Chapter 177 - I Am Confused-II

To Seoyeon the woman's words were like a pleading. It was as if she was begging Seoyeon not to kill but she would never kill people. It was hard for to believe she would kill people when when she was afraid of trivial things like spider or darkness.

"I will never kill people. I can't never do that or wish for other's death," she replied to the woman and saw how the woman shakes her head.

"It is not up to you to decide, my dear. I fear what inside you is making you to instrument. It is not your fault. You and the catalyst are two different beings put in one body. You are the catalyst but you have no hold over the destructive power," the woman could speak louder now after the pain of Jung Hwa's hand on her hand had disappeared.

"The words you said earlier where Seoyeon is reverting to her real nature you mean she is slowly turning to the catalyst?" asked Jung Hwa who stopped beside Seoyeon, standing on her left side.

"Yes. If we don't prevent this from happening, her power will turn to a terrible disaster," said the woman who hen set her lips to a thin line and her brows furrowed under the veil. "There should be a way, the fastest and the easiest way," the woman whispered as if speaking not to the, but something else.

"Are you suggesting to kill her?" Jung Hwa asked and the woman shook her head vigorously, raising her hand to wave to stop Jung Hwa from killing Seoyeon. The fortune teller felt Jung Hwa's power and it would do her worse if he kill Seoyeon.

"I can never suggest that. The catalyst had been killed but it is a fact that Seoyeon's soul is there. What we need is to separate them or destroy the catalyst. Seoyeon is not at fault." It sounded to Seoyeon that the woman was trying to protect her from being killed. "There must be a way. Other way. Not the one your uncle and aunt use."

"Why do you want to protect me?" At this point, Seoyeon find it hard to believe people. Her trust had been broken many times, leading her to be suspicious. Her aunt said the fortune teller was the one to tell them that she was the bringer of misfortune and that killing her was the only solution.

At first, Seoyeon thought the woman hold hostility against her but now she seemed to want to stop the catalyst without killing her.

"The catalyst," said the fortune teller before she pursed her lips, "In the past my ancestors knew the catalyst of the six hundred years ago. As people who could tell one's future, we are told to guide the catalyst if it appeared again in the future. Killing is not an option. I tried to use one method in the past as a precaution to subdue the catalyst and its power; but you broke it. I don't know how you did that. It could be that the catalyst's power grew over time."

"What method did you use?" asked Seoyeon, to elicit more answer from the fortune teller. "This is why you said you know who I am because we have met before."

Jung Hwa was more interested in seeing how the truth would unravel. The questions Seoyeon asked was what Jung Hwa also want to know and the mysteries of her was slowly pulled from the woman who was the source of their informations.

"I locked away all your memories of your past," the fortune teller revealed and Seoyeon looked at her in baffled. "That was the only way," the woman continued knowing Seoyeon was not only surprised but heartbroken. "So you wouldn't remember anything about your origin. Anything that involve about your power, or witches, I used magic to make you lose the memories."

She locked her memories? Everything about her? Seoyeon questioned herself. Is that why whenever she tried to remember her past, there would be a gap in between? Seoyeon didn't question herself why she forgot some memories of her childhood. Not every children could remember the events of the past and she thought she forgot her birth parents because she was too young. But Seoyeon learn she was wrong.

"That must be the reason why Seoyeon didn't remember anything about her birth parents," was Jung Hwa's comment when he stopped beside Seoyeon, "But that's odd. Seoyeon had forgotten her memories of her parents since she moved to the orphanage. She spoke witches' language in the orphanage until one day the headmaster said she came back unable to speak the language, almost as if she had forgotten everything. Does that mean Mr. and Mrs. Han who adopted her know about her long before that?"

The fortune teller tilted her head, somewhere confused herself and it was not only Jung Hwa who had caught the woman's hesitation in replying but Seoyeon. "As far as I know they didn't know about Seoyeon before that. She still remember her past but I don't know myself, there was some memories of her that she forgot herself."

"Do you know what memories you erased from my mind?" Seoyeon questioned. She want to know more about her birth parents and about herself. Her past might be the key to clear her question. "Or could you return my memories?"

"I could not. Once I locked your memories, it will erased. It is the one and only method that I chose because I had no other choices to make. I hate to tell this," the woman drawled and she lifted her face to meet Jung Hwa and Seoyeon's eyes through her veil. "If there come a day when the catalyst took over Seoyeon, I will have to lock her memories again and this time, the vampire will also disappear from your mind."

Seoyeon break her gaze from the fortune teller and her eyes moved at Jung Hwa to see his eyes looking at her turned red with the emotion that riled inside him. "That will never happen." Seoyeon heard Jung Hwa said the words almost as if he was gritting his teeth.

The fortune teller placed her hands and fold them over her knees she bent while sitting, "With all due respect, that is the one method I found to be the one with less harm or side effect."

"Search for another one," Jung Hwa demanded and he took Seoyeon's hand. She felt his hand tightened on her and there she saw his eyes moving at her. "Nothing will happen. I will not let you forget anything anymore about me and everything else," he assured her and Seoyeon felt the comfort his words gave.

From the start of the conversation, Seoyeon's heart was in unease. Every new information was weighing her. Jung Hwa's appearance on her side made the angst comforted and she appreciated him being with her.

To know that she would have to forgot about him, Seoyeon didn't want it to happen either.

"Is there really no other way?" asked Seoyeon where the woman pursed his lips silently. Once again she whispered to nothing and to Seoyeon's ears, she caught faint noise of whisper that was different from the woman's voice. It belong to someone else's but the only people in the room was her, the fortune teller, and Jung Hwa.

"There are some. Dark Witches. They have a book about the catalyst and how to prevent the catalyst's power to break out," replied the fortune teller, "You will have to find dark witches. The book is said to be with them. I don't know where they are but they are still in Korea. One more word is graves. The book is hinted to be hidden there."

"That isn't much of a clue," remarked Jung Hwa but it was worth of a shot. He would never let Seoyeon to die or forget about him. It could happen over his dead body. "I thought you were an excellent fortune teller but there is a limit to your power if you can't describe the place clearly."

The woman didn't took Jung Hwa's words as an offense, knowing that the vampire had said the words on purpose to make her angered and spoil lies if she had one but she had told nothing but truth. "My power is to tell one's future. It will not work to find things, sir vampire. Would you like me to read your future, Seoyeon?" She shifted her face to see Seoyeon.

Seoyeon hesitated on her reply. She was curious but somewhere afraid that the future would be a tragedy. What if by knowing her future now it will instead make the situation worse?

Jung Hwa came and he placed his hand on her shoulder naturally, "You should try, knowing would not hurt and maybe it could help you to find more things and even if it is bad, mine should be worse," he rubbed her back and gave a her the smile she didn't like at the beginning but now she feel the most relieved seeing it on his lips.

"I will try.." Seoyeon took steps forward to the fortune teller, sitting on the place against the woman.