A/N: FINALLY! Sorry for not posting an update on this fic for so long, we were just unsure on how to proceed. But fear not, as we've got a plan! Enjoy~
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the story. Many thanks to MilayaMilenZeal for her help!
King & Companion
Chapter 10
Well, it was any time now that Kuja was going to be home for his break. Prompto had been becoming increasingly excited for his friend's visit, and he was truly looking forward to updating his fellow shifter on everything that had happened while the falcon shifter had been at school. He was even eager to hear about Kuja's experience in school, even though Prompto himself hadn't always enjoyed his lessons when he was younger, often finding them boring.
Zidane and Mikoto had even come home a few days prior themselves, as they had kept their trip to Lindbulm short. Prompto had been thrilled when they showed him the pictures they had taken while there, but despite that, he had no urge to leave home anytime soon.
Right now, however, he was curled up against Noctis's feet in wolf form while the raven was doing his usual work, lightly dozing as he waited for Ignis to return with Kuja. He soon heard the familiar sound of the Regalia's engine as the sandy blonde drove in, and Prompto immediately perked up, bright and alert as he wagged his tail.
'Kuja's here!' he grinned up at Noctis. Noctis didn't respond to the call, as it became clear he had actually fallen asleep. 'Noct!' the blonde barked, jumping onto the arm of the chair and licking a wet streak up the Nightwalker's cheek.
"Gah!" the King yowled, blinking, before he glared a bit at Prompto.
'Kuja's here, Noct!' Prompto huffed, stepping back, his excitement showing through his wagging tail.
"Right, right…" Noctis chuckled softly, stretching out before he stood up quietly. Prompto was practically dancing in place as he waited impatiently by the door for his lover, grinning eagerly. Once he was awake properly, Noctis walked over to the door and after Prompto without a word. And Prompto, the overly-eager scamp, dashed ahead, his excitement getting the better of him this time, barking happily as he ran to the garage. By the time Prompto got there, Kuja was just getting out of the Regalia after Ignis.
'Kuja!' the wolf shifter crowed, running over to him, his tail going a mile a minute. He had enough restraint to not jump on the silverette, as he knew that would get him yelled at.
Kuja chuckled softly at the other shifter. "Well, hello there, dear."
Shifting back, Prompto grinned at him. "It's good to have you back, even if it's just for a little bit," he smiled brightly. The falcon shifter merely nodded, before looking up as Noctis came over. As he did, Kuja nodded his head politely.
"Good to see you again, Kuja," the King said with a smile. Prompto automatically tucked himself into Noctis's side as he usually did, before looking to Kuja again.
"How long will you be able to stay for your visit?" he asked.
"Four days," Kuja said simply, adjusting his hair. "I think that should be long enough, correct?"
"Definitely enough time for us to catch up," the blonde smiled as they started to head back inside. "So, what's it like there?"
"Certainly different," Kuja said as they walked down the hall. "It's quite intriguing, though…as is their dress code."
Noctis laughed softly. "Yeah… Father would sometimes call them 'ruffles'."
"What are ruffles?" Prompto questioned, looking up at Noctis curiously.
This almost made Noctis laugh, but Kuja couldn't hold back as he chuckled. "What he means, dear, is that the cloth is adjusted in such a way that it makes it 'ruffle'." Rather than explain further, Kuja pulled out his phone, tapped along it a bit, and then handed it over to Prompto. The smaller male took the phone, and then looked at the picture, before he handed it back to Kuja, nodding his understanding.
"I don't think I'd like that for myself…" he muttered, internally cringing at the idea. Kuja merely shrugged his shoulders with a chuckle—right before he yowled as he was suddenly jumped from behind.
"HEYO KUJ!"
"…Hello, Zidane."
"Hey Zidane," Prompto chuckled. "Where's Mikoto?"
Zidane chuckled as he hopped down. "She went ahead to the garden."
"Cool, let's go meet with her, then," the wolf shifter smiled.
"Sounds good!" Zidane laughed, before he hurried ahead of the others.
Kuja sighed softly. "He certainly hasn't changed a bit," he chuckled.
"What did you expect?" Prompto pointed out.
"Touché," Kuja murmured, making Noctis chuckle. When they arrived at the gardens, Prompto looked around to find Mikoto, wondering if she was watching the night lilies again like he did. Sure enough, the girl was sitting in the back of the garden, just looking ahead quietly, lost in her thoughts.
"Hey Mikoto!" the blonde called to her. "Look who's here!"
Blinking, the girl looked up, confused, before she spotted Kuja. Smiling a bit, she stood up and came over. "Welcome back, Kuja," she said calmly.
"Evening, dear~" the older Shifter chuckled. "How are you doing?"
"Good, thank you."
"Hopefully we don't upset your sleep schedule too much before you go back," Prompto said cheekily.
Kuja snorted with a small smile. "Oh, you don't have to worry about that, dear."
"Oh?"
Kuja merely waved it off, before he said, "Let's not focus on that for now, shall we?"
"Fine, if you say so," Prompto conceded, rolling his eyes a little with an amused smile.
Noctis reached out and ruffled the blonde's hair with a chuckle. "He just did, Prom," he said. The blonde merely pouted at having his hair ruffled, but he quickly settled again.
Ignis chuckled at that interaction. "Well, I'll see you all later for dinner," he said with a nod.
"Right, thanks, Iggy."
"Thanks!" Prompto added. "So, anything interesting that you learned at school?" he asked Kuja.
"Oh, quite a few things," Kuja chuckled as they all settled in the garden. "You may want to consider going as well sometime."
"I'm not as musically talented as you are, Kuja, you know that," Prompto pointed out.
Kuja merely chuckled cheekily, before the turned to Zidane and Mikoto. "So how has your trip been?"
"It's been cool~" Zidane said with a grin, hands behind his head, while Mikoto nodded.
"Yes… It's quite a sight with all the trams being steam-powered."
"The pictures they took were too cool!" Prompto chimed in.
"I'm sure they were," Kuja said with a nod.
"They are! Miko, show 'im!" Zidane urged, prodding his sister. The girl nodded her head and pulled out the phone she carried with her, going to the gallery. And Prompto watched with a content smile as he leaned lightly against Noctis.
As Mikoto was showing off the pictures, though, Zidane blinked briefly, after which he scampered over to Prompto. "Hey, Prom."
"Hm?"
"Is it just me…or is there another smell on Kuj?"
Pausing to quietly sniff the air, Prompto blinked, noticing what Zidane meant. "Yeah, I smell it. I wonder who it could be…?" the wolf shifter frowned curiously.
Just then, Noctis ruffled Prompto's hair again. "I don't think that's too important, is it?" he said with a chuckle.
"But…" the blonde pouted.
"Leave it. Both of you," the King warned.
"…fiiiiiine."
Prompto sighed, but heeded the warning anyway, snuggling into Noctis's side.
X*X*X*X*X*X*X
Later on, as the group chatted and caught up with each other, Ignis came to collect them for dinner.
"Dinner's ready," the human called out, catching everyone's attention.
"Right. Thanks, Ignis," Noctis said with a nod.
"Ready to enjoy Ignis's cooking again, Kuja?" Prompto asked with a chuckle as they headed to the dining room.
"Definitely," Kuja said with a smile as they stood up and headed off to the dining room.
"By the way, do you just cook for yourself while there?" the wolf shifter inquired.
"Oh, depends on the classes, really," Kuja said as he tucked some hair behind his ear. "If I have time, I do, but otherwise I'll get something from the school's café."
"Maybe you should make a meal for everyone with Ignis next time you visit!" Prompto grinned. "Besides, I'll bet your cooking's good."
"Hahah. Maybe."
"What do you think, Zidane?" the taller blonde asked his friend.
"Hahah! Definitely!" Zidane laughed with a big grin. Prompto laughed as well as they walked into the dining room and took their seats.
"Wonder what Ignis made this time…?" the wolf shifter wondered idly as they waited.
And when it was brought over, the wolf shifter almost drooled at the sight of the bowl of Dry-Aged Tender Roast Stew. "Nice one, Iggy," Noctis said with a chuckle.
"Thanks, Ignis!" Prompto grinned eagerly before beginning to eat. Kuja nodded his head calmly, thanking him politely, even as Zidane and Mikoto had already begun to eat eagerly. Noctis smiled as he watched them eat, before he began to eat as well, much slower than anyone else. As they ate, Prompto felt a weird feeling wash over him, but he had no idea what it was. He paused in eating briefly as he tried to place it, but couldn't, so he simply shrugged it off and resumed his meal. No one else seemed to notice, and no one brought it up as a result. As Noctis took a sip from his drink, he briefly glanced over to window, humming softly.
"What's up, Noct?" Prompto asked when he noticed.
"…Ah, thought I saw something," he said with a small shake of his head.
"Like…?"
"Ah, not sure…"
"Hm…"
As they got back to their dinner, though, Zidane blinked and looked up toward the window.
Looking out the window curiously himself now, Prompto narrowed his eyes slightly, before he perked up when he saw what he thought Noctis saw. "Oh! Butterflies! At this time of night?" he frowned, confused.
Kuja looked up at the call, frowning a bit, before he gave a small sound. "Ah…those are Eve Monarchs. They're only active at night and feed exclusively on Night Orchids."
"…Oh right, I forgot that was a thing…" Noctis murmured.
"I haven't seen butterflies in years! Not since I was with my pack!" Prompto exclaimed eagerly.
This caused Noctis to laugh softly. "Well, then perhaps we can go see them after dinner. How does that sound?"
"Sounds awesome!" Zidane laughed.
"Definitely!" the taller blonde grinned, and, due to his excitement, he began to eat just a little faster. Once he was finished, he looked at his friends as they finished eating as well.
Noctis chuckled softly as he finally finished, while Zidane and Mikoto got off from their seats as soon as he put down his utensils. "C'mon, dude! Let's go already!"
"Alright, alright; coming."
"Yes!" Prompto crowed, before shifting and running on ahead…again. Zidane laughed and was quick to run after him, while Mikoto followed at her own pace just ahead of Kuja and Noctis.
"They never change," Kuja chuckled softly, making Noctis smile.
"Problem?"
"Not at all."
'Woohoo!' Prompto cheered as he ran on to the garden. He barked happily upon reaching the doors, pushing them open before scurrying outside. The second he stepped out, he immediately saw the numerous butterflies fluttering about the garden, their shining blue wings glittering in the moonlight as they floated around the Night Orchids for their food.
'Whoa…!' the blonde gasped, awed by the sight.
When Zidane came up behind him, the shorter shifter whistled in awe. "Damn! That's impressive!" he said with a laugh.
'They're so pretty…!' Prompto breathed. And he was reminded again of his old pack, back when he was a little pup, playing in the flowers with his parents and butterflies being everywhere. Zidane didn't seem to notice the pause as he walked ahead into the garden, watching the butterflies as they went about their day without seeming to care about either him or Prompto.
The wolf shifter gained a soft smile on his muzzle when one of the butterflies landed on his nose, tickling him a little bit. The butterfly flicked its wings as it settled on Prompto's nose momentarily, before it swiftly fluttered off as the others came over. Prompto's bright blue eyes widened in awe as he watched them, looking up at Noctis excitedly when the raven joined them in the garden.
Noctis chuckled as he watched the butterflies flutter about. "Hm… Quite a bunch of them…"
'…Reminds me of when my parents and I would play in the flower fields with butterflies all over the place when I was little…' the wolf shifter murmured, his gaze distant as he remembered. Catching the look, Noctis frowned softly and reached out, lightly scratching him behind the ears. This caused a rumbling, almost-purring sound to emit from the blonde's chest, and he leaned into the touch.
Kuja hummed as he stepped into the garden as well. "Interesting…" he murmured. Just then, one of the butterflies fluttered over, making the older shifter hum, as he lifted a finger, letting the critter land on it silently.
'Seems it likes you or something about you,' Prompto chuckled. Kuja merely hummed, while Mikoto walked over, watching the butterflies going around with a curious look in her eyes.
'…Kuja? Did you guys ever see butterflies back in Bran Bal…?' the wolf shifter asked, almost hesitantly, as he knew Bran Bal wasn't always a pleasant topic for him.
"…probably," Kuja mumbled with a shrug. "We didn't get out much…"
'Right… Sorry…'
The older shifter didn't say anything else; he just stood there, watching the butterfly as it settled, only minutely flapping its wings on occasion.
Zidane and Mikoto, meanwhile, were in the middle of the garden, laughing as the butterflies fluttered around them from flower to flower. Prompto smiled as he trotted over, his tail wagging contently.
'They're really pretty, huh?' he asked.
"Definitely!" Zidane said with a grin.
'What do you think, Mikoto?'
"They're beautiful," the girl murmured, a warm smile on her face. Prompto smiled as well, glad that they all got to experience this together. Noctis chuckled softly…before he frowned as he looked to the horizon. Blinking, the blonde wolf looked as well, before sighing heavily.
'Sunrise, huh?' he guessed.
"…Yeah. You can stay until they leave, but I should get inside…" Noctis said with a small sigh of his own. Prompto bit his lip briefly, feeling torn for a second, but then he quickly went to his lover's side.
'I'll go with. No reason for you to be alone,' he smiled.
Noctis blinked, before he smiled. "Alright…"
The wolf shifter smiled contently once he shifted back, tucking himself into Noctis's side as they went inside, bidding everyone goodnight as they went. Once they were back in their room, changed for the "night", and were settled in bed, Prompto hummed happily as he cuddled with the raven, before voicing a thought he'd wondered before.
"…Hey Noct? I know you can't have kids of your own, but…had you ever considered raising another as yours?" he asked softly.
"…mm…maybe…" Noctis murmured softly. "…haven't really thought of it, to be honest…"
"Well, maybe we could think on it, for later," the smaller male offered. "No rush, obviously."
"…hmhmm…" Noctis hummed softly.
"Love you, Noct…" Prompto whispered, kissing the Nightwalker's jaw softly before settling against him with a yawn. The recent excitement of waiting to see Kuja, along with seeing the Eve Monarchs, had worn him out.
"Mm… Love you, too…" the King mumbled sleepily. Smiling tiredly, the blonde drifted off, breathing in the raven's soothing scent as he slept.