Disclaimer: Not mine

Chapter 2

Noctis dozed, lulled by the noise of the engine and still recovering. His head was pressed against the window, the blanket he'd been hidden under now covering him.

Prompto glanced over every now and then to make sure he was alright. It was going to take time to get him to safety, so he was making for Capitis Haven, it was secluded enough for now, kept murky due to the old growth in the area and there were no other hunters around. If needed, they could easily enough head into the Myrlwood and Pectriche Haven. He wanted the Prince fully healed before they moved on and he had to face the full daytime sun. He pulled the truck off the dirt road to hide it from sight and got out, grabbing his camping gear and moving it to the Haven before going back to the truck. "Time to wake up your Highness," he called gently, reaching out to touch his shoulder and the Prince snapped awake, eyes wide, fangs out and he backed off, hands up. "Easy, just me."

"Prompto?" Noctis blinked, fighting off sleep and saw him standing back, hands up and he frowned before he realised his fangs were down. "Sorry," he looked away, willing them to retract.

"No harm done," Prompto promised. "Need a hand down?"

Noctis shook his head and slipped from the truck only to stumble on landing but Prompto was there, slipping an arm around his waist to help steady him, despite his nearly attacking him. "Where are we?"

"Vesperpool," Prompto answered as they crossed the dirt road and then he helped Noctis up onto the flat stone of the Haven. "It's remote enough and there's been no hunts here for a bit. I don't want to risk the full sun until you're fully recovered."

Noctis nodded, it made sense. He didn't want to risk sun exposure when weakened, he'd suffered that once before and the burns took forever to heal. He sighed as he was settled into a camp chair, he hated the lethargy that came with healing. He loved sleeping but this was too much even for him. A gentle hand brushed his hair back from his face and he leant into the warm touch.

"Do you want to lie down? I'll have the tent up in a few minutes."

"Don't want to be a bother," he mumbled, Prompto had already done so much for him.

"You're not, your Highness."

"Noct, call me Noct," he yawned and rubbed at his eyes.

"Okay, Noct," he agreed softly, moving away to finish pitching the tent. By the time he was done, Noctis was almost asleep in the chair. "Let's get you settled in," Prompto murmured, leaning down to wrap an arm around Noctis, gently pulling him up and Noctis slumped against him. "Okay, I'm going to pick you up," he warned before lifting the slightly taller yet lighter male up into his arms. Noctis just mumbled sleepily, pressing his face into Prompto's shirt and he swallowed but carried him to the tent and got him settled into a sleeping bag. Noctis clung on to his shirt with one hand, eyes barely open to slits, and Prompto gently disentangled his fingers, squeezing his hand gently. "It's okay, just get some sleep. I'll keep you safe Noct."

"Sssstaay," he slurred before falling fully asleep.

Prompto ran his free hand through Noct's hair, hoping to sooth him, keeping hold of a limp hand with his other. Obviously he hadn't been as healed as he had been acting in his apartment, perhaps he'd been acting it because he knew they had to leave and didn't want to be a burden. Prompto settled comfortably on the mat he'd put on the floor, taking the time to study Noct in the muted light. He'd been too busy keeping him alive to really just sit back and look. He'd seen pictures of the Royal Family before, who hadn't? Though some of those he'd seen had been very different to those people would have seen, part of his training as a child. They'd tried to portray them as soulless monsters, bloodsucking fiends who would sooner kill you as look at you and he'd believed it, till he'd come to Lucis. He'd watched and learned ever since arriving, he'd seen vampires, werewolves, incubus, succubus, all kinds just going about their lives, hidden amongst the human population. He could only tell what they were because of what he was, even if the process had never been completed. Most of them were very good at hiding what they were, they had to be. Only in Insomnia were they safe and free to reveal what they were, under the protection of the Lucis Caelum family.

The question that worried him was simple, how much did Noctis know about MT's and how long would it take him to realise? He wasn't afraid of a human working it out, why would they? He had no effect on them, but to someone who wasn't human? He had been made to be able to match them in a fight, to be able to kill them far easier than any hunter could, to see past the façade and recognise them no matter how they hid. Noctis was a young vampire, no older than he looked, the same age as Prompto himself, which meant he would be easy to draw in. He didn't want that, but it wasn't a conscious thing, it was literally in his genes, his scent, looks, voice, all designed in a lab to entice the supernatural beings of Eos, to make them trust his kind. All he could do was try and dampen the energy given out by the Magitek core implanted under his sternum. Thankfully the glow was well concealed by muscle, skin, and clothing. Even dampened, over time it would affect Noctis, which was why he needed to get him to safety as soon as possible and then leave.

Prompto got up and headed down to the water, he would catch his meals while he could, leaving the food supplies for areas where he couldn't catch, kill or pick his food.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Noctis was confused to find the roof of a tent above him as he opened his eyes, before he remembered the fight, Prompto, and the truck. He pushed himself upright and looked around, feeling the background hum of a Haven around him. He opened the tent flap, hesitating as he gauged the light level, before crawling out, finding Prompto sitting beside the fire, fish roasting over it. The blonde looked up and grinned at him.

"Evening sleepy," he teased and Noctis blinked before smiling back.

No one outside of his Dad and Gladio really teased him, without being mean about it anyway. "How long did I sleep?" he sat down opposite Prompto, enjoying the warmth of the fire.

"All day, not surprising. You've been recovering from a nasty fight and without the amount of blood you need to heal faster." He tossed a canteen over to him. "It's animal, sorry about the taste."

Noctis nodded and unscrewed the lid, fighting back a grimace at the smell. Animal blood would do, but it didn't taste very nice compared to human. However, there was only one source of that nearby and he would never feed without permission, plus Prompto had already given him blood several times so for his health it would be unsafe to drink from him for a while. A Hunter willingly giving their blood to a vampire was unheard of, so why had he done it. He could understand saving him, he hadn't known who and what he was until after the fight, but to then risk his own wellbeing by taking Noctis into his home, caring for his injuries and giving his own blood? It didn't make sense. Everyone always told him to never trust a Hunter, but everything said that Prompto was trustworthy. Was he looking for a reward? A way out of Hunting? They had to be close in age, if not the same, which meant he'd started young, the son of Hunters maybe, so maybe he hadn't chosen the life of a Hunter. It wasn't a profession you could just walk away from, he wouldn't be welcome in any town if he did which would mean surviving on his own, not an easy task. Saving him and delivering him to safety though, he would be able to ask for a reward such as being allowed to live in Insomnia, though he'd be watched, probably for life. "You'll be able to ask for any reward you want from Father," he offered casually as he forced the blood down.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Prompto blinked at his words, what? He looked up at Noct, seeing the forced casualness, the way Noctis was watching him and he smiled. "He can refund the petrol money if he wants. I'll have to take a hunt or two on the way or we'll be pushing the truck."

"Hunts?" Noct asked and a deaf man could hear the trepidation in his voice.

"No, Noct. Not that kind of hunting. I mean voretooth or coeurls or anything else that's causing trouble. They don't pay as well but they leave a clearer conscious," he quickly explained, watching as some of the tension seeped from the young vampire. How would he react if he knew Prompto had killed his kind before? He'd had no choice and even if he'd been given one, he still would have killed them because he hadn't known any better. The same with the werewolves that had been used for practice as well. He had killed since leaving, but only in self-defence or defence of others, like the wolves that had been attacking Noctis. "Will you be okay staying in the occasional caravan or hotel, or should we tick to Haven's?"

"I won't attack anyone," Noctis glared and Prompto sighed.

"That wasn't why I was asking. We won't have much access to human blood, I don't want you to be uncomfortable. You've never travelled outside of the city, the people can be very suspicious, especially of strangers. You're dressed like a Hunter which will help that a bit, though you don't have tags." He removed the fish from the fire and put them on a plate with some salad made from local ingredients.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

"Does that taste good?" Noctis asked, curious. He didn't know any humans and the food smelled gross to him, but obviously it didn't, or else humans wouldn't enjoy it so much.

"Not bad, I'm no gourmet cook or anything but it's hard to muck up roasted fish and a salad as long as you don't leave it over the flame for long enough to turn it to charcoal," he grinned and finished it off before leaning back on his arms, leaving the camp chair empty. "Have you ever camped before?"

"Just overnight for fun, but within the Wall," Noctis admitted. Camping for vampires was different too, technically they didn't need a fire, tent, anything really. They did it because Gladio liked lying out under the stars where they could actually see them. Under the Wall the sun wasn't a threat, so it didn't matter how long they stayed out.

"It's a bit different out here. Bathing in rivers and lakes, sleeping on rock, personal hygiene can get a bit difficult," Prompto explained and Noctis nodded.

"At least cold water doesn't bother me as much as it will you," he shrugged. Personal hygiene wasn't really important when you didn't sweat or anything…ah, but he'd have to deal with it because Prompto did. It beat being dead or worse, anything was better than where he'd be now without Prompto stepping in.

"Yeah, it's pretty cold around here, it'll be warmer closer to the city," Prompto yawned and Noctis winced, had he stayed up all day while he slept?

How was that going to work? They had to travel in the day, it was too risky at night with daemons spawning anywhere they pleased. He'd have to stay covered somehow that wouldn't raise suspicion from others driving passed and he guessed he'd sleep then; he could sit watch at night while Prompto slept. It would be lonely for both of them but they'd both be awake in the evening and morning for a while. "You should sleep, I can keep watch." A Haven would only keep daemons out after all.

"You sure?"

"Yeah, I'm feeling a lot better. Not up for a fight but I can wake you if I sense something coming," he swore, wondering if Prompto would trust him to watch over him while he slept.

"Okay, wake me if you need anything," Prompto got up and stretched. "The chair is yours to use if you want to get off the rock." He ducked into the tent and Noctis settled into the camp chair, closing his eyes to let his other senses take over. It took maybe twenty minutes for Prompto to fall asleep, his breathing deep and even. For a second, he considered taking off into the night, but it was crazy. Seeing maps of Lucis was very different to trying to navigate his way across the continent alone at night, he'd never make it without help.

His best chance was to trust Prompto and he did…which was strange. There was something niggling at the back of his mind about just how easy it was to trust and like him. Cor would glare at him for being so trusting of a stranger, especially a Hunter, but what else could he do? Prompto had done nothing to hurt him, had given him his own blood, he had to trust that would last the trip.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Noctis stirred, the absence of engine noise rousing him enough to open his eyes and blink blearily out from under the cap he wore to help hide his features from prying eyes and the sun. "Mmmm?"

"Just stopping to fill the tank and grab some supplies, go back to sleep," Prompto answered and then Noctis distantly heard the sound of him leaving the cabin. He was drifting back into a deep sleep when the door opened again and then the engine started, the steady noise drawing him back under.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Prompto drove as far as he dared before stopping for the day, the sun was low on the horizon and he reached over to gently shake Noctis' shoulder. "We're here, time to wake up," he called and Noctis stirred, sitting up and blinking sleepily. "Morning," he smiled as Noctis yawned, flashing fangs. "Hungry?"

"Little, why?" he asked.

"Bit of fang showing," he answered, getting out and going around the back to get the camping gear out, Noctis soon appearing to help. After two nights, Noctis was getting the hang of helping set the camp up though he stayed well away from the food. It was nice, having company and someone to help, even if their sleep schedules were opposites. If they weren't on the road he'd simply switch around but that wasn't possible. Even though they didn't talk much, he liked the Prince, he didn't try to dodge out of helping set up and take down the camp, he never complained about the rough conditions, and he was even willing to share stories about life in the city. Prompto shared stories in exchange about the greater world of Lucis, he never mentioned Niflheim or even Accordo. The longer he could keep his origins secret, the better as far as he was concerned. It wasn't like Noctis was pushing for childhood stories or who his parents were. He hoped he never did.

TBC…