The house was quiet under the soft glow of the moon. Everyone was supposed to be asleep, safe inside Grandma's home, protected from the curse that haunted the abandoned palace.
But sleep didn't come easy.
Ethan's eyes fluttered open first. Something felt… off. His gaze drifted toward the large window in the room—a window that wasn't meant to open or let anything through. Tonight, it was covered in a thin mist, and faintly, a handprint appeared on the foggy glass.
"Aiko," Ethan whispered, nudging her gently. "Did you touch the window?"
Aiko rubbed her eyes and sat up, cheeks flushing pink in the dim light. "Ethan… I didn't. Why would you think that?"
He looked at her, the warmth of her presence making his heart race. "I don't know… it's just strange. The window shouldn't look like that."
She smiled softly, a little shy now. "I swear, I didn't touch it. Do you really think I'd lie to you?"
Before they could say more, Echo and Liam stirred nearby.
"We both had weird dreams," Liam said quietly, still half asleep. "The same strange symbol kept showing up. Like the one Grandma told us about."
Echo nodded. "And when I woke up, one of the dreamcatchers was broken on the floor."
The room grew still as the team exchanged uneasy looks.
At that moment, Grandma appeared in the doorway, carrying a small bundle of charms and herbs.
"Someone—or something—tested us tonight," she said softly. "But you are not defenseless."
She moved to the door and locked it firmly. Taking a new dreamcatcher and a locket from her bundle, she turned to Ethan and Aiko. "Touch these together," she instructed.
Their fingers brushed as they held the charms, a comforting warmth spreading between them.
"This will protect you both," Grandma said, hanging the dreamcatcher and locket on the locked door's handle. "We must be prepared for what's to come."
The night fell silent once again—calm, but charged with a new sense of warning and resolve.