Ten more to go. Amber thought hopefully but she didn’t smile. Her face remained a mask, empty of emotions, but devoted to her task.

They traveled at day and night, but Amber would continue to knit the shirts. She lost track of time, as she continued walking and knitting, with her brothers, either as swans or as humans, traveling with her.

Her hands had become rough, her skin scarred by the needle and the stinging nettle. But her body grown, her hair shining brown and her eyes, despite carrying the sadness in them, they were gleaming hazel.

And so five years passed and the road brought the siblings to the City of Flowers.

Amber was amazed when she entered the City. When she was smaller her father would always tell her stories of beauty and dancing petals. And they were true. The City was making a living by raising countless fields of flower beds and then selling them either at the City of Commerce or at the City of Magic.

She wanted to sing and dance, laugh and catch the petals, which were carried away by the soft winds. On every balcony, there were pots with colorful buds, filled with shiny water drops from the morning watering.

But her quest had brought Amber here and she couldn’t bear spending her time aimlessly. She was in dire need of stinging nettle and she had to try and buy some. Passing through the crowd and the sellers, she pulled her hood, covering her hair, keeping her gaze low.

“Anything you wish to buy Miss?” the husky voice from her right made her stop.

The boy was young, around nineteen but his body was showing that he could easily be a fighter. Trained and tanned under the constant warm sun, the boy smiled at Amber and showed her his pots of flowers.

His eyes were warm honey and his hair black. Amber would smile in that case but she couldn’t. Instead, she pulled the stinging nettle out of her dress’s pocket and showed it to the young seller.

“Nettle? Why would you want to buy nettle.”

Amber took out a small pouch of golden coins, savings her brothers had managed to gather when they worked at night, and offered it to the seller, moving the nettle on her hand.

“You…you can’t speak?” his eyes widened and moved from behind his counter, coming to her side.

“Keep your money,” He looked around and then back at Amber “and follow me.”

He took her hand and Amber’s eyes widened at the sudden touch. None had held her in all these years of her traveling and she realized how much she had missed human contact.

The boy took her back to the small room, which was his home. He pointed at her to sit and quickly he took off his selling shirt and washed his hands. Amber noticed that the room smelled like orchids and jasmine. The gardens of her home used to have jasmines and with the though Amber left a traitorous tear fall.

“Hey, don’t cry. I will not hurt you.” He offered her a cup of warm milk and Amber drank pleased.

“My name is Elis and this wreck is my home and store. Where do you come from?”

Amber took out the small notebook, her fifth brother had brought for her and wrote the name of her City.

“From Commerce City? That’s a long way!”

She nodded.

“Why are you searching for stinging nettle? No one buys them.”

Help, please, were the words she wrote unable to explain the reasons, because she couldn’t, after the witch’s warning.

Elis seemed to think of her words for a moment and brushed his hair, thinking.

“Stinging nettles can be found at the outskirts of the city. But the City of Flowers has a law.”

Amber gazed at him waiting to continue.

“If anyone dares to bring them into the city will be sentenced to death. It is proven that nettles can attract Demons or even worse, can be used for poisons. And so far, the law works.”

He leaned in front of her and looked at her face. The hood was still covering her hair but her eyes were clear like the day. Elis left a sound and grinned at her.

“You look beautiful.”

Amber held her breath and tried not to smile. But she couldn't stop the raising heartbeat on her chest.

“What is your name?”

She drew the lines feeling for the first time happy and grateful even if she couldn't show it.

Amber.

------------------

The door to the cell opened and the guardian entered. Amber stilled for a moment and looked at him, but quickly she turned back to her knitting. She couldn't stop now, not before finishing the eleventh and final shirt she had begun.

The guardian gave her a detested look and turned to the open door.

“You have 10 minutes,” he said gruffly and left.

The cloaked figure entered and turned to the seated Amber. Although night the moonlight had found its way into the cell from the small caged window, illuminating slightly the tiny space.

A gloved hand lifted the hood and the black hair appeared. Amber stilled as she saw Elis standing before her and left a relieved breath.

“Amber, thank gods you're safe.” he knelt in front of her holding her rough from the nettles hand.

“When I learned that you were caught, I rushed back. I didn't expect the guards to ambush my home and found you there. One of the sellers told me that they had caught you knitting.”

Amber nodded.

“Why? Why do you continue knitting even now Amber?” he begged with his voice but she remained expressionless.

Amber lifted her face and met his eyes. If she could speak, she would tell that the attack was planned, that she had seen the icy eyes of Susan, as the City's guards had caught her. Even now, the Demon was haunting her and she couldn't get away.

For two years she had managed to stay close to Elis, helping him with his work as a florist. And he would every night sneak out from the city, bringing back nettles for her. The night, she and her brothers had escaped from their home seemed so far away; she had met her brothers as swans from time to time, comforting them with her gestures that she was safe and well.

When she left home she was ten.

Now in her twenties, she had almost finished knitting but she knew that there was no time. Tomorrow she would burn at stake and Elis couldn't help her, even if he bribed the guards.

Her eyes continued staring at him and she wished with all her heart Elis would know how much precious the time, they had spent together, was.

“Amber, please...I can't take you away from here.”

She nodded, understanding and let down her knitting. She lifted her hands and cupped his face, making Elis still under her touch. Slowly, she tilted her head and kissed his lips, leaving a trace of her love for him behind.

Elis stared at her, breathing heavily and stormed out from her cell, leaving her behind. Alone with her only companions the knitting shirt and the moonlight, Amber continued letting silent tears fall on her moving hands.

------------------

“Here comes the prisoner! All standby!” the guard shouted at the gathered crowd as the cart which had Amber and her shirts on it was heading to the central square.

She was going to be burnt together with her shirts, a reminder to everyone of not breaking the rules again. But Amber was ignoring the cries and the hateful voices of the angry people. She had spent the night knitting. She was so close to her end but she continued knitting, hoping that at least her brothers would be saved.

When they pulled her to the gathered pile of wood and tied her waist on the stake, only then did she dare to lift her eyes, meeting the icy blue ones.

Susan was sitting together with the shell that used to be her father on the tent, where all the royalties were gathered. She smiled at her, the same evil smile she had given Amber ten years ago and clapped her hands with sick excitement.

Amber lowered her head and continued knitting like mad. She was so focused that she didn't notice the fire on the torch which was coming closer and closer to her.

The cries at the sky made her flinch. Eleven majestic swans were flying above her, diving into the air, hitting the guards and by flapping their wings, pushing away the people. Amber cried out in alarm but continued knitting feeling the nettle more painful than ever.

A roar shook the ground and only then did she notice that the red tongues of fire were heading from the wood to her feet.

But instead of feeling fear, Amber rejoiced; she started lifting the completed eleven shirts into the air, calling for the first time after ten years her brothers' names. One by one all eleven brothers gathered around her flying into the nettle shirts and landing on the ground, transformed back to their human forms.

A loud shriek was heard from the standing of the royalties and Amber saw Susan charging against her, ready to kill her. Amber was still throwing the shirt into the air, ignoring the burning fire, caring only for her brothers' safety, but that very moment she called out the only one she truly needed by her side.

“ELIS!”

A crack opened to the ground and soon crows filled the air as the man in black rushed over and caught Susan from her neck, pinning her down to the stone ground. The screams of the people filled the air but Amber recognized the black hair and the muscular body of the man she had fallen in love with.

“You!” Susan shouted at the raging man.

He was covered with black tattoos, his eyes glowing red and his hands were clawed.

“Do you remember me? I am sure you are!” Elis spoke with a deadly voice.

He lifted her from the ground still holding Sudan who was screaming and kicking under his hold.

“You sealed my powers! But I had found the cure. I had to do a good deed, for my powers to return. Here's my answer then for both Amber and her brothers!”

Black smoke covered Susan and soon she was dissolved into ash, leaving nothing behind.

The air cleared and the crows disappeared. Elis turned and saw the eleven brothers, gathered around the fainted body of Amber. They had just managed to rescue her from the flames.

He left his rage calm and soon he reverted back to his human self. The brothers eyed him with suspicion but when he walked slowly and leaned in front of their sister, they nodded at him thankfully.

Elis brushed his knuckles on Amber's soft skin and held her rough hands, kissing them softly.

“Amber.”

She opened slowly her eyes and looked at him, with recognition at her eyes.

“Hello Elis.” her melodic voice ringed into the air.

And they both hugged each other.