Leon’s head leaned back and he closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath of fresh air to calm his nerves. This was bad, this was very bad… he couldn’t get this goldfish out of his head. It was like some twisted spell and being away from her was pulling at his heart like never before. The king and his sick games. The man knows everything that had happened and what was going to happen. He knew this would be the feelings that Leon would have to deal with and now Leon was suffering because of it. He missed her, and now she hated him… And now he was hearing her voice… her voice calling his name…

Hearing Isabelle shut the door, his eyes popped open. Oh, he wasn’t dreaming, she was actually here. Listening to what she had to say he didn’t turn around. He couldn’t face her just yet. Her words struck a chord with him and his hands clenched in his pockets. She felt the same way… oh this was painful. Turning around he saw just how close she actually was and there was a moment of silence between the two of them as she stared down at her hands. 

Stepping to her, he placed a large hand on her cheek; his thumb gently wiping away the tear. He hated to see her cry, but at least she wasn’t crying alone. “I’ll show you…” He said softly, “I’ll show you everything.” He brought up his other hand and placed it gently on her cheek and leaned down, resting his forward in hers. Her vision went blank and soon his memory transferred to her.

[i]The heavens were bright and sunny; he walked through the streets of a small town looking at local items when a beautiful red-headed goddess approached him.

“Lord Leon.” She said in a giddy voice. “My love for you burns with the passion of the sun. Please let me take you out on a date.”

“No.” He said simply before turning and beginning to walk away.

“Lord Leon please!” The woman cried in desperation, she grabbed ahold of his arm with a force strong enough to cause him to stumble. “We would be perfect together. I am the goddess of power, and you are the second strongest god in the heavens. I could make you great, we could be the best couple in the heavens. I love you; please give me a chance!”

“For the last time I said no.” Leon said shortly shaking her off of him, “I know your status has fallen and you seek to regain what you’ve lost but gaining the love of someone by forcing yourself upon them is no way to do so. Leave me be.” 

Again the woman snatched at him, ripping his Department of Wishes armband from his bicep and digging her clothing painfully into his arm. “We are meant to be, don’t you see! I love you! What more do you need?”

“I need to return your love, but your love is nothing more than mere words seeking what you have lost.” He said sharply shaking her off roughly. “You have said the same thing to Lord Hue, to Lord Alexander and even to Lord Axel, is there no end to you lustful desire for power?” At that he stormed off. [/i]

The next memory that came to pass was Leon standing in front of the king.

[i]“Little Lion.” The king said standing in front of his throne radiating in gold and silver lights, “You denied a goddess love, love that can be honest and true and now she has fallen from grace.”

“She threw herself from grace because my denial to her advances.” Leon spat back. “I cannot be held accountable for the actions of someone who is not in my department. She chose the path of self-destruction because she was attracted to anyone with power who might be able to get her higher.” The group of banished gods behind him, some were branded already, others were not. This was the moment when the king was branding them. And even Alexander and Axel nodded in agreement to Leon’s statement about the woman.

“You have denied the possibility of love, you do not love Little Lion; and I question your ability to do so. You have defiled a goddess and drove her to madness without attempting to love her.”

Leon scoffed at this, his internal voice thinking [b]Why would I attempt to love her if I felt nothing in the first place?[/b] (of course Jo was able to hear his internal thoughts.)

“For the sin of defiling a goddess you are here by branded and banished until you have seen the error of your ways.”[/i]

The vision faded, leaving the screams of pain the marking caused him before Leon pulled back completely from her and dropped his hands to his sides. “Words are meaningless; she spent weeks chasing me, professing her love every chance she had but never once did her actions towards me prove any love. Gifts are meaningless, they are devices of manipulation that expire over time; words are something anyone can say and can be used to trick feeble minded fools and I am no fool. I knew what she wanted, and I wasn’t going to give it to her.”

Leon let out a shaky sigh. “Despite how I treated you when we met, you still agreed to help us and have followed through with your word. You could have left me on that beach to suffer and faint but you didn’t, you got me to the mansion. And when I asked you to stay… you did. And now here you are, willing to listen to my story. My sin is because I didn’t love. I refused to love anything. Not even the humans I help, I didn’t hold any love or respect for… until I spent time with you.”

“Our first encounter is the last that I use my powers with you. But if you feel desire, know it’s of your own accord and not mine though…” Turning his face away, his cheeks showed a small shade of pink and he spoke in a whisper nearly lost to the winds, “The feeling would be mutual.” At that he turned his amber-golden gaze back to her and extended out his hand. “Jo…” He asked softly, “Do you love me in return?”