A Thousand Miles

"Wow!" Prompto sighed, interrupting the silence to verbalize whatever he had been daydreaming about. "I can't believe in just a few days you'll be a married man."

"Yeah," Noctis responded lazily. Staring into the distance, he continued to watch the scenery whip by as the wind blew back his hair. The quartet was barely outside Insomnia yet the road trip already felt like it lasted for eternity. Perhaps the anticipation made time seem to drag on. Maybe if he napped then time would pass more quickly. However, now that Prompto opened his mouth there will be no shutting him up anytime soon. Not that he didn't enjoy their conversations; it's just that Noctis would rather be lost in his own reflections right now. His relationship with Luna, a most sacred of bonds, was a bit of a touchy subject for him.

"When was the last time you saw Lady Lunafreya?"

Noctis frowned as he was now face-to-face with Prompto. His friend had flipped his body over so that his arms dangled over the back rest and his knees occupied the seat. Why wasn't Specs ordering him to sit his ass back down?

"Twelve years ago," Noctis replied, hoping that would be the end of the conversation.

From the corner of his eye, he spied Prompto fingering the leather as if itching to pick at the material. A nervous tick of , more was coming.

"Isn't it weird though?"

Cocking his head curiously, he waited for Prompto to continue.

"I mean this arrangement…"

"Not really," Noctis interjected and continued in a matter-of-fact tone. "Tenebrae is under Niflheim control - technically their territory. On their part, this is a typical political move. Marriage of their princess," the distaste was evident as he stressed the nature of Niflheim's influence, "to a Lucian prince. Throughout history peace had been attained by similar means. The only weird part is that their military has been kicking our ass and now want a peace treaty with these types of terms."

"No, that's not what I meant." Rolling his light blue eyes, Prompto contemplated on his word choice. "You hadn't seen Lady Lunafreya since you were eight…"

"Riiight." Where is he going with this?

"Well, without any contact, she's practically a stranger. You're about to marry someone you might not even be in love with. It's just…kinda sad."

Shocked eyes darted from Promtpo's remorseful face to the rear-view mirror where he spotted Ignis carefully observing their interaction. Little did Prompto understand, however, was that Noctis did not need his pity for he was about to marry his best friend.

– Three Years Prior –

Running his fingers nervously through his hair, Noctis stared at the blank white page. His right hand twirled his pen as he fought to focus his thoughts. A difficult proposition as the fragrance of the distant sylleblossom fields invaded his nostrils; the scent seemed to be permanently imprinted in the book. The leather-bound book patiently waited for the prince to inscribe his message. Umbra, on the other hand, did not. The shiba inu went from sitting at attention to pacing around the room to plopping onto his stomach while releasing a bored yawn. Now low growls rumbled in his throat, demanding the notebook back.

"Oh, cut it out, Umbra." Noctis shot a warning glare, which Umbra was not the least intimidated by. "You don't understand how important this is. It can't sound stupid…or lame."

Jumping to his feet, Umbra rushed over, head butting Noctis's arm out of the way. Gently clamping his teeth onto the corner of the book, Umbra stole the prized possession off the table.

"Hey!" came the outraged cry as Noctis tackled the dog to the floor. "You can't take that without a message! Think how hurt Luna would be to find an empty page!"

Before Umbra could respond, his ears twitched to the sound of the front door's lock unlatching. In his distraction, Noctis grabbed the notebook out of Umbra's mouth and shoved it behind a pillow on the sofa. Picking up a comic book, Noctis sprawled himself along the length of the sofa, posing a mocked nonchalance.

"Hey," he greeted casually as Ignis appeared with a couple of grocery bags in hand.

"Good evening," Ignis replied, spying the prince's tense figure. His eyes then fell to the dog whose head whipped around in confusion. "Lady Lunafreya sent mail."

It wasn't a question. Having grown up with Noctis, Ignis had met Umbra on multiple occasions, carrying with him the precious cargo – the one item that connected the childhood friends.

"And?" Noctis cringed behind the comic book as the irritation seeped out more than he had intended.

Watching the dog approach the couch, Ignis observed Umbra pushing his snout under the pillow only to get shut out by a swift elbow jab. Insulted, Umbra barked out his protest.

"And it appears Umbra is anxious to deliver your letter."

"There's nothing to deliver."

Pausing in his task of putting the groceries away, Ignis left the kitchen and pulled up a chair, taking his seat across from Noctis.

"How long has Umbra been here?"

"Why is that relevant?"

Having grown accustomed to the stubborn snappiness, Ignis kept a calm voice and requested, "Please, answer the question."

Rolling his eyes, Noctis sighed and estimated, "Don't know. Couple of hours, maybe."

"You normally have a response within seconds of reading Lady Lunafreya's letters. Minutes if you had a gift to add. Why is this time so different? What did she write that has you so flustered?"

"Nothing," he began until he saw utter confusion written on Ignis's face. Groaning, Noctis discarded the comic book and pulled the notebook out. He opened it to the last entry – a photograph dated a month ago. Perhaps a public relations photo opportunity that Niflheim arranged. Luna decorated the page by framing the picture with white lace. Simple yet elegant.

"Hm," Ignised mused. "Sometimes I forget she's no longer a child."

"That's the stupidest statement ever. She's four years older. I'm the child."

"Noct, all I meant is that the last picture I had seen was she was still young and thus the only mental image I can conjure of her. Why exactly is this bothering you so much?"

"Because I'm…" just as he was about to open up, Noctis immediately withdrew into his shell. "Forget it. I'm being stupid."

Umbra barked his agreement.

"Why is admitting your love stupid?"

Whimpering, Noctis felt his cheeks burn. Snatching a pillow, he smothered it against his face to conceal his blush.

"How long have you known?" The question was muffled but audible.

"You have always been smitten with her since you were young. Essentially for as long as I can remember. Though in the last year or so I have noticed you have become, shall we say, more sensitive whenever Lady Lunafreya became the focus of conversation. In fact, you have grown more protective of her."

"Crap…that obvious?"

"Well, I wouldn't recommend you playing poker."

This time it was the prince and not the dog to growl out his frustration.

"You care to tell her how you feel, yes?"

Throwing the pillow across the room, Noctis was ready to yell "none of ya business," but the future advisor's hard stare forced him to refrain.

"I am only trying to help, Noct. What exactly is holding you back?"

"How about sounding like a lame, love sick puppy for starters? Getting laughed at. Rejected. I mean look at her! She's a woman who has grown into her responsibilities as Oracle. I hide from mine at the arcade. And it hurts to think that while my heart flutters at the mention of her name, hers might not beat the same way. I cannot risk our friendship on what might be just a schoolboy crush."

"Now you are truly speaking nonsense."

Clamping his mouth shut, Noctis lowered his gaze as if to hide his uncertainty.

"Answer me this. Girls have flung themselves at you, flirting shamelessly, yet you turn each one away. You've never been on a date. Why is that?"

"Because they're not Luna."

"Even with thousands of miles of separation, you have remained fully devoted to her. This is not a mere infatuation. While finding the right word to adequately express your feelings may be difficult, it is worth telling her."

With those final words, Ignis left Noctis to his thoughts and returned to the kitchen to begin dinner preparations. From under the coffee table, Noctis pulled out a simple shoe box full of various crafts and gifts he had accumulated over time. At various points he had intended to incorporate them into the notebook but later discarded them as unworthy. Rummaging through the trinkets he found a handmade card he kept from elementary school. It was simple – a red heart-shaped construction paper with a simple "I love you" scrolled inside it. After carefully taping the card in, he added a message next to the card that read "Now, more than ever." Sighing, he resigned to the fact that was the best he could offer. Securing the book into Umbra's pouch, he bid the messenger farewell and prayed for The Six to bestow their favor on him.

– Present –

Noctis smiled as he recalled Luna's reply of her own proclamation of love, sealed with the pink lipstick stain where she had kissed the corner of the page. When he first read the message he had to pinch himself to ensure it was not some cruel dream. Snapping back to reality, Noctis's heart skipped a beat as he realized that soon the fantasy of feeling her soft lips pressed against his will come true. Returning his gaze back to Prompto, he fought back the blush as he felt the heat rising in his cheeks.

"Actually, we're not strangers. For the last twelve years we have remained in touch using our own communication system. Despite the physical distance we have learned a lot about each other - our interests, our hopes and fears, our most intimate dreams. There was plenty of time for our friendship to grow into love for one another."

"Oh…so the ultimate long distance relationship," Prompto declared as he turned back around, sinking into his seat and gazing dreamily at the puffy clouds. "That's pretty hardcore, surviving all those obstacles with war and all. I can't wait until we can finally meet Lady Lunafreya."

Grinning shyly, Noctis returned to watching the landscape zoom by. Each passing mile was a step closer to Luna.

I'm coming, Luna. When I finally find you, there will be nothing that can pry you out of my embrace. I promise this gap we have endured all of these years will never separate us again.