"This is crazy," Prompto breathed, his hands shaking. "A picture I took made this!"

'This,' was 15,000 gil that Vyv had casually exchanged for a picture of the Rock of Ravatogh. The boys were currently in Lestallum, and Prompto was seconds from exploding with happiness.

"What are you gonna do with it?" Gladio asked.

"I get to choose?" Prompto's voice was full of wonder.

"Uh, yeah." That was Noctis. "It was your picture that made the money after all."

"You'd best save it for a rainy day," was Ignis' sound advice.

"Or," Prompto began, before stopping abruptly. He grinned mischievously at his friends. "Or we could stay at Galdin."

Noctis perked up immediately. "I'd kill to stay at a hotel."

"You're staying at one right now," Gladio pointed out, referring to the Leville.

"Yeah, but the Leville is no Quayside Cradle." Prompto sounded borderline offended at the comparison. He turned toward Ignis hopefully. "Whaddaya say Iggy?"

Ignis sighed and pushed his glasses up his nose. "Into the car then."

"Yes!"

The drive to Galdin Quay was an incredibly peaceful one. The promise of staying at the Quayside Cradle brought a feeling of calm over the car. They had been there before, of course, the day that Insomnia fell. But that felt like so long ago – it felt as if years had passed, though in reality it had only been weeks.

"We gotta go to the beach, obviously," Prompto said excitedly, turning around in his seat to face Noctis.

"Obviously," Noctis echoed, his tone amused. It wasn't very often that they could just let go and have some fun, and Prompto's happiness was infectious.

"After lunch, perhaps," Ignis said, his eyes on the road.

Prompto gasped. "Lunch at Mother of Pearl?!"

"We may as well," Ignis responded. He made eye contact with Noctis via the rearview mirror. "If Noct doesn't mind us dipping into our savings."

"Fine by me." Noctis shrugged. "Besides, I'm sure another one of Prompto's pictures can make up the difference later."

Prompto sighed contentedly. "Y'know, guys, I think being a professional photographer might actually be in the stars for me."

"Wasn't it always?" Gladio asked.

"I, uh, didn't really think I could do it before," Prompto chuckled embarrassedly. "But it seems less like a crazy dream now!"

Noctis opened his mouth to respond, but was distracted by the glittering ocean that had just come into view. A few moments later, Ignis was pulling into a parking spot. Before they knew it, they held a key to a luxury room.

The room was bright and airy, and boasted a view of the ocean. They scattered immediately, checking out the incredibly soft beds as well as the balcony that hung right over the water. Noctis headed outside and peered into the ocean, hoping to spot a fish or two.

"Noct?"

Noctis turned toward Prompto, who had just stepped out.

"I totally didn't think of this before, but…" He ran his fingers through his hair nervously. "Are you okay being here?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" Noctis asked, genuinely curious.

"Oh!" Prompto wrung his hands together. "Because we were here when we found out about Insomina, so…"

Noctis felt his heart squeeze for a moment, but the pain was fleeting. He chuckled. "It's fine, Prompto. You don't have to worry about me."

"Good!" Prompto chirped. He lowered his voice. "But don't feel like you need to spare my feelings or anything, okay? We don't need to stay here."

"You sure about that?" Noctis asked wryly. "You've been dying to come back here."

"Anybody hungry?" Gladio interrupted.

"You bet!" Prompto rushed back into the room, leaving Noctis' question unanswered.

Lunch was a lavish affair, but nobody seemed to mind. They were all drunk off the salty breeze, and off the fact that, for a night, they didn't have to think about how terrible everything was. They laughed, and talked about nothing. For a moment, it felt like a night out back home. Back when everything made sense. Prompto felt a twinge of sadness in the middle of one of Ignis' anecdotes about what a terrible teenager Noctis was. He quickly shook it off as he realized what was next on the agenda.

"Beach time!" he said, standing up abruptly. "Come on, come on, come on!"

"Alright, chill." Noctis stood up and stretched. "A nap sounds better than the beach right now."

"You can take a nap on the beach," Prompto said, ushering them out of the restaurant.

"You could fish, you know," Ignis pointed out.

Noctis perked up immediately. "Beach time it is then."

Noctis sat at the edge of the dock, the sun warming his bare back. His fishing rod bobbed serenely in the ocean – until Prompto zoomed past him and jumped into the water.

"Dude, you're gonna scare all the fish away," Noctis wailed as Prompto resurfaced.

"They'll come back!" Prompto said, shaking the salt water out of his hair.

A few feet away, Ignis was reading under the shade of an umbrella. Gladio, of course, had decided to go on a run by the shore. It was warm, but not too hot. Overall, a perfect day for the beach.

Well, it would have been, if Prompto hadn't scared all the fish away.

Nobody noticed the hours trickle away. Soon, the sun was setting beyond the horizon. All of Galdin was bathed in an orangey red glow. Noctis, who hadn't moved from the dock in hours, gazed at the water appreciatively. He got up and made his way further down the beach, where Prompto stood in the water by some large boulders.

"You should take a picture," Noctis suggested.

"I should," Prompto agreed dreamily. He leaned against the boulder and sighed. "Nothing beats this – aah!"

The boulder he had been leaning on had shifted. In a matter of seconds, it had sprouted massive claws. It angrily snipped at Prompto, who shrieked. Things happened very quickly after that. Noctis worriedly tried to keep his eyes on Prompto, who was engaging in a bit of a struggle with the slow-moving Sparkshear. By the time Ignis and Gladio arrived, the massive crab-like monster was walking out of the ocean – with a pair of bright yellow trunks in its claws.

Noctis immediately started laughing, despite the fact that danger was literally a few feet away.

"Shut up!" Prompto shouted from the water.

"Sorry, sorry." Noctis was in tears, as was Gladio. Ignis was trying very, very hard to keep a straight face. "We'll get them back for you. Just – oh my God – just hold on."

The Sparkshear had been joined by a few of its friends. It was a relatively easy battle, given that they moved incredibly slowly. Noctis, however, was still weak with laughter, which made the fight drag on for a few minutes longer than it should have.

Ignis bent down and retrieved Prompto's trunks. He looked at Gladio and Noctis, and the three of them immediately started to laugh.

"You guys are the worst!" Prompto yelled, stranded in the water. He was silenced by the thwap of his trunks hitting him in the face. "Ow!"

Darkness eventually enveloped Galdin Quay, which had come alive with twinkling lights. Showers were had, and the boys found themselves lounging in the comfort of their room. Everybody was a little drowsy – everybody except Prompto, who was still grumpy.

"You still mad?" Noctis asked. He was lying on a bed and closing his eyes. Prompto was sulking on a nearby loveseat.

"No," he pouted. He lowered his voice. "You guys didn't have to laugh that much."

"Would room service improve your mood?" Ignis asked, handing Prompto the menu.

"No. Way." Prompto's sourness immediately melted away. "You mean it?"

Noctis was already up, peering over Prompto's shoulder. Prompto's little beachside incident was quickly forgotten as they bickered over what to get and how much to spend.

It was late when they finally went to bed. They big balcony windows were open to let the warm breeze in, and the gentle crashing of the waves filled the room.

"I wish every day could be like this," Prompto whispered into the darkness.

"Yeah, you made a good call," Noctis replied sleepily. "Know what my favorite part was?"

"Hmm?"

"When that crab stole your trunks."

"God, would you – shut up!"

Gladio snickered.