Chapter 1

The desperate and hopeless sobs that filled the room echoing off the walls are the first thing she hears. She listens more intently and can make out the cries of a woman begging someone to stop, but there's a silence in response. As she walked into the house, the creaking floorboards beneath her feet seemed to echo in the stillness. She turns around and is met with the sight of a door that had been there moments ago, now gone. She wanted to hurl a string of expletives, but resignation was stronger, so she chose to ignore it and focus on the unfamiliar environment she found herself in.

Well, so far, it seems to be some kind of living room. The walls are coated in a yellow cream paint, but the oppressive darkness of the room makes it difficult to appreciate. The only light coming from under the door of one of the closed rooms.

She wants to open that door, the sense of dread enveloping her as her hand moves toward the handle. However, instead of continuing, she takes a minute to attempt to fathom the mysterious emotion that has taken her over. Why is a chill running down her spine when she considers the door? Even with the feeling of dread, why does she still feel compelled to come closer?

She feels her body responding to an unknown force, propelling her closer, but it is unnatural.

Someone utters a barely audible, "Hush," so quiet she isn't sure if she's heard it at all. She cautiously turns, her ears straining to listen for any sign of another person, but all she hears is silence.

How strange, I remember **** being here just a second ago.

Internally, she shakes her head, her thoughts becoming disoriented as they transition between the present and future, the speed making her head spin.

She forces her legs to move, and after a seemingly endless amount of time, she finally makes it to the door with the light spilling out from beneath it. The sobs become louder, but she ignores it and the weird feeling it makes her feel as she opens the door.

Only to be once again in the entrance of the living room.

She frowns and her feet start aching as she walks towards the door, which now seems impossibly far away. The walls stretch on and on until the living room feels like an endless hallway, and she has to squint to make out the door in the distance. She walks, her shoes scuffing against the pavement with a dull thud, and all she can seem to be able is that: walking.

After minutes of looking at the same, monotonous paintings of geometric shapes on the wall, she lets out a deep, exasperated sigh.

"I should've known," she murmurs with a soft tsk as she closes her eyes.

And wakes up.

She yawns as she sits up, her comfy mattress falling down on her form. She watches her white door, feeling the warmth of the sun on her skin as she stretches.

Not a moment later, her brother's voice reached her ears, a soft call of "Sis! It's time to wake up!" accompanied by a couple of gentle knocks.

The door opens to reveal the eight-year-old's bright face, and the sound of his steps echoes through the room. At seeing his sister being awake, he shows a brief look of shock before his smile returns. "It's breakfast's time! Are you going to school today?"

She looked at the talisman, taking in the intricate design and the faint smell of incense it emitted. The lines are almost all black, with only faint gold showing. It means she has a day, probably. Better to use it for another occasion.

Shaking her head, she says, "I don't think so, kiddo. I've already done all the exams last week, so why go this time, um?"

He pouts and points to her closet with his index finger. "But I've seen all the talismans you've got that are the same!"

Surprised at his brazenness rising, she appraises him with a blank look, her lips curl in an amused smirk. "Have you been searching around, kiddo?"

Here he pales, clearly recognizing the small threat for what it was. "I-I mean, I didn't want to! But mom told me to leave some of your clothes there…"

She gets up, slowly advancing towards him, her bangs covering one of her eyes. "Do you know what kind of terrifying stuff there can be here, hiding between something like innocuous clothes, um?"

He shakes his head like a rattle. "I didn't touch anything, I swear! I just saw it, you know?" Seeing her still advancing, he no longer retreats, bravely standing his ground and puffing his chest out. "Besides, mom told you to not keep dangerous things inside your room!"

She stops in front of him, looking at his determined eyes with a sad smile for a second, before sighing and ruffling his hair. "Don't worry, kiddo. I just got those talismans. And they're mostly harmless." He opens his mouth, probably to ask him again about the classes again, but she interrupts him, "And those are for university."

That shuts him up.

She yawns once again and motions him to go outside. "Let's go to eat, kiddo."

Mom gives her a quick nod and turns back to her computer, the keys clicking away as she works. It's more than she deserves, so she just quietly sits down and eats her cereal while Bruno goes to wake up Stefania. She tries to accelerate time with her gaze as she waits in the uncomfortable silence, but it still takes Bruno five minutes to wake up their sister.

She's ready to sing the 'Hallelujah' when she hears their steps, but as usual one look from Stefania and she stops her mental singing.

"Good morning, Mom," says Stefania with a kiss on their mother's cheek. "Where's dad?"

"He had to go early to work early today."

Bruno looks up. "Do you know if he will return by the time school is over? He promised to teach me how to use the camera he bought me for my birthday."

"I'm sure he will, dear. Why don't you tell me how your day was yesterday?"

And that's enough for her little brother to open the gates of his rambling. He starts by telling her about his classes, from time-to-time checking with her mom to assure her he speaks the truth. Mom answers with a distracted, "Of course, sweetie," each time he does so. She still listens with curious attention, asking for clarification when necessary.

It isn't until half an hour later that mom goes away with Bruno, ready to leave him to school and to go working, respectively. Stefania's high school is nearer, so she goes walking, already typing on her phone and just giving her a wave and 'bye' as she leaves.

Bruno hugs her before going out with mom, giving her a nod and a quiet 'be careful' as she follows her brother.

She looks at the window until she can see the car being a little dot in the distance. With a sigh, she goes back to her room; it's time to work on making more talismans. A thing that she's gotten better at doing since her trip to China, where she found out about talismans. She almost cried when she used one and finally could see the world as normal people do without the cloudy filter that makes the surroundings unrecognizable. Except, of course, the people, the dead and other creatures. They're pretty clear.

They always are.