WOOT! I made it to chapter eleven. n.n

Colette: Yes! n.n Freakyanimegal owns nothing.

Me: Please enjoy. n.n'

The next day, Kratos found himself holding his son back and covering his mouth as he tried to restrain the boy. Tailing Rodyle had gone

relatively uneventful, the half-elf merely seemed to be wandering about Tethe'alla for no apparent reason...to Lloyd's eye, at any rate. Sure, he

was having a bit of trouble keeping up with his father in terms of stealth, having to use his wings because rheairds were too loud and just

watching was so...boring. However, not long after they had followed the half-elf around, the Desian had proceeded to mount dragons and fly

off somewhere. This time, they were able to use the rheairds provided they stayed far enough away. Kratos had guessed he was waiting for

something around Ozette, thus they took to hiding in the foliage near the town where they could fully see the town square. It had gone

well...due to circumstance. Lloyd had watched in silence as his friends walked into the square and were attacked by the Papal knights...

Lloyd took in a sharp intake of breath and gripped his swords, Kratos grabbing his wrist to stop him.

"We can't be involved, Lloyd," Kratos said, "they can handle this."

Lloyd went to protest as he was cut off by Genis' voice.

"Whatever, bring it on!" the half-elf snapped, already in the midst of casting.

The teen frowned and went to unsheathe his sword when his friend surprised him by unleashing a powerful spell that cleaved through about two of

the knights, startling his friend that hid in the foliage. The knights fell relatively quickly and to Lloyd's surprise Genis had indeed taken up the position

of 'leader'. His casting was almost instantaneous and he had even gotten a knack for nailing people in the forehead with his kendama at just the right

speed and place to knock someone out. Once Sheena or one of the others had managed to get the helmet off, the smart-aleck proceeded to knock him

out, or at least cause him to flinch long enough to send them to the next world with a spell. As the last knight perished with a 'Flame Lance', Genis

smirked and landed the ball back on the kendama.

"Keep working on it," he said, scratching his nose.

"..." Lloyd frowned.

"Is everyone all right?" Genis asked, looking around.

"Yeah, I think so," Sheena said.

"Of course, o fearless leader," Zelos mock saluted.

"That spell was amazing, Genis!" Colette chirped.

Lloyd watched from the sidelines and felt as if a weight had been strapped onto his chest, his eyes misting. He was glad his friend had improved, but

that he had to take up the role like that that had once been his...because he had gotten- no, he shook his head, thinking about it wouldn't help

anything right now.

"They were after me again...I'm sorry everyone," Colette said.

But it wasn't her fault...it wasn't her fault at all...

"Stop apologizing, Colette!" Genis said.

"Yeah, they're after all of us," Zelos said, "Sheena's from Mizuho, now considered a village of traitors, Regal's wanted for failing to take you, Genis and

Raine are half-elves."

Lloyd jolted. W- What? They were?

"You never did notice that, did you?" Kratos said softly.

"I didn't-" Lloyd started, then stopped.

All those times he said that stuff about the Desians, and Genis had asked that stuff about half-elves... he was such an idiot! He never realized his

friend was asking that because he was actually a half-elf. Did that mean...Genis was afraid of him? He was afraid to tell him what he really was

because he didn't want Lloyd to hate him. The teen snarled a bit. The...the idiot! He didn't care, he could never hate his friends- but why hadn't he told

them? Why did everyone know now? Could it be that Genis and Raine told them...because he wasn't there anymore? No, he shouldn't make

assumptions, but he couldn't stop the horrible feeling that he had been cheated out of something important to him.

"Thanks every-"

Colette collapsed onto her knees, crying out in pain. Kratos stopped his son once more from moving from his hiding place as Genis instantly got his

sister to check on the blond.

"She's running a fever, but what could be causing this much pain?"

The pink-haired girl, Presea, as Lloyd had been told, walked forward and told Raine to leave the situation to her. It was a faulty move however, seeing

as the pinkette then proceeded to swipe at her companions, backing them off so she could knock Colette unconscious with the blunt of her ax.

"P- Presea!?" Genis cried.

Out of nowhere a dragon swooped down and grabbed Colette, flying off to the side above its master, Rodyle.

"Good work, Presea!" he cackled.

The pinkette, however, was taken down by Corrine as Rodyle took to the air on one of his dragons above them, another one of them hovering with

Colette in its clutches. This, of course, led to the current situation...

"Lloyd," Kratos hissed in a low hush, "keep control of yourself-"

The teen continued to struggle against his father, attempting to break free. That Rodyle bastard! How dare he take Colette like that! He wasn't

going to let him take her! He wasn't-!

"Lloyd-!" Kratos snapped.

Lloyd ejected his wings, knocking Kratos' arms back just enough for him to break loose and completely defy his father's wishes by shooting up

through the air towards Rodyle, swords drawn and his wings flaring out behind him.

"RODYLE YOU BASTARD!" he shouted.

The teenager took a swipe at the surprised Desian just as one of his little 'pets' attacked him from the side. Lloyd, good as he was with swords

and flying, was not used to airborne combat, thus took a hit to his arm a milisecond before Kratos flew up next to him and knocked the dragon

back.

Taking this as a sign to leave, Rodyle took off with the unconscious Colette as Lloyd attempted to fly after them, succeeding only in being

constricted in his father's arms as he thrashed in mid-air.

"Let me go! Let me go!" he shouted. "COLETTE!"

Kratos dragged Lloyd out of the air and onto the ground, where it was easier to wrestle with the boy without concern of dropping him at all.

Once on the ground Kratos dismissed his wings and attempted to get his son to calm down, the brunette continuing to thrash at a chance of

release. Of course, Lloyd had yet to realize that they had landed in the square...and his friends were now staring at him and the Seraph as if

they had three heads.

"Let me go, damn it! I-!"

"Lloyd!" Kratos snapped. "You-!"

"LLOYD!?"

It took the shocked voices of his companions to draw his attention to matters at hand. The brunette froze in mid-flail, jerking his head to the

side to stare at his companions staring back at him.

"..." Lloyd twitched, his mind drawing a blank.

"Put away your wings, Lloyd, before someone sees," Kratos said with a small sigh.

The teen did as he was told as his father released him, staring back at his friends before turning his head away, forcing a huff as he crossed his

arms and tried to act agitated. He was supposed to act like a Cruxis angel, he was supposed to act like he didn't care about them, but...

"I know, I know! You don't have to tell me!"

"Apparently, I do," Kratos said, "your emotions often get the better of you, you must be sure to control them."

"W- We're not even sure we'll run into them, anyway!" he said. "So-!"

Kratos put a hand on Lloyd's shoulder, causing the boy to look up at him.

"I know it's hard," he stated, his eyes misted somewhat, "but no matter what happens, you have to act how I made you act on the mountain, do you

understand?"

Lloyd huffed, crossing his arms and turning to the side.

"...Lloyd-"

"I know, I know..." he said again, this time without the feeling, "...I understand..."

"W...What are you doing here?!" Genis demanded, his eyes narrowed in a glare.

"Yes, what are you doing here?" Raine asked, her eyes narrowed as well. "And isn't Rodyle a Desian? One of your subordinates? Why then,

would you be attacking him like that, if I may ask?"

Lloyd flinched, realizing he had blown their cover on multiple levels. W...What was he supposed to do?! Just sit back and watch as Colette got

taken away?! Wait, no, he needed a lie....he needed-

"Rodyle has been ignoring our orders as of late," Kratos explained coldly, "we do not know why he has taken the chosen, if that is what you

are planning on asking."

Genis went to say something and then gritted his teeth together, growling to himself as he turned toward the unresponsive Presea, the girl's

blank green eyes gaping out into empty space.

"Look, we don't have time for you guys right now!" he said. "So...so just go away!"

Lloyd looked at his friend's back and was tempted to say something, anything, but closed his jaw tightly in order to stop himself from doing

anything else that might cause trouble. He looked around and caught the eyes of the rest of the group, Raine's sad gaze, Sheena's scoffing

and hurt glare, the looks of suspicion from Zelos and the new blue-head they called 'Regal'...

"...I-" Lloyd started.

Sheena walked up and smacked Lloyd across the face. Kratos flinched a bit as Lloyd simply stared back at the ninja, her hazel eyes tearing up

as she continued to lock him in a death-glare.

"You-! You have the nerve to-! To-! ARGH!" she shouted. "I HATE you-!!"

"Sheena," Raine said, "Genis is right, we have something else to take care of."

"The girl, I assume?" Kratos said, glancing at Presea.

"It's none of your business!" Genis snapped at him, his voice cracking a bit out of suppressed emotions. "You-!..."

The half-elf caught sight of Lloyd's face again and the older male attempted to keep his expression blank, noticing how his best friend's eyes

watered a second before he cleared them with a sharp shake of his head. Genis reached into his pack and pulled something out, a metal of

some kind. Lloyd briefly wondered what it was before his friend marched up to him and held it out, stunning everyone present, though it was

visible more than others on some.

"This is inhibitor ore," Genis said sternly, "we need someone to make a key-crest for Presea."

Lloyd's eyes widened briefly before he forced a rude scoff and crossed his arms.

"And why the hell do you think I'd help you with that?"

"We don't have a choice, that's why!" Genis snapped.

"Why should I-?"

"Because Colette still believes in you!!"

Kratos said nothing as Lloyd visibly twitched. The next second he snarled down at Genis in a fake rage.

"What the hell are you talking about?! There's no way I'm going to-"

"I'm not blind, Lloyd!" Genis snapped. "I saw you just then! You tried to save Colette!"

"I- I tried to retrieve the Chosen-"

"BULL!" Genis snarled. "I...I don't know what you're doing, and I...I don't know what's happened to you, but you just tried to save Colette! On

Mt. Fooji, she...she said something was wrong with you!"

Kratos and Lloyd both hid a twitch. When Lloyd had seized control back then, he had tried to comfort Colette, had tried to tell her, had tried to

keep her from falling into despair...she had noticed, then, huh? She had noticed that something was wrong.

"I...I want to believe her..." Genis said weakly, his tone losing some of its strength as his softer emotions took hold, "I want to believe

you're...still you, Lloyd. I don't know what you're doing, but I-"

"Sh- Shut up!" Lloyd snapped, backing away from him. "You're just- just being a stupid, little kid! Don't you understand?! I'm with CRUXIS, I'm

your ENEMY, there is no way in hell I'm gonna-!"

Genis whipped out his kendama.

"Then we'll force you to make it!" he snapped, his voice cracking again.

"Genis-!" Raine started.

"Oh please, you can't beat us!" Lloyd snapped. "Kratos by himself took on the four of us! You-"

"Lloyd," Kratos spoke up, "make the key-crest."

"I-...what?!" he gasped slightly, looking at his father.

"..." the Seraph's eyes narrowed, yet softened, "go ahead and do it."

"But...but I don't understand-" Lloyd started.

"You don't have to, now do it," he said simply.

Everyone present stared at Kratos, unsure if they were completely sane, but Lloyd managed to nod and slowly look back at Genis, who had

just as slowly got out of an offensive stance and held out the inhibitor ore once again. Lloyd took it in silence, his eyes never leaving his

friends'.

"I can't make a real key-crest, you know," he said, "but I'll do the best I can."

"I guess that'll work, then," Genis snorted, still glaring at him.

"You could stand being a little more grateful," Lloyd said coldly.

Genis went to say something when his sister placed a hand on his shoulder, much like Kratos had done for Lloyd earlier that day. She shook

her head down at her brother, the boy going to protest before nodding in acceptance.

"How long will it take you to make it?" Genis asked, still glaring.

"...About ten minutes," Lloyd said, looking down at it.

"Well, let's not wait around in the middle of town," Raine said, "we'll go down to Presea's house, it's the large one down the path there. You

two can meet us there when you're finished."

"What? But what if they run off with the ore-?" Zelos said.

"Either he makes it or it's useless anyway," Raine pointed out, "we have nothing to lose."

"I am certain we can obtain more, if necessary," Regal said with a sigh.

Lloyd suddenly felt very, very alone, even moreso than he had before. He was there, standing with them, but they were completely ignoring

him...he thought maybe he preferred them yelling. At least then they were acknowledging him. Now, as they turned away and started off

toward the meeting place, he felt more and more out of place than he ever had in his life. Genis stopped at the back of the group when the

others went ahead, slowly looking back at Lloyd.

"...You can still do the right thing, Lloyd," he said softly.

The teen's brown eyes widened as the half-elf boy turned his back on him and walked off, his head down and sniffles, just barely audible even

with angelic hearing, started from him even though he attempted to hide it. Lloyd and Kratos watched after them in silence as Lloyd's fingers

tightened over the ore, closing his eyes before opening them again, a spark of determination in his irises.

"Yeah...and I will," he muttered, "I'm sorry, Genis."

"He couldn't hear that, you know," Kratos said simply.

"I know, you would've gotten mad at me if he had," Lloyd said to his father.

"True," he nodded, his eyes closed.

"Okay then," Lloyd sighed, "let me get working on this."

They went into the lobby of the inn and Kratos waited patiently as his son worked the ore, his interest mildly caught in the boy's finger-work.

He truly was an adept craftsman, even regardless of his upbringing by the dwarf. The Seraph suppressed a smile, seeing as he didn't quite find

himself unable to be proud of anything the boy was good at.

"...Hey D- Kr-..." Lloyd took a deep breath, "Kratos?"

Kratos blinked a moment, curious as to what his son wanted.

"Yes, what is it?"

The teen fidgeted a moment, his eyes still on his work.

"Why are you letting me make the key-crest?" he said.

"I can tell Yggdrasill that it would aid one of the Chosen's companions," he stated coolly, "and by doing so it would keep her safe. He doesn't

want her dead, you know, she's useless to him that way. That and I can simply say we chose not to cause a scene, two angels fighting in the

middle of town with that group would cause unnecessary attention."

"It's not like we would've fought with our wings out-" Lloyd said.

"Even still, it would have drawn attention to us and their group, possibly endangering her."

"Well- Wait, yeah! About Colette! You're sure Rodyle won't hurt her, right-?"

"If I wasn't, I would've made sure I went after him," he stated simply, "dragging you along with me, if I had to."

"Then why did you stop me!?" Lloyd snapped.

Kratos glared, causing the boy to flinch a bit and slowly lose the color in his face.

"You would have gotten hurt," he said simply, "I told you, without a clear head you will only harm yourself."

The teen glared at his father again before sighing and looking back at the ore.

"Okay, fine, but-"

"I'm certain the first thing your friends will do is go after her," Kratos stated, "and we're not through with Rodyle yet either. Though that

doesn't mean you can run after her, either..."

"Why n-?!"

"Think about it, Lloyd," Kratos said curtly, "if we take her, where will she end up? Derris-Kharlan. Even if you try to hide her or let her go or

something akin to that, Yggdrasill would find out about it one way or another. Then we'd all be in danger. It's best if your friends save her."

Lloyd frowned deeply, his eyes misted as he mulled over his father's words and then nodded with a sigh.

"Okay, fine, but she will be okay, right?" he asked.

Kratos nodded.

"I assure you, she will," he stated.

"..All right," Lloyd said with a brief nod, "thanks."

He continued working in silence, glancing up at his father every few seconds as the Seraph sat there in silence. Lloyd wasn't comfortable with

that, with the silence, he didn't like it. Before the tower he always had his friends around, and even after that his father's voice had been there

with him most of the time- whether spiritually or physically. Anxious to both break the silence and distract himself from thinking of his friends, he

spoke.

"Did you ever have any hobbies when you were my age?"

Kratos tilted his head to the side, almost amused. Why was he asking that all of a sudden?

"I- I mean, it's just- you've never really told me about the kind of stuff you like and don't like and stuff," the teen stammered, a light blush

coming onto his cheeks as he worked the ore, "I know you don't like tomatoes, but that's kinda it."

The Seraph said nothing for a good few moments before he answered.

"I quite enjoyed drawing at one time, truth be told," he stated.

"Really?" Lloyd blurted, his gaze instantly on his father once more.

"Is that so difficult to believe?" he asked stiffly.

"N- No, you just don't look like an artist, I guess," Lloyd chuckled a bit.

"Hmph," he snorted.

It was silent again while Lloyd finished the make-shift key-crest, obviously not succeeding in his attempt to bring about conversation. Once his

task was completed, they headed off toward Presea's house, where the group had been waiting for them. It took everything Lloyd had to walk

back to them, still as their enemy, and having to act like he could care less about their lives.

"Are you done?" Genis asked coldly, his arms folded over his chest.

Lloyd frowned and held out the key-crest.

"Here, this should return her to normal," he said.

Genis took the key-crest without a word, marching over to Presea and placing it on the girl. In an instant, her clouded eyes came into focus, an

expression of confusion playing on her face.

"Huh?" she said.

"Presea? Are you all right?" Genis asked.

"What...what have I been doing?" she said, looking around frantically. "W- Where's my daddy?!"

The half-elf nervously glanced over at the house behind them before the pinkette ran inside, the rest of the group following her. Lloyd went

after them on instinct, his father giving a small sigh before doing likewise. Inside, Lloyd did his best not to gasp at the corpse in her house. Her

dad? That was her dad? Why was he in here like-? Well, Presea had been zoned out like Colette had been, right? So it could make sense that

she didn't know what had happened- Oh no. That poor girl...imagine having to wake up and find out your father was- He snuck a quick glance

at Kratos.

"We'll...we'll bury him," Genis said to her as she fought back more cries, "I'm...I'm sorry, Presea."

She said nothing, nodding faintly. Genis looked at the corpse and hesitated a minute, unsure of how he should proceed when someone made

the decision for him. Lloyd walked forward and pulled the blanket up over the head, tucking the material under the body to make a sort of

cocoon.

"W- What are you-?" Genis stammered.

"W- What does it look like?!" Lloyd snapped at him. "I'm moving the body! Now find some shovels so we- so we can..."

The brunette's face fell as he looked down at the covered form, a forlorn feeling in his chest.

"Look, he deserves a proper burial, at least," he said softly.

He caught Kratos' disapproving look, and he knew that he wasn't exactly holding up on his faulty 'act'...but so what? No one would know about

this, no one except the people in this room. Kratos wasn't going to say anything, and he couldn't just stand there, he could never just do

nothing...even if that did mean he'd have to face consequences. He'd done nothing before, at the Ranch, he had done nothing and had yet to

forgive himself. So he was going to do something this time, he wasn't going to be afraid of what would happen. Genis looked at him a bit, as if

thinking whether to allow it, then nodded.

"Yeah," he said, "...th- let's do this."

Within the hour the burial was completed and Presea stood before her father's grave, taking a deep breath before turning to look at the rest of

them.

"Thank you for assisting me with my daddy's burial," she said, "I...I've been a great burden on you all."

"You remember?" Raine asked.

She nodded, her pigtails bouncing as she did so.

"Yes, mostly," she said.

"Why did you have an exsphere like that on you?" Genis asked.

Lloyd and Kratos stood off to the side as the pinkette revealed the origins of her exsphere, Lloyd listening on with keen interest. She was a

research subject. Just like his mom...how could people DO that to other people? He winced, remembering Forcystus' words: 'The people you

now command'. Guilt washed over him briefly before he realized Presea had said something to him.

"You," she said, "you're...Lloyd, right?"

"Wha-? Uh- Yes," he said stiffly.

"The traitors," she said simply, "you and Kratos."

The teen said nothing and focused all his willpower in order to keep his face blank.

"You helped..." she trailed, confused, "...why?"

Lloyd went to say something and then caught himself, crossing his arms and turning from them in a huff.

"If you didn't want my help, you could've just told me so," he spat.

"At any rate, if you wish to find the Chosen I'd suggest finding the rheairds and heading for the eastern skies," Kratos explained to them, "the

Chosen is useless as she is, however-"

"Like we care! We're going to save her!" Genis said, glaring at the angels.

Kratos tilted his head to the side in amusement, Lloyd managing to hide a smile.

"Become quite bold, haven't you?" Kratos asked simply.

Genis glared at him a bit before his eyes widened.

"Wait- how did you know about the rheairds?"

Lloyd had heard from Yuan how they had had rheairds, and that they had lost them. The Seraph hadn't told him much more besides that, being

vague as usual, but he knew his friends were looking for them.

"Lloyd, we're leaving," Kratos stated, turning toward the exit.

"What-? I mean- right," he nodded, following after him.

"W- Wait-! Lloyd-!"

Both Aurions stopped and Lloyd turned to look back at his friend for the last time for a long while.

"...Thank you," Genis said quietly, his face sad, yet still strong and independent looking.

"..." Lloyd turned to hide a smile, "just don't expect your enemy to help you again, got it?"

Then they left.

"...You didn't do that bad," Kratos told him, "better than I expected you would."

"Tch," Lloyd spat, "you owe me big for that."

The Seraph sighed and nodded softly.

"I know," he stated simply.

Then Lloyd remembered. The device in his pocket...he could use that to get in contact with Yuan, when he had the chance. If they needed the

rheairds to get Colette back, and Yuan had rhearids (he did, right? He was a Seraph, and he'd be the only one who could do this...), then the

man could lend some to his friends, right? It was worth a try asking, anyway, because Colette dying didn't seem like something Yuan wanted.

The half-elf was still an enigma to him, but he was certain that his motives had nothing to do with the 'Chosen'.

Besides, if anything happened to her because Yuan wouldn't cooperate, or tried to have her hurt or whatever, he could simply rat him out to

Yggdrasill. Blackmail wasn't something he wanted to resort to, but if he had to to keep his friends safe... He frowned. Yuan hadn't told him what

exactly it was he was up to, yet, but it was against Cruxis and he had been keeping him up to date on his friends. Yuan was his best bet at any

hopes of helping to take Cruxis down, short of managing to escape without his father getting killed... That settled it, then. As soon as he got a

chance he'd ask Yuan about the rheairds.

"Lloyd? Are you all right?" Kratos asked.

"Huh-? Oh, yeah," he nodded, "just thinking."

Kratos said nothing and turned from him, shuffling for his wingpack to take out the rheairds. Lloyd felt bad to be keeping what he was doing

from Kratos, but...he had said that he trusted Lloyd to do what he had to, and that he wouldn't stop him... Was this fine, then? That he was

deceiving his father? He groaned.

"Are you all right?" Kratos asked, glancing at him.

"Fine," Lloyd sighed, "but I got one heck of a headache."

OMJESUS! I ACTUALLY HAVE THE PLOT MOVING AGAIN! :D YAY TAKING DOWN WRITER'S BLOCK! n.n

Colette: Om...?

Me: ...I blame my friend, she got me saying it. (You know who you are...)

Colette: Oh...okay... Freakyanimegal owns nothing. n.n'