I always used to enjoy the winter.
The cold weather was biting and unforgiving, and it was a time of hardship if we were not able to stockpile enough in time, but it was still my favorite season.
The way the frost and ice transformed the landscape was awe inspiring, but that wasn’t why I liked it so much.
I liked the winter because it was easier for me to spend time alone without being questioned or criticized; nobody could fault me for spending all my free time in my tent when the air was so cold that it would be dangerous to sit outside for too long.
My last winter had been different; I had lived as Luc’s prisoner, and the freedom the cold weather usually gave me became just another tool that was used to control me.
It was the first time the long, dark nights had ever felt oppressiv
