1Okay, well since the vote was a tie the last time I checked (sorry for anyone who reviewed after I started writing this) I had to flip a coin and Zelos won. So, sorry the whole voting thing didn't work. Oh well. You Kratos voters will just have to wait a little bit longer. I'll try to make this one good too.

Chapter 23: Confessions Part II

Storm was flying so fast that she could barely see where she was going. Tears were stinging her eyes, but she told herself not to cry. Lloyd's words still hung heavy in her heart and she tried to figure out a way to get him to trust her, so it could be like it had once been between them. But then she began to think about it for a while longer.

Lloyd won't even give me a second chance, so is it really worth it to try and win back his trust. He did say that I would never be a sister to him. Lord Yggdrassil has always let me into Cruxis no matter how many mistakes I've made with my emotions. Yggdrassil must trust me, Storm thought as she arrived at Altessa's house.

Storm landed outside of Altessa's house where Zelos had sneaked out after he was informed that she would be arriving for him. They walked into the nearby woods so they could talk privately.

"You probably know why I'm here," Storm said to Zelos.

"Yeah, I figured he'd want me to lead them to Derris Kharlan after that little episode last night," Zelos replied giving a fake chuckle.

There was a long silence between the two of them. They both stared at the ground not knowing what to say to each other. Finally Storm decided to go against her good judgement and spoke up.

"You know...you don't have to do this tomorrow, you don't have to kill them," Storm said as she glanced at Zelos.

"Yeah, I know but this is what I want. I have to lose the Chosen's title. It has made my whole life pointless, a joke," Zelos replied.

"But, you always seem so happy and carefree," Storm said, surprised by his answer.

"On the outside I do, but I'm not always what I seem to be. I'm only surrounded by beautiful women and I'm only popular because of this title, not because of who I am," Zelos replied.

"That's because you never show who you really are," Storm replied gazing at him.

"I left that part of me behind a long time ago," Zelos replied.

"I know how you feel," Storm said under her breath, "I don't even know who I am anymore."

"So, what happened to you when you were younger to make your life so terrible?" Storm asked as she sat down.

Zelos sat down next to her as he started to tell his story...

It was the first snow that the young nine year old Zelos had ever seen. The entire ground was covered with the white, sparkling snow. Zelos was in awe at the sight of his village completely covered, so he miraculously managed to convince his mother to go outside with him in the snow.

Once they got outside Zelos decided to make a snowman, his first. Once the snowman was completed Zelos stood back to admire his piece of artwork. Unfortunately, when he looked back he noticed that his snowman wasn't exactly a masterpiece. It was actually pretty ugly and was even pretty out of proportion. Oh, well he could live with the fact that his snowman was unique.

Suddenly, there were red spots all over Zelos' snowman. Zelos thought the snowman was ugly, but he had liked it. He was upset that someone would splatter red all over the snowman he had spent so much time on. He turned around to find who ruined his creation. When he turned around he saw something that would haunt him for the rest of his life.

There behind him was the source of the red spots, his mother. She was killed, and before she died she managed to tell Zelos the one thing that was on her mind...

"Zelos, you never should have been born..."

"I know how losing a parent feels, although I wasn't old enough to remember her, I still wish she was around," Storm said. "And then I find out last night that my brother wasn't dead like I thought. I thought it was great at first, but now I'm not so sure I really wanted to know. It makes things so much more complicated,"

"That must have been rough for you last night. To find out about Lloyd, but that also revealed what happened to your mother," Zelos said.

"Yeah, I knew she died when I was younger, but dad never told me that he was the one who killed her. I'm not mad at him, he had no other choice, but I wish he would have told me about her and about Lloyd," Storm admitted.

"You know, I think you're going to be alright Storm," Zelos said.

"What are you talking about?" Storm asked.

"I mean that I think you're going to overcome everything that stands in front of you, you're strong. You're much stronger than I am. I'm just running from everything. I want a normal life, one where I can settle down and have an easy life with no worries and maybe a family," Zelos said.

"A... family! You!" Storm replied, shocked.

"Yeah, why not?" Zelos replied seriously thinking about it.

"Well, I just never pictured you that type," Storm replied.

"I already told you that I'm not always what I seem to be," he replied laughing.

"No, you're not are you? So, I guess you're not going to consider going against Yggdrassil are you?" Storm asked with a little despair in her voice.

"Probably not. You know, you're not all you seem to be either. Who are you anyway? One minute you're against Lloyd and with Cruxis, then suddenly you reverse sides, then sometimes you seem stuck in between the two," Zelos pointed out.

"Even I don't know who I am anymore. Most of the time I feel like I'm stuck in between even when I seem to be on one side or the other. I guess I don't really belong here," Storm replied.

"That's not true, you belong right here," he said as he stared at her and gave her a small, comforting smile. "Unlike me, I was always hated by everyone, including my parents it seems."

"No, there are people here who care about you," Storm scolded him for forgetting about his friends.

"They'll all hate me by tomorrow though so I may as well accept it now," Zelos replied.

"But, you don't have to do it," Storm said.

"That's just it, I have no other choice," Zelos replied.

"Fine, but...promise me you'll think about what I said...okay?" Storm asked.

"Sure," Zelos replied as he got up and walked back to Altessa's.

"Zelos..." Storm said as she watched him walk out of sight.

Well, everyone, how was that? Was it too mushy? Sorry, if it wasn't quite to your taste. But now what is Storm going to do? What about Zelos? Don't forget that Lloyd and Kratos will be having a talk in Flanoir in the next chapter, Confessions Part III! Until then, do your thing and review!