Welcome to Adventu, your final fantasy rp haven. adventu focuses on both canon and original characters from different worlds and timelines that have all been pulled to the world of zephon: a familiar final fantasy-styled land where all adventurers will fight, explore, and make new personal connections.
at adventu, we believe that colorful story and plots far outweigh the need for a battle system. rp should be about the writing, the fun, and the creativity. you will see that the only system on our site is the encouragement to create amazing adventures with other members. welcome to adventu... how will you arrive?
year 5, quarter 3
Welcome one and all to our beautiful new skin! This marks the visual era of Adventu 4.0, our 4th and by far best design we've had. 3.0 suited our needs for a very long time, but as things are evolving around the site (and all for the better thanks to all of you), it was time for a new, sleek change. The Resource Site celebrity Pharaoh Leep was the amazing mastermind behind this with minor collaborations from your resident moogle. It's one-of-a-kind and suited specifically for Adventu. Click the image for a super easy new skin guide for a visual tour!
Final Fantasy Adventu is a roleplaying forum inspired by the Final Fantasy series. Images on the site are edited by KUPO of FF:A with all source material belonging to their respective artists (i.e. Square Enix, Pixiv Fantasia, etc). The board lyrics are from the Final Fantasy song "Otherworld" composed by Nobuo Uematsu and arranged by The Black Mages II.
The current skin was made by Pharaoh Leap of Pixel Perfect. Outside of that, individual posts and characters belong to their creators, and we claim no ownership to what which is not ours. Thank you for stopping by.
[attr=class,lyric1]gonna keep on keeping on the only
[attr=class,lyric2]way i know how
[attr=class,bulk] Prompto was only a little disappointed that he couldn’t show off his super cool off-the-grid rebel painting skills, but only a little. He still thought that his way was better and he still didn’t like the idea of going in looking like a bank robber (plus a mask like that would totally flatten his hair and he spent ages gelling it right), but it was Noctis’ choice so Prompto just shrugged and said, ”Yeah. Guess that works,” even though he felt a little prickly that Caius got to be cool and capable and they were listening to him about tech which was totally Prompto’s thing.
But it didn’t matter so much, really. Not compared to what came next.
”Huh?”
Prompto’s voice went up an octave as Noctis made the connection that Prompto hadn’t. If the Starscourge was here then that meant…
”No. No way.” Prompto’s mouth felt dry. That hot feeling from the whiskey came back and swirled around nauseously. ”He’s…?”
Yuna had seen him too. He remembered that from up on the ferris wheel. How she’d told him the story and it had felt like the floor had fallen out from under him and he was falling straight through. But that had been ages ago, she’d said. He couldn’t still be…?
”I, um. Heard from somebody that saw him too,” he muttered, glancing away. ”I just didn’t think…”
He didn’t think. That was his problem. It was always his problem. Because right after that, he’d seen Ignis and Gladio and he hadn’t let himself dwell on the very real possibility that Ardyn could be anywhere and he’d never even know the difference.
He didn’t like hearing his name. He didn’t like talking about him. He didn’t like hearing about him. He didn’t like learning more about him either, but something that Noctis said struck through the sudden ringing in his ears anyway, and Prompto frowned, glancing at his friend. ”Wait, really?”
Ardyn could cure the Starscourge? That was…new.
He might have asked more about it if Caius hadn’t gone on the attack a second later.
”Bullshit.” Caius’ expression changed. It really changed. His eyes were set on Noctis like he wanted to strangle him. ”You wiped it out. It was gone. Not a trace left in Eos, and you expect me to believe that-!”
”H-hey!”
Prompto didn’t know what was happening. One second they’d been talking about Ardyn and then the next Caius was picking fights. What he’d said didn’t even really hit when he was saying it in that tone, glaring at Noct like he’d done something wrong. Even Caius seemed to realize that he was out of line when he quickly sighed and bowed his head, apologizing.
What was with people exploding on them today? Prompto looked between Caius and Noctis uncertainly, not really sure what to say.
He was starting to think there was a reason they didn’t have more friends. When Noctis was the prince of Lucis and was going to be king one day with all the cool powers and responsibilities and everything that came with it, it led to people thinking he could do just about anything and that he should do it for them. It made people want to use him. It made them mad when they couldn’t.
”Yeah, well, Noct’s not an Oracle. It’s not his fault.” Prompto watched Caius cautiously even as he admitted his mistake and promised to help. After he’d seen that dark look in his eye, he wasn’t sure he could trust him as much as he’d thought he could. ”We’ve got a plan. That means we’re done here, right?”
Prompto gave Noctis a purposeful look and grabbed his arm. He knew how Noctis could get when the weight of expectation was thrown at him. Sometimes, he needed somebody to guide him away from it so he didn’t think too hard and start blaming himself. ”Come on, Noct. Let’s get outta here.”
[attr=class,lyric1]gonna keep on keeping on the only
[attr=class,lyric2]way i know how
[attr=class,bulk] ”Eh…”
He listened to Caius’ speech about the masks. He still wasn’t sure about it. He turned it over in his hands, inspecting the fibers suspiciously. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Caius it was just…
Well, Caius himself said he didn’t know much about tech, right? He knew more about Sonoran tech for sure, but that was only because Prompto hadn’t had much time to learn about it. Astrals, that would be a pretty great night. Just him and a bunch of tech he’d found, taking it apart, seeing how it worked, maybe even reading some books about it. Prompto didn’t usually like reading, but tech magazines? Instruction manuals? Internet tutorials? That was heaven was far as he was concerned.
Too bad they’d probably never come back to Sonora again. Not that Prompto wanted to spend a single second longer here than they had to, but it seemed like the only place with any really interesting machinery around here. He wished he’d had the time to appreciate it.
”I’m not saying you’re wrong,” he said. ”I don’t know much about Sonora stuff, and I only know what I saw in the prison. Buuuuuut….” And there was his counterargument, ready to make everything more complicated for no reason.
”Masks work fine for face recognition, sure, but Noctis and me might get in a fight, and I need a clear line of sight if I’m gonna be shooting anything from a distance. And Noct’ll need his, er, what’s it called? When you see things from the side? Peripher…Uh. Vision. Anyway, a mask’ll make that harder. Only so big an eye hole can go, you know?”
He was rambling, but it was a thoughtful ramble. It wasn’t that he dismissed Caius’ ideas and hard work out of hand, and he’d totally wear it if Noct thought it was the best idea, but…
But…
”Face paint’ll also do the trick, you know? Least it did back in Insomnia. If you make it all jagged and wonky in different colors, the software doesn’t know what to make of it. Plus it looks, like, really cool.”
Part of him had always wished that he was a little more edgy, the kind that’d need to use that really cool paint, but he was best friends with the prince and his crownsguard. He literally joined the system instead of fighting it. He knew Lucis had its problem, and Insomnia especially didn’t treat the poor all too well. There’d been a reason they were raising their voices against it, and Prompto had watched it all unfold from the internet. Sitting in his computer chair. In between hangouts with Noctis and training to join the crownsguard.
Kinda hypocritical, really. But that was waaaay past him now.
”I know how to do it. If we’re not worried about standing out anyway, face paint’ll be way more light-weight, and we’ll be able to see things better. You and Cindy should totally wear the masks just to be safe, and we’ll keep those extras ready for anyone else. But me and Noct should probably stick to the basics, you know?”
He glanced at Noctis, part of him desperate for approval, part of him prepared to drop it all if Noct just gave the word. As much as he argued, it was more on principle than, like, a super important thing to him. He just liked tech. He liked talking about it too, and most of the time, his friends shut him up before he got too deep into the cogs and gears of the whole thing.
Caius wasn’t done talking though. He finished his drink and set it down definitively on the table (so cool!) before turning to Noctis and Prompto again about some business they’d do after this.
”Uh…okay?” Prompto wasn’t sure there would be an “after this,” but if Caius wanted to be optimistic, that was fine with him. Caius seemed real serious about it too. His fist was even clenched on the table which seemed like a bit much until he kept on talking.
And Prompto’s eyes widened. He sat up straight and leaned in closer, mouth agape in shock.
”The…The Scourge?!” He stared at Caius, hoping beyond hope that somehow this was a really sick, uncharacteristic joke. Then he looked at Noctis. Then at Caius again. ”It’s here? But how? That’s like totally impossible, right? We haven’t seen a single daemon since we got here!”
Because that’s how the whole thing worked. You get sick. Nothing can stop it. And then you turn into a daemon. Or at least, that’s how it usually worked when it wasn’t done in some miserable lab doing unspeakable things to innocent clones. Prompto bit his lip.
”I…don’t know if we can help, man. I mean, we can take out daemons. We do that all the time, but healing someone, that’s…” His eyes lowered. The panic he’d felt sank into something a lot darker as he muttered, ”That was Luna’s thing.”
He’d never known Lunafreya. He’d never met her, really. But he knew that she and Noctis wrote to each other often, and he knew how broken up his friend had been after she’d died. She’d been a good person who hadn’t deserved what happened to her.
”Maybe you could find a healer? Somebody who’s really good at holy stuff? I don’t know if anybody like that exists around here, but maybe…”
Prompto also wasn’t too well-read on religion. Or history. Or medicine. Or…
But he knew about the Scourge. No kid coming out of high school could graduate without knowing a lot about the Scourge. Even a kid with a straight C report card.
”Is there anything you can think of, Noct? Cause I really don’t know…”
[attr=class,lyric1]gonna keep on keeping on the only
[attr=class,lyric2]way i know how
[attr=class,bulk] ”Wait, what?”
Prompto was so caught up in his telling of the story and in his own grim mood that he almost missed exactly where Noctis had picked up some extra gil from. The…Rising Stones? Wait a minute, but that would mean…
Yeah, it was totally confirmed. Noctis told him that Caius would help which was a no-brainer and then went on to suggest somebody else. A somebody that Prompto had thought he’d left far, far behind him.
”You’ve met Alex?” Prompto stared at him, mouth gaping. ”No way…”
What were the odds? Seriously, the odds were like…nothing, right? He’d taken a statistics class once. He’d been really bad at it. Couldn’t remember a single thing about it now and he’d only passed because of Ignis’ help, but still. He knew enough to know that Noctis working with the Stones and knowing Alex the same way he had was like…way improbable. So improbable that it bordered on disbelief. Or suspicion. Yeah, Prompto was kinda leaning towards the latter.
He wanted to call Noctis out on it. He wanted to tell him that heck no they shouldn’t ask Alex for help. The man was like a creepy stalker or something, hunting them all down one by one on the streets of Sonora and bringing them back to his broken base that he called a guild. But he couldn’t. He couldn’t say any of that because he heard the emotion in Noctis’ voice as he thought about their lost friends.
Prompto’s eyes lowered. Whatever pain he felt thinking about Ignis and Gladio (and it was a lot), it must have been nothing compared to Noctis. Prompto had met them in high school mostly just because they were always around his friend. Ignis had helped him pass his classes. Gladio would play videogames with him and push him around for being so small. In the end, they’d both helped him pass the Crownsguard qualifications – Ignis with his book smarts and Gladio at the gym. Prompto had proved his own skills at the shooting range. They’d both believed in him or at least pretended to for Noctis’ sake. Then they’d all taken their trip together, a somber affair that they’d all made almost fun just by being together.
Ignis and Gladio meant a lot to him. They were Prompto’s friends. But to Noct, they were family.
Prompto averted his eyes so Noctis wouldn’t know he saw the tears welling up there. ”Never,” Prompto agreed earnestly. ”They’d do the same for us, right?”
Or at least, they’d do the same for Noct. If it had been Noctis in prison, the two Crownsguard wouldn’t sleep until he was free again. He didn’t know so much that they’d come just for Prompto, but that was alright by him. He liked to think that they’d be relieved to know that Noct wasn’t alone right now. That he and Prompto had found each other. Prompto might not have been the best guard, but he was one. He’d passed the test. He’d proven himself in the field. He wanted to believe that having him around was a far shot better than nothing.
Their drinks came. Their hot, steaming drinks. The waitress placed the deep red wine in front of Noctis and a mug of hot cocoa in front of Prompto. It looked really nice even if it didn’t have any whipped cream. That was the least of Prompto’s worries right now though.
Once she left, he started talking again. Earnestly. Seriously.
”You know I’ve got your back, right?” He tried to look his friend straight on. It didn’t matter if Noctis was crying or not. In fact, if he was, that was all the more reason to offer support. ”No matter what happens. We’ll do this together.”
Truer words had never been spoken in his entire life. He hoped Noctis understood.
[attr=class,lyric1]gonna keep on keeping on the only
[attr=class,lyric2]way i know how
[attr=class,bulk] Here it was. The moment of truth. Prompto hadn’t really thought much about what he’d do once he actually found Noctis other than hug him and never leave his side again. Maybe another time and place, that’s exactly what would’ve happened, nothing more and nothing less, but with the fate of Gladio and Ignis hanging over them both…
Well, that kind of soured things, didn’t it?
”Er, yeah. I made it out…alive.” That was all he could say about Cissnei’s little death trap of a bar. Or was it a strip club? He still didn’t know the right word for it, but Prompto sure wasn’t going to tell Noctis anything that happened in there that he didn’t need to know. ”And hey! She wants to help! So we’re on track there.”
Optimism was the spice of life, as they said. Or at least, he thought that’s what they said. Optimism wasn’t a spice he was used to around here.
”Isn’t it though?” Prompto rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. More snow ruffled out between his fingers and melted, leaving them wet. ”I swear, I thought I was in Niflheim at first. This is where I, uh, landed? Fell through a portal? I don’t know. And I thought, ’Oh hey. I’m still in Niflheim, I guess. Why’s the sun out? And where the hell’s everybody else?’ But it’s not Niflheim. Still gives me the creeps walking around it though.”
He was rambling. Or maybe he was just procrastinating. He didn’t want to talk about what he’d seen of their friends or what he’d learned from Cissnei. It was just too…grim. He didn’t like grim. He wanted more than anything to just have this moment with his best friend. After everything he’d gone through, he thought he deserved that, didn’t he?
Prompto was so invested in their conversation, in his own thoughts, in Noctis just being there across from him that he couldn’t help but jump when the waitress came by. He didn’t know this was that kind of place. A place with waitresses. He probably should have guessed from the menu on the table that he totally hadn’t looked at even a little bit. Noctis ordered some mulled wine (What did that mean, anyway? Mulled?) and then looked expectantly at him.
”Uh…” Prompto looked desperately down at the menu that, without opening it, was like a lifeboat still all tied up to a sinking ship. Then he looked at the waitress who was distractingly pretty with her blonde curls, and he swallowed before sheepishly asking if they had any hot chocolate. He felt like a kid, asking that way. And asking what he asked. Noctis was getting wine for Bahamut’s sake! So adult. So cool. But Prompto had never liked wine. And he didn’t know enough about other bar drinks to pick something on the fly.
The waitress responded that they had a peppermint spiked cocoa and Prompto nodded feverishly. ”Yeah, that! That sounds…good.” Then she left and Prompto sank into the booth, shoulders slumped, utterly defeated. ”Do we even have the gil for this? Tell me you’ve got gil.”
They’d had plenty of money before just from doing hunts and killing monsters and stuff, but no one ever trusted Prompto to hold onto it. He didn’t know if gil from Eos would be accepted here anyway. Probably not. Interplanetary rules and all that.
”What kind of help could we call? I mean, we could probably get Caius. He’s helpful, and like, a glaive so he’d be in on it. Probably.”
He imagined that conversation. ’Hey, do you want to be in on our suicide run to help our friends that you don’t know? It’ll be great!’ Caius might do it because of Noctis though. The prince of Lucis would have more than a little sway over a glaive.
Prompto bit his lip. If they were already talking about allies then it was probably time that he came clean. He didn’t want to. He wished he could just sip cocoa with his buddy and relish the luck that had brought them together again, but that wouldn’t be fair to their other friends, would it? And they were a group. Almost like a family. Noctis, Gladio, Ignis. They were more of a family to Prompto than he’d ever had growing up, at any rate.
”Hey, uh. Before we talk strategy and stuff, you should probably know…what we’re up against.” Prompto took a deep, shuddering breath and sat up straight again. His knuckles were white on the sticky wooden table between them. ”So I actually saw them. It was a weird magic thing, don’t ask. But I was looking for you and I guess it didn’t work quite right because trying to find you led me to them. I guess cause we’re all crownsguard and use your power and stuff. Anyway, I saw them. They were in this big prison in the middle of nowhere, all icy and cold, somewhere north of the city, I think. There was this big dome around the place. Cissnei said they’ve got an anti-magic field on it so maybe that was that. Guards everywhere. Towers with mini-guns and snipers. That kind of thing.”
Prompto looked down at his gloved hands. The place had felt so much like…Gralea. Like those metal towers and corridors where Prompto had found himself alone. Like the place where Prompto should have stayed if fate hadn’t shown up to steal him away to Lucis. He shook the thought away the best he could, but the darkness wouldn’t leave him, settling somewhere in his throat.
”They were in bad shape. Real bad shape. I could hardly recognize Gladio, he was beat up so bad. Ignis wasn’t so beat up, but he was skinny. Skinnier than usual, I mean, and being blind in a place like that…” Prompto swallowed. ”I don’t know if they’ll last much longer, Noct. I mean, they’re fighters. And it looks like Gladio’s really been fighting, but…”
He couldn’t finish the sentence. The darkness in his throat wouldn’t let him.
”A-anyway. That’s when I started trying to get people together. I went and found Caius cause somebody told me a glaive was in Torensten and I thought he might help. Then he sent me to Cissnei. And…now I’m here. It’s crazy even thinking about breaking into a place like that, but we can’t just leave them there. We just can’t…”
His voice broke. Damn it. Prompto rubbed his eye with the back of his hand and finally looked at Noctis to see what he thought. He knew he’d agree.
”So…that’s that, I guess. Everything I know. Sorry it’s not much to work with.”
[attr=class,lyric1]gonna keep on keeping on the only
[attr=class,lyric2]way i know how
[attr=class,bulk] Prompto’s heart was pounding. Like, really really pounding. He wondered, somewhere distantly, if he was going to faint. That would be just his luck, wouldn’t it? To finally get exactly what he’d always wanted only to fall unconscious before he could get it.
Cindy had asked him out on, well, not a date. This was definitely not a date as he kept telling himself over and over again to try to keep himself from going into full on cardiac arrest. After they’d made all their criminal plans to save their friends, it was just a matter of waiting for the right time to pull it off. Which left them with some time in the worst city on the planet. That was when Cindy had asked him to…to…
To go somewhere. Alone. Just the two of them. Which was not a date.
Was it?
Of course, Prompto got there over an hour early. They were supposed to meet at this resort place so they weren’t seen together so much in the city, and the whole train ride there, Prompto had hardly been able to think. Once he got there, he had to admit, he was almost distracted. There were tons of people, lots of smiles, and skaters doing circles on the ice. The mountains were beautiful glistening as they were with snow and ice beneath the sun and a clear blue sky. It was all enough that Prompto couldn’t help but take out his camera and snap a few pics and it almost distracted him.
Almost.
But no matter how many pictures he took, no matter how many people there were, no matter how much the smells from the market stalls made his mouth water, he couldn’t stop the constant pounding of his aching heart. Cindy would be here. Cindy would be here soon. For him. Because she’d asked him out. Probably a pity thing after what had happened with Alex, but still. He’d take a pity date. Which this wasn’t because it wasn’t a date until you called it one. He’d take a pity…outing. Yeah, that was it. Because he was not a man of dignity, Prompto. And if it meant he got to spend time with Cindy.
His Goddess. His Muse. If Prompto had known any prayers to the Astrals, he’d have been on his knees begging them not to let him mess this one up. Once, just once, he would have begged, please let him be cool.
A couple walked past him, both sipping cups of steaming mulled wine. Prompto slid his hands in his coat pockets and retreated further into its warmth. He wasn’t dressed any special way, just in his coat and hat for winter, the same outfit that had saved his freezing butt in Niflheim. He hoped Cindy liked it. He hadn’t had time to go buy something better. She’d look gorgeous as always, he was sure. While he was just…just…
Prompto groaned as he sank into the collar of his own clothing. He kicked at the snow on the ground idly and tried to swallow back his nerves as his heart kept on beating, beating, beating like it wanted to escape before he made a fool of himself. Somewhere, a clock struck the hour with the echoing sound of bells.
Ready or not, it was go time. And he was not ready.
[attr=class,lyric1]gonna keep on keeping on the only
[attr=class,lyric2]way i know how
[attr=class,bulk] So thankfully nobody thought using the ring on Alex was a good idea which meant no murder in Tifa’s bar which was not something Prompto wanted to see even if Alex was begging for it cause he thought he could take the power of the Ring of the Lucii. That was just like him, really. Thinking nothing could hurt him, they were all beneath him because they’d only fought an empire and whatever the hell Ardyn was while Alex had saved five worlds that morning or whatever. But Noctis agreed it was a bad idea, and Caius gave it a flat, “Please don’t,” so that was the end of that. Hopefully. Probably.
If Noctis needed to use the ring inside the prison then they’d just have to cross their fingers and pray it worked.
What was a little less clear though was what exactly Caius would do during the whole thing. It seemed like they’d shot a big hole through his behemoth idea. Which left them with…nothing. At least when it came to distractions. Prompto crossed his arms and leaned back and thought long and hard about what he could do from a distance, but then again, he’d be hiding in a box or something. ”I guess somebody could borrow my autocrossbow and start shooting. That’d get attention,” he said before realizing how that sounded and quickly adding, ”Er, that’s the name of a mini gun. Niflheim tech. Not like I can hide that going in so…”
Noctis suggested just summoning Ramuh and Prompto laughed. ”Yeah, that’d do it! Just a big old shot of lightning from the sky! Wait, are you saying you can’t do that anymore? I guess that’s not too big a deal. They always kinda picked and chose when they’d show up. It was real scary too…”
Though that did leave him wondering, was this somewhere even the Astrals couldn’t reach? Or had the Astrals decided to stop working with Noctis for some reason? The first thought sent a shiver up his spine. The second didn’t bother him so much. He liked Noctis cause he was a cool dude, not cause he was a Lucian prince who all the gods were into. The gods could be real dicks about it anyway. But after everything they’d done for them to just abandon Noctis now…
It wasn’t right.
Prompto picked up one of the masks that Caius had brought, turning it over in his hands. ”Dude, it totally looks like we’re about to rob a bank in these!” he said before turning to Noctis to see if he agreed. He thought he’d agree. ”It’ll be hard to blend in wearing this. For me and Noctis, I mean. Like. These are real suspicious. And once we get Iggy and Gladio, we’ll be sticking together and we know they know their faces.”
Prompto didn’t really care too much either way. If Noctis thought the masks would be useful then he’d use it without another word. ”Wouldn’t any mask work on face recognition software? I mean, unless there’s something about Sonora tech I don’t know. Plus, we’d have to have our faces somewhere they’d know to look. If they’ve got face recognition then they could probably use it on anybody who lives here, but not us! Not like we’re posting pictures on their internet or anything.”
He missed the internet. He really did.
He also missed posting pictures. And printing pictures. And taking pictures. And-
”So what do you think, Noct? Alex’ll need something to hide his face for sure. Oh! And Cindy too! Don’t want her getting in trouble cause of us.” He rubbed the back of his neck and glanced at her sheepishly. ”Thanks, Cindy. I….er…You know. For….driving.”
He still couldn’t quite meet her in the eye. His Grease Monkey Goddess.
[attr=class,lyric1]gonna keep on keeping on the only
[attr=class,lyric2]way i know how
[attr=class,bulk] As soon as Prompto was inside, heck, as soon as the doors were open and some of that glorious heat leaked out, Prompto was groaning as though this were his greatest pleasure in life. He quickly stepped inside right behind Noctis and let the doors click shut behind to preserve some of that wonderful, life-giving heat. It didn’t matter that it made his ears and his nose and his fingers stung worse because every part of his body was screaming to stay here and only here forever. Outside was nothing but white death. Inside though? Inside was good. Inside meant life.
Prompto didn’t even look around until Noctis started talking about the place. His eyes were closed in bliss, he realized, and he opened them to see a snow-struck Noctis in front of him, peering around before directing Prompto over to an out of the way booth with a wave of his hand. Prompto followed obediently behind him, not really taking in much of anything. His boots stuck to the floor as he walked, giving a little ’squick squick’ sound as he peeled them away from whatever film of liquid had dried there over the years. The place smelled like old whiskey so maybe it was that? Anyway, it didn’t matter much, because as he slid into the leather booth, a gust of hot air rustled through his frozen hair and he melted into it.
”Oh man…” Prompto leaned forward so he could get right in the heat’s path. ”Have I told you how much I hate the cold? Cause I really, really hate it.”
He was so cold and so relieved by the simple pleasures of a heater that he didn’t think about how ironic it was – him, a Nif, hating the cold where they all lived. He didn’t think about it at all. Not one bit.
”Sorry your friend’s not here,” he said without looking up. He kept his elbows folded on the table, head down. His hair was starting to drip with cold water. Must’ve been the frozen snow stuck in it. He wondered if his hair was frozen solid.
”You think they’ve got cocoa? I don’t even care if it’s got alcohol in it or nothing. But a cup of cocoa…that sounds heavenly.”
Especially dark chocolate cocoa. With whipped cream on top. And some sprinkles. They probably didn’t have sprinkles at a place like this though.
At first, Prompto was so caught up in his own bliss to even know what Noctis was talking about – just that his tone had changed and it was all…serious now. Prompto slowly raised his head and looked at him, frowning for a moment in confusion, before it suddenly hit him exactly what they were doing here. Not just in this bar, but in this whole city. Or the country for that matter. Prompto wouldn’t have touched it with a ten foot pole if it had been up to him.
But it wasn’t. And while he was complaining about the cold, Gladio and Ignis were being forced to live in it.
”Oh. Uh…yeah. One sec.” Prompto sat up straighter, reluctantly pulling himself out of the heater’s path. He ran a hand through his hair and shook the matted snow out of it. Then he did the same for the rest of him, brushing off whatever snow and ice he could before it melted into his clothes and left him wet and shivering.
”I don’t know how much you know. I guess Caius must’ve told you everything I told him. But I met with his contact. Cissnei.” He felt the blood rush to his cheeks at the mention of her. Just the thought of that night got his blood pumping with shame and confusion and other things he didn’t want to mention. But he didn’t think that Noctis would notice. His face was already plenty red as it was, probably. The cold wind tended to do that to somebody with a complexion like his.
He took a deep breath and tried to get his thoughts in order. Getting his thoughts in order was hard.”She said she’d been looking into it already, actually. She knows Ignis, I guess. So…she’s got leads. And she’s got somebody looking into it. She didn’t want to share much right away. She said she’d show me what she came up with when she got it.”
He hoped it was soon. Not only was he impatient to help his friends, but he was impatient to get out of this place. He’d never been good at waiting.
[attr=class,lyric1]gonna keep on keeping on the only
[attr=class,lyric2]way i know how
[attr=class,bulk] Noctis knew what he meant. That was a relief though it also wasn’t a relief because it meant Noctis had been through everything that Prompto had more or less. He remembered running off to get to the crystal while the others handled the daemons Ardyn kept throwing at them. Funny. They seemed to stop coming after Noctis went off on his own. Which was exactly what Ardyn must have wanted – Noctis on his own. It was enough to make his blood boil, but for the life of him, Prompto couldn’t understand why someone – or something – like Ardyn would care if the rest of them were around or not. It wasn’t like he couldn’t take them all in a fight with one hand behind his back. Cause he was a daemon. Or…something like it. Prompto still couldn’t forget those gleaming yellow eyes, dripping with black ichor that replaced the white sclera.
But now…now wasn’t the time to think about that. It was a really hard time not to think about that, but it wasn’t the time. Because Noctis was still talking. Prompto was supposed to listen when Noctis was talking.
”The crystal…pulled you in?” Prompto asked with only a slight tremble to his voice. Get it together, Prompto. He swallowed, following after Noctis mechanically without really looking around. Some part of his brain told him he was supposed to be looking for something, but the rest of his brain was running at a hundred and twenty percent trying not to think about the thing they were talking about. Plus there was the cold. His ears were starting to hurt real bad like they’d been dunked in scalding water. Except the cold version. Point was, they hurt something terrible and his nose hurt and his eyes were watering and the tips of his fingers were going numb because his gloves didn’t cover his fingers – just his hands and his barcode tattoo.
He’d tried to burn off the barcode tattoo once. Aranea had to stop him. He hated looking at it. He hated other people looking at it more.
Shit, Noctis was talking again. Time to pay attention. It was just like in school when he’d be doodling along on his notebook and then the teacher asked him a question. He had to keep at least half his brain on listening. Even if that was the best he could do right now.
”So uh. After all that, the crystal just took you…here?” That’s what Noctis was getting at, yeah. Which was really weird in its own right except Noctis kept talking and-
”Wait, you met Alex?” For the first time since they’d started talking about all this, Prompto was really and truly jarred out of his own thoughts. He felt his mouth open in surprise. ”Er…Yeah. Totally know him. He helped me out of a tight spot too. And brought me back to Provo. Wanted me to join his guild or whatever which sounds a lot cooler than it is.” That was one way to describe what happened. But how had Alex found Noctis? And right when he was in trouble too? Did he just roam around Sonora looking for that kind of thing or…?
Yeah, no. That was real suspicious alright. Alex liked to save people. Alex was also a real jackass once you got to know him. Prompto still owed him big time, especially if he helped Noctis out of a tight spot, but…
But he couldn’t get past his yellow eyes. Eyes like Ardyn’s. Like a daemon’s. And the way he could lift you up one second and then tear you down the next until you couldn’t help but cry at the worst of times…
Prompto would’ve said more about Alex, but Noctis stopped so fast that Prompto had to stumble to a stop behind him so they didn’t just crash into the snow again. He looked up at Noctis in alarm, but saw his friend was practically beaming. ”Dude! It exists!”
”Huh?” Honestly, with everything they’d been talking about, Prompto had totally forgotten what they were doing here. But then he followed Noctis’ eyes to a place that, just like Noctis had said, was a bit of a hole in the wall, but the sign at the top said “Seventh Heaven” which was exactly what they’d been looking for. ”Oh. Oh yeah! Good call, Noct!”
Moment of truth. What kind of place was “Seventh Heaven?” It didn’t look like the same kind of place where he’d found Cissnei. It was all plain and kinda small, but there were those lights up around the sign that could’ve meant anything.
For a moment, Prompto couldn’t decide between his nerves and the cold. But then the cold won out in a landslide and he rubbed his arms, shivering full force with his teeth chattering and everything. ”Well, let’s get going then! I hope they have hot cocoa. Or hot tea. Or hot…anything!”
Heat. Warmth. Even just being inside would be better than this. Prompto could already feel himself melting.
”You first. Since you know this Tifa girl and all…”
[attr=class,lyric1]gonna keep on keeping on the only
[attr=class,lyric2]way i know how
[attr=class,bulk] Prompto’s smile slipped as he kept on rubbing his neck, waiting. He couldn’t look any of them in the eye after he finished laying out his plan. He’d felt so confident in the moment, finally telling them all what he’d come up with like he was the head of a group project in high school or something. And they’d all quietly listened without interrupting or anything which was nice of them but…
But his heart was pounding and he thought his cheeks might have turned red again. He couldn’t stand waiting.
”Yeah, I like it.”
Prompto looked up in surprise. Noctis liked it? He couldn’t help but beam as Noctis went on to add his own thoughts followed by a domino effect of everyone else chipping in. They all liked his plan. It felt like a weight had melted off his shoulders. They had all the information that he knew. They had the base idea he’d come up with. Now he could let them handle the rest.
He didn’t make for a good leader. He didn’t want to be one. That was way too much pressure. But following? He could do that just fine.
Caius and Alex argued about the whole behemoth thing, but he didn’t mind. That wasn’t part of his plan originally anyway, and they could sort everything out however they wanted. Alex was…weird about it all. He wasn’t even totally sure that he liked the plan since he never said so. He just said he wished Prompto was around for…something. Then told them not to kill anybody.
”I mean, yeah. Duh.” Prompto said, rubbing his neck again uncomfortably. He didn’t like killing someone any more than the next guy. In fact, all that long way through Lucis and Altissia and Gralea, they’d just been killing monsters and MTs. Which were…not people.
Not people at all.
The conversation was still going. No time for thoughts like that. He tried to push it away the way he always did, but the mood still stuck and he knew it’d just come back when he was least expecting it. Stupid thoughts. Always breaking out when he told them to stay put.
He hoped Noctis didn’t notice.
It was Noctis that got him to perk up again, or at least the mention of him. Noctis mentioned that he could still use the ring when Ardyn had blocked the rest of his magic which was a good point, but then Alex wanted him to try it. Right here. Prompto sat straight up, giving him a look like he was crazy.
”Hey, no. We don’t need to do that. He shouldn’t use it any more than he has to! Plus, do you know what that thing can do? That’d be totally bad news, right Noctis?”
They’d all traveled across the world to get the ring. They’d had to get the ring. The ring was special. It was something Noctis needed if he was gonna be a king of Lucis and stuff, but that didn’t mean that Prompto had to like the ring. Because every time Noctis used it, it hurt him.
Plus, he didn’t think Tifa would like it if Noctis tore a fabric through a reality in her bar. Or instantly disintegrated somebody. Or if they got in a fight so he could use Holy which might just destroy half the bar with it. Yeah, that was a big no go.
”We’ll do just fine without it. With my guns and Noctis’ sword or daggers or whatever, we’ve got this! And uh…if we’re really screwed, that’ll be our Plan B. But we don’t gotta test it now. I don’t know if anything can block that thing. So…”
Just like before, he was running out of steam. All he could do was look at Noctis and hope he agreed. ”So whatever you want to do, Noct. But I not being your test dummy. You can use it on Alex if you’ve gotta.” He grinned weakly. Because they both knew exactly what that’d do to Alex. And they were both not cool with killing people. Even people who they wanted to punch in the face a lot of the time.
He just really hoped Noctis didn’t think he was for real. Then he’d feel really bad when Alex was shot into the void of outer space.
[attr=class,lyric1]gonna keep on keeping on the only
[attr=class,lyric2]way i know how
[attr=class,bulk] Noctis was okay. That was good. He was cold though just like Prompto – two birds of a feather! A very cold bird with a lot of cold feathers. Noctis lamented only wearing one glove, and Prompto wanted to argue back that at least it was a long glove before Noctis suddenly realized something that changed the game altogether.
He unbuttoned his sleeves and let the extra fabric fall down his arms.
Prompto gasped.
”You can do that?” he asked in shock. Yeah, okay, it made sense that he could do that. How many times had Prompto seen that leather jacket? He’d, like, half noticed the little button there and the strip of fabric keeping the sleeves suavely above the elbow, but he’d never really given any thought to undoing them before. It was almost blasphemous. That was Noctis’ look! And now he’d given it up just for a little more protection from the cold and the wind.
”M-man, I’m so jealous!” Prompto rubbed his arms feverishly again. Now Noctis’ sleeves went a little past his elbow. What Prompto wouldn’t give for sleeves past his elbows!
But that wasn’t important right now. Or was it? His head was still spinning from the fall.
Good thing he only needed to follow close behind Noctis and nod at all the right times. Noctis chose to walk away from the big crowd they’d left behind which was a good choice if you asked him, but their change in outfits drew some eyes for a completely different reason. They didn’t look like the guys the guards were after anymore, but they did look completely out of place in this weather. Most people were wearing coats, gloves, maybe some scarves drawn up to their noses. That kind of thing. Then there was Noctis and Prompto, traipsing along like they were just asking for frostbite. Best not to think about it.
”Seventh Heaven?” Prompto asked, glancing at Noctis with his head cocked to the side. ”That kinda sounds like…You know…” He didn’t want to say it outloud. He’d already had enough of women wearing corsets and fishnet stockings dragging him around by the easily dominated ear this trip to Sonora.
Thanks, Cissnei.
”Uh, sure! I’ll keep my eyes open! As long as they don’t freeze shut. Heheh.” Jokes. Jokes were good. He liked jokes.
He was so cold.
They stopped at a crosswalk. Prompto was busy peering down the street looking for a sign that looked like a strip club when Noctis dropped the question on him. The big one.
”How did you get here by the way? I mean, were you guys still in Gralea?”
The crosswalk lit up green. People were walking again.
Oh.
”I, uh. Yeah! I guess that’s important! Good to figure out that stuff. While we’re walking.” Prompto was not, in fact, walking yet. He fixed that right away, going along with the crowd and trying his best to keep his head down. ”Gralea. Yeah. That’s the last thing I remember before, well, you know…”
Everyone around here had the same kind of story if you went looking for it. First one place then poof! Somehow they ended up around here. Noctis must have been the same. His heart hurt thinking about it.
But Noctis had asked. He couldn’t not think about it if Noctis asked him to.
”We looked for you. Once we caught up at the Crystal. Me, Gladio, and Ignis. We looked and looked, but…” That was the most painful memory of all. Ardyn had done something. That bastard had done something with Noctis, and after days of searching the place up and down, it hurt to remember Ignis’ tired, defeated words.
Maybe it was time to stop looking.
”We were about to try heading back to Lucis, but then I ended up here. On the side of the road. Couldn’t even catch a bus. Man, was I in for a shock when I saw the sun! Told me right away something wasn’t right!” He could only keep the act up for so long. He tried for a laugh, but it quickly faded into a groan like a balloon that had run out of air. He glanced at Noctis, biting his tongue.
”Did that make sense? I hope that made sense. I mean, Caius is from the future so I guess there’s no way of knowing what to expect. So uh…” He rubbed his neck, swallowing hard. ”What about you?”