Tales of Symphonia: Another Tale
The Sleeping Bag

The next morning was windy, and cold. The snowy season was coming, everyone could feel the dramatic change in the weather. Genis suggested finding a place that sold chocolate, so he'd have some to make some hot chocolate on those especially cold days. But it'd have to be in a town they were passing through, because they couldn't stray for too long. Wind stung their faces as they trudged along, seeing storm clouds forming in the distance.

It wasn't long after that, did they see a city appearing in the distance. Even if they did stop for a night's rest in a few hours, they were sure to make it there by noon tomorrow. But then, off to the left, a noise, a strange noise. It was almost a howl but not quite, and then flapping wings were heard along with the screaming of a dieing man. Before anyone of the three had a chance to do anything, a wolf jumped out from the bushes, but this wolf had the wings of a bat sprouting from its back. It let out a low, menacing, growl and bared it's teeth.

"What is that?" Genis asked, getting ready to fight if worse came to worse.

"I don't know...but I think it's hungry." Raine answered, as she grabbed her staff and waked the creatures nose with it.

The creatured roared furiously and charged at Raine, but missed, and went flying...right into Genis and Presea's tent...thrashing could be seen and loud grunts of frustration were heard. Finally the creature reappeared, and flew off, dragging something with it.

"Genis," Presea began, "Isn't that your sleeping bag?"

"What?" Genis rushed off to the tent, and came out slowly, "It..took...my sleeping bag..."

Presea and Raine stood silent, but ownly until Genis had finished cooking the dinner he had started, soon after he found his sleeping bag, gone. The said dinner was a small meal, because they had started running out of food. It was a little fish and a little mashed potatoes on the side. After dinner the three sat around the fire for a while, doing there usual things. Raine was reading about temples near by, Presea was carving a small wooden figure and Genis was cleaning up.

An hour or so later they agreed that it was time to go to sleep. Presea and Genis left for their tent. Presea put the half carved figure next to a wooden owl, and a wooden pumpkin. She then burrowed into her sleeping bag. Suddenly she rememberred Genis. She popped her head out of the sleeping bag to look at Genis. He was on the ground, shivering, curled up in a little ball.

"Genis...it's cold...why don't you and me share my sleepign bag until we can find you a new one?" Presea asked, concerned about Genis sleeping on the cold hard ground, especially on a night like this.

"I-I'll be f-fine, really." Genis said, still shivering.

"No you won't be. It's cold, too cold to sleep on the ground."

"I'm f-fine."

Presea sighed and climbed out of her sleeping bag, and walked over to Genis. She put her hand on his shoulder and tightened her grip. Without any sign of effory, she lifted him off the ground, and his feet were hanging in the air. Genis was only staring as he realised he was now an inch or two off the ground, and by one hand.

Presea walked back over to her sleeping bag, and shoved Genis inside. Then she began to climb in, letting one of her pig tails brush against Genis' face. Genis was still a little shocked, but he could feel Presea's hair brush against his face. They lay trying to sleep, trying to find a position where they weren't direcly touching, but there was no way in this little sleeping bag, were they going to get even an inch between them.

Finally they gave up and lay, squeezed together by the sleeping bag.

Meanwhile Raine was trying to sleep in her own tent, but was kept awake by Presea and Genis' constant movement. She didn't know they were ownly trying to find a little room between them, and suddenly she went into a frantic "Motherly Mode". She dashed from her tent and tripped on a rock.

"OW! DAMMIT!" She yelled as she pulled herself up and headed for Genis and Presea's tent.

She lifted the flap of the tent open and looked inside. She could see the two sleeping, almost like brother and sister. Her motherly mode began to fade off, as she walked back to her own tent.

'Relax Raine, you just need to relax...maybe we should all sleep in tonight...yes...that'll relax us...me...'

A few minutes before...

Genis lay still but Presea was still shifting around, trying to find a comfortable position to sleep in. Finally she found her head resting on something hard, but soft and comfortable at the same time. She didn't realize that what her head was resting on, was Genis' chest, and she quickly fell asleep.

Genis was still awake, how couldn't he have been with all the flailing around next to him. Finally the movement stopped, and he felt warmth press against his chest. A soft, pigtail rubbed against his face as he looked down, to see Presea's head, resting on his chest. He was puzzled for a moment or two, but then slipped into a sleep.

The next morning Presea awoke first. She could still feel her head on the "pillow" but now, in the sunlight, she discovered that her head had been resting on Genis the entire night. She quickly pulled her head away, and climbed from the sleeping bag. She walked out of the tent, still in her pajamas. She saw Raine, pouring water over the fireplace, to get rid of anything that may have restarted the fire.

"Sleep well?" Raine asked Presea who yawned as she walked closer.

"Yes." Presea answered, blankly...

The silence was awkward, but Genis had now awoken and was getting breakfast ready while the other two went off to get changed.