"Alfmoor, you should really try to calm your mind," Eirwen chided her teacher and friend. Her brown eyes twinkled with mischief. The water pail hung from her fingertips, empty after her most recent watering of the garden. The first new buds of the year had pushed their way through the dirt, waiting to deliver fresh vegetables after a long winter of pickled and salted dregs.

Birds had begun returning and Eirwen's morning walks had started earlier and earlier to see them. Though her companions warned her about proper sleep, Eirwan had only become more restless as her birthday approached. Four days and she would be free to return home.

The pent up excitement and frustration had begun to escape her. She turned on her friends at every little fumble they made and was sure to chastise them about it. After spending nearly two years as the focal point for all of their frustrations, Eirwen was eager to give them a taste of their own medicine. Alfmoor was an easy target. His constant negative outlook on everything made it easy to taunt him until he lashed out.

Alfmoor's red eyes slipped closed and he shook his head. "You have become impossible to manage these last few months, child. Felix mentioned you were out climbing trees with your prince. You need to use more care, anything could be out there hunting you."

Eirwen scoffed at the idea. "What out there could possibly hurt me?"

"Everything. You're nearly human now, Snow," Galen said as he walked up to them. He leaned on his pickaxe. Light seemed to emanate from him in the cool morning. "All of this training has been to repress your darker nature and the things that lurk in the shadows can sense that. If they sense weakness, they will come for you."

Despite the harsh warning, Eirwen knew he meant only the best for her. The seven of them had been unendingly kind and hospitable to her during her stay with them. The only dark stain on their relationship was the looming threat that hung over all of their heads should Eirwen fall to the blood call. They'd sworn to end her before she harmed a soul and a vow from them was as lasting as the sun.

"I wouldn't let anything happen to her," Ezekiel called out from the roof. Somehow, he had become a welcome presence at the cabin. They had noticed early on how much his presence calmed their Snow and brought her to focus. Though his visits were infrequent they were always met with celebration.

Galen waved the boy off back to the thatch he'd been adding to the roof patches that had been damaged in winter. "I never would have thought Snow to be one to depend on another for her safety."

A laugh came from Ezekial who was now out of view. He couldn't help the amusement he felt every time they called her by the fake name she had given. The name sounded more and more ridiculous as time marched on and Eirwen spent more time in the sun's rays. Soon her skin would drop the pallor of winter in favor of summer's golden glow. Every day she looked more alive than the last day.

"I can defend myself," Eirwen confirmed. She tapped the dagger strapped to the inside of her boot with the other foot. Felix had used the most basic of combat training to tire her out when she began to worry about what was coming. As a result, she'd honed her skills with both the dagger and the crossbow. Often she would handle the hunting during the day now and have dinner waiting for them when they returned from the mine.

Sometimes Eirwen would wonder what good these skills would do her when she was back in the castle. Heldie would never let her out of her sight again. Thoughts of her stepmother sent the excitement into a frenzy. She'd nearly given up on having a family again after months out at the cottage. She only needed four more days.

The teasing on both sides died away and Eirwen pressed a quick kiss to Alfmoor's cheek. "Forgive me?"

The man waved her off, obviously unable to hold any sort of grudge against her. He took the empty bucket still dangling from her hand and turned to return to the cottage. Galen followed behind him, barely keeping up with the heavy limp in his left leg.

"I'll just go on a short walk, try not to miss me," Eirwen called out to them. She waved at Placidus who poked his head out of one of the upstairs windows to note which way she'd gone.

The trees provided a blissful reprieve from the harsh sunlight above. Even after all of her work to change herself, or rather not change herself, Eirwen still felt a slight discomfort when in full sunlight. The darkness whispered to her like an oasis in the desert. She would almost miss it when she rid herself of the curse.

Eirwen looked back to the gaps in the trees that would lead back to the clearing. She never went far though they were convinced she was looking for any opportunity to run off. She couldn't blame them given how she had fallen into their lives. This time, she would leave with a bit more fanfare.

A bush shook up ahead and she dropped to her right knee, left leg extended and her hand resting at the top of her boot. They would never let this go. Not ten minutes after a warning and she had run into trouble. On the other hand, if she dealt with it on her own maybe they would finally see her as more than a silly cursed girl.

"Come out, or I shall show you know mercy," Eirwen called out. She was privately impressed that her voice didn't tremble. It all shattered when her blood ran cold at the sight of Ryker stepping out of the shadows.

The man's eyes widened as he looked over at the woman crouched in front of him. This was not the princess he'd known and he might now have recognized her if she hadn't spoken to him. Slowly, Ryker lowered his shortbow and stepped toward her. "Eirwen, is it really you?" He held out a shaking hand to her.

Eirwen hesitated, for once it wasn't for fear of herself. Shame seeped into her veins as she looked at him. The dark circles under his eyes, the patches in his clothes, were those all from looking for her? He beckoned her towards him and she took a few steps forward. Without another word he threw his arms around her and embraced the child he'd loved so much. One feel of her strong pulse soothed every worry he'd had in finding her.

"I finally found you," he whispered, a hint of regret in his voice.