She awoke buried in cold.
Snow pressed heavily against her chest and limbs, trapping her beneath its frozen weight like stone. Each breath came shallow and painful, the icy air burning inside her lungs. For a long moment she remained still, suspended somewhere between sleep and consciousness, listening to the distant creaking of branches swaying in the wind.
Above her stretched a dark sky, broken only by the pale glow of the moon. Tall pine trees surrounded her, their branches bending beneath the weight of fresh snow. The forest seemed endless and silent, as if the world itself had forgotten this place.
Slowly, awareness began to return.
Her mind searched for something familiar—anything that could explain where she was or how she had arrived here. But when she reached into her memory, she found nothing. No faces. No places. No fragments of a life before this moment.
Even her own name was gone.
The realization struck her with terrifying clarity.
She did not know who she was.
Fear crept into her thoughts like frost spreading across glass. Her heart began to beat faster as panic slowly took hold. She tried to move her fingers, but they were trapped beneath the frozen layer of snow that covered her body.
With great effort she forced her arms upward. The snow above her had hardened into a thin sheet of ice. When she pushed against it, the frozen crust barely shifted.
She tried again.
This time a faint crack echoed above her hand.
Hope flickered inside her chest. She dug her fingers into the icy surface and pushed harder until the frozen layer finally broke apart. Her hand burst through the snow, and cold air rushed over her skin.
She gasped as the freezing wind struck her face.
Despite the pain, the sensation felt almost comforting. It meant she was still alive.
Slowly she dragged herself out of the snow. Her shoulders emerged first, then her chest, until finally she rolled onto the frozen ground beside the hole where she had been trapped.
For several seconds she lay there breathing heavily, her body trembling uncontrollably.
The forest stretched endlessly around her. Towering pine trees stood in every direction, their dark trunks rising like silent guardians beneath the moonlight. Snow covered everything—the ground, the rocks, the branches—creating a strange, quiet beauty.
But the silence felt wrong.
She pushed herself into a sitting position. Pain shot through her muscles as the cold reminded her how long she must have been lying there.
Her thoughts felt slow and heavy, as if they too had been frozen.
Where had she come from?
Why was she here?
She didn't remember walking into this forest.
She didn't remember anything at all.
A sudden rustling sound shattered the silence.
Her body went rigid.
The noise came from somewhere behind her.
She turned her head slowly, scanning the dark forest. For a moment she saw nothing.
Then the sound came again.
Branches shifting.
Snow crunching under something heavy.
Something was moving through the trees.
Her pulse quickened.
An instinctive warning echoed through her mind.
Run.
She forced herself to stand, though her legs trembled violently beneath her weight. The cold had already drained much of her strength.
The sound behind her grew louder.
Closer.
Branches snapped in the darkness.
She turned toward the forest path ahead and began to run.
Each step felt slow and clumsy as the deep snow dragged at her feet. Her breathing grew ragged, and the cold air cut through her lungs like glass.
Behind her something moved faster.
Much faster.
A low growl rolled through the forest.
The sound sent pure terror through her body.
She pushed herself harder, stumbling through the snow as branches scraped across her arms.
But her strength was fading.
Her vision blurred.
Her legs buckled.
She fell forward into the snow.
For a moment she couldn't breathe.
The forest fell silent again.
Slowly she turned her head.
A figure stepped from the shadows.
A wolf.
Its fur was thick and dark, dusted with snow that clung to its back. The animal moved slowly and carefully, its pale eyes fixed on her.
The wolf stopped several feet away.
Watching.
Waiting.
Its breath rose in soft white clouds in the freezing air.
She tried to crawl backward.
Her hand brushed empty space.
She glanced behind her.
The ground suddenly dropped away into darkness—a steep ravine hidden beneath the snow.
There was nowhere left to go.
The wolf crept closer.
Its claws pressed quietly into the frozen earth.
Her body trembled violently.
Not just from the cold.
From fear.
She realized something then.
She was going to die here.
In a forest she did not remember entering.
Without a name.
Without a past.
Without anyone searching for her.
Tears filled her eyes.
Why was she here?
What had happened to her life?
The wolf moved closer.
Its teeth flashed briefly beneath the moonlight.
Then something caught her attention.
Far beyond the trees.
At first she thought it was the moon reflecting on the snow.
But the glow remained.
Small golden lights flickered in the distance.
A village.
Hope surged through her chest.
She turned toward the lights and forced her voice to rise above the cold air.
"Help!"
The word came out weak.
Barely louder than a whisper.
She tried again.
"Help!"
But the cold had stolen most of her strength. The sound barely carried through the forest.
Her vision darkened.
The trees seemed to spin around her.
The last thing she saw before losing consciousness was the wolf stepping closer.
Then everything disappeared.
Warmth replaced the cold.
Strong arms lifted her gently from the snow.
She felt herself being carried through the forest, steady and careful, as if the person holding her barely noticed her weight.
Through half-open eyes she saw a figure above her.
A man.
The rising sun glowed behind him, surrounding his silhouette with golden light.
She tried to focus on his face, but her vision remained blurred.
Still, she noticed something strange.
As the sunlight touched his skin, it shimmered faintly, like crystal reflecting light.
Her mind struggled to understand what she was seeing.
But exhaustion pulled her back into darkness.
When she woke again, everything was quiet.
Soft morning light filled the room around her.
Warm sunlight rested gently on her face.
She blinked slowly, adjusting to the brightness.
The ceiling above her was wooden, with simple beams crossing its surface. Pale curtains hung beside a nearby window, and the scent of coffee lingered faintly in the air.
A clock ticked quietly on the wall.
Nine o'clock.
She pushed herself into a sitting position.
The room felt unfamiliar, yet strangely comforting.
A wooden table stood beside the bed, and a chair rested near the window.
The door opened.
A young woman stepped inside carrying a tray.
She paused when she saw the girl sitting up.
Relief spread across her face.
"Oh," she said softly. "You're awake."
She placed the tray beside the bed and smiled warmly.
"Good morning. I'm Bella."
Bella handed her a cup of coffee before placing something small into her hand.
A bracelet.
"I found this in your pocket last night," Bella explained.
The girl stared at it.
The silver chain glimmered in the sunlight.
But it meant nothing to her.
An emptiness settled in her chest.
"I… don't remember anything," she whispered.
Bella frowned slightly.
"What do you mean?"
The girl shook her head.
"My name. My home. My life. I don't remember any of it."
Bella's expression softened.
"I found you outside my house," she said gently. "You were unconscious in the snow."
The girl hesitated.
"There was someone," she said quietly. "A man. He carried me out of the forest."
Bella shook her head slowly.
"No one like that lives here."
A knock interrupted them.
The door opened, and a tall man stepped inside wearing a white coat.
His dark brown eyes studied the girl carefully.
"This is Dr. Edward," Bella said.
Edward approached the bed and examined her injuries with calm precision. He checked the bruises on her arms and the cuts along her shoulder.
Finally he stepped back.
"She survived severe exposure," he said quietly. "There are signs of animal injuries and head trauma."
Bella looked worried.
"Will she recover?"
Edward nodded.
"The memory loss is extensive," he said. "But it may return with time."
As he turned to leave, he paused at the doorway.
"She must not try to force her memories," he added.
Bella frowned.
"Why?"
Edward's gaze drifted briefly toward the girl.
"For now," he said quietly, "forgetting may be what keeps her alive."
That night, after the girl had fallen asleep again, Bella searched through the small belongings that had been found with her.
Inside a worn wallet she discovered a few euros, a small bottle of rose-scented perfume, and a single key.
There was also a broken ring.
Bella turned the ring beneath the lamplight.
Inside the metal, a name had been engraved.
Jenny.
Bella whispered the name softly.
"Jenny."
The sleeping girl stirred slightly in the bed.
But she did not wake.
Outside the quiet village, the dark forest stood silent, waiting.