A Blank Slate

She was warm. Not too hot or cold, and whatever she was resting on was soft. Opening her eyes slowly, she found herself lying in the shade under an oak tree. How the girl got there, she couldn't say. Confused, she realized she didn't know anything about her surroundings, or herself for that matter. No favorite color, no family, no name, nothing. The girl slowly righted herself, yawning as she did so. How long had she been asleep? At her feet was a rifle. Naturally, she picked up the weapon, running a hand over the word etched into it's side. Arizona she mumbled aloud, feeling as though she should recognize the name. There was something so familiar about it, about all of this, but she couldn't summon a single memory. She was a blank slate, and that was terrifying.

Not too far away from the amnesiac girl a certain man had just so decided to take the scenic route, that being a nice overgrown trail through the forest. Admittedly it was every bit as scenic as he'd hoped but despite looking very pretty it proved a nuisance to step over what seemed to be every root and branch conspiring to have him trip. He was wearing a small backpack filled with several kinds of supplies, counting medical should something come up. While very much scenic this also just so happened to be the shortest path to his current destination. Roland Gates had since a while now set his eyes upon Clover Town and the group residing there: "Cait Shelter". From what he had gathered they were a bunch of happy go lucky fools who took in just about anyone, far too trusting for their own good to say the least. Then again he couldn't hope to gain the allegiance of any but a group just like theirs considering his history with the powers that be. After wandering for a while he came upon a meadow with a grand oak tree standing silent watch in the very center. Sunlight was streaming down through the layers upon layers of leaves above him and made for a very comfortable atmosphere. He figured this would make for as good a place as any to stop for lunch, and as such he approached the tree as to sit down but was suddenly interrupted in the midst of a thought as he heard a voice.

"Arizona"

He could tell the voice had come from somewhere close by and with the tree being the biggest obstacle in sight he guessed whoever spoke was most likely just behind it. He decided to just call out for now as to not risk scaring them should they not be aware of his presence. "Is someone there?"

The girl jumped to her feet, looking around wildly. Who had called to her? It dawned on the redhead that her voice had been heard by the stranger, who's voice seemed to come from behind the huge oak. Peering cautiously around the trunk, she found the source. A blonde man, a few inches taller than her, stood on the other side. The mottled sunlight caught his hair, giving him an almost ethereal quality. Sliding the rifle's strap over her shoulder, she took a couple steps toward the stranger, hoping to be amiable. "Uh, Hi..." Hopefully she didn't have to fight him, as she wasn't sure that she remembered how to use the rifle on her back, or if she had ever learned in the first place.

He didn't have to wait for long as a girl with fiery red hair suddenly popped up from behind the tree, seemingly very cautious of him, afraid even. She had forced a nervous greeting and he couldn't help but think that the all the green in the meadow did very well at accentuating her red long hair. Roland had considered whether the voice belonged to a bandit or a brigand but seeing this girl he quickly set aside such thoughts seeing that besides the large rifle strapped to her back she seemed to be pretty much harmless. "Hello" He waved casually to her in a friendly manner but kept his distance since she seemed a bit confused. It suddenly hit him that she might be lost as that would explain her obviously cautious behaviour. Knowing what one had to go through to get this far it seemed plausible to think that people might get lost in here fairly often. "Are you lost?" He stood firm and kept his distance as to let her decide on a comfortable distance. On top of that he kept a friendly smile on his face as not to intimidate or worse yet scare her off in case she actually needed help.

The blonde man waved and called to her, giving a friendly greeting to the confused woman. Was she supposed to know him? The answer to that question was quickly answered, when he followed up by asking if she was lost. Blinking, she made her way towards the stranger, realizing he was just a casual good samaritan. "I, uh, I'm not sure, actually. Where am I?" It took her a little bit, but she finally noticed her own attire. With short shorts and a flame-patterned bikini top, topped off with thigh-high tights, boots, and a scarf, she was a sight to behold. The only reason she knew her hair color was the red strands that framed her face, and she could only assume how long her ponytail stretched. She realized she didn't know the color of her own eyes, and made a mental note to find a mirror as soon as she could. Going back to the task at hand, she addressed the stranger. "Who are you?"

Roland had deterred from noting the girl's... unusual outfit even though it only grew all the more prominent the closer she got to him. He was sure to get it fired right back at him as he was out in the middle of the woods in a bartender suit of all things. In the end the both of them were oddly dressed considering their immediate surroundings. The girl herself seemed very curious on top of her obvious confusion, seemingly even astounded by the clothes she was wearing. She had initially approached him blinking as if he was the first person she had met for quite a while. She had asked him where she was, thus confirming his suspicions yet something just felt kinda off about it. Before he could answer her first question she immedieatly asked for his name, something he was more than willing to part with. "Me? I'm Roland, Roland Gates" He paused as if to let it sink in for a moment before he continued. "As for where i'm not sure if there's an actual name for it but we're not that far from Clover Town"

"Now..." He suddenly raised his right arm and pointed straight at her "...who are you and what are you doing out here?" As much as he wanted to help her out he had to admit it was sort of strange to meet anyone, not to mention someone as lightly dressed as her in the middle of this forest that evidently didn't see too many visitors. In the end he didn't as much suspect her of anything as he was just curious of what she could possibly be doing out here, and with a gun for that matter.

The stranger introduced himself as Roland Gates, and informed her that they were near a 'Clover Town', whatever that was. She assumed that she probably should have recognized the place, but she was drawing a blank. Roland, however, was drawing her focus far away from the lack of memory. A few inches taller than her, the blond man wore a suit, which was a bit out of place, not that she had any room to judge. He was certainly attractive, however, the girl couldn't help but notice that fact. But, before she could dwell on this long, he drew her out of this thoughtless observation by pointing at her. He then demanded the impossible: he asked her name.

The girl shook her head, feeling panic set in. She didn't have the slightest clue as to who she was, and she certainly didn't know what she was doing here. All she could remember was waking up underneath the oak tree. As her anxiety deepened, she instinctively reached for her rifle, when she remembered the engraving on the gun. "I'm Arizona." She didn't know if that was her name truly, but that was the only name she had any relation to.I, uh, don't know what I'm doing here, actually. What are you doing here?" Maybe Roland could lead her to this 'Clover Town', or give her directions at least. Maybe someone there would know her, maybe she'd find out what was going on, maybe she could remember something again.

...You don't know? While the girl had given him her name it would seem she was expecting him to take a lot on fate here, unless she actually didn't what she was doing out here. He had half expected her to try and shoot him with that rifle on her back as she had initially shook her head and seemingly reached for it before she had finally introduced herself as "Arizona". Now from what Roland could remember that's the same word he had first heard from her. Come to think of it she hadn't even given him her last name even though he'd given her his full name, she was either rude or still very cautious of him. Before he could inquire about it she countered with what he was doing out here, a fair enough question considering he had asked the exact same thing. "I'm on my way to Clover Town as it happens, this just seemed like a shortcut is all" While she seemed like a nice enough girl he couldn't help but feel something was very off about all this, he started to consider she might be in trouble.

"Not to be rude but you're not giving me a lot to work with here, if something's wrong you can just tell me" He smiled gently as to mediate the fact that he did want to help her out should she be in some sort of trouble. "I help people for a living after all"

The redhead felt her cheeks redden, her eyes beginning to well with tears. Was she always this weak and emotional? Arizona felt embarrassed and helpless, and was hating every second of it. Roland could see immediately how lost she really was, and had automatically offered his help, which she was grateful for, but what if someone who wasn't so nice had found her? What if Roland wasn't the kind, caring person that he claimed to be? Should she trust him? Wiping the tears from her eyes with her scarf, she decided to trust the man before her. "I, uh, can't remember anything. I don't know who I am. I just woke up here, underneath this oak tree, and that's all I can remember." Arizona paused, letting the man register what she had told him. Pulling the rifle from her shoulder, she held it out to him so he could see the name carved into it. "This is the only clue I have to who I am," her voice shook, and Arizona cursed internally. She didn't want to be some weak damsel in distress.

Roland had noticed the tears forming in her eyes and felt kind of bad for putting her on the spot like this. She seemed to be in enough trouble as it was without him prodding her for answers. She quickly wiped her tears and explained that she in fact couldn't remember anything. While improbable it wasn't impossible and seeing her crying just moments earlier didn't make it any easier to be a sceptic about it. Besides, being an amnesiac himself he could relate to what she was going through right now. He could still recall just how scary the world seemed when you knew positively nothing about it. Constantly aware that you'd forgotten something very important, that being everything. Then he remembered just what had put him at ease back then, when it felt like the entire world could turn on him without a second's notice. She showed him the word engraved on the rifle which she had taken as her name and could tell just how miserable she felt.

Seeing how much she was hurting from all this he felt like he had to do something, anything really. Then he came to think of the one thing that had made him feel better back when he much like her had woke up only to realise he didn't know anything. This small thing that had made him feel like everything was going to be okay. With that in mind he knew exactly what to do, as rash as it would seem. He took a step forward and wrapped his arms around her to pull her into a hug. "There, there... We'll figure it out..." Roland wasn't sure  if he was making it better or worse but it felt like the right thing to do. This girl didn't have anybody to turn to, so he figured he'd have to be "anybody". "Us amnesiacs should stick together right?

Roland hugged her. He hugged her. He was a total stranger, and here she was, wrapped in his arms as if he were a close friend. Though, if Arizona was being realistic, he could have been a friend of hers, and she wouldn't have known. In spite of herself, her arms wrapped themselves around the man, setting the rifle down in the process. Then, as if the situation hadn't been odd enough, he mentioned that he was an amnesiac as well. "What?" she sniffled, but her curiosity outweighed her confusion and fear. What had Roland lost? Was he just like her? What was going on? The redhead realized her question had been too vague, and elaborated, her voice slowly regaining stability as she spoke. "I mean, how are you an amnesiac? What happened? Did you ever get your memory back?" Despite her query, Arizona didn't let go of Roland Gates, as the warmth and comfort of a well-timed hug was too great to pass up so easily. Plus, at least now she would remember the last time that she hugged someone, which isn't something she could say of most subjects.

While Roland could tell Arizona was tense at first she eventually relaxed and wrapped her arms around him in return. He let out a sigh of relief as he was afraid he might've been ahead of himself. Seeing as she had calmed down he deemed the hug a success, hoping he'd at least cheered her up a little bit. He'd have to admit the hug felt itself felt pretty good for him too, seeing as how warm and soft she felt in his arms. He dismissed the thought as he started to feel a bit embarassed and was soon enough met by questions regarding his own amnesia. With that he realised he hadn't even explained properly, or at all for that matter. His voice took on a solemn tone as he spoke up. "No, it's been years and I can't recall anything before that" He realised he wasn't inciting too much hope for her right now but lying wouldn't help her any more than the facts did. "I was hurting and squirming in the middle of nowhere, I was hurting so bad I couldn't even think straight, less realise I had lost my memories" A shiver ran down his spine as he recalled just how much it had hurt back then. He shook his head and went on as to not think about it. "Then this... woman took me in and said that the rampant plague must've gotten me, and most of my brain cells in the process. She helped me to help myself and while my body was restored my memory wasn't"

It started to dawn further on him just how much he wasn't helping by telling her he was a lost cause to begin with. "A-anyway, I try not to think about it too much" By now he started to wonder whether he had kept the hug going for too long and whether he should let go of her or not.

The blond man's story did little to put Arizona at ease. But, at least she had someone to sympathize with. The hug between the two strangers continued, growing almost stagnant as neither let go. For Arizona, she wanted to comfort Roland for his loss, and was reluctant to let go of the comfort he provided as well. It totally wasn't because he was dreamy, not at all. In spite of her insisted intentions, she found herself beginning to blush, which was horribly out of place for this situation. Since her face was nearing the shade of her hair, she deemed it appropriate to stay close to Roland, just until she could regain her composure. She didn't want him to think her rude, after all. "I'm sorry, that must have been awful. It sounded cheesy to her, but she truly meant it. She wasn't in agony, just confused and lost. Plus, she found herself caught in a pair of very strong arms from the gate; Roland had the worst lot of the pair, and Arizona felt obligated to comfort him, especially since she brought it up. "So, uh, you said you were going to... Clover Town, right? Mind if I tag along? After giving a pause to clear the air and give respect to Roland's suffering, Arizona changed the subject, hoping to help the man focus on the future. The last thing either of them needed was to panic, Roland least of all; He was the only one who knew the way to civilization from their current location, and Arizona had a feeling she could walk for ages before stumbling on a town of any sort if she chose the wrong direction.

Roland couldn't help but feel that his attempt at comforting Arizona could have gone better. After all she was currently trying to comfort him rather than vice versa at this point. While he had mostly come to terms with his loss of memory given how long ago it was now he still appreciated the sentiment. After a moment of silence she had asked if she could come with him to clover Town. Seeing her current situation he had meant to take her along to begin with, he wouldn't dream of just leaving her out in the middle of the wilderness like this after all. "Of course, you can stick with me til you figure something out" Just as he couldn't leave her alone out here he also couldn't ditch her the first thing he did when he reached town. "We'll figure something out once we get there" He mostly said as much considering he wasn't sure just how much he could do for her as things stood.

"Anyway, I was just about to get lunch before you flew into my life" Roland was starving even before he found Arizona and he had some sandwiches just waiting for him in his backpack. "How about you? Hungry?" He had packed too many anyway so he supposed he could share, and come to think of it odds are he'd have to keep her fed for a while as it is.

As soon as Roland mentioned it, Arizona felt absolutely famished. Her stomach growled tellingly, and Arizona blushed a little, letting go of the man. "I, uh, am, actually. Are you sure you have enough food for us both?" The redhead had no idea the last time she ate, but she didn't want to take from Roland. His kindness was sweet, but she didn't want to overstep her bounds. She realized she had no money to pay him back for the meal, or to buy food in the future, so she would be pretty reliant on Roland. This fact made Arizona feel a little guilty, considering she hadn't given Roland much choice in the matter. She had essentially fallen from the sky into his arms, and Roland had no choice but to catch her. The girl resolved to repay her rescuer, since he had done so much for her.

Roland couldn't help but laugh a little as the girl's stomach seemed to growl at him. She seemed a bit embarassed and let go off him shortly after. She seemed a bit reluctant to take him up on his offer. "Don't worry about it, there's enough for about four of us" Roland usually packed a tad bit too much just in case something unexpected ever happened, things like this for instance. Roland realised Arizona might feel guilty for seemingly taking advantage of him like this but Roland didn't really mind. While he admittedly wouldn't usually take in strangers like this he could symphathize given her amnesia and admittedly he found her very attractive, but that was of course besides the point if anyone would dare call him out on it.

Roland knew for a fact he could pitch in for the both of them should he need to, after all he was sitting on more Jewels than you'd expect from just looking at him. He could most likely cover for the both of them for a long time to come and even longer assuming his work to be at the Guild went well. "Just let me worry about that stuff, I'd feel more guilty if I ditched you on the street" He pulled his backpack off his back and proceeded to pull out a pair of wrapped sandwiches. "So just have a sandwich for crying out loud" And so with that he smiled at her as he was holding a sandwich in front of her. As for what kind it was he didn't have a clue.

Roland quickly did his best to ease Arizona's concerns about the financial standing of the pair, since Roland seemed to already think of them as a matched set. Arizona unwrapped the sandwich handed to her, musing on her circumstances. It seemed like she would be stuck with Roland Gates for quite a while, though that didn't sound like a bad thing. A sudden thought flitted into her mind: what would they do about hotel rooms? The redhead quickly shook the thought from her mind, her ponytail swishing to and fro as she did so. The girl took a bite of the sandwich, filled with cheese and a meat she didn't recognize. After swallowing, she realized she had no clue what business Roland had in Clover Town. If she was to tag along, she might as well know what she was getting into. "Thank you for the sandwich. If you don't mind me asking, what are you going to do in Clover Town? Hoping she wasn't being too forward, she took another bite and let the man respond.

While Roland might be assuming a lot concerning the pair's future he did think it was best for the two of them to stick together for now, more for Arizona's sake than anything else. He was certain the two of them would do just fine together as long as she could tolerate him. And while he was certain he could cover for the both of them he had to admit it just stood to reason that it would be much cheaper for them to share a room rather than seperate ones. The one problem being pitching the idea to her and the fact that he's stayed in the same room as anyone else, no less a girl. He shook his head and took a bite of his sandwich, the rich taste of meat and what he assumed to be some sort of mustard filled his mouth quickly enough. Arizona had started to eat her sandwich as well by now, she seemed happy enough with it and managed to ask what he was up to in Clover Town between bites.

"I'm joining the Mage's Guild there; Cait Shelter" He paused only to remember that his amnesiac companion wouldn't know what he was talking about at this point. "How do I put this...? A Guild is a place for people with magical powers to come together and take on several kinds of jobs for all kinds of people" He assumed that would make for as good an explanation as any and gave Arizona a moment to let it sink in before he went on. "Now this Guild, Cait shelter is the sort of place that takes in just about anyone from what i've heard..." This time he paused for his mouth to form a sad smile. "...Which means they might be my only shot at joining a Guild"

Arizona bristled, immediately angry at how Roland just assumed that she didn't know what a guild was. How stupid did he think she was? That was, until she remembered her current circumstances. She had just confessed to being an amnesiac, and Roland wouldn't know exactly what she could and couldn't remember. Come to think of it, Arizona wasn't sure what she did and didn't remember herself. It appeared that she could remember general concepts, such as foods, plants, and the definition of things like guilds and magic and towns. What she could' remember were personal associations with these concepts, like her favorite type of food or flower, or any specific guild or location. Realizing how she had instinctively thrown the rifle over her shoulder, Arizona assumed that her muscle memory was intact as well, leaving just her experiences that were missing.

Remembering that Roland had been speaking, Arizona shook her head, trying to focus on his conversation. He said something about a guild called Cait Shelter, professing an interest, or need, by his last statement, to join. So, by extension, it felt like Arizona was going to join Cait Shelter as well, a notion the redhead realized she wasn't opposed to. A mage's guild would offer her room and board, and an ability to earn wages. Wait, was she a mage? If not, there would probably be an issue with her tagging along after Roland. But, there was a more pressing question at hand. "Roland, what magic do you use?"

Seeing as he hadn't even mentioned that he was a mage til just now it was all within reason that Arizona would ask just what sort of magic he used. Now he could've just told her out straight but then again he could make a sort of demonstration out of it. "How about I just show you instead?" He reached into his bag and this time pulled out a small metal case. He placed it flat on the ground and opened it to reveal its content: a row of strange vials filled with equally strange liquids of many different colours. He took a moment to decide which one to get, the purple one would be good but then again he hadn't had a green one for a long time. He eventually settled on the green one and picked it up, holding it in front of Arizona's face. "Now watch" He pulled the thick lid off the vial, the vapour escaping being faintly visible against the green scenery.  Then he proceeded to tilt the vial ever so lightly as to let but a few drops fall to the ground between Roland and Arizona. The few drops didn't as much fall to the ground as they rather seemed to go straight through it. Whatever grass it had touched had practically melted away and there was visible and deep looking holes where the droplets of the strange liquid had fallen.

Now without further warning he immediatly proceeded to empty the rest of the strange vial's obviously dangerous content into his own mouth. He savoured the potent taste for a bit until he eventually swallowed. He could feel the poison empowering him and while he didn't want to hurt the meadow he had to show something off now. He didn't think it over for too long as a strange black and red smoke or gas suddenly materialised and gathered around his arm which he held in front off Arizona to show her properly. "Just don't touch it, I hear that hurts" Granted there was no assurance she would know the symbolage of the fabled Slayer magics but decided to give her a chance to prove as much, there was no telling just what she might remember and not after all.

At first Roland's strange vials didn't bother her, until he poured a few drops on the ground, whereupon the ground itself seemed to melted away. Arizona instinctively moved back slightly, instinct telling her to stay as far away from the substance as possible. And then, to her horror, he began to down the vial. Arizona nearly screamed at him, but her voice refused to obey her. What was he thinking? What was he doing? But, as red and black vapor slowly twisted around his arm, Arizona's jaw dropped. He could create dark poison clouds by eating toxic substances? That was the sign of a God Slayer, right? Arizona wasn't sure if her memory was correct. At the cost of insulting Roland, she took her guess. "Poison God Slayer, right?" Eyes wide and curious, she almost resembled a child, eager for any bit of knowledge she could get her hands on. In a sense, she was a child, young and naive, almost completely ignorant about the world around her.

"Yes, that's ri..." He stopped midsentence as something didn't feel right about her answer. Slayers were considered common knowledge among mages and most others despite their rarity and as such her knowing of such shouldn't be a surprise. What roland couldn't piece together was how such things stayed with her. Come to think of it her amnesia didn't make much sense, nothing seemed to be ailing her and she didn't seem to be hurting anywhere. On the contrary, she seemed very healthy despite her circumstances. Amnesiacs would usually hold on to basic information yet certain would still remain blurry to them. Given the situation he suspected the cause of her amnesia to be something beyond his area of expertise, he would have to make sure though. So without fruther ado he initiated a quick enough check up, quickly planting his left palm on Arizona's forehead. He noted that she felt a bit warm but nothing abnormal or feverish. "You're not hurting anywhere are you?" Assuming she was as healthy as she looked it was down to either mental trauma or magic. While mental trauma wasn't out of the question it was too much information wiped much too cleanly relating directly to her identity. So seeing how precise this wipe had been he could most likely assure that someone had intended to and indeed used magic to wipe her memory. In other words this might have been intentional, though he couldn't possibly say why anyone would put a young woman like Arizona through such a thing. Absorbed in thoughts he had neglected to remove his hand from Arizona's forehead as a result.

As soon as Roland verified her assumption, the man paused, immediately swept up in thought. The man proceeded to take the hand opposite to the poison cloud -a subconscious effect of the troubled mind the slayer possessed- still swirling around his arm, and place it on her forehead. Arizona tensed, a bit unnerved by the sudden contact, especially from a man who appeared to be physically toxic, until she remembered how Roland had hugged her before, and relaxed slightly. He then asked her if she was in pain, and Arizona had to quickly take inventory of her bodily functions. Her toes and fingers wiggled, ankles and knees and elbows were in functional order, all bones seemed to be intact. Her muscles weren't sore, and Arizona realized she felt surprised by this. Was she normally extremely fatigued? After that, she realized her head wasn't aching. Should she be in pain? She felt her heart race, mind scouring over the infinite circumstances to which she could have lost her memory. "I'm not in any pain. Should I be in pain? Is something wrong?"

Roland dispersed the smoke from his arms as Arizona seemingly took a moment to think it over before she stated that she wasn't hurting in the slightest. "Well, not saying you SHOULD be hurting, it would've made this easier though" While he couldn't be absolutely sure he was nevertheless convinced that Arizona's memory must have been wiped through magical means rather than more "wordly" causes. And considering the appearent effect of it he could assume that it had been directed in such a manner, meaning there could be either a mage or magical item at the root of it. Assuming magic was the cause someone must have meant for it to happen although their reasons for doing such remains a mystery for now. "You see, if you're fine then odds are your amnesia was caused by less.... substantial means, meaning it was probably magic, whi...." He paused as he realised he still had his hand planted on her forehead and quickly retracted his arm, embarassed he had failed to do so earlier. "...Which would also mean that someone meant for you to end up like this"

Arizona felt chills run down her spine. Who would do this to her? What did she ever do to them? It could be anyone, Arizona could have done anything. She had no memory of who she was, or where she was from, so she could have been anyone before. She could have been a hardened criminal, the rifle would make sense. What had she done exactly? Did she deserve this?

In her horrified reflection on her circumstances, she hadn't even noticed Roland had neglected to remove his hand from her forehead. Honestly, the slightly awkward touch had been a slight comfort, though it had been startling at first. The slayer treated her kindly, and Arizona was glad she had been found by such a benevolent person, even though her situation was less than ideal.

Realizing she had been silent for far too long, and Roland was probably worried about how she was taking this news, Arizona pulled herself together. "So, how do I go about finding who did this?" The redhead wasn't sure if she was seeking revenge or just answers, but she knew that whoever had taken her memory needed to be found.