Lira looked at him, he had been like this for the last day or so since he had collapsed. She had yet to even move from his side since he had collapsed out in the courtyard. He was currently laying in her bed, tucked in tightly, and she was constantly wiping the sweat from his forehead with a wash cloth she had set on the bed stand.

She didn't know what was wrong with him, but the way he had simply collapsed in the courtyard, and that scream.

It still chilled her to the bone, it was the scream of a man who had lost everything, the scream of a man who had nothing to live for.

And since then he had scarcely even breathed. When he had collapsed she was afraid he was dead, he had simply stopped moving and crumpled over like a marionette with his strings cut.

She looked over the man laying on her bed, her cheeks dying red as she looked at him. He really didn't seem that old. He had to be in his twenties, or so and the red hair and beard on his face gave him a rugged and suave look.

She leaned in closer getting a better look at his face, her mouth dry as she leaned directly over him.

Should she?

She had already done it once, when he had first been joined.

And that feeling, that sensation.

She pressed her lips against his, this was only the second time in her life that she had kissed a man, and he had also been the first. God what was this feeling? Why did his lips feel so good?

She pressed herself deeper, and her tongue slowly came out to taste him.

He tasted good, there was a slightly salty metallic taste, but there was also something else. Before she could however put her finger on it he started to stir. Her eyes flew open wide and she practically threw herself away from him.

He however did not awaken, he simply mumbled something to himself and rolled over onto his side. She exhaled a sigh of relief as he went back to sleep. Not only her cheeks but her entire face was a bright red…

She let out a sigh and wondered what had come over her.

[Unknown location]

Leon had never seen a landscape like this before, the world around him was gray. Everything was covered in a thick fog that made it difficult to breathe. “Hello?” he called but the only reply to his words was a slight breeze that pushed the fog away on a path.

He didn’t know why, but it seemed like he was supposed to go down this path. This was the way that had been laid out for him. With a bad feeling burning in his chest he stepped onto the path, only to have the fog cover up where he had just been.

For hours he followed the path the wind cut for him, until he came to a clearing, in the clearing there was three mirrors. Looking around he approached them, but stopped when he felt someone behind him. He didn’t know how he knew; he just knew there was someone behind him.

Slowly turning he looked at the other person. Like looking into a mirror there he was, the other leon.

“Long time no see,” The other him said with a smile that held no good intent. Leon rationally knew that this was a dream, but everything about it was so real, the sight, the feeling, even the smell. “It has been a long time nasci.” it said as he looked Leon over.

“Who are you? And why do you look like me?”

“Oh, tell me, how do you feel right now?” He asked, as he walked around Leon slowly.

“Why would you care?”

“Do you know how fascinating you actually are?” he gestured to Leon. “You can't remember at all can you?” He laughed, his face twisting with disgust, “it is your own fault, it is all your fault that she died, and yet still she loves you?” he spat on the floor at Leon’s feet. “Nasci, you are truly as your name.”

“My name is Leon,” he growled, looking at his other self.

“Is it now? How do you know? Do you even remember who gave that name to you?” Leon racked his brain, but the pain was too great he was forced to give up the search or risk passing out from the pain.

“Nasci, Huh? It means vermin right? This is the best insult you can come up with?” Leon growled.

“It is not an insult merely a statement,” he said, circling around him once again. “You are a Nasci, parading around wearing my face, using my voice, and confusing young girls.” He growled, stopping directly behind Leon.

“Leave Lira out of this, this is between you and me.”

“But how can I leave her out of this? Do you know who she really is? What she really means?” He sighed, “You wish me to leave? Then you must first leave yourself, you are the ghost here, not me.“He snarled “You are wearing my face, and I feel like you have been wearing it far too long now.”

He reached out, and dug his fingers into Leon’s forehead, the pain was intense, and Leon found he couldn’t move couldn’t resist as the man tore off his face. The mirrors glided around and in their reflections Leon found that under that face, was not bone and muscle, but an empty black void of nothingness.

Still unable to move he had to watch as the other leon held up the loose skin that had used to be his face. “Do you see this?” he looked at the face, dripping with blood and back over to Leon, before pointing to the mirror. “You can claim that I lie all you want, but the mirror always tells the truth.”

Leon tried to open his mouth, but found that he could not even do that. “Under this facade you are nothing, you are not alive, you never have been, and you never will be.” Blood constantly dripped from the face, creating a pool on the gray ground that spread out like a rose.

“You aren't even real,” he said backing up into the fog, “you never existed, and you never will.” Leon fell to his knees, and wherever he looked there were mirrors, showing him the truth. All while the other leon’s words echoed in his head, “You don't even know who she is...”