dark when Tepic woke, for some reason in a bed at the Free Clinic. He could hear the soft breathing of another urchin from the armchair in the corner and curious, he went and had a look who it was. Billy No-Toes was sprawled out in the well padded chair, snoring gently. Concerned for his friend, Tepic fetched a blanket from the bed and tucked him in before trying the front door handle. As he suspected, it was locked, after all, you couldn’t be too careful when there were drugs in the cabinets, anyone might be passing! He carefully picked the lock and slipped out, turning to softly close the door and re-lock it behind him.

Turning to the Steamworks, the lad lifted the drain cover and dropped lightly into the sewer system. As he was in this part of the City, he thought he might as well check the traps, taking out his fresh catch and resetting the ones that needed it. Once he had done the rounds, he dropped the voles into one of the cool boxes he had stashed around, knowing his friends would check them in the morning.

The early morning light was just turning the horizon a gentle pink as he pulled himself up and out of the sewers by Mr Dark’s Wax Museum. He knew he had been sleeping a lot recently, so it must be time for his sift, even though he was a little early. There was no one else at the factory and the gates were shut, but it was not difficult to climb over the outer wall and some kind person had left one of the top windows open, so he was able to get in quite easily.

He punched in, putting his clock card back with the others, and set about tidying the place up. It was good, Mr Popplefot would be please with his initative, and he was helping his friend. As he worked, he was unaware that his eyes closed and his breathing settled into the shallow rhythm of sleep…..

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