Disclaimer: Don't own ff15, obviously, otherwise I sure wouldn't be making this fanfic, I'd definitely add this to the game
'Noctis'= Thoughts
OoO= Short pause/cut
XxXxxxxx= Long pause/cut
*Noctis= Sound
A/N: So I wanted to make this fanfic to expand on the world of FFXV, while the gameplay is incredible, the story leaves much to be desired considering the great potential it has. So anyways, enjoy:)
Chapter 1: Parting Ways
It was an early morning, the clouds were parted slightly to let a sliver of sunlight escape and illuminate the evened pavement of the city grounds. Noctis slept at the near top of the apartment building, though being the prince, he could sleep in any room he wanted, in his own apartment, the sunlight could barely etch the top before day break came.
*ring
*ring
Emitting a soft groan, Noctis turned over and quickly pressed the snooze button on his alarm, then promptly settled back to sleep.
*ring
'What is it now…' He thought, before slowly sitting back up and grabbing his phone. "...huh, it's Specs," Noctis muttered to himself. "Guess it must be pretty important."
"Hello?" Noctis said.
"Good morning, Noct. I didn't wake you, did I?"
"Yeah, well, the alarm sure didn't."
"Then I was right to call you."
Noctis let out a short yawn. "...but it's so early, I don't even think the sun's out yet."
"I'm heading over regardless, you had best be awake and ready by the time I get there. Altissia is quite the distance and his grace is eagerly awaiting your presence."
"Right-right."
"Good, I'll arrive shortly."
*beep-beep
Noctis cracked a wry smile as he finally got out of bed.
OoO
Locking the door behind him, Noctis approached the Regalia, where Ignis was impatiently waiting. "It's been awhile since I've been in this car," Noctis said, taking his seat on the passenger side.
"You were in this car about a month ago, I believe," Ignis remarked, gearing the engine. Surprisingly, Ignis wasn't yet dressed in his custom fit royal garments, rather he had a on a plain striped shirt with suspenders and faded gray pants, which made Noctis feel a lot more comfortable that he wasn't dressed yet either.
"Well, not really much of a reason to use this car since you always drive me around in yours."
Ignis sighed in a mock exasperation. "Forgive me for working too hard."
"Sooo, why this car today, anyways?"
"For the guest's convenience to go to the signing ceremony, at least that's what Captain Darutos mentioned."
"Ah, I see."
"I shall entrust this car to him once we arrived in Citadel."
"Yeah, the Regalia's practically brand new. I don't mind him driving it."
Ignis glanced at Noctis, a grin crept up his face. "And you don't want to drive, Noct? I recall you being rather eager to drive once you got your license."
"I was eager to drive, then I found out about traffic, and it's not like I can just go anywhere I want. It's a lot easier to let someone drive for me."
"Are you sure it isn't an excuse to get more sleep?"
"You got me," He fidgeted with his seat position for a bit until he turned back to Ignis. "Y'know, I bet Iris is pretty excited to drive the Regalia, took her forever to get her license."
"She simply hadn't the time, Gladio rarely allows her to have a break from training."
Noctis kicked his shoes back onto the dashboard. "Must be tough being the King's shield…"
"It's no harder than being the King's advisor." Ignis jokingly replied.
"I can only imagine how you feel Ignis," Noctis said half-sarcastically, half-honestly.
OoO
The Regalia smoothly rolled into the parking, Ignis and Noctis stepped out of the car and met with Drautos, the hard faced, heavily clad Captain of the Kingsglaive, who was waiting in front of the Citadel that stood soaring above the sprawling city of Insomnia.
"Your Highness," Drautos swiftly greeted. "We've been waiting."
"It's been awhile, Drautos."
"Yes, it has. Ignis, the car?" Drautos asked.
"In the parking lot."
"Thank you, after your business here is finished, you'll be returning home, correct, Prince Noctis?"
"Yep."
"Understood, I'll have someone drop you off in the meantime."
"Thanks."
"And Ignis,"
"Sir?"
Drautos drew a hand past his short, brown hair. "Make sure you're available at all times, I'm not sure when King Regis will be able to see you all given his schedule."
Ignis attempted to suppress the expression of surprise on his face at the unexpected change of plans, but Drautos could read right through him. "His...meeting probably ran over longer than expected," Drautos supplied.
"So what happened to that 'his grace is eagerly awaiting your presence'?" Noctis asked, directing his question to Ignis.
Ignis pushed his glasses up, pausing before answering. "...I...had no idea."
"Hopefully his majesty will see to your departure tomorrow," Drautos said.
"Yeah, hopefully."
"Captain," Ignis suddenly said.
"Hm?"
"Is the date of the signing of the treaty still undecided?"
"Unfortunately, yes."
Ignis let out a short sigh, a sure sign he was beginning to get flustered. "Indeed."
"I understand your anxieties, but King Regis wishes to proceed with caution."
"Likwise…"
"In any case, I'll call you when I get word."
"Much obliged."
Noctis turned to enter the Citadel. "So...what'll we do 'till Drautos 'get's word'?"
"It's up to you, Novt, though I assume you'll take another nap."
"You know me too well."
The Citadel was spacious on the inside as tall as it was on the outside, with freshly waxed, gray marble floors to mark the special occasion. Noctis spotted Iris conversing with an attendant who happened to be a relative to Ignis (both of them seemed to share the same amount of patience). Once Iris caught sight of Noctis and Ignis, she immediately ran up to them.
"Hey Noct, Iggy!" Iris chirped.
"Salutations, Iris," Ignis promptly greeted.
"Hey," Noctis said.
"Ready for your big day, Noct?"
"Yeah," His tone was forcibly flat like he was trying to sound as aloof as he possibly could. It bothered Iris how distant he always sounded, but she could never find it in her to tell him.
"...yeah," Iris said, weakly.
"Iris, I dare say you're more excited about the wedding than the groom himself," Ignis lightly teased in an attempt to break the silence dragging on between the two.
Iris shifted uncomfortably, rocking back and forth on her jet-black boots. "...um…" She fashioned a loose smile. "Who wouldn't be?! Honestly, I'm just lucky I get to be Noct's escort, come on, I'm totally gonna have to get some worldwide recognition when the headlines read 'Iris, second seat of the Amicitia saves his highnesses' royal ass'!"
Noctis cracked a small smile. "I think I can manage, my combat skills are pretty good, right, Ignis?"
"..."
"Ignis?"
"Frankly it could use some further refining,"
"'Course you would say something like that."
The group began making their way to Noctis' quarters which lay buried deep within the confusing labyrinth called hallways. It was a nightmare to navigate for a foreigner, but having been raised here, Noctis had no trouble making his way through.
"Iris, how has your training with Gladio been going along?" Ignis asked.
"It's been hell."
Ignis and Noctis chuckled at her mock seriousness.
"After I completed the self-defense course in a day, when apparently it was supposed to be a three month long course, Gladdy decided he'd personally come up with his own self-defense course for me in preparation for the trip. At least now no one can say I'm underprepared..." She clarified.
"That does sound..." Noctis paused when a pair of guards standing as still and motionless as the statues decorating the halls greeted him with a bow.
"Good morning, your highness."
"Yes, Good morning!"
"Morning." He lowered his voice as they were passing by the two guards. "I can't stand... that."
"Being greeted?" Ignis questioned, slightly confused.
"No...all the formality, bowing their heads like that all the time."
"You are royalty," Iris said.
"I know but—" Before he could finish, two Kingsglaive guards rushed by, one bumped shoulders with Ignis.
"Pardon," Ignis muttered.
"Sorry 'bout that, sir!"
"Come on, eyes forward!" The other guard yelled.
Noctis watched the guards disappear behind the sharp corridor, he turned to Ignis who flashed a sardonic smile. "Were those...Kingsglaive uniforms?"
"Precisely, but they aren't from Crown City so I suppose they don't who you are."
"Doubt it, if they're in the Citadel 24/7."
Iris was awestruck by the guards. "So that was the Kingsglaive? I've never seen them in person before…"
"The Kingsglaive are his grace's own personal guards, and with the war going on, they've been rather busy." Ignis explained. "I imagine they have mixed feelings about the empire's terms for the treaty."
"I get everything out there will belong to Niflheim, but don't they live in Insomnia right now?" Noctis asked.
"Yes, but even so, their home will cease to be a part of Lucis, it must be shocking news to hear."
"Yeah…" Noctis stopped to open the door to his room, he went in while Iris and Ignis followed behind. His room was massive, likewise being a prince, but to Noctis that just meant he had more room to put stuff on the floor.
"Just like I remember it," Iris said with a laugh.
Ignis sighed. "Unfortunately." he faced Noctis. "I do hope you plan on tidying up your room since it won't be just you in here whenever you return. Speaking of, has Umbra paid a visit?"
"Nope, but I did send the notebook back, so she's probably busy or something."
"Doing what, I wonder?" Iris asked.
He shrugged. "Uh, Oracle-y things? I have no idea what Luna's doing right now," Noctis said.
"Whatever she's doing, we best start working on this room."
"Well then, Ignis, just pack whatever you think I'll need, and Iris—"
"Yeah, Noct." She was distracted by an old picture of Noctis and Luna together during their childhood, there was a noticeable coffee smudge on the edge she couldn't help but to wonder about.
"If you don't have anything better to do, would you mind helping out?"
"Oh, no, not at all, but I have to leave in a bit to see about my royal garments."
"What for, weren't they tailored a few months ago?"
"I kinda didn't like the shirt color so they…" Realizing how petty she sounded, Iris' tone and body language started to come off as sheepish. "...they...had to go back and re-tailor it..."
"Didn't think you were so picky."
"Yes, quite childish,"
"I know-I know...just don't tell Gladdy about this, or he'll make me go through another ten hours of training."
"We won't say a word about it, your highness." Noctis smirked as Iris shot him an angry glare.
Iris and Ignis went back to sorting out the clutter while Noctis eased himself on the bed—still made up after all this time. "I think I spent more time trying to sneak out of here than actually staying in here."
"Indeed," Ignis said, neatly packing in a second shirt into a suitcase. "Often I would go along with you, and every single time you escaped the king went into a panic."
"It's a good thing you did, otherwise, King Regis would've sent out his own Glaive searching for Noct." Iris mentioned.
"Imagine that, sure am a pretty big deal around here."
"I wonder why," Ignis said sarcastically. "Everyone gets so worried for you around here, especially after you sustained your injury."
"Yeah, I know."
"Before then you were a much more livelier child, I still wonder what happened."
"Seriously? I guess I did talk a lot less to everyone."
"Huh, really? Now that I think about it, I didn't see much of you after you got hurt until high school," Iris said.
"Is that when you started training as backup?" Noctis asked. "After I got stuck in that wheelchair?"
"Yeah...kind of sucks being second-born, I'll constantly be behind Gladdy and if one day I'm not, that means something terrible happened to him."
"I totally get where you coming from…" He mused.
"Nothing wrong with that, you're an important asset on the team regardless," Ignis said to lighten the mood, he faced Noctis after musing himself for a bit. "Speaking of, Noct, how have you been keeping up with your training?"
"Last week I confirmed I was pretty good at blade-warping," He let on.
"Hm, pray tell?"
"I warped-striked into some store by accident—no one got hurt, except for me when I fell."
"Novice mistake, but it seems you've really gotten down blade-warping after you've had so much trouble with it in the past, especially with your injuries."
"Not like I had a choice, if I can't warp I'm as good as dead out there."
Tired of sorting through the clutter, Iris plopped down beside Noctis. "Oh come on, none of us can warp, but it's not like we'll all die out there."
"I believe it's more about living up to potential than the latter," Ignis said.
*beep
*beep
It was Ignis' phone no doubt with the tone-less ringtone, Ignis gestured apologetically to Noctis and Iris before taking the call. He muttered a few words and briefly glanced over to Noctis, then returned his phone to his pocket.
Noctis and Iris looked at Ignis. "Unfortunately his grace is too busy to meet with us today," Noctis stared at the floor.
"I'm going to check on the baggage for the ceremony, in the meanwhile, you two should continue to sort through the belongings, it'll be a long road ahead of us." With that, Ignis gently closed the door behind him.
"Wish Iggy would take a load off once in awhile, he'll overwork himself before we even leave the citadel," Iris said.
"Don't sweat it, he likes all the extra work...I think..." Noctis trailed off. "Hey Iris..."
"What's up?"
"Do you think...I mean...never mind."
"What?"
"Nothing, I just spoke without thinking."
"You're always so closed off Noct, would it kill you to open up a little more?"
"Tch, you sound like my dad."
She toyed with him. "What, is my voice that deep?"
"You know that's not what I meant."
"Then what?"
Noctis let out a disgruntled sigh, Iris could tell he was reluctant, so she continued herself. "If it's any consolation, whenever you become king, you'll have some awesome friends looking out for you, whether you want us to or not."
"But...you think I'll make an ok king?"
"Yeah you'll make an ok king."
"Just an 'ok' king?"
"Hey, I'm just agreeing with what you said."
He snorted. "That's a first."
OoO
*knock-knock-knock
*kno—
The heavy wooden sword was knocked out from the soldier's clammy grasp and landed with a soft thud on the padded floors. The sound of grunts and sword clashing bounced off the spacious walls in the Crownsguard Training hall. Standing by the entrance was Clarus Amicitia, the king's own shield, and Gladiolus, his son, in admist all the sparring matches, they were going over security measures for the signing of the peace treaty between the august Lucis and the industrialized Niflheim empire.
"So even Cor will be out patrolling during the signing?" Gladiolus asked, leaning on the wall, he was already dressed in his royal fatigues which put his robust abs on display.
"As will the Crownsguard, but only the bare minimum will be on duty. You can never be too cautious with Niflheim." Clarus' short, rough white hair and worn skin showed his old age, now that he was past his prime, no longer was he the king's shield but a part of the king's ruling council.
"So the Citadel will be left to the Kingsglaive, then? Guess they don't know what you're capable of."
Clarus quietly chuckled. "The Kingsglaive has seen more than their fair share of battles, it's they who are capable, Gladiolus."
"Yeah…" He still sounded unconvinced. "You're the king's shield, aren't you?"
"In this time of peace, the Crownsguard fulfils a different role—for the people."
"Ah, so a people's shield."
"Precisely. Protecting the populace extends to his majesty."
"Really now," He said noncommittally.
"The sole duty of an Amicitia is to safeguard and support the king, Glaive or Shield."
"Like I haven't heard that before."
Noticing the sharp change in attitude in his son, Clarus adopted a much more formal tone. Looking at Gladiolus squarely in the eye, he spoke to his son as a royal advisor. "The ceasefire will certainly bring about many changes to Lucis, but no matter what, your duty as an Amictia is to keep Prince Noctis safe."
Gladiolus frowned, confused why his father felt the need to say this. "As always." He uttered.
"Protect him not just as the next king, but as a comrade and a true friend. I will do the same within the walls and I entrust you shall outside these walls."
"Yes, sir!"
*knock
The knocking came from the door. "Come in." Clarus beckoned.
Cor along with Prompto following behind entered into the training hall. "Pardon the intrusion," Cor said.
"And pardon me —" Prompto paused when he saw Gladiolus. "W-wait, Gladio?!"
"What're you doin' here, Prompto?" Gladiolus asked.
"For his Crownsguard uniform," Cor supplied, Prompto vigorously nodded after him. "So I figured he should meet the captain himself." Prompto nodded again.
"Got it."
Prompto tensed up when Clarus walked up to him. "Prompto Argentum, is it?"
He started to nod his head, then went in for a verbal approach instead. "Y-yes sir!" He was stuttering.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, it appears your training went smoothly, I see no injuries."
"Uh...n-no sir, no injuries! It went...smoothly...at least I think so." He stared at the ground for a second, before setting his eyes back on Clarus' seeping gray ones—at least he attempted to make eye contact, but it proved difficult. "Oh, a-and I promise to protect Prince Noctis with my life!" He sputtered out.
"That's very noble of you to say, but remember you must also protect yourself, hence the training."
He nodded.
"I understand you wish to accompany Noctis as his friend on this journey, take pride in that fact when you stand beside Noctis."
More nodding and a short 'Thank you'.
"Thank you for the time, and may you be on your way."
"Yes, sir!
"I guess I should check up on a few things too," Gladiolus said laxly, though it was just an excuse to follow Prompto out into the hallway.
OoO
"You gonna wait around here for Noct?" Gladiolus asked.
"Nah, I think I'm heading home for a little bit."
"What for?"
"I got word that my parents might be home and so I really wanna show 'em my new digs. It'll be proof that I'm deemed worthy to go along with you guys on the trip, I just hope they're here, otherwise I won't seem them in like, forever."
"It'll really suck if they're not there, won't it?"
"They...really aren't ever there. Maybe I'll see them a few times a month, my dad is a part of the Kingsglaive after all and with the treaty and stuff going on I don't see him that much."
"What about your mom?"
"Never bothered to tell me what she does...soooo if they're gone then I'm coming right back here!"
"Got it, but I might be out a little late, got dinner plans."
"Ooooh, pray tell." Prompto chirped in a mock accent.
"My family and I are going out to eat, which practically never happens so I figured I'd tag along, but whatever food they have can't beat cup noodles."
"Such refined taste, well, tell Iris I said hi."
"You can tell her yourself, can't you?"
"She told me she's been super busy lately trying to finish her semester in college while also training with you every day."
'Huh guess, I might of overworked her too much these past couple of months...' "Nah, her training is over now, so you should talk to her whenever you get the chance. I bet she's tired of seeing my face already."
"Then I'll definitely give her a call and annoy her!"
OoO
Iris stood in the main hallway looking over her re-tailored Crownsguard's uniform, it consisted of a plain burgundy shirt (the only spot of color on her entire uniform) coupled with a mini skirt held up by two loose belts, knee-length boots and a leather jacket with a faded Crownsguard insignia on the back. "Looks good, now all that's left is to..." She trailed off when she caught sight of Libertus, a fellow Kingsglaive guard, stumble to the ground, she rushed over to the heavyweight young man and picked up his crutches.
"You alright?" She asked, handing him his crutches.
"Yeah, I'm fine." He took a moment to heave himself upright. "Thanks."
"It's nothing, you're the Kingsglaive I heard of, right?"
"Yeah that's me, name's Libertus, and you must be Iris Amicitia."
She blinked. "You...know who I am?"
"Oh yeah I hear your name tossed around in a few bars 'round here, you're a pretty popular hunter."
She rubbed the back of her head. "Only because I don't charge as much as the other guys."
"And you do your work efficiently." He added cheerily.
"That goes for the Kingsglaive too!" She added cheerily as well.
"Much appreciated, we Kingsglaive rarely get as much praise as the Crownsguard."
"I can't imagine why, you guys are like, so awesome."
"Believe me, you're in the vast minority when you say that."
"That really sucks...oh, I should probably get going, sorry for bothering you."
"No not at all, in fact, you remind me of someone who I call my little sister."
"Really? Send her my regards."
"Will do."
The sound of Libertus' crutches sticking to the ground and his rough grunts got quieter and quieter as the moments passed until they were replaced by the sound of footsteps approaching her.
"Hey Iris," Noctis called out, he walked up to her. "Finally got your new Crownsguard outfit together, huh?"
"Yep, oh, are you going somewhere Noct?"
"Yep, Specs called and said he'll be working overtime so I'm riding back home with Darutos. Good thing too, I was bored as hell in that room."
"He's Kingsglaive too isn't he?"
"Uh yeah, Darutos is, why do you ask?"
"No reason, I just have them on mind."
"Gotcha, well, have fun doing whatever you're doing tonight."
"Going out for dinner?"
"Yeah that."
"You got anything special planned?"
"Other than for Ignis to chew my ear off as usual, no, not much."
Iris giggled. "Good luck with that, anyways, see ya, Noct!"
"Later."
OoO
The monotonous noises coming from the TV were drowned out by Noctis' inner thoughts as he lay comfortably on his couch waiting for Ignis to come in. When he finally did return to his apartment, it was late at night and all of his favorite programs were over.
'I shouldn't of even bothered to wake up today...' He took his phone out and scrolled through his recent text messages. 'Looks like Ignis should be coming here soon, good, I could use the company.'
Several levels below Noctis' own, Ignis and Prompto were entering into the apartment building. "Whoa this place is huge!" Prompto exclaimed, gaping wide-eyed at the ample room the lobby had to offer.
"It certainly is fit for a king,"
"And a prince!"
"That reminds me, Prompto, were you able to see your parents today?"
His face flickered with sadness for a brief second before he speedily masked it with a cheesy smile. "Nope, and I probably won't see them until we get back—maybe."
"That's rather unfortunate," Ignis pressed on the elevator button.
"Are your parents always gone like mine, Ignis?"
"On the contrary, my parents constantly supervised and directed my behavior so that I may act accordingly around the king. I don't remember there being a time longer than a minute when they weren't around me when I was young."
"So that's why you baby Noct so much, it's your job."
"Partly, but also because his mother died while he was so young, that's also why I've took it upon myself to fulfill that role for him."
The elevator door slid open and a young woman emerged from the outside, Prompto coughed and shifted uncomfortably. "'E-evening!" He squeaked out.
She nodded. "Good evening!" The words smoothly rolled off her tongue.
"Good evening." Ignis greeted.
"And good evening to you too!"
Prompto waited for the woman to disappear around the corner before turning to Ignis excitedly. "Did you see the way she looked at me?!"
"She's engaged," Ignis said as they entered into the elevator cart.
"Wha—how do you know that?!"
"Aristocrats know aristocrats."
"...damn it..."
The elevator door closed shut and began its ascent to the top. "Hey Ignis, do you cook a lot?"
"I wouldn't say 'a lot'."
"Really because Noct let me have a bite of his dinner once."
"And?"
"It was amazing!"
"Is that so?" He sounded slightly amused. "What of it?"
"I was hopin' that's what we'd be eating at camp, I know you usually cook in the kitchen, so I can't imagine how it would taste out on the road!"
The elevator stopped and they walked out into the hallway.
Prompto continued. "I actually asked Noct and he said there would be no problem, now I can't wait to eat more of your meals, Iggy!"
Ignis chuckled. "Well, I certainly don't want to disappoint, tell me, what are your preferences?"
"Anything—sweets, spicy food...uh, non-spicy food, even that really weird stuff they have on the TV cooking shows!"
"I'm hoping to experiment with the local ingredients, so I'm glad you can keep an open mind."
"It's my pleasure!" He said with an enthusiastic grin.
Ignis stopped to press the button the intercom. "We've arrived." Ignis said.
"—Be right there."
The door thrust open and the two entered in. Their facial expressions skewed when they saw how unkempt the Prince kept his own apartment, though, that part was expected. "Iris texted me and said she and Gladio will be here in a few minutes," Noctis said, then collapsed back onto his couch.
Prompto surveyed the room. "We'll need all the help we can get."
"Certainly, it'll be less of a cleaning party and more of a cleaning expedition," Ignis said.
Noctis grunted, then pulled himself off the couch. "With all this bitching we might as well get started right now," He said sharply.
"Capital idea, Noct," Ignis said, he bent down and collected discarded wrappers on the floor.
"Can I use your bathroom first, Noct?" Prompto suddenly asked.
"Sure, it's down the hall to the left,"
As Prompto scurried off, Noctis walked over to a pile of clothes.
"Doing laundry, Noct?" Ignis called out, already he had compiled a trash bag full of wrappers.
"Nah, there's something I left in here a while ago...somewhere…" He threw several birthday shirts on the hardwood floor. "But feel free to do the laundry part, Specs."
Ignis scowled and walked over.
"—ah, here we go," Noctis pulled out an old tackle box. "It's my fishing gear."
"I'll make sure we'll visit a few fishing spots along the way," Ignis reassured, hinting the excitement trickling into the prince's usually flat voice.
"I've practically fished in every single body of water in Insomnia, can't wait to test my skills out there."
"As will I test out my cooking skills with any edible fish you happen to reel in."
"In that case, I'll reel in plenty."
*beep
"Got it." Noctis jogged over to the door then swung it open.
Iris and Gladiolus walked in both wearing loose smiles. "What's up." Iris greeted, her tone sounded more tired than usual.
"Yo." Gladiolus muttered, his tone also seemed a little off.
"Hey."
"Sorry we ran so late, Gladiolus wouldn't stop nagging me to make all these damn stops everywhere," Iris said.
"It's not my fault, none of the stores had I wanted."
"What...were you looking for?" Noctis asked cautiously.
"Cup Noodles." They both said at the same time.
"So you're fighting about...Cup Noodles…?"
"Got a problem with my Cup noodles?" Gladiolus asked forcefully.
"Will you shut up about your Cup noodles, you act so childish sometimes!"
"Me act childish?! Don't pretend I don't know about your sudden 'outfit change'."
"That has nothing to do with this!"
"Uh-huh."
"Gladio, Iris." Ignis walked up to them having already sorted out Noctis' clothes. "No use in agitating the situation any longer, we have plenty work to do."
Iris and Gladiolus sighed in agreement. "You're right about that, kinda expected for Noct's room to be a mess, but damn," Gladiolus said.
"Yeah, it's like we're in one of those hoarders TV shows," Iris said.
"Just get cleaning you two." Noctis grumbled.
"Where do you want us to start?" Gladiolus asked.
"Anywhere's fi—"
There was suddenly a rummaging sound coming from down the hall, the bathroom door clicked open and Prompto walked out carrying a tall stack of old comic books. "Check out all the comic books I found in your bathroom, Noct! Never knew you had so many!" Prompto yelled out.
"I don't, half of 'em are yours," Noctis said.
Prompto frowned. "I thought I recognized some of these…" He muttered. "So what do you wanna do with these, Noct?"
"Meh, whatever."
"'Meh whatever'?! This was our childhood, Noct, and that's all you have to say?!"
"Yeah, I'm not into that kid stuff anymore."
"Really?" Iris asked, she strolled over to the tower of comic books and fingered through tattered childhood memories. "Some of these are in mint condition, betcha you can get a lot of money if you sell some at a pawn store."
Prompto gasped. "Sell them?!"
"Oh cool, you have some shounen in here too Noct. I used to love reading these, bet they would sell a lot if we bring 'em to the right guy."
"I can't even look at you anymore Iris," Prompto said.
Noctis nodded, competely dismissing Prompto. "Sound like a plan once we get back."
"Et tu, Noct?!"
Noctis shrugged her shoulders and went back to arranging the laundry. The room soon fell silent when everyone continued cleaning, with only a few short exchanges and the sound of typical cleaning noises filling in the soundless air. The hours crawled by and the once pitch black night, seeped into morining when the last trash bag was finally discarded.
"When you move all the trash out, this place looks massive," Prompto said in awe, reclining in the only chair left in the apartment.
"What a shame it'll be the last time we see it like this in all it's former glory," Ignis said. "When we return Noctis will begin his new life."
"It's hard to imagine what life will be like then."
"Better." Gladiolus stated.
"What do you think, are you excited for your marriage?" Prompto asked.
"Yeah, a little."
"Just a little? I'd totally be freaking out right now if I were you right now!" Iris said.
"Same here, I'd have to keep on pinching myself to make sure it isn't a dream!" Prompto added.
"I do believe Noct is more excited to see his bride after so long than the marriage itself," Ignis said teasingly.
Gladiolus smiled. "Hope the bride's just as excited to see Noct as he is to see her right now."
"Knock it off you guys." Noctis grumbled. "I'll tell Luna just how excited I am to see her whenever we get to Altissia, happy?" Everyone nodded to spite Noctis and he rolled his eyes.
"Hope you guys are all prepared for the trip from here to Altissia, the outside is no joke," Gladiolus said.
"Yeah, I hear there are wild animals out there that just walk up on you," Prompto said.
Iris broke out into a broad smile. "That sounds exciting, but terrifying all at the same time, there's gotta be a word for that!"
"Thrilling, capricious, exhilerating..." Ignis suggested.
"How about 'tericiting'!" Prompto said.
Ignis and Iris shared a tired smile.
"So then what do you guys wanna do in the meantime, before we get to anything 'tericiting', it's still early in the morning." Noctis said.
"What else?" Gladiolus got out his phone. "King's Knight!"
Noctis smirked. "You're on."
So just a few things
-Iris is 19 in this story, no one is aged up but her
-All of this I got directly from the Parting Ways script, so if you would like to check it out feel free to, literally, it's free
And of course,
-If you have any suggestions or anything relevant like something I forgot to add, please tell me
That's all, thanks