Lesson 1: Tools

"You will need a solid, flat object, such as a strong, yet thin, knife. It should NOT be a valuable one, obviously, as it will be roughly used. The last half inch of the tip will be bent at a forty five degree angle, to allow the 'pick' to enter easily. The best pick I have found is a small needle, about one and a half inches long, and bent in the same manner as the knife." He held up his personal tools as an example, then motioned towards the table in the back of the room. "Obviously, I am not going to ask you to destroy your own property, so I have supplied you with some knives and needles. There are also some hammers back there for you to bend them. Making your own tools gives you a feel for how they work, and you develop a comfort with them. When you hammer the edges, do it slowly, with small, firm taps. If you try to rush it, you will weaken the metal and shorten the life of your tool. You may also want to take this time to dull the edges of both tools, for safety sake." He smirked. "That is, if you value your fingers."

Valdian waved them to the back table and watched to see their progress.

Responses:
Misty: Shalmistra eyed the tools sitting on the table, dark eyes contemplating the task at hand. She was half tempted to use the Power to make the necessary changes to the knife and needle. Unfortunately, Valdian had made it quite clear that that wasn't a viable option.

Taking the hammer, she set about it quietly, ftapping the edges into place, ensuring that all edges were straight and not too sharp. In a way, it was little different from repairing some of the tools she used in the Infirmary, or fixing a knife so she could heat some of the more potent herbs over the fire on its blade.

When she was finished, she lay her tools on the table and waited for Valdian to come inspect them. She was beginning to have some suspicions as to why the Ji always had pocket money ready to hand.

Valdian: Valdian leaned on his desk and hid a grin. What he had said was true...they needed to know how to make things by hand. But it was truly funny to see the look of frustration on the Aes Sedai's faces when they had to sweat their way through simple tasks. He saw Misty looking over toward him and he wandered over to check out her handiwork. "Make the blade duller." He said, and turned around before a smile cracked his face. The blade was fine.

Lesson 2: Know Thy Enemy

Valdian walked up and down the aisles, tossing a lock on each desk. "This," he said as he tossed another lock and scared an unsuspecting student, "is a standard lock. You will find it on most doors, chests, you name it. From the simplest peasant to the richest noble, this is the lock of choice. Noble's locks are better quality and therefore harder to pick, but not impossible. For practical purposes, we will be working with simple locks for now."

He held up his own lock, showing it to the class. "When you are on the streets, hungry, hunted, lost, this is your only enemy. This little lock is the only thing that stands between you and living comfortably. Like all enemies, you must have intimate knowledge of it, and know the weaknesses you can exploit."

"Inside of a lock are plates and pins. The plates are the meat of the lock. There are two plates, one on top of the other, and they are held in place by the pins, or the round parts that fit inside of the plates. The pins stick out a little below the bottom plate and there is a gap above them. When a key is entered that is the correct shape, the grooves of the key, when turned, will push the pin up into the gap, allowing the plates to slide past each other and thus opening the lock." He looked out at a sea of blank faces.

He blinked, scratched his head, and took some chalk in his hand. "Here...I'll draw you a diagram."

http://gregmiller.net/locks/mitguide/chapter3.html

"Any questions?" Responses
Catieri: Catieri stared at the lock on her desk. She stared at her dulled knife that was masquerading as a lockpicking tool. She stared at the diagram in the front of the room.

"This," she asked dubiously, holding up the knife. "Is supposed to open this?" She held the lock up in her other hand. "By moving those pins." And she waved the knife toward the diagram. She shook her head, not really expecting an answer, and went back to studying the diagram

Valdian: Abron raised his hand and spoke in a loud voice. "If your forces are on the defense, dosent that give them a better chance in battle?" Atreus shook his head, saying, "Yes and no. If your objective is to hold the flaming area, then you have the advantage of not having to destroy the enemy. On the other hand, then you can't choose where and when to bloody fight. You must be prepared for flaming battle whenever they want it, and they may disengage at will. In a defensive battle, retreating is not much of a bloody option."

Lesson 3: Beyond the Basics

Valdian sat on the edge of his desk. "Now that you know the HOWS of lockpicking, now we will examine the SPECIFICS. These lessons will not have a final exam, but they are required nonetheless. It occured to me that I did not tell you WHY you would need to pick locks. You see, when I was on the streets, I survived initially by sleeping on the ground, underfoot, cold, hungry. When I learned lockpicking, a whole new world opened up to me. I was able to secure inn rooms, steal enough money for food, et cetera.

"The work of Aes Sedai and Gaidin will lead you far from the tower and, at times, will find you without anything. With this skill you will be able to survive a little more comfortably. This skill is in no way to be used frivolously and even when required it is to be used with caution."

He stood up and approached the group. "Now, what I need from you, before I can teach you a few more lessons, is your solemn word that you will use this skill as an emergency solution."

Lesson 4: How to Not Get Caught

"When you are on the street, picking locks will seem a tad conspicuous. Most cities have jail cells that are generally unpleasant, and you will not want to be there. So, you will need to know 3 things. How to manipulate physical elements, how to fabricate, and how to escape.

"Firstly, you must be constantly aware of your surroundings. Weather, crowd conditions, building layouts...all of these things can determine the success you will have. A good picker is observant, and alert to changes. Ideal conditions for a picker: foggy night during a riot on a door surrounded by walls. That is never going to happen. However, you can hope for one or more conditions to work in your favor and you must be sure to use them to your advantage. You must also be aware of conditions working against you, such as sunlight, open areas, nosy people, et cetera. Know what makes you weak and do not fall victim to it.

"Second, there are times when you may get caught despite your caution. The key to lying your way out of a situation is to plan a lie ahead of time, but be versitile with it. You must convince yourself that the lie is a fact; convince yourself and you will convince others.

"If, for some reason, the lie does not work, you must know how to escape. This also involves knowledge of your surroundings. The key to escape is to get to a crowd. If you can run to a crowd, you can walk amongst them undetected. If nessaccary, you must realize when it is time to leave the city altogether. I visited many a city that way."

Final Exam

Valdian leaned on his desk and crossed his arms. "Find an Aes Sedai who is willing to allow you access to their rooms and bring them back here. They will wait for me here while you go to their rooms, pick the locks, and bring back one item to prove that you were there. This item shall not be overly personal or classified. You will have only one hour to get to the rooms, pick the lock and return with the item. The Aes Sedai must then identify the item to determine that it did, indeed, come from their rooms. This test requires much maturity and tact, so be on your best behavior. Sign up tomorrow with the your name and the name of the Aes Sedai of your choice and let me know when you want to take the test." Responses:

Jesriad: Jesriad felt a little awkward around Kirenna. It was still somewhat gnawing at him- what had happened between them and then unhappened as simply as it began- but he would at least remain a friend if nothing more as best as he could. He smiled & waved to Valdian as the students left their Aes Sedai / Asha'man in the room and left when he started the clock. Jesriad dead ran down the hall, outside, and straight to Kirenna's room where her lock awaited. He had stayed up last night practicing, and had gotten his average time down to about 5-10 minutes, but his hands were sweating and it was a bit chilly. Focus... focus... He took a few deep breaths and then began.

His needle and bent blade went into the lock. The first pin was rather close to the bottom, but it would do. Jesriad used the needle to somewhat flick the first pin upwards and then press against it again, "flicking" it up again, and again, until on the 5th one he felt his knife give. He looked up at the sun and knew it could barely have been but a few minutes. Smiling, he pressed the knife through to the second pin as the 1st came back down to rest on it. He repeated his procedure with the second pin, and right as the pin came up, his hand slipped on the blade. He grasped the blade handle with the same hand as his needle, holding it just barely under the 1st pin as the second slid back into place. He almost swore but caught himself and went back to work. He pressed his blade up to the pin, did his "flicking" and on the 4th flick the pin came up. His blade shot inwards and he pulled the lock open with a highly audible woop of delight as he set down his tools and the lock. He ran in the room, looking around for an item to bring back as proof, and smiled as he saw a piece of wood he knew Kirenna had made (or one like it) as she taught her OP Art class. He picked it up and raced out the door, collecting his tools and refastening the lock onto the door. He had thought of taking the lock too, but decided against it in case some mischeivous novices came by. He ran back to the classroom, and, to his delight, was the first one back. "Valdian, Kirenna, I'm back!" He held up her sign with delight. The timer had barely elapsed 10 minutes time.