Broken Valentine

Amazon Bunny: Whoot! Chapter Niiiine!

Raine: You ARE going to ressurect me, aren't you?

Kratos: That is the intention...'snogs'

Raine: XD

Amazon Bunny: You'll see what happens, anyway...

DISCLAIMER: Amazon Bunny doesn't own Tales of Symphonia or any of its characters. Otherwise, she wouldn't be writing this story.

Kratos stood wearily outside Ozette. It was a rather foggy night, and the musty smell was getting to him. The Seraphim wandered into the local coffee shop, looking for something that would ease his headache.
Picking a random booth, he slid in and rubbed his throbbing temples. Damn it, he thought. Just a great time to have a headache.
"Excuse me, sir, but are you ready to order?" A waitress in a rather skimpy skirt asked, tapping her foot impatiently.
"Oh...No...I mean, yes, yes...Just a coffee, please. Black coffee," Kratos said quietly, clenching and unclenching his fists. He really needed some asprin right about now.
"That'll be 20 gald, please," the waitress handed him the reciept.
The angel paid the fee, desperate for the woman to leave and bring his drink.Shooting a glance at the grandfather clock in the corner, he noticed the time read 12:17. It was already this early in the morning...Grandfather clocks. Those were the kind Raine had in her home. In fact...
"Here's your coffee, sir," the waitress brought his steaming drink. "Say...Do I know you?"
Oh, but of course.
That waitress was the girl whom he'd ask for Sacred Wood.
"No," Kratos said curtly. "I don't think so." The last thing he needed was for crazy girls to smarm up to him.
"Oh, but I recognize you!" The girl said gleefully. "You're Kratos! Remember me? You asked me where to find Sacred Wood."
"If you don't leave me alone, I'll ask you where to find your manager."
The girl pouted. "Fine, fine. Enjoy your coffee, sir." She pranced off, throwing what she thought was 'stunningly beautiful' glances over her shoulder and giggling.

Kratos stared at his cup of coffee. Black coffee, just the way she would make it. He remembered...
It was a perfect morning. Kratos and Lloyd had finished un-setting camp, and Genis was making breakfast. Sweet aromas of pancakes, sausages, and eggs mingled together in the fresh morning air. Colette was finishing cleaning her scrape, when she tripped out of her sleeping bag that morning. Raine, over by the river, was getting water for coffee, the only food she could make fairly well.
"Fairly well" was an understatement. Her coffee was amazingly good.
And it just so happened that Kratos loved coffee.
The healer pulled out a pouch of ground coffee beans and measured a fair sized amount.
The traitor could only stand and gaze in awe. Her every move seemed so graceful, so beautiful...
"Kratos!" Lloyd snapped his fingers in front of the auburn haired man's face. "Kratos, are you just going to stand there, mouth agape, or are you going to eat breakfast?"
He felt the color rise in his face, and everyone was staring at him. Raine poured a cup of the dark liquid and handed it to Kratos. Spearing a sausage on his fork, he glared at it, and took a bite. It never occured to him that he sat close enough that his leg was up against her's. And it never occured to him that they sat together, away from the other three.Normally, he would have sat far away, perhaps on a fallen log, and ate his breakfast in solitude.
But today would be a special day...
He took a sip of his coffee. The bittersweet taste rolled over his tongue, seemed to soothe his wandering thoughts. He stared absently, lost in thought, sipping coffee. Black coffee, her specialty.
"Are you alright, Kratos?" Raine asked softly. "You seem...angry."
He sipped his coffee thoughtfully. "No," he replied. "I'm...Fine."
"Would you like another cup?" The half-elven woman offered, holding up the coffeepot.
Kratos noticed that he had drank the entire cup. "Very well, then."
"Good, huh," Raine said happily, pouring him another cup. "It's probably the only thing I can make well other than tea."
"No, I'm sure you can cook other things well," Kratos lied.
"Well, thanks, but..."
"How do you make this?" Kratos gestured to the coffee.
"Oh...Well, it's quite simple, actually. You use a half cup of ground coffee for each pot. The water must be spring water, or else it wouldn't be right. The secret is in the water," she said simply. "For black coffee, anyway. For the kids, I usually add a spoonful of sugar and a spoonful of cream."
"Well, I'll have to try this out later," he said, a smile at the corner of his mouth. As he drank his third cup, he realized that he would have the worst coffee breath that day...

Hesitantly, Kratos raised the cup of coffee to his lips. He drained it with one gulp, something he never did before. The hot coffee singed his tongue and burned his throat. Raine's coffee never did that. Her coffee was always pleasantly warm; hot, but not too hot; bitter, but sweet.
This coffee was just plain scalding and bitter.
It was nothing -nothing-on the scale of Raine's coffee.
He ordered another cup and drained it like the last. And then another. And another. And another. He wanted, no, he needed the coffee.
As he lifted the sixth cup to his lips, the manager himself came to see what was causing this fascination up at the counter.
"Sir, how many cups have you drank?" He said sternly, peering over his oversized spectacles.
"Only five," Kratos responded, drinking his sixth cup.
"Sir, do you know that that much coffee in a sitting is hazardous, if not, fatal?"
"She used to make coffee."
The manager gave Kratos an incredulous look, and went back to the counter. "Noone here is to give this man anything to eat or drink, or you're fired." Hesaid bossily. "Ozette's tourism is very poor this season. Ifthis shop suffers a customer death by...too much coffee...then surely this shop will lose popularity and we will beforced to close. Understood?"
The co-workers nodded numbly. The waitress shot a frightened look at Kratos, just as he finished his sixth cup.

The Seraphim could not get his coffee in any other way. He tried to order more, but nobody would give him any. So he left. Grudgingly, angrily, disappointed, lost in memories- but he left, desperate to seek solace to this pain. To add on to his mental frustration, there was a tight, uncomfortable feeling in his gut. No, he did not have to visit the toilet yet- it was different. He wandered the quiet, empty village, the sun was to rise in a few hours.
The pain in his chest was ripping him apart. He had lost Anna first, because he had no choice. Now he had lost Raine, but he had a choice. He could have saved her, he told himself. He had a choice, he could have looked for a cure, he could have done a billion different things to save Raine. But he didn't.
Suddenly, pain exploded in his chest.
A whimper tore from his parted lips, and a low moan escaped.

"Welcome to the Church of Martel!" The Pastor greeted. "What ails you, my friend?"
That would have been the common greeting whenever someone entered the Church of Martel. At this time of day, the pastors and priestesses had gone home, getting a good night's sleep for the coming day.
Kratos fell to his knees in front of the Statue of Martel and the Great Seed. In front of the heavenly statue, lay an open casket. Raine's casket, to be specific.
"In all 4000 years of my life,it's strange that I've never made a confession before," Kratos said with a dry laugh, one hand clinging onto the casket, one hand nursing the wound on his chest. In his carelessness, he had been targeted by thugs; stabbed, robbed, and left for dead on the side of the road. With what little strength left in his body, he used his angel wings to fly himself to Martel Cathedral, a new structure right outside Heimdall and the Ymir Forest, where Raine's body lie. She had not been permitted to be buried in her birth place, because of her race.
"All I wanted to do was live a happy life. And then be reunited with all my friends and loved ones in death. It seems...It seems I will not be able to. I have done too much wrong." Tears welled in his eyes. He drew a long, painful breath. "I was born into a wealthy family; my father was a Knight, my mother a Lady-In-Waiting for the Queen. I had everything I wanted then, except for the love I wanted from my parents, from everyone. I was shunned because of the rumor that my father was not my real father. Back then, it was a sin, a crime. It still is, but the prejudice has lifted some. I finally found friends. I had grown, into a man, and I met a boy named Mithos, and his sister, Martel, from Heimdall. They, too, lived a life like mine. Rejected, shunned. Only their reason was because they were half elves. I told myself, what difference did it make? I was just like them. We were outcasts, rejects. Mithos wanted to learn swordsmanship. And I taught him. Martel's fiance, Yuan, had later been chased out of Heimdall too, and we became friends.
"During this time, the continents of Sylvarant and Tethe'alla began to war. We tried to stop this, so Mithos split the world in two with the Eternal Sword. The Peace Treaty was signed in Derris Kharlan. And then...Mithos...did the unthinkable. He was tired of the prejudice against half-elves, and it finally pushed over the edge when Martel was killed.
"I thought the best way was to follow Mithos for a long time. We even found a way tobecome literally immortal.Until I was sent to Asgard Ranch, to survey the work, and met Anna, my thoughts changed. Anna was a part of the Angelus Project. She was beautiful. And she understood me. Little by little, I fell in love. One day, it was raining. I had been testing a new security system, and found a fault; every time someone would reprogram the system, the Gates would open for a minute or two, and then swing shut. The detectors would shut off momentarily, as well. So I found a way to smuggle Anna out. I had a Desian send her to me, telling him it was important, and then I killed him. I took Anna and escaped. We fled to Hima. And then to Luin. And then Asgard. We hid in Balacruf Masoleum and when Lloyd was born, we hid again in Asgard. We were finally caught in my late Grandparents' home, in the mountains of Hima. Anna was sent to Iselia Human Ranch, and when I led her escape again. We were caught this time. Anna's Ex-Sphere was removed and she became...a monster. I...I killed her. Lloyd fell down a cliff, where there were monsters, and Desians, and I thought the chance for happiness was over."
Kratos ran a tongue over his dry lips and drew in a short, haggard breath. His hand trembled on the casket, and his knuckles were white. His skin had become clammy and cold, his eyes with more life than ever before.
"I became a mercenary. I thought the best way to take out my anger was to kill. I took my anger out by killing anything, ripping things to shreds, destroying things. Until I realized Lloyd, my son, was still alive. Things took a better turn. And then, I met Raine. She...was different from Anna. Anna was gentle, mild, graceful and taller. She gained a little weight when she became pregnant with Lloyd, and remained that way until her death. Raine, well, Raine was outgoing, cunning, and brilliantly smart. She was shorter than Anna, more petite. When I spent time with Raine, I thought my chance for happiness was rekindled, everything would be right again.
"And then I went and ruined it. Ruined it! I should have searched for a cure, I should have known! I just merely sat about, thinking that Raine was strong, Raine would overcome. But I guess I was wrong again."
Blood had pooled around him, and he knew his time was short. His breath was short and raggedy, in short, sharp gasps. He reached in the casket and held Raine's stiff, cold hand. Staring up at the statue, he screamed, "I can't die now! I have to save Raine."

And he let out his last breath.

To my reviewers:
Miss Raine Sage: The first to review deserves my first response! Thanks for the comment! Uh, this chapter might be reaaaally sad, but I kinda warned y'all. Don't worry, I will make an alternate ending. And no, this is not the last chapter (without the alternate ending). There is the Epilougue. Haha!

RavenGhost: Thanks! I hope you liked this chapter. I know, angsty angsty angsty and sad, but like I said, I will make an alternate ending.

Midnight Eclipse713: Thank you! I won't give any spoilers whether Raine and Kratos will live after this, but you'll just have to read on, lol

Scarlet Kratos: Homework is the epitome of EVIL! Every Villian Is Lemons (SpongeBob, haha), and Homework is the President! Enjoy the chapter, lol

ShimaGenki: heheh, I updated...Thanks for the review! Make more stories of your own soon! I can't wait to read em!

Hamano Ayumi: Ooh COOOOOL! At my school, I have lots of Foreign Exchange students...O.o We have an Italian kid, Russian kid, French kid, etc etc etc! Yay! You updated "Guardian"! Wah! Loved it!

adri66215: You'll see who destroys the book, etc etc etc or if it will be destroyed at all! lol thanks for the comment!

Elvyn-Light: Nifeliem is easy to destroy; whenever the scene is blue, you have to find the exit. Whenever the scene is red, you have to kill all the monsters. Reccommended level is 120 for easy defeat. Just make sure to keep above the 200 Soulfire thing. Thanks for the review!

deathscall: uh sure, lol Zelos is cool though (pouts)Nice Kratos costume, anyway! Thanks for the review!

cutie1004: awww, I know, I was feeling sort of mad when I wrote the chapter. Listening to sad song while writing this chapter, lol

Amazon Bunny: Finished! This seems rushed, though...(stares) I apologize! I did this all in one day, heheh!

Lloyd: Dad...(shocked) (dramatic scene and stabs self to death)

Colette: Lloyd...Lloyd, Lloyd! (drinks poison)

Amazon Bunny: Everyone's just dying today, aren't they? XP Reminds me of Cleopatra and Marc Antony...Or Romeo and Juliet. Muahahahaha!

Zelos: (walks in) Oh my G-

Sheena: EEP!

Amazon Bunny: I didn't do nuthin.

Zelos and Sheena: YES YOU DID! YOU MURDERER! YOU INSANE MURDERER!

Amazon Bunny: AhHhHhHhHhHh! ReAd AnD rEvIeW!