Tobias felt more and more uneasy with this ragamuffin, no longer because the boy had tried to pickpocket him, but because a boy this young shouldn't be looking after himself, especially not when in odd jobs. The fact that Tobias himself had gotten mugged in town and the reports on crime he regularly read in the Whitby gazette were enough to convince him that such a boy could go down a very dangerous path indeed.

His grip on the boy's wrist loosened a little, so as not to hurt him, though he was ready to tighten it should the kid try to run.

"That won't do. Who is your legal guardian? You ought to have one, even if it's the poor law guardians... Where do you stay, if not in t' workhouse?"

He looked up, his eyes scanning the harbour as if he expected a guardian to magically appear and claim the child.