Dun dun daaaaaaa! Hello wonderful people, and welcome to the hopefully improved and newly updated Chapter 1 of We All Fall Dead! Cue confetti!

So this took like... what, half a year? Yep, pretty sure it was a half a year. Damn, 2013 really sucked for me. But now it's 2014, and my ind has been straightened out! So hopefully I can fix the parts of this story that were devastated by the trainwreck of my post-depression. Yep.

This story is officially dedicated to three very important people! GameCGuru for helping me out with fixing this up, for showing so much support with my other stories, and for being freaking awesome. Valiona for being an amazing friend who keeps my sanity intact and also for her fantastic show of support. And Kazegami-inkpot a.k.a the reason I ever even started and finished this story, and for being a great inspiration! Thanks for everything guys!

DISCLAIMER: Just like before, I do not own any characters or places from Tales of the Abyss. However, Kuro is rightfully my property and was born from the insanity of my mind.

UPDATED: 1/20/14

Chapter 1

The Night Before

Asch walked into the room he occupied at the local inn and slammed the door. He kicked off his boots and threw his sheathed sword- the Key of Lorelei- on the bed. His hands raised, his fingers tangling into his crimson hair, his feet angrily pacing the creaky hardwood floors.

"Damn that replica... Damn him!" Asch growled under his breath as he continued his pacing. "He's so annoying!"

Leave it to the replica to make something that seemed so simple, so complicated. He couldn't just mind his own business, could he? No, he just had to go and show up at the Tower and mess up his entire plan, what-with trying to save everyone, and the hyperresonance, and the Jewel... How could that idiot just not know he'd received it?

Asch turned and punched the wall, holding himself back at the last minute to avoid creating a hole, which did nothing to appease his frustration. That damn replica...!

The former God-General fell back and landed on the bed. He moved his hands out of his hairline and rubbed at his temples.

Damn it all.

He laid there, silent and still, his mind racing, for a minute or two before sitting up and tugging his tabard over his head. He carelessly threw it away, not paying attention to where it landed. His sword was kicked off the bed, clattering to the floor as the redhead flopped backwards, blowing out a heavy breath.

So much to do, and so little time to do it.

xxx

Luke sighed as he gazed out the window of his room. He had it cracked open, and the cool breeze blew across his face and ruffled his hair. It was late, he knew, but he couldn't get himself to fall asleep just yet. So he'd taken place at his window seat, watching as the world outside slowly died down. He heard music, a lone clarinet playing its calming melody to anyone still around to listen. Knowing that kid, she'd be out there performing for the stars for half of the night.

His Viscount ceremony had gone off without a hitch. After the actual ceremony in the castle, there had been a sort of after-party, where everyone had danced and talked over drinks and refreshments as the sky over the city darkened. Luke and the rest of the gang had spent practically the entire night dancing around like idiots, with the exception of Jade, who simply watched them in amusement. Luke smiled at the memory. They'd received quite a few stares, but the looks were ignored, the lot of them too caught up in their fun.

Fun. When he thought back on it, things hadn't started to get 'fun' until she showed up. He remembered her hating the idea when it first came up – Lorelei forbid she willingly dressed up and attended such a formal event. But regardless, she'd been there with them, and it just wouldn't have been the same without her; the solo musician still outside playing her clarinet, Kuro. The replica peered out his window, trying and failing to locate his friend in the dark that had settled over Baticul. It was pitch-black by this point, a quarter-till midnight by the look of his clock. He hoped she would come in soon. If he fell asleep, there would be no one awake to listen for her. But he knew better than to try and force her to come in. That was a game Kuro always played, and a game she almost never lost.

He sighed quietly and glanced over at the small, red gem that was lying on his desk near the window, manifested from his fonons out of both boredom and thought.

The Jewel of Lorelei. Asch.

Luke turned and looked back out the window, catching a glimpse of his reflection. His emerald green eyes stared back at him from under a mop of fiery red hair. The redhead reached up and tugged at a few strands, sighing. Sometimes he just failed to understand why Asch hated him so much. Asch was the original. Asch had a past. Asch had the memories.

What did Luke have? He had seven years worth of nothing but memories of being locked up in the manor. He had seven years worth of growing up having people telling him of bets and promises that he didn't and never would remember. Because they weren't his memories. They were Asch's. He had to walk around carrying the burden of killing thousands of people on his shoulders, with the memory of Akzeriuth always lurking in the back of his mind; despite all he'd done and was planning to do, that would never go away. And he had to walk around with the people closest to him, in all of Auldrant, and lie to them- well, most of them- and act like everything was alright, like he couldn't suddenly disappear at any time.

Sure, Asch had helped him in the past; getting the ingredients for Mother's medicine, the Tower – a fact Luke was particularly ashamed of, having needed Asch's help to try and save Asch himself; hell, he even tried to help him back at Akzeriuth. But if Asch really did hate him so much, why bother helping him? He was just a replica. Asch would be fine without him.

Luke sighed, his hand dropping to his lap and his forehead hitting the glass pane of the window, his earlier thoughts of his friend and the ceremony having faded away, along with the sound of music. Time after time, Luke tried to be useful, be helpful, but somehow, all he managed to do was mess up. Like at the Tower, and of course Akzeriuth... He'd screwed up big time there. Maybe the world was just... better off without him.

...No, that wasn't entirely true. Natalia sometimes needed him. Same with Guy and Tear. And if he wasn't there, who would take care of Kuro?

...Well, then again, Natalia, Guy, and Tear could all rely on each other, and could take care of themselves just fine, anyway. And Guy would take in Kuro, if need be, and he knew she would be fine on her own, even. Maybe he really wasn't needed after all...

Luke shook his head, his skin rubbing against the cold glass pane. He really needed to get out of the habit of having these thought processes so often. If Kuro saw him like this, acting all depressed, she'd be worried. And if she found out why, he'd be in for it. He had to admit, he did have a tendency to put himself down, especially after something happy, like the ceremony. He called it self-punishment. She called it stupidity.

Luke stood from his seat. Enough was enough. He shouldn't just sit here wallowing in self-pity, thinking about Asch and replicas and the past and death-

Death.

He was going to die.

Luke reached out, and ran his fingers along the surface of the Jewel before turning towards his bed, leaving it be for the night.

He was going to die.

I don't want to die... I don't want to die!

The replica unbuttoned his white coat and threw it on the floor. He tripped himself and fell onto his bed, sighing heavily.

The music floated back into his ears, soft and slow, through the window he'd left cracked open. Luke could tell that it was, undeniably, Kuro, still playing her clarinet like she did almost every night and showing no signs of coming to bed anytime soon. Luke let her be and curled up on his side, not bothering to cover himself with the blanket because he knew Kuro would do it when she came in later. His ears picked up a familiar tune among the series of notes, and he smiled to himself. She was playing their song, his song.

'I do everything for you. Make sure you eat, sleep, and don't overwork yourself, slap you when you're acting like an idiot... Hell, I technically tuck you into bed at night! I'm like your mother!'

Kuro... She was something else. The way she could light up his world just by walking into it amazed him. When, over the past year or so, had they gotten so close? His memories of the time they'd spent together was all blurred and smeared together across the chalkboard of his mind, and he couldn't seem to pinpoint a time when it had happened. It was like he just woke up one morning and... Boom. He wouldn't say he thought of Kuro as a motherly figure in his life, but his sister? Sure.

The smile faded as a thought slipped into his mind. If he died, what would happen to Kuro? Where would she go? Who would she have? He couldn't bear it if she ended up having to revert back to life as it was before they met.

Maybe Guy would have to take the kid in after all…

Kuro's music found its way back into his mind, pushing away all of his negative thoughts, and his smile returned. He may not have forever, but he had now. And he had to make the best of it, for the sake of her and all of his friends.

Mumbling the lyrics he knew by heart under his breath, Luke drifted off to sleep.

Across the room, on the desk where he'd left it, the Jewel of Lorelei started to glow.

xxx

She tried to open the door quietly, but it squeaked on its hinges as she pushed on the large slab of solid wood. Wincing, Kuro peeked inside. Luke was asleep on his bed, not appearing to have been disturbed by the sound of her opening his bedroom door. She let out a silent breath of relief and slipped inside, closing the door behind her. Her clarinet case was set in its usual place near the door, next to his dresser, which she quietly opened. Kuro pulled out a pair of the redhead's sweatpants and one of his old shirts, then retreated to the bathroom across the room.

She emerged a few minutes later, Luke's clothes hanging off her frame and her dress bundled in her hands. Carefully placing the bundle of midnight blue fabric on the same chair Luke had thrown his Viscount outfit on, the young girl moved back over to the door and switched on the fan. A soft, calming whirring sound filled the room, along with a light, soothing breeze. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Luke's sleeping form shift. Smiling, the brunette went over and closed the window before crawling into bed. She flipped the blanket over them both, tucking herself into Luke's chest.

Not long after, she fell asleep.

She didn't notice the Jewel on Luke's desk, its dim glow finally fading away.

And that was the updated version of Chapter 1! Not much changed really, but I personally am a lot happier with it. Kuro isn't some omnious dark force anymore! Whee! Nonetheless, if you come across anything in this chapter that still needs fixing or seems off, please let me know! I really do want to make this story better, and I appreciate you all helping me out!

See ya!

Valerie(SonicGirl2002)