Winter's Warmth

by evilbunnygirl93

When the boys get into the next town they find that a girl has ran away and are asked by Dave to help find her. The reason she left brings up some painful memories for Prompto and after a small argument, he decides to split from the group to look for her on his own. Weakened by the cold, Prompto struggles as Gladio worries and provides the only thing he can when they reunite. His w

Prompto stared out of the Regalia's window as snow started falling from the sky. He took a couple pictures as they drove in silence. Gladio was in the back reading his novel as Noctis slept soundly leaning against the window. Ignis kept both hands on the wheel while staying attentive of the surroundings. He refused to play any music so he could have his full attention on the snowy road. Prompto occasionally found himself humming, much to Ignis's dismay, but the advisor said nothing about it. He already knew he was pushing the limits of Prompto's sanity.

Gladio smirked to himself listening to Prompto humming and peeked over his book to see Ignis gripping the steering wheel tighter than normal trying to keep himself from snapping. Gladio knew it was only a matter of time before Ignis lost his shit. He never was coolheaded when he felt that they were driving in a dangerous situation.

"Prompto," Gladio spoke up. "I'm trying to read and Ignis is trying to concentrate on the road."

"Huh?" Prompto turned away from the window and looked at Gladio then at Ignis. "Oh, sorry."

In the corner of his eye, Ignis saw Prompto shrink a little in his seat. Appreciating the silence, but at the same time feeling guilty.

"It's quite alright. The silence was putting me on edge anyways."

Prompto shifted in his seat giving a slight nod. Within a few seconds he tested out a soft hum and Gladio smiled as it slowly grew louder and more upbeat. He went back to his book as they continued onwards.

When they pulled up into town, Ignis knew something wasn't right. There was a small crowd by the Crow's Nest and the rest of the street was empty.

"This seems off." Prompto said as they parked. Gladio had put his book away and nudged Noctis awake who groaned, but dragged himself out of the car with the others. Prompto shivered rubbing his hands over his bare arms as they walked to the crowd.

"What's going on?" Noctis asked and a woman holding a baby turned to them.

"Oh, passerbys?"

"You could say that." Ignis said. "May I inquire what has happened?"

"A little girl went missing." A familiar deep voice spoke. The crowd parted as Dave walked through with another hunter in tow. "I'm glad to see you boys here. We could sure use your help."

"Sure, what can we do?" Noctis asked right away.

"This morning, I returned from a hunt," The hunter by Dave spoke. "My little girl she was upset because I had left again. She started crying about how scared she was that her mother and I are always gone. She didn't even give me a chance to talk and she ran to her room. I gave her time to calm down, maybe thirty minutes tops, and I went to check on her. Her… she was gone and her window was open... I …" The man stuttered as tears ran down his red cheeks.

"A lot of people around town are looking and we have a few hunters searching outside of town. We need some more eyes out there, preferably skilled ones." Dave said. "Jack's wife is out looking for Suzie, that's the little girl's name. She just turned seven, black hair, brown eyes, and she took her favorite green coat."

"Why aren't you out there looking?" Prompto asked, glaring at Jack. Gladio glanced at Prompto then at the other two. He wasn't the only one sensing the change in the gunslingers attitude.

"I brought him back." Dave said sensing the same tension forming. "He can't be out there with a distracted mind."

"You'd think a father who's looking for his kid would only have determination to get her back. Nothing could distract him from that."

"What the hell are you implying kid?" Jack snapped.

"Just that a loving parent wouldn't leave their kid alone or give them a reason to run off in the first place." Prompto said holding his ground.

"Why you little—" Jack growled stepping forward, but Dave quickly placed an arm across the father's chest, stopping him.

"If she ran away it's because you're fucking up."

"Prompto!" Ignis snapped. "Enough."

"Yeah man, chill." Noctis said. He turned back to Dave who was still holding back Jack. "Sorry, Jack, he hasn't been getting much sleep."

Before Prompto could respond, Gladio covered his mouth and pulled him back a little. "Shut up."

Noctis kept his attention on Dave and Jack as he heard his friend moving behind him. "Where do you want us to start looking?"

After Dave got Jack to calm down and to walk away, he marked some areas on Noctis's map for them to start looking. They gathered some gear and wrapped up in long coats before heading out. It was too cold for chocobos to be running around so they had to walk instead which didn't help their moods that much. When they were out of town, Noctis finally spoke up.

"Prompto, why did you suddenly snap like that? The man was grieving he didn't need your attitude on top of it."

"I stand by what I said. It wouldn't be an issue if one of her parents were with her. You heard what he said, both of them are hunters which means they're never home."

"You don't know that." Gladio said. "They could only be hunting around here and one may be home with her while the other is out. You don't know the situation that they have."

"I know it is bad enough for a seven year old to run away." Prompto retorted.

"Either way, you had no right to say those things to Jack." Ignis said. "When we return to town, I expect you to apologize."

Prompto looked away, keeping his scowl like a little kid being scolded. He followed behind as they walked into the nearby trees to start looking.

During their search, they had ran into a few other hunters and shared information about the areas they've already searched in before splitting up. Every once in a while they'll call out Suzie's name, but they kept it to a minimum to avoid attracting monsters. They had no problem with fighting them, but they didn't want to bring danger to Suzie if she was nearby. They didn't mention the incident from earlier, but they could still tell that it was on Prompto's mind. He wasn't talking to them, in fact the only time he did speak was to call out for Suzie. Gladio tried to get Prompto riled up with sarcastic comments to at least try and get him to talk to them, but he just ignored the big man.

Noctis was getting tired of Prompto's attitude and not talking about it. He slowed his pace to match Prompto's as Ignis and Gladio stayed ahead, but they made sure to listen. Noctis bumped Prompto on the shoulder.

"Hey man, what's bugging you?" Noctis asked, but didn't get a response. "You know you can always talk to me. We're best friends. You should be able to tell when something is bothering you."

Prompto stopped in his tracks and the others did so as well. Ignis and Gladio turned to face them. The gunslinger refused to look them in the eye. He bit his lip and opened his mouth ready to talk when Noctis's phone rang. The prince was ignoring it letting the ringing sound echo through the trees. Ignis cleared his throat.

"Noct."

Noctis gave in and answered the phone. "I can barely hear you, you're breaking up a lot. Are you sure about this? Okay, we'll head back." He hung up the phone. "It'll be dark soon. They're calling off the search for the night and continuing in the morning."

"What? You can't be serious." Prompto snapped. "We can't leave her out here on her own. Daemons will find her and…"

"Prompto, it dangerous for us as well." Ignis spoke calmly. "Dave cannot endanger the lives of others."

"No fucking way!" Prompto's voice wavered and his eyes became watery. "There's no way I'm leaving her out here. If you asshole want to go back, then go. I'm staying and looking until I find her."

"Prompto—" Noctis started grabbing his friend's shoulder, but Prompto shrugged him off and took off running in the snow. "Prompto!"

Noctis started going after him, but Ignis grabbed his arm stopping. "Let him be. We must find suitable shelter for the night."

"I'm not leaving him out here on his own." Noctis snapped, but Ignis maintained his cool composure.

"Prompto is my friend too, but my duty is to make sure you're safe."

"Specs, you can take the prince and rest up. I'll go after Prompto and drag him back." Gladio said.

"What the hell?" Noctis said with a glare. "We're not going back. We're going to get Prompto, then we're going to find Suzie. Gladio, what if this was your sister, you'd be the first one running into the woods to find her. Ignis if this was me when I was her age, you wouldn't sleep until I was found. We can't just leave her out here."

"I understand, but like I said before, we must find suitable shelter first. We need to have a go to place in case we're unable to make it back to town for any reason." Ignis said with a rare soft smile. "You misunderstood before. We want nothing more than to reunite with Prompto and bring Suzie home safely, but we must think ahead. Prompto does not have a clear mind at the moment. Let us give him time alone to calm down."

"You two go ahead, I'll hunt him down." Gladio said.

"Gladio, I prefer you stay with us. We need the extra eyes in the darkness. Prompto will be okay on his own. He's come a long way since high school." Ignis said.

"I just… I don't want to leave him out there all alone thinking we've given up." Noctis said quietly.

"He'll come around." Gladio said patting Noctis's back. "We'll find him and Suzie."

"I do believe I spotted a cave earlier today. Let's see if it is empty of any residence." Ignis said walking in the opposite direction from where Prompto ran off. Noctis gave one last look before following his advisor.

Gladio stayed for a moment looking in the same direction, his hands clenched together. "
Prompto, stay safe."

Prompto's teeth were chattering as he walked through the heavy snow rubbing his hands over his arms. When he ran off from his friends, he had expected them to chase after him and drag him back, but when he slowed to catch his breath he realized nobody was behind him. He wasn't sure if he was happy or upset about it. It wasn't too long after that the forest became dark and the temperature seemed to have dropped a few degrees. Prompto adjusted the beanie on his head to cover his ears a little more as he walked on.

The wind blew softly carrying the shrieks of nearby daemons, but this didn't deter him. Prompto walked faster through the snow ignoring the fatigue of his own body as he looked around. He called out Suzie's name. It wasn't as loud as earlier, in fact it was more like a whisper. When he didn't get a response a stopped walking. He stared up the dark trees and his shoulders dropped.

"What am I doing?" He mumbled. There was no answer, only the wind blowing through the trees rustling the branches. His body turned around to head back when he heard a high pitch scream.

Prompto turned back around hearing a second scream before taking off in the direction it came from. He ignored the burning sensation in lungs that the cold caused as he ran through the trees jumping over logs and dead bushes. The screams were getting closer and sounding more like cries. With every step he could sense he was getting closer until his flashlight caught a glimpse of a goblin running through the forest carrying a lime green jacket with two others chasing it. There was another scream and Prompto turned to his right to see two more goblins tugging at a little girls arms.

The girl cried out as she tried to pull her arms away, but one of the goblins started jumping up and down as it tugged at her limb. The little girl looked up when a flashlight shined on her and the next thing she saw was Prompto kicking the goblin in the head. The goblin lost its grip and fell back, but it didn't have time to get back up before Prompto shot it twice. The other goblin let the girl go and jumped onto Prompto's back. The gunslinger twisted around grabbing at the daemon and threw it off before shooting it as well.

It became silent except the sound of sniffling. Prompto called his gun off and turned to the girl to kneel in front of her. She was wearing a thin long sleeve blue and a pair of blue jeans.

"Are you Suzie?" He asked and she nodded slowly. He smiled. "My name is Prompto, everybody from town is looking for you. Dave asked us to help bring you home."

Suzie sniffled. "E-even my parents? They're looking too?"

Prompto felt a slight sting in his heart, but he kept his face up. "Of course they are. They're worried sick about you."

"I… I wanted them to find me. They're always going out and fighting monsters and finding people. I thought they would find me too. I want to be more important than those monsters."

"Hey," Prompto said rubbing her cheek, feeling her shivering. "You are the reason they go out and fight. They want to keep you safe from monsters and daemons. They sacrifice time with you in order to protect you. Trust me, the only thing they think about is coming home to their sweet daughter. You're the only meaning in their lives."

Suzie sniffled. "Are they going to be mad at me?"

"They'll be upset, but probably more with themselves than with you. They'll be happy to see you." Prompto said. He stood up unbuttoning his coat, and shrugged it off before kneeling back to wrap Suzie up with it. She looked up at him seeing him with only a tank top and dark leopard jeans on.

"Won't you be cold?"

"Nah, I'm fine." He said pulling her up to her feet. She was drowning in the coat, but he tightened the ends around her legs before buttoning the front up making the coat into a makeshift onesie. Prompto pulled his beanie off and slipped it on her head covering her red ears. He turned around holding his arms behind him.

"Hop on."

Suzie nodded and waddled to his back to jump on. Her weight was nothing as he stood up and carried her piggy back. Suzie buried her face in his shoulder. "Thank you, Prompto." She mumbled.

Gladio kept looking back into the trees as they kept up a steady pace. Part of it was his habit being the prince's shield, the other was looking for any signs of Prompto suddenly popping back up. It was doubtful since they had gone in a completely different direction, but he kept hoping. The darkness in the forest was thick even without the trees covered in leaves which made their progress slow. Ignis had marked the cave earlier on the map just in case and according to him they were getting close. Noctis was anxious to find it as was Gladio. As soon as they inspected it, Gladio was planning on hauling ass to find Prompto.

It was one thing to be traveling alone a night, it was another to be doing in the middle of winter. Prompto didn't think about things all the way through which means he's bound to do something stupid. Not that it was always a bad thing, but it made Gladio worry if he wasn't around. At least he or one of the others could have Prompto's back when he did stupid things. If he got hurt, they would be there to give him a potion.

Gladio stopped in his tracks, and Ignis stopped along with Noctis. Ignis turned. "Is there something wrong?"

"Prompto doesn't have any potions on him, does he?" Gladio asked already knowing the answer. Typically they all carried at least one with Noctis and Ignis carrying the rest. Prompto would sometimes waste a potion on a minor scratch so Ignis made sure he gave the gunslinger limits in order to preserve their supplies.

Ignis knew the face Gladio was making and he wasn't going to argue. He instead walked forward holding out two potions to the shield. "The cave is up ahead. Noct and I will clear it out. You go ahead and we'll catch up."

Gladio took the potions and nodded. "Noctis, just follow my trail okay. I'll come back the same way if I find him before you guys find me."

The snow crunched under Prompto's feet as he slowly trudged onwards. His head was dropped, arms and legs shaking as he took each step. It wasn't long without his jacket that the cold was hitting him hard, but he wasn't going to let Suzie freeze before him that's for sure. He let out a shaky breath as he glanced up and adjusted Suzie on his back. She let out soft noise as she shivered, but other than that they were both quiet. A strong wind blew and Prompto froze taking the brute of the wind trying to block it from hitting Suzie as much as possible. He gasped out when it stopped. His skin and lungs were burning at this point. He need to find shelter for them soon and get a fire going or else they really are going to freeze.

Prompto felt dazed as his feet slid across the ground, kicking snow as he did. The sound of rushing water peeked his ears and he looked up. He didn't see much in the darkness, but decided to turn a little to avoid the water. Suzie sniffled and he shivered as another gust of wind hit. After it was over, Prompto heard the sound of snow crunching and trees branches moving. He caught light dancing around and he blinked a few times as it shined in his direction.

"Prompto!" Gladio's deep voice sent a shiver down Prompto's back. Before he could move, his face was planted against Gladio's firm chest, although covered with a thick coat. He felt the big man's arms wrap around him. He could hear Gladio talking, but he was having a hard time making out was being said.

"Hey…hey!" Prompto blinked feeling his face being squished between two solid, gloved hands. He was looking up at Gladio. His eyes were wide with concern and his mouth started moving again. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

Prompto shook his head before pushing forward into Gladio's chest. "Warm."

Gladio wrapped his arms around Prompto's body. The gunslinger could feel the big man talking again, but his head didn't want to listen at all. "Prompto? Prompto is this Suzie?"

The name stirred him back and he looked up again. "Oh, yeah. She lost her jacket. Gave her mine."

Gladio sighed rubbing Prompto's arms. "I told you to layer up. I knew we should have bought you a couple of shirts. Your tank tops aren't meant for this weather."

"M'fine." He mumbled shivering from Gladio's warmth. Gladio stepped back to unzip his jacket, but Prompto shook his head. "I'm okay Gladio. No need for you to be cold."

"Says the freezing stick barely able to stand up."

"Gladio—"

"I'm giving you my jacket." He said unzipping it all the way.

"No, Gladio! Thunderbombs, behind you!" Prompto warned.

Gladio called out his Hardedge as he spun around seeing seven or so growing thunderbombs coming up to them from the trees. He gripped his sword tightly and swung it a nearby thunderbomb before looking back at Prompto.

"Run, get her away from here!"

"But—"

"We can't risk her getting hurt. Noct and Iggy will be here soon. Just get out of range of these things." Gladio ordered. Prompto took a hesitant step back and nodded before running into the trees.

Prompto knew his numb legs weren't going as fast as he wanted them to go and his lungs were burning with each step. His run was more of a forced jog as he swayed back forth to keep his balance. The cold had taken more out of him than he had thought. He glanced back spotting two thunderbombs following close behind. He cursed his legs for going so slow. He gasped out as he stumbled forward and fell face first into the hard snow. Suzie let out a soft noise as she fell off his back. She sat up and started shaking him when she saw the daemons getting closer. He pushed his body up and quickly grabbed Suzie in his arms.

He got to his feet and started jogging again, but the thunderbombs were catching up. He didn't hear the water until he was standing on the edge of the riverbank watching the water rushing through carrying ice, tree branches, and other debris. Prompto twisted around calling out his gun as he held tightly to Suzie with his other arm. Before he could shoot at the first thunderbomb, he saw a flash of blue and then the prince appeared knocking it back. Prompto was breathing hard feeling his heart pumping in his chest as Ignis came through the trees with Gladio.

Three more thunderbombs had followed them as they joined Noctis. Prompto aimed his gun, but his hand wouldn't stop shaking. Too scared of shooting one of his friends by accident, he dropped his arm, but kept ready to use his gun. He watched as his friends fought the daemons back, making them shrink, but one floated away as it grew and came towards Prompto. He raised his gun and aimed at it. He didn't hesitate shooting at it, but it didn't seem to take much damage. Prompto thought he missed the second shot, and the third didn't do any good either. His legs were barely keeping him let alone were they going to let him run again.

The thunderbomb was close now and Prompto knew already what was about to happen. He could hear his name being called as he turned around shielding Suzie's body. The blast came less than a second later. His back burned and a searing pain shot through his body as it was pushed forward. The next second he went from feeling a burning heat to a burning cold as his lungs filled up with icy water. He felt his body dragging across the river bed and he kicked his legs out of instincts. He felt his head break the water surface and he coughed as his body was slung around. He felt Suzie cough more than hearing her over the rushing water.

It wasn't until he opened his eyes that he realized he closed them in the first place. The first thing he saw was his three friends running over rocks to keep up with him. He tightened his hold on Suzie as his body turned and slammed into debris. He spotted a rock coming up. He reached his hand out to grab it, but the force of the water pulled him away from it. He wrapped his arm back around Suzie to make sure he didn't lose her in the chaos.

Icy water kept getting into his mouth and nose making it hard for him to breathe and his body was becoming numb to the temperature. He felt his grip loosening on Suzie.

"Prompto, hang on!" Gladio's voice broke through his clouding mind and he tightened his grip. As his body whipped around he spotted a log being held by two rocks and he was heading straight for it. He could hear Gladio yelling for him to hold on and that they were going to save him, but all that went through his mind was the log getting closer and closer. He waited until the last second before letting one arm go from holding Suzie and he reached out to grab onto the log.

The water pushed him under and his hand slipped from the log, but as he came up from underneath he managed to grab a branch and held on. The water was slamming into his face as he tried to pull on the branch, but he didn't have the strength.

"Prompto!" His friends were yelling for him. He finally managed to look over and saw Ignis at the bank's edge holding his Drain Lance out.

"Prompto. You'll have to reach!" Ignis yelled.

The last thing on Prompto's mind was letting go of neither the branch nor Suzie, but he was becoming weaker by the second and one thing or the other was going to give. He took a few deep breathes as he studied the distance for a second before letting go of the branch. He reached his arm out and luckily as he did, a chuck of ice slammed into his back pushing him closer. He grabbed the spear's blade with his gloved hand, but he could feel his grip slipping already.

The moment Prompto grabbed on, Gladio took the spear from Ignis and pulled it back. Both Noctis and Ignis moved to the river's edge ready to grab their friend. Prompto felt the spear being pulled and tightened his grip. Gladio pulled the Drain Lance in two fluid motions and Noctis and Ignis were able to grab the two out of the water. The spear disappeared as Ignis pulled Suzie from Prompto's body and Gladio knelt next to his friend.

"Remove his clothes." Ignis ordered, doing the same for Suzie. Gladio pulled his own jacket off and laid it flat on the ground as Noctis stared pulling Prompto's clothes off. Prompto let out a soft gasp feeling the snow on his back, but his body was already mostly numb. Once Noctis pulled his friend's pants off, Gladio scooped him off the ground and laid him in the jacket, but before he could wrap the blonde up, he noticed something red. Gladio grabbed Prompto's hand and turned it over, seeing a cut across his palm.

"Damn it, the blade cut him." Gladio said. He reached under his layered clothes and ripped a piece of his shirt. He tied it around Prompto's hand before wrapping him tightly in the jacket. Gladio picked Prompto up in his arms and held him close to share some of his warmth.

Prompto looked up at him with half lidded eyes. "Gladio…"

"Hey we got you now. You can rest." Gladio said softly. "You did well."

Prompto closed his eyes, burying his face into Gladio's chest. The prince's shield ignored the icy water from Prompto's hair that was starting to soak though his second jacket and shirt. Within seconds, Ignis had rid Suzie of her wet clothes and wrapped his own jacket around her and picked her up as well.

"Noct, gather their clothes. We'll need to dry them out over the fire." Ignis ordered. Noctis gathered the stiffening clothes, trying his best to hold them away from his body so his own clothes won't soak up the water.

Gladio held onto Prompto tightly as they walked through the trees. Prompto had begun muttering and Gladio tried to respond, but he couldn't make out what the blonde was saying. They were getting close to the cave when Prompto stopped talking all together. Gladio gently shook him and he groaned.

"How are you holding up?"

"C-c-cold." Prompto mumbled.

"We're almost there. We'll get a fire started soon and warm you up."

"'kay" He said softly.

Ignis lead the way up a hill and at the top stood a small cave entrance, just barely big enough for Gladio to walk through without having to duck. Noctis dropped the pile of wet clothes and ran to the pile of tree branches he and Ignis had gathered earlier. He separated them into two piles a few feet apart and ignited a fire to both of them. Ignis sat Suzie down on one side as Gladio laid Prompto down on the other. Suzie sniffled as she scooted closer to one of the fires and laid on her side. Ignis rubbed her arm as she shivered and curled up into a ball.

Gladio unzipped the jacket Prompto had on and gently turned him onto his side to look at his back where the thunderbomb had exploded on him earlier. There were small burns, cuts, and bruises all over his back. Gladio rubbed Prompto's cheek and the blonde stirred a bit as he opened his eyes slowly. "W-where?"

"We found shelter in a cave." Gladio spoke softly.

Prompto furrowed his eyebrows. "Wh-y?

Gladio glanced up at Ignis before answering. "To get out of the cold weather, silly."

"C-cold. Why a-a-am I c-cold?" Prompto stuttered. Ignis was quick to come over and knelt beside Gladio.

"He's not shivering." Gladio said.

"Gladdy, 'm cold." Prompto mumbled.

"I believe he is suffering from hypothermia." Ignis said as Gladio handed him a potion and then immediately started shedding his layered clothes until he was down to his boxers.

"Dude what are you doing?" Noctis asked.

"Warming Prompto before his condition worsens." Ignis spoke for the Gladio as he broke the potion over Prompto's body. Prompto groaned feeling the potion heal up his wounds, making his back and hand itchy. Gladio laid next to the gunslinger and pulled the cold body up against his own warm one. Ignis helped take Gladio's discarded clothes and covered them up with the shirt and two thin jackets. Noctis walked up pulling off his long coat and covered them up with it as well.

"I'll grab some more firewood." Noctis said and rushed out of the cave as Ignis moved around to check on Suzie to make sure she wasn't suffering from the same ailment.

Prompto's mind was clouded mess, but he felt something warm pressing against him and he cuddled into it. It was a hard mass, but it was comforting at the same time. He let his mind drift away as the warmth wrapped around his back and made him shiver a bit.

Gladio held Prompto's body close throughout the night, being careful not move him around too much. Ignis was sitting by the fire staring at the cave's opening watching for daemons or monsters as Suzie slept soundly next to him. Noctis was laying by the other fire in a deep sleep as well. Prompto's and Suzie's clothes were hanging over the fires by a string Ignis had found, probably used for trapping animals. Gladio was waiting for the weight of the clothes to break it, but it surprisingly held strong.

The crackling fire and wind was starting to make Gladio drift off to sleep. His mind began to wonder when he felt something. His eyes open and he looked down to find Prompto starting to shiver. The gunslinger let out a soft moan as he buried his face into Gladio's chest, so he tightened his hug around Prompto's body. Prompto placed a hand on the big man's pec as his face moved up. His eyes opened up and he stared at Gladio for a moment. After blinking a few times, his eyes widen and he tried to pull away, but Gladio only tightened his hold.

"Stay." Gladio mumbled. "You're still cold and I'm comfortable."

Prompto's body slowly relaxed and snuggled against Gladio again as his body shivered, but his face slowly grew red. Gladio smirked as he started rubbing Prompto's back making him moan a little.

"Feels good." Prompto mumbled into Gladio's chest. Gladio press his face against Prompto's head as he continued rubbing and soon they were both drifting off to sleep.

Morning seemed to have come out of nowhere and the sun shined brightly into Gladio's eyes. He let out a tired groan as he began to sit up, but he felt a weight on top of him. He lifted his head enough to see that Prompto was laying on his chest. Gladio's hand was on the gunslinger's back, he could feel one of Prompto's legs between his own, and the reminder that the blonde was fully nude came back full force. Prompto moaned as he moved up a little in his sleep and Gladio could feel the semi hard-on laying on his stomach. He hesitated for a moment, enjoying the feeling of Prompto on top of him, but eventually he started to gently shake Prompto.

Moaning louder, Prompto rubbed his face on Gladio's chest before opening his eyes. He slowly sat up, still unaware of his position, and the jacket slowly fell down. He raised his arms and stretched out his stiff muscles. Gladio watched every second as the blonde's lithe body stretched, then contract as he relaxed. Prompto rubbed his arms as he began to shiver.

"Cold" He whined.

"Then put on some clothes." Noctis said throwing a dried tank top at Prompto's head. Gladio looked over seeing Noctis, Ignis, and Suzie awake and cooking over one of the fires. His face began to turn red when he realized they've seen how the two of them had laying and how he had blatantly stared at Prompto a couple seconds ago. He looked back up at Prompto and found the blonde covering his face with his shirt, but Gladio was able to spot his redden ears.

He reached up and pulled Prompto back down on his chest and held him down. "If you're still cold then stay here and warm up some more."

Prompto felt his heart rate speed up as laid on Gladio firm warm body and the calloused hands began rubbing his back again. He was started to enjoy the moment when he heard a snort followed by a giggle.

"I see a full moon!" Suzie laughed. Prompto's mouth dropped as he looked behind his own back realizing he was fully naked…and on top of Gladio…who was mostly naked.

Ignis covered Suzie's eyes and he held an amused smile. "Why don't you hurry and put on some clothes."

Prompto didn't need to be told twice and he slipped on his shirt, then his boxers and pants, after Noctis had tossed them over. All the while Gladio also put on his clothes. He took the jacket that was on the ground and made Prompto put it on as well. Once there were fully covered, Ignis took his hand away from Suzie's eyes. Prompto sighed as he laid on his side beside the fire that wasn't being used for cooking.

"Are you still cold?" Gladio asked and Prompto nodded his head. The prince's shield easily picked Prompto up and sat him in his lap.

"G-Gladio?" The whimpered out, but the big man hugged him close and he could feel the warmth on his back already, or it might be his own embarrassment. Who knows?

Ignis had made some sort of meat on a stick for breakfast and when it was done they quickly ate it up. They snuffed out the fires and gathered their things, they wrapped Suzie up in Prompto's jacket like he had done the night before and had her ride on Noctis's back this time. When they started walking out of the cave, Prompto was already feeling tired, and was stumbling as they walked. He didn't have much energy to spare. Gladio knelt in front of him and told him to get on. At first Prompto waved off the idea of riding on Gladio's back, but after a little more walking and then falling to the ground, he reconsidered. Ignis helped him get on Gladio's back where his arms drooped in front of Gladio's chest as he dozed off.

Noctis spotted the town coming closer and was relieved to finally be back. He felt Suzie fidgeting on his back.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

"Yeah, I'm just scared that mommy and daddy are going to be made at me." She said softly.

"I think they'll be happy to see you again." Noctis said. "They've been worried about you."

"I know. I shouldn't have ran away." She mumbled into his back.

"True, but you were upset."

"Being upset is not a good excuse." Ignis interjected. "However I believe you will be forgiven under the circumstances."

"That's Ignis for 'it'll all be okay,'" Noctis translated and Suzie nodded her head.

"Is Prompto going to be okay?" She asked.

"Yeah, he may not look it but he's pretty tough." Gladio said. "Just a bit tired at the moment."

"Okay."

They walked the rest of the way in silence and soon they were walking up into town. Within seconds word spread that they had found Suzie and before they could even get to the Crow's Nest, Dave came out to meet them along with a woman.

Suzie's head shot up and she started moving to climb off of Noctis's back. He knelt down so she could get off safely and run up to the woman. "Mommy!"

Dave gave them a sad smiled before noticing Prompto. "Is he hurt?"

"He'll be fine. He will need a proper bed for the next day or so to rest." Ignis said. "Is there something wrong?"

Dave took a moment. "I need you're boys' help again." Prompto's head lifted up slowly to listen. "Last night, Jack went back out to look for Suzie, but he hasn't come back yet. We're worried he may have gotten hurt. Asking hunters to look for a little girl is one thing, but getting them to actively look for a hunter is another."

"The hunters won't look for him?" Noctis asked.

"They'll keep an eye out for him and for his dog tag, but hunters are capable of being on their own and don't need others looking for them."

"That's a load of—" Noctis started, but Ignis cut him off with a hand to his shoulder.

"We need to get proper rest first." Ignis said glancing at Prompto.

"I-I'm okay." Prompto said jumping off of Gladio's back. He stumbled back a bit, but caught his balance. "I got plenty of sleep riding on Gladio."

Noctis snorted. "Thought that kind of thing would tire you out."

Prompto's face became blood red. "Not funny.

Gladio patted his back knocking him forward a bit. "We all know Prompto is a 'layer' not a 'rider', too much work for him."

Ignis cleared his throat reminding them that they weren't alone. Dave no doubt looked at Prompto differently now, but the gunslinger didn't have the energy to defend himself. Ignis looked over at Prompto. "Are you sure you don't want to stay here and sleep?"

"I'm okay Iggy."

"There's no shame in taking a break." Gladio said. "You had a rough night."

"We all did, that doesn't mean you guys get to go out and let me sleep. No way. I'm coming with you guys."

"Why don't you and Gladio both stay then?" Ignis said. "Noct and I shall do this one on our own."

"But…" Prompto mumbled.

"You look like a walking ghost. Take a breather." Noctis said. "Gladio will be staying too."

"Who decided that?" Gladio asked crossing his arms. "As if I'm letting you go out there without me."

"Noct and I will be fine on our own for a few hours. You and Prompto should both get some more sleep." Ignis said giving Gladio a stern look. "You should have enough gil to get a room."

"I told you, I'm not staying here."

"Gladio, you need to stay here as well." Ignis urged once more staring him in the eyes. Gladio's eyebrows raised a little when he realized what Ignis was trying to do. Make it so Prompto would stay and rest, which he wouldn't do if the rest of them decided to leave. Gladio gave in with a nod.

"Fine, let's go Prompto. Our beds are calling us." Gladio said turning away. Prompto started to protest, but Gladio grabbed his arm and started dragging him away.

When they got to the motel, they only had two single bedrooms left, so Gladio paid for both of them. The two of them headed up to their room and went in where Prompto plopped face down on the mattress. His eyes were already heavy and he could fall asleep any moment. Gladio wouldn't let him sleep with his legs hanging off though. He pulled Prompto up and flipped him over. The blonde looked up at him with tired eyes. Gladio smirked as he started unzipping Prompto's jacket.

"Wh-what are you doing?"

"You can't sleep in these dirty clothes, Ignis would have a fit." Gladio said opening the jacket. Prompto sat up so he could pull it away before grabbing the tank top next. Prompto blushed as Gladio gently undressed him down to his boxers then maneuvered him under the blankets. Even though Gladio did all the work, the whole thing seemed to have exhausted Prompto. Gladio closed the curtains and turned off the light before undressing as well. He slipped under the covers and pulled Prompto up against his body just like the night before. Prompto's slow and heavy breaths hit his chest, telling him that the gunslinger was already out for the count. Gladio started rubbing his back as he buried his nose into Prompto's hair.

Prompto woke up slowly in the dark room. His brain was adjusting from waking up in the cold to waking up in a warm room on a warm bed. His eyes blinked noticing his vision going up and down. He rubbed his fingers on the solid warmth below him and he sat up realized he was on top of Gladio again.

"Awake?" Gladio asked. Prompto didn't need a light to know the bigger man was smirking.

"Y-yeah." He mumbled. He shivered feeling Gladio's hand rubbing his back, coaxing him to lay back down, so he did. Embarrassment and nervousness was catching up to him, but Gladio didn't seemed bothered by the fact that they were both mostly naked and laying together. "How long have we been sleeping?"

"I slept a couple of hours. You slept all day and half the night." That made Prompto sit up and Gladio followed suit, but he leaned up against the headboard.

"Are Noctis and Ignis back?"

"Yeah they returned a while ago. Probably sleeping in the other room by now."

"Did they find Jack?" Prompto asked. Gladio was quiet for a second, but then he reached out and rubbed Prompto's cheek. "Gladio?"

"They found his dog tag. They think a daemon got him last night." Gladio said softly. "Suzie still doesn't know yet."

Prompto grabbed Gladio's hand and leaned into it. "Oh."

"Can I ask you something?" Gladio said pulling his hand away.

"Sure."

"Why did you freak out on Jack about Suzie running away?"

Prompto shifted, bringing his knees to his chest. "I knew how she felt. Having an empty home all the time, thinking my parents didn't care about me, running away hoping they would come looking. In Suzie's case they fought through hell to get her back. In mine… my parents didn't even notice that I was gone for a week. They didn't care. I guess I thought of myself when I was her age. My anger toward my parents came out a little bit. I… I wanted to apologize, but now…"

Gladio heard Prompto sniffling and reached out to him. He pulled the blonde into a hug and held him as he cried.

After several minute passed, Prompto calmed down and sniffled. "I'm okay." But he didn't move. Gladio slid back against the headboard as Prompto leaned against him. "Gladio?"

"Hmm?"

"Why are you holding me like this? Doesn't it bother you, I mean we're both guys."

Gladio started rubbing Prompto's back again making him shiver. "Does it make you feel uncomfortable?"

"Not really. I… like it." He mumbled the last part burying his head into Gladio's shoulder.

"Good because I like it too."

"What does it mean though?"

Gladio hummed. "Well, for me it's the same as how I've always felt with you around. A 'like' that's more than a friend, but not like a brother."

"A 'like' that… has more touching and…maybe…" Prompto mumbled.

"What was that?"

Prompto's face was on fire, but he spoke slightly louder. "…kissing."

"Do you want to kiss?" Gladio asked rubbing his hand up to Prompto's neck.

"I-I mean…I don't know… I'm not really sure about these things."

"So you haven't kissed anyone before." Gladio chuckled and Prompto groaned. "Here." Gladio said readjusting their bodies so that Prompto was sitting on top of his thighs.

Prompto wiggled a bit unsure about sitting on Gladio, but the big man was smiling and rubbing his neck again. He pulled Prompto closer, and Prompto placed his hands on Gladio's chest. He tried to calm his breathing as they got closer. Gladio brushed his lips against Prompto's and the blonde let out a small gasp. Gladio pressed his lips harder, kissing Prompto properly. The gunslinger's body shook, but he pushed into the kiss, shaking as he wrapped his arms around Gladio's neck. He slowly pulled away, but stayed close enough that their noses were touching.

"Cute." Gladio whispered.

"Wha—" Prompto's lips were caught by Gladio again before he could say anything else. Prompto moaned a little feeling one of Gladio's hands rubbing down his side. Gladio smirked before slipping his tongue in catching Prompto off guard. He leaned back, but Gladio followed until Prompto had fallen back with the shield in tow.

They continued making out and rubbing their hands on each other until Prompto finally had to pull away. His tongue ached, he was out of breath, and his lips were swollen and tender. Gladio placed gently pecks on his cheeks and neck before placing a final one on his nose.

"I really liked that." Prompto whispered.

"Hmm, me too."

"So, what now?" Prompto asked.

"Well we could stop—"

"No!" Prompto said a little too quickly, "I mean…"

Gladio chuckled. "…or we could try to go a little further see where this takes us."

"You think it will go somewhere? You with me, I mean?"

"Only if you want it to." Gladio said.

"Yeah, I think I do. What about you?"

Gladio placed another kiss on Prompto's cheek. "I've wanted this for years."

"What? Seriously?" Prompto asked, his voice raised to a slightly higher pitcher.

"Yeah. I kept it pretty well hidden huh?"

"That's an understatement. Why didn't you say anything sooner?"

"I didn't want to scare you away. I was content with watching you at a distance. Especially since you have an infatuation with Cindy." Gladio chuckled.

"Oh yeah. She's pretty, but I don't there's anything there. I mean I tried, but I'm a complete loser."

"No you're not. She just has a different interest. I mean you have me falling for you and I'm the hottest person you know."

Prompto snorted, but laughed and Gladio joined him. Once they calmed down, Prompto rubbed Gladio's chest. "Hey, Gladdy, when… when we get more comfortable with this. Do you think we'll do… other things?"

"Other things being?" Gladio asked with a smirk knowing what Prompto was asking, but he couldn't help, but tease the blonde.

"Y-you know." He muttered. "Touching and other things… you know down there."

"Does talk about sex embarrass you?" Gladio asked and Prompto covered his face with a groan. Gladio moved his hands away and placed another quick kiss on Prompto's lips. "You're cute when you're embarrassed. When you're ready, I'll make you feel good in way you never knew were possible."

Prompto let out a moan and Gladio hummed. "I like the way you sound, I wait to hear what other noise you can make."

"Gladio." Prompto groaned and the bigger man laughed.

"Not tonight though. We'll just cuddle and sleep for now. In the morning we'll talk about it more, okay." Gladio said. He pulled Prompto back up so they could fix the bed and lay back down for the night. Prompto cuddled up against Gladio as the shield's arm wrapped around his body protectively. Gladio's warm body was enough to make Prompto fall right back to sleep within minutes.