(A/N) Second chapter up! Things are going to pick up now that the setting has been laid out... I just love how Yuan and Kratos' personalities clash, their banter always makes me smile. Anyways, please read and review! (feedback is greatly appreciated!)

Disclaimer: If I owned Tales of Symphonia, you'd get the Kratos ending every time, and there'd be a prequel. Sadly, I do not.

Chapter 2

Kratos tightened his belt and strapped in his sheath. He wore a common brown tunic and leather boots, simple attire for a relatively well-off boy of his age. The army didn't accept people under the age of eighteen, so he didn't have to worry about being drafted under his new persona. He swept a hand through his hair and pulled on his greaves. He looked ordinary, and loved every second of it. The comfort and the spoils of the castle life sickened him to no end. How could they live in luxury when there were good people dying to protect their capital? Kratos scoffed silently to himself, he scribbled a short note to explain his absence to Nyx. She of all people deserved an explanation. Things would be better off like this. He was planning to slip by unnoticed to Asgard and lay low for a while. After the direct line of the throne was passed over himself and officially given to Nyx, he might return, but he couldn't stand this place much longer. Kratos had a strong sense of right and wrong, and the wanton death and stubborn will to continue fighting was an affront to his very nature. In his letter, he waived his right to the throne. Listening softly at the door, Kratos heard breathing. Kratos knew that his father had posted guards in the hallway by his room, he could hear them walk over, and the steps had never receded.

Kratos allowed a small smirk to grace his features; finally he was going to have some fun. He opened the shuttered windows as wide as he could, peering down the castle's beautiful stone walls. Balconies were higher above him, and ledges would supply the footholds he needed to descend. It was still early, not a person was in sight on this side of the castle, and the nobility had their dwellings just past the gate ahead. Kratos hoisted himself out the window and perched on the sill. It was only three stories, hardly a challenge with his training. Quietly and gracefully, Kratos slipped from ledge to ledge, avoiding the incriminating eyes of the other windows. His boots landed softly on the grass below, and Kratos gave the castle a final glance. Turning around, he felt a surge of joy surface. He was free at last.

He casually sauntered into town. He was the only son of a low ranking noble, autonomous and on visit to some relatives in Meltokio. He was leaving today for Asgard, the neutral border city between Tethe'alla and Sylvarant, in order to check up on his aunt. His new name would be Daisuke Hayato, and though his nose wrinkled at the name, it was generic enough to be of any class and utterly forgettable. He thought he could blend in quite nicely. Not to mention he could easily handle himself on solitary travel. Kratos only had to pause briefly in the market before he'd be on his way. He didn't want to take any supplies from the castle, or they'd have an idea of how long he'd plan on traveling and narrow their search down considerably. Also, Kratos hated the notion of stealing of any sort, and yes he did live there, but they weren't his things. The Meltokio market was bustling as usual, and Kratos weaved his way through the crowd. He paused in front of one of the vendors, a grubby man with an apron and a wide smile.

"Can I help you, boy?" the man asked amiably, gesturing to his assortment of gels. Kratos pulled a bit of gald out of his pocket and purchased a fair quantity of apple and orange gels before nodding brusquely and moving on. His armor was fine, blade perfect, and he really only needed a few bottles, preferably holy and life to stay under the radar. Kratos turned to enter the flow of Tethe'allan citizens, and nearly ran right in to a man walking in the wrong direction. Kratos couldn't help but roll his eyes at the man's idiocy. Everyone knew that you walked on the right hand side.

"Sorry," Kratos said as politely as he could muster, though he shouldn't be the one apologizing.

"It's no bother," the man obviously hadn't taken the hint at Kratos' edgy tone, and was dusting himself off. He had turquoise hair pulled back into a long ponytail that swept over his dark cape. He had obviously been travelling, if his outfit was anything to go by, and Kratos narrowed his eyes at the man's expression. The half-elf's face had closed up, and he looked rather suspicious for a moment. As if nothing had happened, he smiled in a friendly manner.

"Yes, excuse me, I'm new here." Kratos had an intense desire to keep walking. It wasn't that he didn't like half-elves. He actually found them good company, but this particular half-elf was a character he didn't want to deal with while making his escape.

"Really, I hadn't noticed." Kratos deadpanned. The man couldn't be too much older than him, probably around eighteen at the latest. The man picked up on Kratos' try at sarcasm and scowled.

"Could you direct me to the castle?" He looked like it took all of his energy to maintain his civil demeanor and Kratos smirked at his obvious ignorance.

"Sir," Kratos stressed the word and feigned oblivion, "you are in Meltokio." The man now looked pissed at his disrespectful manner, "If you don't know where the castle is, then surely you have no business being there." Kratos chuckled shortly and walked past the man who was now bristling with discomfort. Somehow Kratos didn't think his intentions were good anyway, not like the castle guards couldn't handle him, but at least he'd made their jobs simpler.

"Hey," The man spun to keep his attention, now looking near murderous. "What's your problem, kid?" Kratos felt a spurn of anger at the man, very near to his own age, calling him a kid. Sharp movement behind the elven teenager, however, drew Kratos' gaze. Crap. Tethe'allan royal guards were walking through the square, checking with vendors and civilians. Their gleaming armor flashed in the morning sun, and three of them were very near to where he made his first purchase. The salesman could easily point him out. There was only one reason they could be here at this time of day, and Kratos let out a string of mental curses. He'd taken far too long already, and he hadn't expected them to discover his absence so quickly. His mind reeled and frantically looked for the best escape route. An alleyway lay off to his left hand side and Kratos contemplated bolting right then and there.

The pissed half-elf was the problem; he would probably make a scene. Kratos angled his body behind the blue-haired man's and saw one of the guards making conversation with the grubby gel vendor. He did his best to look apologetic.

"Right, sorry." his expression was made more believable because of his urgency, "The castle's this way. I'll show you." He inclined his head to the left and broke out in a quick trot down the alley way and around the corner with a reluctant half-elf in tow.

Yuan furrowed his brow at the rude boy's change in demeanor. It was true that his intentions were less than honorable, but the kid didn't know that. He felt like the teenager saw straight through his false identity. How could he though? He was so discreet; he blended in perfectly with the local society. Admittedly, he had been walking in the wrong direction, but everything else had been spot on. The boy had a smug look on his face most of the time, but his eyes flashed after he'd spun around. Obviously he disliked Yuan, but then he decided to be polite and show him the way? Fat chance. Yuan twisted briefly to look behind him before following the red-haired teen. His eyes widened at the glistening armor of the palace guards, the insignia on their helmets said as much. Quickly, he jogged after the boy who conveniently turned a corner and out of sight. Why were palace guards patrolling the market?

That was what the kid had seen, and why he changed moods so swiftly. The corner of Yuan's mouth twitched upward. So this kid was running from the royal guard? What had he gotten into? Now Yuan had leverage. The kid kept up a pretty decent blasé mask and Yuan had to give it to him. He was almost believable.

"It's down this alley, and to the right, then the left." The boy shrugged and headed off in the opposite direction he told Yuan to go. Clever kid. Yuan stopped him with a hand on his shoulder, eliciting a scowl and accompanying glare. A lesser person might have quaked, the glare was that terrifying. Yuan held his ground though, meeting the russet eyes head on.

"Not so fast." Yuan felt like he'd won, "I need you to show me." The kid quirked an auburn eyebrow, matching his unruly mess of hair. Without even trying, he was practically exuding an 'I just told you how to get there, idiot' aura that made Yuan uncomfortable.

"You seem to really want to avoid those palace guards, and I really need to get to the castle." Yuan felt pleased as the kid's scowl deepened, "Maybe we can both get what we want." He straightened his cape while watching the boy's mind whirl. He seemed to be calculating the risks. He leaned against the wall cockily, his blade sheathed at his side clinked against the stone bricks as an emphasis to his casual attitude.

"What do you want to do at the castle?" He folded his arms across his chest, and at Yuan's silence added, "I am a Tethe'allan patriot, and if your goals are anything less than pure, I should turn you in right now." His eyes narrowed. God, for a fifteen-year-old, this kid was almost scary.

"I have an audience with the king," Yuan replied smoothly, "You see, I'm a traveling merchant, and I need permission to sell my wares from Asgard here in Meltokio." He'd aced that one. The boy snorted, however, and Yuan's pleased grin dimmed perceptibly.

"For starters, it's no secret that the king is ill, and he's not seeing anyone. Secondly, he doesn't grant vending permissions, that's a counsel thing." Yuan froze, grin still in place albeit faded. The boy's eyes shot dangerously up to his.

"I've been to Asgard, though I can't remember seeing you there. What do you sell?" The boy's smirk was back in full force and Yuan slumped.

"So what." He replied weakly, "Why the hell do you know so much about royal propriety?" There the kid stiffened ever so slightly.

"Doesn't matter, either way, I'm not letting you anywhere near the castle." The kid's tone was final. Now it was Yuan's turn to raise an eyebrow.

"How does a boy running from the law keep an excellent fighter such as myself from getting where I want to go?" He had his dignity left, and the kid was bent on cutting it down. Now the boy looked affronted, as if he was insulted by the implication he might lose in a fight.

"You know, you really need to stop acting like you're so much older than me. I'm not a kid. I'll stop you if I feel like it." Yuan rolled his eyes at that. It looked like he had a tag-along.

"I never caught your name." Yuan made idle conversation as he walked in the direction the boy had been previously headed. He looked like he was contemplating using the 'I never gave it' reply, but simply decided against it.

"Daisuke Hayato" Ah, so it was an alias then. Stupid clever kid with his generic names. "And you?" Yuan figured he'd have to reciprocate the gesture, though both new that the names were nothing more than a ruse to make them both more comfortable. What a strange game indeed.

"Yuan Hirozaki" 'Daisuke' scoffed at the common last name and almost smiled at the irony. He ran a hand through his spiky hair and followed the suspicious half-elf down the alley way. Yuan felt his cape billowing comically and for once wished it wasn't as long when he felt the boy's piercing eyes on his back.

"Just out of interest, what was down that alley, to the right, then the left?" Yuan asked, mildly curious and willing to do many things to keep the boy's focus off of himself. The kid's mouth twitched and his eyes flashed in amusement. His hand rested on the hilt of his blade as if that was where it always sat.

"Just a platoon of Tethe'allan regulars set to relieve the front lines." Yuan narrowed his eyes, this boy was going to be tricky to outsmart if he was going to ever complete his mission.

(A/N) Thanks for reading... next chapter will be out soon! Review please!