Hello and Happy Holidays to everyone who's clicked on this story! This is officially my second fanfiction (If you're into ToV, check out "On the Brink"...got to self endorse, right?) Either way, I'm relatively new to the fanfic scene so any constructive criticism is welcomed. This is a 25 holiday prompt story, so a new chapter will be posted each day until Christmas day.

I wanted to note that this is when Lloyd is three years old, before the incidents that lead to Kratos' return to Cruxis. Anyway, I do hope you read, enjoy and review!

Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Symphonia or any of it's characters.

Chapter One: Snow

The small house sat on the outskirts of town, the massive red trees that surrounded the hut covering it from the outside. The lakes, which sat far from the little home, glittered in the slowly rising sunlight.

The golden beams continued their skyward climb, tickling to tops of the mountains. Everyone in the small home, as well as everyone in the sprawling city, was asleep. That was, save one little boy.

With wide eyes, he was watching the frosted window with care. He'd been up since before the sun, the soft noise waking him. The child wasn't sure what had caused the soft noise, like the sound of feathers tumbling against the floor, but he was determined to figure it out. Carefully, he clung to his pillow, his only protection, as he continued to watch while sitting on his bed.

There!

Jumping off his little bed, pillow thrown into the air, he rushed to the window, face pressing against the glass to get a better look. His curious rust colored eyes darted from side to side. He was positive he'd seen something. Perhaps it was the cause of the quiet noise?

Again!

He leapt back as more of it became visible, the fluffy white substance attaching itself to the windowsill. As he watched, more and more began to fall and cover the ground. In bemusement, the young boy watched it descend, a smile crossing his face. The strange falling matter was something he was sure he'd never seen before and as he observed it toppling to the ground, he became increasingly curious.

What was this strange substance? Just then, a shockingly strong gust of wind rattled against the window, the small boy bounding backwards to the safety of his warm blankets. The little brown head reappeared moments later as he turned his fear-filled eyes towards the window. He swallowed, hard, and slowly shifted out from under the heated comforter. Shuffling towards the glass barrier, he warily peaked out.

Another rushing gust send him flying out of the room, not even stopping to close the wooden door behind him. Small feet moving as quickly as possible, he dashed to the safety of his parent's room. With one motion, the door was open and the child had jumped onto the bed, burying himself between the sheets as well as the two sleeping people.

The sudden motion jolted the two awake, both quickly swarming to the middle to see what was wrong with the child.

"Lloyd," his mother's voice came softly, "What's the matter?" Her gentle hands reached under the covers to hold the shaking child, his body trembling as she tugged him closer to her. She gave her husband a wary look, a slight smile crossing her face.

The father took a deep breath before letting it out, "Lloyd, did something scare you?" His voice was gruff, the small child feeling the vibration of the older man's voice in his body. Slowly, small, brown tuffs appeared from under the sheets, the little body still ridiculously close to his mother.

He turned his moist orbs towards his father, "Daddy, there's a monster outside." His voice hiccupped, causing his father to reach his arm across both his son and his wife's body. He hugged them both close, the warmth of his mother and father calming the terrified child. After a couple more minutes of silence, the heat started to bother the boy. He wiggled to free himself, turning to look at his daddy.

"Daddy! There's a monster outside!" Lloyd was frantic as he stood upon the bed and jumped up and down. His dad sat up, taking the boy roughly under his arm and dragging him off the bed with him. The boy let out a loud giggle as his father swooped him around the room before gently landing the child on his feet.

His father bent down to level with the three-year-olds gaze, "If there's something outside, Lloyd and daddy better go take care of it." He smiled, eliciting a broad grin from his son. The wife sighed as she got out of bed, instantly clutching her arms around herself, seeking heat.

"Just make sure he's bundled up, Kratos."

"I always do, Anna," Kratos took his child, walking him back to his bedroom. Upon entering, the two quickly went to work creating armor for their upcoming fight. Kratos tied Lloyd into his thick, red coat, looping the hood strongly over his little head. He slipped on the child's boots, the boy eagerly discussing battle plans with his father. He nodded as his son talked, his hands busily working to lace the black boots up. Once the child was ready for combat, taking the large stick his father had found for them to play stickball with, his father slipped on his own coat, taking his sword with him.

The two opened the door, heading outside. When both of their feet entered the white substance, the child screamed and jumped onto his father. Kratos, with speed, grabbed his son and held him, bringing the terrified child to his waist. "What is it, Lloyd?"

The child dropped his stick, hugging his small arms around his father's neck. "Daddy, this stuff belongs to the monster!"

Kratos raised an eyebrow, "Is that so?"

"Yup! I saw the monster drop it!" His childish intellect caused his father to laugh, gaining a curious glance from his son, "What is it, daddy?"

"I suppose you're still pretty young, Lloyd." His father wasn't making any sense. The boy squirmed about in his father's arm, the older man gently placing his son on the wet ground. With careful feet, the child let himself be lowered, the toes of his boots quickly disappearing underneath the white menace. With a rather soft glare, he stared down at the substance.

"Son," with his father's words, rusty eyes looked up.

"What?"

"No monster left this."

"But I saw it fall and then my window started shaking," he recalled it, the memories still fresh in his little, terrified mind. He tugged at his daddy's pant leg, "Daddy, if a monster didn't do this than what did?"

Kratos said nothing, pointing a gloved finger up towards the sky. The young boy's gaze traveled skyward, bewilderment catching on his features. From high above, white flakes were tumbling down, each one dancing helplessly along the breeze. As they came, more would follow and after them, more. Hundreds of thousands of pure flecks somersaulted towards the two.

"Wow, what is that, daddy?" The awe in the child's voice was apparent, causing Kratos to smile. It was the first time they'd ever been somewhere cold during the winter months.

"That, Lloyd," he spoke, picking up his son and placing him on his shoulders, "Is snow."