This one is a little bit shorter than the others but there is more Noct/Luna development. :)

Chapter IV

"King Regis, sir."

Continuing to stare out at the Crown City of Insomnia through the window of his study, Regis Lucis Caelum took in a deep breath through the nose and let it out in a sigh. Not even bothering to turn his desk chair around, he spoke, "Yes, Cor?"

"I have that report you wanted, sir."

Regis closed his eyes and willed away the ache in his bones.

He had been holding up the Wall of Insomnia for almost 30 years now. He couldn't even hold up the Old Wall, and should Niflheim ever attack, the power of the ancient Kings wouldn't be able to save them.

He was tired.

"Sir?"

Regis swiveled the chair around slowly so as to not make him dizzy, and saw the worried expression Cor wore. Waving away the unspoken question in his eyes, he soon reached for the folder his long time friend and guard was holding. "Just the normal report?"

"Yes," Cor answered. "The Eclipse is doing well at her station, and her and the Night have added on a third, Irene reported."

The King opened the folder and skimmed through it until he came across the handwritten name of Prompto Argentum. Seeing his code name written right beside his real one, Regis glanced up at Cor. "And the Performer is trustworthy?"

"He was adopted by his parents when he was one year old. There isn't much detail as to how, but we have a source who suggests he's the son of Versatel Besithia."

That made Regis' eyebrows raise in shock. "Niflheim's leading engineer? How did the son of one of the most important men in Niflheim's government make into Lucis?"

"We're not entirely sure," Cor said as he decided to take the seat across from Regis. Lifting his leg up so his ankle could rest on his knee, Cor rested an elbow on the armrest and scratched at his beard. "There's no word on the birth mother, it seems that she may have died. No one even knew the engineer had a child, so I suspect the mother fled to find the Performer a better home."

The King sat back against his chair and narrowed his eyes. "You believe he poses no threat?"

"We've had a guard watching him ever since he and the Night were young. His parents have never been home and he attempted to befriend the Night at a young age. Sources say the Night hurt his feelings by accident and the Performer stayed away until he lost weight. They've been friends now for years."

"You didn't answer my question, Cor," King Regis scolded. "Does he pose a threat?"

The Crownsguard shook his head. "After years of surveillance, I can say that I trust for them to be near him and to befriend him. He's only ever interacted with the Night, and now the Eclipse. He's never had any interaction with anyone else, barely even his parents."

"And that doesn't seem odd to you?"

"To be frank, sir," Cor said as he stood his ground. "I think he's lived a sad and lonely life, and noticed the Night may have felt the same. It took him a few years but now they're friends, and if I were you I would be thankful for it. Either way, we're gonna continue to keep an eye on all three of them."

When Cor mentioned his son having a sad and lonely life, Regis couldn't even get upset with him.

It was true. Noctis had a sand and lonely life, and there was nothing Regis could've done to make it easier. He had already tried his best, but his son was destined to die. It was already seen and asked for.

Feeling a headache coming on, Regis gave his old friend a sorrowful smile. "Thank you, Cor. That is all."

The Crownsguard gave a curt nod and stood from his seat.

Once he was out of the room, King Regis sagged against the high end upholstery, the emotional pain in his chest overtaking him for a second.

He could only hope he was helping Noctis as best he could. He wanted his son to have a fighting chance.

"Come on! You can do better than that!"

Noctis pursed his lips before grimacing, his body increasingly tired and aching as he had spent the last two hours trying to perfect his warping.

It was going badly.

To make matters worse, Luna was here during this training session along with the entire gang. They had rented out the banquet hall in his apartment complex so Luna could watch and be a part of it. Noct was doing everything he could to bring her out of the shell she had used as a protection these last several years, and he wanted to help her stop being lonely. He figured letting her watch him and his three friends train would be okay, but he didn't expect to suck so much in front of her.

Fixing determined eyes at the several foot high mark Gladio had fixed on the wall, Noctis chucked his dagger towards it, stabbing it right in the middle, and he felt the dematerialization taking over his form as he attempted to warp to the weapon, using the same feeling that had encompassed him the first time. His hand had barely touched the handle of the hilt as his body rematerialized before he was falling to the ground, nearly spraining an ankle. The dagger seemed to know that he had failed, because it dislodged from the target and fell to the floor, missing Noct by a few inches.

"Damn it!" Noctis choked out as he attempted to breathe. The wind had gotten knocked out of him.

"Can't we put the mark somewhere where he won't keep getting hurt?" Prompto pleaded as he watched Noctis struggle to turn himself over so he could get up. "He's gonna end up breaking something."

Ignis stayed quiet with his arms crossed, and Luna sent Gladio a worried expression from her seat on the floor next to Prompto.

Sighing through his nose, Gladio crossed his arms and saw Noctis attempt to stand. He was shaky, but he made it, and he angrily grabbed at his weapon. "Does the Prince wish to stop?"

"Not until I get this," he nearly shouted in anger. "This shouldn't be so hard! I did it perfect last session!"

"It may have been because you were in a simulated fight," added Ignis.

Prompto scoffed incredulously. "Simulated? Gladio full on attacked him."

"It worked didn't it?" Gladio shot back.

"Only because he had felt threatened."

Noctis, who had gone quiet while his friends started to bicker, limped several feet away from the target, and Luna seemed to be the only one still paying attention to him. He could feel her eyes on him, and a part of him felt embarrassed, while the other part of him was frustrated beyond belief. Why was this so hard?

Pushing his lips together in a thin, angry line, Noctis threw the dagger at the mark, forced his body to warp over to it, and just like before, as soon as his hand touched the hilt he was falling to the floor.

The sound of his body connecting with the hard surface face first made everyone's head turn, and when he screamed in pain, everyone was rushing to his side.

Luna made it to him first, her blue eyes glossy with worry as she hesitated in touching him once she was by his side. "Noctis!" The other three were saying his name as well and Ignis was asking where it hurt.

Forcing his lips to nearly disappear in a closed mouth wince, Noctis took in deep breaths through his nose. He refused to open his eyes, refused to see the embarrassment he felt. Attempting to roll over onto his back, he cradled his wrist as soon as he was turned over. "My wrist…" he hissed.

Luna willed her power to her hands in a second, making them emit a warm, golden glow as she lightly rested them on his hurt joint. The boys watched on in awe as she healed him, practically all of their mouths open as they had never before witnessed the power of the Oracle. It was a good thing there wasn't anyone in the hall but them, because otherwise her cover would have been blown.

Warmth spread up Noctis' arm and into his chest as she gradually increased the pressure of her hands, making the pain slowly dissipate until there was only a small ache. His face went slack as she healed him, and soon he was looking at her in awe as well.

She pulled her hands away from him for a second before letting her left rest on his shoulder. "Does it still hurt?" She whispered.

Shaking his head, Noctis attempted to sit up, and Luna and Prompto helped him do so. All five of them were sitting on the floor, with four of them watching Luna. Her eyes barely moved from Noctis' but she knew that they were all staring at her. She could feel it.

"Do you want to stand?" Luna asked as she raised her hand to his cheek.

He could feel the softness of her skin and it caused him to blush. Nodding, he stayed silent as Prompto and Gladio helped him stand. Ignis dusted off his back once he was upright and Luna walked away to retrieve the dagger that had fallen from the mark and skidded a few feet away.

"I think we're done for today," Gladio's voice rumbled. "We'll pick it back up in two days."

"Y-Yeah," Noctis agreed as he shooed away the still fretting Prompto and over protective Ignis.

Ignis didn't heed his motions and rested a hand on his shoulder. "Do you want some help getting to your apartment?"

Rolling his eyes, and attempting to shake off the weird feeling in his chest, Noctis said, "Nah, I think I'll be fine. Luna can take me up."

At the sound of her name, Luna appeared next to Gladio and handed him the dagger. "Don't worry, I'll make sure he stays upright," she joked.

Prompto smiled at her, the two sharing a moment as Noctis rolled his eyes again. Gladio and Ignis went to retrieve the mark, and any other things they may have brought, and the five of them soon exited the banquet hall.

Noctis' friends waved goodbye while Ignis told him to take some painkillers ahead of time just in case. The Prince agreed, and Ignis looked at Luna for confirmation. Once he got it, he ushered the other two out, leaving just Noctis and Luna.

Silence stretched between them as they walked towards the elevator. They pressed the up button and waited for the door to open, and Noctis admitted to himself that this was the most awkward he had ever felt in front of Luna.

A minute later the elevator doors opened and Luna used the keycard for it to let them go up to their floor. As the elevator doors dinged shut, Luna cast a glance beside her and tried to figure out what was going through his head. The feeling of the elevator moving upward seemed to jolt Noctis out of his silence as he whispered, "Thanks for, uh… for healing me."

"You're welcome," she murmured. "I'm glad I could heal you."

It went back to being quiet again, and he hated that he didn't have anything to say. That feeling that was in his chest when she healed him, it was still there, and he couldn't place what it was. His wrist was still warm; most likely it was her power still attempting to heal whatever remaining damage was there.

"You know… Noctis…"

He turned his head to the side and looked at her in askance.

"I don't want you to train yourself too hard. I don't want you to hurt yourself. To keep on hurting yourself."

Narrowing his eyes, the elevator dinged again before he could speak and Luna exited the space before him. He followed her out, and tried to find his words. "Luna…" She wouldn't turn around to meet his gaze, and that made him a little angry. With a confidence he had never known before, he moved until he was in front of her, and lifted her chin gently with his fingers to forced her to look at him. "You're in danger. I'm not gonna sit idly by and just let things happen."

She averted her gaze due to intensity of his. "I have Irene and the other guards. I'll be fine. I just-"

"Luna."

She hesitated in meeting his eyes. The air between them shifted, and it suddenly felt hotter in the hallway than it ever had before. He normally wasn't this confident around her. What had changed?

Their eyes met, blue on blue, and Luna had a hard time breathing.

"As long as you are in danger," he started. "I will always be there to protect you. I've been training all my life, and there are a lot of things I still need to work on, but if you're here, and your life is at stake, then mine will be too."

Luna bit her lip. "But why?"

"You're my best friend," he whispered with a sideways smile. "I care about you. You're probably the most important person in my life other than my father. How could you think that I wouldn't want to protect you?"

Her lip trembled slightly and she moved her chin away from his fingers. The skin where he had touched her felt hot. "I-I… you're my best friend too. I just worry that with everything and the empire… I don't want to-I can't see you get hurt because of me."

Luna started walking towards her apartment, moving so slowly that she was still far away from her door. "If you were to die, because of me… Noctis… I don't think I could-"

His arms engulfed her from behind and held her to him, their bodies not even centimeters apart. His face was right next to hers and she could feel his breath on her jaw. It sent shivers down her spine. Her hands didn't stay at her sides after a few seconds and moved up to hold onto his arms.

"Noctis…?"

"If you were to die, Luna..." he started as he rested his cheek against hers, and for the first time since she had been in Insomnia, she realized just how much taller he was than her. At the thought of her death, she could feel him trembling ever so slightly. "If you were to die… I wouldn't be able to forgive myself. I would be lost without you."

"B-but your friends…"

"Luna…. Not only are you my best friend, but you're also practically family. Plus, if, or should I say when we do have to fight, the three of them will be beside me fighting for you. We're not gonna let anything happen to you."

Between the feeling of his arms around her and his face right next to hers, as well as the fear that had been inside of her for so long it was starting to feel like a normal everyday emotion, Luna couldn't hold it in any longer.

She had been so scared for so long now, and after finding out the Empire's plan, she couldn't handle it. She had been holding it in, and with each passing day it caused more and more physical pain. When she had told Noctis, it took the tiniest bit off, but after he wanted to start training more to protect her, the feeling of despair and unease increased. Her fears were becoming too much… but being in Noctis' arms right now, and hearing his words, it seemed to make everything go away.

She didn't have to do this alone. She had friends to protect her, both inside and outside of a Insomnia.

But his destiny… a voice inside of her head reminded.

Feeling a tear fall down her cheek, she saw it rest onto Noct's arm before rolling away. He seemed to know that she was crying, and he only held her that much closer.

If he was going to fight for her, then she was going to fight for him.

He was just as much her family as she was his.

"Noctis," she whispered; her voice a little wavy as she fought back the emotion. He made a sound in his threat in reply. "If you're gonna fight for me, then I wanna fight for you too."

Her words appeared to flow into him, and she gave him the time he needed to process it. Soon, he was turning her around in his arms and resting his forehead against hers as his hands trailed down to take her smaller ones into his.

"You don't have to do that," he said, as he remembered what she had told him all those years ago about being the Chosen King.

Luna squared her gaze with his as she squeezed his hands. "I want to."

Noctis closed his eyes and felt her squeeze his hands again for emphasis, before opening them and whispering, "Okay."

The feeling in his chest was starting to dissipate, and he could feel a blush rising in his cheeks. Clearing his throat, and effectively ruining the moment, Noctis slowly let go of her hands and stepped back. He tried to keep his eyes with hers, but lost the battle after only a moment.

"We'll probably have to, uh, discuss it with Gladio. He probably won't want to do it."

Luna noticed the change in him, saw how quickly his confidence faded, and thought over if she should take charge. Deciding to not push it, especially since she was still feeling rather shy herself, she looked at the floor for a moment as she moved her shorter hair out of the way, before looking back up at Noctis. His face was the color of a ripe Lucian tomato.

"I'd like to be there when it's discussed. I want him to know why I want to do it in case he says no."

Nodding, Noctis quietly told her that that would be fine and he'd talk to her later. After she said her goodbye he quickly walked to his apartment and shut the door, leaving her confused and curious at the sudden changes.

She walked to her own apartment, and greeted Umbra with a scratch behind the ears when she opened the door and he ran up to her. Irene saw her enter and noticed the strange expression on her face.

"What is it?" The older woman inquired from her bedroom door.

"I just had a strange experience with Noctis," she answered as she went to sit on the couch. "We were downstairs where he was training, and he hurt himself so I healed him and then… he kind of changed."

Irene went to sit down next to her, moving Umbra's tail out of the way as he got up on the couch. "Changed how?"

Luna turned to Irene and thought about what had transpired. "He-after I healed him, of course, had this new sense of confidence. Something I had never seen before, not since we were little."

"What did he do that was so different?"

Blushing, Luna took the time to study Irene's features as she tried to guess her thoughts when she spoke. "We, um… we had a moment in the hallway. We've only really touched each other once, other than a few brushes here and there, but in the hallway he was… affectionate."

Irene sat back against the cushions and furrowed her brow. Her long, black hair was tied up in a ponytail, with a few strands wispy around her face. The creases of her face were a bit exaggerated as she thought to herself, and Luna could see the wheels turning behind her brown eyes.

"So you say this happened after you healed him?"

"Correct."

"And he hadn't been affectionate since you guys were kids?"

"Yes."

Irene went silent for a second as she thought it over. Umbra sat between them and started to go to sleep.

"What if when you healed him, you also healed his lack of confidence, only it was temporary? Like his lack of confidence is the byproduct of an injury?"

Eyes wide, Luna felt as if a lightbulb went off above her head. "His father did say that he used to be more outgoing before his accident."

"Accident? You mean the one that sent him to Tenebrae?"

Luna nodded her head. "My mother healed his injury and we became fast friends afterwards, but now, up until I just healed him, he has been a bit distant in an emotional sense. I thought it was just our getting used to being around each other again."

"You know, this interaction may have shown you his true feelings," the retired Kingsglaive reasoned. "Especially since it was because you temporarily healed his heart and mind."

"That does make sense."

"The thing is… do you want to explore what a more confident Noctis would do and be?"

Luna took a second to think it over. Her cheeks heated up at the thought of them being affectionate and Irene laughed.

"Honey, you have it just as bad as he does. If one of y'all doesn't do something soon, nothing may ever happen."

"You may have a point there," Luna conceded as she sighed.

Standing, Irene strolled towards the kitchen and started making a cup of Ebony coffee. "You might as well make the first move, Lady Luna. Prince Noctis isn't very aware, especially if he's too wrapped up in his own mind to need healing."

He hadn't moved in five minutes.

As soon as he had closed his door, he slide down the thick wood and just sat down on his ass. His heart was racing and his mind was going just as fast.

"What in the hell did I just do?" Noctis asked himself incredulously.

Running through the conversation and images in his head, he just remembered feeling warm inside and free, like nothing was holding him back.

He had been so close to Luna he could've kissed her. He had initiated contact. He had been making a move, and she… enjoyed it. He had been able to see the happiness in her eyes behind the fear. It was clear as day that she felt something. Why couldn't he handle making a move himself but was fine when Luna made a move?

Cursing, Noctis hit his head against the door behind him.

"What am I gonna do now?"