*Note* THIS IS IN NOCTIS" POV!

Recollection

By: Vicis est Eternus

The dark night was oppressing, and made even a smile seem downcast. Or, was it just my mood? The dark streets were illuminated by the dull streetlamps.

I walked down the dark street slowly. My feet stepped in front of each other. Slowly; I was in no rush.

I tried to remember… anything, really. Anything that I could beyond yesterday. My clothes were filthy and torn, and yet… I didn't know why. It must have looked like I was in a battle of some kind, perhaps I was, I just… didn't know for sure.

People avoided me, why, again, I wasn't sure, I wasn't sure of anything. While passing a store window, I got a glimpse of my reflection, my dark blue hair, my eyes, everything. I saw my reflection, but it was a stranger to me.

I had no wounds, even though there was dried blood on my skin, and every so often, I would catch a glimpse of something shimmering nearby. It would look like a piece of jewelry got caught in sunlight.

I haven't seen sunlight since I woke up.

Headaches came and went, but I ignored them. I seemed to be… numb. I couldn't remember anything, and yet, I knew I was searching for something. Or, was it a someone? Either way, this… drive gave me some sort of purpose, seeing as I couldn't remember any other purpose I had other than to search for something that I had no recollection of.

No… past memories, but, thankfully I was still aware and educated. I knew one thing from another, which clearly stated that I did have memories, and didn't just… appear on the barren land that I woke up in.

I sighed, or, did I just breath loudly? Either way, the pattern of my breathing was disturbed and it drew attention to myself. People, drunks, muggers, they were on the same streets as I was. I wondered what time it was.

No one approached me, I suppose that was explainable; I looked like I had been through hell and back, and lived to tell the tale. Or, at least, that was the first thought my mind gave me when I saw my reflection.

My clothes had cuts in them, dried blood, were ripped and torn. There was blood and dirt on my skin and hair. All of the evidence, and I had no idea what happened to me.

I suppose that I could guess, but I have no idea if war is going on or not. I pause in front of a bar. The noise coming from there is loud. I can smell the smoke and the alcohol.

Why did I pause? Why are my feet planted in front of the bar? Was I an alcoholic? I didn't know an answer to any of these questions.

I started to walk again. It was late, and I hadn't even slept since I woke up yesterday evening. I suppose that's odd, seeing as I haven't had any form of sleep in a day. Then again, I suppose its even odder to just walk through a city without even stopping to rest, let alone eat.

Then there was the fact that I knew I had to find something. Or, someone, either way, the need was nearly driving me mad. I raised a hand and touched my right temple gingerly. The large, black bruise covered from my temple to my ear. It was large, and even my light touch sent waves of pain through my head. It must be stupid of me to wonder why I'm having so many headaches. The bruise might as well come from someone hitting my head with a shovel - Very, very hard.

The sidewalk I was walking on was dirty; it had pieces of gum on it. The gum had been squished flat and changed colour from whatever it had been before to black.

I knew I was getting closer to the 'downtown' area. The buildings were getting taller and the lights became much more frequent. I knew I needed to find it, or, was it a person? Even then, I didn't know which gender. I couldn't say 'I need to find him' or, preferably 'I need to find her.' So, until I remembered, I suppose that I would just have to settle with 'it'. Referring to whatever I knew I needed to find as an object was much easier. That, and I didn't have to rack my brain and confuse myself for the answer.

The further I walked, the more I noticed that the dark street I was once on was getting brighter. Neon signs illuminated the night, lights flashed, and signs were lit up by electricity. It seems that I have reached the busiest section. Was it here?

Was what I looking for, something obvious, or well hidden? Will I know it when I find it?

Or was I doomed to forever search until I died?

All of the options looked bleak. I suppose that my future really has no happy ending. By the looks of it, I was in a battle of some sort, which meant that I was either war obsessed, or, very despised. Then again, I could have just been caught in the crossfire…

The bright lights were in my vision now. It wasn't that far of a walk to see them, though. The large, double lane street held almost no cars. This should be odd. But, then again, what did I know? Perhaps I walked on a movie set, perhaps I was dead - the possibilities were endless.

A young, blonde woman staggered out into the street. Her long, wavy blonde hair caught my attention. Why this seemed important was beyond me. Was the person who I was looking for blonde? Or, was it someone that I wanted to avoid? I paused right in front of the road.

If I kept asking myself questions I had no answers to, I knew that I would definitely go insane. The blonde woman was hardly attractive, and the face completely unfamiliar…. Except her hair.

It was the same as… My memory failed me. Then again, all it has so far is failed me. What was so special about this random person's hair? The colour was most likely not natural, and dyed instead. Would dyed hair be some connection to my life? I hoped to Etro that that I wasn't a hairdresser. If I was, then the possibility that I hired someone to beat me half to death was high.

Annoyance. That one emotion seemed to be the only thing that I felt as of late. Well, it's the only thing that I have felt a majority of since yesterday.

Surprise, anger, and annoyance. Those three were the only emotions that I have any recollection of feeling.

Did I love someone who was blonde? That was a possibility. Yet, it didn't matter if I did or didn't, the woman who was desperately trying to get back into the building that she came out of was no one I remembered. If she was connected to me, I defiantly did not want to remember.

I continued on, crossing the street. There were no cars and the streets were deserted. The lights inside the buildings were off, the only lights were actually the advertisement lights that were on a timer. How late was it? I didn't feel tired, not in the slightest. My eyelids did not droop; my mind was clear and aware.

What was wrong with me?

The cloudy sky was dark, but it covered the entire sky above my head, not allowing a single hint that there were stars behind it. Then I realized, that even if the night was clear, the possibilities that one would be able to see stars was still slim. Pollution, lighting, human development hindered the possibility of seeing stars in a city. I chuckled quietly. Did I always analyze everything this much? Or was it just because I lost my memories, and fact was the only thing I had left? The second option seemed more likely.

"Hey." A feminine voice commanded. I didn't want to stop, I knew who it most likely was. I really didn't want to hear. 'Don't I know you?' or anything along those lines. I did not want to know her. Still, I stopped, though I was tense, I knew my face didn't show any emotion at all. I turned slightly, just to make sure who it was. The same woman with the blonde hair stood behind me. I really didn't know what she wanted.

"What?" I asked her quietly. I made certain that my face was blank. That way, she couldn't think that a certain expression I wore related to what she wanted.

"You get beat up?" She asked stupidly, her dull brown eyes were unnecessarily wide. She looked like an idiot. 'You get beat up?' I could find many different things wrong with that sentence. The grammar, the fact that, yes, obviously I got beaten up, and the third, was why in the hell did she care?

"It's nothing." I told her. I wanted out. I didn't want to be here, and be subjected to her pestering questions.

"But, you have blood all over you!" She shrieked. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Did she not notice the blood at first? I really didn't want to answer her. My body was tense, and I wondered if she could actually pick up on my body movements. I hoped not. While I found my face easy to control, my body movements were out of the question. Someone who noticed would figure me out easily, I guess. Either way, I couldn't stop it, that, and the girl who was staring at the dried blood in horror wasn't all that bright.

"So?" I questioned. My tone was harsh, and hurt immediately registered on her ugly face. I wondered if I was always this way towards women; was it just towards her? Her pig-like nose scrunched up in anger. Her eyes squinted, making her face even more unappealing. I realized with shock that she was scowling at me.

"Fine. Just trying to be helpful." She scoffed, and then took off, strutting away from me. Her high heels made her walk strangely; she kept loosing her balance.

I thought about how she would complain about how ridiculous and pointless high heels would be-

I froze, I could practically hear a commanding, feminine voice speak. I could hear how they would grumble and her tone would be disapproving.

And yet, there wasn't a name, or a face, or any other thought that connected to it. I scowled at the ground, and clenched my hands into fists. Anger, was feeling I felt, though annoyance was still there, I was angry at whatever part of me made me forget.

Did the voice that I just heard belong to a woman with blonde hair? Or, were their two different people, one with blonde hair, and another with a commanding voice?

I forced myself to relax, letting my hands go limp at my side, and my facial expression to drop. I started to walk up the street again. I knew I still needed to find it. Or, was it a her now? So far, the only things my mind remembered belonged to a female human. Both of them, the voice, and the hair, was I looking for them both? Or, was I looking for only one? The questions were really starting to get to me.

A/N: Okay, so, here is the first chapter in response to Dawn's challenge #1. Read and enjoy. This is an LightingxNoctis StellaxNoctis fic, cause he can't remember who he is looking for. Does it meet your expectation dawn? *shoves cookie into mouth* I have a REALLY big mouth!