First Sentence

"The night felt more oppressive, gloomier, and colder than any Aluriel could remember. Clouds obscured the moons, cloaking the forest in an eerie glow. The towering firs, which until recently had simply borne silent witness to her failures, now seemed to lean inward, looming upon her. Almost as if to judge her. As if they remembered *what she’d done*. The chill bit through her clothing, worming its way into her bones; the powdery snow clung to her cloak like a blanket as it landed. Every sound reminded her of her newfound vulnerability: the distant snap of a twig, the furtive rustle of unseen creatures, the clumps of snow gently falling from the branches above. Each sent a jolt of fear across her spine. The whispers intruding in her mind reminded her of her own madness. Every time she closed her eyes, her mind conjured flashbacks of her *crime*. Perhaps the forest, too, was now afraid of her."