She had been born on the winter solstice, along with twelve other children. Nothing appeared out of the ordinary with her, so she was treated no differently than the other children. Everything changed the year of her thirteenth birthday.

On the fall equinox, the king of the realm announced that his son, a child born on the summer solstice thirteen years prior, would be needing a bride in three years' time. In one year's time, they would begin scouring the kingdom for the girl, who would spend the two years after that dividing her time between her home and the palace, in order for her to learn how to behave properly while still being able to spend time with her family.

On the eve of her thirteenth birthday, she suddenly fell sick, stricken with fever and unable to stand. The village was worried they were going to lose her, the daughter of the chief. She was invaluable to them, both because of the fact that with her marriage, they could form alliances with other villages, and the fact that animals seemed drawn to her, making it so they never went hungry in the harsh northern winters.

The fever shook her throughout the night, and no one knew what was happening inside her. No one knew when she would next wake from the fever dreams, or if she would wake at all. The worst part was, no one knew what would happen if she did wake up.