It's been a massive while ^^' I finally ended my dissertation and have been quite very stressed in the past few months. Moved again, spent half a year at my new job :D

This chapter covers a part of the story I had been wanting to write since I started it. Expect a family reunion, as well as angst and drama. I hope you enjoy!

Stranded

Chapter 30 – Lestallum has a new King

Noctis had hoped they'd stick to discretion as they infiltrated Lestallum. He had also been hoping that Luna wouldn't be as much of a daredevil while pregnant, but he knew when he was in front of a lost cause. They had so much left to deal with and she wanted to cover as much as possible as fast as possible.

Which meant Glauca was just a thorn in her side at this point. Lunafreya waited until she was inside the powerplant to summon Ramuh's magic. She didn't need anything flashy, just efficient. She wrapped her trident with lightning, Noctis helping her phase through the walls of Exoneris's fabric, her magic making quick work of any imperial soldiers they met along the way.

They were both worried about what the magic could be doing on Darius, but she still had two covenants to forge. And if either of their friends or Noctis himself got hurt, she would heal them as best as she could.

Noctis phased them past an nth wall, slowly getting a feel of what was waiting for them. They were both dressed in dark clothes, reinforced with pieces of armor. Ignis had insisted they not leave things to chance and Noctis was grateful his fiancée had listened. Glauca was shouting orders at his scrambling men, still wearing his faceless armor. His voice brimmed with worry for once, and with good cause. They'd taken down everyone inside the factory but for the command room. And the people on the outside weren't getting back to Glauca, thanks to Cindy working her magic on their radio system.

It was all falling together and it felt too easy, but when Noctis whispered so to Luna, she reassured him with a stroke of her hand against his chest. He could almost hear her tell him they had had enough hard times as it was.

Then she called for more magic, her eyes glowing and the light from her trident extending down her arm and to her very heart. Noctis felt the cold air swishing around him, but it was nothing compared to the icicles that reached the soldiers. It ran across the floor and metal bridges in zigzags not unlike lightning bolts on a dark sky. Noctis raised his armiger as a shield when the first gunshots sounded, the weapons effectively keeping them safe. Lunafreya's magic kept going, a wild blur of ice throwing soldiers aside until it reached Glauca's feet. And tore right through his armor, shattering the boots and lower legs inside of it.

Lightning followed, eating at the exposed flesh, the crystal armor breaking up as its wearer barely had time to move. Luna had grown strong enough to erase the threat Glauca had once been with a twist of her fingers. As Noctis had one arm around her waist, holding his sword in his left hand, he could tell she was leaning on him, and that the toll was much worse than how it looked. Yet, the fear he felt as her magic wreaked havoc felt new. This level of power could have been between Ravus's hands. What a nightmare that would have been.

"You can't…" Glauca tried to speak through the pain, but Luna answered with more ice, encasing him with brand new armor, just as bright as the one he used to wear, but which devoured his flesh as it expanded.

Noctis couldn't help gritting his teeth, keeping the armiger flowing around them just in case. Blood tainted the ice and the lightning faded, the last imperial commander standing dead on his feet. Taking a quick look around, Noctis confirmed that the remaining soldiers were either heavily wounded or cowering in corners. A few whispered the words "we surrender". One look at Luna told him her work was done and he could take her away from this place. The magic in his blood roared and he let the blue light wrap all over her, phasing him, his moving armiger and his beloved queen past the wall, then past the crystal storage and back into the streets of Lestallum.

The rebel garrison had made quick work of taking down Glauca's men under the orders of Ignis and Aranea. It really felt as though everything was falling into place. A few warp-strikes later, they were in front of the Leville, which was officially safer than the rest of Lestallum. Cindy gave them a thumb's up as a welcome and Luna finally let her trident vanish into thin air. Then Noctis felt her faltering next to him and he wrapped both arms around her, kneeling down along with her.

"Whoa, Luna, you alright?"

"Just feeling a bit sick from all the motions. I'll be better with some water."

"I should have stuck to walking for the last part, I just really wanted you away from all those soldiers," he apologized.

"I would have done the same if I was the one able to warp-strike. I just need my feet to stay on the ground for a bit."

He helped her back into a standing position, waiting until she pushed against his chest to take a step back again.

"We did good today," she said, sharing a glance with him. "The empire's threat will soon be a memory from which people can start healing."

"You did more than good, Luna," he shot back, grabbing her hand and giving it a squeeze. "I still think you should sit down."

She shook her head at him, albeit slowly.

"Could use some fresh air, at least as fresh as it can get in a city like this," she added, spotting the trash lying in the corners of the little square. "I'm really parched, Noct."

"Alright, I'll fetch you something real quick."

She smiled at him, waving back to Cindy. It felt surreal, that the war she'd fought for her entire life might soon be over. Despite her relief, she felt a strange emptiness inside. Her hand went to stroke her stomach, and Darius gave a kick in such synchronicity, she barely jerked despite the pain.

"Thank you darling. I'll do my best to not do something like this ag…"

"Is this really Lady Lunafreya I see?" a voice cut her off, snark and anger wrapped together. She flinched, summoning her trident within a heartbeat.

The voice belonged to a tall teenager, blond hair, bi-colored eyes, features not completely unfamiliar, but twisted by a mix of disdain and… hate. His right arm was covered in bandages and there was a stench coming from him, so strong, Luna wondered how she hadn't noticed it yet.

"Who are you?" she asked, warning in her voice.

The boy was alone, shoulders looking almost too large for his slight build. He had more growing to do, his cheeks were hollowed as though he'd lost too much weight in too little time, reducing him to nothing but muscles and nerves under his pale skin. There was magic coming from his skin, magic all too familiar and her heart stilled as she wondered if it could be…

"Well, there's no doubt you're the famous Oracle now. Another way to remind me how lacking I've been. You've been collecting Astrals, encouraging my brother to take on my royal arms."

Luna's eyes turned into slits at that.

"Ravus Lucis Caelum… I cannot say it's a pleasure."

"Oh, the displeasure is reciprocated, have no fear. You can stop gathering the Astrals and pretending you're a savior, alright?"

Lunafreya raised her trident with grit teeth, only in a self-defense gesture, not an attack yet, but Ravus answered with the tip of his fleuret, metal clashing. She heard Cindy's yell behind her, but everything went too fast at this point. She knew the brat in front of her was Noctis's brother. The same one who'd framed him for murder and made sure he'd be banished from his own kingdom. The one the crystal had picked instead of Noctis, although it really seemed the crystal had made a mistake all along.

The sword and trident clashed two more times, Luna easily twisting the fleuret and throwing it to the side, too far for Ravus to get back to it. He looked so angry then, his right hand catching her trident by the middle pike, and his arm seemed to bulge, his strength surpassing what she'd expected from him.

"You little bitch!"

His left hand slapped her across the face, Luna calling off her trident as her neck bent aside, tasting blood in her mouth. Her first thought was for Darius, because who knew what could follow this slap, but then her second thought was for Noctis who'd had to deal with this ill tempered brat for most of his life. She dispelled her trident, swift on her feet despite the dizziness, whipping over herself with one hand holding her stomach, while the other turned into a fist. Her firt connected with Ravus's face so hard, he was sent sprawling, falling on his right arm with a sickening crunch and a yelp.

"Godsdammit, there's never…"

Luna saw a blue blur and sensed the armiger shimmering in the air before she heard Noctis speaking over Ravus.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!"

Ravus blinked, but his brother was already on him, pulling him off the ground by the collar of his white coat.

"Noctis…" the boy started.

Noctis's eyes were almost bulging from his head, a snarl all over his face as he cut his brother off.

"Shut up! You don't get to just slap my pregnant fiancee and then act like you made a simple mistake, you hear me?" he continued, shaking him from side to side as he spoke.

"Preg… w…what?"

Noctis shoved him back to the ground harshly, then pulled him back up with a curse.

"I hope your ears are working at least, cause I won't say it a third time. You just raised your hand to the mother of my child, you spoiled brat."

Ravus tried to raise his hands in self defense, but his right arm was hanging limply by his side and Noctis shoved his left arm away, ending his sentence by punching him in the gut. Wheezing, blinking, tearing up, Ravus started summoning what little elemancy would answer.

"That was for Luna," Noctis warned, landing a second punch. "And that's for putting Gladio through the wringer with your bullshit."

The third punch was wrapped in ice, Luna watching in shock as Noctis seemed to completely nullify whatever magic his brother was summoning. She didn't want to interfere, not when every single punch was this earned. All she hoped was that Noctis wasn't hurting himself at the same time.

"That was for our father."

"I didn't mean to…"

"I'm not fucking done with you," Noctis bellowed, his eyes red with magic.

Footsteps rushed towards them, Luna calling her trident again as she saw a large brown-haired man followed by a petite girl with the same brown eyes as him stopping just a few paces away from the Lucian princes.

"Noct?" she started.

He looked up, his royal arms still floating in the air as he took in his surroundings.

"Gladio, Iris?" he said, confusion showing in his voice.

"Yeah, your brother ran off before I could grab him," the Shield explained. "For all I care, you can keep going. I need to hand in my resignation if I can ever talk to the King again."

"Gladio!"

"Noct!" Luna said again.

She sounded scared now and it only sent his anger flying, but he needed to make sure she was alright before doing anything else. So he grabbed Ravus's head and pushed it against the ground.

"You don't move, you hear me?"

"I won't," Ravus answered in the frailest voice.

Noctis almost wanted to kick him, but the urge was painful. He warped to Luna, keeping his armiger between her and the Amicitia.

"Are you hurt? Are you okay?" he asked.

"I feel fine, just… overwhelmed. And I'm worried for you," she added.

"You're not fine," he observed, wiping the blood at the corner of her mouth.

"Just bit my tongue, I'll be okay. I just want to understand what's happening. This guy here…" she pointed to Gladiolus.

"My brother's Shield, Gladiolus Amicitia. And the girl is Iris, his sister. She was always good friends with Ravus. Iris!," Noctis started as he noticed how closely she was looking at Ravus. "Leave him where he is. I'm not going to hurt him too bad, but I'm not done yet."

The fact Ravus simply whimpered where he lay was like a stab wound pulsing in his chest. Where was the belligerent teen slapping Luna and yelling names at her? Where was the angry brother who always held his fists up and wouldn't go down without a fight? Where was the boy who'd trapped him in exile?

"I know he was very, very wrong," Iris answered.

"As long as he doesn't know, there's no point feeling sorry for him. Now, Luna," he turned back to her. "Luna, I'm sorry, but I swear to you, you don't have to worry about either Gladio or Iris. Neither of them would harm my future wife," he continued with a raised tone.

Gladiolus frowned, while Iris made an exclamation. On the ground, Ravus was shaking harder.

"So you landed yourself the oracle and your brother went and attacked her?!" Gladiolus surmised.

"Yeah. I don't know why I'm even surprised." Noctis marked a pause, giving one last look to Luna, who just nodded to him. Then he let go of her again, walking up to his brother. "Rave."

"Just exile me or something," the boy answered in a hacked breath.

"No. You don't get to run away with your tail between your legs. Get up."

Ravus pressed his face into the dirt, shaking his head.

"Stop being a brat for once in your life."

"I know! I know I can't take any of it back, but I'd rather you hit me more. The ancestors keep saying the crystal was wrong. I didn't want… I didn't mean for dad to be in danger, but now he is and there's nothing I can do."

"Enough! Ravus, you need to own up and you can't only do it once and pretend it's going to be enough. I'm not going to hit you again unless you give me a reason to. Get up."

"Stop ordering me around," Ravus spat, struggling to his knees, his right arm refusing to hold any weight while his left arm shook with the effort.

Noctis was finally seeing him as the bitter rage turned into the cold anger he'd been holding close to his heart for all those months. His younger brother looked like the ghost of himself.

"Come on, we need to get you out of the street before we cause an actual riot," Noctis muttered under his breath.

He mostly wanted to get Luna somewhere safe, but thankfully, there wasn't much of a crowd gathered yet. People had become too used to hiding behind closed doors and he wondered if anyone was watching this. While he was mad, he didn't want to relive what had happened back in Lucis a second time. Behind him, Cindy had walked up to Luna and was worrying about her fist and wrist, commenting on the strength of her punch.

Ravus caught Noctis's eyes with his and the pain the older brother saw in his gaze was almost infinite. The exiled prince was tempted to warp next to him, knowing he would flinch away. The thought burned his heart, and his feet moved, armiger released, eyes back to blue. Ravus still looked ready to cower in fear and that too was new, that too hurt. They'd fought as kids, but his brother had never ever been scared of him. Noctis squatted down with a grunt.

"Rave…"

"Just stay mad at me," Ravus objected.

"I'm still mad, but I think you got it. Here."

Noctis grabbed him by both shoulders, meaning to help him to his feet. Ravus screamed as though he was being burned, leaping to his feet and Noctis found himself still squatting, holding the crumbling right arm of his younger brother in his hand.

"What the fuck?!"

The bandages couldn't hold the flesh turning to dust, or the silver-tinted bones that fell on the ground at his feet. His stomach protested, but between the dirty bandages and bloodless flesh, a thing moved. It looked like a snake of muscles, fibers marbled with purple stains, strands of bulging muscles forming a head that hissed at Noctis. Screams echoed all around, Noctis sensing Luna next to him, seeing Gladio moving to keep Ravus still from the corner of his eyes. Meanwhile Iris stood frozen, paler than a ghost.

Noctis didn't drop the snake, the wrongness pulsing from it awakening his elemancy. Luna's hand was on his shoulder as he summoned five balls of fire, sending them in a tight spiral that made the monster retract and coil in on itself.

"Ravus…" Noctis started.

"Just destroy whatever the fuck that thing is," his brother answered with a broken sob.

Noctis wasn't going to need to be told twice. He burned it to a crisp, with the bandages and everything else that was left, dropping it before the fire could reach his skin, sharing a quick glance with Luna. She looked green in the face and he wanted to apologize to her, but he was feeling ready to be sick too. The smoke that rose from the snake was the same dark purple as Ardyn's favorite coat, Noctis batting it away with gritted teeth. Ravus's right arm was still missing when he looked at him and while he remembered how often elemancy would eat away at his flesh, he'd never thought…

Did I just do that?

"Why was there a fucking parasite in your arm?! How long has he been like this?" Noctis added, his attention shifting to Gladiolus.

The Shield glared at him.

"He was normal enough a couple weeks ago. The freakshow kinda started when he tried collecting royal arms."

"Which Izunia ordered him to do while impersonating…" Iris started, cut off by the hand Gladiolus raised in warning.

Noctis's eyes had widened and he only kept himself from rushing next to the girl because Luna was still next to him, still holding his shoulder.

"Ardyn is always at the root of everything," he sighed. "Luna… The magic from that… worm-snake-thing… It –was different from the blight, right?"

She shook her head.

"Not different enough. But you could sense it too, so it's something else. Not a daemon, but not…"

Ravus's legs buckled and Gladiolus kept him from keeling over, hissing through clenched teeth.

"It's not contagious, is it?"

"Even if it was, I can fix you," Luna shot back. "I need to take a look at his wound. Make sure there's not…"

More…

There could be more, eating away at Ravus from the inside. Noctis had no idea what his father might be thinking right now, being a prisoner of his own castle, a prisoner in his own flesh. But he knew that if he was going to truly save Regis, he needed to keep Ravus alive. To think his baby brother was missing a piece had his mind reeling.

"Get him inside, Gladio. We're going to make some sense of this mess."

Cindy looked shaken and Iris was whiter than a sheet as they quickly moved into the Leville. Gladiolus kept Ravus upright and they were up the flight of stairs and in the common room of the suite Luna had taken in the hotel for their little group in a matter of minutes. They sat Ravus down on a couch, Noctis getting the nicer loveseat close for Luna. Iris sat down next to Ravus, holding his left hand as Luna inspected his wound. Cindy had gone to find Prompto, and Gladiolus had decided to wait in a separate room for now and make a few phonecalls in the hope he could get ahold of Ignis.

Luna quickly surmised the damage. To her surprise, there was no bleeding, as though the festering wound had already closed the spot where it had slhoughed off his body.

"There's no blight in him from what I can tell," Luna declared. "Let me just make sure Noctis didn't break any of your ribs."

Her light made her fingertips shine for a few seconds and then she finally allowed herself to sink back into her seat, running one hand across her forehead. Noctis had been pacing across the room, but he hurried to her side, offering her an elixir. Iris squirmed a bit, Ravus sharing a brief look with her. He mouthed the words "thank you for staying" and she offered him a nod in answer. He turned back to his older brother and the Oracle.

"So what now?" he managed.

Noctis glared at him, his back held far too rigidly.

"What now?" Noctis repeated. "Where do I even start…? You've…"

He gestured at the whole room, falling silent as his shoulders dropped and Ravus slumped down, pulling his hand back from Iris's to hold it in his lap.

"I know I've been impossible," the younger prince started. "And I've been making things impossible…Yet, you're still… looking out for Lucis… and for me…"

Noctis let out a heavy sigh.

"You're still my godsdamn brother. Our father wants you safe. What the fuck has been happening with you for your arm to even be…?"

"I don't know! I think Ardyn did something. I burned myself trying to use fire magic months ago and it never seemed to heal."

"And his arm was hanging from his shoulder back in the last tomb we visited… until it pulled itself back up somehow…" Iris added, turning green just from the memory.

Lunafreya frowned.

"I imagine you didn't look for a doctor after that?"

"What was a doctor going to do?!" the younger prince started, jerking forward as though ready to pounce, but his lost limb made his balance fragile and he caught himself with his hand before Iris could move.

"You watch how you talk to her, Ravus," Noctis warned. "And try to stay calm for at least the next week."

His brother didn't even prickle, sagging back into the couch.

"I am sorry," he declared. "For the attitude, and the stupid slap."

"That is a start," Luna said. "I understand being confused and hurt. What I don't get is why it makes you lash out at your own family." She threw a glance at Noctis, reaching one hand towards him and he took it with trembling fingers. She noted the bruising on his hand and fixed it with more magic, despite his instant protest. She kissed his freshly healed knuckles afterwards, even though they still trembled from the nerve damage she could never erase. Her focus came back to Ravus, and her eyes were cold and serious as she turned to business. "Now, is it wise to speak of our next step with Ravus?"

Noctis shared a long look with his brother. There were so many things he wanted to tell him, but the last thing he wanted to see happen was Ravus making things harder for them. Their father was still in danger. Their entire kingdom was. And the brat could have seriously hurt his Luna.

"I can't trust him," Noctis declared. "It's easy to say everything was Ardyn's magic and manipulation…" He stopped himself before going any further. "Whatever we plan next, you can stay here with Iris and Gladio, alright?"

Ravus gave a weak nod.

"Not like I can be much help as a cripple…"

"Yeah, you better be out of that pity party by the time we're back." Noctis groaned, biting back on any comment about how he was still pulling his own weight even with his own physical shortcomings.

Instead he gestured for the door and Luna agreed to follow him out, but only after confirming with Iris she'd be fine. Gladiolus was in the kitchen, downing a beer while impatiently tapping on his phone.

"Hey," Noctis greeted him.

"Oh, hey. You guys okay?" the Shield asked, his voice shifting a bit.

The first hint was followed by the nervous twitch in his forearm and the way he held it too quickly in a failed attempt to cover it.

Lunafreya rubbed at her rounded stomach and her prince wrapped one protective arm around her frame. She could almost hear his reassurance regarding the tall and large bodyguard they'd allowed into their suite.

"Should be, eventually," Noctis sighed. "I didn't expect to see you again so soon. Or that you'd even be on my side."

Gladiolus hung his shoulders before scratching at his beard.

"He fessed up to Iris and she told me the whole truth once we were out of Insomnia. I'm not gonna forget what you did back in the citadel," Gladiolus added, his jaw tensing lightly as he rubbed at his left elbow. Noctis paled, but understood. While his friend knew the truth, it didn't change the fact Noctis had been the only one seeing the illusions Izunia had created for the sake of Ravus's sick plan.

"Made a full recovery at least?" he dared to ask.

"Mostly. The girlfriend from rehab stuck around though. I think your queen might get along well with her, once all the shitstorm is over."

Noctis felt a tentative smile growing on his face at that, sharing a brief glance with Luna.

"It's always nice to make more friends," she said, leaning a little more into Noctis. "I feel like a terrible host, but I might need to lie down very soon."

Noctis held her closer, his protectiveness kicking up a notch.

"Shouldn't you have something to eat first? You were already exhausted from the stunt you pulled in Exoneris earlier."

"My stomach is telling me no," she told him sincerely.

He could tell she was trying to keep the fatigue at bay, at least while they were still around Gladiolus. While he knew him, she couldn't feel entirely safe around the large man just yet and he didn't blame her. She'd been patient and polite enough. Just as he opened his mouth to speak, the door to their suite was pushed open, with Ignis stepping in, followed by Aranea. They had their own room, but Ignis had previously agreed to report right after their rounds of the city.

"Cindy caught us up on the latest developments," the advisor said as a greeting. "Is there anything I can do to help?" he added.

Noctis hadn't realized how stressed he was until now, feeling the tension in his shoulders and in his back as a wave of relief ran through him. Ignis never lost control, even when he did. He always felt safer with him around, especially since the man had managed his ill-tempered brother for years.

"I… Ravus lost his arm," Noctis stated, feeling stupid as the words registered. "He slapped Luna and she punched him and then I kinda lost it and his arm decided it was time to just detach from his body and turn into a snake."

Ignis swallowed, the worry clear in his eyes as he took a few more steps into the room.

"Lestallum is under our control now," He started, as though it was his turn to state the obvious. "Cor has been taking charge of things, we don't have to worry about imperial outposts. You should take time to recover. Gladio and I can make sure Ravus stays put."

Noctis found himself shaking his head.

"Staying put is not going to be enough, Ignis. As long as Ardyn is out there, we can't know how far his influence can reach."

Ignis nodded slowly, clasping his hands behind his back. There was a lot he hadn't seen coming with Ravus and deep down, he was wondering how much he should have spotted before things got that far.

"Okay, you're starting to freak me out. Gonna make sure Iris is fine," Gladiolus declared before crossing the room in five steps.

He shut the door behind him with a bang, Aranea making a beeline for the kitchen counter to see if more beers were left in the fridge. Luna had wrapped one arm around Noctis's waist, stepping closer to him to offer him what comfort she could while in front of his friends.

"I don't think your brother can…" she started

"I don't know anymore Luna, that's why I can't…" He squeezed her a little too tight, Luna shaking him up without a word, which had him easing his hold instantly. "I'm so sorry, Luna, I'll snap out of it. You feel sick and exhausted."

"They both look exhausted," Aranea observed from behind the counter.

"How about we switch rooms for the rest of our stay?" Ignis offered. "You shouldn't have to stay in the same suite as Ravus if you don't feel safe about it. Especially not after he battered Lady Lunafreya."

"I battered him right back," Luna reminded them, which got her a thumbs up from Aranea. "Still, I wouldn't say no to the offer. Noct?"

"Yeah, I think I'd feel better that way. Thanks for suggesting it," he added as he turned back to Ignis.

It was just a few more minutes of standing up to exchange room keys, collect a few things from their bedroom and then bid their goodbyes to their friends to turn in for the rest of the day. Luna sat down on the perfectly made bed as soon as she was in the room, her shoulders dropping a notch. Noctis made a quick sweep of the room, as was his usual whenever they got anywhere new. Once he was done, he came up to her and knelt down by her feet, catching her hands with his.

"Why are you not sitting by my side?" she asked.

"I want to take a minute for Darius first," he confessed. "When I thought Ravus could have hurt either of you two… I…"

Noctis had no word to describe the sheer violence within him at the very sight. He still somehow felt like it hadn't been enough, but the conflicting sense of being a good brother was mixing with his thirst for payback for everything Ravus had done.

"You saw red," she went on for him, squeezing his palm as he reached for her belly with his other hand. "He's been kicking me a lot. Wonder if he meant one of those kicks for Ravus," she tried to joke.

"He would have more than earned it. He had no right attacking you like he did earlier. Luna, I don't… think I want Darius to ever be around Ravus."

How could he trust his own brother again?

"Noct, you don't have to make any of those decisions now. We don't even know where we aim to live after Darius is born. You might not have to worry about Ravus if we stay in Tenebrae."

She had meant to be reassuring, but from the way he blinked at her and shivered, Luna could tell her home country had yet to win him over.

"What does that look mean?" she tried to tease him.

His ears flushed and Noctis shrugged, trying to refocus on her, on their baby, on the fact they were in Lestallum right now. "Let's be in the here and now for right now. We won. You won. This should have been your day, but of course that ass had to come around and…"

He barely held back on mentioning how he should have been protecting her more closely, should have led her into the Leville to get water together, not leave her alone. He knew she wanted to retain some independence. As his face darkened, she tugged on his wrist, cupping his face with her free hand.

"Noct…"

"You're helping fix his godsdamn country and all he can do is be mad about it…"

"I'm sorry this is how you ended up seeing him again."

"Luna, no, don't apologize for that. I just… I don't want him taking away anything more from…" his voice broke and he shook his head, his shoulders shuddering despite his effort in staying still. "I thought I hated him before, but if he were to actually hurt you…"

It was her turn to shake her head, tugging at his wrist a little harder.

"Come where I can hold you," she pleaded. "I'm okay, just tired."

"You're not okay. I can see the bruise on your face now."

He pushed himself up to gingerly sit by her side, his motions a little rough as he summoned a potion and then agreed to lean in for a brief kiss before popping the can opened. There was no need for word as Noctis started lathering the potion over her bruise with slow, careful gestures. He'd done it for larger bruises before, but the care still felt just as warm, maybe even more. She realized he was fighting back tears and couldn't help tearing up too.

"I'm really going to be okay, Noct."

"You'd better. I don't think I can get a new job if something happens to you," he clumsily tried to ease the tension in the air.

"Enough silliness," she chided him. "Help me lie down, please."

Her shivers were growing and she assured him it was only exhaustion, she would see a doctor on the next day. Noctis helped her scoot back onto the mattress, and shift her sore legs onto it, laying down with her after ordering some room service. They snuggled close, Noctis wrapping himself to her side, his left hand rubbing her stomach in slow circles as they allowed themselves to bask in each other's presence.

"Crazy day, huh?" she asked him after a few minutes in silence.

"Insane… And you made it sound like you wanted to plan Insomnia next."

"I… I do feel pressed for time," Luna sighed.

She didn't have to say why. Their baby was the first thing on their mind, but then there was the threat against Noctis's father.

"We can go back to worrying tomorrow," he told her.

While it was easier said than done, exhaustion claimed Luna before their room service could even arrive. Noctis on the other hand needed more time. He ate, shoved the leftovers into the fridge and watched over her sleep as he sat in a chair, phone in hand. Ignis had had more to report in texts. His informants back in Insomnia had finally given him news.

Apparently, the King had entirely stopped seeing anyone, instead deploying his glaives to take care of what he called "left-over imperial occupation" within the city. The Citadel was under high alert, and the entire city had a strict curfew. Sneaking in wouldn't be simple. Glancing at Luna, Noctis realized she was shivering and that he'd made it snow inside the room again.

"Oh for Ramuh's sake," he grumbled, shutting down the spell now that he was aware.

He sent a quick text to Ignis to confirm Ravus wasn't doing magic himself.

Doubtful.

He put the phone down and forced himself to lie down next to Luna, carefully adding a cover over her frame. She shuffled closer to him within minutes.

"Still awake?" he couldn't help but ask.

"No," she whispered. "Just wanted to be close to you."

"You only need to ask," he chuckled, stroking her hair.

To be continued…

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Next chapter shouldn't take as much time to show. Thank you for bearing with me and know that leaving comments really motivates me 😊