Hello, everyone! :)
It's been several years since I wrote for Noctis x Hope. I'm a bit sad to say this isn't a brand new story; I'm just resubmitting it to a different section than before, with a few grammatical edits and sentences and a fresh author's note, hehe. There are still a few users in the Versus XIII section, but with the release of XV, I figured I may as well share this again under the new title. Although Noctis and his kingdom are still based off his 2011 trailer self since I wrote this back in 2012 and hadn't learned of the new XV stuff yet. I also haven't updated the story with my current writing style, so it may come off a lot more childish in tone than my author note is! (It totally will. I read over it again and it's such a dorky story smh)
Summary: Noctis is taken into a strange dreamland one night, finding it utterly bizarre and oddly colorful in comparison to his usual daily darkness. He meets up with his boyfriend and lover, Hope (who is one year younger than Noctis in this story - they are 16 and 17 respectively), and they embark on a short but... interesting journey through this weird world.
The music for this one-shot is "Awake Now" by Parachute Youth.
I don't claim copyrights to FFXIII or FFXV/Versus XIII, this was written purely for my own enjoyment.
"Vemdro cbyfh uv yht mekrd! Syo drui tea y druicyht taydrc!" (1)
The first thing Noctis expected to see when he opened his eyes certainly wasn't a daisy, much less one that was content to shriek hysterically in his face. Pasty white and wailing at the top of its lungs, the tiny plant smacked its tiny leaves against his face until he started, moving from prone to fully upright in a smooth motion. Noctis stared at it with wide eyes, watching with bemusement as it hissed defiantly and beat the surrounding grass flat. After several moments it fell quiet, not protesting when Noctis fled in the opposite direction.
Sure he was far enough away that the daisy wouldn't attack, Noctis stopped and took in his bearings. Glancing around himself, he appeared to stand atop a crudely drawn, dark blue hill, decorated with an endless rainbow of (thankfully silent) flowers underneath a light orange sky. Plump purple clouds dotted the horizon and lurked around the green sun high above him. Everything looked like it was drawn in crayon.
He raised a slim eyebrow and took a step forward into the field of pastel flowers. He heard a soft, girlish giggle beneath him and looked down, but nothing let him know what made the sound. Noctis shifted onto his other foot—where had his boots gone?—and elicited another giggle. Both eyebrows now quirked in confusion, disappearing underneath his bangs as he knelt, staring intently at the drawings amid the hilltop. He reached out to touch one of the personified plants but stopped when yet another noise came towards him.
"H'yaaaah! Noct!"
Over a knoll off to Noctis' left rang a light cry, not unlike a battle yell. The source bounded past the grassy crest, racing out of the tall stalks to show a small, silver-haired boy straddling the bluest Chocobo he had ever seen. Out of the four times in his life that he had ever seen one of the feathery creatures, Noctis was fairly certain most, if not all Chocobos were supposed to be yellow. The boy holding the reins laughed and leaned over the massive bird's side, hand trailing through the grass. It took Noctis a moment to spot the crayon he held tight in his left hand, and he was taken aback when the boy's seemingly mindless doodles sprang to life; a tiny army of misshapen creatures visually similar to rabbits bounced in their wake.
The raven made to step out of the way as flightless beast and rider grew nearer, but Hope saw him and veered to the left, one hand stretched out as they came close. "Come on, Noct!" the boy said with a bright smile, voice raised to be heard over the wind.
Spared only a moment to blink before he reached out and grasped Hope's passing hand in his own, Noctis gave a startled yelp as he was yanked off his feet. The smaller boy was fast to pull him onto the Chocobo, where Noctis fell into place behind the bird's folded wings. He wrapped his arms loosely around Hope's slender waist, azure irises gazing over his shoulder with incredulity.
"Hope, where are we headed?" he asked, bewildered.
The younger winked at him from over his shoulder, "To the palace, silly! Where else?" he giggled cutely and spurred the Chocobo faster.
Noctis, mind still reeling with questions, rested his chin on Hope's shoulder as they journeyed on. When his nagging curiosity finally got to the better of him, the raven leaned close to Hope's ear to speak, so he wouldn't have to yell over the roaring wind. "Why is everything in crayon? Where are we?"
The former l'Cie had a kitten-like grin on his face. "This is your dream world!" Holding the reins in one hand, he flung out the other into the open air, as if gesturing to the entire landscape. "Everything is crayon because that's how I created it," he said simply. He pointed at a distant ridge, where a large flock of green-spotted and purple-striped Chocobos grazed.
"So my mind is incredibly childish? I thought I could shape my dreams at will, but I guess you've got it under control." Noctis was only half-joking.
Hope shot him an exasperated look. "I'm not a kid, and you should lighten up!" he cried indignantly.
Noctis ducked his head behind Hope's, hiding a smirk. "'I'm not a kid', says the one who challenged and lost to Prompto in the prank war last week," he replied loftily, the casual statement making the silver-haired boy's cheeks redden with embarrassment.
"W-Whatever, we're here!" Hope exclaimed quickly, gently pulling back on the reins to lead the Chocobo to a complete stop in a bright lavender and yellow courtyard.
Noctis failed to see how 'here' had suddenly come upon them when they were running through endless blue plains, much less how 'here' appeared in the first place. He blamed it on how time passed in the dream realm and slid out of the Chocobo's saddle, staying beside the beast as Hope followed suit into the prince's arms. The bird trilled with happiness when the reins slipped over its head, kicking up its feet and a cloud of dust before it trotted off to graze in a nearby meadow. Hope took Noctis' hand in his own and led him towards the humongous pink castle.
Wait, pink?
The raven craned his neck back to peer up at his vast palace and was very startled to see that yes, his normally stone grey fortress was now an almost sickeningly bright neon pink. He suppressed a disgusted shiver and trailed much more slowly after the smaller boy, who had let him go as soon as he'd stopped. Upon closer inspection, the front door was the same as the surrounding area: covered in tiny strokes of what was now clearly crayon. More detail was etched into the structure itself than the innumerable flora and fauna they'd passed on the journey, right down to the familiar, creaking echo that resonated through the center hall when the heavy metal door was opened.
After experience outside, Noctis halfway expected something extreme to be lying in wait for him, but another part of him doubted anything could top his grotesque paraffin wax fortress. Contrary to the outer decorum, the inside of his palace was the same grey as it should have been. Hope was nowhere in sight, but an open door down the east hallway spurred him on. He followed the dark red carpet beneath his feet, his mind already taking an old path he'd crossed for years. Within minutes of traversing winding corridor after corridor, he stopped in front of the throne room entrance with a strong sense of nostalgia. Anticipation rose in his throat as he pushed through the tall black doors.
A replica of the Lucian throne stood out in the center of the great hall, amid a mass of dark pink symbols that writhed and trembled on the floor around it. Hope was reclined casually in the seat, with his cheek cradled against his fist and his eyes closed. He gave the appearance of sleep, his body unnaturally still. When the prince drew nearer he awoke with a twitch and tilted his head in Noctis' direction. His eyes, once alight with humor and love had dulled to a flat, impassive jade. He rose from the throne and pulled out his Air Wing in one fluid motion, aiming the boomerang level with the raven's chest.
Noctis, uncertain how to respond, cautiously drew his own set of swords and chose his falchion, pointing the blade towards the silver-haired boy in invitation. He was given barely a second to react before Hope was upon him, Air Wing swung out to catch him on his sword arm. In the opposite hand, the boy brought forth his black magic, quick to cast Firaga at point blank range. Both were sent flying as the fireball struck inches between them, the prince faring worse as heat seared him through his clothing. His clothes were ruined and he felt the pain of second degree burns on his skin, but no marks appeared on his flesh. He let out a groan as his back hit the floor, the air knocked from his lungs as Hope landed only feet away, balanced gracefully on his heels.
"By-dra-del." (2)
The raven froze, staring at the boy with wide eyes. The word was spoken as spitefully as the daisy had shrieked at him earlier, mocking his vulnerability. Hearing Hope utter something so dark and so unfamiliar sent a shiver down Noctis' spine. "What?" he couldn't help but ask, mind reeling once more at the strange language.
There was something detached in those eyes as Hope smiled cruelly down at him, his expression contempt. "You are weak," he said slowly in English, like a teacher explaining something to a student. "Mekrd hajan cdyoc vun muhk." (3) He cackled loudly, a freakish high-pitched sound that poured ice in Noctis' veins. He threw Air Wing aside and held up his arms, advancing quickly.
Electricity crackled in his left hand, and the smell of burnt rubber filled the air. Noctis rolled to his feet and leaped away from the boy, but his timing was too late; there was a deafening boom as the spell hit him dead-on, the force of the impact throwing him into the floor like a rag doll. He couldn't breathe, only spasm uncontrollably against the floor, gasping and clawing at the broken stone.
Footsteps stopped next to his head and Noctis winced, trying and failing to pull away from the l'Cie. Through blurred vision he saw Hope lean close to his face, smiling wickedly. "Kuut hekrd, so bnehla," (4) he cooed. Something heavy smashed into the back of his skull, and Noctis passed out.
With a startled cry, Noctis shot upright, the covers pooling around his waist as he gasped for breath. A trickle of sweat ran down his chest, and he felt more on his face as he held his temples. He could still feel the phantom heat of fire against his skin, and the burning shock of lightning that pierced his chest. He panted heavily, a hand over one eye as he stared at the sheets in mute horror. The dream was vivid in his mind, flashes of it still tugging at his subconscious.
A cold, tentative hand touched his shoulder and Noctis jerked away, turning to the other occupant of his bed. Hope's sleep-riddled irises met his surprised, fearful ones, confusion and worry evident on the younger male's face. The prince knew his eyes had changed colors and closed them, facing away from that knowing gaze.
"Noct, what happened?" he asked, yawning through the middle of his sentence. "Was it a bad dream?"
In normal circumstances, he would have been offended as such an adolescent claim, but Noctis simply nodded and laid back down, drawing the groggy l'Cie to his side. "Yeah," he muttered hoarsely and nuzzled his face into soft silver locks. "It... it was..." He tightened his arms around the younger teen, falling silent aside from his labored breathing.
The boy smiled at him and lightly caressed the elder's cheek. "You won't have it again," he said with finality, reaching up to kiss his lover's nose. "I promise it," he murmured.
His erratic heartbeat under control with the boy's reassurance, Noctis smiled back, holding Hope close as he spooned the others' small body. "Thank you, Hope," he whispered, leaning over to kiss the boy's forehead before falling into a gentle sleep.
Hope's heart warmed at the sight of his peaceful raven, snoring lightly and finally undisturbed. "Rest well, my love."
I hope you all enjoyed~! Please leave a review, I'm intrigued to know how many others have hopped onto the NokuHopu bandwagon, if any. ;)
The foreign language that's spoken by the plant and by dream!Hope is actually Al Bhed, it was easier to use than a real-world language.
Translations:
(1)"Filthy spawn of the light! May thou die a thousand deaths!"
(2)"Pa-the-tic."
(3)"Light never stays for long."
(4) "Good night, my prince."