Red Obsession

Prelude 2 : Doll

Jem

"Give me the doll!" His grandma's rough voice was impatient, so Jem grabbed the used toy through a white scarf carrying it towards her carefully. A man had come this morning, he had climbed all the way up the mountain to their cave to ask for help, his eight year old daughter was dying, it happen in a span of two days. She hasn't been doing anything unusual, just her doll has been missing for a few hours when she had lost it in the field behind the village.

"I hate those bad charms they put on toys to poison children.” His grandmother was cursing when she lifted the doll then drained it in a heavy smelling liquid of fine herbs. “Step back!" She ordered when Jem ran to the nearest wall cuddling to it watching a strange form lifting above the tin bowl. A shill scream rang the cave echoing along the walls when he covered his ears seeing a face out of a nightmare appearing then fading in the smoke, a second later it was all gone, the silence was sill numb from the horror though.

With a loud sigh, his grandma washed the sweat drops off her face.

“Im getting old." She said taking the doll out, squeezing the rests of the mixture off it. “Be at hand Jem and throw it into the fire.” She asked when he walked towards her slowly.

Things like that and worse had been seen by him before, but nothing could top the shadows that had creeped into his last night's dream. Fighting for his life, was the crown prince while he was out there to collect herbs, his eyes blood-red to disguise himself as on of the demons, still both were defeated until a boy with sun-blonde hair has given them shelter.

"Grandma, have you ever heard about Pak Mountain?" he asked throwing the doll into the flames and watching it becoming a piece of black ashes.

Grandma seemed even more pale when he turned back to her.

"Bring me some water!" She said so he sighed walking to the small shelf with food and supplies.

"I had a dream last night, it wasn't a regular dream."

Her loud sigh crumbled the skin on his back, but he just filled a cup with water then brought it to her.

"Grandma say something. Do you know anything about Pak Mountain, prince Hyeong's journey and a monk with blonde hair?" Jem sat on the floor across her watching how she was drinking from the cup that was trembling in her wrinkled hands.

She emptied the cup then placed it on the stone floor of the cave.

"There is more worry in the air, anxiety, the demons are creeping deeper. I sense it, the death is closing in, the birds are singing quieter, the nature feels it already. Big changes are on the way."

"What does it mean?" Jem was watching her, goose bumps raising on his skin.

“Our line is dying out with me."

"Grandma I'm skilled and required to take your place."

“Only a woman from our clan can be a shaman Jam."

A silence fell when he lowered his head.

"Does it matter, if I'm a man?”

"No one will come to you, no one will trust you, they'll say you're an imposter."

"If it's so damn important I can dress up as a girl!" Jem raised his voice.

The features of a porcelain doll, he had inherited after his mother made his face so perfectly carved he could disguise as a female without any problems.

"Jem?"

"So if I can't become a shaman like you, like mum, like great grandmother, why am I here? Why can't I go to Seoul instead, study, find a real job? What am I doing here, if I'm not worth to take your place!" He was mad.

Frustration hitting him as hard as during the evening when Hyaenun left.

"You will find your way. You know we don’t have resources for you to go to Seoul or to study."

"I know." He wanted to kick that empty cup, to yell in that small cave.

"What has the dream guided you to do?"

"To go and find that boy."

"So follow it.”

"Where should I go, it was thousands of years ago. How can I know if he had reincarnated in this generation."

"You’ve said you are skilled like me, you know how to find someone you have only seen in a dream." She looked straight at him so he lowered his head.

"I need to go and find him."

“Go and take this." She pointed at the shelf. ”The man had left some money for saving his daughter.”

"That's not even enough for a bus ticket... but will you be fine without me."

"I can deal on my own, take it." She pointed at the shelf again when he was ready to scream and cry, but walked there grabbing the 5000 won banknote hiding it in the pocket of his used jeans.

"Visit me whenever you can." Her voice became raspy when Jem bit his lips.

She was over 90, almost unable to walk on her own, how will she deal up here alone? What about all the sinister she was facing each day?

”Take care ok, I need you. I have no one else." He grabbed a few things from the shelf, opened the backpack he had been using when he had attended the school in the village, putting the few belongings he had inside.

Jem was packing quickly knowing that if he takes longer he might stay.

"Bye grandma, send me a message through a dream whenever you'll need me." Jem walked to her wrapping her tiny body in his arms, she almost had no strength to hug back, she was becoming so small, as if she was slowly dissolving into herself.

”You're brave Jem, you will find your way.” Her eyes were filled with tears so he just nodded before standing up and swallowing his own tears quickly.

The day was slowly coming, the faint sunlight causing all shadows to return to earth, a brightness was lying over the valley when he rushed his steps finding a lost path down to the village, hoping there will be people warmhearted enough to give a lonely boy a ride to Seoul.