The Shadow Behind the Mirror

Chapter 3 - Light from the Mirror

The morning sky hung gloomy, gray like the feeling of Aira that was still not calm since the incident at the attic two nights ago. The wind blowing from the window of his room carrying cold air, making the pendant around his neck feel even heavier.

At school, nothing has changed in plain view. But for Aira, the world seemed to shift half an inch from the place it should. Students' footsteps feel noisy, laughter sounds like fake echoes. Everything feels ... not real.

"I know you must have come earlier," Nina's voice suddenly heard from behind her.

Aira turned and smiled faintly. "You too."

Nina sat on her bench in her small park behind the school. "You haven't told you all about your grandmother's house, huh?"

Aira looked at Nina with a doubtful look. But there was something in the girl's eyes that made her believe. "I saw ... I was in the mirror myself. But not me. He moved differently. And spoke. His voice was like me, but his tone was cold."

Nina looked tense. "Did he say something?"

Aira nodded. "He said ... I finally came."

Nina sighed deeply. "I have heard of a story from my father. In the past he said, your grandmother - the cardians - the twin sister. But he disappeared when he was a child. Never found. And since then, people say mirrors in your house can 'catch' souls. I don't know this is just a myth or ..."

"But if it's just a myth," Aira cut, "Why can I see him?"

They were silent. The wind blows slowly, uncover the leaves of the acacia tree that houses the small park. In the middle of silence, Aira felt the pendant warming again. As if he was 'burning' in front of Nina.

"And strangely," Nina added quietly, "I also have something."

From her school skirt pocket, Nina took out a small object - a round mirror, as big as a palm. The handle is finely carved, from old silver metal. On the back of it carved the same symbol as Aira saw on the wall of his room: a circle with three cross -lines.

"Where did you get this?" Aira asked quickly.

"My father said this was a relic of his mother's family. In the past they said they came from the same village as your grandmother."

Aira looked at the small mirror. The surface is not too clear, but when he stares inside, there is a tinge of vague blue light that only looks occasionally. The pendant throbbed stronger.

"I don't think ... this is not a coincidence," Aira whispered. "We might be connected with something bigger than we know."

---

The first lesson is slow. Aira can't focus. His mind floated in the mirror, pendant, symbol, and voice from behind the glass. He hardly realized that when art lessons began and Mrs. Laras, their art teacher who looked eccentric, invited students to draw freely.

But when Mrs. Laras said that they could take drawing tools from the old art room at the end of the back building, Aira was immediately interested. He knew that the building was rarely used-and he heard the rumors of other students called it 'haunted'.

"Let's go there together," said Nina enthusiastically, as if he knew what Aira was thinking.

The old building is indeed different. The plaster the walls peeled off, and the wooden door made a severe c**t when opened. Inside, the shelves are full of dust, piles of worn paper, and old paintings leaning off carelessly in the corner of the room.

But what attracts their attention is a large painting hanging on the wall of the room, covered in a dull white cloth.

"Can we open it?" whispered Nina.

Aira nodded. Together they pulled the cloth.

The painting behind it makes their breath restrained.

A girl stood in front of a large mirror, with a blue pendant on her neck. But the reflection in the mirror shows a different face. The reflection eyes are bright silver, like liquid silver. And his smile ... not a human smile.

"Aira ..." Nina's voice was barely audible. "That is you."

Aira approached. His hands trembled as he touched the painting frame. In the lower right corner, it says: "For those who come past the shadow." There is no name of the painter. No date.

"Why is this painting here?" Aira murmured.

Suddenly, the pendant glowed. The blue light spread slowly to the wall, highlighting the faint carvings on the floor under the same paintings - the same loss as in Nina's room and mirror.

As if the place had been waiting for them for a long time.

---

After returning home from school, Aira returned home with her head full of questions. He went straight to the room and opened a diary. Write endlessly.

＞ "Today I see my paintings ... or at least someone who looks like me. But his reflection has silver eyes. And this pendant ... keeps reacting every time something that is 'related' appears. I feel like I was called to another world, but I don't know how to open the door."

After writing, Aira reopened the old paper folds she found. This time he realized that behind the paper there were other carvings - Alpalus, barely visible, except under the right light.

He tilted paper under the light of the pendant. The circle symbol reappears. But this time, under the symbol, there are three points:

8 - 1 - 9

Aira stared at the numbers for a long time. What is code? Date? Or coordinates?

Suddenly, the surrounding air became cold. He turned to the small mirror in his room - and this time, he saw himself ... and someone stood behind the reflection.

Himself - but paler, sharper. And this time, he spoke directly, without sound, but Aira could hear clearly in his mind.

"We start from numbers."

---

Aira sat on the edge of her bed, holding a tight pendant. The numbers are - 8 - 1 - 9 - continue to ring in his mind like a spell that is not completed. What is the meaning? Date? Serial number? Or maybe code?

He stared at his reflection which was now empty, only his own face appeared in the mirror. But he knew, something changed. Once he saw himself with silver eyes, he could never forget the shadow.

His cellphone shook. Message from Nina:

＞ "I can't stop thinking about the painting. There's no way that is a coincidence. We have to find out who painted it."

Aira replied quickly.

＞ "I agree. Maybe we can ask Mrs. Laras? Or check the school art archive?"

A few moments later, Nina called directly.

"I had a chat with Mr. Rino, the school guard," Nina's voice sounded fast. "He said the back building was once the first principal's room. There are rumors that he has a collection of personal paintings that are 'unusual'."

Aira closed her eyes, trying to remember the details of the painting. The color strokes are strong but not rough. There is accuracy in the technique, as if the painter knew exactly what he wanted to convey - and to whom.

"According to Pak Rino," continued Nina, "One of the most highlighted paintings was once brought to an art exhibition in the city. But suddenly it was pulled back. The reason ... because visitors felt 'uncomfortable' seeing it. Some even said they felt followed after looking at the painting too long."

"The same painting?" Aira asked quickly.

"Looks like that. No one knows for sure who the painter is. But one of the old teachers said, the painter only marked his work with symbols. The same symbol as in your pendant."

Aira felt her hair on the neck. The longer, the clearer that all of this is not a coincidence. The pendant, mirror, symbol, and painting are connected in a much older fabric than himself.

That night, Aira opened the diary again. He wrote fast:

＞ "I feel like I was entering the story that has been written for a long time.

When the last ink dries, the pendant on his neck is burning again. But this time, the light highlighted directly into the small mirror on the table. In his reflection, it was not his face that appeared ... but a circular stone room, with symbols on the floor, and in the middle-a large mirror stood tall, with the same black metal as his pendant.

Light pendant brighter.

And from the mirror, his shadow - a silver -eyed - returned to the back. This time closer. More real.

And he smiled.

"It's time, Aira."

---