The Curse Within

That morning, Lucy sat in the corner of the dining room as usual. Her heart felt heavier than ever. Ericka, her friend, was gone a victim of a curse she had unknowingly uttered. She never imagined the power she had inherited could bring such destruction.

The soft voice of Aunt Rati offering breakfast barely reached her ears. She only nodded faintly, staring blankly at the wooden table in front of her. Her thoughts kept drifting back to that night, the last time she saw Ericka alive.

Uncle Wiryo came to visit Lucy again. However, there was something different about him this time an expression of deep concern etched across his face.

"Lucy," he said firmly, "we need to talk about something you've been hiding from me."

Lucy frowned. "Hiding? What are you talking about, Uncle?"

Uncle Wiryo's gaze was sharp. "About your sister. About what you did to her."

Lucy was stunned. Her face paled. "What do you mean?" she asked, though she had a sinking feeling she already knew.

"You didn't just curse Ericka, Lucy," Uncle Wiryo said. "You cursed your sister, too."

Lucy averted her eyes, tears beginning to well up. She wanted to deny it, but the memory came rushing back, sharp and vivid.

****

_A Dark Memory_

Her mind traveled back to a few weeks ago. At that time, Lucy had just returned to Indonesia. She came home with mixed feelings worried about her mother's condition, but also irritated with her sister, Nadya, who she felt always played the "golden child." Every conversation between them seemed to end in conflict.

That night, after the first family dinner they had shared in years, Nadya began to criticize Lucy's attitude.

"You don't know anything about this family, Lucy," Nadya said, arms crossed. "Just because you've been living in the Netherlands, you think you're better than us?"

Lucy glared at her. "I came back because of Mom, Nadya. For her. I didn't come here to listen to your whining. I don't have time for this drama."

But Nadya didn't stop. She kept throwing hurtful words at Lucy, calling her selfish and accusing her of only coming home when their mother was dying. The argument escalated, and Lucy's anger began to boil over.

"I'm so done with your crap, Nadya!" Lucy finally yelled. "You always make everything about you. If you're so perfect, why don't you just take my place?!"

At that moment, Lucy didn't realize her rage had triggered something inside her. Her words echoed in the room, as though some unseen force had amplified them. Nadya, who had merely wanted to argue back, suddenly fell silent. Her face turned pale, and she took a few steps back.

The next day, Nadya had a small accident. Although it wasn't serious, it was enough to land her in the hospital for a few days. Lucy thought it was just a coincidence, but when similar accidents kept happening... especially after heated arguments with someone.. she began to suspect something was very wrong.

****

The Unavoidable Truth

When the memory faded, Lucy found herself back in the present.

"I didn't mean to do it, Uncle," Lucy whispered, her voice trembling. "I was just... angry. I didn't know... I didn't know it would actually happen."

Uncle Wiryo let out a heavy sigh. "Your power isn't something you can ignore, Lucy. Every emotion you feel, every word you say, can have consequences. If you don't learn to control yourself, you'll only bring destruction."

"I never asked for this, Uncle. I don't even know why this is happening to me," Lucy said, tears now streaming down her cheeks. "I just want to live a normal life. I want Nadya to be safe. I want Ericka back. I never meant to hurt anyone I care about. But all of this... all of this feels like it's my fault."

Uncle Wiryo looked at her with compassion. "I know it's hard, Lucy. But you can't change what's already happened. What you can do now is learn from your mistakes and make sure it doesn't happen again. You have to control your emotions, your thoughts, and your words."

****

That night, after her conversation with Uncle Wiryo, Lucy returned to her room, her heart weighed down with guilt and determination. She stared at the old book lying on the table. Its weathered pages seemed to call out to her, demanding to be read.

She opened the book hesitantly, her eyes scanning each word with caution. On one of the pages, she found a spell that caught her attention. It was called the "emotional binder," a method to suppress negative feelings so they wouldn't affect her power.

"Hmm... this might be just what I need," she muttered.

Lucy decided to recite the spell, carefully following the instructions written. However, as she began chanting, something strange happened. The lights in her room flickered, and the air around her grew colder. She could feel energy surging through her body, growing stronger and harder to control.

As the spell ended, a shadow materialized in the corner of her room. Its form was blurry, but its glowing red eyes were unmistakable.

"Who... who are you?" Lucy asked, her voice trembling.

The shadow didn't respond. Instead, it moved closer, circling Lucy like a dark mist.

"You shouldn't play with things you don't understand," the shadow's voice echoed in her head. "You've opened a door that was meant to stay closed."

Lucy fought against her fear. "I don't know what the fuck you're talking about! What door?!"

The shadow chuckled softly. "Oh, you know, Lucy. You know very well. Your power is the key. But that key will only bring destruction if you don't learn how to use it."

Before Lucy could say anything else, the shadow vanished, leaving behind a cold chill that seeped into her bones.

****

The next morning, Lucy recounted the incident to Uncle Wiryo.

"Last night, I saw something, Uncle. A shadow with red eyes. What was that?"

Uncle Wiryo sighed deeply. "That's the guardian of your power, Lucy. It appears when someone breaks rules that shouldn't be broken."

"What rules?" Lucy asked, confused.

"That this power must not be used for selfish reasons, let alone to hurt others," Uncle Wiryo explained. "Every time you violate that rule, the guardian will appear to warn you. If you keep doing it, you won't just lose control of your power... you'll lose control of yourself."

Lucy fell silent, pondering his words. She knew she had to change. She couldn't keep letting her power take over.

"Alright, I'll learn. I want to control this," she said at last.

Uncle Wiryo gave her a small smile. "That's a wise decision, Lucy. But remember, this won't be an easy path. You must be ready to face all the consequences."

Lucy nodded. She knew this was the start of a long journey filled with challenges. But she also knew she had no other choice.

Deep down, she resolved to atone for her mistakes, to protect the people she cared about, and to find a way to turn this curse into a force for good.