AN: ... I have no explanation. Dedicated to a friend who helped me get the ending.

Jojen sat alone in the forest. He was trying to start a measly fire, with no luck. If the dried grass wasn't blowing away, the flint wasn't lighting. He slumped back against the tree trunk. The lasts few chunks of meat from his supplies were skewered, and lay cold over the failed fire. It was his sixth night in the forest, without Meera. His beloved sister had fallen ill, and she had told him to leave her side, and learn how to fend for himself. He regretted leaving her, but it was, of course, the right choice. Without her, he was useless and defenceless. He figured it was time he learnt how to look after himself.

Silence blew through the forest, only disrupted by the wind.

Then the branch fell behind him. He snapped his head to the side, reaching for his knife and carefully peering into the dusky fog of the forest. Satisfied nothing large was out there; he turned back around and resumed prodding the fire.

It was a mere second later the air churned and a hooded figure was standing not two metres from where he was sitting, pointing an arrow at his forehead. He let out a small gasp. The figure didn't flinch.

He took a second to study the creature. Human, tall, and a female figure. The black cloaked shielded her eyes and nose, but her mouth was visible. The rest of her face was shrouded in black. Jojen couldn't see to be sure, but he sensed as if the figure was looking down.

"Jojen Reed." The female's voice pierced the air.

Jojen remained vigilant in silence. The girl pulled back tighter on the arrow, threatening him.

"If you do not tell me who you are I will rip the knowledge from you myself."

Jojen's eyes bore hard into the shadow of the figure's face. "So be it."

And with that, the figure swiftly removed her hood to reveal a fair face, hardly damaged at all, with the exception of multiple scars around her mouth and lower lip. She had eyes like the ocean, a striking blue colour. In mere seconds she had locked them with Joejn's dark one, and he felt as if he were in a trance, as if something was grabbing at his very soul.

But the sensation did not last long. For the girl had whispered his name once in acknowledgement, and fallen to the ground convulsing and retching.

AN: ... Yeah. Ummm. More soon.