Author's Note: Hello all! What is this? Three chapters in one week?! I know, I can't believe it either. Well, here it is, nonetheless. So please enjoy! Also, thanks is sent to all of you who alerted, favorited, and a humongous set of thank yous to silent romantic, AbyssalDaemon, ThePurpleRose, Stephy825, Destiny's Light, Bubble-Headed Brunette and Kiomori for reviewing! You guys are all fantastic!

Onward ho with the chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own ToS, because if I did, all of the Z-skits would have full voice acting, instead of just text. I'd love to hear them all cringe over the Professor's cooking. T'would be hilarious.

Chapter Nine: Regrets and Reunions

"There it is!" Lloyd called out as he stood on top of a large hill. The crisp morning air ruffled his hair back and forth in the breeze while sprinkles of dew kissed his cheeks so they looked fresh and healthy. As he perched on top of the hill, the white scarf he had draped about his neck fluttered gently against the summer's breeze, every so often flopping on his stiff, brown, cloth pack that hung off the boy's shoulders. Grinning excitedly to himself, Lloyd wheeled around and grinned at the man who was following him a few steps behind.

"I can see Meltokio from here!" He pointed to the tip of the cathedral that stretched above the rest of the city. "Can you see it?"

Kratos nodded stoically as he too reached the top of the hill. His hand still precariously resting on the hilt of his sword, he glanced at the cathedral for a moment before his eyes scanned the area for potential lurking monsters.

"Yes, I can see it, Lloyd." He replied, eyeing a particularly suspicious bush. Peering over at Kratos, Lloyd saw that the angelic swordsman wasn't paying attention and frowned.

"Oh, c'mon you're not even looking." He complained tiredly. Kratos closed his eyes and sighed.

'I did look and it's the same it has been in 4000 years.' He thought flatly to himself. 'Why would I want to spend more time looking at it-'

"Please look?"

Kratos thoughts were interrupted as a pair of very determined, very large eyes stared at his own, tapered eyebrows creased against them with all the boy could muster. Watching the boy back, Kratos arched an eyebrow at Lloyd.

"Pardon?" The angel inquired. Lloyd eyed Kratos for a moment or two and inhaled deeply.

"Just thought if I asked nicely, maybe you'd do it." He shrugged. Kratos observed the boy in front of him carefully and turned his attention to the cathedral.

"I see you do possess manners after all." The angel commented. "I suppose it would be best not to deny you if that would deter your politeness." Lloyd glowered at Kratos and sighed as another breeze blew through the air, ruffling his hair.

A bout of silence sank into the air, while a few birds chirping in the distance did break it slightly. Discreetly taking his eyes away from the steeple of the church, Kratos glanced down at Lloyd's spiky brown head and quickly returned his gaze to the towering city.

"What do you plan to do once you reach Meltokio?" He asked offhandedly, his gaze resting on the city's outer walls. Blinking in surprise that it had been Kratos who destroyed the tranquility instead of himself, Lloyd stared at the older man before he regained his sense of self and scratched his cheek.

"Uh.. well, I'm gonna look for my friends." He stated matter-of-factly, his arms folded against his slender chest, "There's a chance that they could have come here by now and I want to find them."

"I see." Kratos replied simply. His hand brushed against the hilt of his sword lightly as he eyed another suspicious thicket that laid on the side of the road. The thicket squeaked in surprise, rustled violently and a small monster bellied out of it, scuttling in the opposite direction as fast as its stubby legs could carry it. Rolling his eyes at the scurrying monster, Kratos gripped the hilt of his sword firmly and looked at Lloyd once more.

"Let's hurry on." He stated sharply to the boy and resumed his swift strides down the worn and well loved highway to Meltokio. Lloyd jumped at his tone, but quickly regained his sense of self and hurried after the older man.

"Yeah.... hold on, how come you get to know what I'm going to do and I don't get to know about what you're doing?!" Lloyd interjected as he trotted after Kratos. Glancing down at the boy slightly, Kratos shook his head and returned his gaze to the road.

"You were the one who decided to share the information. No one forced you to divulge it." He replied loftily, a spike of his auburn hair drifting over his eye like a veil. "Perhaps you should work on your discretion." Frowning, Lloyd's nose scrunched up in a glare and he tightly crossed his arms against his chest.

"That's not very fair."

"Life's not fair, Lloyd."

Silence overtook the crisp air once more, until Lloyd came to a halt, his stiff brown shoes planted in the dirt path. Noticing the sudden stop of his son, Kratos glanced over his shoulder to see that Lloyd was fervently itching his forehead underneath his bandage.

"Lloyd, what are you doing?" He inquired, his eyebrow raised. Lloyd looked up at Kratos, gave him a dead look and went back to itching his forehead.

"What do you think I'm doing?" The boy asked tersely, digging at his forehead for all he was worth. "I'm scratching my forehead. It's itching me like crazy." Kratos scanned Lloyd's forehead and his eyes narrowed.

'He'll scratch himself raw if he's not careful.' He told himself as he observed the red rash that was cropping up on Lloyd's skin. 'And knowing Lloyd, he won't think about the consequences of what he's doing until it's bleeding.'

Stepping forward, the angel knelt on one knee and brushed Lloyd's hands away from his head. The boy froze, blinking in astonishment, brought his hands up again to itch it again, but they were once again batted away from his face.

"I was going to do this once we reached Meltokio, but it seems I have little choice." Kratos murmured as he untucked the edge of the bandage and unraveled it down and around his left hand. "It seems your wound is becoming irksome to you." He glanced down at Lloyd and his eyes narrowed at the boy.

"Don't move." He told the boy rigidly as he pulled off the last piece of the bandage so Lloyd's wound was exposed to the air. "And stop scratching it. You will only make it worse." The miniature boy glowered at being chastised, but sighed pointedly and eyed Kratos, his cherrywood eyes locked on the angel's face. Kratos let the old bandage fall to the ground, and then planted both of his palms firmly on Lloyd's temples, which made the six year old jolt in surprise.

"What are you doing?!" Lloyd asked incredulously as he watched Kratos who was about three inches from his forehead.

"Examining your wound." Kratos replied, as he ran his thumb over the swollen and red abrasion. Lloyd flinched in pain and tried to pull away, but Kratos' grip was far too solid.

"Leggo, that hurts!" The boy complained, but Kratos held fast, noting the crusting rim around the wound and puffy skin that surrounded the perimeter. He ignored the boy's protests at being released and hissed silently when a fresh trail of blood seeped out of the healing wound and ran down Lloyd's face.

'While the wound is healing, my techniques won't be enough to speed up the process completely.' He growled internally. 'I will have to use some conventional methods in order to solve this.'

One hand still stably holding Lloyd, he reached into his pocket, pulled out what looked like a bottle of green slime and flipped open the lid with a flick of his thumb.

"Hey, leggo of my head!" Lloyd squalled, trying to break out of Kratos' grip. Turning his eyes on the boy, Kratos cast Lloyd a death glare, which silenced him almost immediately.

"No." He said curtly. "And if you don't want me to put this medicine in your eyes, you'll hold still." Lloyd ogled at Kratos, peered down at the medicine that he held and glanced back up at the man, the expression on his face telling the world that he wouldn't put it past Kratos to put it in his eyes to teach him a lesson.

Kratos raised an eyebrow at the first grader in his grasp and nodded once approvingly when Lloyd ceased his caterwauling and stood stock still.

"Good." He commented coolly. "I see we understand each other then." Lloyd didn't answer, his gaze still fixed on the bottle to make sure that it didn't pull anything funny. Sighing to himself, Kratos pulled off one of his gloves, poured some of the thick green gel into his palm and dabbed the pads of his thumb, index and middle finger into the goo.

"This will sting at first, but it will ease the pain and cool the itching." He explained as he lightly brushed the gel onto Lloyd's wound.

"Okay..." Lloyd nodded, still standing stock still with his eyes clenched shut. Kratos' eyebrow arched at Lloyd's display, but he shook it off and continued to dress the wound with the goo.

'He doesn't actually think I would put it in his eyes.. does he?' Kratos asked himself as he smeared the green gel over Lloyd's forehead. Once the wound was thickly coated with the lime substance, Kratos capped the bottle and returned it to his pocket. He then unhooked the flap of Lloyd's backpack, reached inside and pulled out a fresh roll of bandages that he had received from the nun before he had left.

Placing a finger underneath the beginning strip of cloth, Kratos unraveled the long wrap with a swift hand and encircled it around Lloyd's forehead, all the while making sure that he wasn't cutting off circulation and air to the boy's abrasion.

'That would only make it worse.' He muttered to himself as he worked steadily. 'Though, it is quite amazing that he managed to heal this quickly with only some basic healing and common first aid practices.'

"Hey.. Kratos?"

Kratos glanced down slightly from Lloyd's forehead to see that Lloyd's reddish brown eyes had opened and were staring back at his own with fervent attention.

"What is it?" He asked, tucking the edge of the cloth into the other rolls so it stood in place.

"You wouldn't... really put that stuff in my eyes, would you?" The small boy asked as he eyed the older angel finish up fixing the bandage. Kratos sighed and smirked.

"I would do so if you were flailing around and my hand slipped." He replied, wiping off the gel from his hands on a stray piece of cloth. "So that is up to you, I suppose." Brusquely eyeing his handiwork, Kratos stood back up and, regloved his hand, returning it to the hilt of his sword.

"But not intentionally, no." The faux mercenary surveyed the path and then back at the boy who was still poking his numb forehead with an index finger.

"Let's move on." He stated stoically and trekked down the path, his cape billowing behind him.

Lloyd watched Kratos, his face perplexed, patted the bandage with the palm of his hand and gaped when he registered that Kratos was about thirty yards down the highway ahead of him.

"Hey, wait for me!" Lloyd called and chased after the angelic swordsman, his leather shoes kicking up dust behind him.


"How long does it take one tailor to measure one little girl?" Yuan asked himself aloud as he leaned against the wall outside his office. His arms folded against his chest, the Renegade leader sighed tiredly and stared at the metal dome that ran overhead as the roof of the hallway.

When the tailor finally arrived, Colette had jumped at the opportunity of new clothes, as her old ones were so gigantic, they had the appearance that she had attacked a set of curtains and the curtains had won. The tailor had been equally giddy at the idea of creating a set of new clothes for the little chosen, since the only thing she had made for over 300 years had been replicas of desian uniforms. After a while, that pattern and style grew very old, very fast. As a result, she had practically done a cartwheel when she saw the little girl with whom she could play dress up.

Snorting impatiently, Yuan glanced out of the corner of his eye and fleetingly gazed upon the door of his office. The clean lines of the door stared back at him and mocked him for his new place in the hallway and how he was not in his plush office chair. The blue haired angel's eyes narrowed dangerously at the door and he tore them away so they eyed the ceiling instead.

"And why, may I ask, was I ejected from my own office?!" He demanded to the empty hallway, though he did not expect an answer. The blue haired half elf then shut his eyes in frustration, the events from two hours ago replaying back in his mind and cackling raucously at him while they rewinded again and again.

"First thing's first." The tailor nodded as she rolled up her sleeves and took out some ticked tape. "We need to take some measurements." Colette fidgeted with the sleeve of her huge tent of a dress and bit her lip as she eyed the Renegade leader, who was sitting at his desk in his swivel chair, nose deep in documents. The tailor looked perplexed at first, but when Colette pointed to Yuan, she caught on and nodded in sympathy.

"Sir, we have a problem." She saluted, her ticked measuring tape draped back over her shoulders like a hunting anaconda. Sighing, Yuan glanced up from his papers and raised an eyebrow.

"What is it?" He asked as he stood up with a stack of the papers in hand. The tailor then gently nudged Colette's shoulder with her hand, gesturing for her to step forward.

"Um... Mr. Yuan?" Colette's tiny voice wavered as she held up the hem of her gigantic dress. "I... need some privacy." The Renegade commander shut the door to his large filing cabinet, glanced over his shoulder at her and watched her carefully, before he understood what she had meant.

"I see." Yuan nodded curtly and turned around so he was no longer observing her, but instead perused his bookcase. The tailor and Colette looked at each other, then back at their blue haired friend and the tailor sighed exasperatedly, her left gloved hand pinching the bridge of her nose.

"Sir, we need COMPLETE privacy." She restated, her hand on her hip. "As in, a male free atmosphere." Yuan peered over at her, frowning as he did, and arched a turquoise eyebrow.

"What do you suggest?" He asked flatly. "That I leave my office so you can turn it into a beauty parlor?" Silence filled the room like congealed cream stew as both females stared pointedly at Yuan. Yuan blinked.

"... you can't be serious."

"Yes, sir, we are. A girl needs her privacy." The tailor nodded seriously as she began to herd the Renegade commander towards the door, who in turn was dragging his heels every step of the way.

"But this is MY office-"

"It was your idea, sir." The tailor replied jovially, nudging him out the door. "We'll let you back in when we're done." With that, the door shut with a loud thud and the titanium locking mechanism latched, successfully barring Yuan from any way of getting back his office.

So there he stood in the hallway, officeless, banished and thoroughly agitated.

"I cannot believe I was just banished from my own office by a tailor." He glowered at the paneled floor. "This is infuriating. It was not as if I was going to look or do anything suspect." As he suffered in silence very loudly, the door to his office clicked open and the tailor popped her head out of the door frame, beaming jubilantly.

"I'm done!" She called, strolling out into the hallway, the door shutting behind her. "I'm giving her a minute to change."

"What a silly little thing, though. She wouldn't take off her undershirt or tights when I did the measurements, even though they were five sizes too big." The half elf tailor cooed. "She said she'd get too cold." Glowing at the door, the tailor beamed again and sighed.

"Ooh, she's just too cute!" The tailor continued, her voice laced with bliss. "She was so much fun to make clothes for. I made her four new outfits and a pair of pajamas and oh, I just can't wait to see her in them. Too cute for words, that's what she is, just too cute for words-"

'I can think of a few words..' Yuan muttered bitterly in his mind, but didn't let his thoughts grace his face.

"So, if you're done cooing at my office door, perhaps I can now reclaim my personal work area?"

"Hm?" The tailor broke out of her stupor and blinked. "Oh, yes, yes, you should be able to go in now."

'.. how generous of you.' The angel commander bitterly spat in his mind. 'Never mind I was the one who occupied it first.' Instead of voicing his many evil thoughts he had swimming in his mind, Yuan brushed past her and paused at the door frame.

'I suppose it would be polite to knock.' He mused. 'Though, the many times those people decided to raid my base, they never did.' Bringing up a hand, Yuan knocked swiftly on the door twice.

'I won't, however, stoop to their level.' He replied to himself. The door made no response to his knock, so he figured it was safe to enter without a high pitched shriek killing his eardrums. Yuan pressed the button on the side of the door which made the large panel retract into the wall. Nodding at it, the angelic commander strode into his office and inspected it.

The damage was considerably less than he had expected. There were some scraps of cloth on the floor, along with an ancient looking sewing machine on his desk, but all in all, it could have been much worse. Yuan let out a breathe of relief that he didn't have a crater where his office used to be, but his attention was snagged by a little sigh from the corner of the room. Pivoting, Yuan saw the small angelic chosen, who was laying on his office's plush bench, fast asleep.

In place of the huge balloon of a dress, Colette now sported a crisp white sun dress that hung down to her lower thigh, and was decorated with two robin's egg blue ribbons that trailed around the edge of the dress in parallel lines, as to hide the hem from view. The dress had puckered peasant sleeves that came in at her shoulders, but then flared out in a bell fashion to her wrists so it looked like her arms had been engulfed in a funnel. All along the edge of the sleeve, the same blue ribbon had been laced in and out, tying off at a bow at the very end. Her collar swooped down in a boat neck fashion, and ribbons also adorned in and out of the fabric, tying off with a loose bow at the base. To add to the outfit, Colette had also tied navy blue ribbons in her hair so they rested against her blonde locks of hair.

All in all, she did look absolutely adorable.

However, while Yuan did momentarily notice her new outfit, he was too preoccupied with the large bunch of thick, stiff cloth that Colette clung to with unconscious, yet fervent focus.

"What pray tell is that?" The Renegade commander inquired, pointing to the sheet like fabric that Colette was hugging in her sleep. "And where did she get it?"

"Oh, I just fond that spare cape lying around in my pile of mended clothes that I hadn't passed out to people yet, so I let her use it." The tailor replied as she packed up the rest of her supplies and headed for the door. "She seemed so fond of it, I told her she could have it." Yuan raised an eyebrow and leaned down, prodding the cape with his finger.

"... Isn't that my traveling cape?" Yuan asked as he poked the thick wool material of the cape. Sure enough, it was his thickest traveling cape that she had chosen to squish while she slept.

"Huh.. well would you look at that?" The tailor commented, obviously surprised. "Well, there's your cape, sir. Freshly mended, though it's now occupied by a little girl who seems to like it quite a bit." The tailor then saluted her irritated commander and exited out the door. Watching the door with narrowed eyes, Yuan shot it a death glare that would have peeled the paint if he had used it for long.

He sighed, not wanting to peel his paint, and ran a hand through the aqua ponytail that fell about his shoulders. He then turned his gaze back to Colette, who still curled up on the couch, her blonde hair trailing down her face.

'At least... I have my traveling cape mended now.' He told himself as he watched Colette's tiny hands curl around the edge of the cape and dig her fingers into the folds of the fabric.

Staring down at the little girl who snoozed peacefully on his sofa, his traveling cape latched in her grip, the Angel of Reason sighed tiredly and returned to his desk, flopping unceremoniously into his chair.

'This is going to be a habit. I can tell.'


Once the pair reached the gates of Meltokio, Lloyd's enthusiasm had curbed completely and he looked exhausted. Walking so much in one session was one thing, but bouncing up and down while doing so took it out of him more than he would have admitted. That's what Kratos believed to be so, anyway.

"When did the road to Meltokio get so long... and why am I so tired?" The boy asked aloud, his limbs limp at his sides.

"That is what happens when you decide to bounce instead of conserving your energy like a sensible person." Kratos replied curtly as they both adjourned into the main cobbled street of Meltokio. Lloyd glared at Kratos and folded his arms.

".. stick in the mud. " He replied, tearing his eyes away from the older angel to stare into the gargantuan city that stretched in front of him. Instantly, his lethargic vanished and was replaced by one of enthusiasm.

"Wow, look at the size of this place!" The tiny boy exclaimed as he ran into the ground level of the city and spun around, taking all of the sights in. "This is so much bigger than last time!"

'That was because YOU were so much larger last time.' Kratos thought flatly, but kept his comments to himself. Lloyd was obviously enjoying himself and he didn't feel it right to ruin his moment. The little boy wheeled around and pointed to the first set of stairs that stretched up into the middle level of Meltokio.

"Race ya!" He called. Kratos regarded Lloyd with a deadpan look, his eyebrow caulked.

"I don't race, Lloyd." He stated, but it was too late. Lloyd had already plowed up the stairs, laughing as he did so. Kratos sighed and shook his head tiredly.

'When he's excited, there's no getting to that boy.' He told himself and began his dignified ascent of the stairwell.

Once he reached the middle platform that housed several botanical plots, Kratos saw that Lloyd was standing next to the second set of stairs, both of his hands resting behind his head and his left knee brought up against the wall.

'Was he.. waiting for me?' the angelic swordsman asked himself. Upon his arrival, Lloyd's head snapped over to Kratos and he grinned triumphantly.

"I won." He nodded smilingly to himself, if anyone else. "Want to go again?" Kratos groaned softly and eyed the boy with another flat look.

"Lloyd, there was no racing involved, as I did not race you." He pointed out calmly. "So no." Instead of pouting like Kratos had expected, Lloyd grinned wryly up at him.

"You're just worried I'll win again." The former teenager responded, his eyebrow raised to match his older counterpart's. Kratos, who was feeling slightly irked by Lloyd's lack of listening, closed his eyes and sighed.

"Lloyd, that is not what I meant-"

"Still gonna win!" Lloyd interrupted, now halfway up the second flight of stairs. Kratos watched in exasperation at his son's display and shook his head.

'No getting to him, indeed.' With his hand on the hilt of his word, Kratos quickly walked up the steps to where the first class resided, his patience beginning to run thin.

"See, told ya I'd win." Lloyd grinned at Kratos as he sat on the side of the walk near the top of the stairs, his scrawny, boyish legs dangling over the side. Kratos sighed and mentally fought the urge to groan and pinch his nose in exasperation. Once he controlled it, Kratos strode over to where the boy sat and observed the area around him, taking in all of the people who passed through, the birds that chirped merrily in the air, and the direction in which the wind blew. Meanwhile, the boy swayed from side to side in his seat on the walk and his eyes trailed up until they rested on Kratos' face.

"So... where are you going now?" Lloyd asked out of the blue as he continued to swing his legs back and forth. Kratos sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. Lloyd was not going to let it go no matter what, so he had no choice by to throw the boy a bone, albeit a small one.

".. I have business with the church." He replied concisely. It was true enough to not be a complete lie. He DID have business in the church, just.. not business that Yggdrasill had with the church. That was true enough to slide by unscathed.. he hoped.

"... oh, okay." Lloyd blinked, looking a bit astounded at having received an answer at all, let alone that one. "..... I suppose you would, since you're pretty high up in Cruxis and all. Yggdrasill must send you on a bunch of that kinda thing."

".. Mm." The older man nodded in agreement and glanced down at the boy who sat next to his side. The miniature version of Lloyd looked back up at Kratos, his cherrywood irises set on his own, and stood back up, stretching as he did so.

"I've got to go to see if Zelos is home yet." Lloyd yawned into his scarf and stretched again. "I bet he's gotten back by now."

"Then this is where we part ways." Kratos stated stiffly, his hand ever resting on the hilt of his sword.

"Yeah, I guess so." Lloyd nodded in agreement. After he readjusted his scarf, Lloyd stood up straight and locked eyes with Kratos.

"So, I'll be going then." He said firmly, his spiked hair fluffed by a stray breeze. "See you later, I guess." Lloyd then pivoted on his little brown shoes and took off towards the aristocrat's quarter, spiky chestnut hair swishing in the wind.

Kratos nodded curtly at the boy's fading back and turned in the opposite direction. He was going to go without a word, continue on doing what he needed to do and collect the sacred wood he required. Then he could go back to assisting Lloyd from the sidelines....

..where he belonged.

"Hey, Kratos!"

Shaken from his train of thought, Kratos paused and turned his gaze over his shoulder to see that Lloyd had stopped his sprint and was waving at him, a huge and sparkling grin blazoned on his face.

"Thanks for everything you did!" The boy called. "I owe you one!" With that, Lloyd wheeled around and dashed towards the aristocrat's quarters, the tails of his scarf flipping in the air behind him.

Kratos observed the boy run in the opposite direction, his mind completely blank of words. His wordless exit had been ruined by the grateful smile of his jubilant son, who had just truly smiled at him for the first time since after the Tower of Salvation. It hadn't been a little smile, either. Lloyd had given a elated and joyful smile that lit up the boy's whole face with warmth and light.. and that smile had been directed at him no less.

A tiny part of him, a deeply buried, deep seeded part wanted to chase after the boy, to tell him not to run so fast in a crowd, to tell him his friends would still be there later if he was patient, if they were even there at all, and that he should eat something first. However, the angelic swordsman didn't move, transfixed on his position in the side of the upper courtyard. He didn't move, or even blink. All he did was stand there, his eyes fixated on Lloyd's retreating back and his left hand on the hilt of his sword. That was all he would let himself do.

'.... No, that time has passed. I cannot chase what used to be.' Kratos emptily watched the fading visage of Lloyd sprinting off towards the aristocrat's quarter and turned on his heel. He had matters he had to attend to, items he could no longer delay. Besides, there was nothing more to watch, anyway. Lloyd had long since disappeared from view, only his shadow haunting the memory of his eyes.

His swallowtail cape fluttering behind him, the angel swiftly headed for the enormous cathedral that laid next to the castle gates, his eyes cool, calculating and emotionless.

'I cannot pursue what I forfeited long ago ... no matter if I want to.'


"Huh... not bad, Sebastian, not bad." Zelos approvingly inspected himself in the mirror. Having just taken a bath and received his new clothes, the short chosen preened himself in front of the mirror and flashed himself a wondrous grin.

"If I'd known you'd have found this, I would have come back a lot sooner." He laughed, readjusting his coat. His new coat much resembled that of a trench coat, but it stopped just short of his calves and had black belts tied around the cuffs. The same shade of pink as his vest, the coat's buttons were shiny and black, as were the piped trim that ran along the outside edge of the coat.

Underneath his coat, Zelos sported a simple black v-neck sleeveless shirt, which he had tucked into his white capri pants. A white belt held his pants up and clipped together with a gold buckle, which shone in the mirror and glinted off the glass.

Zelos had left the coat open, tying it back into place with the matching belt straps that had come with the coat so it looked very much like a smaller version of his vest. Once it had properly been adjusted to his taste, the narcissistic chosen then felt his shoes, which were basically miniature copies of his original pair, and flipped his new white headband out of his eyes. After he'd preened the proper amount as he deemed fit, Zelos winked and struck a pose in the mirror.

"Show time." Zelos smirked in the mirror, and glanced up at Sebastian, who hadn't left his side the entire time. Sighing at his butler, Zelos stretched, wandered over to the side tablet that sat next to the chaise and tucked the brand new sword that sat upon it safely into his belt.

"Hey, anybody shows up, tell them I'm out." He called back to his butler, pulling a small white pouch off the side table and stuffed it into his jacket. "Unless it's papal knights. Then tell them I'm stuck up a tree on the other side of the world or something."

"Yes sir." Sebastian replied. Waving lazily behind him, Zelos strode to the door, pulled it open and meandered out the manor.


Lloyd trotted down the cobbled steps of the aristocrat's quarters quickly, each step pounding on the ornate road below him. He had never been fond for the aristocrats or their lifestyles much the first time he had visited Zelos' house, and that hadn't changed when he shrank. Lloyd had always been a fond believer in the basic necessities when it came to decorating and found that usually less was more. However, the rich and noble occupants disagreed with him, as they believed more was more and too much wasn't enough. It certainly showed amongst the passersby in the rich district, as they all sported lacy collars and cuffs, velvet, silk and fur clothes, rich and detailed shoes and more money than brains. Grimacing to himself, the small boy took in several of the fashions and shuddered at the thought of having to wear them.

'That would definitely itch.' He commented as an older man who wore a lace outfit strode past, his hand on a jewel encrusted cane. 'It's like someone dumped Colette's eyelet bedspread on him.' Looking thoroughly disgusted, Lloyd continued down the street, his eyes watching the carriages that passed him by.

'Man, do they really need all this stuff?' Lloyd asked himself as he passed a particularly gaudy coach, frilly ribbons and lace trim stitched delicately along the outside. 'It seems a bit much to me.' Turning his head back to the road, Lloyd saw several groups of middle aged rich women skitter in his direction. Albeit different shades and dyes, all of the women looked exactly the same, similar hairstyles which resembled oddly colored beehives that stretched high into the air, and a uniform pattern of dresses, each of which had more lace than Lloyd thought should have existed. They even had round deep red circles of rouge painted on their cheeks, which clashed violently with the vibrant eye shadow and lipstick that adorned their faces.

Lloyd didn't want to stare, because he knew staring was rude, but he couldn't look away. Something that bizarre deserved at least one good gawk.

'It's like they were attacked with a stamp set.' He blinked in horror as he watched them descend upon the street in droves. As more of them flooded out onto the walk, Lloyd noticed the space on the street that was ruffle free was growing slimmer by the second and the chances of him avoiding the satin barrage had disappeared from his view.

'Man... now they grew.' He groaned, 'Guess there's no way around it... I'm gonna have to rush them.' Kicking up some dust, the first grader dashed forward and squeezed into the lurid barrier of satin, lace and polyester.

Trying not to gain any attention, Lloyd darted carefully in and out of the crowds of the painted up women, each with pearls and gems strewn about their bodies and parasols of sheer fabric adorning their arms. No matter which way he dodged, nasal voices of spoiled women flooded his senses, all of them were all gossiping about the latest news of fashion, new tips on snagging young men and what the neighbors down the lane had done last week. Since Lloyd's hearing was usually excellent, though selective when it came to the professor's lessons, he groaned in pain as he ran through the crowds, desperately trying to find the exit from the gaggle of laughing vultures. Finally making it out of the cluster, Lloyd picked up the pace and sprinted as fast as he could away from the wall of full skirts.

'Ugh, that was disgusting.' the boy made a revolted face as he ran away from the pack of older hyenas. 'They're trying to snag guys my real age for themselves and if I hear 'scandalous' one more time, I'm gonna hurl-'

"Bud!"

Lloyd stopped cold and craned his head around. He could have sworn he heard something, but he didn't see anyone who would have known who he was. Frowning, Lloyd folded his arms and eyed the cobblestones underneath his feet, deep in thought.

'There's nobody here.' He thought tensely, eyeing some of the lanky men who were gossiping about the latest ruffle trends, 'But I could have sworn I heard-'

"BUD!"

Looking up, Lloyd saw a blur of red and pink zooming towards him and launched itself into the air, coming right for him. Taking a step back in shock, Lloyd froze where he stood and the thing collided with his chest, knocking the wind and the balance out of him. Reeling back, Lloyd landed heavily on the road, his tailbone squealing in pain. However, he quickly forgot about his sore coccyx when a pink clad arm wrapped itself around his neck and pulled him into a fierce hug.

"Wh-wha?" the six year old boy gaped dumbfounded at the stealth hugging session he was being subjected to in the middle of the street. Looking upward, he caught the view of a seven year old boy with a shock of long red hair who mauled him with a bear hug around the neck.

"Bud, it's you and you're not a pancake!" Zelos cooed happily, rubbing his fist into Lloyd's hair and beaming. Lloyd, with both of his hands on Zelos' arm, tried to dislodge himself from the Chosen's grip, though he wasn't successful.

"Zelos?!" He asked, though he was pretty sure it was him. No one else launched themselves at him at all, let alone like that.

"Oh, Bud, I'm so happy to see you!" The chosen beamed, flipping a spike of Lloyd's hair back and forth. "I was so worried about you." Finally breaking his grip, Lloyd stepped back and blinked.

"You were worried about me?" He asked. Zelos laughed and clapped a hand on Lloyd's back.

"Nah, I knew you were too stubborn to just throw in the towel like that." He laughed. Lloyd snorted and shook his head.

"Yeah, how could I ever think you'd actually worry about anyone who you didn't see in a mirror?" He quipped back, his face in a wry grin. Sniffing, Zelos pretended to look hurt and clutched his coat.

"Ow, Bud, that one was harsh." He sighed. "But, that goes to show you're still the hotheaded Bud we all know and tolerate." Rolling his eyes, Lloyd snorted again.

"Yeah, yeah. Live it up." The six year old boy replied. "But seriously, I can't believe I'm saying this, but boy am I glad to see you. I haven't seen anyone else yet, so seeing you is actually good for once." Zelos gasped, put his hand to his chest and let out a fake sob.

"Ouch, man, ouch. Y'know, there's only so much I can take before it really strikes home." He feigned a tear and grinned. "Still, good timing, man."

"Good timing?" Lloyd asked, his tapered eyebrow caulked upward. "For what?" Zelos grinned and hooked a thumb towards the stairs that led to the lower quarters.

"I got a message from the Elemental Research Laboratory to get there quick." He replied. "They're gonna try and see what the hell's wrong with all of us and the more the merrier with test samples."

"Huh.. not bad, Zelos." Lloyd nodded approvingly. "That way we can figure out if we ate something that did this or whatever it was."

"I know." The chosen added smugly. "Now, let's get a move on." He then scanned his eyes over the street and then turned his eyes back to the large bandage on Lloyd's forehead.

"But I gotta know. What the heck happened to your head?" the miniature chosen reached up and stabbed Lloyd's forehead with his finger. Cringing, Lloyd pulled out of his reach and rubbed his forehead.

"Yeowch, don't do that." He groaned, as he gingerly massaged his forehead. "Don't worry about it. I'll tell you on the way." Zelos raised an eyebrow and ran a hand through his hair.

"Whatever floats your boat, Bud." He responded, observing the stairs. "Then start talking. We're shipping out for the institute stat."

"Alright." Lloyd agreed, pulling down the straps of his brown pack and tossing one of the tassels of his scarf over his shoulder. Rubbing his pink nose with his arm, the first grader peered around the road, looked over at his crimson counterpart and grinned sheepishly.

"So, how do we get there?" He asked. "I kinda forgot." Zelos sighed exasperatedly, his crimson tresses falling into his face.

"I'm not entirely surprised you forgot, Lloyd." He commented loftily. "After all, it wasn't about overthrowing Cruxis or food, so no wonder you forgot where the laboratory was." Lloyd shot Zelos a dirty look and folded his arms.

"Oh, very funny." He grumbled. "But still, where is it?" Brushing a finger under his nose, Zelos grinned and shot his finger straight at the gaggle of ladies with the fluffed skirts and tall beehive hairstyles.

"If we get past that pack of painted wolves, we'll get to the stairs and it'll be a beeline right for the bottom." He replied. "After that, it's a straight shot to the left." Suddenly, Zelos' eyes sparkled and, latching a hand onto Lloyd's arm, took off in a dash towards the clump of women.

"Whoa, wait, what?" Lloyd protested as he was dragged along. "I gotta go back in there?! I just got out of there and-"

"And back in you go." Zelos grinned and, with a powerful swing, threw Lloyd into the throngs of rouge ridden middle-aged women.

"I'll get you back for this!" Lloyd called threateningly as he disappeared from view. Laughing madly and not at all intimidated by his friend's threats that echoed through the cluster, Zelos rolled up his sleeves and dove into the growing crowds of ladies, making his way to the stairs.


"And that's how I got here." Lloyd breathed as the two boys sprinted down the stairs. It had taken quite the amount of effort to escape the closely knit gaggle of rich cougars and after they had successfully squirmed their way out, the pair of young boys roared down the steps. During their excursion, Lloyd had filled Zelos in on what had happened to him since they had all scattered.

"What, you serious?" Zelos gaped. "The old dude of death found you AND you're still in one piece?!" Lloyd shrugged and kept up his pace, each step he took echoing down the stairs.

"Yeah, I know, right? Not only that, but he said he wasn't going to turn me into Cruxis or Yggdrasill." He added, his scarf tails whipping about behind him. "And when we got here, he let me go just like that, no fight or anything."

Zelos' eyebrows shot to the roof and he shook his head in disbelief.

"I wanna believe you Bud, but that's... that's just odd." The redheaded chosen frowned. Lloyd frowned as well and sighed.

"That's what I thought. I mean, what kind of enemy doesn't try to take down another enemy when they're weakened? To top it off, he rescues and helps the enemy get better?" Rubbing his cheek with his sleeve, Lloyd trotted down the steps, watching each step to make sure he didn't trip.

"It just doesn't make any sense to me, anyway."

"Regardless of whether or not it's you Lloyd, I don't think it would make much sense to anybody else either." Zelos replied. The chosen ran a hand through his crimson hair, yawned and shook his head, the throngs of sleep still echoing in the corners of his eyes.

"What a weird guy. Still, he's an enemy, Bud. You've gotta keep that in mind." Sighing a little, Lloyd nodded tiredly in agreement and unconsciously felt his forehead, which the freshly changed bandages clung to his head like a barnacle on a pier. When his fingers hit the fresh linen wrap, the small boy's eyes grew heavy and his shoulders slumped.

Kratos had taken so much time and care to reapplying them.. it just didn't seem right to call him an enemy. A betrayer, sure. A royal pain to deal with, definitely. Arrogant and standoffish, certainly. But.. enemy just didn't feel right... not anymore anyway. Sighing to himself, Lloyd shook himself from his thoughts and focused on the stairs in front of his feet again.

".... yeah, I know. There's no way I'm forgetting that he betrayed us and all." He murmured, "But still... why did he help me? I don't get it." Zelos shrugged and sped up his running, the bubblegum pink flaps of his trench coat billowing behind him against the breeze.

"I dunno, Bud, I dunno." He responded wistfully. "Though, maybe he did that on purpose." Lloyd's cherrywood eyes shifted to Zelos and his chestnut eyebrow arched.

"How do you figure that one?" He asked curiously. Yawning a little, Zelos gazed up at the blue sky and stretched.

"Think about it, Lloyd. Why would he be so.. nice is such a strong word...." The pink clad chosen screeched to a halt on the stairs and thought, his hand on his chin.

".... civil!" Zelos pumped a fist into the air. "Yeah, that's it. Why would that guy be civil to you if he's your enemy?" Flashing a finger in the air, he thrust it front of Lloyd's nose and waved it back and forth like the wand of a metronome.

"Because he wants you to trust him. He's gets you to trust him, he'll get all the answers he needs and then you'll be a Lloyd-kabob in three minutes." Zelos stated bluntly. Lloyd turned a little pale and took a step back, his hand still on his forehead.

".. I don't want to be a Lloyd-kabob." Lloyd replied stiffly. "I'd kinda like to avoid that." Smiling grimly, Zelos patted Lloyd's shoulders and wrapped an arm around them.

"Then best keep what wits you've got about you." He advised, clenching one of his eyes shut and curling his finger like a hook, "Out here, there be monsters." Snorting at Zelos, Lloyd shook his head and brushed off Zelos' arm, though he was grinning at his friend.

"I know, I know." He acknowledged tiredly. "I'll keep an eye out."

"You do that, bud of mine." Zelos grinned and, snagging Lloyd's sleeve, veered to the left and dragged Lloyd after him. Lloyd, having not expected the movement, lost his balance, swung through the air and landed gingerly on the base level of Meltokio.

"Ack... don't do that! You almost made me fal-" Lloyd began to complain, but Zelos didn't give him any time to do so. Red tresses smacking his younger friend in the face, he whipped down the street, Lloyd's arm firmly in his grasp, and made a beeline for the street that led to Elemental Research Laboratory.


"Here we are, Bud." Zelos pointed to the large building that laid in the shadows of the bridge overhead. "Told ya I'd find it." Lloyd snorted and folded his arms against his chest.

"That was before you decided that the lady at the inn needed to be flirted with." He retorted, his chestnut eyebrow caulked in an arch. Placing his palms on the door, the red headed chosen smugly smirked at Lloyd and shrugged.

"Hey, we got candy out of it." Zelos replied as he pushed open the doors to the laboratory with a fierce shove. "It's wasn't a complete waste of time-"

"There you are, you stinkin' chosen!"

Both boys' eyes shot to the building's entrance as a familiar red-clad miniature ninja with spiky black hair charge them, her fiery gaze locked on Zelos. Zelos beamed at her and saluted lazily.

"Heya, Miss Ironing Board, how's it going?" He flashed a charming smile as she drew closer. "I see you managed to keep your fiery personality, though your chest is still flat as a pancake-"

"Don't call me that, you sorry excuse for a chosen!" Sheena jumped, booted him in the stomach and lightly touched back down on the ground. Zelos, writhing on the ground, looked up at her and grinned, though there were tears in the corners of his eyes.

"Heh, I still got it." He smirked jovially at her, who in turned glared daggers at him.

"You've got a lot of things." Sheena retorted hotly, her arms folded against her chest. "What took you so long?"

"Ran into Bud." Zelos replied weakly as he stood up, felt his abdomen for any signs of internal or external bleeding and pulled Lloyd into view. Up until that point, the red clad first grader had managed to stay out of Sheena's sight and thus out of her warpath. Blinking, Sheena looked over at Lloyd and her demeanor changed like the flip of a coin.

"Hey, Lloyd, how's it going?" She asked, her voice sunny. "Did you have a hard time finding your way here?" Lloyd, who had been expecting, paused and shrugged.

"No, it wasn't too hard." He replied, scratching the back of his head. "Not once Zelos actually started paying attention to where he was going."

"Ouch, Bud." Zelos complained as he ran a hand through his long red hair. "And this from the guy who can't stay awake during his lessons?"

"Hey, that's only because they're boring-"

"Okay, okay. We get it." Sheena interrupted both boys' banter and flipped part of her raven bangs out of her face. As she did, the mini ninja noticed the large strips of linen that graced Lloyd's forehead. Her curiosity got the better of her, so Sheena leaned over and prodded Lloyd's bandage with her finger.

"By the way Lloyd, what happened to your head?" She pointed to his bandaged face and poked it with her finger again. Lloyd recoiled at her touch and rubbed the spot where she had skewered his face with her pointy childlike finger.

"Got banged up." He responded. "I don't really know how I did it, but I did quite a job of it anyway."

"Oh.. huh." The ninja nodded in reply and trotted back over to her cabinet where she had sat for the last couple days.

"So, what happened to you guys?" Sheena asked as she retook her spot on the filing cabinet. Lloyd looked down at himself and then at Zelos, who had begun braiding his hair.

"It's a long story." He admitted. Sheena shrugged.

"Eh, I got time." She replied boredly. "So spill, what's the deal with everyone so far?" Lloyd peered back at Zelos in an effort for help with the story telling, but Zelos merely whistled to himself, ignoring Lloyd's pleading looks. Lloyd dealt him a death glare and then turned to Sheena, whose gaze hadn't wavered.

"Well..." Lloyd quickly explained about what had happened to him to Sheena, how he had run into Kratos and such, his departure from the House of Guidance, and the information he had learned from the nun about the four seraphim. Conveniently he left out the part of falling from a window, nearly being suffocated by said nun and attempting to interrogate Kratos while he was in his underwear. Such things he didn't ever want to think about again, let alone say them in front of the loudest boy in Tethe'alla.

"And that's what happened to me." He summed up. Sheena rested a hand on her cheek as she listened and nodded once Lloyd had finished.

"Uh huh." she responded after she thought a minute. "Man, that's really weird. Why didn't Kratos turn you into curry when he had the chance?"

"That was what I said, 'cept I thought Lloyd'd be a kabob by now." Zelos added, still fiddling with his hair.

"Really? I thought Lloyd'd be more of a soup or curry-"

"Does it really matter?" Lloyd interrupted, his face turning red over the thought of being turned into a tasty treat. "Anyway, I got here and Zelos was the only one I found. Except him, you and Kratos, I haven't heard from or seen anybody."

"That's not good." Sheena shook her head tiredly. "And here I'd hoped we'd have at least heard from Colette or something-"

"Oh, you don't need to worry about her." Zelos interjected as he tied of the tail of his braid and let it hang on his shoulders. "She's fine."

"She is?" Lloyd asked surprisedly. Zelos nodded lazily and flopped against the cabinet that Sheena sat on.

"Yeah. She's babysitting Yuan and the Renegades right now, so she's just fine." He replied as he yawned into his hand. "She and I got nabbed by the Renegades and now she's hanging out with them."

The brunette boy glowered at the ground and curled his hand into a fist, thinking about the renegade ambush that had led all of them apart.

"Yuan... you're going to regret having done that..." He growled aloud, but Zelos' laugh shook him out of it.

"Don't be so glum, Bud." Zelos grinned. "This all worked out in our favor. Ya see, I suggested Colette stay behind so we can A) Keep an eye on Yuan and B) Keep her out of the way of Cruxis. Everyone wins."

Lloyd's eye twitched and he fought the urge to box the chosen's ears.

"You could have said something, y'know." He commented crankily. Zelos thought about it, shrugged and nodded.

"Yeah, I could have, but I just got out of some very important beauty sleep and-" The chosen's utterly pathetic excuse cut off short as the door leading the basement opened with a loud creak and a set of footsteps echoed through the entry room. As the owner of the footsteps, a half elf scientist with green hair and a special badge that read 'Head Scientist', reached the main floor, the tiny shinobi beamed with delight and stood up from her seat on the filing cabinet.

"Did you get my results back?" Sheena asked hopefully as she bounced off the cabinet. The head scientist looked over at Sheena, and he sighed unhappily, his shoulders slumping as he did.

"Unfortunately, we did not.. nor can we. It has just been brought to our attention that we cannot help you further, regardless if we want to, which we do." The scientist said, regret dripping in his voice. Sheena, Lloyd and Zelos gaped at him.

"What? Why?" Sheena asked, horrified.

"The pope has put out a direct order that any persons found helping the Chosen or his companions will be put to death." The half elf responded. "He's even captured one of the others and has set a date for her execution, so he can use her as an example."

"What?!" Lloyd demanded, pushing forward. "Who?"

"Kate, one of the half elf researchers from Sybak."

Lloyd's blood boiled and he crunched his tiny hand into a fist, fire in his eyes. Because of assisting their escape from the clutches of the Papal Knights so they could save Genis and the Professor, Kate was set to be executed with no mercy. He wouldn't let that happen. He couldn't.

"We've gotta save her!" He exclaimed to the other two children before he wheeled around and stared down the researcher.

"Where's she being kept?" Lloyd asked, the spikes of his hair flaring with intensity. Taken aback by the boy's passion, the researcher blinked.

"She's being held in the prison in the Castle." He responded. "I believe there is a way to get in via a route underneath in the coliseum but-"

"Fine by me." Lloyd interrupted and pivoted back to the mini ninja and the shrunken chosen.

"Let's go, you guys." He proclaimed and made for the door, his scarf billowing behind him. However, just as he reached for the door, Zelos jumped in front of him and held his arms out as a barrier.

"Whoa, whoa, and how do you plan on doing that, Lloyd?" The seven year old asked incredulously. "The only way you can get in there is by competing and you're six-"

"That doesn't matter and I don't care!" Lloyd replied sharply, so sharply that Zelos pulled back in shock. "She helped us, so we have to help her!" Ducking under Zelos' arm, Lloyd wrenched open the door and glanced over his shoulder at them.

"You guys can come if you want, but I'm going." He stated curtly, and with a flick of his scarf, sprinted down the cobbled path as fast as his little legs could carry him.

Zelos watched his stubborn friend dash off in a stupor and sighed, though he was smiling.

"Regardless of his size or age, Lloyd's still Lloyd." Zelos nodded approvingly.

"Yeah, no kidding." Sheena agreed, her arms folded. Nodding to each other, both of them then swiftly pursued the tiny idealist up the street and stairs, and towards the huge battle dome of Meltokio.


"Whaddya mean I'm too little to compete?!" Lloyd demanded as his eyes partially peered over the counter.

"Sorry Squirt, but rules are rules." The woman behind the counter of the coliseum. "We can't have little kids going in there to get turned into pancakes. It's bad press."

"But that's not right!" Lloyd protested. "I have just as much right to fight as the others do-"

"You're very cute, but shoo, kid." The lady yawned at her post and flicked him away with her wrist. Lloyd glowered at her and retreated to his friends, feeling thoroughly annoyed and defeated.

"Now what?" He hissed to them in a hushed whisper. Zelos looked over Lloyd's shoulder at the young lady, who was reading a fashion's magazine and smirked.

"Leave this to me." He told them smugly and strode past Lloyd, his pink coat swishing behind him. Zelos skipped over to the counter and began chatting happily to the woman, swaying his weight from leg to leg like a little boy.

Instead of chastising him or shooing him away, the receptionist started cooing over how cute and precocious he was, her face growing pink. Zelos kept up his little charade for about ten minutes, before he beamed at her, and skipped back over to his two gaping companions.

"There's your ticket, Bud." The chosen wryly smiled, holding out a pink slip with Lloyd's name written on it. Taking it from him, Lloyd read the warrior's ticket and stared back at Zelos in shock and awe.

"How did you do it?" He asked incredulously. Zelos winked and bowed dramatically, his garnet braid flipped over his left shoulder.

"I have my ways." He replied smugly. "Mostly it's just charming my way in using cute phrases and the right expressions at key points. Now, let's get in there before my charms wear off and she changes her mind." All three children nodded in agreement and scurried into the waiting room for the fighters.

Once the trio of children made it inside the waiting quarters, Lloyd scanned the entire room for any means of getting into the dungeon. They did find the door at first glance, as it was a huge oaken door with bars on it that had a plaque with 'Dungeon' written on it and was thus hard to miss, but they found it to be locked and desperately searched around the floor in an effort to locate the key.

"Any sign of the key yet?" Lloyd called as he scoped out some short swords, picking them up, swinging them around, and putting them back in disgust. Zelos felt up and down the floor, crimson eyebrows set in a frown and shook his head.

"Not yet, but I'll keep looking while you're in there getting your butt kicked and maybe by the time you get dragged out, I'll have found it." He replied, checking the floor along the door frame. Lloyd snorted and picked up a pair of matching short swords.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence there, Zelos." He retorted sarcastically, giving each sword a swing. "How will I ever lose now?" Satisfied with the swords he found, Lloyd stashed them into the leather sheathe holder Sheena had run out and bought him and adjusted it accordingly. Originally the holster had been for a children's set of wooden swords, but it worked well just the same.

"Okay, I think I'm ready now." Lloyd told the guard at the gate, who had been asleep at his post the entire time. Jolting awake, the guard glanced groggily at Lloyd, yawned and pushed the door open.

".... good luck, squirt.." He yawned and quickly fell back asleep, snoring vociferously. Lloyd raised an eyebrow at the narcoleptic guard and then turned his attention to the door that led to the blazing scene of the arena. He frowned, deep in thought over his battle strategy, but was thrown out of it when a hand suddenly clapped onto his shoulder.

"Well, do you best Bud and, whatever you do, don't get turned into a Lloyd-kabob." Zelos grinned, patting Lloyd's back sharply. Wincing at the impact of Zelos' hand on his shoulders, Lloyd shook it off and stared flatly at the chosen, his face and expression radiating how annoyed he was.

"I'm not gonna be a Lloyd-kabob!" Lloyd glared exasperatedly at Zelos, readjusted his scarf and eyed the heavy oak door as it laid there open and waiting for his entrance into the coliseum's battlegrounds.

"Here goes nothing." Lloyd held his chin up high and strode into the arena, his hands brushing against the hilts of his new swords.


Whahah! Another chapter completed!

Lloyd: Wait, I get to fight now? Awesome!

Zelos: Yeah, that's the one thing you're actually pretty good at.

Lloyd: What's that supposed to mean?!

Zelos: Ahahaha! What do you think?

Lloyd: .... I think I'm not going to wait until next chapter to test my swords out.

Zelos: ... wait... what?!

Lloyd: Demon Fang!!

Zelos: Augh! *is 'Demon Fang'ed*

Me: Let's not 'Demon Fang' people just yet. Save it for later.

Lloyd: Oh.. alright.

Me: Please Review!