"Welcome back, Baby."
The voice was too close.
Too calm.
Too certain.
I couldn't move.
My body locked in place as the air behind me turned cold—unnaturally cold, like warmth had been pulled out of the room completely.
"Don't turn around," he said sharply.
But I already had.
Slowly.
Carefully.
And then-
I saw it.
At first, it looked human.
A tall figure standing near the doorway, its shape steady, almost familiar. But the longer I looked… the more wrong it felt.
Its presence bent the air around it.
Like it didn't fully belong here.
Its eyes found mine.
And something inside me dropped instantly.
"You've grown," it said softly.
My breath trembled.
"…Who are you?"
A pause.
Then—
"I was there the night your world ended."
My chest tightened.
The storm.
The voices.
The door.
"You…" I whispered.
It tilted its head slightly.
Almost pleased.
"Yes."
The room felt smaller.
He stepped in front of me again, blocking my view.
"Don't listen to it," he said firmly.
But it laughed.
Low.
Empty.
"She deserves to know," it replied.
My heart was racing now.
"Know what?!"
Silence.
Then—
"That she was never meant to live this long."
Everything in me froze.
The necklace burned against my skin.
"She was supposed to awaken," the presence continued calmly. "And be taken."
"Taken…?" I repeated, my voice barely there.
"Stopped," it corrected.
A sharp stillness filled the room.
"She carries a fragment that should not exist in a human vessel," it said.
"Something ancient. Something dangerous."
My mind spun.
And then—
He spoke.
"She is not your concern anymore."
There was something different in his voice now.
Not soft.
Not distant.
Protective.
The presence shifted slightly.
Its attention fully turning to him now.
"…You," it said slowly.
"Still guarding what was never yours."
He didn't respond immediately.
Instead—
The air around him changed.
The wind gathered.
Not from outside.
But from within the space itself.
And for the first time…
I saw it.
What he truly was.
His form didn't change completely—
But something about him became clearer.
Stronger.
The air obeyed him.
Moved with him.
Like he wasn't just standing in the wind—
He was part of it.
"I told you," he said quietly.
"I found her first."
My breath caught.
"You're…" I started.
He glanced at me briefly.
And in that moment—
I understood.
Not fully.
But enough.
That the man I met in the river which I didn't care to ask of his name wasn't human.
He was something tied to the wind itself.
A guardian.
A force.
Something that existed long before me.
The presence laughed again.
"You think that bond protects her?" it asked.
Then—
Without warning—
The air snapped.
A force surged through the room.
He reacted instantly.
"Stay behind me!" he said, pulling me slightly back.
The space between him and the presence distorted—
Like two forces colliding without touching.
The walls trembled.
My heart pounded wildly as I looked toward the door—
And that's when I saw it.
The house…
Too quiet.
"…My aunt," I whispered.
No movement.
No sound.
Just stillness.
Something inside me sank.
Deep.
Heavy.
"No…" I said softly.
The presence didn't deny it.
Didn't react.
Which told me everything.
Something broke inside me.
The necklace flared—
Hot.
Blinding.
My breath hitched sharply.
"What is—?!"
Pain rushed through me.
But not like something hurting me—
Like something trying to break free.
"Baby—!" he turned toward me.
Too late.
The feeling exploded.
Light burst from my chest.
Not soft.
Not gentle.
Powerful.
Uncontrolled.
The wind surged violently outward—
But it wasn't just wind.
It carried something deeper.
Something ancient.
The room shook.
The presence staggered slightly—
For the first time.
"…Impossible," it whispered.
I couldn't see clearly.
Couldn't think.
All I felt was—
Release.
Like something inside me had finally breathed after years of being held down.
Then—
Silence.
The light faded.
The wind settled.
My body gave out.
And just before everything went dark—
I felt him catch me.
"…It's starting," he whispered.
Darkness took me.
And somewhere in that darkness—
Something inside me finally woke up.