This is a retroactively added bonus chapter featuring Iris

Gone Fishing

Imagine Iris' surprise when she read about the fishermen's fest at Galdin Quay and realized Noctis was not going to make it there. In the early morning of this Sunday, he and his retinue had left to help out some hunters and farmers all the way up North, at Meldacio's Hunter HQ near the Vesperpool. Had he known of the fest, they probably would have taken a detour over Galdin Quay, but as things were, even if they turned back, they would arrive at the late evening, when everything was over already.

I could ask Cindy to drive me over and get you a souvenir, if you like. Iris had texted Noct.

- Would be great, thx.

Anything specific I should look for?

- Nah. Cant really name anything without knowing what they offer.

I'll just look for something cool then.

He had sent a thumbs up emoji in response.

So far, so good. Until Iris found out that Cindy had taken the truck and driven back to Hammerhead already. This meant that there was only one car left to get around with, and it belonged to neither Dustin, Monica or Cid.
Following the sounds of metal banging on metal, she climbed the stairs leading up to the Cape Caem lighthouse. For once, Cid was actually working on Regis' old boat instead of delaying Noct's departure by asking for more time or more parts. Iris did not mind, of course. The longer Noctis stayed in Lucis, the more time she got to spend with him.
In a camping chair in the shade of a tree, Iris found the car owner she had been looking for.
She approached him carefully. "Hey, uhm … Ardyn, was it?"

He lifted the fedora from his eyes.
"Lady Amicita. To what do I owe this pleasure?"

For a moment, she struggled to find the words. Both Dustin and Monica had made it pretty clear she should not talk to him, and even Cid had advised her against it, calling him a bloody cheater and liar, like any politician. Yet Ardyn appeared to be as friendly and polite as he had when he had introduced himself back at Lestallum, which made her wonder all the more what their issue with him was, apart from him supposedly being the Niff chancellor.
"I was just wondering … that red car that's parked besides the road is yours, right?"

Ardyn sat up straight in the chair, but Iris could tell by the look in his eyes he was still fairly tired.
"That humble beauty would be mine," he replied. "Pray tell, why do you ask?"

"Thing is, I could need a lift and it seems Iggy and the others won't be back before tomorrow."

"You're asking me to be your chauffeur?" He chuckled, seemingly amused by the mere notion. "Are you not worried that the chancellor of Niflheim might kidnap you?"

"Well, are you really the Niff chancellor?"

"As I live and breathe."

"But you're helping Noct?"

He smirked at her. "Nothing gets past you, does it?"

The question might have been pointless to begin with. She had seem him accompany Noctis, and she doubted Noct, or Iggy or Gladio for that matter, would let Ardyn travel with them if he was not trustworthy to some degree. Then again, this was Noctis she thought of, and everyone else was there to constantly watch out for him. But would Gladdy allow his little sister to hitch a ride with the enemy all by herself? She would be in for a very stern talking-to, that much was certain.
Iris sighed. "Gladdy's probably gonna kill me for this, but if Noct thinks you're okay, I'm not worried. Listen, I just need someone to drive me over to Galdin Quay and back. It'll take but five minutes. I just want to gab a present for Noct and be off."

At the mention of Gladio's disapproval, he had looked more lively already.
"A present for our beloved prince, you say? This, I have to see." With vigour Ardyn swung himself out of the chair. "All right, I'll be your cab driver for a little while. Charge-free, even."
Bowing gallantry, he pointed her in the direction of the road. "This way, my Lady."

"Just call me Iris, please."

Together they walked down the hill to the flamboyant red convertible. Ardyn unlocked the doors, threw his hat onto the dashboard and dropped into the driver seat, while Iris took the spot next to him. Once he had ignited the engine, the car radio started playing classical music. It was some famous Altissian piece, if Iris was not completely mistaken. Not her kind of music, but tolerable.
The drive to Galdin Quay took about 10 to 15 minutes at best, but that did not keep Ardyn from starting a conversation.
"If I may, Iris, how would you describe your relationship to your brother?"

"Pretty good, I think. Gladdy and I get along well."

Ardyn shot her a sideways glance before focusing back on the road. "So, would you say that your older brother has done a good job raising you?"

"He didn't have much time to look after me, actually," Iris replied, although she had no idea what he was getting at. "Noct has always been his priority, ever since he became his Shield. I understand that's a lot of responsibility."

"The two of you are quite a bit apart in terms of years. Have you never felt ostracised, standing in Gladio's shadow? Never longed for more?"

His questions made Iris wonder whether he was testing her or something.
"No, not really. Gladio's doing things I could never do. Or want to do. I mean, I don't even know yet what I want out of life. I'm still in high school, you know. Well, I was in high school …"
Thoughts of the not so distant past flooded her mind. Of her high school friends, the normal life, as it had been, before the Empire's invasion. Iris swallowed hard. Part of her already knew she would not be getting her old life back, not with Insomnia in ruins and her father and Jared dead, but that did not keep the other part, the grieving part of her, from missing all she had lost. It was easier to keep her emotions in check when a stranger was around. She was strong enough not to let her pain show.
"Why do you ask?", she said to Ardyn. "Do you think I should be more like Gladio? With proper training, I could take on some monsters, too."

He chuckled in a way that made her skin crawl. "This is really too easy," he mumbled before his voice regained a pleasant and joyful tone.
"No, my dear. I don't think the world needs more hunters and fighters. There are plenty of more interesting professions to choose from. I'm certain a bright young lady such as you will find something suitable."

"Like what?"

"This depends entirely on what suits your fancy."

She thought on his words for a while. "I'm pretty good with needle and thread. I could be a seamstress, I guess."

"Like I said; this is entirely up to you."

By the time he pulled into the Galdin Quay parking lot, Iris had already spotted the stands lined up along the beach and in front of the pier. There were a lot of people moving about, clearly more than the usual tourists, restaurant visitors and hotel guests.
"Just five minutes," she repeated herself and got out of the car.

"I am not going anywhere." Ardyn leisurely leaned back in his seat as if trying to get some more rest.

Within a couple of seconds, Iris had gathered an overview of the festival. There were vendors selling fishing equipment, such as nets, spools, rods and lures, but also food stalls and the obligatory stands offering phone cases and souvenirs found at every market of considerable size. In a quiet corner, she discovered a couple of kids selling old toys off a picnic blanket. A rugged looking moogle plush caught her eye as she walked by. It was practically begging to be mended. For a moment, Iris considered buying the plush before reminding herself that she had come to the fest for a different reason.
Naturally, Iris knew close to nothing about fishing, but the colourful lures painted in the likenesses of monsters and daemons easily fit her idea of a cool-looking gift for Noctis. She took a few minutes to browse the impressive selection. One lure was more colourful and detailed than the next. Feeling that she was running out of time, Iris picked the one she liked best, paid for it and hurriedly returned to Ardyn's convertible.

When she walked up to the car, Ardyn appeared to be dozing, yet looked up the moment she reached for the car door's handle. His eyes quickly found the bright yellow lure in her hands.

She presented it to him, beaming proudly at her choice.

"What, is that all?" Ardyn asked, looking unimpressed. Perhaps he failed to recognise what it was designed after.

"It's a chocobo lure," Iris explained. "Isn't it cute?"

"It's a bit disappointing, is what I say. I believe our dear prince Noctis owns such a lure already."

Like the night stealing away daylight, Iris felt her enthusiasm being drained.
"Way to ruin a gift. How would you know what lures he owns?"

"I had a glance at his equipment last time I saw him fishing." Ardyn opened the driver's door and got out. "Anyway, I cannot let you return with this. Let us look for something that will truly impress the prince, shall we?"

"Uhm, all right …"
Gift-shopping with the Niff chancellor had not been on Iris' to do list for this day, but she doubted she could talk him out of it now. He had made it clear she should not return before they had found something that met his approval. At least this meant that time was no longer an issue.
Iris browsed the wares again with greater attention. The result remained the same. She still had no clue what to get for Noctis, and not knowing what he already owned was not making it easier, either. Of course, she could have sent him pictures and asked, but firstly, Gladio did not like it when she interrupted them during work, and secondly, doing so would take away the surprise for Noctis.
After a while, she returned to Ardyn. Thanks to him being as tall as her brother and about three times as fancily dressed, locating him in a crowd of people proved to be no challenge. She found him in front of a stand offering angler's clothing just as he was trying on a beige-coloured fisherman's hat.

Ardyn flashed her a smile. "What do you say?"

"I don't think Noct would wear something like that," she replied.

"This is not for him. It's for my own hat collection."

"In that case, I'd still say the fedora looks better on you."

"Of course it does," he replied smugly and gestured to his coat. "It's called an ensemble for a reason."
His gaze shifted from her to some kind of advertisement on the board where the locals usually pinned the most urgent hunts.
"Now, what have we got there?" he said, putting the hat back and heading for the poster.

On their way over, Iris saw numerous anglers occupying the pier between the beach and the restaurant. Why, became obvious the moment she laid eyes on the poster. It promoted a fishing competition in conjunction with the fest. Noctis was going to be so mad to have missed out on this as well. First prize was a supposedly magical lure styled after the sea goddess Leviathan.

"This is more like it," Ardyn said, sounding more than pleased with his discovery. "Have you ever heard of the saying: Fortune favours the bold?"

Iris took a second to figure out what he was talking about. "Are you suggesting we should enter the competition?"

Ardyn turned to her with a gasp. "Oh no, not we! You. Imagine the look on Noctis' face if you hand him that lure."

She took a step back, raising her hands in defence.
"No-uh. No way. The competition's already underway, and even if I could enter still, I've got no equipment and no idea how to fish."

He chuckled. "You have never travelled with the chancellor of Niflheim before. I can solve two of those problems with ease. All you need to do is muster up the will to try your hand at fishing." The tone of his voice suddenly shifted. "Unless, of course, you preferred to return to Cape Caem with that petty little gift. His Royal Highness might appreciate the thought behind it, I suppose."

Was he intentionally insulting her? Because Iris felt insulted.

"There's gotta be a catch to this, right?" she asked, wary of all his implications.

Ardyn put a hand to his heart. "Please, Lady Iris. Do not offend me. Being on good terms with the prince and his friends is my top priority. Besides, it should be a fun way to pass the time until they return."

Before she could come up with any counter-argument, he handed her the keys to his car.
"Here. There might be an old fishing rod lying around in the trunk. Be a dear and go fetch it while I take care of your registration."

As he walked off, Iris sighed heavily, not knowing what she had gotten herself into. It was just fishing, right? Noctis' favourite pastime. Nothing to it. She could try it out, and, well, although it appeared to be very unlikely she might win that competition, at least she could share her experience with Noct.
Iris ran back to the parking lot and opened the trunk of Ardyn's car. To her surprise, there was nothing in it. No fishing rod, and nothing else, either. Not even the Regalia's trunk looked this unused when cleaned out. Slightly puzzled, Iris returned to the festival.
Ardyn found her shortly after. He held a piece of paper with her registration in one hand and a fairly new fishing rod in the other. The model reminded her of one she had seen Noctis use.

"There was nothing in the trunk of your car," she told him.

"Is that so?" He put on a thoughtful look that did not quite convince her. "Never mind, then. Here, why don't you take this tackle instead? It already has a spool and everything."

"Okay, thanks." Iris traded his car's keys for the fishing rod. She assumed he got the equipment as part of the registration. Or perhaps he had not, but in that case she was probably better off not knowing. Something about this made her feel uncomfortable, as if she was involved in some kind of illegal activity. Except she did not see how, or why, for that matter. Slowly, but surely, Iris was starting to understand why everyone had warned her of him.

Ardyn let his gaze wander along the pier and beach. "Now, where to cast a line …"

"Looks pretty crowded already," Iris said.

"Let's look for a spot further down the coast," he suggested and pointed at the shoreline beyond Galdin Quay. "Simple logic tells me where there are less fishermen, there will be more fish."

"Makes sense, I guess."

They had to move quite a bit away from Galdin Quay to find a spot where the shadows of fishes showed beneath the waves. In fact, they had wandered so far that Iris was starting to worry whether they might become easy targets for sea monsters. Ardyn was quick to alleviate her fears, saying he could handle a monster or two just fine. How, was another question entirely, because he did not look like a fighter to Iris.
He had brought a camping chair and a cooler from the fest with them, although Iris doubted she was going to catch something worth keeping. Oddly enough, the camping chair looked much like the one he had sat in at Cape Caem, but she did not remember him carrying it to his car. By the time Iris had set up everything, Ardyn seemingly prepared for another nap. He had been looking tired all day, so she decided not to question the origin of the chair and let him rest.

Just a few hours were left until the competition was officially over.

Hoping for good luck, Iris attached the chocobo lure to the line and cast it out over the sea. It took her a few tries until she got it close enough to the fish, and several more tries to figure out how to actually lure the fish in. The first time she got a bite, it happened so unexpectedly she forgot to pull the rod back and landed face first in the sand. When she patted off her clothes afterwards, the idea of buying a pair of those ridiculously looking rubber pants she had seen earlier suddenly seemed reasonable.
Yet much like her older brother, Iris had never been one to give up easily. She learnt from her mistake and kept trying. Perhaps an hour or more had passed by the time she pulled her first fish ashore. A really small catch, but a catch nonetheless.

"Ha! I got one! See that, Ardyn?"
Laughing, she turned back to find the chancellor with his head askew on the backrest of the chair, his legs crossed and eyes shut.

Iris approached him with the little bluegill in hand. This type of fish was so common even she had recognised it.
"Ardyn?"

No response. If it was not for his chest rising and falling she might have thought him dead. Iris had only seen Noctis sleep this soundly before. To make up for her disappointment of not being able to show him her very first catch, she quickly snapped a selfie with the fish and sleeping Ardyn in the background before releasing the bluegill back into the wilds. It was much too small to win the competition with anyway.

Over the course of the time that passed, Iris slowly got the hang of fishing, even managing to renew the spool once. Although she had lost a couple of fish, she had been lucky enough not to lose the chocobo lure thus far and the few fish she caught actually got bigger.

Half an hour before the end of the competition, Iris finally got a bite from something with a considerable pull. The fish appeared to be rather large, too, judging by its shadow. With what little experience she had gained, Iris battled the beast. It threatened to pull her off her feet more than once, but she stood her ground and let it wear itself out. After several minutes, Iris eventually managed to reel it in far enough to see the fish emerge from the water. It was indeed quite large, at least by her standards. Iris was so overjoyed, she could hardly believe her luck.
She was just about to collect her catch from the waterline when she noticed the other, much, much larger shadow in the water rapidly coming closer.
Out of the waves erupted a scaly long snout full of frightening teeth followed by a large head fin. The sea devil swept the fish up into its maw and swallowed it whole, not caring that it was still attached to a line. It turned its attention towards Iris in a heartbeat.

Iris dropped the fishing rod and ran back to where the chancellor was still resting.
"Ardyn, wake up!", she cried in alarm. "There's a sea devil!"

He did not stir.

"You gotta wake up!" She grabbed him by his scarf and desperately tried to shake him awake, but no avail.

The sea devil was heading towards him. It must have realised he was the easier prey.

Iris retreated a little further, quickly picked up a couple of stones and threw them at the creature. Apart from hissing at her in mild annoyance, the sea devil remained unimpressed. If only she had something to distract the monster with!
"Ardyn!", she called out again. Again, no reaction. Iris franctically looked for a larger stone to throw, but the sea devil had already reached him.

It bit into his leg and pulled him off the chair. Even then, Ardyn did not wake.

Iris shrieked in horror as she watched the beast drag him with it towards the water. Mustering up all her courage, she ran up to the monster to try and grab Ardyn's sleeve.

The sea devil momentarily let go of him to snap at her. A gooey black liquid dripped from its teeth.

At about that time, Ardyn's eyes finally snapped open. He pushed his upper body up from the sand and gasped, when, a single moment later, the monster bit down on his leg again and resumed to drag him through the sand and towards the sea.

"Ardyn," Iris brought out in a breath.

"I'm already aware thank you very much," he replied, sounding annoyed, and kicked the sea devil's snout with his free foot hard enough for it to open its jaws. In a single motion, Ardyn rolled over and rose back to his feet. For someone who nearly had his leg bitten of, he was moving with surprising ease.
The sea devil went in for another bite as Ardyn raised a hand over his head and a red-tinged long sword appeared out of thin air. He brought down the full length of the blade on the creature's skull with lethal force. It dropped limb instantly.

Iris carefully stepped up to him and the dead monster. "Are you all right?"

Apart from a black stain on the lower leg of his trousers, he appeared to be entirely unharmed. Ardyn dismissed the sword into what had to be an armiger and shook the sand off his coat and out of his hair.
"I must apologize for you having to see this. It is quite unlike me to get caught off-guard."

"Did Noctis … share his armiger with you?" It would explain much, Iris figured.
Like what Talcott had told her, about Ardyn tossing a magical red blade at the dart board the other evening.

"For simplicity's sake, let us say he did," Ardyn replied with a sigh. He picked up the fishing rod and reeled the line in until it got stuck somewhere inside the dead sea devil's body. "I must say, that is a pretty big fish you caught."

"Not really a fish, though," Iris said. "More of a reptile."

A horn sounded in the distance, signalling the end of the competition.

"Mere details," Ardyn claimed and bent down to hold out a hand over the sea devil's snout. The entire creature glowed red with magic.
"Come now, I know you fit." A few seconds passed before the creature, along with the line and fishing rod, disappeared in a burst of tiny, immaterial crystals.

Iris stared at the empty space with disbelief. "Did you just shove the entire sea devil into the armiger?"

"You do not expect me to carry this beast all the way back to civilisation, do you?" he asked in return and cast a sideways glance at her.

In a similar fashion, but much quicker, he collected the chair and the coolor before they made their way back to Galdin Quay. Underneath of the pier leading over to the restaurant, where people were unlikely to see him use Lucian magic, Ardyn re-summoned the dead sea devil. Iris already had a bad feeling when she brought the jury over.
They were clearly impressed with her feat, yet the rules unmistakeably stated that only freshly caught fish counted as entries to the competition. Aquatic monsters not included. So much for winning that lure and impressing Noctis. Even the chocobo lure had been lost deep within the sea devil's belly.

By the time she and Ardyn headed back to his car, he, too, was in a sore mood.

Just as she was about to get in, an idea struck Iris, and she left him waiting once more to go and use the last of her pocket money to buy the moogle plush she had seen at the kids' flea market. With the doll on her lap, she dropped back onto the passenger seat. She would mend it, and then turn it into a decoy that will hopefully save someone's life one day. Iris could not help but smile to herself, brimming with inspiration and the confidence to realise her vision.

Ardyn cast a glance over to her, but seemingly decided to start the engine instead of commenting on her purchase.

"What, you've got nothing to say?" she wondered aloud.

"At this point, I no longer care," he replied. "To be perfectly honest, I would prefer if we could pretend none of this happened."

The sight of his annoyed and weary expression made her chuckle. "I could do that, but it was quite the adventure."
Not to mention she had at least one picture that proved it.

"Would it be possible, perchance, to change your mind with some ice cream?"

"What do you take me for, twelve?"

"It worked on Noctis rather well."

My head canon notes say that Ardyn rarely sleeps, because he is partly nocturnal and often suffers nightmares. When he does sleep, however, he is out like a light. That, combined with a video clip of a crocodile coming after a fish that's being reeled in, inspired this scene.
Also, in case you were wondering: Ardyn questions Iris to compare her relationship with her brother to Somnus' relationship with him before everything had gone downhill in his life, but Iris is so susceptible to his phrasing he is momentarily tempted to set her up against Gladio.