I don't own tales of Symphonia. Otherwise this wouldn't be a fan fiction.

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Time can pass very slowly when there is nothing to do, but it can also pass slowly when there is to much to do, and both Kratos and Yuan felt as if the few weeks in which Kratos was bed ridden took forever. Kratos spent most of the time completely still, hardly breathing because he was so afraid of any pain. He could do nothing but sit and think. Luckily he had planning to pass the never ending hours. It was an obnoxious process considering he couldn't move to write anything down, and he kept forgetting what he'd come up with and having to plan again. Many times he found himself wishing he could get up and check what books he had to use. Worse than anything he kept getting interrupted by is mother who, in the wake of the incident, had decided to baby him herself. She would come in and cluck over him, often bringing in a friend or two so that they could see what a good mother she was. At first it had been interesting to watch his mother try to answer questions of how it had happened. From lack of creativity Yuan had told her that Kratos had tripped and fallen into a ditch, this wasn't the type of heroic injury expected of a general's son so in turn Mrs. Aurion made up her own lies.

Yuan was not pleased with Mrs.Aurion either. She had banned him from Kratos's room until her poor little baby was better, and Yuan had found himself doing more average slave labor. Field work was miserable. Planting vegetable after vegetable left the mind nothing to do except think about pain. Yuan tried to ignore the pain in his back, his arms, and his neck by thinking of fighting moves he thought Kratos ought to know. Occasionally he would lay down in the fields and rest, only to find himself brutally awakened by the overseer. Yuan never cursed the overseer though, for he was the only reason Yuan's former friends didn't attack him. But all things both good and bad must come to an end, and one weekend morning Kratos found himself in good enough condition to have his mother, long bored of coddling, throw him out of the house to enjoy the sunshine.

With books and papers in hand Kratos walked out into the fields to find Yuan. Kratos liked the fields although they weren't as nice in spring as they were in summer or fall. Now in spring the slaves were planting and tilling and hoeing, but there were slaves everywhere and Kratos didn't know where to find Yuan. Nervously despite the authority he held over them, Kratos went to ask one of the overseers. They were nice humans who watched out over the slaves to make sure that none of them acted up.

" Um, Mr. Overseer, sir?" Kratos walked up to the man and tapped him on the back.

" Who the… Oh! Young Mister Aurion, is there anything I can do to help you?" The overseer turned around and smiled falsely down at Kratos.

" Uh, yeah. I mean yes, I mean… do you know where my slave is? He's got blue hair, he's about my age and…" Kratos stumbled through his words and watching the mans large bull whip very closely.

" About your age? Well, then he'd be planting with the other children over in the potato field." The overseer pointed as he spoke. Kratos thanked him hurriedly and walked as fast as could over to the potato field trying his best not to drop any of his lesson plan. By the time he'd reached the potato field he was out of breath and miserable. Kratos walked up and down the rows of what would one day be crops, careful to avoid stepping on the newly planted potatoes. It took awhile to find Yuan, who's vibrant hair had once again been dulled by filth and grime.

" Yuan! I … finally found… you," Kratos panted as he walked towards his new pupil. Yuan turned and looked up at Kratos and glared at him.

" Your tired? I've been out here all day and…" Yuan stopped short seeing Kratos back away in fear, after all he still felt guilty. " Sorry Kratos. I'm glad your not um, dead."

" It's alright Yuan I'm fine. I've got stuff to teach you with," Kratos said the second part in a very loud whisper that could undoubtedly be heard with great ease. " We should find someplace to secret to do this." Yuan nodded and looked around the vast plantation for the some form of enclosure.

" How about in the forest, you know a part nearish to your house." Yuan suggested. " Besides we need to be outside if I'm going to train you." So leading the way Yuan headed in the direction of the house, and miserable about the distance he'd have to travel Kratos followed.


After clearing the great distance from the potato fields to the Aurion mansion. The boys snuck around the house and entered the woods behind it. Not very far in the pair found a clearing that Yuan announced was perfect. The woods cleared out around a small river that ran idly through the forest. It was beautiful and peaceful with sun light streaming through the trees and making the water sparkle like gold. Kratos let out a contented sigh as he plopped down on the ground exhausted from the long walk and its toll on his newly healed body. Yuan glanced at him and grumbled realizing another advantage to their hideout. If Kratos got exhausted so easily it was helpful for the place to be close to his house. But he was still annoyed. It was beginning to dawn him that before he even tried to explain how to fight he'd have to focus on basic physical fitness. This was going to be harder than he thought.

" I'm amazed you get to and from school everyday without collapsing. You are so weak. I can't even start training you today your way to tired." Yuan shouted in exasperation.

" Once on the way to school I did faint, because it was so hot," Kratos said aloud although it seemed he was more thinking to himself than anything else. " Anyway, I guess that means I'm teaching today!" Kratos gestured to Yuan to come sit down beside him and began to ruffle through his papers in an important fashion. Yuan watched him slightly interested. To tell the truth he was very excited by the idea of reading, although it did seem rather complicated.

" Here we go! A first reader book!" Kratos opened the book carefully and set it with one half on his lap and the other on Yuan's. " Alright so you see the first word? That says cat. The C is a tricky letter because it can make more than one kind of sound and…"

" What's a C?" Yuan asked interrupting him. Kratos just gaped at him.

" You don't even know your alphabet? You don't know anything do you? I

M going to have to teach you more than I thought. Yes, you'll need to know arithmetic, and science, and history." Kratos said as it dawned on him just how far behind Yuan was.

" That's to much!" Yuan shouted, feeling overwhelmed.

" I know. We'll just work on the alphabet for know," Kratos began to go through his things again, until he found what he was looking for. " Good. I was worried I hadn't brought one. This Yuan is an Alphabet book." Kratos put the book between them and began to explain.

" See here Yuan? This letter is an A. A is the first letter of the Alphabet. A is the letter in the word Apple, the first letter in the word Ant, and the first letter in lot's of other words too. Okay, now this is the letter B. B is the second letter in the alphabet. B is the first letter in the word…"

" But you said it was the second letter!" Yuan interrupted looking very confused.

" Well it's the second letter in the Alphabet but it still starts some words." Kratos explained, but his pupil still looked confused. " Fine lets just forget about words for now. B is the second letter of the alphabet. No what was the first?"

" Um, A?" Yuan asked.

"Yup! You got it right! You learn very quickly. Now let's keep going." Kratos said clapping Yuan on the shoulder.

The boys worked until the sky began to darken and they decided to head back for dinner. Yuan was now able to recite his alphabet from A to K, although he sometimes got the order of G and H confused. Kratos was very proud of him and for some reason that seemed to matter. He excitedly ran the letters through his mind. Kratos had said that once they reached the end of the alphabet he had a song to help Yuan remember. Near the front of the mansion the two parted ways promising to practice after school ended the next day. As Kratos entered the mansion Yuan walked happily to the house slave quarters feeling more intelligent than he ever had before.