\herosection{The Mirror that Knew}{chapters/2025.10.21-TheMirrorThatKnew/image/the-mirror-that-knew.jpg}

\DROPCAP{../../dropcap_c/dropI.png}n the high country \\
where clouds touched the roofs, \\
the village of Lir kept the art of mirrors.\\
Their mirrors were not toys of vanity \\
but instruments of devotion. \\
Each generation one was made \\
for the Temple of the Dawn, \\
to reveal each soul as it truly was.

When the honor fell to Master Iren, \\
no one questioned the choice.\\
He was patient, precise, and — \\
he liked to say — \\
humble. \\
``A mirror must be pure as snow,'' \\
he told his apprentice Sela, \\
a quiet girl whose quiet nature \\
he mistook for slowness. \\
``If the maker leaves a trace of himself, \\
it will cloud the image.\\
I, of course, will do no such thing.''

Weeks passed in silence \\
broken only by the hiss \\
of molten silver and glass.\\
At last, \\
the mirror was lifted into its frame, \\
shining like captured sunlight.\\
The abbot came, \\
the bells rang, \\
and the villagers lined up \\
to see what they would see.

The first pilgrim stepped forward — \\
an old woman, \\
trembling.\\
Her reflection bloomed crisp and clear.\\
Then a high priest, \\
strutting in his finest robe — \\
the surface misted over at once.\\
One after another, \\
they gazed at themselves in the mirror.\\
The modest saw themselves luminously; \\
the self-important saw only fog.

``Surely the mirror isn't working correctly,'' \\
the crowd grumbled.\\
Murmuring spread.\\
Iren laughed lightly to still them. \\
``The metal is fresh — \\
it needs to season.''\\
He turned toward the glass, \\
certain the reflection of his own face \\
would steady the crowd.

Nothing.

Only a foggy light.\\

He felt heat rise behind his ears.\\
``You've spoiled the mixture'' he hissed at Sela.

She blinked, \\
frightened, \\
then stepped up beside him.\\
The mirror caught her instantly — \\
her image bright and alive, \\
the whole hall luminous.

``What did you do?'' he demanded.

``Nothing,'' she said. \\
``I only looked.''

That night, \\
he worked alone, \\
polishing until his hands shook.\\
The harder he tried, \\
the duller the surface grew.\\
Exhausted, \\
he leaned close, \\
whispering a prayer he could barely remember.\\
For an instant, \\
a face flickered — \\
worn, \\
uncertain, \\
human — \\
and then was gone.
