Chapter 6! I hope you guys like it, and thanks for reading.

The group crowded around Colette, eagerly waiting for Lloyd to put the Key Crest on. Lloyd carefully undid the latch on the chain.

"I didn't think I'd be giving you your birthday present like this," he said quietly. "I attached it to your Key Crest. It's late, but…" He hesitated, then gently placed it around her neck. "Happy birthday."

The seconds ticked by. "Colette? Can you hear me?" The girl continued to stare blankly ahead.

"She's the same," Genis remarked quietly.

"No!" Lloyd pulled the Key Crest off her neck to look at it. "Dammit!"

"What do we do now?" Genis glanced around at his friends. "Maybe…maybe the researchers at the Academy know why it didn't work?"

"Only one way to find out." Zelos shrugged. "We can ask them."

They all started to gather their things, but Kratos hesitated. "…Lloyd. You should stay here and get some sleep."

"No." Lloyd was stubborn and resolute. "I'll sleep in a little bit. After we talk to them."

"…" Kratos opened his mouth to argue, but Raine quickly shook her head at him. Lloyd turned on his heel and started picking his things up.

"He won't listen," she told him quietly. "You know what he's like."

"He's a stubborn child," Kratos muttered.

"Yes, and he's not going to stop being stubborn for the rest of his life. He's a stubborn child, he'll be stubborn adult." She sighed, glancing at her student. "There are worse things he could be."

Well. She wasn't wrong, Kratos thought. Lloyd's determination had its upsides and downsides. No one could ever accuse him of giving up.

"Let's go." Lloyd stalked past them. He looked as if he expected Kratos to argue, but instead the man just followed him out the door.

The scientists they talked to at the Imperial Research Academy were just as stumped as they were.

"Well, without actually examining her Crystal," the man explained, "we can't tell exactly why it didn't work. It may be because the Key Crest is broken, or incorrectly formed. It could be that the Crystal has already metastasized and won't respond to any treatment."

"…Metastasized…?" Kratos furrowed his brow in confusion. Raine caught the look, but didn't say anything.

"What?" Lloyd grimaced. "Does that mean…?"

"It means there isn't much else to be done," the second scientists said evenly. "We've never seen it go that far, but we theorize it is possible for the Crystal to overtake its host. Then there isn't much more we can do but wait."

Lloyd clenched his fists, but Raine questioned further. "You say you've never seen it go that far. Have you done…actual experiments on people?"

"Oh, no, no, no!" The scientists both looked aghast. "We do isolated experiments on test animals. We'd never harm any human."

"…Hmmm." She folded her arms. "Are you positive there are no human experiments going on?"

The scientists assured her there were not. She didn't look satisfied, but she said nothing further. The group left without any more information. Lloyd was still looking fairly upset.

"Well," Zelos said, stretching his arms above his head. "That wasn't exactly what we were looking for. Let's hope the eggheads are wrong, eh?"

"Zelos." Raine abruptly turned to the Chosen. "Can you do me a favor?"

"Ah, my scholarly beauty. What do you need?"

"In that room, there was a book. It was called…Mana Signatures Among Humans." She folded her arms. "Do you think you can go get it for me?"

"Of course. After all, I am the Chosen." He pretended to bow and left with a flourish of his hands.

"Do you think that will have an answer, Professor?" Lloyd asked eagerly.

Raine shook her head, her eyes still on the door that Zelos had gone through. "No. But I needed to talk freely for a moment."

"Be quick." Kratos nodded. "He won't take long."

"Kratos, is what they were saying possible? Can a Cruxis Crystal metastasize to a person and cause irreversible damage?"

"Not exactly," he said swiftly. He kept his eyes on the door, watching for Zelos. "It's not the Crystal, but a disease caused by the Crystal. If it affects the Chosen, then she will eventually be overtaken by the Crystal. But she hasn't shown any signs of it…yet." His eyes flicked to Colette. "And it has nothing to do with the Key Crest."

"Hmm…interesting." Raine sighed. "I have no idea what to do. Perhaps we should find another Key Crest?"

"Oh, Professor!" Zelos swung jauntily out the door and held out the book. "Here you go. Now, for my reward, I'll take a peck on the cheek!"

"Hmm. Maybe Kratos can help you out." With that, she started walking away. Zelos made a gagging noise and ran after her.

"Ugh! You know I'm not into guys!"

"Geez," Genis huffed. "That guy doesn't take anything seriously."

"Yeah," Lloyd agreed. The rest of the group followed the two, catching up near the inn. "We don't have time for this. We need to figure out what to do next."

"You," Kratos said sternly, "need to rest. If we try to travel now, you'll be even more useless than you usually are."

Lloyd opened his mouth to argue, but he abruptly yawned instead. "Ugh. You're right. I'm really tired."

"I think we all need a day or two to rest," Raine said calmly. "Let's stay here and decide our next step."

"I want to go home."

They all turned. In the chase to find a cure for Colette, they had all forgotten about Presea. She was staring up at them. "I want to go home," she repeated.

"Yeah, we've gotta get the little one back to her parents. I'll bet they're worried." Zelos smirked at Kratos. "Parents, huh?"

Kratos ignored him. "Shall we head there tomorrow morning?"

Raine nodded. "That sounds like a plan. Perhaps, before then, we can figure out a solution to the Key Crest issue."

"Yeah." Lloyd sighed and followed behind her. "Sounds like…a plan."

Back at the inn, Kratos and Raine managed to coax Lloyd into taking a nap. It wasn't as difficult as anticipated; Lloyd had, apparently, reached the limit of his energy. Once he was in bed and asleep, he was out like a light. He slept until the early afternoon, practically dead to the world.

"Thank goodness he's getting some rest," Raine sighed. "I just hope his sleep schedule isn't off from now on."

"He'll be fine," Genis told her. "Remember, this is the same kid who used to sleep until noon and stay up until four in the morning."

The rest of the group took the day to relax, though there was a definite undercurrent of anxiety among them. Zelos left to wonder around Sybak, claiming he'd had enough "wholesome goodness" for the day. Genis broke open a spell book he'd bought from the junk seller and started reciting incantations to himself. Raine curled up in an armchair and delved into the book from the Academy. She occasionally hummed to herself, and finally said, "Didn't Yuan mention something about Colette's mana signature?"

Kratos, who had started digging through his pack for his own books, nodded. "Yes. Colette's mana signature is nearly identical to Martel's, which is why she is so valuable to Cruxis."

"Interesting." Raine frowned at the book in her hands. "According to this, those with similar mana signatures tend to have physical similarities. For example, a pair of humans with similar mana signatures had identical allergies. They were in an experiment and they had several other things in common, such as the same hair and eye color. Fascinating."

"That reminds me," Genis said, "Raine, why did you ask if the Research Academy was doing human experiments?"

"Hmm? Oh, right." Raine glanced at Presea, who was sitting quietly on a couch across the room. "I was curious. Surely you've noticed the…similarities between Presea and Colette?"

"Huh? Similarities?" Genis followed her gaze. "Yeah…they are kind of similar."

"She wears an Exsphere," Kratos remarked. "Do you think the Academy might have something to do with it?"

"Perhaps. There might be another explanation. The Renegades gave Sheena her Exsphere; perhaps they have something to do with Presea's."

The group grew quiet after that, falling back into their calm work. After a quick lunch of sandwiches, the return of Zelos, and some more reading, Lloyd woke up. He came out of the room, rubbing his eyes and stretching his arms. He looked much better, Kratos was glad to see. He had some color in his cheeks and seemed much more alert.

And he immediately continued working on the Key Crest.

His friends kept giving him worried glances, but he ignored them. He refused all offers of food and suggestions to take a break, instead intently carving out the charms. It wasn't until Raine, at around dinnertime, physically took the Key Crest from him that he stopped.

"You aren't getting anywhere with this," she scolded. "We'll just have to try something else."

"But-!" Lloyd tried to protest, but Zelos interjected.

"She's right, bud. It could just be that this Key Crest is a dud."

"No. No, it's me. I did it wrong." Lloyd sighed and rubbed his face. "It's my fault."

"Don't think that way," Genis argued. "You're doing your best! Maybe Zelos is right. Maybe it's the Key Crest itself."

Lloyd stood up. "Maybe if I draw the charms out first…" He mumbled to himself as he went into his room, with Genis following anxiously. Raine sighed, then said, "Well...it is her necklace." She put it back around Colette's neck. The girl didn't respond.

Kratos, meanwhile, had his own obsession to deal with. The book from Meltokio he had taken was helpful, but had very superficial information. All theory, nothing concrete. Kratos wanted to know exactly what he would need for him, a human, to wield the Eternal Sword. But he needed something else.

It didn't matter if he found a way for a human to wield it. If Kratos himself was dead, there wouldn't be anyone able to wield it. Yuan might be able to, but Kratos didn't trust the man as far as he could throw him. It had been a long time since the two of them had been friends.

Zelos might have been able to, if Kratos wasn't almost certain that Cruxis already had their hooks in him. But perhaps the Chosen could be persuaded.

Then there was the obvious choice. The choice his mind would not allow him to even consider, because he wasn't putting all of this on his son's shoulders. He wouldn't do that to Lloyd.

So he went to the Imperial Library and started searching for books on mana. Anything that might allow him to survive releasing Origin's seal. Even for just a few moments, long enough to reunite the worlds.

And maybe say goodbye to Lloyd…

He returned to the inn around sundown, a few books in his arms. He settled in and began to read through. After a while, he was surprised by a pair of footsteps approaching the room.

He assumed it would be Lloyd, or perhaps Zelos come to mock him some more. Instead, in walked Raine, her face set with a frown.

"I thought you weren't going to interrogate me anymore." Kratos set his book to the side. Raine's eyes flickered to it for just a second before going back to him.

"This is different. May I sit?" Raine was being much more cordial than she had recently. Kratos raised an eyebrow, then gestured to the chair next to him. "It's about Lloyd."

As she sunk into the chair, Kratos shifted uncomfortably. "What about him?"

"I can't get through to him. He keeps trying to fix this Key Crest." She clasped her hands together. "He feels…guilty, I think, and he won't accept that there might not be anything he can do."

"Why are you telling me this?"

Raine sighed. "I thought that would be obvious. Someone needs to talk to him."

Kratos stiffened. "And that someone should be…me? The traitor?"

"I can't say I'm pleased about it, either," Raine huffed. "But Lloyd will listen to you. He responds to you. He respects you, he likes you."

"He shouldn't," Kratos replied automatically. Raine's eyebrows went up in surprise and Kratos humphed. "It's the truth. I'm not really in the position to be a role model."

"All the same," she said evenly, "the two of you have bonded over this journey. I think talking to you would help him sort out his feelings. It definitely helped him when we first learned about Exspheres."

Kratos was quiet, then finally he said, "Alright. Where is he now?"

"He took a walk around Sybak," she informed him as he stood up. "Genis convinced him to get some fresh air."

"Very well. I'll go talk to him, though I'm not sure what I can say." Kratos slipped his cape over his shoulders. "I'm not exactly…the comforting type. I'm a bit too blunt. Harsh."

"Do what you can." Raine watched him leave. She sighed and headed back to her room. She wasn't sure about this.

She wasn't sure about this at all.

Lloyd was lying on his back, on the roof of the library, staring up at the stars.

He hadn't really intended to come up here: originally, he'd planned to just stick near the Research Academy, near the water. Instead, though, he had climbed up here to see if he could see the stars.

He wondered if the stars were the same in Sylvarant and Tethe'alla. He could make out all the same constellations he knew by heart. His eyes traced over the familiar, comforting figures of monsters and men, heroes and villains.

There was the sound of soft shoes on brick behind him. Someone was climbing up to the roof. Lloyd sat up and glanced around, hand on his swords, ready for a fight.

But it was only Kratos. The man was climbing one-handed, as he had two steaming mugs of coffee in the other. Silently, he sat down and held one out for Lloyd.

"Thanks." Lloyd took the mug. "What are you doing up here?"

"I could ask the same of you." Kratos sat down cross-legged next to his son.

Lloyd frowned at him. "Yeah, but I asked first."

"…Your friends are worried about you." He kept his gaze steady on Lloyd. "So am I."

"Why?" Lloyd asked. "I'm fine."

"Are you?" When Lloyd didn't answer, Kratos nodded. "That's what I thought."

Kratos took a drink of his coffee. Not because he wanted to, but more to get Lloyd to do the same. The trick worked, as the teenager took a gulp of his own. "I know you want to save her, but working yourself to death will only make the problem worse."

"I know that. I just…" Lloyd turned his face away. "…Never mind. It's not important."

Kratos watched him for a moment in silence. Finally, he set down his coffee and sighed.

"Lloyd. I understand how you feel, wanting to do anything to save someone you care about. But…I also understand it from a different side. Imagine—no, you don't have to imagine."

"…What?" Lloyd asked. "Imagine what?"

"When you found out the Chosen was giving up her humanity, think of how you felt. You were guilty, angry, scared. Am I correct?"

"Yeah. You're right."

Kratos picked his coffee back up and took a drink. "Those feelings are exactly what your friends feel now. They worry for you, and they don't want to see you like this. Exhausted, refusing to eat, obsessed."

"I just want to protect her," Lloyd said quietly. "Colette is like this and…I know I can help her."

"Everyone feels this urge to protect those they care about. It's ingrained in us as humans." Kratos stared out at the inky black sky. "But that same principle applies to those we care about. They want to protect us. And they want to see us take care of ourselves." He looked at Lloyd. "How many times has the Chosen told you to be careful?"

Lloyd looked down at his coffee. "…I understand. But I still—!"

"No buts," Kratos said firmly. "If you won't do it for your own sake, then do it for hers. The Chosen is always worried about you; don't add to her worries by neglecting your own health." He paused, then added, "Imagine how upset the Chosen will be if she comes back to find a cranky, tired teenager instead of her usually cheerful friend."

At that, Lloyd finally cracked a smile. "Yeah. I guess you're right." He drank the last of his coffee and sighed. "Thanks, Kratos."

"Of course." He made to stand up, but Lloyd suddenly said, "Hey, Kratos, wait a minute."

"Hmm?" Kratos raised an eyebrow. "Is there something else you wanted to ask?"

"Yeah. It's kind of stupid, but…" Lloyd hesitated, then said, "Can you just…hang out with me for a little bit?"

Kratos blinked. "Why on earth…?"

Lloyd's face got red. "Look, it's not weird, alright? I just…it's nice to talk like this. Like back during the Regeneration journey."

"…" Kratos didn't respond, but he sat down next to Lloyd and waited. "Well?" he asked. "What did you want to talk about?"

Lloyd gave him an exasperated look. "Oh, come on, don't make this awkward. Don't you ever just talk to your friends?"

"Heh." Kratos can't help but smile. Anna had often said the same thing about him, telling him he made every conversation a little bit more uncomfortable. "Yuan and Yggdrasill are the closest I have to friends."

Lloyd laughed. "Well…I guess you guys didn't get together too often for coffee, huh?"

"…We used to," Kratos said abruptly. Lloyd blinked in surprise. "A long time ago, the three of us were as close as you, Genis, and the Chosen."

"Really?" Lloyd moved so that he was crossed-legged as well, mimicking Kratos. "That's…weird to think about. How did that happen?"

"…" Kratos paused. He hadn't intended to get into this, but it wouldn't hurt to give Lloyd a bit of the story. "I was friends with a woman once. I met her when I was around your age."

"Your wife?" Lloyd guessed. Kratos shook his head.

"No, this woman was just a friend. A dear, dear friend to me." Kratos sighed, the memories flooding back. "She introduced me to her younger brother, who was just barely a teenager. He begged me to teach him to use a sword."

"Really?" Lloyd jolted up straight. "Hey, you mentioned him before! You told us that you had taught someone else swordsmanship. But…you said that…he fell into despair or something like that?"

Kratos nodded solemnly. "That was the first time I met Yggdrasill."

"Wait, you knew him when he was a kid?" Lloyd was totally engrossed in the story now. "And now he's your boss?"

"Hmph. Not anymore." Kratos sighed. "It was a long time ago, but we travelled together. I taught Yggdrasill to use a sword, and we would often talk afterwards, just like you and I do now."

"What about Yuan?"

Kratos smirked. "Heh. Yuan and I were more like you and Genis. We always used to play pranks on each other, play silly games, tease each other."

"…What happened?" Lloyd asked. "Why are you guys…?"

"Time," Kratos said simply. "We grew apart. We were still friends, and I still felt responsible for Yggdrasill as his teacher. But we weren't close. We didn't have that connection. Eventually, our relationship deteriorated and we became less friends and more…business associates."

"…That's why you stayed," Lloyd said slowly. "You wanted to help your friend."

"Hmph. Did I need another reason?" Kratos shrugged. "Either way, I wouldn't call us friends now."

"Hey, well, look on the bright side!" Lloyd grinned at him. "Now you have us!"

"…Hmph." Kratos smiled gently at him. "I suppose I do."

Automatically, his hand reached up to Lloyd's head. The gesture was familiar, an old sign of affection, ruffling his son's hair. So very long ago, on windy nights like this, looking up at the stars, Kratos had done the exact same thing. It was…comforting to Kratos.

Lloyd stiffened. He wasn't used to outright warmth from Kratos. There had been moments, like earlier, where Kratos would pat his back in approval or squeeze his shoulder encouragingly. But this was more like…

Well, it was more like something Dirk would do. Did do, in fact, when Lloyd would finish a project and proudly show it off, or boast about his latest sword move.

The moment was over quickly, as Kratos removed his hand and stood up. "Um…Kratos?" The older man grunted in response, evidently just as embarrassed about what had just happened. Lloyd made the decision to ignore the strange moment, and asked something he had been wondering about for a while.

"Um…you've been to both worlds, right?"

The older man nodded. "Yes. Why?"

"Then…do you know…are the stars the same in both of them?" Lloyd pointed up at the sky. "Because there are a lot of the same constellations."

Kratos looked up with him, surprised. "Hmm. Raine is right, you are fairly observant." Lloyd glared at him, but he continued, "Yes, the stars are the same. The two worlds exist on shifted dimensions, but the rest of the universe remains the same. So, the stars you see now, are also the ones you saw in Sylvarant."

"Whoa. Cool. Are the stories the same?"

"Largely so," Kratos confirmed. "Some are different, but they hold the same premise. For example, instead of Undine or Ifreet, it might be Gnome or Shadow who is the hero of the tale."

"Huh. What about the stories about Origin?" Lloyd asked.

Kratos stiffened. "There…are no stories of Origin. Not in the stars."

"The Professor told me that, too, but…" Lloyd frowned. "I'm sure of it. I remember that once, someone told me stories…" He suddenly seemed to realize who he was talking to and stopped, his face flushing. "Ah, sorry, I didn't mean to be weird. It's nothing. I probably dreamed it."

Kratos was staring at him, unable to speak. Was it possible…? Did Lloyd really remember those stories? Those tales from centuries ago, that had long since been lost to time, were sometimes the only stories that put his son to sleep at night.

"…Speaking of dreams," Kratos said, quickly regaining his composure. "You'd better get to sleep. Come on." He hesitated, then clapped his hand on Lloyd's shoulder. "Be careful going down."

Lloyd followed him to the edge of the roof. Together, they started to climb down the side of the building. The city was quiet, so still that they could hear their own footsteps echoing around them.

When they reached the inn and headed for their room—they were sharing with Zelos now—they found it empty. Lloyd shrugged.

"Whatever. He's a big boy, he'll be back." Lloyd rubbed his eyes and stretched, more interested in sleep than his newest companion.

"…" Kratos didn't say anything, but curiously glanced out the window. No sign of the red-haired Chosen. Strange.

"Hey, Kratos?" Lloyd had pulled his boots off and was sitting on the edge of the bed. His jacket had been stripped off as well, thrown aside to the corner sloppily.

"…Hmm? What is it?"

"I'm really glad you're still here." He grinned at the older man. "Are you going to stay with us?"

Kratos hesitated. Finally, he said, "I can't."

"You should." Lloyd fell back with a thump and started to curl into his blankets. "We could help you with what you need, you know. You don't have to do everything alone."

Kratos sighed. "Lloyd, go to sleep."

"Promise you'll at least think about it," Lloyd insisted, his voice muffled. "Please?"

Kratos smiled faintly as Lloyd burrowed into the blankets like a child. "…Fine. I'll consider it."

It was unusually windy around Sybak for this time of year. As Zelos leaned against one of the trees in the nearby forest, he could hear the leaves above him rustling as they moved. He narrowed his eyes as a figure emerged from the darkness. It was dressed in a cloak, the hood pulled up over the wearer's head.

"What," Zelos said flatly, "are you wearing?"

"Chosen. I see you're being your usual idiotic self."

Zelos narrowed his eyes. "You've got a lot of nerve calling me idiotic. I'm not the one who can't catch a teenage girl."

"Whatever you say." Yuan pulled down his hood. "We need to make this quick."

"What's with the Grim Reaper get-up?" Zelos rolled his eyes. "You look ridiculous. More than normal, and that's saying something."

"Just in case. Pronyma's been sneaking around, looking for the Chosen. Rodyle is up to…something ridiculous. And I suspect…well, never mind it now." Yuan held something out to him. "Here's the trap for the Chosen. Take them to the top of the Fooji Mountains and set it. We'll take care of the rest."

"Hmm. What about Kratos?" Zelos' eyes swept up to Yuan's own. "I'll bet he could break out of this in a minute."

"A minute's all I need." Yuan pulled the hood up over his head again. "Once I have Lloyd in my custody, he'll comply."

"You seem awfully sure of that." Zelos folded his arms. "What if he doesn't?"

"If you had seen Kratos after he lost his family," Yuan remarked, stepping back into the trees, "you would understand. He'll do it."

Zelos watched him go, disappearing into the shadows. He frowned as he turned the trap over and over in his hand. He wasn't quite sure: should he do it? Should he sabotage the trap? Maybe he just shouldn't plant it at all. Too many choices, none of them appealing. Pocketing the trap, he started back towards town.

This whole thing suddenly felt wrong. He didn't like this one bit.