Chapter 1;

Reflections Aren’t Mirror Images

The Forest of Silence stood on the other side of the river. It was so close, yet so far, and even though the river separating Miran from it was only a few feet wide, there was a strange quietness that lingered in the air. It wasn’t tranquil, nor was it comforting. It was the kind of silence that was deafening because of the lack of noise. It was unsettling.

In all of Miran’s 20 years, this had been her first time standing in front of the river. Villagers weren’t allowed to step foot outside the village, and the river happened to lie just on its outskirts. The only people who could venture out of the village were priests and priestesses, and those in training. She had been accepted into the Temple at the age of 18 and trained for 2 years under the guidance of her sister priestess, Lee Nari.

Despite being only 25 years old, Nari was one of the village’s most recognized priestesses. A trainee wasn’t supposed to leave the village until after 3 years of guidance, but Nari had made an exception for Miran.

Priests and priestesses made weekly trips outside the village to survey the area, gather herbs, and bring back fresh water. Some thought the task daunting, but Miran didn’t think of the experience like that at all. If only by a few extra miles, she had stretched her view of the world. The forest they gathered herbs from was filled with colourful flowers too, and she loved the sight of them on their way to the river.

But of course, nothing piqued her interest more than the Forest of Silence. The forest on her side of the river bustled with small animals and was filled with the songs of birds. The forest that mirrored hers didn’t stir; not even when a strong wind blew. It was because nothing lived in the Forest of Silence. It was supposedly the home of yokai but they lived in the spirit realm, and not in their world.

“Miran, we’re going to fill the jugs with water now,” Nari said to her. Miran broke her gaze from the Forest of Silence and met Nari’s eyes. Her eyes trailed down and admired Nari’s beautiful robes – a long white coat with red peeking out of the sides, and red pants. It was the outfit of purity and knowledge, and Miran couldn’t wait to wear the same uniform one day.

It was a far cry from her current getup – blue robes were the garments of a priestess in training. But she supposed it was better than the brown rags she had worn before she entered the Temple.

Nari led Miran to the foot of the river, and kneeled on the ground. She removed the cover of the wooden jug, and dipped the empty container into the clear water. Miran stood behind her, and went on her toes so she could steal a peak at the river.

“Miran, you know the rules,” Nari told her sternly.

“I wasn’t looking,” she muttered in response. Miran was lying; in truth, she wanted to take a glimpse of her reflection in the water. But reflective surfaces acted as the gateway between the human world and the spirit world, so it was taboo to do so. It was for that reason that mirrors had been banned from the village. Growing up, the only instances that Miran had seen her reflection had been from the shallow puddles that were created because of rainfall. And even though she wasn’t supposed to, she occasionally stared into her soup bowl to look at her reflection.

“And your hair, you didn’t tie it up,” Nari continued to lecture her.

Miran grumbled and took a few steps back. She removed the hair tie she kept around her wrist and pulled her long, ebony locks into a ponytail that mimicked Nari’s. A lot of the things Miran was forced to do didn’t actually improve her skill as a priestess, but they taught her discipline. And that was important in being a priestess, Nari had told her.

“Nari, how are you not tempted to gaze at your reflection in the river?” Miran blurted out.

“I am, I won’t lie about that,” Nari started. She continued to fill the container with water, all the while keeping here eyes off the water. “But the river is not the place to do that. Brief glimpses of one’s reflection are blessed by the puddles after rain, or in others’ cases, by gazing into their soup bowl and not eating.”

“I – what are you talking about?” Miran laughed nervously.

Nari hauled the filled jug onto the grass and covered its top with the lid. She let out a laugh, then turned to Miran. “Just make sure the senior priests don’t catch you doing it.”

“Yes,” Miran replied dutifully and dipped her head in a bow.

The two walked back towards the rest of the priests, and the group made their way back to the village. Just before they left the river, Miran swiveled her head around to gaze at the Forest of Silence one last time. It was the link to demons, spirits, yokai and ghouls, and it scared her to think that a mere river separated them.

At the same time, an ounce of curiosity filled her. But that too, was taboo.

.::.        .::.        .::.

Blue skies transitioned to midnight, and Miran tucked herself in her bed. She, along with several other priestesses in training, slept next to each other on futons.

The girl laying next to her, Kwon Hyeri, was a year younger than her. Miran liked to think of herself as an upperclassman figure whenever she talked to the younger trainee. In a quiet voice, Hyeri asked her, “What was it like going out of the village today?”

“There’s so much green there,” Miran replied. She envisioned the various fauna that made up the forest, along with the bright flowers that decorated their path. “It’s beautiful, really. But it’s eerie at the same time – when you get to the river and see the Forest of Silence, it gets really eerie.”

“What’s the Forest of Silence like?” Hyeri gulped.

“It’s… silent,” Miran muttered. “Like there’s no life there.”

Hyeri let out a yawn and adjusted her pillow. “Because there is no life there. It’s inhabited by demons.”

“It’s not really inhabited by demons,” Miran told her. “Demons belong in the spirit realm. And they can’t travel to the human world without a reflective surface. The Forest of Silence is empty; it’s lifeless but it’s not inhabited by the dead either.”

“There are trees there though, right? Trees are living things,” Hyeri said.

“Yeah, but we don’t have to worry about trees getting up and attacking us,” Miran huffed. “We should go to sleep soon. We’ve got talisman classes tomorrow, and you know how draining that can be.”

“We attend all these classes and have so many priests in our village, but not one demon has struck us,” Hyeri whispered. “Sometimes it makes me wonder why we do all this.”

“I’d rather it stay this way than for a demon to actually find their way to the human realm and attack us,” Miran whispered back. “Besides, even if demons don’t show themselves, people still disappear.”

Hyeri rolled her eyes and replied, “Miran, the last case happened over 20 years ago. You and I both know not a single villager has gone missing since then. But I do agree with you, I’d rather it stay peaceful like this.”

“Yeah.”

“The thought of yokai and demons are scary.”

“Yeah,” Miran mumbled to herself. She let out a yawn and shifted underneath her covers. “They’re monsters.”

It was a frightening thought that they lived worlds apart from them, yet were so close.

A/N: This was more like a prologue, so Baekhyun's not in here >.> But he'll come in very soon! Also, if you're confused about the whole mirror-alternate-world concept, don't worry it's not that important. Just know that 'souls' can traverse between the two worlds via mirrors, and that the two worlds are parallel to each other. 

\\ xoxo