:| Just Another One |: {Artemis}

He was tall. That fact did not leave her mind as she continued to stare at him, wondering what she was supposed to do with him. Patrolling was a boring role, but these fresh recruits always found a way to mess things up which was why they were assigned to senior Peacekeepers in the first place. If Ana had a choice, she would have told the head Peacekeepers that she would take no part in training, but it was part of the job description and she was not one to skip out on a job.

Still, the boy in front of her was daunting—though nothing compared to her big boned family—and she would have to think of ways to make him somewhat useful. But first, she was going to have to correct him. Already. “Do not call me ma’am. I am no ma’am. I’m just Ana to you.” He continued to talk and that was when Ana realized she was going to have a problem. The accent was not something she was familiar with, but she did recognize it as a District 10 product. She had heard Mace Emberstatt talking enough to recognize that way of speaking and know that she would have to spend the next few weeks interpreting his words.

“Mostly patrol work now,” she grunted out, unhappy with her current post. She had her share of exciting moments and dealing with crazy people, but it didn’t give her the same satisfaction of wrestling information out of people in the interrogation room. If she was lucky, her superiors allowed her to deal with some of the nutcases they brought into the building. “But I specialize in interrogation and tracking.”

That did not bring up a fond memory either—she had so few of them already—but she did appreciate the new skill she had learned while training under “Andy”. It made her a little more lethal and useful when it came to her patrol work. “However, you will be learning the ropes of District 4. Soon, you’ll know the place like the back of your hand, but more importantly, where you can find most of the lawbreakers.” She turned around and started leading him toward the front door. “You lag behind, I leave you behind.”

The first place she took him was to the beach but it wasn’t for the sake of relaxation. “Alright, here’s the beach. The rules on display are over there—,“ she pointed to a worn out sign that needed fixing. “—but that’s not what I care about. What I want to know is what you know about this beach already.” She turned her body so she was directly facing him. “Start talking, boy.”

She hadn’t expected much—the new recruits were always quick to disappoint—but she had at least expected some effort. This kid…doesn’t even make an attempt. Not to mention that he continued to call her ma’am when she had instructed him very clearly to not do that. It took all her mental willpower to not grind her teeth as she swallowed her words and reminded herself that patience was a good virtue. It didn’t help that he wasn’t even rude about it; there was no sense of fortitude in this boy, no spine holding up his back. She would have to teach him how to form a backbone, to actually stand up for himself. Maybe then Ana would be able to tolerate the boy.

Narrowing her eyes, she circled around him, taking careful steps. He had the potential to be a formidable Peacekeeper if only he would lose that schoolboy look of his. She slapped his back hard, realizing she had to reach a little higher than she was accustomed to. “Boy, you’re not going to get anywhere with this career if you don’t grow some bones back there.” Ana completed her circle until she was standing in front of him. She pointed to her side, toward the cave that she had climbed through many times as a child.

“That cave. Describe that cave to me.” If he asked her one more time to clarify, she was probably going to have to grab a stepladder and give him a smack directly to his head. “Then I want you to describe that pier across the pathway over there.” The description exercises were not without their purpose: if he was going to know District 4, then he was going to do it her way. She had spent her childhood in the District and had learned every nook and cranny of the place. It was time for him to do the same.

“Listen, kid. I want you to succeed here and in your job. You’re gonna have to move up ranks, but you won’t be doing that if you don’t learn how to think for yourself. You’re gonna make tough decisions on the job, even if it doesn’t seem like it at first glance. Now describe that cave, then describe that pier. I need to figure out how perceptive you are.”

Ana nodded her head slowly as she heard his description. It was nothing much, but it was better than when he turned to her and asked her to clarify. She hadn’t expected much to begin with, just a simple, superficial description of the place. It was a start, though, and she wouldn’t have to beat it into his head to say more. The description of the pier surpassed her expectations. He was more perceptive of the surroundings there, as if he was a young child from District 4.

Then he looked back at her with that questioning look on his face again. Ana supposed it would do no good to keep leaving him in the dark and decided to begin her first lesson. She gestured at the cave with a head nod, directing his attention toward the mouth of the cave. “You have a good description of the cave—if you were trying to paint a picture of it. But as a Peacekeeper, you have to look for the hidden features. For example, that pile of rocks there—" she pointed her finger to the pile of rocks three feet from the mouth of the cave, “—has the potential to be a hiding place for a small item or act as a signal. It is up to you to decide if there is anything against the law there, and if you should pursue it.” She then pointed toward the ceiling he had mentioned. “If you notice that ceiling, there are deep notches, also used to hide items. but more importantly, people. You would be surprised what some of these crazy people will do to protect items or people they love.”

Ana then started walking toward the pier and watched as the people in her path scattered, before stopping by one of the overturned boats. “You’ll find that no one wants to talk to you here, so you have to learn about the people a different way. You have to be able to stand in the distance and read these people to determine if their intentions are harmless or not.” Her eyes followed the owner the boy had pointed out. “That owner. Why does he go down by the shore? He should have employees who can do that for him, so why does he linger by the pier?”

“Understand that I am asking you to do more than just walk around when you patrol the district. You want to be a good Peacekeeper? Keep your head down and your eyes open.”