Disclaimer: Not mine

Edited

Chapter 7

The graduation party was long over, and they lay in bed together, both naked, Prompto's hand tracing protection runes over Noct's skin. "I love you," he whispered, kissing Noctis' shoulder.

Noctis rolled over in his arms and kissed him properly. "Love you," he murmured sleepily. "Aren't you tired?"

"Not really," Prompto admitted.

"Well go to sleep, Gladio and Specs wanna talk," he yawned, "to you 'bout something tomorrow." He lay his head against Prompt's shoulder and closed his eyes.

"Okay," he kissed the top of Noctis' head. "But there's something I need to talk to you about too."

"Mmmm."

Prompto smiled as he felt Noctis' body relax into sleep, his breathing deep and even. He wasn't looking forward to the talk in the morning, but he had been thinking it over, and it was necessary. He tightened his grip on Noctis and closed his eyes to sleep himself.

He woke early the next morning and slipped silently from the bed, going to make breakfast, leaving a note for Ignis to say he had done so for when the older male arrived. He set the tray on the bedside table and got back into bed to wake his Prince. Noctis was a lot easier to wake these days than he had been before, he slept less too. No outside of himself, Noctis, and his Dad knew why.

The runes he tended to draw on Noctis' skin, the sharing of magic between them, had taken most of the pain from Noctis, repairing the lingering damage. It would take being turned to fully remove all trace of the fatal wound that would have killed Noctis if not for the King's magical intervention. Noctis had admitted to feeling a boost in his magic as well, elemancy coming more easily as time passed.

Prompto ran his fingers through spiky black hair. "Morning Noct," he called and Noctis gradually began to stir until he was awake and Prompto served up breakfast.

"You cooked? Thanks," Noctis grinned and dug in. Prompto's breakfast was a wonderful thing. He'd taken lessons from his Dad in order to look after Noctis post-feeding.

"My pleasure," Prompto grinned as he ate his own. "Noct…we, ah…need to talk."

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Noctis froze, those words generally meant nothing good…at least according to movies and tv and books…

"Hey," Prompto took his hand, squeezing gently. "Noct no, this is not a break up." He moved to kneel over Noctis, forcing eye contact as Noctis swallowed. Prompto kissed him hard and Noctis raised his arms to hold him there. "I love you Noctis, I have no intention of ever breaking up with you." Prompto kept eye contact and Noctis could feel his love through the feeding bond, relaxing.

"Could have used better words," was all he said and Prompto chuckled.

"Sorry," he whispered, kissing him again, before sitting back, now serious.

"What is it?"

"I…I'm leaving Insomnia."

"What!" Noctis stared at him with wide eyes, how was that not breaking up with him?

"Not permanently," Prompto rushed to assure him. "I swear, I will be coming back. There's some training that Dad wants to do that can't be done here, even in the room. Now's the best time for it. You'll be busy settling into post high school Princely duties, you won't have time to miss me," Prompto took his hand. "You'll be able to feel me through the bond, if anything happens I'll be back in minutes."

"You're leaving," that was the main thing he focused on. Prompto was leaving him.

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"I'll be back before you know it," Prompto promised again, moving to rest their foreheads together. "I wasn't planning this, but Dad's insisting on the training. We've got our phones; we can still talk every day. We're not planning on going all that far either. Maybe you can talk the others into a camping trip outside the wall and we can meet up at some point." He moved a hand to run through Noctis' hair.

"When are you leaving?" he asked quietly and Prompto hated hearing the insecurity in his voice.

"Soon but not right away. I told Dad I wanted to wait until you were okay with me leaving," he promised.

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Noctis stared at him, relieved Prompto had refused to leave until he agreed. He wanted to say no, to tell Prompto not to leave, ever. But…that wasn't right. He couldn't force Prompto to stay at his side. Prompto had promised he would come back, he had to believe him. He leant forward and kissed him. "I'll be waiting for you to come back," he promised and Prompto grinned. "I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too," Prompto told him.

"I'm meant to move back to the Citadel at the end of the week, you won't leave before then, will you?"

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"I'll tell Dad," it made sense, he still didn't have much clearance for the Citadel. "We should shower and dress, the others are in the hall." He got up and offered a hand to Noctis who let him pull him up and they headed for the bathroom to shower together.

When they left the bedroom they found Ignis and Gladio in the main room of the apartment, talking quietly.

"Hey guys," Prompto greeted as he took the breakfast tray to the kitchen.

"Good morning new graduates! How does it feel?" Gladio grinned at them.

"No more school!" Noctis grinned back, dropping onto the couch.

Ignis chuckled. "I am sure you will be bemoaning paperwork and Council meetings just as much as you ever did school."

"Poor you," Prompto laughed as he finished washing their dishes, moving to sit beside him on the couch. Noctis childishly stuck his tongue out at his boyfriend.

"Actually Prompto, we were hoping to talk to you about your plans," Ignis offered and Prompto shook his head.

"I'll be leaving Insomnia once Noct's moved back into the Citadel."

"What?" that got the full attention of both retainers before they glanced to Noctis, he didn't look very upset.

"I thought you two…" Gladio frowned and the two younger teens held hands.

"I love Prompto and he loves me," Noctis stated firmly.

"I'm not leaving for good," Prompto jumped back in. "I'm heading out with Dad for a bit, we've barely seen each other since I came to the city. Six months, a year tops and I'll be back. We have our phones; I'll call every day."

"I see…I suppose that makes our offer unnecessary," Ignis adjusted his glasses, obviously thrown by Prompto's plans.

"Offer?" Prompto looked at them.

"We were going to offer personal training to ensure that you could easily pass Crownsguard exams. That way Noctis can officially make you one of his Retainers until he's able to name you his Consort."

"Really?" Noctis looked between them, grinning. "Thanks guys. Would you still be willing to help when he comes back?"

"Sure," Gladio agreed.

"Of course, it is not a limited time offer."

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Prompto looked around the room he'd called home for the last several years, it was strange, seeing it stripped practically bare but what he wasn't taking, Noctis had either claimed, or had been stored away for his return. The bell rang and he headed downstairs, finding Ignis at the door. "Hey Iggy, wasn't expecting anyone today."

"Sorry for intruding, but may we talk?"

"Sure, come on in. Coffee?"

"No, thank you," Ignis answered as Prompto waved him to a seat, grabbing a water bottle.

"So what's up?" he asked as he sat opposite the older male.

"It is about you leaving," Ignis answered, watching him. "I wanted to ensure you are doing so for the right reasons."

"The right reasons?" Okay, now he was curious.

"You are aware of the Council's reluctance over your place at Noctis' side and that Noctis' free time will, for a time at least, be all but gone."

"You think I'm leaving because I'm worried about my place with Noctis? Ignis, I know what I mean to Noct and he knows what he means to me. What a bunch of stuffy old people think doesn't bother me. My leaving now gives him the chance to settle into the new routine without worrying about trying to find time for me as well. I've been here for a few years now, I miss the road, miss hunting….I miss my Dad. Besides, there's some things he wants to look into that he needs someone watching his back for. Do you know the average lifespan for a hunter? Forty, if they're really lucky. Dad's not getting any younger," he managed to smother a laugh at his own words even as Ignis pondered his words.

"I see," Ignis said after a while. "You will keep in contact."

"Of course. I'll have my phone; you guys can text me whenever and I'll text or call whenever I can. Only reason I wouldn't answer would be in the middle of a hunt," he promised and Ignis nodded. "I'm not abandoning Noct or leaving forever. The only way to stop me coming back would be if I died."

"Let's not think of that," Ignis smiled at him, despite his very real concerns on that. Prompto had grown up outside the wall, he knew how to survive out there and he would be with his Father.

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Noctis sprawled on his bed, naked, waiting for Prompto to join him. Tomorrow, they would be driving Prompto to the checkpoint across the bridge, the farthest anyone was willing to let him go. He'd meet his Dad there and then they wouldn't see him for at least six months.

This would be the last time Prompto fed from him until he returned, and he'd miss it, miss the connection forged by his blood feeding his boyfriend. Prompto and Harry had both said even a year apart wouldn't weaken the bond between them, that they would be able to feel each other, even if only barely depending on the distance.

Prompto left the bathroom, hair damp, and smiled at him; fangs already visible, eyes silvery, and Noctis grinned, reaching for him. Prompto crawled up the bed, hovering over him, studying his body, memorising it. Noctis reached up, running his hands over Prom's body, knowing where to touch to get a reaction. Prompto leant in, kissing him, careful of his fangs. He parted his legs when Prompto nudged him, moaning in pleasure as his boyfriend gently prepared his body. Feeding had definitely changed since they had gotten together. He clutched at Prompto, hips moving to meet him, head thrown back and then he cried out as fangs sank into his throat.

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Prompto drank hungrily as Noctis writhed in his arms, overwhelmed by pleasurable sensations. He gently licked the wound closed as he continued to move inside Noctis' very willing body. He lifted his head to see dilated pupils, almost black eyes glazed as Noct whimpered and moaned. He reached between them to stroke him and Noctis almost screamed as he was overwhelmed by pleasure. Noctis went limp beneath him, gasping for air even as Prompto kept moving, seeking his own release.

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The Star of Lucis pulled smoothly to a stop at the checkpoint, Ignis behind the wheel. Just beyond the checkpoint was a bike, the rider familiar to all four within the car.

"Guess this is it," Noctis offered softly, squeezing the hand he had held for the whole drive.

"Yeah," Prompto took off his seatbelt, twisting to face Noctis.

He leant in and kissed him, Noctis wrapping his arms around him. It was a good thing the back windows were almost blacked out so no one could see, except the two in the front. They parted and then they all got out of the car, Ignis moving to grab Prompto's bag from the boot for him.

"I'll call tonight, we'll probably stay in the caravan at Hammerhead or nearby," he told them, smiling crookedly. Proper goodbyes had been said back at the apartment where there was privacy. He shouldered his bag and offered Gladio his hand, then Ignis, before bowing to Noctis who laughed and shook his head, pulling him into a brief hug.

"Stay safe," the Prince whispered.

"I will," he promised.

He turned and headed for the checkpoint, seeing the guards watching them with wide eyes. He showed them his id and travel permits, turning to wave at them again while they checked it. He was waved on and walked through, turning back to wave one last time before making for the waiting bike, getting on behind his Dad.

Harry waved at the three watching boys before turning the bike and driving off.

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Noctis looked around his practically empty apartment. He didn't want to leave, to go back to the Citadel. This apartment was home, Prompto's place was home, not the Citadel. It always felt too large, too cold despite the warm furnishings and top of the range heating. His rooms there were bigger than his apartment and it allowed Ignis to remain with him if needed since he had a room off the kitchen, what had been the room for his nurse when he was a baby and then after he was injured.

"Ready?" Ignis asked as he emerged with a box.

"Yeah," he finally said, grabbing his bag and turning to leave.

He locked the door behind them and followed Specs down to the car, sitting in the back to watch the city as it flew by. Once at the Citadel, his things were taken by staff and they walked up to the Royal Wing were his suite was. It wasn't like he had never stayed there since moving into his apartment, he spent the night sometimes after a gala or when a meeting had run late, sometimes even after dinner with his Dad. He hadn't lived there for a while though and it was obvious.

The rooms had been thoroughly cleaned and aired for his permanent return, most of his things already there and unpacked. He found some boxes in the closet in his room, the things he was keeping for Prompto, as well as all of his own clothing.

He went through to the bathroom and started the shower, soaking in the warm water, leaning against the wall. He still felt a little shaky from Prompto's feeding the night before, neck tender from where sharp fangs had pierced his skin. He liked the feeling, it helped make it all feel real.

He closed his eyes and smiled as he felt Prompto's happiness and excitement. He felt it as Prompto realised he was using the bond and sighed as love washed over him, sending it back to him. He finished his shower and dressed for bed, sitting down with his phone as it rang, Prompto's name flashing on the screen.

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In the kitchen, Ignis smiled as he prepared dinner, hearing Noctis' excited voice from the bedroom. There was no need to guess who he was talking to. He only hoped their relationship could last despite the distance between them. He had the forms ready to submit when Prompto returned, Cor had even signed under the recommended part, with his backing very few would dare try and stop Prompto's application to the Crownsguard. He had promised to work with blades while away, admitting his Dad was good with a sword, he'd just been too weak as a kid to train with one and they'd had no access to a child sized blade.

He put the stew on to simmer and headed for his own suite a few corridors away to finish unpacking, leaving only a few changes of clothing in the room in Noctis' suite. He was content to be back in the Citadel and at Noctis' side, rather than in a separate apartment several blocks away.

By the time the stew was done, Noctis had hung up and Gladio joined them, the three settling in to eat and watch a movie. They all felt the oddness of being only three when they had gotten so used to having a fourth there.

TBC…