ᴄʜᴀᴘɪᴛʀᴇ ꜱɪx - ᴄʜᴇʀᴄʜᴇʀ
Chapter Six - Seek

Small note here: Even though six is spelt the same, the number in French is pronounced "sees." Just a little fun fact for you there!

Note: I do not own the following characters
Rey Lopez {civilian form only}/Snow Drift {heroine form only mentioned}, Gilla aka the snow leopard kwami, the snow leopard's miraculous and her family members [Iris Lopez, Amy Lopez, Shawn Lopez/mentioned as "dad" and Reina Hunter-Lopez] - Sci-Briana14

Bernadette "Betty" Fontaine, Celestia Lesbianne, and Professor (Poppy) Bourgeois - GeekyCookie1

Sonic the Hedgehog [mentioned] - SEGA GAMES

Language checkpoint
"Okay, that was a close one." - "De acuerdo... Eso estuvo cerca."

"Do you think she knows about you being...?" - "¿Crees que ella sabe que eres...?"

"No, no I don't think she knows and if we're lucky, she won't catch on." - "No, no creo que ella lo sepa y si tenemos suerte ella no se dará cuenta."

"I'll be more careful next time, I swear." - "Seré más cuidadosa te juro."

"You promise to be more careful?" - "¿Prometes ser más cuidadosa?"

"I'll be more careful from now on. I promise." - "Seré más cuidadosa de ahora en adelante, se lo prometo."

"Thank you." - "Gracias."

"All right, let's get this over with." - "D'accord, allons obtenir ça."

Trigger Warnings
Explicit display of a "suicide attempt" (mainly medium)
Explicit display of gaslighting (medium to high; moderate at best)
Explicit display of physical, emotional and verbal abuse (low to medium)
Explicit display of mockery towards a suicidal individual (low to moderate)

Implicit (low) and explicit display of self-harm (low to medium)
Implicit reference to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (low to medium)

~~~~

A few hours prior Lance's death being revealed to the public...

"Hi, Max."

"W... Why a... are —"

Pulling himself together, Max took a deep breath and looked at his cousin. "Why are you covered in blood?" the boy asked at last, his voice now coming back to him as his cousin merely glanced down at herself before looking up.

"I must have gotten you good if you think this is blood," Bernadette cheekily countered, now laughing as Max puzzlingly blinked. "Oh come on, Maxie. This isn't real blood, this is just paint," she continued, keeping her cool as Max rubbed his head, which gave her an idea as she smiled.

"Maxie, have you been staying up again?"

"Maybe..."

"Maxie, you know better than to be staying up all night," Bernadette gently scowled at him, now shaking her head as she softly laughed. "Well, it's no wonder why you think I'm cover in blood! You're dreaming this whole thing up," she lightheartedly added, to which Max tiredly shook his head.

"But I was only asleep a few minutes ago."

"Ah, see that's where your problem lies, Maxie. Your brain isn't processing the reality of your surroundings since your mind is still in sleep mode. That must be why you think I'm covered in blood, when in reality, it's just paint," Bernadette cheekily explained as Max found himself yawning against his will.

"See?"

As Bernadette smiled so earnestly at him, Max chuckled as he rubbed his eyes. "Yeah," he started, shaking his head. "No, yeah, that must be it. I'm just being delusional and I'm sorry for thinking you were covered in blood in the first place," he said, sincerely apologizing as Bernadette felt a slight pang in her throat.

Although Bernadette sweetly smiled at him, a part of her felt guilty in the sense that she was tricking her cousin into buying her lie. But she brushed off the feeling. After all, she was doing this for him, for them. She was doing this to save their home!

The heroes do nothing to stop the real evil from spreading, only focusing on that stupid moth man and his idiotic attempts to obtain their miraculouses. Those so-called heroes just march around their streets, masquerade around the city in their pointless costumes and win on the account of luck — not even on the countability of skill.

None of them ever stopped to think about the real evils lurking behind the shadows of their beloved home. So, why should she feel guilty about manipulating her cousin into thinking he was in the wrong? The heroes lied every single day! All of them were no better than the old man they're hunting down.

But of course, all of the idiots in Paris [not Max, of course] praised and worshipped the heroes as if the trio were some kind of gods. She couldn't wait for the day, she could call out all of the heroes on their lies and their false promises of peace. The girl could easily fume over the three all day, but why fume when one can simply turn that anger and rage into a source of motivation?

After all, Paris only needed one hero; the three Paris had alone were simply too much and if more were to follow after them — Bernadette almost shuddered at the thought of more teenagers pretending to be helpful. Regardless, Paris simply wasn't big enough for four of them alone...

"... It's just the paint looked so realistically close to what blood typically looks like," he explained as Bernadette quickly snapped out of her thoughts. "Ah, well, now you know how to prank Kim and Alix when you're feeling mischievous," she teasingly said, only for her cousin's eyes to light up.

"Any chance you want to reveal your secret supplier?" Max cheekily asked, to which her smile quickly disappeared for a slight second. However, she quickly brought the smile back, not wanting her cousin to get back on her trail. She even included a sly chuckle to mask the fear she felt.

"Maxie, you know I can't do that. You're just going to have to find your only source," she playfully said as Max childishly huffed. "Fine. Maybe, I can ask around, but I'll outdo you," he insisted as his cousin had merely rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right," she easily shot back as the two chuckled.

"Well... if you don't mind, Maxie, I need to go remove this paint," Bernadette gently said just as Max began to yawn. "Fair enough. I should go back to sleep anyways. It's late as it is," he said, now taking off his glasses to rub his eyes.

Although Max had wondered why his cousin was out late at night covered in paint, he was far too tired to care in the moment. Maybe he would ask his cousin tomorrow, if Max remembered....

"But I'm glad we were able to resolve that problem, so I'll leave you to remove the paint and let you sleep," Max cheekily said, now placing his glasses on as he began to walk out of Bernadette's room. "Goodnight, cuz. Love you," he said, flashing a smile to his cousin right before he closed the door.

"Goodnight, Maxie!"

As soon as Max closed the door and she heard his footsteps fading away, Bernadette waited until her cousin's footsteps were gone for good and when she no longer hear movement in the distance, the girl sighed in relief.

"That was a close one," Bernadette told herself, now sighing. "I have got to make sure I don't make the same mistake again," she said, staring at her blood-stained costume she managed to hide from her cousin. Staring at her arms, she frowned, a moment of doubt and confusion lingering in her eyes.

"Sometimes, I wonder how I got myself involved in this line of work," she said, solemnly chuckling. "But no matter. All of this will pay off. I just have to make sure that no one finds out," she told herself, now staring at her hands once again as Bernadette heard a faint sound of laughter.

Closing her eyes at the sound of the laugh, Bernadette clenched her fists. "No one will find out about me," she persisted, now looking at her reflection as the girl saw her black hair dampened and various blood stains splattered across her face.

"Not even my cousin and the ravenette across the street will discover the truth," she told herself, a flash of sheer determination in her eyes.

"I'll make sure of it."

———————————————-

|Present Time|

"Hey, Lie-la!"

As the red haired girl mischievously grinned with her red painted lips and lukewarm brown hazelnut eyes, Lila quietly growled underneath her breath.

Lila knew who was taunting her from looking at the girl's dark red (almost blood like) silk-inspired sundress, her sliver square-shaped earrings, her fierce red high heels and an ankle bracelet on her left foot with the word 'Winner'.

"Allison," Lila angrily mumbled. "Have you heard the news?" the redhead asked, which caught her attention. "No. What news?" Lila curiously inquired, to which she saw the girl's smile turned to a taunting smirk.

"Your so-called protector was found dead this morning outside of an alleyway. That cop of yours couldn't even defend himself when his life depended on it," Allison began, only to chuckle afterwards. "It seems to me as though the captain failed you, my clueless ex and those mindless drones of yours," she continued, now smiling as Lila clenched her fist.

"Ha! Like you should be the one to talk. Last time I check, the Plastics wanted their look back and I'm pretty sure you and your lackeys missed the expiration date," Lila sharply stated, now crossing her arms as she glared at Allison, whose eyes remained mocking her, much to Lila's annoyance.

"Secondly, don't insult my friends or my boyfriend," Lila stubbornly continued as Allison laughed. "Still trying to copy me, Rossi? It's pathetic, really. First, you form a group after I made one and now you're trying to pass my ex as your own. Trust me, little vixen, he's not as great as you keep making him out to be."

"Funny. I don't think I ever asked for your opinion," Lila snarks, a pity smirk on her face. "But in any case, Alex is an amazing boyfriend and he had every reason to leave you. After all, he knew greatness the moment I waltzed into his life," she continued, sassily flipping her hair as Allison blinked before she began to laugh once again, now viewing the girl as a joke.

"You being great? Ha! Please. The only great thing about you is that exotic, horse hair of yours. I bet it's not even real just like everything else about you," Allison insisted as Lila rolled her eyes.

"Whatever," Lila quietly mumbled, finding herself at wit's end with the redhead. "Well, it doesn't even matter because I'll just go to Captain Abbott all the same," Lila added as Allison lowly chuckled.

"You think I'm joking but I'm not. Like I told you, the captain is really dead and if I were you, I would watch your back, Rossi. You never know when or who the killer will come for next," Allison insisted, no longer chuckling as she was sincerely warning the Italian girl, who had no intention on taking her seriously.

"You're kidding. First of all, why would the killer come after me? I'm practically a saint," Lila proudly boasted to which Allison had to resist the urge to laugh at the girl, only to fail a few seconds later. "You a saint? You're exactly the type of person the killer would be after," Allison sharply countered as Lila merely shook her head, once again brushing off her claims.

"I highly doubt it, but as for Captain Abbott, he's supposed to be the best police officer around. There's no way he's—"

"Breaking news!"

Catching the sound of the television blaring in the background, Allison then retrieved her black sunglasses, swinging the accessory as she glanced at Lila, whose bold smirk faded just as quickly as it came. "You have got to be kidding me right now," she heard Lila mumbled, now frowning.

"This just in, the prominent and bright police officer, Captain Lance Abbott, who was expected to take over his own department later this month before his affair with the late Audrey Bourgeois came to light has just been confirmed dead by the autopsy as the former ex-captain was found brutally beaten and stabbed to death several times outside of an alleyway."

Wincing at the screen, Lila briefly held her throat. "What kind of monster would have the nerves to beat a man senselessly to death?" she insisted, now shaking her head as Lila forced herself to look away. "Captain Abbott didn't need to die in that way. That's just the killer doing the most now," she briefly continued as she stared at Allison, who had nodded.

"You're telling me. He might have not been great, but that didn't mean the killer needed to take the direction that they did. Some people are just psychopaths who deserve to be punished for murders like these," Allison insisted as she and Lila looked at each other, a look of mutual understanding in their eyes.

"Are we seriously bonding over the fact we both view the killer as a monster?" Allison and Lila briskly asked each other as a slight gasp came out from the two, who blinked before they proceeded to laugh.

"Oh, our crews are going to flip out when they find out about this," Allison half-jokingly stated as Lila gave a sly smirk, seeing how she could use this moment to her advantage.

"You know with your power and my wits, the two of us would be a real, fighting chance to dethrone Bourgeois and Lopez."

"Hmm... maybe except you particularly lack in the wits department," Allison swiftly said as she slid her sunglasses on. "Besides, I know better than to trust a lying vixen like you. If you want a pawn, go look somewhere else, Rossi," Allison continued, now shaking her head at the girl.

"Darn, I was really hoping you would say yes."

"Well, not all of us are so easily swayed by you," Allison countered, now adjusting her sunglasses. "I gotta go, but seriously, be careful out there. I have a feeling Audrey and Captain Abbott won't be the only ones dying, so keep an eye on who you let into your circle. After all, the killer could be anywhere," she continued as Lila merely rolled her eyes.

"I suspect that you secretly like me."

"Ha! You know, just for that, I'm rooting for the killer to get you," Allison shot back as Lila crossed her arms. "Right back at you, doll," Lila stated, watching as Allison left the small diner.

However once her rival had left, Lila couldn't stop thinking about the way her pawn was murdered. Did Lila personally like Lance Abbott? No, but the captain was useful... to a certain fault.

But now the guy was gone and the more the girl had thought about Allison's words, the longer Lila found herself believing in the possibility that her rival was right. She didn't want to believe Allison, but if Audrey and Lance were killed for their corruption, who's to say the killer wouldn't target her?

"What if... I'm next?"

———————————————

"How about this one, Rey?"

As the young girl shook her head, she went through the racks until Rey had gasped at once, grinning excitedly.

"Iris, look what I found!" Rey happily exclaimed as her grin remained in tact. "Isn't this so cool?" she followed up as Iris skeptically looked at the vintage black T-shirt with the face and authentic signature of Jagged Stone himself.

"It's..." Iris began, only to sigh in the end as she did her best to conceal how she truly felt about her youngest sister's discovery. "Rey, it's not your style," she said at last, to which the girl's smile fell. "Maybe this one would be better suited for you," Iris gently continued, now holding up a light lavender silk dress she saw with slight ruffles on the shoulders and bottom end of the dress.

Rey had frowned when she saw the dress. Lavender wasn't even her favorite color and she didn't even want to look the part of a rich girl. She just wanted to look like a typical teenager her own age, hence why she had gravitated towards the vintage Jagged Stone T-shirt because she liked Jagged Stone, even if the rest of her family had disapproved of her taste in music.

"Since you know... you're Little Miss Perfect and all," Iris gently added, now smiling as Rey's face faltered from her sister's comment. "Oh..." she mumbled as Iris was oblivious to Rey's true feelings. "I mean, you would just look like a true Lopez wearing this dress, you know? You just need a little boost in switching out your normie look to something more of a Lopez's style," Iris continued, gently advising her little sister in a lighthearted supportive manner but rather Rey viewed the dress as another way of being fit back into the box of what people perceived her to be.

"You know... I don't actually need the dress or this shirt anymore," Rey dismissively said, placing the shirt back as Iris's face fell from the dismissal of the dress she chose out for her little sister. "B... But, I really think—" Iris began, only to get cut off by the girl, who merely sighed.

"No, Iris, it's fine. If you really knew me though, you'd know that my favorite colors are purple, teal blue and white. You would know that I dislike ruffles and how I stay away from dresses drawing too much attention to me. Iris, I'm not like you or Amy and I just wish someone could see me for me."

It was the first time Rey had actually gathered the courage to tell someone about how she truly felt and it had caught Iris off-guard as she was always used to her submissive nature her little sister had. It was actually sorta exciting to see her little sister stand up for herself for a change.

"Rey..."

"I'm heading out," Rey briskly concluded, leaving the store as Iris stared at the dress she picked for her and back at the vintage Jagged Stone T-shirt her little sister had adored so much.

"Rey, wait!"

But her little sister was long gone now and as Iris stared at the two options, she found herself frowning. She always thought she was helping out Rey by guiding her into the direction of maintaining her "Little Miss Perfect" title. But, Iris never thought just how Rey actually felt...

"Rey, I'm so sorry..."

Descending from the stairs of the mall and making her way to a empty bench, Rey sat down as she quietly sighed to herself, now fumbling with her pearl necklace.

"Be the perfect daughter, be the perfect student — I don't want to be Little Miss Perfect. I just want to be me," she insisted, now unclasping her necklace as she stared at the pearls, which Rey seemed to despised more in the moment. "Why can't... Why can't I just be me for once?" she asked herself, now holding her head low.

Is that too hard to ask?

——————————————

On the other side of Paris, a window sill opened as a light purple glow could be seen in the distance. In the dark, shadowy part of the room, a secluded older male resembling an actual moth gripped onto his cane with a smirk.

"A daughter pressured by her loved ones and society. Her emotions are perfect for my latest akuma," the mystery man spoke as he touched a pure, white butterfly which was now corrupted with dark, purple energy as the butterfly mindlessly flapped its wings.

"Go to her, my little akuma and fester her dark heart!"

As the akuma began making its way to Rey, the akuma flew from Hawkmoth's lair to the mall only to stop mid-way as its intended target was discovered by another.

"Rey?"

Looking up, Rey was in the process of wiping her tears away when the girl saw her white snow leopard kwami peek her head out from her handbag. "Gilla, I... Gosh, this is super embarrassing. I'm so—" she insisted, trying to apologize when Gilla looked around and quickly went out of her hiding spot to hug her wielder.

"Rey, please listen to me. Master Fu didn't choose you to wield the necklace of renewal because you were 'perfect.' He chose you to be the next Snow Drift because of who you are as a person," Gilla sincerely began as Rey softly looked up.

"You're exceptional just the way you are, Rey. I love who you are as a person and one day, everyone will get to know and love the real you," Gilla sincerely continued as Rey softly smiled, now sniffling as she continued to wipe away the rest of her tears. "You really think so?" Rey asked, her voice full of hope as Gilla smiled.

"Kid, I know so."

Taking a deep and controlled breath, Rey grinned as she lightly cupped her kwami in her arms. "Thanks, Gilla. You always know how to cheer me up," she sincerely told her kwami, who smiled brightly at her words. "You're welcome," Gilla softly said, before she had dig inside of Rey's bag to locate a container full of chocolate-covered strawberries, which she managed to retrieve and bring back to her wielder.

"Halfsies?"

"Sure."

With a grin, Rey and Gilla both shared a chocolate-covered strawberry. Now calmer, the girl found she no longer possessed any negative emotions, which led to the akuma being unable to touch her. As such, Hawkmoth chose to recall his akuma, deciding to wait till another day to akumatized his next victim.

"This is only a temporary setback, but be warned, heroes, I will be back and when I return, your miraculouses will be mine!" Hawkmoth determinedly proclaimed as the charged akuma returned to his lair, now fluttering near him as the windowsill closed from behind him, forever hiding in the dark....

"Gilla! You should be back in the handbag. You know, you can't be seen in public. What would happen if someone caught me with you?" Rey firmly said, lightly scowling Gilla, who went to retrieve another chocolate-covered strawberry.

"Rey, I checked and no one is here. Trust me. I would know if we were being watched," Gilla briskly countered back, confident that she wouldn't be seen with Rey. "Hmm... If you say so, Gilla," she began, to which the kwami munched happily on her chocolate-covered strawberry.

"But I still think you should go back, essentially since the last thing I need is someone to find out that I'm Snow Drift because of you," Rey told her, to which Gilla dramatically huffed, though she knew the rules pretty well. "Fine, but the strawberries are coming with me," Gilla sassily said, claiming the container as she slowly stared at her wielder before going back into Rey's handbag.

"Thank you," Rey said as she closed her handbag. As the teenage girl stared at her pearl necklace, Rey placed the item back on, ensuring the necklace was safely clenched. Then believing she had heard her name being called, Rey stood up.

"Coming!"

As Rey left, a girl stealthily stepped out from her hiding spot, smirking as she stopped the voice recording. "I knew there was something amiss about her when we first met," she told herself, now chuckling as she saved the recording and started a new one, now pressing play.

"With Little Miss Perfect being Snow Drift out of the way, there are still two more left to unmask and if any of them attempt to uncover my secret or stop me from succeeding with my plan to establish peace in Paris, well..." the girl started, only to trail off as she smirked.

"Those three idiots got another thing coming," the girl darkly finished, a flash of chaos appearing in her eyes. "Till next next, this is Betty Fontaine signing off," she concluded, now ending the second recording as she held the miniature device in her hand, a smirk reappearing on her face.

"Now, let's go catch ourselves some heroes."

———————————

"Rey-kins!"

Hugged by Chloé, Rey happily grinned as she proceeded to hug back. "Hey, Chloé," she softly began before glancing back to her best friend's aunt, who smiled warmly in her direction. "Hi, Professor Bourgeois," she greeted. "Hi, Miss Lopez. I trust your day is going well?" the professor softly asked her as Rey nodded.

"Yes. I was actually shopping here with my sister, Iris, but I can't quite seem to find her anywhere," Rey softly explained as the professor nodded. "By any chance, Professor, did you see her around here?" Rey followed up, only for the professor to shake her head in the end.

"No, I have not."

"Oh," Rey merely said before turning to Chloé. "Have you by chance seen Iris?" she ask, only for Chloé to shake her head as well. "No, I haven't. I'm sorry my aunt and I can't be of any help to you but I hope you find your sister soon," Chloé later added in sincerity as Rey softly smiled.

"Thanks," Rey began with a grin. "Well, I'll let you two be while I continue my search for Iris," Rey added as Chloé nodded. "Good luck!" Chloé insisted before her had eyes lit up at the sight of a boutique. "Come on, Aunt Poppy, let's go check it out!" Chloé added as she happily grinned before dragging her aunt along to follow her.

As Rey observed the two and chuckled, she then made her way to another section of the mall, attempting to look for Iris when the girl walked by an video game store. As she attempted to walk past the store completely in search for her oldest sister, Rey caught an advertisement for the release of Sonic the Hedgehog.

Although she made the effort to ignore the sign, once she heard the familiar voice game instrumental, Rey found herself getting briefly distracted as the girl ran inside the store where she found Max with his cousin, which caught the girl by surprise since Rey didn't think his cousin had liked video games.

Then again, Rey didn't even know Max had a cousin till the day the two met at Phillip's Ice Skating Rink [even though, his cousin has always gone to their school, she just never thought about taking the time to notice].

Realizing that she needed to do better with knowing her classmates out of school and seeing the opportunity to develop a friendship with Max's cousin, she lightly made her way towards the two.

"Hey, Max!"

"Oh, hey Rey!" Max cheerfully greeted the girl, to which Rey happily grinned in his view as she turned to his cousin. "Bernadette, was it?" Rey began as her grin turned to a soft smile.

"I know we met before but since our time was quickly interrupted by Hawkmoth and the akuma, I thought I would take the time to reintroduce myself to you once again," Rey continued as Bernadette shook her head.

"No need. I know who you are already."

"Oh..."

As Rey had trailed off, she had briefly turned where a snow leopard's tail necklace was seen. "Your necklace... I take it you must be a fan of Snow Drift?" Bernadette curiously inquired as Rey glanced down at her miraculous, quickly placing the necklace back in her shirt to only reveal her authentic pearl necklace.

"I guess you could say that, but I mainly just try to keep my love for the super-heroine under the radar," Rey awkwardly explained as she did her best to conceal the sudden nervousness she felt around Max's cousin, which made the girl want to laugh as Rey assume she was simply being paranoid.

After all, it's not like Max's cousin had implied she knew her secret as Snow Drift: All Bernadette was ask a simple, harmless question.

"Oh? Interesting. I would think one would choose to embrace their love for a heroine, no? I mean, Alya shares her love of Ladybug by devoting the entire Ladyblog to her," Bernadette plainly followed up. "That is true, but I'm the type of fan that will cheer for her from afar," Rey plainly explained to her as Bernadette nodded.

"Fair enough," Bernadette cheekily said as she later turned to Rey with a grin. "Though now that I think about it, you and Snow Drift both look oddly similar to each other right down to the both of you having the same necklace," Bernadette cryptically followed up, causing Rey to slightly panic inwardly [though outwardly, she kept a neutral expression on her face] at the thought of someone knowing her secret identity.

"Betty, come look at this!"

With Max indirectly coming to the girl's rescue, Rey silently sighed in relief. "You know, I should get going. But if you and Max ever wanted to play Sonic sometime with me, I would be honored to play alongside you both," Rey cheekily said as Bernadette kept a bright smile.

"I'll take you on your offer and don't worry about what I said. It was just a observation I noticed. But hey, it must be nice to look similar to a superhero," Bernadette lightly said as Rey awkwardly chuckled. "Yeah... Well, I'll see you both later then," Rey softly said, now waving farewell to the two as she quickly took her leave.

"De acuerdo... Eso estuvo cerca," Rey mumbled to herself, glancing back as she stared at Bernadette, who was happily playing a demo version of Sonic the Hedgehog with Max, the two laughing.

"¿Crees que ella sabe que eres....?" Gilla whispered, keeping her head low as Rey moved out of the two's view. "No," Rey answered, before taking a quick look at the cousins. "No creo que ella lo sepa y si tenemos suerte ella no se dará cuenta," Rey briefly continued, now giving Gilla a much-needed stern look as she went back to hiding from the cousins' view.

"Seré más cuidadosa te juro," Gilla sincerely stated, looking down in shame as Rey gave her kwami a hopeful look. "¿Prometes ser más cuidadosa?" Rey inquired as her kwami instantly nodded. "Seré más cuidadosa de ahora en adelante, se lo prometo," Gilla told her wielder, who nodded. "Gracias, Gilla," Rey sincerely told Gilla, who smiled warmly and made a vow to stick to her promise.

This incident could not happen again.

———————————

"Rey, there you are!"

"Iris?"

As Gilla quickly ducked her head back into Rey's handbag, Rey glanced up to see Iris with several shopping bags as the two sisters ran to each other before briefly stopping, as if debating whether or not to hug each other. In the end, the two sisters awkwardly stared at each other, choosing not to hug in the moment.

"Ready to head back?" Iris curiously asked as Rey glanced one last time at Max and Bernadette before she looked away from the two, now nodding. "Yeah. I think I had enough of an adventure," Rey cheekily said as Iris softly chuckled. "Well, that makes two of us then," Iris lightly said as the two walked together.

Upon leaving the mall, Rey and Iris entered their family's limousine where the two were then driven back home to their mansion. As the driver went to park the limo and unlock the doors, Rey took the liberty of exiting the limo by herself while Iris happily waited for the driver to escort her out.

Once Iris was officially out of the car, Rey had offered to help carry some of her sister's bags but Iris gently declined the offer. When the driver offered, Iris once again turned down the offer, choosing to carry her own bags. Upon entering inside their home, the two spotted their parents, who had glanced up.

"Hi, girls. How was the shopping trip?" Reina lightly greeted as she turned around to face her daughters. "Hi, mom. The shopping trip went well," Iris cheekily said as Rey silently observed the way her mother looked at Iris in an endearing manner. "That's good," Reina softly said as Rey quietly cleared her throat.

"Oh. You're still here," Reina bluntly said upon speaking to Rey, her look of endearing instantly shifting to one of disappointment. "Did you have something to say?" she ask, to which Iris silently observed the way her mother looked at Rey with a level of disgust and annoyance.

"No, I didn't have anything to say," Rey meekly answered and as their mother looked away from her little sister, Iris truly saw (for the first time) just how much of a major difference their mother treated the two [and Amy, she supposed, if Iris wanted to go down that route].

"Hey, Rey. Did you want to help me unload these bags?" Iris gently asked but she only frowned when Rey shook her head as the two made their way upstairs. "No, I think I'm just going to go to my room and try to get ahead of my assignments," Rey answered, her voice devoid from emotion as she quickly separated from Iris and closed the door from behind her.

Frowning, Iris glanced at the shopping bags as she then looked back at the door. While she quickly set to place her bags on her bed, Iris retrieved one bag in particular as she happily grinned to herself, hoping that her gift would be enough to cheer her little sister up. 

"I can't believe you took Little Miss Perfect to go shopping and not me."

Turning around, Iris stared at her younger sister and merely sighed. "For the last time, Amy, I offered if you had wanted to come with me and Rey but you said no because you were busy complaining about something," Iris dully countered as Amy merely crossed her arms.

"For being our parents' favorite, you sure are a terrible listener. In that case, I was busy complaining about how mom and dad give you and Rey more freedom than opposed to me — me! You're the favorite and Rey is Little Miss Perfect, but what about me? Where do I fit in this family?"

"Amy, it's not my fault that our parents —"

"It is your fault!" Amy angrily snapped at her older sister as Iris merely rolled her eyes at her younger sister's claim. "Oh, please. You're so dramatic, Amy, but if you started to apply that kind of energy to your auditions, then you'll become a star in no time," Iris cheekily said as Amy bitterly glared at her older sister.

"Oh, trust me. I'll be the best actress the world ever knew! I'll be better than you, Little Miss Perfect and our parents combined!"

As Amy angrily huffed and walked away from Iris, the eldest sister frowned as she now saw how her parents' need to maintain the Lopez reputation was actually in the process of tearing their family apart.

Maybe, Iris couldn't fix things with Amy right now but Iris knew she still had a shot at repairing and strengthening her relationship with Rey. At least, that's what Iris kept telling herself.

Hopefully, it weren't be too late for the three of them to become real sisters... but she knew it started with this moment. So taking a deep breath, Iris knocked on Rey's door.

"Come in."

As Iris opened the door, she found Rey working diligently on her studies. "Hey, Rey," she softly greeted as Rey briefly looked up. "Oh, hey," Rey said before looking back at her textbook, continuing to work as Iris closed the door from behind her. "Rey... I owe you an apology," Iris began, which caught her little sister off-guard.

"Iris, what are you talking about?"

"Rey, you're only sixteen years old and at your age, you should be able to enjoy your life, not fretting over how to please everyone. You're only a junior in high school, but society has insisted on calling you Little Miss Perfect. You're stressed enough as it is, but with our parents' expectations, things are only made harder on you."

"Iris—"

"No. Rey, I'm serious."

As Iris sat on Rey's bed, she quietly sighed. "I didn't get how hard you have it compared to me and Amy, because I was blindsided by finding ways to keep myself from falling off our parents' pedestal," she admitted, now looking down in shame.

"But I realized by doing so, I indirectly gave you more pressure to keep being Little Miss Perfect because that's what our parents and the people of Paris expect you to be," Iris added as she looked at Rey and held her hands.

"Rey, listen to me. The only person you have to please is yourself. Not me, Amy, mom, dad or even society. Just you," she continued. "You should be able to be yourself and if that means wearing less expensive clothes or listening to Jagged Stone, then who am I to stop you? Those things are aspects of you and no one can ever take that away," Iris sincerely added, now smiling.

"Rey, I'm sorry for contributing to this amount of pressure you must feel in trying to be the perfect daughter and the perfect student, so I hope this will make things up for all the years I failed to be a better older sister to you."

As Iris gently gave Rey the shopping bag, she patiently waited as Rey skeptically looked at her sister, now placing her pencil down. "Iris, if this is what I think it is—" Rey began, only to get cut off as Iris laughed.

"Trust me, it's not."

"Mhm, sure," Rey quietly mumbled, but she nonetheless went through the shopping bag and as she did, the girl gasped. "No way!" Rey happily exclaimed, now pulling out the vintage Jagged Stone black t-shirt. "Iris, did you really—" the girl began, looking at her sister, Iris, who only continued to smile.

"Keep looking."

At first, Rey was genuinely confused but as she proceeded to look back in the shopping bag, her eyes lit up as she pulled out four tickets to Jagged Stone's next concert. "Now I know this won't make up for everything I've done to you in the past, but I hope you'll be able to enjoy Jagged Stone's next concert up close with a few of your—" Iris sincerely stated, only to get interrupted by Rey pulling her in a hug.

"Thanks, sis."

As Iris felt tears on the verge of falling as this was the first hug between them, she held her sister before breaking off the hug, not wanting her tears to fall on Rey. "You're very welcome, dork," she teasingly said, now grinning brighter. "Make sure you keep the T- shirt hidden from Amy though. You know, she'll do anything to sabotage us if it meant proving to mom and dad that she's worth their time," Iris half-jokingly warned her little sister, who nodded.

"Of course, but thank you again."

"You're welcome and hey, sis, if you are ever struggling, just know you have someone in your corner. I'm not going to run from the problems our family have anymore. You and Amy are my sisters and I refuse to let our parents' expectations tear us apart. It's time for us to end this... together."

With that, Iris smiled and excused herself from disturbing her little sister any further as she left her room, closing the door from behind her.

"Well, that was nice of Iris to do," Gilla chimed in, now coming out from her hiding spot as Rey softly nodded before she smiled. "You were right," she began, now looking at the vintage Jagged Stone T-shirt her eldest sister got her.

"Maybe, there is hope for people to know the real me after all."

——————————

"I really need to stop letting you convince me to do things, Celly."

Cleo had a plan; she would eat breakfast, talk to the Bourgeois family for a bit then go back home and deal with the consequences that came with being a disappointment to her mother, Jolene Monroe.

But no.

Celestia had insisted on going shopping, which meant Chloé was invested and if she was invested, that meant Poppy was tagging along as a chaperone and now, Cleo was stuck at the mall, accompanied by the three when she should have been comforting her mom in the midst of her stepfather's death.

While the four had initially stuck together, Chloé wanted to explore on her own and by taking her aunt with her, Cleo and Celestia were left to their devices. As such, the two girls went to the bookstore and explored the anime department in the mall, but their fun came to an end when the two were met with an encounter.

"Cleo! Cella!"

Turning their heads, Cleo and Celestia observed a older, light-skinned American with his ruggish black beard and his chocolate-brown eyes running towards the two. When he got closer, the girls saw his denim jean jacket and black T-shirt. "Hey, Ethan," the two greeted as the man managed to catch his breath.

"Why do you look like you're in a rush?" Celestia curiously inquired as Ethan looked at the girl. "Because I'm on a tight schedule and I need Cleo to come with me," Ethan had insisted, much to the girl's annoyance as she stubbornly held onto her little sister. "No, you don't," she insisted, knowing exactly what he was going to do.

"Well, it's not really up to debate here, now is it?" Ethan coldly shot back as Celestia's eyes widened from the sudden shift in his voice. "When did you start acting like a real jerk?" Celestia bitterly asked as Cleo dejectingly sighed.

"Since he started hanging out with my stepdad and his friends. He's been around them for too long and now it's starting to show," Cleo dully explained, remaining unchanged when Ethan grabbed onto her right arm. "Cleo is coming with me and that's the end of the discussion," Ethan firmly stated as Celestia opened her mouth, only to get stopped by her sister.

"Don't say anything. I'll just see you tomorrow at school. Okay?" Cleo softly said as Celestia angrily crossed her arms as she now stared at Ethan. "I wonder how Poppy would feel if she saw you like this now," Celestia insisted as Cleo shook her head in disbelief, wondering why she even tried.

Rather, Ethan didn't answer and not long after, he was starting to drag Cleo alongside him. "Poppy would be extremely disappointed in your actions, Ethan!" the two heard Celestia defensively calling out as Ethan continued to walk away. However, Cleo could see a sliver of guilt in his eyes and she knew that Celestia had cut straight to the man's core.

So when Cleo entered Ethan's car and he began driving in silence, she awkwardly held her hands and took a deep breath.

"She's right you know. Ever since you've been hanging out with Lance and his friends, you've changed," Cleo solemnly began as Ethan sighed. "Cleo, don't contribute to a lost cause," he said, now gripping harder on the steering wheel. "You're not a lost cause, just misguided," Cleo softly said and from the corner of her eye, Cleo could see that Ethan's eyes softened at her response.

"Thanks."

"Yeah, no problem," she dismissively said. "Also, you owe Florian an apology and two hundred euros on the false police report you did awhile back on him. He remembered and now that Lance is dead, my boss wants his payment but mostly, he just wants his best friend back," she continued.

"I'll think about it," Ethan mumbled before sighing. "Should I ask just how you knew I was at the mall and why you're picking me up or...?" Cleo awkwardly asked as Ethan lowly chuckled, a first for her.

"Your mother — she has connections. Even without Lance, she could make connections but through him, she's expanded her network and as to why I'm picking you up and not her, well, you'll just have to wait and see for yourself," he cryptically continued as Cleo found her body shivering from the sudden switch.

She thought that by now she would be used to this other side of him, but no. Cleo just really wanted the old, dorky side of him back like everyone else. But, she suppose that she was lucky since Ethan was still somewhat nicer to her [than opposed to the others, where he was much crueler].

"Ethan, you don't have to do this."

"I don't really have much of a choice, Emmie. Besides, you and Jolene is all I got left at this point," Ethan insisted, pulling up to her studio apartment as he parked the car and unlocked the doors.

"I'm sorry, Emmie, I really am but you have to go. Please don't make me drag you inside like last time," he said, almost pleading with her as Cleo saw the look of desperation in his very eyes. In that same moment, Cleo realized Ethan was more than just misguided; he was downright lost in the weight of his actions.

"Ethan, I can't go in there. You and I both know I can't. I'm not ready. She's going to do something to me the moment I set foot in there, I know it," Cleo insisted, her heart now racing as she found herself trying to convince Ethan out of sealing her fate. "Please, can I just stay at your place for the night or could you just drop me off at literally anywhere else?" she pleaded, but Ethan only shook her head.

She knew the answer before Ethan had his mind set on it.

"No."

"Fine, but just for the record, Jolene doesn't love you. In fact, she's just using you and if you think there's something there just because Lance is dead, you're better off drop the idea. If you thought you could just heal my mom from the demons inside her by trying to woo her after Lance's death, then you're a fool if you think you can fix her."

As she unbuckled her seatbelt, Cleo glanced over to see Ethan shake his head. "You're lying," he insisted as she frowned. "I wish I was, but you're just a pawn to her, Ethan, nothing more," Cleo stated, brutally but truthfully telling him the truth, but Ethan was still against her response.

"If you still don't believe me, then ask her out. Go ahead, but mark my words. My mom will brutally humiliate you. She'll take your heart, stomp on your affections and shatter your self-worth to pieces," she said before Cleo sighed. "Ethan, I wouldn't be telling you any of these things if I didn't care about you as a uncle," she continued, noticing the way Ethan reluctantly looked away.

"That's why you need to leave or put distance between you and her. If you don't, you will get caught in the crossfires and you will burn just like me. Maybe, I'll always be stuck with her, but you at least have a chance to save yourself. So, please, I'm begging you, move on from my mom before you get hurt," she continued, now on the verge of begging when Ethan sighed.

"Cleo, please get out before I go drag you to her."

Realizing that she wouldn't be able to change his mind no matter how much she tried to convince him otherwise, Cleo gave Ethan a small but heartbroken smile, knowing the man would just have to know the truth through the hard way. "Okay. I'll get out," she reluctantly said, opening the door as she got herself out of his car.

"But when she breaks your heart, humiliates you and destroys everything you are as a person, remember that you had a choice and you chose to stay," she concluded as Cleo closed the door. Not long after, Ethan drove off as she sighed, silently hoping that the man wouldn't do anything stupid.

Entering the apartment, Cleo felt a sense of dread and knew there was no way she was getting out of her own punishment. So upon taking the stairs and reaching her floor, Cleo chose to distract herself by counting her steps until she made her way to the front of her mother's door, now losing her count as her nerves settled in.

"D'accord, allons obtenir ça," Cleo told herself, taking a deep breath as she knocked on the door. Then seconds later, the door opened and there in front of her, Cleo saw the shell of whom her mother once was.

As she stared at her mother's messy jet-black hair and hollowness of her amber eyes, Cleo saw her mother was wearing baggy clothes and for a moment, she felt sympathy for her mother.

Then she spotted the bottle in her mother's possession and any sympathy that she had for her went down the drain as fear surged through her. Fear led to panic when she saw her mother unable to keep her balance, her knees wobbling as she began to drunkenly giggle.

"Mom, how much have you been drinking?" Cleo slowly asked as her mother continued to giggle. "Mom? Mom!" she called out at last, catching the woman's attention at last as her mother must have registered her appearance because a look of anger, disdain and disgust became apparent.

From there, Jolene pulled on her ear and forcibly pulled Cleo inside of the apartment, slamming her daughter to the ground as she locked the door and the locks. As Cleo fell onto the ground, she stood up and prepared to flee when Jolene angrily gripped onto her face, the woman's long nails pressing against her face.

"Well, if it isn't my good-for-nothing daughter," Jolene bitterly began, giggling as she swirled the (now) empty beer glass bottle in her possession.

"Mom—"

"Tell me, what kind of daughter abandons her mother and leaves a broken, vulnerable woman to her own devices?" she followed up as she raised her arms, revealing a series of recently fresh scars on her wrists, much to Cleo's dismay as her heart sank. "Look at what you did to me, Clementine," she insisted as Cleo's eyes widened, now pushing her mother away as she shook her head.

"No... No, I didn't —"

"Oh, but you did. You broke me just like you broke this family," Jolene continued, her voice calm as Cleo persistently shook her head, trying to convince herself she wasn't the one at fault.

"No... Mom, it was —"

"Because of you, Joshua left us. Because of you, Lance is dead and because of you, I have no willingness to stay," Jolene began as she started to pull a gun out from her pants, now dropping the bottle as glass shattered across the area.

"Mom ... mom, please —"

"Oh, now you care. That's so typical of you to only care about me when my life is at risk. Where were you when I was here all alone to learn Lance's death on the news?" Jolene calmly asked, giggling louder as she began to adjust the gun.

"Mom —"

"Answer or I shoot," Jolene sharply threatened, holding the trigger as she held the gun to her head. "Three, two, one —" she continued, only to get cut off as she saw the girl holding her hands out.

"I was with Celestia and the Bourgeois family!" Cleo confessed at last, her heart now thumping loudly in her chest.

"I didn't know how I got there at first, but then Poppy explained that I must have had a black out because I couldn't handle the stress in the aftermath of escaping dad, so she and Celestia offered to let me stay at the hotel," Cleo explained as Jolene took her finger off from the trigger as the woman began to laugh, much to the girl's dismay.

As her heart sank at the sound of her mother's laughter, Cleo solemnly stared at Jolene, who continued to laugh at her, mocking the way she believed her so easily. "The gun..." the girl slowly but cautiously began, now trailing off as she realized she never heard the gun set the bullets in place.

"The gun was never loaded. Was it?" the girl had reluctantly asked her mother, who now smirked in her direction. In that moment, Jolene undid the clip and as Cleo predicted, there was no bullets.... Just a empty case.

"No, you're just easy to predict," her mother cheekily said, now laughing once more as Cleo looked away from Jolene. "I should have known better than to think you would do it," the girl mumbled to herself, realizing her mother never had any sort of intention to pull the trigger and end her life.

Rather, her mother had simply wanted to make Cleo feel worse about herself than her daughter already did.

As Cleo looked down in shame and embarrassment, she proceeded to look up when the girl saw her mother stroke her chin. "Perhaps, but... My dearest flower, you don't get blackouts and you certainly weren't escaping from your poor father," Jolene persisted as Cleo blinked.

"N... No, I... I was running from d... dad, I'm certain of that much. He... He was trying to kill me," Cleo meekly insisted, trying to pull away from her mother's touch as Jolene's drunk giggles turn to hysterical laughter.

"Lance trying to kill you? Ha!"

"But it's true! Dad grabbed a knife and looked at me before he slashed my face. Then, he threw me right back onto the ground and said it was time for me to reap what I sown. It was then he slashed my arms, pinned me to the wall and attempted to go for my throat," she quickly explained, the flashbacks appearing inside her mind.

"I only escaped because I found a opportunity to free myself," Cleo insisted, refusing to bring up how she had freed herself.

If her mother found out she had hurt her husband, then she would think that the killer was her and well, Cleo didn't want to deal with all of that. She also attempted to remove the bandage wrapping that was on her arms, but quickly stopped the moment she heard her mother start to quietly giggle.

In that moment, Cleo knew her mother didn't believe her. "You brought it on yourself by ruining his speech. Did you ever think that your stepfather was right to reap what you sown and get his revenge on you?" Jolene swiftly countered with ease, giggling as Cleo slowly blinked.

As the flashbacks of her last encounter with her father played in her mind, Cleo stared at her mother and clenched her fist.

"Damn it, mom! Why are you constantly defending him like he did so much for you? He cheated on you and lied about the affair he was having with Audrey Bourgeois for crying out loud!" Cleo angrily snapped, irritated that her mother was going to believe a guy she married for a few years over her daughter, who has been with her.

"Lance never loved you, mom! He just married you because it was convenient for him in the moment to do so! Let's just be real here. Lance only saw you as the perfect target for his own plan and used you to achieve it," she sharply continued, realizing that her voice and tone were rising up for the first time in years as Cleo quickly corrected the behavior before her mother could call her out on the action.

"Not to mention, Lance treated us very differently! With you, Lance always act like you were some kind of goddess while I always got the short end of everything! Not once did Lance ever decide to hit you, insult you or criticize you, even when he was drunk!" the girl briefly continued, her voice now cracking as the flashbacks of her interactions with Lance were coming back to her.

"I mean, why would Lance need to hurt you, right? For this plan to work, he needed to trick you into thinking that you two were equals. But me?" Cleo paused, now chuckling as she gave a pained smile.

"Your precious husband always took his anger out on me! I took all of the hits. I had to deal his cruel insults and the criticism you never got from him! I dealt with this from him every single day and you did nothing to stop him. You're supposed to be my mother and you just encouraged him each time I failed to meet either one of your and Lance's standards or complete my errands in time."

As Cleo took a shaky deep breath, the girl found her hands were literally shaking as she spoke. Her heart was pounding but she was tired of her mother seeing Lance like he was the greatest thing in his life.

"Yet, you still choose to defend him over me," she bitterly stated, chuckling once more as Cleo stared at her mother. "Even when he would have succeeded in killing me had he finished the job. Even though he is dead and would have faced criminal charges had he just been alive a little bit longer. That's who you're choosing to defend," she continued, shaking her head afterwards.

"Unbelievable," Cleo mumbled to herself in disbelief. "You know, I told you right at the moment I saw him that he wasn't any good and you..." she began, only to trail off as the young girl realized she was now standing in front of her own mother from the moment felt the glass crushing the bottom of her boots.

While her mother remained perfectly calm, a crazed sort of smile came across her face as Cleo awkwardly smiled, her heart now pounding endlessly in her chest. Whatever she wanted to say in that moment completely left her mind as Cleo heard her mother laugh darkly underneath her breath.

"So you think you know better than me," Jolene began, her head low as Cleo knew she was screwed in that moment. No amount of begging or pleading would have changed her mother's mind. She should have bolted upstairs, but her legs were now paralyzed in fear, forcing her to stay within her mother's range.

Cleo tried to speak, but fear seized her of a tongue, so she fiercely and frantically shook her head. The girl then attempted to do sign language to convey her response, but the moment she saw her mother lift her head and the crazed look in Jolene's eyes, she had stopped, instead focusing on the gun in her mother's possession.

She had a split second to duck and grab the item herself, but her mother was faster and swung the gun to Cleo's forehead, causing her daughter to be briefly dazed from the hit.

Then dropping the item onto the ground, Jolene proceeded to grab her daughter, who had attempted to flee the moment she saw the distraction. Cleo tugged on her mother's arm in an effort to free herself, but then immediately stopped as Jolene had retrieved a piece of glass from the broken beer bottle.

As Jolene placed the glass on her daughter's forehead, she saw Cleo try to move again and began to smirk upon applying pressure, grabbing forcibly on the girl's face as the look of warmth vanished.

As she then slashed the glass piece across Cleo's head, Jolene proceeded to shove her daughter onto the ground and laughed, finding her own pleasure in seeing the fear in the girl's eyes. "What's wrong?" Jolene mockingly asked, darkly chuckling as she held the glass piece proudly in her possession.

"Can't you handle a little blood?"

As her stepfather grabbed her and slashed the knife across her face, Lance then threw her back onto the ground, as he grinned at the sight of her own fear. "What's wrong? Can't you handle a little blood?" he continued, now slashing her arms as she had used to try to defend herself.

As Cleo's breathing became erratic, she stared at her mother, only for Jolene to turn to a shadow of her father, who held his knife confidently in his possession, before he cruelly gave her a smirk. On instinct, Cleo shielded herself in an attempt to block her stepfather out of her mind.

"Please stop! I'm sorry for everything I did to you! I'll do whatever you want, just stop," Cleo desperately pleaded, now almost begging for her life as she looked to see Lance's shadow darkly chuckle. "Oh, trust me, Clementine, you can't escape me," she "heard" Lance whisper to her as Cleo gripped onto her head.

"I'm always going to be a part of you," she "heard" Lance tauntingly tell her as he had "looked" at her with a smirk. "Till we meet again, little rose," he "told" her as Cleo opened her eyes, no longer seeing the shadow of her stepfather but her mother, who was now holding onto her throat.

"Oh, trust me, little flower. This is only the beginning."

—————————

The next day, Jolene was staring at her TV screen as her eyes grew darker at what she saw, a look of disdain and disgust on her look. Then as she looked at Cleo, who was in the process of covering her bruises and injuries inflicted on her from the previous night, Jolene caught a glimpse of her daughter's wrists as she saw a few scars directly placed on her veins, the only place she hadn't touched....

"Harming yourself already, dearest? Are you trying to be an attention-seeker?" Jolene taunted as Cleo pulled harder on her jacket, covering up her wrists from being seen as the girl forced herself to look at her mother. "N... No," she timidly whispered, her voice barely above a whisper. "Sorry," Cleo mumbled.

"Dear, you'll just give those so-called friends another reason to leave you. I mean, your so-called friends of yours will have to leave you eventually once they see how much of a problem you are. I wouldn't be surprised if you were replaced," Jolene briefly told her as Cleo silently stared at her before glancing at the time.

"Wait, shouldn't you be at work?" Cleo followed up as Jolene merely looked away. "I resigned the day Lance died," Jolene dismissively answered.

"B... But if he's not here and you quit your job, how are we supposed to keep affording this place?" Cleo asked as Jolene looked at her daughter with a shrug. "Your problem. Go figure it out and fast. Our rent is due in two weeks," Jolene sharply stated as Cleo solemnly sighed, realizing she needed to adjust her schedule to do some last-minute jobs to secure rent for next month's payment.

"Yes, mother."

Cleo was prepared to reach the front door when she made the mistake of catching her mother break down at the sight of Lance's death. "Cleo, can you believe this? What kind of monster goes out of their way to slaughter a man like this?" Jolene bitterly asked as Cleo reluctantly went to comfort her mother, who kept her attention on her husband's dead body.

"T... This isn't justice. This is tyranny!" her mother angrily claimed, before she bursted into tears once more. As Cleo continued to comfort her mother, she caught a glimpse of a piece of paper on her stepfather's body.

"The killer left a note," Cleo briefly pointed out as Jolene pulled away, leaving Cleo's shirt drenched with her tears. "S... So what?" Jolene asked, now blowing her nose on the girl's sleeve.

"When the killer went for Audrey, they left a note—" Cleo began, only for Jolene's tears to swell. "For my beloved Lancey-poo and now he's dead because of you and that sick monster in our streets!" Jolene angrily finished as Cleo chose to ignore her mother's response, but focus on the reason for the note.

"Why would the killer need to leave a note if they...." Cleo slowly began, only to trail off as her eyes widened. If Audrey's note was connected to Lance and her stepfather was dead, that meant the killer had no intention to stop at two people. No, the killer had a specific list of victims in their mind.

Which meant if the killer went after her stepfather....

Realization struck her as Cleo took a deep breath. "Mom. Don't panic, but I think one of us might be next," she began as Jolene stared at her and laughed. "If the killer goes for one of us, it's going to be you," Jolene insisted. "I mean, come on. What would the killer have against me?" the woman followed up, turning to face her screen, only for Jolene's jaw to drop.

The cycle of damnation doesn't end with one. It festers and infects anyone in sight. A mother should be pure, but like your husband and his mistress, your heart is corrupt and dark.

As Cleo turned to her mother, she could see Jolene scoffing. "The killer could be talking about anyone," Jolene confidently stated as her daughter blinked. "Maybe... if it weren't for the fact that Audrey and Lance being the first two victims," Cleo pointed out, staring at the content of the note and back at her mother, whose eyes widened.

"No."

"Mom, I'm pretty sure you're next," Cleo continued as she wasn't one to lie about these things. The girl was into too many mysteries and true crimes shows to let this feeling go. She knew her mother was next and if she was correct, that meant Cleo had to be aware of anyone with motives to end her mother's life.

"Little flower, you're being absurd."

But upon viewing the second half of the note, the news' system began to unexpectedly glitch, causing the killer's next potential victim to be shown as the person of interest's name was no longer hidden from the public.

You speak of saving, but you are a disgrace to humanity and a danger to us all. For that, your time has come to an end. Watch yourself, Jolene. What you sow must be reap and so, the devil will come to collect your soul in order for the world to be free once more.

"I told you," Cleo mumbled, now wishing she hadn't been right as Jolene angrily turn off the screen. "It's clearly a joke meant to scare me, but I will not buy into the killer's game," Jolene countered back, yet Cleo detected something in her mother's tone that she never thought she would hear: fear.

Despite her act, Jolene was terrified to know she was going to potentially become the third victim. "Mom... this isn't a game. This is all real and whether you like it or not, you're next on the killer's radar," Cleo gently began as Jolene glared at her direction.

"But now that everyone knows the killer is after you, we can work together to —" Cleo excitedly started, only to get cut off.

"Little flower, you're not a cop. All you're going to do is get me killed like your father, so why don't you just go to school, go to work, and leave this to the professionals? Yeah?" Jolene sharply continued as Cleo merely frowned.

"That's the problem though. Not even the professionals are going to come to your side and defend you against the killer. You're going to become a lost cause and if you have any hope of living, then you're going to need my help," Cleo stubbornly stated, but her mother scoffed.

"Why?"

"Because I'm the only one in Paris that actually cares about you!" Cleo sharply stated as Jolene gave her a mocking smile. "Like I said, dear, you're not a cop. Just a girl who thinks she has what it takes to be one," Jolene followed up as she chuckled. "Besides, I would much rather trust Ethan with my life than you," she continued as Cleo glared at her.

"Ethan's going to see you for who you really are and he's going to distance himself from you," Cleo told her mother, who only smirked. "No, I don't think so. If anything, I think he'll continue to stay in my pocket. He won't leave me and neither will you," Jolene told her daughter in a confident tone as Cleo frowned at her mother's words. Then, she went to close the door from behind her.

As Cleo biked her way to school, she tried to brush off her mother's harsh words. Ethan would leave her. She knew that she was a goner, but not the guy who she saw as a type of uncle figure. If anyone was capable of placing Jolene in her place, it was him.

So as the girl parked her bike and secured the item in place, Cleo made her way to the school, she went to retrieve her textbooks from her locker when she felt a paper ball thrown in her direction. Picking up the paper, she saw the word slut written inside as she crumbled the paper.

"Say, how will Little Miss Perfect feel when she learns that her poor best friend has slut in her genetics? I mean, wasn't your dad some kind of serial cheater? Ha! I always knew you were trouble, Monroe, but this is just something else now."

"Makoto," she mumbled, staring at his white long-sleeved T-shirt, sliver earrings, a long gray scarf-like jacket with black lace-infused gloves, black pants and black buckle high-shoes. From the corner of her eyes, she even saw his white shark tooth necklace in the midst of his black hair and chocolate-brown eyes.

"No wonder why the killer is targeting your family. All of you are just a danger to our society. I wouldn't be surprised if you were next after the killer goes for your mother," Mako darkly stated as Cleo angrily punched the male in his face, causing him to fall face-front onto the ground.

"My family is not a danger to society and I'm going to make sure the killer doesn't come for me or my mother," Cleo firmly stated, staring at the blood on her knuckles as she saw Mako stare at her. "You're crazy, Monroe," he mumbled as Cleo merely rolled her eyes at him.

"No. I'm going to seek out answers and catch the killer doing this before they come for my mother," Cleo firmly stated, but Mako only laughed in a mocking manner as the boy stared at Cleo in pure disgust. As she closed her locker with her textbooks in hand, she looked at Mako.

"Talk about me or my family again and you'll end up with more than a broken nose," the girl sharply threatened, preparing to walk to her class when his chuckle caught her off-guard.

"Good luck, but monsters always hunt down other monsters," he advised her, to which Cleo turned around to see Mako standing up. "Your mother won't live and neither will you," he insisted, now spitting in her face with a smirk. Then as he proceeded to walk away, Cleo wiped the spit from her face.

"I'll prove you and everyone else wrong. You'll see...." Cleo mumbled determinedly, long after Mako had left until another paper ball came into contact with her face.

"Come on, really?" she mumbled, opening the paper and frowned to herself. Captain's little slut, the note read as Cleo looked up to see two random girls whispering to each other, before looking at her. It wasn't until they started laughing that Cleo came to the realization the girls were talking about her as a flash of embarrassment blossomed on her face, causing her to quickly look away.

.... But first, Cleo needed to survive high school and endure the consequences of her late father's actions.

Knowing she was in for a long day, Cleo braced herself for the possibility of collecting more unwanted notes as she crumbled the note, ignoring the sound of the girls' high pitch laughter. Once she found Miss Bustier's classroom, Cleo went to open the door, only to stop as she froze.

Reminding herself that things would change for the better once she [Cleo] prevents her mother from being the killer's third victim and catch the killer, she took a deep breath, now feeling slightly optimistic about the day ahead as she opened Miss Bustier's door.

"D'accord, allons obtenir ça."