Hi guys, thanks for sticking with the story so far. This is my first fanfic, sorry it's a little slow but I need to map out my character's beginning for later on in the story. Please review, criticism welcome. More chapters (hopefully) on the way soon.

Selena lay awake that night thinking about what her father had said about that man knowing what she could do. But what could she do? She didn't even know herself what she could do. She tried to think about what she did every time something happened. Only one thing fit every time; that little pool in the back of her mind. That must be it.

She wondered to herself if this was something she could control so she sat up in her bed and cast her thoughts out for something to test it on. They landed, as they so often did, on roses, her favourite flower. She was fascinated by how such a tiny bud could explode into such a beautiful and complex flower. But how to turn it into a test?

Her stomach grumbled making her jump. She had not finished her dinner and was regretting it now. Maybe she should go down to the pantry and make herself something to eat. Later, she thought, try the test first.

She thought for what seemed like an age wondering what she could do. I know how to turn it into a test, she thought, I'll make a rose. She had never tried to make anything before so she was a little unsure as to what she should do and being hungry did nothing to speed up her thoughts. So she did what she felt was right. She gingerly dipped into the little pool in her mind and immersed herself in it and thought of nothing but the rose she wanted.

It was a strange feeling as though all of her energy was being pulled out of her body and into the palm of her hand. After a few moments there was a perfect rose, lilac in the moon light, nestled into the palm of her hand.

She looked at it for a moment in wonder before a wave of exhaustion overcame her and she tumbled back onto her bed, sound asleep.

When she awoke in the morning she took a moment to try to remember everything that had happened the day before. She sat up in her bed and looked at the purple rose, still in her hand.

Her stomach growled, she felt as though she had not eaten for days. Breakfast first, she thought, thinking later. As she ambled through the house, still half asleep, her mind wandered to the man on the mountain. How could he have known what she could do? Was he a sorcerer and had used his mind to find her? The thought scared her and a new question came into her head; what if she was a sorcerer? Well, maybe not a sorcerer but one thing was certain, she defiantly had magic.

She opened the pantry door and gasped in shock. Along the walls were dozens of roses tucked into every jar and behind every package of meat. How had she done that? She had only wanted to make one. Her stomach growled again. Ah, of course, she must have been thinking about food last night when she had made the flower.

A floor board creaked upstairs as one of her parents walked across the landing. Quick, she thought, I need to get rid of these flowers before they see.

Although her parents did not punish her abnormal behaviour it was not encouraged and Selena was scared that dozens of purple roses in the pantry might raise awkward questions. As quickly and as quietly as she could she gathered up the roses into an empty grain sack just as her mother came through the door.

"Selena, what are you doing in here with that sack?"

"I was hungry so I wanted to make some bread so I took a bag of flour from the store and brought it in here."

"Selena, that store is for winter, you mustn't use it."

"I'm sorry, mother, I'll go and put back the sack."

Her mother yawned. "I think that's a good idea. Besides, there's still some flour in the jar in the kitchen, when you get back you can help me make some out of that."

"Ok, I will." She said, breathing a sigh of relief at her escape with the flowers. As she got to the store shed she paused and wondered what to do. She couldn't put the flowers in there, someone might find them. So she decided to hide them at the foot of the mountains, her parents never went up there and her and her brother were banned so no one would find them.

As she reached a clump of bushes and started to hide the sack a cough startled her and she whirled around to face that man.

"What are you doing, Selena?" he asked, gazing at the bag in her hands.

A small mountain of questions of her own appeared in her mind. "How did you know what I can do?"

He stared hard into her face. "What can you do?" he asked, smiling.

"I don't know. I think it's magic but it's not very good. Can you teach me?"

"I could." He said. "But you would have to let me teach you properly. It will take months, maybe years, of constant hard work to become proficient to any degree. Are you prepared to do that?"

"Yes, if it will help to make me better." She said, eagerly. "If I must be different I would rather be different for something I can control and use."

He nodded his head. "Right then, I will expect to see you once every week at a time and place that we will arrange at the end of each meeting. You will be required to study and practice in your own time and, most importantly, do not be seen by anyone. You never know who's watching."

She nodded and then raced back to her mother already dreaming of the skills she could learn.