Ivory: ::waves:: 'Lo I'm Ivory Shadows, until I decide to change my name and what not...Well, yeah, this is just the "prologue" to the story I'm going to write later. I don't know how many chapters this...Erm..."Prologue" is going to be. So...It's set about five years pre-Jak II, hope that helps clear something's up.

Xeniar: So it's more of a prequel, then?

Ivory: ::glares at Xen:: Yes, it is more of a prequel...So anyway, I'll let Xen handle the disclaimer.

Xeniar: Good gods, if you really thought she owned it...You're just plain stupid and shouldn't be allowed to live...We don't need any more stupid people.

Ivory: Xeniar, you forgot that I own you and the plot!

Xeniar: Holy hell! This is about my life?

Ivory: Just the first half! ::grins::

Xeniar: ::glares::

Ivory: So as Xen was saying, I own nothing! Well, all except him and the plot…Oh I went through and fixed most of the errors…I hope I got them all…I'll check again soon.

Chapter One:

I Hate You

I was nine around the time my dad received word that he was to be drafted into the Krimzon Guard, I hated him for not blowing his damn head off then and there, like most the others were doing...Because around this time the Metal Heads were attacking like hell. My mom got really upset when dad told her he had to go, that he was going for our benefit, so we could live safe and not have to worry.

"Why not just move to Haven City like everyone else?" Arien would ask my parents frequently, to her it seemed the perfect way out.

Dad nearly jumped for joy that day...I mean, it seemed the perfect solution, he'd go to work in the Guard and we'd live inside the city walls, instead of the rat hole of a town we lived in now. Problem was, I still had to go to school, I mean, I was nine, you don't just pull a kid out of school and tell them to make something of themselves with a fourth grade education.

But of course, Arien had a solution for that too. Every morning my dad would wake me up about a half an hour before he had to leave, to give me time to get ready for school, then he'd leave for work and drop me off in front of the building, he'd then wave and leave. After school was over, I'd walk home to find dad and mom talking to some of dad's fellow Guards outside our house; we lived in the slums, like most of everybody else.

I followed this routine for a long time, but soon my dad couldn't find the time to take me to school...He'd wake me up, say "Your fiery orange hair is just like your mother's, fading to soft gold near the ends. You know, that's the reason I talked to her in the first place, 'cause her hair caught my eye." he'd then exit for work, leaving me to walk to school. Sometimes I could get mom to walk with me, though most of the time she said she was busy with cleaning and such, and, like my dad, would leave me to walk alone.

When I got to school, people were usually pretty quiet, they didn't really tease me or anything, hell, they didn't seem alive. Everyone was dispirited, and I was pretty out of place there, everybody had dark eyes, it bugged me to be the one of the only people with jade eyes there. I used to be really enthusiastic about school, but now, I wasn't, the place was just...Gloomy. The teachers seemed to be far away all the time, like their mind was elsewhere. I loved the breaks we got though, the other students seemed to brighten instantly, they'd challenge each other to races across the field, they'd play tag and other sorts of games.

The school bell would ring, dismissing everyone from class, nobody was happy to go home...I assumed it was because they knew they'd just be going home to a dad that didn't have time for them and a mom who was always worrying about their dad. My dad would be discussing with co-workers when I got home, but they were usually pretty nice to me, they'd smile and ask me how my day went. I always replied with: "Okay, I guess." After the meetings dad would play a game of twenty questions to figure out how my day went, he always asked the same questions, and he always seemed pretty happy to me.

My daily routine never really seemed to change over the next four years, I went to school, went home, answered dad's questions, eat dinner, answer mom's questions, then go to bed. So, I went to school, and dropped my bag by my desk, nothing to important was ever in it anyway; I sat down and listened to the teacher's long, boring drawl, or I was supposed to. The teacher hadn't started talking yet, and there was some new kid standing in front my eighth grade class, he had dark hair, like everybody else, but his eyes were a bright blue. I guess that was why I became friends with him. His name was Silasyr, he was normally pretty cheery, and he was always the first to volunteer for things, so he was okay in my opinion.

I went home that day with better spirits than I had in the past four years, and I was looking forward to telling dad and mom about my new friend, Silasyr.

I opened the door, and stumbled back in shock, I felt like I was going to throw up...And I didn't even know why. I had a nauseating feeling in my stomach, and an eerie air loomed about the house, I looked at the floor, it was covered in what looked like blood. I should've stayed outside, but I couldn't, it's like some horrible accident, you know you shouldn't look, but it just fascinates you...And you stop thinking altogether and just stand there...And stare at it with your mouth hanging open. I followed the stains into my parents' bedroom, the door was slightly open...I don't know what possessed me to open the door completely...I just did. I gagged, I saw my mom's corpse lying on the bed. Her wrists had been gashed open, and in her right hand was a gun, a bullet shell lying useless near her head. I was going to leave the room, but it was just...Morbid...And exciting...So I went closer to the bed. There was a hole near her temple, it was bloody and some of the flesh had been blown away, minute sized pieces of skull and what I hope was flesh were scattered around near her head. I threw up.

Disgusted as I was, I somehow managed to get into the kitchen, where my dad had broken down and was fighting to hold back sobs.

"So...Did you see her?" he choked out, his normally happy green eyes pained and foggy.

I nodded slowly, I felt horrible.

"But why'd she do it?" I asked, tears threatening to pour from my own eyes.

He held out a note, some of the words were blurry where my dad must've been crying while reading the letter.

Reosev and Xeniar:

Reosev, it's your fault. You had to get drafted into the fucking Guard. You had to move to this place. You had to force us into an impossible city. You had to get caught up in that war. You had to be too fucking afraid to say you couldn't go. Then you dragged Xeniar into it. But it isn't your fault alone, hell no. It's Xeniar's, too. That little bastard had to come home dispirited. He had to bring his problems into the home as well. He couldn't be normal. No. He couldn't pretend it was okay. He had to give the house a miserable feeling.

I hate you both. And I hope you understand that. You're both fucking stupid, you should get along fine. Have fun managing the house without me.

Sincerely,

Lynkrof.

My hands were shaking when I finished reading the letter. I felt horrible, like I was somehow to blame. Dad reached out to take the letter, but I shook my head.

"It's not our fault." I growled, still clutching the letter firmly.

"Xeniar...Just give me the letter, I'm going to have it burned with her body and the bed." my dad told me, he was trying his best to be comforting.

"No!" I shouted, tearing the letter into pieces and letting them fall to the floor.

"It's not our fault, she shouldn't have..." I began to cry, and my dad pulled me into a hug, trying his best to calm me down.

"You're still just a kid." he told me.

"I'm thirteen."

"See? You're still just a kid."

"Whatever."

Ivory: Are you crying?

Xeniar: ::trying to hide the fact that he was crying:: N-no. Of course not.

Ivory: Okay, well, whatever. Yup, well, that's about it, I don't know when I'll be able to get the next one up.

Xeniar: ::mumbling:: Maybe if you review she'll stop turning my life into a sob story.

Ivory: But that's how it happened, Xen!

Xeniar: ....

Ivory: Well, anyway, tell me how it is! Praise will be thanked and flames will be used to keep Xen's house warm in the next chapter.