The Sleepwalker (english ver.)

The Daughter

Dawn broke in the East Glade. Little birds began to sing their autumnal melody as usual. A crow landed on the window and pecked Gahyeon's forehead.

- Ouch! - she rubbed her forehead, in shock - Good morning too, Ravena! – The girl exclaimed, furiously.

She stroked the bird's shiny black feathers and finally cried out to wake Yoohyeon, who was sleeping like a rock in the other bed.

In the next room, JiU stretched, humming an old song her mother taught her once, when she was a little girl. Music had always been something precious to her, as well as her sister Dami. Both would reconnect to their roots to access the ancient magic much more effectively when she sang her mother's songs.

The leader got up and went to comb her long brown hair. She untangled the purple ends that she had colored the day before with a violet flower essence, extracted by Dami through a potion. The eldest noticed that her sister had already gotten up earlier, as she always did, imagining she must've been reading something outside the hut or testing some elixir to cure Siyeon's curse, as JiU herself had suggested.

After getting ready, she calmly entered the small kitchen, still processing many thoughts and trying to deal with a mental hangover after the tragic vision. Walking through the door, she found the Clan gathered at the table, all staring at her with worried faces. Without a clue, she just sat in her usual spot and served herself a cup of tea.

- Don't you have anything to tell us? - SuA was ready to start the dialogue.

- Like what? - JiU remained confused.

- I swear I didn't open my mouth even once. I'm sure one of them overheard something they shouldn't have - Dami threw a fierce look at Yoohyeon, who shrank in her chair.

- I'm sorry, JiU. I heard the conversation between you and Dami. I had to tell the others about... well, you know. What you saw in your vision.

Siyeon remained silent in her place, staring at the ground with a neutral expression. Only JiU was able to notice a certain look of shame in her dull eyes.

- Okay, you already know what I saw, right? But you should also remember what I always say when you girls come to me worried about a prediction: the future is not certain. Destiny is something very abstract. Things can happen in the most different ways as posible to imagine. There is no guarantee that we won't be able to reverse the curse. Even if we can't, it's also not certain that Siyeon would get so far from her humanity and kill me...

The sleepwalker looked up and stared at JiU with a silent "sorry" face. It was just enough for JiU to become more upset and stand up, slamming both hands on the table in front of her.

- Absolutely not! I refuse to believe that something like this could happen - the leader continued - Siyeon has always given her life to protect each one of us. It is, at the very least, fair that we stand by her side and do our best to change this situation. The Dreamcatcher Clan will not leave anyone behind! Was I clear?

SuA was scratching the wooden table with her long nails and looking at Siyeon's face out of the corner of her eye, with a certain amount of contempt. Rising slowly from her chair, she decided to speak out as well.

- JiU, I have always respected your authority but if we're really being honest here I don't think Siyeon is the same girl we knew then. She becomes stranger to me each day...

Siyeon frowned, starting to question herself. Could she really be undergoing some change in character? As if the fangs, the pale skin and that constant thirst for blood weren't enough... She wouldn't allow herself to be driven by those instincts, ever. Especially if that would put one of her friends at risk or even worse, putting JiU in danger.