•𝑶𝑻𝑯𝑬𝑹𝑺𝑰𝑫𝑬•【√】

╰CHAPTER 22 ╮

I have no clue what I'm doing. I just hope this works. Please, please, let me figure something out. It should work. The simpler the plan, the less there is to go wrong. Jimin, please forgive me if this goes wrong.

I have step one and two of a plan. After that I'm hoping Jimin can do the rest. It's terrifying that everyone is stepping back and following my lead on this. I'm not the leader type. I have no qualifications, and I'm the least experienced person here. I'm the Seer, though, and they're trusting me. I really wish they wouldn't.

I take a deep breath and give a little nod. Jiwon opens the closet door. This is not very well thought out. Jimin is out in an instant, like a bullet from a gun. There's a scary moment, with shockingly bright blasts whizzing in all directions, where it almost looks like he can't be caught.

Taehyung lunges, nearly falling over, and manages to grab hold of Jimin' arm. The boy twists and shakes loose, but it cost him just enough time for Jeongguk and Joon to catch him. He can't get his arms free, so he kicks his foot out sideways, hooking it around Joon's ankle in an attempt to trip the older man.

Joon anticipated it, and yanks Jimin' elbow, hyper-extending it; the forward motion forces Jimin to his knees. It's hard to watch, but I can't look away. He's held in place by Jeongguk and Joon, but he doesn't struggle. His eyes run around the room, searching for a way out. There is no fear on his face, no anger, no trace of anything but the alertness of a cornered animal. I force myself to turn my head. Seeing him like this will not be an easy image to forget. I wish Junsoo would've stayed upstairs.

I stand in front of Jimin and drop to my knees so I can look him in the eyes. He stares me down, but I can't read his face. Defiance? Maybe.

"You fought this, you know," I can't bring my voice above a whisper, "When they were doing this to you, you fought it. I'm just trying to..." To what? To fix him? To save him? "We're just trying to help you fight it," I try to smile at him, but he stares me down with that dangerous, closed-off expression. What must this all look like to him?

I don't know a better way. I'm sure we could write a new spell, with a whole ritual to it. We could try an altered version of a counter-curse. I just don't want to shove any more magic into his head. This should give him, the real him way in there somewhere, a way out.

I look down at my hands, clutched nervously around the little wooden cross. If Jimin places importance on any object, it's this. I untangle the leather string and place it around his neck. He tries to dodge out of the way, his dark eyes wide with confusion and distrust, but Joon and Jeongguk hold him in place. There's step one.

I pull out my pocket knife. Twice now I've needed it today, and I thought I'd never use it. I flip the tiny blade out of its red casing. It almost looks like a kid's toy, but it's sharp enough for what I need to do. I pause for a moment, the little strip of metal reflects the light coldly. I hold out my right palm and run the knife over it as roughly as I can. It leaves a bright red trail. The pain doesn't bother me as much as I thought it would. There's step two.

My blood sealed the spell, my blood should unseal it. I look at Jimin, and see horror break through his mask of composure. He's guessed what we're doing, but he doesn't know. He doesn't believe we're on his side. He looks at me like I'm a monster. He starts wrenching and twisting in place, trying to break free of Joon and Jeongguk. I reach out, placing my injured hand over Jimin' wrist. He struggles uselessly to pull away. I have to reach him. He's lost somewhere, and I have to help him.

"Come back," I don't know where those words came from, but they seemed right.

He flinches, and it's the most disturbing reaction he could've had to my words. That tiny, reflexive motion is not Jimin. Not any version of him at all. I don't let go of my hold on his wrist. He closes his eyes, looking determined. He looks like he's in pain. He bows his head and clenches his jaw. His hands are shaking, but no one lets go of him. Did something go wrong?