Maka ♂ & The Treasure ♀
"Find the treasure, it's your destiny." That's all they ever did, ramble on about my amazing destiny as a thief. But it's better than having someone boss you around I suppose, Marcus and Tyran don't care about what I do. Having criminal guardians can lead you to do great things, illegal, of course, but great nonetheless. and that was their goal, make me the best criminal I could be.
That's what brought me here, to this dark, quiet corridor. It isn't a damp corridor, or one that smells like death and decay. Just a long, dark, silent hall. And small, dark, silent me.
But what I'm looking for is small, brilliant, and, though also silent, causes the most talk. The Scared Treasure.
No one's ever seen it and lived, outside of the royal family of course. There are myths and rumors, but the only thing known for sure is that it's a family heirloom, and it's made of pure, soft gold.
Having something like that in our possession, we could do anything we want. And that's why I'm sneaking around one of the most well-guarded places in the entire kingdom.
Keep your footing light, like the moonlight. You want to avoid that by the way, moonlight will make your pelt's brighter colored patches shine.
Use your small body to your advantage, press into the corners where the skylights don't reach. Useful, skylights are, there aren't many places you can avoid a light that comes through the roof on all sides of the room. But they exist, and a good thief can find them.
From behind me, a guard strolls quietly down the hall. On his left is a shining sword hilt, peeking from its leather sheath. And, of course, myself, crouched waiting in the shadows.
That's another thing, years of training lets you figure out what dexterity the greater percentage of gaurds are. Left handed, not something you'd expect. Always keep on the side where the sword hangs, they'll draw with the opposite side and then have to turn to get at you easily.
Carefully, I unhook the thick, long leather collar around my neck, wielding it in one paw. rearing up on my back legs as he passes. Grunting in surprise, he goes for his sword and I quickly whip the leather collar around his neck, catching it with the claws of my other paw and pulling hard. He goes down, gagging and pulling at my artificial weapon. Most important rule- anything and everything can be used as a weapon. After a moment, he goes limp and I hop over his body, refastening the studded collar and grabbing my arrow from the dark corner. I "borrowed" it from some other guard on my way in, they really should watch their stores of extra arrows more carefully.
I run quickly through the hall, keeping my footsteps as light as possible. I have only a couple minutes tops before someone discovers my unconscious friend.
I skid to a halt, almost loosing my footing and crashing into a large vase. Clever placement, really. Anyone traveling too quickly down this polished floor will bring the giant pot upon themselves, which would then set off the alarm and trap them until someone comes for them. Clever indeed. Or it could have just been pretty, but I prefer to over-think things rather than under-think them.
In front of me is a small wooden door that I almost overlooked, so unlike the other rooms I'd already checked, which were large, conspicuous and heavily guarded, only to have nothing behind them but empty, well polished marble floor. The door is small, a full grown wolf could only just barely have fit through it without ducking, and was scarred with claw marks and deeper, more precise grooves as if it had been hit with a sword or two. It had no handle, only a lock, and two bands of metal wrap around the frame, small studded spikes protruding from them every couple inches. I can't see why it would be hidden here, but it makes the most sense. When you want to keep something safe, sometimes the best protection is keeping it hidden. This they'd done well, if it was indeed here. I'd almost skipped over the little door as a closet.
With a long curved claw, I dug around in the lock until there was a satisfying click and the door swung open on silent hinges. I stepped inside eagerly, I must be so close!
The room is small and square, maybe fifteen feet both ways, and has no windows. If not for the light filtering in from the hallway, it would be completely dark. I can see candles along the walls, which must be how they light the little room when it is occupied. As my eyes adjust, I can see the ceiling is no taller than the hallways outside, and the walls are made of simple, gray stone. The floor seems to be non-existent, the cool marble of the hall ending abruptly at the doorway. Disappointment crashes down on me, I see nothing of interest, just another decoy. But still, I am curious.
Darting back into the hall, I grab a torch from it's sconce in my jaws and trot back inside. Using it, I light one of the candles and instantly they all go up in flames, small flammable wires that connected the wicks burning away to nothingness and sending sparks floating to the earth. I gasp as the room is lit, dropping the torch to the ground. It sputters, landing flame first, and the dirt extinguishes the flame, singeing my paw on the way down first. But I don't care. The door swings shut behind me, but I have eyes only for what I've been preparing for all of my life. There, hidden in the shadows in the corner farthest from the door is a small, golden shape, glimmering and shining in the light. It is shaped like a wolf, silver eyes set deep into the surface, white lace decorating its back. It is small, smaller than me, and seems to stare right back at me with a life it shouldn't possess. Before I know what is happening, I'm gliding across the dirt floor, peering curiously at the shining golden object.
This must be the treasure, and how beautiful it is. I touch a paw to its surface, it is smooth, and cool, made of soft, pure gold. Which, may I add, is also very heavy. How in the world did they expect me to move this, much less make off with it?
Grumbling, I circle the statue, pushing my anxiety back down. Not time to worry, I have a minute or two left before they notice, and they'd have to figure out where I went too. After my third time pacing around the heavy treasure, I notice something I hadn't before. In the left shoulder, there was a small keyhole. I pushed the lace out of the way, dropping it onto the ground, and inspected it. I look at it curiously for a moment, why in the world would a golden statue need a key? My claw didn't reach far enough to get to the mechanics inside. Then I remember the arrow, which I'd shoved into the side of my studded collar for safe-keeping, since I had neither a quiver or a belt, and need my mouth for other things. Reaching over my shoulder, I grab the shaft in my teeth, pulling it out. It takes a while but there is a satisfying click as something unlocks. Then something strange begins to happen.
Gold flakes off, peeling and falling onto the cold dirt floor. From outside, a commotion is starting and I know my time is up. Whatever is going on, I have to get out. Now.
But I can't just leave, can I? I was so close, and they would definitely up security next time.
And the statue is beginning to come apart, gold breaking off in larger sheets now, peeling away like a bad sunburn.
I can feel my eyes widen in horror, what the heck have I done? Black peeks from beneath the gold, sprouting like grass growing in fast forward.
Frustrated, I go to yank the arrow from the lock, only to find it is stuck, both in the statue and in my collar. I'm left staring at it in disbelief, pushing and tugging against the soft, flaking gold fur. From outside people storm by and someone crashes into that vase I saw near the door. Finally, I yank the arrow's shaft free, the tip stuck behind in the closing flesh as a sigh breaks through the muffled noise of the guards, and white patterns trace themselves across the black fur that has appeared. I notice with a jolt that the silver eyes have turned ruby red. And then it moves. The treasure that has been guarded by centuries is
alive. For a moment it's just this strange creature and myself, a slight little thing with bold patterns, beautiful eyes, and an innocent, confused face. She looks at me with those big eyes and asks a single question with a voice as smooth as the metal she'd emerged from,
"Who are you?"
I'm in shock. It... it's a wolf! A
young wolf, like myself. Not a statue of one, but an
actual wolf. There's a banging on the door and I look around frantically, but I know its no use, we're stuck. Unless I can somehow dodge past Behind me, the door is blown off it's hinges, quite unnecessarily, my stupid self didn't try to block it at all. It collides with the stone wall beside me. Guards pour in and I brandish the pointless arrow uselessly against their swords. Dear Lupin, help me!
