Second chapter, filled with a crapload of dialogue.

We spent the whole day traveling to Caelin. Not much happened though, except for a few bandits and whatnot, but otherwise, it was actually quite peaceful. Caelin is not too far from here, but everyone was exhausted, so we decided to camp for the night.

I was taking another of my walks again, just admiring the surroundings, as usual. Well, I would actually be sleeping just like everyone else, if it weren't for Serra. She's just so...I don't even know how to describe her. Being one of the few females in our group, I had to share a room with her, meaning I had to struggle with her extremely conceited way of talking. She is very bothersome, although deep inside, she does have a heart, so she isn't that bad. If only she would just…shut…up.

Getting tired of walking, I decided to sit on the ground. Eventually I found myself lying down and staring at the stars. It was quite a beautiful sight. Normally there wouldn't be too many stars in the night sky, and even if there were, I wouldn't really notice them much.

Just then, I heard a few footsteps at my back. Slightly alarmed, I immediately sat up and turned to my back, to see Matthew looking straight at me.

"Well, didn't expect to see you here." He said.

"Oh, staying up late too, huh. Just like always." I remark.

Actually, ever since that fateful encounter, Matthew and I did become good friends. Mostly we'd talk at night, when both of us are still awake. He'd still try to steal my things occasionally, but he does it in lighthearted manner, so it doesn't irritate me as much. After a while, I even got him to tell me where he came from. He said he was from Ostia, just like me. It was really such a strange coincidence, mostly because of how similar he was with my late friend, in terms of personality.

"Mind if I join you?" he asked.

"Sure." I said back. "No one's complaining."

Matthew lied down beside me and looked towards the sky. I felt myself blush a little, for some unknown reason, but I quickly dismissed it. At least it was to dark for Matthew to see it.

"The stars are beautiful tonight, aren't they?" He commented.

"Yes, I agree. In fact, it reminds me of before back when I was still in Ostia." I stated. Funny, at that moment, I noticed that Ostia is what both of us talk about most of the time when we're alone.

"Ostia, huh. Say, what did you do back there? You know, you don't talk much about yourself either, except maybe to Lyn, as I noticed."

"Well, I'm not exactly too comfortable with my past, and Lyn IS a close friend, but I guess I'll tell you a few things, in exchange of course."

"Exchange? Sheesh Ione, I'm actually a tad bit scared." He said, laughing afterwards.

"Hey! I'm not that manipulative!"

"Really? Well you definitely tell a different story on the battlefield. Who knows what a clever lady like you would do out there."

Matthew laughed again. Was I really that bad in the battlefield? Being myself, I immediately dismissed that thought, and said a comeback.

"Oh shut up. I just wanted you to stop stealing my things for a week, at least. Would it really hurt to just ask if you could borrow something? I already said it was fine with me."

"Oh come on. You know me, Ione. Besides, you always have that funny look on your face whenever you find out something's missing."

Matthew chuckled to himself, which irritated me a lot. I could not help but feel annoyed and flustered at the same time.

"Still, I accept." Now that slightly took me by surprise. "I'll stop stealing if you tell me a bit about your past. Like I said, you're quite the mysterious character yourself."

"Okay then, a deal's a deal. Well, back in Ostia, I lived in a small village. My father was one of the best strategists in Ostia, actually. He used to be the one of the army's top tacticians, until he was left handicapped during battle. After that, he just spent the rest of his life playing Chess, though he was quite adept at it. He even taught me about different strategies at an early age. After a while I became fairly good at it too."

"Hm, I see. Your father must have been quite the tactician, seeing as you inherited some of his skills as well." Matthew said, in a complimenting way.

"Flatter me all you want, but it was my father who had the skills, not me. I am bound to make miscalculations, while my father on the other hand would have never made any mistakes even if his life depended on it."I said back.

There was a short silence afterwards. I couldn't help but feel ashamed of myself, because of what happened back then. It was a painful experience, and I did not want to recall it.

After a few moments, Matthew began to speak.

"Hey, Ione. Did something happen to your father?"

Another short silence passed, which abruptly ended when I answered his question.

" Yes, actually. A few years ago my father, along with my mother and a few other villagers were killed when a large number of brigands arrived. Not only were they out for bloodlust, but greed too. They tried to steal all the gold around, and then they got to my father while I was still out with a friend. When we came back, I became in charge directing some of our fighters, since I was the only tactician left. My friend directed the other villagers for escape. Everything went well at first, but…I ended up making a grave mistake."

"I'm sorry for your loss. You must have been through quite a lot." He said in a sympathetic tone, although I could tell he wanted to know more.

"It doesn't bother me as much now. I have learned to cope with it through time." I said, though I was completely lying. It really did still bother me, and I never did forgive myself for that incident.

"Well, that's enough reminiscing for now." I quickly said, trying to change the subject. "I'm feeling a bit sleepy, so I'll go back to my tent."

I stood up and patted my robes to remove the dust and quickly left the area before he could object further. After a few minutes, I reached my tent and went inside quietly, so not to disturb anyone. As I lied down, I started thinking about that tragic experience once again. Sadness took over me for a moment, as I felt a small tear running down my face. I would have never forgiven myself for making that mistake, the mistake that cost so many precious lives, including the one that I loved.

Mmm-hmm. Lots of text there. I feel like I may be moving things too fast, and maybe my OC is Mary Sue-ish. Well, I'll try to put some more action in the next chapter, and interactions with people aside from Matthew. R&R please, I still think I suck at this.