The oppressive gloom of the attic pressed in, a familiar weight on Catherina's chest. She curled tighter on the rough wooden planks she called a bed, the damp cold seeping into her bones. The morning light, a sliver through the grimy window, brought no comfort, only the dread of another day under the iron fist of her adoptive mother. She knew what awaited her: chores, insults, and the ever-present threat of Kenn, her stepbrother.

A sudden, chilling splash of cold water jarred her awake, drenching her already thin clothes. She gasped, flinching as her adoptive mother's harsh voice cut through the silence. "Get up! You this stupid lazy bones!" The words were a familiar sting, a reminder of her unwanted existence. Catherina sighed, the weight of the world settling on her young shoulders, and slowly, reluctantly, pushed herself up from the floor.