Reflection

by Fernandsr

Summary:

Owlette keeps a secret.

But Catboy already knows the truth, and he's waiting for them to confess... because if he admits they've been lying to him, he could doom the entire world to vanish into darkness.

When an unexpected event tears them apart, Catboy begins a journey toward someone he has never seen, yet somehow already knows. A mystery with many names: Tigresa. Mélanie. Daniela. In her eyes, Connor sees a symbol. A weakness.

She is destined to die; her blood is cursed and her heart has been shattered by magic. She is a tool —the toy of a faceless monster that everyone sees, one that hunts for more 'specimens.' And yet, all she wants is to get her family back.

Are she and Catboy truly strangers, or is there something beneath those masks that binds them together? Will the coming tragedy unite Connor, Greg, and Amaya... or drive them further apart?

In Paris, love will die. All that will remain is a city of shadows.

Notes:

(Hi! No, I haven’t gone anywhere. I’m just dropping by to say this: due to the extensive word count of each chapter, or the parts into which some chapters are split, I decided to include this dynamic note. I’ll be updating it with the remaining word count for the next release to show that I’m active and to stay connected with my readers).

IN PROGRESS!: 6,600 words remaining to be polished (Total for Chapter 2, Part 3: +20,000).

Chapter 1: Prologue

 

They appeared with the world itself,

and their existence remains a mystery —perhaps the very first of all.

 

In the beginning, there were fifteen.

Yet none who came after ever matched their power.

These were the Primordial Spirit Animals.

 

Three of them broke away, choosing their own path.

As for the rest, they lived in close harmony with the elements until they ultimately merged with them —becoming one with fire, water, air, and earth.

 

Yet, the fate of the others remains unknown...

Or rather... it once did.

 

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(Were beasts of enormous size, such as no one had ever seen nor written of before. and he became the beasts, and the beasts became him, that night, before the battle of zela, caesar spread the eagle's wings that had grown from his back and flew over the camp like a shining star. and many who beheld this sign believed it to be of great omen; thus were the hearts of the soldiers strengthened).

 

"I’m glad... they decided to let me take those private Latin lessons", Élise murmured, her voice filled with fascination yet tinged with confusion as she studied the yellowed fragment of paper in her hands. The ink was faded, but the letters still seemed to breathe history. "Who would've thought there'd be a hidden passage in the basement that would lead me here..."

Her words faded into the echo of the room.

The air smelled of old dust and damp stone, and the shelves around her were veiled in thick cobwebs. Each time her flashlight swept across the space, the beam revealed forgotten relics —glass jars, rolled parchments, shards of broken pottery— fragments of a time no one had thought to reclaim.

"Mmm...", she whispered, absently tracing the paper's edge. "I wonder what else might be hidden here... and why anyone would keep it in such a secluded place". She yawned softly, the weight of the night settling over her. "It's late. Maybe I should come back tomorrow after school. I'll have plenty of time to clean this place up".

She carefully tucked the paper between the pages of her notebook, then cast one last look at the hidden chamber —that forgotten corner where silence seemed to have a voice— before climbing the narrow steps back to the surface.

The muted thud of the tile sliding into place broke the stillness for just an instant.

As she walked down the hallway, the flashlight swayed gently in her hand, and her mind kept spinning with new questions.

None of which would find answers tonight.

It was going to be a long night.