((A/N: One review? Wow! Well, I guess I'll blame the Fanfiction site chaos this time. I suddenly got attacked by review mails this morning, so I'm guessing the E-mail alerts have been fixed now. I still didn't get any more Serenity reviews though. Ohwell. Enjoy this next chappie!))
Chapter twenty, Kratos' P.O.V.
Ignorance.
I opened my eyes, groaning deeply. My limbs felt like they were made of lead. How long was I out? I couldn't even remember falling asleep in the first place.
Tilting my head, I cast a glance at the room I was in. My surroundings didn't seem familiar at all. I tiredly pushed myself out of bed, walking out the door, onto what seemed like a balcony. I was in a house in the middle of a forest.
Ofcourse! The dwarf's house!
Judging from the sun's position, it was somewhere early in the morning. Apparently, I'd passed out and slept through the night. But where were Zelos and Sheena?
After returning inside to strap my sword around my waist again and retrieve my cloak, I walked down the stairs. The lower level of the house was also completely abandoned, though I could faintly smell the leftover scent of breakfast.
I wandered outside, glancing around. Everything was silent. Wondering where everyone had gone, my eyes fell onto a bland gravestone. I approached it, observing the soft grass that lay before it. It seemed like whoever was buried at this spot had been here ten years at the least. Maybe even twenty.
My thoughts drifted off to that boy again. He'd said he was seventeen years old and he carried the Angelus exsphere. Plus, Noishe was here. Fifteen years ago… Yuan and I had searched the ravine, yet encountered nothing but corpses of Desians and monsters. There was no way that that boy could be-
"Hey."
I looked up sharply, my hand automatically moving to my sword as I turned to face whoever had approached me. Still, I quickly dropped the cautious manner when I saw that it was the boy from yesterday. He seemed a bit startled, but shrugged it off.
"Uhm… That Zelos guy told me to tell you that he was going to help that girl get the Sacred wood. And… uh… They were going to take a detour to fetch that other stuff." The boy scratched the back of his head thoughtfully.
"Aionis?" I questioned.
"Yeah, that."
"I see." I turned to face the gravestone again, thinking deeply. Ofcourse, it would've been hard for Sheena to carry the Sacred wood. How foolish of me to forget.
"Are you feeling better now? You just kinda conked out yesterday." The boy said, apparently attempting to make conversation.
"I'm fine." I said shortly. Though I was still a bit tired. "Was it your bed I slept in?"
"Ah… Yeah." The boy laughed nervously.
"I apologize for the inconvenience." I managed a flicker of a smile.
"N-no, that's okay."
The brunette seemed a bit uncomfortable with my formal way of speaking. Deciding to change the subject, I turned to the gravestone again.
"Who is buried here?"
"My mom." The boy said, suddenly looking grim as he moved to stand next to me. "She died in an accident when I was little. Dad found Noishe and me at a cliff near the human ranch. He raised me as his own son."
My eyes widened slightly, but I doubt the boy noticed. His words echoed through my mind. 'A cliff near the human ranch'…
"What happened to your real father?" I asked, my voice steady as always.
"I don't know. Dead, I guess." The boy shrugged lightly.
"You do not care if he's still alive or not?"
"Why should I? He probably abandoned my mom and me anyway. Otherwise, he would've protected us, or come looking for us or something."
"Sometimes it's not that simple." I muttered under my breath.
Was the boy right? Should I have searched a bit longer? Was it wrong of me to assume I had lost my family all those years ago? The fact that Noishe was still alive was solid proof that I had overlooked something.
"What is your name?" I looked up, finally asking the question I'd been avoiding all this time.
"Give me your name, and I shall give you mine." The boy spoke loudly, placing his hands on his hips.
I gave a small chuckle at his strange mixture of arrogance and ignorance. "Kratos Aurion."
"I'm Lloyd. Lloyd Irving."
In an instant, my life was turned upside-down. There was no way this was a coincidence. This boy was indeed my son, whom I had thought to be dead. He'd been living here this entire time and I had no clue.
Before I could delve into the matter further, I heard a familiar voice calling me. Sheena came walking towards the house, followed by Zelos, who was dragging along a large chunk of wood. It was time to craft the Eternal Ring.
((Heheheh... It's like some bad soap opera, ain't it?))