"You're not focusing!" Lorcan growled as he slashed his sword at Holly. She ducked and swept her foot under his legs. He tripped over but was back up again in an instant. Her hip-length silver hair kept whipping in her face, no matter how it was tied back. She'd just given up on it. Her golden brown skin was gleaming with sweat as she pushed herself to stay on her feet.

"Yes, I am!" she argued. He pushed his blade against her own, forcing her into a battle of strength. He flipped her blade out of her hands and it fell to the ground with a clang. He kicked her in the chest and she fell alongside her sword.

"If you were focusing, you'd have the brain to get out of that!" She snarled at him, and stood up. "If Connall distracted you last night-"

"No, no! Nothing like that happened! I needed to tell him that I was about to leave for a few days."

"Maeve wants you trained, doesn't she?"

"After a hundred years, she thinks she's found someone."

"Who?"

"I don't know. I'm being sent into the countryside until I can use it."

"Mistward?"

"Think so." She lunged at him again, and he pushed her off easily. He swiped the blade at her head again and she blocked it. She kicked him, right in the knees and he collapsed. She pointed the sword at him.

"Holly Whitethorn!" someone called. Holly whirled around to see Mayla, a servant in the castle. "The Queen requests your presence." Holly followed Mayla through the hallways until she reached Maeve's throne room. Maeve drummed her fingers on the armrest of the throne.

"You are to leave right at this moment. A horse has been prepared. You are travelling to Mistward," she said.

"Why now?"

"I need you trained. Go." Holly turned and found a male- Connall- waiting to escort her out. She walked with him outside, wondering what the rush was about. He didn't ask her anything, thank the gods but it was still strange.

"Connall?" she said when her horse was in sight.

"Yes?" he asked.

"Why was Maeve trying to get me out so fast?"

"I can't tell you. A person Maeve doesn't want you seeing is coming."

"Who?"

"Blood oath," he whispered. Without warning, he grabbed her and put her on top of her horse. She almost shrieked, but simply nodded and rode off to Mistward.

A week later, Holly Whitethorn reached the forest just outside of Mistward when something came running out- straight at her. She dismounted and drew her sword quickly. She slammed the hilt right into its face, but then she realised it was a Fae male. Fenrys, Connall's brother. "Who are you?" he demanded.

"I'm going to Mistward," she said quickly.

"Do exactly as I tell you. I may have angered a few skinwalkers and now they're out for my blood. Run, and don't look back." She spun and ran, feeling her magic build up, magic that could easily- No, she scolded herself. You'd just kill Fenrys along with all the demi-Fae in Mistward. She kept going, her feet barely touching the ground as she flew towards the fortress. She dived and rolled when one of the guards at the gate shot an arrow at her. She kept going towards Mistward anyway, and when she got to the guards, she was immediately grabbed and shoved against the wall.

"Name?" one hissed.

"She's with me, Darron," Fenrys interjected before he could get a name out of her. Fenrys pulled her into the fortress and into a silent corner. "What is your name?"

"Holly Whitethorn," she answered.

"Congratulations. I'm Fenrys and I'll be trying to teach you about your magic. I'd prefer you not call yourself by your real name as that'll cause a lot of whispers among the demi-Fae."

"Then what do I say when someone asks?"

"I don't know. Make something up. Just stay anonymous."

"Fine."

"Now follow me." He led her to a room, small but cosy. "You'll be staying here for however long it takes for you to learn the limits of your power. Meet me in the kitchens in the morning." He left her in there, and she immediately went to bed. Damn, she was tired after a week of travelling.

Holly woke up two hours before dawn. She quickly changed into a set of clothes that had been laid right behind the door and brushed her long hair. She walked around the fort for a while until someone found her and directed her to the kitchen. She saw a young lady, with blonde hair and blue eyes ringed with gold, a middle aged man with brown hair and another demi-Fae with fiery grey eyes. She walked over to them and the blonde lady turned to her. "Good morning," she greeted. "What's your name? I assume you came in last night with Fenrys."

"Uh, yeah. I'm Ember Frostbyte. Who are you?" Holly asked.

"Evalin Ashryver, this is Emrys and Malakai. Are you working in the kitchens?"

"She is," Fenrys said from behind her. "She'll be with me for the rest of the day." Holly looked back at him, then looked to Emrys for orders. Breakfast was mad, everyone storming in and then running back up. She learned no one's names but she didn't particularly care. Evalin helped with cutting the many vegetables and frying the eggs. Holly was sweating by the end of it, and then she looked to the massive pile of dishes and groaned. It would take forever. Evalin spotted her annoyed look and sat down next to her.

"Washing dishes isn't all bad when you got someone with water magic helping you," she said softly.

"Did you say your last name was Ashryver? As in Wendlyn Ashryver? Descended from Mab?"

"She's my grandmother." Evalin waved her hand and the dishes scrubbed themselves clean. "Now we get to put them away." It took the both of them half an hour to tuck away every dish that had been used. Fenrys was waiting at the base of the stairs and nodded at Evalin.

"Come on," he growled. Holly followed him outside and he said simply, "Show me."

"Show you what?" she asked.

"Your magic. I don't care what you do, just give me an idea of what I will be working with."

"That's not the best idea…"

"Just do it, Holly Whitethorn." She concentrated on bringing her magic to its full, and sure enough trees started to move in ways they were supposed to, stars and the moon could be seen floating in the sky and some things dissolved into pure nothingness. "Stop," Fenrys commanded when her magic started creeping over where he stood. She couldn't stop though. The feeling of this power, this magic was unbelievable. "Stop! Holly, stop!" She was right here, and she could take on the world. Then something pushed against it, but she broke through that barrier too.

"Ember!" Evalin screamed. Evalin was running, everywhere there wasn't something wrong she stepped. Evalin stopped right in front of Holly, and shook her shoulders. "Snap out of it!" Holly blinked a few times, and everything faded. "What was that?" Evalin asked her gently.

"My magic," Holly responded.

"Was that the full extent?"

"No."

"Does it have a name?" Holly thought for a moment.

"Arcane. Don't bother researching it. I'm the only one whose ever had it."

"Arcane? Like secret in the Old Language?" Fenrys asked.

"Yes. Because-"

"Shut up. Can you shift?"

"I think I can."

"Do it." She concentrated, looking past her magic and into the Fae blood running in her veins. She became smaller, and stood on all fours. A wolf. A grey wolf. Evalin tilted her head but when Fenrys gestured for her to go away, she obeyed. Fenrys shifted too- a white wolf, much larger than her. He trotted over to her, and bared his canines. She bared hers right back. He growled and shifted back to Fae and she joined him. "A grey wolf," he commented. She said nothing. He pointed to a rock on the ground. "Dissolve that, and nothing else."

"Wait! There's something else about arcane magic that you should know."

"Are you stalling?"

"No."

"Then what is it?"

"It's celestial magic too. Manipulating the universe and magical energy." She willed it to appear in her outstretched palm and turquoise crackling material sparked. Fenrys reached to touch it but Holly slapped his hand away. "Unless you want a burn that'll last for centuries, I wouldn't touch it." Fenrys sighed.