What Have We Gotten Ourselves Into?

So, poking around ancient magic stuff? Yeah, turns out it's not all fun and games. Who knew, right? After Lena and I stumbled upon that altar in the woods, things around the village started to feel a bit... off. But Lena, she was on cloud nine, buzzing about like we'd hit the jackpot of all adventures. "Alex, this is huge!" she kept saying, and I mean, she wasn't wrong, but I was more in the "huge and possibly terrifying" camp.

I tried to get on board with her level of stoke, but there was this nagging feeling I couldn't shake. "Lena, don't you think it felt kinda spooky out there?" I asked, hoping it wasn't just me.

She paused, that wild gleam in her eye dimming just a notch. "Maybe," she admitted. "But come on, Alex. We've gotta see where this goes."

And yeah, that's Lena for you—once she's got her teeth into something, good luck prying her away. So, I figured, might as well strap in for the ride. "Okay, but let's not go charging in without thinking, alright?"

"Deal," she agreed, though we both knew her idea of being 'careful' was probably way different from mine.

The village was buzzing post-festival, but under all the chatter and laughter, I started noticing weird vibes. Elders whispering, animals acting up, just a general sense of something being up. Lena and I turned detective, sneaking around, diving into old books, and trying to chat up anyone who knew anything about... well, anything that could explain the freaky altar.

One day, we're elbow-deep in ancient texts at the library, and Lena's hand brushes against mine. Hello, electricity. We locked eyes, and for a second, I forgot all about haunted altars and jumped straight into a "what if" about me and Lena. Then she blushed, dove back into the books, and that moment was gone as quick as it came.

"Look!" Lena's whisper cut through my daydream. She'd found something—a drawing that was a dead ringer for our altar, surrounded by text about rituals and guardians. Stuff that sounded way out of our league.

"We should probably tell someone," I said, suddenly feeling way over our heads.

"Yeah," Lena agreed, all her earlier excitement replaced with a serious vibe. "Mara will know what to do."

We packed up, our mood a mix of adventure and "oh crap, what now?" As we headed home to spill the beans to Mara, I couldn't help feeling like we'd just opened Pandora's box. And from what I'd heard, she wasn't too keen on returns or exchanges.