What's up my dudes, how's things?

I passed the finals of my apprenticeship, which means I am now a Federally Certified Office Worker, lmao. I also get to start my new job in a week (same company, in a department I really liked with a great team and a cool boss) so that's exciting.

Enjoy!


Noct dismissed his broadsword in favour of one of Prompto's guns and fired a shot, head pounding and vision swimming, he lined up for another shot - but then, the warm feeling of healing magic washed over him and his mind cleared up instantly.

Ignis, who had administered the smelling salts, was already turning away from him again, rushing towards Prompto…

…Prompto, on the muddy ground, gasping and writhing in pain. Gladio was by his side, talking to him more gently than Noct had ever heard him speak to anyone other than Iris and Rosie, his chocobo. He held both of Prompto's arms in a firm grip, holding him down so he didn't hurt himself further.

His right leg was bleeding profusely, blood spurting from his thigh in rhythmic bursts.

For a long moment, Noct couldn't decipher the scene before him, couldn't parse what had injured Prompto this badly, until his gaze fell on the cadaver of a killer wasp and it all made sense.

He had done this.

Noct had injured Prompto like this, in a bout of confusion caused by the killer wasps' toxin.

He couldn't move, stayed rooted to the spot and could only watch as Ignis dropped to his knees behind Prompto and pulled him flush against his chest, rubbing soothing circles into his chest and whispering gentle reassurances into his hair.

The awful noises Prompto made reminded Noct more of an injured animal than his best friend, and he already knew the sound would haunt his nightmares for weeks to come.

"Hold him still," he heard Gladio say. "The bullet hit an artery, but it's still inside. It needs to come out before we can use a potion."

No time for a sedative or he'll bleed out , was left unsaid.

Noct felt sick.

Prompto made a distressed noise and Ignis curled around him, shushing him quietly. His hand moved to stroke Prompto's hair, repetitive, soothing motions.

"Starting now," Gladio warned, and Ignis' other hand came up to cover Prompto's mouth.

Right. There were still beasts around, Noct noted distantly. If - when - Prompto screamed, they'd be alerted, and they couldn't afford to take that risk.

And, oh, scream he did as Gladio started to dig out the bullet without hesitation. Even muffled by Ignis' hand, Prompto's pained cry tore through Noct's body like lightning, shaking him to his very bones and he felt his knees go weak.

Gladio worked fast but not hurriedly, all his training in field medicine paying off. It still took him a decent amount of time to get the bullet out, all while Prompto sobbed desperately, eyes squeezed shut and head thrown back against Ignis' shoulder

Noct wasn't sure how long it took - realistically, it couldn't have been more than a minute or two, but it felt like an eternity until he finally heard the tell-tale sound of a potion being shattered against Prompto's leg.

Noct let himself sink to the ground, still unable to tear his eyes away from his friends.

Prompto's breathing sounded harsh and he was shaking like a leaf, silent tears streaming down his face. Ignis was gentle with him, whispering reassurances into his ear that were too quiet for Noct to make out, one arm wrapped tightly around Prompto's chest and his other hand still in his hair.

Gladio granted Prompto a few moments to catch his breath before he started prodding at his leg, quizzing him about sensation and his range of motion, which Prompto answered in a quiet, shaky voice until Gladio nodded and let go of his leg, visibly relieved.


They'd barely set foot into their hotel room at the Leville when Gladio clasped Noct's shoulder and kept him from going any further.

"C'mon, let's go get that bounty."

It was the kind of tone that left no room for argument, and even though Noct knew it was a thinly veiled excuse to catch him alone, he nodded mutely and trudged after Gladio.

He really wasn't in the mood for a lecture - for nearly killing Prompto, for freezing up afterwards instead of helping him - but it was foolish to hope Gladio would go easy on him.

Not that he didn't deserve the chewing out.

Gladio didn't try to talk to him until after they'd been paid by the tipster.

"It wasn't your fault, y'know," he finally said after he'd bought them both some meat skewers from a street vendor and steered Noct towards the parking lot.

"Yeah? Did you miss the part where I put a bullet into Prompto's leg with my own hands?" Noct snapped.

"Don't be dramatic. You weren't in your right mind. Those damn wasps scrambled your brain good."

Gladio conveniently left out the part after his confusion had lifted, when he'd all but frozen up and just watched, uselessly, as his friend bled out.

Noct swallowed, feeling nauseated as the visual of Prompto's blood dyeing the ground red within seconds came to his mind once more.

"I almost killed him." It came out as a whisper, but Gladio still heard him.

"You were confused, Noct. That's not something any of us could control," Gladio said, uncharacteristically gently.

"He shouldn't-" Noct cut himself off, tried again. "He's not even supposed to be here. The only reason why he has to fight and get into dangerous situations with barely any training is because I asked him to come. Whose fault is it if not mine?!"

Gladio sighed. "Noct, if he weren't here, he'd most likely be dead already. Cor gave us a rundown of the state of Insomnia, me 'n Iggy. The area where Prompto lived- it's almost completely destroyed."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" Noct's voice came out strangled.

"Yes, because if he's here, then at least we can protect him. You can protect him. Yeah, maybe he wouldn't be fighting daemons and weird monsters if you hadn't asked him to come, but maybe he wouldn't be doing anything because he wouldn't even be alive."

"I still froze up, though."

Gladio shoved his shoulder, hard enough to make him stumble.

"Are you trying to make this difficult? It's, well, it's not good that you froze up, but it's understandable. Most people would have. What's done is done now, Blondie's just fine and probably already talking Iggy's ear off, and the only thing you can do now is to push forward and do better next time."

"Hoping there won't be a next time," Noct muttered. He handed his skewers to Gladio, who happily took them. Even though he felt marginally better, he didn't think he could stomach them just yet.

Besides…

"I'm gonna head back," he said, tone deliberately casual. "Are you coming?"

"Nah," Gladio waved him off. "You go have your talk with Blondie. Tell Iggy to meet me by that food place he wanted to check out."

Noct's cheeks reddened at his intention being caught so clearly, but he nodded and stomped off towards the Leville.

When he entered, Ignis was in the kitchen making something that suspiciously looked like hot chocolate - never mind that it was like a million degrees in Lestallum - and Prompto was in bed, pale and shaken but otherwise fine.

"Uh." Noct said stupidly. "Specs. Gladio says to meet you by... That place you wanted to check out? He didn't give me a name."

"Ah, yes, I know the one," Ignis said, pressing a mug of steaming hot chocolate into Noct's hands. "I've been wanting to try their wine in particular. Tenebrae's finest, I've heard nothing but praise for it. Give this to Prompto, will you? There's more if you want some."

And then, Noct was alone with Prompto.

Slowly, he carried the mug over to the bed, but once he was there, he found himself suddenly unable to do anything but stare at Prompto.

"Noct?" Prompto tried. "Hey, buddy, you good?"

And just like that, Noct's eyes began to sting and before he knew it, hot tears were rolling down his cheeks.

"Whoa, hey, Noct." Prompto leaned over and hurriedly took the mug from his hands. "Dude, it's fine, don't cry. C'mon, sit down."

Noct sniffed, feeling utterly pathetic. He sat down on the edge of the bed and looked at his hands - he couldn't bear to look Prompto in the eye.

"Prompto," he started, feeling all choked up. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to."

Soft hands grabbed his, and then he was being unceremoniously pulled down onto the mattress.

"Hey!"

"I'm fine, don't worry about it," Prompto said, eyes big and earnest as he looked down on Noct. "I even got a cool scar out of it. My first real battle scar, dude! Wanna see?"

Not waiting for an answer, he stuck his leg out from under the cover and pointed at the newly acquired scar.

It was somewhat star-shaped and way smaller than it had any right to be for something that nearly killed him.

Noct reached out with a trembling hand and gently touched the scar with his finger, tears once again blurring his vision.

"Noct, seriously, stop making that face. Gladio patched me up real good, and Iggy's been so nice to me all day! Is that what you feel like all the time? I'm jealous!"

Noct let out a choked laugh. "Iggy's always nice to you. Sometimes I think he likes you better than he likes me."

Prompto shrugged. "Yeah, well, I eat my veggies and I help with the dishes. You set the bar pretty low, dude."

Noct laughed again, more steady this time. "Yeah."

Then, he cleared his throat and turned onto his back to stare at the ceiling.

"I really am sorry, though. And I'm glad you're okay."

"Okay, apology accepted. Even though I don't think you got anything to apologise for. Not like you did it on purpose," Prompto was quick to reassure him. "And, yeah, it was scary, but I know you and the guys won't let me kick it just like that. I'm doing more dangerous shit than ever, but I also feel safer than ever because I know you guys are there."

"Dude, that's so sappy," Noct said, but he couldn't quite hold back a smile.

He still felt guilty - would feel guilty for a while, he knew, possibly forever.

Not just about Prompto, either, about Gladio and Ignis too. The three of them, in danger every day just because of him. It was a tough thing to accept, and Noct wished he knew how his Dad did it. Knowing people were risking and giving their lives to protect him…

It was a burden Noct didn't know how to bear.


Fuck those damn wasps honestly, I hate them so much.

And now, I wanna use this opportunity to shamelessly promote my own fic that I posted earlier this /
I wrote it for a zine and I'm honestly so, so proud of it, you have no idea. I've read it a million times to make sure it was as perfect as it could be and I STILL adore it, even though I've read it so many times and picked it apart so much. It's might just be one of my favourite things I've ever written. It's an Ignis-centric fic and focuses on, well, being queer, different types of relationships etc, it's just a very personal piece and I'm very much in love with it. So it'd be lovely if you gave it a chance. I don't think I can directly link here, but you can find it on my profile, it's titled "What we are is but a choice".

That's all, thank you for being here. Y'all are incredible 3