Shift in the Shadows

"Morning," I replied, stretching my arms over my head, hoping to shake off the lingering discomfort. "Did you finish the assignment?"

She scoffed. "Of course. Unlike someone I know, I don't leave things to the last minute."

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Keep bragging."

We walked toward our building, the weight of my bag pressing into my shoulders. The chatter of students surrounded us, blending into an indistinct hum, but the whisper—that damn whisper—slithered through the noise, threading itself into the air between us.

You are different.

My steps faltered for a fraction of a second. The world dimmed at the edges again, a creeping blackness curling into my vision. I forced a breath into my lungs and turned to my friend, searching for any reaction.

Nothing. She was scrolling through her phone, oblivious.

I clenched my fists. Not real. Not real. Not real.

The whisper curled closer.

Not real ? Then why do we lie in wait?

I bit the inside of my cheek, grounding myself. "Did you watch that new series I told you about?" I blurted out, desperate to drown out the voice.

She gave me a side glance, smirking. "Oh? The one with the morally grey anti-hero you're obsessed with?"

I huffed. "First of all, it's called having taste. Second, did you watch it or not?"

She laughed, shaking her head. "I started it. And yeah, I get why you like it. The protagonist is basically you."

I shot her an incredulous look. "Excuse me? I am way less dramatic."

"Says the person who just gasped in offense," she teased, bumping her shoulder into mine. The slight contact sent a surge of shock through my body. She'll never know.

I scoffed but didn't push the topic further. The normalcy of it, the ease of our banter—it was a lifeline. A reminder that, despite the creeping unease, I was still here.

We reached the classroom, and I made my way to my usual seat at the back. She plopped down beside me, already pulling out her notes, while I pulled out my phone, pretending to scroll.

But my mind was elsewhere. Waiting.

My gaze flickered to the window. Outside, the trees swayed in the morning breeze, their branches twisting and curling in ways they shouldn't.

I blinked.

For a split second, I swore I saw something staring back at me from between the leaves.

We await your rise.

Okay. This is getting creepier than usual. A shiver ran down my spine as my body tensed. But for what?

Then suddenly, the first bell went off. Oh. I relaxed, melting into my seat. Hugging my bag to my chest, trying to calm myself down.

"GOOD MORNING, MISS!!", all the students got up to greet our teacher for the hour. I sneaked a peek off our timetable and saw it was Literary Criticism. Just what I wanted. I thought with absolute dread.

"Good Morning, Sit down", she greeted our class. "Where is the register?"

"The class rep has gone to get it, Ma'am", Hanra, one of my classmates called out.

I felt a sudden shift in the air. It was sudden and miniscule, meaning not many would notice. I turned around to face Hanra who just answered. Nothing noteworthy. But there it was, the wrongness I felt a while ago. I scanned her up and down trying to figure out what it was.

Out of nowhere, something hit me in the chest. It felt like my chest caved in, my lungs stuffed up my throat. I went into a coughing fit. My throat burned and my eyes watered with the lack of air. A warm hand grabbed hold of me and patted me on my back, slowly grounding me into the class.

It was her, Sonan.

No wonder the hand felt so warm. She gave me some hot water, she borrowed from a classmate. I gulped some down and took a deep breath. The teacher shot me a concerned look, but I reassured her with a nod. So she continued with her class. I glanced down at Hanra and saw her shadow bend in ways it shouldn't. I blinked and it was gone.

I resisted the urge to curse out loud by clenching my fingers into a fist instead.

Navya. She whispered.

I snapped out of it and turned sideways to face her. I did it discreetly, because I didn't want to be called out by the teacher. I raised an eyebrow in question.

Are you okay? Her worried eyes scanned me all over. It made me feel warm all over.

Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking, I reassured her.

She glanced at me questioningly but I ignored it and pulled out my textbooks and tried to focus on what the teacher was taking.

And failed, spectacularly. And my thoughts kept on drifting to those wings I saw today morning.

It wasn't a hallucination. It was real. It had been there, I could tell. But at that time I was too focused on the rotten leaves burning and seeping into the soil to make sense of anything else.

I recalled all the things that happened today, my short and absolutely draining panic attack, the shadows that lasted longer that usual, the leaves burning and just seeping into the soil like nothing, the whispers that seemed clearer than before...

Speaking of which, I should have noticed it the first thing I woke up. The air, the world, everything seemed off.... Like something had officially begun.

I could feel it.

I could sense the change, the shift in the air, the presence of something ancient and something new, a bit broken but somehow whole, trying to swim to the surface but ultimately failing, so instead deciding to lie in wait for the best time to break free—to destroy, to haunt or something.

It scared me more than I'd like to admit but no one else can hear it, nobody can see it and none can feel it like I do.

Stay calm Navya. Stay calm. I repeated it like a prayer hoping that everything will be okay, everyone I care for will be okay.

But I could feel it.

Nothing will ever be the same anymore.

And some people wouldn't be here for long. And I didn't know what to do other than pray because no one will believe me either way.

The sound of the bell resounded as the first hour was declared over my our Miss. I looked up from my pretense of going through the book to see her walking out the class with a smile.

"Hey, you okay?", Sonan was concerned. I felt the shadows and all those whispers stretch closer but it was alright as long as she was okay.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I thought of something funny and almost laughed out loud—then I remembered we were still in class and tried to stop myself, which ended up causing that mess", I reassured her with a wry smile.

She held her forehead, looking absolutely done with me. God, She is so cute.

She shook her head at me and started rummaging through her backpack for her textbook, preparing for the next hour, urging me to do the same.

As I pulled my book and pen, I felt another hint of the wrongness. I looked up instinctively and saw it again—Hanra's shadows streching and bending in ways it shouldn't. I stared at it in fascination. There should be magic in this world, right? So, isn't it possible for me to learn as well?

Her shadow formed an eye—staring straight at me. A flicker of desire in its gaze. A shiver ran down my spine. I knew I was different but I never wanted to be the object of affection of whatever this thing was.

The eye slowly melted back into her shadow. I looked up trying to find something else to distract me but I saw Hanra staring at me. Her lips curled into a creepy smile, so different from the ones I were used to. My stomach clenched. She knows.

You are unique but she is a mere tool.

The whispers were more pronounced now, more haunting. Was she still Hanra or had she become something else? The very thought chilled me and what I heard next made me almost scream in terror.

Your soul shall submit like it had in the past.