Meira Dynam

Meira is the protagonist of Snow Like Ashes, the debut novel of Sara Raasch. Though she spends the first sixteen years of her life believing she is nothing more than an orphaned refugee, over the course of Snow Like Ashes she discovers that she is the princess of the Kingdom of Winter.

Appearance
Like all citizens of Winter, Meira has snow-white skin, white hair, and blue eyes.

History
Orphaned during Spring's attack on Winter, Meira spent the first sixteen years of her life as a refugee under the care of General William Loren, whom she knows as "Sir." One of only two children in the refugee group, she grew up alongside Mather. She has long harbored romantic feelings for Mather but was told to forget them because he was the heir to Winter and her status would not permit it. Sir, Mather and the other refugees have trained her to fight and defend herself and the camp, but she is barred from any real missions.

Snow Like Ashes
At the opening of Snow Like Ashes, Meira goes on her first real mission to retrieve half of the locket that is the conduit for Winter's magic. Although the mission goes awry, she proves herself by retrieving the locket half anyway. She is tracked by Spring soldiers back to the refugees' camp, and they run for Cordell, the nearest kingdom and their most likely ally.

Upon arrival in Cordell, Meira is informed that in order to secure an ally for Winter, she will be wedded to Cordellan prince Theron Haskar. Although she likes Theron and actually develops feelings for him, his father the king, Noam Haskar, is abrasive and manipulative, and Meira initially rejects the assertion that she will do anything against her will. Slowly, she accepts that she must do what is right for Winter and agrees to learn the ways of court and submit to the engagement, although she avoids the other refugees for as long as possible, feeling betrayed. When Sir and Mather corner her, they inform her that the wedding is in two weeks. Having expected a longer engagement and the chance to continue fighting for Winter, Meira storms into Noam's study to confront him. He is not there, but she finds a letter in which he has promised the evil king Angra access to Winter through his new "ownership" of the country via Meira. She shows the letter to the other refugees, hoping to prove her value.

When word comes that Spring is marching on Cordell, Meira contradicts Sir's orders to stay in the castle and instead joins the battle, disguised as a Cordellan archer. When Sir is mortally wounded by a cannon blast right before her eyes, Meira feels herself fill with icy coldness, but before she can process the shock, she is kidnapped by Spring's general Herod.

Meira is thrown in a work camp in the Spring capital, Abril. She struggles through manual labor without water for weeks. However, she is comforted by fellow prisoner Nessa and her brothers Conall and Garrison. They show her a secret system of tunnels in which the Winterian prisoners have carved their memories of Winter, and she is proclaimed the hope of the Winterians. Though initially despairing, she devises a plan to restore the prisoners' hope. She collapses a set of ramps occupied by Spring soldiers. A little Winterian boy begs the soldiers not to hurt her, and they whip him; she feels the coldness again and discovers that she has healed the little boy. She is dragged before Angra.

Angra attempts to torture the secret of the magic out of her, but she is greeted by the voice of the dead Winterian queen Hannah. Hannah tells her that she is the true heir to Winter, Mather is actually Sir's son, and when the conduit was broken the magic went into her. Meira uses this knowledge to protect herself; Angra then gives her to Herod. Herod attempts to rape and torture her, but Meira kills him. She frees Theron, who has given himself to Spring to motivate his father to attack; he comforts her and tells her the armies of Cordell and Autumn are on their way. Using her power as the living conduit, Meira gives energy and healing to the Winterian prisoners.

Angra attacks her, but she is saved by Sir, who was healed by her magic without her knowledge. With Angra vanished, Meira and the others return to the capital of Winter to rebuild.