Dragon of the Elements(a.k.a Element): Ookay. My muse, EarthDragon, is currently still in hiding, so I'm a little low on ideas. I haven't managed to convince her that she can keep her fan-fiction privileges, though if she terrorizes anyone else, she's gonna end up at the Muse Pound.



Earth(peering out from behind a rock): You mean it? I'm not in trouble.



Element: No, now please come back. I need some inspiration for the second chapter.



Earth: Really? Well, okay. The muse descends. You may now bow before my presence. All the hail the all migh-



Element: Shut up. And thanks to the people who reviewed it, and another thanks to Fearless, for their input!!



Earth: And thank you Umm, for appreciating me. At least somebody does. My fabulously gifted self, and my amazing talents, are far too under-appreciated.



Element: Remember what I said about fan-fiction?



Earth: Shutting up.



***In Riiocan***



Nothing. His hand froze as he frantically tried to digest this piece of information, the only one that was currently in his head. He remembered nothing. No faces, no names, no life. There was only pain, and the feeling of a blank screen in his head. That and the drums.



He finally pried open his eyes, and again there was nothing. For a second his growing panic nearly escalated to hysteria, then he realized the room was pitch-black. He sat there, staring wildly in the dark, trying to grasp onto the situation.



There was a situation? Maybe. He didn't know. Was he supposed to be here? Did he belong here? He didn't think so. If he was supposed to be here, then why did he associate this place with panic and pain?



Speaking of pain, his was getting worse. His head was still pounding, and since he was sitting up, it made it even harder to breathe. And his leg...he didn't even want to think about that. There wasn't much he could do, sitting up, so he lay back down, closed his eyes, and tried to think.



He couldn't. What was there to think about if he didn't even know what he thought? Blank, blank, blank. That's all every part of his mind was. But he didn't scream, or cry out, or yell for help. Because he didn't know what it meant to do those things.



Suddenly, he heard a noise. Immediately his head was full of questions? Was it good? Bad? What was good and bad? Where was it coming from?

Then, light. In the midst of the black, a square of yellow was cut. He sat up fast, wondering what it was, if it was danger, and not knowing why.



A black silhouette appeared in the square, and a voice yapped something out. He didn't understand, and anyways, he was to hurt too respond. When he didn't move, the silhouette did. It came in the room, which was quite small. Glancing down at the hurt man, who stared unblinkingly up at them with a mixture of fascination and confusion and blankness.



The silhouette turned, yelled something else out into the light, then knelt down. They reached out a hand, which was only met with the same weird stare. The silhouette tried to say something else. Same result. The man's unblinking stare was making them nervous.



The silhouette-person finally reached out and touched him on the leg. Unfortunately, the light from the door was inadequate, and so they did not see the odd angle that his left leg was sticking out. So when the person touched it, they did not expect the piercing yelp of pain that accompanied his poke.



Immediately realizing what was wrong, the silhouette-person left the man alone, instead staring at him, studying him, as if with its gaze, the silhouette could find out what was up with this strange, hurt person with the penetrating stare.



He was scared. And the poke from the strange, dark thing that had come from the light had sent pain that he didn't even know existed. When he yelped in pain, he had started from the sound, and it took him a few moments to realize it had been him.



Light exploded from everywhere! Again, he let out that piercing yelp, for the light had sent fresh waves of pain through him. He looked around wildy for the silhouette, but instead saw another person, a human.



The person had clothes that fit closely around them, made of soft leather. A much-used and 3rd-rate gun was attached comfortably to their belt. A bandana held mid-back length chocolate-brown hair back from her face.



He face. He stared at it, the first recognizable thing he had seen since before, well, he didn't know. The face was tanned, and dirty, but the green eyes were clear and strong. Their gaze met, and for a moment, a connection was made.



Then the pain became too much, his leg and his head and his ribs all swirling in a hurricane of pain which over-whelmed all other feelings, including the emptiness inside him.



For a moment he felt relief, for at least the pain filled his empty head, then there was only the face of the silhouette-person, then only the green eyes, then only the dark.



to be continued



Dragon of the Elements: Okay, that went by really fast. Hopefully in this chapter you'll figure out that Harper (who is 'he' or 'him' in this chapter) has total amnesia. Yeah it's been done on like every show, but I got this idea a long time ago. In this chapter I tried to convey what it would be like for an amnesiac. Most times they can still talk, and walk, and have brief flashes of memory. But what if that didn't happen? What would it be like to not know what pain, or light, or speech, or even good and bad are??



EarthDragon: And on that deeply philosophical note, and thanks to Element's amazing muse, chapter 2 of 'Shadowy Face in the Mirror' is done!!



Element: Isn't it the muse's job to tell them to review? You're not doing your job, Earth!



Earth: Oh, sorry. More reviews please. Advice, input, ideas, it's all good. And even if it's not, that's okay. Cuz then I can wail on your puny butts!



Element: She's kidding. Anyways, what's a beta? People are talking about them, but I don't know what they are and I don't have one!