Disclaimer: not mine
Decided not to make you all suffer with a cliff-hanger
Chapter 15
Prompto grinned as he spotted Noctis, lifting his hand to wave but then he frowned as an odd scent reached him. He knew that scent from…his eyes went wide int error. "NOCT!" he screamed right as the blast shook the building, going over the bench backwards, rolling in the grass.
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Noctis stepped onto the grass and the world exploded. He felt something hot and heavy slam into him and then everything went black.
He hurt was the first thing he registered. He struggled to open his eyes, blinking and then coughing in the smoke. He reacted instinctively, slowing his breathing to almost nothing, pupils expanding beyond a humans in order to see through the smoke.
He could hear screams and moans of pain…he needed to get up, to help, do something. He slowly pushed himself up, leaning against some debris, getting his first good look. Half of the main building was gone; the rest was still standing but for how long? If he'd been even two steps further back… good thing he'd been…. Prompto! he was on the grass, he'd be okay. Even if debris had hit him, he was a wolf, he'd heal.
He heard a low growl and pushed himself further upright, worried. There was only one wolf on campus…had Prompto been hurt badly enough to force a shift? He peered through the smoke, he was surrounded by slabs of broken building, cut off, isolated, great. But that growl sounded close. "Prom?" he whispered. He didn't have any idea what Prompto was like in wolf form, if he would remember or understand him. He hoped that he would know his scent well enough to not attack at least…but the other students? There! He spotted something moving on four legs, climbing down the debris to get to him. "Prom?" he called and then he froze, eyes wide as he stared into bloodthirsty crimson.
Impossible! He knew what that colour meant…an MT! How could an MT be in the city? Was this an Imperial attack within the wall? He tried to get up, but his leg wasn't working, and he gasped in smoky air, trembling in fear as memories clambered in his mind. No…not again. He forced his breathing to slow again, holding his hand out, summoning a weapon, a silver loaded gun. He couldn't stand which meant using a sword wasn't possible. And there was the worry…this couldn't be Prompto, could it?
The wolf prowled closer, lips pulled back in a snarl, saliva dripping from its teeth and he grimaced at the scent of rotting meat. Crimson eyes glowed in the odd light caused by flames and smoke and Noctis pressed further back against the rubble.
"Please don't be Prom," he whispered, bringing the gun up. As it crouched, he fired a warning shot but then it pounced and he threw his arm up, protecting his throat, screaming as sharp fangs ripped into his arm, its weight pinning him down.
The weight vanished and he screamed again as the teeth were ripped from his arm, slumping back, panting. He blinked and looked around, eyes going wide as he spotted familiar blond hair…Prompto! He rolled with the wolf across the ground and then he was on top of it, gripping its head between his hands only to wrench it to the side and Noctis heard the snap of its neck breaking, the wolf going limp in death.
"Prom?" he called, seeing that he was trembling. Slowly, Prompto straightened up and turned to face him and he was met with golden eyes rather than the blue he was so used to. "Prom," he held his hand out and Prompto took a half step back…fear in his eyes. "Prom please," he whispered but then he saw where Prompto was looking and let go of the gun, sending it back to the Armiger, leaving himself unarmed.
Prompto stared at him but then slowly took a step forward, going down onto hands and knees, crawling to him, expression wary. His nostrils flared, obviously taking in Noctis' scent and he held still, knowing the wolf was very close to the surface. "Noct…"
It was a relief to hear him speak and he managed a pained smile. "Hey," he offered and then frowned. "You're bleeding." A headwound too. He lifted his unwounded arm slowly, making sure Prom saw it coming, stroking a soot stained cheek, feeling how hot his skin was and Prompto whined, pressing into his touch. "It's okay," his arm dropped weakly.
Prompto hesitantly reached for his wounded arm, glancing up at him and Noctis smiled without showing his teeth. Ever so carefully, Prompto began working the ruined uniform jacket off of the arm and then pulled the material of his shirt out of the wound, causing it to begin bleeding again. Prompto lifted the arm higher, lapping at the wound and Noctis relaxed, trusting him. Prompto growled softly and then began sucking?
"Prompto?"
"Anticoagulant, poison," was the shaky answer and then he went back to it.
Noctis nodded, and relaxed, closing his eyes. He needed to feed but he also knew how dangerous an anticoagulant was to him, and that was without any other poison. At least now the secret was out…as long as he could get Prompto safely away without anyone realising. He forced his eyes open and looked at Prompto, not really wanting to see the mess his arm was but he couldn't help it. "Prom…I can't lose much more," he mumbled, he felt cold and tired.
Prompto pulled back, lips and chin red with blood which he quickly wiped away. He ripped up Noctis' ruined jacket and began tightly wrapping the wound to stop the bleeding. He leant in, nose against Noctis' throat and he held still as Prompto sniffed him. He shivered as Prompto rubbed his face against him before pulling back and offering his wrist.
Noctis blinked in surprise. "You sure?" he asked softly and Prompto offered a shaky smile but then he froze, sniffing. He spun around, crouched in front of him, growling. "Prompto?"
But his friend didn't need to answer as Noctis realised he was hearing too much growling for it to be only Prompto, it was deeper too, more animalistic….oh. That wasn't good. Three more wolves were making their way down the mounds of debris, eyes glowing red.
"Prom run, get out of here!" he urged and Prompto's head shot round, golden eyes wide as he stared at him in shock. There was no way Prompto could take them all and he didn't want to watch him die. He tried to summon the gun again, but he couldn't get a grip on the magic.
Prompto turned back to the wolves, baring his teeth.
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Gladio shoved his way passed the emergency responders, Ignis on his heels. They knew Noctis was alive, but he felt very weak and that terrified them. Had he been in the building when the explosion happened? Had Prompto? They had to get to them before anyone else did. If the boy was hurt, he might shift and even if he didn't, he'd heal to fast to pass for human.
With how weak Noctis felt, he'd need blood and fast, Ignis may have to donate, unless Prompto could? Noctis would likely need further medical aid than just blood but they both had curative with them to help heal any wounds and stabilise him.
Crownsguard were arriving behind them but they kept going, following their sense of Noctis, relieved that it seemed to be leading behind the school to where they ate lunch. The last thing they needed was for Noctis to be buried under all the rubble. The scent of blood and the acrid stench of fear was heavy in the air but…
"Wolves," Gladio hissed, it couldn't be Prompto, the scent was way too strong, even if he was bleeding out.
"The Empire?" Ignis' eyes were wide behind his glasses. They froze at the sound a howl…. from where Noctis was. They scrambled up higher, trying to find the way to the back. "There!" ignis pointed and Gladio looked to see a ring of debris with three massive wolves within, MT's? And then they saw what the wolves were approaching …stalking. Propped up against some of the rubble was a familiar figure, blood splattered around him. Crouched in front of him was Prompto and even from where they were, they could see him snarling, the shine of wolf gold eyes. He was close to shifting and defending Noctis. Ignis started when he saw a fourth wolf, dead nearby. No sign of weapons damage… had Prompto killed it?
They began scrambling, trying to get down to them, Prompto needed help but they couldn't warp, and the building was too tall to risk jumping, they'd do no good injured after all.
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Prompto crouched, snarling threateningly at the approaching MT's, feeling sick. This was what his fate was meant to have been. He wondered if he'd known them, if they'd been in his squad but pushed those thoughts aside, focusing on remaining in control and protecting Noctis. He could smell the weakness coming from Noct and knew he needed help and fast. But three wolves? He'd…. he'd have to shift, there was no other choice, he didn't have the element of surprise to help him now. Even then, against MT's when he'd had no real combat experience or training since leaving the facility…
He couldn't help wondering about Noct's reaction, there'd been no shock of fear in his scent when he'd seen his golden eyes. How could that be? Surely, he'd hate him for keeping such a big secret, doubt him…. something? But Noctis hadn't flinched, had reached out to him, let him close and even if he'd somehow missed the eye colour… no human could have taken so much vampire blood without being violently ill, would have detected the substances in the wound. Pity he'd dismissed the gun though, it'd come in handy… not like his own were loaded with silver or on campus even.
He firmed his stance, seeing them crouch lower, getting ready to pounce and he took a deep breath before howling, hoping they would worry he had backup coming. He then glanced at Noctis, knowing they may both be about to die if the Glaive or Guard didn't show up in the next minute or two, and if they did show up…well at least Noct would live. He met wide blue eyes and smiled sadly at him.
"Prom…." Noctis whispered, obviously struggling to remain conscious.
"I'm sorry," he whispered before turning back to the other wolves, kicking his shoes off and then he launched himself at the one on the right, letting go of his iron control over his inner wolf, praying he wouldn't turn on Noctis.
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Ignis slid down, trying not to fall as a howl sounded, looking up to see it was Prompto who had howled, but why? He saw Prompto shifting his stance and then the blond looked back at Noctis before shocking him by launching himself at one of their attackers, body seeming to almost explode, leaving a large wolf to slam into the MT. Really, he wasn't much smaller than the MT, where on Eos did that extra bulk come from? The two wolves rolled across the broken concrete, snarling and snapping at each other.
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Noctis stared at the two fighting wolves, feeling his vision beginning to go dark. He had to stay awake! Where was help? He blinked, shaking his head, trying again to summon a weapon.
"Noctis!" a familiar voice called, and he lifted his head, looking around. Iggy?
He was so tired…
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Gladio saw one of the wolves' lunge towards Noct and didn't hesitate, calling his sword and hurtling it with all his strength at the MT. It yelped and whined before going still, the sword pinning it to the ground. The other lunged at the pile of rolling fur, trying to aid the one Prompto had tackled. A lance flew by, missing the wolf but landing between it and the fight, causing it to back off and turn to face them. He dropped down into the area encircled by rubble, with Noct injured he had been trapped, had Prompto been hurt too? Had they been separated and the wolves attacking when he reached their Prince?
He grabbed his sword, ripping it free, taking the wolfs head off to be safe before facing the living wolf, leaving Ignis to check on Noctis.
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Ignis dropped to his knees, trusting Gladio to keep them safe. "Noct? Wake up," he called, seeing the makeshift bandaging around his arm, his uniform jacket? He began gently checking the rest of his body, finding his leg was broken, not healing at all due to the blood loss. He summoned a hi-potion and broke it over Noctis, hoping to seal any wounds to stop the bleeding and at least start healing his leg.
He heard a loud howl of pain and turned, summoning a dagger, but watched as one of the two fighting wolves collapsed to the ground, unmoving. The other got to its feet, shaking itself off and then moved, powerful jaws locking around the back of the neck of the one fighting Gladio, giving him the opening to cut into its throat. The MT collapsed and the wolf let go, backing off, hackles raised, growling softly as Gladio cut the MT's head off.
It was a relief to see golden eyes on the remaining wolf, it had to be Prompto, right? It was large, powerful, and wounded. Light golden-brown fur showed signs of blood. Gladio shifted and Prompto snarled, lips drawn back.
"Gladio back up," he called as calmly as possible.
"Ignis?"
"We don't know how aware Prompto is in wolf form, he might not recognise you."
"So, what do we do?"
"Switch places, I likely smell less threatening," Ignis answered. "I've given Noct a hi-potion, but it will be best if you carry him."
"Hope you know what you're doing," he muttered, backing up and letting go of his sword.
Ignis stood and moved forward, hands out and open. "Prompto? It's okay, we're safe now," he murmured gently. "Can you understand me?"
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He hurt; the others were strong, powerful but he'd triumphed. Protected his pack. He turned and snarled, seeing the way to his pack blocked, smelling the enemy…. not the enemy? The big ne backed off towards his pack, another taking his place. Noise…talking…. he…. he shook his head, whining.
He stared at the figure…man…vampire…Iggy! He was Iggy…and he was Prompto…he could remember! He understood. He felt so strange…he could remember being the wolf, but this was so different. He stared at Iggy…no weapons.
"It's Ignis, Prom, you know me," Ignis murmured, slowly kneeling down, not quite making eye contact. How did he know it was him? "You're hurt, please, let me help."
Why? Why would he offer to help? He couldn't smell a lie…could he…they…. accept him? He stared at the hand that was slowly extended towards him, inhaling the familiar scent.
"Ignis," a voice called warningly…Gladio!
"He hasn't snapped or lunged yet," Ignis answered, never looking away.
He took a deep breath and struggled to calm down.
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Ignis held his hand out, was that…recognition? "Please Prompto, we don't have much time," he called and then a cold nose was pressing against his hand, the wolfs body relaxing. "Good, that's good. You're safe."
He held still as the wolf approached, trying to read his body language but he'd stopped snarling at least, and then he was pressing against his own body and he nearly stumbled from the strength of the move. Cautiously, he buried a hand in the thick pelt even as Prompto looked at Noctis and whined in distress.
"Prompto, I need to get you out of here before anyone else arrives."
The wolf looked at him and then back to Noctis before there was a loud cracking noise…bones reshaping. He stared in awe as the body shrank, fur receding, until Prompto was on his hands and knees, naked. He slowly lifted his head, looking utterly exhausted, blood splattered in his skin. "Ig…" he swayed, eyes not fully focused and Ignis moved in, getting an arm over his shoulders before standing, pulling Prompto with him.
"It's alright, I've got you," he promised. How was he going to get him through the city, naked? Then he reached into the Armiger, pulling out some of Noctis' washing. "I need you to help me, I have to get you dressed," he urged, able to hear and smell others approaching. He supported Prompto while the teen lethargically got the pants up his legs, doing them up for him and then shoving the shirt on. Prompto managed to point to his shoes which he must have kicked off.
"What do I say?" Gladio asked.
"Prompto was hidden in the rubble, unconscious, you dug him out while I saw to Noctis and then I took him home to rest and recover."
Gladio nodded, it was the best they could do. Ignis scooped the barely conscious blond up and began making his way from the site of destruction, trying to keep out of sight.
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Gladio carefully picked Noctis up and began making his way to safety, soon running into Cor and some of the Guard.
"Gladio," the Marshal barked.
"Broken leg and his arm's been injured too; he's lost a lot of blood. Ignis administered a hi-potion."
"Where is he?"
"Seeing to Prompto. He was caught under the debris and unconscious but coming around. Ignis said his injuries are mild so he's taking him home, not like he doesn't have half a hospital there anyway."
"The wolves?"
"MT's, we dealt with them," he answered, keeping moving. They soon had Noctis in the back of an ambulance and Gladio went with him.
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Ignis gently lowered Prompto onto the bed, seeing him struggling to open his eyes. He sat on the edge and gently ran his fingers through his hair, trying to sooth him. "It's alright, you're safe, I'm here."
"Ig…gy…" he slurred, eyelids fluttering. "N…Noc…"
"Gladio is with him, they'll take him to the hospital," he explained. "Are you still hurt anywhere?" he asked but there was no response, Prompto deeply asleep, maybe even unconscious.
He went into the bathroom and got the soap out of the shower, sniffing it, scent killing soap. He got a bowl of water and wash cloth before going back to the bedroom, stripping him off to give him a sponge bath. The scent of wolf was as strong as the day after the full moon and he needed to dull it as much as possible because it was likely someone would come to see them. He got him re-dressed and under the covers before dumping the water. He found some scented candles about the house and lit them to help.
He then went to the kitchen and prepared one of Prompto's shakes as well as a glass of water. After that he put some meat and vegetables together to begin on a stew for once he was awake enough to eat it. He took the fluids upstairs and then sat down to wait for him to wake.
His phone rang and he answered. "How is he?"
"They found traces of poison in his system, but it looks like he bled most of it out. The wounds on his arm are from one of the MT's. The potion stopped the bleeding and they've cleaned the wounds, they'll scar a bit but not as badly as his back. Docs have him hooked up to blood as well but he's showing signs of coming around," Gladio explained quietly. "I told the Marshal you took Prompto home, he'll likely call soon."
"Understood. Prompto is sleeping now but he shows no dangerous signs of concussion. I'd prefer to remain until he's up and about but if I'm needed…" he knew it was likely someone was close enough to hear him even over the phone.
"Stay, nothing you can do here but worry and pace. Keep blondie company and assure him Noctis will be okay."
"Very well, I will let you know when he wakes up." He hung up and settled in to wait, he couldn't even call the Argentum's since Prompto's phone would be with his bag somewhere on campus. By now the attack would be on the news, would they have heard? He only hoped whatever was left of Prompto's uniform would not be found or would be taken as ripped off by rubble. There was nothing more they could do.
TBC….
