Yeah, I know this whole Los Angeles subplot might seem unnecessary at the moment, but in the end it will all melt into one glorious mistake, I promise!

Welp, all I can say now is enjoy the story, I sure did enjoy writing it.

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Not a word was spoken during dinner meal between Louis and Eva, not even a glance or a sign that they knew the other was there. After the moment they had in the bathroom, neither knew what to do or what to think about it, it all seemed so... Unreal to them. Before that moment in the bathroom, they could rarely even bare to share a common space, let alone act like that. That is partly due to them having tensions since early childhood, and partly due to Louis himself.

A good three years ago, when he was fourteen and she was fifteen, Louis started to develop feelings for his life-long rival, feelings neither wanted to even consider seriously. Oh, Eva was well aware of his feelings since the very beginning, she is the one who pointed them out to him after all. He tried to ignore her constant taunting, her flirtatious remarks and suggestive stares. He knew nothing she did was out of affection, but only for her entertainment. Sometimes he would catch himself thinking about accepting it all, about admitting defeat and confessing just so she could get off his case, but he would mentally slap himself afterwards; no way is he going to back down, no way will he let himself be beaten by her! With her persistence and his stubbornness, something was bound to happen, and something truly did.

About a year ago, with him now being sixteen and her seventeen, a strange relationship had developed in between them; one of mutual dependence. Not a day could go by where she wouldn't tease him in one way or another, and not a day would go by where he wouldn't respond angrily to her attempts. It became sort of a comfort zone for the both of them, whatever bad or unexpected happened in their day, that strange relation was a constant that kept them moving. Then one day, she stopped. Louis might have felt relief at first, but as the days passed, he found himself worrying about her. A week passed, then a month, Louis' worry grew. Once he couldn't hold back anymore, he went to search for her. Now both wish he didn't.

"Monsieur Louis, Mademoiselle Eva. Are you done with your meal?" An old maid with a white old-fashioned servant hat covering her hair walked up to the table, her plastic smile giving Louis an unnerving feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"Y-yes, thank you for the meal." Eva whispered and stood up, still not turning to look at Louis.

" And you, Monsieur? Do you wish to eat anything else?" The maid spoke, but Louis didn't reply, just stared at his plate. He glanced up at Eva.

"I'll be in my room if anyone needs me." She knew Louis was looking at her and bit her lip slightly, but still refused to make any contact. As she walked away from the table, she thought about what happened after Louis left the bathroom.

*earlier that day*

She stumbled back in shock as her reflection spoke, her eyes wide in fear as the reflection craned her head slightly at her, its face staying calm.

"W-what?" Eva stuttered.

"I said," The reflection sighed."we know what to do now."

"W-what is that?" her legs were shaking, eyes wide in disbelief as her reflection rolled their eyes and gave her an annoyed stare. 'This isn't possible, it just isn't! Am I that tired?' Eva asked herself, then looked back at her reflection. As if the Eva in the mirror knew what she was thinking, she rolled her eyes and muttered:

"I'm as real as they get; now let's talk before you run away with your tail between your legs."

"E-excuse m-"

"So, that blade that your special little friend has is very valuable. I would like for you to take it from him."

"W-why?"

"So you would stop talking to your damn reflection!" Eva in the mirror snapped, and a short silence fell between them. Eva took a minute to gather her thoughts, then concluded this was probably a hallucination; she hadn't eaten anything all day and it was getting late. But what should she do now, should she just leave the bathroom or should she continue to talk to herself like a lunatic? 

"I don't see how some ornate knife could be of use to me..." She thought out loud, at which her reflection snorted, taking her aback with its next words:

"Well, I honestly do not know what some teenage brat can do with a hand-crafted blade that has my blood mark on it, but I do know what I need it for."

"W-what? Who are you?!" She exclaimed in a shrill voice, but the reflection ignored the panic in her voice and answered nonchalantly:

"Not you, and I thank whoever's up there every day on that fact."

"Okay, stop insulting me! Whoever you are, your snappy comebacks to my questions sure won't get you that blade any quicker!" Eva snapped back at her reflection, cocking her hip to the side as she narrowed her eyes, imitating her mother's threatening pose. 

The reflection straightened its figure out and glared into Eva's eyes, Eva shooting it back with the same stony gaze. This staring competition dragged on for a while, before both looked away and the reflection hissed like a serpent.

"Well then, you are not a pushover. I guess you deserve to know why I need that blade if you can stand up for yourself..." The reflection's voice changed from mimicking Eva's to a dry, whisper-like one, filling the room with a cold discomfort. For a second, Eva could swore she could feel something slithering underneath her skin, like a tiny snake, encapsulating her limbs in a tingling sensation. She still kept her gaze away from the mirror though, her reflection giving her a sense of unfamiliar dread.

"That blade is the key to why I am still alive, when I shouldn't be. That and your mother."

Another heavy silence fell between them as Eva tried to comprehend the meaning of those words. Why did the reflection mention her mother? She bit her lower lip in thought, but nothing came to mind. She turned back to face the mirror, to try and coax the stranger in the mirror to explain their words. However, once they made eye contact, Eva's breath got caught in her throat. 

Where she once stared at her own chocolate colored eyes, now stood two slits of a nauseating black hue, a single thin golden line going down their middle. Even though the person, that she is now convinced wasn't a figment of her imagination, is still gazing at her from the other side of the mirror, she could feel their eerie presence all around her body, constricting her breath to the point where all she could see is that haunting pair of eyes. She wanted to scream, to move back and press herself against the tiles, to open the door and run for dear life, anything! However, it's as if she wasn't allowed to do so, as if her muscles resisted the very idea of doing so. She was hopelessly stuck, listening and watching as the figure in front of her shifted and changed.

"Listen well now, I need that blade before you return to your parents."

*back to the evening*

After she left the dining room, Eva stalked up to Louis' door. She stood there, frozen in place, staring at the neatly decorated wood in front of her. She chanted the orders she received over and over, whispering them to the empty hallway.

"Retrieve the knife before he gets consumed, retrieve the knife before he gets consumed, retrieve the knife before he gets consumed..." Eva repeated to herself constantly, not sure what is the meaning behind those words. The stranger did not care to explain much, just the bare basics about her mission; retrieve the blade if you want Louis to be safe.

Hesitantly, she grasped the round door handle and twisted it, breathing a silent sigh of relief when the door opened. She stalked inside the dark space, too afraid to turn on the lights, squinting as she took cautious steps on the carpeted floor. Once her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she could make out the shape of a bed, as well as a night stand and small lamp right next to it. Step by step, she reached the night stand and pulled her phone out of her jeans pocket, turning on the flashlight as she opened the first drawer. Deodorant, hair comb, charger, headphones and nothing useful. She huffed and slammed the drawer shut, quickly opening the second one and rummaging through it. Again, nothing useful, bundles of socks and boxers. She was about to give up and throw her phone on the bed in exasperation, when she stepped on an object lying right next to the night stand. She aimed the flashlight on her phone at the item and smiled and victory once she recognized the cold glint of the weapon.

"Score! It must have fallen down at some point." She wrapped her hand in the napkin she took from dinner, wrapping the blade in it. She wouldn't risk touching it after how Louis acted earlier in the bathroom, who knows what curse could be lying on that thing!

After she secured the weapon and turned off the flashlight, she hurried back to her room, closing the door of Louis' room loudly and entering hers with relief flooding her system.

However, that relief was short-lived as she turned on the light, only for her eyes to meet Louis'. He was sitting in her room, waiting for her.

"Good evening, Eva. Where did you wonder off to?"

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And that's it for now! Did you like this chapter? What do you think of the LouisxEva subplot? Does it need more work?

Well, whatever you may think about this chapter, I am looking forward to seeing your reactions to it!

Stay safe, kitties!

OceanFury