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The Soldier and the Thief

This is a tale of two enemies. One was a soldier. Al was a steadfast warrior, dedicated to the protection of the people and the destruction of their enemies. The other was a thief. The thief was interested only in obtaining things for aleself. Al was skilled at stealth and deception.

These two encountered each other often. The soldier would seek out the thief when someone reported something missing. Al would search the thief, but rarely discovered anything to prove that the thief was involved. The soldier often found things missing from alir home and suspected the thief had taken them.

Then one day the soldier came home to discover the thief in his home, holding items belonging to the soldier.

"Now I have you, thief! I have proof that you have stolen from me. I shall cut off your hands!"

"Wait, let's talk about this. I only take these things because I need them. You can't punish me for trying to feed my family!" The thief looked sad for the fate of alir family if al would not return with the treasures al had taken.

"Your family does not need my parent's sword, the weapon that was given to me in alir memory," the soldier drew his weapon and advanced on the thief.

The thief screamed, "Help! Help! This soldier is trying to murder me!" As al shouted, al dropped the items he was holding. The ancient sword fell to the ground.

The soldier struck at the thief, but the thief dodged with great agility. Five more times the soldier tried to slash the thief, while the thief continued to yell for help. Before the seventh swing of the soldier's balde, the door to the soldier's house slammed open and three nobles entered.

"What is going on here?", the eldest noble insisted.

The soldier held his blade between the thief and the door as al explained, "I found this thief in my house, stealing my belongings."

The thief immediately retorted, "Belongings? I have none of your belongings."

"You threw them on the floor over there," the soldier pointed to the scattered items near his bed.

"That is what you say. I say that I did no such things. I only came into your home because I smelled smoke. I was worried that you might be in danger."

"Lies!"

"Stop this, now." The noble started slightly when the soldier turned to him, steel still bared and anger flashing in his eyes. "We have heard both of you, and we cannot know the truth. You," pointing at the soldier, "have been claiming that this other has been stealing from many, but have never proven it. You," pointing at the thief, "have been claiming that this soldier has been threatening you and forcing you to pay ali to not kill you. We cannot believe either of you."

"What?", both the soldier and the thief exclaimed.

"Therefore, we insist that both of you stop the accusations and threats. Ignore each other from this moment forward. Now you, get out of this soldier's home." They followed the thief out as the soldier was left gaping.

A few days later the soldier found the thief outside of the city, bathing in the water where the forge water is vented. The water was steaming, so the thief did not see the soldier approach. The soldier grasped the thief's arm and pulled al from the water. Al put his ancestor's blade to the thief's throat and spoke.

"You have cheated me and many others. I won't allow it anymore. If you promise me right now that you will never steal again, I will not kill you here. You know that if you break your promise that I will find you and kill you. If you want to live, you must cease being a thief."

The thief was frightened. Al knew that the soldier would kill him, and the thief decided to live. "I will never steal again."

The soldier checked with the thief every few days for years to ensure that al had not stolen anything. The thief would offer the soldier tea and cake during these visits. The thief was happier now without the stress and dangers of thievery. Al was grateful to the soldier for turning al onto a new path. The soldier found the ex-thief an interesting person, with many interesting stories to tell.

The realization of their friendship made both of them happy, and their friendship grew stronger for the knowledge of it.