Second Chances
By Chomper318

Author's Note: Tales of Symphonia belongs to Namco. I'll String Along With You belongs to Diana Krall. This ficcy belongs to me. I hope readers will like it, it's my first TOS fic. Finally, a new chapter. It's short, but at least it's an update.

I'll String Along With You

You may not be an angel
Cause angels are so few
But until the day that one comes along
I'll string along with you

I'm looking for an angel
To sing my love song to
And until the day that one comes along
I'll sing my song to you

For every little fault that you have
See I've got three or four
The human little faults you do have
Just make me love you more

You may not be an angel
But still I'm sure you'll do
So until the day that one comes along
I'll string along with you

--Diana Krall

Chapter Nine

They walked back to Dirk's house. Everyone preoccupied by his or her own thoughts. Kat walked along side Kratos musing over what had transpired. Every now and then, amidst a thought or two, she would reach down and smell a flower. Her fingers lingered softly over the petals while she admired the colors or fragrances. The forest, the same forest that scared her just a night ago, was filled with many different flowers that were not native to the Katz Island. Big yellow ones, little red ones. There were flowers dotting the side of the road. Though Kat didn't know any of their names, she was none-ever-the-less captivated by them.

She had to sidestep a stone on the road. Up ahead, Tabby and Stray were a few yards from her. They were walking side by side and one or the other would occasionally look back towards Kat to make sure she was alright and that she wasn't lagging behind. Kat would smile at the Katz to reassure them that she was fine. But her smile couldn't quite reach her eyes.

Mentally, she replayed the scene at Raine's house. What was happening was troubling Kat. Kratos honestly believed that Kat was his Anna. Over and over again in her head, she asked herself if that was a possibility. She knew that she had memories that she suspected were reminiscent of Anna's. But how could she? There was no real answer to that question unless she was Anna. But what if she wasn't Anna? What if she was delusional? And why not? She couldn't remember anything from her past; maybe she was some weird lunatic who pretends to be someone else? ...But that doesn't explain some of the impressions she had felt. Maybe Anna was possessing her. What if.... Kat shook her head. She was going nowhere with all these What ifs and sighed in frustration.

She looked around and tried to guess how close they were to Dirk's. Then, she secretly turned her head slightly to look at the man beside her. He was looking straight ahead, with his hand resting casually on the hilt of his double-edged sword. He remained mostly silent during the walk back and spoke only a few times to inquire if she was alright and if she needed anything. She watched him and wondered about him--his past and his thoughts. She knew from earlier conversations that he was a Cruxis Angel (whatever that meant)—and that he had killed Anna in order to protect their son and to end her sufferings as a monster.

Something earlier drifted back to Kat. When she first encountered Kratos, she ran from him. The reasons, which weren't very reasonable, were because she was overwhelmed by the fear and anxiety that he would kill her. At the time, she couldn't understand why she felt that way. But with the theory that she was somehow Anna (or possessed by Anna), she thought that it was rather apt that she should feel the emotions that Anna might have felt just before she died. Such as the fear of death even though it was necessary to protect and was dealt by the hands who loved her. Of course, it only made sense if she was Anna. Lost in thoughts, she didn't notice the slight dip in the road and stumbled a bit as she continued on the dirt path. She reached out blindly and Kratos was quick to hold her to prevent her from falling.

"Are you alright?" he said gruffly.

"Yes...sorry 'bout that."

Tabby turned to see what had happened and Kat shouted out that she was fine. Tabby nodded and continued on with Stray.

Kat straightened herself out. She pushed a lock of hair out of her face. When he was satisfied that she wasn't hurt, he turned his attention back towards the road and whatever he was thinking of. Kat did the same thing. Together, they continued back to Dirk's.

When they reached the house by the creek, the door was opened and Tabby and Stray were already inside. Kat walked in and stood at the threshold. She saw Tabby and Stray sitting by the table and looked around the room.

"Where's Dirk?" she asked.

"Meow, he doesn't appear to be here," Tabby said, "I called out, but there were no answers."

Kratos entered the house. "Are you all hungry? None of us ate much this morning." He walked over to the stove. "I can cook us something...how about a sandwich?"

Stray nodded. "That sounds good. I'll help." He got up and walked over to small kitchen area.

Kat crossed the length of the room and sat next to Tabby. She pulled on her tail and stared at it. Like Tabby's, it was pink but unlike Tabby's, she knew hers was a fake. She couldn't helped but stared down at the rest of her Katz costume. She felt oddly out of place wearing it, a feeling she never felt before now. She had always tried to fit in as a Katz, and she succeeded. She wore her Katz costume proudly and when she received her Expedition outfit, she was elated. Now...well, now it seemed kind of awkward. She looked at her pink tail again. She wondered what it was and then it hit her. She was hiding behind the costume, afraid to find out the truth of her identity. When the Katz offered her one, she literally took it and put it on. In her mind, she willed herself to believe that she was a Katz because it was easier to accept than to question and probe about herself... until now. She touched the fringes of her outfit. Now, she couldn't hide behind it anymore. She wasn't a Katz. She looked across the room and at Kratos, who was arguing with Stray over the merits of adding lemons to a sandwich. She clutched at her tail—her fake tail. She wasn't a Katz...she wasn't Anna either...she wasn't...anyone.

Realization sank in. She had no identity. She couldn't stand it, just couldn't stand the thought that she was no one. She wanted to know. She wanted to know if she was Anna. She wanted to know if she wasn't Anna. She just wanted to know who she was. And for the first time in a long while, she broke down and sobbed.