Noct looked blearily at the top of the tent the three slept in last night. The previous night, the was so exhausted that he went straight to sleep. No dreams or thoughts about the day. He just was. It was a nice thought and he lay in his sleeping bag and enjoyed it for a few minutes before he began looking around for his bag. He found it tossed in a pile with the others in the corner of the tent and got out some clothes for the day.
Currently he could hear very loud snores coming from beside him. Guess his body had gotten use to being up early when he was outside. He could just make out the first signs of daylight beginning. The darkness was getting lighter. He could hear birds beginning to chirp and greet the day. The other two occupants of the tent did not look like they would be rising with the sun so he snuck out of the tent with his clothes and toiletries.
The outfit that Ignis picked out for the trip were probably the least fancy thing the prince owned at this point. It consisted of a black T-shirt and shorts along with a pair of boots for hiking. Ignis insisted on the boots to protect against snakebites since there would be hiking. Seeing that no one was around for miles, Noct got dressed in his clothes outside the tent, making a mental note to ask Gladio where he could clean himself later.
Gladio had explained what a firepit was the day before and the mechanics of setting one up but Noct was not sure he would be doing it right and did not want to make a fool of himself, so he left the job alone until Gladio could help. For all his bragging, he never seemed to mind sharing his knowledge with Noct. He teased but Noct got the feeling that's all it was.
It was nice listening to the way Gladio spoke. He was never overly demanding and he always explained things to the prince, weather it be training or this. Most people that taught him kinda sounded snooty, like either they were looking down on him for not knowing or just did not want to be there at all. He always did well with his studies but did not like any teacher in particular. Guess Gladio was the outlier and he was only technically a teacher.
Dressed and looking around the clearing they had spent the night he, Noct realized how perfect he suited their needs. It was very large, about 20 of Noct's steps in any direction and it was flat ground. A person could look at it and never guess they had hiked up a mountain to get there. Iris and him did a pretty good job yesterday with the rocks and sticks but there were still many on the ground. Why not? Noct thought as he finished up yesterday's assigned task.
The work went by significantly quicker with just himself working but he enjoyed it more when he was doing the job with Iris the day before. An odd thought for him. Why would he not prefer the fastest way? that was a thought to ponder on later. He just finished up when the sun finished rising. It might have been his current location or the company but Noct did not think any of the sunrises in the palace looked this amazing.
The tree leaves created mesmerizing shadows on the ground when the sunlight filtered through them. With the tall trees on either side and the tent placement, the sun did not quit reach all the way in the tent, most likely Gladio's doing. Pondering what to do next, Noct remembered Gladio saying something about a lake nearby.
He continued that thought by remembering that they ate the last of their meal foods last night. Unless they ate snacks they would not have anything for breakfast. He did have his fishing gear close and he could do some exploring as well. It sounded like a win-win situation all the way around. Just for the extra practice Noct summoned just his rod from his magic lock box.
He was young and that's what his father called the place where he put things only he was allowed to get to. It just sounded right. He did this a couple of times before settling with it back inside and began walking in a random direction. He went the opposite way they came in at. He spotted another game trail while he was clearing the rocks and decided to follow it.
The lake could not be too far, with the way Gladio spoke it was fairly close. So Noct travelled that trail for about 15 minutes, climbing over trees and pushing underbrush out of his way. He was quit honestly having the time of his life. He began laughing and talking to himself. He was not much of a conversationalist according to Ignis so he just talked about all the things he learned from Gladio the day before.
After 15 minutes, he turned around and headed back toward the clearing. When he returned he could still hear snores coming from inside the tent, so he picked another trail. He would become quiet when he got close to camp but would get louder the further out he went. After the fifth trail, he hit the jackpot. Letting out a definitely unprincely sound he ran toward the dock.
It was an older dock for sure. He went slow testing it to make sure it was safe. It had probably been about three hours since he woke up and he was getting hungry. He did not get to fish often so this was going to be fun. He was tired from his explorations earlier so he sat at the end of the dock and summoned his pole and tacklebox. He picked his lure and restrung his rod. It was old so he tried to do this as often as he could.
He let out a breath of crisp morning air the moment the lure first touched the water. He cast out a few times just to feel the fishing rod move. The sun was definitely up by this point. He stood as he got his first bite and began wrestling the fish to get it to the bank. This was always his favorite part.
T
he push and pull of him and the fish was a lot like fighting or dancing. They each had to give and get but eventually only one would win their struggle. It was not the smallest thing he's caught but definitely not the largest. He got some rope and a trap that he had stored in his lockbox and put the fix in it. Now how many fish did it take to feed everyone. If he could get two each that would do for breakfast and maybe lunch.
He was getting hungrier by the fourth fish. When he cast out again, something almost took his pole from him completely. The fight was on and whatever it was, it was huge. Noct felt if he lost concentration for even a moment, he would lose his pray. After an eternity of back and forth, Noct heard something in the brush behind him. Not thinking anything of it at the moment, he continued his fight.
Gladio would deny it to anyone who asked but when he first woke up to the prince gone, he panicked. He looked frantically around the camp and did not calm down until he noticed the stone and wood pile had definitely increased. No intruder would do chores in an unknown camp. Letting his training kick in he noticed there was fresh footprints for one set of shoes going around the clearing.
There were no signs of a struggle and it looked like several game trails had been disturbed. When the realization of where the prince probably was came through, Gladio's relieved laugh woke his younger sister. The boy must have gotten bored waiting for them and decided to go exploring. Guess one thing about living in the palace is that days start early. The two siblings got dressed and ready for the day. Gladio looked where the firepit should be sadly as his stomach let out a growl.
They had snacks but he was hungry after all the hiking yesterday. Guess they could all snack when he found the prince before setting up the fire and trying to get breakfast. He enjoyed fish but did not really enjoy catching them. He was told once upon a time it was because he was too impatient.
Gladio and Iris went to the trail leading to the lake. Figuring they could look at the dock and it was one of the trails the prince went down, It was a good first choice. When they were almost to the water, they heard a young battle cry. Recognizing the prince's voice, Gladio ran through the trail, picking up and carrying his sister.
What he witness was surprising to say the least. If he did not know they were the only three in the area, the older boy would have thought someone else's kid was standing at the end of the dock. The clothes Ignis picked out were perfect for the boy. They made him look like a normal kid. The fact he was covered in leaves and dirt also helped out the normal image.
At the moment, it looked like he was glaring at the water and his tight line. No telling how long he had been at it, he let out another battle cry and pulled hard. This trip was going to be a lot of firsts for both boys it would seem. He had only seen the prince this fired up once before when they had first started training and never with this much excitement.
With one last heave, the victory was assured. Gladio heard a large splash and Noct leaned down to get his catch. It was the largest catfish that Gladio had ever seen. Finally getting it completely out of the water, Noct looked back and noticed the two watching him. It was like someone hit the poor boy.
His smile and excitement just vanished. replaced by a shy boy. His cheeks colored and he looked down at the ground with the fish still at his feet on the shoe. He almost looked ashamed as he fidgeted in place. Well, Gladio could not let that happen after finally seeing the prince transform into a kid could he.
Noct won his fight with the fish. It was huge and was the most difficult catch he had ever made. It took all his might to pull it out of the water but with a joyful cry, he hauled it up on the shore. Vaguely remembering the sound behind him as he was reeling the monster in he turned and saw something unexpected. Gladio and Iris were standing behind him and witnessed his rude display.
Noct kinda hoped he would be back in camp and have regained his composure before the others woke up. He could feel his face flush and tried his best to hide it by looking down. Looking down was a bad idea though because it only showed him how bad off he was. His clothes, which he put on this morning were covered in dirt and leaves from playing earlier. Prince's are suppose to look royal all the time. He was covered from head to toe, he was surprised they even recognized him.
He was about to start apologizing for his display when Gladio let out a whoop even louder than his snores. When Noct looked up, Gladio only had eyes for the fish at his feet. "How on earth did you get that out of the water? It could probably feed us all this morning." Unsure but willing to continue this train of thought Noct answered a little timidly "I caught some others as well. They are in the trap."
If anything Gladio got happier at that statement alone. "Good thing we came along then to help you carry them back" he chirped. Unsure because neither Gladio or Iris said anything about his clothes, he grabbed the other fish and they began making their way back to camp. "Although" Gladio stated "next time you run off to play, let me know so I won't worry so much". It was said with such a calm air, Noct did not have to think twice about his affirmative.
Gladio continued the conversation about the fish, seeing an opportunity and taking it. The closed off child that had appeared when the did slowly disappeared back to wherever he came from. The bright child that was fishing slowly came back out. It was amazing the difference showing an interest in his hobbies had created. He began talking more and moving his hands to help make his point.
Any chance of Gladio thinking of him as just his prince flew out the window. As the young man shone with pride. they made their way back to camp to learn to start fires and cook the fish that the boy had caught. Today was going to be a beautiful day after all.