Disclaimer: Final Fantasy does not belong to me
Xethear: Hello everyone! School has been relentless for the past few weeks, apologies for the really late update! Now that I'm on spring break I can hopefully update the next chapters faster! Hope you all enjoy chapter 11!
Chapter 11: Memories of Happier Days
Lightning remained motionless from the shock, her body numb yet warm, her lips sealed by the prince's. It took a moment for the soldier to realize that she wasn't hallucinating and once reality hit her she pushed the prince away from her with a powerful shove to the chest.
A furious blush was painted across Noctis's face as Lightning made some distance between them. The small blush also present on Lightning's flustered face only made Noctis's heart beat faster. Just then Lightning walked up to Noctis, her hair concealing her face hiding any emotions behind light pink locks. She forcefully picked him up by his collar and drove her fist into his stomach causing the man to fall back down on the ground clutching his abdomen.
"W-What, what was that for?!" Noctis said coughing up the words. He looked up at Lightning to see an angry expression on her face but despite that, her blush was still present.
"What were you doing?!" Lightning asked furiously grabbing the prince by the collar once again. She clenched her fist once again, but before she could inflict more damage to the prince, he held up an empty elixir bottle to her face. "What happened to the elixir?" She asked releasing the prince from her grip.
Noctis rubbed his stomach and winced from the aftermath of Lightning's punch, "You were… poisoned Lightning…," Noctis coughed,"…and you told us before not to waste a drop." The prince went over to a nearby tree sat down and leaned against the trunk while rubbing his stomach before continuing his explanation. "I tried pouring it in your mouth, but you were unconscious and your mouth was closed so just pouring it wouldn't work considering it's such a small vial so I…" Noctis averted his gaze from the female soldier who was suddenly realizing what had happened. "I sort of drank the elixir and gave it to you through… another method." The blush on Noctis's face had returned and he refused to look Lightning in the eyes. Both remained silent for a moment, too embarrassed to speak to one another.
Noctis sighed as the pain began to subside and slowly rose to his feet, "I suppose we should head back now? Everyone is probably worried." He said to the female soldier and pointed to the direction of the camp.
"Right. Let's get a move on then..." The soldier said swiftly before starting on the path leaving the prince to follow behind her.
As the two cadets made their way passed the thick brush of the forest, the camp began to appear in the clearing with a crowd of cadets to welcome them back. As soon as they entered the clearing their friends charged after them and surrounded them with concerned looks on their faces and a barrage of questions.
"You're a mess Light!" Vanille exclaimed as she began wiping an annoyed Lightning's face with a moist towel.
Fang crossed her arms and examined Lightning from the top of her head to her boots, "What happened out there Sunshine? We expect you to be able to take down a little Ochu."
Hope handed the female soldier a bottle of water, "The other cadets told us what happened." He explained.
Sazh came over with a first aid kit and handed it over to Vanille who quickly unpacked it and began dressing Lightning's wounds.
As the female soldier received first aid as well as more questions from her friends, Noctis had decided to walk back to his barracks along with his friends. Gladiolus and Prompto walked at Noctis's sides and each threw one arm over the prince's neck.
"An Ochu huh Noct?" Prompto said out loud as the men continued to walk towards their barracks, "You should have told us, we would have been able to help out Noct."
Ignis walked ahead of the three men, "Indeed Noct, it's best you avoid rash thinking. You had us all worried when your squad came back shouting at everyone that an Ochu had attacked."
Gladiolus laughed and patted Noctis on the back, "Give him a break, he had to go help out his princess. You both would have done the same."
The word princess caused Noctis's heart to skip a beat and his face to heat up as it caused him to recall what he had done to Lightning in the forest. 'I never expected a soldier of her caliber to have such warm and soft lips-' Noctis violently shook his head dismissing the thought which caused his friends to stare at him with a questioning look on their faces.
"Everything alright Noct?" Prompto asked a flustered looking Noctis.
"I-It's nothing." Noctis said quickly before entering his tent. "I need to be alone for a moment guys, I'm alright." The prince said behind the tent flaps.
Prompto, Gladiolus and Ignis all exchanged concerned glances but fulfilled the prince's wishes by leaving to rendezvous with their teams.
Paradigm Shift
Lightning had returned to her tent along with her friends excluding Hope who ran off to find Lightning a meal to help her regain her energy. She took the time to fill everyone in on what happened and decided to fill Hope in on the parts he missed afterwards.
"And that's the gist of it." Lightning said taking a drink of water as she concluded her report to her friends on her encounter with the ochu. The soldier told her friends everything, except the detail of how Noctis gave her the elixir.
Vanille stared at Lightning her eyes filled with excitement, "The way you tell it it's like we were there with you Light! I still can't believe it, an ochu that close to base camp."
Lightning crossed her arms, "It surprised me too considering they shouldn't even be this close to the outskirts of Bodhum."
At that moment the tent flaps opened and an out of breath Hope walked in balancing a plate of Gysahl Salad and Fond de Behemoth in his arms. "C-Can someone helped me with this?!" Hope asked frantically afraid that he may lose his balance and drop the dishes at any moment.
Thankfully Sazh came over and relieved Hope's burden as he took the plate of Fond de Behemoth and set it on a small table in front of Lightning.
Lightning looked stunned as she stared at the meal that was presented in front of her, "You didn't have to go and get all this Hope." She said feeling guilt well up inside her.
Hope responded with a smile, "Don't worry about it Light, this is small compared to the things you do for us."
"Little Hope is right Sunshine." Fang added while polishing her spear. "You need to get some of that energy and fiery spirit back."
"Eat up Ms. Soldier." Sazh said giving Lightning a fork and knife. "I'll be out to give your report to one of the lieutenants."
Lightning nodded thanking the man before he left and began to eat the food her friends got for her. Knowing that it was something that came from her friends made it taste amazing and she knew she would be better in no time flat.
Paradigm Shift
As soon as he got home Noctis went upstairs, locked the door of his room, threw his bag by his bedside and collapsed on his bed. The events which unfolded in the forest played in his head nonstop throughout the day causing the prince to act jumpy whenever he happened upon Lightning. Everyone admired him for defeating the ochu with Lightning. The cadets in their squad thanked them and the lieutenants praised them for their feat. At the end of the day both Noctis and Lightning were called up to the stage and were given a round of applause; however, everyone found it strange that neither cadet looked at the other and kept a distance of about three meters.
Noctis threw one arm over his eyes and groaned as he recalled the expression Lightning had on her face on their way back to base camp. She seemed troubled and the faint blush on her face gave Noctis a hint as of why because he was feeling the same thing – indirectly, that was his first kiss.
'There's no reason to be nervous around her Noctis. She was poisoned; you had to give her the elixir somehow.' The prince told himself in his head, but it didn't calm his nerves. No matter what reassuring thing he tried to tell himself, part of him continued to suspect that Lightning felt he did it on purpose.
Noctis groaned and turned on his bed so that he was facing the wall. "I probably shouldn't show up at tomorrows practice." He murmured to himself softly. The prince suddenly felt his eyes grow heavy and quickly fell asleep.
Paradigm Shift
Lightning thanked Sazh and her friends for driving her back home with a wave of her hand and walked up to her front door. As soon as she unlocked the door and turned the knob the door flew open and she stared at a tear stricken Serah who came running towards her. The young Farron quickly threw her arms around Lightning and began sobbing uncontrollably as she tried to speak.
"I-I'm so glad you're home L-Light…" Serah managed to say choking out the words. She buried her face in Lightning's uniform and continued to sob, "I don't want to lose you too."
Lightning was filled with guilt knowing that she caused her sister to worry about her; she never wanted Serah to know what had happened earlier in the day. Placing the thought aside Lightning returned Serah's hug and held her sister tightly. "It's alright now Serah, remember who you're talking too. I won't lose so easily." She said in a soft comforting tone and stroked Serah's hair. Serah began to calm down and her sobs began to cease as she found security in her sister's embrace.
The siblings found their way to the couch and sat down together; Lightning turned the tv on just so that there was a little sound in the room. Serah wiped the tears that still remained on her face with the palm of her hand and took deep breaths in order to calm down and relax.
Lightning smiled realizing how strong her sister was and pat her sister on her head, "So how did you find out Serah? I never wanted to make you worry."
A warm smile appeared on Serah's face as she found her sister's sign of affection to be very comforting. Her voice was still a little shaky when she responded, but she was recovering quickly, "S-Snow told me." Serah confessed to her sister.
At that moment Snow walked into the living room carrying a plate filled with food, "Hey Serah is it alright if I eat this-"The blonde suddenly froze when he met Lightning's steely glare and before he knew it he was standing outside of Lightning's house, the door shut and a fresh black eye present on his face. Snow laughed and scratched the back of his head, "I didn't expect her to be home already."
From behind the door he could hear the two siblings bickering, "Light! You didn't have to go and do that! Snow was comforting me all this time!" Snow smiled knowing Serah was defending him.
"Serah, I came home to you tear stricken! Is that his idea of comfort? And he was obviously raiding our refrigerator!" Lightning retorted causing Snow to groan from the other side of the door.
"Ha ha… they seem to be feeling better." Snow said to himself as the two Farron sisters continued their argument.
Paradigm Shift
Noctis woke up from his nap and glanced at his chocobo clock; it was late and from the lack of shouting in the house he knew his friends must have gone to bed. Feeling renewed energy from his nap; the prince rose up from his bed and stretched before picking his bag up from the floor. He unzipped the bag and rummaged through the contents until he felt what he was searching for. Noctis pulled his hand out from his bag and along with it, the small empty vial which had held the contents of the elixir. The moonlight which shone from his bedroom window reflected off the glass of the vile beautifully which reminded the prince of a special memory.
Noctis closed his eyes and clenched the vial in the palm of his hand as he recollected.
It was a beautiful night. The sky was cloudless revealing a star splashed night sky.
"What is this flower called?" A young Noctis asked a woman with hair the color of the night sky, the same color as the prince's.
She was tending to a small bed of flowers and gave Noctis a smile as he held up a flower which had yet to bloom. "Of all the flowers in the garden, you've sure selected a rare one Noctis." The woman said ruffling the prince's hair causing him to blush and pout. "This one is called Vespere Lux, it's very rare.
"Vespere… Lux?" Noctis repeated.
The woman nodded, "This rose is unique just like you my little prince. Would you like to help me plant it?" She asked Noctis who replied with a grin and a nod.
After digging a bed for the flower the woman gave Noctis a small nod letting the prince know it was okay for him to place the flower in the ground. Despite being really eager, Noctis kept calm and gently lowered the flower into the hole. Once it was safely in place the woman placed her hands over Noctis's and helped him cover the roots of the flower with a generous amount of soft soil.
Moonlight shimmered through the glass ceiling sheltering the flowers and bathed everything in a magical light. Noctis looked at everything in awe; it was unlike anything he had ever seen.
The woman smiled warmly at Noctis and held out her hand which Noctis took hold of. "Noctis, take a look at the flower you planted." The woman said directing Noctis towards the flower.
Noctis stared wide eyed as the small bud began to bloom revealing crystal like petals with the colors of the morning sky.
"W-Wow." The prince said in complete amazement. "It looks just like the sky mother!" Noctis said energetically as he looked up at the woman.
Noctis's mother gave his hand a light squeeze and smiled warmly at her son. "It's very special Noctis, this is your flower now."
Noctis gave his mother a big grin, "I'll always think of you and father and my friends when I look at it!"
Noctis's mother gave Noctis a gentle kiss on the forehead and the two began walking towards the castle. "They say Vespere Lux is a symbol of love Noctis."
"It makes sense mother." Noctis said as he walked alongside his mother. "When I look at it, I think of the people I love."
Noctis opened his eyes and stared at the empty elixir vial in his hands. There was a small tear resting on top of the vial. Noctis places a hand on his face and felt moisture. He sighed and placed the vial on his desk before lying back down in his bed.
"You sure have a way of telling me things mother." Noctis whispered. "I've met someone whose eyes look just like Vespere Lux."
End Chapter
Xethear: Apologies again for the late update everyone, now that I'm on spring break I can hopefully finish work and update a little faster next time! Thank you all for your patience and I shall try and make the next chapter longer than this one!
Noctis and Lightning: You need some Fond de Behemoth to restore your energy.
Xethear: Does it really taste good?
