Final Fantasy XV - Kingdom Hearts

Part 30

Summary: Two warriors of Light, the Chosen King and Keyblade Master, face an unseen Darkness.

Nearing Vesperpool

'Ugh, so much for the good weather', Noctis said with an obvious grimace in his tone as he watched their world be bathed in rainwater.

'Unfortunate as it is, we've still a way to our location. Perhaps the weather will clear up upon arrival?', Ignis suggested hopefully as he turned down to the road leading to the hunter's HQ. 'I hope so…', Prompto sighed as he leaned against the door of his seat, 'Imagine going through all the mud and waters…'.

'We've endured far worse places than merely swamp waters Prompto', Ignis reminded, 'If I recall, we had to explore sewers at one point'. 'Courtesy of your Goddess of Gears', Noctis added with a smirk. Prompto blushed and looked away with a pout, huffing in response to the harmless banter. Leaning back into his seat, Noctis glanced at Gladiolus on his right to see the man just staring into the window and watching their world pass them by.

With a frown, the prince sat up and carefully studied him. Ever since they left Lestallum his shield hadn't said much other than agreeing with what the plan would be, answering questions with distracted tones likely without knowing what the questions were. He hadn't even joined in on their chats and banters, which perturbed the prince since the man would never miss a chance to take a jab at the future king.

When he was sure Ignis and Prompto were enraptured with their conversation, he gently nudged the shield with a prod to his side. Gladiolus lightly jumped in response to this, turning to Noctis. 'What's up?', he asked, looking at him. 'You alright? You've been pretty quiet since we left', Noctis pointed out, eyeing him. Gladiolus just nodded and said: 'Yeah, just still waking up, that's all'. 'You sure about that? Kairi told me you and Aqua were hungover before she healed you two', the prince said.

Gladiolus let out a huff and just rested his elbow on the side of the door and his head against his propped fist. 'Yeah…', he said. Noctis rolled his eyes and just settled back into his seat, this conversation was not going anywhere soon it seemed. 'Specs, what do you know about this royal tomb?', he asked to fill the silence.

Clearing his throat, Ignis explained the tomb was dedicated to the supposedly first queen of Insomnia. However, unlike the future rulers, she despised being seen in public and most of her life she spent them working behind the scenes, enacting her rule from the shadows. 'Jeez, she sounds more like an assassin than a queen', Prompto said with a small gulp. 'Yet during her rule the kingdom prospered, perhaps she did far better as a queen who worked in the dark than she did in the light', Ignis suggested.

'…ya know that sounds a lot more sinister now with the heartless and darkness thing…', Noctis chuckled. He got a laugh from Prompto and a hum from Ignis but like before Gladiolus had said nothing. This time he earned Prompto's attention and likely concern. 'Hey, big guy? You sure you're good?', he said, turning around to face him despite Ignis' constant reminder of the proper sitting position. 'I'm fine buddy…', Gladiolus said distractedly.

'…I can date Iris then right?'.

'Yeah sure…', Gladiolus said. Then frowned when he thought about Prompto's words, then looked shocked and turned to him with a: 'Wait what did you say!?'.

'You just gave him your consent to court your little sister', Ignis revealed with a chuckle, 'This is what happens when you don't pay attention to what you're saying'. Gladiolus growled as the laughter grew among the three, eyeing Prompto while he is contemplating throwing him out on the road. He heaved a deep sigh of frustration and slumped back into his seat, back to staring outside as the laughter slowly died down.

'Sheesh, somebody's not all here today!', teased the blond with a cheeky smile. Gladiolus huffed in response, clenching his fist. 'You're lucky the others like you enough to keep around…', he warned darkly. 'That and Aqua could kick your butt if you tried to harm me~', Prompto taunted. Gladiolus' gruff look softened and looked more distracted as he didn't speak again or even give the blond some blunt response. Instead, he sighed and kept looking outside the window.

Blinking at the man's lack of a verbal response, Prompto shrugged and decided not to push his luck with the man's patience. He slinked back into his seat to resume a chat with Ignis about what's lunch going to be this time, leaving the prince and shield in silence.

Noctis kept an eye on his friend regardless, something was off…

*Wayfinder II*

In the car with Riku in the passenger side and the two islanders in the back, Aqua had the radio on with Riku's gummi phone connected to listen to their music. Kairi was laying her head on Sora's laps while he rested his head against the door, both asleep. Riku was tuning into the music playing. Aqua was grateful for the younger keyblade wielders being quiet and content, it allowed her to think.

Driving in silence with Riku's jazz music playing was helping her concentrate on the road despite the heavy rain. Downside to all this, she could think about herself and Gladiolus, and still come up with no answer for her current situation.

'Never knew you had a penchant for drinking'.

Aqua's thoughts were broken as she glanced slightly to Riku, eyeing her. 'Kairi told me this morning', he revealed, 'Said you were both hungover when she found you'.

Aqua groaned quietly as she nearly slammed her head against the wheel of the car. The last thing she needed, to look like an irresponsible teacher to her students and fellow master. And having Riku calling her out on her night did nothing to help her. With a deep exhale, she said: 'Gladiolus and I, against my better judgment, decided to celebrate our results'. She made a turn to follow Ignis and they drove past the small outpost of the hunter's town.

'Hey, don't get me wrong, I'm not against you two having some fun', Riku said with a smirk. 'Heck I almost wish I joined you'. 'Well I wouldn't have had you tag along, you're still too young for that', Aqua said firmly. 'Pfft, you do know there's only a year between us now, right?'. Aqua's frown shifted slightly to a smirk and a little giggle escaped her, he wasn't entirely wrong. Granted she was the same age when she first met them to this day, and now Riku is just a year younger than her.

One benefit of the dark realm you don't necessarily age there, something they had discovered after they checked her for any traces of Xehanort's darkness within her. Aqua was sure how she was meant to feel that she didn't age, but Kairi teased her the next birthday she'll have she'll turn twenty-nine.

'Still, I didn't see you as a drinker, never gave me the impression you enjoy beer', Riku said casually. 'I'm not. Up to that point, I've never even taken a sip of wine', Aqua explained. 'Oh, that explains the hangover…', Riku hummed with a chuckle. 'Word of advice, master to master, do not overindulge', Aqua warned, shuddering. 'The pain…never before did I wish the darkness would take over the world…'.

'I'll…keep that in mind', Riku said wearily. Through the tunnel and a reprieve from the rain, Riku sat up in his seat to look at her properly. '…so…you and Gladio?'. Aqua froze at the question, her face contorting into discomfort and awkwardness, which Riku immediately picked up. 'Did, something happen to you guys last night?', he asked. Aqua tapped her wheel, biting her inner cheek in thought, contemplating her response before she peered back slightly to see her apprentice and friend was still asleep.

'…it happened after we got back to our room…I, remember being very intoxicated, as was he, and remember mostly us acting like idiots and laughing like a pack of hyenas', she started, already sounding embarrassed by her recollection. Riku nodded, not speaking but encouraging her to continue her tale. 'Then, I fell to the ground, he picked me up but slipped against the wall…and then, we just stared into each other's eyes…next thing I knew…we…we kissed'.

Riku's eyes widened with surprise as Aqua's cheeks went red, looking anywhere but at him. It was bad enough her first kiss was taken while she was drunk but confessing it to a fellow master was almost as bad. She dreaded telling Terra and Ven this…already imaging what the older man was going to say, or worse, tease her with. Riku folded his arms and leaned into the seat, putting the information together and humming.

'…is that why you two have been acting so awkward?', he asked, looking at her. 'Yeah…ever since we kissed…it's like, I can't even look at him without feeling… *sigh* I don't know…', Aqua said as the car exited the tunnel.

'…do you like Gladio that way?', he asked, not looking at her. Aqua blushed softly at the rightly asked question, looking down on the road slightly. 'I…don't know', she said. 'What do you mean? You're saying you don't see him that way?', he asked. 'N-No! I mean…', Aqua said, but groaned. 'Its complicated, Riku'. 'Doesn't look like it to me. You guys didn't even talk about it did you?', he asked. 'Waking up with a hangover and smelling like you just walked out of a barrel full of beer doesn't offer a lot of time to talk, Riku', Aqua said.

'Ok I'll give you that one', Riku conceded with a nod, 'But when are you gonna talk to him about it?'. Aqua turned the car, following Ignis down a slope to where the Haven was located as the day began to brighten up. 'I don't even know how I feel about it Riku', she sighed, 'I…I've never, you know, had any form of relationships with a man before'.

'Really? Not even with Terra?', he asked, genuinely surprised. Aqua made a face of disgust. 'No, he's like my brother!', she said, shuddering. Riku laughed at her response before raising his hands. 'Ok, ok! Sorry! Haha!'. Settling down, he asked: 'But with Gladio…how do you feel about him?'. Aqua pursed her lips and pondered, taking her time to put her feelings into words. Truly she had tried to put them together during her shower, and even during the drive before him speaking, she couldn't describe them.

'…I don't know, Riku', she confessed. She frowned in disappointment of herself before she felt a nudge by the boy. 'Maybe, a certain redhead could help you?', he offered, gesturing to the sleeping beauty. As he finished, they arrived at their destination and parked just behind the Regalia and near the Haven. The two younger keyblade wielders were woken up by the master while Aqua checked on Donald and Goofy, drying themselves off thanks to Donald's magic as the retinue joined them.

'Everyone ready to get going?', Noctis asked as the team gathered up.

'Sooner we find the tomb we can leave, looks like the rain has only stopped temporarily', Ignis said, gesturing the dark clouds gathering up from the south. He pulled out a map from his pocket and after he unfolded it, he showed the party the location would be located at least west from the dungeon they explored for the mythril. 'Doesn't look too far, let's get going then', Kairi said a smile. 'Stay alert for the wildlife', Ignis warned.

The ten proceeded to head into the wooded area, sticking mostly on the beaten path and steering clear of the lake itself after Ignis reminded everyone of the large wildlife with the maws as long a sword with the equal snapping force of Gladiolus.

Most of the walk was peaceful since the team stayed away from the wildlife and kept following Ignis as he leads them into the thicket. Along their travels, Aqua had been walking slower than the others to the point where she was sticking in the back of the trail of people, head down as she was still trying to wrap her mind around these feelings for the shield. Slowly walking until she reached her side, Kairi gently nudged her master.

'You ok?', she asked quietly.

Looking at her apprentice then a glance to Gladiolus, the master let out a sigh as she crossed her arms. 'Kairi, could I ask you something personal?', she inquired. 'Sure, what's up?', assured Kairi. '…when did you start to fall for Sora?', the master asked. At this, the redhead blushed softly, slowly turning her gaze to Sora as he and Prompto were talking animatedly about something, likely the blond was talking about places they hadn't taken the other worlders yet.

She placed a hand on her heart and smiled. 'I always had a different feeling towards Sora, even when we were kids', she said warmly. 'When I fell in love with him…I guess it on the day before our islands disappeared'. Aqua smiled at her as she let out a small sigh of delight, clasping her hands behind her back as they walked on. 'And as time went on, the year apart from each other, reuniting again just strengthened that connection…then all this happened', she said.

Then she gave her a wide grin and leaned into her ear and whispered: 'Yesterday…he said he loves me'. Aqua's face brightened with joy as Kairi hugged herself and allowed a little squeal of delight from her. Looking at her master with the brightest eyes she ever seen, Kairi said: 'You have no idea how wonderful it is to be able to say and hear it between us. It is like having a quick way to reach cloud nine!'.

Aqua couldn't help but smile wonderfully at the girl as she giggled girlishly with the widest smile Sora would be proud of. Then she frowned at her master and lowered her arms. 'Why are you asking me though?', she questioned. Her master's smile slipped into a worried look as she and Kairi turned their heads back to the walk. 'Its…complicated…', she started. 'Riku did say something on those lines, did something happen between you and Gladio last night?', Kairi asked. Aqua rubbed her neck and with red slowly coloring her cheeks.

Blinking innocently, the redhead glanced at Gladio, then back to Aqua before her eyes grew wide as her mouth opened with a silent gasp. 'D-Did, did you two…?', she gasped. 'We kissed…', Aqua groaned out, 'Nothing more!'. Kairi covered her mouth to hold back a squeak of delight and looked rather pleased by this. 'That's wonderful! I didn't know you and Gladio had a thing between you two!', she said with obvious excitement.

Aqua shook her head which turned Kairi's excited look to disappointment. 'That's the thing Kairi…I, I don't know how I feel about him', she revealed. 'I mean, he's a good man, strong, brave and-

'Handsome?', Kairi offered with a wiggle of her eyebrows. Aqua gave her a blunt look before she sighed: 'Yes, he's handsome as well'. 'And…I think his tattoos are…attractive…'. Kairi grinned impishly at the woman's discomfort. Aqua felt like she was part of a gossip group and the fact she might have a thing for a man was like a high school girl having a crush on someone for the first time. Which in some sense she wasn't entirely wrong giving the fact this was the first man she felt this way towards.

'Okay, so Gladio's hot, and your type. But you also like his personality?', Kairi asked. 'Yeah…I mean he can be a smartass, and he does have a bit of issues when it comes patience and Noctis are the subject, but he's a good man. Braver than most, loyal to his friends and…', Aqua listed, smiling softly as she did so while looking at him dreamily. This did not go unnoticed by Kairi, who upon glancing back at her she was now carrying a cat-like grin. 'Yup, you like him~', she teased.

Aqua's dusty red went dark red, her voice disappearing along with whatever responses she would have had for her apprentice. 'I-I…', Aqua gasped before reluctantly she huffed in defeat. 'Let's say I… like him, Kairi…it wouldn't matter', she said with regret, lowering her arms to her side. Kairi's smile disappeared into a frown as they got closer to what looked like a cave within the density of the woodland ahead. 'Why? What if Gladio likes you the same way you like him?', Kairi offers.

'…because we're from different worlds…I can't stay here nor could I ask him to leave Eos…or Noct for that matter', she revealed. 'Even if we did replicate the same feelings, we can't be together if we're dedicating to our tasks, him as Noct's shield and I a keyblade master'. Somehow saying that despite the logic and crucial part of the problem, it hurt Aqua's heart. It was as though the words from her very lips cut her heartstrings and she mustered enough strength to keep that pain from tainting her voice.

It was at moments like this she truly envied Kairi and Noctis for having that special other within their world, Lunafreya with Eos and Sora with Destiny Islands. It would be so much easier this way, had she and Gladiolus come from the same world but no, she was a master that would be fated to protect the worlds from the heartless while he would be by his king's side as his protector. To have such a long distance between them, and even then, they may not even see each other for days, months even.

'But…why should that matter?', Kairi asked, warm and kindly, 'If you guys like each other, then distance shouldn't be a factor right?'. Aqua glanced at her as Kairi took out her GP and held it out. 'Even if you're physically apart, there's ways to connect, phones for example'.

Then she stopped her walking and placed a hand on her heart. 'What does your heart say?', she asked. Aqua placed her hand upon her chest over her heart, pondering her apprentice's words and looking back on her feelings and experience with the shield. She looked to the others, Gladiolus standing by the entrance with Goofy and Riku talking, leaning against the wall and his face showed he was deep in thought. He turned to the others before his eyes fell to Aqua, both locked in a gaze for a moment before he gave her a wave.

Smiling back, Aqua waved shyly back. All the while Kairi was smiling in satisfaction before they all ventured deeper into the cave.

In the cave, there was an abundance of flora and fauna to make the place resemble more of a jungle, though there was a slight miasma that while it didn't necessarily cause their visions trouble it certainly didn't encourage them to split the party up. The faint noises of animals and wild beasts kept them all on their toes, mostly in case the wildlife decided to strike.

Ignis in front to guide the group and Sora with Riku in the back to cover the rearguard in case of ambushes. Throughout their search for the royal tomb, the occasional skirmishes with the wildlife known as the mandrakes or giant insects that wanted to taste their flesh.

Slapping his bare arm to smack a mosquito, Prompto groaned. 'Ugh, I think I've got bitten by the bugs here more then I took hits from Gladio!', he said. 'Tell me about it', Kairi agreed, smacking a bug from her, 'Least they're not heartless bugs'. There was a collective chuckle among the group as they journeyed down a narrowed passageway, which leads them to two separate pathways for them to explore.

'Blast…', Ignis commented, cupping his chin. 'So much for not splitting up', Noctis added with a sigh. Looking between the two, the party had ultimately decided to cover more ground they would split up and as soon as one group found the tomb, they'd contact each other immediately. Luckily for them, there was service down here, faint but enough for a quick text to inform the other party.

Taking the left was Sora's group consisting of himself, Kairi, Donald, Goofy, and Prompto while the rest followed Noctis. Carrying onwards the other party of five proceeded to the right, climbing up a steeper hill with Ignis and Riku ahead, the latter just in case a heartless attack. The passage is much darker than the entrance with the mandrakes prowling around in the dark, again keeping themselves away from the humans.

Along the way Noctis was making some of their magic flask bombs, having stored so many elements inside himself he figured it wouldn't be a problem if his friends had some magic of their own. He's made at least six so far and handed two to Gladiolus and four to Ignis out of consideration, namely because Ignis was more proficient with magic like this.

They reached the summit of their march and came to see before them is a small area with water submerging the land with one lone tree in the middle of the small lake. Behind it and further into this small space was to their delight a royal tomb waiting for the prince to plunder it.

'Guess Iggy was right…', Riku commented with a shake of his head.

'When am I ever not?', Ignis said smugly, pushing his glasses up his nose. 'But best we inform Sora and the others, let them know we've found it'. Before anyone could contact them, Gladiolus raised his hand, stopping them. 'May wanna hold off on calling…or making a loud noise', he said, voice lowered and gruff. 'Because it looks like that tomb's got itself a guardian'. They looked, following the shield's gaze and like he said there lumbering around the lake and tree was a large beast.

Crouched down near the cliff of the summit, the team looked at the wild animal while it just prowled around the single tree. 'What is that?', Riku whispered, glancing at the strategist. 'That…is a creature known as a "treant" … they are mandrakes that have grown and matured into far more deadly beasts', he explained, pushing his glasses up. 'This could be a problem'.

'How? We've got the numbers and strength', Noctis asked, standing up. 'Noct-

Before Ignis could finish the prince, warp struck the treant into its large back, earning a roar from the beast as it reeled back and stood on his hind legs. It shook the prince off its back and started to flail its long arms wildly and angrily. Noctis stepped back from the animal as it turned to the prince, baring its large maw and teeth at him, its tail suddenly lunged to him with a quick strike. Noctis used his magic to evade the strike with a quick sidestep, his body coated in the blue light.

He summoned his revolver and took shots at the beast, but the tough thick skin of the beast was too much for the bullets to pierce through and merely bounce off it. The treant charged to the prince, swinging its arms at him as Noctis quickly warped to the tree and narrowly dodged the attack just as the beast's claw swiped at him. Re-appearing to the tree and standing in front of it, the prince summoned Blade of the Mystic and readied another warp strike.

As the treant turned to the prince, a large bolt of white lightning struck it on its back, forcing it onto its stomach as the antler-like horns on its body singed and nearly caught fire. Aqua and Riku jumped down from the summit and stood in the waters in front of the beast just as Gladiolus and Ignis joined in from running down the hills to the team, weapons drawn. The treant spun around, its tail sweeping on the ground and headed for the two keyblade masters. Riku erected a barrier around himself to hold his ground, making the tail recoil painfully from the barrier and flailed in the air, which Gladiolus took the chance to attack.

He brought his great sword down onto the back of the treant, cutting one of the antlers in half and drawing blood from the beast, it roared and thrashed around, swiping at Gladiolus. The shield stepped back from its claws, raising Defender to block the attack. Not only did the attack did nothing to the shield but repelled it to make the arm recoil.

Ignis tossed his two daggers at the beast when it leaped at them before he sprinted away from the monster landing zone. The two daggers bounced off its chest like he was throwing rubber at it, meaning its hide was still too thick for normal means of harm. The treant landed on the spot where the two stood before it let out a very loud roar that shook the ground and made some of the team cover their ears.

However loud noises were the least of their worries as Aqua turned to Riku and Noctis, looking rather dizzy and extremely confused. They started to haphazardly swing their weapons around like drunkards, waltzing away and nearly hitting each other. Aqua glanced at Ignis and Gladiolus, both sharing dismayed looks. 'Shit, that roar must've done something to them!', Gladiolus cursed, hitting back a claw from tearing him a new one.

Aqua jumped from the claw aiming for her, landing near Gladiolus. 'Keep it off Noct and Riku, I'll deal with them!', Ignis ordered, running to the two boys leaving Aqua and Gladiolus to fend off the treant. As it starts to snarl and slam its claws onto the ground which made small tremors that made the two stagger a bit. 'Okay, so its hide is too tough for normal strikes…', Gladiolus said with a grunt, 'Got any ideas?'.

'If we can't hurt it with normal means, then we'll just have to use magic!', Aqua declared, channeling her magic to summon fire. The treant however charged at her, slamming its claws down onto the woman, luckily Gladiolus quickly stepped in front of them and with his shield raised high, he blocked the attack and held it there. 'How do you need!?', he yelled back, throwing the beast off him. 'Just a few seconds!', Aqua assured, keyblade's tip glowing golden red.

Gladiolus nodded as he started to swing his sword at the treant's arms when it swung against him, when it leaps at him he'd throw his sword at the treant, and when it tried to roar at him to likely induce the same state of mind as Noctis and Riku, Gladiolus would throw his shield directly at the beast's head.

He ducked under its swinging claws and parried them when he stood his ground. Gladiolus managed to hit its claws and even the body of the treant, but like previous attacks, it just bounced off or just left dents in its thickened body.

Aqua spun her keyblade around in her hand and aimed it at the breast just as it started to stand on its hind legs again, likely attempting to crush Gladiolus beneath its weight. Grabbing her keyblade with both hands as it glowed golden-red as the tip sported a swirling sphere of flames. 'Firaza!', she yelled. A torch sized ball of fire flew to the treant but the moment it impacted it, it then exploded into a huge dome of flames.

The fire so hot and great it evaporated some of the smaller pools of water in seconds, scorched the earth into a black and incarnated the greenery around them. The treant itself was reduced to nothing but charred remains of the beast, the antlers crackling with embers in them and breaking apart with smaller embers burning its hide.

From the explosion itself, Gladiolus raised his shield high enough to protect himself from the attack, and only when he didn't feel the intense volcano rivaling heatwave from Aqua's magic, he lowered his shield with a breath of relief. Looking at the woman, wiping the sweat off her forehead with a smile, he nodded to her in approval. Then Aqua's eyes fell to his shield and gave it a curious look, she approached it. 'Gladio, look at the front', she instructed, gesturing it.

Worried the fire may have damaged it or worse, the man turned his shield to face it and his brows went up with surprise. The yellow eyes had shifted into a glowing red color, and somehow it felt different than just a color change. 'That's new', he mused. Aqua crossed her arms in thought, looking back and forth between the shield and the charred remains of the treant, putting two and two together with a quick nod. 'I have an idea…could you aim your shield…that way?', she said, pointing to the clear space behind him.

Following her instructions and holding his shield upwards, she then asked him to punch the shield. Worried but willingly to see where this was going, Gladiolus did so, and the result was not what he expected. The moment his fist punched the flat surface of his shield, the face blast a fireball from it that flew faster than a gunshot and smashed through one tree and smashed into the wall with a small explosion.

Not only was the tree broken in half with small embers remaining on both ends but there was also destruction left on the wall before them.

Both looked at the shield, gobsmacked and completely in awe before Gladiolus sported the largest grin she had ever seen appear on his face. 'I can shoot fireballs from my shield!', he cried, lifting it over his head like a child getting a new Christmas present. 'Ha! I owe Goofy for this!'. Aqua smiled happily at him, but then when he glanced at her, their smiles left, and they locked eyes. Gladiolus lowered his shield as Aqua dismissed her keyblade, not taking her eyes off him.

Both opened their mouths to speak but then they awkwardly paced in place, attempted to start a conversation about their awkward situation, the woman clasping her hands around her stomach and the shield rubbing his neck.

'Aqua…I uh', he starts but then Ignis called to them. Looking at the man they see Riku and Noctis rubbing their heads as the older man handed them each a potion. They approached the three, conversations left for another time to check on them. 'Are you two ok?', Aqua asked, looking at them. 'Other than feeling like there's a fog in my head? Peachy', Riku groaned, shaking his head. 'What the hell was that?'.

'A strange ailment that leaves the victim confused and disorientated', Ignis explained, patting his shoulder, 'Luckily the potion and smelling salts will clear up your minds'. 'Shame there's no magic for that kind of stuff huh?', Noctis said with a shake of his head, smirking at Aqua. The woman thought crossed her arms and gave a thoughtful look. 'I swear there was some basic spells for healing…I just can't remember what it was called…', she hummed.

Chuckling, Riku waved his hand. 'Either way, nice work with that treant thing', he praised before turning to the prince, 'Time to add another weapon to your collection buddy'. Nodding with a smirk and with a nod from Ignis, the prince jogged to the tomb just as Riku sent a text to Sora and the others to inform them of their findings.

Once Noctis acquired the next arm, which turned out to be a large ninja-like star, Riku informed the group Sora and the others had found a Haven near a decently large waterfall with a pond. Looking up to see the skies darkened, the group decided they would use the Haven to rest for the night then proceed back to collecting the last two arms.

*Nightfall*

By the time Noctis' party arrived, Sora's group had already started to make the camp, tents were already put up with Kairi and Prompto getting the chairs ready. Donald and Goofy had Ignis' cooking station ready for him at his instance since he had little fighting done and was more than able for dinner tonight.

Plus, he was eager to try out a new recipeh~

The only thing that wasn't going was the fire for the campfire. Sora said he was just waiting for the others to arrive before he got the fire going by collecting some firewood first. Gladiolus, however, took that task unto himself, claiming he needed something to do while he waited for dinner. As he walked off though, he sees Aqua following him and when she joined his side, she says it was just in case heartless or daemons ambushed him.

They headed back to where the royal tomb was since that was the closest to the campsite and there was plenty of good wood to be used for tonight. The entire walk there, however, was laced with awkwardness and silence between the usually chatty duo, neither had made so much as a "peep" to each other. The blue head was rubbing her arm shyly as she desperately tried to muster up the courage to speak about that night.

As they returned to the summit overlooking the royal tomb with the moon shining down on them, Gladiolus made the attempt to walk down the hill with Aqua in tow, before she inhaled and said: 'Gladio'. He stopped walking but didn't turn to face her, face still looking down the hill as Aqua composed herself. 'We…we need to talk', she started, cringing at that cliched line. Gladiolus turned to her with a serious look on his face, then he joined her at the top of the hill.

They looked at each other as if waiting for the other to break the ice between them but neither having the courage to address the elephant in the room. Aqua, however, refused to let this come between them, having grown weary of this awkwardness between them and missing just being able to speak normally with him. Taking one quiet breath, she opened her mouth to speak.

'I-

'I'm sorry'.

Aqua blinked, tilting her head when she saw Gladiolus' serious look shifted into a look of shame as he placed a hand on his hip. 'That night…I should've been more careful with you and the booze. I knew you hadn't tried it before and instead of taking it slow and not letting you indulge, I go ahead and do the exact opposite it', he said with guilt and frustration in his voice. Guilt for letting her get drunk and frustration as his lack of consideration.

'G-Gladio…', Aqua started, clearing her throat, 'Me getting drunk wasn't your fault. I'm not a child I should've known better myself'. 'Doesn't mean I shouldn't have done jack…', he argued back. Aqua frowned before she said: 'Well…I, don't regret it'. He gave her a surprised look as she shifted in place. 'I mean, don't mistake my words, I have no plans to get drunk every we do go out again, but for that one night…I liked it'.

She smiled. 'It was nice, just having to share a drink or…five, with you. Not talking about heartless, the fighting, or lamenting on my shortcomings. It was a wonderful escape', she explained. 'And maybe, we could do it again?'. Gladiolus opened his mouth before he sighed and chuckled at her. 'You are being way too forgiving; you know that?', he said with a smirk. Deciding to add some mirth to this, Aqua cheekily said: 'How about you make it up to me and pay the next time?'.

'What? Do you know how much I paid the last time?', Gladiolus asked incredulously yet his eyes were alit with mirth and smirk was as friendly as ever. 'Nope, and I don't intend to find out~ If you feel *that* bad~', she teased. 'Pfft, whatever', Gladiolus said with a wave of his hand. Aqua giggled as the shield rolled his eyes. In silence, they stared at each other before coming to the main topic of this halt, the real reason she wanted to speak.

Clasping her hands, she mustered her courage to look at him. 'I wanted, to also talk about…the…', she said lamely before her friend beat her to the punch. 'Kiss?', he huffed. 'Yes…that', she hummed. Gladiolus' face softened with remorse before he said: 'About that…I, I really, I didn't mean to'. Somehow that felt like a slap to Aqua's heart despite, rightfully so, she should have no reason to feel that, but Gladiolus face shifted into a look of alarm. 'Shit no, that sounded horrible…I didn't mean, I…*groan*'.

Aqua would have laughed at how clumsy and awkward he was acting if she wasn't trying to try and wrap her mind around the whole ordeal. Deciding to go for broke and spare this man the agony of embarrassment, she said: 'Did you like it?'.

Gladiolus rambles stopped when she asked that question, a small look of conflict etched its way onto his face before he turned it into genuine curiosity. 'Did you?', he asked simply. Frowning at the turn-around question, Aqua placed a hand on her chest and said: '…yes'.

He wasn't expecting her to have liked it because he gave the woman a look that was taken back by the confession. 'I have no experience with men, I grew up with my brothers as you know, so romance is something as alien to me as other worlds were to you', she confessed, 'Even when I asked out on a date years ago, I was so bashful and terrified I was literally thinking of every single excuse in the book to get out of it'.

She earned a snicker from the man, least he found her bashfulness amusing. Looking at him, she continued. 'I thought about that kiss, maybe I was overanalyzing it or reading too deep into it. And maybe, I'm being naïve but I…believe I know what I'm feeling'. Blushing, she looked at him. 'A-A-And you?'.

Gladiolus looked away for a moment, closing his eyes and taken a deep breath before he opened them and turned to her. '…I don't regret kissing you if that's what you're worried about', he confessed. Approaching her, he said: 'But…let's say we had certain feelings for each other, maybe its more than just an infatuation with the other…do you see it working out between us?'.

'That's…a good question…', she said with a frown, 'I know our occupations will require so much from us…and likely, we won't see each other as often as Sora and Kairi or Noct and Lunafreya'. That would be the hardest part for them to endure should this relationship go forward, yet still…

She gave him a heartfelt stare and said: 'I dunno if it could work but…I…I want to try'. The shield said nothing, his amber eyes staring into her blue ones to search for doubt but found nothing other than courage and something he couldn't describe. He thought to his task as the shield of the king, her as a master of the keyblade. Two different occupations that would take so much from them, likely their chances of meeting would be few and far between them.

However, even if he felt this connection to her was nothing than just a friend's affection…the idea of letting her slip through his fingers sounded so…wrong. Seeing her this determined to try this, how could he deprive her of this?

'Then…if you're willing to give it a go…then so am I', he said, going with it. Aqua gave him a smile that felt and looked so different than her regular smiles. It felt like it was something only he would have gotten to see. 'Great, that's great!', she said excitedly. Noticing this though she cleared her throat and nodded, 'I-I mean…very good', she muttered softly.

Gladiolus chuckled. 'Cute', he mused. Her cheeks flushed and she made some small noises out of shyness, making him chuckle. 'Come on, we've still got that firewood to get', he said, turning to go. 'G-Gladio…', Aqua said, catching his attention. He turned to see her rubbing her arm, shyly smiling. 'C-Could, could we…kiss again?', she asked. Wordlessly the shield approached her and took the master into his arms, letting her reach her own over his neck and shoulders and then slowly they leaned into each other's lips until they connected.

Both shut their eyes as this new sensation of warmth washed over their bodies, sparks rushing down their spines as they clutched each other tightly. She tasted so exotically to the shield, unlike any other girl he had been with, he wanted more. Holding her against his chest as he brushed her blue locks from her face, Aqua gently moaning from this wondrous sensation.

Then they heard something fall to the ground, breaking their kissing and alerting them to turned and identify their intruder.

Prompto just stood there, jaw to the ground as from his stance he looked to be holding something, and one glance down to the ground they saw his camera planted between his feet. Here was silence between the three of them, the only noise was the wind and sounds of the water behind the two new couple. Aqua's face was red while Gladiolus looked between desperately trying come up with an explanation and flat out murdering Prompto.

Wordlessly and almost robotically, Prompto picked up his camera and walked back down the hill and to the Haven, leaving the two alone in the now ruined moment. '…I'm gonna kill him', Gladiolus promised. '…please do', Aqua squeaked.

*Later…*

Collecting some firewood and returning to the Haven, there was a silence the moment they arrived as all eyes suddenly fell upon them.

Aqua and Gladiolus handed the firewood to Sora who quietly started the fire. Aqua glanced at everyone subtly as Gladiolus started to ask what Iggy had planned for dinner and other mundane questions. The woman glanced at Kairi who was sporting the biggest cat grin she had ever seen, practically beside herself with glee as Prompto gave the poor woman a look that could only be described as "I wanna be dead right now".

'I…think I'm going to turn in early', Aqua said, nodding to Ignis. He nodded in response, whether he was aware of the change in relationships of the team or not she wasn't entirely sure. She was going to just go to bed and hopefully, everyone would leave it at that.

Gladiolus…had other ideas.

'Just a sec, Blue', he said, turning to her.

Before she could do anything, he cupped her chin and kissed her, earning a small noise of surprise from the woman. When he was done, he said proudly: 'Goodnight'. Then he walked off to chat up Ignis, looking at him with bewilderment as Aqua stood there, blushing madly. Everyone else stared at the scene that unfolded, excluding Kairi and Prompto, jaws to the ground and eyes wide as dinner plates.

Quietly and quickly Aqua retreated to her tent before the others could ask her what just happened. No sooner did she enter her bedroll, she heard the voices of everyone asking Gladiolus what just happened, how long were they together and other questions she was much happier to have Gladiolus answer.

'SEE! I CALLED IT! WA-HOO!', Kairi cheered.

'I'm going to kill that girl…', Aqua muttered. As she laid on her side, drowning out the voices of her companions, she smiled as she drifted off to sleep.

A/N: …how did I go from having this too short to longer than most chapters…?

Anyways, we've resolved Aqua and Gladiolus's relationship and now that's done! Sorry, there wasn't a lot of action here, I just wanted to focus on these two and resolve the issue now than drag it on. Next time its Costlemark Tower! If any of you have played this game, then you know what you're in for!

Big thanks to VashTheStampede0409 for the shield idea, they've come up with more ideas for it which will be explored in the next chapter!

Questions:

Q1: What do you enjoy most of this story?

Q2: Is there any character bar Ardyn you wanna see more of?

Q3: Should there be a chapter of the team visiting the Chocobo ranch?

Q4: What is your favorite episode of the chocobros?

Q5: Who do you enjoy the most from this story?

Q6: Your favorite royal arm?

Random Questions:

You're a keyblade wielder in training, who would you have as a master, a fellow student, and rival?

If you were part of the Crownsguard, what would your weapon and talent be?

As always everyone, thanks for reading this! Stay awesome but more importantly stay safe!