Power of the Pen: The Amateur Mendicant Society
For VHunter07
A/N: I'm a terrible person.
I will be writing a long-winded author's note at the end of this story, mostly apologizing for being a terrible person. Long story short--real life was dropped on my head from a great height. I way over-committed myself, and found myself unable to find the time to actually sit down and finish this. But here I finally am, with the somewhat less than polished ending to this somewhat less than polished story. I wish I had been able to finish this when I was supposed to, because now I only barely remember what I was going to have happen. As it stands, this story is highly unrealistic, but I've never been able to help much what I write :-P
An excerpt from the diary of Doctor John Watson:
This has been a most singular case, one which I shall, perhaps, make public in the future. For now, though I should record the facts here, so that they will be easily accessible to me later.
Holmes and I arrived at the door of an old, large stone building, crumbling with age. How he arrived there I still do not know--somehow, from clues left on the victim's person, he lead us to the dead man's old lodgings. Of course, when I use the term "lodgings," I use it loosely.
The man was apparently a part of a small group of beggars, calling themselves the Amateur Mendicant Society. A mendicant society being a group of people who choose to give up all earthly possessions, living off the charity of others, these men have nothing but the clothes on their backs. They are organized by three men--Greene, Black, and White. Upon questioning them, we learned that they have been taking in people from all over the city--people who were looking for a new start in life.
--
An excerpt from the private diary of a member of the Amateur Mendicant society, the day before he joined:
I had another talk with Mr. Greene today. It is truly amazing that he understands all of what I am going through. I have no reason to live--no family, no real friends, almost nothing to my name. He says he understands because that's what his life was like--that's what he was going through before he chose to abandon all worldly possessions and embrace the poverty he found himself in. This explains his ragged clothing and thinness. Even so, he carries about him a noble and purposeful air. He knows what he is here for in life, and he chooses to share it with others in the hopes of helping them find themselves. I too, he says, must embrace my own poverty.
He has offered me the opportunity to join them. I have made up my mind to take it.
--
An excerpt from the diary of Doctor John Watson (continued):
Supposedly the "new start" works wonders. Of course, the term "supposedly" is a key phrase--the people we spoke with seemed more brainwashed than anything else. They do seem quite content, however.
They survive by begging. They are a guild of beggars, if you will. All that they acquire is shared among them--used to buy what food they can for all of them. When asked what else they did, none answered, but chose instead to make ambiguous statements about wishing they could help us as they have been helped.
Holmes thought the whole business sounded suspicious, and I was inclined to agree with him.
--
A telegram on the desk of Inspector G. Lestrade:
AMATEUR MENDICANT SOCIETY
HOLMES
--
A note next to the telegram:
The man will make me crazy.
--
An excerpt from the diary of Doctor John Watson (continued):
The real break came when Holmes waylaid a passing beggar, and persuaded him to speak with us. Holmes' wallet was growing thinner by the minute, in the interests of this case. When questioned, he came up with much the same information that we had gotten from the others. However, this fellow seemed more inclined to speak plainly, as opposed to the guarded statements and riddles about "being helped."
Holmes asked me what my impressions were. My only thought was of some dark, secretive cult, which held more secrets than it seemed to the outsider. I expected him to scoff and point out the romanticism in me, as he was wont to do when presented with such a statement, but instead he only nodded.
My companion remained silent for some time, occasionally muttering a phrase that the beggar had said: "The society helps people--Not just the members, but the world."
--
An excerpt from the diary of a member of the Amateur Mendicant Society:
Perhaps we are doing the world a favour, as our great leaders tell us. But I cannot help but feel that these actions are not performed selflessly--that we are acting not in society's best interests, but in the interests of Greene, White, and Black. I know I am not the only one who thinks this--Brown in particular used to speak of it often. But he is gone now...
--
An excerpt from the diary of Doctor John Watson (continued):
When Holmes came out of his trance like state at last, he proceeded to question me, asking me if there was anything I had noticed about the phrasing used by the members of the society. All I had noticed was that the members had often talked about "helping" people when refering to begging. Apparently this was exactly what Holmes was after. "Beggars and thieves, beggars and thieves!" he repeated, over and over. Then he seized my wrist and announced that it was time to see Mr. Greene.
Lestrade arrived at the scene with a warrant as we were about to enter the room of Misters Greene, White, and Black. Upon knocking, however, it was apparent that no one was inside. Determined to gain access, Holmes broke down the door, and we found ourselves in a simple square room as bare as the last one had been. Lestrade was looking unimpressed, but Holmes was immediately on the ground, testing each floorboard. A few short moments later he let out a cry of triumph, and lifted back a hidden door to reveal a treasure trove. The space beneath the floor was filled with valuables, many of which matched the descriptions of items taken from the burglarized houses.
The facts were these--The Amateur Mendicant Society was not only begging, it was stealing. Greene, White, and Black were using the society to amass a fortune. When their members went out begging, any money that they did not need strictly to survive was given to Greene, White, and Black to be "disposed of," and that kind of money adds up fast. In addition, however, the three ringleaders had been convincing some of the most loyal (or most greedy) members that in order to help society they must remove items of worth from the lives of others, whether willingly or not. It takes powerful men indeed to convince so many people that thieving was acting in the best interests of society, Holmes pointed out, but when working with people so desperate as the ones that were taken in by the society, it may be a more simple matter than it seems, so long as the only ones who knew of the criminal side of the organization were the ones that would stay quiet. Apparently they'd misjudged when it came to Brown, and found that he needed to be disposed of.
At that moment we heard footsteps outside, and pressed ourselves against the wall by the door. The three ringleaders entered the room. Homes slammed the door behind them, trapping them inside, while Lestrade brandished his handcuffs. The three did not bother to ask us why we were there, but instead fought like tigers to escape. In subduing Greene and White we lost Black, who was quicker on his feet and made it out the door. The Yard is still looking for him, so perhaps we'll have the three of them behind bars soon enough.
Only the epilogue left...