Disclaimer: Why do I have to do this again? Oh yea, that's right, it's because I can't afford to be sued… whatever. sigh I don't own Tales of Symphonia, nor any of its characters. But my birthday is on August 15th, so could I have Zelos? Pretty please?

Chapter 6: New Discoveries

Raine's POV

Thinking I should go check on the sick Chosen of Tethe'alla, I dismiss myself from the small inn table where the remaining six of us are eating ramen for dinner (courtesy of Genis, of course) and head up the stairs to the room he and Lloyd are staying in. I briefly wonder where said boy is, since normally he would never miss an opportunity to eat ramen. But when I open the door, my questions are answered as I walk over to the bed.

The sight before me is rather cute, and heartwarming, too. Yet at the same time I feel a sudden rush of pride in knowing that my hunch was right. There, in the bed together, are Lloyd and Zelos, limbs all tangled together, sleeping peacefully.

I've seen the way Lloyd looks at Zelos, and vice versa. I saw Lloyd kiss Zelos earlier (I wasn't spying, honest!). And Lloyd's stuttering of excuses over both the guard duty incident and the dirty sheets incident did not convince me otherwise.

I decide to let the sleeping lay, as the saying goes, and make a silent vow to check on Zelos later. Exiting the inn room, I take a note in the back of my head to always put those two in the same room.

Lloyd's POV once more

The first thing I notice as I wake is that I'm very warm. And comfortable. Opening my eyes, the body intertwined with my own reminds me of the past day's events. I can do nothing but hope that no one came in to check on us…

I carefully extricate myself from the arms of the Chosen and head straight out the door, having never changed into my nightclothes. I walk calmly down the stairs, making sure not to rush or seem flustered or anything, and see the others sitting around the inn table, engaged in conversation. I walk over, making my strides natural, sit down in an empty chair, and am met with a few greetings.

"Ah, I'm glad you're here. We were just discussing where we should go next, and when to leave," Regal informs me.

"Since Zelos isn't better yet, shouldn't we stay here?" I suggest. Colette and Genis not in agreement, but Regal, Raine, and Presea don't look so sure.

"We're almost out of money. We can't afford to stay here much longer," Raine announces.

Genis asks, "How much do we have left?"

"Due to the purchases of our improved weaponry, we have approximately five-hundred gald left," Presea says in her almost robotic manner. She's gotten a lot better since we had her key crest fixed, but… still…

"Ouch. We really are broke," I mutter under my breath. "Fine, we'll go wake Zelos up and ask his opinion." The others nod in consent, but I'm the only one who rises. "Well?"

"How about you go wake Mr. Royal-Pain-in-the-Ass. It was your idea," Genis says snappishly.

I stick my tongue out at him and wrinkle my nose, but continue upstairs anyway.

When I enter the room, I see that the Chosen is awake, and he sits up as soon as he notices my presence.

"Hey, Lloydie! What's up?" he asks in a hoarse voice, showing that he's still not better. I give him a weak smile in greeting.

"Umm, Zelos. Do you feel up to traveling? We're kind of… out of money… so we cant stay at the inn more than another night."

He frowns suddenly. "I dunno… I don't think I can fight or move much at all…"

I contemplate this for a moment. Thinking has never exactly been my strong point, but every now and again I do have a breakthrough, and now seems to be one of those times.

"Okay, how about we just head over to your place in Meltokio? That way you can rest, but we won't have to pay! And if we take the Rheairds, it won't take long to get there, either!"

He thinks on this for only a brief moment before nodding in consent. I excuse myself from the room, and go back downstairs to inform the others of our decision. They all agree that Meltokio would be the best place to go for now. While we're there we can even stock up on some of Zelos' money.

And so it is that the eight of us pack our bags and set off for Meltokio!

TBC

Yay, chapter six down! Only an indefinite number of chapter left to go (I'm on chapter 12 right now, and still going)… Look for the next chapter in a few days, and, as always, I want more reviews!