Disclaimer: See previous chapters.
Revision Updated: 18-Jul-2009
Chapter Title: Learning a Trade
Fann gaped at her. "Apprentice?"
"Yes." Amanda reached over and grabbed an apple from the table. She wandered around the suite, occasionally taking a bite, deep in thought. Fann watched her, wondering what she was thinking about.
"Think about it," Amanda said, stopping in front of her. She stood there for a minute, her hands on her hips, her head cocked to the right. "You do understand that I'm not doing this just to be nice? Or to repay an old debt? Though that is part of it."
Fann nodded. She'd suspected as much but hadn't actually expected Amanda to be so honest about her motives.
"I've decided that if I'm going to invest so much time in teaching you what I know, I need a more formal relationship than I'd originally planned," Amanda said, giving her a serious look. "Something more than just your word."
"Like what?" Fann asked. "You can't just say I'm your apprentice or assistant?"
"No," Amanda said bluntly without any explanation. She wandered around the room for a little longer. The next time she stopped in front of Fann there was a strange gleam in her eye that made Fann slightly nervous. "Okay. I've got it. I don't deal with them very often but for this it should be okay."
"Who?" Fann asked curiously.
"The Thieves Guild," Amanda told her. "They still have offices in most large cities."
"That sounds like something out of a novel or some game." Fann grinned at her at the thought.
"They don't advertise their presence but they're real enough." Amanda told her. "They used to be much more important several centuries ago when it was easier to move around without being noticed, but there still are benefits to belonging to the Guild."
"Like what?" Fann asked.
"Guild members don't steal from each other, for one thing." Amanda winked at her. "It means there is less competition."
"What else?"
"Members can use the Guild's library. There are bigger ones but they have really good historical records of where certain objects might be." Amanda pulled out her chair and spun it around so its back faced Fann, before sitting on it, her arms resting on the back. "They have other services, like job referrals and appraisers, that can be useful though I don't normally need such things myself. And they'll let you know if someone is looking for you."
"So, if I agree, what happens?" Fann asked. "Do I go down to the local office and sign up?"
"No. It isn't that easy. Which is probably why they aren't as well known anymore. And they don't really want people bothering them because of something they read in a book," Amanda said, shaking her head. "You have to be sponsored by a member in good standing." She said. "Like me."
There was something about her smile and the way she said it that was disturbing but she was too tired to care, Fann thought, trying to hide a yawn. She hadn't gotten any sleep the night before and it was starting to catch up to her.
She apparently hadn't hidden it was well enough, she found out a few minutes later. Coming back into the room after trying to clean up her damaged clothes in the suite's bathroom, Fann slumped tiredly onto the nearest chair.
Not giving her a chance to get comfortable, Amanda quickly sent her off to bed. "You need to get some sleep and then we'll go get you registered as my apprentice. And then we'll need to find a place somewhere quiet for a few months so you can learn enough of the basics so you don't embarrass me by getting caught."
"Okay," Fann said, getting back up. "When do you want me back here?"
"I'm not tired now," Amanda told her. "You can use the bed."
Fann looked at her suspiciously, wondering if Amanda didn't trust her enough to let her out of her sight, but couldn't tell anything from her calm expression. "Okay... wake me up when you need me?" Amanda nodded and pointed her in the direction of the bedroom.
Quickly putting her plan into action, while Fann slept Amanda used the phone, talking to real estate agents and her bank, looking for a place she could use for her plans. There were certain things it would need. A house wouldn't be big enough but something next door to one would be a good start. And nothing too conspicuous.
The cost wasn't a big issue. Even without digging into her long term investments, she still have plenty of money left over from her last serious job. The more difficult part would be the changes she would need to have made to the building.
She was still working out the details when Fann wandered out of the bedroom. Amanda put down the faxes she'd been examining and stood up. "Good. You're up. Let's get you cleaned up and changed and we can go down to the Guild office." She turned a protesting Fann around and headed her back to the bedroom. She had several things she was sure Fann could wear that would look a lot better on her than the clothes she was still wearing from her encounter with Luis that morning.
Sitting alone in the Guild's outer office, Fann squirmed in her seat, uncomfortable in the clothes Amanda had insisted she wear. She wasn't short but Amanda was several inches taller. The only thing she'd had that Fann had been able to wear made her feel years younger than she actually was. She wasn't sure if she really wanted to know why Amanda had what looked like a Catholic school girl uniform in her possession. She was just glad that Amanda had agreed to take her back to her motel afterward so she could change into something else.
She was startled out of her thoughts by Amanda's return, accompanied by a leering old man.
"I see what you mean, Lady Darieux." He told her, rubbing his palms against his legs, leaving dark marks. "She'll do well for the kinds of things you have in mind."
"Yes." Amanda told him. From her body language, Fann could clearly see her distaste at being in his presence but it didn't register in her voice.
"I'll get the papers for her to sign." He told her before turning around and heading back down the hallway.
"Lady Darieux?" Fann asked as soon as he was gone.
Amanda just shrugged. "They have a long memory. I haven't used that in centuries."
"They don't have any problem with the whole...?" she mimicked waving a sword.
"Not the ones who know. There are stranger Guild members."
Further discussion was interrupted by the return on the old man. He handed documents to both women. "The fees are all paid. The bank approved the transfer from your accounts. Here you go. The five year papers." He turned back to Fann with a smirk. "She must have a lot of confidence in you. Most Guild apprenticeships are ten years." He watched Amanda and Fann sign them, before grabbing them out of their hands. Examining the documents, he produced a large stamp out of a pocket and pressed it over the signature before handing one copy to Amanda and keeping the other.
Fann watched him shuffle off before turning back to Amanda. "Fees?"
"Don't worry. I'll explain later," she said, heading towards the door. "We need to get going."
"Why Tucson?" Fann asked her later that day. They had stopped at Fann's motel on their way back from the Guild office so Fann could change. Amanda used the moment to quickly tell her about the small building on the outskirts of Tucson, Arizona with an adjoining house and garage that she'd purchased with the intention of having it turned into a place where she could begin Fann's training.
"Right now, how much do you know?" Amanda asked, leaning against her car and watching the young woman examine her bike.
"About your profession?" Fann stepped back from her bike and turned towards her. "I know you, ah, liberate objects from all sorts of places and sell or keep them. But how? Or why? No idea yet. I'm assuming that you'll be teaching me that kind of thing."
"Yes, as my apprentice you'll be learning the fine art of object acquisition," Amanda said smiling at Fann's expression. "And to start out I need you to learn as much as you can about how people protect their possessions and how to get around those protections. And you need to learn that in a safe place. Before you actually start helping me. Tucson is that safe place."
"Okay," Fann answered. "When do we start?"
"I have several things to finish up here and then I can meet you at the house in Tucson a week from now," Amanda said. "Or we can arrange for your bike to be shipped there and you can go with me."
"Directions to this house?" Fann asked, ignoring Amanda's other suggestion. "And what do I do while I wait for you to show up?"
"You can spend the time until I get there exploring Tucson. You aren't going to have much free time once we get started," Amanda told her. "I have directions back at my hotel. I'll give them to you after dinner." Amanda climbed into her car and waved Fann over. "Come along."
Two months of intense training followed Amanda's arrival and their occupation of the house. Although Fann briefly wondered who had set up the building they were using for her training she was soon too busy to care as Amanda drilled what she referred to as the pillars of her trade into Fann.
In the mornings Amanda taught Fann how to use a wide variety of different types of special burglary tools and other equipment she'd found useful over the years. Afternoons were spent with the physical aspects of her craft. Evenings they spent pouring over details of various jobs Amanda had done in the past and how they had gone. She didn't share just her successes. Fann noticed that Amanda spent just as much time dissecting the jobs that had blown up in her face, not sparing herself criticism.
Through this Fann noticed that it wasn't just the knowledge of hundreds of locks and security systems that had made Amanda successful. There was a very physical element involved. A master thief of her stature and experience apparently required the skills of a trained acrobat.
While Fann had the manual dexterity and flexible mind to learn to use the tools of her new trade, it was the physical aspect where she really shone. She noticed she was continually amazing Amanda with her strength and agility. And she tried to not let it go to her head but she found that she was able to quickly pick up any task Amanda set her. But after a stray comment to Amanda about how exhausting she'd found her short bout with Luis back in New Orleans, she wasn't surprised when Amanda shifted the focus of her physical training more towards endurance than strength.
Fann twisted in the harness, head down, as she struggled to unlock the door. "Why am I doing this again?" she grumbled to herself as she tried to move only the barest amount.
"Because I told you to," a quiet voice off to her left said. "You aren't always going to be able to easily access a door. Now that you've learned to pick any mechanical lock you might run into you have to be able to do it when you can't touch the floor or even the door itself."
Twisting her head slightly, Fann stuck out her tongue at the blonde master thief. "Well, you've had years to learn how to do this. I've only been learning this for the last two months," she pretended to protest.
"This is only the beginning. The easy part. If you want to work with me there are a lot of things you need to be able to do like this that combine the different things you've been learning." Amanda shook her head. "They don't just leave things lying around waiting to be picked up. That's a bit much to expect, no matter how much I would like it." Amanda grinned. "And we want to get in and out without being noticed. It's safer that way. And more challenging."
Fann had continued to work on the last lock even as Amanda chastised her. With one last click the door opened. Fann hung there for a minute, squirreling her tools securely away in a pocket. "Happy?" she asked the other woman.
"Yes. Why don't you get down from there and we'll go get lunch." Amanda told her. "We can talk about the next part of your training."
Fann reached up above her harness and pulled herself upright. She quickly disconnected the harness from the rope and dropped down lightly beside Amanda who just shook her head. "What?" she asked.
Amanda tilted her head and gave her another look. "I'm just amazed at how strong you are."
"There's nothing special about me," Fann protested.
"We both know that isn't true," was her answer. "I'm sure there's a reason why you are so strong and why you're learning things so quickly."
"It doesn't feel quick," Fann grumbled. "You've had me working on those locks and safes for weeks now."
"Take my word for it," Amanda told her. "I don't know anyone else who could learn this quickly. It's almost like magic."
"Magic?" Fann looked at her in amazement. "You mean spells, and wands, and things like that that people can control? Something different than the thing that makes you immortal? You've mentioned it before but I didn't think you were serious." She'd had occasional glimpses in her more graphic dreams of people doing something she'd assumed was magic but she'd never mentioned anything about her dreams to Amanda. And she hadn't seen any proof yet that the events she dreamed about were even real, though she suspected they were.
"I don't know much about the things you've mentioned but over the years I've run into people who could do something they called magic," Amanda said, shrugging. "At the rate you're learning we should be ready for a real job in another month. I've got just the thing for your first few jobs but I'll need to see a friend first. If you want to meet a real witch that'll be your first chance."
"A witch? Does she have a name?" Fann asked curiously.
"Cassandra," Amanda told her, motioning her towards the door and her car.
"Like the Greek Cassandra?" Fann gave her a look. She'd gotten used to the idea of Amanda being immortal because she seemed to be so normal but occasionally she would mention something that reminded Fann of how old she really was.
"Yes. That Cassandra," Amanda said, smirking at her. "Though according to her she isn't actually Greek."
"Can you trust what she says?" Fann asked.
"Yes. Now, where did you want to have lunch?" Amanda asked as they climbed into her small car.
"Surprise me." Fann told her with a smile. "You know I can eat anything you like."
"Okay. Prepare to be surprised," Amanda said, starting up her car. And with a squeal of tires they were off.
They easily found seats in the back of the small restaurant. After they ordered lunch, Fann looked around trying to see everything without being to conspicuous. "This is different," she said softly.
"Yes. I try to come here at least once every time I'm in Tucson for more than a week," Amanda told her, apparently amused by her reaction. "It's also very private."
"Okay." Fann took a sip of her iced tea and leaned back with a sigh. "So what did you want to discuss?"
"Two things. First - self defense," Amanda told her. "It's something you need to start thinking about."
"Why?" Fann asked. "It's not like I have people trying to kill me."
"Not yet," Amanda said. "But you have two good reasons to learn how to defend yourself."
"What?" Fann asked curiously.
"One - You are working with me. While another immortal probably isn't going to attack you they might involve you in any attempts to attack me. If you can take care of yourself you are less likely to become a hostage."
"Oh. So some immortals like to play rough?" Fann asked faintly. This wasn't an aspect she'd thought about. She realized she'd been relying too much on Amanda's earlier claim that she would be safe from any immortals.
"Very. And two - we're in a very competitive business. Although we shouldn't have to worry about Guild members there are other people who will try to stop you or try to steal from you. You are strong enough to protect yourself, once you know how."
"Okay. But how am I going to do that?" Fann frowned at Amanda. "You already have me so busy I don't have any time left for anything else."
"Well, unless you want to learn just how to use a sword..."
"No!" Fann blurted out.
Amanda grinned slightly at Fann's reaction. "I'm not the best person to teach you how to defend yourself. And we probably won't be in Tucson long enough for you to start learning from anyone here. But I do have a friend in Washington who runs a dojo who would probably be willing to train you."
"Okay. What's the other thing?"
"I think you've got a good beginning with the technical aspects of all of this," Amanda told her. "If that were all it took you would be ready to start. But the things we acquire belong to people or are guarded by people. To be really successful, you need to start learning how people really think. You should be able to walk into a bar, and just by watching the people there know who you can steal from and who to avoid."
"So what is the plan?" Fann asked. "How do I learn that?"
"We'll start working on your observation skills over the next month." Amanda raised her glass and took a sip. "If you are as adept at that as everything else I've taught you, next month we'll go visit Cassandra. You should be ready for some real world experience by then." Amanda paused for a moment to take a bite of lunch. "After I've talked with her we'll do a few small jobs I have lined up to test your progress."
"What kind of jobs," Fann asked.
"A couple favors for a friend. Real enough but not too dangerous."
"And then what?"
"We'll pay a visit to Mac in Seacover," Amanda said, and grinned to herself at something she found amusing.
"Mac?" Fann asked.
"Duncan MacLeod. He's the friend with the dojo." Amanda looked over at her. "He should be able to give you a good grounding in self defense."
"How long should that take?" she asked curiously.
"I don't really know. I think at least a few months to get the basics. We can do some smaller jobs as training while that is happening."
"Okay." She looked down at her plate and realized to her great disappointment that she'd eaten everything there but couldn't remember what it had tasted like.
Notes:
* I didn't spend a lot of time on the actual training. Whole books could be written on that subject. And movies (Check out that one with Sean Connery and what's-her-name.). Putting it here would have been exceedingly boring.
* The Thieves Guild mentioned in this part doesn't really exist. It is something I invented for this story. It does not have any intentional resemblences to any fictional or RPG 'Thieves Guild'.