The next day went by just as quickly, and before she knew it, Frank and Valeria were opening the door for her new mentor. He was young and had tan skin, a neatly shaved beard, and long curly hair pulled back in a ponytail. Frank welcomed him with a hug.

"Good to see you Hami. How's the family holding up?"

"As best we can."

"You look exhausted, buddy. Is Tara still keeping you both up at night?"

Hami yawned and massaged the stubble around his chin. "Unfortunately. We're still trying to get her to sleep at night, but she just sleeps when she wants to."

Frank looked over at Valeria. "Hami and his wife have a six month old at home. I told him he could postpone training you for a while, but he insisted."

"No way, brother," Hami said, shaking his head. "I wouldn't miss out on the chance to train one of the most gifted protégés our faction has seen in a long time."

"Thanks," Valeria said, trying to choose her words carefully. "I'm sorry I didn't choose your guild. I just had to make a choice and -"

"- Oh don't worry," Hami interrupted, holding up his hands. "Once we saw what sneaky Frank was up to, we knew you'd end up here."

"Hey," Frank said with a laugh, "We're just doing our part."

"Uh huh," Hami said, his tone sarcastic. "Well, you're in good hands here, Valeria. Frank and Jada are the cleverest mentors in our faction. Long ago, I was in your shoes as a protégé and new Bounty Hunter, and Frank here," he said, gripping both of his shoulders, "taught me most of his tricks as a thief."

Frank wagged a finger. "I taught you some things, not everything. So, what did you have in mind for today?"

Hami smiled as he removed his backpack. "Well, I figured we'd start off with something fun." He removed an odd set of ropes with balls attached to the ends. "I thought Valeria and I could toss some Bolas around in your backyard for a little bit. Afterwards, we can come back in and you can help me demonstrate pressure points."

"Nice," Frank said, "Have fun outside you two. Holler if you need anything."

Valeria followed the bounty hunter outside to their secluded backyard, where she could see the sun beginning to set along the horizon.

Hami removed one of the odd ropes with the balls at each end, and held it up. "So this is a Bola. It's basically a rope with a weight on each end. While it can technically be used as a weapon," he said while swinging the rope around like a nun-chuck, "That's not its primary purpose."

He turned, swung the bola like a lasso, and released it toward a lamppost. The device wrapped around the bottom as he said, "the Bola is designed to bring your prey to the ground. Now you try."

Valeria looked at the lamppost with disbelief. "You want me to toss this thing? I'm pretty sure I'll end up hurting you or myself."

Hami removed another bola from his bag and threw it slower this time. "It's all in the wrists. Go on, give it a try."

Valeria tried swinging her bola with a similar motion, but when she released it – the device somehow went backwards.

"Well," Hami said with a laugh. "At least you didn't hurt anyone. Go on, keep practicing."

Valeria's prediction ended up proving correct; she hit herself multiple times while trying to toss the bola. Her arms still burned from yesterday's rappel lessons with Penny, and certainly didn't make the task any easier. She lost count of her attempts as Hami addressed her again.

"Don't worry," he said, his tone reassuring. "You'll get it eventually."

"I feel like I'm failing at everything," Valeria blurted out, her mental and physical fatigue overwhelming her. It was true, things weren't going well this first week of training. She barely picked up the creeping skills Xun had taught, and still got the different sailor knots mixed up during Penny's lesson.

"It's only your first week of training," he said, his lips pulling back into a smile. "Not gonna lie - I lost track of how many times I cried during my first week. So stop worrying. Here, why don't you tell me more about yourself. Where are you from again?"

"I'm from El Salvador, but I came here when I was six years old. How about you, where are you from?"

"Brooklyn."

Valeria stopped swinging her bola and looked at him with a confused look.

"Well, it's true...I'm from Brooklyn. But that's not the question you were really asking. My parents came here from Afghanistan. They came to escape violence."

Valeria released her bola, which didn't even come close to the lamppost. "I have witnessed violence here in the U.S," she said casually.

Hami sighed again as he threw another one at the lamppost. "I'm both sorry, and not surprised. This country has a lot of issues, but I still have faith in it. My neighborhood is pretty diverse, so I don't run into too many problems. Most people see me nowadays and say I look like Ramy Youssef."

"Sorry," Valeria said, her eyebrow raised. "I don't watch much TV. Who's that?"

Hami laughed and said, "He's a famous comic from Queens. Can't say I'm surprised about old Frank and Jada restricting TV time. Let me guess - are those two making you watch old school heist movies every night?"

"Kind of. We watched Out of Sight last night."

"That's not an old movie," he replied, a smirk across his face. "That's a relatively new and awesome movie. Well trust me. They'll make you watch Rififi, The Killing, and the Asphalt Jungle eventually."

"How old are those movies?"

"Like ancient!" Hami said with a laugh. "1950's ancient. Black and white, and boring as –"

"–Hami," Frank interrupted with mock disappointment as he suddenly appeared behind them. "Your generation is so disappointing. You can't last ten minutes through a movie if things aren't blowing up."

"Yeah-yeah," Hami groaned. "I'm sorry Mr. Sinatra. How come you haven't shown her Rififi yet?"

Frank shrugged. "I was going to show that last night, but my wife seems insistent on the movie selections lately. I, of course, haven't complained, as I hope you remember the most important lesson I taught you?"

Hami laughed as he placed an arm around Frank's shoulders. "Of course. How could I forget?"

Valeria frowned at them. "Care to teach this lesson to your protégé?"

"It's not really applicable yet –" Frank began, but was cut off by Hami, who cheerfully said, "Happy wife, happy life!"

"Ha-ha," she replied, making sure to lay the sarcasm on thick. "So can we get back to training?"

They went back inside and Hami began demonstrating the body's pressure points. These techniques allowed someone to incapacitate an opponent without killing them. It took a little while to understand some of the different techniques, but Hami reassured her. "Pressure points usually get their own lesson, so we'll work on them again next week. Valeria," he said while extending his hand, "It's been my honor."

As they shook, Frank clapped him on the back. "Don't be a stranger. Jada and I still haven't had a chance to see the baby yet."

Hami turned and hugged him. "Don't worry, chief. I'll speak with my lady-boss and make sure we come over sometime soon. Who's training the girl tomorrow?" he asked as Frank escorted him to the door.

"Dontrell."

Hami whistled as he stepped outside and offered her a concerned look. "Good luck with that one, Valeria. I'll pray for you."

"Get out of here kid," Frank said, a grin across his face as he closed the door. He turned to Valeria and said, "You should go to bed, kiddo. Tomorrow could be a rough day."

"Are you guys kidding about Dontrell or being serious?"

"Well," Frank said, massaging his temples, "if you think Jada can be exhausting with her methods, her brother is ten times worse."

"I thought you said I'd train with his second in command...Brigitte?"

Frank shook his head. "Dontrell wanted to take her place for your first Assassin training session. He can be intimidating, but don't worry. Jada and I will be there tomorrow. Go to bed, kiddo."

Valeria went upstairs and got ready for bed. As she lay there, slowly falling asleep, she couldn't help but wonder about the Assassin leader, the lesson he had in store for tomorrow, and whether or not she would be ready for it.

Only one way to find out, she thought before drifting off to sleep.

#

Just like the previous school days, Thursday went by incredibly quickly. Valeria had declined Sai and James' invitation to continue their D&D campaign. She reiterated that she was grounded, and would be stuck at home tonight. While that was true, that wasn't the only reason.

Sorry guys, she thought to herself. I can't play because I'm training with the most feared Assassin in the world tonight. No big deal.

James had looked hurt during the lunch break. "It seems like you're really busy all the time now. When is a good time for you?"

Valeria removed her personal calendar from her pocket and studied it. After a few moments, she shrugged her shoulders. "Tomorrow evening I guess. But I'm sure you guys will have more exciting plans for a Friday night."

James, Roberta, Jon, and Sai exchanged nervous looks. "Not really," Sai said. "While you're grounded, we could visit your house tomorrow?"

"Yeah," she said. "I'd like that. I'll check with my host parents and let you know. You're sure you all don't mind?"

They all agreed.

"By the way," James added, "Are you still playing a Rogue, or did you want to change to a different class?"

Valeria paused. "I'll play a Rogue. I think it comes naturally to me," she said with a grin.

After lunch, they went their separate ways. She was looking forward to spending an evening with them; she needed a break from her exhaustive Rogue training. The evening seemed perfect except for one thing. She needed to invite Erin.

She found her in their afternoon Biology class. "Hey, Erin," she said as she took the adjacent seat. "I'm still grounded, but Sai and his friends are coming over to my house tomorrow night. If you don't have any Friday night plans, I'd really like you to come too."

"I'd really like to go," Erin said with a sigh. "But I can't. With the threat against my family, my Dad said I can't go anywhere for the next few weeks. There's that, but that's not the only thing..." she trailed off before finally looking up. When their eyes met, she took a deep breath, and said, "I think someone has been stalking me."

Valeria hadn't anticipated this response. While she and Erin had grown closer after their argument, mistrust continued to linger. Sometimes she wondered if Erin really wanted to be her friend or not. She had expected a decline, but not for this reason.

"My host-dad is a police officer," Valeria said, trying to reassure her. "He'll be there and make sure we're all safe. If you told your Dad that, he might let you come over. It's not like we're going out clubbing or anything."

Erin considered this a moment. "What's your host-dad's name? I can try asking."

"Detective Frank Malone."

"Alright," Erin replied, a smile crossing her lips. "I'll ask and let you know tomorrow. No matter what happens, I want you to know that I really like hanging out with you, and you're welcome over my house any time."

Valeria couldn't resist the urge to smile back. She felt overwhelmed by a familiar feeling - one that pushed back against the narrative in the back of her mind. She thought no one cared, but that was proving untrue. While Frank and Jada brought newfound meaning to her life, and being with Sai elicited emotions she had never felt before, her relationship with Erin was another entity, and she would savor every moment of it.

"Ms. Tyrell!" the biology teacher yelled from the front. "If you and Ms. Ramirez are finished chatting in the back, maybe you can try and pay attention in my class!"

Valeria and Erin giggled as they tried to quiet down.

"You got me in trouble," Erin whispered with a subtle laugh.

"Better get used to it," Valeria whispered back. "It won't be the last time."

Valeria barely paid attention to the rest of her classes, and before she knew it, she stood outside their townhouse. "Here goes nothing."

She went inside and raised an eyebrow upon noticing the living room. All the furniture had been pushed to the side walls, and a blue padded mat was spread across the floor. She noticed two men dressed in karate gear; one in green, the other in red. Both men breathed heavily as they sparred back and forth, and they eventually stopped upon noticing her standing there.

"Hey, kiddo," Frank said, adjusting his green uniform.

"We meet again, Valeria Torres," Dontrell said as he wiped the sweat from his brow. "Don't worry, I'm not here to murder you and the old man here."

Frank laughed. "Old? Me? Whatever. You could beat me, but Jada would come kick your ass."

"True," Dontrell said with a smirk. "She's the only person who scares me. I dunno how you survive with her during that time of the month – you know what I'm sayin?"

Valeria was taken aback by their interchange, as the two seemed more like arguing brothers than fierce rivals. Valeria bowed her head, and said, "I'm sorry if my choice offended you."

Dontrell sighed as he looked her way. "Forget about it, girl. You're not even gonna introduce me properly old man?"

Frank frowned, and said, "I'm not that much older than you. Valeria, you might remember Dontrell, the leader of the Assassin guild."

"Of course," Valeria said. "It's an honor to meet you again," she said, walking up to the Assassin leader and offering her hand, but Dontrell shook his head.

"We do not shake hands on a JuJutsu mat. We bow."

He bowed his head while maintaining eye contact. She repeated the gesture, turned, and repeated it to Frank.

"Here's your Gi," Jada said, entering the room. Valeria noticed she was wearing the same green karate uniform as Frank. "Get changed upstairs, and meet us back down here."

"Do I really need to wear this karate outfit?" she asked, inspecting it.

"It's called a Gi," Jada corrected, her voice reflecting irritation. "And did it sound like I made a suggestion?"

Valeria read her eyes and picked up the hint. No sass with me today girl. She ran upstairs, changed into the green Karate Gi, pulled her hair into a ponytail with a hair tie, and went back downstairs.

To her surprise, she found Jada and her brother sparring, with Jada utilizing different grappling techniques and throws successfully against her brother. It was amazing to watch; a woman of her size taking down a man so much bigger than her. Jada pinned her brother to the ground and subdued him with a choke hold. He resisted a few moments before tapping out.

Breathing heavily, Dontrell smiled at Jada. "Damn, Sis, you haven't lost a step at all, unlike your man there."

Jada grinned as she bowed. "I still train with Master Jigoro twice a year."

Dontrell looked over at Frank with surprise, while he simply shrugged. "It's true," Frank said. "She flies to Japan every six months or so."

Valeria raised an eyebrow. "You fly to Japan that often? Just to meet some karate teacher?"

"Master Jigoro," Jada protested, "Is not just any teacher. His grandfather – Kano Jigoro – founded modern Judo – the most common form of jujutsu. He still says I'm his favorite student."

"I believe it," Dontrell said as he wiped his brow. "He must have taught you everything."

"I'll reveal my secret," Jada said with a laugh. "I introduced him to Old Bay seasoning. The old man can't get enough of it, and I bring him a case every six months."

"How did you meet him?" Valeria asked.

"He was a master within the Ninja guild," Frank replied. "He taught a lot of us old timers self-defense back in the day. He passed on most of his training to Xun, Jada, and Brigitte, who took over the responsibility of training protégés in North America."

"But you're special," Dontrell said with a sly grin. "You get to train with two World Masters and the Sovereign today. Lucky you."

"Thanks," Valeria replied. "Where do we start?"

"Well," Dontrell said as he looked over at his sister. "My sister insisted on Jujutsu and Judo techniques today. Care to explain why sis?"

"Sure," Jada replied. "Unlike Karate, Kung Fu, or most other martial arts, which focus a lot on exchanging blows or fancy routines, Jujutsu and Judo focus on grappling and takedowns. As smaller framed women, these techniques are perfect for us to overpower larger and stronger adversaries by using their weight against them." She turned toward her brother and bowed.

Valeria watched as Dontrell charged his sister, who simply caught him with a hold and brought him to the ground with blinding speed. It only took a moment for Jada to use the momentum to envelop her brother in a choke hold and force him to tap out again.

"Wow!" Valeria exclaimed. "That was awesome."

"Be quiet!" Jada snapped as she stood up, "just watch and learn." She bowed to Dontrell again, who charged at her with a much slower pace. Jada recreated the move, explaining each step in slow motion. "Now try it on Frank."

She turned and bowed to him. Frank approached her in slow motion, and Valeria tried her best to recreate the move. Jada's hands adjusted her form during each step. When finished, Jada ordered her to do it again. She tried five times, but still wasn't able to execute the maneuver at full speed.

"Keep practicing," Jada said. "You'll get the hang of it. That move is a variant of Harai-Goshi. Let's try a different one?"

"Okay," she said, trying to mask the disappointment in her voice. It was true - she was disappointed that she was unable to pick up the move as quickly as she hoped. But the truth was more complex than that. She had always felt powerless; as a child in El Salvador and as a teenager in the United States. But now she had the opportunity to flip the scales.

She should be succeeding. She should feel powerful. There were moments where the scales seemed to be tipping her way, like the Hall of Shadows or her takedown of Wormer a few days ago. But as she failed at training and continued to screw up these jujutsu moves, she felt like things were slipping out of her control. She might never succeed in this new world; maybe she wasn't the girl they were looking for. She stood there, lost in a daze, until someone placed hands on her cheek and came within inches of her face.

"Where are you right now?" Jada asked, gripping her face.

"I'm sorry I screwed up the moves -"

"Never apologize," Jada said, her eyes ablaze as they burrowed into her own. "You're afraid. It's written all over your face."

"I'm sorry -"

"Never apologize!" Jada snapped, maintaining her hold. "You should never apologize for being afraid. Fear is a normal part of life. But you can control it, or you can let it control you. So repeat after me: I'm afraid."

Valeria paused, unsure if this was a trick. In the end, she stuck with the truth. "I'm afraid. I'm afraid of..." There were so many things she could say. She was afraid of failure, and disappointing Frank and Jada. She was afraid of being a victim again. She was afraid of being abused and abandoned again. But she never got the chance.

"I already know what you're afraid of," Jada interjected. "You are afraid. But courage is not the absence of fear, it's the willingness to persist in spite of it." She released Valeria and took a step back. "So repeat after me. I'm afraid, but that will not stop me."

Valeria nodded. "I'm afraid, but that will not stop me."

"Again."

Jada made her repeat this phrase seven times. With each repetition, she thought of one of her fears, acknowledged each one, and reiterated that the fear wouldn't stop her. The mantra was similar to the one Jada presented at the Statue of Liberty; the idea that one must focus on moving forward.

She closed her eyes and took a slow deep breath. No matter how many times I fail, I will keep moving forward.

When she opened her eyes this time, she was ready for the next lesson.