Title: Close yet so far
Genre: Friendship, angst
Summary: A look into Noctis' childhood after Lunafreya leaves Insomnia and before he befriends Prompto. Last scene happens just before first chapter.
Chapter 13: Close yet so far
"Any mail yet?"
The eight-year-old prince inquired as Ignis helped a correspondence manager sort the recently received stack of mail. He wriggled his hands impatiently and stood up on his toes to peek over the older boy's shoulder. Even at the tender age of ten Ignis was a good head taller than the short prince.
"Give it time, Highness. The Fleurets left only two days ago."
Noctis snatched a handful of envelopes from his future advisor's hands. "She promised she'd write to me the second she got home." He leafed through the stolen papers but couldn't find his name or the familiar handwriting of the Fleurets' only daughter. Glumly he handed the envelopes back to Ignis and shuffled out of the office with his hands stuffed in his pockets.
Ignis set down the letters and followed the prince.
"Noct", he began. He always addressed the prince by his title when in the presence of others, but when it was just the two of them he would drop the act and address him by his given nickname. "She has probably yet to arrive home. Besides, the mail will take a few days to arrive."
Noctis kept his gaze focused on the tips of his sneakers. "How long do you think it'll take?"
"A week, I would imagine."
Ignis adjusted his newly bought glasses. Noctis thought they made him look older than he really was. That coupled with his smart attire – a white dress shirt, black vest and dress pants – height and his polite mannerism made him appear as the closest thing to an adult Noctis could confide in.
King Regis rarely had the time of the day to humour his son or spend badly needed quality time with him. Noctis had wanted to play football ever since Luna had told him how boys of her age spent every break in school playing it. It wasn't a common sport in Lucis, but Noctis had gone to his father and requested for a football. He had been so happy when his father actually bought him a real life football. But what he had really wanted was his father to play with him. Noctis still had the untouched football sitting by his desk.
Along with Ignis, Noctis had Gladiolus as his closest friend. His future bodyguard was away for few months to train basic survival under Cor, somewhere in Leide last he heard.
It had been merely two days since the prince had held hands with the twelve-year-old Tenebraean princess, laughing and promising to write each other every day.
A whole week.
It would be a very long and lonely week.
Seven days later there was a knock on Noctis' private chambers' door.
"Enter", he mustered as much regality with his child's voice as he could to the single command.
A middle-aged female servant opened the door and curtsied politely. "You have a visitor, your Highness." Noctis was instantly on his feet, eager to have someone to play or talk with.
Umbra's familiar snout appeared in the doorway. Once the dog had walked inside the servant took her leave with a small smile tugging at the corner of her lips. It had been days since the young prince's usually solemn face had stretched into a wide grin.
"Umbra! You came all the way here from Tenebrae?"
The husky rose on its hind legs and licked Noctis' face, tail wagging excitedly.
"H-hey! Down, boy! You must be starved from your long journey."
Together the boy and the dog sneaked into the kitchen. Meal time was still few hours away and the kitchen had only minimal staff members making preparations. Once the prince was sure the coast was clear, he took several slabs of meat from the fridge and piled them on a plate. He hid the plate and continued to crouch to stay out of sight. He found a suitable container and waited until one of the staff members switched on the dish machine. Under the cover of its noise he took the container and filled it with cold water by the sink. Balancing the meat in one hand and the water in the other he hurried back to his room Umbra in tow and locked the door.
Once Umbra was suitably fed Noctis focused on the small cloth wrapped around the canine's foreleg. Carefully he removed it and straightened the small piece of paper. His heart hammered, butterflies fluttered wildly in the pit of his stomach and his hands began to sweat as he recognized the familiar elegant script.
He's yours, Noct. Take good care of him and he'll take good care of you. –L
Noctis blinked once. Twice.
Luna was giving Umbra to him? He read the short message over and over. But sure enough the message remained the same and he hadn't imagined anything. He had to tell his father!
"C'mon, boy!" he called to his new companion and off they ran to his father's study. Noctis nearly slipped and fell as he rushed across the corridors in excitement. Umbra didn't fare much better as its clawed paws slid on the slippery parquet. The study was empty. Maybe he was in the meeting room?
They went in such a hurry that the secretary stationed at the desk outside the meeting room didn't have time to stop them. The meeting room's door was closed. Noctis slowed down and crept to the door and pressed his ear against it. His grin fell when he heard men talking inside. King Regis was busy – again.
"I'm sorry, your Highness. The King has left strict instructions not to be disturbed for the next few hours", the secretary gently guided the distraught prince away from the door. "Do you want me to summon your caretaker?"
"No." Noctis shrugged her hands off him. He was about to bolt, but halted when he remembered how his father always told him to behave around the palace employees. "No, thank you." He corrected himself and bowed his head politely before hurrying outside to the palace gardens.
They arrived by a pond. Its other side was surrounded by trees and bushes. Noctis made sure to choose that side as he didn't want to be found. He huddled by the pond's edge and poked the surface with a dry branch. Umbra lay down next to him, enjoying a light breeze that ruffled its fur. Noctis was sure the dog would prefer the climate here compared to the heat of Tenebrae. He shuffled further into the tree's shade when he heard two palace employees walk close by.
The palace was full of people; servants, butlers, housekeepers, guards, curators, flagmen, correspondence managers, gravel cleaners, heads of departments, administrative officials and clerical staff, even tour guides during certain seasons… Yet Noctis felt so alone. The only people that truly mattered to him were always busy or away training to serve him. Why couldn't they train serving him here where he was right now?
Noctis picked up a flat stone and threw it to the pond. It bounced two times before sinking.
He attended a public school. There he was revered like a celebrity by fellow students. They would bombard him with ridiculous questions on a daily basis. None of them cared about him just what he was. He left the school premises every lunch break and hid by an old construction site. There he would just stand and wait for the school bell to chime. He was no less lonely in the school surrounded by his peers than he was in the palace surrounded by people whose very livelihood was to serve him.
But now he had Umbra.
Noctis turned to the resting canine and let his small hand glide across its shaggy black fur. The dog made no movement in acknowledgement besides the wagging of its tail.
"Do you think I should write to Luna?" He pondered aloud. Truthfully Noctis had expected a longer letter from her. Maybe something along the lines that she had fun and maybe an invitation for him to come visit her homeland. But he knew from the week of training with Luna and the two huskies that the dogs couldn't carry big letters without them wrinkling to the point of being illegible or becoming wet or even falling off from the tight cloth wrapping.
Still he couldn't have asked for a more pleasant surprise. Not only had he gotten the promised letter from Luna, he had also gotten a companion. Someone who didn't care that he was a prince or didn't feel obligated to put up with him because it was their job, someone who unconditionally loved him and put his needs above everything else.
The prince got up with new purpose and jogged to his quarters. He didn't need to even order his new companion to follow; the moment its new master made a move to get up it was following closely, ears perked at attention.
Noctis settled down at his desk. He piled his study books to the other side and took out his favourite pencil. He tapped the pencil's skull shaped eraser against his chin in thought.
'Dear Luna', he began writing slowly in his best handwriting. He stared at the two words long and hard before groaning and turning his pencil upside down to destroy the evidence of his sappiness.
'Hi, Luna'. Okay, that was less cheesy. He could roll with that.
'Thanks for giving Umbra to me. I promise I'll take very good care of him. He will be my best friend.' He halted and scratched his head in thought. Again his eraser removed his carefully written message.
A knock on his door interrupted his work. Umbra stood up and let out a short bark.
"Highness?" It was Ignis. Noctis hurried to his door and unlocked it. The older boy entered, confusion dancing in his serious eyes as Umbra circled around him sniffing him all over.
"When did you get a dog?" Ignis stood stiffly and watched the canine warily while Noctis closed his door.
"It's Luna's dog. Well, actually, now he's mine. She gave him to me. He walked all the way from Tenebrae to deliver me a letter from Luna", Noctis explained, words jumbling as he chattered excitedly.
"Quite the distance. Surprised he made it so far", Ignis noted. He sat next to the prince and carefully lowered his hand to pat the dog on the head. "He looks bit of a mess. I should go wash him. We don't have any dog brush, do we", it was more of a statement than a question. He looked around Noctis' room. "And I see you have no food or water bowel. Where is he sleeping?"
Rest of the evening went figuring all the arrangements concerning the family's newest addition. It wasn't until the next day that King Regis even heard of his son's newest pet.
A year later Lunafreya was sitting in the study rehearsing her latest lesson when a handmaiden opened the door to allow Pryna to stroll inside. Luna set down her book and greeted her white canine companion. Dutifully the dog sat down while Luna fetched a treat as a reward for the delivery.
"Did you bring me something?" The blonde removed the wrapping from the husky's foreleg and read the message while Pryna dined on the leftovers from the family's previous meal.
Umbra and I began to play football. Wish you were here to teach us how to play it properly. Miss you. –N
The last part of the message had been erased and rewritten several times. He had clearly had some trouble deciding whether he wanted to keep it in the message. She suspected he had intended to leave it out, but hadn't been able to completely erase it and had then admitted defeat and just gone with it.
Smiling, Luna added the slip of paper to a special journal she kept. It was filled with memories of her time in Insomnia ranging from Somnus' sheet music to diary-like entries where she recalled her time with Noctis. She had attached the young prince's every letter and dog mail between its covers.
She knew Noctis had Ignis to help him write the longer 'official' letters that he sent by proper mail. It was the dog mail that was close and personal – even if he couldn't go into detail with the amount of space he had available. Noctis had admitted in his letters that he didn't allow anyone to read the dog mail. It was only for their eyes. They had even come up with a certain way to bind the slip of paper with a cloth that only they knew how to do. That way they would instantly know if someone had been snooping on their privacy.
Luna eyed some of the previous dog mail messages.
I wish we went to the same school. I don't like my classmates.
I had something Ignis called a growth spurt. I wonder if I'm taller than you yet.
I went to our special place in the meadows. It's not the same without you.
Her heart ached with each letter. That boy was so lonely. His father was always busy managing the country on his own as well as keeping up the enchanted barrier surrounding the crown city. Noctis didn't have siblings, his cousin had passed away just the year before and he had no friends in school. She could only hope that things would change for the better when he would enter high school. Umbra was the only company she could offer him. She would write him as often as she could to offer him a meager comfort and remind him that he wasn't as utterly alone as he felt.
She would let Pryna rest for a few days before writing her reply.
Ten-year-old Noctis stood outside the school waiting for Ignis and the driver to come pick him up. His class had ended earlier than normal because of the sudden news; Tenebrae had been invaded by Niflheim. The boy didn't fully understand what it all meant, but he was sick with worry. Umbra had left to Tenebrae just over a week ago to deliver his most recent letter to Luna.
What if Umbra wouldn't be able to make it? What if there wasn't anybody to even receive the letter? What if Luna was taken, or worse, killed?
His thoughts went in circles. Soon his body followed and he began to pace restlessly. He glanced at the clock on the school wall.
Still fifteen minutes before Ignis would arrive.
Sighing, the prince leaned his back against a lamp post. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the familiar black and white fur gleam in the evening sun.
"Umbra!" he hurried to meet the dog midway. "Thank Etro you're alive! I was so worried", Noctis babbled, his eyes shining with fresh tears. He quickly blinked them away and kneeled in front of the husky. Sniffling he unwrapped the cloth and unfolded Luna's message.
Father speaks of the Empire making a move to invade Tenebrae. The imperials gather outside our borders. I fear for the worst. –L
It was the last message he received from her.
Years later when he saw Lunafreya's beautiful – and mature, so much older than he remembered her – face appear on the television he felt joy at seeing his childhood friend was safe. But as his eyes trailed over her pale complexion and her hard icy eyes he felt all joy drain from him.
Now it was her who was alone. And he had no way of reaching her when imperials kept intercepting all the letters. Time and time again he sent her letters both by regular mail and attached to Umbra. By the third time Umbra returned with his letter still attached to its leg Noctis knew that it was hopeless.
When Noctis, Prompto, Ignis and Gladiolus arrived to Altissia, Noctis could barely recognize his dear friend. Gone was the easy smile that lit up her whole face and made him feel welcome and wanted. She had built strong walls around herself and let no-one in.
As they sat in Regalia and drove off far away from imperial controlled cities Noctis tentatively let his hand fall over his betrothed's. She pulled away as if she had been burnt. She refused to meet his inquiring eyes and kept her gaze strictly on the road ahead. He was at a loss on how to approach her.
Ignis had comforted him and told him to take it slowly and give her time. She had most likely been through a lot with the loss of her parents, country and friends. Noctis should know; he had lost much as well – even if he wasn't present during Insomnia's fall. Ignis suspected she had suffered through some sort of trauma as well, but he wouldn't reveal his suspicions deeming it not his business to meddle in her personal affairs.
Noctis watched as Lunafreya entered her tent. Not only did she insist on sleeping in a separate tent, she had to put the tent to the other side of the campfire.
He hadn't been physically so close to her in many long years yet he felt he was further apart from her than ever.
A/N: I needed to write some friendship fluff and address Noct's lonely childhood before Prompto came to save the day in high school. It turned quite angsty, but never fear! For the next chapter will be humour! I actually started the humour-chapter before this one, but kinda lost the plot midway and decided to write this one first.
I guess I also wanted point out how much Luna and Noct's friendship (and romantic relationship, I suppose) has evolved since chapter 1.