*Cough.*
Choking on her tea, Ava couldn't help but turn her face away in embarrassment at the Madam's question.
To the side, Haley leaned over and passed a handkerchief over to Ava while lightly patting her on the back, "Drink slower, don't joke." On the side, the Madam also couldn't help but hold a trace of concern in her eyes. If she hadn't treated Ava as one of her girls before this incident, now that she had put herself in harm's way to save Haley, especially when she could have passed by with no one being the wiser, the Madam had truly treated Ava as one of her own.
Clearing her throat, Ava turned to face the Madam again and said with a slightly red face, "Ah, I seemed to have walked out early…."
Catching Ava's meaning, the Madam let out a meaningful smile and shook her head lightly, "It's alright. I should have known Ruffio wasn't up to any good. He's an excellent merchant, but I suppose that makes him a horrid teacher. If you don't want to learn from him anymore, don't bother. Just visit him one more time tomorrow morning to give him anything you borrowed and let him know your intentions. I'll deal with the rest."
Frowning slightly, Ava couldn't help but ask in concern, "Won't it affect Foxes Respite?"
Shaking her head, the Madam couldn't help but let out a small laugh. It was rare to see Ava confused, "Ruffio is the one who owes me favors. Not the other way around. And even if that wasn't the case, I'm more than confident in dealing with a little merchant like him."
Nodding in realization, Ava acquiesced. It was her oversight, she didn't know enough about the Madam's relationships here, nor the influence the Foxes Respite held in this part of town, and she couldn't help but have a subconscious feeling that people who lived in the proper part of town had a higher status than those who lived in the slums and gray zone. It seemed she needed to correct her mindset.
Thinking for a moment, Ava let out a small cough and said, "Er. Ruffio didn't give me much, but I seem to have misplaced my needle."
Confused, the Madam couldn't help but ask, "A needle shouldn't be a problem, but how did you manage to lose it? If it isn't in your room, shouldn't it be at Ruffio's place?"
Letting out a small cough, Ava glanced at Haley, who quickly leaned over to the Madam's ear and explained where Ava had 'lost' her needle.
Letting out a burst of cheery laughter, the Madam once again gave Ava a lookover before saying, "Good! Serves them right, trying to touch my girls. Ava, if you're interested in using needles as weapons, I can find you a teacher."
Startled, Ava couldn't help but look at the Madam again. She had heard of people using needles as weapons, although she had never really understood. Needles were small and didn't have a good place to grip, which meant that she had to use twice as much effort to create a surface wound. It was only places like the eyes that might be a bit more susceptible. Perhaps more problematically, needles were a consumable weapon, and if they were customized for throwing, Ava's heart couldn't help but hurt a little thinking of the expenditure.
Due to these reasons, and the difficulty of learning how to use needles as a weapon, people who could use them effectively were rare and often liked to keep themselves concealed. After all, no matter how proficient they were, at the end of the day, it was a type of hidden weapon. Even if they could beat someone in a frontal assault, why bother spending the extra effort? The fact that Madam knew one of these elusive masters and knew their real identity was quite surprising.
Thinking for a moment, Ava shook her head and said, "I'm not interested in needles. It was just what I had on hand. If I had my knives with me, neither of them would have walked out alive."
Thinking for a moment, Ava added, "Although, I don't know if they managed to walk out in the end. Crawl, maybe."
Lightly laughing while shaking her head, the Madam said, "Well, if you're interested in learning a knife, it'll be even easier to find you a teacher. I heard from Lily that you were a capable combatant, and you joked about killing the last time we spoke, but I can't say I took it all that seriously. If it really is something you're interested in, I can try to find you an appropriate instructor and institution."
After a moment of thought, the Madam added, "Of course, I do hope that you'll think about what you want in life. There are things that we're good at, and there are things that we like. I hope you'll find something that you like. From my perspective, I'd really rather you not be a fighter. No matter how talented or able you are, it's too hard to avoid harm in that profession. I'd much rather a stranger than you be in harm's way."
Feeling slightly warm in her heart, Ava nodded. "I… I'm not quite sure what I want. But I think I would like to learn to fight in the meantime, if only for my own safety."
Sighing, the Madam nodded. "Alright. But I hope you know that as long as you stay with us, I'll do my utmost to keep you and all the girls safe. This isn't the slums, Ava. There are more people here than just yourself who want to see you safe. I just hope you can keep that in mind. You're a fox. You're one of us."
Rubbing her forehead, the Madam thought for a moment and asked, "So, what weapons are you interested in learning? If it's something too complicated, it might take me a day or two to find you a proper instructor."
Listening to what the Madam said, while Ava kept it in mind, she didn't think about it too much. No matter how much one prepared or how many people were watching your back, accidents could still happen. Just look at Haley today. Perhaps there was a chance the Madam would have brought her back in one piece, but there was always a chance that she was a step late. It was still better to rely on oneself. With that thought in mind, Ava said, "Whatever is the most practical. Up to now, I've only really used knives, but that's because they're the cheapest and easiest to get my hands on and don't require much separate skill. If Madam has a suggestion, I'm willing to listen."