Neko Kurai: "Hiya! This is the first of a series of stories I will be posting up. I hope you will enjoy this story (and I'm sure you will) because trust me... I'm just getting started X3

There will be more twists than a pretzel, so sit back, read and if you wish review (I would appreciate it) Enjoy! X3

Disclaimer: I don't own any of Jak or anything Naughty Dog, 'cept for Valere, the young percursor monk (not the precursor monk itself, just the character) and Central Parkway (yes, I'm claiming a place...what?)

Tracing the Past: Chapter 1

It had been two days after Jak had won the Kras City Grand Championship; they had all recovered from the poison thanks to the antidote they had taken, despite the fact the Rayne was the one who tricked them into getting poisoned in the first place. It was a nasty surprise, yes, but everything turned out alright in the end, and now all they had to do was kick back and wait for their boat to take them back to Haven City, back to where they belonged.

Jak pulled his car over near the Bloody Hook; everyone had arranged to take one last drink before they left for home the next day; it seemed everyone wanted to live it up a little; having your life on the line really made you appreciate being alive. He nimbly leaped out of the car, startling a few pedestrians that were near him, save for a Precursor Monk that was passing by. She stopped in her track, starring intently at him, almost studying; Jak felt a small blush form near the tips of his ears; he wasn't used to being looked at that way. He saw that she nodded, as if deciding something, and made her way over to him.

"Excuse me…" she said shyly as she approached him. "May I ask you a question?"

"Shoot." Jak replied coolly, folding his arms in front of him.

"Are you…related to someone by the name of… Valere?"

"Sorry, I don't have any relatives…"

'At least… none living anyway…' he thought sourly.

"Oh! I beg your pardon, it's just…well. You look so much like her…especially your eyes…" her the Monk smiled warmly. "They are exactly like hers… so full of life and compassion…"

'Compassion? Do I even have that anymore?' he thought to himself. He shook his head. 'No…I've seen too much, done too much, for that to even exist anymore…'

"Sorry but--" he began, but suddenly stopped. Out of nowhere, images began to flash before his eyes: a tall woman sitting silently on a hill, her long green hair blowing in the wind; she turned towards him and smiled warmly; she raised her arms, as if beckoning; wanting to embrace him, but those eyes… the blue eyes stood out the most to him…

"Sir?"

Just as soon as those images came, they disappeared, as if they never occurred. Jak blinked a few times, gathering his thoughts from those images. When he finally had his thoughts together, the Monk was still standing there, looking at him awkwardly.

"What?" he asked.

"I asked if you were alright; you seemed to have zoned out."

"Oh… yeah I'm…I'm okay."

"Oh…well…um, sorry, for taking up your time…" she made the sign of the Monks to him and turned to leave. When she was halfway across the street, he had the sudden urge to call out to her… not knowing why…but…

"Wait…"

The Monk stopped in her tracks, looking back at him.

"What was her name," the words came tumbling out of his mouth, surprising even him. "The woman you asked if I was related to?"

"Valere…" the Monk smiled warmly again, as if the name alone was so pleasant a thought. "her name was Valere." and with a quick nod, she left, disappearing into the crowd… almost as if… she was never there…

Jak stood there, silently saying the name in his head.

'Valere…' an image of the woman was before his eyes again, her blue soulful eyes standing out as they gazed towards the setting sun, her green hair caught in the wind in a eternal dance. 'Her name was…Valere…'

Neko Kurai: "Well, that was chapter 1; short, yesI know, but they become longer as it goes on. I'm going to post up chapter 2 but I will only post chapters 3 and 4 ifI get (at least) five reviews (if no one's interested, I don't see the point in uploading them) anywho's until then! X3