The couple ran through the trees, loud crashing drawing closer to them. They had been warned to be indoors by sunset, but they had tarried too long and now the beast that had been haunting the village and killing anyone who was unlucky enough to be outside had their scent. If they could just reach their home... They emerged from the woods and found themselves face to face with a man aiming a crossbow towards the forest.

"Behind me!" he said gruffly. "Now!"

They did not have to be told twice. The two ran around a building to hide, the man peeking out to watch the brave soul. He hadn't moved, still aiming the crossbow. His armor was dark, thus they could barely see him. Across his back were two swords and there looked to be several round containers on his belt. The beast came crashing out of the trees and before it could comprehend the man in front of it, he'd released the bolt, sending it sailing through its eye. The beast yowled before charging at the man. He quickly threw down the crossbow and drew the outside sword, defending himself. It yowled again and swiped at the man. He dodged, but it caught him in the shoulder, knocking him down. But he was quickly back to his feet, attacking the monster. To the couple's surprise and faster than they could track, the man was on top of the beast and in one fell swing, beheaded it. The man hopped off the beast and cleaned off his sword before returning it to its place. He gave a whistle and a black horse trotted out from between the buildings. The man attached the beast's head to the saddle before turning to where the couple was hiding.

"Get out here." The couple emerged from hiding. "What were you thinking? You could have been killed."

"We just lost track of time," the man explained.

"You were lucky I was out here to say your asses." The man had dark hair cut short with yellow eyes that looked like a cat's. On his chest lay a pendant shaped like a wolf's head and they realized that a Witcher had just saved them.

"How can we thank you for saving us, Master Witcher?"

"I don't work for free."

"But... we haven't the coin to pay you."

"Then I claim the Law of Surprise. What you find at home yet don't expect."

"Then you shall have our firstborn," the woman said.

The two men turned to her.

"What?"

"I was going to tell you when we returned home." She turned back to the Witcher. "You shall have the child I am carrying."

7 YEARS LATER

The little girl looked upon the fortress with wide-eyed wonder. Her parents had told her that she would be going someplace special where she could be around people like her. Juray was scared, naturally. She was going someplace new after all, leaving behind everything she knew. Not that she would miss what she left behind. Her parents left her to her own designs, doting on her younger brother. The other children would avoid her so she would often play by herself. The entire village would have nothing to do with her. All because she was unlucky enough to be born under the first full moon of the winter. The elders called her cursed. The villagers called her White Demon. Because she had been born with snow-white hair. Then came the day the stranger came to their door. She watched from around the corner as her parents spoke to him before her mother started to pack provisions and called to Juray, giving her the pack and telling her she had to go with the man.

"You're going to a place to be with people like you," she'd said. "It's much better this way."

Juray was scared of this gruff man with two swords and a scar down the left side of his face. But he held out his hand to her, the first person she'd ever known to do that to her. So she left with him, waving goodbye to her parents. She stopped being afraid of him when he ran off the children who threw rocks at them, shouting her hated nickname at her. The man explained to her that he'd saved her parents before she was born and they agreed to send her with him to train to be a Witcher. This frightened her, but after a long journey that felt like it took years, Juray looked upon the walls of Kaer Morhen and she couldn't help but feel a little excited for the first time in her life.

James hadn't expected the child he'd claimed as his reward would be a girl. He thought about not claiming her until her parents begged him to take her.

"You will never see her again. If she goes through this training."

"She will do better among your kind," the father said. "She's a cursed child."

James raised a brow. "Cursed?"

"She was born under the first full moon of the winter. If she stays, she'll spread her curse to the rest of the village."

James rubbed his forehead. "Fine. I'll take the girl since I'm sure if I don't you'll use her as bait for the next monster that bothers your village."

"She should have been stillborn."

James couldn't believe what had just come out of the father's mouth.

The mother turned and pack some provisions for their daughter. "Juray. Get out here."

A little girl of about six walked into the room and he now saw why they were convinced she was cursed. The girl's wild hair was snow-white, a stark contrast to her bright blue eyes. James had only met one other child with white hair, a Witcher student whose hair had gone from black as night to white when he'd undergone the Trial of the Grasses, his resistance to the mutagens unseen before and he was given extra mutagens to test how far that resistance went. The boy was the only survivor of the group of students given the extra mutagens. James looked over the girl and wondered if he was giving her a death sentence.

Juray's mother handed her the bundle. "You're going to go with him. He's going to take you to a special place to live with children just like you."

Juray didn't look convinced and James could smell the fear on her. A fear he was used to as a Witcher.

"You have to go now."

The little girl still didn't move. Until James held his hand out to her. She hesitantly stepped forward and put her small hand into his. As James led her to the door, she turned and waved at her family. They didn't wave back.

Outside, a group of children waited.

"There she is! White Demon!" They started to throw rocks at her. "White Demon will kill us all."

Juray squeezed his hand tighter as a couple of the rocks hit her and she whimpered.

"Enough," James said, gruffly.

A couple of the children ran wide-eyed once they realized the stranger was a Witcher, one crying about freaks. The rest of the children kept throwing rocks until one bounced off James' leg.

"Get lost, you little bastards." He gave a wave of his hand, casting Axii to make them leave. "Go back home."

They all froze, before dropping the rocks and turning around and leaving.

"How did you do that?" Juray asked as he lifted her onto the horse.

James mounted behind her, taking the reins. "It's something Witchers can do." He turned his horse, glad to leave this superstitious lot behind.

Vesemir was watching over the training yard. Lambert was being aggressive as usual. Eskel and Geralt were sparring with each other. Little Berenger, one of the youngest of the apprentices was attacking a training dummy, his mentor sighing and shaking his head. He turned his head as a lone rider came into the keep. He knew that James had gone to claim his Unexpected Child and Vesemir and Rennes moved towards the stables to meet him. Both men were surprised to see the child he claimed was a little white-haired girl that had to be no more than six.

"James," Rennes motioned to the girl. "You know that we only train boys."

"We can train her," James interrupted. "We don't have to make her go through the Trials, but I have a very good reason to have brought her anyway."

Rennes motioned for him to continue.

"The girl was born under the first full moon of winter. Her hair color caused the village to believe her cursed and she was shunned by everyone, including her own family. If I left her, she would be dead before her next birthday." James felt the girl's arm around his leg and he reached down to put a hand on her shoulder.

Vesemir noticed the gesture, noting that James had never done that before to any of the apprentices, even the boy that he had basically raised from birth who perished during his final Trial.

"Why not, Rennes?" Vesemir asked. "It would do her good."

"Do you really think the students want a little girl training next to them?"

"She's training with them, Rennes," James said. "She has nowhere else."

"We're not a charity. We don't just take in orphans."

"She's my Unexpected Child and we will train her."

Rennes' lips drew into a flat line.

"Can't argue with that logic," Vesemir said. "He saved her parents, the girl was his reward for doing so."

"Fine." Rennes then turned and walked away.

"He's not happy."

"Of course, he's not," James snorted.

"So they were convinced she's cursed?" Vesemir looked down at the girl. "You have a name, kid?"

"Juray."

Juray learned quickly, much to the amusement of most of the boys. Berenger, being a year older than her, would spar with her the most. And she usually succeeded in besting him. She may have been smaller but she used that to her advantage. In this particular sparring session, Juray had bested Berenger, knocking him on his back before promptly sitting on his chest, causing the boys around them to laugh.

"I can see why your village called you White Demon," he commented. "You fight like one."

"Don't call me that, please." Juray stood, helping Berenger to his feet.

Lambert walked by at that moment, purposely bumping into her hard enough to cause her to stumble.

"If you're done playing, why don't you move so the real Witcher students can spar," he said.

Juray sighed. She'd been putting up with his verbal abuse for the past two years. She hadn't seen him in a week or two, as he'd just gone through the Trial of the Grasses. Like Juray, he was a product of the Law of Surprise, here as a reward because he was the first thing his father saw upon returning home. Unlike Juray, who was much happier around people that didn't shun her because of her hair, one of the older boys also had white hair, Lambert was bitter about it.

"What makes you think I'm not going to be a Witcher?" Juray retorted, answering his jabs for the first time.

Lambert looked at her and scoffed. "Because you're a girl."

"So? Who says girls can't be Witchers?"

"Do you see any girl Witchers?"

"Obviously, most of the Witchers are on the Path."

Berenger laughed. "She has you there."

"Shut up, Berenger." Nearby, Geralt and Eskel had stopped sparring. "You shouldn't even be here, girl."

"Well, you don't have a say in that."

"You think you're so special because you have white hair? Because you're a girl? Nobody's special here. You're a nobody. Hell, your parents didn't even want you."

Juray didn't answer, Lambert jabbing where it hurt the most.

He scoffed. "The little White Demon nobody wants around."

Juray took a step back.

"Are you going to run and cry now? Just sit in the dirt and cry." He then shoved her hard enough that she fell onto her backside. "You'll never be a Witcher."

Juray picked herself up, only to have Lambert shove her back down. He was suddenly pulled back and shoved himself.

"Why don't you pick on someone your own size, Lambert?" Geralt said, crossing his arms and protecting Juray so she could rise.

"Like you? You're nothing special either. You haven't even done the Trial of Dreams yet?"

"So? You're not anything special either, so why don't you leave Juray alone before I rearrange your face."

Lambert balled his fist up, ready to throw a punch, but suddenly backed down, instead shoving past Geralt and heading off the training yard. Geralt watched him go, noticing that both Rennes and Vesemir had seen the whole incident.

He turned his head to Juray. "You okay?"

Juray nodded. "Yeah. Thanks, Geralt."

"I think you'd make a good Witcher."

"Really?"

"Of course," Eskel said. "You've only been here two years and you're already kicking Berenger's arse several times."

"Hey!"

"It's true," Geralt said. "We just watched her do it."

"Do you think Rennes will let me? I don't think he likes me very much."

"All you have to do is convince Vesemir," Eskel said with a smile.

"Until then, come on," Geralt said. "You need a challenge."