Alright! This story is a result of a challenge from Freakyanimegal456!

She said that she wanted someone to do a fanfic of some of her OCs so I decided what the heck? I'm going to try it out and hope that I don't jack up the characters too much. So all the characters in this fic belong to Freaky and the game belongs to Namco. No one sue me! So on to the situation.

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Chala lately has been having some serious thoughts that are causing her some deep internal conflict. She doesn't want anyone to see her weak and confused so she leaves for a small trip. She's been gone a few days and still hasn't figured out what's wrong. No one knows where she is and that's how she wants it. Or is it?

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Melting the Heart of Ice

Her footsteps were rhythmic and steady. Thump, thump, thump, thump. They never changed their pace and the dull sound against the ground never changed either. Her thoughts were drawn deep into her mind and her posture was slumped in defeat. Her hands limply swayed at her sides as she moved and her eyes were downcast. Even though her eyes were trained on the ground before her, she could not see any of it. It was a miracle she hadn't tripped, but it seemed her fantastic abilities had kicked in and took up the slack for her lack of awareness. She navigated the trail with an elegant grace that was far from human, but not as soft as an elf's. It was somewhere in between.

She suddenly stopped and snapped out of her trance. Her piercing eyes scanned the forest around her and a few stray strands of blue hair fell into her blue-grey eyes. Why had she fazed out so far that she hadn't even realized where she was walking?! Now, around her were dark clumps of trees and above her was a tightly knit canopy of leaves. The trail was lost from her sight and night seemed to be fading down on the half-elf. Where had she wondered to?

Chala wasn't one to be afraid. She was strong, cold, and distant. She was the perfect fighter. She had no one to be used against her and no one to possibly betray her. Any other fighter would admire her. She had kept herself out of reach. Chala counted on herself and relied on no one else. It was her greatest strength.

But………lately it had been her greatest weakness.

Where was the person SHE needed to be there? Whose shoulder could SHE cry on? Who even cared about what happened to her? Where were her supposed 'friends'? She had been gone for a few days now. Were they even looking for her? Why should they? Why would they? She was nothing but a cold hearted bitch. Chala had been told so many times before. It was nothing new to her.

But it still hurt.

The half-elf was no ordinary half-elf. She was an angel. She was strong and she could cast some of the most difficult spells with ease, but she couldn't make the words stop hurting. The heart she had covered in ice still ached. The mask she often wore fell apart and she couldn't understand what she had done. She couldn't have deserved all this? Could she?

Now, Chala stood in the middle of the clearing and looked up at the sky that peeked through the blanket of leaves. Drops of water fell in beautiful crystals and surrounded the lost female. Soon, he clothes were completely drenched and her skin began to wrinkle beneath her clinging clothes. Oddly enough, the half-elf didn't seem to notice. Instead she closed her eyes and lifted her face up to let the rain splash across her face. She felt the drops splash against her smooth skin and let them drain off her face into the pool below her. It was like the sky was lost, feeling everything Chala was. The only thing that seemed to understand was crying for her.

"What should I do?" Chala wondered slowly opening her eyes. She had long since lost the ability to cry. It was something she banished deep within her. It wasn't an option for her anymore, and she knew that she had made it that way. She was ok with that.

"…running……you're running," a soft whisper echoed through her head. She sighed. She had to admit she was, but…it was comforting. When she was alone she no longer had to face the looks of pity from those around her. She didn't worry her parents as much.

Her parents……

What had they done to deserve her? They were two great people and they got her as their daughter. They didn't deserve that. Raine and Yuan deserved a daughter who was able to love and be loved. They deserved a daughter who laughed, who cried, who played, who loved, and a daughter who could be embraced. Chala was none of that. She didn't deserve them and they deserved better.

"Maybe……maybe I shouldn't go back," Chala wondered as she turned back the way she came. Yet, as soon as she started to move, she stopped. No one knew where she was. She didn't even know if they were looking for her, "Maybe……I should just keep walking."

Chala turned around again and this time bolted off into the woods. She never looked back and just kept running forward…until her foot slipped.

"YAGH!" Chala screeched in surprise as she tilted sideways on the paths and lost her balance. She was quickly thrown down the steep hill of mud and erosion. She spun side ways down the hill and eventually turned to fall head over heels. Chala's hands shot out in an attempt to catch herself but everything slipped through her muddy hands and she slammed into the ground covered in stones. She cracked her head on a decent size rock and lied there on the ground in a daze. Her head had landed beside a small creek and her beautiful blue hair matted in dark mud flowed all around her in the water. Chala stared blankly ahead of her as she noticed a steady stream of crimson flow down her face and run off her cheek.

"…damn…" Chala muttered as her eyes closed.

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"Daddy! Is this right?!" a young half-elven girl around five held up a ball of concentrated mana. Her father whose hair greatly resembled hers nodded with pride and came up behind the young girl.

"Now, release it towards that target," her father said showing her where to aim.

"Got it," she nodded happily. She released the attack and hit a dead bull's-eye.

"Good job, Chala!" her father said sweeping up the young girl and throwing her into the air causing her to giggle in excitement.

"Thank you daddy!"

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"What are you doing mother?" a fourteen-year-old Chala asked as she moved into the kitchen.

"I'm trying to make this cake. Its so far the only food I haven't managed to destroy, but it won't set right," her mother answered sweeping something off the kitchen table into the drawer and closing it. Suspicion washed over Chala, but she dismissed it and moved forward to see her mother's problem.

"You set it in wrong. Here," Chala quickly switched it around and closed the oven, "It should set right now."

"Thank you!" her mother smiled appreciatively. Chala hadn't expected that a day later that cake would be decorated for her fifteenth birthday.

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An eleven-year-old Chala jumped and put down the book that was in her hand. Her uncle had rushed into the library and slammed the door behind him. He looked around in desperateness and quickly caught sight of Chala. He ran over to her and quickly said, "Where have you been? Your mother and father are going ballistic."

"I said I was going to read," Chala sniffed reaching for her book. She was however stopped as her uncle took her into a hug.

"We've been worried about you. Don't do that again," he whispered as he released the girl.

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Worried.

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"CHALA! WHERE ARE YOU?!"

"BLUE! COME ON ANSWER US!"

"COUSIN CHALA!"

The three voices echoed around the female's head causing her to snap back to reality. She was still lying halfway in the creek and it was pouring down rain. Chala opened her eyes slowly and saw three pairs of shoes dashing towards her. Still thinking that she was in her mind Chala closed her eyes and began to fade again.

"Chala! If you don't open your eyes, I swear!" a voice hissed sounding somewhat frantic. It was familiar……Cheresea?

"Come on blue. Wake up," another voice said sounding worried. Was that Trethe?

"Oh man! Aunt Raine's gonna kill if she doesn't wake up!" a whiny voice sniffled beside her. That was definitely Jeremy.

"That's it!" SMACK!

Chala's eyes flashed open and she looked up murderously to see Cheresea drawing back her hand as if she was burned.

"Good, your up," she chirped sounding much like her golden-haired mother.

"What of it?" Chala hissed as she slowly sat up and wiped the mud from her form.

"Don't give us that, blue. We we're really worried about you. We thought something bad happened to you," Trethe said looking at her seriously. Chala froze and stared at him. He meant it and he was daring her to challenge that. Chala couldn't believe it. They actually cared.

"Don't scare us like that again!" Jeremy sighed wiping something out of the corners of his eyes.

"Everyone's out looking for you. When you didn't come back, we all began looking. Don't go off and not tell us like that. You have no idea how freaked we were," Cheresea said handing Chala a coat to wrap around her.

"What are you talking about? Chala can take care of herself. I wasn't freaked out," Trethe sniffed scratching the end of his nose in dismissal.

"Oh yeah and that's why you were one of the first ones out of the house when Yuan said he found Chala's discarded weapon outside," Cheresea smirked as she helped the half-elven female to her feet.

"…I want to go home…" Chala whispered looking down at the ground. Cheresea, Trethe, and Jeremy looked at one another before deciding against saying anything about it. The four began walking back to their homes. Chala leaned against Trethe and Cheresea and allowed them to lead her home. She closed her eyes and whispered, "Thanks you guys."

This time the three threw smiles at one another and answered in unison, "No problem."

Something within Chala warmed. She had friends who cared. She had family who cared. And better yet, she had somewhere to return to where she was wanted. She felt……warm.

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If Chala seems more moody than normal, I apologize. I'm actually projecting my thoughts through Chala. Everything she thinks I've thought. So yeah……maybe I'm off in her character. If I am, I apologize.

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Well, there you go Freakyanimegal456. I hope you liked it. Also I have a few more ideas so I could turn this into a series of one-shots if you'd like. It's your choice considering it is your characters.

Also to other readers! I hope this was nothing that would shame Grandkid or Tasks of a Spirit. Please Review and tell me what you think! I hoped you all liked it! Oh and if you think its good, but could used some tweaking tell me! I'll happily rewrite it until it's better!