Well...I really don't have much to say other than I hope you guys enjoy this. I know I took a bit longer than I should have, but my excuse is "Corrin is stubborn as fuck and she wouldn't let me leave". You guys would understand once you start reading...

The Hands Rewind

"So? Explain yourself!" Corrin demanded with her hands on her hips. She glared at Cloud as if somehow this whole predicament was his fault. To a certain extent it was but that was in the particularities, and it was also difficult to glare at the person who looked like the person she loved so much. She made an effort to not look over at her brother's doppelganger. Carrigan couldn't really tell if he preferred it that way or not. It was slightly jarring to see his sister so alive and well when he had long accepted her death in his past life. He slid his eyes from her to stare at the ground. Meanwhile Cloud had no problem scowling back at her.

"How should I know why he looks like your brother? We've never met before so there's no way this would be on purpose. Not like we would want to look like your pathetic brother," the serial killer muttered the last statement underneath his breath. He hid a smirk when he felt Carrigan bristle next to him. It was good that the furious woman didn't catch that insult. Still Corrin didn't appreciate Cloud's aloof behavior.

"There is no way this is a coincidence," she argued. "He looks way too much like my brother." She glanced over at Carrigan, who continued to stare at the ground and stay right by Cloud's side. Corrin frowned. Not only did her brother and this young man looked identical, even his shy behavior was similar. She knew how her brother would try his best not to say anything to a stranger and avoid any possible contact with them. It was exactly what his doppelganger was doing at the current moment. What was going on? Corrin raised an eyebrow in surprise when the silverette spoke up.

"It…it could be a coincidence," he reasoned. "After all, we just met somebody who looked like very similar to Cl-I mean Zack," Carrigan quickly amended. He mentally berated himself for calling the serial killer by his true name earlier, yet he could defend himself with saying how "Zack's" action took him by surprise. It was difficult to use the pseudonym since he was so used to saying "Cloud", but he had no choice in the matter. If they wanted to keep their identities a secret, they had better get some practice in addressing each other by their alias. Carrigan continued, "There's nothing wrong with looking like somebody else…"

Corrin paused to digest that information. While what her brother lookalike said was true to a certain extent, there was something strange about him that she couldn't shake off. Call it a woman's intuition. It wasn't a particularly negative feeling but it wasn't overly positive either. The same couldn't be said for the silverette's companion though. She wasn't really sure what to make of the situation. However she did know that it would be a mistake to let these two out of her sight. After all her brother had gone out for some "fresh air" as he had told his sister. Corrin knew the real reason for his absence was that he was simply nervous in interviewing potential employees. Despite his high position as CEO of their late father's company, Carrigan's past self lacked some of the important qualities necessary in running a business. Like talking to people.

She crossed her arms. "You're telling me…that out of the seven billion people on this planet, I managed to find the one person that looks like my brother? That's a one in seven billion chance of happening."

"Congratulations. You can do math," Cloud said sarcastically. Corrin glowered at him, a low rumble sounding from her throat to signal her patience's end with him. It was probably a good thing that Cloud spoke up. It was on the tip of Carrigan's tongue to let his sister know that she only knew how many people lived on Earth due to him telling her once. If he had gone through with it, he might have given the game away. Carrigan was absolutely certain that Cloud wouldn't be at all pleased with that. Nor would he be pleased with how long his sister intended to drag this vexing conversation out.

"Who are you anyways? You never answered that question."

"There's no reason for us to."

"Just answer it! Who are you guys?"

The serial killer wasn't intimidated by her scary expression at all. If anything, it just annoyed him even more. Like how this whole conversation was annoying him. Cloud definitely knew that they had absolute no time for time wasters like this. Seeing how she wasn't going to be the one to break this meeting, he decided to take the initiative. He grabbed Carrigan's wrist in another firm grip before pulling him behind, again ignoring Carrigan's slight whimper. He also disregarded Corrin's indignant shout of "hey!" as he led his companion back the way they came. Unfortunately they didn't leave quickly enough as Corrin rushed ahead of the pair to block their way. Cloud returned the glare that was becoming quite common recently. He didn't want to stay in this dirty alleyway any longer than he had to, yet this damn bitch wouldn't let them leave. Cloud seriously wanted to hit her or do something of the like. Yet that wasn't an option opened to him especially with Zelda's ground rules. Not to mention that if he really wanted to silence her, Cloud would have to kill her again. Obviously the brat behind him wouldn't allow that to happen since his whole purpose of accepting this role was to prevent that in the first place. That didn't leave the serial killer with any favorable way of dealing with this bitch in his way.

Corrin smirked slightly at the obvious frustration on the older man's face. While her brother's doppelganger still avoided her eyes, she could see how much his companion wanted her to get off of their backs. Well, Corrin would have delighted in telling him there was little chance of that. She wanted to get to the bottom of this and whenever she wanted something as badly as this at the moment, she became a real bloodhound for it. She crossed her arms again and tapped her foot. "Well?"

"Well what?"

"Tell me who you are. Then I might just leave you alone."

"No."

"Tell me!"

"No."

"My name is Kamui, and he's Zack," Carrigan finally answered. At his sudden statement, both Corrin and Cloud looked at the silverette in surprise. However Cloud's face expressed a hint of anger at his victim's abrupt willingness to identify them just like that. Carrigan didn't see his fury or was choosing not to. He stared right at Corrin in order to avoid the serial killer's malicious glare. Cloud slightly gritted his teeth when he realized he was given the same treatment as Corrin earlier. "It was very nice to meet you," the young man said.

"Oh. Um…" Corrin wasn't expecting this at all. She thought that perhaps the older man would exasperatedly tell her their names before pushing her aside, not this strangely normal exchange. It certainly caught her off guard. "Likewise. I'm Corrin."

"There, now you know who we are. Go bother somebody else," Cloud snarled.

"Not so fast. I still want to know why Kamui looks like my brother. And I don't think it's a coincidence that he has the name that could have potentially been mine or my brother's."

The serial killer let out a growl of frustration. This really was the girl he killed before with her fucking doggedness. Yet what really got to him was her second statement. He glared at Carrigan, who only cowered under his gaze. When Cloud didn't think the brat couldn't have gotten any stupider, he just had to pick a name that would draw suspicion to him. As if his appearance wasn't suspicious enough. The serial killer looked back at Corrin. "It's just a coincidence," he said through clenched teeth. "Why won't you just accept that?"

"Because I know it's not a coincidence! I can feel it!"

"Corrin, please. It really is just a coincidence that I look like your brother," Carrigan attempted to reason with his pig-headed sister. "And it's also a coincidence that my name happens to be whatever your mom…or your dad wanted to name you or your brother. Zack and I have somewhere we have to be. Can you please let us go now?"

Corrin paused not to consider leaving them alone but to ponder on how she would solve this mystery. There was absolutely no way she was letting this go past her without some firm answers. Her gut feeling screamed at her that this wasn't by chance, that this meeting was indeed on purpose. Now she just had to get to the bottom of it. She crossed her arms in serious deliberation. She opened her mouth to say something before she felt a jolt in her pocket. Carrigan and Cloud watched as the young woman checked her phone. Whatever she saw seemed to have sparked an idea judging from the knowing smirk crossing her face. Corrin shoved the electronic back into its place before looking at the pair again. "I just might let you go…if you come with me to see my brother for a little while."

"No," Cloud answered immediately. He turned to Carrigan to address him. "We wasted enough time here, Kamui," he growled with emphasis on the alias. He jerked his head in Corrin's direction. "We are not going with her."

Corrin shrugged indifferently at Cloud's answer. "That's fine with me. If you don't mind me following you for a very long time." This prompted the serial killer to scowl at her once again. She only smirked back smugly. Cloud drew breath to rebuke her when Carrigan stepped in.

"If we go with you, do you promise to leave us alone?

"Sure-."

"Were you not listening to me?" Cloud snarled. He grabbed Carrigan's shoulders but quickly resisted the temptation of slamming him against the wall. Even so, the young man winced quietly again at the painful grip that now plagued his shoulders instead of his wrists. "We are not going with her."

"C-Zack…" Carrigan began before looking over at Corrin. "C-Can you give us a minute, Corrin?" he asked tightly.

The young woman glared. "I could…if your 'friend' would let you go." Cloud refused to retort. However when Corrin continued to stand there and not give them the desired privacy, he finally relented and released Carrigan. It was only then did Corrin move slightly away from them. She still kept her eyes trained on the pair. Carrigan tugged on Cloud's sleeve to pull him a little away from his past sister. Although the serial killer initially resisted, he eventually followed Carrigan. He checked one last time that Corrin was out of earshot.

"You better have a good reason for listening to your sister and not obeying me," Cloud warned as he glared right at Carrigan. The silverette ignored the blonde's choice of words as he inhaled deeply.

"Look. I know my sister. She's really stubborn."

"Tell me something I don't know," Cloud responded sarcastically. This earned him a scowl before Carrigan continued:

"Once she gets onto something, it takes a really long time for her to get bored of it. I couldn't remember the last time somebody was able to persuade her to let something go. And from the look of things, she won't leave us alone for a while. She's going to do everything she can to get what she wants. We'd only waste more time if we keep on refusing her, so we might as well go now." The young man held his breath for Cloud's answer. The serial killer's irritated expression did not change throughout Carrigan's argument. Even now he kept staring daggers at the silverette. Yet Carrigan could tell that Cloud was brooding over the situation. He silently prayed to Zelda that Cloud would accept his reasoning and go along. After what seemed like years, the older man shook his head in annoyance. Carrigan's heart skipped a beat until he felt an appreciative warmth at his companion's next words.

"…fine," the serial killer muttered. Carrigan was close to breathing a sigh of relief when Cloud suddenly grabbed his shoulder and pointed at him. Actually, it was wrong to say that the older man gripped his shoulder. The silverette flinched, not because of abruptness of the grasp but because of how close Cloud's fingers were to his neck. As if the serial killer was in the act of choking him. He almost thought that Cloud would actually do it considering how they pressed against his sensitive skin, causing his breath to hitch. "But don't think that you're off the hook just yet," he threatened in a low voice. Carrigan's expression faltered slightly as a terrible shiver ran down his spine. Although he wanted to tell the serial killer to back off, for some reason he couldn't find the right words. All he could do was nod silently. Cloud smirked in amusement at the young man's meek behavior before relinquishing his hold. Carrigan rubbed out the ache in his shoulder as he turned to Corrin. He smiled at her.

"Lead the way, Corrin." He waited for her but she didn't move. In fact she froze with her eyes glued to him, almost like he was a ghost. Carrigan's smile quickly disappeared as an anxious feeling rose in his chest. "Is something wrong?"

The question seemed to snap Corrin out of her trance. She shook her head to clear her thoughts before nodding to Carrigan. "Yeah…no, nothing's wrong. I was just…reminded of something," she muttered to herself. Her confident smile soon returned. "So you guys agree?"

"Yes," Carrigan answered for both of them. He was certain that at the current moment Cloud didn't want to respond at all. His scowling face and refusal to look at Corrin affirmed that. However Corrin showed signs of indifference to Cloud's behavior. She beckoned them to follow her out of the alley and onto the crowded streets. As Carrigan trailed after the young woman, he sensed Cloud's presence right behind him. At least the serial killer wasn't abandoning him. Truthfully even if Carrigan ignored his refusal and went after Corrin without him, the serial killer really didn't have a choice but to follow the younger man. Though Zelda initially tasked the silverette to watch the blonde, it seemed as if they reversed roles considering who was chasing after whom in the last twenty-four or so hours.

As the trio made their way through the swarms of people aching to get to their destinations, Carrigan examined his surroundings. Despite some changes that occurred between the present period they found themselves in and their own actual timeline, Carrigan found that much of his home city remained the same. The other times he had rushed through too quickly and worried too much about Cloud to examine his surroundings. Now he had the chance to recognize much of the buildings that made his past home despite the pace they were walking at. It made him feel slightly more comfortable with the familiarity the place held. If he needed time away from Cloud, he would be able to do so with less of a chance of getting lost. And since the serial killer also resided in the city before, it would be a bit…easier for Cloud to find him, he supposed.

Upon that thought Carrigan had to admit throughout the whole journey so far, Cloud was watching him, not the other way around. It made him feel even more useless than before. However he didn't spend as much time to dwell on the depressing thought as he was brought back to reality by Corrin.

"Here we are," she announced. As there was a lull of people at the entrance, the trio were able to stop in front of a tall building and examine it. While Cloud remained unimpressed as the place looked like any other business building with its high-rising stories and blue-tinted windows, Carrigan held his breath at the extreme familiarity that washed over him upon seeing his second home. It was exactly as he had left it in his past life. There was something reassuring about that, about nothing much changing. At the same time, Carrigan wanted for something to change. It would be more of a subtle alteration for the people around him and a more prominent amendment for him. "Come on." He heard Corrin order. Snapping out of his thoughts, the silverette followed after his past sister. Cloud's presence still remained behind him.

Corrin pushed the doors open, inevitably causing some of the occupants inside to look up in curiosity. Those who registered her identity quickly went back to work while others continued to stare for a little bit longer. Thankfully the place wasn't as crowded as it was on the opposite side of the doors. Corrin paid no attention to everyone around her as she led Carrigan and Cloud into a free elevator. It couldn't be said the same for Carrigan. He actually recognized some of the people inside. The fear of other people recognizing him suddenly plagued him, and he could only hope that they wouldn't by some miracle. As a result, the silverette kept his eyes pointed towards the ground. Perhaps they wouldn't realize that he looked identical to their current boss at the moment if they didn't look at him straight in the eye. Carrigan had to look through his silver bangs to follow his sister. He didn't see the slightly bemused expression on Cloud's face. The serial killer could care less if people stared at him. So long as it didn't endanger them in any way.

Once the trio boarded thankfully with nobody else, Corrin clicked a top floor to start their ascent. As the machinery whirled around, an awkward silence befell them. Cloud leaned against the back handle with Carrigan standing in the middle and Corrin covering the buttons. Nobody met eyes with each other, and the tension nearly suffocated them. However the calm was soon broken by none other than Corrin herself.

"So what's your relationship with him?" she asked Carrigan as she jerked a thumb behind her. Her red eyes trained on Carrigan, she didn't notice the scowl on Cloud's face. Carrigan was rather taken back by the sudden inquiry. His face felt that annoying blush rising again. His mind drew a blank while he attempted to answer her question.

"W-Well, um…w-we, we're, uh…we're…

"Together?"

"Yes. I mean, no! I-I mean…" Carrigan sputtered as Corrin raised an eyebrow at him. "Yes, we're together, but we're not together, together. We're just…friends?" He cringed inwardly at his choice of words. In the heat of the moment though he couldn't think of anything else other than that false word. Corrin frowned at his response, showing her obvious doubts. She opened her mouth to pursue the matter further when Cloud interrupted her.

"We're just business partners. That's it."

Both silverettes looked at the blonde, Carrigan showing surprise while Corrin displayed skepticism. However Cloud was looking at only one person. His sapphire eyes shot Carrigan a silent warning, don't say something stupid like that ever again. Flinching from the sheer intensity of the glare, Carrigan couldn't retort with his own angry words. He simply slid his eyes away from the serial killer as he faced the elevator door once again.

Corrin frowned at the responses she got. Though the older male claimed that they were business partners, Corrin was certain that there was more to this odd pair than they let on. She wanted to know more. It couldn't hurt to try asking the young man besides her again. However when she nudged him again, Carrigan didn't answer. He was making it too obvious that he intended to ignore her. Corrin cursed to herself at the missed opportunity. It seemed like Cloud had intimidated Carrigan to the point of not wanting to converse anymore. No matter what she tried to do to get his attention, the stranger's mouth now sealed shut. The elevator ride continued its tensed trek upward.

Carrigan quietly sighed in relief when he heard the ding to signal their destination. When the doors split apart to allow the trio to leave, Corrin led the way forward. The moment they stepped onto the floor, Carrigan recognized the place. It was actually his office floor. Just a few steps more and they would reach his actual office. All of a sudden a panicked feeling constricted his chest, almost stopping his breath. Even though it was his ulterior motive to check on his past self upon accepting Corrin's deal, for some reason he felt extremely nervous now when they were so close. The silverette froze in his tracks while Corrin went on ahead to the fated door. However he didn't stay for long as Cloud shoved him forward.

"Let's go already," the serial killer growled in annoyance. Carrigan shook his head slowly, still trying to take what might happen in. Cloud rolled his eyes at his companion's behavior. The brat was so eager to follow his past sister. There was no way Cloud was going to let him chicken out especially since they wasted enough time with this detour. He grabbed hold of Carrigan's arm and dragged him to where Corrin was waiting.

"What's wrong?" the young woman asked once they reached her.

Cloud scowled. "Idiot's just nervous."

"Pfft, there's no reason for you to be nervous, Kamui. If anything, my brother should be the one nervous," Corrin replied. Without knocking on the door, she twisted the knob to bang it open. "Hey, Carrigan, I'm back!" Her loud voice caught the attention of the two males inside looking out the windows. Corrin strode forward purposely towards her twin. After a moment's hesitation, the future Carrigan also walked into the room with the future Cloud right behind him. However they stopped short some distance away to first give the siblings some space. This gave the two a chance to examine and reminisce about the room. To Zack, it looked like any other office building with the large desk in the back of the room and three chairs surrounding it on both sides. Bookshelves and cabinets with important documents lined the walls. At least there was a nice scenery outside for him to stare aimlessly at in boredom.

One of the males in particular smiled brightly once he saw who was calling to him. He began waving to his sister when his eyes caught something that made him double take. The past Carrigan stared right at the two men standing behind his twin, mainly at the one who looked identical to him. Was it really possible to have a stranger look exactly at him? He had heard stories about people meeting their lookalike, but Carrigan never thought it would happen to him. He gapped in surprise but nothing came out. It was only until Corrin hung an arm around him did he regain his voice. "Took you long enough to come back, bro. Had a nice walk?"

"Hi, Corrin, and yes, I did. Who are your friends?" Carrigan asked. He looked at the future Carrigan pointedly, who stared right back. If a total stranger who could very well be his second twin wasn't standing before him, he probably would have stared at the blonde, handsome man instead accompanied with a slight blush. Before Corrin could answer, Carrigan's double stepped forward and held out his hand.

"I'm Kamui, and this is my…friend, Zack. It's a pleasure to meet you," the future Carrigan said with a slight smile. For a moment, Carrigan simply stared with his mouth slightly open. However the snowy-haired male beside him gently nudged him to snap him out of his trance.

"O-oh, I'm Carrigan. The pleasure's all mine," he took Kamui's hand in his own. At the contact he shuddered slightly. For some reason he didn't like the feeling of it. Carrigan was too busy to dealing with his own sensation to notice that Kamui also quivered slightly. It was only until his companion subtly urged him away did he disregard that feeling.

"Hey, who's this?" Corrin asked with a finger pointed to the young man behind her brother. She narrowed her eyes in an attempt to remember the albino's identity. There was something familiar about him that she couldn't really place. Carrigan quickly answered her question:

"He's Robin. He's one of the people I was going to interview today."

At the mentioning of his name, Kamui balked slightly. Even Zack, who had been looking out the window, glanced over to study him with a critical eye. Robin seemed to ignore the strange actions coming from the two strangers. Instead he simply smiled and inclined his head.

"I'm very pleased to make your acquaintance." He tilted his head to the side curiously as he stared right at the future Carrigan. "If you don't mind my asking…why do you look so much like Carrigan, Kamui?"

"It's just a coincidence," Kamui answered rather quickly. He honestly had no interest in talking with this man right now. If only he could get his past self alone at the moment, he would advise him not to hire Robin at all. His eye twitched slightly when he saw the look of disbelief on Robin's face. "It's true! Zack, tell him!" The silverette turned to his companion in an urgent plea.

Now everybody was staring at the blonde. Zack rubbed his eyes in annoyance as he could feel a headache coming on. He was seriously getting tired of all of this. He swore to himself that if it weren't for Zelda's ground rules, nobody in this room would be alive right now. "It's…just…a fucking coincidence. When will you idiots accept that already?"

"Now that's not a very nice thing to say," Robin clicked his tongue in disapproval. "And you didn't have to get so defensive over your boyfriend." He hid a small grin when he saw Zack narrow his eyes at him. However the one with the most reaction was Kamui. The silverette's face flushed a deep crimson upon hearing those words.

"Zack isn't my boyfriend!" he tried to keep his voice leveled but failed miserably. "There's no way that is ever happening!" Kamui wanted to bury his head in the ground, the wall, something, anything to hide his deep embarrassment. Why was everybody assuming that they were a couple? Was that what he and Zack looked like to other people? He didn't even want to think about the possibility of that when there was zero chance of that ever happening.

"Oh? I thought there was something going on between you two considering how you hesitated when introducing him. I suppose it's my mistake for assuming that then…" Robin muttered. "My apologies." He glanced over at Zack though there wasn't much of a reaction from him. The albino drew breath to say more when Carrigan's sister interrupted him.

"Robin? Wait a minute…" Corrin narrowed her eyes. "Your name was on the list. Your interview was supposed to be done nearly two hours ago! What are you still doing here? Carrigan! I thought you were finished with the interviews already!" She released her hold on her twin to stare at the albino. Robin's smile disappeared when he heard that statement. The teasing manner from before was replaced with one of nervousness.

"Oh…well…I…"

"Oh well you what?" Corrin asked menacingly as she strode forward to glare at Robin. "Explain yourself!"

"Wait, Sis! Let me explain!" Carrigan quickly jumped in front with his hands outstretched to protect the shorter male from any possible bodily harm Corrin might have inflicted. "I…decided to take a break today from interviewing people, so I rescheduled his. I should have told him earlier, but he already arrived by then."

Robin chuckled nervously, "I actually got a little lost trying to find the room. It's a good thing I met Carrigan or else I might have wandered around lost forever. So he really saved me back there." He smiled again at said person.

"O-Oh, It wasn't much," Carrigan muttered as he blushed slightly. He looked away to hide his embarrassment, but those who took a closer look could see that he was smiling slightly.

"Trust me, I'm truly grateful that you helped me." When Carrigan looked up to smile at Robin, the shorter male gave him a wink. That only made the silverette look away with blushing cheeks.

"Bullshit," Kamui muttered under his breath. He could see how the albino was trying to suck up to his past self. Unfortunately, it seemed to be working. After Carrigan had revealed Robin's name, Kamui remembered exactly who he was. He remembered that this particular day he had quite the list of people to interview. And Robin was one of the few who was late. While the future Carrigan, and past Carrigan for that matter, was normally a patient individual, he was more exhausted that day than usual. And more crabby. So when Robin had attempted to appease him, the albino had only dug a deeper hole for himself. Needless to say, he didn't get the job.

However Kamui never remembered meeting Robin earlier in the day like his past self had claimed nor did Robin use the excuse of being lost when he entered the room for the interview. And he certainly didn't remember befriending Robin. He couldn't help but feel that something was amiss here. Something was clearly wrong with the events occurring right now. Obviously the future selves shouldn't be here but there was something else. It was on the tip of his tongue to ask exactly what had happened. Thankfully he stopped himself in time lest he gave the game away. However nothing was stopping Corrin from questioning her brother.

"Why did you reschedule the interviews? They were supposed to happen today." She frowned.

"Oh…um, well, somebody told me that I seemed really tired and down. He suggested that I get some rest today," Carrigan admitted sheepishly. "Even though I told him that I had people to interview, he just told me that if I wasn't feeling up to it then I shouldn't push myself."

"Wait, what? Who is this guy?" Corrin pointed at Robin. "Don't tell me it was him." Robin didn't look amused at all at that jab. He shook his head but kept his mouth shut.

"No, it wasn't Robin. It was…" the young man trailed off as his cheeks tinted red again. Corrin stared at her brother with a frown. For some reason she felt like she wasn't going to like what happened next.

"Well?" she prompted.

"He was…a police officer who helped me out when I was walking. I…kind of ran into some trouble and he really saved me then."

"Ran into some trouble…" Corrin then gasped. "Somebody harassed you, didn't they?! Who was it?! Tell me! I'll beat their skulls in for hurting my little brother!" Both Carrigan and Kamui flinched when they saw their sister ready to murder somebody. Her younger twin held out his hands in an attempt to placate her.

"N-no! I'm fine, really! It's fine! Please don't hurt anybody, Sis!" he pleaded. Corrin looked at her brother with her furious eye. After a moment's hesitation, she finally calmed herself down. She shook her head in annoyance.

"Carrigan, why didn't you call me? I would have come running immediately." At that, Carrigan sighed.

"It was all right, Sis. Nothing really bad happened."

"Just call me next time, all right?"

"I will."

"So…did you get the name of who helped you?" Kamui asked, suddenly showing intense curiosity to this story. Carrigan looked at him. He still couldn't really get over how there seemed to be another, slightly older him standing in front of him. It was like looking into a mirror without the glass.

Carrigan replied, "He said his name was Cloud." At the name, Kamui jumped slightly. Even Zack looked over at them with a slight scowl when Carrigan told them the name of his savior. Corrin raised an eyebrow at their reactions. She was about to ask them what was wrong when Carrigan pointed at Zack. "He actually looked a lot like you."

"Really?" Now Corrin looked at the blonde with a renewed interest. The thought of Zack looking like another person in this city never occurred to her, especially with the extremely low odds of that ever happening. Now that was out in the air, Corrin was even more curious about these two strangers. It didn't seem like a mere coincidence as they had previously claimed. Even Robin seemed to be curious about the matter as he stared at the pair with a thoughtful expression. "Did you guys know about that police officer?" Corrin asked.

"We-."

"Yeah, we met him," Zack growled. "He's a real idiot if you ask me."

"No, he isn't. He's really kind!" Carrigan protested. He blushed slightly as he remembered his encounter with the officer. He was smiling at the warmth of the memory when he suddenly remembered something. After Cloud saved him, he had addressed him as "Kamui". He recalled how confused the officer was once he corrected him on his real name. However Cloud didn't seem to mind the mix-up too much. Thinking back, Carrigan guessed correctly that Cloud had probably mistaken him as his doppelganger in front of him. He even remembered how the police officer had asked where Zack was. "You know him, right, Kamui?" he had to ask. "Because he mentioned that he met somebody that looked almost like me."

Kamui hesitated for a moment before nodding, "We just met him today, actually. He was nice." Carrigan nodded in agreement. He mumbled something under his breath that caused Kamui to frown. "What was that?" he asked, not quite catching Carrigan's words.

"Oh, nothing," the past self squeaked. Kamui was tempted to pursue the matter further but he left it at that. He opened his mouth to ask about something else when his vision swarmed. He could barely see what was in front of him with the faces blurring. A terrible migraine plagued his mind, his knees buckling. He heard somebody calling to him in a panic. However he couldn't respond to them as he fell backwards.

Kamui fully expected to crash on the ground. However he felt two firm hands grab both his arms as he fell onto somebody, stopping his momentum. He groggily looked around to register what just happened. Kamui felt something rumble on his back, signifying that the person who had caught him was talking. He froze when he finally realized who had saved him from falling.

"We're leaving now," Zack told the others. He glared at Corrin, as if Kamui's dizziness was somehow her fault. She ignored his pointed stare to look at Kamui with concern.

"Is he going to be all right?"

"He'll be just fine once we get out of here," Zack growled as he began to lead Kamui away without so much as a good-bye. "And you better keep your end of the deal." Once the serial killer uttered those words, Carrigan looked a question at his sister. She only made a negative gesture as she continued to watch the pair walk to the elevator to leave, one leaning on the other for support. The pair ignored the three pairs of eyes staring intently at their backs while they waited. After what seemed like days, the doors slid open and allowed the blonde and silverette inside. As the elevator shut itself, Zack felt only one pair of eyes leave them. The other two continued to stare, and he had to wonder whether those two people (and he knew Corrin was one of them) were still staring at the elevator doors despite them leaving already.

Once they were out of sight, Cloud shoved Carrigan away from him. Surprised by the abrupt action, the silverette barely managed to stop his momentum with his outstretched hands on the handles. He breathed a quick sigh of relief before turning to glare at the serial killer. Although there was an amused smirk on his face, Cloud's eyes showed the obvious signs of his irritation.

"What did you do that for?" Carrigan asked, the fury unmistakable in his voice. He forgot all about his splitting headache in favor for reprimanding Cloud. Just when he thought that the serial killer was actually showing signs of kindness, he had to turn around and prove him wrong.

Cloud chuckled, "Well you're all better now, aren't you? You didn't need to lean on me anymore. Unless you liked it that much."

"What?! No! I would never!" Carrigan couldn't stop the blood from rising to his face again. As his "business partner" continued to sneer at him, the silverette finally wretched his eyes from that predatory gaze. He clenched his fist in an attempt to calm himself down.

"Since you have no trouble flapping your mouth now, you better explain yourself quickly," Cloud growled as he leaned back on the wall and crossed his arms. Carrigan looked at him in confusion. The serial killer scowled as he elaborated, "Both you and I know that in our past lives we never met each other until the investigation. So why did your past self say that that idiot of a police officer saved him?"

Carrigan blinked as he pondered about that. His past self's story had surprised him as well. If he remembered correctly…it was supposed to be…Cloud who saved him from his harasser. Not his sister. Wait, that wasn't right! His sister was supposed to save him! Not Cloud! That was why that story had shocked him. That wasn't how things were supposed to turn out! He recalled how the stalker had trapped him in an alleyway and that he thanked his lucky stars that Corrin found him in time. So why…why was he recalling that Cloud saved him instead of his sister? He still remembered his sister scolding him for not defending himself. But now Carrigan could also find the memory of Cloud chasing off his attacker. Just remembering that little scene made him blush slightly.

"I think…your past self did save me…" Carrigan finally muttered.

"What? I don't recall ever saving you."

"I know, but that was because we weren't there to intervene. See, when that guy harassed me in the past, it was my sister who saved me. But since she was occupied with us at the moment that my past self was being harassed, she couldn't have saved me. So then…"

"…shit," Cloud cursed to himself once he realized the implication. He himself was starting to get the segmented memories that Carrigan found. Truthfully, he got them before Carrigan became dizzy and they left. He didn't realize how he was glaring at Carrigan so intensely that the younger male squirm underneath his gaze. Being brought back to reality, he grabbed hold of Carrigan's wrists to pull him closer. The young man gave a startled yelp at the rough treatment. They were much too close for his liking. Yet his struggles against Cloud's iron grip was futile and he had to bear with their close proximity. "This is your fault," he accused.

"What?! How is it my fault?!"

"If you haven't run away, none of this would have happened. And if you don't want to disturb this timeline any more than we have to, then you better obey me from now on. Understand, brat?"

"…" Carrigan only stared at Cloud defiantly. Seeing how the CEO wasn't answering, the serial killer dug his nails into the pale skin. He smirked in satisfaction at the pained cry he elicited from Carrigan. He continued to do that until he could almost see the tears from the corner of the boy's eyes.

"I asked, understand, brat?"

"I…I understand," Carrigan finally gasped. Cloud smirked at the answer. He dug his nails deeper one last time before relinquishing his hold. He watched with relish as Carrigan quickly scooted away from him to rub his wrists of the ache. He smiled devilishly when he saw the crescent moons etched in Carrigan's skin. It wasn't much of a punishment but it would do for now. Perhaps that would teach the silverette a lesson to be more obedient in the future.

The elevator dinged to notify them they had reached the first floor. Cloud waited until the doors opened before quickly walking away from Carrigan, surprising some of the people waiting outside. "Hurry it up. We don't have all day." Carrigan could only glare weakly at the serial killer's back before following him unwillingly, ignoring the stares he was getting. At least he could rest assure that his past self was in a much better position than he was at the moment. He didn't realize he forgot to tell his past self not to hire Robin. That probably would come back to bite the pair in the ass in the future...

And that is chapter 5 (or 6 depending how you want to look at it). But anyways, so the original history is that Corrin saved Carrigan from being harassed, like he said. However, that history changed because of future Cloud and Carrigan (obviously). They first made the past Cloud late in getting to his job. Then they occupied Corrin in the beginning chapter, so there was no way she could go save the past Carrigan. And because the past Cloud was late, he was able to stumble upon past Carrigan. So...yeah, if future Carrigan didn't run off like in the previous chapter, none of this would happen. But where's the fun in that? Eh? Eh? I'll shut up now...anyways, see you guys next time.