Savior of the Species
Based on the sidequest in Chapter 8 of FFXV.
I've been hearin' that people been seein' a pink chocobo around the Vesperpool. Folks say the poor girl injured its leg and she's been nippin' at people gettin' too close. Some hungry critter's bound to come across 'er before long…
"So, a pink chocobo, huh?" Gladiolus commented, stretching his arms behind his head. "And from what Wiz said, seems like she's got trust issues."
"I don't blame her." Prompto shook his head sadly. "With a color like that, someone's bound to take advantage of it."
Ignis nodded behind the wheel of the Regalia. "If the word has spread to Wiz, then it's highly likely poachers are on the move."
"Then we better find her quick." Noctis said, worried about the lone animal.
With the Regalia parked, the Prince and his retinue began their search in the swampy areas of the Vesperpool Lake, where predators and wild animals alike gathered around. As a cry of kweh! surprised the four males, the source of the sound was found in between the intricate, twisted large tree roots, hunched in the waters and covered in streaks of mud with its pastel pink hue peeking through.
"There it is!" Prompto exclaimed, only to be bombarded with hushes. "Poor thing's hiding from all the predators."
"Alright, slow and steady, guys." Noctis positioned into a crouch and began to move. "We don't wanna scare her off."
The chocobo gave a soft cry, no doubt in pain. Its wings hovered protectively over one of its legs.
"We need to treat her soon." Ignis murmured as they inched closer, while Gladio fished out a potion.
The loud snap of a tree branch alerted the pink chocobo and the glares of three males settled on the blonde cameraman. Prompto cringed as he stepped on it and whispered a sorry. With the chocobo now aware of their presence, she squawked in agitation.
"Hey, girl." Noctis cooed, just a feet away. "It's okay, it's okay. We're here to help."
She flapped her large wings in retaliation, sending a strong gust their way. But Noctis stood his ground, determined to show the creature that he meant no harm. He continued to coo in a calm voice and brought out the tuft of gysahl greens. His left hand outstretched towards her with the leafy substance and his right hand wiggled its fingers at Gladio's direction, prompting him to hand over the potion.
"Hey. Heyyyy." He drawled almost in panic as she tried to nip his wrist, ignoring the greens. "Easy. We're here to heal you."
As he now crouched in front of her, the pink chocobo had the prettiest eyes, a mixture of sky blue and a tint of forest green. She squawked one more time, loud and indignant, but Noctis remained calm, knowing that the chocobo would attack him without hesitation at the slightest shift in his emotion.
He continued to wiggle the vegetable and his arm moving in with slow movements. The chocobo began stiffened, however she did not cry out or flap its wings. Instead, she tilted her head, her bright eyes staring directly at his. As the leaf touched her beak, she opened her mouth and proceeded to consume it. Noctis took this opportunity to pop open the potion and heal her leg.
"There we go." Noctis sighed in relief as he stroked her neck. "Good girl."
Travelling back to the Chocobo Post on her back was exhilarating. Either she wanted to show off her new leg or she was just naturally fast. Noctis let out a whoop in excitement. He admired the color of her feathers as she ran with the sun beaming down. They washed off the mud at the lake and she had the most unique color.
Much to Prompto's dismay, Noctis hopped on the chocobo while the three of them got into the Regalia and agreed to meet back at the Chocobo Post. As Gladio joked about having a race, the pink chocobo cried out in challenge and sped off. As they arrived at the Post, they were met with the smug smiles of Prompto and Gladio. At Noctis' defense, they lost their way a few times as the pink chocobo was not used to the terrain.
Wiz smiled in gratitude. "Thanks a lot. She'll settle right in." He gently guided her in one of the stalls and settled a basket of gysahl greens on the ground below her. "Since this is her new home, mind givin' a name for her?" The old man grinned.
"Me?" Noctis pointed to himself in surprise.
"Why not? You did save her."
"Uh, well." He drawled, still shocked to have the honor of naming her.
"Oooh, oooh, what about Rose?" Prompto chirped.
"Too predictable." Gladio snorted.
"Perhaps something that reflects her character, Noct?" Ignis suggested.
Her character, huh? He stared at the pink chocobo and once again she held his gaze, almost in expectation. Well, she was strong and fast and seemed to be more independent than the other chocobos. The budding friendship between them was so sudden and new. Noctis never expected to befriend a chocobo today. She seemed to be more independent than the other chocobos. Her stance was taller, her nape straight and taut that was almost militant, and striking.
And suddenly, he knew the perfect name.
"Lightning." Noctis ruffled the feathers on her neck. "Her name is Lightning."
"Lightning?" Prompto said in almost disbelief and groaned. "But that's a boy's name. It should be something cute and feminine like-"
"Shut it." Gladio cut him off then turned to Noctis. "I like it. It suits her."
Lightning softly squawked and nuzzled her head beneath Noctis' jaw.
"Well, it seems she likes it." Ignis smiled.
She continued her soft cries, nuzzles, and cuddles and Prompto couldn't resist fishing out his camera and snapping a couple of pictures.
"Yeah, yeah." Noctis chuckled, patting its head and rubbing his palms all over her. "There you go." She nudged her head against his. "Atta girl."
"O. M. G." Prompto squealed behind the camera. "Most adorable bird ever."
AN: It's not like I wanted a pastel pink chocobo color in the game so I can name it Lightning... (cries lol) By the way, some of the dialogue does come from the game. Like when Noctis is cooing at the chocobo, UGH, my mind immediately went Lightis. Anyways, sorry for taking so long to put out another one-shot/drabble. My writing chops have been failing me, but I'm sure they'll be back as the new Dissidia game is coming out. OMG guys first Lightis interaction! This ship is sailinggg.