Make good first impressions. Be friendly, be polite. Be grateful.

Caramia hoped she had at least appeared to have come across so, even if she felt the absolute opposite. The cramped car journey had left her ample time to think, for the men seemed content to sit in silence and so her mind had done what it always liked to do.

Torture her.

She had been so close to making the Crownsguard and yet on the brink of success, she had been inexplicably removed from the city and tasked with babysitting four grown men on some bachelor party-esk road trip. It was almost laughable. Almost.

What had she done wrong? She wracked her brain furiously but could think of nothing. She was near top of her regiment, not that she liked to boast, and she had devoted her entire life ever since she had become of age to serving the crown. Albeit she hadn't known anything different; with her mother having died in service to the King when she was young and her father nowhere to be seen, she had been raised by another member of the Crownsguard. Hearing endless epic and heroic tales of her mother's past, she had grown up wanting nothing more than to follow in her glorious footsteps.

But yet, here she was. The group seemed friendly enough, even though it was quite clear that 'Prince Grumpy' did not want her there. The others appeared indifferent for now although Prompto had made her genuinely laugh, something that had surprised her. That, however, did not take away the anger and resent that had begun bubbling under her skin as she continued to silently curse the King for sending her away without so much as a hint at the reason why.

And then the Regalia broke down. At first the engine began to rumble ominously until it coughed and spluttered, jerking the car forward violently until it shuddered to a stop. No amount of tinkering under the huge, polished bonnet could coax any life back into it and after a spell of some hilariously poor attempts from them all at hitchhiking, Gladiolus rolled his shoulders back and concluded resignedly that they would just have to push the Regalia to Hammerhead, where mercifully there was a garage.

Pushing the Regalia, as it turned out, was no easy task, especially under the unforgiving heat of the sun. Only a short while ago it had been pleasantly warming their skin but without the breeze it blazed across their backs and faces , shimmering fiercely on the horizon. They tried to take breaks sparingly although the distance they were able to move the Regalia before needing to stop became less and less as time went on. It seemed Hammerhead was another world away.

Caramia leant against the side of the Regalia after they had stopped once again, breathing heavily and wiping the sweat from her brow. The metal underneath her burned with heat but she ignored it, caring more for the slight respite it gave her aching legs. Her mood had turned well and truly dark and as Noctis caught her eyes for a moment, she inwardly dared him to ask the very question that would make her snap, which of course, he did.

"So tell us then. Why are you here?" he spat from his seated position on the ground.

"Noct..." Gladiolus growled in way of a warning but Caramia pushed herself upright, walking round to face Noctis.

"No, it's a more than reasonable question," she retorted, her jaw clenched and her eyes narrowed. "Pity though that I have no idea."

"What do you mean you have no idea?"

Caramia rolled her eyes; the prince may have been insufferably sullen but she had hoped he wasn't stupid. "Exactly that. I don't know why the King pulled me from my training when it was agonisingly close to completion. I can only guess I messed up somewhere but I can't for the life of me think what."

"I highly doubt the King would entrust the care of his only son and heir to you if you had 'messed up', as you say," Ignis offered diplomatically.

"Then why make me leave? Especially on the brink of the Empire arriving to sign the peace treaty. It's not like you requested my presence either. No offence intended but you clearly want me to be here as little as I do."

"Hey, that's not true..." Prompto began but Noctis cut him off, throwing himself to his feet.

"If you'd rather not be here then by all means, go. Don't worry, I'll tell my father you did your duty and escorted myself to Altissia safe and sound."

Caramia scoffed. "I'm not foolish enough to defy the King's orders, with or without your word. Besides, I have no known family in Lucis and I have barely been outside of the Crown City's walls. Even if I had the gil to leave and travel on my own, I wouldn't know where to start."

"Well it looks like you'll have to stay with us for a little while longer then, Cara," Ignis sighed, pushing his glasses up his nose as he tapped a finger on the Regalia's luxurious leather steering wheel. "Would it make you all feel better if I told you I could see the sign for Hammerhead?"

Four groans of relief simultaneously sounded and Gladiolus clapped his hands together.

"On your feet then, looks like we'll have her in the garage before dark after all."

In fact, the sun had only just begun to set when the Regalia finally rolled into the awaiting spot outside Hammerhead's garage. Waiting to greet them there was a wizened old man and a young and rather provocatively dressed woman, Cid and his granddaughter Cindy as Caramia quickly learnt. Cid was cantankerous and impatient, even berating Noctis on his temperament no sooner had he greeted him. Cindy was the complete opposite. She was extremely friendly and excitable and while her knowledge of cars and their repair was impressive, Caramia wondered how she got any work done in what she was wearing. Her attire didn't just look impractical but down right uncomfortable too.

"I'm afraid the old girl may be in there for a while," Cindy said in the heavy drawl of her accent as she shut the heavy door on the garage. "You folks should ask over at Takka's if y'all want some food. He may also have some info on any hunts that need doing if y'all want something to pass the time."

Takka, as it turned out, was both a restaurant and its proprietor. He was a pleasant enough man although he seemed incredibly nervous, possibly a result of being face to face with the Prince of Lucis, either that or the uncomfortable air that had settled upon the group from their outburst earlier was more hostile than Caramia thought. Takka's menu was rather limited to say the least but thankfully what he lacked in variety he made up for in taste. Caramia felt her mouth water as five bowls of steaming chilli con carne were set down before them, filling their noses with a rich aromatic aroma of succulent beef and spices. Surprisingly, Noctis insisted on paying for them all although Caramia laughed cynically under her breath as she wondered just which of his friends had kicked him under the table to ensure he offered to foot the entire bill, hers included. As they ate, the men asked Takka about any hunts in the local area as Cindy had suggested and his eyes lit up at the question.

"As a matter of fact, there's a rogue Dualhorn been causin' some trouble not far from here. Pretty high bounty for it too, folks certainly want it gone. No one's managed to take it down yet though and judgin' by the state some of the hunters have come back in, this ain't a hunt to be taken lightly. You sure this ain't too dangerous for you boys? And ma'am," he added hastily as Caramia raised her eyebrows indignantly.

Gladiolus rubbed his hands together, a large smile stretching across his face at the prospect. "Consider it done."

"We'll set out tomorrow morning in search of the beast," Ignis confirmed, watching as Noctis tried to stifle a yawn from behind his hand. "Best catch an early night though if the Prince has any hope of being awake before noon."

"Hey, I'm not that bad," Noctis chuckled, although the looks on his friend's faces told a different story.

Takka smiled warmly, his expression deeply grateful. "Well feel free to use that caravan out there for the night. It's small but y'all should just about fit inside."

Ignis rose to his feet, inclining his head towards Takka. "Much appreciated." He gestured to the caravan just outside the restaurant's doors. "Shall we?" The others hopped down from their stools too, an enthusiastic chorus of boasts and challenges breaking out as Prompto suggested that they play King's Knight. He stopped suddenly, however, as he glanced backwards to see Caramia still sat at the counter, her head in one hand while the other pushed around half eaten food with her fork.

"Are you coming, Cara?" he asked, trying to keep his voice light and friendly.

Forcing herself to smile, Caramia looked up from her plate to meet Prompto's expectant gaze. "You guys go on ahead, I'll catch you up in a bit. There's this..." she broke off, staring down at the various leaflets scattered across the bar in a desperate search for inspiration, "...book I've never seen before," she finished as her hand grabbed the only document that appeared worth reading. "I want to take a look at it before we leave." Prompto's eyes narrowed briefly as he considered her words and Caramia cursed inwardly as she looked properly at the cover of the book in her hand. Cosmogony...great. Only one of the most widely available books about Eos' history in the Crown City and clearly rather popular here, too.

"Oh...ok," Prompto finally answered, looking at little confused. "You could always read it over with us?"

Caramia raised an eyebrow. "I've heard about this game and judging by the reaction you got from merely mentioning it, I highly doubt I'll be able to concentrate at all while you try and deflate each other's egos."

"You got a point there," Prompto chuckled. "Gladio's is the worst; he claims he's the best but we know better."

"Prompto are you coming or what?"

"You got five seconds or we're starting without you!" Noctis and Gladiolus' voices boomed through the air and Prompto grinned apologetically.

"I must depart; a quest awaits me, my lady," he said as he crossed his hand over his heart and dipped his head in a mock bow. With that he scrambled off towards the others, throwing himself into the vacant chair outside the caravan and pulling out his phone to join the game.

Caramia shook her head as a smile spread across her lips. Prompto was incredibly daft and would undoubtedly be the liability of the group, she could tell that much already, but he was sweet. And, at least he had actually given her a second thought, unlike the others. She had remained quiet after her altercation with Noctis earlier in the day and they had pretty much ignored her, although she had noticed Gladiolus' amber eyes falling upon her briefly a number of times as they had eaten dinner. Perhaps she had simply had some food on her face.

With a resigned sigh, she flicked open the Cosmogony book; she had in fact never read it and it would at least be something to pass the time. Her eyes skimmed over the pages, taking in the well known tales of the Hexatheon, the six astrals that watched over all of Eos. Her attention was drawn, however, to the section that bore the picture from the front of the book. The winged man was apparently a King of Lucis named Ardyn who was being imbued with healing magic from The Six in order to save those who had succumbed to the Starscourge. Without Ardyn's help, their grim fate was an agonising transformation into daemons, grotesque creatures that still caused chaos when the land fell dark in present day. Caramia marvelled at the story and the King's bravery, pondering what absorbing the daemons' corruption had done to his body and perhaps even mind. She had not heard such abilities spoken of concerning King Regis or Noctis; perhaps the power had died with the King all those years ago. A noble death, Caramia thought fiercely.

Closing the book, she stepped down from her stool and walked slowly over to the restaurant's entrance to see what the men were doing. It appeared they had finished their game for they sat reclined in their chairs, sipping from mugs as they chatted. Caramia was about to swallow her pride and join them when the breeze carried the words of their conversation close enough for her to hear.

"So what are we going to do?" Noctis began, a frown on his face as he fiddled with the cup in his hands, his elbows resting on his knees.

"About what?" Gladiolus demanded.

"About her."

Ignis sighed deeply; he had wondered how soon the subject would arise. "You heard the King's orders, Noct. She is to accompany us to Altissia."

Noctis exhaled sharply, pushing himself backwards and slouching in his chair. "I know but I just don't see the point. You guys have always managed to keep me out of trouble before and I doubt it's any special kind of training or she would know about it. Besides, this was to be our last adventure together before I'm married. Just the four of us."

"It has all seemed a bit last minute. As for us, things certainly will change after the wedding," Gladiolus mused, crossing one muscular tattooed arm over the other.

"Exactly," Noctis agreed. "And I've a heavy feeling that, well, she's just going to get in the way."

Caramia stared in outage at Noctis, her breath choking in her throat. She glared at each one of his friends in turn, giving them three long seconds to at least say something even remotely in her defence.

"One..." she whispered, curling her hands into fists, "...two...three...damn all of you!" The curse tumbled from her lips as she spun around, reeling at their selfishness and insensitivity. Their words didn't hurt, she hadn't any affection for them and couldn't care less if they liked her or not but they could have at least attempted to tolerate her without being outright rude. Marching over to the counter, she tried to compose herself briefly as she took in the startled look on Takka's face. She could only imagine her expression was darker than the sky outside.

"Do you sell any camping equipment?" she asked, straining to make sure her voice did not betray the anger that was boiling within.

"Sorry Miss, but no...although I do have a tent out back that I haven't touched in years. You can borrow it if you like."

"Thanks Takka, I owe you one."

With a timid smile, Takka hurried off into the back, soon returning with a bulky looking bag that had seen better days. He handed it over."You folks thinkin' of doing some camping in the area? I know a few good havens that'll keep the daemons nice and far away. In fact, there's one pretty close to Hammerhead, not far from where that Dualhorn is supposed to be."

An idea flashed across Caramia's emerald eyes and she smiled warmly at Takka. "Sounds perfect. Goodnight."

With that she walked purposefully back to the restaurant's door and, making sure the men were still deep in conversation and not glancing her way at all, she slipped into the darkness, heading for the camping haven that Takka had informed her of. It wasn't far, just like he'd said, and luckily she didn't encounter any daemons once she'd walked out of range of Hammerhead's bright, protective lights. Making quick work of the tent, she climbed inside and sat facing outward, looking up at the vast, bejewelled sky that stretched over Lucis as far as she could see.

She would honour her King's wishes but for the sake of her own sanity she would protect the Prince from afar, letting the group do whatever it was they needed to get out of their systems before the wedding. Her tent, for she had no intentions of returning it to Takka any time soon, would suffice for accommodation and when she was in dire need of a bath and a proper bed, she could stay at hotels using the gil she was to obtain in the morning. A monstrous silhouette moved in the distance; the Dualhorn did indeed look imposing but she was sure she could take it down and claim the reward before the Prince had even managed to get out of bed. What a shame it would be for the royal party to trek out into the desert to find their prey already slaughtered. Caramia was sure their disappointment would be fleeting, however, as soon as they realised that the nuisance that had set to cloud the thrill of their adventure had miraculously and mercifully disappeared.