Hello again everyone. Sorry for the delay on this chapter too. Everything is just so hectic around here anymore. Anyway chapter six give us our first conversation with Ilex and Richter without anyone else being around and even though I don't really think I'm any good at romance I find that it has a certain cuteness about it. There is also a suprise conversation with someone secret and a little bit of Ilex's past gets revealed. Have fun and I hope you enjoy it.


Chapter 6

I ran a hand through my hair as I walked down the lone passage way. I was feeling the guilt for telling Emil off like that.

As I rounded the corner I leaned back as my throat was placed precariously closer to a blade then I felt comfortable with. I stared into the face of Lloyd Irving. My eyes wandered to the ground behind him and widened when I saw Richter lying on the ground covered in blood. I turned my gaze back to Lloyd and finally noticed the blood that was on his sword.

"Hello Lloyd." I said in a calm voice. I saw his eyes glittering with faint recognition. "Do you remember me?"

He stared at me for a moment before opening his mouth. "You seem familiar, but I can't place where I have seen you before." He said finally.

I shrugged casually. "Not surprising." I said. "You had a lot more to worry about two years ago then someone like me. I worked along side you and your companions in the restoration of Luin. I was one of the mercenaries that you hired to help get some of the materials across land."

He lowered his sword and cocked his head, and I could see he was thinking very hard.

"Ilex Camillia?" He said hesitantly as though he still wasn't completely sure on whom I was.

"That's right." I raised my hand, and before he could stop me, casted a quick first aid spell in Richter's direction. "At least he won't die on us now." I said in explanation.

He sheathed his swords and looked at me curiously.

"Hey he may be an ass, but he has a nice ass." I crossed my arms in front of my chest and looked his straight in the eyes. "Anyway what are you doing here? Not causing trouble are you?"

He flinched when I said the word trouble. I must have made him think about Palmacosta.

"I know you didn't do it." I said suddenly.

"You know I didn't do what?" He looked up and his eyes widened.

"Palmacosta, I know you didn't do it." He stiffened when I mentioned the location the blood purge.

"How?" He asked his voice beleaguered with guilt.

"You gave my kid five miracle gels and an elixir." I held out all the items that he had given me. I had never bothered to use them.

He visibly paled when he saw the items I held. "That was you lying there?"

"Yes your imposter attacked me while I was trying to get the kid to safety."

"I didn't even recognize you." He said quietly.

"Lloyd what are you doing here?" I asked again.

"I can't tell you. I promised someone that I wouldn't tell anyone what I was doing." I nodded my head in understanding.

"That's okay, as long as you're being careful. God knows what Ganesha would do should one of you all ever end up hurt." I said whilst looking around. "Hey is Colette with you?"

"No were not traveling together right now." I felt myself soften at his said tone. It was just as Ganesha said. He fell for her, whether she knew it or not.

"I see I see." I nodded my head while he stared at me like I was crazy. "You finally lost to Zelos, huh."

"What no. Besides she would kill me if that ever happened." He said embarrassed.

"Whatever you say Lloyd; whatever helps you sleep at night." I replied teasingly.

"Hey at least he's never groped Colette." He gave me and evil grin as I felt the rage building up.

"Don't remind me, I'm going to strangle that idiot chosen with his own flowing red hair the next time I see him." I said menacingly.

"Um…I don't think Ganesha would like that." Lloyd took a couple steps back as I began laughing hysterically at the visions in my head. "You haven't really changed at all since the last time we met have you?"

I wiped a tear from my eye as I gave him an evil look. "You don't seem to have changed either. Your hair is still ridiculous." I reached up and ruffled his bangs.

"Not the hair, not the hair!" W stopped and looked at each other before bursting out in our Zelos screams.

"Not the face, not the face!"

After we stopped making fun of my supposed well…I don't know what seeing as Ganesha and I aren't seriously related I asked him. "Do your friends even know what you're doing?"

He shook his head. "It's too dangerous for them."

"Oh yes lets go fight the almighty god Mithos, but it's too dangerous to look for a bunch of jewels." I threw my hands out.

"The jewels are dangerous. I can't risk them falling under the influence of the dormant power." Lloyd replied.

"I think that they would be very disappointed to know that you don't trust them enough to tell them."

"I just want to protect them." He said sadly. I could see the toll it was taking on him from not being able to tell them. I patted his arm since I was too short to reach his head.

Richter groaned on the ground behind Lloyd and I walked to him. I placed my hands on his shoulder and his eyes snapped open to stare at me straight in the face. God I was such a sucker for green eyes.

"What….are you….doing?" He was struggling to breath and that concerned me. I held my hands over his chest and casted another first aid.

The pieces of flesh that hadn't been repaired the first time began to stitch back together. I grabbed one of the miracle gels that Lloyd had given me. I opened his mouth and tried to get him to chew it before realizing that he didn't have the strength to do it himself.

I put it in my mouth and chewed it up. Then before any could slip down my throat I opened his mouth and forced it in. When I sat back up Lloyd coughed uncomfortably. I laughed lightly while I moved Richter so that his head was resting on my lap.

After making sure that he wouldn't be uncomfortable I brought my head up and let my gaze land on Lloyd. "I don't know what you want them for, but I won't stop you."

He nodded and murmured a quiet thanks to me before walking to the door and disappearing from my view. I sighed and turned my attention back to Richter.

I hadn't said anything around Lloyd but the main damage seemed to come from an older wound. When he began unconsciously whimpering I began stroking his hair. It seemed to sooth him, as he quit moving.

As I stroked more of his hair out of the way I could see that I had been right on my assumption that Richter was a half-elf. I traced the elongated but round tip of his ear. Seeing as he seemed to be Tethe'allan he must have lead an awful life.

I gasped when someone grabbed my hand and realized that I had allowed myself to zone out. Richter's shaking hand had stopped my own as he tried to push himself up.

"Oh please. Don't be stupid." I pressed lightly on his shoulders but it was more force then he could handle and he fell back down.

"Don't tell," His breathing was heavy, "Please, tell no one."

I began running my fingers across his forehead to try and calm him down, I found it a little weird seeing as the only person I've ever done this before is Luke.

"I won't tell anyone." I assured him. "It's not my place to tell."

With my assurance that I wouldn't spill his secret he stopped struggling and let me play with his hair.

"Why in the world would you fight him?" I asked suddenly referring to his fight against Lloyd.

"He was trying to stop me." He replied, his voice was still ragged.

"Well you're braver then most people. Most wouldn't even think of fighting him." I returned.

"You acted like you knew him."

"I did once. I know all of the chosen's companions." I thought back to the day that I had met all of them.

"How did you meet them?" I looked at him. His eyes were closed but I could see him grimacing with pain. He was having me talk so he could forget it.

"Before the two worlds were re-united, Lloyd and his companions could travel from one world to the other by use a machine called a rheird; a device that was used by the desians in those days. A couple of months prior to the unification Luin was attacked by desians and ended up completely destroyed. All the people that lived there had been taken to the Asgard ranch that wasn't far out of town. When Lloyd and the others heard they helped free the people and had asked several mercenaries for assistance. I was the only one that agreed to work, free of pay too."

"Why wouldn't the others help you?" Richter broke in suddenly.

"Most people were afraid of the desians, I hated them." He flinched. "Not because they were half-elves but because of what they took from me."

"I see." He said simply.

"Anyway when the people were freed the first order of business was to try and rebuild the town, but it would be difficult. We had insufficient funds to do it. Until Lloyd and his companions came back about a month later with enough money to swim in. they donated it all to the restoration of Luin." I could still remember the shocked looks on everyone's faces when they had turned up with all that money.

"So you helped rebuild?" Richter guessed.

"Well my original job was to guard the materials that could only be moved across land, but when everything was delivered and we knew we had enough to complete everything they put me to work building too." I held my hand out for him to see. "It took me until the fifth house to learn how to nail right so I wouldn't hit my fingers instead."

He shook with soft laugher. I tapped the side of his glasses to tell him that I didn't appreciate his laugher. I stiffened when I heard the very faint sounds of footsteps coming out way. Then relaxed when Emil's and Tenebrae's voices. I looked down to Richter's curious expression.

"People are headed this way. It's just Emil and Tenebrae." He nodded but didn't look too pleased to hear someone else was going to see him in a weakened state. "Don't worry. Emil wouldn't make fun of you. Tenebrae I'm not to sure about." I laughed when he growled.

"How did you heal me anyway?" He asked after a minute.

"Just two first aids and a miracle gel." I couldn't look him in the face when I said miracle gel. It had only then occurred to me that it could have possibly been considered a kiss. He looked at me curiously. I said no more.

"Oh by the way we kind of, maybe, sort of, knocked out Aqua on our way around. In our defense we told her to move, but she wouldn't do it." I waited for the rage that never came.

"She'll recover before long." Was all he said.

We sat in silence for a few minutes while I continued playing with his hair. When I noticed the gash on the other side of his head facing my leg I cursed loudly.

"Why didn't you tell me you were still bleeding somewhere?" I demanded. Because he was so much bigger then me, I pretty much had to yank him in order to turn him over. He muttered obscenities at the ground.

I laid my pal lightly over it, so it barely touched his skin, and muttered another first aid. I looked him over carefully to make sure he didn't have any other wounds he had neglected to tell me about. I sighed in relief when I found none.

I stared around at the blood that made dark stains on the floor of the cave. Emil and Tenebrae were right around the corner now.

"It may be best if you pretend to pass out while talking to Emil. He doesn't particularly like Lloyd." I said to Richter as I was still looking at the blood on the ground. He didn't say anything but I felt him nod against my thigh.

"Richter, Ilex!" I had prepared myself for the yelling, Richter however had not. He jerked spontaneously, rolled off my lap and hit his head on the floor.

"Ugh…" I couldn't help but laugh at his rough landing.

"Hang on. H-how did this…" Richter cut Emil off.

"I was careless. Lloyd…"

"Huh?"

"Lloyd Irving he,"

"Lloyd, you mean the servant of the Chosen of Regeneration?!" Emil cried.

"Actually I think it's more of a mutual thing." I butted in pushing my two index fingers together. As usual no one paid me any mind.

"The core he…" I twisted my lips around when Richter passed out. He was supposed to fake it, but I guess that small bump to the head did it.

"Richter!" I grabbed Emil's scarf to stop him from glomping poor defenseless Richter.

"Relax, he'll be fine. But we can't just leave him here."

"It's more important to go after Lady Marta." Tenebrae cut me off. He was glaring at me for even thinking of helping an enemy in such a way.

"We at least need to tell someone." Emil replied.

"There's no time. Now that Lloyd has appeared, time is of the essence. Lady Marta's life is in danger. After all this man is the enemy. Didn't you come here to protect Lady Marta?"

"I did but I can't just leave him like this. He said some mean things, but he also helped me out." Emil said. I raised my hand.

"And by the way I never agreed to help her." I turned to Emil. "Go with Tenebrae and I'll go and find that traitor Aqua. She can get him out."

"I believe that you will regret this decision but it is yours to make." Tenebrae sniffed before turning and phasing through the door and Emil followed.

"No wonder everyone calls you spiteful." I said when they disappeared. I adjusted Richter so that he wouldn't be uncomfortable and turned to the door on the opposite side of the room. It was sealed on the other side but I should be able to get out on this side.

I whooped when the door opened and walked back to the chamber in which we had defeated Aqua. When I stepped inside I was relieved to find that she had already recovered from out battle.

"Oh, it's you." She said as she turned to look at me.

"Come on." I said already turning to go back the way I came.

"You expect me to just go with you after what happened?" She cried while waving her flippers around.

"Well fine then. If you don't care that Richter's hurt I'll go back and help him myself."

"Wait no I'll go, but don't you dare attack me." She painted her flipper at me as if it was a threat.

"Don't worry, you're not that privileged." I replied while walking away.

When we made it back to Richter he had shifted himself around causing the wounds I had healed to open up again.

"Master Richter!" I rolled my eyes as Aqua fell to the ground beside her beloved master. "What happened to you?"

"Great gasping guppies!" I cried out making her jump. "I should think that it's a little obvious that he's been stabbed. You know, shiny metal thing being rammed through your entrails." I made a stabbing motion.

"That hurt him, but that's not the reason that he collapsed. It's the wound from two years ago." Aqua snapped in reply.

"What happened two years ago?" I asked remembering that I had noticed some older wounds.

"If you weren't my enemy I would tell you." She said after a moment's silence.

My head perked as I heard a deep low rumble on the wind. Something big had been moved. I dug around in my pack until I came up with one of the miracle gels Lloyd had graced me with.

"Here, give that too him when he wakes up. He'll feel right as rain." I gave her the gel before walking over to the door. It seemed to be sealed. I huffed and stepped back. "If I don't make it Aqua, I want you to tell Richter that my eyes appreciated his butt pouch."

Before she could say anything I leapt forward and screamed as my body was torn apart, turned into wind, carried through the seal of the door, and reassembled on the other side.

Due to the pain that racked through my limbs I fell on my butt and gasped.

"Oh crap that hurt." I rubbed my head trying to make the pain in my eyes go way so I could see normally.

When my vision returned I gasped at the sight. Emil and Marta were both lying knocked out on the floor no doubt Lloyd's doing. I looked around for Tenebrae but didn't see him anywhere. I bet he was begging someone for catnip.

I forced myself up and stumbled around until I finally got close enough to the two of them to make sure everything was alright. After I was finished I let my eyes wander around the cave. I got up and walked over to a tacky mask lying on the ground.

"The hell?" I said when I picked it up. It looked really familiar, but I couldn't place where I had seen this before. As I continued examining it Marta made a funny kacking noise before sitting up and twisting her head around to look at me.

"What are you doing here?" She asked in confusion.

I shifted my eyes." I'm not entirely sure, but I think the owner of this mask knew exactly what they were doing down here." I held it up for her to see. I laughed when she made a face.

Emil groaned and shifted. Marta ran over to him and waited for him to open his eyes.

"I guess I'm still alive." He said.

"I guess Lloyd decided not to kill us."

I glared at Tenebrae when he appeared out of his little cloud.

"Lady Marta! Centurion Lumen's core is…"

"It's gone!" I sighed. Must you people always state the obvious?

"Are you talking about a white jewel? I think that Lloyd took it with him." Emil broke in suddenly as we all stared at the bare alter.

"He took it are you sure?" Marta replied.

"I would say so, seeing as it was the entire reason for his being here." I said nonchalantly while I continued to examine the make. "God this thing is tacky."

"Was it important?" And there they go again; ignoring me as always. One of these days when their heads get chopped off, because they didn't listen when I told them to duck, they're going to regret never listening to me.

"Yes, Centurion Lumen's core is essential to our journey. Lady Marta, let's hurry. You and I must go after them." Tenebrae turned to Marta.

"Them, excuse me I'm only aware of there being one person, and he's carrying some sort of jewel thing. God Lloyd's more girly then I thought."

"Lady Marta!" Tenebrae repeated completely ignoring me and my existence. Way to make a girl feel the love Tenny.

"Okay, but first…" She turned to Emil. "Thank you so much, Emil. I really appreciate you saving me once again." Damsel in distress.

"Uh… well I didn't really do anything. I was pretty much useless." Emil rubbed the back of his head after I bonked it.

"There you go again, with that stupid inferior ego thing." I said contemptuously.

"But you did save me. You became a knight, a Knight of Ratatosk. That's why you were able to save me, right?" Oh gee, no he didn't do it with is own power, maybe. "I always thought that you would make a good Knight. It's true! That's what I thought, ever since the first time we met."

"Awkward." I said at the sudden silence. The evil kitty turned to glare at me.

"The only awkward person here is you." He said spitefully.

"Fine, that's cool, I know when I'm not wanted." I held up my hands in surrender. "You can get out over there by the way."

Before anyone could say another word my body ripped apart and I squeezed through the crack in the door once more. Not even bothering to reconfigure myself I flew through the passage ways and out the way we went in. Alba and the rest of the city watch were gone so I deemed it safe to come back together.

No sooner had my feet touched the ground before Gale assaulted me with shattering shrieks. Something was amiss. I clambered on his back and gripped as softly as I could without falling off as he leapt into flight and carried me away from Luin.

We flew for several minutes, and just as I was about to make him turn back, I saw them.

"Oh shit!" below was an entire platoon of Martel Knight; headed directly for Luin.


Sorry for any typos that you may have noticed. I tried to get this up as soon as possible and may have missed something while I was skimming back through. I just want to make a quick mention that the unknown person Ganesha that was mentioned several times in this chapter is now going to get her own story called "Ganesha's Grace" it's featured in the first Tales of Symphonia game and is a Zelos Romance fic. I should have the first chapter up today if anyone is interested please go to my profile and find it under my stories.

Anyway, thanks for reading and I hope you liked it. Please review and tell me what you think or you may ask any questions if something just didn't sit right with you.

Ja' ne