Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

As the swords of his ancestors tore through him, as the flashes of blue light filtered past his eyelids, the images of his friends, and of Luna flashed through his mind. The last one struck, and there was only his father left standing before him. He felt the King’s very solid, very real blade pierce his chest.

The entrance to the Astral realm. Ardyn standing before him. His friends by his side. Calling his ancestors once more. And Ardyn falling, turning to nothing. The last of Noct's strength left him and he could feel his body and soul fading into an inky black void.

Despite how ready he had told himself he was, it terrified him. It was over. There was nothing more. And yet, there was relief as he realised there was nothing more. There were no more responsibilities required of him. He could rest now.

“It’s finally over.”

... 

Then he was falling, and his vision exploded with light. He let out a cry of surprise as his knees hit something hard and black.

Everything bombarded his senses at once - phantom pain from swords launched at his body, tearing through flesh, voices shouting, heat on his skin, rough ground under his palms.

And screaming that wouldn’t stop, ringing in his ears.

Everything. Too much.

...

So bright. Blurry shadows moved rapidly around him. Something was grabbing him, and he realised he was falling sideways. He blinked, trying to clear his eyes.

The screaming stopped, and the voices returned, calling his name.

He could hear his pulse pounding in his ears, but how could that be? He was dead.

 ...

He was dead. Wasn’t he?

Gods, why did everything hurt? Why was it so bright? Was he being punished? Had he done something wrong?

“NOCT!” Prompto had looked over to see his best friend turn deathly pale and fall to his hands and knees. Only a moment later, Noct was screaming, the most awful, painful sound Prompto had ever heard.

Ignis slammed his foot on the brake seconds after Prompto’s cry, causing Gladio to crash into the back of the suddenly-halted Regalia. About to shout a few curses of his own at the other two for messing around while he was doing all the work, the words died on his lips when he saw his Prince on his knees.

Prompto was already sliding across the hood of the Regalia, falling to his knees in front of Noct, frantically calling his name.

Ignis was next, jumping over the car doors to fall to one knee beside his prince, trying to gauge the situation. There were no monsters around. Noct appeared simply to have fallen, and was clearly in too much pain to register Prompto’s frantic calling.

Then Gladio was beside him.

“What the hell happened?” he yelled, just as Noct’s screams stopped. The boy pitched sideways, right into Ignis’s waiting arms.

Quickly, Ignis felt for a pulse. Noct’s eyes were closed now. He was gasping for breath, his body completely limp, but his pulse was thankfully easy to find as it raced in his throat.

“He just fell over and started screaming,” Prompto wailed, eyes wide with shock. “I don’t understand.”

“It appears he is ill,” said Ignis, trying to remain calm and recall any moments Noct had displayed any sign of being unwell since that morning. He had been moody, probably anxious at what was ahead of him. Nothing unusual.

He and Prompto had put on the expected display when the Regalia had broken down, not wanting to push and pretending to be far more exhausted and put out than they actually were.

Perhaps he had misjudged his prince, and he had actually been ill all this time. Was it perhaps something to do with the Crystal? Was the increasing distance from it causing this sudden attack?

“Ignis?”

“Pardon?” He blinked and looked up at the large man standing above him. Gladio looked far more concerned than Ignis had ever remembered seeing him. He looked down at Noct in his arms once more. “One of us needs to go ahead and call into the garage for help.”

“Prompto and I can keep pushing,” Gladio said. “Or maybe we can just leave the car here and walk to Hammerhead. It can’t be too much further.”

Ignis paused.

“I think that would be best. Are you able to carry him all that way?”

“Of course,” Gladio grunted, leaning forward and lifting the much smaller boy into his arms. “He weighs nothing.” A little awkwardly, he pulled Noct onto his back, holding onto his legs so he wouldn’t slip off. Ignis was there, settling Noct’s arms over Gladio’s shoulders.

Gladio waited while the other two grabbed a few things from the car.

Prompto was completely freaked out, grabbing bottles of water at Ignis's command. He kept glancing up at Gladio- no, at Noct. Gladio could feel Noct’s breath, slowing now, like he was sleeping, and hadn’t just been screaming loud enough for all of Eos to hear.

It was going to be fine, he told himself. Just another hiccup on this trip. They must just be getting all their bad luck out right off the bat. Noct would get some rest and wake up fine tomorrow. The Regalia would be fixed at Hammerhead, ready to head off to Altissia in no time.

“Shall we go?” Ignis said, calm as always, as if they were about to head off on a Sunday picnic.

“Let’s move. The faster we get there, the sooner we can get him fixed up,” Gladio agreed.

Prompto nodded, walking close to Gladio and Noct. The gunman was trying to control his panic. He couldn’t stop his eyes straying constantly towards Noct as they walked. He was used to seeing the young prince sleeping, but he had never looked this deathly pale before. He lay limp on Gladio’s back, head bobbing gently as the older man walked, hair stuck to his face, slick with sweat. Prompto reached up and pushed it out of his eyes.

Gladio tipped his head to the side and raised an eyebrow as he caught Prompto's worried gaze.

“Don’t worry Prom, he’ll be fine.”

Prompto looked away quickly.

“I know.” He put his arms behind his head trying to look casual and unconcerned. “He’s probably faking, just didn’t want to push anymore,” he joked.

“Yeah, that must be it. We’ll get to Hammerhead and he’ll miraculously recover.”

“I’m just mad I didn’t think of it first,” Prompto added with a grin.

“We must hope so,” Ignis chimed in. “Because the only alternative is that our Prince is gravely ill, and we have no clue as to what is wrong with him.”

Everyone fell to silence at that, the briefly-light mood gone. Ignis instantly regretting saying anything.

“Do you think it’s the Crystal?” Gladiolus asked, his voice sombre.

“I wonder that myself,” Ignis said. “It may be possible, but I’ve not heard of such a thing. I know it does drain him, but nothing like this. There is nothing I can think of that would cause so sudden an attack, nor cause him so much pain.”

Gladio frowned, shifting Noct’s weight slightly on his back.

“Should we tell the King?” 

“Perhaps, if he does not improve. But let us get to Hammerhead, and see how he goes. If there is no change by this afternoon, we will contact the King. Let us hope there will be no need.”

For Noct, opening his eyes was like swimming to the surface of a pool of custard. His whole body felt so heavy, and his eyes refused to cooperate. He was ready to give up when he felt a hand on his arm.

“Noct, you in there, buddy?” It was Prompto’s voice, but instead of cheerful, it sounded strained and concerned. It was what he needed to force his eyes open.

“Woah, Noct! Don’t try to get up yet!”

Huh? He’d hadn’t realised he had been trying. He stilled, and blinked away his fuzzy vision to see Prompto hovering over him, a huge smile on his face.

“Oh man, you really are awake. Thank the gods.” He turned his head and called behind him. “Ignis, Gladio! He’s awake!”

Noct tipped his head to the side. He was indoors, somewhere, on a bed. Had he been knocked out in battle…? What…?

He gasped as a ghost of blue flashed towards him, jerking as it launched at his chest. Prompto was there, hand on his arm, as he gasped for breath.

Oh god, oh god, he was supposed to be dead. What was this? How was this happening? Was this some kind of dream? Was this the afterlife?

“Noctis, breathe,” murmured a calm voice in his ear. He felt himself being pulled upright, felt a hand rubbing his back. Ignis was there, supporting his weakened body. Prompto rubbed his back, and behind them both he could see Gladio, arms crossed, looking concerned.

“W-where?” he rasped “Where are…”

“Hammerhead. The car is being repaired as we speak. You collapsed as we were pushing it. We were forced to abandon it in order to carry you here. We had it towed once we arrived.”

“Repaired? I…” Then he looked at Ignis. He really looked, and his body started trembling. “Ignis, your eyes! You…” The man before him, ten years younger than when he had last seen him, had clear eyes, his face unscarred. He turned to look at each of his friends. It was as if he had gone back in time. Back to…

“Hammerhead,” he whispered. “The car broke down. We had to push it to Hammerhead. Cindy had to fix it. We…”   

“It’s okay, buddy, we’ve got it sorted. Don’t worry about the car,” Prompto said, frowning.

Noct was reeling. He was back at the beginning. Back when they had left Insomnia. Back where everything had started. But did that mean…

“Dad…”

“We were only moments away from contacting the King to inform him of your illness, but your return to consciousness rendered it unnecessary," said Ignis. "How do you feel? Do you wish me to call him?” Ignis scanned the young Prince's face. Noct's eyes were darting between each of the three faces before him, wide and panicked, as if he didn’t fully understand where he was or what was happening. He didn’t have a fever. Perhaps a nightmare?

Noct pushed away the hands holding him. His dad was still alive. Insomnia hadn’t been attacked yet, they still had time.

“Call him, Ignis. We have to warn him.”

“Warn him about what?” Gladio frowned.

“Noct, I think…” Ignis started, gently trying to push the flailing boy back onto the bed.

“Call him, he needs to know Niflheim is coming, he needs to…”

It hit him. Of course. His father already knew Niflheim was coming. He already knew. He had sent his son away for that reason, to keep him safe until the end. His father had known all along. 

He choked on a loud sob. Fuck. Why was this happening to him? If something had truly gone wrong, if he truly was back at the beginning, what was the point? Everything that had happened, had to happen. His father dying, his kingdom falling... Ten years of darkness which led to his ultimate sacrifice to destroy Ardyn. So many lives lost, and there was nothing he could do about it. He couldn’t protect his kingdom, or even his friends. Every innocent life lost was going to end no matter what he did.

“Noct.”  Ignis spoke again, the older man forcing Noct to look him in the eyes. His very whole, uninjured eyes, looking far too concerned about him. Ignis had Noct’s hands and was holding them tight, trying to bring the young Prince back to them.

Trying to calm his breathing, Noct blinked away his tears and attempted to focus on his friend.

“You are safe, Noctis. We are in no danger,” Ignis said, slowly and calmly. “We are en route to Altissia, bringing you to Lady Lunafreya. Do you remember? There is no need for concern. Niflheim will soon be under treaty. They have no need to attack.”

Noct could feel himself nodding. What more could he do? Announce to his friends that this was his second time living this life? That no, everything was not going to be okay?

“You should try and rest," said Ignis. "Take this, it will help.” Noct was about to argue, knowing there was no way he could sleep, but he drank the offered potion. He could feel the Crystal turning it into healing magic, the panic fading from his body. He was nodding again, his eyelids slipping closed. His magic knew he needed sleep. He couldn’t remember the last time he had slept peacefully. Where would he be when he woke up? Maybe this was just a dream, or maybe everything that happened was just a dream. Maybe he was just sick, and hallucinating everything.

Maybe…

Ignis let out a long breath as Noct’s eyes fluttered shut. It wasn't long before the Prince was sleeping calmly. Ignis didn’t know what to think. Noct was clearly unwell to the point of hallucination, and possibly lucid nightmares.

“Wow.” Beside him, Prompto let out his own sigh. Gladio was already walking away.

“What the hell happened to him?” he muttered, sitting heavily at the table. “It’s like he’s forgotten where he is. Did you see the way he looked at us? It was like he hadn’t seen us in a long time.”

“Indeed. His mind is playing tricks on him, but for the life of me, I cannot understand the source. All I can be sure of is that he is ill. Perhaps sleep and potions will help. Beyond that, we must hope his magic will help heal him.”

Prompto sat on the edge of Noct’s bed, staring thoughtfully down at the Prince. His teeth worried the corner of his lip. Something about all this felt way off to him. Something else was wrong. He just couldn’t figure out what.

Chapter Text

The next time Noct opened his eyes, he felt an odd sort of peace. It must have been early, because the room was mostly dark, only a sliver of light peeking through the curtains. It was quiet and still, bar the hushed breathing of his sleeping companions. After so long on the road together in confined quarters, he could tell each one apart. He could pick out Gladio’s gentle rumble, almost a snore, but not quite, in the bunk above him. Prompto, lying beside him, with his head up the other end of his bunk, was soft and even with the occasional snuffle. Ignis was very quiet. The sound of him sleeping was less familiar, as he was almost always awake before the Prince. He had to listen hard over the sounds of the others, but it was there.     

He let out a soft sigh and rolled onto his back. He put his hand to his face, rubbing along his chin. Still twenty. Back to Gladio teasing him and Prompto for not being able to grow proper facial hair.

He needed a plan. He needed to sort out the mess in his head and figure out what to do. He counted back. How many days had it been from when they had left to when they had heard the news of Insomnia’s defeat? Four days left? Not long. He knew he couldn’t stop it. Insomnia was going to fall, and thousands were going to die no matter what he did, thousands of others left homeless, the refugees of Insomnia. He flinched. Uncurling his hand, he realised he had been digging his fingernails into his palm.

His Father was going to die. He was going to die. It was fact.

But maybe he could try and stop the ten years of devastation the Starscourge would unleash onto the land, and the countless deaths that had occurred while the ring was absorbing the Crystal's power. Maybe he could prevent Luna and Jared's deaths, the destruction of Altissia, Ignis' eyesight. And, possibly, his friends' lives.

He had the power of the Six. Or had... He’d had the power of the Royal Arms and the power of the Crystal. Pausing his restless thoughts, he reached out to the power of the Crystal. It was there, but it was weak. He frowned. His magic, the connection, it must have gone back to how it had been when he started all this. Although it was slightly different from what he had grown used to, the Crystal was still there, separate from him. He could feel it drawing from him.

He needed to forge powers with Titan, Ramuh, Leviathan, Shiva, and Ifrit again. And maybe, if he tried, he could convince Bahamut to join him too, without waiting ten years for the ring to absorb the Crystal. It was probably foolish, but he had to try.    

There was movement to his left. He could just make out Ignis stirring and sitting up. The man stretched and swung his legs over the edge of the bed, blinking over at the light coming from behind the curtain.

Noct watched silently as he reached for his glasses, placed them on, and then looked over towards the bed where he lay. Ignis jerked upright and took three quick steps over to him, kneeling down and placing a hand on his forehead.

Noct batted his friend's hand away.

“I’m fine, Ignis, stop.”

Apparently Ignis hadn’t realised the Prince was awake, because he froze.

“Noct, are you well?” The note of surprise was not disguised by his hushed tone.

“I’m fine,” he repeated. “I just…” he faltered, once again unsure of what to share, or where to start. “It’s been a rough couple of weeks. Uh… It’s hard to explain…”

“I understand that your marriage to Lady Lunafreya was sudden…”

Noct laughed.

“Yeah, it’s been a long time since that worried me, Iggy.”

Ignis looked confused. Noct shook his head and sat up.

“Sorry. I know I’m not making much sense. I don't even know where to start. When I think about it too much, I feel like my head's gonna explode.”

“Noct," Ignis began, but Noct waved a hand dismissively.

“I should wait 'til the others wake up before I try and explain, or I’m gonna have to do it more than once.” Noct stood, stretching, and walked to the kitchen area. He turned on the small light, unearthed the kettle and put it on to boil, then looked in the cupboard for Ignis’s jar of Ebony. The man would need a coffee for this, that was a certainty.

He opened the small fridge, wondering what food they had on hand. Man, he was hungry. He never got as good at cooking as Ignis, but maybe he could manage some eggs?

“Hey, Iggy, do we have bread?” Not waiting for an answer, he pulled out the box of eggs, and a pan from the usual cupboard, and went about cracking them in. “Iggy?” He looked over to see the other man staring at him with a look of confusion.

Noct couldn’t help but burst into laughter, which he quickly covered with his fist in an attempt to not wake the others. Oh man, he had forgotten, for just a moment, where he was. He had been so useless at the start of their trip. Ignis blinked, and stood, reaching to the cupboard behind him, he passed Noct the loaf of bread. With a small grin, Noct grabbed it and pulled out some slices to toast.

“Noct, are you quite certain you are well?" Ignis asked cautiously. "This new behaviour is... shall we say, eggs-tremely uncharacteristic?”  Noct snorted.

“Yeah, I’ll explain later,” he said, waving his hand dismissively. The eggs were sizzling now, and he could hear someone else rousing.

“I smell eggs,” he heard Prompto mumble, as he poured hot water and coffee into a mug for Ignis, handing it to his still very stunned friend.

He flipped the eggs as Prompto’s head appeared from beneath the covers, his face flushed from sleep. He yawned, rubbing his eyes. He looked around the bed he was sitting on, then up at Noct, who grinned and waved a spatula in greeting before he proceeded to flip the eggs onto the toast.

“Oh great, I woke up in the Twilight Zone,” Prompto moaned. Then he sniffed. “Well, at least there's eggs here. Weird.”    

“Apparently Noct has somewhat recovered, and is preparing breakfast,” Ignis said, sipping his coffee. Noct pushed a plate in front of his friend, who appeared to be gripping onto the mug for dear life. Prompto joined them at the table and Noct handed him a plate too.

“Gladio,” he called over to the large lump in the top bunk. “Breakfast. Come now if you want it hot.” The large man sat up fast, not even looking disoriented as he stared down at the scene below him.

“Well I’ll be damned,” he grumbled, hopping straight down from the bunk without even bothering to use the ladder.

“So uh…Noct made us eggs,” Prompto said to Gladio, who was looking from Ignis to Noct, before sitting down and pulling his plate forward.

“Thanks?” he said, sounding unsure. “Uh, so you got up early and cooked for us? I guess you’re feeling better then?”

Noct rolled his eyes. Past Noct was such a lazy ass.

“Yeah, I cooked, get over it, big guy.” He took a bite of his eggs and groaned happily. Oh damn, that was good. When was the last time he ate? Apparently it took dying to really appreciate probably-terribly-cooked food.

He looked up to find everyone staring at him.

“What's going on, Noct?” Gladio said after the silence had stretched for an awkwardly long time. Noct stabbed the eggs with his fork.

“I’ve got no idea. Kind of torn between ‘gone insane', and ‘the universe is fucking with me'. Honestly could go either way at this point.” He sighed, dropping his fork and rubbing his forehead. There was another long pause before he finally added: “I’ve done this before, all of this. I’ve done all this before. The journey to Altissia to marry Luna? I’ve done it. Yesterday I was ‘fulfilling my duty as King and the Chosen’. Today? I’m right back here at the beginning.” His forehead rubbing moved to his eyes as the blue light flashed at him again. “And… I keep seeing swords hitting me in the chest, so this is really fun.”

Fuck, he wasn’t helping the situation at all. Maybe he just should have shut up and played along. They were going to think he’d lost it. Maybe he had. He took a long, steadying breath and lifted his head, picking up his fork and eating some more eggs.

“Noct, you’re not making sense,” Ignis offered gently, putting a hand on his arm. Noct swallowed his mouthful.

“I know, okay? I know. We need to get back on the road. Cindy should be done with the repairs, right?”

“Oh, that's what's been bugging me!” Prompto said, suddenly snapping his fingers and pointing at Noct. “How do you know Cindy? We never mentioned her. You said her name yesterday, too, when you woke up acting all weird."

Noct nodded.

“Right, Cindy. First time this all happened, we pushed the car to Hammerhead and we all met Cindy together. She got us to go out and fight some monsters for Gil, because the car repairs were going to cost us all the money we had on us.” He paused mid-ramble, tapping his fingers on the table “Oh damn, I hope we have enough to get back home, we don't have time to be fighting monsters right now.”

“If I understand you correctly, you've experienced all this before?” Ignis was pressing once more. “Are you sure it wasn’t merely a dream?”

Prompto suddenly sat up straighter.

“Is that why you were talking about Niflheim yesterday?” His eyes were wide. “Did you have, like, a mystical premonition or something? Is that why you fell over? Is that why…” His voice got louder and faster as he spoke, until Gladio nudged his shoulder, shutting him up.

“Are you sure you’re not just freaking out over the wedding?" Gladio teased. "Sure you’re not getting cold feet?”

Noct frowned, looking down at his now empty plate.

“I wish. If only it was that easy.” He stood, taking his plate to the sink. He filled the sink and squirted in some soap. “We have to leave for Insomnia, this morning. I’ll explain as much as I can on the way. I need to speak to Dad. He won’t be happy about us coming back, but I have to.” He turned. It looked as if all three of them had been about to speak. “Don’t ask, let's just hurry and move. We can talk on the way there.”

“If you say so, Noct. Let us prepare to leave.” Ignis was pushing his chair back to stand.

“We’re just going along with this?” Gladio stood, his voice rising. “Iggy, you can't be serious.” He pushed his chair away roughly and advanced on the Prince. “You have a duty. We have to get to Altissia, to your bride. This isn’t a joke. The whole of Lucis is relying on you.”

Noct glared back at Gladio, his fists trembling at his sides.

“I know," he said. "I know what my duty is, more than you realise. I-” He stopped himself before he said something he was going to regret. Ignoring the man in front of him, he closed his eyes and concentrated on his breathing. “Gladio, you're my Shield and my friend. Please. I need you to trust me.” He opened his eyes once more. There was hesitation on Gladio’s face. “Please, Gladdy.”

Gladio said nothing for a while, but eventually he stepped back.

“Fine, Majesty. Whatever you say,” he sneered, and stalked over to the door, pulling on a shirt as he went. “I’m going to go check the car.” He left, slamming the caravan door a little too hard behind him.

Noct sighed and collapsed into his seat.

“I will begin packing,” Ignis said and stood to do just that. Sparing one last glance at Noct, Prompto stood and took the plates from the table, placing them in the sink.

“This is going to be a long car trip,” Noct muttered. Forcing himself to stand, he went to pack.

It was so, so long. Gladio was sitting in the front seat, sullen and glaring out the window. Ignis was quietly driving as fast as he could, at Noct’s request. Prompto was trying to look as small as possible, his normally cheery demeanour reduced to one of uncertainty.

Noct, however, was trying to figure out how to start explaining - if he even could. What more could he even explain? Should he tell them about his death? About the ten years of Darkness? About Ardyn?

He opened his mouth, his heart suddenly racing.

“Insomnia is going to fall in four days," he said. "I’m sorry.” He paused, gathering his thoughts. “There isn’t anything we can do about it, I…” He stopped again as his voice cracked. “I’m not going back to stop it. We have to be out of there again by tonight. Before it happens.”

“Are you saying, Niflheim is attacking and we’re running away?" Gladio demanded coldly. "Why do you even want to go back?”

Noct felt his temper rising again as he stared Gladio down through the rear vision mirror.

“They’re going to steal the Crystal. I have to go back and see the Crystal before they take it, I have to speak to Dad before…” He looked down. “I want to stay and fight, you have no idea. But you have to believe me, this is bigger than Insomnia. I have to leave, to stop something worse from happening. Dad knows all this, that's why he sent us away.”

“But what about the marriage to Luna. Isn't that supposed to be the beginning of the Treaty?” Prompto asked in a quiet voice.

“Dad lied," said Noct softly. "He knows Niflheim aren't gonna go through with the Treaty. They just want to get close enough to the Crystal to steal it. And Luna isn’t in Altissia, she’s on her way to Insomnia as well. Dad knew, he sent us away to protect us. Luna's going to survive the attack and head to Altissia, waking the Six on her way. It’s up to me to gain their power after that.” Noct closed his eyes and lay his head on his arms, resting on the door of the opened convertible. Damn, he felt so tired again already.

“Noct, I cannot comprehend how you know all this. Please forgive me, it seems so impossible,” he could hear Ignis saying.   

“I know,” he said softly. He had no idea if he was doing the right thing. He had no idea what he was doing at all.

“What…what about the King, Noct?" Prompto asked. "If Insomnia falls... Does he…?” His voice broke as if he was too afraid to say it out loud. Noct squeezed his eyes shut tighter, pressing his face into his arms as his breath caught in his chest. Almost panicking, he swallowed hard. He saw his father's sad eyes as his sword tore through his chest.

“Noct.”

Arms were pulling at him and he let them. The arms wrapped around him and he let them. His face felt wet, a hand gently wiped it. He buried his face into Prompto’s offered shoulder. He let himself be held and comforted. Just for a minute, he let his friend take his burden. He would have it back, but right now he just needed a minute. 

Ignis gripped the steering wheel so tight his hands were aching. It was all he could do to not yell at his dear friend for being a contemptible neanderthal.

“Iggy,” Gladio growled. “Slow down. You’re going to run us off the road!”

He almost did just that, as he considered slamming his foot on the brake, but decided against it.

“If you concern yourself less with my driving ability, and focus instead on your Prince's suffering, I would be most grateful.” His grip loosened slightly as he felt the surprise emanating from the man beside him. “This is not the time for anger or doubt. The three of us have been assigned a task - a duty. And that duty is to protect our Prince and friend. You might consider doing that, instead of sulking like a spoiled child.”

He didn’t even need to look over to know Gladio had deflated, and his anger had been replaced with guilt. Ignis knew him well enough.

It was a long time before Gladio shifted in his seat and sheepishly grumbled, “Sorry, you’re right.”

Ignis would have gloated over his small win, but he was instead far too concerned with the view in his mirror. He had tilted it just enough so that, if he kept one eye on the road, he could see Prompto looking defeated, petting the raven black hair of his friend who was sleeping on his lap. His face was still wet with tears, the burdens on his shoulders so heavy Ignis could see them dragging him down. Fear had already set deep into the crinkles from the frown between his eyes, his heart so tired it struggled with every beat.

He knew, he could feel it. Their Prince, whatever he was going through, hadn’t even begun to share the worst of it.

Chapter Text

Someone was gently shaking his shoulder.

“Noct? Wake up, we’re here.”

“Wha-?” Geez, he'd fallen asleep again. Blinking, he looked around to see the tall walls and towers of Insomnia around him. He hadn’t meant to fall asleep. He was lucky the guys hadn’t waited until he was unconscious and turned the car around.

“Backstreets, Iggy,” he said sleepily. “We’re not going through the main entrance. Don't want anyone to know we're here.” He rubbed the sleep from his eyes, glancing over at the others. Prompto offered a small, but genuine smile. Gladio was ignoring him. “Gladio, while I’m in there you might want to go visit your family, get them to pack light and be ready to leave. Iris gets out fine with Jared and Talcott. I don’t know about anyone else.”

“I’ll call them,” Gladio huffed. “I’m not leaving you. If the Nifs are here, I’m not leaving your side”

“Gladio…” The older man’s eyes shifted to meet Noct’s in the rear vision mirror. He was apparently going to be stubborn about it. Noct sighed. “Fine. Do what you like.” He looked away as they crossed over the long bridge. They were so close now.

“You sure Iris will be fine?”

Noct looked back up and nodded.

“She'll be okay Gladio. She'll escape to Lastallum, we’ll meet her there later.” Gladio nodded and turned away once more.

“Does this mean you believe me?” Noct asked with a small smirk, unable to stop himself. Gladio huffed.

“I mean it’s not completely unreasonable that those Nif bastards would pull something like this.”

As they approached the citadel, Noct had to force himself to ignore the bustling city around him. He didn’t want to see the busy streets and cars, the people milling in crowds, families and children, crossing roads, having coffee, playing in parks, enjoying their day. His future people. He couldn’t bear to think how many would be dead in four days. Ignis pulled up to one of the small side entrances to the citadel. The guards saluted and bowed as they marched into the entrance.

Noct’s heart pounded harder and harder as they reached their destination. He approached the guard at the grand entrance to the throne room and spoke quickly.

“Go tell my father I need to meet him in the sub-meeting room. Tell him it’s me, tell him discreetly. No one else needs to know we're here. Please be quick, I’m in a hurry.”

Shocked, the guard bowed and said hurriedly, “Yes Highness, of course Highness,” as he disappeared through the large, ornate door. Taking a moment to steady his breathing, Noct hurried towards the meeting room, his three companions following him wordlessly. Once inside, Noct fell into one of the soft chairs and closed his eyes. This was so much harder than he’d imagined it would be. This place was wrapping around him, reminding him it was his home, whispering in his ear that soon it would be gone forever, not much more than a crumbled ruin of a city that had once been a magnificent jewel.

Prompto sat beside him. Noct didn’t bother to look up. He could tell it was Prompto by the endless fidgeting he did when he was nervous. Someone stepped over behind him. To his surprise, it was Gladio’s shoes he could see as he opened his eyes, standing next to his chair. A hand fell onto his shoulder, offering silent support. He gave a slight nod of thanks, just as the door burst open. Noct’s head snapped up to see his exhausted and flushed-looking father.  King Regis Lucis Caelum CXIII, looking more frantic and ragged than Noct had ever seen him.

He wasn't even aware of standing or walking across the room. He just knew he was falling into his father’s arms as if he was eight again. He could hear his heavy breathing. The man froze for a moment, shocked, before returning the hug.

“Noct, you foolish boy, what are you doing back here?” he whispered into his son’s hair.

“When've I ever done what I was told?” he mumbled back, not willing to pull away from his father's embrace just yet. When they finally pulled apart, his father's eyes were glistening.

“Son, I implore you, you must leave.”

“I know, and I will. I just have to speak to you about the Crystal, and to Bahamut.”

Whatever he had been expecting, this was not it. He jerked backwards as if Noct had burnt him.

“How do you…”    

“I know everything. Something strange happened to me. I’ve done all this before. I know about Insomnia falling, Niflheim stealing the Crystal, and…you…” His voice broke. “And my journey to find the Crystal, and fulfil my duty as the Chosen King…until…the end.” He stared at his father, knowing the man would know what he meant by that. Somehow the already-pale man looked paler.

“Noct…I…”

He pushed away the sudden and unexpected anger that twisted in his heart as he thought about how his father had known about everything and kept it from him. Perhaps it had been a selfish act, simply not having the heart to say it out loud, but he worried it was more that his father hadn’t trusted his ‘wayward’ son to follow through with his duty in the end.

“Something happened, and I woke up here at the beginning, at Hammerhead. Knowing everything I’d done, everything that had happened.” Noct looked down, but in a moment his father was wrapping him in another hug.

“I am truly sorry, Noctis, for the part I played in this. I should have told you when you left.” Noct soaked in the feeling of being held like this, the soft fabric of his father's royal attire on his cheek, the feel of his dad’s beard tickling the back of his neck. “I am so sorry for this burden that has been placed on you. I know it is unfair. I would take your place in a moment if I could, and believe me I tried. I begged the Gods to let me do it for you.”

“It’s okay. I understand. I didn’t for a long time, but when the time came I understood.” This time it was Noct who pulled out of the embrace. “We need to go, I have to talk with Bahamut. I'm kinda hoping I'll get some answers from the Draconian.” The King nodded, turning to lead them all to the Crystal room. Noct’s friends, who had been standing quite still throughout the entire exchange, all moved to follow their Prince. Noct looked over at his dad as they walked at his slow hobbling pace.

“Is Luna here?” he asked. The King looked guilty once more.

“Not yet. I don’t imagine she will arrive until tomorrow. I presume, if you have made your journey to its full completion once before, that she survives the attack?”

“She does,” Noct said with a smile. “She's amazing. She travels alone, all the way to Altissia, not only healing people, but waking the Astrals along the way. I don’t know how she did it.” He paused, and added honestly. “She's much stronger than I am.”

“I think you suit each other well,” the king said fondly. Noct looked down, almost tripping as the flash of Ardyn’s blade pierced Luna in his mind's eye, as he lay fighting unconsciousness, too far away to help. He choked down a gasp and continued, ignoring the feeling of everyone’s eyes on him.

“Please tell her I know everything,” said Noct. “And that I'll be waiting for her at the resting place of the Archaean. Please ask her to meet me there.”

“I will tell her.” The king pushed open the doors to the Crystal Room, indicating the guard standing nearby should open the Crystal’s safeguards. Noct grit his teeth, suddenly on edge. He could feel the radiant power as he had that day. He looked up at his father and held out a hand. The King pulled off his ring, hesitating for a moment before placing it in his son’s waiting hand.

Noct was instantly sweating the moment it touched his palm. He could feel it calling him, whispering to him to put it on. He grimaced and placed it on his middle finger. He cried out as the expected pain tore through him, and his knees would have buckled if his father hadn’t caught him. He heard calls from his friends behind him. Gasping, he held out a hand, showing he was okay. He pulled away from his father’s grasp and walked towards the steps leading to the Crystal. Standing before it, he touched its surface, trying not to panic as his arm sank into it. Not fighting the pull, he walked inside, until everything behind him was gone, and nothing but endless swirling blue lay before him.

“Bahamut?” he called, and waited. For a long time, nothing but silence greeted him, until…

“It is not time for you to be here, Chosen King. The Six have not yet been awakened.” Noctis felt himself floating down to land on the Astral's colossal hand. Bahamut, the leader of the Astrals, looked down at Noct. “Why are you here?” 

“I was kind of hoping you'd know why I’m here…again…” Noct waited, feeling so small and insignificant as the Astral’s eyes seemed to look right through him. After a long pause, Bahamut spoke.

“I see. This is quite perplexing. It seems, Chosen, you are living a life recurrent. This is both curious and unexpected.”

“I was hoping you would know why I'm doing this all again,” Noct groaned. “Well, at least I don’t have to explain anything to you. What am I s'posed to do now?”

“The fate of this world falls to the…”

“I know that part already, been here before, remember?” Noct grumbled impatiently. Ugh, this place was giving him the creeps. The last time, it had felt more like a few hours than ten years to him, but at the same time it was starting to feel achingly familiar. The power of the Crystal was so strong, like flames licking along his flesh, sending electricity through his bones, clouding his mind. He shook his head.

“Please tell me there's another way of doing this. I can’t allow ten years of darkness to ravage Eos again. If I have to be here and do everything again, please tell me it can be different this time.” He was starting to feel lightheaded, and he had a moment of panic. “Whats going on-“ he muttered.

“The Crystal feels familiar to you Chosen, another unexpected circumstance. It appears the Crystal is trying to form with you.”

“It’s what?! I don’t know if I like that sound of that-”

“Journey onward, young Prince. Wake the sleeping Astrals, complete your journey to the Tombs of the Kings past. Only then will you bring deliverance and light to this land.”

“Niflheim are going to take the Crystal from Insomnia. They’re going to destroy this city and thousands of people along with it. Why can’t you do something about that, why-“

“It is time to leave Chosen. I will see you again soon.” The Astral was fading.

“Wait! Why won’t you answer…” Everything went white and he was standing once more in front of the Crystal. He blinked and took a step backwards as a wave of vertigo hit him, causing him to stumble backwards. Many hands caught him, and he blinked, staring up and the concerned faces of his friends. Gladio was holding him not-quite-upright; Ignis had a steadying hand on one shoulder, and Prompto on the other. He wanted to smile and let them know he was fine, but it turned into a grimace as the new magic burned in his veins. He felt a tug at his hand. His father was pulling the ring off.

Once off, it made little difference. What had Bahamut said? The Crystal was trying to form with him? He glared at the offending rock. Gladio helped him to his feet.

“Can you stand?”

He tried. The burning was fading, the dizziness seemed to be subsiding.

“Yeah, I think I’m good.” Relatively speaking.

“Had us all worried there buddy, the Crystal sucked you right up,” Prompto said. Noct looked over at his father, confused.

“Is that not normal?” he asked. The King shook his head.

“No. When I’ve spoken to Bahamut in the past I have only touched the Crystal.”

“Oh.” What more could he say? This day was getting weirder and weirder by the hour. “Well, he didn’t really help me. So that was a waste of time.” He looked sadly at his father. “I asked him to protect Insomnia, but he just ignored me.” The King nodded knowingly.

“Astrals, especially Bahamut, like to stick to their plan.” Noct snorted.

“Bullshit, he just wants me to do all the work. What does he care if a few thousand humans perish? He’s a God, we mean nothing to him.” He glowered at the floor, then let out a sigh. “We should go.”

“I need to return to the throne room,” Regis said. “Everyone will be wondering where I have gone, and someone will come looking for me soon.” Noct nodded numbly as his father said this, but all he could think of was the fact he was never going to see him again. The King’s face was one of grief. He stepped forward, reaching out to touch his son’s cheek.

“I am proud of you, my son, don’t ever forget that. Even when I am gone, I will never truly be gone.” He wiped a tear that was rolling down Noct’s face with his thumb, his own eyes damp once more.

Noct stepped forward and, for the last time, held his father. He felt fingers combing through his hair and a kiss on top of his head, and then he was pulling away.

“I don’t need to remind you to walk tall my son, because I can see you already are.” One last smile, and a glimmer in his eyes… and then he was gone.

Chapter Text

The car trip back was silent again. Noct was torn between missing the rowdy music and silly banter. And wanting to curl up in the silence and fade into the seats. Instead, he stared out the window, focusing on nothing at all as the scenery blurred past in a haze of yellows, browns and greens. The sun was starting to set, and Ignis was getting antsy about being out after dark, so the Regalia was moving faster and faster as the sun dipped lower. Prompto, who was sitting in the front this time, groaned loudly and stretched his arms, startling Noct from his haze. He glanced over at Ignis and then started fiddling with the radio until some music started playing. Noct grinned as his friend tapped his fingers on the dashboard along with the tune, singing some of the lyrics out loud. Gladio rolled his eyes playfully, a small smile of his own on his lips as he returned to his book. 

Ignis eyed the sun edging closer to the horizon warily as he drove. Everyone knew you never drove past the wall at night; it was just too dark out here, and the Daemons were far too strong. Then he spotted it. A flash of blue and a plume of magical smoke. Slowing to a crawl, he turned his head to the other three.

“What would you lads say to camping out over there tonight? Not as safe as Hammerhead, but far safer than driving at night.”

Noct, knowing well enough what the darkness brought, agreed quickly. There was no point in mindlessly driving on at this point.

“Let’s do it. I’m tired. I can’t even imagine how tired you must be Iggy, you’ve been driving almost all day.”

“I am quite weary, but I’m sure I can find us something to eat first.” He pulled over to the side, not far from the campground. Jumping out, they all grabbed their equipment from the Regalia and hiked to the rock, with its mysterious blue symbols, calling for weary travellers to come visit.

Setting up was interesting. Prompto and Ignis had never done it before, so they had no idea where to start. Gladio, who enjoyed camping every chance he got, worked straight away on the tent, setting it up with ease. When he was done he watched, impressed, as Noct told the others where to put everything, how to fold out the chairs, and set up the cooking stove. He raised his eyebrows as Noct walked over to the fire pit and, too busy talking to Prompto to look at what he was doing, he called fire to his hands and set it alight- something he had struggled with for so long.

“Nice work, Noct,” Gladio called, walking over to the fire and sitting down in one of the chairs. Noct ducked his head, embarrassed, but there was a small smile there.

“It was nothing,” he said quietly, finding himself a chair and sinking into it with a content sigh.

“I believe you now.” Noct’s eyes snapped to him.

“Really? What changed your mind?”

“That fire you lit just now. The last time you tried to light a fire you almost caught yourself on fire, and me, and the whole building.” Gladio smirked. “It’s obvious you’ve done this a few times.”

Noct snorted with laughter.

“Oh geez, more than a few. I don’t know how many times, I’ve lost count for sure.” He leaned back looking up at the sky, It was dark now, and the stars were coming out. “But for all the complaining I did, it was always my favourite. We had some of the best times out here.” He grimaced, and grit his teeth suddenly. Gladio raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

“I’ve always said camping is the best,” Gladio added after a while, startling Noct out of his thoughts, “It’s only got to get better with three of my favourite people.” Prompto brought over a plate of what looked like rice and rows of meatballs on sticks.

“Looks good Iggy, thanks!” Taking the plate from Prompto, he dug in.

Noct, taking his own plate from Ignis, smiled up at his friend gratefully. Taking a stick, he took careful bites of the meatballs, trying to remember if this was what Ignis had cooked the first time they had camped out. He couldn’t actually recall, He did remember this dish though, and it was just as good.

The group chatted contentedly for a while about trivial things. Noct wondered idly when they would demand more answers from him. No one had asked what any of the conversations he’d had with his father meant. He was on edge waiting for it. Knowing it had to be explained eventually, he didn’t like keeping something like his death from them, but when was the right time to bring that up? ‘Pass the pepper Ignis, by the way I’m going to sacrifice my life, so how about this weather?’

Probably not, but still, keeping it from them was no better than everyone keeping it from him. He remembered the moment he had told them in his past life; he realised it had been the last time they had camped together before this. That felt like so long ago. Like it was a fading memory in his distant past, when really it had only been days ago for Noct.

He scooped up his last spoon of rice and rested the plate on his lap. The voices of the others faded into the background as he let his eyes fall closed. So tired all the time. He had always felt tired because of the Crystal, but this was worse than normal. He tugged sleepily at the magic. It was so strong now.

So weird, he really didn’t know what was going on anymore.

He felt something nudging his leg.

“Wakey wakey, Noct. Time for bed.”

He cracked open his eyes enough to level a glare at Gladio who was grinning over at him and poking him again with his boot.

“Go get your beauty sleep.”

He groaned, forced himself to his feet, and staggered over to the tent. He somehow managed to pull off his jacket and boots before finding his usual corner to curl up in.

 “His exhaustion does seem rather excessive. I do wonder what exactly the Crystal was doing to him while he was inside it,” Ignis said, drying the last plate as Prompto passed it to him.

“I’m sure he’s never been this bad, but he has had a pretty weird couple of days,” Prompto added, lifting the bucket of dishwater to tip it over the edge of the rock.

“Whatever the reason, he’ll work it out,” Gladio pointed out, clapping his hands onto his friend's shoulders. “I’m going to bed. Night all.” He wandered off to the tent, leaving Prompto and Ignis to put away the last few things. Both of them worked in silence before joining the others.

Using the light of his phone, Prompto changed into some comfortable clothes, noticing Noct had fallen asleep in his regular clothes again. He was curled up in one corner; there was a bit of space between him and Gladio, who was laying on his back, one leg curled under him. Ignis, already changed, placed his glasses down and slept against the furthest wall, leaving Prompto to curl up next to Noct.

It took him a while to get to sleep. He kept going over and over the bits and pieces he had heard between Noct and the king. Most of it hadn’t made sense out of context, but it all gave him a really bad feeling. He rolled over and snuggled closer into Noct. His movement disturbed Gladio, who shifted his bent leg over Prompto’s legs and flung his arm out so it was resting against the back of his neck. The tent was small, but somehow they made it work. Prompto and Noct had shared beds so many times, having sleepovers at each others’ places, playing video games long into the night. Prompto, admittedly, was a cuddler, but Noct never seemed to mind, he slept so deeply. Both of them were notorious for waking up with nightmares too. Comforting each other in the middle of the night had become a normal thing with them.

Eventually Prompto fell asleep and Noct roused enough to feel his friend close by, and to hear his other friends sleeping not that far away. Maybe coming back here, whatever fresh pain it would bring, wouldn’t always be completely terrible, if it meant he could relive moments like these.

Noct groaned as the annoying alarm was placed closer to his head, as if he hadn’t heard it already. He rolled over trying to hide his head under his arms.

“Come on Noct, time to get up.” Prompto said, quite unnecessarily. He leaned over his friend and tickled his fingers through the other man’s raven hair. Noct groaned again and batted at the offending hand. 

“What, no eggs this morning Highness?” Gladio teased.

Surrendering to his fate, Noct managed to sit up, even though the rest of him was refusing to cooperate.

“There you go, upright and everything,” Ignis said, clearly amused. Noct heard him standing, unzipping the door to leave the tent. He sat there for a moment more, blinking and yawning, as Prompto pulled on his boots and followed.

“Why does morning have to be so early?” Noct mumbled to no one in particular.

Gladio snorted with laughter, but before he could respond there was a shout from outside

“What the hell are those?!”

Gladio and Noct glanced at each other before jumping up and running out of the tent. Prompto and Ignis were standing near the edge of the haven looking down.

“Sabertusks,” Ignis said folding his arms thoughtfully. “We’re probably safe up here in the Haven, but if we want to get everything back to the car we might have to scare them off.” He turned to look at Noct. “We should prepare to fight though, they can be very ruthless.”

Noct yawned and pulled on his other boot. Of course, he already knew about sabertusks, but Ignis seemed to enjoy lecturing them on things like this.

“I guess we take care of them then, shouldn’t be too hard.”

Perhaps a little foolishly, Noct ran to the edge of the Haven and jumped, summoning his engine blade and throwing it, warping forward to strike the beast closest to him.

“Hey, wait for me,” Gladio bellowed behind him, running towards another, blade at the ready. Noct heard a shot to his right and the sabertusk beside him went down. He rolled to the right and called his daggers, as another launched at him, hurling the blades into the beast’s side in another warp strike. Gladio was over to his right slashing at his own opponent.

“Gladio behind you!” Noct called, realising there was one crouching by a bush ready to launch at the preoccupied swordsman.

“I’ve got it,” Ignis called, throwing himself forward with his daggers.

Noct warp dodged as one of the beasts swiped at his face, side stepping behind it. Bringing his blade up as it tried to jump at him again, he brought the sword through its throat. He allowed his blade to dematerialise as another shot rang out behind him, and there was a thud as the creature that had been leaping at him fell to the dirt.

Looking up, he saluted in way of thanks to Prompto who grinned back. Bringing his sword down again, he impaled the sabertusk before it could get up. He looked over to see Gladio swinging his sword in a huge arc and slicing two of them at once. On his other side, Ignis was busy with another. Warping, he felled one of them that was running towards him, taking it by surprise. His sword only grazed off its natural hard armour. It swiped at him, and he only just managed to dodge in time, sending his sword back and instead choosing his daggers. He slashed them into its side and it snapped at him again, knocking one dagger out of his hand. It vanished as it hit the ground and he was shoved backwards. Quickly, he plunged the other dagger into its chest. The blade didn’t even seem to bother it, as it roared and snapped at his face, Noct only just managing to hold it off with the other hand.

“Prompto, help Noct!” a voice called, but before anyone could come, Noct's Armiger exploded around him, but not the Royal Arms like he was used to. It was everything else in the Armiger. Swords, regular and great alike, daggers and lances. He yelped as the blades flew outwards and then back into impale the monster over and over again until it collapsed, lifeless. Noct staggered to his feet, staring in surprise at the mutilated creature. Only he didn’t have long to think about it, as he heard movement behind him and once again, without his permission his blades were flying through the air, blocking and attacking the sabretusk before it could come near him.

A third and fourth came at him, only to receive the same treatment, and Noct fell to his knees, panting as the magic roared freely through him, as if it water that had burst its banks and was rushing out, flooding everywhere. He ground his teeth, forcing himself to draw it back in, to stop the tide.

Eventually, the magic seemed to calm and he was able to breathe. Blood pounding in his ears, he swallowed and tried to catch his breath. Trying to get to his feet, he turned to see Gladio’s blade vanishing as he finished his battle. Prompto was already running in Noct's direction and Ignis was fighting one last sabertusks which looked to be almost dead.

Trying to get his balance he staggered a little, just as Prompto approached.

“Noct! That was so cool!”

“Ye-eah. I-“ He almost tripped and Prompto caught his arm.

“Woah, easy there. Are you okay?” He quickly put Noct's arm around his shoulder, allowing his unsteady friend to lean on him. “Did you get hurt or something?”

Noct leaned on his friend. The magic had retreated back to where it came from, leaving him feeling drained.

“Don’t know. That was weird,” He managed. With Prompto's help, he shuffled back to the Haven, Gladio and Ignis catching up with them part way.

“What happened Noct? Do you require medical assistance?” Ignis asked with concern in his eyes as he looked the smaller boy over. Gladio made to take his other arm, but Noct waved him off, pulling away from Prompto. He was already feeling better. Less like his legs were jelly and the ground was trying to trip him over.

“I’m fine, was just a bit thrown there for a second. I wasn’t expecting that to happen.”

“What actually happened?” Gladio pressed as they walked.

“My power went all haywire, I wasn’t controlling it, it was just acting all on its own. It…protected me, I just had no control.”

“That certainly is unexpected.” Having reached the Haven once more, Ignis gently guided Noct to one of the chairs. “I take it by your reaction, this hasn’t happened before?”

“No, nothing like this, I’ve always been in control, always.” He shook his head and stood up again, “It’s not like anything bad happened, I’ll be fine.”      

“Famous last words,” Gladio joked, nudging Noct's side as he walked past to start taking down the tent.

They packed up quickly, hoping to get out of there before more monsters showed up, and back on the road to Hammerhead.

Chapter Text

“Howdy, y’all.”

Noct couldn’t help but smile at Cindy’s usual cheery greeting. They’d just arrived in Hammerhead and the others had wandered off, leaving Noct to fill up. He was quickly approached by Cindy, who always took the time to fill up for her customers.

“You must be the prince! Nice to meet ya,” she grinned. “I’m glad you’re back on your feet, Highness. Your friends were awful worried about ya.”

Noct glanced over to the small shop, where they seemed to be having an energetic conversation about Ignis’ coffee. Had Ignis just found out it was out of stock?

“Yeah, I’m feeling a lot better, thanks.”

“Glad to hear it,” she said, putting put her hands on her hips, and tipping her head to the side with a grin. “Now, what can I do for y’all today?”

“Just filling up. I wish we could stay. The guys mentioned you had some jobs for us, but we’re in a hurry.”

“I understand, y’all have a weddin’ to get to.” She put the gas nozzle into the Regalia.

“No, uh. Slight change of plans, unfortunately.”

“Oh? Trouble in paradise, Prince?” she winked. After a few moments the pump clicked and she pulled the nozzle back out, closing the fuel door.

“Uh, yeah something like that,” he flushed. “It’s really complicated.”

“Love often is, Highness.” She dusted her hands off and Noct searched through his pockets for their last 10 Gil before handing it over.

“We’ll probably be back for those jobs when we’re done. We’re going to need the money.”

“Of course. There’s always bounty work to be done around here.” She pulled a cloth out of her pocket and rubbed it fondly over the Regalia. “And I ain’t never unhappy to see this beauty.”

“She’s happy to see you, too,” replied Noct. “No one looks after her better than you.”

Cindy looked up at him with an odd smile. “Well, thanks. Hope to be seein’ y’all again real soon. Are you goin’ to stop by the work shed and see Paw-Paw before ya go?”

“I’ll do that.” He tipped his head in farewell and walked over to the shed.

Cid was sitting at a table setting inside, fiddling with some mechanical parts. The man looked up when Noct entered and raised an eyebrow.

“Well if it isn’t Prince Noctis himself.”

“Hi uh…Cid right?” Noct said catching himself last second, almost forgetting that he hadn’t actually me Cid this time around yet. “Just wanted to say hi, and thanks for looking after the Regalia the other day, on such short notice.”

“I’m Cid alright, and all the thanks goes to Cindy. That kid’s got real talent when it comes to cars, and it seems she’s taken a real shine to yours.” He put the parts down and stood, looking Noct up and down.

“Yeah, she sure has. I don’t blame her. It’s a great car.”

Cid was quiet, and Noct stared awkwardly for a moment before Cid folded his arms.

“You remind me a lot of your Dad. I never expected to say this, but you have the same spark about you,” he said with smiling eyes. “Not quite what I was expecting from a spoilt brat who hasn’t been outside those big tall walls of Insomnia. But you’ve still got a long way to go, son. Are you sure you’re prepared for the journey?”

Noct was shocked. Was he really that different to the first time he had been here?

“I uh, don’t know if I’ll ever be ready, but I’ll do my best.”

“Be sure you do. Lucis is relying on you, you know. You look stubborn enough at least, just like your old man.”

Noct snorted.

“I know Cid, trust me, I know. And uh, thanks.”

“Good. Now get going, I’m sure you’ve got more important things to do than hang around this old geezer.” Without another word, he sat, picking up the car parts once more.

“Right. Bye, Cid.” Noctis turned and left, almost bumping into Prompto on the way out.

“You almost ready to leave, Noct?” he asked as he gave him a nudge with his shoulder.

“Yep, fuelled up and ready to go.”

They walked back to the car, where the other two were already waiting inside. Ignis was in his usual seat behind the wheel, and Gladio was taking the back seat.

“So where exactly are we going?” Prompto asked, walking around to the front seat and climbing in. Noct pulled out the map Cindy had given the others the day before. Standing next to Ignis, he flattened it out over the wheel so Ignis had a clear view. Gladio leaned forward to see.

“So I’m thinking we head right along here.” He followed the road on the map with his finger, stopping at the blockade at Duscae. “We won’t be able to get through here, so we should go along here,” he trailed the road to the right of Longwythe, “and leave the car somewhere safe around here. We’re going to have to leg it the rest of the way though.” He indicated crossing The Malacchi Hills.

Prompto groaned loudly. “No way, we have to walk?” he whined. “Why can’t we take the car? Isn’t there another road?”

“No, all the roads into Duscae have Niflheim blockades. We do not want them seeing us, so attacking is not an option. Yet.” He folded the map up and handed it to Ignis. “But hey, the first stop after we get to the other side is the Chocobo post,” he added wiggling his eyebrows at Prompto, who gasped.

“Chocobos?!” he exclaimed, eyes glimmering with joy.

Noct hopped into the back seat settling in for the drive.

“Yeah, if we’re going to make it to the Disc on time, we’re going to need a little help, since we can’t take the Regalia.”

“Wow, Chocobos! That’s so awesome, I can’t wait to see them!”

“I think you’ve made his day,” Ignis said starting the engine.

“I think you’ve made his year,” Gladio corrected, opening his book.

“Come on then, let's move! The Chocobos are waiting!” Prompto squeaked, bouncing in his seat. 

Noct looked back in the side mirror as they pulled out of the service station. Of course, it was too far away to see, but he couldn’t help but look back in the direction of Insomnia. Hoping more people made it out alive this time, that Luna and Iris would still get out. Hoping he was doing the right thing.

Gladio, noticing the Prince’s mood had gone a little sombre, nudged the smaller man with his knee.

“You know,” he started, looking at Noct from the side of his book. “If you hadn’t mentioned this wasn’t your first time doing this, I would hardly recognise you. I don’t know how to explain it, but it’s easy to see you have already lived as the King you will be one day.”

“Oh, really? Thanks I guess.” He didn’t really want to think about how him being King was only days away. “It’s strange being so…weak again, you won’t believe how strong we were before, Gladio. We could take anything on. We were unstoppable…” He drifted off as he remembered his friends and him cutting down Daemons in Insomnia, the last stand on their way to fight Ardyn and Ifrit. There had been so many of them; it had taken days to reach the Citadel, days of endless darkness and terror. He couldn’t even imagine what ten years of that had been like. 

Gladio frowned. He was starting to recognise the signs of Noct seeing things that weren’t there, going back to his other time. His brow furrowed and his eyes grew wide and drifted far off, like he was having a waking nightmare. His mouth went into a thin line and his hands balled into tight fists, leaving his knuckles bloodless. Gladio gently put a hand on the younger boy’s arm.

“I do believe we can take anything on. We are strong, and we will be even stronger again one day. So long as we’re together, we can do anything.” 

Noct looked up at him, startled, and nodded slowly,

“You’re right, thanks.”

“Of course I am. I trained you myself, I know what you’re capable of.”

Noct smiled and leaned back in his seat, and it wasn’t too much later that Gladio felt Noct’s weight pressing into his arm. He was asleep again, of course. He rolled his eyes and returned to his book, allowing the Prince to nap on him. He had a feeling that, decent sleep was going to be hard to come by once they lost the Regalia. 

It was a few hours later when Ignis turned his mirror to look at Gladio and Noct. 

“Might be time to wake him, we’re almost there,” he said with a small smile

“Sure,” Gladio replied, he put his book down and reached over to pat Noctis’s face. “Time to wake up, Noct.” 

Noct jerked awake rather violently, flinging himself away from Gladio. His hand went to his chin, his eyes scanning the car, and when he spotted Gladio, he blinked, staring for a moment. Then he visibly relaxed, sinking back into his seat rubbing his face sleepily.

“Morning, Sleeping Beauty,” Gladio said cheerfully.

“Fuck off,” he grumbled as he stretched, but there was a tiny smirk there.

“Hey, that’s no way to talk to me, I was being a good pillow for you,” Gladio said, elbowing Noct in the side playfully.

“A pillow full of rocks! My neck hurts.” Noct shoved back.

“And my sleeve is wet, brat.”

Noct looked around, he could see buildings ahead of them on the road.

“We almost at Longwythe?” he asked.

“Yes, we’re here,” Ignis replied as he slowed the car down to an appropriate speed.

Noct, focused on the motel sign off in the distance, asked quietly, “Did we have a package from Cindy to deliver here?” His voice was so quiet the others almost hadn’t heard him.

“No, should we?” Prompto looked at the others who all looked confused. “Nope, no package.”

“Uh, no. Never mind.” His eyes hadn’t left the passing view from his side of the car. 

Noct spotted a small building and wondered where Dave’s dog was. It always barked at them as they passed, every town they went to. If Dave was there, it barked. Then he remembered they hadn’t saved Dave yet. Oh Gods, was he still trapped in that shed? Noct hoped Cindy had sent off someone else to go find him.

“Noct?” Ignis’s voice cut through his troubled thoughts.

“You okay there buddy?” Prompto asked, leaning over the seat looking at him.

“Uh, Ignis, you should turn down that way.” He pointed to the road heading to the right of the barricade.

He went back to staring out the window, ignoring the worried looks. Eventually Prompto turned back around and started rambling about photos, which Noct appreciated.

Ignis turned onto the dirt road which wound around the cliff edge that separated the desert of Leide and the lush Malacchi Hills. On the edge of his seat, Noct was looking out for somewhere to stash the car. It was a good 15 minutes before he spied a small nook in the sheer cliff edge, they could probably squeeze the car into if they were careful. The rock wall looked a little more jagged here, small footholds they might be able to use to climb up.

“Ignis, see that there?” He leaned forward, pointing past Ignis’ face to the gap. “Pull off here and try to get the car in there, hopefully it will be safe until we get back.”

“You worried someone’s going to steal it?” Prompto asked, sitting up a little and turning around.

“No, I’m worried that when we don’t turn up at Galdin Quay, they’re going to start looking for us.” Noct frowned. “And yeah, I guess they might even steal it. Wouldn’t be the first time.”

Ignis pulled into the gap and put the roof of the Regalia up. Squeezing out, Noct stood back to see if it would work. The rear of the Regalia stuck out a bit, but it would do. Getting to work, they started gathering their things. 

They had to pack light: no tent, only a backpack of food, medicine and sleeping bags. Everything they could carry on them. Noct pointed out there would be a few opportunities for him to fish for their meals.

“So we have to climb…that?” Prompto asked incredulously. “That is really high up.”

“Yep.”

“Have I mentioned I’m acrophobic?” he added nervously.

“Once or twice,” Noct said with a grin. He stepped up to his friend, putting his hands on his shoulder. “You were fine then and you’ll be fine now.”

Prompto raised an eyebrow warily at his friend. “It’s really weird when you do that.”

“I know.”   

“Shall we begin then?” Ignis asked, gazing up at the rock face.

“Let’s do it.” Noct faced the cliff and, finding a foothold, started his ascent. It wasn’t that much harder than the time they had rock climbed at the volcano, really. If anything, without the heat from the volcano it was probably easier. Prompto, however, wasn’t convinced.

“This is horrible, I think my arms are going to fall off.”

“Quit your complaining,” Gladio grunted as he pulled himself up. “If scrawny arms here can do it, you can too.”

“Hey!” Noct resisted the urge to ‘slip’ and kick his friend.

“As Noct weighs the least of all of us here, while still having the muscle strength to lift a Greatsword,” Ignis paused to take a breath and reach up to the next handhold. “Of all of us this is probably the easiest for him.” he pointed out with a huff.

“Speak for yourself,” Noct groaned. His legs were turning to jelly. How much further was it? It felt like he’d been climbing forever. He had been kidding himself; this was hard. His body was so much weaker than it had been for the volcano climb, and this seemed to be a lot higher. Noct whimpered as a wave of hot air hit him, and he clung on desperately as a flashback of the volcano left him gasping for air. He could almost smell the sulphur and ash, as wave after wave of heat rolled over him.

“Oh God, don’t look down,” Prompto cried shrilly snapping Noct out of his daze, he gulped and scrambled upwards. 

“Why would you look down?!” Gladio, of course, looked down, but to his friend who was looking paler than usual and clinging to the rock face with his eyes squeezed shut, he rolled his eyes.

“Damn fool," Gladio hissed. "Are you coming or are you just going to stay there all day?”

“I-I’m coming,” Prompto insisted. Forcing his eyes open and upwards, he looked for the next protruding rock. “I can do this,” He said quietly, more to himself than anything.

Noct was sweating now. His hands were aching and his legs were trembling. He was trying not to think about if he would survive the fall at this point, wondering if he was high enough that he had time to summon a weapon to warp safely to the ground. He didn’t even want to look up. He didn’t want to know if it was still a long way to the top. Small bits of rock and dirt flicked into his face and dust went up his nose as it loosened from his movements. He was sure it was in his mouth. Gross.

Then his hand reached for nothing and he looked up. So close, he reached to his right for a lump of rock, panting with exertion. He grabbed it and dragged his tired body up one last push, boots scrabbling at the stone and he heaved himself over the top. He staggered out of the way before collapsing to the ground.

Soon after, Ignis followed, then Gladio, who turned, and reached down to heave Prompto up, who was so pale, every freckle on his face stood out.

“Lets never do that again,” Prompto gasped after Gladio dropped him to his hands and knees.

“No promises there,” Noct said, spreading out on the grass and staring up at the cloudless sky,

“Are you saying we will have to do that again?”

“Yeah, one of the Royal Arms is at the top of The Rock of Ravatogh.”

Prompto gawked. “It’s at the top of a volcano?! But why?” He flopped down onto the ground.

“I don’t know. Seems a rather interesting place to be buried; certainly would be peaceful.” Ignis was on his feet again, already looking composed once more.

“Right…super peaceful…” Prompto snorted.

Gladio, who apparently hadn’t even needed a break, stood over the two lying on the ground with his arms folded.

“That’s enough of a break, time to get up. Or we’ll be walking in the dark.”

Noct frowned, trying to remember if there was a Haven on the way to the Chocobo ranch. Certainly not up here. They would have to at least get to the other side of the hills before they found one. He groaned wearily and sat up.

“He’s right, we have to go, I don’t want to be out here when the Daemons are.”

“I’d say it’s about five hours ’til we have to start worrying about shelter,” Ignis pointed out helpfully, glancing at his phone

“Right, so let’s move.” Gladio took Prompto’s arm and pulled the dramatically groaning man upright.

The area was really beautiful up here. The way they had come, there was a really amazing view of the desert, reaching all the way to the wall surrounding Leide. And in front of them, dense forest, thriving and green. 

Noct sighed and took the lead, heading off in what he hoped was the right direction. Towards what he hoped would be a shelter of some sort. And, if I don’t get us killed, it will be a miracle, he thought glumly.

Chapter Text

 “Are you sure were not almost there?” Prompto whined again.

Gladio really hoped so. Not only had they had been walking for hours and got into several fights with the local monsters, but he was probably going to kill Prompto if he didn’t stop asking.

And, if he was honest, he was feeling pretty exhausted. The others were too, by the looks of them. Even Ignis looked tired. The normally unruffled man was dragging his feet a little. He held his jacket with one hand, slung limply over his shoulder and he kept glancing at his phone and looking up at the horizon.

Prompto was complaining loudly, but somehow managed to have a spring in his step, as though even drop dead weariness couldn’t beat the never ending pool of energy he had. But even then, you could see on his face that he was hungry and getting worried about the sun setting.

Noct was the most surprising. He just kept going; he was getting snagged on branches and tripping on rocks, but he just kept right on going. Shoulders square, one foot after the other. It was as though if he stopped, or even thought about stopping, he wouldn’t be able to start again. He was more determined than Gladio had ever seen him. His face was blank, eyes hard. It was unnerving.

When it started raining, everyone looked up at the sky as if to say: really? Right now? Everyone except Noct, who just let out a tired sigh and kept on walking.

And then it was dark. It happened a lot more quickly than Gladio expected. The sun just vanished behind the thick line of trees. Everyone was tired and hungry, and now wet. Gladio started looking for somewhere safe for them to stop. As setting up the tent wasn’t an option, and without a Haven to stay at, he needed to find an alternative. It was his job to keep Noct safe, to keep them all safe. And wandering through the dark like this was probably just going to get them killed.

Sometime later, Gladio spotted a large mass of rocks. Wandering over to them, he sagged with relief when he saw that they hid a cave. It wasn’t much of a cave, probably only just big enough for them to all sit.

“Guys over here.” He beckoned them over. The lights from their torches stopped and turned towards him. “I found a place to stay the night. It’s no Haven, but it beats walking out here in the rain and dark.”

It was pretty miserable. Noct crawled in first, at Gladio’s insistence. Head tucked into his knees, he was able to find a flat enough section of wall he could lean his back against. Prompto crawled in next to him. There was barely an inch of space between the two by the time he got settled. Ignis found some comfort sitting cross legged on the other side of Noct. Gladio ended up sitting in front of them all, concerned enough about the creatures of the night to guard the entrance. He decided to leave his legs stretched out, even if it meant they stuck out of the cave a little, and his boots ended up getting splatters of rain on them.

They pulled out snacks from one of the backpacks, unravelled sleeping bags and huddled under them. Trying desperately to stop the shivering, which was bound to happen when you were soaking wet in a cold, dark forest at night, they leaned closer together for warmth.

Prompto showed them photos he’d taken that day, then asked Noct about some of the sillier things they had gotten up to on their previous road trip.

“Prompto made me get up super early - Ignis was even still asleep, that’s how early it was - and he dragged me down to the lake get a photo with a Catoblepas.”

Ignis almost choked on his apple at the thought of Prompto being so reckless with the future king of Lucis.

“I had to stand there with a handful of mushrooms with it getting closer and closer, and I could hear it coming up behind me. Damn, it was so big, it could have easily squashed me just by stepping on me. But Prompto just wanted me to pose like this.”

Prompto was in hysterics as Noct tried to replicate the ridiculous pose while sitting down covered in sleeping bags. “Oh man, that sounds like so much fun. I can’t wait.”

“It was terrifying and I almost died,” Noct dead-panned, but then he shrugged, and his grin came back. “I guess it was also kind of fun. The photo was pretty good.”

Noct eventually fell asleep on Prompto’s shoulder, and Prompto fell asleep head leaning back against the cave wall with his mouth wide open. Both were lucky to be asleep at all. Ignis and Gladio shared anxious glances as the Daemons roamed around outside.

Several times Gladio thought he was going to have to go out and fight them, as they got nearer and nearer, before finally wandering off. As the time trickled on, both of them took turns at keeping a lookout, so the other could get some sleep.

Eventually, an hour before dawn, Noct woke up, his leg and back cramping terribly, and insisted on moving to the front so he could both stretch them out and let the other two men sleep. Prompto still heavily asleep, flopped sideways onto Gladio.

Now that he was awake, Noct was so cold he could hardly stand it. It didn’t help that his clothes were still damp. He called a ball of fire to his hand, and let his hand rest in the middle of them all, so everyone had a chance to feel the warmth from it. As he stared sleepily into the flames, he wondered - not for the first time, how it could be warm and not burn him at the same time.

It was when the first twinkling of sunlight started filtering through the trees - that despite the drizzle - that he dazedly realised he hadn’t heard any Daemons for a while. Prompto yawned and tried to roll over, only to realise he was on Gladio. He groaned and stretched his legs out kicking Noct’s outstretched arm, who yelped and yanked it back, the flame extinguishing and plunging their cave into darkness.

“Watch it,” he hissed at Prompto, who blinked sleepily back at him. “You’re lucky I didn’t burn you!”

“Sorry,” he mumbled. “Legs hurt.”

“Yeah, mine too.” Noct ducked his head outside.  It was still quite dark, but looked Daemon free. “We should be able to leave soon though. I think it’s safe.” He looked from Ignis to Gladio, “Maybe we should let them sleep a bit longer. They were up all night looking out for us.”

“I really need to pee though,” Prompto whined, fidgeting from side to side.

“Get out then, I doubt Gladio would be very happy if you did it now.”

Noct scooted far enough out of the entrance that he could get to his feet, moving so Prompto could shuffle out behind him.

Both groaning and stretching sore, cramped muscles, Prompto staggered off to relieve himself while Noct continued doing some simple stretches Gladio always had him do during training lessons. And when he was having a particularly rough time with the childhood injuries to his back and leg. 

A rustling to his left told him Prompto was back, and he stopped his stretches, only to be knocked flying across the muddy grass, skittering to a stop and hitting a tree.

“Not Prompto, then,” he groaned. “Ugh.” He staggered to his feet, sword in hand, looking around for whatever had hit him.

It was a Gigantoad, just standing there staring at him with its gross, bulging eyes. It flicked out its tongue again and Noct threw himself to the side, then flung his sword into a warp, hitting the creature right between the eyes. He slashed quickly a few times before warping away out of reach. It leapt at him and he ran around behind it.

“Prompto!” he yelled, hoping the gunman hadn’t wandered off too far. “I could really use back up here.”

It leapt again, at the same time as Noct warped. He landed a kick to its face, and using that momentum, he flipped over it pulling his Greatsword from his Astral Arsenal. He landed another heavy blow onto its back, and warped away once more.

“Noct!” Gladio and Ignis were running over to him, but in that second of inattention, he was hit once again from the side, this time slamming face first into the mud and rolling. He came to a stop as a pair of hands grabbed him.

“You okay? Come on, up you get.” A potion was shoved in his face. He fought the dizziness and drank it down, the pain in his shoulder and face subsiding. Prompto’s smiling face swam into view.

“There you go, better?”

“Thanks. But next time, pee faster.” Noct got to his feet as Prompto materialised himself a gun, and they both dashed into the fray. Ignis was launching his lance, while Gladio swung his War Sword in a large circle, catching the Gigantoad off guard.

“Okay there, Noct?” Ignis called, landing a small way from the monster and straightening his glasses.

“I’m fine. What a way to wake up, huh?”

“Certainly does get the blood moving.”

A huge tongue flung out, slapping into Gladio and knocking the large man onto the ground. He was up again quickly, and Noct took that moment to launch another warp attack, this time pulling out a shield and slamming into the beast. It bellowed and fell to its side, and everyone jumped in to attack at once.

Noct finally ended its life, his sword piercing straight through the top of its head. Gasping for breath, he jumped down off the thing. Prompto coming over to clap a hand on his shoulder.

“Nice one, Noct.”

“Thanks. Bahamut’s balls, I was not expecting that.” He had to lean over, putting his hands on his knees to catch his breath.

“Well, we sure showed it,” Gladio said, rolling his right shoulder in a wide circle. “Nothing like a quick battle in the morning to work out the muscle kinks from sleeping on the ground all night.”             

“I think I’d prefer a light jog, myself,” Ignis said dryly. “I suppose since we’re all awake for the day we might as well continue?”

“Yeah let’s go. But first, are there any snack bars? I’m starving to death,” Noct said grasping his suddenly noisy stomach.

Taking a few moments to pack up their things and grab a few snacks for the road, they left their little makeshift Haven - avoiding the fresh corpse - and headed West.

The sun was well up by now, sparkling its rays around the puddles left by the now absent rain. Ignis breathed deep. They all felt dreadful after the night in their tiny cave, and rude wake up call. But it was morning, and now they could get on with it…and maybe find somewhere to bathe. Yes, a bath was in order. Ignis didn’t even want to know what his hair looked like right now.

Pushing that aside, he glanced over at Noct, who seemed content enough, munching on his rummaged snacks and joking with Prompto. They walked side by side, nudging one another, Prompto, almost dropping his water bottle as they laughed.

He was happy they had both gotten enough sleep, and thankful Noct had woken early to allow Gladio and himself a few more hours as well. Ignis knew he didn’t require as much rest as the others seemed too, but even he had his limits. Reaching into his backpack, he pulled out his second last can of Ebony, praising the Gods for the foresight that had led him to grab a few from the car.

It was another solid hour of walking, before they reached what must have been the end of their hilltop stroll. The land suddenly plunged downwards, to a slightly less dense forest.

“I’m not sure if this part is going to be easier or harder than the climb up,” Noct said unhelpfully. “I mean, at least it’s not quite so steep?”

Prompto let out a quiet whining noise as he approached the edge,

“Guys, I really don't like this…” He trailed off, and Noct stepped over to put his arm around the blond’s shoulder.

“Prom, trust me, I’ve seen you do way more badass stuff than this.” He patted him on the shoulder. “You can do it, just take it slow.”

“Right, slow. Oh man, I wish I could warp down there like you can.”

“I’m not warping anywhere, I’ll be right here with you.”

Noct took one last look down. It really did look much easier than going up had. It was like huge stepping stones, except they were boulders, bigger than any person. Turning around and going backwards he reached down for the nearest boulder. Looking around again, he realised it was a little lower than he was tall. He let himself drop down to it, walking along the top and finding the next surface to get down to. The others had started their decent as well, Prompto going next, making the drop easily and looking pleased with himself.

The next drop was ok, but the one after would mean risking breaking some bones. Peering around the edge on the other side, he spotted a part of the rock that went down onto a sloped rock.

“What about over here?” Noct asked.  Gladio squeezed past him, in the limited space they had to look over.

“It looks like it’s our only option. It’s going to be risky, since we can’t see what is at the bottom of that slope or how far the drop is after it.”

“I’ll go, I can warp out of trouble if I need to.”

Gladio didn’t look happy, but he nodded. It was the obvious option.

“Go on then.”

Noct approached the edge, climbing down backwards until he was holding up his entire weight on the edge. Suddenly anxious, he could barely feel anything except the pounding of his heart in his chest. Then he let go, his feet hitting the slope a second later. He was sliding, flipping himself around he tried to slow his decent with his hands and feet. He sighed in relief as the slope became just level enough that he was able to come to a stop himself, several metres from the edge. Getting to his knees, not trusting the slippery surface enough to stand upright, he waved up at his companions. Gladio grinned and raised his fist in the air in triumph.

“Well done Noct,” Ignis called down.

He gave them a thumbs up and flinched, looking down at his hands. Groaning he realised he’d torn them to shreds stopping himself on the rock. His ungloved hand was obviously the worst, but the tips of the fingers on his gloved hand were pretty bad too. He didn’t have a potion on hand, so instead summoned a dagger, and, with difficulty managed to tear a jagged strip out of his shirt. Grimacing, he wrapped it around the ungloved hand, using his teeth to pull it tight. The other hand would just have to wait. He could already feel that tingle of his magic beginning the healing process anyway.

He looked up, watching as the others seemed to be having an argument about who was going next. He turned, taking a moment to see if even going this way as possible. Happy to see the next ledge was not too far down, they would probably be fine - except that if you were sliding all the way down to it, you would probably miss it and fall to your death.

“There is another ledge down here,” he called up to the others. “But you have to stop and climb down to it. No sliding off the edge, got it?”

“Sliding off the edge equals death, got it,” Prompto called back.

“And wrap up your hands,” Noct added, holding up his injured hand to show them.

Carefully, he moved back up to where he had been able to stop, and searched around for something he could hold onto. Nothing. It was pretty smooth, except… he summoned his dagger again, slamming it down into a crack in the rock. Of course, now he had probably completely ruined his dagger, but better it ruined, than his friends splattered on the ground below. Holding on tight, he dug his feet into the rock as best he could and looked up.

“Okay, go,” he called.

Ignis was first this time. As he approached, Noct held out his hand and easily grabbed Ignis’s arm. His arm jerked, but he grasped to the dagger tight and it held, pulling Ignis to a stop.

“Thank you, Noct,” he said, dusting off his gloved hands. Still crouching, he moved out of the way so Prompto could go next. 

Prompto took a little convincing. Noct could see Gladio walking him to the edge, and patting him on the shoulder reassuringly. Eventually, Prompto climbed down and let go. Noct could clearly see the terror on his face as he slid down.

Thankfully, he thought to dig his hands and boots in enough to slow down, so Noct could catch his arm without sending them both off the edge.

Trembling, Prompto gripped the arm that held him, burying his face into Noct's shoulder, panting from the fear and adrenalin.

“Wow, thanks dude,” he mumbled into Noct’s shirt. “That was scary as hell.”

“Yeah, no kidding,” Noct mumbled back. He would have let go to comfort his friend, but he was still worried they might overbalance and tumble off the edge.

“Also, that was kind of fun,” Prompto added with a smile.

Noct laughed, and Prompto pulled away and moved over to Ignis.

“Your turn, Big Guy,” Noct called up, and Gladio grinned, dropping from the edge without any hesitation.
He worked quickly, slowing himself down. Noct reached out, and Gladio grabbed his hand, and for a moment, Noct was relieved as Gladio began to skid to a stop. His shoulders screamed with pain as he took Gladios’ full weight. For a moment he thought he would be able to hold them both, but then there was an awful weightless moment where his injured hand failed him, and his grip slipped from the dagger. He let out a panicked cry as he realised they were both heading towards the edge. 

“NOCT!” Prompto screamed.

Time seemed to slow; he saw Noct's eyes widen, and his friend disappeared over the edge.

Chapter Text

Gladio felt the moment Noct had lost his grip on the dagger. He tried desperately to dig his boots into the stone beneath him, but the prince was already slipping past him. All he could do was hang on, scrabbling frantically for any kind of handhold as they both slipped. He felt the jolt of Noct going over the edge, pulling him along. Grabbing at the edge, Gladio held on, and they both came to a sudden stop. Noct let out a shout as he crashed violently into the cliff.

He would not let go. He would not drop Noct, so he hung there, the muscles in his back and shoulders straining.

“Noct!” he yelled down, but the boy below him was limp, unconscious, blood dripping down his face from where he had slammed the rock. “Noct!”

“Gladio?! Noct?!” Prompto and Ignis appeared above him. Gravel and dirt rained down and Gladio had to look away.

Gladio tried to think. There was no way he could drop Noct onto the ledge below, it wasn’t far, but it was not very wide. And there was a pretty high chance that, unconscious, the prince would just fall off it, or miss it entirely. He couldn’t drop down either without them both possibly falling off.

“Noct! God damn it, wake up!” he roared, panic starting to tighten his chest. He moved the arm holding the prince, hoping to jolt him into consciousness.

Gladio could feel hands grabbing his other wrist desperately, but it did little to comfort him. He knew there was no way the other two would be able to pull them both up.

He tried shaking Noct again, and the boy came to with a yelp, looking around, confused, then looking up at Gladio.

“Oh shit, Gladio.” He said his voice wavering.

“Noct, can you warp to the ground?”

“Y-yeah. But-”

“Don’t worry about us! Just get down there or we’re both going to fall.”

“R-right.” Noct drew a dagger, with shaking hands he hurled it to the ground and warped.

He fell to his knees when he hit the grass. Wiping the blood out of his eyes, he looked up as Gladio dropped down to the lower ledge. Ignis and Prompto followed his lead and dropped down. Noct sagged with relief as he watched them climb the rest of the way. Thankfully, it seemed to be a fairly easy descent to the ground. He went to wipe his eyes again and frowned at his blood-covered hand.

Getting to his feet, he walked a little unsteadily over to the others as they all jogged towards him. Ignis reached him first, immediately taking Noct's head, brushing hair away from his face and pushing a gauze pad against his forehead.

“Are you okay?” he asked, checking Noct over for other injuries.

“Fine. It’s not that bad.”

“I’ll be the judge of that.” He started inspecting the most injured hand, as Gladio passed Noct a potion. The prince drank it, letting out a hum of relief as the magic started healing him.

 Prompto was suddenly hugging him.

“Oh god, I thought you were dead. I saw you fall off the edge, and I thought you were dead.”

“Sorry Prom. I’m fine though, really.”

Prompto pulled back, and raised an eyebrow.

“You don’t look fine, you look like a horror movie.” He pulled his camera and snapped a photo. 

Noct rolled his eyes, and looked down at his hands, they looked rough and were still covered in blood and dirt, but they didn’t hurt much anymore. His face was all wet and starting to feel sticky from the blood, and every time he opened his mouth he tasted it.

“We should move, we still have a long way to go,” he said, as Ignis finally let him go, satisfied he wasn’t dying.

Ignis was already pulling out the map.

“So, I believe we are currently located here,” Ignis said, pointing to a spot just beyond The Malacchi Hills. “We are headed there, correct?” He pointed to the Chocobo post on the map.

“Yeah, that’s right. Next stop, Wiz Chocobo Post.” Noct grinned pointedly at Prompto, who jumped up pumping his fist in the air.

“Yeah, I’m not sure what’s more exciting, cute fluffy Chocobos, or not having to walk!”

The moment they emerged onto the road from the forested area, and Noct spotted that huge yellow sign, he felt overwhelming relief. Prompto practically skipped across the road in joy, but stopped dead when he reached the white wooden fence. 

“Where are they?”

“Where are wha-“ Noct froze in horror. The ranch was empty, and it was then he realised. He’d completely forgotten. He’d been so focused on getting here, he had completely forgotten the Chocobos were all locked away, safe from Deadeye.

“Oh no.” His knees felt weak; they didn’t have time for this. They didn’t have time to hunt down a Behemoth. But if they didn’t have Chocobos, there was no way they would make it to the Disc in time.

“Noct?”

“W-we-“ He tried to breathe, tried to focus. They had no choice, they had to go find Deadeye. “We need to make a bit of a detour,” he finally said with a sigh, rubbing his face.

“What’s the problem?” Gladio asked.

“I forgot there is a Behemoth terrorising this area. It’s been attacking the Chocobos, and Wiz has them all locked up safe. Last time we came through here, we had to deal with the Behemoth before we could rent them from him.”

“Alright, so let’s go get it!” Prompto said eagerly, his eyes full of passion. “We can’t let that Behemoth eat all the Chocobos.”

“It’s tough,” Noct said quickly. “We’re going to have to be really careful. We’d had a lot more experience by the time we got to this point before.”

Ignis put a hand on Noct’s shoulder.

“With well-founded strategy, and your previous knowledge, we still have the upper hand,” he said confidently.

Ignis was right of course.

“Okay.” Noct straightened. “Let's go. Wiz will give us a nice reward for taking the bounty too. We can buy more food and potions.”

They hurried over and introduced themselves to Wiz, who was very happy to hear they wanted to take care of Deadeye. He even made them all a sandwich. Probably after taking one look at them looking so dishevelled. Noct, after all, still had some dried blood in his hair and a torn shirt.

“Be careful boys,” he waved, as they left for the Nebulawood.

Noct was trying to be enthusiastic. His stomach was full, and the meal had given him plenty of energy. He discussed the battle with his friends on the way, and created a few Fira flasks as they walked, passing one to each of them.

“So where we fought him last time, there were all these old oil barrels laying around. Some of them must have had oil still in them, because I threw a fire at it and boom!” He made an exploding motion with his hands. “Hurt it real bad, but it has a lot of health, so one explosion isn’t going to do it.”

He led them to a small opening in the rock that was covered up with sheets of metal.

“Bit of a shortcut,” he explained, using his foot to kick it out of the way. “Last time, we found this way out after we beat Deadeye. His lair isn’t far from this, so get ready.”

Noct took a steadying breath and pushed through the hole, which led out into a dusty barren area surrounded by high walls of rock and old broken metal structures. There was evidence of the Behemoth everywhere, from the crumpled oil drums to the splintered trees. They didn’t need to get very far into the area before Ignis called out,

“There it is!”

The ground rumbled as the giant creature pounced down from its hiding spot, right in front of them. Standing on its back feet, it roared at them. Even though Noct had fought a few Behemoth now, it still sent a tremble through his body.

Not wasting any more time, Noct took action. Warping in, he landed a blow straight onto its chest, then flashed away before it could retaliate, effectively drawing its attention away from the others.

“Over here, Deadeye,” Noct called, flashing over to it once more and harassing it with several more strikes. His attacks didn’t do much more than irritate the huge creature, enraging it enough to chase him over to the oil barrels. The beast was almost ready. when he looked over to see if the others were in position. In that instant of distraction, he was clipped by the side of one huge, clawed paw. He hit the ground hard, breath knocked from his lungs as he rolled a few times.

“Now, Ignis!” he shouted, warping a safe distance an instant before the Behemoth’s claws raked where he had just been. Ignis threw the Fira spell. The shockwave from the explosion staggered him, and he could feel the heat even from that distance. The Behemoth roared in anger and shied away from the blast, turning its attention towards the others. They all jumped in, slashing frantically at the beast. Prompto, perched upon a rock, was shooting from a distance, while Gladio and Ignis were in the thick of it, attacking its back legs and underbelly.

Noct, still trying to keep the Behemoth’s attention on him, was warping up and attacking its head over and over. He focused on sticking to the right side of the Behemoth’s head - the stump from its broken horn and the blind eye that was its namesake an obvious weakness. It kept snapping at him, becoming more enraged as Noct kept warping out of reach. Noct and his companions forced it towards another cluster of barrels. The others broke away once they were in close and Noct called out to Prompto to light it up as he warped once more out of harm’s way.

The explosion had Deadeye crumpling to the ground, roaring as it struggled to get up. They moved in once more, Noct throwing his blade into the Astral Sphere in favour of the more powerful Greatsword. Sweat stung his eyes and he dashed it away, breathing getting harder as he got more exhausted.

“We’ve almost got it!” Gladio shouted as he swung his blade, biting into its leg.

“Just a little bit more,” Ignis agreed, narrowly avoiding its sweeping tail as he slashed at its back.

Prompto let out a scream as the same swing of a tail caught him up, flinging him into the rock wall. Leaving his sword embedded in the Behemoth’s shoulder, Noct warped over to his friend. Prompto groaned, struggling to get to his feet.

“I’m okay,” Prompto said, blood trickled from his cheek. “I think. Ow.”

“You sure?” Noct asked, concerned. His friend held his chest, and appeared to be struggling for breath.

“Take it.” Noct forced a potion into his hand.

Prompto hesitated, before nodding and drinking it down.

“Thanks.” Prompto's gun reappeared in his hand and he gripped it tight. “Come on, we’re almost done right?”

“You got it!” Noct grinned and they dashed back into battle.

The Behemoth was in no way out of the battle, despite its injuries, managing to get back up and shaking off its pain. It swiped at Ignis, who had just stabbed it with his lance. Ignis jumped out of reach as Gladio moved in from the other side. Prompto started shooting and Noct warped back over to it, attacking it alongside Gladio.

Then it turned, faster than Noct had been expecting. Noct moved to warp dodge but instead warped right into the path of its claw which slammed down onto him, crushing him to the ground. The breath was forced from his lungs, leaving him winded, black dots filling his vision. There was a pounding in his ears as he gasped for breath and struggled under the enormous weight. He could hear Gladio screaming his name, and then…

His Armiger exploded into existence, the tide of power once more pouring from Noct as the blades took over, throwing themselves into the Behemoth over and over again. The creature bellowed as it was repeatedly slashed until it fell to the ground. Noct was vaguely aware that the weight had been lifted off him. He screamed, rolling over, as the magic burned through him, overwhelming him, pouring through his very soul. He dragged himself to his feet. The others staring in terror as he stood, eyes glowing, the Armiger circling rapidly around him, waiting for the next danger.

Dragging each breath in, he forced the magic back inside once more. It was like trying to capture smoke inside a box, it slipped and snaked around him, refusing to be put to rest. Eventually, after what seemed like an eternity, he was able to rein it in. Panting, he staggered as the Armiger disappeared. A shoulder slipped under his arm, holding him upright as he fought off waves of vertigo.

Someone else's hands were on his cheeks.

“Breathe, Noct. Breathe.”

And he did. Ignis’ face swam into view, stroking his cheek. Murmuring that Noct was safe, that the Behemoth was dead.

“Thank you,” Noct said wearily, the moment he had enough air to speak.

“That was…wow…” Noct turned his head to Prompto, who was still holding him upright. “The power of the kings is cool and scary,” the blond said quietly.

“You’re telling me. I hate it, I don’t like not being in control of it,” Noct muttered. It wasn't the power of kings he was used to, and it was happening without the Royal Arms, he had no idea what this power was or why it was happening to him now.

With a groan he focused on his legs, trying to figure out if he was going to be able to walk if he pulled away from Prompto. It only took him a moment to conclude the answer was most definitely a ‘no’.

“Do you need a potion, Noct?” It took a second to realise Ignis was talking to him.

“Uh, I think I’m fine, just really… tired.” He stared at Ignis a moment. “Don’t you need one?” The older man was holding his arm in an awkwardly, and there was blood seeping from between his fingers.

“I will in a moment, I just wanted to be sure that you were okay first. It looks worse than it really is.”

“Piggyback time then?” Prompto teased. It was obvious Noct wasn’t walking back on his own steam.

Noct grimaced.

“Now Noct, don’t pretend you don’t love Glady’s piggybacks,” Prompto said playfully. “You take any chance to get more sleep.”

“You got me,” Noct grumbled, rolling rolled his eyes as Gladio hoisted the prince onto his back.

“Come along, let us procure our reward,” Ignis said, turning to the exit.

“And our Chocobos!” Said Prompto 

“And a bath,” Gladio added.

“No bath here, you’ll have to have a shower,” Noct mumbled, head dipping onto Gladio's shoulder.

“That is unfortunate,” Ignis replied, “I could have used a good soak.”

As he nodded off, listening to their banter, Noct came to the realisation, that he was the luckiest ill-fated soul on Eos, to have such wonderful, loyal, friends as his. Even if their loyalty was born of duty, even with everything they had been through once before and everything that was to come, he knew they would always be there. And he was going to make damn sure he was there for them, for as long as possible.   

Chapter Text

Prompto was happily dreaming about fluffy yellow Chocobos, when he was roused by Noct jerking awake next to him.

Noct pulled sharply away from Prompto, and would have fallen out of the small bed if Prompto hadn’t grabbed him at the last moment. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust, but once they did, he realised Noct was sitting up stiffly, hands clenched in the sheets.

“Noct?” he asked, concerned.

Noct’s head snapped around to look at Prompto, his eyes wildly darting all over the blonds face.

“Where am I?” he whispered uncertainly.

“Chocobo Ranch,” Prompto said softly.

Noct still looked unsure, his eyes pleading with Prompto to answer without him having to ask. Then Prompto realised.

“Oh! Uh… Life version 2.0.”

Noct’s eyes drifted for a moment, then his features softened and he sighed, falling back onto the sheets.

“Oh, thanks.” There was silence, then Noct snorted loudly. “2.0, you’re such a nerd.”

Prompto grinned, but said nothing, deciding the early morning silence was too peaceful and still to ruin with talking.

But, he realised that Noct was lying very still, and he had to be sure,

“Are you ok? Did you… have a bad dream or something?”

It was a moment before Noct responded.

“Sort of. I-“ He paused. “I was dreaming of something that happened… last time, you know? And when I woke up it was so dark-“ He swallowed loudly. “I didn’t know… when I was.” He let out a short strained laugh. “You’re the only one I can’t tell with. You look the same, except you get a little bit of fluff here.” He tickled Prompto’s chin. “And even before then, you don’t change. Everyone else gets… new scars…” He faltered. He was quiet for a long time, Prompto had so many questions, but he didn’t push. He knew Noct would tell him when he was ready.

“So what you’re telling me is, I don’t get a kick-ass beard or any wicked scars?” Prompto said with exaggerated disappointment. “I don’t know how I feel about this.” Noct laughed, genuinely this time, and closed his eyes.

 “I know it hasn’t happened to this you, but I’m sorry you had to wait ten years for me Prompto. I’ll try to make sure that doesn’t happen again,” he mumbled sleepily.

Prompto stared. Ten years?

“Don’t worry Noct, I would… we all would wait forever for you, if we had to.”

Noct didn’t answer, he had fallen asleep again.

Prompto hummed thoughtfully and flopped back down next to his friend, deciding that if it was early enough for Ignis to still be snoring, it was early enough to sleep some more.

Later that morning found the boys mounting their Chocobo’s and heading further West to the Disc of Cauthess. Wiz had informed them it would take most of the day to reach the Disc on Chocobo, but they would most likely reach it before dark.

Noct was on edge, not making eye contact or giving anyone more than one-word answers. Everyone let him be. They knew that if Noct’s calculations were correct, today was the day. As Niflheim warships descended upon Insomnia, King Regis would be murdered, and their home would fall.

As the landscape flew past, the grassy plains turned quickly into land much more barren, the ground lay waste to the destruction brought on by the meteor that fell 2000 years prior. Thankfully, though intimidating for humans on foot, the enormous shelves of rock were easy enough for their energetic mounts to traverse. They even managed to avoid the packs of Voretooth and Bulette that called the base of the Disc home. Hitting the beginning of the rocky crags that rimmed the crater, they travelled North instead, following the tall walls until they found the road and entrance.

Relieved that the steel gates built into the surrounding rock were open, and clear of any Niflheim activity, they dismounted and thanked the Chocobos for their trouble, before starting the trek down the path that lead to the Disc of Cauthess. It took some convincing to get Prompto to stop patting his. Noct shivered. Not only did the Titan the Archaean await him there but also a Royal Tomb.

“Noct, a moment?” Ignis’ voice cut through his thoughts.

“Hmm?”

“I am curious as to how you plan to proceed, now we have arrived at our destination.”

“We find somewhere to make camp, we should be safe camping out in the open because Daemons don’t come here at night. There are monsters, but they life further down, closer to the meteor. And then we wait.”

“Wait?” Prompto spoke up.

“We wait for Luna. I can’t form a covenant with the Archaean alone, the Oracle must speak with him for me.”

“Oh.”

They set up camp just off the path, but close enough to see it. There were some scraggy trees nearby which they quickly felled and turned into firewood There was not much else to do but sit on their sleeping bags and watch the sky get darker and darker. Ignis expertly charred some Behemoth steaks they had scavenged from their bounty the previous day, and some bread and vegetables he had purchased from the store at the Chocobo post.

Ignis knew the prince was unsettled, and rightfully so, but how deeply he only came to realise when he observed the younger man, staring off into the distance, lost in his own thoughts. While he watched, Noct brought a fork full of carrots absently to his mouth and chewed several times before freezing and pulling a face. Ignis almost laughed as the man then forced himself to swallow and pushed the remainder of the carrots to the side of his dish. Clearly his distaste for any kind of vegetable had not changed, Ignis thought as he took another bite of his own meal.

There was little conversation. Noct was silent, the others desperate to fill the silence. They bantered about trivial things, and Prompto showed everyone the photos he’d taken at the Chocobo ranch.

It was dark, when Noct dropped his dish with a loud clang. Everyone looking up at him as he pushed it roughly across the ground. The light from the flames flickering across his face, deepening the shadow his hair threw over his eyes.

“I- “ He paused, gritting his teeth. “I really need to say something.”

Noct clenched his fists. Doing this once before did not make it any easier the second time.

“When I was 5, and the Crystal chose me, it wasn’t just to be the next King of Lucis, or to hold the ring and protect the Crystal. It chose me to stop the Starscourge, and more than that. To stop someone who is threatening all of Eos, with eternal darkness, and Daemons roaming the land forever.

“There is a man who goes by the name of Chancellor Ardyn Izunia of Niflheim; or as he used to be known 2000 years ago, Ardyn Lucis Caelum, the first true King of Lucis. He was the first one Chosen by the Crystal to save the people from the Starscourge.  As chosen by the Astrals themselves.

“Only it didn’t go to plan. Because he was protected by the Astrals from the Starscourge, and used the healing powers they gave him to remove it, it only had one place to go - inside his soul. So when he was ready to join the Gods as they had promised, they refused. His soul was tainted. They banished him from ever ascending the Astral plane, and he was never able to leave Eos.

“They knew they’d fucked up, so the Astrals chose a new ‘First king’, and he was given only the power of the Crystal and the Ring of Lucis, and was to protect them.” He paused. “Until 113 Kings later when the Crystal chose me.” His voice was suddenly bitter.

“And you know Luna’s family was chosen by the Gods 2000 years ago, to be the new healers, the Oracles who would keep the Starscourge in check. By giving the powers of the Chosen and the Oracle to two separate people, they wouldn’t repeat the mistake that was Ardyn.”

“So I am the one. The ‘ King of Light’ who must purge Eos of the Starscourge, and defeat Ardyn.”

He stopped, his hands were shaking.

“To do that, I have to die.”

Noct didn’t look up when there was a scuffle and clang of Prompto dropping his dish; he didn’t look up when he heard Ignis’ soft gasp, or Gladio’s curse.

“No, no, no,” Prompto was saying softly.

The other two were silent. Noct couldn’t look up. He couldn’t look into his friends faces again as they processed the news. As they came to terms with the fact that their friend and prince was doomed to die, and there was nothing they could do about it. He’d already seen it once, and it had broken him.

“That’s why the King sent you away,” Ignis said, finally shattering the awful silence.

“Yeah,” was all Noct would manage.

“He tried to stop it,” Ignis said, remembering what the King had said that day to Noct- “He begged Bahamut to take him instead.”

“Yeah, he did.”

“I can’t… no-” Prompto was standing, his eyes full of tears, “No, that's not fair!”

“I know,” Noct whispered.

“The Gods fucked everything up, and now you have to pay the price.” Gladios sneered, his voice shaking slightly.

“I- I am sorry Noct,” Ignis said.

There was silence once more, before Noct spoke again,

“All this, coming back and seeing you all again. I was- I thought I was ready. But it’s just made it harder. I don’t-” He gasped for breath, as he realised what he was about to say. “I don’t want to die.”

Noct flinched as arms wrapped around him. He felt his shoulders quaking, as hot tears rolled down his cheeks. Prompto was holding him, and they both cried. More arms joined and he realised it was Ignis, one hand on his back and the other holding the back of his head, fingers tangled in his hair. Then Gladio was there, his arms long enough to wrap around all three of them. His very soul ached, but his friends were there, holding it together, and they always would be.

Noct didn’t know how long they stayed there for, but eventually his tears ran dry, and he stopped trembling. Prompto got up, but only to move his sleeping bag closer to Noct, and they leaned on each other. Gladio added a log to the fire, while Ignis suggested half-heartedly that they play a few rounds of cards, and everyone tried to make things normal.

Eventually, Noct started nodding off. Prompto took Noct’s cards and coaxed him into his sleeping bag, before curling up beside him. Ignis, who had migrated closer to the two at some stage during the card game, had just settled into his sleeping bag, when Gladio suddenly stood and stormed off into the darkness. A moment later Ignis heard the distinct sounds of a large sword hitting something, probably an innocent tree.

He returned sometime later, a sheen of sweat on his forehead. Saying nothing, he picked up his sleeping bag and lay down next to Prompto.

Ignis watched the embers die in the fire. He could not stop thinking of his Prince and friend, whom he had been unknowingly marching off to his death. If Noct had not already lived through this once, how long would it have been until they found out? How many nights would they have shared, looking up at the stars, enjoying meals, playing cards? Not realising - It would be the last time until it was gone.

Chapter Text

The next morning when Noct opened his eyes, he found himself peering sleepily through a pile of tangled limbs that was his friend. He blinked as the last fragments of his dream floated away into reality. The reality being, no matter how many time he re-lived this existence, he would never be ready for this day. And now that he was awake and thinking about it, there was no hope of him closing his eyes and going back to sleep.

He shifted his attention to his surroundings. Prompto was curled half on him, half around him, as if shielding him from the morning light would shield him from what it heralded. He could hear the hushed whispers of Ignis and Gladio somewhere nearby.

He abruptly had the fierce urge to check the news, just to make sure.  And the more he thought about it, the heavier and more suffocating Prompto felt on him, until Noct was not so gently pushing Prompto off him and trying to stand.

“Huh? Uh…what…?” Prompto jolted awake, and was instantly alert, when he saw Noct’s wild eyes, the prince searching frantically for his phone.

“I’ve got to check, I have to check,” he muttered as he dug around in his sleeping bag, then his jacket, which was in a pile nearby. Frantically moving back to his sleeping bag, he yanked it up to look underneath, and the phone fell from inside, hitting the ground. He leaned forward to retrieve it, but then froze, and just stared at it, gasping for breath, his reaching hands trembling. 

Prompto was torn. He wanted to comfort his friend, but he instead moved to reach for the phone, as Noct snatched it off the ground. Noct's hands were trembling so much, it took him a few moments to open his web browser and find the news.

Biting his lip, Prompto stood and stepped back, fidgeting nervously with his shirt as Noct waited for his phone to load. Ignis and Gladio came to stand behind. They all glanced grimly at one another, Ignis’ phone open in his hand with the same article Noct was looking at. Bold headlines and blurry pictures of their beautiful, now broken Insomnia.

Noct’s arm dropped, his face vacant, he put his phone into his pocket.     

“It’s done then,” he said, his voice distant and broken, like that tiny glimmer of hope he’d held moments ago.

Then he sat down and pulled on his boots. No one said anything until he started walking away from their camp.

“Noct?” Ignis said calmly. “Where are you going?”

“To get the Royal Arm near here. It’s just down the end of this path. Not far.” He didn’t even look back or wait, he just kept walking.

“I don’t think-“

“You can come if you want,” Noct interrupted. “I just need to go.  Right now.”

Gladio stood as Noct walked off down the path.

“I’ll go,” he said.

Ignis nodded and looked over to Prompto, who shrugged and sat back down on his sleeping bag glumly.

Gladio walked quickly after Noct, slowing down as he walked beside the desolate looking prince.

“Hey,” Noct said, without looking up

“Hey,” Gladio responded, putting his hands into his pockets as they walked. 

“I’m sorry about your Father, Gladio.”

Gladio faltered. He hadn’t been expecting that.

“Ah, thanks.”

Of course, from the moment he realised Noct was serious about the King dying, he knew that meant his father would die too. It was the fate of the Amicitias. The King’s Shield. His bloodline's entire purpose was to guard and protect the royal family. A fate and an honour. If the King died, his father would be first. He’d been prepared for it his whole life, and for himself to one day throw himself in front of Noct. That didn’t mean it didn’t hurt of course. His father was the bravest, strongest man he knew, with a gentle heart, and his loyalty and sense of duty were beyond anything his King could have asked for. 

“I’m grateful that in the end, he had his friend by his side. But I’m sorry for what that means for you.”

“It was a duty and honour he was always proud to have. As I am.”

“Thank you.” Noct's voice was quiet. “Have you called Iris yet?”

“Yeah, I spoke to her earlier. She made it, along with Dustin, Jared, and Talcott, like you said. They’re heading to Lestallum.”

“That’s good. We’ll meet up with them soon.”

Gladio hummed in agreement and they continued their walk in silence.

They turned the bend, and the path opened on both sides, leading to a platform where the Royal Tomb lay, and, beyond that, the Meteor, huge and black, cracks in its surface glowing vibrant blue.  The tomb itself was mostly ruins now, not much more than a few curved pillars on either side of the platform, and in the centre the Statue of the Ancient King that had been laid to rest there, a huge sword in its grasp.

Noct stepped forward, the sudden burning determination taking him by surprise, he held his hand out to the Blade. Recognising him immediately, it began to glow, pulling itself free of the statue’s grasp. It rose up in the air, glowing brighter and brighter, crystalline fragments falling from it as it stopped in the air a moment.

Noct felt his heart pounding and his breath catch in his throat as the glowing blue blade plunged down towards him, exploding into shards of light as it hit his chest, instantly drawing the Armiger from him. The lone ghostly weapon spun around him, and Noct fell to his Knees on the stone. He wrapped his arms around his head as sword after sword appeared before him, throwing themselves at him, each one taking a little bit more of his life with it.

“Woah!” Gladio dashed forward as the young man fell to his knees. His Armiger spun around once more him before vanishing, but Noct was panting for breath, a strange gasping scream coming from him. Gladio put his hands on Noct's shoulders, unsure if this was what was supposed to happen.

“Noct!” He shook Noct roughly. The distressed boy jolted and stared up at him, breath coming out harsh and uneven. His eyes were distant.

“Gladio?” he choked out. Gladio pulled him closer, one arm around his back the other hand on his shoulder.

“Just breathe, kid, you’re okay.”  

There was a long moment of Noct gasping, his heart pounding so loudly he struggled to hear anything beyond it. The moment stretched out and he forced himself to breathe long and slow, a hard task, but it helped that he could feel Gladio's hand on his shoulder and the other slowly rubbing his back, he focused on that, as the adrenaline left him and his limbs began trembling.   

“What was that about?” Gladio asked, pulling a wobbly Noct to his feet when he could finally breathe properly.

“Sorry…” He grimaced. “I sometimes s-see the Royal arms when they… In the end…” Just thinking about it had him gasping again. “I didn’t mean to…” 

“Hey, it’s alright. Do you need to sit down again?” Gladio asked as his charge started trembling harder.

“No, no, I’m ok.” As if to make his point, he pushed away from Gladio’s arms, and stood still for a moment rubbing his face, he took a long shaky breath then looked up.

“Okay, should we get back then?” Gladio suggested. “The others are pretty worried about you.”

“Yeah, I know.” Noct sighed and they walked back towards camp.

“So that back there,” Gladio jerked his thumb back at the Tomb, “that wasn't normal?”

“Mostly it was. The sword and my Armiger all normal.”

“Ah, that’s pretty weird.”

“Yeah,” Noct laughed weakly. “It is.”

When they arrived back to their makeshift camp, Ignis was cooking porridge over the fire, while Prompto was poking absently at the logs with a stick.

“Welcome back. How did it go?” Ignis asked, with the standing, steaming pot in hand.

“Good. Got the Blade of the Mystic.” Noct pulled it out of his Armiger, holding it out to show the other two for a moment, before letting it disappear again. He plopped himself down next to the fire.

“Breakfast, Specs?” he asked, nodding at the pot.

“Indeed. The best I could manage was porridge. I hope that will be sufficient,” He said, crouching down next to the bowls he had set out, and pouring some into each.

“Yeah of course, thanks Iggy,” Noct replied absently, finding a twig at his feet, which he proceeded to snap into pieces and flick into the fire. 

Breakfast was another quiet affair, peppered with uninspired conversation to try and make things seem less depressing than they were. Prompto suggested they play ‘King’s Knight’, which chewed up a few hours before Noct started getting bored and restless. Noct had just put his phone down with a sigh, when it rang, making him jump. He picked it back up quickly, fumbling with the button before putting it to his ear.

“Hello?” he said quickly. He had a feeling he knew who would be on the other end.

“You made it,” the voice on the other end said calmly.

Noct let out a sigh.

“Cor.”

“Where are you?”

“Disc of Cauthess, I-“

“What are you doing there? Noct, have you heard the news?” Cor demanded, surprise in his voice.

“Yes, I already knew. It’s hard to explain, but I knew it was going to happen, and that Father sent me away to protect me. I know I have to collect the Royal Arms, I already have the one here. But I’m going to need that key from you for the rest. As for the Disc, I’m here to form a covenant with the Archaean. ”

There was silence for a long time, and Noct almost spoke again to make sure Cor was still there.

“I see.” Cor said finally, “I’m heading to Hammerhead, can you meet me there when you’re done?”

Noct snorted.

“How about we just skip that part and I’ll meet you at the Tomb near the Prairie Outpost. We both know you’ll be gone by the time we get to Hammerhead.”

More silence.

“Okay then, meet you at the Tomb of the Wise.”

“Yeah, but also, Cor: have you seen Luna?” Noct said hastily.

“No, I haven’t.”

“Oh.” Noct's tone showed his disappointment. “If you do, tell her I’m waiting.”

“I will. Good luck, Noct.”

“T-thanks.”

Cor hung up before Noct could say anything more.

“What did the Marshal have to say?” Ignis asked

“We’re meeting him at the Tomb of the Wise, when we’re done here. It’s to the far North, back in Leide,” he said, putting his phone back down at his feet. “He hasn’t seen Luna.”

“I’m sure she’ll be fine Noct,” Prompto said

“I know she will,” Noct replied.

***

The days passed so slowly that Noct thought he was going to scream from boredom and nerves. Just waiting around was not something he was used to. He alternated between napping and staring into the distance, sometimes getting into a half-hearted argument with Prompto about comic books or movies. But mostly he just sat, stewing in his thoughts, getting more and more irritated about the whole situation. Until Ignis asked him if he wanted to play cards and he snapped, spitting out a sharp reply, which he immediately regretted and apologised for profusely.

“It is quite alright Noct. I understand the situation is rather tense,” Ignis said after a moment.

“I…I think I need to go for a walk,” Noct said, raising his hand in protest before anyone could argue. “On my own. I’ll be fine.”

Ignis hesitated before finally nodding once.

“If you’re sure.”

Noct took off, heading towards a narrow path he’d noticed earlier, just off the paved stone path that headed towards the Tomb. It wasn’t like he had anywhere else to go.

Slipping through the small gap in the rock, he followed through to an open view of the Meteor. He observed it warily, as if expecting Titan to pop out all of a sudden and start trying to crush him. It would make things a little faster, he thought to himself. Moving on, it was more of the same around here, rocks, sand, more rocks, dead-looking trees. The occasional golden bird-like creature that flew off as soon as he neared. Rounding another corner, he openly gasped. A steaming pool of water lay before him, surrounded by more rock and less dead-looking trees.

“Well, what have we got here?” He jogged down to the pond, crouching down at the edge and peering in. The water was clear, and there was even some plant life growing in it. Dipping his hand in, he noticed it was warmer than he was expecting. Then, with a glimmer of hope, he looked further into the water hoping to find…

“Fish!” he jumped to his feet, with a grin. “Hell yeah!”

Quickly, he pulled his rod from his Armiger. He only had the one lure at the moment, but it would have to do. He cast in and sighed happily. What luck to find a body of water, here of all places, which actually had fish in it. He could already feel the tension leaving his shoulders.

And that was where Prompto found him four hours later.

“Dude, this is where you were the whole time?” he cried. “Ignis thinks you fell into the Meteor!”

Noct laughed,

“Sorry, this sort of just happened.” He waved a hand, indicating the small pile of fish at his feet.

“Woah, you caught dinner? All is forgiven.” Prompto crouched down inspecting the fish. “You should come back though, Gladio is ready to nose dive into the crater after you.”

“Yeah, okay,” he sighed.  “I’ll come back. Not like we can eat more if I catch them anyway.”

“Right, let’s go.” Prompto picked up half the fish, leaving the other half for Noct. “Man, these look totally amazing. I’m so hungry.”

“Heh, it was nothing, that pond is full of them,” Noct responded shrugging.

As they headed back to camp, there may have been a lot of laughing, shoving and chasing each other with fish along the way, which threw Noct a little as he wasn’t expecting to be feeling so good.

“Thanks Prompto,” he said seriously.

“What for?”

“For being you, for always just being you. I couldn’t do any of this without you.”

Prompto froze and ducked his head, his face flushed red.

“You really mean that?”

“Of course I do, you’re my best friend.” Noct paused, realising this conversation was rather reminiscent of one he had had before with Prompto, the day he had been doubting his place in the group. “I- I’m serious, I need everyone, and that includes you. I’m a bit of a selfish brat like that.” He grinned once more, nudging his friend playfully.

“Aw man, getting all serious on me.” Prompto teased, then his face sobered.

“Thanks Noct, I actually really needed to hear that, I- I feel so useless sometimes.”

“You’re not useless, you’re Prompto. This group needs you as much as anyone else in it. We need you. You are important to us, I promise.”

“Heh, if his highness says so.”

“He does.”

They both smirked at one another, which ended when Prompto dashed forward and dropped a fish down the back of Noct’s shirt.

“Uggghhh! Prompto that is gross!” Noct wailed, tugging on his shirt pathetically with his one free hand in an attempt to loosen it.

Prompto laughed and ran off, leaving him to retrieve the fish and run after the gunner.

“Get back here you-" He caught up with Prompto and almost smacked into the back of him. Then skidding to halt, Noct looked past Prompto and froze. His mouth hung open, and he didn’t even notice as the fish fell out of his arms to the ground. He took a dazed step forward, feeling like the air had been knocked out of him.

“Luna.” 

Chapter Text

This wasn’t exactly how Noct imagined his reunion with Luna after 12 years apart. Well, sort of; he didn’t like to think about the last time he had actually seen her. His shirt was still torn from the cliff incident, and all his spare clothes were in the Regalia, so he’d made do, despite Ignis’ concern about the Crown Prince looking so unkempt. He really was grimy, his last shower had been the morning they had left the Chocobo ranch - after several days of camping in this dustbowl, there was no way he could be anything else. Not to mention he currently smelt like fish and he was pretty sure there was some of it in his hair somewhere.

All of this flew from Noct’s mind when Luna smiled delightedly. In just a few graceful steps, she’d rushed over to stand in front of him, taking his hands.

“Noctis, it is so wonderful to see you again,” she said. The joy that shone from her, was making him feel a little dizzy. And he realised he still hadn’t said anything; his mouth was still just hanging open. He had a desperate urge to run away, because the longer he looked at her, the harder it was to not see her corpse hanging above the throne in chains like Ardyn's puppet.

“Luna,” he said again, although he was pretty sure his voice sounded weird, like he was choking on something.

“Noct,” she repeated, her smile turning to amusement.

“Uh…” He pulled back from her a little, running a hand through his hair. “Are you okay?”

“Yes, I’m fine,” she said, indicating her own torn and dirty clothes, which Noct hadn’t actually noticed until now. “A little frayed around the edges, but nothing I cannot handle.” He remembered that she had got here by herself, which was amazing.

“I’m glad,” he said finally. “I was worried.”

“King Regis,” she started, her face darkened, her lips pressing together before she pulled herself together. “H-he told me to meet you here Noct, I don’t understand why you are even here.”

“That’s a really, really long story.”

Luna offered a reassuring smile.

“It’s okay, Noct. How about we sit and talk.” She reached into her pocket. Pulling out the Ring of Lucii, she held out her hand.

“This is yours now,” she said quietly.

Noct started at her hand in dread, but slowly, his hand quivering, he took the Ring, wrapping his hand around it.

“Thank you, Luna.” 

There was a long moment where no one said anything before Ignis spoke up.

“Why don’t we start dinner?”

“Yeah of course,” Noct said quickly, as if snapping out of a daze. “Please join us. Make yourself comfortable, it’s not much. You can use my sleeping bag if you want I…” he blurted.

“It’s okay, I have one of my own,” she said. “Don’t worry.”

Noct nodded stiffly and looked down, suddenly remembering the fish at his feet. Flushing, he bent to pick them up.

“Hey, at least I got us dinner,” he said with a sheepish smile,

“Where on Earth did you catch fish around here?” Gladio asked with a smirk. Noct had the ability to find somewhere to fish anywhere.

“Oh, I found a pond. Sorry, that’s where I’ve been all day. Prompto said you were worried.”

He emptied his arms next onto the pile of fish Prompto had left near the fire.

“Are you saying we have a water source nearby?” Ignis asked, the hopeful desperation on his face made Noct laugh.

“Yes, it’s really clear, and warm.”

Noct had never seen Ignis looking quite this joyful in all his life. Ignis cleared his throat.

“I suppose we could all use a chance to freshen up.”

“I’ll show you after dinner, if you want,” Noct said, distracting himself by pulling out a knife and attending to the fish.

There were so many things Noct wanted to say to Luna, but uncertainty tightened his chest and so instead of confronting his fear, and speaking to his friend he hadn't seen for 12 years, he sat, putting all his effort into the fish in front of him. The others looked to him as if he had a plan, but aside from collecting the Royal Arms and the power of the Astrals, he had no idea if he could truly change anything. How could he look at Luna in the eye and tell her he had seen her death and he wasn’t sure if he could prevent it from happening again?

Luna observed all their interactions for a moment, before moving to the backpack she had brought with her. She pulled out the tattered sleeping bag she had acquired along her journey and flattened it out by the fire with the others. She seated herself and glanced over at Noct, who was sitting with legs crossed in front of him, very obviously not looking at her and cutting open fish as if it was the only important thing in the world.

She wondered what had happened to him, to cause him to end up here. He was so different from what she had been expecting - not that she had much to go on with her childhood memories and the brief notes they had exchanged through their notebook as her only reference. She was still concerned that her being here, would put him in more danger than he was already in, but the look in King Regis’s eyes when he had asked, the way he spoke of Noct knowing, she felt as though she couldn’t deny him. She hadn’t had nearly long enough to speak to him about it, but she just couldn’t refuse. Reminding herself that she had to come here to the Disc to speak to the Archaean anyway made her feel a little better.

“Lady Lunafreya, would fish be suitable for dinner?” Ignis asked. “Regrettably, we do not have a surfeit of cooking supplies.”

“Fish sounds wonderful Ignis,” she responded quickly. “Please, I am not fussy, do not worry. Is there anything I can do to help?”

“Please, rest. You must have had a long journey here. Noct and I will take care of dinner.”

“If you’re sure.”

“I am, please don’t worry yourself.”

Luna mused at how unusual for her to be around people again. Prompto was smiling and taking photos of them all. She grinned as he blushed and snapped one of her, his freckles almost disappearing from his nose with his fierce embarrassment. Ignis was cutting vegetables, while Noct was skewering lengths of fish onto twigs for roasting. Gladio was polishing an enormous sword that looked bigger than he did - quite a feat, considering he was probably one of the tallest men she had ever seen.

Prompto sat down on the other side of Luna, fiddling with his camera when Luna leaned over.

“It’s really nice to finally meet you Prompto,” she said with a smile.

Prompto froze, tilting his head upwards to look at her through his hair, Luna realised he was definitely blushing again.

“Oh, ah-“ he finally looked up with a huge grin on his face. “It’s nice to meet you too.” His hand went behind his head as he continued, “I have been looking forward to meeting you ever since I was a kid and you sent that letter.”

“Me too,” Luna admitted. “I am so glad you became friends with Noct,” she said recalling all the stories and photo’s she had received them both over the years.

“Yeah, me too.” He held out his camera, a photo of her and Noct, poor Noct looked completely stunned. She laughed,

“Noct mentioned you’re a photographer.”

Prompto flushed again,

“I- I’m not a professional or anything, I just like to mess around, you know.”

“Oh, I think you’re photo’s are lovely, I’ve seen so many of them in our notebook messages.” Prompto was now blushing so hard, his freckles almost vanished completely.

“Ah, I- Thank you.” He squeaked, looking back down.

They spent some time, Prompto showing her the photo’s on his camera and chatting. After Niflheim had taken Tenebrae, aside from the occasional visit from her brother and Gentiana, Luna had spent most of her time alone, feeling so lonely and yearning for contact. Being alone on her trip here, therefore, had not been that hard. Of course, Gentiana had been there from time to time, she had been Luna’s support, whenever Luna had felt the most afraid, the most unable to continue, Gentiana had been there with a smile, offering her the words she needed to move on. Now that she was here, with Noct and his friends, all warm and talking amongst themselves, it seemed strange and unfamiliar to her - but very pleasant. Smiling, she leant forward, clasping her arms around her knees, and just enjoyed the moment, the fire crackling pleasantly.

Noct still hadn’t looked at her the entire time they had been sitting.

“Noct,” she said quietly. “Are you okay?”

He started and almost dropped the fish he had been handling.

“I’m fine,” he insisted, in a way that sounded anything but ‘fine.’

“Noct,” she frowned, concerned. But after a moment’s consideration, she decided to leave it. He would talk when he was ready.

Dinner was amazing. If manners had allowed, Luna would have groaned loudly as the flaky fish and perfectly cooked vegetables passed her taste buds.

“This is incredible,” she said. “A far cry from what I’ve been eating lately, thank you all.”

“You’re welcome,” replied Ignis. “I only regret there is not more we could offer.” She waved her hand dismissively.

“Please Ignis, this is the best thing I’ve had to eat in weeks.”

“How was it?” Noct asked quietly. “The trip here from Insomnia, I mean.”

Luna finished her bite thoughtfully.

“It was challenging. I kept out of sight of monsters, but I had to walk most of the way here. I kept quiet and hidden as best I could, and it was okay. Gentiana came to me often, she kept my spirits up, but also the thought of seeing you, it helped see me here.”

Noct was looking at her now, his intense blue eyes peering out through the hair that attempted to hide them.

“Are you ready to tell me how you got here?” she asked and he instantly looked down.

“This is going to be hard to believe,” he began after a moment, “but I’ve done all of this before.”

She sat in shock as he told her his story. It seemed unbelievable, but at the same time the way he held himself, the way his voice shook, the way he ducked his head. She believed him.

Her eyes filled with tears as he got to the end, especially at the way his hand clenched when he told her how he had to sacrifice himself. Her stomach twisted in guilt and horror. She had known. As an Oracle and Voice to the Gods, of course she had known. And as she watched Noct, she realised he wasn’t aware of her complicity in all of this, and she wanted to cry. The other her must never have told him. She would have been too scared, and too selfish, just wanting to let him be happy, while he could. She had cried when she had found out she would die forging covenants with the Astrals, and she had wailed when she learned that Noct would die too. It just wasn’t fair. She was willing to accept her fate, but why did Noct have to die as well?

The others looked grim. It seemed Noct had only recently told them about his inevitable fate. She wondered what all this would change.

Chancellor Ardyn.

She trembled at the thought of him. She had been exposed to him only briefly the day Insomnia had fallen, and she had felt something off about him then. She understood that feeling now. It had been her powers feeling the darkness inside him, and wanting to heal it. And although she felt so much hatred towards him for the suffering he had caused, she also felt sorry for him. He was just as much a victim in this as anyone. How could the Astrals have done such an abhorrent thing? How could they have betrayed humans so badly, the very ones they were to protect. It had never sat well with her that sacrifice was the only answer they had offered and yet she had still gone along with it. Now her faith was fraying at the edges, threatening to undo her.

“Luna?” She looked up, realising she had been quiet a long time after Noct had finished his tale. Looking at him, her eyes watered once more. She went down on her knees in front of him, reaching forward to cup his face, and he let her.

“I am sorry, Noctis. This fate you have been handed is not reasonable for anyone to bear, and I am deeply sorry that you must.” Her eyes blurring, she leaned forward pressing her forehead to his.

This close to her, Noct couldn’t stop seeing the phantom images of her in his dreams when she had died; the field of sylleblossoms, and Luna, floating away from him. He wanted to run away again, but instead, he sat, frozen, until she pulled away, tears in her eyes. 

“It’s okay, there is nothing you could do.” He said looking down again. “This is not your fault.”

They had taken turns to bathe after dinner. Everyone insisted Luna go first, and she was happy to finally submerge into the warm water, scrubbing the dirt and grit from her body with her hands, letting her braids float free.

“What are your plans now, Noct?” she asked the furiously blushing man as he sat hugging his knees behind a rock facing away from her.

“Uh, I guess we go and collect all the Royal Tombs and make pacts with the Astrals. What else can we do?”

“Yes, I suppose there is no other choice. But I am surprised that you are still inclined to go through with it, particularly having gone through it once already.”

“Hey,” he said, sounding slightly offended. “Just because I know I’m going to die, doesn’t mean I’m happy to let everyone else die instead.”

“I’m sorry,” Luna gasped. Covering her mouth, she said quickly, “I didn’t mean that…“

Noct sighed.

“It’s okay.” He fell silent, Luna bit her lip, feeling terrible.

“Noct, I do hold hope there will be a way we can all be happy, until we figure it out what that is, I will stand beside you.”

“Thank you, Luna.”

She finished her bath and dried off quickly, dressing once more. She frowned as she pulled on her ridiculous torn and dirty dress; she needed to find some more suitable clothes.

“I’m finished,” she said quietly. Noct peeked out from behind the rock, as if afraid she might be lying and standing there naked. It made her smile again.

“Your turn,” she said. “Go on. I’ll stand watch.”

“You don’t have to,” he said quietly, still blushing.

“You didn’t have to either,” she pointed out. “I am quite capable Noctis, and if something does turn up I’d rather take care of it myself than have you fighting wet and naked.”

“Fine, just…” He waved his hands, indicating she should turn around, as if she hadn’t been planning to do that anyway. Laughing, she turned, sitting on the rock that he had been hiding behind.

She stared off into the distance at the glowing blue cracks of the Meteor as she heard the sounds of him undressing and splashing into the water, and the groan of contentedness as he relaxed in the water.

If she was truly honest, she had no feelings for the Prince - not like…that. She felt he was more a dear friend, her feelings were more protective than anything else. Both their fates had been entwined for so long, their relationship had always been complicated, their union nothing more than false hope and lies from Niflheim. Coming to terms with her own inevitable death, and his, her fear that being with him would put him in danger, had all been too much. But now she was with him, as selfish as it may have been, she was happy. She hoped she could keep him safe, as his friends did, and perhaps become close friends like they had been when they were children.

“Luna?” Noct said after a long silence.

“Yes?”

“I’m… really glad you’re here,” he said quietly. Luna smiled. It was as if he had been hearing her thoughts.

“Me too Noct.”

Chapter Text

“I, Lunafreya, Blood of the Oracle, beseech you, Titan the Archaean, Astral of stone; enter into this covenant, that the King might drive the darkness from our star.”

They stood on the edge of the cliff that stood over the crater, Noct side by side with Luna as she called to the Astral below, Trident of the Oracle in hand.

They had strategised over breakfast, and after packing up their campsite, they had headed straight to the Archaean. There was no point in wasting any more time. They had been lucky to see no sign of the Niflheim soldiers so far, and Noct would rather it stayed that way as long as possible.

Sweating from the heat that came from being this close to the meteor, his stomach in knots with anticipation, he tried to remind himself that they had a plan; he had done this before, it was going to be okay. There was a deep rumble as the meteor shifted. An enormous hand appeared, and Titan slowly showed himself, the other arm lifting the meteor on his back, higher and higher, until his head was in view. Huge, black, basalt-like shards pierced his body and head. The one golden eye that remained looked down at them in rage.

“Oh my god!” Prompto squeaked, taking a photo. “He’s huge!”

“He certainly is awe-inspiring,” Ignis agreed.

Titan began to speak, the ground trembling with every word. Noct cried out, grabbing his head as familiar pain seared through it. Startled, Luna turned to help, but Noct waved her away.

“Just keep going,” he hissed through gritted teeth. “I’ll be fine.”

Nodding, she continued, her words fading into the background as Noct fought wave after wave of pain. He had been hoping that, with Luna here, Titan’s words somehow wouldn’t have this effect on him. The ground shook once more, and Noct lurched to his knees, but Luna managed to stay upright, holding onto her Trident for support.

“I vow the King will prove himself worthy,” she said with conviction, standing straight once more. Noct moved to stand as well.

“Go, Noct, he is waiting,” Luna said, placing a hand on his arm.

Nodding once, Noct drew his sword and warped down to the ground below. He dashed, forward as Titan punched his colossal fist down, as if Noct were some insignificant bug to be squashed. Materialising his Greatsword, Noct held it above him, his stance wide as they collided, groaning as he held. Noct waited, feeling for the right time, then threw his weight forward, the blade slicing a deep groove in Titan’s hand as he pulled it away. He had no time to rest; the hand was coming back, this time from the side. Noct swung his blade, once more countering the fist as it swung at him. Throwing all his weight into the attack he pushed the hand away once more.

Wasting no time, Noct switched to his smaller sword. He warped to top of the Archaean’s hand, ran the length of his arm and warped once more, aiming his blade straight for the remaining eye. The Astral reared back as Noct threw everything he had into a flurry of attacks. He warped at the last moment, and was almost knocked away as Titan swiped at him, missing and destroying some of the black shards that stuck out of his face. Noct nearly lost his balance as the shoulder he was standing on shuddered under him.

Noct vanished, appearing once more to land a series of vicious attacks on the Archean’s face. The giant hand swatted Noct out of the sky, spinning him through the air. Panicking, he threw a dagger, jolting to a stop as he warped to one of the rock walls surrounding them. Fighting vertigo, he was trying to figure out where he was, when he felt hands pulling him up.

“Come on, help me out here,” Gladio yelled down to him. Noct angled his body, grabbing onto the edge with his free arm and digging his boots in as he helped Gladios pull him up.

“Thanks,” he said, panting.

“You okay Noct?” Ignis asked, helping him to his feet, but Noct wasn’t sticking around.

“I’m fine,” he yelled back as he jumped off the cliff, warping back down.

The Astral’s hand was already moving towards him, this time with an open palm, as if to swat Noct. He phased out of the way as it rose up in the air once more, and this time Noct warped up to meet it, sword plunging into the Archaean’s knuckle. Allowing his blade to dematerialise, he drew his dagger and warped back to the ground, only just managing to pull a sword out in time as the hand came down again. His arms strained as Titan pushed down on him, but he managed to find the strength once more to push him off.

Noct warped to the side as Titan’s hand crashed to the ground, knocking him backwards and pushing clouds of dust and rubble into the air. Titan’s hand wasn’t moving.

“Now!” Noct screamed up at his friends, who stood at the edge of the cliff above him. Noct warped out of range as they threw their Blizaga magic directly onto the immobile hand. The magic exploded over the hand, clouds of frost and shards of ice billowing out as the Archaean’s hand and half of its arm froze solid white.

Not giving the Archaean any time to recover, Noct drew his sword and launched himself, swinging the blade straight down onto the frozen limb, crying out in pain as the sword only slammed off the arm. The shock of the impact jolted through Noct's entire body and he fell back to the ground. He gasped as the residue ice magic whipped around him, the cold biting into his exposed skin, frost clinging to his clothes and hair.

“What happened?” Ignis called down.

“I don’t know,” Noct replied, dragging himself to his feet with a groan, “Time for plan B!”

“What’s Plan B?” Prompto called back.

“I have no idea,” Noct muttered, warping out of the way as the arm started moving again. The hand slammed down right where he had been standing.

“That had to have done a lot of damage, even if it was not the intended result,” Ignis offered. “Perhaps if we try again?”

“Yeah, do that,” Noct responded, and immediately started drawing ice magic into flasks, all the while dodging Titan’s attacks. He warped back up pass them on to his friends.

“Do it right this time,” he said cheekily, before heading back down.

The fist was coming down. Noct countered; throwing it back and warping up, he launched a number of quick strikes there, before the enormous hand fell back towards the ground, landing hard. Noct was thrown off and hit the ground hard rolling to his feet. This happened several more times before Noct finally got a heavy blow in, enough for the hand to be disabled again.

“Go now, he’s vulnerable!” Ignis shouted. Noct warped to safety just as they threw down the ice magic, the limb turning white once more as it froze solid.

“I hope it works this time!” Noct screamed, blood pounding in his ears. Trying his best to ignore the frost creeping along his skin, he drew his Greatsword once more and threw himself forward, the blade finally shattering the limb into pieces. The Archaean fell forward onto the stump.

Gasping for breath, exhausted from the battle, he could only just hear the cheering from above.

“Don't get too excited,” Noct called, rubbing his arms in an attempt to warm up as the Archaean shuddered, and slowly rose again.

“Come on, can’t we be done now?” he groaned, as the ground and started shaking and his head was lanced with pain once more. Before he could fall to his knees, hands were on his arms, steadying him. He turned to see his friends had come down to join him.

“You have your proof Archaean,” Luna called from the clifftop, “Now lend the King your power.”

Titan roared, gold magic flowing around him. The ground shook harder, dust and smoke covering the area, until the only thing Noct could see was the gold light glowing brighter and brighter, forcing his eyes closed. There was an explosion, and he was blown off his feet. Then everything went quiet.

Sound came back slowly, the ringing in his ears louder than everything else. He heard someone groaning and he opened his eyes to see that Titan was gone, leaving them alone in the massive, empty crater. He hissed as he felt a sharp, burning pain on his wrist, the one that was covered, he already knew what it was. The Mark of the Archaean, branding itself there. A lovely permanent tattoo reminder of their pact.

With a sigh, he looked around. The others were dusting themselves off and getting to their feet, and he stood as well, eyeing their latest problem. There were fountains of lava suddenly spouting up around them, and with the earth still occasionally rumbling, they were far from safe.

“Noct!” Luna called, running over to him. “You did it!”

“Celebrate later, we have to go,” Noct said.

“How did we get out of this last time?” Prompto asked.

“Ardyn actually. Flying a Niflheim airship. But in the process they stole our car.”

“Wait, what…?“ Prompto started. Noct held his hand out to stop any further discussion.

“Later. We don’t have time to talk about it now.”

“We should run, now,” Gladio yelled, as more lava shot out of the earth.

They ran, dodging molten lava and falling rocks. Noct warped to grab Prompto’s hand as he slipped on some sliding gravel, almost falling into the crater.

“Thanks, man,” he said breathlessly, and they kept going.

By the time they reached the campsite and grabbed the backpacks, Noct was so exhausted he was ready to pass out. He stumbled as he pulled on his.

“Noct, here,” Luna whispered, leaning forward to lightly press her forehead into his. “Blessed stars of life and light,” she whispered, as her healing magic glowed around him. He sighed as the ache faded a little from his muscles.

“Thanks,” he said as she pulled away.

At least it was calmer up here, and the ground wasn’t crumbling around them. It still shook occasionally, loosening debris from the cliffs above them as they hurried to the exit. As they reached the last bend, Gladio, who was in front, froze and held his hand out to halt the others.

“Niffs are here,” he said, jerking his head towards the gate.

“Not too many. They have a bunch of soldiers and some MT standing guard. They look a bit ruffled though, must be wondering what’s going on down there.”

“Considering the entire meteor just vanished into thin air,” Ignis pointed out. “I’m not surprised, it won't take them long to figure out what is happening and send reinforcements.”

“Ardyn will be looking for us, once he finds out what we’ve done,” Noct added. “But Niflheim won’t care that Titan is gone. They’ll just pat themselves on the back like they did last time, and tell everyone they took care of it. Everyone in Duscae would have been feeling those earthquakes.”

“We need to move," said Gladio. “We don’t want to have to fight more soldiers than necessary.”

“Right on, let’s do this,” Prompto said, drawing his gun.

“Noct.” Ignis put his hand on the younger boy’s shoulder.

“Why don’t you rest? You did well fighting Titan, let us take point on this one.”

“And let you have all the fun?” Noct smiled weakly, “You wish.”

Ignis raised an eyebrow, not believing the Prince for a moment, He looked like he was going to fall over if he let go of the rock wall he was ‘casually’ leaning against.

“Please Highness, I must insist…”

Noct groaned. The ‘H’ word, Ignis’ version of puppy dog eyes.

“Fine, whatever. Go for it, I’ll be right here.” He sat down hard, for emphasis.

“Thank you.”

Nodding to one another, the others strolled around the corner.

Creeping forward so he could watch, Noct leaned his head against a rock, realising just how tired he actually was. As the others launched their attack, he followed them. Prompto was standing a ways back, taking pot shots at any soldiers that came nearby. Gladio was deadly as ever as he swung his sword in wide arcs. Luna preferred hard and fast jabs with her trident and the occasional beam of gold light as her magic blasted them. While Ignis was almost dancing as he sliced and thrust, hard and fast with his daggers.

The soldiers certainly hadn’t been expecting them, and it wasn’t long before Prompto was climbing the tower and pressing buttons to open the gate. Noct didn’t complain when Gladio offered a hand, pulling him to his feet. Noct made it all the way to the road, blowing the whistle for their Chocobos. Prompto offered to share with Luna, but Luna quietly suggested that perhaps Prompto should ride with Noct instead.

“He looks as if he might fall off if left to ride alone,” she pointed out smiling fondly as Noct pulled himself sleepily onto his mount.

“Hey, I can hear you!” he grumbled, making them to both laugh. “I’m fine! Not once have I fallen asleep on a Chocobo.”

Prompto laughed, and climbed up behind him.

He made it all the way back to the Chocobo ranch. It’s not as if Chocobos were the kind of thing you could easily sleep on anyway; they bounced around so much. Although he had to admit, he was leaning on Prompto pretty heavily for the last leg.

He even made it to the shower, forcing himself to stay awake long enough to scrub away the grit and ash, and so much dust. He vaguely remembered turning off the water and pulling on underwear before finding a soft place in the small caravan to collapse and fall asleep.

Chapter Text

Noct groaned and rolled over, the smell of food assaulted his nose, waking him from the best damn sleep he’d ever had. Gods he was hungry. He blinked sleepy eyes as they tried to adjust to the light in the small caravan. He could the hear sound of food sizzling, and his friends chatting; he was sure he heard his name, and the sound of Luna giggling.

“Stop talking about me,” he grumbled. He sat up, hoping it would wake him enough that his eyes might start remembering how to work. There was more giggling.

“Good morning, Noctis,” Luna said cheerfully. She was sitting in a chair beside Prompto, who was showing her his camera while Ignis cooked in the background.

Yawning, Noct stood and stumbled over to the kitchenette, but before he could sit, Prompto quirked an eyebrow at him.

“Um, dude,” he said. “You might want to get dressed.”

Looking down, Noct realised he was only wearing underpants. He flushed and then sighed. Getting his clothes back from the Regalia was going to be heaven. Staggering back to his bed, he found his clothes folded neatly next to it, courtesy of Ignis, most likely. Except his shirt was… He pulled out the yellow fabric.

“What the hell is this?” he demanded, glaring at the brightly coloured cartoon Chocobos that decorated its front. Prompto looked over, snorting into his hand with uncontrolled laughter when he saw Noct's disgusted face.

“Ignis said he found you a new shirt,” he gasped in between snorts of laughter. “I had no idea…”

Luna even had a hand over her mouth, although she was able to hold back her laughter a little more elegantly.

“I considered it preferable to the tattered garment you had on previously,” Ignis said, hands on hips, clearly unimpressed with Noct's lack of appreciation. But as Noct turned his glare onto the older man, it was obvious to Noct - someone who had been subjected to Ignis’s looks for a very long time - that behind the stern look there was definite smugness.

“Where is my old shirt?”

“I disposed of it.”

“You didn’t.”

“I most certainly did, it had so many tears in it, I couldn’t figure out which holes were for your arms and head.”

Noct looked mournfully at the hideously cute shirt in his hands.

“At least we will match,” Luna said with a small grin.

Noct looked to her and decided that her pale yellow tank top, with it's one white, elegant - looking Chocobo, definitely did not ‘match’ his unsightly number.

“Whatever.” He let out another dramatic sigh and pulled on the shirt, along with his pants, and plopped down at the table opposite Luna and Prompto.

“Did you sleep well?” Luna asked. Her eyes still glittered with mirth, probably because he was still pouting, but that stopped the moment Ignis pushed plates full of steak and eggs in front of them. He was so hungry.

“I did actually,” he responded quickly, before shovelling breakfast into his mouth.

“Thank you so much, this looks wonderful,” Luna said, taking to her dish with a little more decorum.

“You’re welcome,” Ignis replied. “I’m going to go find Gladio and tell him breakfast is ready.”

“So where are we going next, Noct?” Prompto asked after finishing his mouthful.

“Collecting two more Royal Arms, back in Leide.

“Wait, does that mean we get the car back?”

“Yeah, hopefully.”

“Oh good, because I’m about three battles away from wearing a shirt like yours.”

“Hey how about we swap?” suggested Noct hopefully. “I thought you liked Chocobos?”

“I love Chocobos,” laughed Prompto. “That shirt, not so much.”

Luna watched their banter, her attention drawn from it as another wave of nausea and a bone-aching weariness rolled over her, gone soon after it arrived. It had been happening more often since waking the Archaean.    

“What’s up, Luna?” Noct asked her, noticing her attention drifting off.

Her eyes snapped back to his, there was something there, he could see something wasn’t right.

“I was just thinking…” She trailed off. Noct raised an eyebrow at her, taking another bite. “I… don’t think I should continue travelling with you Noct,” she continued hesitantly, it was something that had been worrying about her all morning.

“It’s not that I don’t want to. I am just concerned about the attention my presence will bring from the Niflheim army. Particularly with my brother leading them.”

Noct put his fork down and swallowed.

“Luna, you being with us is not going to make a difference. We are going to be hunted, and they will find us, but we are strong enough together to deal with them. I know you can handle it alone. You did it before, and you can do it again. But I want things to be different this time, I think you should stay with us. Please.”

“I…” She sighed. “I will think about it.”

“Good,” Noct replied. “And don’t worry about Ravus, he comes around. Actually…” He looked down with a grimace, “The sooner we see him the better.”

Luna frowned, trying to decipher his meaning.

“Is my brother going to be okay?”

“I hope so, if we can get to him before Ardyn does,” Noct responded, shoulders suddenly hunched as he poked a fork into his eggs. “He has a grudge against me because of my father. He doesn’t think I am the rightful king, and more than that I know he wants to protect you, Luna. He betrays Niflheim to protect you, and Ardyn does not let him get away with that. I just hope he listens to me if I warn him.”

Luna nodded once, eyebrows pinched.

“We will make him listen,” she said firmly. Noct hummed, going back to eating.

Just then, Gladio and Ignis walked in, both taking a plate and sitting at the now rather cramped table. This caravan was not really made for five people, especially not when one of those people was as big as Gladio.

Gladio snorted in amusement when he noticed Noct’s attire. Noct just rolled his eyes in response and ignored him.

“So…” Prompto began after a long silence. “Back to Leide, then.”

“We are meeting with the Marshal, correct?” Ignis asked.

“Yeah.” Noct frowned, suddenly realising something.

“We’ll need to head through one of the blockades first. Now that we’re technically on the run from Niflheim, busting down a blockade shouldn’t be a problem, especially from this side. It doesn’t matter if they see us, so if we can start causing them some problems, we might as well.”     

“Maybe tell Cor that,” Gladio suggested. “He might even lend us a hand and take them from the other side.” Noct nodded.

“Sure, I’ll let him know.”

They finished breakfast, Luna helping with the washing up and refusing to take ’no’ for an answer, while Noct went outside to speak to Cor somewhere a little less crowded.

“How did it go?” Gladio asked when he found Noct sitting in one of the chairs in front of the caravan sometime later.

“Fine,” Noct replied, leaning back lazily in his chair. “He’s going to meet us at the blockade near Longwythe Peak, near where we left the car.”

Looking around, he realised he was not ready to move on from the peacefulness that came from this quiet ranch. Ignis was chatting to Wiz, probably discussing recipes. Ignis had his notebook out, which was a sure sign. Luna was attempting to pat a Chocobo, which didn’t look too happy about it, and Prompto was laughing and taking photos of the encounter. Everyone looked so happy here. He soaked it in, remembering each of his friends and how cheerful they were right at this moment, before the shit hit the fan and everything got more and more complicated.

“Noct?” Gladio said, Noct hummed, turning to show Gladio he was listening. “So I guess we’ll make contact when we get closer and take them from both sides?”

“Yeah, that’s the plan,” Noct confirmed, getting to his feet, arms folded. “so I guess we should get moving. At least it won’t take long to get there with the Chocobos.”

Gladio nodded, but was grinning, his fist covering his mouth.

“What?” Noct demanded, holding his hands to the side, knowing full well why his friend was laughing.

“Man, it is really hard to take you seriously in that shirt.”

“Shut up.” He stood, punching the sniggering Gladio on the shoulder as he passed.

Packed and ready to go, they bid farewell to Wiz, thanking him for his help, before they mounted their Chocobos once more. This time Luna had her own Chocobo. She trotted along beside Noct as they passed through the forest that lay at the base of the Malacchi Hills, this time following the cliff wall along and heading towards the road blockade. Managing to avoid most of the monsters that roamed the area.

By the time they made it to the blockade, the sun was high in the sky. They stopped close by to tell Cor they were ready to go. They could see the rows of unactivated Magitek soldiers standing in formation, along with a Magitek Armour, which towered over the soldiers, turning from side to side keeping a lookout.

“Watch that Magitek Armour,” Noct said, after getting everyone’s attention. “Aim for the legs, it will fall over pretty quick. They shoot bullets and missiles, and when they’re destroyed they tend to explode, so keep an eye out for that.” He drew his sword. “This shouldn’t be too hard. It’s only a few more guys than you handled the other day.”

“And a missile shooting, self-destructing Magitek robot warrior,” Prompto said hesitantly. “Yeah, sounds like a breeze.”

Noct pulled a sword from his Astral Sphere with a smile.

“Yup, now let’s do this.”

He waited until they were close, before warp striking the closest MT Soldier. The force of his hit knocked it over,  activating all the nearby soldiers. They came to life, swinging their swords and axes, and Noct’s companions joined the fight, blocking and dodging. The MT Armour also came to life, bullets spraying from its mounted guns. Noct warped behind it and swung his largest sword at its legs a few times, in an attempt to topple it. His attempt failed as he phased through several attacks from MT soldiers who seemed to take issue with this. Trading the sword for his daggers, he warped left and right, landing quick hits, then warping out of the way before they could react. There were close calls - one almost collected his shoulder with an axe, but he was lucky enough to phase out of the way just in time, before slamming a blade straight between its armour plates, It fell to the ground, just as the second took its place.

After warping back to take a breath, he flew forward once more, using the momentum of his attack to slam this second MT down onto the ground. Ignis appeared beside him, lance in hand. They nodded to each other, and Noct took his own lance warping straight up into the air, before slamming down into the MT, while Ignis swung his lance, slashing at its side. The MT sparked red, black smoke billowed from inside it, and it stopped moving.

“Nice one,” Noct said, fist bumping Ignis before they moved onto the next.

Most of the other MT soldiers were occupied with his friends, so Noct ducked and phased until he reached the legs of the Armour once more, hacking at them until it shuddered, tilting to the side, spraying bullets off at an angle and into the sky as it toppled. Several missiles shot out.

“Missiles!” Noct yelled to the others as he phased through one, warping away as it exploded where he had been standing. Another exploded close behind him, the shockwave knocking him to the ground.

“That was close.” Luna was there helping him to his feet. “Are you-“

“Watch out!” Noct threw himself on top of her, knocking them both to the ground as another spray of bullets went over their heads. Jumping up, he warped to the Armour, He jumped on top of it and hacked furiously at it, until the guns stopped firing and it sagged, black fluid spilling from it.

“It’s going to blow!” someone screamed, and Noct warped away just as it exploded, the blast throwing him clear of the battle and into some bushes.

“Ow,” Noct groaned. Untangling himself from the bush, he decided he was lucky he hadn’t been impaled on a branch.

Moving his limbs one at a time, he realised he was mostly uninjured and looked back over at what was left of the battle. Gladio was taking out the last MT soldier, while Prompto was helping Luna stand.

“Is everyone alive?” Ignis called as he walked over to Noct.

“I’m alive!” Prompto called.

“Noct?” Ignis asked, reaching the prince, who was rubbing his head.

“Does tired count?” Noct grumbled.

They all gathered at the gates, avoiding the smoking remains of the MT soldiers. Prompto dashed to the control tower to open them.

“What took you so long?” Cor said smugly, as the gates opened wide enough for them to see Cor and a pile of shattered MT remains. He walked over to Noct arms folded.

“Now are you finally going to tell me what on Eos is going on?”

Noct sighed, and as they walked through the gates, he started telling Cor what he needed to know. The older man’s face blank the entire time.

“I’m going to need the Key to the tombs now,” Noct finished. Cor handed it over.

“So you really know where they’re all located?”

“Yes, so don’t worry about us. Concentrate your efforts on the people, make sure everyone is safe and has somewhere to go. We’ll work on the rest.”

Cor nodded, still looking at Noct with an odd expression.

“You have changed Noct,” Cor said finally.

“So I’ve been told,” Noct replied with a snort.

“Your father would be proud,” Cor said. Noct sobered,

“Ah, thanks,” he replied awkwardly. Cor clapped his hand on Noct’s shoulder.

“Go on then, you have a lot of work to do.” He stepped back and turned.

“So long Prince Noctis. The hopes of our people are with you.” He waved one hand as he walked away.

“Sure.” Noct rubbed his hair. Like he needed that reminder.

“And you might want to consider getting a new shirt,” Cor added over his shoulder

There was a roar of laughter behind Noct, and he turned to glare at his so-called friends.

“Treason!” the prince shouted, and stormed off in the direction of the car, trying to hide his own smile.

Chapter Text

Noct groaned in contentment as he sank into the seats of the Regalia. It was so good to have the car back. 

“Noct, we will need to find some suitable accommodations for the night,” said Ignis from his usual seat behind the wheel.

“You find somewhere. I’m sleeping in the car, it missed me,” Noct responded, sleepily closing his eyes.

“I’m never leaving this car again,” Prompto agreed.

Noct could almost hear Ignis rolling his eyes as he let out a long-suffering sigh.

“I will find us somewhere appropriate then.”

“Why don’t we just camp?” Gladio said from the front seat. It had been decided that the three smallest should sit in the back, leaving Gladio in the front with Ignis.

“Camping is an option,” Ignis said. “But we will need to find Lady Lunafreya a tent. There is hardly enough room in ours for four adults, let alone five.”

“We could sleep under the stars again,” Luna said from in between Noct and Prompto.

“And that we could,” Ignis began, “but if it rains we will be thankful for some shelter.”

“Just keep driving to the Prairie Outpost,” Noct said with a yawn. “There’s a caravan and Haven, we can decide when we get there. They might even have some camping equipment for sale; it is a hunter outpost after all.”

“Uh, Noct?” Gladio said after pulling out their map. “There is no way we’re making it to Prairie Outpost tonight.”

“Damn. Sleeping under the stars it is, I guess,” Noct replied.

“We will be fine,” Luna said confidently. “There are many havens around, and the sky looks clear.”

“See, Luna is up for it. Don’t worry so much,” Noct said.

“You can literally sleep anywhere,” Prompto pointed out. “So of course you’re not worried.”

Encouraging Ignis to drive as close to sunset as possible, they finally made camp in a Haven to the north of the Three Valleys. Leaving the tent in the car in favour of sleeping bags, it didn’t take them long to set up. Ignis was just happy to have his cooking equipment, even though he had to cook by firelight, as it was dark.

After dinner they taught Luna to play cards, and as it turned out, she had an incredibly good poker face. So she ended up winning almost every time, even beating Ignis.

“Are you sure you’re not using some mysterious Oracle powers to win?” Prompto accused, throwing down his losing hand with a pout.

“I’m afraid not,” Luna said with a laugh. “I am just that good.” she winked as she threw down her winning hand and high-fived Gladio.

Eventually they all settled into their sleeping bags and started drifting off one by one. Luna and Noct staying awake. They chatted about Luna’s life in Tenebrae, and Noct shared some of the antics he and Prompto had gotten up to while living in Insomnia. It wasn’t until Noct asked, with a wistful smile, what she would do after she was no longer required as the Oracle, that Luna froze and looked over at him in alarm.

“Noct, did I not die the last time?” She asked carefully.

“Yes… but, I won’t let that happen again,” he responded, his voice certain. “I won’t let Ardyn hurt you.”

“Noct.” Tears welled in her eyes, as she realised he had no idea. “I am not meant to survive this world Noct.”

He frowned and said nothing for a moment.

“But… why? I was given a second chance to save you. Why?”

“Waking the Astrals, it… it takes a toll on my body.” He got to his knees, his face pale.

“So you’re going to die anyway? No matter what I do…?”

“I believe so. But Noct, do not despair, I do not fear death. The morning will come when night and the moon rest, we will be at peace.” She smiled as she spoke, reaching forward to touch his face as a tear rolled down his cheek.

“Bullshit,” he spat angrily pulling away from her. “ You might not fear death Luna, but I do. I have seen you die and I have died myself and both were horrible and pointless. I fear it enough for the both of us and I will not let us die.” He stopped, panting and looked down as he realised what he was saying. “I’m going to find a way. We are going to live as the sun rises and the night ends. We will watch as the world rebuilds itself into a place that doesn’t need Crystals, or magic, or Kings, or Oracles, or Gods. And then when we’re old, we will die and be happy that this world no longer needs us to survive.”

“Noct…”

He sighed and leaned into her shoulder, and she leaned back, resting her head against his.

“I watched you die, and then I watched you float away and you told me you wished you could have stayed with me.”

“I am here now, Noct,” she said, putting her hand on his. He squeezed it, his eyes sliding shut.

“I know.”

“Noct,” she said, “tell me all the adventures you got up to the first time with your friends.”

And he did; he told her as much as he could think of. They shifted positions until they were both lying on the ground looking up at the stars as Noct spoke. His head pillowed on her leg, her hand playing with his hair, something she remembered he had loved when they were children. They talked so long the fire went out and by the time Luna realised, Noct had fallen asleep on her. The others found them like that the next morning, wondering what had gone on after they had fallen asleep.

Gladio’s hand landed on Noct’s shoulder as he stepped forward to receive the Sword of the Wise. He had seen the tremble in the younger man’s hands when he stepped into the Tomb. Noct straightened, the support from his friend reminding him that he wasn’t alone, that his friends were all here. The sword glowed and rose up in the air; he hadn’t realised he had taken a step back until he hit Gladio; the hand on his shoulder tightened, grounding him; he was here, he was safe.

Noct gasped as the sword dove into his chest. It didn’t hurt, but the memory of this weapon and the other twelve others like it cutting into him, finishing with his father’s blade, ending his life, feeling his breath catch and his vision go dark…

“Noct?“ He shuddered as Gladio called his name, his head was pressed into Ignis’s chest, Gladio’s hand on his back. Prompto and Luna hovered worriedly nearby. Noct tried to calm his breathing and pulled away from Ignis slowly. 

“I’m fine,” he said.

“It’s okay if you need to take a moment,” Ignis said.

“N-no, we should move,” he said firmly, heading to the exit.

Following the path back to the main road, Noct led them North East to Keycatrich Trench. The ruins of buildings destroyed in whatever battle had occurred here sat beside rusting husks of Magitek airships, which were quickly joined by new airships dropping dozens of Magitek Soldiers and an Armour Mech.

Determination burning like fire in his chest, Noct didn’t even wait for the others. He threw himself recklessly into battle, taking out three of them before anyone else could react. He warped from enemy to enemy, knocking them over and moving to the next, then back again, until there were only a few left for the others to handle on their own. He pulled out his Greatsword and warp slammed into the MT armour’s leg as hard as he could, toppling it instantly. Then, repeating the strategy he had used the previous day, he warped to its head and slashed at it furiously, warping away as it exploded, this time making sure to clear the blast zone.

Noct staggered and fell to his knees, struggling for breath as the battle caught up with him.

“Wow, Noct that was… amazing!” Prompto called, running up to him. “A-are you okay?”

“Fine,” he gasped, forcing himself to stand. “Let’s keep going.”

“Noct.” Ignis was standing beside him. “I feel like a rest might be in order.”

“I’m fine,” Noct insisted. “It’s not far.” He started walking again, the others giving each other worried looks before following.

They reached the mine-like dungeon, home to the Tomb of the Conqueror. Noct led them to the room where he recalled there had been a generator and turned it on, lighting the place up.

“Oh thank goodness,” Prompto said, laughing nervously. “This place was getting creepy.”

“Don’t let your guard down, this place is crawling with Daemons,” Noct said, pushing through an unlocked gate.

They reached a locked door and Noct groaned with frustration, before turning them around and leading the way down some stairs.

“I feel like something is messing with us,” Gladio said, as they reached another gate that was unlocked. “I’m sure this was locked a moment ago.”

“It was, and they are,” Noct responded. “Fucking Goblins think they’re really funny.”

Luna proved invaluable, as she blasted through the annoying Daemons with gold light shooting from her Trident. Making the hordes of Goblins much easier to deal with than Noct remembered. Her Oracle healing magic showed their worth against the dark creatures. Even still, fighting their way through half a dozen more groups of the little Daemons, and then a much larger spider Daemon, left Noct reeling.

Ignis frowned again. He could see what was happening; Noct was pushing himself too hard, trying to prove to them - or perhaps himself - that he wasn’t weak. The Tomb had spooked him, and if what Gladio had told him about the first Tomb was true, it was probably going to keep happening. Stepping resolutely forward, he pressed a potion and power bar into the trembling prince’s hands.

“Eat,” Ignis commanded, injecting the word with all the force he could muster. Noct threw him a defiant glare, but Ignis stared the younger man down until he gave in. Drinking the potion and peeling the wrapper away from the bar. That done, Ignis turned to the others.

“Does anyone else need a snack?” he asked cheerfully.

Noct stared down at the Axe of the Conqueror. Luna stepped forward, and she reached over, intertwining her fingers with his, offering a reassuring smile.

The axe rose. The blue sparked something inside him. Darkness. Pain. Cold.

But then there was warmth and he looked down to see warmth and light radiating from Luna’s hand where it held his.

“We’re here for you,” she said firmly.

He nodded, crying out as the axe pierced his chest.

Not real.

The Kings rose before him.

Not real.

The Royals Arms shooting towards him.

Not real.

He opened his eyes.

This was real, his friends were here; he was okay. For now, he was okay.

“Let’s rest, before we go back,” he said faintly. Pulling his hand from Luna’s, he turned and slid down the statue onto the floor.

“Good idea,” Prompto said, quietly sitting on one side of him, Luna on the other. “I’m beat.”

Noct’s head felt fuzzy; he rest it against the statue and stared at nothing. He felt frustrated and tired, and so weak.

“Rest now.” Ignis was kneeling in front of him, one hand resting on Noct’s cheek. “We are safe here.”

When Noct drifted off, he didn’t dream of dying, as he thought he would. Instead, he dreamed of running through fields of sylleblossoms with Luna, laughing at photos with Prompto, training and roughhousing with Gladio, and cooking with Ignis. When he woke, hours later, Prompto was nuzzled into his neck, snoring lightly. He blinked rapidly, his eyes adjusting to the dim light. Gladio and Ignis were awake, sitting against the wall on either side of the door. He looked down at his other side. Luna opened her eyes at his movement and smiled up at him.

“Feel any better?” she asked sleepily, and he nodded, suddenly wondering if she had anything to do with that.

“I’m glad.” She yawned, sitting up and stretching her legs out. Noct smiled and jerked a thumb in Prompto’s direction as the blond man mumbled and nuzzled closer into Noct.

“He’s a cuddler,” Noct whispered, as Luna covered her face with a giggle.

“I can see that,” she said.

Noct looked at his phone. It was heading towards midday - they had spent the entire night wandering the dungeon. If they left now, and hurried, they might make it back to the Outpost before dark. So Noct roused Prompto, nodded to Ignis and Gladio and they started the long trek back to the entrance.

Chapter Text

Prompto was incredibly glad to be out of that awful dark cavern. The moment he stepped into the sunshine, he felt better. Not only was that place creepy as hell, it was so hard to take photos in the dark. At least Noct looked like he was feeling a bit better; he had been almost scary. It was obvious to Prompto that collecting the Royal Arms was messing with the prince. Out here they could all breathe a little easier.

“Prompto?” It took him a moment to realise Luna was talking to him.

“Sorry, what?” he asked, looking up from the camera he’d been fiddling with.

“I was wondering if you had taken any good shots,” she said gesturing to his camera.

“Oh! Uh, no not really. It was way too dark in there, which sucks.”

“Hmm,” Luna smiled, taking his hand with the camera in it and raising it to point at them. “Why don’t you take one now?”

Prompto grinned and aimed the camera so they were both in shot, pressing the shutter.

“Ahh!” Prompto yelped, almost dropping his camera as Noct crashed into the back of them.

“Shit, sorry!” Noct quickly apologised, as Prompto clutched the camera protectively to his chest. “Sorry, I wasn’t paying attention, I didn’t realise you’d stopped walking,” he added.

“Don’t worry man, no harm done. Everything okay?”

Noct was flushing as he looked around.

“Uh, yeah. There was something around here I wanted to get for you. I was just trying to remember where I found it last time.”

“Oh for me?” Prompto beamed. “What was it?”

“Ahhh, let me find it first. You’ll love it, trust me.”

“Oh I love surprises.”

They hadn’t walked much further when Noct told them to wait, and dashed off up the rocky area near the dungeon they had just left, coming back a minute later with a huge smile and his arms full of… some weird looking machine. Prompto was practically bouncing by the time Noct handed it over. It was huge, definitely something you would wield with two hands. It looked like it shot something out of the front and had two sharp spikes on the side.

“Oh em gee! It’s so cool, I love it! But also what is it?” he finished, inspecting it with confusion.

“I have no idea, it’s some MT weapon. You loved fighting with it last time, so…” Noct trailed off with a shrug.

Prompto froze with the grin still on his face, trying to keep himself in check he peeked up at Noct. Did he know? Had the other him told Noct his biggest secret? He pushed the idea away quickly, of course. Noct wouldn’t be the same around him if he knew, surely? Noct was giving away nothing, he just looked happy with himself. Noct just knew he loved machines, and weird gadgets; he was a good friend.

“Thanks buddy!” Prompto jumped forward with exaggerated joy, hooking his free arm around Noct’s neck. “I’ll treasure it always.”

“Just don’t hit me with it and I’ll take that as thanks enough,” Noct said holding his hands out as Prompto waved the weapon around, fighting imaginary enemies with gusto.

They continued onwards, Prompto examining it as they walked, pressing buttons, trying to figure out how it worked. Everyone quickly gave him a wide berth as he accidentally fired it, the blast almost knocking him off his feet.

“Hey, knock it out!” Gladio shouted.

“Sorry, I didn’t realise it was going to do that,” he called back, flushing.

“Yeah, well, a little warning before you randomly fire strange weapons off next time. You almost hit me,” the older man grumbled.

Despite almost killing his friends, Prompto was still looking forward to testing it out in a real battle. He didn’t even have to wait very long.

“Woah, hello,” he cried cheerfully, as a huge cat creature came bounding toward him at lightning speed, fangs bared. He considered for a second he should warn the others, as the monster was obviously very fast and dangerous, but he didn’t get a chance - it was already there, pouncing, reaching claws outstretched straight for Prompto.

He cried out, dodging to the side. He pulled the trigger, the blast from the weapon hitting the creature in the shoulder. To his dismay, it did nothing more than irritate the huge cat, which slid past him and spun once more, ready to pounce.

“NO, RUN!” Prompto heard Noct’s panicked shout from behind him, but the creature swiped a huge claw, hitting Prompto. The blow knocked him over, and the monster landed on top of him. Gouging. Pain in his chest. Screaming. What was going on? He couldn’t breathe, he had to get this thing off him!

Panic setting in, Prompto slammed his hand frantically onto all the buttons of the weapon Noct had given him, causing it to whirl to life. He pulled the trigger and BOOM! It exploded, throwing the creature off him.

Prompto was still screaming as Noct fell down next to his friend - short ragged screams, as if he was having trouble breathing. His eyes were darting all over, and his chest was a mess. There was blood everywhere. Suddenly having trouble breathing himself, Noct tore open the only Hi-Potion they had with shaking hands. Lifting Prompto’s head up, he held it over Prompto’s mouth.

“Prompto! Prompto, you need to drink this,” he yelled, and Prompto went quiet. Only his ragged breathing remained. Hoping he wouldn’t choke, Noct forced the potion into him. Several times, he had to stop as Prompto gagged and coughed, until the potion was gone. Noct, leaned over his friend then.

“Noct, move!” Hands were pushing him, but he didn’t care. He wasn’t letting Prompto go, not until he knew he was okay. Then there was gold light in his face, and he realised it was Luna working her own healing magic. Noct was still shaking when Gladio heaved him roughly to his feet.

“There’s no time, we have to run!” Gladio roared, pulling his huge sword in front of them. Noct and Luna pulled, the now - semi-conscious Prompto to his feet, Noct wrapping his arm around this back and letting Prompto lean all his weight onto him.

“Come on, bud,” he said, half dragging Prompto out of there. “Stay with me now, we have to move.”

The Coeurl was upright again and bounding towards them. It slammed into Gladio and his blade, rocking him back, but Gladio managed to keep his feet. The Coeurl pounced backwards once more. Its long tentacle-like whiskers waved, the air suddenly filled with crackling electricity, before they whipped towards Gladio. A bolt of lightning shot from them straight into the Kings Shield. He screamed, but it was quickly cut off as he fell to his knees, his sword disappearing as it fell to the ground, his body jerking and twitching violently before his eyes rolled back and he fell forward onto his hands.

Fighting the unconsciousness threatening to take hold, Gladio screamed at his twitching body to stand the hell up. Someone was shouting his name, and there was a commanding bellow behind him. Luna, holding her trident, stared Coeurl down as if it were a misbehaving child. Shot a beam of gold light, throwing it backwards.

Ignis was now at Gladio’s side, pulling him to his feet. Using every last trace of stubborn pride left in his body, Gladio managed to stay upright, and, leaning heavily on Ignis, moved forward, running from the Coeurl as quickly as they could. Noct was struggling with Prompto, who seemed to be fading in and out of consciousness, stumbling and almost bringing them both to the ground several times.

Luna, fierce and determined, managed to hold the Coeurl back, only running to join them when the dazed creature decided they were too much trouble and slunk off. They almost made it back to the road before, Prompto finally lost his battle with consciousness, his full weight falling on Noct. Noct was unable to hold him up, and the blond slipped to the ground, Noct falling to his knees beside him.

“How is he?” Ignis called, lowering his staggering companion to the ground as well.

Noct didn’t respond, pulling back Prompto’s shredded clothing. There was so much blood. He let out a breath, as he realised the wounds were slowly healing.

“I t-think he’s o-okay,” he decided, relief hitting him in a wave. He felt almost weak as he sat back. He realised as he went to rub his face that his hands were covered in Prompto’s blood. He stared at them.

“Good,” Ignis said with a sigh. He turned to Gladio, who still had his eyes open, though they were distant and glassy.

“Gladio can you hear me?” he asked firmly, opening a potion. The man’s eyes drifted slowly to Ignis, and he nodded jerkily. Raising a shaking hand to grab the potion, he managed to drink it down. The trembling in his body was already receding by the time he finished. Luna was there, placing her hands on the side of Gladio's face, whispering as healing magic flowed.

Leaving Gladio in Luna’s capable hands, Ignis moved to check Prompto. Noct was sitting beside his friend staring at his quivering, bloodied hands in shock.

“Are you injured?” Ignis demanded, grasping the prince by the shoulder, expecting him to be bleeding from a deadly wound.

“I-I…” Noct could hardly get the words out, he was shaking so much. “N-no Prom…” He trailed off, and Ignis took Noct’s hands, realising at once the blood was all Prompto’s. He turned to inspect the injured man, and was satisfied that Noct had been right; he was healing adequately.

“Noct,” Ignis said calmly as he pulled out first aid supplies, “Prompto is fine, you did well.”

“I-I forgot. It’s my fault, I a-almost got him killed.”

“Noct, you got him out of there,” Ignis said firmly, grasping his shoulder. “You healed Prompto, you saved his life. This is not your fault.”

Noct looked over to Prompto and took a breath. Prompto was fine, he was going to be fine.

Prompto could hear voices. Man, his chest hurt. He gasped and tried to grab it, but a hand took him gently.

“Easy now, you don’t want to do that just yet.” Ignis was beside him, gently patting his hand before he set it back on the ground.

“Wha-?”

“You were attacked by a Coeurl,” Ignis said, “but Noct and Luna healed you quickly enough that you seem to be okay. You’ve had a bit of blood loss, I might sit you up in a moment so I can wrap this bandage around you.”

“Oh.” He couldn’t really manage more than that.

“It’s okay, just relax for now while I finish cleaning this up.”

Prompto was going to thank Ignis, but decided against it and chose to nod instead.

Gladio, despite Luna’s protests, was getting to his feet.

“I’m fine,” he grumbled, pushing her hands away. He felt a little dizzy, and his right arm and chest hurt like hell for some reason. Getting to his feet, he held his arm out to look at it. A spider web of red, angry looking scars criss-crossed his arm from his shoulder to his wrist. But even as he watched, he could see them fading and shrinking.

His priority was to assess the situation, to make sure they were safe, and that no one else was injured. He first noticed Prompto, flat on the ground, covered in blood and blinking dazedly up at Ignis who was talking softly to him. Noct who was crouched nearby, stood and walked over to Gladio.

“Are you okay, Gladio?” He asked, eyes wide.

“Yeah I’m-“ another wave of vertigo had him tipping to the side, and he caught himself just in time, Noct rushing forward to steady him.

“I think maybe you should sit down,” Noct pointed out.

“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell him,” Luna said, as she walked past to check on Prompto and Ignis.

“Heh, yeah she did,” Gladio mumbled, sitting with a sigh. “Is Prompto okay? He looks pretty messed up.”

“He’s going to be okay, we healed him in time.” Noct sat down,

“How about the monster, is it gone?”

“Yeah, we ran. Luna held it off until it gave up,” Noct said.

“Good, although…” Gladio trailed off, looking up at the sky. “We shouldn’t stick around here too long.”

Noct nodded, not looking up.

“I know, I’d say we have about two hours to get back to the outpost, maybe three.”

Gladio hummed thoughtfully.

“Okay, if we can get Prom up soon, we’ll make it.”

“Do you think you can walk?” Noct asked, looking up at his friend

“I’ll be fine. Worry about Prom, he looks like he lost a lot of blood,”

“He did, but Ignis said he’s going to be fine.”

Gladio thought it sounded like Noct was telling himself that as much as he was telling Gladio.

“What’s eating you Noct? You’ve been all over the place since we got the second Royal Arm.”

Noct looked down.

“Sorry, I know, I hate how much they’re messing with me. I…“ He clenched his fists. “I need to be stronger, I need to calm down.” He grinned, looking back up at Gladio through his hair. “You told me off once. You told me I needed to calm the hell down, and that when I can’t focus, you focus for me.” Gladio raised an eyebrow, his lip quirked. “I guess I need to remember that sometimes,” Noct admitted.

“Sounds like wise words from a wise guy,” Gladio winked, nudging Noct’s shoulder with his own.

Ignis stood, gently helping Prompto to his feet. The blond looked like he would fall over if a slight breeze caught him, and he leaned heavily on Ignis.

“We need to at least try and reach the Outpost,” Ignis said, pulling Prompto’s arm around his shoulder. “It is not ideal, but to remain here until the Deamons come out would create a far greater issue.”

“Let’s move,” Gladio said, getting to his feet once more.

Noct touched his arm, and Gladio looked down to see the scars there were now a pale pink. His chest and arm still ached, but the vertigo was less of a problem now at least.

They somehow managed to make it back to the Outpost, Gladio running on pure stubbornness, Prompto with either Ignis or Noct, or sometimes both, holding him upright. Luna and Noct fended off anything that tried to start something with them.

Monica dashed over to them when she saw them stumbling towards the outpost. Ignis assured her that the two injured were fine, and only needed food and sleep. Making their way to the Caravan, they settled Gladio and Prompto into beds, Ignis removing Prompto’s boots and checking his bandages before tucking him in, Gladio even managed to climb up into the top bunk before passing out.

Noct, now freshly showered, collapsed into a chair, head falling to the table with a loud thunk.

“Noct, you’re not going to pass out on me too are you?” Ignis asked, pulling food from the fridge.

“No,” the prince mumbled in a way that suggested otherwise.

“You should at least eat before you sleep.”

“Mmm,” Noct added helpfully. Luna hovered by Ignis, offering help, but Ignis gently showed her to the table as well.

“Please, Lady Lunafreya, as much as I appreciate the offer, you look exhausted.”

“I- thank you.” She sighed, sitting down gratefully. She was actually rather drained, and Noct didn’t look much better. His face was now pillowed in his arms on the table, and he looked asleep already.

“Noct,” she said quietly, poking him in the cheek. He merely grumbled and pulled away from her finger. “Ignis is cooking dinner for us, wake up.”

“No, sleepy,” he whined, eyes still firmly closed, she couldn’t help but giggle.

“Noct,” she tried to say it firmly, but it was obvious she was trying not to laugh. “Ignis is cooking a delicious meal for us, you should try and stay away for that, at least.”

“Lady Lunafreya, you are wasting your time. He-“ Ignis froze as Noct yawned and sat up, rubbing his eyes sleepily. “My word.”

Ignis turned back to the kitchen and resumed cooking dinner. I suppose there really is a first time for everything, he thought to himself as he chopped onions, smiling at the sounds of giggling and sleepy roughhousing coming from behind him.

Chapter Text

With some difficulty, Noct managed to crawl in beside Prompto, who had sprawled over the small mattress, taking up every bit of space available. For a few moments, Noct was almost tempted to bunk with Gladio. Prompto grumbled in his sleep after Noct finally settled in, an arm snaking out to wrap around Noct’s middle. Noct rolled his eyes, snuggling into the warmth.

Noct felt like he had only closed his eyes for a minute when the sudden jerking of Prompto’s limbs jarred him from sleep. Prompto jerked upright with a yelp, gasping for breath. Noct rolled, propping himself onto his elbows.

“You okay?” he asked, searching Prompto’s wild eyes.

“Huh?” Prompto jumped, as if he hadn’t realised Noct was there, then looked over at his friend.

“Bad dream?”

“Y-yeah.”

“Coeurl?” Noct guessed.

“Uhh…” Prompto’s eyes darted to his leather-covered wrist, holding it with his other hand. Oh, Noct realised. That dream.

“I d-don’t remember,” Prompto mumbled, looking down at the bed.

“Prom,” Noct began. “You know you can tell me anything, right? I’m here if you need me.”

There was silence. Prompto’s brow crinkled and his lips pressed together into a thin line.

“Thanks, I know.” He flopped back, looking upwards at the slats of the bunk above them. Noct lay back also, turning to face Prompto, leaning his head on one hand.

“Are you feeling okay?” Noct asked. “You got pretty messed up today.”

“Mmm, yeah. A bit achy, but not so bad.” His hand went to his bandaged chest, and he pulled a face when he realised there was still dried blood on him.

“Go have a shower if you want, no one will mind,” Noct said.

“You think? I don’t want to wake everyone up…” He frowned, looking unsure.

“Go on, everyone is dead to the world, no one will even notice. Ignis put one of your shirts over there.” He jerked his thumb to the pile beside their bed. “Also there are rice balls in the fridge if you’re-” Noct was cut off as a yawn forced its way out.

“Thanks, you go back to sleep,” Prompto smiled.

Noct hummed, lowering his head, his eyes already closed. Prompto snorted.

“Like you need to be told twice,” Noct heard him whisper as he felt the blond climb over him. He fell asleep sometime after the water started running, and didn’t recall Prompto coming back to bed. He roused briefly sometime later, to fine Prompto already asleep, his head pressed into Noct’s chest.

“Where to, Noct?” Gladio asked, glancing at Noct in the rear vision mirror of the Regalia.

Noct leaned on a hand, frowning. He’d been wondering that himself. He was getting a little muddled if he was honest, trying to remember what he had and hadn’t done yet; and he knew it shouldn’t be this hard. Despite all the waiting they had done at the Disc, it felt like he hadn’t stopped moving in years. The more he thought about it, the more everything jumbled up and it got harder to grab a particular memory. There was definitely another Tomb in Leide, at some mines he couldn’t remember the name of. He grimaced at the thought of collecting another Royal Arm so soon. They had come across the mine last time, completely by chance, he couldn’t even remember why they had gone down - looking for treasure probably. Their first trip had been so much more carefree…

A hand touched his knee and he jumped when his eyes focused on Luna. Fuck, he thought, a tremble starting in his hands.

“Noct?” she said softly her eyes full of concern.

“Oh Gods,” Noct whispered, leaning forward and pressing his palms into his eyes. He had actually forgotten for a moment that Luna was here. He didn’t like this feeling; it was jarring and he suddenly felt nauseous.

“Perhaps, it would be best if we made way to Hammerhead to refuel and gather our bearings,” Ignis suggested. Noct nodded, his face still in his hands.

“Hey, I’m happy with going to Hammerhead,” Prompto said, and Noct could imagine his big grin.

“Of course you are,” Gladio teased.

“Whats in Hammerhead?” Luna asked.

“You mean ‘who’,” Gladio corrected.

“No, nothing, no one,” Prompto spluttered. “I just like it there.”

“Oooh.” Luna was definitely grinning now too.

Prompto let out a strangled noise and went quiet, Luna muffling a snigger.

“Do you have a photo of this mystery no one?” she asked innocently.

“No,” Prompto stammered, way too quickly.

“Cindy is nice, you should’ve just asked to take a photo with her,” Gladio said innocently.

“Cindy, huh?” Luna was giggling again.

“Shut up.” Prompto’s voice was muffled, as if he was hiding his face.

“You two would make a charming couple. In fact, I dare say you’d be picture perfect,” Ignis chimed in. “I certainly can’t wait to see how this develops.”

Noct snorted, as Gladio and Luna burst into laughter. Noct lifted his head just enough to see Prompto trying to disappear into the seat. Of course, he could always trust in them to bring him back and calm him down.

By the time they arrived in Hammerhead, Noct had a plan. Cindy was dusting her hands and walking up to them as they pulled in.

“Thought I recognised that beautiful engine purr,” Cindy cooed, patting the bonnet fondly as everyone got out.

“Howdy, y'all” She straightened, her face serious. “I’m glad to see y'all made it. Awful news about Insomnia.”

“Uh, thanks, Cindy,” Noct said.

“Oh my!” She froze as she spotted Luna. “If it isn’t Lady Lunafreya herself. It’s nice to see the news of your death has been greatly exaggerated. It’s nice to meet ya!” She paused with a cheeky smile. “Does this mean the weddin’ is still on? Because your fiancé didn’t seem sure when I last spoke to him.”

Noct made a weird choking nose. He looked down, one hand messing anxiously with his hair as Luna flushed slightly, and cleared her throat.

“It’s rather complicated,” she said.

“Ah, that’s what he said too,” Cindy winked. She moved on, running her hand along the Regalia once more. “So what can I do for ya today? Need some gas?”

“Indeed, we’re running a little low,” Ignis said as Noct leaned over the drivers side and grabbed the map from the car.

“How about we head over and grab some lunch at Takka’s?”

Ignis raised an eyebrow.

“Does that mean you have a destination in mind, Noct?”

“Yeah, I do.” He smiled, booping Ignis on the shoulder with the map and spun heading towards the diner.

“Yeah, lunch time! I’m coming!” Prompto called, running after Noct, Luna following after.

“He certainly sounds like he’s feeling better,” Ignis said to Gladio, as they hung back to pay Cindy for the fuel.

“Just needed some time to focus,” Gladio said with a nod.

Ignis just hummed thoughtfully.

“What about you?” Gladio asked. “I noticed you’ve been quiet. Are you finding it strange that Noct knows what he’s doing?”

“It was certainly an unexpected turn of events, especially happening so suddenly.” Ignis folded his arms, looking off into the distance. It took him a moment, but Gladio soon realised where Ignis’ mind was probably wondering.

“So how are you going with everything else?” he tried to ask casually, shoving his hands into his pockets. Ignis glanced at him and quirked one eyebrow, then looked away and sighed.

“One day at a time Gladio. What more can any of us do really?”

“You’re right about that,” Gladio agreed. “It still seems so unreal. I guess, maybe because we haven’t seen it with our own eyes.”

“That, and we’ve hardly stopped a moment to take it all in, not really.”

“And we probably won’t.”

“At least you have Iris waiting for you in Lastallum,” Ignis said with a reassuring smile, as he placed a hand on Gladios shoulder, but even Gladio could see the sadness there.

“Yeah…” He trailed off, not sure what more he could say. All attempts to contact Ignis’ uncle had failed, and with no other family, Ignis was now alone - aside from them, of course. Gladio was grateful every day that his sister had survived, as Noct had said she would. They had some cousins and an aunt, their mother’s sister, but Iris had not heard from them. Gladio tried not to think too hard about it.

“All done,” Cindy said, her voice much gentler than usual as she sensed the seriousness of the moment she was walking into.

Ignis handed over the Gil with his thanks, and the two headed for the diner. Noct had the map open, his face serious as he pored over it.

“So Noct, is the grub here any good?” Gladio asked as they joined the table.

“Oh yeah,” he replied without looking up. “It’s spicy, you’ll love it.”

Gladio, Noct and Prompto all ordered the jambalaya, while Luna and Ignis both ordered the chili con carne. Ignis was clearly impressed with his choice, as he pulled his notebook out partway and began scribbling notes in a way that had all the men smiling knowingly. Once they were done eating, Noct pulled the map out once more.

“First, I think we should help Cindy and Takka out with a few jobs here,” he began. “Do a hunt or two, earn some cash for the trip.” He pointed to a spot on the map just South of Callaegh Steps. “There’s a tomb here, at a place called the Balouve Mines.” He chewed his lip, looking up at each of them. “It’s going to be tough- there’s a pretty nasty Daemons in there.”

     “We’ve taken on a Behemoth, and the Archaean,” Gladio said confidently. “Not to mention we have Luna and the Ring of Lucii. Where is that by the way? How come you’re not wearing it?”

Noct’s eyes darkened and he looked down.

“There’s a reason for that,” he muttered, his hand automatically going to his pocket, where the ring sat heavily. More heavily than it should have.

“Yeah?” Gladio completely failed to take the hint that Noct wasn’t interested in talking about it. Noct sighed, bringing his hand away from his pocket and started unconsciously messing with his hair.

“I’ll put it on when I need it,” he said firmly, not meeting Gladio’s eyes.

With lunch finished, and everyones mouths happily burning from all the chilli, Noct headed off to tell Cindy they were ready for those jobs.

“Thanks, Prince,” Cindy said with a grin, “We don’t get too many hunters this way, so we’ve been waiting a while for someone to come a long and take care of these varmints. We had one fella, named Dave, but he went and busted his ankle, so he had to leave.”

“Oh.” Noct cleared his throat. “Is he okay?”

“Yeah, he’s fine. Had to hole up in some old shed for a couple of days before someone could get out there and rescue him, though.”

“Ah, that sucks,” Noct said, feeling bad. “Well, we’ll get right onto these.”

Cindy was giving him another funny look.

“Okay then, good luck!” she said, offering one last smile.

***

By the time they had taken care of the last group of Reapertails, Noct was sweating. It was hot, but thankfully the monsters were easy enough, even without Luna and Ignis. Luna had been caught up healing some people that had approached, begging her to heal them, and Ignis had decided to stay incase there was any trouble. Even without her usual Oracle garb, Luna still stood out. Most people in Eos recognised her - she was, and always would be, a symbol of peace and hope for the people. As she had pointed out - even while apologising to Noct - people would approach her, and she couldn’t turn them away.

“I would never ask you to,” he said, squeezing her hand.

“The word of my being here is spreading. The Empire will send soldiers after you.”

“Let them send their soldiers. We’re not leaving you alone again.”

Wiping his forehead as the last Reapertail fell, Noct straightened, stretching his back.

“Not a problem,” Prompto said dramatically blowing into his gun as it dematerialised.

“What about the big one?” Gladio asked.

“Not here. The Dualhorn is a bit further that way,” Noct said, pointing to the hills off in the distance.

“Three Valleys? Do we have time to get that far before evening?” Gladio asked frowning.

“We’ll be fine, it’s not as far as it looks,” Noct shrugged, and started walking.

As they approached, Prompto whistled, apparently half impressed, half afraid.

“Now thats a big guy, look at him go,” Prompto said, half-hiding behind Gladio.

The disturbed beast was shaking, strange light coming from its eyes.

“I see what she meant,” Gladio said as they creeped around the side of the rock. “That is a vicious looking Dualhorn. Lets go take care of it.”

“I was thinking,” Noct said, putting a hand on Gladio’s shoulder to stop him. “I might try using my Armiger this time.”

“You mean, like when your weapons went all haywire without you meaning them to?” Prompto asked.

“That wasn’t really…” He paused. “That’s only supposed to happen with the Royal Arms, and I’ve always been in control before. Those other times… that was… intense magic. Way out of my control, not like bringing out my regular weapons and attacking.” Noct frowned. “I’ve honestly have no idea why it keeps happening. I haven’t tried using the Royal Arms in case the same thing happens, but they’re so powerful, I’d be putting us at a disadvantage if I didn’t try.”

Gladio clapped his hand on Noct’s shoulder.

“Go on then, we’ll be right behind you.”

“Right…”

Noct stepped forward, tugging at his power as he went. It sure felt different with the Royal Arms; he’d almost forgotten. He pulled out each of the three weapons he had in his arsenal, giving them a test swing. Feeling the power flow, drawing on it and channeling his concentration. Throwing a dagger to one of the higher cliff edges, he hung for a moment, waiting for the right moment.

He jumped, drawing the Axe of the Conqueror. His Armiger exploded to life around him, but this time, it was the Royal Arms under his control. The rush of energy had him feeling giddy, and he shot forward, throwing the halberd and grabbing it mid air, landing with all his weight on the beast’s back.

The Axe vanished, and the Sword of the Wise took its place. Meanwhile, the spectral forms of the other two Arms were taking their toll on the creature; it bucked and swayed as the weapons rained down on it. After several slashes with the sword, Noct drew the third weapon and threw it, warping off the Dualhorn and swinging the Greatsword. Magic missiles shot from its end, joining the assault of the Royal Ams still attacking. Noct warped once more and slammed the Blade into the Dualhorn’s side. It fell, crumpling, vulnerable. Noct brought out the Axe again, swinging it up and landing another powerful blow as the Dualhorn roared and flailed in attempts to stand. But it was too late. Just as the energy of the Armiger waned, so did the beast. Noct landed a final critical blow, slicing along its throat and jumping back as its blood sprayed and it grew still. Noct gasped for breath and fell to one knee, his Armiger spun around him a moment more before exploding into light a vanishing.

“The Prince of Pain,” Gladio roared proudly, running forward with Prompto. He pulled him easily to his feet and clapped a hand on his shoulder.

“So cool,” Prompto cried shrilly, his eyes wide with awe.

“Heh, it was nothing,” Noct said.

“So you had control of it?” Prompto asked.

“Yeah.” Noct was smiling; he actually had control the entire time. No weird power drawing from seemingly nowhere, it came and left as it was supposed to. He sagged a little onto Gladio, partly from the relief, and partly exhaustion.

“Let’s go back to Hammerhead,” Noct said. “I’m sure the others are waiting for us.”

Chapter Text

They pulled up to the Balouve Mines, Noct’s fears of what he was getting them into firmly tucked away. He’d spent the last several hours of the drive convincing himself everything was going to be fine, and he almost believed it. Even Prompto’s nervous rambling about the ancient elevator dropping to their death didn’t dent his stubborn determination.

“Watch the mine carts,” Noct warned as they approached the track. “The goblins down here are probably going to mess with us, so stick to the walls.”

Broken carts, boxes, rope and other junk littered the uneven ground, which made for difficult going, even without the added danger of being run down.

“Oh wonderful,” Prompto sighed. “Because I really missed those jump scares from the last cave we were in.”

“Quit whining will you,” Gladio grumbled automatically.

He knew full well that asking the skittish gunner not to not whine was like asking him not to breathe.

Even pre-warned, they all jumped as the first mine cart barrelled down through the shaft towards them. They plastered themselves to the rocky walls and it rolled harmlessly past.

“Cheeky devils, aren’t they?” Ignis muttered, pulling away from the wall. A hand pushed him back, and a gold light flew past his face.

“Watch out!” Luna shouted. One of the Goblins fell to the ground in an explosion of black smoke and sparks of ruby light.

“Thank you. That was close,” Ignis said

“Here come more.” She jabbed her Trident at the first, as it leaped towards them, Ignis calling his pole arm to take care of another.

Further up, the others were similarly distracted, as Goblins seemed to appear from every dark corner. Thankfully, they were easy to handle; the team had barely broken a sweat by the time they were dealt with. They hurried on towards the next threat.

Noct held out a hand to his friends behind him as they approached the track bridging across an open area below.

“This is the place,” he said, ushering them to the sides of the track once more.

And there he was. Aramusha, the warrior Daemon. It stood waiting for them, tall and menacing. The rumble of another mine cart was the cue for Ignis to throw his magic flask - lightning and poison magic, something Noct had spent part of the morning making. The resulting explosion halted the Daemon’s advance, the green blue electricity crackling through the air around the creature. Not wasting any time, Noct threw himself forward with a fierce scream, his magic flowing thick and fast. His Armiger exploded into existence, Royal Arms flying, and he warped fast, striking and then moving again, knowing even one hit from the Daemon could kill him. Eventually the magic slowed, and Noct warped back to his friends, gasping. The Daemon advanced once more, and Gladio and Prompto threw their flasks, Luna unleashing a beam of her own magic into the mix.

“Now what?” Gladio demanded, after their combined explosion of lighting magic subsided, revealing the Daemon down on one knee.

“I was hoping that would make more of an impact,” Noct gasped.

“I feel we should fall back,” Ignis warned. “This Daemon is far above our skill.”

Noct grit his teeth. Yes, they should run. Bringing them here had been a terrible idea; they were outmatched, and thinking he could take care of it with his Armiger and some magic had been foolish. A hand pulled at his shirt, tugging him backwards as the Daemon stood and advanced on them once more.

“Ignis is right, we should try to get out of here.” 

They began to move backwards as a group, only taking their eyes off the Daemon to check they were moving in the right direction.

“ If we draw it into the tunnel behind us, it’s size will put it at a disadvantage,” Ignis said. “But we can’t rely on that. Noct and I will hold him back. Prompto and Lunafreya can you back us up with ranged attacks if it gets too close, Gladio take care of any Goblins.”

A chorus of agreement filled the tunnel, just as the Daemon dashed towards them. Noct jerked forwards and drew his sword as it ducked into the tunnel. Awkwardly pulling its long blade free of its scabbard in the tight space, it rushed at them, and their blades collided. Noct grunted as he absorbed the force of the Daemon’s blow,  Ignis taking the opportunity to jab at its side with his lance. Noct pushed forward and shoved the Daemon away from them, taking the opportunity to put a few paces between them, but Ignis was too slow. As the creature jabbed, Ignis fell backwards with a startled cry.

“Ignis!” Noct moved to help his friend, but Ignis was already getting to his feet, panting. He pulled a potion from his pocket, stumbling backwards out of the Daemons reach. Noct took the hint and drew his sword once more, slicing at the Daemon as it attacked again.

“Are you okay?” Noct called. A shot rang out from his right, causing the creature to flinch back, and allowing Noct to get an attack in.

“I’m okay,” Ignis said, breathing heavily. Noct didn’t dare look back to check, as he struggled to block the Daemon’s attacks.

“We’re running out of tunnel,” Gladio yelled. “We can’t hold him in the open.”

Noct felt the panic growing in his chest. He tried to focus, but all he could think was that his friends were going to die because of him. He had brought them here, trying to do the right thing, trying to make things better.

Then the rage rose from his stomach, swamping his panic. He wouldn’t even be here if everything had just stayed the way it was. He had sacrificed himself, Luna had sacrificed herself, to save the world This was supposed to be a chance to fix everything, but he had fucked it up, had made the wrong choices. He had got overconfident; it seemed like everything had been going well; Luna was with them, they had managed to avoid Ardyn, he even had his stupid ring… 

Noct started, leaving himself vulnerable to attack. Luckily it was an elbow and not a blade that hit his side. He stumbled, but managed to stand in time to block another attack. His breath caught in his throat as he realised their key to victory was in his pocket.

“Get back,” he yelled desperately. “I have a plan, but I need room!” He heard them moving back, thanking the Gods they didn’t argue or ask questions.

“Luna, do you have that last flask?” Noct called. He grunted, only just managing to warp dodge a blow in time.

“Yes I do.”

“Throw it when I say, alright?”

“Okay.”

Noct cried out furiously, shoved all his weight into the creature, shoving it backwards just enough that it lost balance slightly. Noct turned and threw a dagger to a spot just in front of his friends, warping away from the Daemon.

“Luna, now!” He yelled, fumbling for the ring. He held his breath and shoved it on his finger, ignoring the whispers and the shooting pain. Somehow managing to stay on his feet, he held out his hand and begged for it to help them. The magic exploded from the flask as Luna threw it, staggering the Daemon again.

“Get back, further!” he managed to shout to the others. Ruby light sprouted from the ring, latching onto the Daemon, who was moving in slow motion now. The light licked at the creature like fire, draining its life away. Noct felt the power burning up his arm, creeping up his neck. Flecks of ash pulled away from his skin, as lines of molten fire twined around his flesh. The Daemon stepped closer and closer, still in slow motion, its body beginning to waste away. It grew thin as the magic sucked all the life from it. It seemed to take an eternity; Noct wasn’t sure he could hold on. He felt like he was dying, burning fading away to nothing himself. He wanted to scream in pain and fear and frustration - he probably was, he had no control any more. His whole world had narrowed to the Daemon.

And then, finally, there was an explosion of light, and Noct staggered backwards as the rush of the Daemon’s life hit him.

He forced down a scream as the pain in his arm raced through his entire body. The ground tilted, threatening to meet him as he struggled through his darkening vision, his ears ringing as arms grabbed him, stopping him from falling. Then reality rushed back, and his vision cleared. He pulled his arm free and wrenched the ring off. It took all his will not to hurl it as far from him as he could, and to put it back into his pocket.

“Noct?” Ignis said, not sure how he stopped his voice from trembling. His Prince - his friend - was literally burning; his arms, his neck, part of his face were all cracking and burning, the flesh turning grey. The worst part was that Noct wasn’t responding. He’d pulled the ring off, was staring, eyes glassy and dull, crinkled with pain.

The others all rushed forward, wanting to help, wanting to do something. It was agony to watch. Eventually, Noct blinked his eyes moving to meet Ignis’. It was still a long moment before he responded to Ignis’ voice.

Somehow Noct decided he was able to stand now, and pulled away from Ignis’ firm grasp.

“I’m fine,” Noct said hastily, before anyone could ask.

“Dude,” Prompto stammered as he came up behind them. He held his hand out as if he want to grab Noct, or hug him, but was afraid of hurting him. “Your arm, your face… it…”

“It’ll go away,” Noct said, holding his hand out.

Ignis took it gently, watching Noct’s face as he did so. The cracks in his skin glowed like the flesh beneath was on fire, but even as he watched, they started to fade.

“So this is the power of the Ring of Lucii,” Gladio said. He sounded partly in awe, partly horrified.

“Isn’t it wonderful,” Noct said bitterly.

Not sure if any first aid was required, Ignis handed Noct a potion.

Noct took it, drinking the potion down and Ignis noted the sigh of relief. Noct’s eyes were a little clearer, he looked a little steadier.

“Ignis, your arm,” He said, frowning as he prodded the bloody tear in Ignis’ shirt. The Daemon had managed to slice his arm, it had been quite deep, but he’d taken a potion quickly. The cut wasn’t bleeding heavily, but he probably still needed bandaging.

“Typical, always more worried about me when you’re still bleeding,” Noct huffed.

A bandage was passed over and Noct was suddenly fussing over him instead; Ignis’ shirt was off, and his arm was being bandaged. The man who had been burning from the inside only moments ago, fretting about a small wound.

After a short break, Noct lead them further into the mine, taking out the hordes of Goblins along the way. They reached the main area of the mine, huge and open, the rough rock changing to smooth, white, slightly damp stone. It went down, huge slabs of stone cut into perfect shelves, where old machinery sat, old and rusting. And the mine went further down still, stairs an ladders that lead down into the darkness.

“Please don’t tell me we have to go down there?” Prompto whimpered, eyes wide as he looked down into the never-ending darkness.

“No, thank the Gods. Down this way,” Noct said leading them down a ladder and across a ledge.

“It was somewhere over… ah!” He spotted the crevice in the white stone. “Through here, it’s a tight squeeze.”

“You sure I’m going to fit through there?” Gladio asked incredulously.

“Yeah don’t worry, you’ll fit, big guy,” Noct said, a grin tugging at his lips as Gladio raised a disbelieving eyebrow.

On the other side was a much smaller tunnel, which led to an area where water pooled on the ground. Prompto and Noct both grumbled about wet socks as they sloshed through the water, but their reward stood clear in front of them. Another tomb entrance, built into the rough stone wall.

The key retrieved and the door open, the others were surprised when Noct marched up to the tomb. Squeezing his eyes shut and gritting his teeth, he reached out to the crossbow without hesitation. It glowed blue, lifting up in the air, and Noct flinched as it slammed into his chest, shattering into the crystal-like magic shards that always accompanied Noct’s weaponry.

Gasping, Noct opened his eyes.

“I’m good,” he said, not looking up at anyone. “Let’s get out of here.”

Ignis was the first to move, putting an arm around the exhausted-looking prince. Noct looked up, surprised, and smiled gratefully as he leaned into the other man.

“Let us make haste then shall we?” Ignis said.

“And say goodbye to this creepy mine forever,” Prompto added cheerfully.

“Hopefully forever,” Noct said with a sigh. “Although there are still more caves with tombs in them for us to enjoy later.”

“Nooo!” Prompto wailed dramatically.

“Yep, all part of the fun. Let’s try something a little easier next though,” Noct added with a grin.

“Does that mean we can go see my sis now?” Gladio asked.

“Yeah, let’s go to Lestallum.” Noct agreed. It was the obvious next step, and it would be nice to rest a little. Noct felt relief at that thought, until another occurred to him, one that made him freeze, panic sliding down his spine like ice at the sudden realisation. Ignis looked at him with concern.

There was a very good chance that when they got to Lestallum, Ardyn might be waiting there for them.

Chapter Text

It was pitch black outside by the time they left the mine. Noct groaned unhappily from Ignis’ shoulder as they stood in the mouth of the cave and stared out at the dark world.

“All this time in caves is really messing with my internal clock.” Prompto pouted. “Now what?”

Noct wanted to think of something helpful, he really did, but he was so tired, and thinking was proving difficult.

“Camping?” he supplied unhelpfully.

“I don’t suppose you remember if there are any Havens nearby, buddy?” Prompto asked with a lopsided smile.

Noct shrugged.

“Sorry.”

“I think I remember seeing one,” Luna said, a thoughtful look crossing her brow. “I don’t think it was far from here.”

“Perhaps it would be safer staying here until morning. We could lock ourselves in the elevator?” Ignis suggested.

Prompto looked ill at that idea, but said nothing.

“So either we make a run for it and hope we come across a Haven, that may or may not be there, or lock ourselves in the millennia-old, suspended death cage overnight?” Gladio summarised. 

“I regret my lack in foresight in not securing sleeping arrangements in case of this eventuality,” Ignis said with a sigh.

“Why don’t we just stay here?” Noct grumbled. “There’s plenty of room, it’s sheltered, and we can run into the death cage if we need to?” All this decision-making was taking away from potential sleep time.

“Easy for you to say, sleeping beauty, since you clearly won’t be taking first watch,” Gladio said with an amused huff.

Prompto groaned in frustration.

“The car is like, right there!” He gestured sadly out into the darkness.

“Well, it’s not like we can sleep in the car,” Gladio pointed out.

“No, but it has all our stuff in it. It has all our food in it,” Prompto said.

“Not all of the food,” Ignis said. “I brought enough provisions for the night.”       

“It has our sleeping bags in it,” Prompto pointed out.

“Yes, well, there is that,” Ignis admitted.

Noct, having had enough of this conversation, pulled away from Ignis’ arm, walked over to a cave wall, and sat down.

“Wake me up when you decide,” he said, leaning back and promptly closing his eyes.

“I guess that settles it,” Luna said, looking down at him fondly.

In the end Gladio and Ignis decided to make a quick dash to the car to grab the sleeping bags. They were forced to run like hell back to the cave as an Iron Giant pulled itself out of the ground in the distance. It was not something they wanted to mess with.

Prompto cheered loudly as they returned with backpacks and sleeping bags, causing both the men to shush him and shove him further into the cave.

“There are Daemons out there if you hadn’t noticed,” Gladio hissed shoving a pack into the abashed blond’s arms. “Use your head!”

Sleeping bags were laid out; Noct roused long enough to crawl into one and immediately go back to sleep. Rations were passed around, and Luna tried to get Noct to stay awake long enough to eat, but it was hopeless. They sat in a close circle and ate, chatting quietly until Luna offered to take the first watch so everyone else could sleep.

***

“Hey Noct?” Prompto’s hopeful face popped into Noct’s view from the back seat. They’d only just piled into the car, with Noct driving, Ignis tugged on Prompto’s jacket.

“Please stop distracting him, I’d prefer to survive this trip.”

“I was wondering,” Prompto started, batting Ignis’ hands away. “Could we maybe take a photo with that cool mountain in the background? I’ve never seen anything like it before.”

“That’s because it’s a giant turtle,” Noct muttered under his breath.

“What?” asked Prompto, leaning closer.

“Yeah, you can take a photo, I’ll pull over when we get a bit closer.” Noct waved a hand at Prompto. “Sit down, you’re giving Ignis a heart attack.”

“Yes, thanks man!” Prompto cheered, plopping back into his seat and pulled his camera out. 

***

“A what?!” Prompto paused in flicking through his photos to look at Noct in the mirror, disbelief clearly written on his features.

“A turtle,” Noct repeated with a grin.

“No way,” Prompto said in awe.

“I’m serious, a giant fricking turtle.”

“I don’t even… But how?”

“Dunno, it just came up one day and started thrashing around causing earthquakes.”

“And we somehow fought and won a battle against a turtle mountain?”

“Sure did.”

“Again… How?”

“With great difficulty.”

“But we won, that’s… incredible.”

“Yeah, it was pretty amazing.”

***

Noct was mid yawn when Ignis spoke up.

“How about we stop for lunch?” he suggested, a little too eagerly.

Noct rolled his eyes. “I’m not yawning because I’m tired, Iggy!” he grumbled. “You have so little faith in my driving.”

“Tired or not, it’s a good idea for the driver to occasionally take a break and stretch, and it is actually lunch time.”

“Fine, sure,” Noct said, looking around for a good spot to stop.

It was nice to be back in the lush green forests of Duscae, rolling hills, sweeping plains and plenty of…

Noct slammed on the brakes harder than he’d intended, and pulled onto the side of the road.

“Here! Here’s a good spot, let’s go,” he said suddenly full of energy.

Gladio, who had been rudely awoken by the sudden stop, punched Noct grumpily in the arm.

“What the hell,” he growled. “You trying to kill us?”

“Iggy wanted to stop for lunch,” he said as he got out of the car. “Wake us up and all that…I’m going for a walk.” He called back already walking away from the car.

“Wait, what about…” Ignis sighed, not bothering to finish as Noct was already gone.

“What got into him all of a sudden?” Luna asked.

Noct was practically jogging by the time he heard the tell-tale sound of water. It was a siren song calling to him, and he was more than happy to comply. Trotting to the end of the small jetty he pulled out his fishing rod and let the lure fly with a contented sigh. Nothing in this world made him feel this relaxed this quickly. Just 15 minutes, he reasoned with himself, then they would continue on to Lestallum and see Iris and the others. He just wanted this, for 15 minutes.

***

“He needs this,” Ignis said calmly sipping from his mug. They’d followed Noct and found him happily fishing. They left him to it, walking back to the wooden shelter near the car to make lunch, and more importantly, coffee.

“I think we all could use a breather,” Luna agreed, laying back against the log. She smiled as the sun warmed her, slight breeze tugging at her hair; everything smelled so fresh here.

“Sounds good to me, as long as none of those huge bugs come back,” Prompto said, with a whole body shiver. “I mean, what even were those things? They were huge… ugh…”

“Yeah, they were pretty gross,” Gladio said with a laugh.

There was a moment of silence.

“Maybe one of us should go check on Noct,” suggested Prompto. “You know what he’s like when he’s fishing - a monster could be eating his leg, and he probably wouldn’t notice unless it knocked the rod out of his hand.”

Ignis opened his mouth to argue, but then seemed to think better of it.

“You raise a valid point,” he conceded.

Gladio snapped his book shut and stood.

“I’ll go,” he said “I’ll make sure he comes back before dark, maybe scout out a Haven for the night, just in case?”

“Sure, sounds like a good idea,” Ignis said with a nod.

***

Noct whooped triumphantly as he reached down to pull another fish out of the water.

“Puny, just like yours,” Gladio called from behind him.

Noct gave a startled yelp, almost dropping the fish back into the water. He turned and glared at the older man, who was sitting against a rock, book open in his lap.

“How long have you been sitting there?” Noct hissed, grabbing his chest.    

Gladio looked down at his phone.

“Three hours,” he shrugged.

“Wait.” Noct looked around, only just realising how late it was getting. “Three hours? I’ve been out here for that long?”

Gladio snorted with laughter, getting to his feet.

“Noct, you’ve been fishing for over five hours. The others found a campground a little south-east of here. They’ve started setting up.”

“Why did you let me… We have to go to Lestallum,” Noct said, looking from Gladio to the sun in confusion.

“I know, we just thought you needed a minute. We all needed a minute,” he said, clapping his hand on Noct’s shoulder reassuringly.

“I guess,” Noct frowned.

“It’ll be okay. Come on, how about we get these fish back to Iggy for dinner.”

Noct nodded, and passed a few of the fish up to Gladio.

The walked in silence for some time, until they were almost back at the wooden shelter.

“You okay?” Gladio asked suddenly. “That was pretty intense yesterday, and you haven’t really said anything, about it, you know, since.”

Noct was surprised that Gladio, of all people, was asking him.

“I’m fine.”

Gladio raised an eyebrow. Of course, getting Noct to talk about what he was feeling was about as easy as getting him to eat beans. But he could see Noct wasn’t fine - Gladio himself was far from fine. Noct acted as if most things didn’t worry him, but he wasn’t as good at hiding it as he thought he was.

“Bullshit. That was some fucking bizarre shit back there, in the mine. You looked like you were burning from the inside.” Gladio frowned. “I was useless, and I don’t like being useless, kinda goes against my whole line of work you know?” he said, nudging the shorter man with his arm. “And I’m… I’m sorry, I had no idea about the ring, and all that.”

Noct stayed silent, wishing suddenly he was still fishing again. It was so much easier to just not think about all this stuff.

“It’s okay,” he said firmly realising the silence was stretching out too long.

It stretched out further still, as they headed down the path past the wooden shelter.

“Other me must have been a real jerk, huh?” Gladio said. “I mean, since he didn’t know what I know. He would have been pushing you to keep moving, and other you was probably being a brat about it.” He looked over to Noct to see how close he was. Noct didn’t look up, his face more obscured by his hair than usual. Very close then, Gladio decided.

“I bet we got into some real interesting fights, huh?” Gladio continued.

Noct’s lips had drawn into a thin line. Gladio sighed, and they continued the rest of the walk in silence.

“Hey, there you are!” Prompto’s cheerful greeting brought a smile to Noct’s face.

“Yeah, I brought fish… “

Everything had been set up. Gladio must have let the others know the fishing had was going well because Ignis had even started cooking, just waiting on the fish to finish dinner. Noct sat down to prepare them right away.

“Where’s Luna?” Noct asked, as he pulled out the fish’s guts.

“She’s resting in her tent. She was up rather late last night, as she took the first watch,” Ignis said.

“Yeah, that’s fair enough.” Noct passed the first fish to Ignis, who stuffed it with something and wrapped it ready to go on the fire.

***

“You weren’t a jerk,” Noct said quietly later that night. Gladio was sitting next to him, and Luna and Ignis were chatting while Prompto tapped furiously at his phone screen.

“Huh?” Gladio looked away from his own phone over to Noct. The Prince was hugging his knees, starring moodily into the flames,

“You still thinking about that?” he teased.

“Change my mind, you are a jerk,” Noct said with a grin. But it slowly faded as he tightened the grip on his legs. “We did fight a lot, but I know I was being a brat, we didn’t know what we know now, and that’s just how you deal with stuff. You just wanted me to get on with it and do my job, because that’s your job.”

“And yesterday?” Gladio pressed.

There was silence for a moment, and they only sounds they could hear were the crackling of the fire and the quiet chatting amongst the others.

“I actually don’t know,” Noct admitted.

He traced the outline of small black tattoo, the Archaean’s mark, on his currently bare wrist with his finger.

“I’ve gotten to this stage where it doesn’t feel like what I feel really matters anymore. I have to keep moving, and trying to make the right decisions,” he said finally.

“Of course what you feel matters.”

“Does it though? What does it matter? I’ve got to go off and do my job, it’s certainly not going to matter when I’m dead.”

“Because you’re here now, and you’re a person, and you matter.”

“Sometimes I don’t feel like a person. Sometimes I feel like an object, something with a purpose, something the Astrals are going to use, and that’s all.”

“You’re no object,” Gladio said quietly. “You got dealt a shitty hand, but you still have us, and we all want to be here. None of us are happy about what is supposed to happen. We all just want to be here with you, and for you, until the end.”

Noct was pressing his face into his knees now.

“Shit,” the younger man hissed, a quiet sob escaping, his knuckles white from squeezing them against his legs.

Gladio sighed. This wasn’t his thing; this was Ignis’ or Prompto’s thing, but he was getting softer the longer this trip went on, and it was getting harder to watch Noct pushing himself and being so hard on himself. He would have laughed if someone had told him he’d get this soft a few months ago. He scooted over to Noct and put an arm around the trembling prince’s shoulder, pulling the man closer. He slowly uncurled from his foetal position and leant into Gladio.

“I can’t say it’ll be okay in the end, but it’s okay now. We’re here, we’ve all got you,” Gladio said quietly.

Ignis looked over questioningly at him, and Gladio just shrugged. Ignis nodded in response, a small smile on his lips, as he picked up a warm jacket from Noct’s belongings. Bringing it over, he settled around the prince’s shoulders.

“It’s getting rather cold out here,” Ignis said in explanation. It was, too. The air felt heavy and damp, and as it got later it got colder.

Noct agreed. He was snuggling into Gladio now; the huge man was practically a walking space heater.

“Noct, Gladio!” Prompto yelled, he jumped up, waving his phone around. “You got to help me take out this group of mages, come on.”

Noct, not willing to move from his warm spot, wiped at his face, and pulled his phone out of his pocket, booting up King’s Knight. Gladio grinned and pulled out his own, using Noct’s head as an arm rest.

Eventually Luna retired to her tent, and the boys all gave her their extra blankets so she would be warm enough on her own.

“Don’t worry,” Prompto said with a grin. “We have Gladdy - he sleeps like an oven.”

The man in question grunted sleepily and wandered off to the tent, waving a hand in farewell as he went.

Noct and Prompto traded glances and raced to the tent to try and get the warmest spot next to the warrior. Ignis, suddenly alone, sighed contentedly. He tidied up the last few things before making his own way to the tent. Ignis couldn’t help but smile at the sight that greeted him: Gladio, already asleep, lay on his back with Prompto and Noct curled up on either side of him. Noct, still awake, mumbled a goodnight to Ignis as the man removed his outerwear and crawled inside his sleeping bag.

"Goodnight, your highness."

Chapter Text

Something roused Noct the next morning. He wasn’t sure what it was, but he was happy to ignore it and go back to sleep when it occurred to him he really should get up and get everyone moving on to Lestallum.

He was curled up beside Gladio, who was still asleep, his snores rumbling through the tent. Yawning, Noct blinked his eyes and tried to wake himself up. He crawled to the door of the tent and unzipped it, stumbling out into the way-to-bright morning light.

“Good morning, Noct,” Ignis said. He was sipping coffee and stirring something in a pot, something that smelt amazing and instantly made Noct’s stomach rumble in anticipation.

“You’re up early,” the older man observed.

“Yeah, was just thinking we should get moving,” Noct explained, moving over to the pot to peer inside.

“It’s porridge, and it’s not ready yet,” Ignis said, swatting the prince away.

“Oh, it smells different than usual.”

“I found some new berries and spices nearby,” Ignis said sitting a little straighter. His eyes were practically sparkling.

“Ah, would you um… say you’ve come up with a new recipeh?” Noct asked a smirk tugging at his lips.

Ignis narrowed his eyes at Noct.

“I would indeed.”

“Well, I can’t wait to try it,” Noct grinned. “So where are Prompto and Luna anyway?”

“Went for a morning jog,” Ignis said.

Whatever else he had to say was cut off by a shriek behind them. It echoed off the trees and had both Ignis and Noct standing at attention. Another shriek brought a half dressed Gladio stumbling out of the tent, a sword materialising in his hand.

“What’s going on?” he yelled.

Then Noct saw Prompto tearing through a gap in the trees, running straight for the Haven. Behind him Luna was… laughing?

“Help me!” Prompto screamed. “She’s horrible, she’s a maniac.”

“What the hell Prompto, are you fucking kidding me?” Gladio roared at the realisation that no one was actually dying.

Prompto reached the Haven, climbing it faster than Noct had ever seen him, and grabbing onto Noct and using him as a human shield.

“Don’t you dare,” Prompto yelled out at Luna, who had a mischievous grin on her face as she wave something huge around in her arms. It was long, like a stick? Noct looked down at Prompto, who was smiling, but also looked kind of terrified. Luna scrambled up the Haven and suddenly the two were running around Noct, giggling and squealing like children.

“Get it away, oh my god! Noct, help me!” Prompto wailed.

“Oh for…” Gladio growled, lifting Prompto up by the back of his shirt as Noct grabbed Luna, pinning her arms to her sides.

Noct snatched the thing out of her hands and instantly burst into laughter, effectively letting Luna free, who was also laughing.

“That is so fucking gross,” Noct managed between bouts of laughter.

“What is it?” Gladio grumbled, setting Prompto down with a glare.

“It’s one of those centipedle legs, huge monster bug things.”

“Are you kidding me?” Gladio hissed, trying to remain angry while his mouth twitched with a small smile. “I actually thought someone was dying.”

Luna was laughing so hard she was having a hard time standing let alone defending herself.

“Can we just throw it away now?” Prompto asked.

Noct waved cheekily it in Prompto’s direction before tossing it over the edge of the Haven.

“Gross, I think it dripped on me,” Noct complained, wiping his hand on his shirt.

“You are horrible!” Prompto said, pointing a finger at Luna. “This is what I get for letting you come on my jog with me.”

“Imagine if I hadn’t been there to help you kill them,” she pointed out with a smirk.

“Yes well… good point. But still, really mean!” He marched off to the tent. “It’s always the nice ones,” he grumbled.

Noct and Luna only had to look at one another before bursting into laughter again.

***

It wasn’t until they had finished packing up the last few things from their camp and Noct was hopping down from the Haven that Noct actually noticed the ruins.

“Oh, I know where we are,” he said. “Some old ruins, C-Cas…? Costle-somthing? There’s a Royal Arm here.”

“Should we retrieve it while we’re here?” Ignis asked, pausing beside Noct.

“What…? Oh hell no. You think Balouve Mines was hard? This place is a nightmare. Besides we can only get inside when it’s dark out.” Noct continued walking. “Nope, no way, we’ll come back.”

“Yeah, Luna and I saw that place up close when we were jogging this morning,” Prompto said as he walked up beside them. “It looked really weird, and there was this bridge over a pit and it just went down forever. We couldn’t see the bottom.”

“Well, you can get a closer look at how deep it is, later. Way later.” Noct said, leaving them to continue on with the car.

“Great, can’t wait,” Prompto cried sarcastically after him.   

Noct reached the car, almost dropping the equipment he was carrying when he saw Luna slumped over the door of the car.

“Hey,” he called out, placing everything on the ground and dashing to her side. “What’s the matter? You okay?”

Luna attempted to stand. She was pale, her face contorted into a grimace, one hand on her chest.

“I’ll be fine in a moment,” she said between gasping breaths.

Frowning, Noct placed a hand on her back, unsure how to help. She whimpered and turned, leaning into him, pushing her face into his chest.

“It’s okay,” Noct said, wrapping his arms around her, one hand rubbing her back gently. “I’ve got you.”

Eventually her breathing calmed and she turned her head to the side, letting out a long sigh.

“Luna?” Noct pressed, waiting for an explanation.

“Please don’t worry, I’m fine now.”

“No, I am worried. What’s going on?”

She closed her eyes, not quite ready to leave to comfort of Noct’s arms.

“Noct, we already spoke of this,” she said calmly, one hand tightening its grip on his shirt.

“No… this is to do with the Covenants?” his voice sad and soft. He pressed his face into her hair.

“Yes.”

Noct said nothing. What could he say? Mostly he just wanted to scream.

There were noises behind them, and the others appeared with their own arms full of camping equipment.

“Is everything okay?” Prompto asked hesitantly.

“I was feeling unwell,” Luna said, pulling away from Noct. Squeezing his hand in thanks, she turned to Prompto. “I’m okay now though.”

“Oh, take it easy, huh?” Prompto said, moving to the car.

“I’ll try, thank you.”

Noct tossed the equipment into the car, attempting a forced smile as Luna looked over at him.

“That’s the last of it, let’s move,” Gladio said shutting the boot and climbing into the front seat. “My turn to drive.”

Noct, Luna, and Prompto piled into the back, while Ignis took the passenger seat beside Gladio and pulled up the map to see how far they were from Lestallum.

“I doubt we’ll make it tonight,” he said. “It’s still quite some way. I believe the best we can hope for is lodgings at this service station in Cauthess.”

Still unsettled from his conversation with Luna, Noct just nodded. He settled back in the seat, feeling exhausted all of a sudden. Thoughts and worries spinning around in his head. He tried focusing on just today, driving to the service station; he tried to remember what it looked like, what was there. He couldn’t really remember. just vaguely recalled the huge stone archways that were all around Cauthess. With a sigh, he closed his eyes. Maybe he would just have a nap.

***

A screech of tires tore Noct from sleep, gravity throwing him to the side as the car swerved and Luna and Prompto slammed into him. His head smacked into something as the car skidded to a halt.

Noct groaned, vision fuzzy, heart racing.

“What…?“

“Shit, sorry. Imperials!” Gladio growled. Car doors slammed.

“It seems we have been found,” Ignis announced unnecessarily.

Noct scrambled for his door handle, Luna right behind him as he jumped from the car.

The huge airship overhead ahead was already leaving the area. The MTs it had deposited in their path, at least a dozen of them, swung their weapons menacingly.

They had been lucky, Noct realised. So far this had been the only Niflheim to jump them. He pulled a weapon free. He knew this would probably be the start of constant imperial interruptions.

“Let’s do this!” Noct shouted, looking around at the other briefly to see if everyone was ready to go.

With a cry he warped, launching himself into the closest MT. A spray of enemy bullets hit the ground around him, but he avoided it all, slashing his sword and striking a second MT that came up behind him.

He grunted as a sword nicked his arm, and a second sliced past his face as he warp dodged backwards. Crouching, he pulled out the halberd and heaved around it in a circle, taking out multiple pairs of legs. He jumped in the air, bringing the axe down and slammed it into the MT. Not stopping to rest, he brought it down on the second he had knocked over, both sparking ruby light and releasing black smoke.

Looking around briefly, he warped into the next MT with his sword, the force from his strike slamming them both to the ground. Noct jumped to his feet, but was immediately knocked to the side as something slammed into him.

Gasping as his breath was knocked from his lungs, he tried to roll onto his hands and knees, only to be flipped over, an MT leaning over him with its axe raised above its head. Noct kicked his feet out frantically, as Gladio’s sword sliced through its neck, cleaving its head from its body. Noct rolled over and staggered to his feet.

“Thanks man,” Noct gasped. He pulled a sword out once more and they both jumped back into the fray. Noct slashed at an MT, only for it to be blown backwards by the machine Noct had given Prompto,which he had dubbed the ‘Bioblaster.’

Noct gave him a thumbs up, and Prompto grinned back as he blew away another. Noct stepped back, realising the battle was almost over. Luna shot a blast of light at one last MT, and it fell to the ground, sparking. Ignis limped over to him.

“Alright there, highness?”

“Yeah, are you okay?” Noct asked quickly.

Ignis waved his concern away.

“Nothing serious, I think I may have caught a stray bullet.”

“Right, not serious at all,” Noct rolled his eyes.

“Woohoo, we’re alive!” Prompto yelled, throwing his arms up in the air triumphantly. “Let’s celebrate by eating something dead!”

Noct laughed, “I guess I could use some lunch.”

“Noct, you’re bleeding,” Luna said, hovering over his arm.

“So are you,” he pointed out, indicating the gash on her shoulder.

“Oh, I didn’t even notice,” she twisted her head to look. “It’s not too bad. Do you need a potion?”

“No, you have it, yours looks worse than mine.”

“Gladio, how about you move the car off the road,” Ignis said, sitting down on a rock, looking pale and shaken. “And retrieve the first aid kit.”

They took a moment to patch each other up, Noct insisting that Ignis take a potion. Luna helped Ignis remove the bullet, speeding up the healing up with her magic. Prompto, who somehow managed to be the only one without injury, wrapped Noct’s arm. Gladio shrugged them off; he had a few grazes, but said he was fine. Wounds tended to, they piled back into the car.

***

Prompto could tell something wasn’t right from the moment they pulled into the service station. They had spent the last few hours of the trip messing around, especially the three in the back. Noct and Prompto had been trying to explain King’s Knight to Luna, both promising to get her a phone as soon as they could.

The sun was going down as they arrived at the service station. Gladio filled up the car, while Ignis and Luna went to enquire about staying in the caravan for the night. Noct had gone quiet, his eyes darting around the place, until he wound up sitting in one of the plastic chairs in front of the food vendors on the other side of the caravan.

Frowning, Prompto pulled some gil from his pocket and purchased some food, bringing it back to the table where Noct was sitting and placing it between them.

“Eat dude, you look wrecked,” Prompto said, picking up some sort of meat on a stick for himself.

Noct started, staring at Prompto for a moment before picking up a fork and stabbing it into the noodles.

“You okay?” Prompto asked. “You’ve been acting weird since we got here.”

The prince paused his chewing, not looking up.

“It’s Ardyn,” he said quietly, and his voice wavered. “Remember I told you he was helping us, guiding me along to get the Astrals, and in the end to the Crystal?” He paused, pushing the food around on his plate. “This was the place we stayed the night, I only just realised when we got here. And… I- I keep seeing him, everywhere…”

Noct dropped his fork, his hands going to his face, rubbing his eyes.

“I’m worried I’m going crazy, or that he’s messing with me. He can change himself to look like anyone, change other people to look like him. He made me do something really bad to you, Prompto. I thought you were him and I pushed you off a moving train.”

Prompto put his hand on Noct’s shoulder.

“It’s okay, I’m here. It doesn’t matter what happened then, everything is different now.”

“I know,” Noct sighed, picking up his fork once more. “We need to just stick together. We can beat him.”

Noct flinched as another hand landed on his shoulder.

“Grub any good?” Gladio asked, swiping a meat stick off their plate.

“Good enough,” Noct said, not looking up.

Ignis and Luna joined them. They bought enough food for everyone, Gladio bought beer, then moved the party to the table in front of the caravan.

It was around the third time Noct thought he saw Ardyn out of the corner of his eye, that Noct swiped one of Gladio’s beers. Popping the top off he took a swig, and immediately wanted to spit it back out, deciding then and there that beer was absolutely disgusting. Gladio roared with laughter at the horrified look on his face and slapped him on the back as Noct forced himself to swallow. He drank the rest of the bottle anyway. He was bored by the end, and now he just wanted something to get the beer taste out of his mouth.

He’d had alcohol before, tall glasses of hideously expensive champagne, in fancy glasses at fancy parties while making boring conversation with dignitaries. He and prompto had snuck sips of liqueur from bottles in the royal kitchens and once they had shared a half bottle of something on the roof of the citadel. A few drinks had been shared over the course of his last road trip, but he’d never tried Gladio’s favourite beer.    

Maybe, he decided, he could get himself a real drink in Lestallum, they had plenty of bars there.

Prompto was tinkering with his Bioblaster when the others decided one by one to go off to bed.

“Geez,” he hissed putting the machine down, “I thought they were never going to go to bed.”

“Huh?” Prompto stood and grabbed Noct’s arm.

“Come on.”

“Where?” Noct was jerked roughly to his feet as Prompto almost wrenched his arm out of his socket.

“Just come!”

“Oookay, fine,” he whined, really not in the mood for Prompto’s games.

Prompto dragged him to the Regalia, pulling keys from his pocket.

“Wait we’re going for a drive?” Noct hissed.

“No, get in.”

Rolling his eyes, Noct climbed into front seat. Prompto got into the other side and sighed, sticking his feet up on the dash.

“So… we’re just sitting here?”

“We’re chilling. Here.” He retrieved a handfuls of tiny bottles from his pockets and deposited them on the dash. “I brought you a present.”

Noct snorted.

“Okay, what the hell Prom?”

“You looked a little disappointed at that beer, so as your best friend, I thought we should fix the problem. I don’t know what half this stuff is, but I bought a whole bunch of different kinds so I’m sure at least a few of them are better than Gladio’s beer.”

Noct was smiling now. Ignis had always been weary of Prompto dragging Noct into trouble when they were kids. He pulled the lever on his seat and leaned back.

“Okay, maybe this was a good idea. Thanks Prom.”

“Don’t thank me yet,” the blond laughed, reaching over to take a bottle. He twisted the top off downed the tiny bottle in one go, wheezing and spluttering.

“That good, huh?” Noct said laughing. Grabbing his own bottle he drank it down. “Smooth,” he decided. “Certainly better than beer.”

It continued on much like that until the early hours of the morning. They reminisced about Insomnia, laughed so hard their stomachs hurt, cried about the universe shitting on their lives, found all the stashes of snacks Ignis had hidden in the car. The told stupid stories that  wouldn’t have made any sense if they were sober, and probably wouldn’t have been nearly as funny. They played made-up card games and finished all their tiny bottles and fell asleep still laying there, curled up in the cosy leather seats of the Regalia.

Chapter Text

“Ow.” 

Noct roused at the voice in his ear. Someone was lying on him and their hair was tickling his nose.

“Prom, ge’ off,” Noct mumbled. It was usually Prompto; who else would it be?

“Ow, sorry,” Prompto moaned in his ear, struggling to get off Noct in the confined space.

Noct blinked, groaning as the sunlight hit his eyes. Wait, were they in the car?

There was a clinking of glass as Prompto’s weight lifted off him, and Noct remembered the night before.

Oh, right.

Now his was able to see somewhat, he focused on a pouting Prompto, who was holding his head and whimpering. Somehow, they were both crammed in the back seat of the Regalia. Noct awkwardly pulled his legs out from under Prompto, sitting up.

“You okay?” he asked.

“No,” Prompto wailed. “I’m dying.”

Noct snorted, rubbing his face and yawning.

“Pretty sure you’re not dying dude.”

Prompto groaned again, leaning forward until his head was almost resting on his knees before shaking his head, then wincing.

“Oh, pretty sure I am dying,” he then turned to Noct accusingly.

“How come you’re not dying?”

Noct frowned, then shrugged.

“I dunno, I am kind of tired?" 

“You’re always tired.”

“Good point.”

“You are the worst, I hate you.”

“No you don’t,” Noct grinned, leaning into his friend.

That was when the door was wrenched open and a furious Ignis stood there breathing heavily.

“This is where you have both been?!” he shouted.

Noct scrambled backwards in fear, unsuccessfully trying to hide behind Prompto. 

“We have been searching everywhere for you both!” his eyes flashed dangerously.

“I can’t believe you have been in here the whole time! Why the hell are your phones switched off?”    

“Erp?” Noct tried, but apparently that was the only noise he could make at the terrifying sight of Ignis screaming at him.

“Please stop yelling,” Prompto pleaded, his voice shaking. “My head hurts.”

Ignis’ scowl faltered, as he scanned over the two, both rumpled and tired looking, still wearing the same clothes from the previous day. Prompto in particular looked rather grey. Then his gaze moved to the bottles littering the floor on both the front and back seats.

“Good grief,” he sighed, removing his glasses to rub a hand tiredly over his face. Then he straightened, replaced his glasses and, taking a step back from the car, pulled out his phone.

“I have them both here,” he said after a moment. “They were sleeping in the car, drinking all the alcohol in Duscae by the looks of it.” He paused a moment, listening. “Right, of course.” He hung up without saying anything further and turned back to the two in the car. He regarded them with another long suffering sigh, his anger apparently fizzled out for now.

“Come on out then, I won’t have you two throwing up on the upholstery.”

The two exchanged a look and scrambled out of the car. Prompto would have fallen when his feet hit the concrete, if Ignis hadn’t caught him by the shoulder. He marched them both back to the caravan, instructing them to sit, then went in search of water and pain killers. When he returned with them, Prompto gratefully took them before sipping his water and letting his head fall back to the table. Noct waved the medicine away and gulped down his water, finishing his entire glass and wishing he had more.

“Not fair,” Prompto moaned again. “You get warping powers and anti-hangover powers?”

***

After breakfast, which Noct inhaled and a green tinged Prompto picked at, Gladio arrived to tell them off. Luna sat back, looking amused at the entire situation, although she pointed out to Prompto and Noct she was disappointed they hadn’t invited her.

They piled back into the car, Luna opting to sit to one side while Prompto and Noct leaned against one another, sleeping.

“Finally, on to Lestallum,” Gladio said with a grin. He pulled out his phone to text Iris, smile not leaving his face as he pressed send and looked into the mirror at the sleeping boys in the back seat. 

“So what do you think happened last night?” he mused, his eyes moving between Luna and Ignis.

“Now that I think back on it,” Luna said. “Noct was acting odd last night, before we went to bed.”

“It seems Prompto picked up on it when we did not and helped in his own way,” Ignis admitted.

 “Whatever it was, I hope they enjoyed themselves,” Gladio said. “And that it was worth the several hours of us freaking out this morning.”

 “I can’t believe I didn’t think to look in the car,” Ignis said with a quiet sigh.

Only an hour from the Cauthess service station, a curve in the road revealed Lestallum. It was truly magnificent, nestled along the cliff that spanned the canyon, at the bottom the river dividing Duscae and Cleigne. The road they took, winding along the other side of that canyon, would eventually sweep around across a bridge, and through a tunnel to the busy town.

Prompto roused, peering groggily up at the sight of Lestallum looming nearby.

“We there already?” he asked. 

“Not far now, how are you feeling?” Ignis asked.

“Thirsty,” he admitted, reaching for a bottle of water.

He unscrewed the lid to gulped down several mouthfuls, before stopping to gasp for air. Noct grumbled at his pillow moving and making too much noise and opened one eye. He opted to roll over and lean on Luna’s shoulder instead.

“You might as well stay awake,” she said, amused. “We’re almost there.” 

“Are you getting out of the car in the next 5 minutes?” he asked

“Probably a bit longer than that,” she laughed.

“Goodnight, then.” He hummed and closed his eyes again, causing Luna to laugh again and shake her head.

“Are you feeling any better Prompto?” she asked looking at the other man. He looked far less pallid than he had a few hours earlier. 

“I guess?” he said, sounding pretty unsure. 

“Come here,” she whispered conspiratorially, glancing down and Noct on her shoulder, then towards the front seat with a small smile. She leaned forward, indicating with a finger that he follow. Noct grumbled sinking lower in the seat out of the way, and Luna twisted a little, placing one hand on each side of Prompto’s face. The blond flushed as she pressed their foreheads together and whispered under her breath. Golden light blossomed between them for a moment, then was gone in an instant.

She winked as she pulled away, and Prompto let out a sigh of relief, sinking back into the seat, mouthing his silent thanks.

***

They pulled into Lestallum and made their way to the Leville. Gladio paused to appreciate the Cup Noodle stand, while Ignis and Prompto, who must have been feeling better, were drawn to the many other food carts, whose owners were loudly spruiking their cuisine. 

Noct was on edge again, glancing more than once at the lookout where they had met Ardyn. He bit his lip and forced himself to focus on right now. He had to reunite his friend with the only people he had left in the world. It was important to get Iris and the others moving on to Cape Caem before anything bad happened. Then they had another Royal Arm to find.

The others temporarily forgot the distracting sights and smells of the town as they followed their prince, who was walking with unwavering focus towards the hotel. They all caught the look in his eyes.

Iris was bouncing on her feet in the doorway as they arrived.

“Gladdy!” she squealed happily, as she launched herself into her brothers arms.

“Hey Iris,” he grinned, wrapping one arm around her and mussing her hair fondly with the other. Noct felt the tightness in his chest unclench just a little as Gladio smiled down at his little sister.

“Look at you guys,” she said turning to smile at the others. “And Lady Lunafreya!”

Colour rose to Iris’ cheeks as she stepped forward awkwardly.

“It’s wonderful to finally meet you,” she said to Luna “I’m really glad you found Noct.”

“As am I,” Luna said, bowing slightly in greeting. “It’s lovely to meet you Iris, Gladio has said much about you.”

“Oh.” Iris laughed nervously. “Really?”

Gladio cleared his throat. 

“How about we go get a room, we have catching up to do.”

“Yeah, we do,” Iris said, nodding sadly. “Let’s go.”

Noct felt as if everything was slightly out of focus as they all sat in their room, and as they greeted Jarred and Talcott. His head was buzzing as they spoke with Iris about Insomnia.

“You need to go with Jared and Talcott to Cape Caem,” he found himself saying as the conversation died down, and Jarred and Talcott had left. “It’s not safe here. The Imperials are looking for us, and if they find out you know us there will be trouble.”

“Oh.” Iris gripped the edges of her chair. “I mean, sure, if you say so Noct. What’s in Cape Caem?”

“It’s a safe place,” Noct paused looking down at the carpet. “My dad has a secret boat there, but there’s also a house where you can stay, and Monica and Dustin can go with you.”

“Will you come with us?” Iris asked hopefully.

“Ah, no. We have things to deal with here. Sorry.” 

“Oh, okay.” Iris’ shoulders sagged. “That makes sense, of course, I understand,” she added quickly to cover up her disappointment.

“We will be better off knowing you are safe,” Ignis said gently.

“And we’re relying on you to keep Jared and Talcott safe,” Gladio added.

“Yeah.” A smiled returned to her face. “I can do that, you can count on me.”

“Of course we can,” Prompto beamed. Iris stood.

“I guess I’ll give you all a chance to rest,” she said hesitantly. “You’re all probably tired from the trip.” 

“Wait, it’s still early, you don’t have to leave,” Luna pressed. “It wasn’t a very long drive, we stayed at Cauthess last night.”

“Oh?” Iris hesitated, looked to the others.

 “Why don’t you spend some time with your brother? You could show us around Lestallum?” Luna added.

 “Yeah, I could do that if you want… what do you think Noct?” she asked, her enthusiasm increasing as she addressed the prince.

Noct sighed and leaned forward so his head was in his hands. If he was being completely honest with himself, he was scared of going out and running into Ardyn. He was worried Ardyn would mess with them - or that he would see red and drive his sword right through Ardyn the moment he saw him. And worrying about it just made him feel incredibly tired.

“I think I might stay here and get some sleep,” he said, as calmly as he could.

“Yeah, ah…” Prompto smiled sheepishly, rubbing the side of his head, “We didn’t get much sleep last night, I’ll probably join you Noct… You all have fun though,” he added quickly, looking to Iris.

“Oh, if you’re sure,” Iris said.

“Come on Sis,” Gladio said with a grin. “I heard there’s a huge spice market here, Iggy is gonna love that. How about you show us?”

 Iris forced a smile.

“Sure, let’s go.” She glanced at Noct and Prompto,

“See you later then?”

Noct nodded.

“Later, have fun.”

***

Although Ignis tried to hide it, Gladio could easily see behind his calm demeanour - Ignis was like a kid in a toy store when presented with endless stalls of high quality fresh ingredients. Gladio actually wondered several times if coming here had been a bad idea, and if they were going to leave with any of their Gil.

When they finally managed to get Ignis to leave the market, Iris showed them the power plant. Gladio could certainly appreciate how interesting it was. He had also noticed how standoffish his sister was being with Luna, and wondered what that was all about. Luna didn’t seem at all upset by Iris’ behaviour however - if anything, she seemed to be more charming than usual.

It was some hours later, when they hit the food carts, that Gladio decided it was time to check on his charge, and probably bring some lunch back to the room for both of them. Filling a container with goodies, he announced where he was going to the others.

“Mind if I join you?” Iris asked.

Of course she could, she could do anything she wanted when she tipped her head to the side like that.

“Sure kid,” he grunted. He was actually really pleased to be with Iris again. He’d been so worried about her; he knew she was fine, they’d had phone contact, but it didn’t stop the constant anxiety. It wasn’t until he’d seen her in person that he’d felt that lift. He glanced down at her as they reached the door to the boys’ room, and almost stumbled when he saw the look on her face.

“Iris, what…?” Her huge brown eyes were filled with tears which ran silently down her cheeks.

“Iris…” He pulled her to his chest with one arm, using the other to open the door a crack and peer inside. Satisfied that Noct and Prom were fast asleep, he awkwardly pulled Iris inside and sat down on the unoccupied bed, holding her shaking, sobbing body to his.

“Hey, what’s with all this?” he chided gently, running a hand over her hair and resting his chin on her head.

“I j-just, I was s-so scared Gladdy,” she sobbed. “It was awful, people died…Dad died…” She froze, pressing her face back into his chest to muffle the anguished cry.

Gods he hated it when Iris cried; he just wanted to fix whatever was making her cry, to punch or threaten whoever made her sad. But there was nothing he could do. He felt his own eyes prickling and pulled her tighter as his ears rang with the pent up emotion building in his chest. Gods he hated this so much. It had been so much easier to remind himself, before, that Dad had done his duty; he had died doing what he loved, to protect a man who was not only his King, but his best friend.

But with Iris here, he was reminded that Clarus Amicitia was their father, the man who had raised them to be the people they were today, who had been both mother and father to them for so long. He had taken Gladio camping and taught him how to fight. He had held his children when they were sick, and tucked them into bed, and made them weird - looking birthday cakes, even though he couldn’t cook at all. He’d insisted that he and Gladio sit down and drink pretend tea with Iris and all her stuffed animals, and reminded Gladio what his job was when he was ready to strangle Noct. 

So he held his sister and let her cry into his shirt, and held her tight so she knew he was there. They were practically all they family they had left in the world. They would be there for each other.

***

Noct roused to muffled crying and cracked open an eye to see Gladio and Iris having a moment. Not wanting to disturb them, he buried his head under his pillow and pretended to sleep.

He must have fallen asleep again, because when he opened his eyes again the room was empty; even Prompto was gone. He groaned sleepily and sat up, taking a moment to wake up properly before standing and looking into the bathroom. Also empty. He shrugged, moving back to the bedside table for his phone and pressing a button to light it up. He frowned when it didn’t turn on and realised quickly it had gone flat. He sighed and reached over to plug it into a power point, then lazily wandered over to the door.

Everyone must have been off getting dinner. Surely it was getting late by now; they had probably even tried to wake him up.

He opened the door and stepped out into the hallway, only to find a hand at his throat, shoving him backwards so that his head slammed into the door.

“Hello, Noct.”

No.

No. No no no…

Noct’s vision swam as Ardyn smiled down at him, the hand tightened around his throat. Noct struggled, but his body wasn’t cooperating. He just trembled, useless, as fear paralysed him.

“What have you been doing, little Prince? I have been looking everywhere for you, and everywhere I look, you are not there.” Ardyn’s smile widened. “Did you think you could outsmart me little Prince? Did you truly think you could stay one step ahead of me?”

Noct struggled for breath, clawing weakly at the hand around his throat as Ardyn leaned further forward. His lips brushed against Noct’s ear, making him shudder.

“There is nothing you can do Noct, I will always win.”

He let go of Noct suddenly. The smaller man would have collapsed if Ardyn had not been right there. Wheezing and struggling for breath, Noct tried to call for his dagger, but the blue that glowed around his palms faltered and fizzed, then disappeared.

Bile rose in his throat, and he shoved Ardyn backwards, the older man laughing as Noct fell to his knees. Unable to speak, unable to scream, Noct coughed and choked, vomiting onto the floor. A broken scream escaping him as he realised his vomit was thick and black. Retching Noct scrambled away from it, breaking out into a cold sweat as his vision darkened, his body threatening to lose consciousness.

“What’s the matter Noct?” Ardyn cooed mockingly, “Daemon got your tongue?”

“Nooo…” Noct moaned. It rose up in his chest again and he screamed, his stomach clenching as he heaved more foul black ichor, praying for it to stop. But it wouldn’t stop, it was pouring from his nose and his eyes, and Ardyn was laughing, and then Noct was falling forward into blessed unconsciousness.

Chapter Text

Prompto woke suddenly when something collided with his cheek. He Jolted away, arms lifting automatically to block any other blows. 

“Ow, hey wha’ the…?” he peered through sleep filled eyes and sighed, rubbing his cheek.

Beside him Noct flailed in his sleep. Prompto frowned and moved so he could sit cross-legged next to him. Petting sodden black locks from Noct’s eyes, he called his friend’s name softly in an attempt to wake him from his nightmare.

“Come on man, wake up,” he tried a little louder. He Jerked back as Noct’s eyes flew open, mouth open in a soundless scream of terror and back arching as he clawed at his face and neck.

“Holy shit!” Prompto grabbed Noct’s hands and tried to pull them back from his face, but Noct fought, flailing and kicking, his eyes rolling in his head.

“NOCT! Come on, wake up!” Prompto shouted as his arm slipped. Noct’s arm swung to the side, throwing the lamp from their bedside table onto the floor with a loud crash.

“Shit!” Prompto ducked the fist and reached out to grab it again as Noct went back to attacking his own throat.

“What the hell is going on?” Gladio roared from the doorway.

“Gladio, help, he’s having a nightmare he…” Prompto’s words failed him as a flash of blue, and the air above Noct and Prompto was filled with weapons. Gladio froze is eyes flicking between the weapons and Prompto. Noct was gasping heavily, his eyes glowing, but they were clearly vacant as he was lost in the terror of his nightmare.

“Prompto let go of his hands!” Gladio hissed.

Prompto’s heart pounded against his ribs as he slowly released Noct’s hands. He forced himself to look down from all the deadly weapons to his friend, who appeared to be struggling to breathe.

“Noct,” Prompto said softly, moving his hand to the other man’s face. “Noct, it’s Prompto. Wake up okay?” His hand trembled slightly on Noct’s cheek as he leaned forward. “Noct you’re here with me, you’re safe. No one is hurting you here. Please wake up.” He moved further over Noct, shielding the prince’s body with his own. He ran his hand through Noct’s hair, Noct’s glowing eyes tracking from side to side but seeing nothing. “Wake up Noct, you’re safe. Wake up.”

“Prompto!” Gladio cried in warning as the weapons trembled in the air. He took a step forward, ready to launch himself at the boys if he had to.

Then, as suddenly as they had appeared, the weapons all shattered into crystalline particles and vanished. Gladio slumped in relief, as Prompto continued whispering quietly. Noct wailed and flung himself to the side, heaving over the side of the bed. Gladio jumped backwards as vomit just missed his shoes.

Prompto held Noct so he didn’t fall off the bed with one arm and stroked his hair with the other. 

“It’s okay buddy, you’re okay,” he muttered, over and over, until Noct went limp once more. His only movements now came from his gasping chest and his trembling limbs.

Gladio crouched down, one hand on Noct’s face. His eyes were closed once more, tears running down his cheeks.

“What the hell?” Gladio muttered. “That must have been one hell of a nightmare.”

“Yeah,” Prompto said. “That was something else. I’ve… he…” He stopped and just shook his head, lost for words.

“It’s okay,” Gladio said realising the blond was shaking. He caught the other man’s eye “You did good, Prom, he’s going to be okay.”

“Yeah…”

Prompto looked down at Noct once more. He looked more relaxed now, his breathing even and his trembling limbs stilled. Prompto and Noct had woken each other up to a lot of nightmares, but never anything like this. And never with Noct’s Armiger like that.

Noct groaned. His entire body went rigid and he sat up suddenly, eyes darting from side to side, gasping for breath.

 “Hey, it’s okay.” Noct became aware of Prompto’s hand on his back and turned to look at him, trying to focus on his friend’s violet-blue eyes.

“P-Prom-” Noct started, but was interrupted by a cough, his throat sore and strained. He grimaced as a glass of water was pressed into his hands.

“Drink,” Gladio ordered, only letting go of the glass when he was sure the prince was able to keep hold of it. Noct took small sips as Gladio disappeared again. Noct didn’t look up from his glass when he finished. He just stared down at it as the flashes of his dream threatened to take hold.

Just a dream, he tried to tell himself. 

But it had felt so real. 

How would he ever know with Ardyn?

He realised his glass was shaking, the water sloshing up the sides. Prompto took the glass from him and placed it on the bedside table.

“Are you okay?” Prompto blurted, looking back to Noct. “You must have had one hell of a nightmare man, you scared the hell out of me.”

“I don’t know…” Noct said, his voice quiet and raspy.

 He couldn’t help going straight back there, to the hand around his throat, to the terror of wondering where the others were. Noct’s hands went to his throat again, and he flinched at the twinge of pain.

 Gods had it been real? He could still feel where Ardyn had been choking him. He had to get him off…

 “Noct,” Prompto’s voice cut through the black fog clouding his thoughts. Gentle hands took his, and Noct blinked.

“Noct, it’s okay. It was just a dream,” Prompto said. “Remember, just a dream. It can’t hurt you here. I won’t let it.”

 The words they’d said to each other so many times in the past. When Noct had woken up, Maralith haunting his dreams. Or when Prompto had woken up from what ever had haunted his. Prompto had always come up with some silly reason, but Noct could tell there was something else. He suspected, knowing what he knew now, that it was to do with the time he spent in Niflheim. 

“Do you want to talk about it?” Prompto asked, his voice quiet and unsure.

“Ardyn. I woke up and everyone was gone. He g-grabbed me and…” His hand twitched in Prompto’s and he felt the urge to touch his throat again. He swallowed heavily. “Then I was sick and I… it was black.” He shuddered, squeezing his eyes shut at the feeling. Not just the physical feeling, but the awful wrongness. It was like the dark feeling he got when the ring absorbed a daemon’s energy, multiplied by a thousand. He felt the urge to scrub his skin raw, nausea filling his stomach once more.

“I felt like I was turning into a daemon,” he gasped.

 The grip on his hands tightened.

“We’re here, we won’t let him hurt you,” Prompto said firmly. His voice so strong and serious, qualities the blond’s words didn’t take on very often. When they did, his eyes went hard, and you could feel it. He meant every word, as if he was saying them to your very soul.

Noct, leaned forward into his friend, resting his head on Prompto’s shoulder.

“He doesn’t want to hurt me, not really, he needs me. He wants to mess with me, he wants me to suffer.”

Prompto was silent. He couldn’t promise anything that would help, he couldn’t say it was going to be okay. So he wrapped his arms around Noct and held him, the other man still trembling in his arms. Just letting Noct know he wasn’t alone, that someone would always be there.

 There was a rustle to their side and Gladio was back with a bucket. Noct lifted his head at the sound.

“Wha-"  he started, but Gladio waved a gloved hand dismissively.

“Just an accident, don’t even worry about it,” he said, pulling out a wet cloth and kneeling on the ground.

“You sicked up in your sleep…” Prompto said. “Normal sick, nothing daemony about it,” he added hastily.

Noct wrinkled his nose.

“Sorry,” he said. He didn’t try looking at it. The feeling creeping in his stomach warned him that wouldn’t be the best idea.

“Don’t sweat it,” Gladio shrugged, “I’ve cleaned up worse messes in my time, I have a baby sister after all.”

“Right… thanks.” Noct pulled away from Prompto. “I think I might go have a shower… I feel gross.”

***

Noct took a long shower with the water turned up as hot as he could stand it. There was lots of scrubbing, furious teeth brushing and a handful of moments lost in thought while watching the water drop from his hair onto the floor. As he dried himself, he frowned at the scratch marks on his throat, where he must have hurt himself in his sleep. He forced himself to look away from the mirror and get dressed.

Ignis and Luna had returned, bringing more food to share for dinner. Gladio explained what had happened. Prompto walked to the bathroom door several times, raised his hand to knock and ask if Noct was okay, but changed his mind and moved back to the bed, where he sat anxiously hugging his knees. 

“His Armiger?” Ignis whispered. “This is concerning.”

“He thought Ardyn was attacking him,” Prompto said defensively.

“Of course,” Ignis said. “I wonder if this has anything to do with the loss of control he’s had before.”

“Should we mention it to him?” Luna asked.

There was silence, before Ignis finally shook his head.

“I think, for the moment at least, we would do better to leave it. I feel it would only make him feel guilty, and worry him further.”

“Yeah, I have to agree.” Gladio said. “Leave it for now. Hopefully it won’t be a problem.”

Noct emerged from the bathroom and froze momentarily at the sight of everyone in the room, looking up at him.

“Hey,” he said looking around. “How was your walk around Lestallum?” He plopped down in the one free arm chair beside Luna.

Luna offered him a warm smile.

“It was lovely, Lestallum is a really nice town. It’s so busy and full of life.”

“The spice market was sensational,” Ignis added. “It had a rather extensive collection of ingredients.”

Noct smiled knowingly; he remembered how hard it had been to drag Ignis away the first time. A box was waved in Noct’s face, Prompto offering it along with a lazy smile.

“Hungry, bro?”

Noct considered it a moment, wondering if his stomach would let him eat. He took the box after a moment, his stomach deciding for him with a rumble.

“Yeah, I could eat, thanks.”

The slightly awkward aura of the room slowly grew more comfortable as the others chatted about what they had been up to that day, and what their plans were next.  Eventually they settled into a card game, which turned into an amusing drinking game between Ignis, Gladio and Luna. To no one’s surprise, Noct and Prompto hastily left them to it, preferring to watch from the bed and provide amusing commentary.

As the night wore on and the card game ended, Prompto bumped shoulders with Noct, getting the prince’s attention.

“Want to go for a walk, see the sights of Lestallum?” he asked. “Since we missed out earlier.”

 Noct immediately wanted to say no, the nightmare of Ardyn and the fear of running into him too fresh, but the stubbornness in him wanted to say fuck it, let’s go. He was going to cross paths with Ardyn eventually, whether he knew about the time shenanigans or not.

“I mean, we don’t have to, of course, you probably don’t-“ Prompto rambled on as Noct was thinking.

“No, let’s go,” Noct interrupted. “Lestallum is pretty cool at night.”

“Sweet,” Prompto got to his feet. “Hey Luna, you want to come? Or are you calling it a night like these losers?” He jerked his thumb cheekily at Gladio and Ignis, who were getting ready for bed.

“If you don’t mind, I think I will,” she said standing.

“Try not to stay out too late,” Ignis warned. “If I wake up in the morning and find you lot missing-”

“Yeah, yeah, no falling asleep in the car. Got it,” Prompto said with a snicker.

Lestallum was so vibrant; the moment they stepped out of the hotel they were surrounded by the lively sounds of people, music, and the smells of cooking food. People greeted them as they passed. It tugged a smile on to Noct’s lips. It was something that had taken him a while to get used to - everyone was so friendly here, and not just because he was royalty.

It was always hot in Lestallum, even at night, the result of being so close to the Astral shard. But of course they had power, and security from the daemons, so it was well worth a little heat. 

Luna dragged them to a cart where they bought donuts, warm and covered in cinnamon sugar. Holding hands and giggling like children, they as they pushed through rowdy groups of drinking, laughing people. They wandered down to the look out and Noct leant on the edge, licking his sticky fingers. There was a breeze here it cooled the sweat collecting on his forehead. He closed his eyes and just breathed for a moment, until a shoulder bumped lightly into his.

“Are you okay Noct?” Luna asked quietly.

Noct hummed, opening his eyes and looking out at the darkness.

“I’m… okay,” he finally responded.

Prompto pressed against his other shoulder, his blond hair standing out in the darkness.

“Just so you know,” Prompto said, “it’s fine to not be okay.”

“I know,” Noct replied, looking down at this hands clasped together on the stone ledge. “But right now I think I am. Because I have you guys, and Ignis and Gladio. And I’m kind of tired of not being okay, so even if I’m not, I might just pretend for a while, because fuck it.” He shrugged.

“Well I’m not okay,” Luna blurted with a sigh, leaning forward a little.

Noct’s eyebrows shot up at the sudden, out-of-character admission, and he looked down at Luna, waiting for her to elaborate. Luna frowned, staring back at Noct.

“I think I’m still a little drunk from earlier,” she admitted, then burst into laughter. But the it only lasted a moment and she was frowning. “I mean how could any of us be okay, everything is so screwed up,” she sighed.

“Uhhh…” Prompto seemed to have momentarily short-circuited seeing the usually so-together Luna like this. Noct snorted with laugher.

“You’re right, everything is fucked, no one is okay.”

“Yep, but at least we can be not okay together,” Luna cheered.

“Yeah, I guess,” Prompto said with a grin.

“It’s okay. We’ll fix everything, right?” Noct leaned his head on to Luna’s shoulder. “We have to. I don’t want to have done all this again for nothing. Especially when this time is so much better. We’re already fixing things.”

“There are some things you can’t fix,” she pointed out. Her voice was so soft, and he lifted his head quickly to look at her.

“Some things…” she hesitated. “Some things scar your soul forever, some things you can never get back, somethings you can never unsee.”

“Yeah, you’re right. Some things you can’t fix,” Noct said, looking back down into the darkness.

“Some things you can never run away from,” Prompto added. His voice cracked a little and Noct put one arm around him, pulling him closer still. “But it’s not all terrible…” Prompto added quickly.  

He rummaged around in his pocket and pulled out his camera, switching it on and holding it out so they could all see. There was a fair amount of giggling as they flicked through the photos he’d taken so far, especially when they came across photos Prompto hadn’t even realised had been taken, mostly of Luna pulling faces or Noct taking pics of Prompto when he wasn’t aware, which had him blushing. 

“Prompto!” Noct grumbled, “why do you insist on taking photos of me when I’m on my ass in battle?”

“Think of it as a learning experience,” Prompto said with a grin. 

“Learning experience,” Noct scoffed.

“Oh that’s really cute!” Luna giggled as they stopped on a photo of Ignis looking unimpressed with two Chocobo chicks in his arms.

“Oh, I know,” Prompto laughed. “I just put them there and took the photo before he could object.”

There were so many photos of Chocobos.  

So many.

There was at least a dozen of Gladio and Prompto pulling faces with Noct fishing in the background. Noct shook his head with a groan.

“I can’t believe I didn’t even notice you guys there.”

“I can, you were completely out of it, dude. You’d probably still be there now if Gladio hadn’t gone to drag you away.”

Noct smirked and shoved Prompto playfully with his shoulder.

“You weren’t complaining when you stuffed your face that night.”

Then they got to the drunken selfies, which had the three of them in stitches and gasping for breath. Noct laughed again every time he saw their weird grins and unfocused eyes.

“I guess we had fun,” Prompto gasped between bouts of laughter.

“I guess so,” Noct decided with a grin.

“Hey, let’s take one now,” Luna said suddenly, moving closer to them both.

“Good idea.” Prompto flipped the camera around and they smiled their biggest cheesiest grins.

Noct sighed, still smiling, the two on either side of him still pressed in a tightly, and a calmness washed over him. Things might be shit, but he was safe here, and for right now he was a little bit okay.

Chapter Text

Luna turned a page in her book and sighed at the sounds of Noct and Prompto’s boisterous laughter coming from the bathroom. She was dressed and almost ready to leave, her newly acquired clothes a pleasant change from the ill-fitting clothing she had borrowed from the outposts. It felt nice to be wearing something comfortable.

She even fit in with the others with her new outfits. Fitted black pants and shin high, cuffed black boots and a plain black shirt. She’d also gotten a flowing black jacket she planned on taking to the cave with her, as Noct had mentioned it was going to be cold. Her first instinct had been to choose something white, so as to still be true to her Oracle image, but Ignis had helpfully pointed out black was much easier to launder, especially for blood stains. And if she was being honest, if felt rebellious to be wearing something other than white, the traditional colour of Niflheim.   

She didn’t look up as the front door opened and Ignis and Gladio entered the hotel room.

“Good morning Lunafreya, how was your sleep?” Ignis asked, putting several bags of groceries down on the table. Gladio followed, putting down his own bags, only left with a box of food he was eating from.

“I slept well, thank you Ignis,” she said, raising her eyes briefly before returning to her book.

“Where are the-” Ignis started saying, but was cut off by a shriek and some laughter from the bathroom.

Luna rolled her eyes.

“Still doing their hair.” She turned her attention to Gladio, waving the book she was holding at him, a fierce look in her eyes. “Please, tell me she’s not taking David back again. I swear to the Gods…” She trailed off as Gladio smirked.

“Nah, don’t worry, she realises in time.”

The look on Luna’s face expressed instant relief. Just then, Noct and Prompto came bursting out of the bathroom, still laughing and shoving each other. Luna closed her book and stood with some ceremony. She raised an eyebrow at the pair of them and stalked to the bathroom without saying a word, closing the door behind her.

“I hope you don’t mind, Noct, we took the liberty of speaking to Monica and Dustin about taking Iris, Jarred and Talcott to Cape Caem,” Ignis said as he sorted through the groceries pulling out some items for breakfast.

“Yeah, that’s fine. I don’t mind at all,” Noct replied, flopping down into a chair.

“Also Talcott wanted to talk to you,” Gladio added with a grin. “Said it was important.”

Noct smiled - he could guess exactly what Talcott had to say.

“Okay, I’ll make sure to talk with him.” 

It wasn't long later, Noct and Prompto were munching on still steaming buns they’d pilfered from Gladio when Luna emerged from the bathroom, hair done up in her usual style, braids carefully entwined across her head. She took the bun Noct was about to bite into from his hand and bit into it with a cheeky grin and went to retrieve her book.

***

Down in the lobby, both Iris and Talcott jumped to their feet excitedly as they saw the group coming down the stairs. Monica got to one knee and bowed her head as Noct neared, making Noct freeze in his tracks and run a hand through is hair awkwardly.

“Your Highness,” she said, raising her head. “It’s good to finally see you. I am glad you’re safe.”

“Hi, uh… thanks Monica. I’m glad you’re all safe too.” He cleared his throat as she stood once more. “And thanks for taking the others to Cape Caem. I’ll be happier knowing they’re all safe.”

“It’s my honour, Highness. Dustin and I will ensure their safe arrival.”

“Prince Noctis!” Talcott burst out as soon as Noct turned to him, a huge smile on his face.

“Hey there, Talcott,” Noct said returning the smile. “I believe you have some important information for me?”

“I sure do! I heard this legend about a sword, a really powerful one, and the sword’s supposed to be behind a waterfall nearby.”

“You don’t say?” Noct raised an eyebrow with a grin. “Think it could be one of the Royal Arms we’re looking for Talcott?”

“I bet it is,” he said loudly. “I wish I could come and look for it with you, it would be such a cool adventure.”

“Talcott,” Jarred cautioned gently. “Mind your manners.”

“Maybe when you’re older,” Noct said with a laugh. “Tell you what, I’ll come to Cape Caem and show it to you after I find it, how does that sound.”

“Wow, thank you Prince Noctis! That would be amazing!”

“Going to miss you kiddo,” Gladio said wrapping Iris in a hug. “Behave yourself.”

“Gladdy!” she whined, cheeks turning pink. “Stop treating me like a kid. You mind your own manners you big oaf!” She batted at his arm playfully, but she couldn’t stop her face falling. Lips pressed together, she buried her face into his chest and hugged him back. “Be careful okay?”

“Of course Iri, you too.”

Iris pulled away and turned to Noct, her eyes flicking to Luna.

“I’ll see you at Cape Caem soon, right?” she asked, hands going behind her back.

“As soon as we can get there,” Noct reassured her.

Iris bit her lip, looking as if she was debating with herself before she finally stepped back.

***

Farewells completed, Noct’s party left in the Regalia, headed to the waterfall at Callatein’s Plunge. The trip was short and pleasantly uneventful, and when they pulled into the service station, Noct assured them the waterfall was only a short walk away. It wasn’t until they reached the short path at the bottom of the stairs that he took the lead, turning to face them all.

“Don’t forget, there’s a great big snake that lives around here, so keep your guard up. It’s tough. We’ll try to avoid fighting it if we can.”

“How could we forget?” Prompto replied with a pout.

The lush and slightly overgrown path wound around and down, bringing them closer to the water’s edge. Noct’s steps grew more careful as they neared. The trees grew sparse, and they could easily see down to the river.

“I can’t see it anywhere,” Noct said quietly, as they crept closer.

He held a hand out for them to wait as they reached a wall of rocks that separated the path from the riverbank. Climbing carefully, he peered over the edge, but was puzzled when he didn’t see the huge snake anywhere. It was not as if there was anywhere for it to hide.

He turned to the others and shrugged.

“Maybe it went for a swim?” he said hopefully.

“One can only hope,” Ignis said.

“Let’s get moving before it comes back,” Luna suggested, climbing up behind Noct.

“I’m hoping it doesn’t come back at all,” Prompto said, as he followed them.

Reaching the other side of the rocks safely, Noct led them further down the river bank towards the huge waterfall.

“Uh oh, heads up!” Gladio called, summoning his broad sword as half a dozen Shieldshears clambered out of in the river and toward the group. Shots rang out as Prompto fired at the approaching giant crabs.

“Crab for dinner, Ignis?” Noct called cheekily as he circled around to their right.

“I’m not sure about that, Noct,” Ignis said as he drew a lance. “What they have gained in size they would have lost in flavour.”

“Yeah, you always say that, but it always ends up tasting fine to me.” 

Noct warped up into the air, calling the halberd and bringing it straight down into the back of his first target. It collapsed to the ground as Noct back flipped off its back and landed a small distance away. Immediately drawing his own lance, he waited until it raised its huge claws to attack before launching several quick jabs at its soft underbelly and warping out of the way as the claws crashed down around him. An explosion from behind them had the crab collapsing for good, and Noct turned to high-five prompto.

With a yelp, he pushed the blond out of the way, as a claw crashed down where he had just been standing. He pulled out his sword and launched a frenzied attack, slashing and dodging the monster’s claws, warping over and over until it fell.

“Thanks man,” Prompto called. He was back on his feet and taking out another Shieldshear that was fighting with Luna. Noct moved to Ignis’ side.

“Need some help?” Noct asked.

“I suppose, if you’re offering,” Ignis responded with a grin.

They exchanged a look and Noct nodded, pulling out his lance. They attacked the monster in unison, spinning, their lances flashing as the crab monster struggled under the speed and strength of their blows. Noct warped into the air once more, as Ignis called his name and tossed him the second lance. Noct grabbed it, and with one in each hand, warped down driving both lances into the creatures back.

“Very good, Noct,” Ignis applauded as Noct landed back beside him.

“Thanks, not bad yourself.”

“Woah! What is that?” Prompto yelled, and a second later something knocked Ignis and Noct to the ground. The older man grabbed the prince, shielding him from whatever had hit them as they skidded along the dirt.

Noct groaned, pushing Ignis’ arms from his body.

“It’s the snake, it came back,” Luna yelled.

“Ignis?” Noct called panicked as he realised his friend wasn’t moving, Ignis had taken the brunt of the hot spray the Snake had spat at them throwing them so violently to the ground. He pulled himself free of Ignis’ protective hold.

“Guys, Ignis is hurt, we can’t fight it,” Noct shouted as Gladio stared down the huge snake.  “We have to leave!” The creature pulled itself up to its full height and launched itself toward Gladio. He moved to dodge, but instead of coming for him, the snake struck the remaining Shieldshear, launching the crab across the river into the bank on the other side. The great crab didn’t move again.

“Run!” Noct shouted. Grabbing Ignis’ arms, he heaved the unconscious man up and dragged him as far away from the snake as he could. They just had to get to the rocks, up to the waterfall. It wouldn’t follow them there, he knew it.

“Noct?” Ignis groaned, lifting his head and peering up at the Noct.

Noct sighed in relief, pulling Ignis’s arm over his own shoulders, and retrieving a potion from his pocket.

“No time to chat, we’ve got to move. Drink this.”

Ignis took the potion gratefully, drinking it quickly as Noct attempted to drag him away, the others bringing up the rear.

“Watch out it’s coming back!” Gladio called.

Its tail whipped out, clipping Luna and flinging her across the dirt. Prompto raced to her side and was shot with another stream of scalding liquid. Gladio ran forward, attempting to protect them from further attacks. The sound of his friend’s screams had Noct lowering Ignis to the ground. The snake, the Midgard Sormr, was even bigger than he had remembered, and it moved erratically, the ground trembling when its tail struck the earth.

His vision blurred at the edges as he felt that eery, uncontrollable power roar through him… and he embraced it.

“Please, help us,” he begged.

The weapons tore themselves from his Astral Arsenal he staggered forward, hardly able to hear over the sound of blood pounding in his ears as they began tearing into the snakes flesh. It screamed as blow after blow struck home. Noct warped as its tail flailed and whipped around uncontrollably. It fought back, jaws wide, Hissing and snapping at the blades as they flew around its head. It screeched as it snapped at Noct’s engine blade only for its curved fangs to sink into its own thrashing tail.

Noct’s vision grew darker still as the weapons continued their assault on the now - helpless creature. The snake seemed to realise this prey was far too much trouble and reared backward, in a move Noct recognised through his haze, meant it was going to escape underground. A greatsword appeared at its side and everything slowed as the snake dove towards the ground the sword swung in an arc. Every blade froze suddenly in place, and there was a loud wet thud as the snake’s head hit the ground. Its body convulsed, thrashing around for some time before it followed, falling in a heap onto the ground.

Noct staggered to one side,  gasping for breath, and screamed as the power roaring through him flickered and cut off. The air filled with blue crystalline shards as the weapons dissipated.   

He collapsed to the dirt, fighting desperately for breath. It felt as if Ardyn's fingers were around his throat again, and he wanted to scream but he couldn’t find the air to do so. He was dimly aware of a hand on his shoulder, and a voice calling his name.

“Come on, Noct. Breathe, it’s over.”

Noct fought unconsciousness, grabbing hold of that familiar voice until he found himself blinking in the sunlight and fighting to sit up. Arms that belonged to Ignis propped him up in a sitting position and he looked up into those kind green eyes.

“There you go, back with us now?” Ignis said. He looked tired, he was dripping wet, his face red and splotchy from whatever the snake had spat at them, covered in dirt and with an oozing graze on his forehead, but he was smiling with relief.

“Are you okay, Iggy?” Noct asked.

“I’m fine highness, nothing a nice bath and a steaming mug of Ebony won’t fix I dare say,” Ignis replied with a smile.

“How about a trip through an ice cave instead?” Noct joked as his eyes travelled past Ignis. Luna was standing, and Gladio was helping Prompto to his feet. Noct sighed in relief; his friends were okay.

“Do you think you can stand?” Ignis asked, drawing Noct’s attention back to his advisor. “It’s okay if you need a moment. In fact, here, drink this.” He pulled a bottle from his pouch, unscrewing the lid and handing it to Noct. “I can see how much doing that has drained you.”

Noct accepted the ether, and his eyes slid shut. He let out a hum as his magic turned the drink into whatever it needed to restore some of his energy. Once more, the unruly power was untouchable to him. He could only just feel the barest hint of it, deep within himself.

His eyes snapped open and he made to stand, Ignis understanding and helping him to his feet.

“Thanks Iggy, I owe you one,” he said, his arm lingering on Ignis’ for a moment longer before he looked up at the others.

“You guys okay?” he called. A chorus of tired affirmatives greeted him as they wandered over to Noct and Ignis. Gladio was helping Prompto to his feet, Luna was testing weight on her foot, but seemed satisfied when she was able to stand on it. Prompto downed a potion that was handed to him, and let out a groan.

“That was possibly a little more exciting a beginning to today that I’d expected,” Luna said with a small smile, then frowned and as she wiped some sweat and blood from her face.

“Let’s hope the rest of today is a little less exciting, shall we?” Ignis said, as they all turned in unison to look up at the waterfall.

“I don’t think I can handle much more excitement,” Prompto said, his face and arms also splotched with dirt and the same red marks Ignis had. He rubbed at his arms with a little pout, then looked back at Noct.

“That was cool when you chopped its head off though.” A smile crept onto his face. “Thanks for that by the way, I thought we were dead for sure.”

“Let’s just get this over with,” Noct said with a tired sigh.

They trudged up the rocky path to the base of the waterfall, already sensing the chill from the cave. Somewhat bruised and battered, they pushed onward, into the mouth of the ice cave.

Chapter Text

A little way into the cave, the walls were sheeted in a layer of ice and frost. Despite a few slippery patches, the ground was still manageable.

“Hey Noct, I don’t suppose it’s too cold for Daemons in here?” Prompto asked hopefully, his teeth chattering loudly. It didn’t help that he and Ignis were still damp from the Midgard Sormr’s spray.

“‘Fraid not, Prom,” Noct replied, not taking his eyes from the path ahead.

“Yeah.” Prompto let out a sigh, his breath fogging in the cold air. “I assumed that would be asking too much.”

The ground bubbled black ahead of them, and Noct drew his sword.

“Here we go,” he muttered as the goo formed into Flans, bright blue with yellow eyes, slime dripping from their gaping maws.

“Oh, that’s really disgusting,” Luna said, hesitating beside Prompto, who had an equally disgusted look on his face.

“Never have been a fan of mushy desserts,” Noct said with a grin warping forward.

“Ugh, how do you actually fight that?” Prompto asked, raising his gun and firing off a few test shots, the sound loud and echoing off the walls of the cave. Luna raised her trident and was pleasantly surprised how easily her light magic seemed to stop the gelatinous creatures in their tracks.   

“From back here sounds good to me,” Luna decided as the first fell with a bubbling scream.

“That wasn’t so bad, I guess,” Prompto offered a high-five and they moved on to the next, while Noct, Ignis and Gladio were forced to face the flans up close.

It didn’t take the group long to dispatch the Flans, avoiding their goopy corpses as they turned black and bubbled back into the stone floor. Noct stopped them as they reached what looked like a dead end.

“Noct…” Ignis raised a questioning eyebrow at the prince.

“Not lost,” Noct said quickly, “we just get to go for a fun slide.”

“You’re joking.” Gladio looked down the ice slope, arms folded over his chest. Whatever was at the end of the slope remained a mystery, as the lights from their torches did nothing to penetrate the darkness.

“Not joking at all.” Noct sat down on the edge. “Come on big guy, it’s actually kinda fun.” He gave the others a wink before letting go of the edge and sliding down the ice, using his hands and feet as best he could to stop himself crashing into the sides of the tunnel. It was over fairly quickly. He shot off the edge and braced himself hitting the ground and rolling to his feet.

The instant Noct hit the ground, the sound of forming Daemons filled the cave. Imps pulled themselves from the black sludge, their chittering laughter echoing around him. He pulled a lance from the arsenal, thrusting forward at one of the Imps as someone landed behind him. The Imp jerked backwards, just as Noct slashed the lance to the side.

“Hey Noct! Leave some for me!” Gladio said, slamming his Great Sword down into the Imp. It hit the ground and exploded into black smoke. 

Before he had time to react, Noct was knocked aside as another Imp shot crimson light at them. Pain blossomed in his shoulder, but he ignored it. Quickly regaining his balance, he warped, forward slashing and jabbing at the Imp, while Gladio spun his blade in a circle.

“Miss me?” Ignis appeared at his side, twin daggers in his hands. He slashed at one Imp as it neared them. It flipped backwards, and Ignis’ blades glanced off the crescent-shaped object on its back, with a loud clang of metal on metal. Noct was there with his lance, running it right through the Imp which also exploded.

Shots and golden light from behind them, taking care of the last couple of Imps.

“Took you guys long enough,” Gladio called. “What were you doing, having a tea party up there?” His sword vanished and he stretched and rotated his shoulder with a grunt.

“I wish,” Prompto said. “I don’t know about you but I could use a nice steaming cup of tea right now, or some soup…”

“Let’s keep moving,” Noct said. He felt bad as he watched his friend shiver. “The more we move the warmer you’ll be.”

The cave here opened up, offering a choice of several paths.

“Which way now, Noct?” Luna asked, moving up beside him.

“Uh, this way. I think…” He frowned, looking at each of the directions a moment before waving them along.

They reached another ice slope, and Gladio insisted on going first this time. Noct slid down behind him and dropped down straight into a battle between Gladio and an Arachne. The huge spider Daemon leaped into the air as Gladio roared and spun his sword. Noct dodged out of the way at the last second and warped up to the Arachne sword in hand. The momentum from the attack knocked the monster from the air, and Noct flipped back, landing on his feet in time to see a beam of light hit the Arachne. It screeched, rearing back as bullets followed, and Gladio finished it by slamming his sword down into the daemon, it collapsed, cleaved neatly in half, melting into darkness.

* * *

“More of these assholes?” Prompto groaned as more Daemons materialised in front of them. More Imps, they were weak but fast and their magic burned, leaving scorch marks scattered across clothes and skin.

Noct winced as sweat dripped into a cut on his cheek. He wiped the blood away with the back of his hand as they walked, and glanced over at Ignis with a frown. The man looked more exhausted than he had seen in a long time. It wasn’t usually something ignis allowed people to see. He was always so good at hiding any weakness.

“You okay Iggy?” Noct asked quietly. Ignis started, and turned to look at Noct as though he hadn’t realised he was there.

“Perfectly fine, Noct,” he responded, after only a moment’s hesitation. Noct raised an eyebrow as if to say he didn’t believe it.

“Perhaps a little tired,” Ignis conceded with a small sigh, pushing his glasses up. “But nothing for you to worry about, I assure you.”

Noct’s disbelieving eyebrow did not lower as he looked the dishevelled man up and down once more. Ignis definitely looked paler than usual, and he was visibly shivering, the blotches that had covered his face from their battle with the giant snake were almost gone at least.

“If you say so,” Noct finally said with a sigh. Ignis was being stubborn and they needed to keep moving, to get out of this damn cave.

Their next obstacle came into view - a narrow ledge overhanging a cavern filled with Daemons. Prompto groaned, peering over the edge.

“Great. So our choice is the scary narrow ledge, or the pit of death.”

“Seems so,” Noct grinned. “Don’t know about you, but I’ll take my chances with the scary narrow ledge. I have this feeling it will work out.”

Thankfully there was no problems crossing the ledge, nor were there any fighting the Daemons they found on the other side. Noct led them further along the path to a section of the cave that was closed in and much darker. The light from their torches shone off the icy walls; huge icicles that hung from the ceiling and formed on the ground, creating an eery atmosphere. They disposed of more Flans and Imps quickly as they passed through, the near constant onslaught of Daemons leaving them little time to think. When the cave opened up again, Noct had to stop and consider their next move.

He was sure they were going the right way, but that edge of doubt was still there. It had been so long ago, and it’s not like he’d been paying that much attention the first time. Everything was looking the same, and Ignis still didn’t look good, everyone else looked tired, Prompto was shivering - even his whining had stopped, never a good sign. He pushed down the feeling of panic that was tightening in his chest. He had no choice, he had to pick a direction and hope his instincts were helping him.

“Right… This way,” he said, squaring his shoulders and taking the lead once more. They side-stepped along another ledge, which led them around a corner, and felt awfully familiar. There was a whimper from his left as Prompto’s foot slipped, snow and ice breaking away and falling down into the darkness below.

“You okay Prom?” Noct asked.

“Yeah… j-just a bit c-cold,” he said around clenched teeth, regaining his footing.

“We’re almost there. I can see the other side, hang in there,” Noct said, moving a little faster. Once he reached stable ground, he held out one hand, creating fire in his palm. He reached out his other hand and pulled Prompto close as he stumbled from the ledge.

“Here, it’s not much but it will help.” He held the fireball in his hand between them, using their bodies to contain the heat as much as possible between them. Prompto hummed pleasantly and sunk into Noct’s shoulder.

“Th-thanks Noct,” he mumbled.

“Ignis,” Noct called as the others all stepped off the ledge. “Come get warm, you got wet with that weird snake stuff too.”

“Noct, I-” he started, but Noct rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, I know you’re fine, whatever, get your ass over here.” The two made room for him, huddling together around Noct’s fire.

“Luna, Gladdy, are you both okay?” Noct asked, looking up from the huddle at the other two, who were leaning against least icy rocks they could find.

“Yeah, I’m good,” Gladio said, then looked down at Luna who smiled tiredly.

“Nothing to worry about, I’m fine.”

“Good,” Noct pushed more power into the fire and slowly he felt Prompto’s trembling still, and saw more colour come back to Ignis’ cheeks. He let them enjoy it for a moment longer before allowing the fire to extinguish.

“We should move,” he groaned, and stretched back and leg. The cold always made his old injuries feel so stiff, although not nearly as much as the rain did. It was still bad enough that if he stood in one position too long they started to ache. He gave Prompto’s shoulder one more pat and walked ahead, leading them further into the cave. He was sure they were almost there.

Another group of Imps popped out of the ground, and the group immediately drew their weapons, making short work of the small creatures, despite their weariness. The next area opened up ahead of them. It was bright here, the light glistening on an enormous sheet of ice that covered the rock face completely. Huge icicles clambered over the ceiling, and there in an alcove, set into the rock, was the door to the tomb door.

“Knock, knock,” Gladio joked.

“We’re here,” Ignis said, his voice amused and clearly relieved.

“Finally,” Prompto sighed. “I was starting to think you were leading us around in circles, Noct.”

“So was I,” Noct admitted.

Their relief was short-lived, however. As they stepped towards the door, the air shimmered with black smoke.

“Again?” Prompto cried in frustration, pulling out his gun.

Three Deamons appeared from the smoke, and Noct’s stomach clenched. He’d forgotten about these Deamons. They had been waiting for them the last time he had been here too. Tall and ancient, they looked like wizened mages. Tentacles settled around their faces like long beards, while longer ones flowed beneath them like robes. They floated there, long - clawed hands stretched out, ruby light glowing around them.

“Mindflayers,” Ignis said curiously. “I’ve heard of these Daemons. They’re incredibly dangerous, and have strong magic.”

“More of these guys again,” Gladio said, slashing a sword through an Imp as it appeared in the air, knocking it to the ground before it could completely finish forming.

Luna took care of the other Imps, and they spread out around the Mindflayers. Noct blinked as one vanished into smoke. He only had a second before it appeared beside him, slashing at him with its claws. He warped quickly, bringing up his sword and aiming into its side.

He caught a glimpse of Gladio to his right swinging his Great Sword in a huge arc and hitting one of the Mindflayers, knocking it to the ground. He warped in the other direction, where there was clear space and he could gather himself.

He pulled out his favourite set of daggers and clenched his hands tightly around them. Ignis and Luna were fighting one of the Daemons, while Gladio was fighting the second with Prompto shooting it from behind. The third shot towards Noct, moving faster than he’d expected. He had barely enough time to warp out of its way before slipping in behind it and slashing furiously with his daggers. He dashed to the side as it spun around to attack him, dropping his daggers to pull out his sword, pulling it up to block the attack.

There was an explosion of red light and he was on his back, pain roaring through his body. Dazed, he attempted to reorientate himself, trying to roll over, to do anything. But his body refused to listen as wave after wave of pain rolled over him, and everything was suddenly black as he felt himself being lifted off the ground.

“No…” he moaned, as he realised what was happening. The air pressed so tight around him he felt like he was being suffocated. He kicked his legs frantically as the tentacles squeezed tighter around him. He couldn’t scream, he could barely breathe. He could feel his energy, his magic being sucked from him.

Everything was fading, and white spots danced behind his eyelids. He couldn’t feel his body anymore. Somewhere far away he could hear someone shouting his name, then he felt a jolt and everything released, around him and he fell to the ground.

With a groan, he reached with a shaking hand into his pocket, fumbling around for a potion. Forcing his eyes open, he saw Gladio fighting off the Mindflayer that had gotten him. He heaved himself to one side, the motion causing the world to tip and sway around him. Somehow managing to get to his knees, he yanked a potion from his pocket, tore the lid off, and drank it as fast as he could. He heard a scream behind him, but couldn’t turn to see what was happening.

He gasped for air as he finished the potion, but some of his energy was coming back. He stumbled to his feet, his back hitting the damp ice wall behind him. Looking up, he turned and pulled his sword, heaving it toward the top of the ice wall and warping up to it. Hanging from it, he took several deep breaths. Everyone was still fighting, everyone was still standing.  Prompto had his back against the wall, firing rapidly. Luna was shooting beam after beam of light. Gladio had his shield out and was deflecting red magic, while Ignis attacked with his lance.

“Noct, are you okay up there?” Ignis called, not turning to look as he swung his lance once more at the Daemon. “Lighting magic, Noct, they’re weak to Lighting!”

“O-okay. Everyone move out of the way!” he yelled back. He calling lighting to his hand, condensing it into a ball. He watched as Ignis signalled the others and they herded the three Mindflayers to the middle of the small area.

“Go now Noct!” Ignis called, once everyone was out of the way.  Noct hurled the lightning ball down at the creatures, blinking rapidly as it exploded into light, the air crackling and surging with power. The Mindflayers collapsed to the ground, jerking and flailing as the electricity jolted them. Noct was straining to hang on. Falling into his lighting magic would be a bad idea, but his arm was trembling with the effort of holding on. Desperately, he grabbed on with his other hand, but he was just so tired, his energy and magic almost completely depleted. He almost let go when an explosion hit the ice wall beside him. Panicking he realised he’d lost some time, as the creatures were standing again and throwing their crimson magic at him. His comrades were having none of it, however. They attacked the weakened Deamons with full force. Noct felt something above him crack, and he let go of his sword, allowing it to vanish before he drew it again from the astral sphere and hurled it, warping to the ground.

Staggering with weariness he only distantly aware of the deafening cracking sounds coming from the ice wall and the screams of his friends. Something crashed into him and the world was falling down around him - the entire ice wall, he realised as he floated somewhere above himself, everything moving in slow motion. His body crashed to the floor, something heavy almost completely covering him. He could see the blue sheets of ice shattering and crashing around him, and then nothing.     

Chapter Text

Prompto screamed as the huge sheets of ice collapsed around them. He fought against the hands around his waist, dragging him back.

“Let me go! We’ve got to help!”

“Stop kicking me damn it, you’re going to get yourself killed,” Gladio growled in his ear.

Prompto caught a glimpse of Luna shooting a beam of golden light at some ice as it fell towards them. It exploded and Prompto felt shards flying past them. Gladio grabbed Luna’s arm and pulled the both of them away from danger, through the archway and back into the area near the ledge.

“No,” Prompto moaned as Gladio dropped him roughly to the ground. Luna fell to her knees beside him.

“Noct… Ignis… they can’t be…” He trailed off. He hadn’t seen if Ignis had pushed Noct out of the way or not, it had all happened so fast. And now they were…

“They’re not dead.” Luna touched his cheek gently, her blue-grey eyes suddenly fierce. “They’re fine, I know it.”

Prompto found himself nodding, but his stomach churned with panic. They couldn’t be dead, they couldn’t be. A hand clamped down firmly his shoulder, Prompto blinked rapidly, looking up to Gladio.

“We’ll get them out,” Gladio said firmly. “They’re both tough, they’ll be fine.”

Prompto nodded again, trying to slow his rapid breathing and calm his racing heart. They were right, panicking wasn’t going to help anyone. He raised a hand, wiping the tears from his eyes, and took Luna’s offered hand, so she could pull him to his feet. They all turned to look back at the mess behind them. It was terrifying thinking of friends somewhere under all that. It almost brought Prompto’s panic flooding back, but Luna’s hand still holding his tightened.

“Come on, let’s move. Everything appears to have settled now,” Gladio said, walking forward.

Prompto pulled away from Luna and, clenching his trembling fists, walked back to the archway. His breath caught in dismay. The area beyond was a disaster. Almost half the ice wall that spanned the entire back of the room had collapsed into huge chunks, deadly boulders of ice that had tumbled to the ground and shattered everywhere. The small passage leading to the Tomb was completely covered. Prompto hoped with everything he had that Noct and Ignis were safe in that small area, and that they would be able to get to rescue them in time.

“Looks like those tentacle freaks were crushed in all this,” Gladio said as he carefully picked his way over the debris.

He headed straight for the Tomb, pulling away some of the smaller lumps of ice and tossing them aside. Prompto and Luna quickly joined him and the three worked silently, hoping to find their friends together and unharmed.

* * *

Everything ached, and the more he became aware that he was awake, the more it hurt. There was a low buzzing in the back of his head and he groaned as it bore into his brain.

“Noct?”

It was Ignis. Noct wanted to open his eyes and say something, but it felt impossible - his body was just not cooperating. He knew this feeling. Stasis. It had it happen enough times, and he always hated it. Magic-wise, he was completely tapped out, and would be for a small while.

A hand stroked his forehead gently, and he hummed at the small comfort as he tried to remember what had happened. Everything was so muddled… Had he been fighting… Ardyn strangling him? But then why was Ignis here? The hollow empty feeling and the irritating buzzing. He whimpered. He wanted it to stop, everything hurt so much. The Royal Arms had run him through, hadn’t they? When had that happened? Why did he feel so cold? Wait… An ice cave. Had there been a cave-in?

He wrenched his eyes open. Ignis was there, his face so close, that Noct realised he had his head on the other man’s lap. But as Noct blinked, the face in front of him changed. It was older, scarred, wearing dark glasses.

“Noct?”

Noct snapped his eyes shut once more.

“No,” he groaned. “Please no.”

Hadn’t he gone back? Maybe that hadn’t been real after all…

“Noct, what’s the matter?”

“I’m sorry,” Noct mumbled. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there.”

“Noct what are you talking about?” Ignis asked.

“I should have been there.” A sob caught in his throat. “I should have protected you like you always protect me. It’s not fair. You dedicated your whole life to me and I couldn’t even be there for the one time you needed me.” 

“Noct, calm yourself, everything is okay, I’m okay.”

“No, it’s not okay, you’re…” Noct opened his eyes, another sob escaping even as he wiped away his tears. Ignis was younger again, staring down at him, green eyes filled with concern. He was completely unharmed once more. Noct reached up and ran a finger along the side of Ignis’ face, smooth and scar free. But he looked so tired, his skin was so pale, and his hair was mussed and sticking to his forehead. He was injured, bruises and grazes on his face and neck.

“Oh,” Noct’s hand dropped to his side once more. His first instinct was to close his eyes again but he was afraid if he did, Ignis would change again.

“Do you remember what happened?” Ignis asked, his voice calm, soothing, as it always was.

Noct looked away from Ignis for a moment. He finally recognised the ice cave, and when he turned his head to the side, the door to the royal Tomb, which meant… He looked the other way, toward the wall of ice - the cave in. For a moment, Ignis disappeared in a roar of sound. Everything was falling down around him. Ignis was pushing him out of the way, saving him from being crushed…

“I remember,” Noct said finally. He blinked slowly. Everything was growing unfocused once more, the constant drone of nothingness threatening to pull him again. It was like fighting against a strong current, a dark river pulling him inexorably into a screaming void. He caught Ignis’ eyes once more.

“Stasis,” Noct whimpered.

Ignis frown grew deeper with worry.

“I thought that might be the case.” He ran this fingers through Noct’s hair once more. “Just rest now, you’ll be okay. I’m here.”

“Thank you.” Noct let his eyes fall shut, let the void carry him away, too tired to fight it any more. Ignis began humming, something so familiar, something Ignis had comforted him with as a child. Ignis was there, Noct could feel his hand on his head, his warm presence by his side, and the soothing familiar tune.

* * *

When Noct opened his eyes again, he felt a tiny spark of magic flickering once again. It was enough that he could move, at least. Ignis was still there, but he was asleep, his head resting against the cold rock wall behind them.

Noct forced himself to sit up. It hurt to move, but he had to get them out of here, or they were going to freeze to death. Ignoring his complaining body, he managed to get to his knees in front of Ignis. He looked worse, frowning in his sleep, sweat dripping from his forehead and mixing with the now-dried blood on his face. Noct put a hand to Ignis’ cheek and frowned. He was burning up. How was he feeling so hot when it was so cold?

“Ignis?” Worry gnawing at him, he shook his friend gently. “Specs, wake up.” Ignis stirred, but didn’t wake.

“Ignis?” Noct called a little louder. “Shit, what’s wrong with you?”

Panicking now, Noct tried to stand, and almost fell over. His leg was unbearably stiff. He grunted, rubbing it with one hand as he stumbled to the ice wall of. Slumping against it, he held a hand out to steady himself. He paused, listening. Muffled thudding sounds, too soft to identify, but, he could definitely hear something. It sounded so far away, he hoped it meant the others were coming.

“Hello?” he called, and the sounds slowed and stopped. There was no response, however and he called again, shouting his friends names. There was nothing. Frustrated with the silence he gave up. He pulled his phone out, but as expected, there was no service. It seemed to be something to do with the Tombs. It wasn’t like the dead kings needed phone service.

He moved to the Tomb door, pulled out his key and unlocked it. He had no idea if it was warmer in there, but it would at least be safer if the ice wall collapsed.

With a grunt, he pulled Ignis up as best he could. The man was far too tall for him to carry properly, but Noct managed to get him upright, arms draped over his own shoulders. He dragged Ignis into the Tomb and lay him down against the wall inside, arranging the unconscious man as comfortably as he could, given the circumstances. He checked Ignis’ pockets for Potions, disappointed when he came back with none. There were snacks and water, a small first aid kit, and of course, a can of Ebony, but no Potions, Elixirs, or Ethers. Nothing.

He moved to the Tomb. If he were honest, he was too tired to deal with it on top of everything else, but he needed to take it while he was here. With a weary sigh, he limped to the Royal Arm that was waiting for him, the Swords of the Wanderer. He clenched his teeth and held out a hand, closing his eyes at the last moment as the twin swords floated above the tomb. He tried to focus on everything around him aside from the Royal Arms, but even behind tightly closed eyes he could see the brilliant blue that flooded the room. He could feel his breath coming faster and faster, his body trembling. Only once the weapons had gone inside the Astral Arsenal along with the others did he open his eyes. Noct gripped the edge of the Royal Tomb, out of breath. He fought off a rolling wave of vertigo, willing his breathing to slow. Ignis was here, and needed him right now. He didn’t have time to have a panic attack and pass out.

  Once he was sure he could move without fainting, he shuffled back to Ignis, feeling so exhausted that he could barely walk, His magic hadn’t recovered enough to be moving around this much yet. He pulled Ignis down so he was resting more comfortably on Noct’s lap, much like Noct had been when he had woken up.

“Noct?” Ignis mumbled, his eyes fluttering open. He frowned and then groaned, grimacing in pain as he squeezed his eyes closed once more.

“What’s wrong Ignis?” Noct asked in alarm.

“Hurts…” Ignis groaned softly, as he panted through a waves of pain.

“Where?” Noct asked panic in his voice. “What can I do Ignis?”

There was no answer apart from a moan. Noct put his hands palm down over Ignis. He knew that somewhere within him, he had the ability heal. It was nothing like Luna of course, but his had magic healed them all before, many times. Potion or no potion, he had to find that now. He pulled at his magic, harder than he remembered ever pulling, and his magic flickered. He let out a sigh of relief as he felt the magic flowing down into Ignis, and it wasn’t long before his forehead relaxed a little and the colour returned to his face.

“N-Noct, stop.” Ignis grabbed his hands, his eyes open and staring up at him. “Don’t. Save your energy to get us out of here.”

“But-”

“You’re almost out of magic as it is. Getting us out of here needs to be your number one priority, then we can worry about me.”

Noct grit his teeth. Of course Ignis was right. He hoped what he had done would be enough at least.

“Perhaps you can carefully, slowly, melt a section of the caved in ice, make a tunnel that we can crawl through…” Ignis’ voice faded and he grew still, his eyes fluttering shut. It was almost physically painful seeing him like this. Noct had never seen him so weak, so helpless before, not even when he had become blind. He’d been as strong and stubborn as ever. Then again, he had never seen Ignis sick before.

“Noct?” Noct started out of his thoughts, realising Ignis was looking up at him again. “Tell me what happened, Noct. I know it must have been serious. Twice now you have awoken upset with worry about me. The first time you mentioned my eyes and earlier you apologised. What happened?”

Noct’s breath caught in his chest, and a vision of Ignis, scared, his irises clouded over, flashed before him. Noct gasped, and pressed his fist into his own eyes.

“You…” Noct swallowed heavily. “You were badly injured when we were making a pact with the Leviathan in Altissia. You lost your eyesight.”

“I was blind?” Ignis asked, his voice steady, despite his surprise. Noct let his hands drop back down and nodded.

“Yeah, I don’t know what happened. You never talked about it, and I never asked. I should have, I’m sorry. A lot was happening and not long after I…” Noct trailed off, looking away from penetrating Ignis’ gaze.

“You seemed so sure this was your fault Noct, but you’re saying you weren’t there?”

“That’s right! I wasn’t there!” Noct burst out. “I wasn’t there when you needed me. You’ve always been there for me, always, and this one time you needed me-” He broke off as a sob caught in his throat.

“Noct, I can guarantee that whatever happened was not your fault.”

“It w-was, it was m-my fault, I should have b-been there.” Noct scrubbed at the tears rolling down his nose.

“You cannot blame yourself for everything,” Ignis said, reaching up and brushing hair from Noct’s face. “It is my responsibly to be there for you, not the other way around.”

“No,” Noct snapped. “That’s just it. I know this is your job Ignis, but you’re also my friend -more than that. You’ve always put yourself second, looking after me has been your whole life and you needed me this one time. And I wasn’t there.”

Ignis pushed himself shakily upright before Noct could protest and pulled Noct firmly into a hug.

“You’re right, you are more to me than a responsibility, and being there for you always, has been my pleasure. Watching you grow from a child to a man, a strong fearless Prince, who carries such guilt and burden on his shoulders because he cares so much, and a person who cares for his friends and comrades with such fiery passion, has been my pleasure. Do not worry yourself over what happened then, just know that we are here now. Relieve yourself of this guilt, Noct, that is all I ask.”

Noct couldn’t hold back the sobs any longer. He clung to Ignis, who held him right back. When Noct felt calmer and Ignis lay back down on Noct’s lap, both of them exhausted. They napped, Noct leaning on the cold stone wall, one cold hand holding Ignis’ clammy one.

Noct was roused a third time by a loud thud and a muffled voice. He jerked fully awake when he heard someone say his name and he realised hadn’t come from the man still sleeping on his lap. He felt Ignis’ forehead. He was still burning up, but appeared to be shivering at the same time. His face pale and shiny with sweat, his eyes hollow. Noct didn’t know how much longer he would last without something to help him.

As fast as he could, while fighting the numbness in his limbs, he moved Ignis off his lap and crawled to the ice wall.

“Guys?” he called, using the uneven surface to pull himself to his feet.

“Noct?” Excitement over took the exhaustion for a moment as Noct recognised Gladio’s voice.

“We’re here!” Noct called back. He called his fire magic, pushing his hands against the ice, producing just enough heat to melt it slowly - ‘carefully’ Ignis had said. He had to be careful, or the whole wall could collapse again.

Sweat gathered on his forehead. He had to have enough magic to keep this up, keep it controlled, keep it steady. Streams of water ran to the ground, and he spread his hands to make the hole wider. It had to be big enough for them to get through.

“Noct, are you melting the ice?” He heard Luna’s voice from the other side.

“Yes, I’m coming. Move out of the way.”

His magic almost went out when a huge, unmelted chunk fell, the wall shifting dangerously for a moment before it stilled. Noct let out a breath he had been holding and continued, standing in a puddle now. He hoped he was almost through. He was concentrating so hard on not letting the magic go out that he barely noticed when his hands hit air.

“You did it!” Prompto cried joyfully, his face appearing through the opening. Noct’s vision tilted and he grabbed the wall to stop himself falling.

“Noct?” Prompto faltered.

Noct didn’t answer. Instead he turned and stumbled back to Ignis. Collapsing to the ground beside him, he shook him roughly.

“Ignis, wake up, come on we have to get you out of here!”

* * *

Ignis’ eyes slid half open. It was a moment before he was able to focus on Noct’s face and another moment before he could understand what was being said to him. He grimaced as more pain roared through his body, his limbs shaking as he forced himself to get up.

Allowing Noct to pull his body upright, he leaned on an equally shaky Noct and they staggered to the collapsed section of ice.

Only now there was a hole, and three eager and concerned faces of his companions clambering to see through it. Noct guided him to the hole, warning him about the slippery ground made by melting the ice. Ignis crawled through, strong arms gently pulling him out the other side and helping him to his feet.

“You look like shit, Iggy,” Gladio pointed out, putting one arm around him once it became obvious Ignis couldn’t hold himself up.

“Well then, I look the way I feel,” Ignis said with a slow tired smile.

“Are you injured Ignis?” Luna hovered worriedly, holding out her hands to take his face gently.

“I suspect the venom of the Midgard Sormr may be taking hold,” he said, as golden light bloomed between between them.

“Why didn’t you say anything?” Gladio groaned. “Stubborn idiot.”

“There were no antidotes left and I thought I could make it back to the car. Which I would have, had we not become trapped.”

“I can’t heal you completely, Ignis, but I can relieve some of the symptoms.”

Prompto helped a shaky Noct from the opening in the ice, and they leaned into each other, both exhausted and only just standing.

“I’m sorry, I used the last antidote Ignis,” Prompto burst out. “I was feeling so sick after it hit me with that spray, I had no idea it was our last one or, I would have shared with you.”

“Do not worry yourself Prompto,” Ignis said. “I will be okay.”

“You should have said something earlier,” Noct said. “We need you, Ignis.”

“I am aware,” Ignis said with a sigh. “It will not happen again. Thank you, Lunafreya. I am already feeling better.” He wasn’t feeling great, but the pain had receded a little, enough that he would be able to walk, albeit a little slowly. He looked to Noct, who was swaying where he stood, and Prompto beside him, who was doing his best to hold the prince upright.

“Do we have any Elixirs or Ethers left?” Ignis asked. “Noct is almost out of power.”

Everyone searched their pockets at the question, Luna eventually retrieving an Ether from her pouch. She handed it to Noct, who drank it without hesitation. His eyes fluttered as his magic came flooding back. He groaned, clenching his fists and rotating his shoulders.

“That’s so much better,” he said, looking to Luna. “Thank you.”

“If everyone’s feeling better, how about we get moving,” Gladio said, still holding onto Ignis. “I don’t know about you guys, but I could use some steaming hot Cup Noodles right about now.” He guided Ignis along, and everyone else followed behind.

“Oh, how about soup,” Prompto added. “I could really do with a nice hot bowl of soup…. Mmmm, soup.” A smile formed on his lips as he dreamily imagined his non-existent soup.

As they reached the cave entrance, Noct allowed himself to feel relieved. Everyone had made it. And that was one more Royal Arm he could check off the list. Eyeing the sun, he realised it was morning of the next day. They had been in the cave all night, and despite a few naps, Noct could feel it. But at least it wasn’t dark, because the last thing they needed right now was more Daemons.

Chapter Text

“Lady Lunafreya, it’s an honour to see you today.”

“The honour is mine,” Luna smiled kindly. Bowing her head slightly, she gestured to the seat in front of her. “Please, sit.”

The young man standing in front of her wrung his hat in his hands nervously, eyes looking everywhere except Luna’s face. Dark lines marred his face and arms, marks of the sickness brought by the Starscourge. He quickly moved to sit down but dropped his hat as he did so, his nervousness making him clumsy. Luna crouched to pick it up; handing it to him, she took his other hand. Still crouching in front of him she caught his eyes with her own.

“I can see you are anxious. Let me heal your pain.”

Luna could hear the gasps from the crowd around her as her healing light flared and filled the space between them, flowing onto the man’s face and down his arms. Relief spread across his features when the sickness started to recede, the black fading. His eyes slid shut and he smiled. Luna pulled away and stood.

“You should be feeling better soon,” she said, hands clasped in front of her.

When the man opened his eyes again they were filled with tears. He stood quickly and bowed low.

“Thank you, Lady Lunafreya, thank you so much!” he babbled, before moving away and disappearing into the crowd.

Luna looked up and spied Gladio standing nearby, arms folded - he was clearly taking guard duty very seriously. He nodded and smiled at her and she waved back. The moment she announced she was going to go and help the sick of Lestallum, Gladio had insisted he would come along, just in case. After their trials in the ice cave, Ignis and Noct had slept all day, and well into the morning of the next. Everyone agreed they should be left to sleep, and Prompto had offered to stay behind with them.

“Hey,” said a smooth voice, very close to her ear.

Luna jumped and spun around. Noct grinned at her and held out a small bag.

“Hungry?” he asked. “Gladio said you’ve been at it for hours.”

“Like you wouldn’t believe,” she said, snatching the bag and opening it to reveal the overwhelming smell of spicy steamed buns. Apparently Noct had been paying attention. She had already had taken a bite out of one before she looked up to see Noct’s amused smirk. The were so delicious she didn’t care that he was laughing at her. The bread was soft and slightly spongy and sweet and the meat inside was warm and spicy enough to leave her lips tingling.

“Feeling better then?” she asked, swallowing her mouthful.

“Much,” Noct said, shoving his hands into his pockets. He was dressed casually today, in jeans and a grey and white t-shirt, a cap covering his black hair. “Ignis actually made these. Said you seemed to like them the other day.”

Well, that explained it.

“I’ll have to thank him, they’re fantastic. He made them even better than the ones I had the other day. I take it he’s back to normal then?”

“Yep, same old Ignis. Practically vaulted out of bed to start cooking - made these, pancakes, fruit pies, and snack bars for the road before Prompto and I could convince him to sit down for a minute.”

Luna snickered and took another bite of her bun, then offered Noct the bag. He smirked and took an offered bun.

“So are you finished up here?” he asked before biting into it.

“Yes, I believe so.” She turned and realised most of the crowd had dispersed. She felt better knowing that, despite being with Noct and the others, she could still be the Oracle and help people.

“You’re incredible,” Noct said matter of factly.

Luna turned back to him, one eyebrow raised.

“I’m only doing what I can with the power that has been given to me, nothing more.”

“Still. We’re lucky to have you. I don’t know what would have happened if you hadn’t been there yesterday. And then you come out here today doing this, being amazing for everyone.”

Luna blushed under his fond gaze.

“I do what I can,” she said finally, before clearing her throat. “I’m ready to go back to the hotel, if you want to come?”

“Of course, let’s go.” Noct turned to Gladio, who was still standing some distance away. “Gladio, you coming?”

“I’ll see you there,” Gladio said, waving an arm at them.

They had almost reached the hotel, bag of steamed buns long gone, when a figure standing beside the fountain caught Luna’s eye.

“Gentiana!” she cried happily, rushing forward to greet the Messenger. “It’s been so long, where have you been?”

“It is a pleasure to see you, Lady Lunafreya. And you Prince Noctis.” Gentiana smiled as she dipped her head to both of them.

“Gentiana,” Noct replied, nodding in return.

“I am pleased to see you have been reunited,” Gentiana said, a pleasant smile on her lips, her eyes closed as they often were. “The King of Light and the Oracle are more powerful together than apart.”

“Gentiana, would you join us at the hotel?”  Luna asked. “We have much to discuss.”

“I’m here only to remind you to go forth and receive the blessing of the Storm Sender,” Gentiana said.

“I think we have more than that discuss,” Noct said, folding his arms. “Starting with who you really are.”

This apparently took Gentiana by surprise, as she opened her eyes, looking straight at Noct with a small smile on her face. Luna started to ask Noct what he meant, but he silenced her with a reassuring wave of his hand. Gentiana regarded him silently for a moment.

“You have learnt much on your journey, King of Light.”

“I guess the Astrals don’t talk much to each other do they?” Noct said. “I was sure Bahamut would have said something, considering you’re supposed to be the Messenger.”

There was another long silence, before Luna turned again to Noct.

“Damn it, what are you talking about, Noct?” she demanded.

“Gentiana is really the Glacian,” he said, and Luna’s jaw dropped just a little. Noct raised an eyebrow at Gentiana. “Ready to go have that have that chat?”

* * *

Back at the hotel, Gentiana and Luna took the only available seats by the table, while Noct felt more comfortable sitting cross-legged on the bed. Ignis hovered, clearly out of sorts at having Gentiana suddenly pop in unannounced. He had poured tea for everyone, and supplied a plate of fruit pies and scones, and then had nothing to do but lurk and top up people’s drinks. Prompto lounged beside Noct on the bed, and Gladio - who had walked into the room to find the atmosphere rather more serious than he’d expected was on the other bed.

“This is very curious,” Gentiana observed, taking a sip of her tea. “I wonder how this could have happened.”

“Beats me,” Noct shrugged, feeling tired from explaining the entire tale, from the beginning to Gentiana.

“Regardless, you must go on your quest to obtain the Fulgurian’s favour. A covenant must be obtained.”

“What about you? Aren’t we going to form a covenant, Gentiana?”

Gentiana smiled, her eyes closed once more. She placed her cup on the table and clasped her hands together in her lap.

“I have already formed a covenant with the Oracle, some time ago. But that does not mean you have gained my favour, King of Kings.”

“Right… So do you want to fight or something?” He hoped not. Fighting Shiva probably wouldn’t be fun.

“In time, we will discuss this. But first, the Fulgurian.”

Noct rolled his eyes. Astrals, always so insistent on doing everything on their own schedule.

Gentiana stood and bowed once more.

“I will take my leave.” She turned to Ignis. “My thanks for your gracious hospitality.”

* * *

Noct could feel it the moment the change in the weather came. It roused him from sleep way too early. He groaned and rubbed his leg, rolling over to stretch his back. Careful not to disturb Prompto, he got up, went to use the bathroom, then crawled back into bed trying to get some more sleep before they had to leave for the day.

Several hours later, Noct was curled up in the back seat, falling asleep beside Luna. The roof on the Regalia was up, and the steady sound of rain accompanied them as they sped along the bridge leaving Lestallum.

“Did you not get enough sleep last night, Noct?” Luna asked, poking Noct gently in the side.

He grumbled in response, but didn’t open his eyes.

“Don’t mind him,” Ignis said from the driver’s seat. “He is always like this when it rains.”

“Oh, now that you mention it, I’ve always wondered about that,” Prompto said.

“I’m fine, stop talking about me,” Noct grumbled.

“What have we got here?” Gladio said, sitting up a little straighter in the front seat.

Ignis slowed the car and Noct opened one eye, looking straight out his window. A Niflheim airship was lowering toward the ground ahead, between them and the large metal gate that, if closed, would separate them from Duscae. Noct bolted upright as a dozen MT’s dropped onto the road, blocking their path. Two more airships arrived lowering to the ground.

“What do we do?” Prompto cried.

Noct frowned. The MT’s weren’t blocking the road completely - there was room to pass down both sides.

“Iggy, floor it!” he yelled, He caught green eyes staring at him in the mirror. “If we stop and fight, those other two airships are going to drop more MT on us.”

Ignis nodded and pressed down on the accelerator. The car lurched forward. Noct felt a hand gripping his leg and looked at Luna, who had turned white. He put his hands over hers soothingly as the car veered to the right side, pushing everyone sideways as it skidded on the wet road. There was a crunch of metal as one of the MT’s bounced off the side of the Regalia.

Noct could see the gates were closing.

“Iggy!” Noct called in warning.

“I can see, Highness. We will make it,” Ignis returned calmly. The car was speeding up, veering to avoid hitting another MT.

“We are going to die.” Prompto squeaked.

“We are not going to die,” Ignis said firmly.

The engine was so loud now, competing with the sound of blood pounding in Noct’s ears. An explosion sounded behind them, and the car veered suddenly. Luna and Prompto screamed as both of them were shoved into Noct, slamming his head into the glass. But somehow Ignis was able to correct the Regalia, and it shot off once more, sliding through the small gap between the rapidly closing gates. Ignis didn’t slow, but kept going until the gate was long out of their view, and everyone in the car had finished relearning how to breathe.

“Ignis, you’re incredible!” Luna cried.

“Why do I get the feeling Niflheim are going to be more of a problem now?” Gladio asked.

“I think you’re right,” Noct added, settling back into his seat, “they were a big problem when we did this the first time. Blockades everywhere, and it didn’t help that we didn’t have the Regalia.”

“Oh man, I’m glad we have the Regalia now,” Prompto said. “Walking everywhere in this rain? No thank you.”

“It won’t stop either, not until I make the Covenant with Ramuh.” Noct sighed and closed his eyes once again, dozing lightly once more.

* * *

“So now Luna needs to go speak with Ramuh and then Noct needs to touch the Runestones?”

Noct started at the sound of Prompto’s voice, realising he’d almost fallen asleep again. Three times now they’d had to stop to fight off MT troops landing on the road in front of them. He looked out the front window to see the thick cover of trees had thinned to reveal lush grassy landscape, and as they passed under two of the stone arches, they could see the huge shapes of the Catoblopes that inhabited the lake of Alstor Slough, grey with distance and fog.

“Yeah.” Noct yawned and sat up a little more. “Ramuh is not interested in a fight thankfully.”

“You mentioned there is a Service station up ahead, correct Noct?” Ignis said. “Is that where you wish to stay the night?”

“Sure, it’s that or the Haven down near the lake. I don’t know about you guys, but a nice waterproof caravan sounds infinitely better right now.”

Everyone approved of the caravan, even Gladio grunting in agreement.

“I know we still have enough light left,” Ignis said, “But I feel it’s probably best if we rest up, dry out a little, and make for the first Runestone tomorrow.”

“Hey, uh, mind turning the heat up, Specs?” Prompto whined from the back seat.

Drying off definitely sounded like a plan, as they were all cold and wet. It was a bonus they even had the Regalia this time around, Noct reminded himself. It had been weeks of this weather, with little chance to dry at night - camping in the rain, riding wet Chocobos all day, and a constant ache all the time. Nothing about it had been even remotely fun.

Noct draped his arm lazily across Luna’s knees and, holding his hand out between the three of them, called fire to his palm. Leaning his head against Luna’s shoulder he watched the light from the fire dance around on the roof.

“Aaah, thanks buddy,” Prompto said, humming in pleasure as the tiny flame slowly warmed them.

“That is a technique I’m growing rather fond of,” Luna added, nuzzling his hair in thanks.

“You’re welcome,” Noct muttered. He tried not to fall asleep this time, but it was hard, tired as he was, and slightly more cosy with both his fire and the hot air pumping from the front, snuggled up against Luna, and the Regalia’s gentle motion rocking him. All he needed now were some dry clothes and a comfy bed.

Chapter Text

Ramuh was just as awe-inspiring – and terrifying – as he had been the first time around. Noct had hoped he’d get more used to this, but he knew he’d still be scared, even if he came back a thousand times. Scared or not, though, the Covenant had to be formed.

“I guess that’s him,” Prompto said, finally finding his voice as Luna stepped forward to greet the giant. Noct winced as the Astral spoke. His voice was like a pair of mountains bashing up against each other, but louder.

“You don’t miss a thing, do you Prom?” Noct said watching Luna carefully. She looked tiny in front of Ramuh, but she showed no fear. Only Noct could see how much pain it was causing her, and only because he was looking for it.

“The Astrals are truly an incredible sight to behold,” Ignis murmured under cover of Ramuh’s grating voice. “Far beyond anything mere humans could ever imagine.”

Gladio grunted in agreement, arms folded.

Noct turned his attention to Ramuh again as the Fulgarian raised his staff into the air, his beard and robes whipped about by the wind, his impossibly giant form towering above them. Blue lightning crackled through the air, bursting into three separate bolts, one grounding itself in the cliffs ahead of them.

“Woah!” Prompto squeaked, grabbing Ignis’ arm. Luna didn’t even flinch, but it was clear when she turned back to them that she wasn’t as calm as she was pretending.

“It is done,” she said. Her voice wavered slightly, and she leaned heavily into Noct when he offered her his arm.

The Fulgurian bowed his head once, and rose up into the clouds, vanishing before their eyes. The rain, which had stilled for a short time, returned in full force. Another bolt of lightning lit the sky, striking the cliffs ahead of them again.

“I guess that’s our cue to move on,” Noct said dryly. He looked down at Luna, and his face softened. “Are you okay?”

She didn’t answer right away; her hand gripped his sleeve tightly, breathing was heavier than usual. Ignis started to offer his help, but Noct waved him away. Luna didn’t like people fussing

“Luna?” Noct put a hand on her shoulder and she looked up.

“I’ll be fine,” she said, sounding beyond exhausted. “We should find the first Runestone.”

“Right,” he said doubtfully, raising an eyebrow. “A hike’s just what you need.”

“It’s not far,” she said, forcing herself to stand a little straighter.

“And you can sit and rest when we get there,” said Noct firmly.

Luna opened her mouth to argue, but decided against it. The waves of pain come with the Covenant, were slowing - enough that she felt she could walk, at least, but she was still weaker than she wanted to admit. Noct smiled reassuringly down at her, and she smiled back and let go of his sleeve. Her smile fading as she stumbled, Noct quickly grabbing her arm to steady her.

Noct frowned in concern, but it turned suddenly into a grin.

“I’m glad my discomfort amuses you,” Luna said, frowning at him.

“Hey, how about I give you a piggyback?”

Luna raised an eyebrow. She had never had a piggyback before.

“C’mon, it’ll be fun,” he urged, taking her hands. “I never get to piggyback anyone. Gladio is always piggybacking me.”

“I suppose so… If you’re sure,” she said cautiously, it would be faster, and she hated the idea that she would be holding them up.

“Yeah, yeah, let’s do it,” he said. He crouched down, gesturing her to hop onto his back.

She climbed onto his back and let out an unintentional squeal when he stood more quickly than she expected. He laughed.

“Comfy?”

It was rather nice, she decided, leaning into his back. A moment later, she tensed as another wave of agony hit her. She forced herself to breathe slowly until it passed. It took longer every time. Noct simply stood, supporting her until she felt better.

“Rest now, Luna,” Noct murmured as they began the trek to the first Runestone. Relaxing again, she hummed into his neck and wrapped her arms tighter around his shoulders.

* * *

The others had already found the Runestone and were waiting for them, looking very pleased with themselves, by the time Noct caught up. It only took twenty minutes to reach the Runestone, but Noct had developed a new appreciation for all the times Gladio had had to carry him. Luna was small, but after a twenty minute hike, she seemed to have doubled in weight. He couldn’t bring himself to complain, though, not with Gladio smirking at him. Noct let her down as gently as possible, and she found a seat on one of the dryer - looking rocks under the cliff overhang, already feeling better for the rest. Noct stretched the kinks out of his back and shoulders, then walked over to the growing fulgurite pillar. The lighting that had been hitting it every so often had stopped completely as he held out his hand to touch it.

There were several soft gasps from behind him as a spark of crimson turned into an explosion of light. Noct grit his teeth against the rush of raw power that filled him, pure electricity that sparked in his bones burned in his muscles. There were no distracting flashbacks or wise words this time. He already knew everything Gentiana had to say. There was nothing but the wild bite of energy and Magic born of the Fulgurian.

And then it was gone. Everything was dark as his eyes adjusted, he took a moment to steady himself, feeling the tingle of energy fading from his limbs.

A crack of thunder jolted him back to reality. He turned to his friends, who were all staring at him with various looks of awe and confusion.

“Oh man, your eyes!” Prompto burst, out rushing forward to him to get a closer look. “That’s really weird.”

Noct moved to touch his face automatically; of course his eyes were glowing, as they did every time he called on the power of the Astrals.

“Yeah,” Noct said, turning away from Prompto’s intense staring. “They do that.”

* * *

They moved more slowly now, making sure they didn’t push Luna’s slowly-returning strength too far. The walk would have been pleasant, if the sky had stopped crying on them for five minutes. As they approached the second Runestone, everyone watched Noct's quiet resolve as he stepped forward and placed his hand on the glowing pillar. It was the same dramatic scene as before, bolts of magic lightning filling the air around them. They could only imagine what the Prince was experiencing as his body grew rigid and the hand at his side spasmed, fingers bent into claws. Eventually the magic died down, Noct’s posture softened, and he stepped back from it. He avoided everyone’s gaze as he turned back to face them. Instead, he stared off into the distance, his eyes glowing that eerie colour, the power he had absorbed from the Runestone lingering there before it faded away to reveal his normal blue irises.

“One to go,” he said faintly.

Prompto was there in an instant, placing his arm around Noct’s shoulder with a show of playfulness.

“I don’t know about you, but I’m starving. Time to think about dinner?”

“As if you ever think of anything else,” said Gladio.

“Indeed. We could all use a break, I expect,” Ignis said.

“Let’s call it a day,” Noct agreed, leaning gratefully into his friend. “The last Runestone is in a cave near the Chocobo Ranch, we can stay there tonight.”

Prompto’s eyes lit up, while everyone else agreed heartily it was time to find shelter.

* * *

They started back to the car, then the tell-tale humming and clanking of metal caught Ignis’ attention.

“I think we have company,” Gladio announced.

It was not the first group of Magitek Troops they had come across today, but Ignis hoped it would be the last. Everyone was exhausted, muddy, cold, and wet. The constant rain and cold made each battle harder, slowing their reactions; mistakes had already been made. Despite stocking up on curatives at Lestallum, they had already put a sizeable dent in the inventory.

As they rounded the cliff, the MT spotted them and came to life. Everyone drew their weapons. Bullets filled the air as several MTs opened fire, and Prompto returned the favour with a volley of his own. Gladio and Noct both threw their swords at the same time. Gladio’s blade cleaved through one MT and knocked another to the ground. Noct flashed out of his warp strike a split second later, his sword buried in another MT’s faceplate. Noct’s momentum drove the sword clean through the MT's head and they both hit the ground hard.

“Nice one, Noct!” Ignis called out triumphantly. Noct waved a hand distractedly and Ignis’ keen eyes picked up that he was taking longer to stand than usual. He moved without thinking, realising it would be best if he stayed by his Prince’s side for this battle. One of Luna’s magic blasts flew past him, hitting an MT that swung at Noct, knocking it back a few steps. Ignis, now in range, leaped and threw his all his weight behind his lance, knocking it down before it could reorient itself.

Noct spun and slammed his sword into its side. The thing, buzzed and crimson smoke bellowed from its body indicating it was time to move on to their next adversary. Ignis took a moment to scan the field. Eight MTs remained standing, Gladio taking out the ninth. Ignis ducked to the side as a sword came at him. In one smooth move he drew his daggers and jammed them into the weak spots of the MT’s armour. He let them go, pulling his lance into existence as the MT staggered sideways. He hit it hard on the back of the knees, toppling it into the mud. It struggled to stand and Ignis planted his lance in the centre of its chest.

There was a scream behind Ignis. It was cut short as he spun to see Noct’s sword falling from his hands, splintering into crystalline blue as it hit the ground. Noct’s body arched, eyes rolling back in his head. Ignis was already running forward when he spotted the MT standing behind Noct, the large metal device on its hand open to reveal metal points that were currently jammed into the Prince’s back, electricity pulsing through them in a show of light and magic. Noct thrashed, his mouth still open in a silent scream.

The MT jerked as a couple of bullets from Prompto’s gun took a chunk out of the side of its helmet. With a scream of anger, Ignis threw his lance. It hit the MT in the head and vanished as the MT fell backwards. Noct crumpled to the ground. Gladio’s sword slammed down onto it, cleaving it in half with a spray of magic and electronics. Ignis fell to his knees beside Noct who was twitching on the ground, struggling to get up.

“Hold on Noct, I’ve got you,” Ignis said, his heart racing at the sight of his fallen Prince. He pulled an Elixir from his pocket, not knowing exactly what damage the MT had caused Noct. Thankfully, Gladio stood by them, stopping any more enemies from getting close. Ignis could also hear Prompto and Luna taking shots from the side. He had a moment; he could help Noct to his feet without having to worry about being attacked.

He helped Noct drink the contents of the bottle, then stood, helping the shorter man to his feet.

“Thanks, Specs,” Noct said, gasping for breath.

“Anytime,” Ignis replied, clasping a hand to Noct’s shoulder. But the shoulder vanished under his hand as Noct threw himself back into the battle. Ignis, shaking his head at Noct’s rashness, followed suit, and they hastily took care of the remaining MT.

Ignis sighed with relief as the last MT fell, then winced as he suddenly became aware of a rather large bruise blossoming on his chest. He pulled up his shirt to check it was nothing more serious, and was glad to see that nothing looked broken. Noct, still energised from the Elixir, dashed to Prompto’s side, helping him to his feet as Luna raced over to them.

“Thanks Luna,” Prompto said, accepting Noct’s help. He grimaced as he attempted to wipe his muddy hands on his already - muddy pants. “I was almost a goner back there.”

“Hold still, silly,” she said placing her hands on the blond man's shoulder. “It actually got you.”

Prompto’s face fell as he twisted trying to turn his head to see his back.

“Oh yeah, I can feel that,” he grumbled.

Noct allowed the blond to sink into him as Luna worked her magic, watching Luna surreptitiously to make sure she wasn’t pushing herself too hard.

“Are you okay, Noct?” Luna asked looking up from her work at him. “I saw you go down earlier.”

“I’m fine,” Noct shrugged. “Ignis gave me a potion.”

On their other side, Gladio got up from the mud he had slipped in, grimacing as he looked down to see he was half covered in the stuff now. Ignis jogged to his side.

“You okay there, Gladio?” he asked, eyeing the man up and down.

“Yeah, just having fun in the mud,” Gladio muttered dryly. “You know me.”

Ignis sighed, suddenly realising how hard it was going to be to clean out the Regalia after this.

Gladio rotated his shoulder and grunted, flinching and looking down at his side.

“Damn one of those bastards got me,” he said.

“Let me take a look.” Ignis brushed the man’s arm out of the way and pulled back his torn shirt to reveal a bloody and muddy mess.

“Ugh, great,” Gladio groaned. It was fairly deep, and now he could see it properly, it hurt even more.

“This is going to need to be cleaned before we heal it properly,” Ignis decided. He pulled out a water bottle and tipped it’s contents over the wound, washing as much of the dirt away as possible. Then he pulled out a soft pad from his first aid kit. “Hold that on here until we get to the car.”

“Sure thing,” Gladio said, wincing as he replaced Ignis’ hand with his own over the wound. “You okay, Iggy?”

“Bruised ribs, I think, nothing serious. I’ve taken a potion already. I should be fine by tomorrow.” Ignis looked to the others, who were trudging towards them. “Time to go,” he said. “I do hope we can make it to the Chocobo ranch without any more interruptions.”

* * *

Noct was nodding off. As the effects of the Elixir he had taken finally started to wear off, so did the extra energy it had lent him. He’d made sure to take full advantage of it while he’d had it. After taking the wheel, and allowing everyone else to rest, he’d gotten them safely to the Chocobo Ranch and arranged their accommodation. Insisting the others shower first - and forcing Ignis to take a seat he ordered food from Wiz and brought it back to the caravan. After collapsing into a chair and eating dinner, he was vaguely aware of a conversation about the last Runestone, and what they should expect in Fociaugh Cavern, before everything started getting fuzzy.

A foot nudged Noct’s chair and he jerked awake, spilling the remainder of the food from his lap onto the floor.

“Sorry,” Prompto said guiltily. “Your turn for the shower.” He was looking damp, clean and refreshed, his nose and cheeks pink from the hot water.

“Yeah, thanks.” Noct rubbed his eyes sleepily, they felt sore and gritty and he knew this crappy caravan shower was going to be the greatest he’d ever had. “Where is everyone?” he asked, standing and stretching luxuriously.

“Asleep,” Prompto said. “Ignis left you fresh clothes over there.” He pointed to the counter closest to the shower.

“‘Kay, thanks.” He waved Prompto off. “Go. Sleep. I’ll be there in a bit.”

Sometime later, finally clean and warm, Noct staggered back to the bunks, turning the lights off in the caravan as he went. He flopped into the bed beside Prompto, and fell asleep to the sound of the rain pounding on the roof. The last thing he remembered as he drifted off was a comforting hand snaking around his stomach and pulling him closer.

Chapter Text

“At least it’s not an ice cave?” Luna said, trying to sound cheerful, in the face of yet another cave in which they could get dirty, lost, exhausted, and probably injured.

They paused at the entrance, peering into the impossible darkness that was waiting for them. Noct stepped forward first, urging the others forward. Once inside, they all pulled off their wet extra layers and left them in a pile by the entrance. Everyone switched on their torches, and the beams reflected off the damp stone walls. The passage was narrow, but the ceiling of the cave was high, disappearing into the blackness above them.

Honestly, Noct didn’t mind it. Anything had to be better than standing out in that rain for even one more minute. He bent down, adjusting his knee brace again. Ignis had cornered him with it earlier that morning; Noct hadn’t realised his limping around the caravan had been so obvious. He didn’t like the thing much. It felt weird, and it made annoying noises, but most of all it reminded him of his dad, and not in the good way. It reminded him of how frail he had gotten in the last years of his life. But of course - and he hated to admit it - it made everything hurt less. Ignis gave Noct a look that clearly said “Stop fiddling with it”, to which Noct replied by rolling his eyes and folding his arms petulantly.

As they walked they noticed straight away the tunnel was leading them downwards. They walked for a long time, with the tunnel unchanging and no sign of Daemons; it would have been boring if they hadn’t been constantly on edge, waiting for an attack. They reached a section where the tunnel narrowed further and Prompto slowed beside Noct.

“I’ve got a bad feeling about this pla—” His voice trailed off into a scream as dozens of bats flew out of the darkness. Noct ducked, pulling the screaming Prompto down with him, but the bats ignored them, flying harmlessly over their heads.

“Oh my god,” Prompto wheezed, as Noct pulled him to his feet. “That scared the hell out of me.”

“No kidding,” Gladio said, sounding amused.

The tunnel opened out into a larger area. It was still completely dark, but there was a feeling of openness above them that suggested the ceiling was even higher here.

“We have to go through that?” Prompto groaned as they reached a very narrow opening in the cave wall.

“Yep.”

Side-stepping into the gap, Noct squeezed his way part way in when he heard it.

“Oh shit.” He froze, and someone bumped into him.

“What’s the matter?” Ignis started. “Why did you—”

“Move! Get back!” Noct shouted. He could hear the tell-tale chittering laugh of Imps as they rushed at him, and he cried out as one crashed right into him. Panicking, he tried to fend it off with his hands, as he kept backing out of the tight opening, but there wasn’t enough room to manoeuvre properly. Then there was a yank on his arm and he fell sideways into Gladio, several Imps bursting out of the gap after him.

“First bats, now these guys?” Prompto shouted, his gun already in hand as he fired at the fast-moving creatures.

Helping Noct to his feet, Gladio drew his weapon, but he didn’t get a chance to swing it. Luna had already shot down several of the creatures with bolts of magic, and Ignis was taking down the final Imp, slamming into it with his Lance.

Noct clutched his chest, willing his heart to slow to a more reasonable pace.

“Are you okay?” Ignis demanded, looking Noct over.

“Yeah, I’m fine, didn’t even get me,” he said, waving Ignis off and moving back to the gap. He shone his torch through to make sure it was definitely empty this time.

“Right, let’s try that again.” Noct slid back into the gap, and the others followed. It wasn’t long before they were on the other side, although Gladio only just squeezed through. Another long narrow tunnel greeted them on the other side. It was filled with a faint rushing noise, and its ceiling was far lower, but at the end of this tunnel, at least, they could see light.

Noct ducked through the gap at the end of the tunnel and found himself in a small, well-lit area, the light streaming down from a hole in the ceiling, and water flowing down into a pool of water at the bottom. Vines and small ferns decorated the walls, and grass was growing beneath their feet. On their other side ran an underground river, the gentle sounds of rushing and dripping water echoed off the cave walls.

“What’s this?” Ignis asked. Crouching down, he inspected some green spears protruding from the earth at his feet.

“I do believe these are shallots,” he continued, pulling one from the ground. A very serious and familiar look came over his face. “That’s it!”

“What’s up Iggy?” Gladio asked, a knowing smile on his face as he glanced at Noct and Prompto.

“This is precisely what I’ve been looking for. Imagine finding Allural shallots in a place like this!” He pulled out his notebook and started to scribble furiously. “I’ve come up with a new recipe!”

“Eh,” Noct coughed loudly.

Ignis looked up at him, confused. “Pardon?”

“Nothing, continue,” Noct covered a grin with one hand.

Shallots collected, they moved into, yet another tunnel, where they met by more Imps. They made short work of the Daemons, but Noct had an uncomfortable suspicion there was worse waiting for them. It was when they reached a fork in the path that Noct faltered. Looking in both directions, he could see that one way led to an obvious dead end. But he had a nagging feeling he was forgetting something, and the more he thought about it, the more he panicked it was something important.

“Noct?” Prompto said after Noct had been staring at the dead end for some time.

Noct blinked, stumbling back as Prompto screamed, calling to him for help. He flinched as a hand touched his shoulder.

“N-Noct? You okay bud?” Prompto asked again. Noct spun around, his panicked gaze meeting Prompto’s concerned one. He suddenly remembered, and without even thinking, he grabbed the blond by the arm.

“Hey, what are you doing?” he protested, as Noct pulled him close.

“You need to stay close, okay?” Noct said desperately “Please don't wander off!”

“What?” Prompto said, giving him a slow, unsure smile. “Okay, but why are you like this all of a sudden? Wait…” A thought hit him. “Is this a thing? Like a thing, thing? Is something bad going to happen to me?” His voice was getting more and more hysterical with each question. Ignis stepped forward, placing a hand on Noct’s shoulder and forcing the Prince to look at him.

“What’s this about, Noct?” he asked calmly.

“It's a snake—” Noct said.

“Another one?” Prompto groaned.

“Sort of?” Noct paused, thinking. “It's more like a daemon snake, it has a humanoid head.”

"Like Marilith?” Ignis pressed.

“No, different. It didn’t have arms and it could talk,” Noct turned back to Prompto, hands still firmly wrapped around his arm. “It thought you were its baby and it grabbed you.”

“Me? Why me?”

“I don’t know, it seemed really confused.” Noct frowned again. “All Daemons were humans once, maybe it lost its baby when it was human.”

“That’s a terrible thought,” Luna said quietly. She wasn’t wrong. Fighting Daemons all the time was a necessary evil, unless you had a death wish. But thinking about how those Daemons once had human faces…

“We’re giving them mercy,” Gladio said firmly, as if he needed to remind himself too. “I would want the same, if it was me.”

“We should keep moving,” Noct said. He let go of Prompto and gave him a look. “Stay close. I don’t think it would hurt you, but just in case.”

Prompto nodded rapidly. “No problems there, bud.”

Noct’s memory of the tunnels was still a little foggy, and he ended up taking them down several dead ends. Unfortunately this meant they’d gotten into more battles with Daemons than necessary. It was mostly Imps crossing their path, but Imps were fast, and in the Narrow tunnels Gladio had trouble hitting them. After receiving several burns for his efforts, he switched to his shield in frustration and shoved at them when they got too close instead. Noct and Ignis managed well enough. Using Daggers, they were able to stand back to back and take out most of their adversaries. Prompto had a fast and steady shot, and took out his share - even the speediest Imps couldn’t escape his sights. Luna had more trouble in the confined space. Worried her magic would hit someone, she hung back and took out any that came near her, or jabbed them with her trident if she was fast enough. True to his word, Prompto had stuck by Noct, although it hadn’t stopped Noct worrying about him.

Noct groaned whenever they reached another fork he didn’t remember. Despite their circuitous route, however, they eventually reached a massive open area. It wasn’t as dark as the narrow tunnels, so they could just make out the entire area was decorated with stalagmites and stalactites, with paths that led down and around to lower levels, crossing over one another in places.

“Is this where we meet our snake friend?” Prompto asked nervously.

“You were up there when it grabbed you,” Noct said, pointing up at the opening above them that looked over the huge area.  “So it could be anywhere around here. If I remember right we’re in for a fight, there are plenty of Daemons around here.”

Even as they stepped forward, Daemons started forming down below them, pulling themselves from the smoking ground. Thunder Bombs, Noct realised in annoyance. They floated around, lighting up the area with their luminescent purple bodies.

“Watch out for those ones,” he warned the others. “They like to explode with lightning magic.”

“Let’s take it slow,” Ignis said, surveying the area. “It will do us no good to rush into the fray and become overrun.” He gave Noct a Look.

“Hey, what are you looking at me for?” Noct grumbled, mildly insulted. Ignis merely raised his eyebrow higher and Noct sighed. “Fine, fine. Whatever.” He gestured mockingly. “After you, oh wise leader.”

With a long-suffering sigh, Ignis turned and began to lead them down the path. They sliced their way through the Daemons that ventured near them, watching nervously as more and more appeared on the lower areas.

“Perhaps if you three start thinning the ranks from up here,” Ignis said, looking to Prompto, Luna and Noct. “Gladio and I have your backs if any get close.” He looked at Noct. “You know how to use that crossbow you acquired in the mines, I presume?”

“Sure do.” Noct dropped his sword back into his Arsenal and pulled out the Bow of the Clever. It was a familiar weight in his hands; while he didn’t often favour it over his blades, it had come in handy more than once. Its magic bolts seemed to find their target far more easily than any gun he had ever picked up.

The three of them took their places on the ledge, and began firing at the Daemons on the trail below, taking out some of the slower Imps and Hobgoblins before they even realised what was going on. Noct focused on the Bombs, his magic bolts causing them to explode and take out any Daemons nearby. The stalagmites worked well to shield them from most of the Imps’ retaliating attacks. Daemons were appearing in swarms now, some noticing their attackers and working their way up the winding paths, to be taken out by Ignis and Gladio.

Ignis signalled to the others and they began working their way down the path, weapons trained on the dark corners, freezing when they heard the unmistakable sound of Daemons materialising. Noct had switched back to his sword and was destroying a Thunder Bomb when he noticed the Mindflayers, and a bubble of panic rose in his stomach. He dodged a Hobgoblin’s punch and was almost hit by a crimson blast as one of the ‘Flayers flew towards him. It jerked sideways as Luna hit it with an attack of her own, slowing it enough that Noct could jump out of the way. He ducked behind a handy stalagmite as the Hobgoblin threw another punch in his direction. The column exploded above him and he jumped up, slashing with his sword.

He tugged at his magic, feeling the Royal Arms in his power. He channelled his energy as he desperately slashed at the Hobgoblin and the Mindflayer, dodging their attacks as best as he could. He drew the Swords of the Wanderer from his Armiger, and at the same time his other Royal Arms burst into life around him. Warping into the air, he split the blade into two and dived towards the Mindflayer. He landed several hits, before he warped to the side and took hold of the huge Axe. As he lifted it above his head and swung down, both the Hobgoblin and the Mindflayer were being assaulted by the other Arms. The axe drove through the Hobgoblin and it fell to the ground, melting into darkness. The Mindflayer was still busy with Noct's other weapons, as Noct drew the crossbow, firing several bolts into the body of the creature. The weapon vanished and was replaced by the Sword of the Wise. The Mindflayer collapsed to the ground as it was pierced clean through.

Noct jumped back, breathing heavily, but there was no time to rest. He warped to the next Daemon - another Mindflayer - which had been attacking Prompto. He sent his Royal Arsenal to attack it, and glanced over at Prompto, concerned at the way he was staggering around. He had one hand to his head, no weapon in sight. Noct looked desperately around at the others. Luna stood to one side, firing beams into a group of Imps who jumped around her. Ignis was busy with a Thunder Bomb and a Hobgoblin, and Gladio had his own problems with a Mindflayer and some Hobgoblins.

“Shit!” Noct hissed. There were too many of them. He slashed at the Mindflayer - at least it was unable to retaliate with so many weapons hitting it at once. It fell and Noct’s Royal Arms melted back into his Arsenal as he dashed toward Prompto, just in time to catch him as he collapsed to his knees.

“Prompto, you okay? Where are you hurt?” Noct demanded, looking him over. He had a few cuts and grazes but nothing worse, as far as Noct could see. Noct had already begun searching his pocket for a potion when he realised Prompto hadn’t answered him. Noct scanned his friend’s terror - filled eyes and realised the problem. Prom was struggling to stay upright, his eyes darting from side to side in fear and confusion, he opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out.

“It’s okay Prom, you’re okay,” Noct said soothingly, holding his hands out to show he was unarmed. “Let me help you.”

Prompto jerked away from Noct in fright, a gun appearing in his hand. Noct grabbed his arm and there was a brief struggle. Prompto cried out as Noct hit his hand against the stone floor to loosen his grip on the gun.

“Dude, come on,” Noct grunted earning himself an elbow to the face. “Stop!” He shoved Prompto to the ground, and the blond flailed weakly, too dizzy from the confusion spell to fight properly.

Holding the terrified boy’s arms down, Noct reached into his pocket again with his free arm and pulled out a different bottle - smelling salts. Pulling the cork out with his teeth, he shoved the bottle under Prompto’s nose, Prompto jerked away, sneezed several times, then froze, collapsing weakly to the ground. Noct sighed and rolled off him, both boys breathing heavily from their struggle.

Noct groaned, he didn’t have time to lay here. He had to get back in and help the others.

“You okay Prom?” Noct asked, getting to his feet. He held out his hand to a still dazed - looking Prompto.

“What was that?” Prompto gasped. “I thought a Daemon was attacking me, then you were there, and—”

“It’s okay,” Noct interrupted, pulling him to his feet, one hand steadying him as he stumbled. Noct pulled his last potion from his pocket, handing it to Prompto. “You were confused, the Mindflayer got you. You should be fine now, take this. Rest up for a bit, I’ve gotta back in there.”

Leaving him to it, Noct turned to see how the others were doing. Luna had taken care of her Imp problem, and was now shooting at the Mindflayer attacking Gladio. He turned to Ignis, just in time to see the man thrown through the air as the Bomb exploded. Noct warped. crashing into a Hobgoblin as it launched forward, sensing an easy target in Ignis, Knocking the Daemon to the ground, Noct delivered several quick slashes at it with his sword, before it fell to the ground and vanished with a scream.

Behind Noct, Ignis groaned and got to his feet. Noct turned to his friend, clapping a hand on his shoulder.

“You okay there, Iggy?”

“I was a little too slow, I’m afraid,” Ignis replied, straightening his glasses. “I’m fine though. I think.” 

They both turned sharply at a roar from Gladio, and a scream from the Mindflayer he was fighting as it melted into the ground. Luna, fell to her knees, gasping. Prompto raced to her side.

“Well, that’s that, it seems,” Ignis said as he attempted to dust off his pants with his equally dusty hands.

Noct, his heart still racing, found himself leaning against a rock, his head throbbing steadily. He watched as Prompto helped Luna to her feet, and Gladio allowed his sword to vanish. The shield said something to Ignis, but with the adrenaline fading, it was getting hard to concentrate on any one thing in particular. Noct considered standing, but his legs were suddenly wobbly. It occurred to him somewhere in the back of his mind that he had used his Royal Arms a lot in the last hour, and there had always been consequences for that. It wasn’t like stasis. It was more like using the ring - it felt like his life was being sucked away, just a little, and now his body was demanding rest. He knew this was like what his father must have felt like going to bed every day. Maintaining the wall around Insomnia had drained his life away a little more each day.

He felt in his pockets for a potion, then remembered he’d given his last one away. He became aware that he was staring at the ground and wondered briefly if it would be okay if he lay down for a moment. But of course, he reminded himself groggily, they had to keep moving. He couldn’t sleep here. With a tremendous effort, he lifted his head, looking for one of the others to ask for a potion. It took him a moment to realise Ignis was already walking towards him.

“Alright there Noct?” Ignis asked, obvious concern in his eyes. Noct blinked and Ignis was suddenly in front of him, one hand on his shoulder, looking the Prince over for any Injury.

“Fine, jus’ tired,” Noct mumbled, accepting the offered arm and Potion. It helped, but what he really needed was sleep.

“Noct?” Prompto questioned, as they made their way over to the others.

“Sleepy. Used Royal Arms too much,” Noct muttered, waving all their concerned looks away. “I’m fine. You all okay?” He looked at each of the others. Prompto came over and put Noct’s other arm over his shoulder.

“Perhaps a little weary, nothing an Ether won’t fix,” Luna said with a slow smile.

“I’m fine now, thanks to you bud,” Prompto said, flashing him a grin.

Gladio grunted that he was fine as well before raising an eyebrow at Noct.

“We’re not done here yet, are you sure you’re going to be okay?”

Noct shrugged and offered a tired smile,

“We’ll figure it out; we always do.” He allowed himself to rest his head on Prompto’s shoulder for just a second, and they continued further into the dungeon.

“Let’s get this over with.”

Chapter Text

Noct’s head jerked up as a voice sounded right by his ear.

“Huh? Wha’?” Noct blinked, looking around in confusion. Ignis and Prompto were still holding him up, and they were still in the cave. They had reached another narrow crawlspace, which was obviously why Ignis had decided to wake him up.

There was a snort behind them.

“Told you he was asleep,” Gladio said.

“Not asleep, jus’ resting my eyes,” Noct lied, attempting to stand a little straighter in his friends’ arms.

“I said, am I correct in my belief that this is where we are supposed to be going?” Ignis said.

“Yeah, ah… I think.” Noct frowned. Thinking was hard.

“Should we maybe head back. Or stop for a while?” Prompto said. “You’re not looking so good, bud?”

“No, ‘m fine,” Noct insisted. “We’re almost there, promise.” He offered a smile, but everyone looked unconvinced.

Everyone froze as an eerie hiss echoed across the cave walls. Noct’s smile drained from his face.

“My baby…”

Noct looked to the others, and they looked back with wide eyes and raised eyebrows.

“I suppose that answers our question about the snake Daemon’s location,” Luna said softly.

“Oh Gods, why did it have to be a snake?” Prompto whimpered, his arm tightening around Noct’s waist.

Fear churned in Noct’s belly, doubt gnawing at him. He could barely stand - he would get in the way in a fight. He had to trust the others could handle this without him. He was sure they could, but he didn’t like it. He had to get up, he had to be strong. This was Ramuh’s test and he had to pass. If nothing else, he had the ring.

“We have to keep going,” he said.

He pulled away from Prompto and Ignis, standing straight and pulling his shoulders back in an attempt to hide how exhausted he still was. He had to crawl through the gap, his knee brace squeaking as he got to his feet once he reached the other side. This area was open, like the last room had been, although it wasn’t quite as big. There was another underground river in this room, still and wide, the water in it so clear Noct could see all the way to the bottom. The stalagmites and stalactites were far more abundant. The stalagmites were huge thick pillars, while the stalactites, thin and needle-like, littered the ceiling by the thousands.

A huge splash of water rained down on Noct, surprising him. He stumbled backwards into Prompto, both of them falling to the ground. There was a rush of movement and suddenly the huge Naga rose up in front of them, releasing a resounding screech that had Noct covering his ears.

A voice echoed in Noct’s head as he lay on the ground panting for breath, a voice from another time.

“Kill me… End it…”

Then Gladio was there, pulling Noct and Prompto to their feet. He moved to stand in front of them, Sword at the ready.

Noct blinked rapidly, fighting the images in his head. Ravus, Iedolas - this Daemon sounded just like them. Humans infected with the Starscourge experiments, carried out by Niflheim, they had never completely changed, speaking like humans, remembering who they were. Ravus had begged him to end his life.

“My baby…” the Naga moaned, snapping Noct out of his thoughts. The Naga’s huge, humanoid head bobbed towards them, long thick tangled black locks waving from side to side.

“I’m sorry, we can’t help you,” Noct said. “We don’t know who took your baby.”

“You. You took my baby!” The Naga screeched, head rearing to attack.

“Wait!”

Luna had felt it the moment she had entered the room, the sadness and desperation emanating from the Daemon that lived there. The mother who had searched tirelessly for her lost child. The human who had never completely lost her humanity. The Daemon’s grief was so strong it stopped the breath in Luna’s lungs, and sent tears rolling down her cheeks.

“Wait,” she said again. She stepped forward, holding one hand out to the Naga, showing it she brought nothing more than peace and a desire to understand. “Please, stop.”

The Naga did stop. It lowered its head and looked down at her, its eyes completely white.

“I can feel your pain,” Luna said softly. “I can feel it as if it is my own.”

“My baby… is gone,” the creature moaned, head sinking lower and lower towards Luna. Another wave of pain and grief rolled over Luna, and she had to force herself not to close her eyes against it, against the horror now so close to her.

Noct called her name in alarm, and would have stepped forward if Ignis hadn’t stopped him. Luna did not dare look away from the Naga.

“I am sorry you have lost your child.” Luna raised her hand and gently touched the cheek of the huge monster. “I want to help. Please let me help.”

The Naga looked at her for a long moment, and Luna wondered if it could understand her. Then it nodded its great, hideous head, just once.

Luna’s magic sprang to life of its own accord, golden light pouring from her touch and surrounding the Daemon. With a gasp, Luna fell to her knees. She hadn’t ever had to give this much healing energy before. It felt as if it was drawing the blood from her veins, but the Daemon began to shrink. The huge head was getting smaller and smaller under her hand, the air around them unbearably bright with magic. She could hear the others shouting her name now, but she didn’t stop. A hand grabbed her shoulder and someone was yelling in her ear. Her magic suddenly cut off, and there was nothing but the sound of her own gasping breath and a ringing in her ears.

“Luna?”

She flinched at the piercing pain that shot through her head.

“Ouch,” she mumbled, looking up to see Noct’s concerned blue eyes looking back down at her. “Did it work?”

“I… I don’t…” He frowned, distress clear on his face, “Luna, your nose is bleeding. You fell over, and then you passed out.” He rummaged around in his pocket for something to staunch the blood she could now feel pouring from her nose. “You scared the hell out of us!”

“Now you know how it feels,” she said with a half smile, which turned into a grimace as she attempted to sit up. Noct laid his hand on her back to help her sit, and the first thing she saw was Ignis and Gladio kneeling beside a woman.

“Noct,” Luna said covering her mouth, “is she…?” Noct helped her sit up and she moved to kneel beside the woman. Her face was covered in black goo, the left side contorted, and studded with the blue spikes of her Naga form. Long black hair, a tangled mess, surrounded her face. Luna reached down and took her hand, small and very human. She opened her eyes to reveal a vivid, and very familiar blue.

“Where is my baby?” she moaned. Her voice was quiet and broken.

A sob caught in Luna’s throat, she had failed. She couldn’t heal this woman.

“I’m sorry,” Luna whispered, “I wish I could tell you. I’m so sorry.”

Prompto staggered backwards, stumbling over the uneven floor. His heart was beating so hard he was sure it was going to tear itself from his chest. Everything had been so bright, and then Luna was falling, and the Daemon… The Daemon was no longer a Daemon, but a woman. The moment she opened her eyes, Prompto stopped breathing.

He backed away, only stopping when he felt hard rock at his back.

Those eyes. He’d seen them hundreds of times, so like his own, but still different. The eyes of a woman who had held him, smiled down at him, kissed his cheeks. Prompto fell to his knees, his vision going fuzzy around the edges. The woman who haunted his dreams, screaming as someone wrenched him away from her. After that had come hardness. Cold. Wires. Tubes. Pain in his arm as his code-print was put there.

That was when he usually woke up screaming.

“Prompto!”

“No, that's... not... I don’t…”

He wanted to run, he wanted to curl into a ball, he wanted to scream. Hands caught the sides of his face and Noct’s eyes swam into view. The strength in them anchored him, and suddenly, alongside his thundering heartbeat, he could hear Noct’s voice.

“Prom, it’s okay. It’s not real. It can’t hurt you here. I won’t let it.”

The familiar phrasing caught hold of him. Noct was right, none of that was real, that was all long behind him. But what was real was this person. She was over there on the ground, real and broken and Prompto needed to see her. He clung desperately to that thought and brushing past Noct, stumbling over to where she lay on the cold ground. Ignis looked up at him questioningly, but made room by her side as Prompto knelt down.

The woman’s eyes moved over to his and she suddenly smiled, tears running down her cheeks, one pale, shaking hand reaching out to touch his face. A sob caught in his throat and he placed his hand over hers as it cupped his cheek.

“My baby, is it really you?” She sounded like someone who thought they were dreaming. He couldn’t speak, he could barely manage a nod.

“You’ve come back to me,” she whispered. Her voice was soft and broken, but she was smiling, her eyes crinkled around the edges just like he remembered. All Prompto could see was how vivid a blue they were, and how she had freckles on her nose and cheeks like he did.

“M-Mother,” he choked on the word, fresh tears clouding his vision. He blinked them away quickly, not wanting to miss a second of this.

Prompto didn’t notice as every pair of eyes in the room moved to him as he uttered that one word, but he did notice the joy in her face, his mother’s face. He didn’t know how, or why, but he knew it was her.

“My s-sweet child,” she gasped, as if every breath she took was a struggle, “I’m g-glad… you es-scaped… before they could turn you into their m-onster…”

Prompto wanted to say something, but his voice was lost, his throat constricted so only painfully broken sobs could escape.

She closed her eyes, as the black smoke curled up around her body and the hand touching his cheek fell away.

No one moved for a long time. Prompto stayed crouched in the same spot, long after his mother vanished into the black ether. He barely moved, aside from the trembling that shook his body, his wide, tear-filled eyes transfixed on the black smudge on the floor that had been her.

No one spoke. Luna sat with her arms wrapped around her legs. Her face was still smudged with blood, but her tears had dried. Ignis and Gladio stood to one side. Occasionally they glanced at one another, but neither said a word. There was nothing they could say. Noct sat where Prompto had left him, leaning wearily against the rock. He knew he needed to move, to be with Prompto.

Noct ran over and over it in his head. Human experimentation, human babies, the Naga - the woman truly had been Prompto’s mother, his birth mother. Had she been turned into a Daemon sometime after having Prompto? Had she escaped Niflheim, or just dumped here after her transformation?

Prompto had just lost his mother for a second time, the mother he never even knew he had. Noct had to remind him he wasn’t alone, he still had family. With a significant amount of effort he stood and dragged himself over to where Prompto was hunched over, catching Ignis’ concerned eyes and small nod as he passed.

Noct crouched beside Prompto, who flinched as Noct put an arm around his shoulders. Prompto turned, burying his face into Noct’s shoulder. They stayed like that for a moment before Prompto lifted his head.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered, his voice rough from crying. “I’m holding us up, we need to go.”

“No, Prom. No,” Noct said, and he grabbed Prompto’s shoulders gently. “That’s not why I came over here.” He took a deep breath, searching for the right words. “Prom, stop doing that. Stop acting like you don’t matter!” He pulled his friend into a tight hug. “Something awful just happened to you, and no one in this room thinks your grief is holding us up. We’re all here for you, however long it takes,”

For a moment Prompto was very still in Noct’s arms, startled by his friend’s outburst. He slowly sank into the embrace, and the trembling in his limbs spread until his whole body was shaking uncontrollably. He appreciated Noct’s words more than he could ever say, but it didn’t stop him feeling terribly guilty. He knew Noct was tired, on the verge of passing out - everyone was tired. Luna looked exhausted, worse than exhausted. She’d used so much energy healing his… He didn’t even want to think it. He had to get up, to move, to do something, anything. He wanted to get out of this godsforsaken cave, There was nothing left here for him.

“You sure?” Noct asked when Prompto got to his feet.

“Yeah, if that’s okay.” Prompto said quietly, holding out his hand to Noct. “I think I would really like to get out of here. Let’s go find the last Runestone.”

“Okay, it’s not far.” Noct accepted the hand up, and Prompto immediately put an arm around his friend, helping him stay upright. Prompto’s gaze drifted to the others. Gladio nodded solemnly in his direction, before moving to help Luna.

“If you are sure,” Ignis said laying a gentle hand on Prompto’s arm before moving to take the lead.

The solemn quiet remained with them as they walked the short distance to the last Runestone. Prompto was taken back by the beauty of the room, which was lit by a hole in the ceiling. Lush moss and vines covered almost every part of the stone walls, ferns and shrubs grew along the edge of a small pool of water, and in the middle, the last Runestone. Tall and jagged, it glowed a brilliant white as Noct neared.

Noct’s hand lingered on Prompto’s shoulder a little while longer before he moved to the pillar. This time the lightning had them all shielding their eyes, but it was over quickly. Prompto blinked away the spots dancing in front of his eyes, just in time to see Noct pitch sideways. He jumped forward, Gladio was there first, hauling Noct onto his back with a smirk.

“Rest now, highness. You’ve done your bit,” Gladio said. Noct mumbled tiredly and lay his head on Gladio’s broad shoulder.

The trek out of the cave was much slower and longer than the one in. Thankfully the Daemons were scarce, and by the time they reached the cave exit, Prompto could have cried at the sunlight streaming through. He stood for a long time just soaking it in, wondering sadly how long it had been since his mother had felt the sunlight on her skin. He was jolted from his thoughts as Ignis touched his arm.

“There is a Haven nearby,” he said gently. “We’ll collect the equipment from the car and stay there tonight. If you’re ready?”

Prompto blinked away the blurriness in his eyes,

“Of course,” he said. He tried to force the usual upbeat tone in his voice, but it came out sounding strangled. He cleared his throat. “Let’s go,” he tried again, not meeting anyone’s eyes but instead walking forward in the direction of the car.

* * *

Prompto couldn’t stop shaking.

Having finished setting up camp by nightfall, there was a quick meal and everyone had gone to bed. Noct had missed eating entirely and had fallen asleep the moment he’d found a flat surface. There had been very little discussion as they had gone about their evening.

Just before going to bed, Ignis had offered him a kind smile and asked him how he was doing, asking him if he needed anything. Returning the smile Prompto had said, he would come to bed soon.

They had both known he was lying. He couldn’t sleep. He was terrified.

Somehow, he’d gotten through the whole evening without anyone questioning him. Sure, they’d given him plenty of looks - not that he had really made eye contact with anyone all evening, but he could feel them.

Now that everyone was in bed, he was seriously panicking that the questions would start over breakfast, and then he would have to explain everything. Not that he had all the answers himself. He had suspicions, but mostly what he had were vague dreams, some questionable internet research, rumours and a whole lot of not much.

Of course, the moment he was old enough to realise his parents always kept his barcode covered, he’d started asking questions. They didn’t have many answers, except to say that he must always keep it hidden. After he was old enough to look after himself, and his parents left him alone for longer and longer periods of time to work, he started looking into it himself. He knew he was adopted, they had been upfront about that much. Finding out he had been rescued as a baby from Niflheim, was not something he had been expecting. No matter how much he looked into it he couldn’t find any information about his barcode - until he heard rumours that MT soldiers had them.

He remembered seeing it for himself, the first time. The others had been busy, and he’d crouched down beside a felled MT. It wasn’t dead yet, but it wasn’t moving, It had terrified him. He’d stepped on its arm and tugged at the armour, tearing off the metal plates until he got to flesh. It was all wrong. As soon as the sunlight had hit it, the MT had jerked and started writhing. Prompto had unloaded his gun into its face until it had stopped moving, then melted into black vapour and crimson sparks.

But he had only needed a glance. The MT’s skin had been pale, but smudged with black, like it was rotting. Long veins of black criss - crossed across it, and there, on its wrist, had been a barcode, almost identical to his. He remembered staggering back afterwards, gulping back the urge to vomit, barely holding himself together as the others celebrated their win. He had no idea how he’d hidden his revulsion from them that day.

He started as the log in the fire popped, bringing him back to the present. He poked absently at the fire with the stick he had in his hand, wondering if the others would be angry when they found out. Would they be disgusted? 

He wiped at a tear that slid down his nose. He wasn’t ready for all this to end. It was awful knowing what was going to happen to Noct, of course it was, but he selfishly enjoyed every moment of joy they had, every smile, every joke they shared, every meal under the stars. Of course he didn’t want his friend to die. It was the most awful thing he could think about, and every time his mind went there, his stomach clenched and he had trouble breathing. But thinking about Noct and the others kicking him to the kerb, leaving without him, denying him every last moment he had with his best friend, losing any chance of helping find another way, or to just be there and face the end by his side… Just thinking about it broke his heart. Losing Noct was the darkest hell he could imagine, but watching the love in Noct’s eyes turn to disdain would be worse.

Ignoring the tears that dripped freely from his nose, he brought his knees up to his chest and rested his head on them. He resigned himself to the fact that he wouldn’t be getting much sleep. The fear and hopelessness swirling around and around in his head was his only fireside company that night.

Chapter Text

Prompto hadn’t been expecting the comforting weight of the blanket that dropped unexpectedly around his shoulders. He looked up in surprise as Noct sat down beside him.

“How long have you been out here?” Noct asked, leaning into Prompto’s shoulder. “It’s really cold.”

“I didn’t notice,” Prompto mumbled, looking back into the fire. It was getting low. It would need more wood soon or it was going to burn out. He realised it was kind of cold now that Noct had mentioned it, and it was still dark. It felt as though morning was a long way off. “Why are you awake anyway?”

“Was looking for you.” Noct offered a small smile. “Woke up and realised you were gone. Thought I’d come and make sure you’re okay.”

Prompto heart sped up again. It was coming - the questions, the look of disgust on Noct’s face when his secret was out. He stared into the fire, afraid to look in Noct’s direction. He wrapped his arms around his waist, fingers clenching in the fabric of his shirt. He concentrated on his breathing, trying to keep it under control, anxiety twisting his stomach. But all he could see where his mother’s blue eyes, her mouth gaping, gasping for breath as her eyes slid closed.

“Hey Prom,” Noct started, pausing when he felt his friend tense up beside him. “Do you think, in Kings Knight, if we take Druids into the Dasharne forest we’ll be able to beat the boss then?”

Prompto let out a small broken whine. Alarmed, Noct looked over at him. His shoulders were heaving, his breath ragged as he tried to breathe through sobs.

“Shit, Prom,” Noct sighed. “I’m sorry. It’s okay come here.”

Prompto slumped into his arms as Noct’s mind raced, thinking of ways to comfort his friend. He didn’t know what to say to fix this pain. It wasn’t something he could heal with a potion, or vanish with a joke or a smile. So Noct said nothing, just held him and let him cry and shake and breathe through it.

“I’m sorry,” Prompto whispered. “I’m just so scared of you hating me.”

Noct let out a breath he’d been holding, and he realised what this was about.

“Oh Gods Prompto, is that what this is about?” He pulled the blond in tighter and cursed himself for not realising. “Of course it is. I’m sorry, I should have said something. I just never found the time, I’m sorry.” Loosening his hug, Noct looked down at him, Prompto’s eyes wide with fear. “It’s okay Prom. I know, and it doesn’t matter.”

“You know?” he whispered, his voice cracking, uncertainty scrawled across his features.

“Yeah, I found out when we were in Niflheim,” Noct grimaced. “I’ll tell you the whole story if you want…”

Prompto sat up abruptly, the blanket falling from his shoulders as he pulled away from the comfort of Noct’s arms.

“You don’t care that I was born in Niflheim?”

“Of course I don’t care, why would that bother me? You can’t help where you’re born. All that matters is that you’re you. And you’re a good person Prompto. One of the best,” he added softly.

Prompto was staring, wide-eyed in disbelief, and it was some time before his brain began to function again, and a wave of relief passed over him. His head flopped forward, resting on Noct’s chest and took a deep breath letting it out slowly.

“Thank you,” he whispered as arms wrapped around him once more. There was movement and Prompto felt the blanket being pulled around his shoulders again.

“You’re welcome.” Noct smiled down at the mess of hair poking out from under the blanket. “You need to stop forgetting how important you are to us, okay?”

“I’ll try,” said Prompto softly. Noct couldn’t help but notice him glance down at his covered wrist. Gently, Noct took hold of it and pulled the glove off, meeting Prompto’s eyes for permission before undoing the chunky bracelet. Prompto began to worry at his bottom lip as Noct ran his thumb over the codeprint, inspecting it curiously. 

“I really hate it,” Prompto mumbled, letting out a sigh.

“I know.”

“When I was a kid, I used to think about cutting it off.” Prompto’s eyes flicked nervously up to Noct’s momentarily to gauge his reaction before looking back down. “I could tell my parent’s hated it, too. They always acted so weird when they saw it and made me cover it up. I think they wanted to just pretend I was a normal kid from Lucis, but when they saw it, it reminded them I wasn’t normal.”

Noct was silent for a while before he pulled up the sleeve on his left arm, laying his bare wrist down beside Prompto’s. On it they could clearly see the two marks, raised black lines that looked like the cross between a tattoo and a brand. Titan’s was older, six lines that started from a central point and curved outwards in a spiral form. Ramuh’s mark was still fresh and angry-looking, red around the edges, a crooked ‘C’ shape with sharp jagged points on both edges that curved up.

“I have one too,” Noct said with a crooked smile. Prompto looked up at Noct, one eyebrow raised.

“Mine’s a barcode from Niflheim for some weird MT experiments, yours is a divine mark from the Gods. They're hardly the same, dude.”

“Yeah, I know that. My point is, neither of us asked for these, they don't define us, and they don't choose who we are. Only we do that.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

“Damn straight I am, but more importantly-” Noct paused, staring at Prompto, seriousness back in his eyes. “You never answered my question.”

“What?” Prompto said, swallowing hard against the sudden tightness in his throat, blue eyes wide with confusion.

“About Kings Knight? We’ve been stuck on this bit for days now, and I can’t remember how we—” Noct stopped again, Prompto had ducked his head back down and was shaking again. “Prom?” Worried, he touched the blond hair gently and Prompto threw his head back in silent laughter.

“Oh my God, you’re such a brat,” Prompto burst out.

“I am not,” Noct gasped with exaggerated outrage.

And then they were playfully shoving each other until they ended up sprawled on the rock, Prompto’s head on Noct’s stomach, both too tired to move. They stared up at the stars and Prompto was going to say something about them when he heard Noct’s quiet snores. So he pulled the blanket up over them both, laughing quietly to himself about how Noct could sleep anywhere. It was cold, and the fire was on its last embers, the rock floor of the Haven was hard under him, and he was going to wake up with a kink in his back for sure, but at that moment he really didn’t care. Noct didn’t hate him, and that meant everything was a little bit less bad than it could be.

* * *

A light tap on the side of his face forced its way through the dream fog. Grumbling, Noct swatted at the intrusion. He felt warm, although not particularly comfortable - whatever he’d fallen asleep on was hard as rock. But he was warm, and his leg wasn’t aching for the first time in days, and he just wanted to sleep. The tapping was back, accompanied by a voice.

He rolled over and hid his face under his arm. He just wanted a few more minutes, what was their problem? He aired his annoyance at the treatment, but his unintelligible grumbling was met with sniggering.

“Maybe we should leave him a while longer?” said Luna’s voice, clearly amused.

Noct grunted his agreement with this idea.

“He can sleep at the Chocobo ranch,” Ignis said with a sigh. “We are not far, and I imagine it will be far more comfortable than the ground.”

“No kidding, my back is killing me,” Prompto whined.

“C’mon, everything’s packed up,” Gladio said, nudging the prone Noct with his boot. “You can sleep in the car.”

Noct tried to throw his pillow at them, but he couldn’t find it, so instead he attempted to pull the blanket over his head. Apparently that was gone too. With a groan he rolled onto his stomach, curling into a ball and burying his face into his arms.

“That’s it!” Gladio growled. Noct yelped as he was picked up and unceremoniously thrown over Gladio’s shoulder, the others following and laughing as the bigger man stomped towards the car. Noct grumbled unhappily, blinking in the sunlight. He eventually he gave up trying to focus his eyes and flopped into Gladio’s back, using his arms as a pillow. He was then deposited on the warm seats of the Regalia where he immediately curled up, face pressed against the door, and drifted back to sleep.

“He is actually ridiculous,” Prompto said with a fond smile as he slid in beside Noct.

“It certainly is a talent,” Ignis agreed pulling out onto the road once everyone was settled in 

By the time they got to the Chocobo Post, Noct’s stomach was rousing him enough he could head to Wiz’s outdoor restaurant with the others and order some lunch, where he practically inhaled the club sandwich that was put in front of him. Prompto jumped up pretty quickly afterwards announcing he wanted to see the Chocobos. The moment he was gone, three pairs of eyes settled on Noct.

“What?” he demanded, when no one said anything.

“What’s goin’ on with Prompto?” Gladio said. “Found you two fast asleep this morning next to the fire, so I’m guessing you know something.”

Noct raised his hands, shaking his head,

“Oh hell no. I’m not saying anything. That’s Prompto’s story to tell,” he said quickly.

“So you do know,” Gladio said, leaning forward.

“Yes.” Noct narrowed his eyes at Gladio and leaned forward, then snagged a chip from his plate. “You need to ask Prompto, or even better, wait for him to say something. It’s a pretty tough subject for him.”

“That’s understandable,” Luna said. “I do hope he feels comfortable coming to us when he is ready.” She paused, looking at Noct. “I’m glad he opened up to you at least. Whatever he’s going through, especially after yesterday, must be very tough.”

“That does beg a rather sticky question,” said Ignis. “If Prompto’s reaction to that woman’s death was any indication, she really was his birth mother. What I’d like to know is, how did a woman like that end up being experimented on in Niflheim?” Noct shifted uncomfortably. He knew they’d have questions, and he couldn’t answer them without breaking Prompto’s confidence. He sighed.

“You’re just gonna have to take my word for it that it’s not what you think,” he said. He felt Luna’s eyes on him for a long moment, and then the others nodded and the tension broke.

“Very well,” said Ignis. “We trust you, as always.” Noct smiled gratefully and turned to Luna.

“Are you okay?” Noct said. “You went through a lot yesterday too. What happened anyway? You had a conversation with her?”

Luna was quiet for a moment, and she looked down at her empty plate.

“I could feel her pain,” she said quietly. “It was overwhelming. I didn’t know what I was going to do, but I needed to try to help, and then my magic was healing her, but it didn’t work. She was too far gone…” She trailed off, her voice breaking from the emotion.

Noct leant over and took her hand, squeezing it.

“You tried Luna, you did all you could,” he said firmly. “It was more than any of us could do.”

“I know, I just wish I could have done more. I’m the Oracle. I’m supposed to save people. I’ve never lost anyone before, my healing has always worked.”

“I feel that even if it did not work as well as you had hoped,” Ignis started, putting a hand on her shoulder, “you gave Prompto an opportunity he would not otherwise have had.”

“He’s right,” said Noct gravely. “That’s not how things worked out last time, you weren’t with us Luna, so we just…” He looked down, trying not to think about how, in another time, Prompto had killed his own mother without realising it.

He looked up when he felt Luna squeeze his hand.

“I just hope he’s going to be okay,” she said.

“He was acting so normal this morning, it was disturbing,” Gladio added.

“He’s good at pretending,” Noct said with a nod. “I think he’ll be okay though - as okay as anyone can be in this situation. He has us, I made sure he knew that last night.”

“We’ll always be there for him,” Luna agreed with a small smile.

There was a moment of silence before Wiz came over with a pitcher of water, and another of coffee.

“Am I correct in rememberin’ one of you is into photography?” he asked as he went around and refilled their drinks.

“Yeah that’d be Prom,” Gladio said.

“Nice. Ya’ see, there’s this wild Chocobo that lives around these parts, perdy little thing, but I ain’t seen ‘em in a whiles now. Startin’ to get a little worried. A photograph would really put my mind at ease.”

“You don’t say?” Noct said with a smile as he leaned back in his chair. “I bet Prompto would definitely want to help you out.”

“His two favourite things in one, I dare say he will leap at the opportunity,” Ignis agreed.

“Glad t’ hear it, I’ve got my hands full with my own little ones. So I appreciate the help.”

“No problem, I’ll let Prom know.”

“Thanks again, friend, that’s mighty kind of ya.’ It ain’t far, but I’ll lend you some of my birds for the trip. ”

“I think this might be just the distraction Prompto needs right now,” Ignis said with a grin after Wiz had left them with instructions marked on their map. “What do you say we go and tell him the good news?”

Luna and Noct ended up looking for Prompto while Gladio and Ignis went to buy some supplies at the shop, just in case. They found him on the ground in the Chocobo pen, leaning up against one Chocobo, talking to it animatedly while another Chocobo pecked at a huge leaf in his hand, and a third Chocobo sat beside him, resting its head on Prompto’s leg.

Luna and Noct, discovering the scene stopped dead, glanced at each other, and stood back not wanting to disturb the serenity of the moment. Prompto needed it, and damn if it wasn’t the cutest thing they had ever seen. Noct took out his phone and sneakily snapped a photo, even though Prompto was so enthralled in his conversation he probably wouldn’t have noticed anyway.

“I wish we could just stay here forever,” Noct whispered, leaning his head against Luna’s.

“Me too,” she sighed. “It’s hard to believe, right in this moment, that anything bad at all is happening.”

“Imagine him working here with Wiz, playing with Chocobos every day,” Noct smiled at the thought.

“Ignis could cook with Wiz.”

“Oh, no way, he would work in the fancy restaurant at Galdin Quay, or maybe in Altissia somewhere.”

“What about Gladio?”

Noct thought for a moment, then grinned.

“Hunter, or maybe he would work on cars with Cindy, or at the power plant in Lestallum?”

“Or maybe he could be a world famous romance Author,” Luna said with a giggle

“Ohhh,” Noct said a little too loudly. Covering up a snigger, he glanced over at Prompto, seeing he hadn’t noticed. “Yes, absolutely that.”

Neither of them wanted to think about what they would do, because it was a little too sad to think about, and they didn’t want to ruin the moment. So they didn’t. Instead, they looked back to Prompto who was scratching the head of the Chocobo he had been feeding, a genuine and content smile on his face.

Leaning on the fence, standing shoulder to shoulder, gentle breeze tugging at their hair and clothes, they let him have his moment.

Chapter Text

Prompto was bounding along ahead of the others, clearly happy about his mission from Wiz. Their path took them through maze-like cliff formations lined with trees, some of which had been snapped in half, while Noct regaled them with the tale of how they had followed the Behemoth last time. They had to fight off the occasional Voretooth, Prompto becoming increasingly worried about the safety of the Chocobo they were looking for.

“Oh! Oh there it is!” Prompto called excitedly as they rounded a bend into a new clearing.

The Chocobo in question, who had been pecking at something on the ground, let out a startled “Kweh!” and took off.

“Nice one Prom, you scared it,” Gladio said.

“Oh, I’m sorry Chocobo,” Prompto whined. “Come back, I just wanna take your picture!”

“How did we do this last time, Noct?” Ignis asked, eyeing the frightened bird, which was now helpfully running in circles.

“We just kinda chased it in Prompto’s direction ’til he got a photo,” Noct shrugged. “That’s why I said we should bring the greens. Maybe Prompto can tempt it?”

“Perhaps.” Ignis nodded once and straightened his glasses. “If two of us cover that exit, while the other two stand here, Prompto might succeed in getting the Chocobo to relax long enough to take a suitable photograph.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Prompto grinned, accepting the bag of greens from Ignis.

Noct and Gladio took their assigned stations at the far exit, while Ignis and Luna stayed where they were. Prompto crept forward greens, in hand. The panicked Chocobo continued to race around the clearing, while Prompto called to it, holding out the greens and cooing promises of food and scratches.

“You doing okay after yesterday?” Gladio asked Noct casually, not looking away from Prompto and the Chocobo.

Noct covered up his immediate surprise with a crooked smile. It was so weird having Gladio asking him how he was doing. Strange how, even though he had felt so close to all of them before, everything was so different this time around. He hadn’t realised it could have gotten even closer between them. Past him would have gotten annoyed by their constant worrying, but now he could see it for what it was. He understood, and he could appreciate it.

“I’m fine, I think. More worried about Prom than anything. You’re right about his acting-as-if-everything-is-fine thing. It’s how he’s coping, I guess.”

“Yeah, it’s a worry. I hope this Chocobo stuff helps, at least.”

“I do, too.” Noct stuffed his hands into his pockets, absently scuffing his boot on the dirt while he watched Prompto cautiously approach the Chocobo, only to have it dash off again. “We all need a break, some easy jobs for a bit.”

“Iggy mentioned we’re running low on Gil, so it’s probably for the best.”

“Yeah, Wiz should have a few jobs for us, and there are always hunts going.”

“So, you happy to hang around here for a while?”

Noct hummed, looking down. Guilt worked its way quickly to the surface. Did they have time to stop here? What did they even need to do next? He froze completely. What did they need to do next? That unpleasant feeling of panic started in his gut as he realised he didn’t know what they were up to; the more he thought about it the more his memories current and past got mixed up.

“Noct?”

Noct started at the quiet concern in Gladio’s voice, but he didn’t look up at the larger man.

“Uh, I need to think on it a bit,” he said quietly, looking over at Prompto and the Chocobo instead.

“It’s alright, take your time.” Gladio threw an arm around Noct’s shoulder. “Like you said, we need a break. Just let us know when you’re ready.”

“Sure,” Noct resisted the sudden urge to pull away, pushing down the panicked thoughts instead and leaning into Gladio’s half-hug. It was actually rather nice, especially when he looked up just in time to see the Chocobo taking a cautious step towards Prompto.

Noct could tell his friend was barely containing his excitement as the Chocobo looked the blond over, then pecked at the greens. When nothing bad happened, it pecked again, stopped, then tore the leaf from Prompto’s hand and swallowed it. Darting forward, it nudged insistently at Prompto for another.

Prompto looked up gleefully.

“I did it!” he said with a grin, keeping his voice down, not wanting to scare the Chocobo away again. Reaching his free hand forward, he slowly lowered it onto the Chocobo’s head, petting the soft feathers there. The Chocobo hesitated, then continued eating the greens with vigour. After giving it a good scratch, still cooing sweet praise to the creature, Prompto dumped the remainder of the greens onto the ground and stepped back slowly, pulling his camera out to take the shot.

The bird didn’t even notice when the camera flashed several times, and Prompto did a little victory dance, blushing when Luna and Ignis started clapping. Giving the Chocobo one last scratch as it gobbled up the remainder of the greens, they all walked back to the entrance with Noct and Gladio.

“Well done,” Noct said putting an arm around his friend’s shoulders. “Much more entertaining than chasing the poor thing around and around for a blurry photo.”

Prompto let out an exaggerated gasp.

“Excuse you, I never take blurry photos!”

“Oh, I don’t know about that,” Noct replied with a crooked grin. “I’ve seen a few.”

“How dare you!” Prompto shoved Noct’s arm away playfully. “I am wounded.”

The others laughed behind them.

“Now, now, Noct, don’t get Prompto’s feathers ruffled,” Ignis said.

“If you ask me, his feathers always look ruffled,” Gladio said with a smirk, jerking a thumb at Prompto’s head.

Prompto immediately bristled. “My hair does not look like a Chocobo butt!” he yelled.

Luna hid a loud snort behind her hand, the realisation suddenly hitting her that, yes, Prompto’s hairstyle really did look like a Chocobo’s tail feathers. She wondered how she hadn’t noticed before.

Noct nudged the pouting Prompto playfully, until Prompto rolled his eyes and accepted the arm back around his shoulders.

“Come on,” Noct said. “Show me the photos you got.”

Prompto, apparently forgiving their good-natured ribbing, pulled out his camera proudly to show his friend the snaps he’d taken as they started their walk back to the ranch.

* * *

Wiz was so pleased when Prompto showed him the photos, he announced dinner was on him that night. They headed back to the caravan to clean up, and Noct decided to take a nap until the sun was down, and the waft of food pulled him from his dreams. Wiz had made a huge pot of thick Garlua stew for them, crusty bread and all. Gladio happily cracked open a bottle of the beer Wiz offered - apparently brewing was another of Wiz’s hobbies. Wiz pulled up an extra chair and joined them for dinner, casually tossing out that if they planned on sticking around, he had a few more jobs for them to do. Quite a few hunts had been requested for the area, and beasts were making it hard for the tourists to visit his ranch.

They sat and enjoyed the cool night, Wiz and Gladio getting more and more boisterous with each bottle of beer. Eventually Wiz started to pack up the dishes, ready to call it a night.

“Gotta’ be up early with so many mouths t’ feed. You understand.”

Ignis stood, collecting the last few dishes. “I must insist I help with the dishes Wiz,” he said quickly. “You did supply dinner, after all, and we’re very grateful.”

“Kind of you Ignis,” Wiz said with a smile, and they left, enthusiastically discussing Ignis’ Orange cake recipe.

Luna stood, stretching.

“You off to bed?” Noct asked not looking up, he was tapping furiously at his phone. He had been playing Kings Knight with Prompto, but it seemed Prompto had zoned out - his character wasn’t moving on the screen, leaving Noct to take on the Green Dragon alone.

“No, not yet—” She broke off with a yawn, betraying how tired she really was. “Just need to use the bathroom. It’s too nice out here to go to bed yet.”

“Sure, whatever you say,” Noct said with a grin as she disappeared into the caravan. She was right, though - the night wasn’t too cold or too damp, the sky was clear, and the stars were pretty magnificent. Not that he was paying too much attention to them right at that moment. He swore as the Green Dragon lit his ass on fire again.

“I need to take a piss,” Gladio announced, standing and stumbling off into the bushes somewhere behind the caravan.

Noct snorted loudly. “Thanks for letting us know.”

And suddenly Noct and Prompto found themselves alone, and it was really quiet, aside from the quiet squeaks of Chocobos off in the distance. 

Bored of playing alone, Noct looked up at Prompto. He was staring off into the distance, face impassive; his phone was still in his hand, but the screen had gone dark from inactivity. Noct shuffled his chair over until he was facing Prompto, although if the movement or the noise disturbed the blond, he didn’t show it. He lifted his legs and rested them in the small gap between Prompto and the side of the chair, his feet half on Prompto’s legs. Prompto looked up, the corner of his mouth lifted into a smile as he followed suit resting his feet on Noct.

Noct tipped his head back, moving more comfortably in the chair so he could actually see the stars. It still surprised him every day, even after all this time, how many of them you could see outside the bright lights of Insomnia. He remembered the first time they had sat out under the stars on their first camping trip, all four of them marvelling at how beautiful the sky was.

“Prom?”

Prompto didn’t respond right away; he could tell where the conversation was going already.

“Yeah, Noct?”

“You don’t have to be afraid to tell them,” Noct said quietly. “If you want to. No pressure. It won’t matter to them. It didn’t then, and it won’t now. I just thought you should know that. I’ll shut up now.”

There was silence for a long time.

“Thanks Noct,” Prompto said finally, his voice barely audible.

They sat there in silence staring up at the stars, until the others started coming back. Luna and Gladio pulled out a deck of cards and started up a game of something that involved a lot of laughing, and occasionally flicking cards at each other. Ignis came back and sat down, opening a can of Ebony. Noct hadn’t figured out how on Eos Ignis managed to sleep while drinking the stuff this late at night. Prompto started fiddling with his phone again.

The moment there was a lull in the noise, Prompto cleared his throat, sitting up a little as he put his phone down onto his lap.

“Um, guys? There’s something you need to know.” He had to stop there, because his throat had tightened up.

“Prompto?” Ignis said. His voice held concern, but it was more than that.

“It’s okay, I know I owe you guys an explanation.”

“You don’t owe us anything, Prompto,” Ignis said firmly. “Only open up to us when you’re ready, and no sooner.”

“No,” Prompto said quickly. “I’m ready, I am.”

Prompto glanced over to Noct, who offered a nod and smile in support.

“I’m not from Insomnia. I’m not even from Lucis.” Prompto paused, fingers ghosting over the edges of his wristband as his stomach churned with anxiety. “I was born in Niflheim.”

He didn’t dare look up, he instead stared down at his shaking knees and powered on, not waiting for a response. “I was found, I don’t know, rescued I guess, from some facility in Niflheim when I was a baby, and brought back to Insomnia and adopted there. ”

“Rescued?” Luna said, her quiet voice breaking through the noisy pounding in Prompto’s ears.

“Uh, yeah. So the Magitek Soldiers Niflheim uses? Turns out I’m one of them. I have this codeprint…” He stopped, undoing his wristband and sliding it off. He rubbed his thumb over the marks there. Everyone around him was so quiet. Too afraid to look up and see what their faces must look like he continued. “All MT’s have them. I guess they gave it to me when I was a baby or something.”

“You’re not an MT, Prompto,” Noct said suddenly. Prompto’s head snapped up to meet his eyes, hard and serious. “Magitek Soldiers, Ardyn’s design brought to Niflheim,” he sneered. “They experimented on humans. Injected them with the Starscourge and turned them into MT’s.” He leaned forward, his eyes piercing into Prompto’s. “You’re not one of them. You were rescued before they could do anything to you. It’s awful what happened to you Prompto, no one should ever have to go through that. But you are not one of them.”

Prompto bit his lip, nodding rapidly, tears threatening to fill his eyes again as he looked over at the others. Now they could judge him however they would. But all he saw there was sadness and concern.

“Prompto, I am so sorry,” Ignis began. “I knew of your adoption, I looked into your past when you became friends with Noct. But this? I had no idea.” Ignis paused as Prompto’s eyes slid from one face to another, then away to nothing, never resting in one place for long. The fear of rejection was so clear on his features, in the way his limbs trembled slightly, and his fingers moved restlessly over the phone on his lap. His entire body crouched forward, threatening to curl in on itself. It was heartbreaking to witness. “Prompto, you have nothing to fear,” he said gently. “No one here is judging you. You are one of us, first and foremost, and you always will be.”

The tears threatening to spill on Prompto’s cheeks did so now, the kind sincerity on Ignis’ face washing away any strength he had left to hold them back.

“He’s right,” Gladio grunted, folding his arms and leaning back, as Prompto turned to him. “It doesn’t matter where you’re from. All that matters is that you made it out of there, and you’re here with us now.” He looked Prompto right in the eyes, his face more serious than Prompto had ever remembered seeing it. “You’re the best thing to ever come out of that hell hole.”

Prompto’s head tipped forward now, his shoulders shaking in earnest at the relief flooding through him. He couldn’t respond even if he wanted to, his throat felt completely closed over and wouldn’t allow any noise to escape. A small, delicate hand touched his knee and he looked up, his eyes meeting Luna’s.

“Prompto, I’m sorry about your mother, I’m more sorry than I can ever express.” She powered on, even as he opened his mouth to object. “I felt the love she had for you Prompto, and it was stronger than anything. She loved you so much, and the relief when she saw you again, it carried her gently into her passing. So was so happy when she saw your face, that you were alive and whole, that you had escaped that place and not become a monster.” She grabbed his trembling hands, tears falling from his nose and cheeks onto them. “You aren’t a monster Prompto. You escaped, and that is all she wanted in the whole world for you. You did it.” Her voice grew cold and hard as her features filled with anger. “And I promise, I will do everything in my power to make sure Niflheim, to make sure Ardyn, pays for what he did to you, to all those people, to you mother.”

“We’ll make them pay,” Noct agreed.

Prompto pulled his hands from Luna’s, wiping his dripping face.

“I…” He looked to each of his friends, in shock. “Th-thank you.”

“Told you they wouldn’t care,” Noct pointed out smugly, his anger dissolving as he looked at each of the others.

Prompto’s sob turned into a half laugh as he looked back up at his friend.

“You were right, sorry.” 

There was a moment of silence, punctured only by the sound of Gladio taking a swig of his beer, and the typical sounds of the night as the world moved on around them. There was a shuffle, and Noct stood, stretching.

“Well, I don’t know about you guys, but I think it’s time for bed.” He held out a hand to Prompto. “You coming?”

Prompto wiped at his face again, then accepted the hand up.

“Yeah, I’m beat.” 

“Time to hit the sack,” Gladio agreed, yawning loudly and knocking several empty bottles over as he stood.

“You can clean you mess up before you do Gladiolus, I’m certainly not doing it,” Ignis said pointedly eying the collection of brown bottles.

“Quick,” Noct hissed loudly, shoving Prompto towards the caravan. “Before he makes us clean something too.”

“Your Highness does realise I can hear you, do you not?” Ignis asked.

“No you can’t,” Noct shouted back, slamming the caravan door behind them.

 They sniggered at Ignis’ muttering coming from the other side, somehow loud enough to be heard over the clanging of bottles, and swearing as Gladio bumped into the furniture.

Noct sobered as he caught Prompto’s eyes once more and he pulled him into a hug. Prompto froze momentarily before sinking into the embrace, and he felt like he was home, that warm comforting place reserved for family and the closest of friends, a place you couldn’t describe because there weren’t really enough of the right kind of words.

“Thank you Noct, for everything.” 

Chapter Text

The sun was crawled slowly down towards the horizon, the firelight flickering merrily across the tall trees surrounding the Haven, and casting dancing shadows across the forest beyond. The five friends enjoyed an early dinner. After spending the morning taking out groups of Voretooth who had been making a nuisance of themselves in the area, they had decided to take on a more difficult challenge: Thunder Bombs in the Malacchi Hills. According to Wiz, they appeared in the forest every night, and had been getting closer and closer to the Ranch. Even with the safety of the lights surrounding them, the Bombs were scaring the Chocobos and the tourists.

“Once again, Ignis, you’ve outdone yourself,” Luna said with a contented groan.

“Glad to hear it Luna,” Ignis smiled, and scooped up the last of his Green Curry Soup. Placing his bowl to the side, he glanced over to Noct, who was of course eating around the peppers in his soup in the precise manner one could only achieve through years of practising vegetable avoidance techniques.

Prompto, however, was helping himself to thirds, happily slurping down the contents of his bowl, which had been the desired outcome. Ignis had a feeling it would be a favourite of the blond, considering he had shown enjoyment in a similar dish back in Insomnia. Since acquiring the Allural Shallots in Fociaugh Cavern - an ingredient that just finished off the recipe perfectly in his opinion - he was able to test his recipe out.

Gladio grinned, raising his spoon in a gesture of thanks before eating the last of his dinner. Ignis was happy he could please everyone with such a simple dish, and it allowed him to work on his other theory. There was something about the way Noct’s magic, the magic of the Lucian line, that converted food and drink that seemed to be connected to they type of food itself. He first questioned it when he learnt of the Potions, the peculiar energy drinks that encouraged rapid energy recovery and astounding healing. As soon as he was old enough to learn to cook, he started experimenting with foods that created certain effects on Noct, and anyone aligned with his magic. The magic of the Lucian line was incredibly puzzling, and Ignis liked puzzles.

Ignis had concluded over the years that certain ingredients, when cooked in certain ways, introduced effects that reduced damage from elemental and status attacks, more rapid healing, boosts in strength, energy and even Noct’s magic itself. Ignis had asked Noct about it, wishing he could speak to his more experienced past self, as Noct had been rather vague, admitting that although the other Ignis had spoken about it, Noct didn’t recall much of what he had said - not surprising, as Noct had never really shown much interest in cooking. Despite picking up a few basics, he was still rather a novice in the kitchen.

Green Curry Soup, thanks to the Combination of Allural Shallots, Cockatrice Legs, and Sweet Peppers, should provide a boost in their strength and energy. It was something they would need going into their first night hunt. He had hoped to discover something that would reduce lightning damage - ideal for fighting the magically charged Deamons - but he would have to work on that.

Only half-listening to the others’ conversation, Ignis pressed a button to light up his phone, searching for news - anything about Niflheim and their plans for the blockade separating them from entering Lestallum and the rest of Cleigne. Noct had been gotten very quiet whenever anyone asked where they would be going next, suggesting some internal uneasiness about their future movements. Ignis assumed that as Noct moved further away from his memories of the past and closer towards whatever ending they would find, it was getting harder for him to have confidence in his decisions. It was not something Ignis liked to dwell on. While he did like puzzles, this particular puzzle was not at all to his taste. By keeping himself busy, he was able to prevent himself dwelling on it too often, but occasionally it caught him by surprise when he sat still, and the fear and grief would hit him suddenly.

“Any news?” Gladio asked, snapping him from his treacherous thoughts. He realised he’d read the same paragraph three times, and scrolled upwards to find where he had lost track.

“I fear it is much of the same - the blockade will continue until further notice… One moment” He tapped on a second article, that contained photos of a base near Lestallum. The images showed a red beam coming from inside the base, shooting up into the air. “Here is something. It appears Niflheim has resurrected Aracheole Stronghold, a fortress near Lestallum. Apparently there was a strange aircraft spotted in the area a few days ago.”

“The day the storm stopped,” Noct said. Not looking up, he poked mindlessly at the red vegetables in his otherwise empty bowl. “It’s a power source, makes the MTs stronger and powers the base. We destroyed it last time after they took the Regalia there. It was basically a trap to lure us there, we ran into Ravus and Ardyn.” He paused, lips pressed into a thin line. “After we destroyed the base, the Niffs left the area and the roads to Cleigne opened back up.”

“It would therefore be logical to make Aracheole Stronghold our next target,” Ignis said. Noct looked up, peering at Ignis through his messy bangs. He looked so tired, but not a weariness sleep could fix. Ignis felt more tired just looking at him. Noct hit it well most of the time, slipping into the contented mundane routines of eating, camping and enjoying each others’ company. But there were moments when he seemed too tired to hide it, the mask slipping just enough that Ignis could see far more of what bothered Noct that he would like.

It was hard, knowing he couldn’t shoulder any of the burden the young King took upon his shoulders, knowing he was the advisor and strategist, yet he couldn’t advise or strategise any way out of this mess.

“I guess.” Noct looked back down and Ignis suppressed a sigh.

One step at a time. Tonight, they would take on this hunt. Tomorrow, he would talk to Noct.

“If everyone is done, it is probably time we left,” Ignis said as he stood and began to collect the bowls. Gladio stood as he approached, taking them from Ignis’ hands. 

“Why don’t you let me take care of the dishes tonight,” he said with a lop-sided smile. “Go check the potion supplies and make sure we have everything we need.”

“Thank you,” Ignis said with a nod, his hand lingering on Gladio’s for just a moment before they parted. 

* * *

The location the Thunder Bombs had been last seen wasn’t far from Killian Haven. It had been Ignis’ idea to camp at the Haven, even though they weren’t far from the Chocobo post. It seemed safer to have a base closer to the hunt location that they could retreat to when they needed. They followed the narrow path as it wound through the forest. It was dark now, the creatures of the day long since slunk off to find somewhere safe for the night, leaving only the occasional chirp from above as birds nested for the evening. They stopped by some rocks and waited for the monsters to show up.

Luna spotted it first, a spark of lavender in the darkness. She had just opened her mouth to let the others know when the Bombs exploded into existence. Raising her trident, she aimed it at the closest one, golden light shooting from the end and knocking it sideways into the other Bombs. They floated almost awkwardly, tipping and bobbing as they hovered. They turned towards the group, huge eyes narrowing as they spotted them, their wicked-looking grins growing wider.

“Alright, let’s end this quickly,” Noct shouted.

A flash of blue light a moment later told Luna he had warped. Reappearing instantly, Great Sword in hand, he landed a heavy blow from above, then flipped backwards. The Bomb rocketed into the dirt, bouncing off and flinging sideways. Several shots rang out from Prompto’s direction. Luna aimed another attack at the Bomb Noct had hit, but he was up and slashing at it with his Sword. Not wanting to risk hitting him, Luna looked for another target. Gladio had launched forward with a roar and sweep of his Great Sword, He sent several flying, one careening close to her. Luna shot several beams of magic in quick succession as the Bomb came closer to her. It grew larger and larger with each attack, until she rushed forward and drove the trident into its body. It shuddered, turning black and dropping to the ground, before disintegrating into black smoke.     

Luna turned to find her next target and was thrown to the ground as one of the Bombs exploded, a scream tearing from her throat as Lightning Magic coursed through her body. The world around her grew dark, her ears ringing as she scrabbled against the dirt with her twitching limbs, trying to force her body to get up.

“Luna!” She could hear Noct’s voice, but it was far away.

“I’ve got you.” Ignis’ calm voice sounded much closer, and then a hand was on her shoulder, helping her up into a seated position. “Can’t have you missing out on all the fun,” he said with a kind smile as he offered a potion. She drank it, gasping out thanks. Ignis turned, jumping to his feet as Daggers appeared in his hands. He let loose a barrage of attacks, driving the nearest Bomb back. Luna staggered to her feet, whimpering as small, painful shocks made her limbs tremble. She managed to steady her hands enough to let loose another beam of magic, taking another down. She looked over as Gladio and Noct worked together, Swords flying in unison, to take down a third. Fists were bumped and Noct glanced over in her direction, dashing to her side.

“Hey, you alright?” he asked, calling a Lance to his hands and swinging it at another Bomb that came close.

“Yes.” Luna gripped her own Trident tightly. “I’ll be fine.”

“Okay, take it easy. Looks like we’re almost—” He threw his Lance up in a block as the Daemon lurched forward. Electricity jolting between them, Noct grunted and shoved, flinging the creature backwards. It rocked sideways, and Luna jumped forward beside Noct to thrust her weapon into its body. Noct pulled a huge Sword from his Astral Arsenal and let out a cry, slamming the blade down onto the Bomb, which suddenly lost all its light and shrivelled into a ball, dropping to the ground and vanishing into dark smoke.

“Nice one,” Noct said, gasping for breath, a smile growing on his lips as their eyes met. “Sure you’re good?”

Luna nodded. The pain was gone now, and the ringing in her ears was subsiding.

“More?! You’ve got to be kidding me!” Prompto cried, as more shots rang out.

Noct and Luna both turned as several more Bombs appeared. Noct let out a groan. Holding out a hand, his Engine Blade appeared in it.

“Right, another round I guess,” he growled as he warped forward into the fray. Gladio and Ignis flanked his sides as the three of them took out the new Bombs. Luna shot a beam at one of the Bombs which had separated from the group and was heading towards Prompto when she heard a terrifying, and far too distinct sound coming from behind her.

“Oh Gods no, not now,” she hissed turning to see the ground bubbling furiously with black goo. An arm appeared, and the sound swelled, like a huge rusty metal door that had almost fallen off its hinges trying to swing open. A huge body followed as the Iron Giant pulled itself from the ground.

“We have a problem,” Luna shouted as she backed up.

“Yeah, I can see that,” Noct called back, narrowly dodging as a Bomb hurled itself at him.

“Oh man, what are we going to do?” Prompto said with a whimper.

“Get your heads back in the game you two,” Gladio roared, as he slammed his blade down on another Daemon. “We can take these guys.”

“Indeed. Focus on eliminating the Bombs first,” Ignis called, “Iron Giants are comparatively slow.We merely need to avoid its attacks for now.”

“Oh, is that all?” Luna heard Prompto mutter.

The ground shook as the huge Daemon stepped forward, swinging its sword as if testing its weight. There were still at least five Bombs left, and the Iron Giant was going to be on them in an instant.

“I have an idea!” Luna took a few steps to the side.“I’m going to shoot at it over this side, keep him nice and distracted from a distance, while you guys take care of the last of those Bombs. Then we can take him out together.”

“Luna,” Noct objected. He didn’t sound completely thrilled about the idea but he sighed in surrender, “Okay, you got this. Keep it off our backs.”

“You got it.” She flashed him a reassuring grin. She just had to keep the thing distracted and stay out of reach, but despite her confident demeanour, she was terrified - the Daemon absolutely towered over her. She wasted no time letting off a few beams of magic, which definitely got its attention. It turned, following her movements as she backed away, leading it away from the others. She kept walking, moving in a circle, occasionally taking a shot, so it would keep following her until its back was to the boys.

Apparently having had enough of her shenanigans, it roared and swung out with its massive sword. Luna managed a tight roll as the sword swung over her. It was surprising it had room to swing that thing in this area, considering all the trees. Roaring again, the Iron Giant advanced on her as she shot a few more beams of magic at it. She backed up, looking around behind her - perhaps these trees could help her out. She had something she wanted to try, but she needed to get close enough first.

She got in one last magic attack before it swung again, a wide swing that once again sailed over her head as she rolled. There was a loud thunk, and the crunch of splintering timber. Luna sprang out of her roll to see the Daemon struggling with its sword, which was embedded deep in a huge tree. Jumping up, she climbed onto the flat of the blade, Trident at the ready, she grinned as she ran up the blade, remembering the time she had seen Noct do a similar thing with the Archaean .

With a yell, she lunged at the Iron Giant, driving the points of the Trident as far into its body as she could. The Giant howled, and she almost lost her balance, but the Trident was stuck fast. Her hands threatened to betray her as she was almost thrown off by the Daemon’s movement, but she gritted her teeth and called forth as much power as she could find. Her fingers dug into the hilt and she let forth a blinding blast of light directly into its chest. The attack launched her backwards, Trident still in hand. She felt herself hitting something hard, then falling to the side, only just managing to twist so she landed on her knees in the dirt. Staggering to her feet, she looked up to see the Iron Giant hand clutching at its torso as it stumbled backwards, a rather sizeable chunk missing from its chest.

“Holy shit,” Prompto cried, not tearing his eyes away from the Daemon as he moved to steady Luna. “What the hell did you do to it?” A laugh him escaped as it toppled backwards. The ground around it bubbled and fizzed as it melted into the black.

“I may have taken my role as keeping it distracted a little too seriously,” she said, eyes wide, clutching her side as she leaned on Prompto. She honestly couldn’t believe what she had just done.

“No kidding, you wrecked that Daemon!” Prompto cheered.

“I’m not sure we’re finished yet,” she pointed out, the ground before them bubbled once more.

“Are you kidding me?!” Prompto shouted into the darkness another arm pulled itself from the ground, the rusty-door screech echoing off the trees once more.

Panic quickly replaced the numb relief that had been spreading in her chest. Luna looked to where the others three were finishing up with the last Bomb. Noct let his weapon disperse as it turned black, and he warped over to where Luna and Prompto were standing, gaze shifting between the fallen Daemon and Luna. His eyes lingered over her hand gripping her side and the way she leaned on the gunner.

“You okay?” he asked between gasps.

A roar brought their attention back to the fact the Giant in front of them. Noct drew his sword just as Gladio and Ignis skidded to a stop between the three and the Daemon, their own weapons drawn.

“That was a brilliant attack, Luna,” Ignis said, as they all took a few steps back.

The new Iron Giant was on its feet. As it stomped forward, Prompto fired off a few shots, which seemed to do nothing at all to it.

Gladio and Ignis launched forward, taking the opportunity to attack.

It cried out in pain as the two sunk their blades into its legs, swinging an arm out, trying to grab the source of its agony. Luna moved to dodge but realised it was going to hit the damaged tree. The already splintered wood cracked as it was punched.

“Move!” Noct hissed. He yanked her arm, tugging her out of danger as the tree fell in between them and Prompto.

“Back up!” Luna yelled, as the Giant lifted its sword once more. They dashed out of the way as it came down from above, Ignis and Gladio only just dodging far enough out of its way.

Noct warped and attacked like an angry hornet, he warping over and over, aiming for its face and the back of its head.

Luna aimed for its chest, the creature staggering back slightly with every blow. It raised its sword once more, swinging it in a wide arc, and forcing Luna to roll once more.

There was a cry as Gladio was thrown from the area, hitting a far-off tree, and falling to the ground unconscious.

“No!” Noct yelled. He warped twice to reach the man, who lay still on the ground. Without back-up, Ignis rushed back to Luna and Prompto, just out of the Giant’s reach. He took to throwing his Daggers, as the other two attacked beside him.

“This is not looking good,” Prompto shouted. “What are we going to do?”

“Keep attacking until we know Gladio is safe,” Ignis said. “Then perhaps we should make a strategic retreat. We’ve finished the Thunder Bombs, the hunt is complete.”

“We’ve just got to hang in there a little longer,” Luna said. She was almost out of energy, but she knew she could go on for a bit longer.

“Wait, what is it doing now?” Prompto said, his voice rising in panic as the Daemon lifted its hand, which was glowing a vibrant red.

“RUN!” Noct roared, as he pulled the much larger Gladio to his feet. Without hesitation the others turned and ran.

Noct’s legs groaned under Gladio’s weight. He wasn’t going to be able to move him while he was still unconscious.

The Iron Giant opened his glowing fist and a ball of light glowed in front of it, the red radiating out to bright purples, and Noct instantly felt the pull. The others stumbled mid run as they also felt the Gravity Magic pulling them in.

Noct wanted to scream as he held onto Gladio, but he could feel the man slipping from his shoulder. It felt as if his entire body was trying to compress into a ball, and at the same time, his boots were dragging in the dirt as the magic pulled them towards it.

It was when he heard Prompto’s tortured scream that he almost lost his grip on Gladio entirely. Through the blinding crimson light and the haze of exhaustion and pain, he could see Prompto jerking in agony as he was dragged closer and closer to the Gravity spell.

Realisation struck him, and he let go of Gladio’s arm, struggling to reach into his pocket. He pulled the Ring of the Lucii free, and with a grunt, he shoved it on his other hand, not even noticing as Gladio slipped to the ground beside him. He raised the Ring, his first intention to sap the Daemon’s life away, but something else caught his attention. A tiny crack in space, something he hadn’t seen very often, but instantly knew what it meant.

Slamming the power from the ring into that crack, he tore it open. There was a moment where everything seemed to freeze, to Noct at least. There was instant relief as the crushing pull stopped, but it was only a second later he felt that familiar burn in his fingers.

The world around him was so bright, the white light suddenly surrounding him drowning out the crimson of the Gravity Magic. Nothing was moving except the crystalline particles floating slowly through the air, and the white symbols of the Lucii flashing in the air around him. It was kind of beautiful, and in that instant Noct wished it could stay like this, just for a moment, because he knew what was coming next.

Gritting his teeth, he felt a new pull, as his magic tugged and his arm burned, fire licking trails up his arm, towards his neck. A hole ripped open in space and a huge bubble of light surrounded the Iron Giant. Everyone and everything except the Daemon before him had vanished as they floated in the nothingness of space. The Daemon couldn’t react as it was pulled into the void Alterna had created - not that Noct could hear anything beyond the roaring of magic and blood pounding in his ears.

Finally there was an explosion of red magic and everything came back. The Void was gone, and the Iron Giant along with it. Noct’s arm fell to his side as everything around him distorted, the crimson sky fading. He felt himself tipping to the side, unable to do anything about it as his knees collapsed under him and he hit something soft.

Everything around him was unnaturally quiet now. He squeezed his eyes shut against his wavering vision. Whatever it was he had fallen on was moving, and vaguely he realised it was probably Gladio. Arms circled him, and slowly sound returned, the first being his own ragged breath, the second a surprisingly soothing voice which took him a moment to realise it really was Gladio. A hand combed through his hair as the voice spoke. He tried to focus on the words, but they too-easily slipped away as more voices came from behind them.

He forced his eyes open, looking into Gladio’s warm, red-brown ones.

“Hey,” Noct managed.

“Hey yourself,” Gladio smiled with relief.

“You okay?” Noct asked.

Gladio snorted. “I should be asking you that Highness. You’re not looking so hot.”

“Noct!” Ignis fell to his knees beside them. “Are you alright?”

“Dandy.”

“He’s alive enough to be a smart arse,” Gladio said with a grin.

Ignis slumped visibly with relief, then straightened and reached into his pocket for a potion.

Noct groaned. God he wanted to pull that Ring off, but he could barely move. His arm twitched uselessly, and he hissed as the movement shot pain up his arm. Fuck this Ring and its sacrifices, he thought bitterly, just as a bottle was pressed to his lips. He recognised the smell of the Elixir instantly, and silently thanked Ignis before drinking it.

“What the hell was that?” Prompto asked, his voice sounding slightly hysterical.

“The black hole? That’s Alterna,” Noct said. Gladio helped him upright, and the world only swayed momentarily before settling. “And the Iron Giant used Gravity Magic. I actually forgot that was a thing, sorry.”

“Hey it’s fine,” Luna said putting one hand on Noct’s shoulder as he frowned down at the ground. “Everyone is fine, don’t worry.”

“If you’re up to moving, Noct, we should return to the Haven before any more Daemons decide to grace us with their presence,” Ignis said.

Feeling a lot better after the Elixir, Noct pulled away from Gladio, and nodded.

“Yeah, let’s get the hell outta here.”

They headed back to the Haven, everyone happy to heal their wounds and head straight to bed. Even Noct, with energy to spare from the Elixir didn’t take long to fall asleep curled up between Ignis and Prompto, everyone’s soft snores lulling him into sleep. He only roused momentarily to remember he had left the Ring on. The pain was gone now, and he was too comfortable to move, so he left it, cold and quiet on his finger, allowing him to rest for now.

Chapter Text

Ignis wasn’t really a light sleeper, but after Noct had elbowed him in the stomach for the second time in fifteen minutes, he was definitely awake. With a tired sigh, he forced his eyes open, trying to focus on the prince curled into a ball beside him. He’d been moving closer and closer to Ignis all night, Prompto pressed against Noct’s other side, following whenever he moved.

Ignis caught the prince’s elbow as Noct jolted once more. He usually slept rather soundly, not moving much at all in his sleep - unless, of course, he was having bad dreams. Ignis let go of Noct’s and ran a hand through his raven hair, a whimper escaping Noct’s lips as he slept on. Prompto, despite apparently being capable of sleeping through Noct's flailing, seemed to be highly trained to wake at any sound of distress. He lifted his head, blinking sleepily down at his friend, then questioningly up at Ignis when he realised he wasn’t the only one awake.

“I will take care of it,” Ignis whispered. “Go back to sleep.” There was no doubt Prompto and Noct had a bond when it came to helping each other through nightmares, but Ignis was wide awake now, and there was no sense in them both being awake this early.

Prompto hesitated, glancing down at Noct one last time, before nodding and curling back into his side.

Ignis, propped up on one elbow continued running his fingers soothingly through Noct’s hair, hoping the familiar action would help Noct navigate his nightmare. He paused as the young man’s breathing hitched suddenly. All his movements stopped, then his eyes flung open, the blue bright in the dim light of the tent. Then he was gasping for breath like he had been running for his life, his entire body trembling.

“Noct, it’s okay. You’re safe,” Ignis said quickly. Noct's eyes snapped to his, his mouth hanging open as he fought for breath. Ignis moved his hand to Noct’s back, rubbing in circular motions.

“Where…?” Noct said around his gasps. Ignis did not miss the look in his eyes, a look he’d often seen, since the day Noct had woken up in Hammerhead, no matter how hard Noct tried to hide it.

“We are resting at the Killian Haven, after doing battle with Thunder Bombs and two Iron Giant’s last night. Everyone is fine.”

Noct closed his mouth, his breath calming as Ignis spoke, his eyes clouded over as he processed this information.

“Oh,” was all he said, before falling back into his pillow. He stared up at the ceiling as the nightmare played over in his head.

“Noct?” Ignis said, after a long silence.

“I’m fine,” Noct answered predictably, and Ignis held back a sigh.

“It is still quite early,” Ignis said sitting up, “how about I make us both a hot drink?”

Noct wasn’t sure if sitting in silence outside, with Ignis worrying over him very loudly, was any better than lying here stewing in his nightmares. But he only had to close his eyes for too long and he saw those bodies, hanging in chains above the throne room, Ardyn standing there, looking thoroughly pleased with himself with one foot on the throne.

“Noct?” Ignis tried again, snapping Noct out of his thoughts.

“S-sure, okay.”

Outside the tent, Noct toyed half-heartedly with the campfire while Ignis started a kettle boiling on the stove. With the glow of sunrise just beginning to colour the horizon, the forest around them was still and dark. Noct got a decent fire started and collapsed into one of the camp chairs, sticking his hands under his arms to warm them. The dampness of the morning and a slight breeze meant it was still cold without the sun up to burn away the morning dew. He should have grabbed his jacket, but he didn’t really want to wake the others trying to find it.

There was rustling to his left, the sound coming from Luna’s tent. He wondered how she was doing. Her moves against the Iron Giant had been impressive. When fighting against Daemons, she had them all beat. Her magic was devastating to them, which made sense, of course. She was the Oracle. Banishing the Scourge was what she did.

He replayed the fight in his head. He’d only seen it out of the corner of his eye, as he had been busy at the time, but the beam of light exploding from the Giant’s chest as she went flying had him stopping mid-battle to stare. He’d almost gotten knocked out, Gladio shouting at him the only thing preventing the Thunder Bomb from getting him.

It had reminded him just how lucky they were to have her here with them.

A hand touched his shoulder and a mug was held out in front of him. It smelt so good, and Noct had to smile. Ignis had bought some hot chocolate at some stage, something Noct liked, and it had been a while. Chocolate was pretty hard to come by outside Insomnia, and was expensive.

“Thanks,” he groaned happily. “Oh man, that smells great.” He grabbed the mug, his fingers wrapping around the metal as the warmth soaked into them.

“You’re very welcome,” Ignis said with a warm smile. He moved to the camp chair beside Noct, his own mug of coffee in hand.

There was no conversation as they sat back and watched the orange light glow along the horizon. The steam from their mugs curled and twisted in the chilled air, Daemons shrieked from the surrounding forest vanishing back to wherever they came from at the first touch of light, and the creatures of the day began to venture out once more.

“Thanks for this, Iggy,” Noct said quietly, breaking the silence. “And thanks for… before. I know it’s weird, but sometimes I still can’t remember where I am.” He dropped his head and took a sip from his cooling drink. It was rich and thick, and sweetened exactly the way he liked it.

“That’s entirely understandable Noct. You’ve lived in two different times, and both have been extremely traumatic.” Ignis paused. “I take it you had a nightmare?”

A lump filled Noct’s throat as he tried not to think about his dream. Which, of course, made him think about it.

“Y-yeah.” He knew he should talk to Ignis about it - talking was supposed to help with stuff like this, right? And who better talk to than Ignis? The man he had known longer than anyone, who read him bedtime stories when they were children, snuck out with him and always took the blame, and comforted his nightmares long before Prompto had been there. Ignis knew him better than anyone, probably better than he knew himself.

Ignis didn’t push. He knew Noct would speak about it when he was ready, even if getting Noct to speak about these kinds of things was sometimes like trying to get a river to run upstream.

“It was about Ardyn, our final battle, and what happened just before that. Every time I think about it I can see it like I’m there again. It was really bad Ignis.”

“Would you like to tell me what happened?” Ignis asked quietly. Noct’s throat closed over and he found he couldn’t swallow, the panic rising quickly in his chest. He shook his head.

“I cannot imagine how difficult it has been for you, Noct, to carry the memories of that other life.” Ignis watched Noct as he stared into his mug, the firelight reflecting off the tears in the younger man’s eyes.  Ignis wished he knew what to say, but what words could take away what Noct had lived through?

“I don’t think I’ll ever be able to talk about it,” Noct said. “Sometimes—” He paused, and cleared his throat. “Sometimes I want to think I imagined it all.” Ignis reached over and took Noct’s hand, and Noct let him.

“Anyone who had lived through that trauma would wish the same,” Ignis said. “There is no shame in feeling it.” A tear splashed into Noct’s mug, and Ignis squeezed his hand tighter. “We cannot undo what was done to you, but we can help you bear it. There is no shame in being hurt.” Noct shook his head, his tears falling in earnest now.

“I can’t go through it again, Iggy, I can’t do it.” Ignis leaned over and put a hand on either side of Noct’s face, meeting his tear-stained gaze.

“You won’t have to, Noct. We will make sure of it.” Noct stared at Ignis for a long moment. Ignis had always been there for him, protecting him. For a moment, it almost felt possible that what he said was true, that they could change everything. He managed a small, watery smile.

“Thanks, Specs.”

Another shriek split the air, and this time it didn’t come from the forest. Noct sat bolt upright and looked over at Luna’s tent. There was more rustling and a whimper. Noct stood, and before he even realised what he was doing, he was standing in front of the small tent, hand poised over the zippered opening.

“Luna?” he called, as he moved to a crouch.

There was no response, and Noct went for the zipper, undoing the flap and pulling it aside.

Luna was curled up in a lump of sleeping bag and blankets, her face buried in her pillow. Noct crawled half into the tent, putting a hand on her shoulder.

“Luna, you okay?” The moment his hand touched her shoulder she sprang up, eyes darting around the small space, hands flung out to fight off unseen enemies.

“Woah, hey, it’s just me, it’s Noct.” He took his hand away from her shoulder, holding them both out in front of him.

“Noct?”

“Yeah, it’s me. You okay?”

“I—“ She shuffled a little in her blanket pile and looked down. “I was having a nightmare.”

“Ah, yeah. Seems to be the night for it.”

“Oh, you too?”

“Yeah.” There was a moment’s silence, before Luna looked up, her eyes pleading.

“Could you come here for a little while?” she asked. Her voice was quiet and fragile.

“Sure. I can just—” He crawled in, then looked down awkwardly while still on his knees. “Uhh…” he finished lamely, not exactly sure where she wanted him to go.

Luna couldn’t help the short laugh that escaped her.

“Just lie down already,” she said, covering her smile.

“Oh, right.” He lay down on his side - Luna’s tent was big enough for the both of them, with some space to spare. Once comfortable, with his head leaning on one hand, he looked down at her. Her smile was gone. Free of her normal braid, her hair was tousled from sleep, falling around her shoulders.

“Thanks, I didn’t want to be alone again,” she whispered.

“It’s okay, I get it.”

“Do you… want to talk about it?”

Noct shrank back. No he didn’t want to talk about it. He saw Luna’s corpse hanging from chains enough in is head, he didn’t want to ever actually describe that to her. Ever.

“It’s okay, you don’t have to,” she added quickly as Noct’s trembling fingers brushed against hers. “I just thought I should ask, you know.”

“Yeah.”

There was silence between them for some time until Noct finally spoke.

“Did you?” he asked. “Want to talk about it, I mean… Y-you can if you want.”

Luna hummed, her nose crinkled as she frowned and her eyes drifted.

“I was dreaming about the day that… that Insomnia fell.” Her eyes moved back to meet Noct’s as she balled her blankets up under her chin. “I dream about that day often. It was awful.”

“Gods, I can’t even imagine,” he whispered, their fingers touching. An entire city falling, burning. He recalled walking through a ghost of a city, broken and crumbling. What must she have gone through to escape?

“There was this man, he was a Kingsglaive,” she began. “He helped me escape. He rescued me, and then he put on the Ring of the Lucii. He sacrificed himself to save everyone, and to kill the man who—” She froze, squeezing her eyes closed as tears leaked from the corners. “The man who killed King Regis.”

Noct grabbed her hand, holding it tight as a sob escaped her. His chest was so tight he could hardly breathe. It was something he tried so hard not to think about, the person responsible for his father’s death. But now that Luna was talking about it, he wanted to know. He needed to know so badly.

“Noct, do you want me to stop?” her eyes met his again. “I can stop if you like, I don’t—“

“Please don’t,” he said quickly, cutting her off. He bit his lip, “Who? Who was it that…”

“It was General Glauca,” she said, not taking her eyes from his. “He… he ended it.”

Noct’s heart thudded almost painfully in his chest. He’d suspected that may have been the case. General Glauca was the same man who had killed Luna’s mother.

“Who was the Kingsglaive?” Noct asked, his voice husky as it fought past the lump in his throat. “Who killed Glauca?”

She took a breath.

“ His name was Nyx. Nyx Ulric.”

Noct squeezed his eyes shut with a small gasp. He felt like all the air in his lungs had escaped.

“You knew him,” Luna said sadly.

Everyone knew Nyx Ulric. He was - had been - the charming Kingsglaive. He had taught Noct how to warp, how to fight with daggers, Gods, how Noct had hoped Nyx made it out. He had been hoping he would run into the man at some stage, with his crooked grin and some smart arse nickname for Noct that sounded perfectly polite when he said it, but was actually incredibly rude to say to the crown prince - but that was, of course, one of the reasons Noct had liked him.

Then he had seen Nyx’s corpse hanging with the others, and Noct had wondered if he would ever find out what had happened to the man. Now it seemed obvious. The burns he’d had on his arms and face. Had come from the Ring, when he had tried to save Luna, and take revenge for the murder of his king. Of course he had. Nyx was a hero, he always had been.

Noct squeezed his hand into a fist, his eye catching on the Ring. He’d forgotten he was still wearing it. How many people had died wearing this Ring, or died because of it? His mouth suddenly felt as if was filled with ash, like the ash that flecked off his skin as it burned away.

“What happened?” Noct finally asked.

“Some of the Kingsglaive had turned against Insomnia,” she said. “They kidnapped me, but it was only as a distraction. Nyx came for me, and we escaped. We fought our way through Insomnia, only to be confronted by General Glauca. Nyx took the Ring from me, and then he had his powers back. The Kings of Lucis declared him fit to bear the Ring and survive. They granted him the Light of Kings.” She paused, tears streaming down her cheeks. “That was the last I saw of him. His friend, Libertus, helped me escape Insomnia while Nyx stayed to fight General Glauca.” She paused once more, wiping at her wet cheeks before looking at Noct again. “It is possible he lives, but I hold little hope. You and I both know the Kings of Lucis do not allow their power to be taken so easily.”

Noct shook his head looking down. Nyx’s body had been scarred and burned, in the same way his body burned when he used the same power. Somehow, despite not being of Lucian blood, Nyx had survived the Ring’s power long enough to use it. Either he had died during that battle against Glauca, or the Kings had taken his life as payment. Either way, Noct was fairly certain Nyx Ulric never left Insomnia that day.

“He was a good man. He cared about the future,” Luna said softly.

“Yeah, he did. We need to make sure his sacrifice wasn’t for nothing,” Noct said squeezing her hand. He lay back beside Luna, looking up at the ceiling of the tent.

“He told me to give you his regards,” Luna said with a small smile. “I didn’t realise then that you knew each other.”

Noct grinned. “Yeah, we did. He taught me to warp. He was the best there was at it.” Noct laughed. “I, however, was so bad at it, I vomited every single time, for weeks. But he would just smile and pull me to my feet, and encourage me to try again.”

“He must have been a good teacher, you’re so good at it now,” Luna said.

“Yeah, now. He wiped the floor with me for ages. But yeah, he was a good teacher. He was patient, even though I was probably a brat most of the time.”

“I don’t doubt that,” Luna said with a grin, laughing as Noct elbowed her.

“Wow, rude!” he grumbled, smiling slightly. He yawned and rolled over so they were nose to nose.

“Noctis Lucis Caelum are you falling asleep in my tent?” Luna said, trying, but failing to sound stern around her smile.

“No, just resting my eyes,” he mumbled.

“Somehow, I don’t believe you,” she whispered, and ran a hand through his hair. “Thank you for listening, I know it mustn’t have been easy to hear.”

Noct cracked open one eye.

“Thanks for telling me. I hope it helped at least,” he said, then closed his eyes again.

Luna let out a content sigh and was considering going back to sleep herself when she heard a clang from outside.

“Someone else is awake,” she said, sitting up. Noct shifted with a small grumble.

“That’s just Ignis, he got up with me when I had my nightmare,” he mumbled.

“Oh Noct,” she said, “you left him out there all alone to come and keep me company?”

“It’s Ignis, he likes being alone. He’s probably enjoying the peace and quiet,” Noct pointed out. Then he groaned, blinking his eyes open sleepily once more. “I did leave my hot chocolate out there, though, and it’s definitely cold by now.”

There was no answer from Luna and when Noct looked up at her, she was giving him a very serious and intense look.

“What?” Noct said quickly.

“We have chocolate?”

“Uh, yeah, Iggy surprised me with it this morning.”

Luna’s face morphed into a smile and she got to her knees, reaching to a pile of clothes and pulling out a jacket.

“Come on, then, let’s go get it!” she said, nudging him with her knee as she pulled it on.

Noct sighed. “Yeah, alright.”

“Good morning,” Ignis greeted them when they emerged from the tent. “I was sure you had both gone back to sleep.”

“We almost did,” Luna said meekly, “and then Noct might have mentioned Hot Chocolate.”

“Of course,” Ignis said with a short laugh. “Would you like some, Luna?”

“Yes, more than anything, please.”

“Right away. Noct would you like yours warmed up again?”

Noct shrugged, plonking himself into the closest camp chair. The sun was up now, its golden light spreading across the forest.

Only moments later, a fresh mug was placed in his hands, and Luna was beside him, gleefully sipping from her own mug.

“Thanks Iggy,” Noct smiled. Seeing her so happy was definitely worth it.

“Thank you so much Ignis, this is incredible.”

“You’re both very welcome.”

The morning moved on. Ignis and Luna chatted, while Noct finished his drink and dozed in his chair. He was thinking about going back to bed when the tent flap opened and Prompto sprang out, full of his unnatural morning energy.

“Hey guys, you’re all up early,” he said, pulling on his shoes. “Noct are you up because you want to go for a morning jog with me?” he said sweetly.

Noct screwed up his nose, looking disgusted. “How are we even friends?”

“Oh, fine then,” Prompto humphed, turning to the others. “Luna you in?”

“Sure am, just let me get my shoes.”

The two jogged off with way more energy than Noct found appropriate in the morning, leaving him alone with Ignis once more.

“How about we attempt breakfast then?” Ignis said standing.

“Sure, what do you want me to do?” Noct asked with a yawn.

Moving to the stove, Ignis hummed thoughtfully as he looked through their supplies, finally pulling out a carton of eggs.

“How about omelettes?”

“With bacon?” Noct asked hopefully.

“Of course,” Ignis said, with a knowing smile. “I’ll even leave the Red Peppers out of yours. Now, if you could manage to crack the eggs into this bowl without getting any shell in that would be a good start.” Ignis pushed the carton of eggs into Noct's waiting hands and they got to work.

Noct took his time cracking each egg open, while Ignis worked on the filling ingredients, finding the vegetables he thought would work well, and selecting his favourite knife. The silence between them as they worked on their individual tasks was comfortable, but Ignis knew they had some things to discuss

“Noct,” Ignis began tentatively, not looking up from chopping the vegetables. “I know you have been anxious about our future movements, and I have an idea that I believe will be of use. ”

“Oh?” Noct hesitated in his whisking.

“Perhaps it would be a good idea to record what you can remember,” Ignis began carefully. “Even if you cannot remember everything it may help. We can mark all the Arms locations on the map, and plan out our steps from there. If nothing else, it will act as an aid in controlling your anxiety.”

Noct went back to whisking, the thunk of Ignis’ knife slicing through vegetables filling the air between them.

“That’s actually a really good idea,” Noct said finally. “Thanks, Specs.” He finished whisking and placed the bowl down onto the small camp table, taking a frying pan and placing it on the stove before turning on the heat.

“Glad to hear it,” Ignis said. He put his knife down and turned to look at the prince. “You needn’t be concerned. You are doing well. Your father would be proud of you.”

Noct's head lowered and Ignis faltered, worrying he’d said the wrong thing. It had already been an emotional morning, without bringing up the late King. Noct stepped forward and pressed his face into Ignis’ chest. Putting an arm around the younger man, Ignis held him close, the desire to protect Noct suddenly overwhelming him.

“It’s really hard,” Noct said. His voice sounded so small.

Ignis took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “It is,” he agreed. “I can’t even imagine how hard it must be for you. We’re here for you Noct. Whatever happens, we will all be there beside you.”

“I know,” Noct said, as he buried his face into his friend's shirt, feeling like a child as Ignis held him.

Ignis pulled away gently, as the smell of smoking oil was brought to his attention.

”How about we finish breakfast before the others get back?” he said, moving to rescue the frying pan from the stove. “Then we’ll take a look at that map.”

“Sure,” Noct said, an easy smile spread across his face. “Now, show me how you flip these things without making a mess.”

When Gladio emerged from the tent sometime later, drawn by the smell of breakfast and the sounds of light-hearted conversation, he smiled fondly as he discovered Noct and Ignis side by side at the camp stove, Ignis making exaggerated motions with his hands, while Noct attempted to flip omelettes with the spatula.

Chapter Text

Prompto finished helping with the breakfast dishes and dried his hands on his pants. He looked over to see Noct sitting cross-legged on the stony ground, leaning over a map.

“Whatcha doin’?” he called as he wandered over. Noct didn’t respond. He tapped the pen he was holding to his chin and muttered something indecipherable, before reaching over and circling something on the map. Pulling a notebook from his lap, he scribbled something there as well.

“Uh, Noct?” Prompto tried again, amused. It had been a long time since he’d seen his friend this focused - maybe back in school when they were studying for their exams, cramming the night before in a panic, consuming an ungodly amount of snacks and caffeine in an attempt to stay awake.

“Hmm?” Noct hummed, not looking up. He mumbled to himself again, scribbling another note in his book, before his eyes flickered upwards to Prompto. “Sorry, what?”

“Just wondering what you’re up to.” Prompto crouched down beside him.

“Oh, I was just marking down the Royal Tombs, trying to remember where they all are, you know.” He ducked his head, the pen in his hand flicking from side to side. “I should have done this from the start - Ignis just now came up with the idea.”

“Neat, it’s a good idea,” Prompto said, looking down at the map. There were three circles in Leide, around the three Tombs they had already visited. A fourth mark in Duscae circled the Disc where Noct had fought Titan.  It took Prompto a moment to recognise the fifth mark on the map as the the tower Noct hadn’t been keen on visiting anytime soon. A sixth mark indicated the ice cavern behind the waterfall in Cleigne. In the top left he had written: ‘Cartanica: Katana, Ravus: Dad’s Sword.’

Not having a clue what any of that meant, he did a quick tally in his head.

“So there are Thirteen all together, right?” Prompto asked. Noct nodded, pen tapping on the map again.

“So that’s six more you need to remember, and eight more to find altogether, yeah?”

“Seven, actually. Luna already has the Trident,” Noct said.

“Ohhh, I didn’t realise. Well that’s good, right? One less to worry about.” Prompto pointed to the writing on the top corner of the map. “So what do these mean?”

“There is a Tomb in Cartanica, which is in Niflheim. As for Dad’s sword—” He paused, his lips pressed into a thin line. “Ravus has it.”

“Who’s that?”

“Luna’s brother. He’s the Supreme Commander of the Imperial Army.”

“Wait… Luna’s brother is the—” He looked over at Noct, mouth open in surprise.

“It’s a long story,” Noct said with a sigh.

“Yeah, I bet.” Prompto looked back to the map. Noct frowned, chewing on his bottom lip before he flipped the pen in his fingers then leant forward and circled ‘Ravatogh’ on the map. The moved to write in his note book.

This went on for some time. Prompto moved to help the others start packing. As he walked back and forth to the Regalia, he checked in on Noct, who was looking increasingly frustrated. Finally Noct stood, and with a flick of his hand, called one of the Royal Arms. A frown of concentration covered his face as he swung the huge sword, then sent it back, calling forth another in its place. Prompto and the others, done with packing up camp, waited patiently at the edge of the Haven, watching as Noct called each weapon in turn. He closed his eyes, frown deepening as he moved his hand, but nothing appeared. He smiled, the frown draining from his features as he rushed to sit back in front of his map, scrambling for the pen on the ground beside it.

“Shield of the Just,” he said triumphantly, one finger scanning the map. “Got it!” He sat back, looking relieved, then looked up to find everyone waiting for him.

“I know which Tomb we can head for next,” he said with a grin. “After taking out the Imperial Base, of course.”

“Excellent news,” Ignis said. “Shall we head to Wiz to collect our bounty and then make for Aracheole Stronghold then?”

Noct nodded. Standing, he shoved the notebook in his pocket, before picking up the map and folding it carefully.

“Let’s get this show on the road.”

***

“I believe we should stop for fuel,” Ignis said as they neared the gas station at Alstor Slough.

Everyone jumped out to stretch, Luna nudging a dozing Noct awake before following Prompto out the other side of the car. Noct yawned, blinking rapidly to see Ignis standing beside his door, one hand on his hip while the other held the gas nozzle.

“Alstor Slough,” Ignis said, interpreting the sleepy, dazed look on Noct's face. “We didn’t get far before it occurred to me how long it has been since we refuelled the Regalia.”

“Oh, right.” Noct yawned again and stretched, moving to the other door to get out. Luna and Prompto were heading to the shop, while Gladio was walking over to the umbrella table in the corner, where a very familiar woman in an orange hat stood, hunched over her work. ‘No way,’ Noct thought with a grin. It was Sania Yeager, the enthusiastic professor they had helped the last time he had done all this. He jogged over to them, just as Gladio leaned on the table.

“Nice to see you again,” Gladio said.

“Oh?” Sania looked up. “Oh, it’s you, the nature lover from Hammerhead.”

“What brings you to Alstor Slough? Studying some interesting wildlife?”

“You have that right, the red frogs here are real fascinating— Oh, and who is this?” She paused, looking up at Noct, who she had just realised was standing beside Gladio.

“Uh, hi. I’m Noct.” He gave an awkward wave, realising it was always going to be disorienting meeting someone again for the first time. “You’re Sania, right?”

“That’s me. I’m rather busy at the moment, so if you boys are done—”

“Is there anything we could help with?” Noct said quickly. “Seems like you could use a few extra pairs of hands.”

“You would be willing to help me?” Sania said. Her face brightened, and she folded her arms with a grin. “Alright then, how about you go and catch me some red frogs then? I need some for my research.”

“Well.” Gladio straightened and slapped a hand to Noct’s back. “Lucky for you, I’ve heard Noct here is a great frog catcher.”

Noct snorted. “Better than you, big guy, that’s for sure.”

“Excellent.” Sania clapped her hands together excitedly. “Just make sure they’re fresh, will you? You’ll find them down in the Slough. What luck you came along.”

As they walked back to the car, Gladio raised an eyebrow in Noct’s direction.

“What was that all about?” he said. Noct shrugged.

“We helped her out last time, I thought we should do it again.” He looked down and Gladio elbowed his shoulder gently.

“Come on, out with it,”

“Ahh, it’s silly,” he grumbled, shoving Gladio’s arm away. “I feel like rushing around like, this I’ve already let so many people down.” Noct shrugged again, “The least we can do is find Sania her frogs.”

“You’re doing your best Noct. You can’t shoulder everyone’s burdens, no one’s shoulders are that big.”

“Yours might be,” Noct teased, shoving his hands into his pockets. “You don’t mind if we take another detour?”

“Well, you already offered, so we can hardly leave her hanging now, can we?” Gladio pointed out.

“It’ll be fun. Besides there’s some good fishing down at the lake.”

“Ahhh, now the truth comes out.”

***

“Oh! Oh! I found one! Noct over here!” Prompto shouted excitedly from the edge of the water. Noct ignored him, not wanting to scare off the little guy he’d just spotted in the grass. He crept forward into a crouch. The frog took a small jump forward, just as Noct pounced, wrapping his hands around its small body. It struggled, but settled down quickly as Noct loosened his grip, holding it as gently as he could without letting it go.

“Hey, there you go,” he cooed as it croaked. He lifted it closer to his face, getting a good look at it before walking over to Ignis, who was holding the plastic aquarium Sania had given them.

“See, you are good at catching frogs,” Gladio said with a smirk.

“The best there is,” Noct agreed, jogging off to where Prompto was.

“You lose it?” he asked as he approached Prompto, who was on his hands and knees in the mud, looking under a bush.

“Yeah,” he pouted. “It went under here.”

“How about I go around the other side and you scare him out,” Noct said, moving around to the other side of the bush and kneeling down. He was already covered in enough mud that a little more wouldn’t make a difference.

“Alright, you ready?” Prompto stuck his hand in the bush and shook it roughly without waiting for a response.

The frog shot out the other side, right into Noct’s waiting hands.

“Got you!” Noct said, and stood.

“Hey I got one!” Luna cried triumphantly, holding up her small, red prize.

“Nice one,” Noct said, as he delivered the frog to the box with the others. “That should be enough, I think.”

“Good,” Prompto said, attempting to clean off his hands at the water’s edge. “I’m hungry.”

“Go eat, then,” Noct said holding the aquarium out for Luna to put her frog in. “How about you go take the frogs back to Sania and get something at the Crows Nest.”

“Wait, what are you going to do?” Prompto asked.

Noct raised one eyebrow and looked pointedly at the lake in front of them.

“What do you think I’m going to do?” he winked. “I’m gonna catch us some Crag Barramundi for dinner.”

“We ain’t leaving you alone,” Gladio growled.

“I’ll be fine, come back when you’ve eaten if you want, I’ll just be fishing.”

“You’re out in the open, I don’t like it,” Gladio argued.

“Whatever, stay if you want. But I can see the gas station from here. And it’s not like you’ll be long.” He shrugged, leaving the choice to them, and began pulling his fishing gear out.

It was cloudy, so his Ice Bomber would probably be the best for catching Crag Barramundi at this time of day. That way, it would still be most effective even if it started raining - which he was fairly sure it wouldn’t, his back and leg were feeling too good for that. He wished he had his Ranker Tonberry, it honestly would be the best choice, especially for this water, which was kind of shallow and had a lot of debris and rocks. But he couldn’t even remember where he had found it last time - on the edge of a pond or lake somewhere in Eos.

“—aaaand he’s gone,” Prompto said loudly, breaking him from his thoughts.

“What?” Noct said, looking up from the Lure in his hand.

“Never mind bud, go fish. We’ll be back soon.”

“Please be careful,” Ignis added.

“Yeah, yeah, go. I’ll be right over there somewhere when you get back.” He waved his arm in the direction of the small hut and pier on further down the lake edge. “I’ll be careful.”

He waved a hand goodbye and turned, calling his rod and resting it on his shoulder as he walked towards the pier, a spring in his step at the thought of a few quiet hours of fishing. There was a growl off in the distance, and he looked up as one of the Catoblepas in the middle of the lake raised its head in the air. Skirting around some large boulders he made it to the edge of the lake, following it around until reaching the small hut.

He was so focused on the water, he almost missed the man sitting in his chair on the other side of the pier. He looked up as Noct approached, and the moment Noct saw, him he smiled. Navyth.

“Hey, there.” The man got to his feet, his face lighting up when he spotted Noct’s rod. “I don’t often see anyone out here.”

“Ah, yeah,” Noct said, his mind racing at the disorienting deja vu. “You mind if I join you?”

“Not at all, plenty of fish for the both of us,” Navyth said with that kind smile Noct remembered.

There was something about Navyth that reminded him of his dad. Not that his dad had been interested in fishing, it was more something about the way his smile reached his eyes. It made him feel at home, which was strange.

“Have we met?" Navyth said suddenly, his smile crooked as he looked at Noct.

Noct looked down. Realising he'd been staring, he busied himself with his lure, attaching it hurriedly to the end of his line.

“No,” he said quickly, not looking up. “Uh, I’m Noct”

“Nice to meet you Noct, the name’s Navyth. Do you fish much?”

“I do.” Noct cast his line out into the water. “Whenever I can, actually.”

“That’s good to hear.” He cast his own line in beside Noct. “You here for the Crag Barramundi?”

“Yeah, it’s been a while. I was hoping to catch some for dinner tonight.”

“Well, you picked the right lure for the job. I imagine you’ll have one in no time.”

It wasn’t long before they both were reeling in their first catches, Noct disappointed when the Alstor Bass breached the surface. He’d thought for sure he’d hooked the Barramundi. He pulled it from the water and shrugged. It was pretty huge, regardless. He ended up tossing it back in - Alstor Bass weren’t great for eating.

“You are good at this,” Navyth said as he pulled in his own catch.

“Ah, thanks,” Noct flushed and cast his line once more.

***

“Looks like we have more company.”

Noct turned to see his friends stomping through the grass and mud towards them.

“It’s alright, they’re my friends.” Noct took one hand off his rod to give them a wave.

Prompto whistled at the pile of fish at Noct’s feet,

“Nice one, buddy.” He slapped a hand down on Noct’s shoulder. “We’re going to all eat like Kings tonight.”

“You said it,” Noct laughed. He was pretty happy with what he’d caught. After the first Barramundi had finally been hooked, the others had practically jumped out of the water at him.

“Guys, this is Navyth,” he said. He reeled his line in as they introduced each other, detaching his lure and putting it away.

“We should be going, Noct, it’s getting dark,” Ignis said after they had finished. It was only then Noct had a good look around, it really was getting dark.

“Yes, I should move along too,” Navyth agreed with a sigh. Noct knew the feeling. “Don’t want Daemons eating me up and stealing my catch,” he added with a laugh. “It was nice meeting you, Noct. Hopefully we run into one another again.”

“Yeah, you too,” Noct nodded, extending his hand to Navyth.

“Here.” Navyth reached into his pocket, “I like your spark, m’boy. You were pulling in those Barramundi like a pro today. I haven’t seen fishing like that in some time. Have this.” Noct couldn’t help but smile as he held out the Knife T. Tonberry lure, the very same Navyth had given him the first time they had met. Back then, he hadn’t known how rare the lure was, but he did now.

“Wow, are you sure?” Noct pressed.

“Of course I’m sure. I’m going to hear some good things from you Noct, I can just tell.” Navyth pushed the lure towards him and Noct accepted it.

“Thanks, I’ll make good use of it.”

“Be sure you do.” Navyth turned to the others and wished them farewell, and then walked away.

“Interesting guy,” Gladio remarked.

“Yeah, he’s nice,” Noct said, watching him go. “We kept running into him all over Eos last time, he kept challenging me to harder and harder fish.” Noct held up the Lure he’d just received and smiled.

“I guess we should head back then?” He looked to the others. “what did you guys get up to anyway?”

“We had lunch, then took a hunt nearby,” Prompto said, leaning over to grab two of the fish by their tails. “Went back to cash that before coming back to find you.”

“Nice.” Noct picked up the other two, holding out one to show Ignis. “So, got any recipe ideas?” he said with a smirk.

“I might.” Ignis pushed his glasses back, taking hold of the fish to look it over.

“Sania happy with her frogs?” Noct asked as they started the trek back.

“Very happy, she said to say ‘thank you’,” Luna said, walking beside Noct. “And asked when we would be helping again,” she added with a smile.

“And gave us the longest most boring explanation ever about why she needed them,” Prompto said with a groan.

Noct laughed. “Yeah, she sure is passionate about her work.”

“Intense,” Prompto corrected.

“Anything besides fishing happen while we were gone?” Gladio asked, as they skirted around the families of Garula, not wanting to start anything.

“Nah, it was quiet,” he frowned, “which was surprising, actually. Last time we came here it was swarming with MT drop ships.”

Gladio stopped walking, grabbing Noct’s jacket and pulling him to a stop.

“And you decided not to share this information when we left you alone?” he growled angrily. Noct jerked his jacket from Gladio’s grip, his own temper flaring.

“It was fine, wasn’t it?” he hissed back. “It’s not like they can catch me anyway. I’d warp to the other side of the lake and be gone before they knew what happened.”

“You idiot,” Gladio roared. “You have no idea what could have happened, they could have dropped on your head and you wouldn’t even notice.”

“I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but I’ve done this before, and I am quite capable of taking care of myself,” Noct shouted back, his hands balling into fists.

“calm down, both of you,” Luna said sternly, cutting through any further harsh words either of them had to say. Stepping between them, she turned to Noct. “You’re fortunate nothing happened. Gladio is right. You zone out when you fish, and anything could have gotten you. But,” she added as Noct started to protest, “nothing happened, so let’s go back. I need a shower.” She gave each of them a stern look before turning on her heel and walking quickly away, leaving Gladio and Noct to frown at each other and follow her.

Ignis and Prompto gave each other an amused look, before following as well.

***

Tempers were cooled by the time they reached the road in front of the gas station. Noct and Prompto were joking and nudging one another as they raced up the stairs. The sun was well on its way down, and the buildings of the Gas station and Crows Nest cast long shadows along the ground.

“I already paid for the caravan for the night,” Ignis called as they ran across the road.

“I win!” Prompto called triumphantly, as he dumped his load of fish onto the table in front of the caravan. He grasped his side, breathing hard and grinning.

“It’s okay,” Noct gasped back. “I’ll just have to beat you at Justice Monsters later.” He threw his fish down beside the others, and they both made their way into the caravan to wash at least some of the mud and fish water off themselves. Something of a water fight was in progress by the time the others caught up. Ignis just rolled his eyes and banished them from his kitchen.

Outside, Gladio had started to work on the fish, and Luna headed straight inside to the caravan’s shower.

“Right, you in for Justice Monsters then?” Noct asked, his voice a clear challenge.

“Hell yeah!” Prompto cried. “You’re going down, my friend.”

The two continued their nudging and shoving as they as they walked towards the Crows Nest, and for a moment it was almost like they were back in insomnia, dodging Ignis and heading to the arcade instead of doing homework or reading boring reports. The boys were so busy with their roughhousing, they didn’t notice the man in the shadows.

“My, my. What do we have here?” a familiar voice drawled.

Noct instantly recoiled, his body rushing with adrenaline, his hand grabbing at Prompto’s. The blond flinched at the pain in his hand and looked at Noct in confusion. Then Prompto noticed the movement in the shadows, and stepped closer to Noct.

“If it isn’t Prince Noctis and his royal retinue. Or one of them, at least.”

Chapter Text

There is no way Noct could steel his features in time, the recognition was already there. There was no time to pretend he didn’t know who Ardyn was. All the hours he had spent worrying about this moment, rehearsing what he would say when they finally crossed paths, everything helpful left his mind, leaving nothing but panic and seething hatred.

“You've certainly been busy, haven't you Prince Noctis?” Ardyn said, stepping forward. “I’ve heard word of your adventures from all over Eos.” His head tilted slightly to the side as he smiled. That smile alone was enough to make Noct want to vomit. Even though he was fairly sure his eyes were betraying him, Noct was trying with every fibre of his being to force his face into something, anything, other than what he was currently feeling.

Ardyn’s face twisted with false concern. “Why, you look upset. Is something the matter?”

Before Noct could say anything, he heard rushed footsteps behind him. Gladio’s large hand appeared on his shoulder, gently pushing him closer to Prompto so he could stand, large and imposing in front of them, putting himself between Ardyn and Noct in a way only Gladio could. Ignis, much lighter on his feet, but no less impressive, took up his other side, his expression carefully guarded as he studied the situation. Both of them were ready to fight, ready to die for their King.

“What do you want?” Gladio growled.

Ardyn’s eyes widened in feigned shock. “Oh my, I see we have a misunderstanding.” He held his hands up placatingly. “I’m not here to cause any trouble.”

“You must understand,” Ignis began, voice calm as ever. “It is not every day we are approached by the Chancellor of Niflheim himself.”

Ardyn’s eyes flickered. His cover was blown. He couldn’t pretend to be the man of no consequence he had played last time, a mysterious but helpful stranger.

“I see you have found me out,” he said with an extravagant bow. “I am indeed he, Ardyn Izunia, Chancellor of Niflheim.” Ardyn’s eyes slid to Noct and he smiled once more. “But you have no need to feel apprehensive, Prince Noctis. I am merely here to make your acquaintance. I assure you I have nothing but good intentions.”

“Why would we trust anything you say?” Noct burst out, unable to keep it in any longer. Gasping with rage, he clenched his teeth. “Niflheim burned Insomnia to the ground,” he said, selecting his words more carefully. There was a lump in his throat. He had no idea how he was speaking past it at all. “There was a peace treaty in place, and Niflheim broke it.”

Ardyn dipped his head, pulling his hat from his head he held it to his chest dramatically.

“Indeed,” he said. “All those poor souls.” He lifted his head once more levelling his stare at Noct. “You must understand your Highness. Iedolas is a sick man, and I fear he has lost his mind.”

Noct’s heart pounded painfully as anger boiled through him. Of course Ardyn was going to blame everything Iedolas, trying to show he was innocent in all this, to get Noct on Ardyn’s side. All so he could play Ardyn’s twisted little game to lead him to the Crystal, all on his terms, killing and maiming the ones he loved along the way.

Ardyn let out a dramatic gasp as more footsteps approached from behind, and his eyes widened as he looked past Noct.

“Dearest Lady Lunafreya,” he said. “The rumours that you were travelling with the Crown Prince were true after all!” He held his arms out wide. “Your brother will be relieved you are safe. He has been searching high and low for you, my dear.”

“You may inform him, that I am indeed safe, Chancellor, if that is his concern,” Luna said. Noct could hear the edge in her voice, that slight hint of fear and hatred.

“I would be careful,” Ardyn said with a twisted smile. “He is displeased with your traveling with Prince Noctis. I fear he will not be happy when he hears you are together.”

“It is fortunate for me, then that my brother is not my keeper,” Luna replied coolly.

There was movement from Gladio, a shift of his body, a warning. Ardyn’s face instantly changed, and he let out a theatrical sigh.

“Alas, I can see that my company is unwanted. I will take my leave,” he said with an extravagant bow. “But before I go-” His eyes moved back to Noct, his smile only a shadow of what it had been, and for the first time since his sudden appearance, Noct could see the hint of the Daemons he held within. “Do take care out there, Iedolas will stop at nothing to get to you.” He paused. “If you require safe passage to Altissia, I offer my airship.”

“While we appreciate the offer,” Ignis said coolly. “I think we will manage ourselves,”

“Of course, you do not trust me. Yet.” He paused again, putting his hat back on. “But perhaps if I show a gesture of good will? Would you trust me then?” With a flourish he turned and began to walk away from them. “I will have the blockade to Lestallum removed at once,” he said without turning back. “You will be free to travel to Cleigne and beyond once more.” He waved one hand. “Goodbye, until we meet again.”

They all watched him walk away, get into his small red car, and drive away. It was not until the light from his car had vanished into the distance that Noct let go of a breath he hadn’t realised he’d been holding, taking several gasps of air to replace it. The others slowly turned to look at him as he stumbled back a few paces. He couldn’t hear past the thundering in his ears and the gasping of his breath, it was like Ardyn’s hands were around his throat once more.

The world tilted sideways, his vision darkening at the edges.

“Oh shit, somebody catch him.”

Noct jolted as hands gripped his arms, and he jerked out of their reach, staggering away.

“I’m fine, I’m fine,” he insisted, but even as he said it every breath that came out of him was choked and uneven.

Noct pushed past them, their comforting hands and words trying to grab at him as he did. Everything felt numb and unnatural. He stumbled forward and his fingers grasped something smooth and cold. The Regalia? When did he get here? He pulled the door open, climbed in, and pulled the door shut behind him.

Shutting out the world.

This was what he needed. The only thing that was left of his dad. The Regalia.

It was quiet and still in here. Noct leaned forward until his forehead hit the steering wheel, eyes squeezed shut, shoulders hunched, body shaking. He tried to slow his breathing, concentrating on the sound of it beyond his thundering heart. As he breathed, he focused on the smell of the leather, and that other smell - that lived-in smell of five people that had spent a lot of time in this car, dirt, sweat and blood. He focused on the tiny bumps on surface of the wheel as he curled his fingers around it.

He longed to be held by his dad, to be comforted like a child and told it was going to be okay. Letting go of the steering wheel, he sank back into the seat, the soft leather drawing him in. It was the closest thing he was ever going to get.

“Why am I like this?” he hissed through clenched teeth. He hated it, hated feeling weak and scared. He longed for that carefree feeling, the hope that if he could just get to the Crystal, everything would be okay, somehow everything would be fixed. Tears found their way through his tightly shut eyes. He wanted to be that strong, stoic hero, willing to sacrifice himself for the good of the world, again. But seeing Ardyn, made him feel weak and helpless, and the weight of what was happening pressed down on him, smothering him. There was no way out. It was hopeless.

The car jolted and Noct’s head jerked up. Prompto was sitting on the bonnet, not looking in at Noct, just waiting. Waiting for Noct to finish having his meltdown.

Prompto was always there, always waiting. And the others, they were always there for him. They put up with a lot from him, and never complained.

Noct let out a sigh, watching Prompto as he fidgeted. His head was low as he looked at something in his lap, his feet swung back and forth lightly, shoes tapping gently against the side of the car. Noct leant forward and knocked on the glass. Prompto’s head jerked up in surprise and he twisted to look at Noct, a relieved smile lighting his face as Noct waved him over. He jumped off the hood and walked around, opening the passenger door and sliding in beside him.

“Hey,” Noct said. He suddenly felt better for having his friend close. The numb feeling was subsiding, leaving behind an aching exhaustion, and he felt guilty for pushing his friends away earlier.

“Hey.” Prompto looked him over nervously. “You okay?”

Noct shrugged, then leaned over, resting his head on his friend’s shoulder. He didn’t want to think about it anymore, and he really didn’t want to talk about it.

“Fair enough.” Prompto relaxed into the seat, then let out a small chuckle. “Are you going to fall asleep on me, dude?”

Noct was seriously considering it - sleep was preferable to thinking. He responded with a sleepy hum, making Prompto laugh more.

“Okay buddy, whatever you need,” Prompto said, as he shifted slightly to get more comfortable. “Just so you know, Ignis started cooking dinner, because he’s worried about you, and I guess that’s what he does when he worries.” Noct snorted. That was true.

“Is Gladio cleaning a weapon, or doing push ups?” Noct asked with a small smile.

“Oooh so close, he’s doing sit ups,” Prompto said. Noct smiled, then sobered.

“Sorry. I shouldn’t have run off like that.” They had enough to worry about without him going off the deep end too.

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it,” Prompto said. “That whole—” He waved his hand - “was kind of terrifying. As soon as I realised who he was, I kind of freaked out.”

Noct had tensed up against Prompto’s side.

“Sorry,” Prompto said quickly. “I’ll shut up.”

Noct let out the breath he’d been holding and tried to relax again, but it wasn’t as easy this time. Noct’s stomach growled, interrupting the uncomfortable silence, and Prompto snickered.

“Bit hungry there, Noct?”

He didn’t feel hungry - the thought of food made him nauseous, but he realised he hadn’t eaten since breakfast. He probably should try, at least.

“I guess.” He lifted himself upright. “We should go see the others, Ignis will kill us if we fall asleep in here again without telling him.”

Noct nibbled at the fish. It was really good, soft and flaky, seasoned perfectly. His stomach had rebelled against the first few bites, but then realised he really needed the food and left him alone. The quiet conversation from the others hummed around him. He’d stopped paying attention some time ago. He just couldn’t focus on what they were saying.

“Noct?” Ignis said, tugging Noct from his thoughts.

“Hmm?” He looked up from his plate, his eyes taking longer than they should to focus on the man sitting across from him.

Ignis hesitated, looking torn before he finally said,

“I was just wondering if you wanted to stay here another night or shall we move on?”

Noct looked down, biting his lip between his teeth momentarily before letting it go and looking back up.

“No, we should keep moving,” Noct said finally. Ignis raised an eyebrow. Clearly this was not the response he had been expecting.

“You’re sure?” he insisted.

“Yeah, we—” Noct cleared the lump in his throat. “We probably don’t have to worry about that Imperial Base anymore.” He scraped at the fish with his fork. “We should move on and get the Royal Arm at Thommel’s Glade. It should be easy, at least, the Tomb is right out in the open.”

“You think that asshole is really going to pull the troops around Lestallum?” Gladio said dubiously.

“Yeah, I do,” Noct shrugged, not looking up. “He wants us to trust him, and he wants me to succeed, to get to the Crystal.”

“He likes to play games,” Gladio grumbled, spearing some more fish with his fork.

“That too,” Noct agreed.

After seeing Ardyn again, Noct had kind of hoped some of his questions would be answered, like why this was all happening again. Did Ardyn know, or was he just as in the dark as Noct was? Did he remember? Was Ardyn messing with him? Maybe this was all one of Ardyn's messed up hallucinations.

Maybe none of this was real.   

Prompto frowned when he realised Noct had stopped paying attention to the conversation again. He had put his fork down, his fish only half-eaten, and was staring at the table, his eyes vacant, the dark circles under them making his face more hollow and exhausted than he ever remembered seeing it. Prompto worried, he didn’t know what else to do. Looking over at the others, and the troubled looks on their faces, it was like a dark cloud hanging over them. Everyone was worried, and angry at Ardyn, at the situation, at the unknown.

Carefully, Prompto put his empty plate down, before he stood and tapped Noct’s shoulder.

“Come on bud, time to hit the hay. You look beat,” he said, forcing the enthusiasm into his voice. He dragged his friend off to bed, earning a smile from Luna and nods from Ignis and Gladio as he wished them goodnight. Noct didn’t seem all there. He collapsed into the bottom bunk of the caravan, and the absent look on his face told Prompto he was on autopilot as he fumbled with his laces. It kind of reminded Prompto of the times when he was stuck somewhere between the past and the present, and he couldn’t figure out what was what.

Prompto knelt down and helped him with his shoes. After tossing them in the corner, he sat down on the bunk beside his friend.

“Noct?” Prompto said, the prince’s eyes fluttered to his in confusion. “Thanks for catching those Barramundi today man, those were some tasty fish. Ignis sure knew how to dress them up nice too.” Noct looked down and it took a moment, but eventually a small, tight smile grew on his face.

“Ah, you know me. It wasn’t exactly a chore.”

“We never did get that Justice Monsters game in,” Prompto added with a playful nudge. “We’ll have to play tomorrow before we go.”

“Right. We’ll do that,” Noct lay his head on Prompto’s shoulder. “Thanks Prompto.”

Gladio was cleaning his weapons, again. Ignis had started a solo card game, and Luna was trying to read, but her mind kept drifting to her brother. She worried about him, constantly. He was as stubborn as she was, a dominant Flouret trait from their mother no doubt. He had held no love for the Calelums , not since the day Tenebrae had been attacked and their mother murdered. Luna understood Regis had only been protecting his son, that it had been too late for their mother.

She understood, but Ravus had grown cold and hard, his grief and hatred twisting him into a person she didn’t recognise. She didn’t remember the last time he had smiled - probably that day, before the gunfire and the screaming. Before their mother had fallen to the ground.

Luna knew he would be looking for her, another reason she had been hesitant to travel with Noct. She worried what would happen when they crossed paths. Ravus was out for blood, and Noct was the only living target for that revenge. He didn’t think Noctis worthy of the throne, or the Crystal’s light, even going so far as to attempt to bear the ring himself, paying for it with his arm. He was lucky that was all he had lost.

Noct had seen what would happen to her brother if he continued on his path, and he had shown concern. He didn’t seem to hate her brother as much as Ravus hated Noct.

Ardyn. What twisted plans did he have, plans that included using everyone she loved as pawns? She knew so little about the man, but it seemed everything he did, as Gladio had said, was a game, one which he had played for a long time.

Luna gasped, moving to straighten the page she had accidentally crumpled in her hand. Ignis looked up from his game.

“Luna, are you alright?”

“Yes, sorry. I was just… thinking too hard.” She frowned as the worry clawed at her. At least she hadn’t ruined Gladio’s book.

“Understandable, considering the circumstances,” Ignis said. “Are you worried about your brother?”

Luna looked up. Of course Ignis would notice such things, he was the strategist after all.

“Yes,” Luna admitted, folding the book and putting it on the table in front of her. She hadn’t read a word for some time. and now it was pointless to continue. “I always worry for him. Working for the enemy, what more can I do?”

“Hopefully, if we come across him, we can persuade him to our side once more,” Ignis said.

“I hope so, Ignis. I fear if he works for Niflheim much longer it will not end well,” she clenched her hands together in her lap. “I just hope he is not too far gone.”

“Trust in Noct,” Gladio said suddenly. He didn’t look up as he worked on his sword. “Ravus will see he is worthy of being King and change his mind.”

Luna couldn’t help but smile. Of course she put all her trust in Noct, and Gladio was right.

“Thank you,” she said. “You are right, I will.”

Noct’s eyes snapped open. His heart was racing, but he didn’t know why. He blinked in the dim light of the caravan and flinched when the bed beside him moved. Prompto was there. He must have had a dream, but thankfully he hadn’t remembered it, for once. He just had this sense of wrenching hopelessness. 

Not that unexpected considering everything that happened the day before.

He didn’t want to think about that.

Prompto shifted beside him, mumbling something in his sleep. Noct tried to settle back down; he closed his eyes and tried to go back to sleep, but everything came rushing back to him and he jolted upright.

Nope.

He reached over and nabbed his phone from the pile of clothes beside his bunk, opening up Kings Knight and turning the sound off so he didn’t disturb anyone. It wasn’t as fun without the others playing with him, but he trained up a few levels, sure to annoy Prompto when he found out Noct had been grinding without him. He took on a monster way out of his league and failed, miserably. Shutting off his phone, he sighed.

He wanted to get up. It was early, still dark, but he felt restless. He wanted to do something.

Yet he still felt so tired.

He closed his eyes and rolled over… to the sound of sizzling bacon?

Rubbing his eyes, he sat up. Everyone was sitting at the small table, except Gladio who was frying up eggs and bacon at the stove, Ignis smiling at him fondly while he sipped from his mug. Luna and Prompto were chatting animatedly over something on Prompto’s phone.

Apparently he had fallen back to sleep after all.

He sat up and Gladio looked around, plate in one hand, and grinned.

“Morning. How you feelin’?” Gladio asked, as he dumped some eggs and bacon onto a plate and shoved them into Noct’s lap. He blinked owlishly, stomach growling at the smell.

“Uh, okay… I think,” he said.

“You still okay to leave today?” Gladio added, handing him a fork.

“Yeah, I’m good.”

“It’s okay if you need more time—” Ignis started to say, but Noct shook his head.

“No,” he insisted quickly. “I’m fine. We should keep going.” He stabbed into his bacon. It was extra crispy, the way Gladio always made it, not at all bad.

“Okay then,” Ignis smiled, raising his mug once more. “Onwards it is.”

Noct nodded, chewing on his bacon.

What more could they do, other than continue onwards?

Chapter Text

Noct wasn’t sleeping. He had his head resting on his arms leaning on the car door as the Regalia sped through Duscae. He let himself zone out, as they drove under the stone arches, the Disc on their left and the smoking Ravatogh beyond that, far off in the distance. He was enjoying the sun on his skin and the wind that tugged at his hair sent it swirling around his face.

Mostly he was avoiding talking to the others. He knew he probably shouldn’t, but that morning had been awkward. He was getting tired of the looks of pity and concern. He caught snippets of conversation from them. Ignis was grumpy about running out of Ebony, and the service station at Alstor hadn’t had any. Apparently Gladio hadn’t been very sympathetic to his plight, because they were now sniping at each other.

It wasn’t until Noct heard the groan from Luna, and Prompto asking if she was okay, that Noct turned around to look at them.

“Luna?” Noct queried with a frown. She was slumped into Prompto, eyes squeezed shut in obvious pain. Prompto looked lost as he held onto her. He looked up at Noct and shrugged helplessly.

Noct reached over. His fingers barely brushed her forehead before she shifted suddenly, pulling away from Prompto to curl up at Noct’s side with a whimper.

“Is something the matter?” Ignis asked, peering in the rear vision mirror at them as he drove.

“Something’s wrong with Luna,” Prompto said.

“It’s the Covenants,” Noct said quietly, brushing her hair back from her face. Her forehead was slick with sweat, and it definitely felt like she had a fever. She didn’t look good at all, and he wished he could help her like she always helped anyone in pain. They’d already discovered potions did nothing to ease her suffering. It was just something that came and went, and she could do nothing but ride it out.

“Should I stop?” Ignis pressed. “Or perhaps we should head to Lestallum so she can rest more comfortably?”

“If the barricade to Lestallum is even open yet,” Noct pointed out. He chewed on his lip thoughtfully. Hopefully it was open, and they could head straight there without a problem. Then again this attack could be over by the time they got to Lestallum, and Luna would just be upset they had taken the detour. With a sigh he held her tighter.

“Let me know when we have to make that decision Iggy,” Noct said finally. “Both are in this direction, right?”

“Yes,” Ignis said, the Regalia speeding up noticeably. “I will let you know.”

Noct looked over at Prompto, whose eyes were crinkled with worry. Noct reached over the arm that was around Luna and took his hand, giving it a squeeze. Prompto offered an unsure smile and squeezed back. It was upsetting, knowing there was not much they could do for her. Luna shuddered, letting out small gasps as another wave of pain tore through her. Noct’s hand settled on her back, rubbing gently, letting her know he was there, even if there was nothing else he could do.

“Noct?” Noct blinked rapidly, must have zoned out again, or maybe started actually falling asleep. He hadn’t meant to. He was still holding Luna tight. At least her shivering had stopped. He shook his head, trying to rid it of the heavy feeling, stretching his arms and legs as much as he could around Luna. Why did he feel so tired all of a sudden?

“Noct?” Iggy called again, Noct’s head snapped upright.

“What?” Noct frowned, lifting one hand to rub at his eyes, why did his arm feel so heavy?

“Are you alright?” Ignis asked. “I was asking how Luna was doing?”

“Ah—” Gods he was having trouble thinking, what was going on?

“Dude, are you okay?” Prompto said from somewhere far away. “You look weird.”

Noct blinked, trying to focus on Prompto’s voice. The blond was suddenly leaning over him, looking into his eyes.

“Iggy, I think something’s wrong,” Prompto said, his voice rising in panic. “He keeps falling asleep.”

Prompto squeezed Noct’s now-limp hand as the Prince’s eyes fluttered shut again. This wasn’t normal tired Noct, he looked confused and was genuinely fighting to stay awake. Luna groaned, shifting from her position beside Noct. She sat up, just as the car came to a halt on the side of the road, Ignis and Gladio both turning around to look at her.

“What’s going on?” she mumbled. Occasional flutters of pain still ran through her, but she was mostly feeling better.

“You doing okay Luna?” Gladio asked.

“Yes, actually, much better,” she said, the confusion clear in her voice. “Did we arrive at the Tomb?”

“Not quite,” Ignis said. “We were wondering if we should stop at Lestallum due to your health, and now something seems to be wrong with Noct.”

“Hey,” Noct smiled, eyes heavy lidded as he looked at Luna. “You okay?”

Luna frowned, confused. She looked down at their linked hands. She definitely recognised this feeling, but how? It felt like healing energy was running between them. It was subtle, and slightly different to her own, but it was definitely there.

“Noct, are you healing me?” she asked, her eyes moving back to his.

“Am I?” he said with a lopsided grin.

Luna snatched her hand away, shifting closer to Prompto so she was no longer touching him.

“Wait, is that why he went all weird all of a sudden? He was healing you?” Prompto said.

“I think so,” Luna said. “I didn’t know you could do that. This— isn’t an infliction that can be simply healed.”

Noct appeared to be trying to lift his hand up to look at it, but ended up giving up and flopping back. He shrugged.

“So long as you’re feeling better,” he said with a dazed smile.

“Maybe this is what Gentiana meant?” Luna said absently. “She told me so often that the Oracle and Chosen were stronger together.” She gasped as Noct suddenly snagged her hand back.

“If that’s the case, I’m not letting you go Luna, whenever you’re in pain. If I can help—“

“But it has exhausted you Noct,” she snapped. “What if it’s hurting you too?”

“I’m fine, just sleepy. Nothing a nap won’t fix.”

Ignis pushed a bottle into his hand.

“And perhaps one of these would help,” he said, then turned back to start the car once more.

“You sure you’re okay?” Noct asked after downing the Ether.

“Yes, I really am.”

“Good,]. You looked like you were in a lot of pain.”

Luna sighed, conceding the space she had put between them. Noct grinned and lay his head on her shoulder.

“Thank you,” she said finally. “I thought that one was going to put me out for the rest of the day.” She realised she felt stronger than she had in days, which begged the question: was Noct healing the damage done by the Covenants to her body, or just relieving the pain it caused?

“Y’welcome. Would be nice if I could do it on purpose though. I know I can heal, I’ve done it before, but that didn’t feel like Crystal magic. I hardly felt anything at all.”

“Just one more mystery,” Prompto chirped.

“Wonderful, like there isn’t enough weird shit happening already,” Noct groaned.

By the time Ignis turned off the main road, Noct was feeling more awake. They drove down a small dirt road into a parking space with a couple of wooden shelters, some beat-up old cars, and a pile of tires, surrounded on all sides by huge trees.

“So this Tomb is pretty close right?” Prompto said as he stretched his arms above his head, rolling his shoulders back.

“Yeah, it shouldn’t take long,” Noct said. “It’s just sitting out there for anyone to see.”

“Oh gee, a King that didn’t have their Tomb in the bottom of some cave or on the top of a mountain,” Prompto rolled his eyes. “What a concept.”

“Yeah, how about that? Just make sure you toss me in a lake somewhere when it’s my time to go,” Noct said, his mouth lifted at the corners at his own grim joke.

He ran a hand through his hair distractedly as he looked out at the forest, his smile fading as a fluttering started in his stomach. Time to get another Royal weapon.

“Right, time to move,” he said, swallowing heavily.

The others followed along behind him as they walked past the old cars and rusting dumpster to a narrow gravel path that wound through the trees and shrubs. A sign not far down the path announcing their arrival at Thommel’s Glade.

The five of them started at the sound of howling yelps, moving into a tighter group, and scanning the area for possible enemies, glimmers of blue sparking as weapons were called to hands.

Movement to Noct’s right was followed immediately by a gunshot. A pained yelp and a thud indicated Prompto’s aim had been impeccable as always. More figures appeared from the bushes, surrounding them completely.

“Voretooths,” Ignis announced, his voice even as he adjusted the grip on his daggers. “Shouldn’t be a problem, provided we stay on our toes.”

“Time to dance then, Iggy?” Gladio grinned, taking several long strides forward, sword at the ready.

Noct, buzzing with nervous energy, warped forward before anyone else could move, his strike taking out the first, then spinning to impale the second. He took a second to look for his third target but Ignis was already there, throwing his daggers and piercing the third Voretooth.

“Eager to finish are we?” Ignis said with a bemused smile.

Noct rolled as one of the creatures launched at him. He got to his feet and spun his blade to take it out, Ignis finishing it off.

“I thought you’d be happy I have so much energy,” Noct retorted before warping away, his attack knocking his target into a tree.

Sounds of grunts, gunshots and magic charges filled the air behind him. He managed to turn just in time, as a set of teeth grazed his arm. Switching his sword for his daggers, he jammed them into the Voretooth as it came back for a second bite, twisting the dagger in its neck until it stopped moving.

A cry behind Noct, caught his attention and he spun to see Prompto on the ground, a Voretooth bearing down on him as he struggled to keep the creatures snapping jaws away from his face.

“Prompto,” Noct yelled, aiming and throwing the dagger in his hand at the Voretooth. The impact sent both Noct and the creature rolling across the ground. Noct got to his feet just as another Voretooth raced towards them. Prompto staggered to his feet, calling his Bioblaster.

“Noct, stay behind me,” he called, stepping in front of the Prince. Noct took one look at the machine in Prompto’s arms and stepped back as Prompto released an explosion. The resulting blow knocked back both the creatures charging at them and several more nearby, and sent Prompto flying backwards into Noct’s waiting arms.

“Nice one, Prom!” Noct cheered, helping the blond to his feet. They exchanged a fist-bump before looking for their next targets.

Nearby, Luna was wiping sweat from her brow. It seemed the battle was over, as Gladio slammed his sword down on the last one, before releasing his blade and wiping his hands on his pants. Ignis was strolling over to them, adjusting the sleeves of his button up shirt as he went.

“Everyone good?” Noct called.

“I’m fine,” Luna replied, her trident vanishing as she made her way over to them.

“All good here,” Gladio said.

“You’re bleeding, Noct,” Ignis pointed out, now close enough to grab Noct's arm to examine it.

“Ignis,” Noct snorted. “It’s a tiny scratch I’m fine.” He tried to pull his arm away but Ignis held on tight.

“Voretooth are notorious for their venomous bite, Noctis,” he said firmly, levelling the prince with his no nonsense stare. “At least allow me to clean it before we continue on.”

“Fine, you can look at it in a bit, the Tomb is literally right there,” he said waving his arm to the structure just off in the distance. “Let’s just get to the Tomb and you can nurse me all you want while Prompto takes photos.” Prompto perked up at that.

“Say what now?”

“There’s this guy in Lestallum, I totally forgot about him,” Noct said, ignoring a disapproving noise from Ignis. “He’ll pay top dollar for your photos of the Tomb, it’s for his magazine.”

“Someone wants to pay money for my photos?” Prompto breathed, eyes practically sparkling with wonder as the smile spread across his face.

“Sure will, bud,” Noct replied.

“You’re happy to sell off pictures of your ancestor’s Tombs to a magazine?” Ignis remarked, one eyebrow raised. “That seems very unlike you.”

Noct shrugged, finally wrenching his arm from the distracted Ignis’s grasp.

“It’s just the outside, literally anyone could come along and take a picture of it. And look at him.” He jerked a thumb at the still dazed-looking Prompto. “What kind of monster would deny him his dreams?” Ignis snorted at this.

“Indeed,” he said then sighed. “Very well, but as soon as we reach the Tomb you will allow me to clean and treat that wound. No complaints.”

“Yes sir.” Noct saluted cheekily before taking the lead once more.

Noct had been correct in that the Tomb was only a few minutes’ walk away. They walked through the huge, fancy, white and brown archway that made up the entrance. As soon as they reached the stairs, Ignis was forcing Noct to sit so he could take care of his arm, Noct calling out instructions for the photos to Prompto who eagerly jogged off to take the right ones.

Noct winced as Ignis poked at the cut with a pad soaked with something that smelt bad. But he kept his mouth closed, keeping his promise of no complaints while Ignis made sure it was thoroughly cleaned. He looked over at Luna, who was wandering around, studying the intricate patterns on the outside walls of the Tomb. Gladio had his phone out and was texting someone, most likely Iris.

“Now,” Ignis said calling Noct’s attention once more. “Any dizziness or nausea, Noct?”

“No, I’m fine.” Noct groaned. “I’m not poisoned Iggy.”

“Of course, but it would be quite neglectful of me to not check.” Ignis placed a hand on Noct's forehead as the Prince groaned again.

“Happy?” Noct grumbled when Ignis finally pulled his hand away. “I’m not dying.”

“Satisfied, for now,” Ignis decided, giving him a scrutinising look, before turning to pack away his supplies.

Noct grumbled unintelligibly and stood.

“Thanks,” he said, not looking back at Ignis.

“You’re very welcome, Highness,” he replied with a smirk, knowing the title would only further frustrate the Prince.

Noct let out a long suffering sigh, and shoved his hands into his pockets before calling out to the others.

“I’m going inside now,” he said, turning to the door and pulling a key from his pocket before the others had a chance to respond. He jammed the key in the door and watched as it swung open, hesitating in the doorway. The light poured in from outside, lighting up the stone statue holding the shield. The dust motes drifting around in the sunbeams, that musty smell hitting him, the familiar weight settling in his chest, made it difficult to step forward.

“Hey,” Luna said, sidling up to Noct. Her hand slipped into his and squeezed tight, pulling him back.

Instead of speaking he squeezed back, and took that step forward, stopping only when he reached the statue. He held out his other arm. The blue glow started, and his mouth was suddenly dry. He closed his eyes and concentrated on the warmth of Luna’s hand in his. Even with his eyes closed it felt like the room was closing in around him - the flashes of blue, the jolt through his body as the ghost of the shield hit him, bringing the Arms shattering into existence. The face of his father—

Pain shot up his arms and his eyes shot open.

“Noct!”

The Armiger was gone, and the only light in the room was the sunlight. Luna had her hands on his shoulders, her eyes wide. Noct realised the pain in his arms was his own fingers digging into the flesh where he’d gotten cut up by the Voretooth. Ignis’s bandage was dangling uselessly and the wound was open and bleeding.

“Uh,” he started to say, but it was difficult to speak past his gasping breath.

“It’s okay,” Luna said, taking his hands and lowering them from his arms. “Come on, let’s go sit down.”

Noct didn’t even notice the eyes of the others following him as Luna lead him from the Tomb and sat him down on the steps outside. He flinched as delicate fingers touched his arm, healing magic glowing, stopping the bleeding.

“I’m fine,” he said to no one in particular.

“I know,” Luna said back quietly. She finished healing up his wound and they sat quietly on the step.

Eventually Prompto and the others joined them, sitting down on the steps. No one said anything for a while, until Ignis pointed out it would be getting dark soon, and the trip back to Lestallum was at least an hour away. It was fine, Noct decided, pulling himself to his feet. They made their way back to the car. Thankfully, if there were any lingering Voretooths, they decided to let the group pass without any trouble.

Noct found his favourite spot in the back seat of the car, Ignis put the roof up, and Noct zoned out. Warm and comfortable, listening to the rumble of the engine, and the quiet conversation of his friends.

Chapter Text

They managed to pull into the warm, brightly-lit, energetic atmosphere of Lestallum just as the lights were flickering on around the town. There had been no trouble at the gate, which was open with no signs of the Empire or their army.

They piled out of the car, the humid air filled with the smells of Lestallum street food and lively music, calling them in several different directions at once. Ignis was insistent he needed a coffee, and ended up leaving with Luna to go find one. Noct and Prompto found they had lost Gladio to his one true passion - they spotted him leaning on the counter at the Cup Noodle stand chatting energetically with the owner. Beside Noct, Prompto was practically vibrating with the excitement of meeting the magazine owner who would post his photos.

“Come on,” Noct said, wrapping his arm around Prompto’s shoulders. “Let’s go find Vyv.”

Vyv was nowhere to be found. The only sign he’d even been at his usual spot by the lookout were scattered copies of “Meteor” on the table.

“Aw man.” Prompto was pouting, just a little bit. They sat down at a nearby table Prompto slumped over, chin resting on his arms

“Hey don’t worry.” Noct nudged him lightly with his elbow. “He’ll come back, he hangs out here a lot.”

“Y’think?” Prompto brightened, and pulled one of the magazines over to flick through. His pout softened as he no doubt began to imagine his photos being the ones gracing its pages.

Noct couldn’t help but smile fondly as his friend’s bad mood evaporated, the hope shining in his eyes once more. It made Noct realise how tenuous the blond’s smiles had been lately. With everything happening, of course, who could blame him? When they’d been younger, Noct had always looked to his friend as this beacon of hopeful smiles and endless cheerfulness, someone who without fail could help him feel better when he was having a bad day. He hid it well, but there were times when he let the mask slip, a mask Noct hadn’t even realised was there until the first night Prompto had woken him up with a nightmare. After that, Noct had started to realise how much he hid, and how good he was a putting on that facade.

“Prom, you doing okay?” Noct asked casually, looking out at the view instead of at his friend. Prompto looked up from his magazine surprised, but his mouth quirked into a lopsided smile.

“Dude,” he said with an uneasy laugh. “I should be asking you that.” Noct turned to level a stare at his friend.

“I’m asking you.”

“Oh, uh…” Prompto looked down at the table, his eyebrows crinkling into a slight frown. “I’m doing okay, I guess.”

“It’s fine to not be okay,” Noct said with a slight grin.

Prompto snorted at the words he had said to Noct, what felt like forever ago, the last time they had been in Lestallum.

“Everything is fucked and no one is okay,” Prompto echoed Noct’s words from that night.

“That’s the one,” Noct said, but his grin quickly faded. “Just let me know if you need to chat, yeah? I know everything is so… busy, but I’m here.”

Prompto was quiet for a short while, his fingers fiddling with the edges of the magazine in front of him. Finally he nodded.

“Yeah, thanks. You too, okay?” He turned, raising a fist with an easy smile.

Noct mirrored the smile and bumped his fist.

“Yeah.”

Ignis took that first sip of his coffee and sighed in relief. Luna, sitting beside him, nursing her own steaming mug, chuckled, but said nothing.

He ignored her laughter at his expense and took another wonderful sip. Gods he had needed this. He felt ashamed to admit to the caffeine headache that had been bothering him all day. This particular coffee wasn’t the best he’d ever had, but it was hot and strong, and that was all he needed right now - especially after the last few days. What a fine time for him to run out of Ebony. Not snapping at the others had taken some genuine effort, but of course Gladio had seen right through it.

Not that his lack of caffeine was the biggest of their worries at the moment.

Between Ardyn appearing, Noct’s meltdown, and Luna’s mysterious illness, the last few days had been horrendous, and he was honestly wondering how long they could keep going on like this, with what seemed like blow after blow, and little respite between.

“Have you returned to full health Luna?” Ignis asked as he placed his already half empty mug down. 

“Honestly Ignis, I am fine,” she said with a smile and a small shake of her head.

“I am glad to hear it.”

They had already been stopped several times by people wanting to shake the Oracle’s hand or to take a picture with her. Others asked to be healed, and she stopped each time, happy to oblige, giving each of them her full and undivided attention with a kind smile and hopeful words. Ignis had kept a wary eye on her, but as usual she kept going as she always did, never outwardly showing signs of fatigue. She stood tall and proud, as was expected of her, a pillar of strength and light to the people of Eos. As they cleared the crowds and the spotlight moved away from her, Ignis observed that her posture relaxed, and she became the Lunafreya he was used to seeing.

Coffees done with, they agreed that their next best choice of action would be to secure accommodation for the night. Lestallum was always busy, and they didn’t want to be without a room.

The moment they approached the reception desk in the hotel the eyes of the gentleman behind it lit up.

“Lady Oracle!” he gasped, bowing as low as he could without hitting the counter. “It is a pleasure to see you again. Will you be requiring a room for tonight?”

Luna smiled politely and bowed her head in return.

“We will. Do you have a room for five available?”

“Certainly, the room you stayed in last time is available. Would that be suitable?”

“If I may,” Ignis said suddenly before Luna could respond. “Provided it is agreeable to you, Lady Lunafreya, I suspect a different room would be preferable to some members of our group. One that doesn’t resemble our original room.”

He raised an eyebrow in Luna’s direction, and she nodded in understanding. After the last few days, the last thing Noct needed was to stay in the same room where he’d had vivid nightmares of Ardyn strangling him.

“Yes,” she agreed. “Thank you, Ignis. Perhaps a different room this time.”

“Oh,” the man paused looking unsure, but quickly composed himself. “Certainly, Lady Oracle.” He looked in the book in front of him and flicked through the pages. “Ah, I have just the room for you. It is on the floor above, and larger with three doubles. Would that be a problem?”

“No, not a problem at all,” Luna said after a silent exchange with Ignis. “Thank you.”

Ignis moved to hand over a wad notes but the man waved it away.

“Please, I cannot accept your gil this time.” He clasped his hands together. “Last time you were here, you healed my son. His mother and I both thought he was going to die. What you did for us, Lady Oracle, what you do for all of us, it is already much more than we can ask for. Thank you. I wasn’t here to thank you then, so please accept this from me. It is not much, but please take it.”

“Oh,” Luna froze, her lips parted in surprise. “Thank you, I don’t know what to say. I’m very glad I was able to help your son in time.”

“Please Lady Oracle, no thanks could ever be enough for what you have done for us. A room is the very least I can offer.”

Luna nodded gratefully.

“Thank you. It is my duty as Oracle, but it is also an honour. I am glad I could help.”

“Oh man, something smells good,” Prompto said suddenly. Sitting up, he looked around for the source of the smell.

The owner of a food cart a few metres away was serving bowls of steaming rice and curry to smiling patrons.

“I need me some of that,” he said with a groan.

“Yeah, dinner time,” Noct agreed. “Let’s do it.”

They wandered over to the food cart and bought their own curry, wandering back to the table, stomachs suddenly growling. It was good, Prompto decided. A bit spicier than he was used to, but still good. Noct coughed, and reached for his drink.

“Too hot for you, bud?” Prompto teased. Noct had never been quite as fond of spice as he had, which explained why Ignis’s curries were usually on the milder side, full of flavour but not as much heat.

“This place is hot enough, why do they like curry so much?” Noct grumbled, his face red as he poked at his dinner somewhat less enthusiastically than he had been before.

“Hey at least there aren’t many vegetables,” Prompto pointed out.

“Well, there is that I guess,” Noct conceded, shovelling a spoonful of rice into his mouth.

“Ice-cream next?” Prompto asked.

“Definitely.”

“There you are.”

The two looked up as Ignis, Luna and Gladio approached them.

“We’ve been wondering we’re you went,” Gladio said, sitting down across from them. He put a steaming cup of noodles on the table in front of him.

“Hey, you guys all bailed on us, remember?” Noct pointed out, pushing his half-finished plate to one side.

“Yes, well, Luna and I took the liberty of booking our accommodation at the Leville while we were out.”

“And I may have been caught up with a few of the locals,” Luna shrugged slightly, cheeks darkening. “You know, Oracle stuff.” Ignis smiled.

“On the bright side, Luna managed to secure us free accommodation on the account of ‘Oracle stuff’,” he said.

“Oh score, thanks Luna,” Prompto said raising his spoon in thanks between mouthfuls of curry.

“No need, the owner was very kind,” she said.

“He was very happy,” Ignis added, “I doubt we’ll ever be able to pay full price again.”

“Sounds good to me,” Gladio said. “How are the finances doing anyway? Do we need to take any hunts while we’re here?”

“Well, this arrangement certainly has helped. I dare say we could proceed to our next destination without taking any. Unless you would prefer to stay, Noct?”

Noct bit his lip, looking down at the table. They had three clear options from here, three more Tombs they had access to in Lucis. The swampland of Vesperpool, the forest of Malmalam Thicket, or the Fiery Rock of Ravatogh. He knew he should say Vesperpool - it was the closest, and therefore the obvious choice. But Malmalam Thicket, from what he could remember, had been much simpler. Certainly much easier than Ravatogh, which he was not looking forward to doing again.

“We should continue on,” he decided finally. As awful as running off to another Tomb seemed, right now, sitting around here, doing nothing somehow seemed worse. “We can always come back after.”

“Then it’s decided,” Ignis said with a nod.

Noct was somewhat surprised when Ignis led them up to a different room at the Leville, one he had never been in before. It was much bigger, with three fancy-looking double beds. Noct whistled appreciatively.

“Nice digs,” he said, before tossing his bag onto the floor and flopping onto the closest bed. He was suddenly wishing he had decided to stay a bit longer. He could certainly spend a week just sleeping on this bed. There was movement beside him as Prompto sat down.

“These beds are so soft,” Prompto sighed. He bounced a couple of times then lay back arms behind his head. “It has been way too long since we’ve slept in proper beds,” he decided.

“Soft,” Gladio teased, dropping his own bags to the ground. “It hasn’t even been that long.”

“Tell that to the crick in my neck, big guy,” Prompto retorted. He took out his phone and poked Noct in the side. “You wanna play dude?”

Noct grumbled sleepily, shifting away from the annoyance.

“I think you may have lost him,” Luna said sitting down on the bed beside theirs facing Prompto.

Noct mumbled something unintelligible and Luna giggled.

“Yeah, he’s gone,” Prompto agreed with a pout. He looked up at Luna, “Hey how about you play with me?” He reached over Noct and gabbed his phone, turning back to pass it to Luna.

“Here, you remember how to play Kings Knight, right?” He moved over to the other bed, and leaning in, he guided her to start a new game. “Noct won’t be happy if he wakes up with all his characters messed up,” he said with a wink.

“Noctis,” Ignis groaned tiredly when he walked in from the other room. He should not have been remotely surprised that the Prince was asleep still fully clothed. “You could have removed your boots, at the very least.” Prompto and Luna, completely absorbed in their game, didn’t even look up. Ignis turned to Gladio, who was loaded with bathroom supplies and apparently on his way to take a shower.

“Hey, don’t look at me,” Gladio said with a smirk. “I’m not his mother.” Ignis rolled his eyes hard at the man as he vanished into the bathroom.

Giving up entirely, Ignis went to make himself some dinner, and probably another coffee.

“Woah, woah, woah!” Vyv cried excitedly as Noct and Prompto walked up to him early the next morning. “It’s the Crown Prince, I heard you were in town with Lady Oracle.”

“You heard correctly,” Noct said. “You’re Vyv, right? President of Meteor Publishing?”

“Hey!” Vyv’s grin widened. “You’ve heard of me. I’m honoured, Highness.”

“I heard you were looking for some photos for your magazine.” Noct said, folding his arms in a way he hoped looked confident. “I happen to have here the best photographer in Lucis.”

Prompto blinked rapidly, his face darkening. He opened his mouth to speak, but only a tiny squeak came out.

“You don’t say?” Vyv narrowed his eyes, looking Prompto over. “Well, show me what you’ve got, then.”

Prompto fumbled with the pile of photos he’d printed out, almost dropping them as he pushed them at Vyv with shaking hands. Vyv took the pile and started sifting through them. Noct grinned and elbowed Prompto happily as Vyv’s eyes got wider and wider with each picture.

“It’s like you know exactly what I’m looking for,” he said, not taking his eyes off the photos.

“So you want to publish them?” Noct asked with a smirk.

“How could I not publish beauties like these?” he said, his voice filled with awe. “These are amazing!”

Finally he looked up at Prompto, who was blushing so hard he looked like he might fall over.

“What’s your name, kid? I want to make sure I put the right name to these photos.”

“Oh, uh…Prompto… P-Prompto Argentum… You, you… really want to use them?”

“Sure do, kid, these are perfect. You really know your way around a camera. Want any more work and I will always have a job for you.”

Prompto squeaked, nodding hurriedly as the unsure smile he’d been wearing grew into a huge one. Vyv grinned and pulled a wad of cash out of his pocket, slapping it into Prompto’s hand without even counting it.

“You deserve this kid. These photos are going to make you and Meteor famous.”

Vyv shook a stunned Prompto’s hand before turning back to Noct, and raking the Prince’s hand as well.

“Thank’s Prince Noctis. I was thinking about selling information on you to the empire for some extra cash, but this is way better.”

Noct laughed, folding his arms once more.

“So glad we could change your mind. We have a lot of places to go, so if Prompto here takes any more photos, we’ll be sure to bring them back to you.”

“That sounds good to me, Highness.”

Noct patted Prompto’s shoulder and they turned to leave.

“Hey,” Vyv called after them, “I don’t normally do fluff pieces but if you and Lady Oracle are interested, maybe we could have some shots of the two of you?” he said, rubbing his hands together. Noct snorted.

“Not going to happen,” he called back. Vyv laughed.

“Oh well, can’t blame me for trying.”

“Did that really just happen?” Prompto asked again, his hands still shaking as he held out the wad of money in his hands. “Like, did that seriously just happen?”

“It did. Told you he liked your shots,” Noct said with a grin. “You’re a good photographer Prompto, you see something other people don’t see.”

“Oh man, I don’t think I’ve ever held this much money in my life. We’re rich Noct.”

“You’re rich Prom, those pics were all yours.”

“No way,” Prompto squeaked shoving the wad in Noct's direction. “I’m not taking it all, we need it for supplies and stuff.” Noct waved him away and shoved his hands into his pockets as they walked.

“I bet you could buy some really nice guns with all that,” he said.

“Yeah, all our equipment could use some updating.” Prompto shoved the money into his pocket. “I saw Ignis eyeing off a pair of daggers at the Armoury the other day.”

“Let’s do that then. I bet Gladio won’t complain. He’s been talking about getting a new shield for weeks.”

They were almost back at the hotel when Prompto hesitated as they passed a familiar stall. Noct snorted with laughter when he saw Prompto’s eyes linger a little too long on the merchandise.

“Go on,” he said, giving the blond a shove. Prompto flushed again, his smile growing as he pulled a note from his pocket he handed it to the stall owner to claim his prize.

No one could stop their smile whenever they glanced at Prompto, fluffy, stuffed yellow Chocobo in hand as they sped along the road away from Lestallum. They had managed to spend at least half the money he had made on new weapons and a few more choice potions for their supply, leaving a nice chunk of Prompto’s earning for later.

Noct was driving, and feeling pretty good about being behind the wheel again. He had left poor Ignis to the driving too often lately - not that Ignis didn’t like it, but it seemed unfair. It was a nice day, and with the top down, the breeze chased away that stifling heat, drying the sweat left behind from being in Lestallum. Prompto and Luna were messing around with Prompto’s camera in the back, loud bouts of giggles from of the two of them drawing his eye to the rear vision mirror, taking selfies and pulling ridiculous faces, trying to convince Ignis to join in, who was clearly trying to ignore them while he read his magazine.

Noct smiled and sighed, relaxing in his seat. He should have known, looking back, that it was a sign things were going too well.

Because it was not long afterwards that Gladio was sitting bolt upright in his seat, shouting to Noct that an Airship was approaching.

They held their breaths as it passed overhead, hoping it was continuing on and they wouldn’t have to fight today. Noct slowed the Regalia as the Airship lowered towards the road ahead of them, a dozen MTs jumping out before it rose once more. Unless they turned back, they would need to fight. There was no way around them. Resigned to this fate, he pulled over.

“Another one,” Prompto shouted as they jumped from the car, pulling their weapons free. “Behind us!”

Noct grit his teeth with anger as a third ship approached, his heart pounding as the adrenalin started rushing.

Everything had been going too well, and now they were surrounded.

Chapter Text

Gladio growled, slamming his sword into another MT and sending it crumpling to the ground. There seemed to be no end to the MTs surrounding them. He took the opportunity to glance around him. Noct was in front of him, and he looked exhausted.

They were all exhausted. Gladio had lost track of how long they had been fighting. It had started like any other battle; they’d moved fast, being highly outnumbered. They were quickly spread out much further than they normally would have been, losing track of one another, just trying to stay alive with so many enemies attacking all at once.

Noct had that ring of his, flashes of ruby and ribbons of energy connecting him to the enemy, followed by explosions of black smoke as the MTs vanished into nothing. Gladio could see the damage from where he was standing, the burns snaking their way up Noct’s arm and up the side of his face. The glow under his skin was like fire trying to escape from inside him, the ash peeling away and floating off into the air. It was not something he could watch without his stomach churning.

Luna was on Noct’s other side, shooting off beams of magic. The weaker Magitek went down easily, not moving after she hit them once. Some of the stronger units, however, kept getting up. No matter how much she hit them, they just kept getting up. But she stood her ground, blood and dirt on her face, and kept going. She was fast. If she could stay clear of the bullets and the blades she would be fine. Speaking of fast, where was Prompto? Gladio scanned the area, but couldn’t see him anywhere on the road or the grass on either side.

Ignis was behind him, and he didn’t look great, one hand clutching at his shoulder, blood seeping from a wound there. His other hand clutched a dagger, his face contorted into a grimace of pain. Gladio backed up, moving to cover the injured man and knocking another MT over as he went.

“Need a potion, Iggy?” he asked, already reaching into his supply.

“No,” Ignis gasped back. “A potion won’t help right now. A bullet is lodged in my shoulder and all it will do is heal over it. I can keep going.” He straightened stubbornly.

“Ignis, you’re no help to us if you bleed out,” Gladio yelled back.

“You need to get to Noct, Gladio. Right now he is our priority.”

Gladio clenched his hand around his sword. Of course Ignis was right. Gladio had a duty, he had to get to Noct. He had to protect Noct.

Noct was standing strong, but they both knew that with every use of that ring he grew more tired, and knowing Noct he would keep going until he could no longer move. When that happened, he needed Gladio nearby. It was his duty as Shield.

He scanned the area once more, finding three MTs to his right, blocking the path between him and Noct, and at least a dozen to his other side. He threw himself forward, running his blade through the body of an MT as it charged at him. It slid from his blade onto the ground, jerking before going still. There were more gunshots. Gladio followed the sound, just in time to see Ignis throw his dagger at an MT shooting at Luna. She was on the ground, but she quickly got up and shot another beam of light at the MT.

Where the hell was Prompto?

The whispers of the ring had grown into screaming.

The burning pain felt like it had turned into an entity all its own, everything blurring together, but he kept going. The ring was taking over, plucking the lives of Daemon after Daemon from their steel prisons and drawing them into it, tearing the energy from both the lives it was taking and Noct himself.

There was a moment, when Gladio was by his side, where the ring grew quiet and Noct blinked rapidly, trying to clear the haze. Where the screaming faded and the magic dulled. That large body put itself in front of him and Noct realised the MT were gone.

They were gone, weren’t they?

A hand touched his shoulder, pushing energy into him, he blinked over at Luna. She was frowning at him. But before she could say anything, her head snapped away from him, her hand tightening on his shoulder.

“More incoming,” Gladio growled.

No. When would they stop?

Noct pulled an Elixir from his stash, pulling the cap and swallowing the potion quickly. Gasping for breath, he felt some energy flowing back. He had to be ready.

Ignis was standing beside Gladio now, one hand pressed to his shoulder. He was tearing something with his teeth and handing it to Gladio, who wrapped it around his arm and pulled it tight across his shoulder. Noct had just opened his mouth to ask Ignis if he was okay when he realised something.

“Where’s Prompto?” he demanded, looking around.

The ground shuddered, a Magitek Armour unfolding from its position on the ground where it had landed, a dozen more MT units landing beside it.

“This is getting ridiculous,” Gladio said pulling his sword up again.

“Where’s Prompto?!” Noct shouted.

The bullets started and Noct held out a hand, drawing the Shield of the Just - only the bullets never reached it. Crystalline blue swords leapt to cover the group, catching the ammunition before it could hit them, and fading away in an instant. Pushing to the front, Noct stood his ground as the air lit up around them.

“Where the fuck is Prompto?” Noct hissed at the others, not turning away from the fight in front of them.

“We’ll find him as soon as we’ve taken care of these assholes, okay?” Gladio said.

No. Noct gripped his shield harder until his knuckles ached. They had to find Prompto now.

Something else was filling the air, white glimmers, almost like snow. The world around him faded, but shot back into focus as the air darkened and cracked with lightning. The whispers started again, only this time they were not from the ring.

He knew this feeling.

It was Ramuh. The Astrals were sending help.

Noct sighed and closed his eyes, sending out a silent plea. Yes, please help.

The ground rumbled, the air around them buzzing.

“What the hell—“ Gladio managed to shout before he was pushed to the side. The others only just managed to jump out of the way before a giant hand descended from the heavens, plucking Noct from the ground, leaving the others staring up in surprise as Ramuh lifted him up into the sky.

Noct’s stomach clenched - he definitely would have lost his lunch if it hadn’t been for all his warping and height training. But no matter how much training he went through, he would never get used to being up this high in the hand of an Astral. Ramuh’s hand squeezed tight around him, all the electricity and magic racing through the air - through his body - Made it hard to breathe, hard to think. It was building and building, and just when he felt like his head was going to explode, there were several cracks of thunder, lightning so bright he had to shield his eyes.

Then silence. An intense, almost palpable silence.

Noct opened his eyes just in time to see Ramuh’s staff hit the earth - everything seemed to slow down for just a moment as the electricity exploded, and a shockwave blew through clouds of dust and smoke billowing out around the area. The ground was on fire, sparks filling the air as the ground cracked under them, bolts of electricity hitting the MTs over and over until they collapsed.

The lightning stopped, and everything was so bright, Noct couldn’t see what was happening on the ground anymore. Noct’s stomach lurched once more as he was suddenly lowered. Ramuh’s hand opened and he lost his balance, falling from the Astrals fingers just as they hit the ground.

“Damn it,” he groaned. Picking himself up, he looked up. Ramuh rose up into the air once more, fading as the darkness faded away. The ground was a mess, it was hot and he could hardly see anything. Thankfully, as the magic in the air faded, so did the fire - filled cracks.

“Noct, are you alright?” Ignis cried, a hand touching his face. Ignis’s concerned eyes were suddenly trained on his.

“Me?” Noct sputtered, looking his advisor and friend up and down. Though, as always, he had been protected from Ramuh’s wrath, he was clearly bleeding through the makeshift bandage on his shoulder.

Gladio was there next, looking tired and somewhat stunned over what had just happened. And Luna… Noct froze, dread filling him. They still hadn’t found Prompto. He looked around frantically but it was hard to see anything past the smoking ground. Almost everywhere he looked there were corpses, collapsed Magitek suits and weapons.

“Has anyone seen Prompto?”

It had been going so well, or as well as one could expect when being surrounded by Magitek, some of which definitely didn’t know when to stay down. Prompto was doing his usual thing, staying back, picking targets that were targeting the others, and it worked. Until the Assassin Units arrived. That’s what he decided he was going to call them. They stood out, wielding dual swords, and they were fast. They kept getting back up, taking shots to the head as though Prompto was throwing rocks at them instead of magic powered ammunition.

Prompto drew this power, the one that connected him to Noct and the Crystal, putting more into his bullets. Piercer, Trigger Happy, he smiled to himself - he had laughed with Noct for ages over naming these fancy attacks, like they did in TV shows.

“Just don’t yell them before you use them whatever you do.”

“Wow, Noct, you really know how to wound a guy. What’s the point of having fancy super attacks if I can’t yell them out before I unleash them on the bad guys?”

He shot at an MT that was going for Ignis, only a moment too late. Ignis lurched back as a round hit him in the shoulder. Prompto unloaded into the MT until it stopped moving, pulling a potion from his pocket, he moved to run towards Ignis, panicking as the older man hunched over in obvious pain.

Prompto opened his mouth to call out to Ignis but was interrupted, only just managing to dodge to the side in time, as a blade flew past his head. The potion fell from his hands and smashed on the road. Instincts taking over, he ducked, rolling away from the MT as it slashed at him again. Cursing his clumsiness, Prompto raised his gun, the MT moving faster towards with him both swords swinging. One knee on the ground, Prompto steadied his hands he shot several rounds, each one jerking the Magitek as they hit, but it kept moving forward. Prompto fired again and again. It wasn’t stopping, he realised, terror gripping him. Heart pounding, he scrabbled backwards across the hot asphalt until his hands met with grass. The MT launched forward. Prompto screamed and raised his gun once more, throwing everything he could into the attack.

The MT exploded, its helmet falling to the ground as it collapsed, swords clattering together as they hit the dirt. Prompto lay there, on his back, gun still raised. Gasping for breath, hardly daring to move, he almost expected the MT to get back to its feet. Slowly, he lowered his gun, a shaky laugh escaping him as he got unsteadily got to his feet. So close, he thought as he stepped backwards, away from the broken, smoking armour. He stumbled, almost falling backwards when something hit him in the back.

At first he thought he had fallen into a tree branch or something, but the next instant everything felt wrong, so wrong. There was all this pressure and he realised with a frown his world was narrowing wildly and tipping to the side all at once. The sound of his heart pounding in his ears was all he could hear as all other sound faded all around him.

Prompto looked down, not sure what he was looking for, and that broke the spell. The bubble of quiet confusion burst and he opened his mouth to scream. A sword pierced through his chest, blood soaking his shirt. No sound came out as the sword was pulled from him and he slid helplessly to the ground. A pair of feet stepped over him, and he flailed weakly, clambering for his gun, firing off another shot, and another, until his gun tumbled from his numb fingers, and the Magitek collapsed beside him.

The world was going grey as wave after wave of searing pain hit him. Gasping, Prompto tried to call out, something, anything to let the others know he was there. But all he could hear was a buzzing, and beyond that, his own breath, loud and ragged. His mouth filled with the taste was blood as he struggled. Every gasp of breath was agony. It felt like forever that he lay there, bleeding out, body shuddering uncontrollably as he got colder and colder. The dead eyes of the Magitek were staring through him, but he didn’t have the energy to feel upset about that. Instead the numbness was making him feel like he was floating, which was a nice change from the pain, so he closed his eyes for a moment and slipped into that darkness.

It was Luna who found Prompto. She screamed for the others as she fell to her knees. Magic already glowing around her hands, she pressed them over the wound in his chest. A spike of terror sent her body into overdrive. He was so pale and still. She couldn’t even tell if he was breathing. There was so much blood, it was everywhere. She jumped as the flash of blue burst in the air around her, Noct having warped was suddenly beside her.

“Oh Gods.” His voice broke at the sight of his best friend. “No… No… Prompto—”

Noct’s hands shook as they, flitted over Prompto’s face and over his throat, and he hunched over, feeling for a pulse, listening for breath, anything to show he was still alive.

“Please,” he whispered desperately. It was there, it was faint. Noct choked on a sob. Pulling his hands away, he pulled off his jacket balling it up and shoving it on the wound, pressing down.

“Noct, is he alive?” Ignis asked, kneeling down on Prompto’s other side.

“I don’t know! I think so,” Noct said, raw emotion tearing at his voice, worry clawing at him, making it hard to think. He was calling on every bit of energy he had to heal, and beside him Luna was doing the same, her hands trembling with the effort.

With all this magic and all his powers, he couldn’t let Prompto die. He would let every bit of magic drain from him before he let that happen. It was going to be fine, he tried to reassure himself, they had been in worse scrapes, Prompto would be fine. He had to be.

“He’s going to be okay,” Luna assured them firmly. “Once we have this wound sealed up - he’s already lost a lot of blood, we can’t let him lose anymore.”

“We need to move him somewhere safer,” Ignis added. “More Magitek could arrive at any moment.”

“Should we go back to Lestallum?” Noct asked.

“I’m not sure how much we should be moving him,” Ignis said. “Old Lestallum is not far from here, we should head there and book a room until he’s well enough for us to move on.”

“Iggy, we need to get that bullet out of your shoulder,” Gladio pointed out helpfully. Noct turned to stare at Ignis in disbelief.

“Gladio, help Ignis,” Luna said quickly, before Noct could say anything. “We’ve got Prompto, right Noct?”

“Right, we’ve got him,” Noct said with a sigh. He turned back to Prompto. He was so pale. He’d already been pale to start he wasn’t sure if he’d ever seen Prompto this pale before. Noct felt a tremble start in his arms, and he clenched his jaw, ignoring it as he drew more magic.

“Noct,” Luna said gently what felt like an eternity later. “Noct, I think he’s healed enough that we can move him now.”

Noct frowned doubtfully, but lifted his jacket. It was wet and heavy, sticky with blood. His stomach churned at the thought. Underneath the wound was raw, but the bleeding seemed to have stopped. His breathing seemed stronger too. It was ragged but it was steady.

Luna took a deep breath letting it out slowly and pulled her hands away, eyebrows pinched as she stared at them, slick with their friend’s blood. She got to her feet and pulled out her water bottle to clean them off. There was a grunt to her left. Ignis was sitting on the ground while Gladio was prodding at his shoulder.

“Hold still, I’ve almost got it,” Gladio said, his voice softer than she was used to hearing. Ignis gasped, his teeth clenched, hands balled into fists on his legs, but he said nothing.

Noct was still kneeling in front of Prompto, and he looked almost as pale as the blond did. He had one of Prompto’s hands in his own, his eyes unmoving from his friends face.

“Noct are you okay?” she asked, putting one hand on his shoulder. He started but didn’t look up.

“I’m fine,” he replied dully.

“No you’re not,” Luna said gently. “But are you injured?”

“I’m fine,” Noct repeated.

“He’s going to be okay Noct, we saved him.”

“I know.”

Struggling against the heavy feeling, Prompto forced his eyes open. Gods he felt so tired. Why was he trying to wake up again?

He tried to roll over and a jolt of pain lanced through his torso, bringing with it memories of lying in the grass, bleeding, struggling to breathe. That explained the agony he was feeling with each breath. He had no idea where he was, and his eyes were having trouble focusing on anything in the dim light.

Prompto felt a hand squeeze his.

“Hey kid, how'r you doin'?”

He didn’t need to think about that, the answer was “not great.” He opened his mouth to answer but all he could do was groan.

“Yeah, that sounds about right,” Gladio said with a small laugh. “Here, drink up.”

Gladio helped him sit up and pressed a bottle to his lips, He drank the potion, stopping every few seconds to take a few painful gasps of breath. It didn’t take long for the potion to start working - it must have been one of the more powerful ones - and he sunk back into his pillow with a hum. The pain was receding, the strange feeling of his inside moving around as they stitched themselves back together was always unnerving, but it was much more welcome than the alternative.

“You had us all scared you know,” Gladio said after a moment, his voice rough and almost scary with seriousness. “Don't do that again. I dunno know what we'd do without you, but Noct... I don't know what would happen… I don’t know what he'd do.”

Prompto blinked rapidly, swallowing hard against the sudden tightness in his throat, but he let an easy smile spread across his face.

“Don’t worry, big guy,” he managed between gasps, his voice was rough and dry. “You’re stuck with me. I’m not going anywhere.”

“Good,” Gladio said, leaning back and folding his arms, apparently done lecturing.

“Hey ah…” Prompto started looking around, they were definitely in a room, not as fancy as the Leville, but not a Caravan. “Where are we anyway? What happened?”

“Motel at Old Lestallum. We found you,” Gladio paused, his gaze flicking down to his folded hands. “Passed out… almost dead…” He cleared his throat. “Bleeding everywhere. The battle was done,” He grinned suddenly. “You missed the best part, Noct summoned Ramuh. It was scary as hell.”

“Oh shit, really?” Prompto gasped, trying to imagine it. “Aw man, I can’t believe I missed that. Imagine the photos—” He paused. “Is Noct okay? That sounds like it would be exhausting? And he was using the ring so much too.”

Gladio’s eyes shifted and Prompto followed them to the other figure on his bed. Noct was passed out beside him. He hadn’t even noticed. He was curled up, a small frown on his face, arms tucked under his body like he was scared to touch Prompto in his sleep.

“Yeah, he and Luna were healing you after the fight. He kept going, healing you all the way here, exhausted our supply of Ethers and refused to take anything stronger so you could take them when you woke up. Passed out not long after we got you inside. Ignis thinks he might have fallen into stasis.”

“Oh,” Prompto reached over, careful not to jostle his body too much. Feeling guilty he ran his fingers through Noct’s hair, the Prince letting out a small hum as he did.

“Hey, don’t worry,” Gladio said firmly, as if reading Prompto’s mind. “We’ve got some more potions for when he wakes up, he just needs the sleep at this stage. Was a big day. He cares about you, we all do.”

Prompto pressed his lips together, not daring look back at Gladio as his eyes prickled threateningly.

“Is everyone else okay?”

“Yeah, Ignis got hurt, but he’s fine now. Luna is exhausted. They’re both sleeping it off. I’m going to go sleep too, just as soon as you’ve had another one of these.” He passed over another potion, trusting that Prompto would be able to handle it himself this time.

“Th-thanks, Gladio.”

“No worries, kid. Get some sleep, yeah?”

Prompto finished the second potion, his eyes already drooping by the time he put the empty bottle on the bedside table. He grit his teeth against the twinge in his injury as he rolled onto his side. Snuggling closer to Noct, he wished he could give back the energy Noct had given to him. He took his friend’s hand, and closed his eyes, hoping he would be able to sleep without any nightmares, the feeling of the sword in his chest still fresh in his head.

Chapter Text

To Noct being in stasis was like that numb, static feeling you get when your arm falls asleep, except the part that felt numb was his connection to his magic. True stasis - which was different from just being tired or low on magic - drew him into a dull endless void. It was never pleasant, it was uncomfortable and confusing, his body felt heavy but also like he was floating, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t stay conscious for long, it would suck him back in until he had enough energy back to pull himself out.

Lying there, in that twilight between consciousness and unconsciousness, knowing there was something not quite right, he knew needed to get up and move. Despite the tides of stasis dragging him under, he fought to open his eyes, letting out a groan at the effort. A hand combed through his hair and the warm comfort it offered almost tempted Noct let himself slip back under.

“Noct?”

The soft, familiar sound of his own name was enough to shake off the last of the weight holding his eyelids down and he forced them open.

“Back with us then Noct?” Ignis said with a tired smile.

“Mmm,” Noct tried, clearing his throat, eyes threatening to flutter shut again.

“Stasis?” Ignis guessed. Noct nodded, groaning as he tried with little successes to shift his body in an attempt to get more comfortable.

He tried to remember how exactly he had gotten here and why he was feeling so rubbish. He had vague flashes of fighting… MTs? Was there a thunderstorm? No… He had summoned Ramuh. He remembered the burning of the Ring, and that too familiar feeling of revulsion as the Ring sucked up Daemon energy. He was suddenly hyper-aware of the feeling of it on his finger, the buzzing of old magic he had gotten used to suddenly itched at his skin, sending a wave of nausea through him. He groaned again, hands twitching as he struggled to move. He needed it off, now. Suddenly Ignis’s arm was around his shoulders, helping him sit up a little.

“Come on, I’ve got an Elixir for you,” Ignis said gently. “This should help.”

With Ignis’s help, he managed to down the Elixir, Ignis’s arm drawing away when he was done so Noct could lay back against his pillows with a long sigh.

“Thanks,” Noct said. Lifting his hand, he stared unhappily of the Ring before pulling it off, depositing it on the table beside the bed. He flopped back, closing his eyes once more, felling so much better now he had some magical energy back.

“Was the Ring causing you discomfort?” Ignis asked, frowning.

“Lil’ bit,” he mumbled. “What happened?”

“Do you recall our battle on the road? We were attacked by the imperial army.”

Oh right, but then…

“Prompto!” Noct’s eyes flew open and he jolted upright, looking around the room.

As soon as he said his name, Noct’s eyes fell on the splash of blond hair on the pillow beside him. Prompto was so bundled up in his blankets Noct couldn’t see much else of his friend, curled up and facing away from him. He reached out to touch him, flashes of blood and a raw open wound, gasping for breath, freckles standing out on an impossibly pale face. Noct pulled his hand away as if it had been burned, panic starting in his chest.

“He’s doing okay Noct, you and Luna made sure of that,” Ignis said. “He woke up last night and had two potions, he just needs sleep now.”

“I’m glad, thanks Iggy,” Noct paused turning back to his advisor. “Are you okay? How’s the shoulder?”

“I’m doing well,” he said with a smile. “Provided I take it easy for a day or two.” Noct snorted.

“Right, you take it easy. I’ll believe that when I see it.”

“You’re seeing it right now. I sent Gladio and Luna to do the laundry.”

“Well, go rest or something, I’m fine now.”

“Get some more sleep,” Ignis said, then paused, his eyes moving to Prompto then back to Noct. “And no more healing Noct. You’ve consumed a lot of Ethers in a short amount of time, you need real rest and recuperation.”

“No problems there, I’m going back to sleep.” His eyes fell on the bedside table where the Ring sat, quiet once more. He jolted with surprise, reaching out to pick up a small blue statue.

“Where did you—“

“I found it when I was looking through your luggage for dirty laundry. I hope you don’t mind.”

“No, it’s fine. I’d actually forgotten about it.” With a small smile he ran his fingers over the smooth surface of the Carbuncle statue. It was comforting. Somehow this tiny object made him feel safe, and of course it reminded him of his dad. It also reminded him of something else he couldn’t quite remember, like a memory that was just out of reach. Closing his hand over the statue, he yawned.

“Thanks Ignis,” he mumbled, and rolled back towards Prompto. He snuggled in closer, but not close enough to touch him - he didn't want to bump his injury in his sleep.

“You’re welcome Noct.”

Ignis stood and walked over to his own bed. Satisfied Noct was out of danger, he could rest once more. His shoulder was aching, not enough to warrant taking another potion, but enough that it was making him feel tired. And at least if he went back to sleep now, Gladio wouldn’t tell him off when they got back for not resting.

Luna and Gladio returned to the small motel room to find Prompto sitting up in bed, frowning in obvious pain as he looked down at his bandaged chest. He looked up when they entered, his face morphing into an easy smile.

“Hey guys.”

“Hey yourself. How you feelin’ kid?” Gladio asked, dropping a white laundry bag onto the coffee table.

“I’m okay,” Prompto answered quickly, all cheery smiles. Of course, Gladio could tell he was lying. How this kid was so good at hiding his pain astounded him Prompto whined enough, about literally everything, but when it counted he hid it way too well.

Luna put down the cardboard boxes she had stacked in her arms onto the small table.

“Oh, hey is that food by chance?” Prompto asked, eyes locked onto the steaming boxes.

“Sure is,” Gladio said, but he placed a plastic container onto Prompto’s lap. “Soup for you. You lost too much blood yesterday, you need the fluids.”

Prompto’s face fell into a small pout, as he could smell the fish and hot chips from the bed. Kenny’s special - the original Kenny's no less, Old Lestallum’s most famous landmark.

“Let me take a look at that wound before we eat,” Luna said.

Prompto flushed as she started to unwrap his bandage, and Gladio snorted at the younger man’s obvious embarrassment but said nothing, instead sitting down to open his own box of lunch. He glanced at the other two. Both Ignis and Noct were sleeping. Noct looked less pale and there was an empty potion bottle on his bedside table, so he could only assume Ignis had waited for the prince to wake up and gotten him to drink it before going back to bed himself. He considered leaving them both to sleep before deciding eating was probably a better idea - they could always sleep after.

Picking up a chip, he sat down on the bed beside Ignis, his movement alone rousing the man. Drowsy green eyes looked up at him, Gladio smiled, waving the chip before eating it.

“Grubs up Iggy, you gonna want some?”

“Thank you Gladio.” Ignis sat up, putting his glasses on from the bedside table.

His gaze went immediately to the still sleeping Noct before moving to the now bright red Prompto, who was half hiding his face while Luna inspected his bare chest.

“It looks pretty good Prom, Noct did a lot of healing work here,” she said, clearly impressed. “I think you might need a few days rest though, and lots of water,” she added, taking the glass of water that had been on the bedside table and pushing it into his hands.

Ignis stood and moved to the small refrigerator, taking out a can of Ebony before sitting down and digging into his food. Gladio moved to the sleeping Prince next, giving him a little shake. As expected, Noct grumbled and after a second shake his waved an arm sleepily in Gladio’s direction.

“Time to wake up Princess, foods here,” Gladio said cheerfully tapping Noct on the face.

With another grunt, Noct moved away from Gladio, curling up to Prompto who was done being inspected and was currently drinking his soup. Prompto laughed, and ruffled Noct’s hair.

“Lunch time dude,” he said. To which Noct responded by stuffing his head under his pillow.

Luna groaned happy as she ate her chips,

“I will never get sick of these,” she declared.

It was several days later when Prompto woke up late one morning, looked around, and quickly realised the room was empty save for some banging in the small kitchenette. With a groan, he got out of bed and dashed to the bathroom to relieve himself. He was sore, but not from his injury. It was long since healed, only a scar to remind him now of that day. He was sore from lying in bed so much. The others had hardly let him leave, making sure he was constantly resting, keeping him busy with games and television when he even mentioned being ready to leave. He felt terribly guilty that he was holding them up, and their constant worrying over him was overwhelming and made him feel more guilty. There was always that constant voice in the back of his head telling him he didn’t deserve it, he wasn’t worth all this attention. He messed up and now he was just holding them back. It didn’t help that he now had fresh nightmare fuel.

Sometimes he saw the blade go through his chest.

And sometimes he was the MT who put it there.

As Prompto entered the room once more, Ignis poked his head out of the kitchenette. He was wearing a spotless white apron and had the sleeves of his button up shirt rolled up to his elbows. He smiled gently when he saw that Prompto was up and about.

“Good morning,” he said, wiping his hands on his apron as he stepped into the room. “How are you feeling today?”

“I’m good, really,” Prompto said quickly, worried Ignis was going to make him lie down again. “Just needed to get up and move around, you know.” Ignis nodded sympathetically.

“Of course. It’s nice to take a break every now and then, but not all of us are as equipped as Noct to a sedentary lifestyle,” he added with an impertinent twinkle in his eyes.

Prompto laughed, and there was a small, slightly awkward silence. Or at least if felt awkward to Prompto, who hadn’t really spend a lot of time alone with Ignis. He was almost always awake when Prompto went for his morning run, but by the time he came back, someone else was always awake. And he’d always gotten the distinct impression Ignis didn’t like him that much when he and Noct had first become friends.

“So like… where are the others?” Prompto asked.

“They’ve gone fishing. I’m honestly surprised Noct was able to hold out this long.”

That actually was surprising. They just had to look out the window to see the river that flowed along one side of the small town.

“I’m baking, if you would like to join me,” he asked, apparently unruffled by the sudden awkwardness. Prompto bit his lip in an attempt to hide his too-eager grin.

“Y-yeah… I mean if you’re sure?” He wanted to, he liked cooking, he just kind of sucked at it. But he didn’t want to get in Ignis’s way if there was any chance he was only offering to be polite.

“Yes, of course.” Ignis said nonchalantly. “I wouldn’t have offered otherwise.”

They moved to the kitchen and Ignis immediately handed Prompto a bowl with lumpy orange and white goop.

“If you could continue to mash this for me that would be wonderful, it will need to be quite smooth so keep at it.”

“O-okay, gotcha.” He quickly worked at the mixture, mixing and mashing it with a fork, determined to get it as smooth as possible. Ignis moved to the chopping board. Taking a knife, he worked on a pile of strawberries and raspberries, chopping them into small pieces.

“Uh, so what’re we making?” Prompto asked.

“Something I’ve been trying to make for a long time,” Ignis said without looking up. “A dessert from Noct’s childhood.”

“Ooh, the pastry thing right?” Ignis paused in his chopping, surprised.

“Noct told you?”

“Oh yeah man, he brought me some of the ones you made all the time at school, they were always so good.” Prompto said, his voice rising with his excitement. “I have no idea why he was so fussy about them, they always tasted good to me.”

Ignis wasn’t sure why he was surprised. Of course he had told Prompto, they were each others’ closest friends. It only made sense that Noct would bring the pastries to school to share with Prompto. He nodded and turned back to chopping the berries, not quite able to hide his smile at the blond’s assessment of his previous attempts. Ignis knew Noct always appreciated his baking endeavours of the mystery pastry, even when he didn’t show it. He was more often than not left with a blank look and a shrug with his rejection. Nope, not quite right Iggy. It was satisfying to hear the praise.

“Right,” he said. Using the knife, he pushed the now-chopped berries into the saucepan. “Now to cook these.”

“You know, we could have just fished at the canal right beside the motel,” Gladio pointed out.

When he had suggested fishing to Noct, Gladio hadn’t expected such a long hike, considering there was a set of stairs right outside their room that led down to the water. He’d needed to get out of that room, and it seemed like Luna did too. At least with fishing they could go without feeling guilty about leaving the others behind. Neither Prompto or Ignis enjoyed fishing or watching Noct fish, and tended to just panic constantly that the line was going to snap or that the fish was going to get away. It was endless backseat fishing whenever they came along, which Gladio couldn’t help joining in because of how hilarious it was to stir Noct up sometimes.

“I know,” Noct said. “But there’s a fishing shop down this way and I wanted to buy some more fishing line, I’m running low.” Gladio snorted.

“Right, trust you to know of every good tackle shop and good fishing spot in Lucis.”

“What kind of king would I be if I didn’t” he replied with a smirk. “Stop complaining, we’re almost there anyway.”

Walking along the concrete edges of the canal, they spotted a bridge in the distance.

“It’s just on the other side of that bridge,” Noct said, nodding his head towards the bridge. “There’s a pier there we can fish at too. Good for Salmon if I remember correctly.”

“At least it’s a nice day for a walk,” Luna said as she walked beside Noct, hands in her pockets.

“Yeah, breeze feels good,” Noct agreed with a smile.

At the shop, Noct took forever in deciding on line and selecting two new lures to use. After he went down to the pier to try them out, Gladio stayed, getting himself a rod. He did actually like fishing, just not as much as Noct. He didn’t really have the patience to stand around for hours fishing, but tossing in a line for a little while was quite relaxing. He tended to start thinking about all the things he should be doing after a while.

Luna, content to just sit on the edge and watch, let them have their fun. There was a lot of back and forth banter about fish size, but in the end Noct caught a rather large Salmon which was far bigger than anything Gladio was able to catch.

Noct looked over at Luna who smiled up at him from where she was sitting, legs over the edge of the concrete ledge. He waved her over with a grin.

“Wanna learn how to fish?”

Surprised, she jumped up and walked eagerly over to him. She had a feeling it wasn’t going to be her kind of thing, but it would be interesting to give it a try. Noct certainly liked it enough.

“Sure, if you’re done?” she said.

He showed her the rod, showing her the best way to hold it, how to operate the reel, and how to cast the line. Gladio rolled his eyes as Noct started excitedly going on about different lures and which ones worked best where, weather conditions, spotting shadows in the water and when to start reeling. All sorts of things that honestly even went over his head. Eventually, he stepped back and let her try it for herself, cheering when her first cast was successful.

“Now we wait,” Noct said, sitting down on the other side of the pier. It wasn’t too long before Luna got a nibble.

***

“You did really very well,” Ignis said as he laid out a row of cards. They had just finished with dinner and were starting a card game while they waited for the others to return. The smell of beef stew filled the small room, mingled with the scent of the pastries they had finished earlier sitting, on a plate in the middle of the table.

“I would be happy to have you join me to cook anytime, Prompto. You pick up skills rather quickly.”

"Oh," Prompto said ducking his head, caught off guard by the compliment. “Thanks, I really had fun helping you.”

Ignis heard the others arrive before the door to their motel room even opened. They entered, looking tired but happy. Gladio was holding the biggest salmon Ignis had ever seen.

“Had a successful day then?” he asked, eyeing the huge fish. His mind was instantly going to what he could cook with it.

“Dude, that's huge, nice work Noct!” Prompto cried standing and snatching his camera from the table to take a picture.

“Not me,” Noct said with a smug smile, gesturing at Luna who blushed furiously. “First try,” he added proudly.

“Wow, nice one Luna!” Prompto said as Gladio handed Luna the fish to hold while Prompto took a photo.

Noct sat down at the table and noticed the plate of pastries. He looked to Ignis, eyebrow raised, before selecting one and taking a bite. Ignis said nothing. Sitting back in his chair, he waited for Noct’s verdict. After a moment of chewing, Noct raised an eyebrow making an appreciative noise. Ignis hold his breath. Had he gotten it, finally after all this time?

“So?” Ignis asked calmly. Noct looked up at him.

“Not even close,” he said, after a moment, a smirk on his face. “Tastes good though.”

Ignis tried very hard not to roll his eyes.

“Glad to hear it,” he said offering a slow smile in return.

He knew, Ignis was sure of it. Noct knew the recipe. For a moment Ignis was disappointed, but he quickly realised, of course Noct wasn’t going to say anything, he enjoyed this game as much as Ignis did. It was their thing. Hopefully this meant he would one day learn to truly perfect the Mystery Pastry from Noct’s youth. A small part of Ignis honestly hoped he would never get it right; the stubborn part of him told that side to shut up, he would get it right one day. But until then, it would keep being their thing.

Chapter Text

With Prompto’s insistence that he was fighting fit, everyone agreed it was time to move on. They’d spent the night before preparing their stocks, Ignis using what was left of the salmon Luna had caught and some Dualhorn steaks to make jerky. They packed their backpacks with the provisions, spare clothes and sleeping bags, and cleaned and sharpened their weapons.

The next morning came too quickly. It was always hard saying goodbye to soft beds knowing they would be spending some time in the wild sleeping on the ground. Putting the last bag into the Regalia, Noct’s eyes were drawn upwards to the sight of the black smoke billowing out of The Rock of Ravatogh and the glow that emanated from its core, radiating to the very tips of the long, twisted, root-like formations. A tingle went up his spine. There was something—

“Yo Noct!”

Noct blinked, looking around to find Prompto climbing into the back seat of the Regalia.

“Dude, I called you like three times. You ready to go or what?”

“Uh, yeah.” He pulled his hand from his pocket, realising his fingers had been tightly grasping the Carbuncle statue, and climbed in beside Prompto. “Let’s do this.”

The drive to Malmalam Thicket was long but thankfully uneventful - they all expected to have more imperial drop ships on their heads. Noct let out a sigh of relief when Ignis pulled into the parking spot, thankful for the respite. There would be plenty of hostiles waiting for them in the thicket.

“Chocobo time,” Noct said with a grin. He headed to the Chocobo hire machine and dumped in a bunch of gil. After a moment a whistle clattered from the bottom opening; Noct took it and blew into it without hesitation.

“Alright!” Prompto cried, his voice even higher than usual. “Here they come!”

The five huge birds appeared in the distance, trotting along the road. One of them came to a fast stop in front of Prompto, flapping its feathers excitedly as he grinned, reaching forward to run his fingers through its feathers.

“Hey girl, did you miss me?” he cooed.

The other four Chocobos crowded around.

“I think I remember you,” Ignis said, climbing up onto his Chocobo and giving it a pat on the head. It fluttered its stubby wings appreciatively, pressing its head into Ignis’s hand with a happy “Kewh.”

“I don’t know how you tell the difference, they all look the same to me,” Gladio said scratching his own Chocobo’s head with a smile.

“I imagine they think the same of us,” Ignis said. “This fellow has a darker patch of feathers right here on his neck, and if I recall correctly he is rather fond of scratches on this side of his head.”

“Of course they’re all different,” Prompto said dreamily, climbing up onto his Chocobo. “You just have to get to know them.”

“I’m not sure mine likes me,” Luna said, voice high with panic as the Chocobo she was sitting on jumped, rocking her to the side as she gripped the reins tightly. Noct frowned and jumped from his mount, dashing over to her.

“Heeey,” he said softly, taking the Chocobo’s noseband and pulling it firmly towards him to stop further jumping. “Hey there, calm down, you’re okay,” he said soothingly, using one hand to pet the soft feathers on its cheek. “This is Luna, she’s really kind and she’ll look after you if you look after her. So be nice okay?” He glanced up at Luna as her shocked expression melted into one of fondness. Flushing slightly under her warm gaze, he took her hand, pressing it into the side of her Chocobo’s head.

“See, she’s good,” he said, stepping back and letting Luna take over. Her Chocobo was now still and happily accepting her scratches.

“Thank you Noct,” she said.

Jumping back onto his own Chocobo, Noct took the lead, guiding them towards the wooden bridge and across the other side where they could see the beginning of the sloped trail that wound through the forest. As they rounded the large rocks beside the bridge, a splash of water and a strange rumbling bellow caught their attention as several Seadevils, now alerted to their presence, snapped and crawled from where they were sun baking on the rocky riverbank.

“Are we fighting those?” Prompto asked, petting his suddenly nervous Chocobo as it flittered from side to side.

“Rather not,” Noct said. “Let’s leave them be, there’s no way they can catch us.”

“A wise decision,” Ignis agreed, giving Noct a pleased nod. “No need to fight unnecessary battles when we still have so many before us.”

“Yep, let’s keep moving,” Noct said.

He lead them in a wide arc around the Seadevils, and up the trail. The trip was fast with the seemingly tireless Chocobos. The trail was steep, but seemed to be no problem for them. They followed the meandering dirt path, passing the short man-made stone walls that rounded the bends, sheer rock faces, tangling branches that threatened to knock them off their mounts if they got too close, and herds of curious Spiracorns. Fortunately the Chocobos were moving too fast for them to start anything.

Noct wasn’t interested in fighting the Spiracorns anyway. He quite liked the black, horse-like creatures - frightening as they looked, he thought they were cool.

Thankfully they made it all the way to the entrance to Malmalam Thicket without getting into any battles. The Chocobos refused to go any further, so they dismounted, thanking them before they wandered away.

Entering Malmalam Thicket, the change in terrain was quite dramatic. The rock walls closed in, significantly narrowing their path. The trees grew close to the rock and were much taller, their highest branches blotting out the sky completely in some places, leaving the patches of shadow and light and flickering shadows on the heavy undergrowth. All around them, the ferns and bushes grew thick and lush, the damp perfect for the thriving moss and fungi.

“Step lightly in here,” Ignis said as his eyes moved quickly from one place to another.