"Ethan, is that you?" Ava's voice quivered slightly, betraying a hint of uncertainty.
Upon hearing Ava's words, Ethan's lips curved into a mischievous grin. He decided to play along with a little bit of teasing.
"No, it's not Ethan. It's Krampus, the Christmas demon, here to visit naughty children who haven't been on their best behavior," Ethan replied, his voice a playful, menacing growl.
Ava gasped, her eyes growing wide with feigned terror. Ethan was well aware that his attempt at scaring her had never worked before, but he relished in the little game they played.
"No, no, I've been good, I swear! I haven't done anything naughty!" Ava exclaimed, her voice laced with faux horror.
Ethan couldn't help but chuckle at Ava's convincingly horrified response.
Though he could sense the fear was simulated, Ava was pretending to be frightened, likely to humor him. This little scare tactic was something he'd learned from the memories of the body's original owner, a trick occasionally used to startle his sister. However, Ryan, now inhabiting the body, could tell how much effort Ava put into pretending to be scared, just to inflate her brother's ego by making him believe she was genuinely frightened.
"Gotcha!" Ethan yelled, his laughter booming in the dimly lit room.
Ava heaved an exaggerated sigh of relief, joining her brother in his infectious laughter.
"You got me for a second there, Ethan. Nice try, though," she said, emerging from the room's corner holding what appeared to be a large candlestick. In reality, it was a gas lamp, cleverly designed to resemble a candlestick, as she approached Ethan.
Stepping into the light, Ava revealed herself to be a strikingly pretty 15-year-old girl with bright blue eyes and silver hair.
Ethan and Ava had both grown up in an orphanage after their parents perished in a demonic beast attack on the third district. They shared little resemblance beyond their blue eyes, which often made Ethan wonder about their blood relation.
The siblings didn't know much about their parents' appearance, but they had been told that Ava resembled their mother, while Ethan took after their father. Despite their dissimilar features, they had grown up close, with Ethan assuming the role of a caring older brother and Ava cherishing him in turn.
As Ava drew near, Ethan reached out, draping his arm around her shoulders and playfully ruffling her hair.
"You naughty girl, how could you lie to your big brother?" he teased.
Caught off guard by Ethan's sudden question, Ava's eyes widened in surprise.
"Well... did I scare you, or did you just pretend to be scared to make me feel like I succeeded?" Ethan probed further.
His questions caught Ava off guard, and she chuckled nervously, realizing that Ethan had seen through her act.
"To be honest, it was scary the first few times, but I guess it's not as scary anymore," Ava admitted, her voice tinged with a hint of guilt.
"Ouch, that hurts right here," Ethan said, bringing a hand to his chest in mock pain.
"And here I was, thinking I was the master of scares," he continued, his voice feigning hurt.
Hearing Ethan's words, Ava genuinely believed she had wounded his feelings.
"I'm sorry about that," she quickly apologized to Ethan.
However, Ethan merely dismissed her, shaking his head in mock sorrow, his face morphing into a visage of deep hurt.
Witnessing the pained expression on Ethan's face, Ava felt even more remorseful.
"It wasn't scary, but I liked it when you did something like that," she said, hoping her words might soothe Ethan.
Ethan detected the concern in her voice but also sensed she might be lying about her enjoying it. Not that it mattered much to him; feigning injury over such a trifle wasn't really beneath him—he was simply playing at being wounded to tease Ava.
"Gotcha!" he exclaimed, erupting into laughter.
Ava, taken aback by Ethan's sudden outburst, quickly realized she'd been duped.
"You!" she exclaimed, her voice a cute blend of anger and surprise as she playfully pounded on Ethan's chest.
"Ouch, ouch, ouch!" Ethan cried out, pretending to be in pain as Ava's light blows landed.
Eventually, she ceased her playful attack.
"That's what you get for tricking me," she declared triumphantly.
"Ahhh, you wicked girl, now my heartbeat's gone missing," Ethan joked.
"Oh, stop being such a baby," Ava retorted, turning away to light the area with the warm, orange glow of the candle-lit gas lamp, and began to walk inside.
Ethan trailed behind at a leisurely pace.
"I've heated some water for your bath. Would you like to eat first, or would you prefer to bathe?" Ava inquired as they entered the apartment.
"I'll bathe first," Ethan answered without hesitation, feeling the discomfort of dried blood and sweat on his skin.
Oblivious to his state, thanks to the dim lighting, Ava hadn't noticed any of it.
"Okay, let me get your bath ready," she said, starting towards the bathroom.
Their small apartment was divided into a bedroom, a living room—which they currently occupied—a kitchen, and a combination toilet and bathroom.
As Ava moved to prepare the bath, Ethan watched her with a slight grin.
"Hey, Ava, about what you said earlier—did you like it when I pulled off that scare, or were you just sparing my feelings?" He called out mischievously.
Ava, anticipating another of Ethan's pranks, decided not to linger.
"I need to get the bath ready before the water cools," she said, quickly moving off.
Ethan laughed, watching her retreat.
"You know the water won't cool down that fast," he called after her.
Ignoring his comment, Ava hastened to prepare the bath, leaving Ethan alone as the room returned to darkness.
It had been nearly a month since the power outage in the entire third district. Given the neglect the district often faced, no one had bothered with repairs, plunging the area into persistent darkness. Residents now relied on gas lamps or battery-powered torches for light.
Navigating through the dark, Ethan eventually found the sofa and settled down, waiting silently for Ava to ready his bath.