2.

If there is one of nine who is more in tune with what she is, more in tune with all that she has and more in tune with all that surrounds her then that would be Raven. There is contentment, there is satisfaction in destruction and in the pain and suffering of others. She is and has always been content with being different. Yeah, she has a gift. It makes her different but not in a weak way, not in a bad way, well maybe that could be debated.

She should not feel sorry for herself and she doesn't; it is everyone else she should feel sorry for, and of course, she doesn't. This gift of hers to her is a huge source of inner strength, it offers her confidence and ensures the deadly presence of threat to all those she comes into contact with.

There is an anger within her too, she in no way likes being told what to do. A voice is with her, an inner voice and it is always with her. Darkness has an ear or will have an ear with all nine of his new generation of daughters though Raven hears it from early on, not only that, but she is also compliant, fully compliant until she isn't. A certain Majella Smith is not aware of the presence Darkness has with her until such a time came when he came out of the shadows.

With Raven, she is grateful for her gift and enjoy it she does. Darkness will have to teach lessons and thus her anger creates a certain ... conflict. She'd rather have full control and say over who she is and what she does than ever have moments of being told of what to do. When lessons sink in, she may just return to being completely compliant and at that may still carries doubt.

Over her eighteen years of life up to a particular gathering, she has had a power over birds, all birds but blackbirds in particular ... ravens, and of course this power is set to continue long after a Ball ends. At will, she could always make these birds come to her. She could have them do whatever she wants them to do. This is a power she mastered at the very young age of six years.

On one day at the school playground, there was another child, there were lots of other children but one child in particular, another little girl who so happens to have a doll that Raven liked, a doll that Raven wanted to claim as her own. Even at six years of age it felt good, it felt powerful, yeah even at six years of age Raven liked what it was and is she can do. A child should not enjoy darkness so much but then again, this is no ordinary child. She does come from evil. Evil is in her completely.

That other little girl was not going to simply hand over her dolly. It was hers and not anyone else's. She could share but not with someone who is not at all being nice. Anger arrives with not getting what she wants and in response to the anger a blackbird comes to land on the other little girl's right shoulder once the refusal to share becomes definite, then another blackbird lands unto her left shoulder and relentlessly they begin picking at the little girl's face.

She ran, screamed and roared and there would be a battle to save her from such an odd and relentless attack. A panic spreads like a pandemic that knows no time. It needs no time to infect the hearts and souls of all those close by. Quick to bleed, quick to fall over, another bout of helplessness and a child is irrevocably destroyed.

The little girl with the dolly would never fully recover from this attack; she is to be forever scarred by it, forever to be haunted by this one event. In the moment of attack adults struggled to help her. There was blood though any damage done, physical damage at least, would heal to a certain degree, mental damage ... well that would last a lifetime.

In the shadows Darkness had watched. He saw it all and he enjoyed it to the point that in her head she hears the approving words and she liked hearing those words. She would come to want to hear those words some more and when a time came where the words wouldn't come or at least seemed to stop coming at all, she got angry.

All children, no matter who they are or what their purpose in the world is, need to learn. They can so often be like sponges taking in absolutely everything. The lessons Darkness has to teach will be taught the way he wants them to be taught, he will not go lightly or takes things easy and slow no matter who the recipients of his lessons are to be. He will show no favouritism.

At twelve years of age Raven does not have many, if any, friends at school. Some, students and teachers alike, fear her. Others think that there is something seriously wrong with her. Mister Edwards is a teacher who certainly fears her. The first time he attempted to get tough with Raven at a moment when she wasn't being all so pleasant, he, along with the whole class, noticed the arrival of multiple blackbirds to the outside of the classroom window. They tapped and tapped against the glass until Mister Edwards eased up, backing away from scolding his student.

Getting to his car after school came to an end was not easy on that day, with it being swarmed by birds, well getting to vehicle was one thing, getting into it was another. Starting his engine and beginning his drive done little to rid his vehicle of the feathered creatures, using his windshield wipers along with picking up speed done the job.

Safe to say it took some time though Mister Edwards persevered until eventually and somewhat safely he managed to make his way home. This moment as unnerving as it was could be deemed as being an event as much as being a lesson taught to someone who under regular circumstances would be delivering the lessons.

The second time he attempted to challenge Raven, Edwards found himself in a similar position to that of the first time round, and of course he had learned his lesson that first time round, in case he hadn't there was a single crow perched on the outside classroom window ledge. He would not be attempting to scold or correct the child on this occasion or any other occasion from here on in.

Raven easily could have taken advantage of all this and could easily have had Mister Edwards in her pocket to do with how she saw fit, but she chose not to. Instead, she decided to end a life just because she could, and of course she would do this without doing any of the killing directly. Mister Edwards had made it home once with his vehicle being haunted by feathered creatures so when they swarmed his car once again, he was sure he would be able to make it home again.

Birds almost completely swamped his car this time round and with this being the case, once he was within the vehicle, he had no immediate plans to vacate it. Drive home, he thought. Surely, they'll ease up by the time he gets there. Instead, they kept coming, becoming more aggressive with every passing second.

Tapping at the driver's seat window and the passenger seat window it would be only a matter of time before cracks appear. Speed would become his friend so he would assume, speed would clear the car of feathered activity. It didn't. The cracks came and the birds gained access. Speed became the enemy. Attempting to defend himself and not being able to see where he was going, his car veered of road and ...

First responders on the scene had no chance. A certain reporter by the name of Johanna Appleby attempted to put a story together having heard of some strange circumstances, witnesses having witnessed the oddest of things travelling the roads. A growing fear of blackbirds a schoolteacher had in the run up to his demise ... instigated the demise. A reporter's investigation only went so far and not far enough.

More and more during this year, the year leading up to her thirteenth birthday, Raven spent more and more time in the school yard surrounded by birds. She attended class and done her fair share of work. Knowledge is power as Darkness whispered to her on many occasions and despite her frustrations this is one thing she did not rebel against.

She couldn't understand why a point came where the words had stopped coming. She knew where these words were coming from, she knew they weren't her own and she knew he was never really far away so why had he gone quiet? And why was he messing with her gift? There had been moments where her gift over the birds was not as strong as it could be or had been, and she knew that Darkness was once more teaching her a lesson.

On one occasion she saw him in the shadows of the school yard, on the inner corner off in the distance, right where two walls meet. Silently and within her own mind she asked him why? He didn't respond. She asked him again only out loud this second time. Still, he did not answer.

He stepped out of the shadows for a moment or two before the skies began to darken despite it being so early in the day. Of course, this, along with the suspected knowledge of Raven's regular ability, spooked the hell out of all who were nearby as all who were near could see the quickening darkness. Her anger built and he would not try to restrain her.

Darkness began to move towards her. With her anger hitting a peak, she sends the birds hurtling towards the slow walking almost silhouette of a man, and with him being exactly who he is, the birds simply pass right through him and then do so again on the way back to she who guides them. His look focused upon her as if there were no one else around. He smiles then vanishes.

Maybe angering her was the point, a test of sorts, a test of her skill, a test in his eyes that she passed exactly as planned. No matter his intentions, he had gifted each of his daughters with free will. There may be shades of doubt in one or two of the nine but with Raven there is no doubt at all. The test took away doubt.

She will do just whatever he says, she might fight it at times, but she is a true daughter of darkness, and the real test of this will come in time. She has her foster parents, a second set of foster parents and she will listen to them too for her day will come whole, her time will come.

As with Mister Edwards, Raven does not try to take advantage of her foster parents, especially in light of what occurred to those she had before, however these people who are her guardians do know something is not right with the girl they took into their home. Sure, the constant stream of blackbirds at their home would be a dead giveaway. There is a fear though they do try not to allow that fear to control them.

They do have the knowledge that they are a second set of foster parents for this girl. What exactly it was that went before is something they know next to nothing of.