Disclaimer: I own Tales of Symphonia! Except, not really!
Author's Apology: Geaaaah! I am so, so, so eternally sorry for taking so flipping long to update! Let me tell you, inspiration and motivation both failed me miserably. You'd think during the summer I would have lots of time, thus lots of ideas and thus lots of fat and happy new chapters, but it wasn't so and I apologize profusely! I hope you continue to read and hopefully the next update will come sooner. (Well…it better!) I hope you review, and I am SO SORRY! I humbly bow to all of you and present this new chapter! (Note: there may be some naughty words, so take no offense, please!)
The Act of Shattering Peace
Chapter Seven:
Practicing the Façade
"One, two, three…you've got it wrong again."
Yuan cursed as he swung his unwieldy weapon wildly, finally spinning it from his hands and letting it fall to the ground with a thud. Kratos lowered his weapon and stepped back a few paces.
"Damn it all to Kharlan and back, the stupid piece of shit!"
"Yuan," Kratos said patiently. "Your weapon bears no fault in this situation."
"I know," Yuan snapped, then sighed as he picked up the large, gold and silver blade. He and Kratos were dueling—rather Kratos was teaching Yuan how to fight—not too far away from Heimdall. So far, things hadn't gone well. There had been a lot of confusion, a lot of frustration, a lot of swearing, and a lot of patient instruction from Kratos as Yuan leapt around, nursing a hand and cursing profusely.
"Right," Yuan sighed, spinning his weapon idly. "Again. I'll get it right this time, I promise."
"Do not make promises you cannot keep," Kratos said with a wry smile.
"Hey," Yuan said, grinning. "I can do it. Have faith in—"
Without warning, Kratos sprang forward, and Yuan only had time to shout and lift his weapon before it was knocked from his hands again.
"Damn it all to Kharlan! What the hell was that for!"
"You seem to be ignoring both rules one and four," Kratos commented mildly.
"Oh?" growled Yuan, shaking his hand as he knelt down to pick up his fallen weapon. "And pray tell, what's number four?"
"Do not make promises you cannot keep."
Yuan snorted, then straightened up. "Yeah, well, add this one on: don't be an ass when you're instructing students."
"On the contrary," Kratos said with a mock bow, his sword still unsheathed in one hand. "That is one of the essential rules of teaching."
"All right, all right," Yuan said, swinging his blade around in a circle. "Woe betide you if I ever have to teach you something."
"Woe in more ways than one, to be sure."
"You certainly have a big mouth," Yuan commented, tossing the spinning blade to his left hand. "Isn't that a violation of 'holier-than-thou instructors' guild?"
"No such guild exists," Kratos said, sheathing his sword and shaking his head. "Too impractical; it would be absolutely impossible to learn anything new during meetings."
"Your jokes suck," Yuan said, twirling his weapon with both hands now. "Not everyone has the brain capacity to think your lofty thoughts, you know."
"Evidently, you boast the same incapacity." Kratos bowed his head, and raised an open palm. "My apologies," he said solemnly. "I should speak in small words."
"What?" Yuan said. "Really, Kratos, I may only understand three-letter words, but now I can kick your ass!"
Yuan leapt forward, springing into the air and swinging his blade downwards, towards Kratos' head. The fool had sheathed his weapon during a fight; even Yuan knew better than that. His heart soared as he felt his weapon connect with something soft. To his immediate dismay, however, he was staring into Kratos' brown, unperturbed eyes. He only had time to glance at the fist Kratos had made around his weapon before he was sprawled on the ground, the wind knocked from his lungs.
Kratos expertly spun Yuan's blade with one hand, throwing it into the air and catching it with ease.
"Obviously," Kratos said, planting Yuan's weapon into the ground. "You underestimate, my friend. Any ass-kicking that was meant to be had, has failed." The human squatted beside his breathless half-elf friend. "Most of the creatures in this world enjoy the full use of four limbs that can be more than enough of a match against a single blade. Just because I have no sword and you do, does not make you the automatic victor. Remember that."
"Rgh," Yuan panted, clutching his offended stomach. "Damn it."
"No frustration allowed," Kratos said, standing up and offering a hand to Yuan. "I believe I'll make that rule number five."
"You survive on these rules, don't you?" Yuan said with a smirk, grabbing Kratos' hand and pulling himself up from the ground.
"One must survive on something. I generally prefer food and water."
"Kharlan, you're full of sarcasm today!" Yuan said, rolling his eyes, and retrieving his weapon. "You must be in a good mood."
Kratos smiled slightly, an action Yuan knew was rare for the swordsman.
"Perhaps," he said simply.
Yuan mock sighed and slumped over, supporting himself on his weapon. "You enjoy seeing my failures don't you?"
"Absolutely."
"One more try," Yuan said with a grin, testing the weapon in his hands again. "I'm getting it this time."
"We shall see," Kratos said, drawing his sword. "Come."
Yuan stood, still spinning his blade absently, watching Kratos for a sign of weakness. So far, and following suit with all the other times Yuan had tried to attack his friend that morning, he saw none. He clicked his tongue against his teeth in impatience. Leave it to Kratos to make his job that much harder.
Without saying a word, Yuan leapt forward, his blade still spinning in a circle. He dove to the left, at the last minute changing his path to the opposite direction, swinging the blade hard at Kratos' right side. Kratos parried with no apparent difficulty, however, and Yuan felt the tell-tale slip of the handle on his fingers as he watched his weapon fly out of control and out of his hands. Not wasting another second, Yuan leapt at Kratos, grabbing a hold of the hilt of his sword.
Kratos grunted in surprise as Yuan tried to wrench the weapon from his hands, but recovered quickly enough. Yuan felt a sharp pain on the back of his head as Kratos grabbed the mass of blue hair protruding from his ponytail. He yelled, his head tilting steadily backwards as he tried to pry Kratos' fingers from the hilt of the sword.
"Give it up!" Kratos growled. "I'm giving you a chance to surrender."
"Never!"
Sighing, Kratos planted his foot hard on Yuan's.
"Ow! What the hell was—"
Yuan's knees buckled as he felt Kratos' other boot connect with the back of them. Unable to move his feet forward to steady himself, Yuan fell flat on his face. He felt Kratos place his foot comfortably on his back.
"Valiant effort," Kratos said simply, sheathing his sword again. "But do not abandon your own weapon so soon. Others are less likely to share, especially if you are trying to kill them."
"Ughf," Yuan gasped. "Okay, I get it. Get off me!"
"Hmm…this is quite a compromising position for you, isn't it?"
"Kratos, quit screwing around, I'm hungry!"
"Very well," Kratos said, removing his foot. Yuan struggled to his hands and knees, glancing up to see Kratos' hand extended once again.
"You know," Yuan said, grasping Kratos' hand for a second time to pull himself up. "You've got to be the friendliest enemy I know."
"I try," Kratos replied simply with a shrug.
Yuan retrieved his forgotten weapon from the ground, and turned to walk back to the village with Kratos.
"So when are you going to start teaching me that mana what-cha-ma-call-it thing?" Yuan asked.
Kratos raised a red eyebrow.
"Mana manipulation?" he said. "As soon as you show yourself worthy."
Yuan grinned skeptically. "In other words, 'As soon as I figure it out for myself' right?"
"You couldn't be farther from the truth," Kratos said rather smugly. "I have already mastered a few techniques."
"A few? Well then, prove it."
"It…" Kratos began, scratching the back of his head, "Takes some effort."
Yuan laughed.
"So you really don't know how to do it, do you!"
"Nonsense," Kratos said gruffly, lengthening his strides. "I just do not feel like wasting energy on the likes of you."
"Ouch!" Yuan protested, the grin still planted firmly on his face as he sped up as well. "Look who's touchy today! Maybe you're in love?"
Kratos stopped dead in his tracks, turning to look at Yuan with an expression that would almost have been laughable if Yuan hadn't known that it was Kratos' famous "death-to-all-beings" look.
"Just…kidding…."
Kratos glared at him a moment longer before sighing and shaking his head.
"I doubt I will ever understand you, friend," he said, a small smile finding its way onto his face as he spoke.
"You say that as if it's a good thing!" Yuan huffed as they neared the large, open gate that determined Heimdall's borders.
"Isn't it?"
"Bastard."
"Hello," Kratos said pleasantly to the guard standing by the gate, ignoring Yuan's last comment smoothly. Yuan sighed and made to walk into the town, but the guard blocked his way with the spear he was holding.
"What's up?" Yuan said, looking down at the spear and then up at the guard. The elf was shifting his weight nervously, his eyes darting everywhere at once as he spoke.
"Password, please," he said.
"What?" Yuan said blankly.
"Password, please."
"Pass…! Oh, come on, it's broad daylight and you know who I am!" Yuan said. "I'm Yuan, remember? 'S far as I know, I'm the only one with blue hair in this village." At this, Yuan grabbed his blue ponytail, waving it as proof. "C'mon, let me in." He started to move forward, but the guard tapped him with the spear.
"Give me the password!"
"What the…!" Yuan looked back at Kratos disbelievingly, and indeed, the swordsman's brow was furrowed as he considered the guard. He glanced up at Yuan and made a small gesture that seemed to say, "Just give him what he wants."
Yuan sighed. "Fine," he said. "May Kharlan bless those far and near from haven safe and all those here. Happy?" Yuan pushed the spear aside, moving beyond the gate and into the village, but not before the guard had the last say.
"You stupid half-elf."
Yuan froze. He turned slowly, his eyes wide, to stare at the guard. The elf was boring holes into the ground with his eyes and didn't seem to believe what he had just done. Yuan stared at him, his face etched with surprise and his mouth slightly open.
"What did you say?" Kratos asked, his voice quiet.
The guard fidgeted uncomfortably, shaking his head erratically.
"You're free to pass," he mumbled, then turned on his heel and marched swiftly away.
Yuan stood motionless, still staring blankly, his mind not fully registering the exchange. It wasn't until Kratos placed a hand lightly on his shoulder that Yuan stirred from his stupor.
"Lunch," Kratos said simply, but there was something in his eyes that told Yuan that was not at all on his mind.
"Yeah," Yuan said weakly, shaking his head and forcing himself forward. "Martel invited us."
Kratos nodded gravely, following Yuan up the street and to Martel's house. Standing in front of her door, Yuan paused, his fist suspended before the wooden surface. He opened his mouth, hesitated, then snapped his mouth shut, rapping on the door three times with his knuckles. He could hear the sound of walking, and soon the door opened.
"Hiya, Martel!" Yuan beamed.
"Yuan! Kratos! Come in, come in!" Martel said happily, opening the door wide and stepping back to allow them to enter. "How was it?"
"Excellent!" Yuan said cheerfully, stooping to kiss Martel on the cheek. "I successfully beat up Kratos!"
"And also achieved the greatest imagination in history," Kratos added to Martel's rather surprised look.
Martel laughed.
"Well I hope you two are hungry," she said. "Because lunch is just about ready."
"You're amazing, Martel," Yuan said, smiling fondly down at her. She blushed prettily and excused herself to go finish lunch.
"We'll be right there!" Yuan called after her, removing his boots and propping his weapon against the wall. Kratos stood motionless, watching him.
"Yuan—"
"Forget it," Yuan said, waving his hand.
"This is not—"
"I said forget it."
Kratos sighed. "Are you all—?"
"Hey," Yuan said with a shrug and a smile. "I'm doing what I do best, right? Being naïve and 'too willing to believe in the good of others'. So just let me get away with it for now, all right?"
Kratos opened his mouth, then closed it on a second thought, and Yuan nodded to his friend in thanks. Turning towards the kitchen, Yuan followed the small hallway, urging a more natural smile to take over his grimace.
---
The evening found Yuan sitting alone in his darkened home, absently polishing his weapon at his small wooden table. It didn't need polishing or even cleaning for that matter, but Yuan wanted something to do other than stare blankly at the wall and think the same, depressing thoughts over and over again. He frowned, the rag slowing on one of the golden whorls on the blade. No, not depressed, he thought. Confused, that's all. Just really, fucking confused.
He sighed, a knock on the door stirring him from his pointless cleaning. Heaving himself up from his chair, he strode over to the door, opening it to find Kratos standing expectantly outside.
"Hey," Yuan said simply, opening the door further and turning away. "What's up?"
"I've been trying to find out more about this afternoon," Kratos said lightly, entering the dark house and closing the door. He paused. "Do you own lights or prefer sitting in a miserable state of darkness?"
Yuan laughed bitterly. "I don't know if it even matters. I'm just too lazy for light."
"Oh?" Kratos said lightly. "Well, I'm not in the mood for darkness right now." He approached Yuan's fireplace, knelt down and placed a single log in the middle of it. Muttering a few words to himself, Kratos extended his hand and a jet of fire sprang from his palm to the log's surface. Yuan jumped.
"Woah!" he said. "That's that mana thing, right?"
"Mana manipulation? Yes," Kratos said with a satisfied smirk, adding more logs to the ever-growing fire. "I told you I could do it."
"Didn't doubt you."
"I'm sure," Kratos said raising his eyebrows and still smirking. He stood and turned to face Yuan. "As I was saying, I was trying to find out more about the incident this afternoon. My search was not fruitful."
"No?" Yuan asked evenly, returning to his seat and propping his weapon against the table.
"Unfortunately," Kratos said heavily, sitting down opposite Yuan. "But please tell me you now understand what I have been trying to tell you—"
"Perfectly. No, wait, that's right, there's no reason for it!"
"Whether there is a reason or not has no relevance when looking at fact," Kratos said. "That guard called you a 'stupid half-elf' and it was not by accident."
"Oh well," Yuan said with a shrug. "Maybe he just doesn't like me."
"Why add on the half-elf then?" Kratos asked coldly. "Why refer to your whole race?"
Yuan shifted in his seat.
"It doesn't matter," he muttered.
"Yes, it does!" Kratos insisted, leaning forward. "Open your eyes, Yuan. Not so long ago you were ganged up on by almost half the population of Heimdall and beaten into a bloody mess! Now you get called a 'stupid half-elf' and harassed when trying to enter your own village! These things have too much in common to be dismissed as coincidental!"
"I don't care," Yuan said fiercely. "There's no point in getting all worked up over—"
"You should care, because you are the one paying for your blind faith in others!"
"What do you want me to do, Kratos, huh!" Yuan found himself shouting. He had had enough of this shit, of…everything, it wasn't just Kratos. "You want me to move! Leave Heimdall? Run away, become a mercenary, maybe? Huh? What do you want me to do? Damn it, what can I do?" He slammed his fist down hard on the tabletop, ignoring the pain that shot up his wrist. "I can't do anything!" he said, gritting his teeth and staring down at his hand. "So what the hell's the point of realizing that everyone's out to get me? Damn it, Heimdall's my home and it's where I'm going to stay until I'm fucking forced out, you understand!" Yuan ended his rant, breathing hard, shifting his gaze to glare at Kratos. The redhead surveyed him serenely, his arms folded across his chest.
"Are you finished?" he asked.
"…Yeah."
Kratos nodded. "Good. And I am not asking you to do anything, Yuan, believe me."
Yuan said nothing.
"I am not asking you to move," Kratos said, shifting in his chair to lean on the table. "I am not asking you to run away, and I am certainly not wishing the same fate on you as I myself carry. I am only asking you to be more aware of your situation and to take measures to defend yourself if necessary. I have a terrible feeling that you are no longer safe, Yuan."
Yuan shrugged.
"Come on," he said, his words casual but his voice uncertain. "What's the worst they could do? Seriously, they're just regular people."
"Regular people have the capacity to do horrendous things," Kratos said darkly. "Take it from someone who knows."
They fell silent, Yuan rubbing his face with a hand. Minutes seemed to pass, with only the crackle of flames to disturb the silence.
"Why?" Yuan finally said, his voice soft. "Why are they doing this?"
Kratos sighed and shook his head. "I was hoping to find out today," he said wearily. "But I do not know."
Yuan shook his head, his eyes buried in the heels of his hands.
"If you tell Martel about this," he said slowly. "I'll kill you."
Kratos raised an eyebrow.
"And why would you deny her this information?" he asked.
"Because," Yuan said, rubbing his eyes and propping his chin on his hand to stare Kratos in the eye. "If you told her, that would make her worry. And if she worried, she would want to do something about the problem. And if she did something about the problem, she would most likely get hurt, wouldn't she? And if she got hurt, especially on my behalf—"
"I understand," Kratos said quickly. "But this threat does not only apply to you, Yuan. That comment was blatant racial discrimination."
Yuan shook his head. "I know," he said, chewing on his lip. After a moment of consideration, he snapped his fingers. "Got it," he said. "So if they're really after half-elves, I'll be the first one to go, right?"
Kratos looked uneasily at his friend.
"Hopefully not," he said.
"But in all likelihood, yes," Yuan finished for him. "Excellent! Well then, if they kick me out or kill me—"
"Don't say that."
"—You can tell Martel, all right? And then she and Mithos can scurry away while nobody's looking. Okay? I'm counting on you."
Kratos said nothing as Yuan stood up and stretched.
"Ahh," Yuan said contentedly, letting his arms drop by his sides again. "That's better. All right! I'm going to go visit Martel, I'll be back later!"
Krato sighed, frustrated. "Be careful," he grumbled, running a hand over his eyes.
Yuan laughed.
"Your concern flatters me," he said. "But have no fear." He retrieved his weapon from the table and hoisted it over his shoulder and grinned. "I may not be a good fighter, but nobody needs to know that, right?"
Kratos raised an eyebrow, then laughed.
"Quite a formidable opponent you've made yourself into."
"These are dangerous times," Yuan said, narrowing his eyes mockingly. "Remember rule number one!"
With that, Yuan laughed, turned, and strode to the door, pausing only to pull on his boots before he was gone.
Kratos sat back in his chair, staring into the fire still in full blaze.
"Rule number one," he repeated softly. A flicker of a smile passed over his face. "Always be on guard."
---
Mithos walked into the crowded bar to find the regulars all grouped around one person sitting on one of the barstools. As he approached, Mithos caught a snippet of the conversation.
"—I told him I wanted the password and he was giving me all sorts of trash, about how I knew who he was, but I told him I wanted it, and so he gave it to me—"
"But I heard you had to harass him before he gave it to you!"
"Well…kind of, a little bit, but not much—"
"See what a pain he his?"
"Mithos!"
He had been spotted by one of the regulars, an elf with dark brown hair. Immediately, the crowd parted and Mithos was ushered onto a stool next to an elf who regularly guarded the village's borders.
"Mithos, listen to this!" the brown-haired elf said. "Witris here was just telling us how he set that bastard straight after he was being difficult."
"Really?" Mithos said, his eyes widening with child-like curiosity. "What did you say?"
"Really, it wasn't a big deal," Witris said, looking down at his cup, his face reddening. "I don't think I was very kind to Mister Yuan and—"
"Who cares!" a voice shouted. "This is the same bastard who stole Martel!"
"Yeah!"
"He doesn't deserve pity!"
"So what happened?" Mithos said, quietly to Witris, touching his shoulder sympathetically. "Was he awful to you?"
"W-Well, no, not reall…well, perhaps a little. He just wouldn't give me the password right off—"
Mithos sighed with frustration, rolling his eyes.
"Yuan doesn't appreciate the importance of the work that others do for this village," he said loudly, shaking his head. He turned his gaze on Witris again. "Thank you for doing your best and continuing to ensure the safety of us all. It means the world to me."
A noise of admiration passed through the crowd. Someone even ruffled Mithos' hair.
"He's a good one, he is," the bartender said, winking at Mithos. "Quite mature for his age."
"Thank you, everyone for helping me with this," Mithos said, smiling sweetly. "I can't stand seeing my sister around that…thing."
The fire immediately sparked in the crowd again.
"Yeah! That's right!"
"Don't worry, Mithos we'll get him for you!"
"Tell us again, Witris! What'd you call him!"
Everyone looked expectantly at Witris again who mumbled the insult to a roar of approval.
"But I didn't dare say anything else," Witris said, taking a draught from his cup, "With Mister Kratos standing right there—"
"Kratos?"
A rough voice from across the room made the regulars turn to see three strangers sitting around one small table with glasses in each of their hands.
"Kratos," the rough voice repeated, and looked at his comrades. Mithos could see they were all clad in black, yet looked distinctly different. One was bald and wearing dark glasses; the second had jet black hair and was wearing a white mask; and the third had a stubbly, unkempt beard and a grin that sent chills down the young half-elf's spine. The latter laughed and pulled himself up from his seat, swaggering over to the bar.
"You're talking about Kratos Aurion?" he said.
"Yeah," said the brown-haired elf uneasily. "Why?"
The stranger said nothing, just laughed. "All right, all right," he said. "Who's out to get this 'Yuan' guy, anyway?"
The crowd erupted with explanations that all melted together in one, noisy mess, but eventually, the people parted, gesturing at Mithos. The man grinned, slinging himself onto the barstool next to Mithos.
"So, kid," he said his breath pungent from liquor. "You lookin' to drive someone outta here?"
Mithos wrinkled his nose. "I'm no ordinary kid," he said, glaring at the stranger.
The man laughed again. "That's what I figure," he said. "'Cause I know that smart kids know how to bargain. So here's my idea. Drivin' someone out ain't so hard if you know what to do. Because where does a person live in their town?"
"Don't patronize me."
"Their house," the man continued, leaning against the bar. "And what happens when they come home and they don't have a house anymore? They leave. You follow me?"
Mithos stayed silent.
"So how about this," the man grinned. "I make this 'Yuan' guy's house burn like the pretty little bonfire it should be, and you tell me exactly where I can find Kratos Aurion."
---
A/N: There you have it! It's a cliff hanger, I know, so I'll get right on the sequel! …Hopefully! Agh! I will, I will, I promise! So please leave a review! Thank you, thank you, thank you!
MT
