Hello everyone! It's been a while, like a year. Literally a year and one day. Yeah. *coughs awkwardly* But I finally caved in to the many PMs I got asking for a sequel and here it is! While I'm not completely content with this chapter, I think from here on the upcoming chapters will be much better. One year and I still haven't played any Final Fantasy games, so most of what I know comes from a little bit of research and other fanfictions. That and I'm still working to get their personalities right, so pardon me if they're still a bit out of character (Lightning especially, because there isn't much we know about our dark haired prince hum). I'm thinking of watching walkthroughs to get her character right seeing as I can't play the games, but we'll see.

I decided to update this oneshot and turn it into a story instead of posting this chapter as another oneshot, because I am kinda hooked again in FF and plan to write a bit more at the moment.

Enjoy and have fun!

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Pluviophile

(n.) a lover of rain; someone who finds joy and peace of mind during rainy days.

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As a child, Noctis had fears that any other kid would have; he feared the darkness, which was ironic due to the nature of his name, and thunderstorms, a common fear shared by many youngsters. He also had an unconditional and unusual fear of bunnies, as embarrassing as it was for him to admit, but thankfully for him, as the years passed and the young boy with chubby cheeks grew and matured, he overcame his fears, especially his fear of little, fluffy white balls of fur that nibbled on carrots.

Noctis rolled on his bed to lie on his stomach, the water drops falling hard against the windows and glass door that lead to the balcony of his room. The sound was comforting and relaxing, but they weren't enough to lull him to sleep after long hours of study and meetings, so the prince resorted to sit up on his bed and run his hands on his face and hair, and leaned back against the bedpost to glance around the darkened room tiredly. Rubbing his tired blue eyes with his fingertips, he reached with his other hand for the switch to turn on the lights so he could read a book or sketch something, do anything as long as it would make him so tired he wouldn't be able to keep his eyes open.

When light filled the room, he felt somewhat relieved. Although he had, yes, overcome his fear of thunderstorms, loud rumbles weren't exactly his cup of tea, but he did enjoy the rain and the peacefulness that it brought to him and the bright rays of light that cut through the sky and clouds. When light filled the room, he, too, noticed the many white plumes fluttering in the air and lying about, scattered across the room messily. Noctis frowned as his hands came to rest on his lap; how he hadn't noticed them before was a mystery to him, but soon his confusion was replaced with eagerness as he kicked the comforters away and got up from his ridiculously large bed. If there were feathers in his room, then the Guardian was nearby. Bare feet touching the cold floor, he quickly walked over to the large glass door, mind set on opening it and going outside to face the storm if it meant getting a glimpse of her.

He didn't need to go outside; in fact, he didn't need to get closer to the doors to see her. She was there, standing tall and imposing on his balcony, drenched from head to toe, hair darker than before and plastered against her skin due to the heavy rain, weapon in hand and eyes scanning the courtyard of his home.

His eagerness and excitement turned into wariness as he put up his guard at the sight of her defensive stance. He should have been alert since the moment he noticed the feathers, he thought bitterly; why else would she be around after not making any appearances for over five months? Of course she didn't pass by to say hello; from what he could tell about what she had said long ago on that party, she wasn't the kind that would drop by suddenly to chit chat. His blue eyes scanned the blade securely held between her fingers in a strong hold, the blood on the metal dissolving in the falling water and dripping off the sharp edge.

That triggered him to move forward and yank the doors open unceremoniously, allowing inside a strong gust of wind and many cold water drops, and also making her turn to look at him impassively. Unfazed by his gesture, the guardian nodded in acknowledgement and bowed her head low before resuming her stance, now with him standing beside her, soles planted firmly on the wet ground.

Electric blue eyes swept across the dark scenery ahead, light pink lips parted before speaking as clearly as the thunders would let her. "My Lord," she said cordially, voicing for the first time his title, "you should go inside. I can't risk getting you sick."

He only scoffed and leaned against the railing, hunching forward and squinting his own eyes at the darkness. She remained still and guarded, hardly bothered by the answer she got from him, far from getting amazed at his contained rebellious nature she had seen glimpses of in the past. Noctis glanced at her still form momentarily from the corner of his eyes, wondering if he'd ever get any sort of reaction from her and asking himself how he grew to like someone he had barely interacted with. It was so easy for him to crack his shell and tease her the first time they met; whereas he would normally have kept his face carefully composed and wouldn't be as carefree, he interacted with her with such an ease that it made him feel as if he had known her for the longest time.

Of course, she knew more of him than he knew of her. Her identity as a Guardian granted her with every single imaginable fact that happened in his life, from his first steps and first words to what he had for dinner before bed the other night. And the only things he knew about her were her name (which was most likely a false one), her occupation and that her hair was naturally pink. That wasn't fair in his mind.

Soundlessly and with an inhuman grace, she jumped onto the railing before plummeting herself forward and falling into the lightless courtyard, leaving the bewildered prince by himself without a single word. He strained his ears and leaned forward even more, trying to hear or see anything that was happening below, but as if playing a prank on him, loud thunders roared and the sky darkened considerably in the absence of the lightning that flashed occasionally. Everything happened rather quickly. In one moment she had disappeared into the night, in the other she silently landed on her foot beside him as her blade folded back into its dormant state.

"There's nothing to worry about anymore," she said coolly, placing her weapon away and shifting the shield strapped to her arm. "Go inside; you're soaking wet."

"Well, so are you." Their eyes met, none showing any emotions at all as they regarded each other.

Minutes ticked by and Lightning finally replied, "It's not my place to stay here."

He stood his ground, defiant. "I can't risk getting you sick."

One thin eyebrow arched up at his choice of words; so he was using her own words against her. Lightning nearly scoffed at this, but instead kept her face carefully impassive and held his gaze. The Guardian knew that turning her back to him and leaving the place against his wishes would only result in making him remain at the balcony for the remainder of the night; she knew of his stubborn nature, she had seen him manipulating people before with his stubbornness only.

As the Guardian, it was her duty to care for his wellbeing, even if it meant going inside just for the sake of his health.

"Fine." She ground out, turning around and walking inside the room without any sort of permission or even waiting for him to go first.

He followed her, closing the doors silently behind his back. "I'll get you a change of clothes." She remained silent, only narrowing her eyes in slight annoyance as he quickly walked to his closet, leaving a trail of wet footprints and drops here and there. Water dripped from her hair and armor, drenched the sash of feathers hanging from her hips and pooled around her feet where she stood. Lightning refrained from sighing out loud when he returned with a pile of clothes in hand, most likely his own, and offered them to her with a sheepish smile.

Not waiting for the confirmation that the clothes were indeed his, she took the pile with reluctance and marched to his bathroom, knowing by heart all the hallways and secret passages of his castle. "Use a clean towel from the cabinet to dry your hair," he offered helpfully and darted inside his closet once the door of his bathroom had clicked shut. Quickly, he discarded his wet pajamas in a pile and slipped inside new ones, the sudden realization that he was wearing nightwear in her presence making his ears burn in embarrassment.

Back in his room, he considered sitting on the edge of his bed to wait for her, but something told her she would take it the wrong way. The prince glanced at the tall leather chair by his study table and headed there, only to stop halfway once he thought he would look way too formal there. Conflicted, he stood with his back to the bathroom door even when it opened and Lightning stepped outside wearing oversized pants and a long sleeved shirt. Abruptly, he turned to face her and blurted out, "I'll make some tea for you."

As soon as the words left his lips, he was already out of her sight, having darted out the door as fast as his legs could carry him before she could even react to his words. Lightning snapped out of her shock quickly and followed after him, feet padding silently on the cold hallways, concentrating on seeking his vital energy and taking the same route as him. She soon arrived at the kitchen, where a kettle was already filled with water and above the blue fire of the stove and the prince was rummaging through the top shelf searching for the tea.

He gave her another sheepish smile after he pulled out a packet of tea bags, silently telling her that these were the only kind of tea he could prepare properly. She decided to help him by reaching for and setting the mugs aside by the stove, and he put two tea bags in each for a stronger flavor.

As they stood there waiting for the water to boil, she noticed that his aura was much calmer than just moments before in his room when she felt him extremely agitated and heard his quick footsteps. She could only translate these actions to a desire he had to please her just so she wouldn't leave soon, and that was exactly what it was actually; she didn't need to read his mind to know. He got attached way too quickly due to his fleeting obsession with the warrior-with-pink-hair-that-saved-his-life; in all these months between their last and current encounter, she could feel his doubt that she would ever appear again after that night rising.

"I'll have to make it up to you," Lightning broke the silence as soon as she sensed his calm emotions shifting.

Noctis glanced up from the floor to her face, arms crossed over his chest and legs stretched before him as his hips held his weight against the counter, and a slight frown marred his features for a moment. "If anything," he started after a few seconds of contemplation, "I should be the one making it up to you." She shrugged her shoulders indifferently, but still nodded her head to urge him to keep going. "You killed someone tonight, didn't you?"

"Three actually."

The frown returned to his face and he averted his eyes. "Were they after me?"

"Not all of them." When silence stretched on, she realized he wanted more details. "Two were sent after you; the other one was just a distraction."

"Where were they from?"

The loud whistle of the kettle filled the kitchen then. It took him some time, but Noctis eventually moved towards it and slipped his hand inside a dark gray mitten before taking the kettle away from the fire and putting it off. He poured hot water into the mugs, the tea bags floated up and bobbed up and down slightly until the water settled inside the recipients. After placing the kettle back on the stove, he carefully pushed the black mug towards her hands. "Sugar?"

Lightning resisted the urge to swallow. "Yes, please."

He moved away from her to retrieve it, returning moments later with a silver tea spoon dipped into a well elaborated crystal pot filled to the brim with sugar. She was careful to serve herself, dropping the exact quantity of two teaspoons of the sweetener into her mug and twirling the liquid to mix it well. Noctis kept his eyes fixed on her tea bags that spun around in the tiny swirl and absently reached for his own mug, sipping it and earning an instantly burnt tongue and lips.

The Guardian took the mug away from his hands swiftly when he breathed in sharply, ignoring her burning fingers as she made to put it back down on the counter, and directed him to the sink, hastily turning the tap and getting the water flowing out. He cupped his hands and dipped his mouth on the small pool of water gathered between his palms, breathing evenly through his nose and half aware of her hand on his shoulder. However he did feel the pat she gave him, signaling that it was enough and that he could stop now. He shut the water off and straightened his back, muscles screaming and stiff due to standing in such an awkward position for at least five minutes.

Her hand still hovered in the air when he turned to face her. "Your fingers are burnt."

"So are your lips and tongue." That earned her a slight quirk of his lips as he recalled when he used her own words against her. "Let's get out of here before anyone comes."

They placed the mugs on a silver tray to avoid more unnecessary injuries and silently headed back to his room, taking the longer route but consequently not running into any servants that, true to her words, were going to check what had happened in the kitchen. She maneuvered their way through the endless hallways, efficiently sensing their presence and evading them, and it made him all the more curious about her. Since a young age, Noctis had always been the curious type, often swarming his father and mentors with questions about everything that surrounded him. He enjoyed books, but he often failed to keep his eyes open for longer than three hours after he started reading, falling asleep wherever he was seated.

His avid brain yearned to learn more of her; of her unique powers, of her likes and dislikes, of what she did in her free time, if she had any. Hell, any information that she was willing to share would be accepted greedily by his hungry mind. Noctis often had to swallow down the wave of questions that was threatening to slip past his lips, knowing very well how overwhelming they could be.

Once inside the safety of his room, the least thing he expected her to do after setting down the tray was to propose something to him. "I have a feeling we'll be meeting more frequently from now on," the Guardian revealed whilst she stepped closer to the glass doors and pulled the overly long sleeves of his shirt up her elbows, mentally wishing the rain would die down soon. "I think we should establish a few things."

The prince moved to sit on the edge of his bed as she turned to face him. "Like what?"

"How should I call you?" She referred to when she called him My Lord; although she would rather call him by a title, she knew how much he disliked them.

"Noctis," he replied simply, then added, "or Noct. Whichever is fine." Her slight frown clearly showed she wasn't much comfortable with nicknames just yet; he replied with yet another sheepish smile.

Lightning moved away from the doors, striding across the room with calculated steps so she wouldn't step on the hem of his pants, and made herself comfortable by pulling back his leather swivel chair and sitting on it. She reclined, hands resting on her lap and cool blue eyes fixed on a painting on the wall. A comfortable silence fell upon the as she examined the gravure and he gently tapped his burnt lips to inspect how much damage was done; it hurt a lot less, thankfully. "I suppose I should give you some answers." His eyes snapped in her direction when she broke the silence, a wide smile threatening to bloom on his lips. "A question every time we meet seems enough to me."

He regarded her pensively, racking his brain for the right question to ask. "Be aware that some things I just cannot answer due to the nature of my job." A nod to her commentary was his answer and he cupped his chin, brows knitting together as he thought harder. Lightning just stood there frozen in place as she waited for him to shoot the first question of what, unbeknownst to her, would become their little game.

"Can you read my mind?"

An amused eyebrow lifted for a brief moment. "No, I can't." He felt relieved, she sensed that easily. Although there was no need for him to hide behind a cool expression and keep it in check when around her, he still cherished his privacy, especially when it came to personal matters such as his thoughts. "I can only feel your presence. Your aura tells everything I need to know: where you are, how you're feeling, whether you're in danger or not. Your thoughts are safe."

Noctis nodded his head, seemingly content with the answer he got; one question down, infinite others to go. "About your question earlier," she started again, instantly catching his attention once more, "I'm not allowed to answer questions that might interfere greatly your life."

He furrowed his brow. "You, yourself, are interfering greatly in my life by protecting me."

She agreed with a curt nod of her head, knowing he would say exactly that. "But I was chosen to do so. I wasn't, however, chosen to tell you who's behind all of this and the reason as to why they want you dead."

"Wouldn't it be better if you told me so we could get this over with?"

"As much as it sounds like a good solution and tempting," feeling someone else's emotions all the time could be tiring, especially when it obscured her own most of the time; "then Etro herself would send you signs or messages. I wouldn't be of use."

He hadn't considered that. Seeing her sitting in his room wearing such casual clothing made her seem less of a divine guardian and more of a regular human like his closest friends, and for a moment he forgot that their relationship was much more than of mere acquaintances. The loose clothes did little to make her seem relaxed, though; even without her heavy armor, she kept alert for any suspicious sounds.

Knowing he couldn't ask more questions regarding her job as his guardian, he settled to watch the falling rain, legs pulled up to his chest and chin resting on his knee, a position that made him oddly relaxed. He breathed in deeply, the smell of rain mixed with their tea filled his lungs, and his eyelids slipped shut. Mind already drifting, he could hear as Lightning reached out for her mug and quietly stirred her drink with the silver spoon, then silence. His eyes peeked open, glancing at her discreetly, watching as she turned her body towards the doors and stared at the dark scenery outside deep in thought.

Her hair was considerably drier than before, curling in loose waves over her left shoulder and contrasting beautifully against the dark material of the borrowed shirt. In a room as somber as his, with neutral tones such as black, white and navy blue, her pink locks stood out, bringing a sparkle of life to his boring bedroom. Noctis closed his eyes again and concentrated on the noise outside that brought him a strange sense of inner peace, fingertips absently drawing patterns on the top of his feet and tracing the veins that stood out. Lightning's presence made him feel even more at peace and safer, and after the whole ordeal they went through that night, he could easily say he was drained and spent.

Long moments passed, the rain grew heavier then later subsided. The Guardian had finished her tea long ago, but her fingers still were curled around the mug in an attempt to keep her mind awake. If she were outside under the rain and still wearing her armor, standing guard would have been much easier. She blinked her eyes repetitively, breaking herself from the trance when the light paddle of raindrops on glass finally reached her ears that seemed to have blocked out all sounds for the past thirty minutes.

Muscles stiff for sitting still for too long, she stood from the leather chair and placed her empty mug beside Noctis's still full one. After rubbing the bridge of her nose and stretching her arms to rid herself of the weird sensation creeping up her limbs, she turned to the heir, who had fallen asleep in that awkward position of his, and approached him silently, carefully and gently lying him down on the bed and closer to the middle of the mattress. She felt as if she was tucking in a child; a twenty four years old child.

Head placed on the softest of pillows and body covered with silk sheets, Lightning scooped one of his hands up in hers and brought it close to her face, once again touching her forehead to his knuckles. "Sleep well." She bid quietly, and then prepared to take her leave.

A strong gust of wind woke him up, glass doors open and letting the air in, silky black curtains billowing and shining under the sunlight. He rubbed his eyes and checked the clock; bright red numbers read it was nearing midday. Slowly, the prince got out of bed, a strange tingling sensation on the knuckles of his left hand, and he approached his work desk. The sight of clean, ironed clothes with few white feathers on top triggered memories of the previous night and he dragged a hand down his face as he groaned in disbelief. He fell asleep and she left shortly afterwards probably.

Now feeling rested and more awake than few seconds before, he brushed away the plumes, which fell on the polished dark floor and joined many others of its kind, and unfolded the shirt to bring it up to his nose and sniff it. No traces of her smell, only laundry soap. Setting it down, he noticed both mugs were filled to the brim, steam rising into the air in swirls, and he smiled softly.

Picking up the coffee mug and walking to his balcony, he sipped the drink as he admired the bright sky, enjoying his calm and relaxed state of mind as the light breeze stirred the plumes inside his bedroom.