It was about midnight, and Rianne heard faint snoring in the distance of the room.

At least they're finally all asleep. She thought quietly to herself.

She had been waiting for this moment for half the night. For this was the only time when she could go out alone. Now all she had to do was to grab her cloak, and make it out of the community unseen.

It seemed easy enough, but Bakura had posted guards at all the exits to prevent Rianne from doing this. They didn't usually do a good job at paying attention however, and it was easier to get past them than anything else.

Finally, tonight if all goes well, I can make it out of this wretched place for good.

The Gods were with her tonight, as it seemed, the guards were all on "breaks" in the underground pub, leaving her free to escape. She was very stealthy and quite as she crept towards the hatch. It was almost too easy to be real.

As soon as she reached her ticket to freedom, she heard the guards returning behind her. As quick as a flash, Rianne was through the hatch, and traveling through the long dark corridor of dried mud and sticks. No one would realize her absence until morning, and by then she would be long out of the city.

About fifteen minutes later, she started to feel a slight breeze on her face, and knew she was almost at the end of the corridor, and a new world above her own.

Even though she had made it out of the community, she was far from finished. Rianne knew that Bakura would be out looking for her as soon as he realized she was gone, but it was a risk she had to take.

If I use a horse, they'll be able to track me too easily, and they'll find me. Although...

There was a great sandstorm approaching, and they would never be able to track her after that washed over. It was a huge threat, riding in a sandstorm, but a necessary one if she wanted freedom.

Rianne hurriedly dashed to the hidden stables. When she got there, she had no time to lose so she selected the horse nearest her. It was a large black stallion that had red eyes. A rather threatening looking horse, but a loyal and trustworthy one. Rianne knew this from experience, as this was not her first time sneaking out. This was however, the first time that she would not be returning to her comrades.

-Flashback-
Rianne was just a little girl when it happened. She didn't know who they were, but a group of men set her village, Kul Elna, on fire and burned it to the ground. Her parents were locked inside the house, as was her sister, and they were trapped in the fire.

She had been outside playing at the pond a little whiles away when it happened, and she could hear her friends and family screaming in pain and terror. She herself was only six, and didn't understand what was going on.

Rianne remembered being absolutely terrified, and running back to her house and trying to get inside. She kept screaming for her parents, but no one answered.

She were so caught up in the pain and terror that she didn't even realize that someone was holding her back from the flames, keeping her safe.

She had severely burnt her hands banging on the door to her house before she was restrained, and couldn't bear to touch anything. When the whole thing was over, no one had survived the flames except herself, and Bakura. He was the one who was protecting her that night. And she owed him her very life for that.

He had been using all his energy keeping Rianne safe, that sometime throughout the night he fell into a large bowl of hot coals, burning his entire body. She didn't remember when it happened specifically. At the time she didn't really even know who Bakura was, she knew he was a ten year old boy who also lived in the village, but that was about all. Rianne didn't even care who he was, her family was dead, and for the first time in her life, she was alone.

Bakura had kept them both alive by stealing food, and begging, despite the wounds. Once Rianne's hands had finally fully healed, and she was able to use them again, Bakura began to teach her the fine art of thieving. Both of them would have scars for the rest of their lives however.

Rianne had just turned eleven, and Bakura fifteen, she was a very fast learner, having to fend for herself most of her life, and picked up on it remarkably fast. She was not ruthless, as Bakura was, but sly and crafty, most of the time the people they were stealing from, didn't even realize they were missing something. Rianne and Bakura were a marvelous team, one distracting the person, while the other robbed them.

Pretty soon, Bakura began to gather followers who wanted to learn from him, and in just a few short years, built a massive underground colony, that was home to all thieves. But also in those few short years, something inside of him changed, he became ruthless, and cold, instead of the warm and friendly person he used to be. That was why Rianne ran away. She absolutely couldn't stand to be around him anymore, despite what he had done for her.

He had become very controlling over time, and often times brutally scary. He never once layed a finger on her, but she was afraid he was going to soon.

-End Flashback-

Rianne loved Bakura like a brother, and would be forever grateful to him, but she couldn't keep living this way. It was destroying her. She felt that if she didn't get away now, that she would never again be able to. And that was something she couldn't let happen.

She didn't have time to saddle her horse, as the sandstorm was coming on too quickly, so she just rode bareback. Rianne leapt onto his back spryly, and galloped off into the distance, to where, she didn't know. All she knew was that anywhere was better than here.