Through a Masked Maiden's Eyes

Chapter 1: Minor Mistake, Major Problem

I gripped the roof’s gutter trying to pull myself back up.

The tiles were slippy from the sleet that had fallen since dusk. I gritted my teeth and swung a leg up ignoring how the metal bit into my hands or the how its sharp edge sliced my thigh through the leather trousers I had on. Better to be sliced up a little than splattered on the ground below. If only I had been born with shifter blood, but alas I didn't even know whose blood ran through my veins. The mansion I was on top of was four stories high but I was on the third story. What was a seventeen year old girl doing on a roof?

Oh that’s easy I’m a thief.

I’ve been stealing since I turned thirteen and got lost. I ended up asking an orphanage for directions and saw the poverty. See I was spoiled but then my parents were killed in an ‘accidental’ fire when I turned thirteen and bonded with water, yeah happy birthday me, not. Everyone thought I died in the accident but there was no accident. My parents and five year old brother were murdered the estate burned to cover it up.

I was adopted so they weren’t my biological parents but they might as well have been. I grew up quickly living in the forest. When I saw those kids digging in the dirt for food and trying to catch mice to eat them, I thought ‘this could have been me’. I decided that I was going to fix everything, no matter the cost. In the name of everything good and prosperous, things were going to change. A lot for a thirteen year old girl to put one her shoulders yeah but I’ve never been… normal.

 Our continent, Oceana, was supposed to be so prosperous and good yet there were children going hungry. Some government we had. So I became a thief.

Well more of I took from the rich to feed the poor, than the greedy take all you can and horde it away type of thief, so yeah I’m an entirely new class of thief. Mind you I won’t steal from just anyone. I steal from other criminals, pretty ironic I know.  I had morals they were just… a little twisted to most I suppose.

I lay on my back panting hard on the roof and finally took notice to my injuries. These were going to be difficult to hide tomorrow. I grimaced at the thought. Yeah… more like impossible to hide but maybe the water would help me out again. I shook my head, I’d jump that puddle when I came to it. I quickly wrapped my cuts so as to not leave a trail of red behind me. No use giving them something to track me by. I rolled onto my stomach deciding that crawling was the best way to not fall to my death. Their final roof is has a small incline with the top being completely flat and a small trap door leading down in to their home, well more like a castle than a home.

The tiles gnawed through my worn leather clothes making sharp icy strokes against my skin with their icy crystals from the sleet that had started to fall lightly once more. I could have it melted it away but then I’d leave evidence that I was here. I inched along up the gentle slope till I grab the top. Almost there… I swung my injured leg over the side and sighed as I straddled the stone ledge my upper body laying flat against it trying to catch my breath. Adrenaline pumped through my veins and my heart beat drummed in my ears but then I heard another join it. I acted like I didn’t know anyone was there.

“Well this certainly wasn’t what I was expecting to find when I decided to come out for a smoke,” sounded a deeply masculine voice that sent trepidation rippling over my skin.

I stopped breathing for a moment mimicking surprise and quickly decided how to play this. Option one, badass from the start, Option two, seductive then badass or Option three abandon the mission. I went for option two. I straightened slowly, arching my back and twisting as I did so to look at him from under my blue mask. I was such a tease, it’ was slightly disgusting, actually no scratch that it was extremely disgusting yet so empowering at the same time.