Alone in a snow covered forest, a beautiful small little girl wearing a plain white dress sat against a tree.
She had run away a hurry, not bothering to put on proper clothes in the harsh winter. The girl was eventually overcome with cold and exhaustion after running deep into the forest.
While breathing in her last few breaths, she smiled. It was a genuine smile with no regrets. She was finally free.
Slowly, her eyes became heavier and she knew that she was going to die. Soon, the little girl gave into the sleepiness and closed her eyes for the very last time.
Frost took over her body, preserving it in a thin layer of ice.
The forest where she had laid in rest was not an ordinary place.
Year after year the forest gave a meager portion of its life energy to the body and ice slowly seeped into it, gradually changing the small girl's appearance.
Her hair turned white with a tinge of blue matching the snow that she was surrounded by. Her eyes, though closed became a transparent gray, and her skin transformed from being rough and tan to milky white and smooth.
Each and every change came so slowly that one would not even notice if they watched unless given a before and after picture.
It took 2500 years for the snowy forest to finally resurrect her.
Getting up from the ground, the girl turned her head from side to side, looking around.
She did not know how she got in the snow, she did not know where she was, nor did she even know her own name.
The time she had spent dead and the time it took for the forest to breathe life back into her, she no longer remembered anything except for the now lost ancient language she had spoken before she died.
After shakily standing up, the small girl slowly put one foot in front of the other, albeit wobbling badly. Using the trees for support, she wobbled her way through the forest.
After a while, the girl got used to being on her two feet and no longer hung on to the trees. She gradually walked through the large forest covered in snow, exploring it.
The deeper into the forest she went, the colder it got and the thicker the snow, but that didn't affect her in the slightest.
Even though she was only wearing a plain thin dress and high white socks, she did not feel cold at all.
In fact, it felt like just the perfect temperature. Her clothes would not be able to get wet or dirty while she was in the snow. The magical beasts all turned a blind eye towards her whenever she ran into them.
To the beasts, the girl did not emit the same life force as other humans, instead she resembled more of the shrubberies.
Some of the beasts came up to her when she passed by and rubbed against her body, showing no her no harm.
Walking towards a clearing deep in the forest, she discovered a small wooden cottage in the middle of it. The house was in relatively good shape, but it looked to have been abandoned many years before.
Pushing open the door, the girl carefully stepped inside the cottage. It was in a simple square shape and there were two rooms.
There was a small kitchen, lounge area, sleeping area in the corner with a double bed, and a small bathroom which was separated by walls and a door from the rest of the house.
The place would have looked relatively cozy if it had not been abandoned for so long. It did not have any candles or light sources other than a fireplace.
The girl decided that this small home will be hers.
Over the next two years the girl cleaned the house up and explored more of the forest.
She met all kinds of snow beasts ranging from gargantuan sized icicle bears, lean snow wolves, to tiny spiders made entirely out of ice.
Inside of her home, she found old books about history, toxicology, healing, and a map in a chest that showed the continent she was in. The books themselves were bound in thick leather and had slightly faded and yellowed papers.
Although it was old, it was still legible.
The only problem was that they were written in a different language. There were some recognizable characters and words, but most of the book was unreadable to her.
With a big sigh, she put the books down gently and got up to tend the fire in the lounge area.
Heat did not affect the girl even though she was born again from the snow.
She could function like a normal human with the exception that she never got cold. This meant that she still had to eat, bathe, and sleep.
The food she ate were vegetables and fruits picked from the forest and meats of small game that some of the beasts caught for her.
Nearing the end of the two years, the girl decided that she would step out of the forest for the first time.
She would follow the map to a town near the edge of the forest once spring came around.
Hopefully the town would still be there.
A few months later, just before dawn, the girl set out from her home and followed the map to where the town was located. It took several hours for her to finally reach the border of the forest that laid next to the town.
By the time she arrived, there were a few hours till noon. Compared to the map, the town looked much larger. The map must be decently outdated.
The girl observed the townsfolk for a few minutes.
They all looked lively, seemed to know every person, and worked hard at what they did. The buildings were all made of stone and wood.
The girl took a deep breath in, then slowly stepped out of the snow-covered forest and onto the soft, green grass that surrounded the town.
With every step, she inched further away from the familiar forest and closer to the unfamiliar town.
When she reached halfway to the town, a middle-aged looking man looked up from what he was doing and spotted her. His eyes became big and round when he saw her and he froze for a few seconds, attracting the attention of another man working next to him.
"Hey Reyland, what's wrong?*" The other man got up and patted his shoulder.
The first man, Reyland did not respond.
The other man sighed and turned his head in the same direction that his old friend was staring in.
What he saw was an extremely beautiful, small girl with long white hair that was slowly inching towards their town.
Although she was still a child, her features were highly attractive. Both men could agree that this girl they saw was the most beautiful they had ever seen.
* [Note that she can't understand what they're saying as she speaks a dead ancient language.]
Both men snapped out of their daze after several seconds. When they looked back at the girl, they realized that she was not accompanied by anyone.
"Reyland, that little girl seems to be an orphan." The other man pointed out. Seeing that, he pitied the girl.
"It seems so Ballard, but why would an orphan child be this far up north alone?" Reyland agreed.
Reyland and Ballard talked back and forth for about a minute before coming up with a plan to welcome the apparent orphan girl in.
Ballard huffed. "Alright Reyland, I'll go inform the orphanage head about that girl. You welcome her in and see if you can get her story while leading her towards the orphanage."
While nodding his head, Reyland agreed. Both men put down their farming tools before cleaning their hands and executing their "plan".
Eventually the girl made it to the town where she was greeted by Reyland.
"Hey there little miss." Reyland said warmly. "Did you run away from home? Where are your parents?"
The girl looked at Reyland with a confused face before opening her mouth. "[Insert random symbols]"
The small girl had a very pleasant voice. Though hearing the girl speak a language that he had never heard before, Reyland became surprised.
A thought came to his mind. 'It looks like this young child came from afar'
Reyland bent down and got on his knees so he could be eye level with the girl. Using hand motions, the introduced to her his name.
The girl caught on to what he was doing and repeated what he said in a heavily accented voice. "Ru-aeu-lu-ond?"
Seeing that she understood what he was trying to do, he gave her a big nod and patted her small head. "Yes. R-ey-l-and."
The little girl smiled. Then she thought for a moment and pointed at herself. "Hy-re-o-na."