Emma hadn't slept a single minute.
She lay on the narrow bed, eyes wide open, fingers clenched around the spiral pendant as if it were the only thing tethering her to reality. It pulsed faintly in her palm, not with light, but with something deeper—like a second heartbeat, echoing her own.
She couldn't lie to herself anymore.
Nora wasn't entirely… Nora.
Something had shifted, subtly at first—too subtle for others to notice. But Emma had seen it. The way her smile lingered half a second too long. The way her eyes no longer blinked in rhythm with emotion. The softness of her voice remained, but behind it… a hollow space.
Emma wasn't asking herself what she should do anymore.
She was asking: how much was she willing to sacrifice to uncover the truth?
A soft knock at the door startled her.
Jessica peeked in, holding a mug of steaming coffee. Her eyes were heavy with concern.
"You okay?" she asked gently.
Emma nodded, though the gesture lacked conviction.
Nora appeared behind Jessica in the hallway. Her smile was warm, her tone light. She looked—on the surface—exactly the same as always.
And yet…
Her smile was too perfect.
Her eyes too empty.
Like a marionette—moved by something unseen.
That afternoon, Emma made her decision.
She had to know. Really know. Was this Nora? Or something else wearing her skin?
The old salon of the inn had mirrors—vintage ones, some cracked, some fogged by age, still clinging to the past like half-buried memories. In the corner stood one particularly large mirror: warped, mottled, its silvering peeling like frost.
It would do.
Emma invited Jessica and Nora there after lunch.
"Let's play a game," she said, keeping her voice casual.
Jessica blinked in confusion but nodded. Nora merely smiled and stepped in front of the mirror.
Emma watched. Closely.
Jessica's reflection appeared first—slightly nervous, her features familiar, timid, unchanged.
Then Nora stepped into frame.
And Emma's breath caught.
The image in the mirror… was wrong.
Something about Nora's reflection didn't align. The shape of her face? The way the shadows clung unnaturally around her eyes? It wasn't distorted by the mirror—it was something else.
The mirror wasn't lying.
The mirror was revealing.
And what it showed… wasn't human.
Nora noticed the way Emma stared at her. For a heartbeat, the smile slipped.
A dark flicker passed through her eyes—black and hollow, as if something ancient had glanced back.
Emma took an instinctive step back.
Jessica looked between them, visibly shaken.
The tension in the air grew thick, electric.
Emma knew then: she couldn't wait any longer.
The spiral wasn't just watching.
It was moving.
And if she didn't act soon… they would lose their last chance.
That night, Emma couldn't sleep.
She sat by the window, the spiral pendant resting in her palm, cool and quiet. Outside, the sky stretched in indigo silence. Stars blinked above like distant watchful eyes. The stillness was deceptive—beneath it, something stirred.
A thought coiled in her mind, tight and uncomfortable:
What if Nora never truly came back?
What if she was only… partially free?
The spiral, though dormant, felt present.
Not gone. Just waiting.
A soft knock broke the quiet. Jessica stepped in, barefoot and pale, eyes puffy from crying.
"We need to talk," she whispered.
Emma nodded, moving aside on the edge of the bed. The mattress creaked softly beneath their weight.
"She's sleeping," Jessica said. "Nora, I mean. Or… whatever she is."
Emma didn't answer right away. The pendant pulsed gently in her hand—less like a warning now, more like a question.
Jessica looked down. "You said she was back."
"I thought she was," Emma said slowly. "But I don't think it's that simple."
The silence that followed felt heavy. Measured.
"You saw it, didn't you?" Jessica asked, barely audible. "In the mirror."
Emma's gaze met hers.
"I saw something that didn't belong to her," she said. "And it looked back."
Jessica's hands clenched. "What do we do now?"
Emma looked out the window again, toward the forest cloaked in shadow.
"We make sure," she said. "One way or another."
Dawn arrived wrapped in silence.
Emma and Jessica pretended it was just a walk.
Nora followed them, saying little. She was calm. Too calm.
The spiral pendant grew warm as they approached the hill. At its peak stood stone ruins—arched and broken, but still standing like the remnants of an old ritual ground.
Here, Emma thought.
Here it will reveal itself.
They climbed in silence, the wind brushing over them like breath from something ancient. Jessica's hands trembled. Emma held the pendant tighter.
At the top, they stood in the circle of stones. Spiral carvings covered the rocks—faded but not forgotten.
Emma turned toward Nora.
"If you're still in there," she said firmly, "step forward. If not—go back to the dark."
The wind rose sharply.
Dust spun between the stones.
Nora stood still… but her form began to shift. Her smile vanished. Her posture warped—no longer human.
Emma raised the pendant.
Its light flared.
Nora screamed.
Not like a woman.
But like something ancient and torn.
That night, Emma couldn't sleep.
She sat by the window, the spiral pendant resting in her palm, cool and quiet. Outside, the sky stretched in indigo silence. Stars blinked above like distant watchful eyes. The stillness was deceptive—beneath it, something stirred.
A thought coiled in her mind, tight and uncomfortable:
What if Nora never truly came back? What if she was only… partially free?
The spiral, though dormant, felt present. Not gone. Just waiting.
A soft knock broke the quiet. Jessica stepped in, barefoot and pale, eyes puffy from crying.
"We need to talk," she whispered.
Emma nodded, moving aside on the edge of the bed. The mattress creaked softly beneath their weight.
"She's sleeping," Jessica said. "Nora, I mean. Or… whatever she is."
Emma didn't answer right away. The pendant pulsed gently in her hand—less like a warning now, more like a question.
Jessica looked down. "You said she was back."
"I thought she was," Emma said slowly. "But I don't think it's that simple."
The silence that followed felt heavy. Measured.
"You saw it, didn't you?" Jessica asked, barely audible. "In the mirror."
Emma's gaze met hers.
"I saw something that didn't belong to her," she said. "And it looked back."
Jessica's hands clenched. "What do we do now?"
Emma looked out the window again, toward the forest cloaked in shadow.
"We make sure," she said. "One way or another."
Dawn arrived wrapped in silence.
Emma and Jessica pretended it was just a walk.
Nora followed them, saying little. She was calm. Too calm.
The spiral pendant grew warm as they approached the hill. At its peak stood stone ruins—arched and broken, but still standing like the remnants of an old ritual ground.
Here, Emma thought. Here it will reveal itself.
They climbed in silence, the wind brushing over them like breath from something ancient. Jessica's hands trembled. Emma held the pendant tighter.
At the top, they stood in the circle of stones. Spiral carvings covered the rocks—faded but not forgotten.
Emma turned toward Nora.
"If you're still in there," she said firmly, "step forward. If not—go back to the dark."
The wind rose sharply.
Dust spun between the stones.
Nora stood still… but her form began to shift. Her smile vanished. Her posture warped—no longer human.
Emma raised the pendant.
Its light flared.
Nora screamed.
Not like a woman.
But like something ancient and torn.