Fon Master Guardian and Agent

Chapter 2: Sync And Arietta's spar 1 !!

The blazing sun that shined gloriously upon the Barrack's outdoor Garden did not brighten Sync's morning. In fact, it only served to intensify the throbbing pain in his head. The very pain that was brought upon him by his lack of sleep.

"God damn your liger, Arietta!" He cursed loudly.

Yes… Sync had struggled to get some shut eye last night, but that had proven to be immensely difficult. Due to his roommate's monster friend, Sync had spent the majority of his hours covering his ears. The liger that had occupied his room had snored loudly throughout the night. It was so loud that even the ear plugs he had stuck to his ear could not block the noise. So after much effort -- that involved covering his head with a pillow-- he gave up. He had then taken his sleep somewhere more peaceful… which just happen to be the garden.

"…. Achoo!"

And unfortunately it was a bad idea to sleep outside at 3 in the morning, especially when the temperature was on very low. Sync had nearly froze up if it weren't for the Fire-arte he had used to keep himself warm. Though it seemed that it was still not enough to stop the slight sickness he had taken in this present time.

"Great… Now I got a cold…Tch!" Grumbling, the tired boy moved against the tree he had camped nearby. His exhausted body responded a bit weakly to his command… He only got 2 hours of sleep after all.

I should get some more rest here… Sync thought as he finally took notice of the welcoming feeling of losing ones will to keep awake. I hope… no one… finds… me…

Within moments, he was fast asleep and there was nothing in the world that can wake him up. Not even the numerous bells that sounded, birds that sung songs loudly, nor the smell of delightfully grilled bacon and eggs did not stir the young lad. It seemed that there was really nothing that could wake him up…

"SYNC!"

… Well, Except for his blonde instructor… Boy…was he sure in for a rude awakening.

Splash!

Icy cold water fell upon the unsuspecting victim.

"Gah!" The boy cried out.

Sync was instantly up after comically jumping up towards a branch and banging his head on it. His body, now drenched and freezing, stood rattling uncontrollably in front of an amused Gunslinger. Green, cold eyes were wide open and glaring at the Woman.

"LEGRETTA! What the hell!?"

She ignored the outburst and smiled. "Good morning, Sync! Glad to see you so energetic today!"

Sync didn't move as he gave the woman the most coldest glare he can muster. Unfortunately, he didn't succeed in making the woman flinch, considering the fact that he was soaked to the bone, tired, cold and had his mask on. His hair lay plastered on his mask, giving the impression of someone who had seaweed on their head.

"Does it look like I'm energetic to you?…" The boy replied, with his eye twitching from behind his mask.

"Hmm…"

"…"

"Yes!"

"Argh!!" He shook his hair free of water and gave a loud groan. "Let me get some peace and quiet!"

"I don't know exactly what you're talking about, but you shouldn't be sleeping at this time." Legretta said as she checked her watch for the time. "You got lessons with me in half an hour so I should suggest you eat breakfast now. You'll need brain food after all!"

Sync shook his head at her. What my brain needs is sleep!

"But, of course you should grab a change of clothes first." The older woman pointed at his wet clothing. "You don't want to get sick now, do you?"

"I'm already sick…and I feel even more sick because of you." The boy grumbled while turning around to grab his wet pillow and blanket.

"What was that?"

"Nothing."

"No… I know I heard something…" Legretta said.

"I didn't say anything!" Sync snapped in reply. There was a rather big malice behind those words that it made him curse silently.

Legretta narrowed her eyes at him. "Watch your tone, Sync! I advise you not to use that sort of voice in front of your commanding officer." She crossed her arms and sternly said. "Do I make myself clear?"

Sync in turn had to swallow his burning need to make a snide remark and nod at her. "Understood."

It wasn't good to piss off a woman in the morning regardless of how awake she might look. There was still a chance that she might still be cranky. The young boy also didn't want to make his head hurt even more because of him starting an argument. It was already enough for him… he just wanted sleep.

Legretta shook her head at her subordinate and was about to turn to leave when a thought suddenly occurred to her.

"By the way…" Legretta paused and tilted her head to the side. "Why were you sleeping out here for?"

"…." Sync turned his head around to reply, but stopped as an Oracle Knight came running towards them both.

"Commander Legretta!" The soldier called out.

"What is it?" The Woman had instantly forgotten about the question she had asked and quickly resumed her usual strict and all business attitude.

"Commandant Van Grants has asked for you…" The Oracle then continued onto give Legretta the full reason on why the Commandant wanted to speak to her.

Sync had, by this time, finished gathering his stuff and began walking away. When he heard his name being added to the conversation, he sprinted out of the area. Usually when that occurred name in a conversation there was always a chance that he was going to be put through another boring meeting. That was surely not something he wanted to be in, especially with his head. There was a more than likely chance that he would snap at his Commandant anyhow.

"I need to get some meds…" The boy grumbled heading back to his room for dry clothes.

Meanwhile….

Arietta sat silently on top of Sync's bed. Beside her was her brother who was resting, but not asleep. The occasional twitch of his ear which caught the young teens attention from time to time, finding it interesting to look at. The soft morning breeze caressed her pale skin causing the pink haired to inhale the cool air. It seems like a nice day…

- What's your plans for today -

"Im not sure…" She whispered. "Probably just the usual studying and training to become a proper God-general. How about you?"

The Liger gave a large yawn showing the perfectly large sharp teeth in his mouth. - I'm going to set that boy straight today. -

Arietta blinked. "What?"

- I told you last night that I would deal with the boy and so I shall. -

The firmness of his voice in her mind made Arietta worried. She herself wanted to deal with her comrade, but not in the way that her brother was probably thinking. So placing a gentle hand on her brother's head and said. "Please don't hurt him."

The Liger snorted. - And why not? He's hurt you so many times in those combat sessions of yours that I just want to sink my teeth on him. (no pun intended) -

"That's to be expected in those times" The girl reasoned as she patted his furry head gently. "I'll handle this on my own. He's my comrade after all."

- How are you going to do that? -

Those were some good questions. How was she going about that? Seeing nothing, she sighed. "I don't know…"

It was the truth. Arietta did not know how to approach this matter. Sync, her comrade and future partner perhaps, has always been a tough boy to deal with. Their very first meeting was not the greatest and there was always a sort of dark hostility that constantly radiated off of him. So how was she supposed to go about this? What can she do to change that?

"Why do I even bother… he doesn't even respect me…" Arietta stopped.

Respect. That sole word had struck a nerve in her mind that suddenly opened up something she's been wanting to elaborate on.

"He… doesn't see me as someone to look up to at all…" The girl had finally hit it.

Now that she had began thinking about it, the boy had never given any respect to her at all. From her first meeting up till now. Not one ounce of respect was given to her. Sure Sync had given some respect… maybe. But it wasn't the type she wanted. She felt that the reason behind this whole hostility thing must be because of the lack of respect. And that was it. Arietta needed his respect.

"I see now…" She said to herself.

- Hmm? - Sensing his sister was on to something, he prodded her to share.

"I think I know what I need to do in order to end this whole hostility between us, Brother." Arietta smiled to herself.

- Do you mind explaining? -

" I need to get his respect. I just didn't notice it until now." The girl hugged her doll until she sighed gloomily again. "Now the problem lies in how to do it…"

- If you ask me, Sister. I believe dealing with the cub would require some sort of fighting.. -

Arietta remained quiet, but nevertheless, repeated her brother's words in her mind. Fighting, despite not wanting to resort to it, was starting to give her some ideas. Then again…

BAM!

The door the door slammed open, surprising Arietta and alerting her brother. In an instant, the large tiger monster had stood on all fours, surrounding his sister protectively. They both relaxed slightly, however, upon seeing a disgruntled looking Sync walk in.

The boy didn't say anything as he made his way towards the closet. He opened it up and began to choose the necessary clothing he would need. There wasn't much, considering his wardrobe was limited to green colored pants, shirt, coat and jacket. They had different styles with added designs, but they were just too plain.

Squirming slightly, Arietta was deciding on what to do. Since Sync was here now, she could just confront him, but her decision and planning still needed time. There was also her curiosity that she wanted answered. Just what did he do this morning when he woke up in order to get drenched with water??

Her brother however, had a different thought and instead jumped off of the bed and landing directly behind the boy. - Hey cub! I got a bone to pick with you… -

Just ignore the large idiotic monster behind you… The green haired boy said to himself as he quickly began to change.

"Eeep!" Arietta immediately covered her blushing face with her doll and stammered. "S-sync! D-don't change here! I'm s-still in here, you know!"

The boy snorted in return. "This is my room and I could do whatever the hell I want. Why should I listen to you?"

Forging the under-shirt, Sync placed his green jacket over himself before adjusting his mask. Turning, he eyed the Liger blocking his path.

Arietta only watched with a sad frown as Sync's words reinforced the fact that she lacked his respect. She didn't bother answering Sync since she knew that he didn't want one.

- Cub… - The Liger growled - You better be prepared because I'm gonna hunt you down and feast upon your body! -

~ Leave him ~ Arietta commanded mentally.

- But sister! - Her brother jerked his head towards the pink haired girl.

Only a distant stare was seen and so the liger let out a sharp growl once more before stepping out of the way. He'll get him just as soon as he could. He'll get em…

Sync didn't look at Arietta as he left. Though he could feel her gaze follow him out of the door. Slamming it behind him, the boy let out a tired sigh and shook his head. "I really need to get some sleep…"

With that thought in mind, the boy walked off to find a vacant room to take shelter in. He would also need to find a good room where his blonde mentor would not be able to find him. Skipping a session with the gunslinger had some very bad repercussions after all.

Somewhere in the Barracks…

Brown pigtails tied by yellow ribbons bounced lightly as a young girl of 11, walked the halls. Her smiling face shined brightly upon those that passed by her. The brown, monster-looking stuffed toy, hung idly on her back with it's hands draped over her shoulders, mimicked her. She continued to travel to her destination with the same expression and only after she had reached an empty hall leading to her room did she drop her smile.

"Finally." the girl let out. "Nap time!"

Rushing to her door, she quickly pulled out a key to open it. Swinging it open, she prepared to make a running leap to her bed. She stopped short however, as a figure made itself known.

"So it's a Fon-Master Guardian." The boy mumbled.

"…" It took a second before the brunette took a deep breath and yelled. "Who the hell are you?!?"

Sync, the intruder, covered his ears as the loud question was brought forth. "Argh! Keep it down! Can't you see I'm trying to sleep?"

"What?? Just Who are you? And what the hell are you doing here?!?"

"The names Sync…. Just Sync." The boy replied as he resumed his relax position. "I just wanted to find a good place to sleep. Now what's yours?"

"…." The little girl stared at him as if he had lost his mind. " Why should I tell you?!"

God this girl is loud. Sync winced at her loud reply. Ignoring the question, he proceeded to try and get her name. "Hey, I gave my name so give me yours." He said in monotone. oh lorelie… my heads starting to throb again…

"Anise Tatline!" The girl said with reluctance and plain irritation. "Now why the hell are you here?? And what's with the mask?"

"I said I came here to get some sleep and I like this mask. " Sync replied tiredly.

"Don't you know you invaded someone else's property?" The girl crossed her arms and shot him a glare as she said this. She wasn't gonna give up on trying to get this guy out of her room. Anise wanted sleep as well and she wanted to do that ALONE.

Sync just shook his head and groaned. He just wanted to get some sleep.

"Look… I just want some sleep since I couldn't get any last night." The boy nearly voiced that out pleadingly, but managed to hide it. "Do you mind?"

"Well yes! Go sleep in your own room!" She told him.

"I can't…" Sync replied, his head pounding hard. It's really getting hard for me to stay conscious…

Anise regarded him with a narrowed eye. "And why not?"

"Too loud…." He murmured.

"…" She confidently walked up to him and said. "Well! Too bad bub! You better leave, or else!" She slowly made a grab for the doll she had on her back.

Seeing no movement, the girl turned to door and was about to yell for help when a hand grasped her.

"Here!" The green haired boy snapped. He dug deep into his pockets and grabbed some money before thrusting them onto her hands. "Just let me sleep here for a few and I'll promise to leave after. Alright?"

Usually this was something he was reluctant to do. But because of his current state, just catching some Z's would be worth it. Please let this work…

The tan skinned girl looked at the money in her hand. She blinked once, then twice before I bright cheery smile made its way to her face. "Okay you got it Mr. Sync! Let me know if I can get you anything!"

"Hn," Sync grunted, totally disregarding the girl's sudden happy mood.

"Okay!" Tucking the currency in her pocket, the young girl watched the young boy in her room slowly slip away to sleep.

"Heh. Well… I guess he did pay me." Anise murmured. Shrugging and totally feeling satisfied with the surprise cash, the young girl quietly fell on her bed to sleep.

By the time she would wake up, the girl would find her 'guest' out of her room. And she would find herself covered in a soft blue blanket. This however, wouldn't be the last time that the green haired intruder would see her.

A little later…

After much walking around, Sync found himself staring at the empty training field near the barracks. Large in size and equipped with the necessary tools such as a rack of swords, spears, shields, training dummies and targets; this was not the best place to take a nap.

Moving towards the weapons racket, he picked up a sword and practiced swinging with it. It was a simple short-sword with a very light weight that made it easy for controlling. Though despite it's simple handling, the boy's skill in it was not the best. His movements and form of combat was poor and the way he swung his sword was just terrible. What looked like a simple thrust or swing for an observer would really be a badly performed one to a highly trained Oracle Knight.

"…." Sync sighed as he stopped his practice and returned the weapon to its proper place. I was never really good at handling a weapon…

Turning to a practice dummy nearby, he approached it. Once in range, 3 consecutively fast punches assaulted the stuffed object. Following the first attack was a spinning side kick to the side. He continued to launch punch after punch and kick after kick, until he had hit every single spot of its body. Sync stopped after that and grinned to himself. THIS form of combat was much more suited for him.

Who needs a weapon when I can smash my opponents to oblivion with these two hands. The boy raised his hand and continued to grin while he clenched and unclenched them. Yes… this is much better.. Ehehehe..

Once Sync had pounded the same Dummy into something unrecognizable, he turned to leave. Feeling satisfied and tired, the boy headed towards the entrance to the barracks. Just as he was a couple feet from it, he had to immediately jump back as something large landed directly in front of him, blocking his view of the entrance. Sync adjusted his golden mask and remained alert with his hands raised slightly in front and his body crouched low.

"!!!" The green haired boy resumed a casual position. "Oh… it's just the loud snoring monster. I thought it was something else."

- I've found you!! - Roared the Liger.

"Oh? I don't remember playing hide-and-seek with anyone." Sync replied coolly, his mind already wandering off to him having a nice nap in a warm bed.

This angered the Liger somewhat.

- Grrrr… Silence you, cub! I'll have you know that… - The creature stopped as something suddenly came to him. - … did you just hear what I said? -

Now it was Sync's turn to be curious about how he could hear this beast. Of course he didn't reply to the monster since he actually wanted to play around with it for a bit. He ignored the slowly approaching creature and instead, turned his attention somewhere else… like another entrance to the barracks to the left of him. Sync would have to deal with the mysterious power of communication-with-a-liger, much later. Giving no reply, he started off.

- Hey! You haven't answered my question!!! - the Liger growled out as he watched the young boy speed walk away from him.

Sync ignored the giant creature and continued to walk rapidly until he was stopped again. This time, it was a Human who was blocking the second entrance. A small person with gloomy looking eyes and long, pink hair carrying a rather odd looking doll -- or dolls if you count the colorful trio that were knitted directly beneath the bigger one-- stood standing defiantly and out of breath.

"T-there you are Sync!" She let out.

"Arietta…" The boy stopped and sighed as he felt an upcoming wave of annoyance was coming his way.

With the appearance of his sister, the Liger stopped his pursuit of the boy and stood standing a good distance away. He observed the scene with peek interest. The liger wondered what his Sister was here for. It had thought that his sister was off doing errands for the Human, Largo.

"Lets spar!" Arietta declared suddenly. She had made her decision to fight in order to get his respect.

A wave of cartoonish question marks erupted above Sync and the Liger's head. That was certainly something that caught both their attention and curiosity rather quickly. Although the Liger came to realize why she decided upon the sudden action.

- A fight to show her strength… - The Liger smiled in amusement upon reading his sister's plan. - Well done Sister, I had thought that I should confront him alone, but I think this is for the best. -

Sync cocked his head to the side. "Spar? With who? You mean fight that thing?" He jerked his thumb towards the liger in the back of him.

Arietta nodded her head vigorously like a bouncing ball. "Yes! But I'll be joining in as well!"

The young boy crossed his arm and regarded the girl's determined stare for a moment. Should I….? he thought to himself. His head throbbed again, causing him to frown. Nah… I should take a day off today…

"No." Sync simply said.

Arietta blinked a few times. "What?" She said that more to herself rather than him since she wanted to know if she was hearing things. Sync didn't just decline a invitation to fight… did he?

"No thanks." He repeated loudly. "I don't feel like fighting today."

Yep he did. "W-why not?" Arietta asked worriedly as she watched her comrade walk away. She was expecting him to actually take the challenge, not decline it.

"Are you feeling well?"

Sync didn't reply as he passed by her.

"Did you get any good sleep last night?? What's wrong with you ?" Arietta pressed on.

At the last question, Sync stopped in his tracks. "As you have said… I did not get a nice sleep at all last night…"

The tone that Sync had used to reply, made Arietta back away slightly. Her brother had instantly appeared at her side after sensing the rather hostile aura that the boy had surrounded himself with.

Sync turned his head around to face the teen. His gaze was directly leveled with hers when he frowned. Just being reminded of that restless night really irked him to the point of forgetting his slightly tired state… and not to mention, his plan of getting a nap. Right now, the only thing that played on his mind was the request that Arietta had given.

"You really want to fight me?" he asked in a monotone voice.

Arietta held her doll up like she usually does when she was shy or afraid. "Y-yes!" She said strongly. The girl had already decided upon herself to make the first action in getting Sync's respect.

"Why should I?"

"Because… because I want you too!"

Smirking, he shook his head. "That's not a perfectly valid reason." There was a pause as he studied the fading fire in the girl's eyes. Such a weak girl…

Arietta remained silent for a moment. And with each passing second, she can feel her confidence decline rapidly. Why couldn't she just attack head on? What was holding her back? She had her brother alongside her.. So why? These questions rapidly sailed through her mind, lingering throughout her silent demeanor.

Because I'm afraid to harm him? That was the one phrase that echoed. That cant be it. I know he is perfectly capable of fighting and taking care of himself. The past Combat Session proves that.

- Don't run sister! - The calm, inquiring voice interrupted her contemplation.

~ I'm not… I think… ~ replied Arietta. She clenched her doll tightly; a sign of her discomfort at keeping the seemingly patient boy. ~ It's just, I don't know if I'm doing the right thing. I- I don't even have a good reason… ~

- You have a purpose. Have you forgotten about that? -

~ His respect.. I know… ~ She told him through her silent communication. A special ability she's had ever since she could remember. It was a mysterious power that had Arietta wondering sometimes, but never seem to have the desire of finding out how it works.

- Yes. - The liger replied. He was proud that he could feel the rising confidence building up once more in his sister. - Just tell him that. Don't be afraid about it. I'm right here. -

"Do you have any other reasons?" the boy stated calmly. He had this feeling that there was another reason. A gut feeling that told him to be patient with this girl.

Biting her lips, the girl nodded slowly. It was now or never. "I want your respect…" She whispered. Her voice shy and as soft as always. It wasn't easy saying those words…

- Good job! - Cheered his brother, who gave a snicker at Sync. The Liger had been waiting to put this cub in his proper seat..

The calm 12 year old raised a brow and said. "What was that?"

"I… I want your respect…" Arietta repeated loudly. Her body tightened as she said this.

"…" respect? The green haired thought to himself. So she wants that… Interesting…

Sync chuckled slightly and allowed a small mischievous grin to show. He'll play with her… after all, he wanted to give that over grown furball a good beating.

"…Very well…Arietta." He addressed her. "Let us engage in combat…" The green haired boy raised a fist towards her. "But know that I don't intend on holding anything back!"

Training field: Combative Match Sector

Show me what you've got Arietta… the masked boy mused to himself. He tightened his black gloves and made a quick sweep of their surroundings. The training field that they had decided to do their battle was a pretty wide one, with a number of trees around. Rocks and boulders of various sizes and shapes littered the squre shaped field. Grass grew up to the size of a pencil and trees, sturdy and tall, littered numerous parts of the battlefield. At the opposite of Sync stood Arietta who glanced at him with determination. Her combat partner stood proudly beside her looking fiercely at Sync.

"You ready?" Sync called out, smirking. He took on a basic stance which consisted of raising his left fist up and right elbow back. His left palm stood facing his opponent's, while he bent his knees slightly to the ground.

Tensing and preparing herself, Arietta took a deep breath and nodded. "Lets go!"

The battle began.

Sync dashed quickly forward while keeping his smirk visible. Arietta's Liger comrade met him with a fierce clash. The boy dodged as the giant monster took a slash at his head.

Heh… Grinning sadistically, the masked boy shot his fist out at the monster's side, connecting perfectly with a bone.

Roaring, the liger retaliated with a flick of its long tail. - Bastard! -

Arietta in the back, tried to remain as calm as she could. Raising her doll up, she targeted Sync and prepared to fire a fotonic blast ( A/N: I have no clue what I'm saying… just made that up.. I think).

Rapid pink lances shot out of the strange looking doll after the girl had seen an opening. Sync on the other hand, managed to see this just as he took a swipe from the Liger and thus was able to dodge it. Raising his own hand, the boy fired a burst of energy as well, sending his own green lances of fotonic energy at Arietta.

The girl shrieked and jumped to the side in order dodge it. Coming into a graceful stumble ,she quickly regained her fighting position and continued to send out blasts.

Dang… I have to admit.. Sync thought as he exchanged a blow with the rather strong monster. This is indeed interesting...

Who was he kidding. This fight was really fun for once. It was a complete challenge, even though he wouldn't admit it to Arietta. The fact that the girl was actually fighting rather well, really surprised him. She certainly fought a lot better with this fierce Liger by her side. The way she was able to pinpoint his every place to dodge, both made him annoyed and thrilled for some reason.

The battle continued on with both opponents wreaking small havoc upon the field. Boulders and trees alike fell or shattered upon the force of Sync's fist and the liger's claw swipes. Arietta's numerous Arte's also leveled neary 20% of the field into complete destruction.

~ Brother! ~ Called the girl as she prepared to join in on the close combat.

Making another swipe, the Large Liger faked a bite at Sync and retreated towards his sister. - At your side!!! -

Sync didn't let up however. He followed in pursuit of the running monster and planted a low kick to its leg. The Liger winced, but continued forward. Jumping to the side, Arietta's 'sibling' allowed a barrage of icicles to pepper the kid behind him. Sync hadn't seen this coming and was thus unable to erect a barrier in time to stop all the damage.

He jumped back and assessed the injury he had taken. Tch… I gotta end this quick before I have to go change again. He winced slightly as he touched the fresh cut on his right leg. He was lucky enough to dodge those icicles. Note to self… Arietta's arte are not something to go up against.

~ Lets take him together, Brother ~ Arietta said as she hopped onto the liger's back.

- Yeah! Lets! - Grinning in it's own way, the liger charger forward once more.

The masked boy simply smirked before engaging the beast. Another round of punching, blocking, Arte-casting, biting, and slashing ensued. And after a key point, the green haired boy made his final move to end the fight. After analyzing the speed numerous times, he had finally seen an opening. Sync then executed his final chain of combos that would lead him to his victory.

"We got you!" Yelled Arietta as she came coming down from the sky with her liger.

Smirking, Sync shook his head and vanished from their view. Caught by surprise, the Liger and his sister found themselves flying back into the air. The green haired boy had sent a hard double kick on the liger's stomach causing the monster to cough out the air it had. This was also followed up with a blindingly fast barrage of kicks and punches to its weakened body.

Arietta shrieked as she flew off of her Liger. And when she thought she was going to fall to her death, Sync appeared in the air to catch her and carry her directly down to the ground.

"Damnit" Panted the girl who was in the mercy of her opponent.

The green haired smirked as he heard the liger fall directly behind him. " I Win Arietta…"

Bleeding from the battle, Arietta winced and closed her eyes as Sync raised a gloved fist to finish her. This is it… I was so close she thought.

Crack!

Blinking in surprise, the pink haired girl stared up at her grinning opponent. "?"

Chuckling, he relaxed and watched her silently for a second before saying. "Heh… Now were even…" Yes… defitintely even. That really gave me some good work out…

Still tired and a bit pained, the girl tried her best not to blush at the current position she was in. Lying underneath a boy was not something she felt very comfortable with. But even so, she managed to blink and give a weak. "What? *pant*"

Shaking his head, he gave a small and subtle smile. "Good-" Sync began to say.

"SYNC!! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING??" Legretta roared, upon finding Arietta with a bleeding forehead.

"Damnit!" They quickly took off to the roof after mumbling a soft 'good battle and sorry' to Arietta. It was so soft that the pink haired girl almost couldn't comprehend.

… I finally got his respect…The girl thought happily as she watched the martial artist evade Legretta's bullets.

"Come back here!" The woman held out her Dual guns and continued to pepper the roof top with bullets. "Graah!!" She let out in frustration.

She didn't get a chance to shoot further however, as Sync had sprinted out of sight. Frustrated, Legretta turned her attention to Arietta who flinched under her stare. "Are you alright, Arietta?"

Blinking, the girl nodded her head slowly. "Y-yes ma'am."

"But your head!" The voice was laced with so much worry that it made the teen embarrassed to reply for a second.

"I-its okay. I'll have it healed in a sec."

"…" Legretta nodded, despite the worried look in her eyes. "Alright then. That Sync… Arietta, head to the infirmary as soon as you fix that. Make sure that was the only injury you've sustained."

The pink haired teen nodded. "Yes!"

"Good. Now if you'll excuse me." The woman had a rather sadistic grin on her face as she held up her weapons. "I've got a brat to punish." And with that, the woman leaped up to the roofs, following the same direction that Sync had escaped to.

What about me? Arietta wondered. Don't I get a punishment too? (Nope! You're too innocent to be punished Arietta, lol xD!!)

It didn't take long for Arietta to stop her thinking as she remembered the current state of her Liger brother. "AHH!! Brother! Hold on!!" She called out as she rushed over to treat her wounded sibling.

Meanwhile with Sync

"What! Not you again!"

Sync sighed and greeted the girl, who had entered the small room, with a lazy smirk. "Yo! Anise."

The girl just crossed her arms and puffed her cheeks at him. "Why are you here again? Same as this morning?" She sounded pretty irritated… who woudn't if they found the same person in their room twice in one day. And without permission no less.

"Yep." The boy said simply as he rolled over to have his back turned away from Anise. "Don't bother me until dinner."

There was silence before the pouting girl found an interesting question. "What happened to you?"

She examined the tear on his green clothes and the numerous cuts and bruises he had on the visible skin. It looked like he had gone through some nasty fight with a monster or something. Boy.. She had no idea how right her guess was.

Sync just scoffed and said. "None of your business."

None of my business! I was just asking! Geez! Anise stomped towards him and tried to smack the back of his head.

….And of course she failed…

"I said, don't wake me up." Sync growled, letting go of her hand while turning his body back towards her.

Freaken fast… The girl thought while rubbing her wrist. The grip was pretty hard too.

She however, wasn't intimidated by him. "Hey! You should know that I don't allow-"

"Here." The boy cut her off with the amount of money he had showed her. "That's what you want, right?"

Anise Smiled sweetly at him and snatched the money from out of his hand. "Ah! You've read my mind! Pleasure doing business with you Sync-sama!"

"… Don't call me that…" He said with irritation. "And leave me alone now!"

"But of course!" Anise continued to smile as she pocketed the money.

This was proving to be a successful day for her. She earned more than the allowance she usually got and so she was really happy about it. I should do this more often… Eheehee.

Taking care as to not disturb her paying client, the 11 year old went over to her unoccupied bed and took out a history book to read. She placed Tokunaga near her side as she began her studies. Anise may have felt annoyed with a boy sleeping in her room earlier, but since he paid twice for each stay, she didn't mind anymore. Plus she actually liked the extra company…just a bit.. maybe she could befriend him even.

At that idea the brunette smiled slightly. Friends. She could use another one besides Dist and Ion. The white haired god-general was just too freaky to her, though she was thankful for his company at times. Ion too was starting to be a good friend. Sure he may seem a bit naïve sometimes, but he was pretty kind and friendly to her. Those were her only two she had closest to a friend here.

Having this Sync as a friend wouldn't be bad… would it? She thought for a second. Maybe… but then again, I just met him today. Is that even okay?

Anise turned to the sleeping boy in her couch. She wondered what he was like though. So far the only impressions she's gotten from him was his rude personality. Then there was the matter with his Mask. She was actually curious on what he looked like.

Is he hiding some sort of scar in his face? She wondered.

Her curiosity for Syncs identity grew with the passing time. Every time the boy shifted and the mask moved slightly, Anise's curious urge grew stronger. If it weren't for Sync's words for her not to disturb him, Anise would have already been by the couch in an instant after he had fallen asleep. And then she would have taken the mask off!!

Aside from those… Anise was truly thinking of a possible friendship to be developed. Maybe…

Gah!! What am I doing?!. The girl mentally kicked herself for getting off task. "I gotta focus!"

And so the young Fon Master Guardian continued with her studies. Her mind worked and worked until she too, fell asleep. The prospect of having Sync as a friend did not leave her thoughts even as she fell into dreamland. She was hoping that one day she would gain many friends…including the green haired God general to be.

She had no idea of the events that awaited her 2 years later. The very events that would give her exactly what she would want….

~Chapter 2 Complete!~

… This is pretty dang hard… I just researched quite a bit before I made this particular chapter. And HOLY CRAP! Not having the game will really put me in a tight spot in making fics =X!! I probably make my next long story on a crossover… FFXII or Star Ocean. At least I have both games lol xD!

Any how! I guess you've noticed the couple of missing words in the first chapter huh? X3!! I need to work on grammar I know, but then again I just finished working on this late at night and posted it hastily (=X!! Hoped you like this chappy though and see you next time! I might do the corrections tomorrow, aside from that just enjoy, yeah?

Special thanks for the following people for their support and help:
Syncietta
lala. arietta
Anonymus

Questions:

1.) Does anyone know what they call the money in the game?

2.) can some one give me some help with the items of ToA?