(A/N: I'm doing this as pre Altissa and AU. My first kink meme fill. Hope its good.)
It had been an absolute shock for Ignis, Gladio and Noctis to wake up one morning without Prompto around. They had stopped to spend the night at Hammerhead's caravan after a week of camping to complete hunts for Dave and Cindy. Their exhaustion had been so complete that even Ignis had a hard time staying awake long enough to wash up before collapsing in one of the beds.
Ignis was the first one to wake up the following morning, smiling at the sight of his two friends sleeping peacefully before he frowned, where was Prompto? Quickly getting dressed, the Prince's adviser quietly left the caravan to find their wayward companion. The first place Ignis checked was Takka's Dinner, perhaps the ever ravenous young man had decided to have breakfast before the rest of them. Takka greeted the adviser as he walked through the door, ''Morning Ignis.''
Ignis returned the greeting, his eyes searching through the dinner as he did, '' Good morning Takka, did you by any chance see Prompto this morning?'' The chef shook his head slowly, '' Sorry can't say I did. Maybe you should check with Cindy, she was up all night working on your car.'' Ignis thanked the man, trying to ignore the budding feeling that something was wrong with the situation as he left the dinner and headed toward the garage.
Even from a distance, Ignis could spot the mechanic leaning into the hood of the Regalia. He approached carefully and coughed to announce his presence. Cindy hummed as she stood back up to look over at Ignis, a wide smile appearing at his sight. '' Well good morning! Sleep well?'' Ignis returned her smile with his own, '' A good morning to you as well, I sleep well.'' He paused a bit before continuing, '' Did you happen to see Prompto this morning?''
Cindy grabbed a grease stained towel, wiping her hands on it as she considered her answer, '' Not this morning sweetie but I thought I saw him last night. He came out of the caravan looking spooked and headed towards the back of the shop. I was busy with the repairs so I dont know if he got back to the caravan or not.'' Ignis stiffened, trying to keep his composure as he listened to the mechanic talk. With a hurried thanks to the lady, he headed towards where Cindy had told him Prompto had gone to last night.
He tried to convince himself that Prompto had simply gone out for some fresh air and fallen asleep but it didnt sound like the perky young boy that he had come to know. Ignis rounded the corner and stopped abruptly at what he saw. At the back of the shop, just off the edge of the wall was Prompto's camera. Prompto never went anywhere without it! Ignis hurried to it, panic starting to make its way into his every thought.
The camera seemed unbroken if a bit scratched on one side and as Ignis lifted it up carefully he saw a folded piece of paper lying on the ground. The adviser reached a trembling hand to it, picking the stark white paper from the ground and slowly opening it. A single picture fluttered down, falling face up as though to allow Ignis to fully appreciate what was being shown. Prompto, eyes closed with blood streaming from a sharp cut on his forehead with Ardyn kneeling beside the unconscious boy, hand around the blond's slim neck and a amused smirk visible.
Ignis didnt bother reading the note just yet, quickly picking up the picture and heading straigh back to the caravan. He didnt bother being nice as he slammed the door open; knowing that the sound would wake Gladio up while he leaned over to grab a glass of water to splash on Noctis' face. The water woke the prince up sharply and Gladio swore at Ignis for waking them up so roughly but the look on the trembling adviser'S face quickly quieted any anger.
''Ignis? what happened? Wait... Where is Prompto?'' Asked Noctis as he looked around for his best friend. Ignis swallowed before extending the picture and note to the prince, '' He was taken by Chancellor Izunia sometime last night. I found those behind the shop with Prompto's camera.'' Gladio got up and made his way to read the note and see the picture for himself. Both Noctis and Gladio's face going pale as they saw the frightening sight of Prompto in the hands of their enemy.
Ignis carefully placed the camera on the caravan's small table as he sat down and started planning on how to get their friend back. Gladio gritted his teeth, '' That bastard! We should have been more careful, he was too interested in Prompto to be just friendly back at the Disc! I'm going to rip him to pieces for this!'' The Shield jumped up, as he shouted, walking from one end of the caravan to the other. Noctis was pale and quiet as he read and reread the note, trying to ignore the image burned into his mind of Prompto lying motionless at the mercy of a deranged man.
The note revealed very little of Ardyn's intention, simply stating: I've borrowed your chocobo. Dont worry he'll live, playing with the dead isnt nearly as fun as people say. Who knows how lovely he'll be next time we meet? Noctis took a shuddering breath before saying, '' We have to find him. There wasnt any Nif airship or we would have heard it. He cant have gotten far.'' Ignis looked up and Gladio stopped pacing before all three moved.
Ignis quickly packed their belongings while Gladio went to grab some supplies with Noctis bringing the repaired Regalia closer after giving Cindy a quick explanation of what was going on. Thankfully for them, Cindy had finish all the major repair during the night, leaving only a few cosmetic things to finish which could wait until the boys returned safe with their missing friend.
Three days had passed since that morning, three days of driving around, trying to find any kind of hint as too where Ardyn might have taken Prompto. No one had seen of heard anything which at least meant that Ardyn had not used any help from the Empire to leave with Prompto but also meant that the trio was no further along in finding their friend. As night fell, forcing them to stop at a near by haven, Noctis couldnt help but bite through his lips in worry. Every day they wasted, trying to find any trace of Prompto was a day more his friend had to deal with any number of things being done to him by Ardyn.
The last few nights had been torture for all of them, each trying but failing to not think about the possible tortures Prompto could be enduring while they laid comfortable and safe within the borders of a haven. It left them all tired and on edge, Gladio snapping at every little thing that set him off and even Ignis was feeling the strain of his lack of sleep. As Gladio set up the tent and Ignis started a fire to cook supper, one that would most likely go uneaten by the group out of guilt and fear, Noctis moved towards one of the nearby depot of elemental energy that could be found there. He extended a hand to collect the cold ice magic and was halfway done when he heard a well know Kweh of a chocobo.
The sound making him think of Prompto, the prince looked away from the magical deposit to search for the chocobo. He froze, not believing his eyes. '' IGNIS! GLADIO!'' Noctis didnt hesitate, screaming to his companions while charging straight for the chocobo and the draped form slumped on its saddle. As he approached the yellow feather bird, he could make out the details of the man on it. There was no mistaken Prompto's freckled face even as pale as dirty as it was.
The chocobo shifted uneasily as Noctis reached out, dodging his grasp and taking a few steps back. Noctis forced his breath to calm down, hearing Ignis and Gladio approaching behind him, and extended his hand again slowly. '' Its ok, we wont hurt you. Please! Come closer... please...'' The Shield and Adviser had been shocked by the scream, thinking the prince might have been attacked but now, seeing the chocobo and its precious burden they understood their charge's frantic scream.
It took Ignis going back to camp to get some gyshalt green for the Chocobo to finally allow the men to approach and grab its reins. Gladio was the one who carefully cut the binding holding Prompto to the saddle, wincing when he saw the bloody prints left by the rope on the pale boy's ankles. Prompto moaned and shifted as though trying to push Gladio away, his breath going sharp and fast. Noctis had grabbed the reins and held the Chocobo while Gladio had Prompto secure in his grasp. When Prompto started shifting and moaning in pain, Noctis reached out, passing his fingers through the blond hair and whispering, '' Its ok Prom. You're safe now. Gladio has you and we wont let anyone hurt you.''
The words or perhaps the voice seem to do the trick, Prompto's breath evening out and the boy slumped back in the Shield's careful grasp. Ignis had taken one look at Prompto after fetching the greens and had hurried away back to the camp to prepare what he would need to take care of the young man's injuries. Now that Prompto was off the chocobo, Gladio and Noctis could see the extent of his injuries more easily.
The blond boy was pale and dirty, old and fresh blood could be seen all over his body through the ripped clothes. His hands had been tied in front of him from wrist to elbow and the rope had been so coarse and full of dripping blood that it had become completely red. A blindfold was still in place over his eyes, one side covered in blood from the cut that had been noticed on the picture left behind. His feet were bare and the soles were just as covered with blood as the rest of him. Noctis paled as he noticed all the hand print bruises barely visible through all the blood and dirt. Gladio gritted his teeth and hurried to follow Ignis even if he wanted nothing more then to track down where the chocobo had come from so he could Rip the Chancellor to pieces with his bare hands.
Ignis was waiting in the tent Gladio had barely had time to set up, the first aid kit open and ready for Prompto's arrival. Gladio laid the boy down on a bedroll, ignoring the dirt and blood it left on it and took a step back to allow Ignis to work without interference. Ignis started by ripping off the blindfold and carefully cutting away the bloody rope before handing both offending items to Gladio. Gladio took them and threw them without second thought into the burning fire. '' I need water, lots of it.'' Noctis nodded from his place at the entrance of their tent before heading to their cooler to grab several bottles of water and at the last moment grabbing a few of Ignis' mixing bowls.
He brought it all to Ignis who nodded approvingly at the sight of the bowls and went straight using the first of many bottles to clean Prompto up bit by bit starting with his rubbed raw forearms. By the time he was done with one forearm, Ignis had to change towels since the previous one was completely bloody. He carefully poured several potions unto the injuries, waiting for the pink new skin to form before wrapping them in gauze. Once the arms were done, Ignis started carefully peeling the bloody clothes off of Prompto with Gladio and Noctis' help. As they did so, stopping every time Prompto whimpered or moaned in pain, the anger the trio felt towards Ardyn simply grew even more as more and more injuries were revealed.
Gladio keep the thin blond boy secured against his chest as Noctis cleaned as much blood as he could while Ignis started working on the worst of the injuries he could see. Bruises decorated Prompto's chest in vivid purple and yellow, some clearly hand print or the results of a kick. Ignis found a few fracture ribs, the discovering making Prompto yell and start struggling against the Shield's chest for several worrying seconds before they were able to calm him down with soft words and touches. There were also several knife cuts that ran from one edge of his chest to the other, sometimes crossing each other, the edges red and inflamed. Ignis thanked Gladio's foresight in buying so many potions and elixirs as he steadily depleted their stocks in order to take care of Prompto's injuries.
By the time Ignis felt comfortable that he had dealt with any problematic injuries, it was almost 3 hours later. Prompto had been cleaned and while he still looked much too pale for Ignis' taste, he was at least out of harm way and safe among them. Noctis had pulled out some fresh clothes from Prompto's bag and with Gladio had managed to dress the unconscious boy without too much trouble. Ignis left the tent to go throw away to bloody water and all the bloody towels that were much too dirty to save while Gladio put some water to make some Cup Noodles for everyone. It was not what Ignis would have prefered but the late hour and worry about Prompto kept him from arguing with the decision.
Prompto woke up to soft fingers threading through his hair and a familiar voices whispering to one another. He was confused, his mind having trouble remembering where he was or why he felt like a behemoth had used him as a chew toy but everything came back to him all at once when a single word feel in his ear, Ardyn. Within moments, he felt his breath hitch as he remembered leaving the comfort of Hammerhead's caravan to go get some fresh air after a particularly bad nightmare only to see the Chancellor suddenly show up. He remembered feeling pain as Ardyn whispered to him how useless he was; how unwanted his presence had been in their little group. Ardyn laughing as he whispered to Prompto everything Ardyn would do to him when they arrived in Gralea. With a trembling gasp, Prompto pushed away from the fingers in his hair, summoning his gun to his hands.
When had his hands been freed? His still confused mind reeling from the overwhelming fear of the last few days in the presence of a mad man with an unhealthy obsession and it took him several second to register what he was seeing. His gun pointing straight at a worried Noct, the prince with his hands up and open to show him he meant no harm. He noticed Gladio half standing to lunge at him and through the open tent door, Ignis by the fire side. Prompto started trembling, his hand opening and the gun returning to the ether of Noct's magic. His body was still screaming in pain as he dropped the hand back to his side before hugging himself and to his embarrassment, Prompto started sobbing.
His sobs seemed to break whatever spell had fallen over the three men at Prompto's sudden awakening. Noctis was the first to reach the sobbing Prompto, hesitating only a second before dragging Prompto into a hug followed by Gladio who moved to the other side and did the same. Ignis entered the tent, kneeling in front of Prompto, ''Prompto, I need you to try and drink this for me. Do you think you can do that?'' Ignis offering an elixir to the still injured Prompto.
Prompto nodded, still crying as he carefully raised his head to look at his friends, all looking at him with worried expression. Prompto tried to grip the elixir but his grip kept failing and Gladio stepped up, helping him bring the drink to his lips until Prompto had finished drinking it all. He felt the familiar sting of the elixir working its way into his system and healing the last of the injuries Ignis had missed and the relief from the pain made him slump forward to lean his forehead on the adviser's shoulder.
He felt hands slowly rubbing his arm and back as Prompto cried until he felt more like himself and less fragile. Clearing his throat, Prompto offered his friends a shaky smile, one that was returned by the others. ''How are you feeling?'' Asked Gladio in a soft voice. Prompto bit his lip, thinking how to answer the question, '' Better now that I'm back with you guys.'' He ducked his head, '' I'm sorry I left the caravan without telling anyone.'' Ignis and Gladio shared a horrified look while Noctis hurried to reassure his friend, '' It wasnt your fault!''
Gladio nodded, '' Ardyn's the one to blame.'' All three noticed the visible wince and shutter that passed through Prompto when he heard the Chancellor's name. Ignis tightening his lips in anger, forcing himself to take a deep breath before being confident he could speak without showing any anger. ''Do you feel able to eat a bit? Gladiolus made some Cup Noodle or I can make a soup for you.'' The adviser didnt know when Prompto had last eaten but it was likely it hadnt been for a while. Prompto thought about it, shifting so he could lean against Noctis. '' Cup Noodles is fine.'' Gladio grinned then asked, '' Think you can walk to sit by the fire or do you want me to carry you?' Noctis added quickly, ''You can also stay here if you want.''
Prompto shook his head, ''I should be ok if someone helps me up.'' Between Gladio and Noctis, Prompto made his way unsteadily to the chairs placed around the roaring fire. The warmth from it helping him relax as he watched Ignis prepare a Cup Noodle for him. Noctis dragged a chair close by, close enough for his knee to be touching Prompto's and Gladio moved closer as well. Ignis offered Prompto the food when it was done with a firm warning, ''It would be best if you eat slowly. It wouldnt do for you to upset your stomach.'' Prompto nodded, carefully blowing on the still hot noddles before taking a bite. He could have sworn right then and there that it was one of the best meals he had ever eaten; outside of Ignis' of course.
They all watched silently as Prompto ate everything, worry still tainting the air between them. Prompto had of course noticed it but wasnt sure how to approach the subject or how to help. He felt guilty for not being able to protect himself better despite being one of Noctis' crownguard. Ignis watched carefully, looking for any lingering pain in Prompto as he ate, he took the time to clean up before speaking, '' Prompto, would you like to discuss what happened?'' Prompto tensed up, his body trembling a bit before the blond man could take deep breaths and calm himself down a bit to answer the question. ''Not right now, sorry Ignis.''
Ignis turned around and shook his head, ''No need to apologize Prompto. I simply want to make sure you know you can talk with us when ever you feel ready to do so.'' Prompto nodded, waiting a bit before he spoke, ''Can we sleep all together tonight? Please.'' The blond asked in a almost whisper. Noctis smiled and with a quick glance to Ignis and Gladio spoke up, '' Of course Prompto, whatever you need to feel safe.'' With that decided, Ignis finished storing the last few utensils while Gladio made sure the fire wouldnt burn the haven down while they slept. Noctis helped Prompto back into the tent, arranging the clean bedrolls together so that everyone would be comfortable as they slept.
Prompto and Noctis laid down face to face, Prompto reaching out to hug Noctis and bury his head in the Prince's chest. He waited there, simply listening to the heart beat of his best friend until Gladio and Ignis joined them. Gladio getting changed quietly before slipping in behind Noctis, between the two boys and the entrance while Ignis did the same on the other side. Ignis rubbing slow circles on Prompto's back, feeling the tension slowly fade away as his mind registered the fact that he was safe and with the people he considered Family. Noctis already half asleep, the older men shared a quick fond look before joining the younger two for the first night of peaceful rest in several days.