In the fall of 1949, young runaway Yael is living as a pickpocket in Germania, where her shapeshifting allows her to go undetected. One day, she attempts to pick the pocket of a teenage boy carrying parcels, but he’s too quick for her. As they struggle, the boy catches a glimpse of Yael’s concentration camp tattoo. He confides that he has one, too, and offers to help her. After introducing himself as Aaron-Klaus, the boy leads Yael to a hideaway in the basement of a beer hall where Yael meets Henryka for the first time. She’s also introduced to a General Reiniger—a Nazi officer who works undercover as a resistance fighter.

Yael is careful not to reveal her shapeshifting abilities to them. The group takes Yael in and gives her a home, plenty of food, and a basic education. While Aaron struggles with calculus homework, Yael learns to read and masters several languages. She is fascinated by the legend of the Valkyries, which she finds in an old encyclopedia: “She liked to imagine the scene: a powerful woman with wings unfurled, looming over the Führer. Making a choice. Life or death” (166).