Kris's POV

The boys were all cautious with following her, and some of them had their backs hunched.

I didn't trust this strange human girl. She radiated a negative energy, the exact same aura I’ve always thought surrounded the witch, Joonmyeon’s aunt. Although the girl’s aura was less volatile, less buzzing, and humble, it still held a sense of vulgar and bad energy. I didn't like her immediately, but she looked like she genuinely knew what she was doing.

She took us to the back of her house, where a small, rusty door was located. The door made my heart pounce, a prick of familiarity exploding within me. Where had I seen this door? I have never ventured to this area of Joonmyeon's house before, and didn't notice they had a door at the back of their house.

I looked at the boys to see if they have the same reaction on their faces, and true enough, they were all sharing a look between one another in wonder and nervousness. From the corner of my eyes, I noticed Hani’s eyes continuously falling to the cat meowing around her legs, shivering and radiating an incredibly uncomfortable feeling.

Besides my flight abilities, I was a human aura detector. I could feel everyone’s feelings, and although Hani’s feelings were always a little restrained and dimmed, she was still easy to read for me, and right now, she was anxious.

“We are going inside, the place will fit.. all of you,” the girl gave us a look, her dark rimmed eyes blazing for a millisecond, before pushing the door open.

My heart stopped beating.

It was the room we were all shifted into this.. form. The witch’s magic lair.

It seemed I wasn't the only one affected, as the boys didn't dare take a step forward, not into that horrid place. Hani gave us a confused look, while the girl looked patient, understanding, and for a minute, I swore she radiated pity. I didn't like that certain emotion from others.

“What's wrong?” Hani asked, the girl behind her watching our interaction with sealed lips.

“It's where we were first trapped into these cards,” Sehun answered with a stoic face, although his complexion was a lot paler than usual. He was terrified. At his answer, Hani whipped her head to the girl with anger-fueled eyes.

“What the hell is this? Are you not going to explain yourself first? Who are you?”

In spite of Hani’s anger, and her small age, the girl looked wise, patient, and downright calm. It was unsettling to see such a young girl, younger than Hani, look so settled.

“I’m Meang,” the girl introduced, not offering her hand for any of us. “I was waiting for you all for the past two years.”

Her answer dropped cold, icy water down our clothes, and the already intense atmosphere dropped. Everyone was quiet too, gazing at the girl like she dropped a bomb, which she quite did.

What the hell did that mean?

Seeing our utter confusion, Meang stepped out of the door with a frown. “I have seen scribbles in this exact room about you, your creation, your abilities and your.. your society. But there was also something I found there,” Meang actually dared to pause for dramatic reaction. “Your freedom.”

“What does that mean?” Luhan looked pissed off, his face red with anger, and I didn't really blame him. We all were, we had no idea what nonsense this little girl was spewing.

“Why don't you come inside first? You’ll understand better then,” the girl looked almost pleading, and our tensed shoulders slouched a little. Pleading was a sign of weakness, and there was no way she was going to do something horrible while looking so.. broken herself.

After giving Hani a nod of reassurance, she stepped forward first, and all of us followed her somberly.

The place looked the same. Dirty, confined, and so.. gloomy. It reflected the witch’s personality, to be honest. She always reeked of something sour and dead bodies, and she always liked her solitary more than people. I have always pitied her, even when I was a child, for she had lived her entire life being ridiculed, made fun of, and nobody wanted to be friends with her. Sometimes I wondered if her making this society was to lessen that for a bit, her loneliness.

The girl went to sit behind a small, rusty table the color of dusty brown, and called Hani to sit in the only place in front of her. The table reminded me of a voodoo one, the same one the witches did their magic and card reading on. I shuddered.

Hani sat on her knees in front of the table, while we were all watching from the sidelines, not sitting down anywhere. The whole place was giving me a horrible feeling within my gut, and I’m pretty sure the boys were just as disgruntled.

The girl was quick to lay down an old piece paper on the table, urging Hani to take it and see for herself. When she did as she was told (a little dissatisfied and disgusted with the state of the paper) the girl started to speak.

“It was said that strong spells have their match,” she gave us a look to see if we where listening, before continuing. “Spells that messes with the balance of the world would always have their match, some sort of power that destroys it and restorse the original balance. When the witch made her spell of locking.. you.. in cards, she already knew there will come a time she’d have to repay for distorting destiny and messing with Godly powers.”

I looked at Hani to see if she was being attentive. She was, gaping, at that, and it didn't look like she payed that much attention with the paper she was holding. The girl, Meang, gave her another paper, this time smaller, squared, and so old that I wondered if the words were visible. I was curious to know what was inside, but I didn't move an inch.

“That is an ‘Aouda’ spell, a reverse one, this is the spell that reassured me you’d come back, seeking freedom, and this paper can grant it.”

My thudding heart increased in its intensity, and I was aware my soulless eyes were wide, burning with emotions. I didn't have to look at the boys to know they were b with emotions as me.

“You mean.. this spell would reverse everything back?” Hani said a little breathlessly, her eyes as wide as saucers, and her grip tightening around the papers she was holding. Meang took the papers immediately from her, not wanting Hani to ruin them, and she didn't even mind.

“Yes,” Meang cleared , rearranging the papers. “As I said before, every massive spell has it's equal, and this is the equivalent to the one the witch had cast. Thankfully for you all, she hid it away instead of ultimately destroying it, because she was scared something horrible would happen to her creation and she’d have to erase everything.”

“Who.. who the hell are you? How do you..,” Joonmyeon stuttered, falling down on his knees in a slow and dramatic way, his eyes wide and filled with emotions, with his whole body shaking.

He couldn't believe his ears.

None of us could.

Meang’s eyes softened drastically at the scene, and she gulped her saliva. It looked like she was as affected about this as the rest of us. “How do I know all of this?”

Hani nodded at her to continue, since all of us were rendered motionless, and Meang sighed.

“By the spirits of the cards that have passed away. We recently bought this house, my family and I, and they kept whispering in my ears, invading my dreams, wishing for someon