Lookit that I'm writing again! Okay, so I still like the idea of having you guys listen to music while reading my fanfics so it plays out like a cutscene in your head. If you'd like to try then I'd love for you guys to look up these two tracks on youtube from the FFXV soundtrack "Welcome to the Leville" and "Bros on the Road II". You'll listen to Welcome to the Leville in the first part, then switch to Bros, when you see the # Enjoy!
Prompto had to wonder why anyone would want to build a city smack dab on a meteorite that, for centuries, was a natural, space made, functioning heater. They couldn't have settled a mile or two down the road where it was cooler? No, Lestallum had to be right next to the power plant. That had to bring up a million and one safety hazards, especially when they had a recent demon infestation that could have cause the whole place to implode. No one else seemed to share his concern. The heat, even in the early evening, was sweltering. How anyone managed to live here, he had no idea, but he was glad to be only a , men, and children populated the alleys and open spaces between the buildings.
Standing outside the Leville in hopes of catching a cool breeze, Prompto could tell that much like Insomnia, this was a town that never slept. How could anyone? It was too darn hot and stuffy. Another minute in their hotel room and he was sure he might have gone insane, or melted, or both. A cooling walk was what he needed, though he didn't have much hope on the 'cooling' part. He wasn't about to go traipsing outside of town so he would have to work with what he had. He was two steps down the front stairs when he noticed a familiar figure to the far side of the lavish hotel fountain.
"H-hey! Lee!" A small breath of relief turned into a short quip of a chuckle as the girl immediately responded by looking over at him. A smile lifted both their expressions as the boy bounded over to her.
"Oh, Prompto! Good evening!"
"Hey." His excitement calmed down once he was within speaking distance. "I almost didn't recognize you out of your uniform." He motioned to the lacy, floral tank, shawl, shorts, and boots their previous party member was now sporting. "You look different not dressed in black. A good kinda different. Uh.. it looks good."
Lee listened intently while the boy fumbled for a proper compliment, and smiled when he achieved one. "Thank you," she raised her arms slightly to display the shawl. "I figured I didn't have to uphold the look anymore, so..." She appeared to look around Prompto, not finding something. "Are the others with you?"
"Yeah, they're up in the hotel room." He thumbed over his shoulder, then pressed the hand to the back of his neck. "I'm not ready to call it a night, so I figured I'd walk around a bit. Though, with this heat," he grimaced, "I dunno if I'll feel better."
Lee perked up slightly. "I was taking a stroll myself, would you like to join me?"
"Yeah! Sure!"
The pair walked up an alley towards the town's upper thoroughfare.
"It's been a while since you've left. How've you been?" He asked.
"I've been well. Yourself?"
"Besides getting roughed up by monsters? Good. We've been doing a few bounty hunts in the area for some spare change.
Lee had always had a habit of walking with her hands in front of her when speaking casually, the fingers of one hand interacting with the other. It gave her a look of always having something she wanted to say, but never voicing it. They turned right and began heading down the grand staircase of the main walk. "Are you leaving for Altissa soon?"
"Yeah, we got the King's ship to get us there but it's kinda broken. Cid's fixing it up right now, so we should be good to go in a couple days."
"That's good to hear. Altissa is beautiful. It's full of waterways and they use gondolas to get around." Her tone picked up in childlike excitement. "And the flower stalls they have everywhere!" She must have realized her behavior as she was overcome with surprise, followed by embarrassment and she calmed down. "I love it. I hope you enjoy it while you're there."
"I'm sure we will, but- wait, you're not going?"
She looked at him curiously. "Not that I know of."
Prompto scoffed in mild disbelief. "You can't miss Noct's wedding! It's like a once in a lifetime chance!"
"I hadn't received an invitation, so I just assumed it was a private affair."
"Yeah, this whole wedding thing is a little unconventional. But you gotta go! I'm positive Noct would want you there."
Lee found the situation strange, but she smiled all the same. "All right, I guess I'll tell Reeve that I'll be attending a wedding."
They looked both ways before crossing the road, passing the food vendors and the Cup Noodle truck as they made their way to the observation deck.
"If you ask, I bet you could be the flower girl," he half teased.
Lee pressed her hands together in thoughtful glee. "That would be wonderful! But I think I'll just be an observer."
Down the stairs, they passed a small group of people gathered around a pair of men playing instruments and striking up a jovial atmosphere with their beat. The city felt much more alive at night, even if the heat was near unbearable. At the overlook, they stood near the wall to get a view of the scenery, or lack thereof. In the setting sunlight, Cleigne and Duscae were consumed in shadows. What with the Archaean gone from the Disc, not even the flames that were once ever present could be seen anymore.
#
Prompto rested his forearms on the railing. "Hard to believe he's tying the knot. Seems like he jumped miles ahead of the rest of us." Lee didn't say anything, but her attentive expression coaxed him to go on, "I mean, I haven't known him as long as Ignis or Gladio have but..." His words were swept aside by a sigh. "I thought we'd get to be 'kids' a while longer, y'know?"
Lee tilted her head, considering the question as she mimicked his posture and rested her hands on the wall as well. "Even after he's married, you'll be friends, won't you?"
"Yeah, of course! It'll just feel... different."
"You have wonderful friends. I'm sure things won't change all that much."
Prompto looked on over the shadowy scenery. "Yeah," he replied, distracted, his eyes showing a mind lost in thought. "I'm lucky to have made friends at all, I think." When he noticed her curious expression, he offered a small, weighted smile. "Hard to think that I was ever a loner, right?"
"Well, I-" She was visibly struggling to find a response, then gave a solemn, single nod.
Prompto exhaled a short chuckle. "I was a completely different kid when I was younger. I was shy, and didn't talk to anyone. I didn't have any friends, until I met Noct. Even then, we weren't exactly friends but.. something changed when I met him. Actually, it's all thanks to a puppy that I was ever given the chance."
"A puppy?" Lee thought for a second. "Umbra?"
"No, this one was white. Her name was Pryna. If I hadn't stopped to help her out, I honestly don't think I'd be here, right now, with you guys."
The pair fell into a soft silence, overlooking Cleigne and Duscae, or what little they could see of it anymore, listening to the people around them. Then, Lee broke the silence.
"I would have been your friend."
He looked at her, eyes wide and brows raised, but she wasn't looking at him. Her melancholic expression brightened slightly. "I would have... shown you all of my favorite places around Insomnia. I really loved the Lux et Umbrae Museum, and the Estheim Park. There was a place I found there that was so peaceful, I thought I discovered my own little piece of Heaven."
He smiled and replied gently. "I would have loved to see it."
"But.." her tone felt heavy, "I didn't exist back then."
"Wait, you're not that much younger than me, how-" she gave him a sidelong glance, and it clicked. "Oh! Right... robot. Sorry, I forget."
"It's fine, I'm glad people can forget that detail, actually."
Prompto felt slightly awkward at his forgetful bumble.
Lee leaned over and whispered, "Do you want to know a secret?"
"Uh, sure."
She reached into her side bag and pulled out a small thumb drive. It looked like small, bulky, hard plastic. It definitely looked outdated. The label was so worn, he couldn't make out the writing on it anymore. "This was where I was when you were a kid."
Prompto looked at her in stunned silence, then back to the drive. "You were- how?"
Lee raised a brow in amusement. "I could easily be stored in this again."
"But you're so much... you,"
"All of 'me' is just data."
"You're not just 'data', " he felt strange that the words seemed to sting him slightly. "You're a whole person. Why were you in there? And.. how'd you get out?"
Lee turned the drive over in her fingers, looking at it with a sad affection. She shrugged dismissively and shook her head. "It's a long story."
"Hey, I'm not tired. Plus, it's still early."
She looked back to the drive and smiled, bringing up memories as far back as she could reach. "Well, let's see. One day, Reeve was doing some spring cleaning."
1/14/17
After watching Brotherhood and Kingsglaive, I felt suddenly inspired to make a few chapters giving Leanna a bit more backstory. How she came to be, and how she ended up working for the King. At the same time, I was on the fence about writing this because I also want to write a whole new fanfic that's a combination of Final Fantasy XV and Versus 13, because I found out what the original story was supposed to be for that game. And lemme tell you, it sounded awesome. I hope, if you enjoy my writing and this particular fanfic, that maybe that's something you guys can look forward to in the future. It'll be a long process since there's so much information, but I keep thinking about it and I wanna make it happen somehow. I'll even have Lee in it as a key party member, and try to make the story's team work more like how it did in FFXIII.
Anyway, I hope you guys aren't tired of this little robot, and hopefully look forward to what her backstory is! Reviews are greatly appreciated! Even if it's just to say you liked a certain chapter or part, or to let me know how I'm doing! I love hearing from you guys.
Couldn't decided if I wanted her to meet up with Prompto or Noct in this scene, so I went with chocobobutt. Is she hanging out with Prompto too much... I worry she is. But in my mind they have such good chemistry...
Once again, if you made it this far, thank you guys so much for reading! If you'd like to interact with Lee, like send questions, or discuss game things she might know of, she does have a blog on tumblr that's currently very active; edenslostwallflower. Hope to see you guys in the future!
Bonus:
When you go to Altissa and hang around one of the flower stalls, you'll hear the following banter.
Gladio: What's up? Planning on making yourself a flower crown?
Prompto: What?! No! I was just.. looking..
Ignis: A souvenir, perhaps?
Prompto: Sort of... not for me but...uh..
