The interactions between Ren and Noct are based off my own with my older brother. It shows how much they really love and care for one another. Such a sweet yet emotional chapter!

Lucis's Reborn

Chapter 2: A Dream

"Sleeping again?"

A woman's sweet and soft voice echoed, and his blue eyes opened slowly. He squinted and hissed quietly from the brightness of the sun, rubbing his eyes whilst yawning and opened them again.

It was that girl again, the girl he dreamed of for as long as he could remember. He didn't know her name and he knew he's never met her beyond his dreams. She was a complete mystery to him, but what he did know was that for some reason, his heart was drawn to her. There was no reason as to why. Maybe it was her bright smile, or those sparkling eyes or her warm touch.

The girl looked to be the same age as him. She had Aegean blue wavy hair, her skin was a medium tan with a golden undertone, her almond shaped eyes were pine green. Her face was oval shaped, she had high cheekbones, rosy cheeks and lips and long thick eyelashes with thin straight eyebrows. The young adult had a beauty spot on her left cheek. To him, she had to be the most beautiful girl he had ever seen, quite literally the girl of his dreams.

"You're staring again." Her cheeky giggle snapped him out of gaze. The boy crossed his arms whilst raising an eyebrow.

"I wasn't the one staring at someone whilst they're asleep." Her eyebrows furrowed together, and she slapped his shoulder whilst pouting.

"I was NOT staring!" She argued and he chuckled.

"Little creepy don't you think?" He leaned his elbow on his knee and rested his cheek on his hand.

"But I wasn't staring." She sang. "I don't know what kind of girl you think I am."

"The kind who stares at guys who are taking a nap." She rolled her eyes and he chuckled. "Either that or I'm so handsome that you can't keep your eyes off me."

"Very funny." She poked his forehead and stood up. "Besides, every time you wake up, you stare at me in wonder. It's like you're in love with me." His cheeks turned pink, and he just scratched the back of his head.

"In love with you? Come on." He murmured.

"Is that why you dream about me all the time?" The boy's eyes widened, and he gulped at this. He turned to see her, with that sweet smile, her head tilting to the right so curiously yet adorably.

"How did you know?"

"You mumble my name whilst you dream." She blushed.

"But I don't know your name." Her smile dropped and the blue haired woman placed her hands on her hips with her eyebrows knotting together.

"You really forgot!" The girl exclaimed and he blinked slowly. "You don't remember my name? Thanks a lot, Noct!"

"You know my name?"

"Of course! I'm not gonna forget your name Noct. Even if I tried." She grinned. "Okay, I'll give you a hint, it rhymes with tiara!" She turned around and began to walk away. The boy instantly stood up and began running towards her, but his movement felt so extremely slow, and he couldn't reach her.

"Wait tiara, where are you going?"

"You're an idiot." She stated. "I'm leaving and won't be coming back until you remember my name." She waved. "Better get it memorised!"

"Wait don't go!" He held out his hand for her and she continued walking away. The light around him began to fade and her figure slowly disappeared within the darkness.

The Prince's crystal blue eyes slowly opened and the first thing he saw was the brilliant sky above, and the Citadel towering into it. The boy sighed deeply, just another dream of her again. How many times has it been since he dreamed of her? Too many to count. He had dreamed of the girl for as long as he could remember, the dreams where she would appear would only occur every few months. But the older he got, the more frequent she appeared. She now appeared about 2-3 times a week and he would always take an opportunity to fall asleep, anytime he could; just to see her. Noctis was in love with a girl he had never met before, only within his dreams and was very sure that she was real, and that she was out there somewhere.

"Wakey wakey, Sleeping Beauty." The Prince heard his sister's voice and instantly jolted up. Ren was sitting beside him on the stairs of the Citadel's entrance, hugging her knees whilst giggling at her brother's reaction.

"Give me a break, Ren."

"Noct, you lazy bum!" She flicked his forehead. "Of course, you'd be snoozing here! I honestly don't know how you can fall asleep anywhere! And you've been taking naps even more than you usually do!"

"I'm just tired all the time." He mumbled and she rolled her eyes at this then turned to her brother.

"Yeah right. You've been dreaming about her, haven't you?" The Prince's cheeks turned pink, and he began scratching the back of his head nervously. She couldn't help but smile at her brother's flustered expression and sigh dreamily; how romantic! "I've been dreaming about her more often now and I have no idea why."

"You're in love with her." Renae stood up and held her hand out for the Prince. Noctis took her hand, and she pulled him up. The 19-year-old led him down the stairs. "With the dream girl who's name you don't know."

"She said she wouldn't come back to see me if I don't remember her name."

"Oh, you're in real trouble then. Do you have any idea what it might be?" Ren asked.

"She gave me a clue. It rhymes with tiara. Any clue on what it might be?"

"Nuh-uh, you're figuring that one out on your own." His eyebrows furrowed together at this.

"Come on, Ren!" She shook her head at this.

"She's your girlfriend."

"No, she isn't!" Noctis exclaimed.

"Yeah cuz you can't recall her name, idiot." He huffed with frustration.

"Noctis, we should start going." Ignis stated and her smile dropped.

"Noct…"

Take me with you!

She wanted to scream from the top of her lungs. Her eyes filled with tears and her bottom lip quivered. The teenage Princess felt her heart slowly slink down to the pits of her body as it broke away into pieces. Renae didn't want to say goodbye to him, ever. The siblings have always been together, by each other's side since childhood. She was aware that him leaving for Altissia to get married would mean she wouldn't see him for a long time, because she would have to live in Tenebrae, and he'd settle in Lucis. And she wasn't ready to be apart from him for so long. It was as if they were both a part of each other, two halves that made a whole. For the past few months, she's been trying to imagine and prepare herself for it, but it would always result in sleepless nights of her breaking down in tears.

Come with me!

He wanted to grab her hand and take her away from Insomnia. Noctis rarely ever showed his emotions, save for the few times he spent with his friends. But when it came to his sister, he felt so free to speak and express whatever he thought and felt to her. There was no one else he loved more than his sister; not even his father, although he deeply respected and loved him. Regardless of the face that she was younger than him, she mothered him, healing his wounds, taking care of him when he was ill, baking him all his favourite desserts and often read to him. His favourite moments was spending time with his sister. And now she was going to go marry someone else and live with him. The Prince thought he was ready to let her go, but deep inside, he was nowhere close to ever being ready.

He wrapped his arms around her, and she wrapped her own around him, as they held each other in a tight and loving embrace. They both didn't want to ever let go, if only there was a way to freeze time or rewind it, so that they could spend more time together.

"If he hurts you, you're gonna tell me okay." He pulled away from her and she nodded.

"I'm going to try to break the engagement."

The four best friends were shocked at what she said. But the most shocked of them all was Noctis and Gladio. They didn't expect her to say this, all of a sudden. In Gladiolus's heart, he thought that maybe, just maybe, she had realised how much he meant to her. The Prince knew that she had been getting ready to marry her betrothed, making the effort to learn about Tenebrae in more detail as well as its traditions and culture. All of that effort, for her to completely break it off? He didn't mind at all, if it meant she was safe from the Empire and she could enjoy life without any responsibility to any Kingdom.

"Wait what?" Prompto asked and the girl just smiled.

"What about The Prince of Tenebrae?" Ignis questioned.

"If I explain to him, I think he'd understand; he's my friend."

"Ren…" The Prince held her hands. "Are you really going to break off your engagement?"

Her eyebrows furrowed together, and she squinted looking very puzzled. Then realisation dawned her as she realised that she didn't specify whose engagement she would break.

"No, not mine. Yours."

"Ohhhhhh." Prompto nodded understanding and Ignis just sighed whilst shaking his head.

'I'm such an idiot for thinking she'd love me.' Gladio thought to himself whilst frowning.

"Ren, you don't have to do that."

"Yes I do!" She snapped with knotted eyebrows as she scowled. "Noct, I know you don't have any romantic feelings for her and only care for her platonically. If you marry her, you'll only hurt yourself and her too. Besides the girl…the girl you see everyday in your dreams."

"A girl?" The blonde tilted his head to the side and Ignis and Gladio looked shocked; what girl?

"You clearly have some sort of connection to her."

"If it's a girl from his dream then she's only a dream." The older man stated.

"It can't just be that."

"That's what it sounds like."

"It's not." Noctis mumbled.

"She's just a dream, don't let a dream cloud your judgement. This is the real world, Noct." He was really starting to piss her off.

"If she was a dream, then how have you been able to see her for so long and so often?" She asked. "She's real; I know she is. If you break your engagement to the Princess, then you have time to find her."

"Noctis, what is it you really want?" Ignis asked.

The dark-haired man closed his eyes and all he could see was his dream girl's bright smile, her sparkling eyes, and that sweet giggle. Whenever she touched him or spoke to him; it felt real. Although it was in his dream, he felt like it was reality. But he had to think about the reality he lived in. Even if he broke the engagement, the Kingdom wouldn't accept it. It was a clause of the peace treaty signing that the houses of Fleuret and Caelum would come together in matrimony. If he broke it off then there wouldn't be peace.

"What about the peace signing? If I break it off with Luna then"

"I'm marrying Ravus, Noct." Renae interrupted him. "The peace treaty signing is still valid if I do. It wasn't specified which one of us had to marry."

Realisation slapped him in the face, as his orbs widened with surprised, he gulped the lump in his throat as tears stung his eyes and his heart cracked.

"Renae, are you doing this…so I can break off the engagement?" Noctis's voice cracked as he held her hands tight. "You're throwing away your life and freedom just for my happiness! I can't let that happen Ren!" The boy yelled and tears slowly fell down her cheeks as she just smiled.

Gladio looked up at her with wide eyes in extreme surprise. Here he thought, she just broke up with him to choose someone else, he believed that she just played with his emotions for the fun of it and all these months he had been nothing but rude to her for it. The Prince's Shield didn't even think for once, if there was another reason she would leave him t\o marry the Prince. All of this…was for her brother, because she loved him more than anything or anyone and would do anything to keep him happy.

The 19-year-old squeezed her brother's hands with reassurance as she continued beaming at him, her gaze remaining so gentle. "Noct, I'm marrying Ravus. It's okay."

"But it's not okay!" Tears fell down his cheeks and she held his face, wiping those tears away. "I can't let you throw away your life just for me. I can't just run away like a coward."

"Noctis, I'm strong. Whatever happens from here on out, I can manage it, even marriage. I'll…I'll learn to love him." She giggled, masking her anxiety. "Anyway, you have to go. You're gonna get stuck in traffic." The young woman wiped her tears.

"Ren…" The girl pushed him towards the Regalia.

"You better have fun out there. Don't worry about me and just enjoy yourself. Eat everything Ignis makes for you, especially vegetables! Try not to stress out Gladio too much, he's starting to get wrinkles. Also make sure to pose in Prompto's pics and send them to me!" She opened the door and they all got in.

"Ren, I love you." She placed her hand on her chest as she smiled feeling her heart crack.

"Take care of yourself, Noct."

Renae lifted her hand waving at her brother. Ignis did a U turn, drove towards the gate, and exited the Citadel's perimeters. She felt her heart break into a million pieces and those pieces fell to the pit of her stomach. Her heavy breathing came out shaky and more tears fell down her cheeks. The Princess clasped her hands together with them pressed against her chest which was raising up and down from her heavy breathing. The young Princess, fell onto her knees and began wailing like a child, something she wasn't allowed to do in public and only did so in the comfort of her own bed.

Deep inside, she didn't want Noctis to go without her, she wanted to be by his side as she always had. She wanted to enjoy the rest of Lucis, without a care in the world. To see the large deserts of Leide, the grassy plains, and wetlands of Duscae, the mountains and cliffs of Cleigne as well as her birthplace, the Rock of Ravatogh. In her dreams, the volcanic mountain beckoned her. But all of that, was just a dream, a stupid and naïve dream which she knew would never come true in her life.