Hello, all! Chapter 22 of Frozen Heart incoming. Sorry about the long wait yet again. Work has been so busy lately, and I recently moved, and life has just gotten in the way. But I haven't forgotten about my story! I've been working on this one slowly over the last two months - it isn't super plot-heavy but it is Lydia-centric, so I hope you enjoy it nonetheless.

Thanks for all the favorites, follows, and amazing reviews! You guys help make this so much more fun. :)

Disclaimer: I don't own FFXV.

Chapter 22: A Right to Exist

"One Elder Coeurl slain," Lydia said, slapping down the whiskers she'd cut off the dead beast's body onto the local tipster's desk. "He'll be terrorizing your locals no longer."

The tipster gave Lydia a blank stare before leaning forward to inspect the proof she'd brought back. "Wow," he said, clearing his throat. "You, um—you managed to kill that thing all by yourself?"

"Yep."

The man then made a sound as he looked her up and down with obvious disapproval in his gaze. She asked herself to have patience, but her efforts were unsuccessful, so she simply gave the tipster a sweet smile and said, "So I'd like my pay, please."

At first, the man looked up at her from his desk as though she was speaking a different language. She thought she might have to repeat herself until the man grunted and pulled out a box. She watched as he pulled bills out and counted them meticulously before handing them to her.

After staring at the funds for a few seconds, she let her eyes wander back to his. "That's not what we agreed," she asserted.

The man gave her a sympathetic smile. "Uh—actually, this is the amount on the monster's bounty sheet." Pointing to the other side of the room, he added, "You can look for yourself on the 'Wanted' board."

Lydia glanced down at the money again and shook her head. "I don't need to, because I remember that earlier this morning, you specifically said you would give me 10,000 gil to take down the monster. You're 4,000 too short, pal."

The man laughed, setting his hand down with the money in it and using the other to close the box. "I don't think so, Miss. Now, you're welcome to take or leave the money that I've offered. But that's it. I'm very sorry if you heard me wrong."

Lydia pressed her lips together and fought the urge to reach out and slam this arrogant son of a bitch's head against the table. Instead, she leaned forward slowly and placed her hands on the desk. "Tell me something—do you think you're the first man to try to screw me over? Do you think because I look young and pretty that I'm easy to manipulate? Well, do you? Go on, be honest. I dare you."

The tipster, who wasn't expecting her to take such a hard a approach, opened his mouth in surprise but said nothing. Several seconds passed before he was able to manage, "Hey, I—I don't set the prices, Sweetheart. I just pay the hunters. So maybe I slipped up and gave you the wrong price."

She chuckled, tapping her fingers on the desk in amusement that he actually believed she was that stupid. "No. No, I don't think you did. I think you saw a tiny, unassuming woman walk in here desperate for cash and you thought it would be cute to fudge it when I asked you for the price." She shrugged. "Seemed like a harmless enough joke, I'm sure, since you didn't expect her to bring back actual evidence of the kill. Too bad the woman you lied to turned out to be me."

"I'm real sorry, Miss," the man said, patting the money still on the desk with his fingers. "But this is it. I can't give you more than the amount set by our association. It's policy."

Lydia raised an eyebrow. "Uh huh. And how much is maintaining that 'policy' worth to you, exactly?"

In response, he gave her a disbelieving look before saying, "I'm not sure I've made myself clear—"

"No, no," she interrupted as she leaned in closer to him. "Let me make myself clear—Sweetheart. You give me the money you promised me, and I'll walk away right now without another word. Try condescending to me again and I'll turn this entire building into a pile of bricks. And you can use the extra cash to pay for the damages. How's that sound?"

Finally, Lydia had managed to break through that wretchedly arrogant facade. As the weight of her words sunk in, the tipster at the desk looked completely aghast and appalled. The confusion in his expression was apparent as he let out an incredulous chuckle. "Are you being serious right now? You expect me to believe that?"

Her eyes narrowed. "You think I'm lying?" And perhaps at that moment, she pushed it too far. But it was worth it just to see the look on his face.

While staring him down, Lydia tightened her fists on top of the desk. Little more than half a second passed before a crackling noise broke through the silence and the entire desk was encased in a thick layer of ice.

The man had a more drastic response than she'd expected—his entire body recoiled and he leapt up from his chair, his back to the wall before she even raised her gaze. "Holy shit!" he said through his teeth, his breaths uneven as his eyes darted back and forth between Lydia and the quick work she'd made of his desk.

Lydia smiled before pushing away to admire the job. The man, however, was still standing as far from her as possible when she looked back up. "Should I assume I've made my point?" she asked.

Much to her great pleasure, the man was now more eager than ever to get her out. So as soon as she finished speaking, he lunged forward and opened up his box of cash, frantically counting bills so he could give her the extra money she was missing. A moment later, he shoved the bills toward her harshly and said, "Just take your money and get out of here, you freak."

A younger, more impressionable version of herself might have been hurt by such harsh words. But instead, Lydia felt no sadness or shame whatsoever as she snatched the money out of his hand. "Gladly," she replied before taking a few seconds to recount the bills. Then, without another word as she promised, Lydia turned away and headed toward the door.

"Hey!" the man yelled, causing her to stop abruptly. "What about my desk?" he asked as she turned her head.

She looked at him and then back down at his desk, which was still encased in ice. With a shrug and a flash of a smile, she said, "Wait an hour or go get a hair dryer."

And without waiting to see the man's reaction, she ducked out of the office and made her way back outside. Satisfied with her haul, she let out a sigh and stuffed the money into her bag. With any luck, that would be plenty of time to figure out a safe way to Altissia and then—well, decide what to do from there.

"I'm quite sure you scared that poor man half to death."

Lydia jumped and whipped around at the sound of her mother's voice. "Damn it, Mother, I told you not to do that!" she scolded, throwing a hand over her chest. Although she supposed it was her own fault for letting her guard down.

Gentiana ignored Lydia's frustration, instead gracefully falling into step next to her daughter and regarding her with thoughtful eyes. "It has been enlightening to watch you, Astra. You are not what I expected."

Lydia's eyes furrowed. "Okay, first of all... please don't call me that in public. As far as the world is concerned, Astra no longer exists. And second, what the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Only that I never knew you changed so much from the meek and timid child you were when your father and I raised you."

Letting out a dry laugh, Lydia said, "I learned the hard way that the 'meek and timid' are the ones who get taken advantage of. It took a long time, but eventually I just realized I had to stop caring what people thought of me and do what was necessary to keep living."

Gentiana looked sad. "And you never allowed yourself to trust anyone?"

It was then that Lydia stopped walking. She looked down at her feet as a familiar face appeared in her mind. "I tried it once, and it didn't do me any favors," she murmured.

At that moment, she almost regretted speaking—certain that her Mother would try to impart some wisdom or press the subject farther than she wanted to go. But instead, Gentiana simply gestured to her bag and asked, "Well then—now that you have the money, how do you intend to use it?"

"For one, I'm going to rent a car," she said, quickly glancing from side to side before crossing the street. "I think there's a place here in town. Travelling by foot is just too slow, and public transport is too conspicuous." With a quick smile at her Mother, she added, "To be honest, that's why I insisted on the extra cash. Rentals aren't cheap, and I still need enough money to survive for a few days—at least until I figure out how to get off this damn continent."

"But the key to Altissia is already with you, is it not?"

Lydia halted a abruptly and turned to face Gentiana. "What?"

"The key in your pocket."

All of the sudden, Lydia's hands flew to her jacket pockets, and she felt around until something cold and hard touched her fingertips. Then she pulled out a small key and held it up to show her Mother. "This key?"

"Yes, the key the High Commander gave you."

Lydia frowned. "I assumed it was just part of his trick."

As her frown deepened, Gentiana's soft face turned into a smile. "Ravus is a complicated man," she said. "His heart is every bit as kind and true as Lady Lunafreya's, but he has been hardened by war and bloodshed."

Lydia slowly wrapped her fingers around the key, the realization setting in that Ravus might have given her something useful after all—and more importantly, that it provided a ticket out of Lucis. If she followed the road to the River Wennath and infiltrated the base there, it was likely she had a chance of sneaking away unnoticed.

"All right," Lydia murmured before shoving the key back into a safe place. "Then assuming this thing is actually useful and not some kind of trap, I'll have to remember to send him a bouquet after I punch him in his pretty face."

"Desperation can drive even the most noble men to unspeakable acts," Gentiana reminded her, prompting an annoyed eyeroll as Lydia turned away.

"I know why he did it," Lydia said in an exasperated tone. That doesn't make it any easier, though.

"Anyway," she continued with a sigh, gesturing vaguely for them to continue forward to the car rental down the street. The rain was heavy enough that Lydia found herself half-running on the way to the building, hoping she could avoid getting completely soaked before having to take a long car ride.

And after securing a rental on a car she may or may not end up returning, she pulled out of the dealer's lot in the pouring rain and rolled up to her Mother, who didn't seem to mind the rain one bit.

"Are you coming with me?" Lydia asked.

Gentiana responded by opening the passenger side door and slipping into the car. "For now," she said. "I want to help you if I can. And I still hope you will change your mind about joining the battle against Ardyn."

Lydia scoffed. "I'm not going to change my mind," she whispered.

Gentiana didn't answer at first, which made Lydia hope she would drop the subject and leave her alone. But instead, Gentiana seemed to collect herself before saying, "Love, I—I loathe to think I appeared insensitive to your situation last night. I know you struggle day by day. And I would ease your burden if I could."

Lydia shook her head as she stared out at the wind and rain hitting the windshield. "I don't need you trying to save me, Mother. I just need to end this curse, and then—everything will be better. But I'm not interested in this world-saving stuff. I've been played before, and I'm done being a pawn."

Wind and rain applied extra pressure on Lydia's car, forcing her to pay close attention to the road as several long seconds of silence passed between her and Gentiana. She had little doubt the storm was Ramuh's doing, but she couldn't fathom why he felt the need to be so dramatic. The weather was impeding her efforts to cross the Duscae-Cleigne border by nightfall. This was not a setback she could afford.

As she fretted over the time, or lack thereof, Gentiana appeared to have her mind on something else. And while she wasn't paying close enough attention to see the look on her Mother's face, she heard something akin to disappointment or regret in the woman's tone. "You truly loved him. Didn't you?"

At the time, Lydia was too irritated to observe the the strange inflection of her voice. With a tight jaw, she did her best to watch the road and pretend the words didn't burn like a fire poker shoved down her throat. After letting them stew in her mind for a moment, she opened her mouth just enough to utter a short, "Yes."

When Gentiana didn't immediately answer, Lydia added, "I'm not sure why that's relevant to you, though."

"Because I sense you are hesitant to tell me that your love for him is why you refuse to help me," Gentiana said softly.

Leave it to Gentiana to choose the most horrible time to be direct. Why was it that every time her Mother asked questions or prodded her, Lydia felt obligated to defend herself?

Still, she tried her best to put up a strong front. "It doesn't matter what my reasons are. I shouldn't have to explain it to you. It's my choice."

"A choice that affects the fate of the world," Gentiana reminded her.

Unable to take such a response seriously, a dry laugh forced its way past her lips. "Okay, now that's some serious BS, Mother," she said as she struggled to control the chuckles bubbling up inside her. "My choice? If what you and Ifrit and Bahamut have been saying all along is true—that everything is preordained—then everything should happen like it's supposed to whether I get involved or not. Right?"

Silence.

"Unless... there's something you aren't telling me."

Gentiana was slow to respond, but when she did, it was with gentleness and conviction. "My only hope is that you could prove a valuable ally to the Young King and the Oracle. They carry so much on their shoulders. It is painful to watch them suffer."

Lydia thought back to the strength of will the Prince displayed after losing his Father, and the determination she saw in Lunafreya when they faced Ramuh together. It's true—she couldn't deny that, like Gentiana, she felt sympathy for the lonely pair of childhood friends who were fated to struggle and lose everything in their fight to protect humanity. They didn't deserve it. It wasn't fair. But why should it suddenly be Lydia's job to right the wrongs of the world?

"Look," she said with a low sigh. "It was one thing when I helped out the Prince and the Princess before, but that was before I knew what I know now. I can't get involved. I'm not helping you or Noctis or anyone else smite Ardyn out of existence. I'm sorry, I just can't. No matter what the reason is."

"And yet he would destroy you without a second thought."

"Well, I'm not him."

"Have you not considered that you would be doing him a kindness?"

Lydia found herself gripping the steering wheel harder, and had to stop talking long enough to focus so she could make a turn. After she returned to a normal speed, she asked, "How do you figure?"

"I suspect that by now, you are aware of the centuries of torment he has endured. No mortal is meant to live forever—certainly not with the excess of memories he has accumulated over his time living in darkness. Do you not think he would feel relieved to be rid of such a curse?"

Lydia smiled sadly while picturing the kind and gentle Ardyn she'd once known in her mind. "I'm sure he would," she said after a short pause. "I'm also quite sure I'm not the one who can save him." When her Mother turned and gave her a curious look, Lydia added, "Ardyn doesn't even remember me, okay? At least—I don't think he does. And if that's the case, there's nothing in this world that I can give him. Even if I wanted to get involved—there's just no place for me in this narrative, Mother."

Lydia could feel the uneasiness settle between them when she reasserted her decision. At the time, she had no way of knowing why Gentiana was so intent on having her allegiance in this fight. But the peculiarity of it all certainly wasn't lost on her. Her Mother was hiding something—yet even after all these years, Lydia knew that if Gentiana had information she didn't want to share, no amount of prodding would make a bit of difference.

As far as Lydia was concerned, that seemed like all the more reason to stay out of Ardyn and Noctis's way. After all, this is what Bahamut wanted from her all along... wasn't it?

"I will not try to force you," Gentiana said after a nearly inaudible sigh of resignation. "But I do hope you change your mind."

Lydia didn't have time to come up with a cold or sarcastic reply to her Mother's comment. All of the sudden, her face blanched and she slammed on the brakes, making them squeal as the rain continued to play "rata-tat-tat" on the hood of the car. Some 40 meters ahead, Lydia saw another vehicle stopped in front of a gate, with none other than a Nifhleim soldier standing outside their window. The soldier looked human enough, but the area was also being patrolled by MTs.

Lydia glanced in her rearview mirror to make sure no one was coming up behind her, and then wrung the steering wheel with her tight fists. "They're setting up more checkpoints all over Lucis," she murmured, narrowing her eyes as the gate ahead opened and the car slowly drove through.

"They are being quite thorough in their search for Noctis," Gentiana observed.

"Getting desperate is what it looks like," Lydia said. "The Emperor doesn't want him getting close to the Crystal, is my guess."

"And yet that that is precisely what Ardyn wants."

Without thinking, Lydia quickly turned to glance at her Mother, and then looked back at the checkpoint up ahead. "You think they'll recognize me?"

"No, I think it's unlikely," Gentiana replied.

"What if they ask for my name? Identification?"

"Have you reason to expect they know your name?"

Lydia tossed her hands in the air helplessly. "No idea. I could be a fugitive now for all I know. Ardyn is tight with the Empire, and I've been spotted with the Prince and his company. How do I know they're not looking for me?"

When she glanced back up through the stream of water running down her windshield, her jaw tightened when she saw the guard up ahead staring in their direction. He was too far away for her to see his expression clearly—but she knew he could see them. And the longer she sat on the side of the road, the more suspicious they would look.

"I'd suggest we turn around and find another route across the border," she murmured. "But it might be too late for that."

"It is a very meager company," Gentiana observed, either reading the soldier's mind or using some other sense that Lydia could not. "I suspect they would be manageable in case of a struggle."

Lydia raised an eyebrow and laughed. "Okay—weren't you the one on my case about being too harsh a little while ago?"

"You know I prefer not to fight," Gentiana said. "But I would—for your sake. And my compassion for humanity, while strong, only extends so far when it comes to those protecting a kingdom of power-hungry fools."

She said it so calmly and with such conviction that Lydia couldn't help but be a little impressed. Then, pressing her lips together, she nodded and replied, "All right, then."

Knowing she could no longer turn back, Lydia put the car back into drive and approached the gate, keeping her eyes on the soldier as he watched them ride up. There was a roof positioned over the check-in station, so no rain poured in when she rolled down the window to greet the soldier. He was tall and stern, but that didn't stop her from giving him a false friendly smile immediately. "Hello there. Dreadful day, isn't it?"

"Where are you headed?" the man asked in a steely voice.

"Oh, no time for small talk," Lydia said. "Gotcha. We're on our way to Old Lestallum. My sister and I are meeting family there."

Lydia smiled through the lie and leaned back as the soldier studied her and Gentiana from his position outside the window. Anyone who looked at the two women side by side would have guessed they were related—but to the human eye, Gentiana looked at least ten or fifteen years too young to be her Mother.

"Mmhm," the man said, folding his arms over his chest. "And your names?"

Lydia couldn't help but pause for about half a second after the question was uttered, but she hoped she recovered quickly enough to avoid unnecessary suspicion. "Lydia Glacies," she said while pointing a finger at her chest. Then, gesturing to her Mother, she added, "And this is Gen—uh, Genevieve." She wasn't sure if the name "Gentiana" was a familiar one within Tenebrae and the surrounding kingdoms, so it was better safe than sorry.

After giving them both a scrutinizing look, the man fixed on Lydia and asked, "Since you're the driver here, I assume you have some ID?"

"Uh, yeah," Lydia said, trying her best to sound normal as she held out her hand. Gentiana was kind enough to hand her bag over so she could reach inside and pull out her identification card. Never in her life had she been so glad that she decided not to keep Rosella's surname. In this day and age, she wanted nothing that would tie them together.

To the average person, "Glacies" was unassuming enough, if not a little unusual.

The man took the card from her and frowned, keeping his eyes cast low as he headed back inside his cubicle. After he, she assumed, took a moment took scan her ID and log it into his database, he brought it back over and handed it to her.

"Would you both please step out of the vehicle?"

Lydia raised an eyebrow. "Are we in trouble?" She risked a quick glance the other direction and saw an MT approaching from her mother's side.

The man shook his head. "No. But since you're passing through an official checkpoint, we have to make sure you aren't transporting anything illegal."

The woman couldn't help but scoff. "Illegal according to whom?"

"Dear, I think it's best we do as they say without complaint," her Mother murmured, earning an annoyed side look from Lydia.

"Please just step out of the vehicle," the soldier repeated. "If you have nothing to hide, then you have no reason to worry."

Lydia took a deep breath, knowing deep down that it was best to cooperate if she wanted to get past these guys and move on as quickly as possible. While she would fight if she had to—and it seemed her Mother would as well—neither of them wanted it to come to that. If it was possible to do this peacefully, Lydia wanted to take that opportunity.

And so at the soldier's command, she and her Mother stepped out of the car at the soldier's command, letting him and the MT give it a brief search. She made sure to stand under the roof so she wouldn't get soaked, although Gentiana seemed to pay the weather no mind. In fact, she didn't even seem conscious of the fact that water was running down her hair, clothes and skin as she stood calmly in the path of incoming raindrops.

Meanwhile, Lydia watched her Mother wondering how the Goddess ever managed to pass herself off as a human, even in her current form.

"Is this a rental car?" the soldier asked, breaking Lydia out of her thoughts.

She saw no point in finding her way around that one, so she simply nodded and said, "Yep. My own car was actually totaled recently, and I haven't been able to buy a new one yet. I got the rental to keep me going in the meantime."

"I see." The man looked about as dry and sick of his job as you might expect from a person who was used to dealing with people on a regular basis. He certainly wasn't the most fearsome or intimidating representative for the Empire. But even she felt a twinge of discomfort when he said, "All right, now we just have to pat you both down before we let you go. So arms out."

Gods, how humiliating.

Despite her grievances, Lydia obeyed withan annoyed sigh and let him pat down her sides. Luckily, she'd stashed her coin in a concealed area and she wasn't carrying anything else of value that she expected the Empire to take issue with.

The entire encounter might have gone off without a hitch if she hadn't turned her head abruptly at the sound of a gasp from Gentiana. Something akin to a painful grimace etched across her face as the MT grabbed her sides not too gently. And he proceeded to pat her down like a box out of storage instead of a person after shoving her against the vehicle.

"Hey, paws off!" Lydia snarled, wrenching away from the soldier only for him to grab her elbow reflexively. She paid it no mind, instead keeping her eyes fixated on the MT who turned his head mechanically to look at her with cold, soulless eyes.

"What do you think you're doing?" the man demanded, holding her back.

"Maybe if your precious Magitek lackeys don't know how to show some respect, you should find someone else to do this job," she said, her eyes burning into his with hatred as the man held onto her with an iron grip.

The man, however, did not look hateful, or even angry. Instead, he remained calm and said, "I'm aware that some of our staff lack certain social graces. We don't want any trouble."

"Neither do I," she told him. "But let me put it this way—if he's too dense to hear it from me, tell him as slowly and as simply as you can that if he touches her like that again, I'll tear his arms off."

"Lydia, please," Gentiana said softly, standing upright with her hands in the air. "It's all right."

"No, it isn't."

"Okay," the man interrupted in an exasperated tone. With a low sigh through his nose, he gestured with his hand for the MT to stand back and then beckoned for Gentiana. "Miss, please come." When she approached, the soldier gave her a quick look up and down before having her mimic the movements he'd asked of Lydia just a moment ago. Once satisfied, the man turned his attention back to Lydia and told her, "You're both free to go."

Having exhausted her patience for the day already, Lydia gave him a quick and half-hearted "thanks" before darting for his side and pulling the driver's side door open. Meanwhile, Gentiana took a brief moment to bow and smile at the soldier. "You are very gracious, sir. May your day be blessed."

Great, now she felt nauseated.

But she did her best to ignore the feeling as she turned the car back on and waited for the gate to open. As soon as her chance was open, she sped off with Gentiana in tow—and without looking back.

For a long moment, there was nothing to penetrate her ears but the sound of the road and the raindrops on her windshield. But it didn't take long for Gentiana (who was now completely dry despite standing in the rain just minutes ago) to speak. "I do not expect the man at the gate to pose any threat to us. He never recognized you."

Meaning Ardyn hadn't spread the word that he was hunting her. At least, not yet.

"Love, are you all right?" Gentiana asked, her voice laced with genuine tenderness.

Lydia huffed. "I suppose I should be asking you that. Did he hurt you?"

With a faint smile, Gentiana said, "That poor daemon knew nothing of gentleness or love. That is why he could not touch me with any regard for how it might feel. But I am far more durable than I look, I assure you."

"Well, that guy should have known better than to have an MT helping him search people," Lydia said coldly. "Maybe it wasn't a big deal to you, but they shouldn't be allowed to treat you that way—or anyone, for that matter."

Gentiana slowly reached over to touch Lydia's cheek with her soft, cold fingers. She didn't recoil. "It makes me happy that you would leap to my defense," the Goddess admitted. "But I never want you to feel you need to. Especially not over something so insignificant..."

"Yeah, but it's not insignificant, Mother," Lydia argued in a frustrated tone. "You don't get it. Maybe you haven't spent enough time around people, but I've been doing this for millennia!"

"Doing what?" Gentiana asked.

A long, slow breath. "Fighting for my right to exist in a world that doesn't want me or—respect me."

After Gentiana failed to reply, Lydia chuckled and said, "I know it sounds stupid. Of course it would—to someone like you. You may not have your full strength right now, but you're still not bound to the rules of Eos like me. You don't know what it's like to be an outcast in two worlds you were born into."

"Then perhaps you could help me to understand," Gentiana whispered.

Even if Lydia wanted to explain, she didn't know how. She didn't know how to explain the connection she felt to this world despite the countless times humanity had burned and scorned her. She didn't know how to explain the crushing loneliness of being one of a kind among such selfish, short-sighted creatures. She'd met her share of good people in this world, but she'd also learned that it was easier not to trust and that she could get results far more quickly by using fear than by seeking mutual compassion and respect.

Ifrit and Ardyn likely had a body count that topped hers, but Lydia was no innocent. The only reason she hadn't gone to war with this world long ago was because eventually, bloodlust turned to apathy. Now, she sought nothing but to move forward and survive because she had no other options. She could use kindness and graciousness up to a certain point, but was she above showing her teeth when someone tried to underestimate her? Certainly not.

Lydia could have opened up and confessed these inner workings of her mind to Gentiana, but she already felt that she'd allowed herself to be vulnerable enough in the last 24 hours to last at least a few months. "It doesn't matter," she said finally, tapping her fingers on the steering wheel thoughtfully. "I should pay attention to the road. The last thing we need is to risk attracting more attention than we already have."

"Darling," Gentiana murmured, sounding as though she was about to press for more answers. But suddenly she seemed to stop and stare off into space for a long moment. Lydia pretended not to notice and hoped her Mother would simply be quiet for a while.

Instead, Gentiana surprised her by reaching over to touch her arm. "I must leave," she said suddenly.

Lydia's eyes bulged. "Wait—what? Why?"

"It's Lunafreya," the Goddess said softly. "She is calling me."

Turning her head briefly to glance at her Mother, Lydia asked, "Wh—what happened, is she in trouble? I assumed she would be safe with Ravus."

Gentiana continued staring off into space, shaking her head slowly. "I cannot see her from here. But I can feel her anguish."

With a shrug that she tried to ensure would look as casual as possible, Lydia maintained her resolve. The last thing she wanted was to look too desperate or lonely, so she kept her eyes forward and said, "Okay, well then go. I'll be fine, I can just—"

Gentiana disappeared from the seat before she could finish her sentence. And Lydia exhaled loudly, absentmindedly reaching down to turn up the heat dial when she realized the car had grown cold.

I admit it, trying to figure out the dynamic for Lydia and Gentiana has been challenging. I'm looking forward to developing that more, because their relationship is a complex one. I also wanted to take the opportunity to develop Lydia a bit more, as we've been getting bits and pieces here and there - but the side of herself she showed to Noctis and his friends in the early chapters is such a tiny part of who she is. I wrote her the way I did in this chapter for a specific reason, but I'll let you readers interpret it how you will. That's part of the fun, after all. At least I think so.

The next chapter will likely be another Lydia-centric one, although I haven't fully worked everything out in my head yet. It's possible Ardyn may make an appearance though, so that should be fun!

Anyway, until next time! Thanks so much for your support.