Right-o, after much planning and time, I'm pleased to finally unveil my newest writing project: Tales of Symphonia: Woodcarving Star!
The concept for this fic has been around since March '10, when I was re-playing the game and got a strong urge to write for it. Though if I'm honest, the idea of a Tales story was something I'd wanted to ever since I got into fanfic writing. TO WARN YOU NOW, THIS HAS SPOILERS FOR TALES OF SYMPHONIA SO DO NOT READ IF YOU DON'T WANT TO BE SPOILED.
I'd written a ToS fic before, but it was a simple comedy one-shot. This time, the fic is a full story; no idea how many chapters there will be, or where it'll end up, but hey, full steam ahead, why not? So first I set about picking the main character. The characters in Symphonia are pretty dang awesome. I debated handling Sheena's role as Mizuho's Chief, or Raine and Genis attempting to cure this mother. In the end, I decided to play it safe and go with the star couple, Lloyd and Colette. Then I worked on the plot. The first proper version I wrote was utterly atrocious, so out the window that went! The second plot was much better and performed better too while being sensible, so I kept it and decided to use it.
Now for some fic details~
-This fic is a Lloyd/Colette fanfic and this will be the only concrete pairing, so if you expect Zelos/Sheena or Genis/Presea, you're outta luck. That's not to say there won't be implications for these pairings however. ; ) If you hate Lloyd/Colette, you are free to leave via the back button on your PC~
-The fic takes place about a year after the original game, so don't fret; all the original characters you know and love so well will be back, with the exception of Kratos. Becauselolouterspace. While Lloyd and Colette are the main characters, if possible I would like to highlight certain parts of the plot for other characters. However, this remains to be seen.
-The hardest part of this fic is getting all the personalities right for the characters; that's what makes them so memorable! I'm often told characterisation is my strongest point in writing, but I really struggled here. Would Lloyd say this? Would Colette laugh at that? These questions ran over so often in my head that I got incredibly worried as to how I was going to write this without taking a century! Hopefully via this first chapter you can judge the OOC nature if any is there.
(My pal who beta-read this actually said I stressed the characterisation too much. D: Eeekers.)
-Nostalgia is a big part of this fic; Lloyd and Colette will return to many places that they did in their adventure, as well as the return of some of the more minor characters. There are also lots of nods to various gags and moments from the first game.
-This fic completely ignores Tales of Symphonia 2. This means no Emil, no Marta, no Tenebrae, no Ricther, no god damn courage is the magic that turns dreams into reality and no Ginnungagap. However, the map from ToS2 that links to Tales of Phantasia is being used as the new state of the world, so the locations of towns and such are the same as in ToS2.
Anyway, that's pretty much all from me. I hope you enjoy reading~
DISCLAIMER: I don't own Tales of Symphonia. All rights to Namco, the jerks who won't release more Tales games over here.
Chapter 1:
It was a grimace that Lloyd gazed in the opulent mirror.
His reflection was so unlike him. An elaborate white suit seemed to have snuck up behind him, and plastered itself over the swordsman against his will, as if invading him. While the clothes were by no means awful, Lloyd gingerly held up a sleeve, examining it with a bothered look. By no means did the outfit fit the personality of the person wearing it; far too regal. What worse was that it served as a constant reminder of the event he was being forced to attend tonight.
"Lloyd? Are you ready?"
The petite knock distracted him, and the polite voice told him it was Colette. Smiling for the first time in the evening, the swordsman turned to answer.
"Sure. Come on in."
The brass doorknob twisted as his casual invitation. In an elegant red and white dress that fell to her knees, her hair braided into a somewhat alien, but beautiful ponytail, Colette smiled shyly at Lloyd, who returned the gesture with a broader one. Her eyes ran approvingly over him as the Chosen quietly closed the door.
"You look great!" She spoke earnestly. Lloyd however frowned slightly, leaving Colette puzzled.
"Really? I don't think much of it. Or this whole dinner party-"
Colette giggled softly, earning a questioning look from the male.
"You always get bored of things quickly; Raine's right." A red hue flashed across Lloyd's face.
"It's not about that!" He protested. "I mean, the last one was alright-"
That wasn't entirely the truth. As with many first time occasions, Lloyd had been very excited at the prospect of a dinner party; especially since he had been given his own suit. However, as always the novelty had quickly worn off, and Lloyd was amazed at how many guests failed to notice the evident boredom that coated his entire face. Seeking Colette, he met with her on the Terrace and the pair had shortly left afterwards.
Colette herself didn't mind the party, although she did for some reason struggle to speak to many of the guests. She had to admit, speaking with Lloyd was the only highlight of the evening and she didn't hesitate to leave with him when offered the chance.
"Cheer up Lloyd! I'm sure it'll be really fun!" The Chosen replied cheerfully, completely disregarding the last party. "I'm sure it'll be more fun then the last one." Lloyd sighed.
"Yeah, maybe. We can hope, huh?"
"Drawven Vow 4. Always give second chances to those who earn it."
"That's for people, Colette, not for parties."
"Oh." Colette looked at him simply, before her trademark magic reappeared almost magically. "Well, it can mean places and parties too!"
Lloyd grinned. Despite her logic sometimes being questionable, he always admired Colette's will to bounce back from getting something wrong, or sadness. She was simply too happy a person to upset the majority of time.
Another knock, this one harder and a bit louder then Colette's own sounded upon the door.
"Sir Bud? Are you adequate?"
Colette laughed gently as Lloyd scowled in the door's direction. It opened to reveal Sebastian, Zelos' family butler.
"Ah, forgive my intrusion. Master Zelos awaits you downstairs."
"All right, we'll come down now." Sebastian left, oblivious to the twitch of Lloyd's face which was so amusing to Colette, who was clamping her mouth tightly with her hands so as to restrain her laughter.
"By the way," Lloyd spoke as the pair made to leave the room. "You look really nice yourself, Colette!"
"O-Oh, really?" The comment had caused Colette to stop, causing Lloyd to bump lightly into her. Her face was a gentle pink and her eyes averted to the floor, not that Lloyd could see any of this.
"T-Thank you, Lloyd."
The words seem to take some effort to form upon her tongue. Lloyd couldn't help but smirk.
"You dork." He teased, tapping the top of her head softly with his knuckles. "C'mon, let's get going, okay?"
Lloyd had to confess; he wasn't exactly having the time of his life.
He laid slumped over one of the banquet tables, unaware he was drawing frowns from nearby guests; one lady even turned her nose up and covered her face with her fan before he caught a whisper of "I daresay he's had too much to drink."
He scowled in response; it was just so utterly boring. The King had wanted to introduce them, but Lloyd and Colette denied any idea of a fuss being made. Zelos on the other hand, had jumped at the chance. He was in fact a small distance away, entertaininga large gaggle of girls that varied in age.
"Really, my darling hunnies, your taste in fashion is simply exquisite! Every one of you shines like an angel in those stunning dresses of yours! And such sleek, shiny hair!"
"Attention seeking idiot..." Lloyd thought with a more exasperated expression then ever. He heard an outbreak of giggling that was somewhere between nervous and flattered.
"Oh, there's my pal! 'Scuse me, ladies." And Lloyd could practically hear their hearts crack in two as he simply ditched them and came over to Lloyd.
"Lloyd, my buddy!" Zelos exclaimed loudly, smacking him on the back none too lightly.
"Please, go back to your...fan club, Zelos." Lloyd responded, irked that his back was now smarting; no doubt with a red hand print beginning to form.
"No can do. I can tell when my bud isn't having a good time, keeping his head pinned down on the table like that. Now get up!"
"Make me." Was the blunt reply.
"Alright." In one fell swoop, Lloyd was yanked back by the collar thanks to Zelos's hand and then lifted off the chair.
"H-Hey! Zelos!" Lloyd protested as an almost mocking smile from the red-head met his eyes. The Chosen of Te'thealla was wearing shiny armour for his outfit, along with pure white gloves masking his hands, as well as his hair tied back into ponytail like Colette's, but longer and more elaborate.
"There we are now, on your feet! That wasn't so difficult, was it?" Zelos teased, earning a glare from Lloyd. "Aw, don't be like that Lloyd! What's the point of coming to a party if you're not gonna have fun?"
"But ugh...it's so boring!" Lloyd spoke with a whining tone almost akin to that of a child. He gestured around him; the formally-dressed guests whose outfits did not always match their intelligence or beauty. The jazz music didn't help, creating a very subdued atmosphere that was close to sending Lloyd to sleep. At least the food smelt good and kept him awake...even if he'd never seen half of it before in his life. "I mean, come on Zelos, I had more fun times in Iselia then this!"
The name Iselia made him ask a question. "By the way, where's Colette?"
"I think she went off to try and talk to other guests; a lot of the elderly guests liked her appearance a lot." Zelos explained. "And if you're struggling to enjoy yourself, I guess the great Zelos will have to help you!"
Grasping him still by the collar, Zelos began dragging Lloyd off the crowd. They received many shocked looks from other partygoers.
"Ooh, Master Zelos! I didn't know you were so rough!" One girl cooed from the side, her gloved hands upon her face as if in awe.
"Dammit, Zelos! Lemme go!" Lloyd spoke angrily, struggling like a mad animal. Zelos's expression changed to surprise until he smirked.
"You know, that temper of yours will be the death of ya one day, Lloyd. Now quit acting like a brat and c'mon!" He tugged once on the collar, as if trying to pull a disobedient dog along.
"No!" Putting up a fierce fight, Lloyd managed to break free from Zelos's grip, but the sudden motion caused the swordsman to lose his feet, staggering forward. "W-Whoa!"
He found himself falling against a great black pillar, which gave away as he smacked against it. Guests gave piercing, loud cries (paticuarly females) as Lloyd collapsed on top of the pillar; the sound of glass shattering ringing in his ears.
"Lloyd! You okay?"
"Milord!"
His back somewhat smarting, Lloyd accepted Zelos's outstretched hand into a sitting position upon the pillar, yet Zelos pulled at Lloyd's hand to sit up-right.
"Hey, Zelos, what gives?" Lloyd retorted angrily. Zelos gave a look as if pitying someone dumb.
"Lloyd, you do realize you're sitting on top of the poor guy you crashed into, right?"
"Huh?"
Pulled upright by Zelos, Lloyd realized the 'pillar' was in fact a black haired man in a dark cape. Two nearby nobles assist in helping the man up by his arms, who once in a stand position, dusted himself off with one gloved hand; the other bare tightened into a fist.
Lloyd expected that fist to slam into his face, and so brought up his arms to protect himself, but no such collision came. Instead, the man was facing Lloyd with a neutral expression. His hand unfurled to reveal the shards of a wine glass; some of which had cut his hand open. It wasn't a bad wound, but he was bleeding.
Lloyd gulped in a guilty manner.
"Hey I...I'm really sorry about that...I got...uh...carried away..." He said awkwardly. Now he was really wishing more-so then ever that he hadn't come.
"Quite understandable." The man replied, although he did not smile. In fact, it came out almost in a flat tone. Lloyd did not respond, but instead looked over him; he was much older then Lloyd himself; possibly in his late thirties or early forties. The man was wearing a dark as night blazer along with same coloured trousers, and equally black, smart shoes. Even his hair seemed to adore this colour; neat yet fancy, with a single strand trickling down the right side of his face. The only change in colour was his eyes, two brown ones that seemed to pierce upon you and a blood red elegant broach upon his blazer.
"Lloyd!"
Through the crowd that had gathered, trapping Lloyd and the man in a circle, came Colette with a frightened look and little regard for whom she had to squeeze past or through; even less did she care about the glares nobles gave her. Reaching the centre, she immediately grasped Lloyd's arm.
"I heard you fell from the King; are you okay, are you hurt?"
"Yeah, I'm fine..." His attention however was not entirely focused on Colette, but the man he crashed into. There was something in the man's eyes Lloyd could not quite place, but that he definitely didn't like.
"You'd best get that checked, Lord Hermann." Zelos spoke from Lloyd's side, gesturing to his bloodied hand.
"You're right, Chosen One. Excuse me, if you will." And with that, the man headed through the crowd, his cape sweeping through the crowd like a huge walking bat. The crowd seemed to look eagerly to Lloyd as if he would respond, but instead he said nothing.
"C'mon folks, break it up. No drama here anymore." Zelos spoke to the now disheartened crowd, which dispersed in no time at all.
"Who was that man?" Colette questioned Zelos.
"Egbert Hermann." Zelos answered. "He's part of our Royal Counsel; the Minister of Finances. He doesn't really speak much and keeps to himself. Heck, I think the only reason he's here is because it's compulsoary forced to come."
"Did you get a sort of...I dunno, feel from him?" Lloyd asked, frowning slightly.
"Boredom? All the time!" Lloyd sighed. Well, it didn't seem to matter a great deal, so he dropped the subject.
"Oh!" The sudden exclamation came out of nowhere from Colette. "I was looking for you before this, Lloyd! I was wondering; would you like to come to the balcony with me?"
Lloyd smiled broadly. "Course I would!" He turned to face the red-head Chosen. "Coming, Zelos?"
"Hmm? Oh no, I, uh..." Zelos seemed to have trouble thinking up what to say. "I think I'll mingle with my hunnies...after all, I wouldn't want to intrude on anything."
He was not entirely sure, but Lloyd could have sworn the Chosen gave a subtle wink as he walked off. Shrugging it off, he gestured for Colette to follow him, which she did so smiling.
"So, a year later, here we are." Lloyd chuckled, his head turned to Colette, who smiled in response.
"Still think it's stuffy?" Colette asked the swordsman, who nodded as if he'd just been ask what two plus two was with slightly widened eyes. Giving a stifled yawn, Lloyd leaned forward and rested his arms upon the balcony railing, his head propped on his arms.
"I remember when I arrived and was blown away by how different Te'thealla to Sylvarant...I mean, they take stuffy to a whole new level!" Lloyd spoke, indicating the many party guests below who seemed almost like fancy dolls on invisible strings as they spoke and laugh amongst themselves. Despite the height, Lloyd was careful to keep his voice to a whisper.
"Well, Te'thealla is amazing. And so's Sylvarant." Colette responded, with the same smile still upon her face. Then, it grew and she looked down upon her hands curled into fists lightly pressing one another, almost as if in prayer. "I'm so glad we were able to save both worlds." She added, her eyes closed.
Lloyd stood himself up right and looked back at her, smiling.
"So am I. Even though we had a lot of problems and mistakes along the way..." Lloyd's mind briefly casted back a year, with dark images of the Great Tree going wild, Desians laughing and something that especially haunted him still, seeing expheres made from human bodies. He grimaced briefly, his head locked downwards. However, his tone was "When it comes down to it, we did a pretty good job."
The expheres in fact, were the sole purpose Lloyd and Colette were in Meltokio. For a year now, the pair had travelled across the new world; their goal to see to it that no more expheres were created or in a good condition. Lloyd brought up his hand and examined the same small red bead like object that had taken his mother's life.
As the Chosen and the swordsman were constantly on the move (even without Rehiards), they came across a lot of current news and travel in each town. Indeed, whilst in the nearby town of Sybak (even if Sybak was across the ocean, but it always had been in Te'thealla), the maid attending to Lloyd and Colette's rooms told the pair in a very rushed whisper how it was suspected Meltokio was under this very exphere threat. When they questioned her further, she quickly (and eagerly) elaborated that some people had been caught with them. As it was now illegial to be in possession expheres, let alone use them, the majority of these people had been caught. At that point, the two had decided to travel to Meltokio themselves via the Grand Te'thealla Bridge, which had somehow survived the merging of the two worlds.
"Do you think we'll be able to find this man?" Apparently, Colette had been brooding over the same subject as him. Lloyd nodded with a determined look. Upon arriving in the imperial capital, Lloyd and Colette met with Zelos, who pounced upon them like a child to a parent who had been gone a long while. After much heaving of Te'thealla's Chosen, and the pouring of tea and serving of cake by Sebastian as they sat down, Zelos revealed that some suspects had already 'sang like a canary'.
"Apparently, some kind of merchant is selling them to Meltokio's public, with a big as hell backpack and purple cap."
"So you haven't caught him yet?"
"Nope. He's quite swift; as soon as we get word of where he is, the Papal Knights head out, only to find he's vanished. Very frustrating for those poor knights."
And so, Lloyd and Colette had decided to stay in Meltokio. When Zelos 'briefly' told the King and the Council who they were, it was with much insisting and many 'pleases' that a reluctant Lloyd gave in and agreed with it. Colette had been open to the idea and perhaps that was what managed to finally sway Lloyd's mind.
"No doubt about it." Lloyd spoke to his friend with that same determined expression. "We'll beat him to a pulp if we have to." His knuckles tightened upon the wooden railing. "I can't believe there are still people making money off of expheres..."
He was then aware of footsteps, and Colette grasping his hand in a sympathetic manner. "I know...it's horrible." The Chosen's voice was sad.
An awkward silence hung over the pair, alien from the joyous attitude of the partygoers below them. The tense look on Lloyd's face pained Colette, and she felt a need to relieve his obvious anger.
In the end, a simple hug was Colette's answer as she wrapped her arms tenderly around her friend, her head leaning against his arm.
"It'll be okay, Lloyd." The Chosen spoke reassuringly.
"Yeah..." Lloyd's head turned to face his friend, and the familiar smile Colette loved was there. "Thanks, Colette."
"It's okay! Now I was wondering..." And Colette released her hold on Lloyd as her gaze fell upon the party downwards, but Lloyd held up a hand.
"Yes, it is too stuffy in here for me." Admist Colette's giggling, he sighed and faced the entryway behind them. "Wanna head out?"
"Of course." Colette smiled. Lloyd did the same, and they departed.
Chapter 1 End
Now I am perfectly open to criticism, and if you have some, I would love to hear it. It's how we writers improve, after all~ Feedback as a whole is appreciated and are cherished like orphans left upon doorsteps, so please give some! I've no idea when the next chapter will be up, as I'm still very busy with homework and other fanfiction writing. However, I will try and update enough that there is interest, but I'd rather I didn't rush this fic as well, so yeah~
Thanks very much for reading, and again, feedback is awesome and appreciated greatly~
~Blue Toad~