Thief Chapter 4

Zelgadis sat with his head in his hands and wondered how this... predicament... he was in had ever happened. Looking up at the two other people in the room, Deigan and Peri, he said, "OK, let me get this straight. As the one to find her and bring her here for training, I'm the one who has to train her, right?" Deigan nodded. "And this means she will stay with or near me until she is considered proficient enough to go up a rank, like Swift did with me?" Again, Deigan nodded. "Now tell me this, how am I supposed to care for this strong willed girl who's the sort to get into trouble while doing all my other duties, not to mention she'll be the only female in the guild since who-knows-when?! Do you realize what that means in this lawless place?!" Once again Deigan nodded, saying, "Of course I do. But it doesn't matter, does it, sweetie?" He tucked his finger under Peri's chin and looked admirably at her face. Peri slapped away his hand and scooted her chair away from the somewhat lecherous Master Thief. "Of course it doesn't matter. I'll beat up anyone who tries anything with me," she said, looking meaningfully at Deigan, who was pouting a little. Zelgadis hadn't seen his master and friend act like this before, but then he also hadn't seen him with a woman, either. There were all those rumors about Deigan's mistresses-of-the-week, though... At least Deigan was looking at her face and not at other places. The man had some sense. Peri resettled her chair in its new location and mumbled almost below hearing, even for Zel's strong ears, "At least it has to be better than home. It can't be worse then that." She shook her head slightly, looking like she was trying to drive bad memories out of her head. "Anyway," she said, in a slightly louder than normal tone of voice, "Stop talking about me like I'm not here! Can we please cut the discussion? It's a simple question, will you let me join or won't you?" She glared at both of the men, daring them to say she couldn't. After a few seconds, Deigan hesitantly said, "S-Sure, I guess we'll let you join." She smiled. "Perfect. Now then, shall we get to business?" She settled back into her chair as Deigan started to pull out papers. Zelgadis pushed back his chair. "I hope I'm not necessary for anything else. I'll tutor her. I- I just need to get some fresh air." He stood up, pushed in his chair, and walked out the door. Just outside the door, filling the corridor as far as Zel could see, was a large contingent of the Guild. Fifty-seven men, most who disdain the use of soap, all crammed into a narrow hallway, all trying to hear what was said in one small room. Surprisingly, the entire crowd was dead silent, at least until Zelgadis opened the door. Or, rather, he tried to. The crowd was pressed so tightly against the door that, even with his increased chimearic strength, Zel was only able to push the door open an inch. Slowly, the crowd shifted so that he had enough room to slip out and shut the door. They just stood there a second, the chimera looking at the crowd. Then everyone started talking at once, asking questions about who the girl was. Not one asked if she was going to join the guild. Most of the questions were about where "Deigan's new whore" was from, not even caring about the name of the girl who had entered into their midst. 'Sheesh... Peri better be right that she can handle this... I wouldn't wish this sort of.... previous judgement... on any one.' thought Zel, as a small bead of sweat pooled in a tear shape on his cheek. It would be very, very, very difficult to get them to accept her as one of their own. Deep in his thoughts, Zel pushed his way past the crowds and headed to his private room, saying not a word as he slipped past. Three hours later, Zel was awakened from a short nap to the sound of the door quickly opening and slamming shut. Sitting up, he saw Peri leaning against the door, panting. Loud catcalls, whistles, laughter, and very raunchy comments slipped through the cracks. Her straight green hair was tangled and her clothes showed several large rips that hadn't been there before. Her blue eyes were wide and hunting for safety. Then her eyes alighted on Zelgadis. He, luckily, was still dressed, but she still visibly jumped at the sight of someone in the room. Then she recognized him and slumped down the door, ending up on the floor. She slowly caught her breath as the jeering outside calmed down. Zel waited in silence for several minutes before she finally did something. One second she was sitting on the floor, just leaning limply against the door, the next she was holding onto Zelgadis for dear life, tears streaming down her cheeks. "I- I thought I could ha- handle the teasing, bu- but why'd they haveta tear my clothes?!" she bawled, getting the anger and frustration out of her. Soon she settled down, having cried herself down, and fell asleep next to Zel. Slowly, he shifted out of under her and tucked her into the bed. Walking over to the large, very sturdy wicker chair that lived in a corner of his room, he settled in for the night.

Elsewhere, things were less peaceful. In a separate house from the Guild, a house owned by one of the wealthier members, the talk ran thick in the air. Seventeen thieves sat around a large rectangular table. They were all the rougher type, people who steal and hurt because of sadistic leanings that commanded their every action. At the head was the leader of the pack, Reyner. A large slightly balding man, he commanded because of his size and ruthlessness. He stood and addressed his group. "Okay, scum, y'all know that that ijit Deigan has let a bitch into our midst. Y'all know bitches are only good fer one thing and one thing only, right?! An we all thought that ijit knew it too, what wit all his wenches. But now he's let one a them in as one of us an we aren't letting that happen, right?!" A chorus of "Right" echoed across the room. "So waddy'all say ta getting rid a' the ijit?!" Again, a loud roar of agreement answered Reyner's call to violence. Then someone chuckled, a deep chuckle that spoke of both amusement and pity. It wasn't that loud, but it drew attention to itself like a moth to a flame, cutting across the babbling of the thieves. Everyone turned to look at the one who had chuckled. Leaning against the doorway was Gavin. His waist-long black hair and the black clothes he wore made him look like a demon that had just appeared out of the shadows. Black gloves and boots, both artfully embroidered with burgundy spikes and highlighted with garnets, made his face the only spot of skin showing. A dark expression, one of superiority and the pity one shows to ignorant children, added to the illusion of the demon from the shadows. A large garnet, slightly redder than most garnets and polished to a dome-like smoothness, sat as a cloak brooch, holding the edges of his floor length black cloak together. He paced cat-like towards the table, cloak moving silently around him. He looked directly at Reyner the entire time he took to go from the doorway to the end of the table. Leaning against the empty chair, he spoke, "So you wish to eliminate Deigan, do you? I have... similar leanings towards him and his cronies. However, simple violence will not work against him, unless you truly wish to be outnumbered and eradicated like vermin?" Gavin's soft baritone drifted through the room and everyone, including Reyner, shifted in their seats and reoriented themselves to the fact that the head of the table was no longer the end where Reyner sat, but instead the side where the newcomer chose to rest. All across the table, heads slightly shook 'no' in the silence. "Good," continued Gavin, "I thought you were an intelligent crew. Now then, Deigan and his system has weaknesses. The only way of removing him from power is to exploit them in a subtle and cautious manner. This will take time, you understand, but it is actually quite simple. Now this is what we will do..."

------------------------------ Authors Note: Boy it's taken a bit to write this. It's probably because this is a turning point. Things are slowly slipping apart and the innocent will be caught and dragged down with the guilty. Boy I'm feeling dark and dead- flowery. ^_^ The next chapter will hopefully be out soon. I have it planned out, I just need to write it. Thanks to Moro the Wolf God for betareading and encouraging me! I needed it...