I shouldn't be doing this. I shouldn't be doing this. I REALLY shouldn't be doing this. Okay, for those of you reading this and are disappointed in me for taking down a few of my stories, I'm EXTREMELY sorry. I started those with tons of inspiration, but they all just kinda... died in my head. I said this in an early authors note in Another new beginning, but I don't really write story boards or anything ahead of time. I just type what comes into my head, I had two or three consecutive brain-farts. I recently played this game for the umpteenth time and was struck with a GIANT plot bunny. Now I just need to say a few things regarding the last chapter...

1: I don't only weigh 72 pounds. The reason story me does is because of malnutrition and an extremely abusive uncle.

2: Cadince is nothing but a bastard in real life and treats me like dirt just because he's a few years older than me. Its for this reason that I mostly avoid my family reunions or other get together and why no one outside the residents of my main households knows my parents have a daughter.

3: None of my intermediate family are currently six feet under, in case you didn't see that in the summary. I only used that for dramatic effect and to give story Katie a reason for how she is.

4: please leave a review. I won't continue a story if people aren't reading it. I also can't change anything to your liking if you don't let me know what's wrong in the first place.

Sorry. I try not to make my authors notes this long.

Disclaimer: I forgot this last chapter, so sorry for those people this may directly affect. Though I own my copy of the game, I make no claims to have had any part in the creation of Tales of Symphonia. That falls directly under Namco and all other affiliates (sorry that I don't know you). I also earn no money from this story and am only writing for my own entertainment and that of others.

XoXoX

Chapter Two: Introductions and Discoveries

The first thing I noticed as I slowly came to awareness was the explosive pain all over my body, centered around my torso. The next thing that was able to catch my attention through the thick haze of sleep was the fact I was laying on soft, luscious green grass. My eyes immediately shot open and I quickly sat up, though my body protested. The world around me was spinning so for a few minutes I just sat there, disoriented. After finally being able to focus, I slowly examined my surroundings. Green grass, an ocean at the edge of a nearby cliff after a drop of I don't know how many feet. To my right, there was a large building that looked like some sort of temple. It sat high on the top of a steep hill, a lone staircase the only means to climb to the entrance. I didn't understand; where on earth WAS this! I lived in the middle of Detroit, Michigan and have for all but the first two years of my life. I would have known if there was something like this in the area. 'I guess I'm nowhere near uncle's house anymore,' I thought solemnly. That was another thing: mixed emotions. I wasn't sure if I was happy or sad to be away from them. Sure, I was mistreated, underfed, overworked, overpowered... where was I going with this? Right, should I be relieved or miserable? I may not have exactly been welcomed with open arms, but its what was familiar, though I could hardly call that hell hole my home.

Not knowing how I got to this beautiful, and strangely familiar place, I went over my most recent memories. First, I woke up and was told to get to work before attending school for the day. Nothing out of the ordinary in that. I didn't do something one hundred percent correct and was punished however my legal guardian saw fit; that happened more often than not. I guess the first abnormal thing was when I decided to fight back for the first time since I was still a child and was being brought away from the sheltered lifestyle my parents gave me. That's right... I fought my uncle for the first time in years and made my exit through the fire escape I had managed to keep hidden in my small room. Despite the grave situation, I gave myself a small smile for doing what I had previously deemed impossible. I had somehow found the courage to stand up for myself against one of the greatest evils I had ever known. That's when I remembered the person wearing white with blond hair. Who were they? I thought I'd seen them before, but the information was dancing just outside my mind and I couldn't quite manage to call the memory out. I decided I had better not dwell on it and find out where I was.

I stood slowly and waited to move. My knees buckled and I was afraid that if I started to walk, I'd collapse again and be unable to get back up. After a while, I was confident enough that my legs could hold the rest of me up off the ground, and I made my way towards the long stone steps leading up to the ancient looking structure on the hillside. Just when I was about to begin my agonizing climb, I saw two figures descending the staircase and coming towards me. Two boys, I decided. One looked to be right around my age. He was wearing red boots, black pants with brown suspenders and two brown belts crossing in the front, red gloves and a red coat with many white buttons that matched his boots, and white ribbons dangling behind him at the neck. He was slightly tanned with brown eyes and spiky hair to match. He appeared to be only a few inches taller than myself, I would guess around 5 8" or 5 9". He also carried two swords, one on each side of his waist.

The other was younger, maybe eleven or twelve years old and only around 4 6". He was clothed in blue and black boots that ended half way up his shins, sky blue shorts with white trim, a matching shirt and short sleeved jacket and two buckles hanging in the front. He was light skinned, with blue eyes and sliver hair that ended mid back and was spiked at the tips. He carried a kendama in his right hand.

Neither one took notice of me as the chatted animatedly, and I stood there watching silently, waiting to see what would happen. As the pair neared the bottom, the boy with silver hair finally took notice of me. A look of surprise crossed his face, replaced quickly with contempt. "Who are you?" he asked, voice laced with suspicion.

"Traditionally, someone is supposed to give their name before asking the same of others," I said with a hint of sarcasm. I didn't quite get the reaction I wanted from him, though the other one looked a bit shocked.

"Hey! You stole my line!" he exclaimed in mock irritation. I could clearly tell he was amused. I tried hard to keep a straight face, but I couldn't help the slight lift in the corner of my lips that formed a small grin full of humor. I could already tell the two of us would get along just fine. I figured it didn't matter in the end who gave their name first, the end result would be the same. I chose to be the bigger person.

"My name is Katie. How about you?" I tagged onto the end.

"I'm Lloyd. And this is Genis," he stated while gesturing accordingly. Good, now that we all knew each other...

"Sorry to ask this, but I'm kinda lost. Could you tell me where this is?" I asked sweetly, hoping beyond hope that I could get an answer.

"You don't know where this is?" Lloyd asked in disbelief. That certainly gave me information... NOT!

"Not really... I'm drawing a blank here. I don't know where this is or even how I got here," maybe if I kept up an act I'd get somewhere.

"This is the Martel Temple just outside of Iselia." Genis told me after studying my expression. He probably wanted to know if I was lying. It's a good thing that I wasn't. I honestly had no idea where this was, and I got straight A's in school. I took AP World Studies one and I'd never heard of a place called Iselia. I was also unfamiliar with the temple. I couldn't recall if any of the less common religions worshipped a goddess Martel...

Wait a minute. Everything clicked into place in my head at once; Martel Temple, Iselia, Lloyd, Genis... All of them were from a game I'd heard so much about from Cadince: Tales of Symphonia. He had been obsessed with it recently. He had just gotten Dawn of the New World for his Wii and had been playing it and the first one constantly for nearly two months. Who would've thought that the demon spawn I called cousin could be useful? I sure hadn't. I needed to remember to thank him when I got back. That is, IF I got back. I had no idea how I'd managed to get myself stuck in a video game, but I knew one thing for sure. I could probably only get back to Detroit the same way I got dumped out here. I had a sneaking suspicion that the person I saw before I blacked out had something to do with my situation.

"I don't know my way to the village. Do you think you could take me there?" I politely requested. If I had the storyline correct after all the time I had spent watching Cadince play, I'd picked up a few things... like the entire plotline for both games. I thought Colette had just recieved the oracle and gotten her Cruxis Crystal. Awe, that means that I had just missed Kratos. That really sucked because he was one of my favorite characters in th video game world. At least as far as Nintendo went; Sony was an entirely different story.

"Sure. We were just heading there anyway," Lloyd gladly accepted my request. That did much to back up my theory on us becoming fast friends. Genis, on the other hand, I wasn't so sure about. In the game he acted like a know it all and, sorry Zelos, a total brat. I knew about his past and that he was a half elf and of course he had reasons to hate humans aside from Lloyd and Colette, but he didn't have to glare at me constantly. At least he hadn't-

"Are you sure that's a good idea Lloyd?" he asked doubtfully. I'd thought too soon. I sighed quietly to myself, preparing an irrefutable reason as to why I wouldn't be a hinderance to them in any way, shape or form.

"I'm sorry to have suddenly sprung this on you, but Lloyd said you were heading in that direction already. Besides, I know how to fight, so you wouldn't need to be my body guard or anything of the sort. Though I understand completely if you refuse. But could you at least point me in the right direction?" That should do it. I've found through experiance that if given an option, someone is more likely to accept a request because then the other person doesn't seem nearly as desperate.

"I guess it wouldn't be all that bad to bring you with us," the half elf caved. My plan worked like a charm.

"Thank you so much for your help!" I said sincerely. If I didn't go with them, I'd probably manage to get myself even more lost than I already was and I'd never find the person in white and get back to earth. In response to my thanks, Genis continued to glare at me and proceeded to run off, going right past the temple.

"C'mon!" Lloyd shouted at me excitedly after several awkward moments as made a mad dash in order to catch up with his best friend. As soon as I realized the both of them were running back, I began my own sprint. Its lucky for me that I'd been pretty athletic and participated in the school sports frequently.

"Wait!" I called in front of me while trying to supress my laughter. Running always made me giddy, for some strange reason. Despite my speed, Lloyd had longer legs and an exsphere while Genis had gotten quite the head start. I let my thoughts drift as the cool breeze blew my hair every which way and stung my bright colored eyes. I started to wonder how I would ever manage to join them on the journey of world regeneration. That would be an accomplishment.

Strangely enough... I couldn't wait.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter and leave a review with any praise or complaints you may have. Until next chapter - JA MATA NE

~Nobody-XV