Author ramblings (end of the game spoilers ahead):

Man, no other fandom can inspire me quite like Tales of the Abyss can. This game is just... AMAZING. It's definitely in my top 4 favorite RPGs, if not my favorite of all time. I couldn't help but fall in love with the characters, and I can't really say that there's a main character in this game that I hate. My three favorites are definitely Guy, Luke, and Asch, though. Guy being my favorite character of all time at the moment

Anyway, I'm starting to digress too much. I wrote this fic as an alternate universe to the game's ending. You see, I always figured that Luke was the one who returned. Well, let me clarify. I think it's Luke's personality with Asch's memories and a bit of his personality, as as well Asch's body. But for all intensive purposes, it's Luke as far as I'm concerned. So anyway, in this fic Asch comes back instead. His own body, his own memories, and maybe a few other things that aren't necessarily his... Of course, you can imagine how Luke's friends would take this. Especially Guy...

To tell the truth, I wasn't a a big of Asch for 95 percent of the game. But after that scene in the last stage... I totally fell in love with him as a character. I feel even more in love after reading the Asch Gaiden, which gives details about his past 7 years ago. I really like writing him (not sure how well a job I do of it, though). So who knows, maybe I'll write more in this AU if I feel like it.

Disclaimer: Tales of the Abyss belongs to Bandai Namco.

Rating: T due to some swearing

Summary: He'd regained everything he'd lost, and yet somehow he had become the thief instead.

Pairings: I suppose you could argue for Guy/Luke or even Asch/Guy...

The Regrettable Return

"Give him back…"

Asch winced as the back of his head slammed into the sufficiently hard wall behind him. The stars that now danced in his vision were accompanied by a very angry pair of blue eyes.

"GIVE HIM BACK, DAMMIT!"

The hand seizing his collar tightened into a fist. Asch glanced down briefly, a distant part of his mind lamenting the fact that the nice, neat collar of his court outfit was being crumpled so horribly.

"Guy, you're being irrational." His voice was calm, but he had been expecting this. Ever since the day he'd returned. Ever since he appeared in that field in Tataroo Valley…

"You think I care?!" The blonde was beyond angry by now. If his furrowed eyebrows weren't enough a clue, his trembling hands definitely gave it away.

"I can't just give him back, you idiot. I had no control over the damn situation! I didn't decide who the hell should come back! He's gone, deal with it!"

He winced again as he recovered from Guy's punch; his right cheek tingling painfully from the impact.

"Killing me won't bring him back either." He wasn't going to respond with anger, no matter how annoyed he was becoming. He'd been sensing this sort of confrontation for awhile now anyway. His occasional trips to Grand Chokmah usually resulted in him encountering the blonde somehow. Or maybe Guy kept running into him on purpose. The look he got every time he passed him wasn't one he could forget easily…

"I know… I know he's in there. Somewhere. He has to be…" The blonde's expression softened a little as he closed his eyes and looked away from Asch. "There's no way he'd die so easily… I know him… and I know he has to be alive… there's just no way!"

"Guy… I…" What was he supposed to say? Anything he said would more than likely piss Guy off more. And he agreed with him, to some extent. It wasn't like he didn't know how much that replica's friends had cared about him. He'd felt no small amount of jealousy, seeing all those people supporting that idiot…

No, he wasn't an idiot. Not anymore than Asch himself was. He didn't deserve to die like that, and yet… he did. That was an irreversible fact, one that he knew Guy would have a hard time ever accepting.

So instead of say anything else, Asch simply closed his eyes and thought back to that day.

"Why… are you here?"

"Because from here you can see Hod. And… because I made a promise." He'd still been in somewhat of daze then, and so he hadn't realized who'd been talking to him. He simply responded based on the last thing he remembered. But he had made a promise, hadn't he? At least, to Natalia and the replica. He didn't realize his error until he looked down to see the girl that was embracing him.

Tear was warm against him… but he resisted the urge to embrace her back. It wasn't his right. Instead he looked to his left, where Natalia stood, a faint smile gracing her features. He couldn't help smiling a little himself. Was this a dream? At the same time, though, this wasn't right…

"I…" He started. The thought of letting them all have live in their happy little fantasy world crossed his mind briefly, but that wouldn't be right, either. There's no way he'd pretend to be someone he wasn't. "I'm… not who you think I am."

Tear looked up at his face, her eyes searching. "…What do you mean…?" Everyone else had stopped dead, their cheerful banter having suddenly ceased.

"I'm not Luke… I mean… I'm not the Luke you want. I'm…" He couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence.

"L-Luke…" Her arms fell numbly to her side and she simply stared up at him. "That can't… you can't be…"

"Luke… what're you talking about?" Guy's voice echoed a similar tone of disbelief. "You're you, like you said, right?"

"Wait, y-you can't mean… Asch?!" Natalia's voice turned shrill as the name escaped her lips.

And there it was: now everyone was staring at him. Tear was even slowly backing away now, one hand covering her mouth as she stared at him in horror. It was like he was some horrible monster that had appeared before them.

"…So my theory was correct in the end." In all their shock, no one had noticed Jade approaching them. "You really ARE Asch, you say?"

Asch nodded. "At least… it seems that way. I feel like… me."

Jade adjusted his glasses before continuing, "It was merely a theory. I didn't want to worry everyone over something I was only partly sure about."

"You mean… you knew Luke wasn't coming back, Colonel?!" Anise was now sporting her own look of horror.

"As I said, it was only a theory… I had thought that it was possible that I was wrong…"

"Then… what happened to Luke?" Guy asked, obviously afraid to hear the answer.

"Well…" Jade sighed before looking to Asch. "Perhaps you could tell us what you remember?"

Asch carefully explained everything he could remember as best as he could. It wasn't easy, seeing as how there was obviously a huge gap his memory in many places. The last thing he remembered before everything went dark was dying. That part was unmistakable. But then the next thing he remembered was feeling something hot, almost like he was burning alive, enter him. And he was awake. He couldn't really remember much of the place where he awoke, and the parts that he did remember were nearly impossible to describe. He didn't even know how long he'd spent there, but eventually he blacked out again only to wake up on the northern end of the Ispanian Peninsula. That must've been only a day or so ago, and he'd only been able to wander around in a complete daze until he heard Tear's song and wandered towards it.

At the end of his explanation everyone looked thoroughly worried.

Jade sighed again. "I see… then it seems that the Big Bang triggered exactly as it should have. If that's the case then…"

"W-what happened to Luke?" Natalia asked hesitantly.

"He's… gone." Asch didn't know exactly why he knew—he just did.

The brief silence after Asch's revelation was broken only by the sound of Tear's quiet sobs. Which were soon followed by Anise's. Natalia, on the other hand, stood still, glancing sheepishly at Asch. Guy simply kicked at the flowers at his feet, his expression unreadable.

Jade cleared his throat before speaking again. "As much as I hate doing things like this, I'll explain to you all everything I know about the theory of the Big Bang. Please, listen carefully…"

That's when Asch had realized just how much of an idiot he'd been in the past. How he had been the one ensured a life after all that time. To think that the replica had been the one that was doomed instead…

"Are you listening?!"

Asch awoke out of his reverie. "Not like I have much of a choice."

"Aren't you the funny one…"

The stars appeared again as Asch's head was once again acquainted with the wall behind it. "Ow… dammit, I told you I can't bring him back! I'm here, DEAL WITH IT!"

"And I told you HE'S NOT DEAD!"

"Try living in reality for a second!" As much as he had wanted to avoid it, he'd let his temper get the better of him. Despite the fact that knew how Guy probably felt. Every time the blonde saw Asch, he'd only be reminded of the friend he'd lost. The friend who he'd always valued so much more…

"Reality…?! Go to hell, Asch…"

"Stop calling me that. My name is Luke fon-"

He reeled as he was punched again. Now he could feel blood starting to trickle from his nose. He was going to have one heck of a time cleaning that up…

"Don't… say that name…"

By now Asch was out of patience. He'd had it with Guy's bullshit. "Why? It was originally my name anyway!" Or rather, more accurately, he was Count Luke fon Fabre now. Not that resuming his "old" life brought him any special kind of happiness. He felt caged now, more than anything. He'd attained the title of Count because he was "worthy" of the title, he'd assumed the position of ambassador to Malkuth because he'd felt obligated to, and he'd returned to the manor because he couldn't bear to break his parents' hearts by disappearing so soon after his return. About the only thing that he had attained that he had really wanted was his engagement to Natalia, but even that arrangement was ridden with obligations and constraining rules involving titles. He was sick of it. And Guy treating him like he was somehow the replica's murderer didn't help matters much, either.

"He bore than name better than you ever did…!"

Guy went for another punch, but this time Asch blocked it. He used his other hand to seize the wrist of the hand that was still gripping his collar.

"Guy, get a hold of yourself, please… Hurting me won't bring him back. You know that. You've known that for these past six months. You know very well about why he's gone and I'm back. I had no control over it… don't take your anger out on me just because the ones to blame are either dead or in prison!"

It seemed that Asch's message might have finally gotten to him. Instead of argue back or attempt to escape from Asch's grip, Guy simply accepted defeat.

It pained Asch to watch the man slowly untense. He let go as Guy's arms relaxed and just watched as the other man sank down slowly to the ground. The expression on his face was hard to read… acceptance? Grief? Despair? Probably all three at once.

"He's… he's really gone, isn't he…"

"I'm sorry, Guy…" Asch knelt down. He wasn't sure of what he should do. It was obvious that no matter what he did, Guy would still despise him. So he decided to go for the most dangerous option. His arms trembled slightly as they encircled the blonde's shoulders. Maybe he'd be pushed away. Heck, maybe Guy would draw his sword and stab him. Not that it would be easy in this position… Asch figured it was worth the risk, either way.

His eyes widened in surprise as Guy responded by leaning his head on his shoulder. "Don't think… I've forgiven you… bastard…"

"I know…" was all that Asch could answer with.

Reviews would be very much appreciated. Thanks!