I Awoke Several Hours, in a Daze

Ceodore had awakened several hours later, in a daze. He thrust his body from it's laying position, into a quick sitting position. From here, the blood rushed to his head and caused him to grit his teeth in pain. His eyesight was blurry and seemed like it was being affected by double vision. Ceo's heart remained frantic, panging, and beating heavily as if he just went through a traumatic experience... Which he did.

"Ah hell... What... What happened?" He asked himself, recalling that he was slipping through a different timeline to get to the world of Mylania. He was caught inside of a temporal disaster which struck him in all manners. His head received the worst of it. "Ugh, everything is jumbled and fuzzy. I can't... Remember much. Damn." Though, he did know why he was here. The reason was to see Kyo Kusanagi, the man who called for him in the first place. But how was supposed to even meet the man. "Can't call for him and my temporal powers are shot. I can feel it in my very nerves. Fuck, that crash in the timelines really screwed me over... Okay, one step at a time."

Ceodore started to recall his own name, age, occupation, family, and other small things to make sure the most important aspects of his life remained the same. They did. He sighed out in relief, knowing that he could actually recover through this. However, much more was out of whack, and he'd have to ask Kyo to fix it later. "Where am I, again? Oh right, Mylania. Mylania. Looks like I made it, but where exactly am I?"

The man started to take a look around the room, he was in an embassy suite styled room. He nodded to himself, wondering if this were to be his base for the time being. How did he end up there anyways? Those were all questions he didn't quite have answers to, and he knew that he'd have to take it one step at a time.

"My mask and sword..." He looked around the room, found his mask at the nightstand. The man got out of the bed, still wearing his all black attire, his red hair frazzled and messy. He brought himself up, pushing the hair out of his face, eyes closed, picking up the mask. Once he did, he'd fasten the mask over his face, and finally opened his eyes. He saw through the slits perfectly, vision not obscured one bit. The right side of the nightstand had his sword propped against it. He picked it up and fastened it around his waist. Ceodore confirmed and checked all his gear. Once he was ready to head out, the young man unlocked the door to his room, and took a cautious look into the hallway.

As soon as the door opened, he would bump right into a tiny young woman. The woman stepped back a bit but looked up at the Masked Man with her heterochromic, doe like eyes. She was holding a bag with the smell of breakfast wafting from the plastic in one hand and two cups of what smelled to be coffee in the other.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't expect you to wake up so soon. I was grabbing us breakfast. Go back and have a seat, you shouldn't be up and about just yet." She made to move forward, inclining him to move back into the room as well.

Ceodore was taking off-guard at the sight of the small, doe-eyed woman. His right hand almost went to the hilt of his blade, but he caught himself before he seemed too rude. The smell of breakfast and coffee also took him off-guard, creating a tremendous roar from his stomach.

"E-Excuse me..." He said in a bashful kind of way, thankful for the fact that the mask hid the pink in his face. The young man took a deep breath and felt her moving forward. She explained that she didn't expect him to be awake already and even cared for his well-being by wanting him to get back to the bed. Ceo didn't know how to respond in words, but showed a bit of hesitance, then compliance with the young woman.

He stepped backwards towards the bed, not taking his eyes off of her for a moment. Besides her being easy on the eyes, Ceodore wondered just who she was, and questioned if she were the one who placed him in the room. "Hm. I don't mean to be rude, but may I ask who you are?" He asked her, this time the composure in his voice returning to its natural seriousness.

When the masked man's stomach growled, Gemini knowingly moved to the table. She smirked on the inside, but her outside features was like a stone wall; Stoic and unreadable. Even when she spoke, though there was softness in her voice, it was dry and monotone. "I bought you a sausage, egg, and cheese croissant. I hope you don't mind." She pulled out four sandwiches, showing that there were two for each of them. "You can make your own coffee. I don't know how many sugars or cream you want."

As she moved to place two of the sandwiches into Ceo's hand, he asked his question. She sat on the bed next to him, barely displacing the distributed weight of Ceo's larger frame on the bed. "I found you on my way here. You fell from the sky like a Japanese Fighter plane at Pearl Harbor. You didn't seem physically hurt, but I could sense your vitals fluctuating. I assumed you weren't evil and brought you here to recover. We're within neutral territory so regardless of if you're evil or not, you can do no harm here."

Her words were all dry, and frank as well. Her brutal honesty was something taught to her from the monks on Roku Island.

Ceo watched the young girl closely, she was a wall. Quite literally in every way. He even felt her own natural energy push back at the door. This young woman was a forced to be reckoned with and Ceo's own body made him aware. She handed him the food and drink, which he accepted graciously.

"Thank you for the food." He said, placing one croissant on the nightstand with the coffee, and starting to bite into the one left in his hand. Ceo listened to how the young woman explained how she found him and the state he was in. That sounded like he screwed up his flight through time perfectly. He found that impossible, however, for he was the God of Time at one point, and had excellent control over his temporal capabilities. A stern look took to his face, his lips pursing.

"I see. That sounds pretty bad, I won't lie about that. Thank you for bringing me here and for the food, once again. Sorry to have bothered you with that... Sudden crashing. I'm not used to using a divine wind tactic when arriving into areas like that." Ceodore said, playing on her little dark joke about the fighter planes. Ceo wasn't taken aback by her bluntness and honesty, in fact he was glad that she wasn't just beating around the bush, and respected her more for the fact that she placed him in an area of disadvantage. That is, if he were an evil person. A lingering feeling in his soul made him feel as though he was something far from good, but wasn't an evil demon.

"Are you evil?" He asked, deciding not to leave the conclusion of this banter in an awkward silence.

Gemini dug into her croissant with gusto, devouring half of it within a matter of seconds. Not a single crumb was lost, yet she made no sound at all as she ate. It was almost like a vacuum. She let him finish speaking as she finished her first sandwich. Then she drunk her coffee black, not grimacing in the least at the taste or heat. Once the drink was halfway gone, she let out a silent 'ah' and stood back up. She walked over to the table to pick up a single pack of sugar.

"I'm not at the moment. I'm not sure if I was before, but I doubt it. There's a gap in my memories, but it shouldn't be so drastic as to have made me evil." She didn't tell him to stop apologizing. He had inconvenienced her by having her carry him. It was natural for him to show his appreciation. The same as she would if she were in his position.

Pouring the sugar into the black coffee and stirring with what appeared to be a small gust of wind around her finger, Gemini turned and leaned the small of her back against the edge of the table. She sipped her coffee while looking the man right in the eye slits of his mask. "My name is Gemini Rose. Who are you?"

Ceo just looked at her in silent awe, watching as she downed the croissant in seconds and drank down the coffee in the same manner of seconds. He was baffled at how anyone can do that without having to take a break. This young woman had her amazing talents, he'd give her that. Ceo raised an eyebrow beneath the mask, but felt that she was probably always like that. In all honesty, it was refreshing to see someone like her be so normal in an external sense, but she was completely comical on the inside.

"What an obscure answer... I'll take it." He said in complete honesty. She left some questions open that he'd more than likely pursue later, but right now, he focused on finishing his first croissant. His eating speed mimicked her own. After finishing the pastry, he noticed the young woman swirling her coffee with wind.

"Ah, right, I can use that..." Ceodore suddenly remembered that he still had control of his God Slayer Winds. They were practically swimming around in his body. Just to show off (because he's like that), Ceodore waggled two fingers on his right hand, to sweep up two coffee creamers, and two packets of sugar to his hand. The winds that swirled around the objects were black in coloring and silently blew back to their origins. Ceodore then added the creamers and sugar, stirring his own coffee much in the same way as Gemini did.

Once it was sweetened and creamed, Ceo took a big gulp, sighing out in relief. The coffee was at the right taste and temperature. This was now his window to introduce himself. She asked for his name and felt like being witty or mysterious, saying something like, "Me? I don't even know myself." Or something like, "My name? My name is something lost in time." However, he just opted with saying.

"Ceodore. Ceodore Wolfheart. Nice to meet you, Ms. Rose." He'd say respectively, freeing up his right hand to shake with hers.

"Sorry. I answered to the best of my ability." Even when apologizing, she didn't seem to show anymore than a small amount of emotion. Though she did look a bit frustrated after a few seconds. She was thinking of how she could have worded herself to convey a more clearer message. She sighed and shook her head only a few moments later. When Ceo began to make the condiments for his coffee fly towards him with some powerful wind magic, Gemini began to devour her second croissant, almost as if ignoring the happenings around her.

"You shouldn't waste energy like that when you're not fully recovered." Her simple words were followed with a small glare that easily read 'that's obvious'.

As Ceo introduced himself and rose his hand for a shake, Gemini would flinch back just a small bit, her pink and crystal eyes showing just a small flash of fear. However, it was immediately replaced with a steely resolve and Gemini placed her fist into her palm before bowing. It was a sign of respect, and how the monks greeted each other on Roku island. "I'm sorry, I don't really like physical contact unless it's during battle."

"There's no need to apologize. Not like I was admonishing you or anything." Ceodore said after she apologized, starting on his second croissant as well. The young girl told him to not waste energy like how just did until he fully recovered, but the good thing about what he just did didn't waste any energy. Not much at least. Performing a menial task such as grasping and stirring weren't taxing on the body. In response to her glare, he simply chuckled silently.

However, his light-heart comedy soon faded when he tried to shake her hand. He saw it in that small moment. Fear. What happened? Did Ceodore do something that scared her? Not likely, but there it was for a split moment. The young man continued to watch her bowing gesture. It was something akin to martial arts of some kind, Ceo could identify that much, but seeing as other forms and cultures used that type of greeting, it was difficult to identify where she learned such a gesture from. Gemini returned to normal, her iron curtain of a resolve taking over the fear in her eyes.

The young woman explained to Ceo that she doesn't like physical contact, unless it was during battle. That was an oxymoron on its own. How would she lay a hand on a person if she didn't like it to begin with? Maybe he was thinking too much into it, but he felt that there was something about this girl that she wasn't telling him. He wouldn't probe her too much, but found her interesting nonetheless. He liked her.

"No need to apologize. Something like that is understandable." He'd say, finishing up his coffee and setting back down on the nightstand close to the bed. There had been a small silence soon after, it came about when Ceodore had began to think about his current situation. When remembering that his mask had come off, a small grip of realization struck him. He turned his gaze back to Gemini and wondered... "I have a question. When I crashed in front of you, did my mask happen to fly off?" He'd ask, feeling as though she might have seen his face. That would mean wearing the mask had become redundant (around her at least).

Gemini nodded her head at Ceodore's question. "I'm surprised it hadn't broken. You have a handsome face, why hide it behind a mask? Unless there are people you don't want to recognize you." She spoke her mind while moving about the room, looking in dressers and testing lights out. It wasn't lost on Gemini to ensure their room had all the necessities.

"You can shower if you want. Then if you are willing to stay here, I've booked the room for two people. I put your name down as the Masked One if that's alright with you. I'm going to head to the grocery store to stock up the room." Her words seemed more like thoughts to herself with the way she made no eye contact with Ceo the whole time. She was still checking the room, ensuring all electronics worked and nothing was out of order. She seemed so obsessed with the cleanliness in the room that one wouldn't be surprised to see her bring out a blue light to see the really dirty places. Finally seeming satisfied with the rooms state, she turned and faced Ceo with a hint of curiosity within her eyes. "If you aren't here when I return, I'll assume you've decided to move on."

Ceodore had blushed when Gemini said his face was handsome. He hadn't ever been complimented in... He smirked a little, a bit glad that the young woman hadn't seen the reddening in his cheeks. Ceo watched as Gemini moved about the room, clearing his throat with an embarrassed cough. "I-I see. Well thank you, I haven't heard a compliment in a while. But you're right on the dime in your assumption. There will be several people here who I don't want to recognize me. I hope you don't find it rude." He explained, removing the mask and setting it on the bed next to him. Doing so made his hair fall over his face and he swept it back with a hand.

Gemini was really kind, signing in the hotel room with both of their names, planning on stocking the place, and even offering him the option to shower. Being alone as long as he was made his heart throb with pain. He gripped his chest a bit, taking a deep breath, and regaining his composure.

"Do you need me to accompany you there? I'd be more than happy to offer any assistance I can. That'd be the least I could do considering all you've done for me as of right now." He'd offer, meeting her eyes with his. His eyes were green and yellow, a sign of his heterochromia. He had a soft smile on his lips and marveled at the color and curiosity of her eyes. She must have been young, probably well into her teenagers, but nonetheless a young woman.

"Her youth reminds me of someone... I wonder if HE's here too." Ceodore thought to himself.

"Don't worry about me leaving so soon. I can stay around for as long as you'd like me to. I'm not the eat and run sort of person, so I'll be sticking around a bit longer." He'd assure her. Ceo was respectful in that way, which is why he offered his help to her in the first place.

Ceo would see the ghost of a smile on Gemini's face when he offered to go shopping with her. She had been secretly hoping he would stay. After living with the monks of Roku Island for so long, she wasn't fond of living on her own again. She had been alone enough when she lived in the Imperial City of Grande. Having someone around was something she enjoyed, especially if they were pleasant like Ceodore seemed to be.

"You don't have to repay me. If you want to come, let it be of your free will." She spoke with just a hint more emotion than usual. Her eyes gazed back into his own heterochromic eyes unshakably. For only a moment, she found herself lost in his eyes. Green and yellow, two mellow and calming colors. Her own pink and crystal eyes seemed like gateways to her soul. Childish yet mature.

"If you're ready, shall we head out?"

"Oh? Was that a smile?" Ceodore asked, chuckling, and smiling back as he saw the faintest smile upon her lips. That was cute enough to get Ceodore on his feet in no time. He picked up the mask and placed it on his face once more. Of course, Gemini would have been able to see the green and yellow eyes through the slits this time around. A mystical moment, really, just between he and her. No one else would have been welcomed to such an opportunity.

"Of course! Repaying you out of my free-will, if that is worded better. Plus, I wouldn't have wanted to shower alone." Ceo said, laughing at his own stupid and perverted joke. Of course, deep down, that's who he truly was. A free will spirit whose eye for woman was rumored to be sharper than the edge of his blade.

He'd walk over to the door, opening it, and waiting for her to leave out first as a courtesy. "Let's go, ladies first after all."

Gemini had the grace to blush herself when Ceodore called her out on her smile. However, she smirked again, finding the feeling contagious and quite welcome after seeing Ceo's own. His next words sent a cold shiver down Gemini's spine however. "Sorry, but you'll be showering alone regardless of my companionship." She spoke derisively and exited the door swiftly. The traces of contentment were slowly fading and being replaced with a deep contemplative aura. Gemini was thinking of her own cold reply towards Ceo. Though it could have been worse, she had the feeling that her reaction towards such a joke had something to do with her missing memories.

The contemplation soon turned to frustration as Gemini briskly made her way to the front desk of the hotel, not hearing Alma Marta wishing her a safe trip to the store. Once she stepped outside of the hotel and the warm air of June hit her, she would finally look up from her self introspection. She would turn around with a mild look of surprise on her face to see if Ceo were still there. "Sorry...I was thinking about my missing memories." She told him honestly as to forgo dancing around any questions he may have had.

Everything had been going pretty smooth... That was until his joke had stabbed into the wrong nerves. When she left out quickly, Ceo felt a little bad due to ruining the soft mood between he and Gemini. He followed out behind her, finding it a little difficult to keep up with the small girl. She could sure walk. That's when Ceo felt he should have considered what she had told him before into thought. That joke was in terrible, terrible taste, and now he felt a bit worse.

Ceodore thanked Alma Marta for the both of them, telling her they'll return in a quick minute. Once the pleasantries were exchanged, he hurried outside the hotel. Ceo felt the warm air touch the open areas of his skin. The feeling caught him off-guard, the air was definitely different from the inside, it felt nice. For just a moment Ceodore forgot about the tension between he and Gemini, but once he met her eyes again when she turned around, everything snapped back into place. This caused his head to hurt, but no visible expression of pain formed upon his face. He wouldn't allow it.

Gemini apologized once more. Ceodore shook his head and walked closer, but made sure to keep personal space between them. "Don't be. I'm the one at fault and the one who should be apologizing. I'm sorry for saying such a tasteless joke." He bowed in subtle respect and apology. The young man didn't want any bad blood between the two. A thought, however, dug itself into his mind when he thought about her missing memories. They were more or less in the same situation, yet she seemed to be affected by her absence of memories the most.

"On the way to the store would you like to talk about it? I mean if there is anything to talk about, or if there was any way I can help... I'd be happy to do so." Ceo said sincerely.

Gemini shook her head. "Your joke wasn't tasteless, just aimed at the wrong person I suppose." She folded her arms and the frustrated look returned. "If you want to talk about our past, then I wouldn't mind. However, I don't think there is much help to be done between us."

She took in a quick intake of air before sighing like air, inaudible to all but herself. She immediately seemed to relax as she and Ceodore slowly made their way away from the Hotel Proper. The warm air felt just as amazing as it did on the way to the hotel. Though she could smell that it may be raining soon, her emotions lingered on the warmth that seemed to feel her core now that she was able to calm down. She wanted answers to her own reactions to certain things when it came to the opposite sex. In that regard, all she could do was continuously think in circles about what could she possibly be forgetting, or even worse, what could have happened to cause her amnesia. "You should go first while I get my thoughts together."

"Possibly, but you'll never know until we hear each other out." Ceodore walked next to Gemini, but stood away a bit, just so she could stay comfortable. The man needed to know where to begin when it came to him. "Where do I even start? Everything is all fuzzy... I don't want to bore the poor girl." Ceo said to himself

"Well let's see. I was an adventurer of sorts, going around with two of my good friends. We blew people up, fought hard battles, and enjoyed great food. After we all went our separate ways I sorta... Fought in wars a lot. A lot of wars where I was literally my own army. Here and there I had some help, but it was mostly a lone-wolf type deal." Ceodore said while chuckling. "Some of the 'help,' however, wasn't needed and ended up hampering my family life, social life... It was just a big mess."

Ceodore started off in a happy tone while speaking at first, but after that, his tone had grown more sullen, as he raised his right hand. Gray, distorted sparks flew out from the palm as tiny strobe lights. He let out a gruff and shook his hand out. "Anyways, in-between the wars and the loss, I sort of wandered my world. Experiencing the world around me was fun, no doubt about that. But when it was all said and done, I had a bigger responsibility to get to."

Ceodore concluded, raising his arms up to stretch them.

Gemini had smiled again when Ceo started speaking, but as his tone fell, so did Gemini's smile. Instead of voicing her concern, she allowed Ceo to finish his story, grimacing at him wasting energy again by creating the sparks. Once it was all said and done, Gemini's expression was softer, yet she still seemed to be deep in thought. "What an obscure answer." Gemini said with a small smirk, her eyes playfully searching the slits of Ceo's mask to see if he would realize her mirth.

Though she teased him, she was a little annoyed that there were so many holes within Ceo's story. He didn't tell her certain things, though she had been forthcoming with him. She didn't dwell on it for very long, however, as she was taught to be purely honest by the monks of Roku Island. She knew very well that others would not follow the same principles. Most people kept secrets for good reasons as well. It was something she used to do, but found it always in her best interest to destroy secrets with truths. Regardless of if the truth was pleasant or not.

"You seem like you've been through so much, and you're not from this world? I think I can kind of relate a little. I'm not from Mylania. I'm from the Vale Continent, on the other side the Yamada Sea."

"Heh." Ceodore would say, a smile coming to lips as she copied his response from the hotel. His eyes lit up a bit and he seemed to have snapped out of that sullen mood in an instant. He even caught her grimace, wondering if she saw the spark in his hand. Probably, since she did chastise him from using energy earlier. "Sorry, I'm just trying to get my powers in order!" He'd say with a small chuckle.

When it came to his story, Ceodore knew he hadn't spoken up about much of anything. That was just a rundown and only because he didn't want to get anything wrong, due to the fuzziness of his memories. Ceo had been through a lot and that sudden crash upon arriving here did much more than screw with his powers; names, places, dates, they were all mixed up and he didn't want to have a story of jibberish being tossed at Gemini. Though, he did feel a little guilty about not having told her anything. The thought of them sitting down with each other again and speaking about themselves once more, when they were both well in the memory department, he'd tell her everything.

"I promise..." He'd say, letting his own thought slip out his mouth.

When Gemini recounted on his exploits, she wondered about where he was from. He didn't want to sound ridiculous, but the first step in actually telling the truth to the young girl would start now. However, Ceodore felt that she wasn't going to believe this next answer. "I am an interloper from another time and dimension. My place of birth is known as, Kilimagroth, of the Dynasteria Continent." He'd saw solidly.

She could only raise an eyebrow when she heard him whisper. What was he promising? It didn't seem to be aimed at her, although, their conversations seemed to be geared towards an extroverted and introverted audience. Meaning they were explaining everything to themselves as well. She chalked it up to his own minds ramblings and said nothing of it.

"Kilimagroth? What's it like?" She asked with hesitation. The curious gaze in her pink and crystal eyes would show that she believed him wholeheartedly. It settled that he wasn't from this world. People from different planets, dimensions, timelines, and even realities weren't too uncommon honestly. Unfortunately, she had registered the sad undertone in Ceo's voice a little too late. She didn't think about his previous story, no matter how many holes it had in it. The main key factor was that Ceo had seen a lot of bloodshed, meaning his own home could he just a another fading memory by then.

Ceodore had recalled home a lot of the time when he was on his lone journey. He smiled, thinking back on how his sister, Julia was doing, and how his mother, Rainfall would be making her daily tea for meditation. When starting at his very home, some of the fuzziness regarding this particular place softened up. "The area itself is rather large and filled with lush green forests as far as one could see. Kili for a time was considered a continent all on its own, until it merged with the Empire. Kilimagroth has three main area. The Sarata Plains is the area that predominates the outside area of the area. That place is filled with various wildlife, be it plant or animal, and serves as the main place for the trade routes going between my village and all the other places. The forest is the second main area. It is a thick forest filled with numerous trees that hug close to each other. The forest starts off light at first, but gradually grows darker as you get closer to some key places. Lastly, the third and final area are the mountains. These stretch over a wide berth, and are iconic to the entire Dynasteria Continent. The mountains are capped with pure, white snow and surrounded by a perpetual fog that even the gods can't get through... Or so I'm told. Only way to get through is to have someone from my clan guide you through."

Ceodore had paused, letting Gemini take in all of that information. He didn't want to overwhelm her with so much at once, so he let himself catch a breath and thought about what to tell her next. Should she want to know more, Ceo would gladly tell her about the village he resided in along with the clan members he shared the place with. Just thinking about it made the walk so much heavenly. He smiled big, almost grinning as he reminisced about his home.

Gemini listened intently, attempting to picture the places Ceo described. Her imagination was quite vivid and she believed that she had a good representation of them within her mind. She hung on to every word Ceo spoke as if on a journey into Ceo's home world. Hearing him speak with such adoration of the place he was born was warming her spirit and she couldn't help but to have a small smile the entire time.

"That place sounds amazing. I wish I could see it someday." She said when he had finished speaking. Looking down, she felt her mind drifting to the Vale Continent. It wasn't nearly as beautiful or mystical as Ceo had described his own home to be. It was mostly desert. Plus, the imperial city's slums in which she stayed were akin to leaving in sewer holes. "What about your family? What were they like?" She asked, drawing herself from her own thoughts to let Ceo finish.

Ceodore smiled when Gemini expressed amazement and a wanting to go to his homeland. He turned his head slightly to look at her, nodding.

"Once my powers stop acting up I can probably take you, if you'd like to go." Ceo was genuinely happy walking and talking with Gemini. She was a very cool person to be around. The young girl made the man happy for once in a real long time. His own heart and spirit was beginning to warm. When asked about his family, Ceo thought to himself, wondering who to start with. He snapped his fingers once it he knew who to talk about first.

"My father, his name was, Manafang. He is one of the original creators of the clan I come from and one of the original settlers of Kilimagroth. My father was a large man physically. He towered up to 8 feet, I believe, and was very muscular. You're a lot like him, actually. Steely, stoic, and solid... Like a big block of metal." He'd say, chuckling a little. "Unfortunately, he ended up passing away during one of the wars he and I fought in. I miss him dearly." He'd say softly, his smile still remaining, but it had shrunken a bit.

"Next up is my mother, Rainfall. She is a very soft and quiet young woman, just like how a mother should be. Whenever she did speak, it carried such a heavy weight, that you couldn't help but just listen to her. She cared a lot for me, my sister, and my twin brother. She's still alive and more than likely making tea as we speak." Ceodore finished, laughing out as he thought of his mother. He then thought of his older sister, Julia, who he still kept in contact with every now and then.

"My older sister, Julia, traveled a lot of places with me. She is very... Hm, cold. Not really towards me, but to others she lacks any sort of emotion. She had a heavy life of constant training and literally being in the darkness, so she came back detached from everything. Well, everything except for family. Just like our mother, she speaks rarely, but when she does it carries a large weight." Ceo continued thinking of where he left Julia the last time they met. After gaining his powers, he and her basically kept jumping through timelines for the giggles.

"And lastly... There's my twin brother, Gin... I ended up having to kill him in battle. He was a great guy, cool, caring, and had a good heart... Rr so I thought. He lied a lot, killed innocent people, and well... I dunno what happened to him, he sorta just changed. I had to put a stop to him and well, that's what ended up happening." Ceo's smile had faded at that point. Remembering how his own brother got him banished and tried to smear his name, on top of killing his best friend's father, Ceodore couldn't ever forgive someone like that. The man balled his left hand into a fist, resting it upon the hilt of his blade. He gave himself a moment, before cheering up and turning to Gemini.

"What about you? What's it like where you're from? Do you have any family out there?" He'd ask, a smile returning to his lips. He felt that he had spoken long enough and that it was time for Gemini to give some sort of insight on herself.

Listening to Ceo speak about his family made Gemini cringe at first. Though he spoke happily about his mother, father, and sister, she was reminded of what had transpired between herself and her own mother. Then when Ceo said that he had to kill his own twin brother, Gemini suddenly felt like the petty argument she had got into with her mother, which in turn started this whole running away mess, was just her being a self-righteous brat. Her memorable problems didn't seem to hold a candle to Ceo's, at least in regards to their family.

"I'm sure if you and your brother spoke once more, he would thank you for stopping him. If he was the way you just described him, then he couldn't possibly had wanted you and your family to be hurt the way he did to others. At least...that's what I hope." She whispered the last part. She didn't know a thing about Ceo's brother, so everything she just said was simple wishful thinking.

Gemini let out a sigh when Ceo asked about her own home and family. She knew it would come up sooner or later but she had hoped to postpone answering for a bit longer. "Like I said, I'm from the Vale Continent, SouthEast of Mylania and across the Yamada Sea. It's mostly a desert region with a few mountain ranges. I heard there's a rain forest somewhere but I haven't really traveled much of my own home anyway. I was from the Imperial City of Grande and lived with my mother, Amelia Rose." She paused as a quick flash of pain passed her face when thinking of her mother.

"She's a dedicated and hard working woman. I honestly didn't realize how much she went through for me until recently. My mother was always smiling for me, even with the fact that we were practically slaves to the noble families within the city. Grande is set up in 3 tiers, like a gigantic castle town. The highest tier at the top of the city is for aristocrats and royalty. The 2nd tier is for those who can live comfortably but aren't reach or famous. The last tier is where I lived. It was no better than living in a sewage pit. It was the literal textbook definition of the slums. Mom worked for the higher tier families just to make ends meet for us. I don't know what happened to my dad since mom never talks about him."

Her eyes dulled even more as she approached the next part of her story. "I joined a gang and started stealing from the 2nd tier families so that I could help my mom. I didn't like seeing her always tired, even though she hid it with smiles. But my mom found out and we got into an argument. I told her I didn't want to live like rats, feasting only on the scraps that the noble families dropped down to us. And my mother...hit me. I was heartbroken and I could see that she was as well. She tried to apologize to me and even tried to hug me but I was just so angry. Instead of listening to her I left the city all together. The last thing I remember is hearing my mother screaming that she's sorry and for me to come back." Gemini's body trembled and her fist clenched. She was trying her hardest to hold back tears at the memory. After a few moments of taking heavy breaths, she calmed down, yet the pain was still evident on her face.

"After I left, I wandered the desert for a week. I passed out on the verge of death and that's where my memories get broken. Between then and a month later, after I woke up on Roku Island, I don't remember a thing. An entire month of memories are just gone. Even worse, the monks on Roku Island told me I wasn't a virgin anymore, meaning I was most likely raped within that time span." Those words left her mouth with only a ghost of emotion. It was something she still hadn't fully comprehended. Since she didn't have the memories of it, she wasn't truly sure how to feel.

"I stayed on Roku Island and trained with the monks for a while. However, I was still an outsider. The monks of the island only let those who have proven themselves worthy train with them and maybe even live there. Roku Island is my true home now and I want to go back. Even though I stayed for a while, the monks never told me their names. They treated me like family, yet kept me at a distance for some reason as well. I didn't return to my mother because I believe she's doing better with me gone. I want to secure a home on Roku Island and then bring my mother over."

Gemini gave her entire story as fast as she could, though she knew it was still a lot to take in. It was like once she started talking, she just couldn't stop. She needed to get all of that off of her mind.

Ceodore listened to Gemini as she began talking. The young woman explained nearly everything from where she lived, to her mother, up to the time gap, and finally about the monks that she lived with in the end. Everything about the girl, her mannerisms, the steely will, and the want for lack of contact all started to make sense. There was an angry fire in Ceodore's eyes. Especially knowing someone was as heinous enough to take something so pure as a young woman's virginity away from her. On top of that, the exploitation she suffered at the hands of the rich made Ceo realize that no matter what sort of time or dimension he jumped to, there was always some form of evil content.

"That story... It's very heartbreaking. I'm sorry if I had brought up anything you had wished to forget about..." Ceo said in a apologetic tone. He felt really bad, but was trying to contain his anger. A pit in his heart was filling with the will for justice. But then a strange sense of serenity struck Ceo. The swordsman thought about her mother and how she cared for her in the slums of the Imperial City. His lips pursed, but he had to say it.

"Gemini, it may not be my place to say, but I feel... I feel your mom may be hurting without you. Have you ever thought of returning and seeing her again?" He asked softly. The young man never liked seeing broken families and truly wanted Gemini to believe the opposite of what she had told him. Her mother still deeply loved her and could possibly be ill with worry. He didn't want Gemini to think that her mother doesn't need her, because in all honesty, he too knew that effects of what could happen when a mother loses her little one.