I’ll Make a Thief Out of You

         SB is surveying a small group of Gypsies in an empty corner of the Court of
         Miracles.
         She is going to try to teach them to be theives.

         SB: Let’s get one thing straight now
         To defeat our enemies
         Every one of you fights
         And no one runs,
         Jera: (Blending into shadows of wall) Can this wait till after lunch? (Timidly)
         SB: I’ll make you sweat,
         Lilith: What do we have to do? (Determind)
         SB: Follow me, I’ll make a thief out of you!

         SB: Any idea’s of how to avoid arrest?
         Jehan: Kick them in the shin?
         SB: Just listen to your mentor
         Tatyana: Even when it get’s real grim?
         SB: With me-e you cannot fail (boasting but suddenly trips and falls)
         Carmenita: (Whistling and removing outstreched foot) Just don’t get caught
         SB: Watch me and do what I do (Hands out throwing daggars and
         demostrates on old
         barrel which turns out to be full of ale and leaks badly.)
         Coquirie: (Squints as she throws daggar, missing the barrel but managing to hit
         a tent
         post.)
         Pathrell: (Tosses daggar with ease and hits directly in the center of the barrel
         Smirks at
         SB)
         Jehan: (Checks to make sure he’s holding the right side of the daggar then
         chucks it and
         almost knocks the barrel over. Grins sheepishly at SB)
         Fantine: (Throws weapon hard and barries it hilt deep in the barrel)
         Imerald: (Tosses daggar behind her and doesn’t even bother to make sure it
         hit. It did)
         Shiriluna: (Watches Jehan with a grin, then expertely throws daggar at barrel)
         Jadzia: (Brings out her own daggars and takes aim)
         Mirage: (Gingerly lobs daggar at barrel and it doesn’t make it halfway)
         Jera: (Is just standing and watching others)
         SB: (Exasperatedly watching Mirage jump away from a tiny spider) Somehow
         I’ll make a
         thief out of you! (Glances at Jera)
         Jera: (Gives SB a look and tosses knife backhandedly into barrel.)

         Coquirie: How ‘bout a game of catch? (Tries with knife again, this time
         narrowly missing
         Clopin who is watching the precedings with amusement)
         Tatyana: Or death? (Throws daggar and knocks someone else’s off)
         SB: Say good-bye to awful throws (To all participants)
         Jehan: Who me? (Throwing the daggar again, this time nearly taking out Djali)
         SB: (Giving up for now on the daggars and handing out rope with hooks on
         the end)
         Guys, this is the tool you’ll
         Use when things get grim (Tosses rope up to high wall and pulls to make sure
         it’s
         attached right, then begin’s to climb quickly)
         Jehan: (Tosses rope up with ease and climbs, quickly passing SB)
         Shiriluna: (Looking at Jehan) This guy’s got ‘em!
         Mirage: (Tosses rope and begin’s to climb without too much trouble. Stop’s
         half way up)
         I gotta catch my breath!
         SB: (Watching Jera at the bottom making no effort to climb) Come along
         trainee!
         Coquirie: (Halfway up the wall) After me!
         Imerald: (Slipping down the wall after climbing a quarter way up)
         Tereina: (Just starting to climb) I really wish that I could fly!
         Fantine: I hope things never get this grim!

         SB: Be a thief! (At top of the wall and suddenly slides down rope to bottom
         and motions
         for everyone to follow. Bring’s them to a stuffed dummy looking an awful lot
         like a
         certain man in black *g* with lots of bells attached.)
         Tereina: We must learn to lift (steal) without a shiver! (Reaches for the
         dummy’s pockets
         and pulls out a couple of coins but seet’s two bells ringing)
         SB: Be a thief!
         Carmenita: And of course hide by the light of the moon. (Ducks into dark area
         of CoM
         and tries to stay still. Suddenly looks over shoulder and SB winks at her from
         behind.)
         SB: Be thief!
         Jehan: Pick a lock with a length of fine wire! (Holds up undone lock and a
         piece of wire
         with a grin)
         Jadzia: (Looks at lock and at wire and curiously wonders what they have to
         do with one
         another)
         SB: (Looks at group) How can this be learned in an afternoon?

         SB: (Divides group into two groups. One is bad guys one is good guys)
         Guards are racing
         towards us
         Just try to stay alive
         Pathrell: (Racing towards Fantine as a guard) Just what the doctor ordered!
         Fantine: (Doesn’t stop running but knocks Pathrell down. Pathrell trips Fantine
         and their
         both lying on the ground)
         SB: Let’s just hope guards don’t arrive! (Throws up hands)
         Mirage: I don’t know if I can take anymore!
         Jera: (Pointing to Lilith’s wrist) What happened to the bracelet you wore?
         Jehan: (Holds up bracelet with a grin)
         SB: That’s more like it!
         Somehow I’ll make a theif out of you!

         SB: Be a thief!
         Lilith: (Threatening Jehan) Your feet better be as swift as a river!
         SB: Be a thief!
         Coquirie: (Picking up stray dagger and tossing it over her shoulder so it
         doesnt’ get
         tripped on. Their is shouts from Jera and Mirage and when Coquirie turns she
         sees that
         the daggar hit the barrel)
         SB: What can you learn in an afternoon?
         All: Be a thief!
         Tereina and Jera: We can’t get any higher! (Sitting on top of wall they just
         climbed)
         SB: (Turns around and suddenly the area is empty.)
         All: (From a dark area of the CoM) Hiding in the dark light of the moon!
         SB: Be a thief! (Smiling broadly as gypsies reappear silently)
         All: Emptying pockets without a shiver! (Crowd around dummy
         and show thier hands to SB which are full of coins and jewels. No  bells are rung!)            
         SB: Be a thief!
         All: What can we learn in one afternoon? (In a lineup towards wall. Suddenly
         whirl
         around and let loose with a shower of daggers which all hit their mark; the
         barrel which
         explodes!)
         SB: To be a thief!
         All: (Break into two groups and attack eachother) There is NO ceasefire!
         (End up in one large pile)
         All: A thief in the pale light of the moon!!! (Everyone suddenly dissapears
         including SB.
         Clopin blinks, looks around, then breaks into a grin and walks off whistling)