Hello. I swear that I haven't died. My summer has been busy and I'm at a complete writer's block for Heart of the Hero. So, in the mean time, BAM! A new story. This one was inspired by the new quests in RS: Stolen Hearts and Diamond in the Rough. I hope you guys enjoy it as much as I have loved writing it. Chapter 2 is already under progress, so…yeah. That won't take too long (I hope).

Big flakes of wet snow fell lazily by the street lamps, which had burned low in their hours since being lit. A gust of wind would blow through the streets, causing the low flames to flicker and occasionally extinguishing the weaker ones. As the flakes of snow joined others on the ground and roof tops, they instantly turned to a thick slush that made walking the streets a much more difficult task.

At this hour, though, only the Ardougne guards were out, following their set routes and bundled in thick burgundy cloaks to fight off the chill of the night. They kept their chins tucked close to their chests as icy gusts of wind blew past them. The storm kept most of the city's citizens at home around the fire. Those that had ventured into the storm, mostly the drunks who frequented the bars, had already stumbled back to their homes. The guards didn't expect to run into anyone else, besides other guards, and focused mainly on keeping themselves warm on their rounds.

Or so they thought.

Arianna Wylde moved silently down the alley way beside the Flying Horse Inn in the western end of the city. She knew the route she needed to take inside and out, and when what guards would be where. She spent a week just watching and waiting. After so much preparation, she had better know what she needed to do.

She shivered as she stood in the shadows of the alley as she waited for the guard to pass on his route. She pulled her deep navy cloak tight around her shoulders, thinking fondly back to her time in the desert months ago. She quickly shook the sunny, warm images from her thoughts as she spotted the guard's torch light. She needed to focus. Maybe once she was done here she'd trade these snow drifts for the sand dunes of Al Kharid.

The guard passed her alley, and, after waiting a few heartbeats, she dashed across the street. Her soft soled shoes made no noise as she moved across the cobble stones. She disappeared into another alley and the guard was none the wiser that there had been another soul on the street with him.

Arianna slid thorough the shadowy alley to the bank of the River Dougne that ran through Ardougne. It was frozen over, but she dared not cross over the thin layer of ice. She crept down the bank until she came to a long log that spanned the width of the river. She had watched as children crossed the log as a short cut during the day. She had even tried it herself, but never with the snow and ice. If nothing else, it'd be a learning curve for her.

She examined the layer of ice and slush that had accumulated, then glanced down to the thin ice and the freezing water below. She knew it would take too long to go to the bridge and cross there. Not only that, but the bridge was situated close to the castle and the place would be littered with guards and the king's paladins. She was sure that neither would look too kindly upon her being that close to the castle at this hour. She took a deep breath and darted across the log.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she made it to the opposite bank warm and dry…well dry at least.

She only had a few moments to savor her success. The next guard would be around at any moment, and with no place to hide, she was left exposed on the river bank. She scurried up the slushy bank and vaulted herself over the low fence and onto the cobblestone street. She glanced to the south and could already make out the guard's torch light.

She dashed down a narrow alley, one that was barely as wide as her shoulders. She stepped carefully through the cluttered space, not wanting to alert the passing guard of her presence. She froze as she heard the guard's footsteps and clank of armor draw near. The light passed the end of the alley and continued on its route. She pressed on.

She found the pile of old crates she had stacked up at the dead end of the alley days before. The crates definitely showed their age. They were very weathered and the 'Karamja Box Company' stamp was so worn it was barely legible. But she had tested them out and trusted that they would hold. She gracefully ascended the three wooden boxes.

As she put her weight on the top crate, a loud creak cut through the silent, snowy night.

Arianna froze mid-climb. Her heart hammered against her breastbone. She glanced back to the end of the alley way, expecting to find a guard coming toward her.

She took a deep breath, realizing that wasn't the case, easing her nerves.

"Relax," she said to herself softly and climbed on the last crate before heaving herself up onto the thatched roof. She crept between peaks, remaining undetected by those patrolling the streets below. The straw of the thatching and the slush kept her footsteps muffled to the citizens within the homes under her feet. The houses in this part of the city were close enough that she could step over the spaces between them. That is, until she reached the Handelmort Mansion.

The mansion and its estate were nestled among the other residences of the city, but a tall fence and hedges separated the cramped households from the well-manicured landscape. While the mansion was home of the Lord Francis Kurt Handelmort, one of the wealthy nobles of Ardougne, his home held nothing of interest for her. Lord Handelmort prided himself with his museum worthy collection, but that was no good to someone like Arianna. The problem with museum worthy items to a thief was only a museum would find them valuable.

She smiled to herself, thinking how that conversation would pan out as she sized up the distance between the roof she was on to the one of the mansion.

'What a fine artifact!' some historian would say. 'Where ever did you find something like this?'

'Ah, well, family heirloom,' she'd say, 'A third cousin on my…uh, great aunt's side left it to me. Thought I'd like it, or something…'

'Really? This is very much like the quality of Lord Handelmort's collection.'

And with no way to explain herself out of that one, the possibility of no pay out wouldn't be worth her time to pursue any of the items within the house hold.

She sighed and turned her attention back to the gap ahead of her. Ten feet, she guessed. She was hesitant about this leap. This time she didn't have someone to catch her if she missed. But she had no more time to waste. She checked for guards on the street below, took a handful of steps back, and got a running start before leaping across the gap. She felt a sudden panic as she began to doubt she'd make it. She started dropping below the roof level of the mansion.

She reached out with her hands, trying to grasp something, anything that would stop her fall.

Her fingers wrapped around something, and her other hand joined the first so she wouldn't lose her grip. She let her feet hit the wall of the mansion with a faint tap. She let herself hang there for a moment before pulling herself on to the flat roof.

She was shaking as the adrenaline wore off. She looked back down the almost three story drop she had almost taken. She let out an uneven sigh and continued. She didn't have the time to deal with these near death experiences.

She dashed across the roof and found the lattice work of ivy on the east side of the mansion and climbed down, glad to be back on the ground once more. She headed down another narrow alley that came out into the market place.

The market place was an open square, which usually full of traders and buyers, was devoid of all life. The stalls were bare, missing the character they possessed during the day. The icy wind blew through the colorful banners that hung about the plaza.

She skirted around the empty stalls, keeping an eye out for any patrolling guards. As she stalked around the market, her target came into view. A store room, owned by the city as far as she knew. During the day the guards of the market kept the store room guarded; now it was just a simple locked door. Nothing her lockpicks couldn't handle.

She knelt before the locked door and slid the delicate lockpicks from her pocket. She inserted one into the lock and set to work. In under a minute, she heard the small click of the door unlocking. She smiled, sliding the lockpicks away. She stood and ventured into the room on the other side of the door. She sighed a small thanks for the little bit of warmth the small room had.

The room itself didn't have much to it. Candles flickered in holders on the wall, providing the only light in the room. To her right stood a wall of bookcases that were over flowing with books, stacks of books were piled on top when all the shelf space had been used up. Just beside the bookshelves was a spiral staircase going up a story, where she was ultimately headed. She turned her attention to the rest of the room, and found a few things that alarmed her.

To the left of the door was a cloak rack, and a number of the pegs were taken by burgundy cloaks. Along the same wall sat a crude table and stool, and leaning against the wall was an iron mace, one just like the Ardougne guards carried.

She had scouted the place from the windows on several occasions, and never once had she noticed any of this before. Now she was worried. She quickly weighed her options, but knew she needed this. She spent the last of her gold on her room at the Flying Horse Inn on the promise of a good payout. She would have to press on if she wanted a warm place to sleep and food to eat.

She moved to the bottom of the stairs, and listened carefully for any kind of noise from above. Once she was certain that there was nothing, she crept up to the second story.

She peeked up on to the second story, and as she suspected no one was up there. She stepped off the stairs and took in the room. More shelves with more books, two beds that both looked like they hadn't been used recently. She continued scanning the room and found two ornate chests sitting in the corner of the room.

"Jackpot," she said softly, smiling. She hurried over to one of the chests. She carefully searched the outside of the chest for any kind of traps. She looked for any "sticky-out things" and "doohickeys" to be jiggled. She smiled to herself, thinking fondly of her good friend, Ozan.

She ran her hands gingerly over the trim of the box, searching for any triggers for traps. She pulled her hand away quickly, feeling a prick on her frost-numbed finger. She checked her hand, then the chest, looking for what picked her. She only found a small piece of metal that had seemed to be peeling off of the chest. She shook her head some and picked the lock with a small amount of difficulty with her numb hands. But the lock soon clicked open

She hesitated a moment before pulling open the chest. She looked at the contents and her heart sank. Her sources had led her to believe that there would be hundreds of valuable runes, not just one! She reached in and picked up the pebble sized rune stone. The vibrant green markings on the stone told her it was a nature rune. She hoped the rune would be worth enough to save this trip from being a total flop.

She sighed, pocketing the rune, and stood, heading for the window and the sturdy oak tree on the other side that would serve as her escape.

But as she took a step, she stumbled and her legs gave out beneath her. She knew something was wrong, very wrong. She tried to stand up again, but had since lost all feelings in her legs and hands. She began to panic. She had to get out of there, and quickly. With each passing second crawling toward the window became harder and harder. Her vision blurred and she collapsed, unable to move herself forward any more.

With an ear pressed against the floor, she heard the door below crashing open. Footsteps of a number of people thundered up the stairs. Boots came into her ever decreasing field of vision, and surrounded her.

"And what do we have here?" she heard a gruff voice say before the effects took her mind, turning everything black as she lost consciousness.