A/N: Quickly getting up Ch. 5 before my Philo paper. ::grin:: Yeah, I've got my priorities straight. Oh boy, things are shaping up now. ::evilgrin::

Wow, people are attacking characters. Characters are attacking back... ::sweatdrop:: Um.. play nice or I will declare a no-fight zone? Kidding. ::grin::

And now Enjoy!

Tales of Symphonia: Gaiden

Chapter Five

Night was falling on the village of Mizuho. It had been decided that they would set out for Cadence at first light.

Lloyd, usually a sound sleeper, was finding himself unable to fall asleep. Grunting in agitation, the swordsman sat up in bed, massaging his temples. Something was bothering him greatly about the whole ordeal.

It all seemed so familiar.

Lloyd jumped as someone faintly knocked on his door.

"Lloyd, are you still awake?" a feminine voice whispered, not wanting to wake up others who may have been sleeping.

Lloyd softly crept around the beds of Genis and Zelos (he had to share his room) and slid the door open. Colette, still fully dressed, looked in.

She motioned for him to come outside so they could talk. Nodding in agreement, Lloyd quietly slipped on his boots and followed Colette out the door, sliding it shut behind him. Zelos opened one blue-grey eye and chuckled to himself, muttering "Lucky Bastard" before turning over and going back to sleep.

"What's up Colette?" Lloyd asked once the two got outside. The blonde stopped at the bridge, resting her elbows on the railing.

"I'm worried," she mumbled, eyes downcast.

"What for?" Lloyd replied, leaning his back against the railing. He tilted his head so he could get a full view of Colette's face. "It's not like I'll be there by myself."

"It's not that..." Colette tried to explain, combing her fingers through her hair. "I just have a bad feeling about all of this."

"A bad feeling, huh?" Lloyd sighed. He fingered the hilt of one of swords in thought. "Want to talk about it?"

"I just... I dunno... I don't think this Aya person is telling us the truth," Colette stated, locking eyes with Lloyd. "I just don't want you to put your guard down."

Lloyd chuckled at her concern.

"I wouldn't worry about it. Kratos will be there telling me that every five seconds, I'm sure."

"I wish I could go with you," Colette admitted. Lloyd blinked, surprised.

"But didn't you volunteer not to go?"

Colette didn't answer and decided the river beneath them was much more interesting than Lloyd.

Lloyd exhaled, suddenly getting the bigger picture. He placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. Colette looked up at the sudden touch.

"Don't you worry, okay? I promise to come back alive," he stated, a sincere smile on his face.

"Lloyd..." Colette started, but she couldn't find the words to finish her sentence. Instead, she threw herself at Lloyd, wrapping her arms around his torso.

Lloyd was surprised by the sudden display of emotion and it took a few seconds for him to register it and return the gesture.

"I'll be waiting here for you to get back, Lloyd," Colette stated softly into Lloyd's shirt. Lloyd slowly pushed Colette away and lowered himself to eye-level with her. He smiled brightly.

"You know I wouldn't have it any other way."

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Aya, after agreeing to take the six with her back to her home, had found a perch atop one of the buildings in Mizuho.

She felt nervous being high up in the air, but she needed a secluded place to think. As far as she was concerned, things were not going the way they were supposed to.

She was only supposed to bring Lloyd back with her. However, Raine and the others wouldn't let that happen. Aya sighed in frustration, knowing the scolding she would get when she got home.

There were too many risks the way things were shaping up. Aya, lost in though, untangled her braid and allowed the honey colored strands to blow across her back and face in the light night wind.

She pulled back the red sleeve of the oversized shirt she still wore and stared longingly at the red gem. This was all that remained of her father. Aya sighed in regret. She'd have to restrain herself now; she couldn't risk changes.

"For someone who dislikes heights, you found an interesting place to think," came a calm voice from behind.

Aya jumped and nearly lost her balance at the sudden appearance of Kratos on the roof.

"Damn it, scare me half to death why don't you..." Aya grumbled in annoyance as the mercenary took a seat beside her.

He didn't say anything as he stared up at the stars, organizing his thoughts.

"What are you doing up here anyway?" Aya inquired, looking at Kratos suspiciously out of one eye.

"I don't need as much sleep as the others. So I like to look at the stars," Kratos replied, not looking at her.

"Sure you do," Aya muttered, rolling her eyes. "You are totally the type to stargaze."

"Shows how much appearances can be deceiving," Kratos replied, tilting his head slightly to look in her direction.

Aya didn't reply, for at that moment the clouds blocking the moon cleared and the pale light illuminated the man's face. Aya was stuck by how angelic he looked; her heart skipped a beat.

The feeling didn't last as Aya instantly looked away, berating herself by hitting the side of head with her palm.

Kratos looked at the strange action in confusion. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing," Aya sighed, stopping her self-abuse. She leaned back at her hands to stare at the moon.

Kratos, though he now knew more about the girl, was still confused about her. He didn't believe her entire story. Kratos could tell she was hiding something important from them all. Frustrated, he furrowed his brow. He had come up here to drill Aya on her past and yet he was hesitating.

Glancing back over at Aya, who was now in the process of tying up most of her in a bun on the back of her head, he was stuck by how oddly familiar she suddenly looked.

"You know, you look a bit like-"

"It was nice talking to you, Kratos!" Aya hastily exclaimed, jumping to her feet. "Better get to bed now, you know. Reserve my strength and all! Bye!"

Before Kratos could get another word in, Aya slid down the roof and jumped the short distance to the ground. He watched her run back to the hut she was staying in, noting she took down her hair as she ran.

"That was... odd..." he mused aloud, one eyebrow raised. Her behavior, he felt, just kept getting stranger.

Sighing in defeat, now knowing he wasn't going to get to ask her anything, Kratos changed his position on the roof so he now lay on his back – and got a better view of the starry sky.

Why had she gotten so jumpy when he started to mention the resemblance? He furrowed his brow. Aya had secrets. And he was going to get to the bottom of them.

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The sun rose over the sleepy village, reflecting off the morning dew. However, nine people were not taking in the view.

Six of them had sacks filled with various gels and antidotes for their journey. Three were there to say goodbye.

Or would have, if they could find their director of transportation.

"And Aya is where?" Genis grumbled, rubbing sleep from his eyes. The half-elf mage was not a morning person.

"I don't know," Sheena mused, scratching her head in thought. "Perhaps she went out to the field?"

No one had a better idea, so the group made their way out of the village. Sure enough, out in the field was Aya, who had just finished carving something into the group with her sword. As they approached her, she slipped the thin blade back into its sheath.

"Morning!" she chirped, flipping her braid over her shoulder.

"That is so cruel..." Genis groaned at Aya's alertness. Raine smacked the back of his head. "Ow! Okay, I'm up... sheesh."

"What is this?" Raine asked, motioning towards the large, circular crest Aya had etched into the ground.

"This? It's to amplify the teleportation spell. Also," Aya explained, "it gives me better control of transporting larger groups."

"Interesting..." Raine mused, walking around the circle, studying it intensely.

"Does she, uh, always act like this?" Aya asked as Raine continued to study her work, rambling about various spells and scholars.

"That's the professor for you," Lloyd explained, shaking his head. "Just keep her away from ruins while we're there and she shouldn't be a problem."

"What was that?" Raine demanded, having picked up what Lloyd had said. Lloyd backed away, raising his hands in defense, chuckling nervously.

"N-nothing."

"Everyone say goodbye, I'm all set," Aya announced, squatting down and placing her right hand on the edge of the circle. She ignored the others' strange looks as she poured her energy into the carving.

With the circle now glowing healthily, Aya set about putting people in their places.

"Okay, now I don't care where you stand, just stay inside the inner circle," Aya directed.

Colette, Presea, and Regal watched from afar as Aya pushed and squished everyone into a proper place.

"Should we still let them go?" Colette asked, fretting nervously. She played with the cuff of her shirt in agitation.

"We cannot leave her plea of help unanswered," Regal replied, however not sounding very convincing.

"True. I agree with Regal. It is for the best that we remain behind," Presea agreed.

"Of course you agree! You get to stay with him!" Colette snapped uncharacteristically. Seeing Presea's shocked looked, Colette glanced away and muttered an apology.

"It's alright for you to worry about Lloyd and the others," Regal offered, knowing that this was harder on her than it was for them. They had each other while Colette was watching the one man she cared for going on an adventure where she could not follow.

Colette held her breath as Aya gave the signal that they were ready to go. She walked to the front of the inner circle, standing inside the ring.

She pulled out her sword and slammed it into the ground. A large, opaque bubble surrounded their friends and Aya. Wind began to spiral around the sphere created by the mana being used.

All three of them fought the pull of the wind.

"What an amazing amount of mana!" Presea shouted over the howling wind.

"Incredible!" Regal agreed.

Colette reclined to comment, her blue eyes wide in surprise. "What's happening?"

Regal and Presea looked at Colette in confusion as the sphere vanished, leaving no trace of their friends. Relieved of the force of the wind, Presea and Regal staggered as they regained their balance. Colette sank to her knees, shocked and confused.

"Colette, what's wrong?" Regal demanded, dropping to one knee and shaking the former chosen.

"Didn't you sense it?" she mumbled softly; Regal and Presea strained their ears to catch what she was saying. "Didn't you sense it!?"

"Sense what?" Presea replied, now concerned for their angelic friend.

"That mana... wasn't human..." Colette stated, resting her forehead in one hand.

"I would assume that the mana of Cadence, being a different world and all, would not be the same as the mana on Symphonia," Regal reasoned.

Colette violently shook her head. "That's not it!" She glared up at them both. "That mana belonged to Origin!"

"What? Colette, are you sure?" Presea pressed, surprised by Colette's outburst. "Aya isn't from Symphonia. How could her spell use Origin's mana?"

"Are you sure you're not making a mistake?" Regal offered. The alternative was too mind-boggling.

"Yes, I'm sure. That spell used the power of the Summon Spirit Origin. I'd bet my life on it," Colette replied, utterly convinced.

"If what you say is true..." Regal was unable to finish his sentence, unsure of what to say.

To say that Aya's spell used Origin's mana would have to mean that Aya has a pact with Origin. But the only person Origin has a pact with is Lloyd. Even more so, if she had somehow found a way to make a second pact with the ancient spirit, it would mean Aya was actually from Symphonia.

Regal grunted, stumped. None of it makes any sense. Did Aya lie to us?

"What have we gotten our friends into?" Presea mused aloud as the three continued to stare at the space their friends had occupied moments before.

Not understanding the truth and left with the contradicting evidence, Presea and Regal started back towards the village to reclaim their belongings. They looked back to see Colette had not moved from her spot.

Sighing, they nodded in mutual agreement. The two of them would have to keep an eye on Colette.

Colette had noticed her friends get and up and leave and made no leave to follow them. Instead, she rose to her feet and walked over to the where the spell-circle had been carved into the ground.

All that remained now was a swirl of dirt and some faint markings.

"Lloyd..." she whispered, remembering his promise to her last night. She knew Lloyd wouldn't – no couldn't – lie to her. "Oh Martel, keep him safe. I need him to come back, because... I love him..."

Colette wiped away a stray tear that tried to fall. She flicked the droplet away with her finger. Yes, she loved him. Colette had never admitted that fact to anyone, even herself. It was comforting thought.

"Lloyd, I'll be right here waiting!" she shouted to the sky, hoping her feelings would find their way to him.

But Lloyd wouldn't receive them. He no longer existed in her Symphonia.

--Silverwings

Ah, now some things should be evident. Where did Lloyd and the others go? Where is Cadence exactly? How did Aya use Origin's mana? Stay tuned...