Though Ephi tried to focus on the old man's words, she only heard the first half, as she was suddenly thrown into a vision of the past, something she had not thought of for years. She supposed she had been partially successful in blocking those memories.
Ephi was maybe 9-10 years old, her hair shorter and in pigtails. She was sitting on the healer's wooden examining table. Voices from another room filtered through the door.
"Are you sure there's nothing you can do?" her mother's voice asked. Ephi could see the healer's head shake. Her mother burst into tears, and Ephi's father wrapped strong arms around her mother. Ephi briefly recalled the last time he had hugged her like that, more than a year ago. She had a strange feeling that she'd never feel that again.
The vision slowly faded, and Ephi realized she was crying. Wiping her tears, she felt a stirring start. Frantically, she latched onto the stirring for the first time, and pulling it up. Within a few seconds, she closed her eyes, and felt her nails start to grow long, sharp, and black.