Rosalind was a simple girl. She had been raised that way. In the village of Cotta, anything different was banished, to the Forest of Juirn. The Forest of Juirn was rumored to be filled with creatures beyond anyone's imagination, fantastical monsters who hunt for sport. A wall had been created to protect the village, and the only way out is through the front gates. Or so it was thought.

Rosalind had found another way. Hidden by thick vines, she had found a hole, that brought her outside the village walls. The forest was beautiful, not at all what had been told in the history books. Trees standing tall, the sunlight glimmering in through the patches. Butterflies flew about, and it was surreal, almost magical. She loved it. Whenever she had time, she'd sneak out to read under the same tree. She had placed a ribbon around it so she could tell which one it was.

But as she went on, she had found that something was watching her. Feeling an odd sense of fondness after the first few times, she had started reading her books out loud, to anything that could hear it. She didn't realize that she had encountered something far beyond her imagination.

She was walking out to her reading spot, when she noticed a figure hunched beside the tree, fiddling with the red ribbon tied around it. She gasped audibly.