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year 5, quarter 3
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[attr=class,bulk] Yuna had to giggle a little at how much Prompto was enjoying the pastry. She was suddenly glad that she’d snuck him a little extra, though she was surprised that he didn’t bother to take off his gloves first before eating. She would think that icing would be hard to clean off leather, but she supposed that was up to him to deal with later if he wanted to eat it that way. Maybe he had been too eager to wait. Or had a nasty scar he wanted to hide. It was really none of her business.
Yuna nodded as he listed off his friends from back home. Ignis and Gladio didn’t ring any bells for her, but the name Noctis struck a chord. She didn’t think that she’d met anyone with that name or anything, but she was positive that someone had spoken to her about a Noctis. If only she could remember who.
That feeling of uneasiness only grew when he mentioned daemons of all creatures. The plague that had ravaged Provo a year ago had largely vanished, but even the name still made her think of cloying hospital air and the yellow-eyed man who had spread the disease. Ardyn had only been toying with her, but it had still taken months after the incident for her to relax again. In contrast, Yuna couldn’t even imagine how Caius must feel about him or how he was able to sleep at night.
Caius.
Yuna sat bolt upright, setting the remnants of her cinnamon roll down on the plate as she suddenly remembered where she’d heard of Noctis.
“You’re from Eos, aren’t you? You must be if you have daemons.” Prompto hadn’t mentioned the eternal night that Caius had lived through, which seemed a little odd, but they could clear that up later. “The leader of my guild is from Eos as well! He actually served as a kingsglaive for King Noctis. Maybe you’d know him? His name’s Caius.” Come to think of it, Prompto didn’t really seem to be the type to rub shoulders with kings though. Yuna liked that about him of course! She admired what she’d seen of his care-free spirit so far. It just made her a little more doubtful that Caius’ Noctis and Prompto’s Noctis could be the same person.
“Is Noctis a common name? It must be if your friend isn’t royalty,” she mused a bit sheepishly. “I’d be happy to introduce you to Caius though. He actually lives here in Torensten.” It was probably better to lead with someone friendly before she warned him that Ardyn was also here. There was no rush. Truthfully, it had been so long that Yuna wasn’t even positive that he was still lurking around Zephon. If anyone could have found a way home, she wouldn’t put it past the dangerous older man.
Thankfully, Prompto didn’t seem to find her earlier comments about teaming up awkward or embarrassing, so Yuna nodded with slightly reddened cheeks about the possibility of working a job together. “I’d like that the next time you’re in Provo. I prefer to work in groups too. I mostly use white magic and summon, so I really work best in the back…” She was working on learning how to use a dagger with Celes, but they were both so busy that they hadn’t had the chance to meet up lately unfortunately. Maybe soon.
“Let me guess. You mostly use guns?” Yuna asked with a smile. “I guess you also need distance then.”
[attr=class,lyric1]gonna keep on keeping on the only
[attr=class,lyric2]way i know how
[attr=class,bulk] ”Wh-what?”
For a moment, Prompto could only stare at her, startled, as she sat straight up and proclaimed he must be from Eos. It was a bit of a surprise, coming out of her and all, but before he could even so much as give an uncertain, ’Yeah, you’ve heard of it?’ she went on.
To talk about Noctis.
King Noctis.
”Wait, you know Noctis?” He launched himself forward, eyes wide. ”Wait no, you said your friend knows Noctis? A Kingsglaive? That’s-!” He didn’t have words for it, actually. Just hearing that someone knew him...That someone knew anything at all about where he’d come from…
“Is Noctis a common name? It must be if your friend isn’t royalty.”
”Nah, that’s defs my Noctis! He’s a prince. Not a king, but you knew, close enough! Iggy actually had to talk to me ‘bout that after his dad died. Apparently Noct isn’t king until they do some...thing. Starts with a 'C.' But then Lucis was taken over by the empire so he’s a prince until we get it back. I don’t really know what’ll happen once he’s all kingly, you know? Could someone like that still hang out with some nobody like me?”
He was rambling. Didn’t matter what he was saying, really. His mouth was chugging along on its own, and Prompto was just along for the ride.
”Er, anyway, but you’ve got a friend who’s a Glaive? I don’t know too many of those. I’m, uh, kind of new to the Crownsguard so I never talked to them much, but maybe he knows something! Or...wait, do you think he’s found anyone else? From Eos? Maybe I’d know them!”
His head was spinning with possibilities and thoughts and ideas that probably weren’t right but he didn’t care much if they were.
”I’ve got to meet him! Your friend! Man, I’m getting in with all the guilds lately, huh? It’s kinda cool when you say it like that.”
[attr=class,bulk] If Yuna had thought that Prompto was excitable before, it was nothing compared to how much his eyes sparkled as soon as he heard that she knew someone from his world. As soon as she finished, he was off on an explanation about how Noctis was actually still a prince, using so many strange words that it was impossible for Yuna to follow his reasoning. She supposed that he would know best though.
“Oh, really? I could have sworn Caius called Noctis his king. The king of light maybe?” Yuna was mostly just musing to herself, so she shook her head with a slight smile afterward. “I must have misunderstood though. And of course you aren’t nobody! A monster hunter who runs around with a prince sounds like a wonderful story. I’m sure you’ve seen so many things.” She hoped her words would cheer him up after he casually put himself down in relation to his friend. Yuna sensed that his inferiority complex ran a bit deeper than he was even letting on, but that probably wasn’t something you brought up on a first date. Better to keep it light unless Prompto went there first.
Prompto expressed excitement about meeting Caius, and Yuna nodded emphatically. It wasn’t often that she got to bring people together who were from the same world, and she was happy to be able to do so. “Absolutely! Maybe...tomorrow?” Yuna smiled a little sheepishly. “Even if we wanted to cut our date short, Caius and Celes both enrolled in the dating event too, so there would be no one at the Dragonblades’ base right now.” She glanced down at the remains of her cinnamon roll, feeling her cheeks grow a little warm. “...And I’m enjoying myself anyway.”
Prompto seemed to be working himself up with the possibility of Caius being able to introduce him to other people from Eos. Yuna felt her smile slip a little as he asked if she knew anything about that. It might have been a rhetorical question, but she still felt like she owed him an answer. “Well...yes. I’m sure there’s others he hasn’t mentioned to me, but I know there was a man from his past, and he had a lead on Noctis at one point.” Yuna hesitated, unsure if she should continue or not. His warm smile and the upbeat carnival music surrounding them were in such contrast to the terrifying man that she’d encountered in a hospital last year. It felt wrong to do this here, but Prompto deserved to be on his guard.
“...I met someone else from Eos once, but I haven’t seen him in a long time. I hope he’s gone,” Yuna admitted as she sat up on her knees. What was left of her cinnamon roll stayed on the plate. She’d lost all taste for it. “Have you heard of Ardyn? Caius made him sound infamous.”
[attr=class,lyric1]gonna keep on keeping on the only
[attr=class,lyric2]way i know how
[attr=class,bulk] Prompto was flying high. He’d been flying pretty good already what with the lights and the music and the smells and the cute girl on a date with him, but all this talk of Eos and Noctis and Yuna’s glaive friend really sold it. He was so excited that he hadn’t even noticed how rude he must have sounded until Yuna pointed it out.
Classic Prompto.
”Oh! Yeah! Tomorrow! I didn’t mean-! I mean, if it had worked out right now then yeah sure, I’d be down for that, but like. I’m enjoying myself too! Really! I just, you know. Got real excited! Heh…” He rubbed his neck, feeling his cheeks heat with an oncoming blush. Real smooth.
”I mean it,” he said, glancing down. ”You’re really cool, Yuna. I’m glad we got to hang out like this.”
And it sure was a great place for it too. This was the kind of place he could only dream of taking somebody! With all the lights and the people and the magic…
He wondered what Noctis would think of it. He was sure they’d have had a blast together.
”Your friend’s...got a lead on Noctis?” Prompto peeked back at her, suddenly too cautious to meet her eye. ”Seriously?”
He wanted to believe it. He wanted to believe it so bad. But there was something else she said, wasn’t there?
”You said…’at one point.’ So not anymore? But...But that means he was here! Somewhere! Right?”
Now he really felt desperate. Ignis liked to joke that Prompto had a face like a hopeful puppy, and boy could he hear it on his voice right now. He laughed and tried to rub the “puppy dog” look from his eyes.
”Sorry. It’s been rough lately. Just hearing something about them’s got me all…” It had him all twisted up in knots on the inside. He was the kind of person that liked to charge ahead without looking back, locking up all the bad feelings until he forgot about them forever, but that hadn’t been working out so well these last few weeks. He couldn’t even go on a date without running himself in circles.
Yuna was strangely solemn now. How long had she looked nervous? Prompto frowned as she sat up on her knees, hands folded in front of her. What was she…?
”I met someone else from Eos once, but I haven’t seen him in a long time. I hope he’s gone. Have you heard of Ardyn?”
Prompto felt his breath steal away. ”Huh?”
Ardyn.
She’d seen Ardyn.
Ardyn was-
”He’s...He’s here?!” His voice cracked. It felt like the lights had dimmed. Had they? Everything was dark out here. Way too dark. ”Ardyn. You’re sure it was…?”
No, no, no, no, no, no.
”No. No way! You can’t-! We shouldn’t-!” Prompto staggered to his feet. His heart was hammering where his throat should have been. ”That’s bad. That’s real bad! He could be-!”
He could be anywhere. Or anyone. He could be watching them right now, laughing, and they wouldn’t know any better. He could be peering from the top of the carousel where it was all shadowy, humming to himself with that stupid voice, wearing that stupid hat, peering at them with those eyes…
Those yellow eyes…
”Woh...” Prompto winced and put a hand to his temple as the ground swooped up under him and he staggered to keep his balance. Also bad. What was he doing, panicking when Ardyn could be anywhere? He had to keep his head on straight or he might as well hang a bright red sign on himself saying, ’Easy Target! Please Ambush!’
”I’m sorry,” he muttered. ”You’ve got to tell me everything! If he’s here then-!”
Then no one was safe. And they never would be again.
[attr=class,bulk] Prompto seemed a little struck when Yuna suggested that they go find Caius tomorrow instead, and he quickly back-tracked. He seemed to sincerely want her to know that he was having a good time, and Yuna gave him a small smile in return. “No, it’s alright. I understand. If you’d met any of my guardians, I don’t know what I would have done…” Instead it had been nearly a year and a half with no news of home and even less news of Tidus. She was left to make new friends instead and go on dates with boys who were nice but that she never saw again.
Well. That wasn’t fair to Prompto. He could be different.
Lowering her head so that her hair covered her face, Yuna forced a smile before looking back up. Prompto seemed to have latched onto the fact that Caius had been looking for Noctis, but Yuna could only shake her head solemnly. “I’m sorry. I’m not sure if Noctis is here. It seemed personal to Caius, so I didn’t want to pry…” She was fairly certain that he had alluded to finding his king once at a restaurant, but that had been several missions ago and Caius hadn’t broached the topic again. She didn’t know if that meant that something had gone awry or if Noctis just wasn’t here anymore. Either way, she didn’t want to make Prompto worry.
Unfortunately hearing Ardyn’s name seemed to make him do more than worry. His freckled face became downright pale and he leapt to his feet as if the name itself were poison. Panic was written all over the boy’s face and words tumbled out of his mouth like he wasn’t getting enough air. But it was when Prompto stumbled that Yuna grew really alarmed.
“Prompto. Prompto, you need to breathe.” Springing after him, Yuna caught him by the hand, clasping one of his in both of hers. His fingers outside of the leather glove were a little sticky from the cinnamon roll, but she didn’t mind. “Esuna.” As the white magic washed over them, she gave him a small smile. “Did it work? You seemed a little dizzy.”
Prompto seemed to come back to himself regardless, and Yuna let go of his hand as he insisted that she tell him everything. She hesitated, looking him over to make sure that he was alright before she nodded solemnly. “I’ve only met him twice, but I’ll tell you everything I know. I’ve...seen how dangerous he can be. But I’m guessing you must know that better than I do.”
Glancing to the side, Yuna pointed out the Ferris Wheel in the distance. “Do you want to talk there maybe?” The location had made sense in her head, but now that the words were out there, it occurred to her how ridiculous it was to discuss Ardyn on a carnival ride. Heat flooded her cheeks, and she clasped her hands together as she rushed to explain. “I meant that...it’s a slow ride. There would be time to talk. And...I thought maybe it would make you feel better.”
[attr=class,lyric1]gonna keep on keeping on the only
[attr=class,lyric2]way i know how
[attr=class,bulk] ”Prompto. Prompto, you need to breathe.”
His hand found its way between both of hers, and he paused, a little stunned by her touch. She cast some kind of magic on him and he blinked and she smiled, ”Did it work? You seemed a little dizzy.”
”Huh?” The magic had felt...warm. He didn’t know any other word for it. It was weird seeing people use magic that weren’t Noctis or related to Noctis or part of Noctis’ life. It was weird, and he didn’t know what she’d cast, but it had been kind of like taking a potion or something. He wasn’t sure. He felt real warm though, especially in his cheeks.
They were still holding hands.
He glanced down at their hands and then back at her and then she let go and she was talking about.
Talking about Ardyn. Shit, he’d almost forgotten about that.
”Oh, uh…” He glanced away. His heart was still hammering from panic, and he felt cold with fear but also warm with whatever feelings he got when Yuna held his hand. He didn’t know what to think or what to say. He couldn’t think straight. It was like trying to walk a tightrope after a few glasses of wine.
”O-okay.”
She’d tell him more. About the two times they’d met. That was two too many.
”Do you want to talk there maybe?”
”Sure. Yeah. Okay.”
Prompto didn’t really register what he was seeing. There was her finger, pointing at something. And a ferris wheel. And she wanted to talk.
She’d held his hand.
Ardyn could be anywhere.
Prompto felt sick.
”A slow ride. No, I get you.”
He walked it back, really trying to get her, and he thought he did. She wanted to talk about Ardyn. She wanted to talk on the ferris wheel. That sounded weird, but now she was embarrassed so he wouldn’t say so. Instead, he shook his head, lowered his voice, and said, ”Just be careful. He could be anywhere. He can look like anyone, you know.”
That was something he’d learned the hard way.
They walked together towards the ferris wheel. Turns out, it needed a special ticket so they walked back to the ticket booth and got a ticket with their date badge and went back. Prompto tapped his foot as he waited in line, glancing carefully at every shadow and ever person that seemed to saunter more than walk.
This was stupid. He was being stupid. What were the chances that Ardyn had stalked him to a carnival? That he was waiting around, humming to himself, taking his time before he struck because Prompto was Noctis’ best friend, and if Noctis was somewhere around here then that’s how he could hurt him the most?
A worker waved them up and Prompto took a deep, steadying breath before he slid onto the seat of the ferris wheel.
”We shouldn’t talk until we’re a little higher up,” he muttered to her. ”He can warp, but we’d notice him up high. That way, we’ll know he’s not listening.”
Did he sound crazy right now? He probably sounded crazy right now, but he couldn’t help it. His mind was a steam train, and it thought they were in danger, and he was just chugging along after it trying not to lose pace.
[attr=class,bulk] It had been a weird suggestion that they talk about Ardyn on the ferris wheel of all places, but Prompto seemed to be too nice to make her feel bad about it. Yuna was grateful for that, and she nodded a little sheepishly as he agreed. “I just thought...you might want to talk away from the crowds. I’m sorry if it feels inappropriate.” She didn’t have a better suggestion of a place to be alone with someone at a carnival though, so they started to head off towards the line together. At least until Yuna stopped in her tracks when Prompto expressed exactly why they should be careful.
“I’m sorry?” She asked a bit numbly, though she had heard him perfectly well. “You’re telling me that he can change his appearance to...anything he wants?” Ardyn had never shown her that particular skill of his. It wasn’t unusual for an unsent to change forms of course, but usually it was to something more monstrous over time. Someone who could mimic other humans was...troubling, and it called into question her theory that Ardyn had vanished from Zephon. Had he really been in plain sight all along?
Feeling suddenly more vulnerable, Yuna gripped her skirt as she followed Prompto towards the ferris wheel. She hadn’t even brought her staff, and that suddenly felt like a mistake even though she hadn’t seen Ardyn in nearly a year. Perhaps Prompto’s anxiety was just wearing off on her, but Yuna still wasn’t able to breathe easy again until she was alone in one of the ferris wheel compartments with the blond boy. On the seat next to her, Prompto still seemed uneasy though, even going so far as to say that they shouldn’t talk until they were higher up. Giving him a concerned look, Yuna peered out the window of the ferris wheel as they slowly drifted upwards to allow the next couple to board the ride.
“I think we should be alright,” she murmured, letting out a slow breath as she leaned back in her seat. It was the first time that she had ever done a ride like this with a boy, but her heart was beating fast for all the wrong reasons as she turned her memories north to a demolished hospital. Her fault. She had never quite been able to believe that it wasn’t.
“I met Ardyn in a hospital in Provo. There was a new plague spreading around the city that was rumored to turn men into monsters, and...I thought maybe I could help. Where I come from, I’m known as a summoner, so I specialize in healing magic. I volunteered there for weeks, but I was the only one in the quarantined section of the hospital that day. Me and...one other man. So I asked for his aid.”
Biting her lip, Yuna glanced over to gauge Prompto’s reaction. “Knowing what I do now...I don’t even know why he was there. I’ve heard that he causes the starscourge, and it’s...chilling to think he would visit his victims like that.” Boredom, perhaps? The image that she had gathered of the man from the bar was an unsent who had grown depressed away from the subjects of his vengeance. Perhaps in a world without the gods, his brother, or King Noctis, he didn’t quite know what to do with himself. It didn’t excuse anything of course, and Yuna still hoped to send him to the farplane in the end, but that was easier said than done.
She had seen him fight Shiva one on one and emerge victorious after all.
“I healed a man in front of him, and that seemed to convince him that I was the equivalent of an Oracle from your world. I...suppose he tried to kill me, but that’s not really right. If he had wanted me dead quickly, I have no doubt that I would be.” Yuna entwined her fingers together and gave Prompto a worried look to see how he was holding up. Talk of Ardyn seemed to make him incredibly anxious, and she didn’t like to think about why.
“Does that sound right? He summoned his sword sort of like Caius, but the magic looked red instead of blue. I thought that was odd.”
[attr=class,lyric1]gonna keep on keeping on the only
[attr=class,lyric2]way i know how
[attr=class,bulk] The door closed, and they were left alone in a metal box looking out over the carnival. Part of Prompto wanted to breathe a sigh of relief. The other didn’t like this at all. It was enclosed which meant that Ardyn couldn’t suddenly warp onto the side and grab them. On the other hand, that also meant they didn’t have a way of escape if they saw something, way up high. Not that either of them could’ve done much at that point anyway. Noctis wasn’t scared of heights, and Prompto didn’t think he was either, but Noctis could warp, and the best Prompto could do was a slow, terrifying climb back down hoping he wouldn’t slip like an idiot and bash his brains against a metal pole.
That was Prompto’s life in a nutshell. Sticking around Noctis and trying his best to keep up the pace.
The Ferris wheel jerked into motion, and then they were off. Slowly. Their car swung a little with the movement, and Prompto watched as the ground jerked out from under their feet. It was pretty with the dark city all lit up with magic. It was prettier than Insomnia, he thought, but that thought just made his heart ache. There were other things to think about. Worse things.
Prompto didn’t find that he could look at Yuna straight on as she told him about Ardyn. He’d been at a hospital. Just the words made him feel sick. Ardyn had always liked to play at helping people. He was like a cat batting at a mouse that had found a nice corner to hide in, never letting it know that he could finish it if he really wanted to. Prompto’s nails dug into the fabric of his jeans.
Yuna had healed a man in front of him. Ardyn had thought she was an Oracle because…
”Wait, you healed the scourge?” Prompto blinked at her, frowning. ”Sorry, keep going. That’s just...wow.”
He looked down at his hands, cheeks suddenly hot. Yuna was an incredible woman. He wanted to ask more, but…
He always had a habit of interrupting. He’d wait. He just had to remember his questions for when he had the chance.
It didn’t take her long. Prompto waited just to make sure he heard it all right and then he let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. ”Yeah. That sounds about right.”
He looked away, choosing instead to watch the half-shaded side window. His heart was pounding. Steady, Prompto.
”Ardyn, he doesn’t kill people until he’s done with them. I mean, I think he kills a lot of people, but the ones he’s got an interest in, he doesn’t. He just…”
Leads them along. Makes them think he can help. Blinds them. Tortures them. Uses them to hurt Noctis.
”I-I, um…”
No good. He couldn’t say the words.
”So…are you an Oracle?” He looked at her, eyes wide, before he shook his head. ”Sorry. Guess it doesn’t matter. But that’s bad if he thinks you are. He killed the Oracle where I’m from. I wasn’t there to see it happen, but…”
But he saw her after the fact -- cold, pale, drenched in blood and seawater. She looked so much smaller that way, and though he’d known it as soon as he saw it, he still couldn’t believe she was dead. That kind of thing didn’t just happen. Not like this. No way.
But it had. Prompto bit his lip.
”I don’t know exactly what he is. We still had a lot of questions when I woke up here. But…”Breathe, Prompto. In and out.”But he’s like a daemon. When he’s hurt, he looks like somebody with the scourge. And he can’t die. I shot him in the back of the head once and he just…” He made a pained noise and looked away again.
”I thought things were different here,” he said. ”No scourge, no daemons, no…” No imperials. No Ardyn. He swallowed. ”I’ve gotta find Noctis.”
That’s what was important. That was all that mattered. If Ardyn came after him, it was only to get to Noctis. And if Ardyn had already found Noctis…
”He’s my best friend, and Ardyn wants to hurt him. He set it all up just to get to him, and then he used me and Gladio and Ignis to hurt him worse. I don’t know why, but that’s all he wants, and I can’t…”
Prompto looked down at his knees. ”I can’t let that happen.”
[attr=class,bulk] He doesn’t kill people until he’s done with them. Yuna let out a breath, feeling her cheeks grow a little hot as she remembered the terrifying note that she’d woken up to in a hotel in Provo. That night was one of the main reasons she’d bought a house and moved on, but she still feared waking up to another slip of paper at her bedside. What use did Ardyn have for her? Entertainment? Most likely he just wanted to watch her struggle against him until he killed her and moved on to the next person, which was an uncomfortable thought. Not so different from how Yevon thought of its summoners though, when she really got down to it.
Prompto asked if she was an Oracle, and Yuna hesitated with her answer more than she had with Ardyn. “Not strictly, no. I’m called a summoner in Spira, but...I suppose they might be similar. He insisted I was an Oracle in practice if not in name after I called for Shiva’s aid…” Her attention was lost after that as Prompto informed her that Ardyn had actually killed the Oracle back on Eos. Yuna stared at him in horror, bringing one hand to her mouth as she reflected on every murderous gaze he’d sent her way. It seemed that her life had been in more danger at the bar than Yuna had realized, though she tried to swallow down her fear at the heartbroken look on Prompto’s face. The Oracle’s death seemed to have hit him hard. “...I’m so sorry. I hope she’s found peace.”
Yuna listened attentively to Prompto’s descriptions of the red-haired man. He didn’t seem to really know what Ardyn was, which was disappointing. Yuna had her own theories of him as an unsent of course, but she had wondered how that would translate to Eos. Apparently not well, if Prompto had nothing to compare it to. Even stranger was the revelation that Ardyn was after his friend.
“He wants to get to your prince?” Yuna frowned thoughtfully, reflecting on what she remembered from the bar before the wine had utterly destroyed her memories. What a fool she’d been that night.
“I only know that he despises your world’s gods and wants to see them dead. He said as much during our second encounter. Would he be able to accomplish that through Noctis somehow?” It was more of a guess than anything. For all Yuna knew, Noctis was just another source of entertainment for him, but it was worth the question.
“As for what he is...I don’t know either, but he reminds me of the unsent from Spira.” This would require a bit of explanation, so Yuna glanced down at the twinkling lights of the carnival below them before she settled back more firmly in the ferris wheel’s seat. “Where I’m from, the dead don’t usually move on of their own will. A summoner has to perform a sending for them so the soul can find its way to the other side. If they’re allowed to stay, then they can morph into all sorts of monsters. Some of them even retain their appearance and personalities.” Yuna gripped her hands together in her lap, trying not to dwell on Maester Seymour too much before she continued. “Ardyn reacted to a sending I performed in front of him. Which tells me he isn’t alive, if nothing else. I’m not sure what an unsent translates to where you’re from though.”
It occurred to Yuna that she should check in on the blond boy next to her, and she gave him a concerned look even as he stared at his lap. There was a lot that he wasn’t saying, but she didn’t need him to if Prompto wasn’t ready for that.
[attr=class,lyric1]gonna keep on keeping on the only
[attr=class,lyric2]way i know how
[attr=class,bulk] The view was beautiful if he was being honest with himself. It was easy to imagine another him from another time – a Prompto not as scared and broken – gazing out awe-struck at the scene before him. This was not Insomnia. He’d known that from the start of course, but seeing the city from up high really sold it. Insomnia was a city of towers and skyscrapers and cars and lights and while he was happy to call it his home, he’d never realized just how artificial it all was with its cold metal and rough edges. Here, he could see everything. There was the dark horizon to the east which met the sea to the west and above it all were a billion pricks of starlight. He could see himself pointing at all the little buildings down below and gaping at the castle’s silhouette and maybe trying his best to sidle a little closer to Yuna as he tried real hard not to screw up the moment.
All that could have happened. Maybe he’d have had a great night. Maybe he’d have finally found a girlfriend. Maybe. If he hadn’t been such a nervous wreck.
Instead, Prompto sat stiffly at the edge of his seat, vaguely aware of his nails digging into his jeans as he tried to keep breathing.
Stupid. Panicking was the last thing he needed. But here he was, and he couldn’t stop it any easier than he could have jumped off the edge and flown away.
He needed to stop. He needed to slow down and listen.
She told him that she was called a “summoner,” whatever that was, and that she’d called on Shiva which was…some serious Oracle stuff if Prompto was being honest. But he didn’t think she wanted to hear that so he just nodded and said, ”Oh,” and kept listening because he didn’t want to interrupt. Then they were talking about Noctis, and Prompto frowned.
”He wants to…kill the gods?” That sounded crazy even for Ardyn, and that bar was set real high. ”I don’t know if he could use Noctis for that. I mean, Noct can totally fight the Astrals. He went crazy on Leviathan. But you can’t really…kill the gods? I mean, you can but then they just die and come back some other time. Like Niflheim killed Shiva, but then she came back as Gentiana who was really Shiva the whole time and-”
He was rambling.
”A-anyway, I don’t think that’s it. Unless there’s some stuff I really don’t know.” Which sounded plausible now that he said it outloud. ”I don’t know why he wants Noctis. Or…why anything really.”
After everything he’d seen, his questions were in the hundreds. His answers were maybe…two.
It sounded like Yuna knew more than he did.
”So they’re like…ghosts?” Prompto stared at her. ”Where you live. It’s just…covered in monster ghosts?”
That was terrifying.
”Uh. No. We don’t have anything like that. Though we’ve got daemons. Lots of daemons.” Which he guessed were kind of like ghosts, but really they were just another kind of monster. The real evil kind. ”So…your thing that gets rid of ghosts…You used it on him, and it worked? Maybe it works on daemons? I think Ardyn’s part daemon or something…”
He remembered how Ardyn’s eyes had bled black ichor after Prompto had shot him point blank. He remembered those piercing yellow eyes, the smell of decay, how Ardyn had overtaken Ravus’ corpse and…
”I’m sorry. If he hurt you.”
”Huh?”
Prompto looked up to see Yuna watching him. There was a kindness to her eyes that made his throat tighten. She felt sorry for him. Was he really that pathetic? That obvious?
Prompto rubbed his eye with the back of his hand and felt tears. Damn it.
What would Gladio have said? Something about being a man. Ignis would have told him to get it together. Noct would have…
He would have…
Prompto bit his lip. ”Yeah.” His voice was thick and unsteady. He didn’t say anything else. He didn’t trust himself.
”So, uh. Nice view, huh?” he said instead. It was lame. True, but lame. Prompto looked away, rubbing his neck sheepishly. ”Sorry.”
