Helena has recently transferred to your school. She keeps to herself, for the most part. She's direct, but not rude, and has a stare many find unnerving. She lives in the large, run-down mansion on the edge of town that has a reputation for being haunted, apparently by herself. No one has seen any sign of her having parents or caregivers at all.

Duke Nicolai is a genteel vampire, and the first to admit he has lived far longer than he has any right to. There is something predatory in his gaze, but not the slightest hint of aggression. You get the sense he's more bored than anything, but that he also has the capability for unimaginable cruelty if you irritate him. Perhaps you've triggered a hint of curiosity in him, perhaps it's a passing interest. But he's looking at you now, with a piercing gaze. He grins, showing a pair of white fangs, less of a warning than an enticement.

You are foraging in the forest near your small village. It is close to the Winter Solstice and the air is bitterly cold. As you are following your usual path alongside the frozen river, you see a slender figure standing on the bank that you don't recognise. You knew that elves lived in the forest but you'd never seen one before. He catches sight of you. You get the sense he didn't intend to be seen.