Note: hints of Yuartel in this chapter- hey! This is Yuan that I'm writing through…I can't help it.

Disclaimer: I don't own Tales of Symphonia.

Part II: Yuan

I know all about tragic love. I had one. However, I didn't know that my best friend, the man who had helped me get through 4,000 years of Mithos' spiral into insanity, would have one either. I remember him coming over to my office in Triet, white as a sheet.

"Help me…"

That's what he said. So, I sat him down, gave him a cup of tea, and then stared in amazement as Kratos Aurion spilled his guts in front of me. He told me everything- about how he had been sent to oversee the Angelus Project, about how he had met this strange woman- Anna, who was in fact the tester for the Angelus Project, and most importantly, how he had fallen in love with her. He was frantic with worry. He was practically falling to pieces over this woman that he had only met about a month ago. That's when I knew that he was dead serious about the whole love thing- when he started worrying over everything. Come to think of it, why had I ever doubted him in the first place? Kratos had always been so serious- he had rarely ever been the kind of man to joke around. I stared at him some more as he started spilling even more. He was afraid…afraid for Anna, afraid for how Mithos would react to him falling in love, afraid of my reaction, afraid of what was going to happen…I didn't know the guy even HAD that much emotion in him. I tried my best to reassure him. I told him that I would handle Mithos, that I would always support him. He gave a weak smile. We sat there for a while, the silence between us thickening, when he abruptly stood up.

"I'm sorry Yuan, old friend. I need to go. I need to return and check on Anna." I nodded numbly. After all, what was a half-elf to do when his best friend decides to use them as a stress outlet? He left shortly after. I watched him go, his cerulean wings glittering on the horizon. I had a feeling that I wasn't going to be seeing him for quite a while…

And I didn't. Oh, I kept my promise to him. I intercepted Mithos when he tried to send an entire of army of angels after his missing seraph. I had told him that an entire army was too conspicuous. Kratos would have sensed them in an instant, and Mithos would never catch the eloped couple. He pouted, and then retreated to his chambers to think of some new twisted plan to catch Anna and Kratos. I stopped that one too. And the next one. And even the next one. I think Mithos caught on to what I was doing by the fifth plan. I remember waking up one morning to find his leering pale face staring into my eyes.

"Yuan, oh, Yuan. Old friend- you think that by trying to stop me you will assure Kratos's freedom? What did he have you do- promise him to stop me? Did he come to you begging like a dog? Now, Yuan, old friend, are you going to leave me too? Are you going to leave your best friend alone all by himself? Think wisely and choose now: Kratos, the traitor, or me. But remember- if you side with Kratos, you not only betray me, you also betray Martel. Because, I know my sister would agree with me."

I told him that I would never leave my best friend alone in the world. He left, satisfied that he had stopped me from interfering further. However, I had not told him the whole truth. Yes, I would never leave my best friend alone, but, I did not mean Mithos.

I meant Kratos. I was happy for him. I was happy that he had found a way to escape from the clutches of the cold, dark existence that I was held in. It almost felt like I was the one who had left. I continued to prevent Mithos from going after Kratos directly by himself. However, I could not stop him from ordering his subordinates from searching for my friend and his wife. Those two were forced to roam the world, constantly moving. I remember meeting them near Asgard three years later. Kratos had asked me to help them get by the Asgard ranch without attracting the attention of Kvar, the Desian Cardinal that ruled there. I remember staring at my best friend, so changed. He looked happier. Gone was the serious, deathly aura that had always hung around him. I felt a pang of jealousy. If Martel had lived, would we have looked like this? Then, I noticed the bundle in Kratos's arms. I pressed him on the matter. He told me to ignore it. But then, his wife, Anna, told me otherwise.

"Show him, Kratos- he might as well know."

Kratos had sighed then. He slowly revealed what lay in the blankets, soundly asleep.

A baby boy.

I remember my eyes widening. The boy looked exactly like his mother- deep brown hair, luminous brown eyes. The only Kratos I saw in him was his demeanor. Calm, collected, the young boy stared up at me with peaceful eyes. I only wish…that Kratos's eyes would have the same look as his son.

Three months later, I ran into Kratos again. This time, it was not to help him. He had finally been caught. His wife had been killed. His son had disappeared. Even Noishe, his faithful pet, had vanished. Mithos had dragged Kratos back to Derris Kharlan and then locked him up. He told me later that he wanted to prevent Kratos from leaving again. He was never going to let Kratos go out into the "outside" ever again. "To insure his loyalty," he told me. I could only look on in horror as Mithos continued to rant.

"Yuan, trust me, Kratos will be punished. Oh yes…it will be a long time before I let him leave my sight again."

"I want him to suffer, like I did when he left me."

"I'm sure Martel would agree with me- after all, isn't betrayal the worst crime?"

"I would be thankful, Yuan, that I did not choose to lock you up as well, if I was you. I know that you were in league with Kratos as well. If it weren't for the fact that you were my sister's fiancé, I would have killed you in an instant…"

I sobbed invisible tears for Kratos Aurion that day. I knew what kind of emotional pain he was going through. I had felt it too myself, 4,000 years ago. He was already suffering too much. I knew that whatever fiendish torture that Mithos had in store for him would only worsen the pain, would only destroy this happier version of Kratos. Martel…maybe, if you didn't die, your brother wouldn't be like this. I wouldn't be like this. Kratos wouldn't be like this. If you are looking down right now on us, wouldn't you agree?

End Part II

A/N: Well, there we have angsty Yuan discussing Kranna. PreToS, of course. Now, go and hit that review button…I know you want to…and stay tuned for Part III!