Dylan slowly straightened up, stepped closer to the edge, his gray eyes catching the trembling reflections on the lake's surface.
He dipped his hand into the water, slowly, then sliced it gently, as if testing the temperature—or maybe just claiming a bit of space.
"You said this was a groundwater spring, didn't you? What kind of creature could even live in here, anyway?"
Élisa crouched beside him. She placed a firm hand on his shoulder. Not aggressive, but with that weight adults use on kids who are being too stubborn.
"You don't know this forest very well. No… this world, actually."
She stared into the water, her face closed off.
"It's like a haunted house. Some rooms are quiet, almost normal. Others rip your guts out and make you relive them."
She paused, her gaze hardening further.
"And you never really know which room you're in—until it's too late."
Suddenly, he felt it. A vibration. Subtle, but real. Somewhere in the water, farther out.
