Sorry for the long delay, but this was awfully long chapter and I had less time than I realized. It also turns out I have a LOT more quizzes, plus two essays and stuff…ugh! So yeah, I guess I'll just have to update when I can. I'll probably have more time in the summer vacation (next Friday). :(
The Month of Awakening (February) Age 8
Week 1
I was getting kind of worried about Kanrik. I mean, he's been in jail for three months now! Shouldn't he have escaped or something? And why aren't the adults putting much effort into helping him? Well, I found out pretty soon.
I decided to talk the Skeith who was in charge, Mortak, about it. While waiting outside the meeting, I eavesdropped- er, overheard the adults talking. It was mostly about boring stuff, like supplies and branches and all that, but then someone said something that pricked up my ears.
"Why haven't we done anything for Kanrik yet?" There was an immediate outburst of murmurs. Peeking from the door, I saw that Mortak was sweating.
"That's a very good question. Why don't you save it for the next meeting?" He was stalling, and I knew it.
"But that's what you said last time," another voice shouted out.
Mortak shrugged, as if helpless. "I'm sorry, but I have very urgent matters to attend to. Good-bye!" With that, he walked out of the room.
My plan was to ambush him when he exited, since I never saw him anywhere else. Something made me hesitate, however. Instead, I decided to follow him. It was easy, really; the supposed Master Thief wasn't too stealthy. I guess the only reason that no one's ever succeeded to find out is because no one tried, probably for fear of getting kicked out of the guild.
But I've heard that threat before.
Taking a few sharp twists and turns, I realized that he was going to the storage room, where we kept the food that we gave to desperate people in our guild. What's he doing there? I wondered, but I kept silent. To my disgust, he started eating the meals- when there were so many others who needed it! Even thieves know that that's wrong. I jumped out of my hiding place.
He leapt up, trying to wipe his mouth quickly on his white shirt. When he realized it was just an eight-year-old, he stopped. "What are you doing here?"
"The better question is," I said, "What are you doing here?" I stared pointedly at the open cans.
"Well I- I was just here to check that these weren't poisoned," he rapidly answered. "Yes, that's right. Wouldn't want to get anybody in the guild sick, now, would we?" He laughed, waiting for me to join him. I just frowned. He coughed awkwardly, and then continued, "Now, how may I help you?"
"When are you going to help Kanrik?" I demanded. "He's been in jail for way too long."
He stared at his toes. "Kanrik is a master thief; he can get himself out."
"But he might be trapped in some sort of high-security cell or something! He might need us!"
"He's already too far gone," he stated firmly.
"What does that mean?"
He raised his eyebrows and shook his head. "I forgot; you're just a child. You're not supposed to know that."
"Know what? You better tell me or I'll-"
"You'll what? You're just poking into adult's business, kid, and it's already upsetting you. Take my advice and go to your mommy, alright….Hansel?"
"Hansel?" I spluttered. "That idiot who took his little sister to eat a candy house in the woods? You might be mistaking me for Julius. It's Hanso, mister."
Unexpectedly, his lips curled into a smile. "Oh…Hanso. You."
"Me," I replied coolly. "Um….who am I, again?"
"Listen, buddy," he sneered, "You might be Kanrik's old favorite, but you are definitely not mine. I'm heir to the hierarchy if something happens to him….and if you get my drift I'll be your boss pretty soon. And there's nothing you can do about it."
My eyes widened. Slowly, I began walking out, still dazed. Then I snapped back into focus. Nothing I can do about it? We'll see about that. "Okay…sir. Thanks for giving me your oh-so-awesome assistance."
"See how easy it is when we work together?" He commented smugly. "Go on, skedaddle."
I saluted and followed his order….I skedaddled to my room and started hatching a plan.
Week 2
We got our little pals again this week, so we got to do whatever we wanted.
"I say," said Kayley, "Let's go to the park and show those spoiled little rich kids that they can't tell us what to do." There was a chorus of agreements, but I didn't voice my opinion. She frowned. "Neopia to Hanso? You with us?"
"Yeah…I've kind of been having some second thoughts about that."
Her jaw dropped. "Are you insane? It was your little person that the guy pushed down!"
"It's not that," I replied hurriedly. "I mean, I'd cream him if I could but…."
"But…." They all waited for an answer.
"I kind of have other plans."
"What plans?" Her eyes narrowed with suspicion. I shrugged innocently. "This doesn't have anything to do with that…that guard?"
"'Course not! Now run along and stuff. Me and Timmy have stuff to do. Isn't that right, little sucker?" I asked, messing up his hair.
He pouted slightly. "Me not sucker."
"Sure ya aren't. But we still have stuff, right? Come on," I pulled him away before Kayley could say anything else.
He stared at me with those big eyes trustingly. "What we gonna do, Hanswo?"
"We are going to find a way inside the jail," I told him.
He grinned. "Kanwik escape?"
I looked at him indecorously. "How did you know about that?"
"Mummy complain 'bout Kanwiks weplacement. He mean. Not enough food. Hanswo skilled thief, I think- you try and break him out!" He said that so matter-of-factly that I gaped, especially the last part. He was good. I had to remind myself what I've been saying to adults- Don't underestimate kids.
"That's- that's right. Just don't tell anyone about it, okay? It'll be our little secret." He nodded in affirmation. "Good. Now, I don't actually know how we're going to break him out. This is just a scouting mission- hopefully I can get the others at my back soon, and then we can really help him escape. I just need a way in." I thought I was crazy for confiding all this to someone so tiny, but he just proved he can help. He might be even useful. "Think you can find one?"
He nodded eagerly and started searching around. We were in the back of the prison, near some forest. I knew that the most dangerous thieves are kept behind, so I guessed that Kanrik was somewhere at the rear. Suddenly, Timmy cried out, "Here!"
It was just a crack in the wall behind the bushes, barely noticeable to anybody unless they had keen eyes. "Good work, kiddo!" I exclaimed, rubbing is hair again. "Now if we only had a way to make it bigger….aha!" I found a small, sharp rock. The stone surrounding the crevice was weak, so it took only a few strokes to make a hole. Granted, it was too small for any grown-up to walk through, but Timmy and I fit in just fine. Even better, the shrubs disguised the entrance.
We crept in nervously, not exactly sure where we'd end up. In the corridor, within eyeshot of the guard? In a cell, filled with dangerous criminals? The girl's bathroom? It was horrifying to think about it. Luckily though, our thin passage stopped at the wall of a locked room; Kanrik's locked room. We were in the part adjacent to the bars, so the guards couldn't see us. The fissure was still too miniscule for any thoughts of a getaway, but at least we could communicate.
When he woke up, that is. All three Master Thieves were sound asleep, snoring peacefully. To be honest, I was kind of glad that it was that way. The other two still creeped me out, and after what they nearly did to Brynn's friend, I made up my mind to avoid them at all cost. "So, Timmy," I started, hoping for suggestions, "How do you think we can wake the blue guy over there but not anyone else?"
"Poke him!"
"Well, that's actually not a bad idea," I considered. Grabbing a long stick, I began jabbing at Kanrik.
He tried swatting it away with his eyes still closed. "Don't you guard-kids have anything better to do than to tease a prisoner?" I prodded him hard on the ribs, and he leapt up. "Why, you-"
His face was absolutely priceless when he saw us.
"Hi, sir," I greeted him calmly.
"Hanso?" He choked out. "What are you…How did you…"
I ignored him and asked a question of my own. "So, was she good or was she good?" That was one nice thing about Kanrik; you didn't have to beat around the bush with him. Just ask straight-forwardly. Of course, mine also had a double meaning: Did he believe me now?
"She was good," he admitted. "Though I still think you could have gotten away."
"You think I could have had a chance when you didn't?" I scowled.
"I underestimated her, but you didn't. I am sure that there is another reason why you let her catch you."
"I told you," I explained angrily, "I was trying to pretend to be her friend and all that so that I can get information or whatever."
He frowned. "We'll talk about this when I get out." He studied me. "You did think of a way for me to get out, right?"
"Well…" I trailed off. He groaned. "Hey, it's not my fault! Your lieutenant wasn't doing a very good job making people help you. He did motivate me, though- he'd definitely stink as a leader, so I decided to get you outta here as soon as possible. It wasn't that hard, really- I bet anyone could have assisted, if they tried."
He shook his head. "But they won't try. They can't. Mortak had probably given orders to them not to do anything without his permission."
"Why?"
"Because if I'm here for more than eight months," he informed me, "I get shipped out to Darigan Citadel." I cringed, having already heard the rumors about that place. They say that the thieves there are so broken up and beaten that they don't even try to escape; which ensured that Mortak would be the guild leader forever. "They have gotten nicer, though. Once, they used to-"
He got cut off by a loud creaking on the stairs. A guard was coming- maybe more than one. I had to get out fast. "I'll come back, 'kay? In the meantime, can you please try and escape on your own?" It was weird for me to berate an adult, but I was being pressured and I really wanted him out.
"Hanso, escape was never really my strong suit."
"Our teacher said that good thief knew how to do all the skills," I complained.
"But they didn't have to be best at all of them."
"Fine," I said distractedly, hearing the footsteps come closer and closer. "How about you steal the keys from a guard's pocket? It's always on the left side. Smash their head against the bars or something if they resist." I didn't really mean the last part, but it slipped out anyway. "Tell you what, you can even take credit for it."
"Hanswo!" Timmy called urgently from the entrance. I quickly ran out. I didn't actually do anything, but I felt better- at least this time I hadn't abandoned my mentor.
We were walking off until we were stopped by someone saying, "I knew it!" We whirled around. It was Kayley, hands on her hips. "I knew you were sneaking off to the castle to see that guard!"
"But I-"
"Save it. I can't believe you would try to do that again!"
Seeing as there was no point in doing so, I just shrugged. "Why do you care?"
"I'm not even going to answer that question," she seethed. "Are you trying to get Mortak get captured now?"
"No-"
"You've gone too far, Hanso. I thought you'd learned your lesson! Ugh, someone has to stop you." She rushed away. I dreaded to think what she was plotting.
Week 3
Kayley's been disappearing a lot lately. I don't know what's happening, but whenever I see her she always appeared to be heading in the direction of the palace. I can't believe it. I mean, is she going to be friends with a guard too just to spite me? That would be a pathetic revenge. In fact, I think it would be kind of nice for her to see that not all guards are bad.
On the side-note, my plan seems to have failed, but word got back about it to the thieves. My folks were whispering about it at dinner. A tip for parents- never share confidential information right in front of your kid. From what I picked up, the plan almost worked, if not for the interference of- who else?- Brynn. I think my point of her being a good guard has been taken. They transferred Kanrik into another top-security cell. That really messed up my plans, and I really didn't want to make up another one.
Week 4
What I said last week, about it being nice for Kayley to have a guard friend- I TAKE IT BACK! I so take it back. Because she couldn't have picked a worse person to be buddies with...and tell stupid little secrets to.
I saw that idiotic Lupe whom I punched ages ago with her. Near the forest. Today. My eyes widened, and I actually had to pinch myself a few times to make sure this wasn't a dream or, to be more precise, absolute nightmare. She did her signature sneer at me, which made me want to tear her face up to pieces. But it only got worse when I heard what she was saying.
"…Keeps a necklace hidden beneath her tunic at all times," she seemed to be continuing. "I saw her mother gave it to her at her birthday party, and Hanso gave it back after he stole it." A gasped in horror when I figured out they were talking about Brynn's necklace.
"You sure about this? Nah, you wouldn't lie," he answered himself. "I can lock you up in prison right now if I wanted to."
Her face flushed. "And I can slit your throat without anyone finding out it was me." So much for the whole 'pal' cover.
"Fair enough."
"So you're going to tell your instructor?" She practically shouted. She really wanted me to hear.
"Nope." She gawped at him for a couple of minutes, until he answered, "I have something else planned, and it's going to be a lot better than just whining to the teacher. Besides, our instructor is on her side." He crossed his arms. "Look, honey, this is just a one-time thing, right? Much as I want to get some dirt on Miss-Goody-Two-Shoes, I can't exactly hang out with you all the time. It would, eh….tarnish my already fragile reputation."
"What reputation?" I spat.
He turned around and noticed me. At first he glared, but then his whole countenance changed into some sort of triumphant, disgusting smirk. "Oh, it's you. Don't think I didn't forget that little fiasco a few months ago. Payback day is coming- but for now I think your accomplice will fit the bill."
"Accomplice?"
He laughed as he walked. "See you later, scoundrel."
As soon as he left, I screamed at Kayley, "WHY DID YOU TELL HIM THAT?"
"To teach you a lesson. Guards can never be trusted- wait and see what he does with what I told him. Mark my words, it'll be what that- that girl would do."
"No, it wouldn't!" I shot. "Listen to this carefully, Kayley: Lupe- Evil. Bad guy. Brynn- Good. Too good, yeah, but good. Why do you have to be so mean to her?"
"All guards are wicked," she countered. "But she was more dangerous than others, trying to get close to you. That guy just proved everything that I'd believed about them."
"Didn't you hear anything of what I just said?" I stormed. "You told me that I've gone too far, Kayley- but it's actually you that did."
So now I know that's something bad is going to happen to Brynn in the near future, and I'll be responsible for it. Great, just when I got myself out of the guilt shell, Kayley comes along and pulls me back in.