The sounds of the forest surrounded her, filling her mind with the songs of birds and the gentle steps of cautious animals. Leaves shifted above her head in a silent dance with the wind. It would have been beautiful if she wasn't meant to be tuning it all out.

"Snow, you're not trying hard enough,"Galen admonished her. The topaz in his eyes bore into her like an arrow waiting to be released. The two of them had been outside every day this week working to teach her how to clear her mind. Though his tone was harsh he never said anything that wasn't deserved, and right now, he knew she was distracted.

In the two weeks Eirwen had been in the tiny cottage she had spent every day from dawn til dusk working herself to the bone. Some days it was as simple as cleaning the filthy cottage. The seven of them always brought home plenty of dust to coat everything she'd cleaned in a new coat of gravel and dirt. She didn't mind that chore as much since she sometimes found bits of the gems they spent all day refining. They let her keep them in a small wooden box in her room in the attic.

Without fail, part of her day was dedicated to suppressing her darker instincts. She was never allowed to prepare any of the meat they brought home. There were days they came home so late that dinner was only what vegetables she coaxed out of their garden and any dried meat they had stored away. Having her around the fresh blood was too much of a risk for now.

Most mornings she spent with Galen learning to calm her mind and spirit. Her naturally curious mind led her to distraction. As her hearing sharpened she found herself tracking deer who would never cross through the little clearing. Their blood pulsing through their jugulars was like a drum calling her to give chase. A herd was passing through now.

Catching them would be easy. Her legs twitch, aching to spring to action. Cold water fell across her head and Eirwen sputtered as she fell back. She hadn't noticed when she stood nor when she'd slowly approached the treeline. Galen stood over her with a scowl.

"You were distracted," he told her. The man began to walk away, not offering her a helping hand.

"I'm trying, I really am," Eirwen called out while smacking her linen trousers to free them of dirt. It wasn't as if anyone would see the dirt on the brown pants out in the middle of the forest, but keeping herself presentable was a force of habit. She chased after him, waving to Placidus as he walked by and gave her a sweet smile.

Galen stopped at the door and spun to face her. "You are meant to be able to reach inside yourself and find the calm there, not give in to your desire to feed at a moment's notice."

She crossed her arms and glared at him. "It isn't a desire."

They continued to argue in circles until Galen threw his hands up and walked inside. The heavy door slammed shut behind her and Eirwen felt this wasn't a time to go after him.

"Your temper is becoming worse than Alfmoor's," Ayumu mused as he came to stand by her side. The dark blue of his eyes seemed to wash over her. "Come, let us walk." He held his hand up and she rested hers atop it. Of all her new instructors, Eirwen feared he may be the one to unravel her secrets.

Their path was a familiar one. Ayumu and Placidus often took her this way to allow her a chance to say whatever was on her mind. By the time they returned she would understand the error she'd made and the teacher she'd most recently upset, normally Galen or Alfmoor, would be ready to explain how to change her ways.

This time, she was silent. There wasn't a question of what she'd done wrong, only a deep fear that she would never get it right. Running away, hiding her true name, sacrificing her comfortable life, it would all be in vain if she couldn't learn to control herself. Her mother's diary had been clear. If she could suppress her dark self until her sixteenth birthday, the curse would fade away and she would live as a human until her death. All it took was one slip up and she'd be cast into darkness and blood.

After some time, Ayumu spoke. "It is not easy for one to ignore their true self. When we fight to contain our nature, it strips us of our power and leaves us as helpless to the world as a bird is to a storm." He stopped her in front of a pool of crystal clear water. At the bottom, a sapphire was just barely visible. Ayumu directed her to sit on a boulder that overlooked the still waters.

Eirwen sat and let her legs hang off the edge. "If I am true to myself, people could be hurt."

"Is your nature that of one who kills for sport, Snow?" he asked her. Before she could answer, he turned and left. He did that often and she knew to stay where she was until her mood had balanced.

It was only midday and the sunlight filtered down through the leaves overhead. Eirwen's mind wandered back to the castle, and Grimhelde, and Ryker. They must have gone out looking for her. The image of her stepmother's face twisted with grief flashed across her mind. Ezekiel's face took its place a moment later. She hoped he was alright. Ryker had taken him far away to a safe place after she'd so violently attacked him.

Even if she managed to rid herself of the curse, he would never forgive her. Eirwen brought her knees up to her chest and laid her chin on them. A branch snapped and a soft smell overwhelmed her nose. It made her mouth water and her throat went dry.

Across the water, Ezekiel stepped out. His furrowed brow smoothed out and he smiled widely when he locked eyes with her. "I thought it might be you."

Eirwen jumped to her feet and was a yard away before he could speak again. "You can't be here." Her heart raced til she thought it would take flight.

"Wait, please, don't run," he begged. With his hands held up, he took a few steps closer and began to edge his way around the water. "I know what you are."

"What?" Her blood ran cold. The diary had spoken of people who would hunt her, hunt her kind. This wasn't how she'd intended to meet her end.

Ezekiel took advantage of her hesitation and nearly closed the gap between them. "I'd heard stories in the villages I passed, about your mother. Everyone dismissed them as rumors since there were never any killings. They said when she visited, crimes would stop. They called her an angel."

"Nachtengel," she confirmed. "She didn't want to kill, and I don't either. What I did to you was shameful, but an accident. I would never harm you." She allowed him to take her hand and breathed a sigh of relief when she didn't feel a sudden pang of hunger. The warmth of his hand spread over hers and for a moment, she believed there was a chance.

Behind Ezekiel, standing out of sight, Galen and Ayumu watched with weary smiles. Eirwen could see them over his shoulder but kept quiet. The way Ayumu's eyes twinkled with mischief sent a shiver up her spine. She could hear them, quietly arguing about who had been right. That was when she realized Ezekiel's appearance had been a test.

A test she'd passed but a risky test all the same. The first flames of anger within her faded before they could take root. Even in their lecturing they'd had enough confidence in her to send in a sacrificial lamb. As if that wasn't enough, they'd given her a face, a flesh and blood goal to aim for in her quest to rid herself of the curse.

Eirwen smiled warmly at Ezekiel and pulled him aside to explain her predicament in detail while her guardians kept a watchful eye.