Letting Go
Author Note/Disclaimer: Originally this was supposed to be a oneshot, but it may expand to a chaptered piece, and this obviously an AU piece. In this particular piece, Stella and Noctis can't see the light, and don't have any powers associated with the light, the crystal doesn't exist. Tenebrae and Noctis kingdom were never at war. Stella is the daughter of an ambassador. Also I don't own Final Fantasy Versus XIII
"Congratulations on your upcoming marriage to General Lantis, Lady Stella," he says sincerely studying the blond noblewoman from Tenebrae. Bright locks of golden hair falling over her bare shoulders, wearing floor length strapless lavender dress.
She smiles at that statement, but the smile doesn't quite reach her eyes, and everything about it seems to scream fake. Clearly she wasn't to please with the relationship she with her engagement to the dark haired lord. He instantly got the feeling her marriage was arrange, like many women in her position ad his for that matter.
"Thank you, Lord Noct," she forces out, but he can tell those were the words weren't quite the words she wanted to say. For some reason he got the feeling, her upcoming engagement, and father were the last things she wanted to talk about.
Even though, she was on moderate good terms with her father when she came here with him five years ago, things have obviously become strained between them, but it certainly wasn't his place to ask what caused the strain between much less try to mend it between them.
Besides he already has suspicions on what cause the strain, and if he had to guess it has something to do with her arrange marriage to General Lantis.
Stella has always hated it when people made her decisions for her, and with something as huge as marriage to a man she barely knows, and is at least older than she is by a decade. There is only a few things he knows about General Lantis.
For instance he knows his reputation precedes him even on the battlefield even in his own kingdom winning several important battles in his youth, during the Cold War ten years ago, but other than that his knowledge about the man is very little.
But other than that he only has rumors to go by, on what he is truly like, because he has never meant the man, and truthfully he isn't entirely sure he wanted to meet him.
Especially when he still has feelings of love for Stella, despite the fact they have broken it off two years ago.
"He isn't here, Noctis," she utters after a moment. "He is currently fighting in Lucan."
He nods slightly, her father has mentioned something about a war with Lucan a couple of months ago, apparently their neighbor decided to attack them a couple of months ago, even though he isn't entirely sure of the reasons why. It could be simply for power.
"Are you pleased about that," he questions, knowing it was slightly inappropriate question to ask.
She shrugs lightly, "It would be disrespectful to say what I want here, when people have ears, and people will surely talk."
His lips curls into a slight smile at that at that comment, and the cruel selfish part of him wonders if she desires him dying on the battlefield, or at the very least still has feelings of love for him, but out of the two the latter is more likely.
Stella has never been the type to wish ill on another person much less wanting a person dead even though she has no desire to marry him.
But he also knows she accepted her fate of being General Lantis wife for the most part. She still dislikes the idea strongly, but he doubts she will do anything improper, that could either bring shame to herself or her family, regardless of their affair a couple of years ago.
He doubts her father and General Lantis knows about it either, and the fact that Stella isn't necessary pure anymore. Something that could have serious consequences if the general decides to proclaim the fact his wife isn't a virgin.
But at the time neither of them were thinking about the consequences of their act, and it was something they did countless times after.
"Will you be leaving tomorrow with your father?" he questions, his cerulean eyes resting on the older ambassador talking one of the council men in the corner of the room.
"No, I'll be staying here," she remarks emotionlessly, "safe from harm, safe from anything disastrous that may happen to my people."
The silent implication of until the war is over, wasn't lost on him, and who knows when that will be. Even though his father agreed to send troops to help aid Tenebrae, wars could last years and possibly even a decade, and Lucan is a large and powerful country.
"So I'm sure you will be seeing a lot more of me," she remarks and truthfully he couldn't quite capture the emotion in that last statement. For a minute he could have sworn he heard a hint of longing in her voice, but at the same time she almost sounded conflicted with herself.
A part of him knows letting go of her will be the hardest thing he has to do. Epecially with the knowladge he is going to see a lot more of her in the upcomming months and possiably years until the war to comes to a conclusion.
A part of him wonders if he should be please about that fact or not.