Chapter Text
Noctis stopped, his head tilting slightly to the side as his wheelchair slowly grew to a crawl across the marble floors of the Citadel. His guards, who had been flanking him because of his way overprotective father (like, geez, he’s practically an adult already, he can wheel his own butt around), also stopped, gazing at him curiously.
“Is there a problem, Your Highness?” The one of his left, a Crownsguard he knew who would just about die laughing at the most awfulness of puns, asked. The ten year old didn’t say anything, his hands slowly tightening on the wheels.
Someone was following them.
Like his dad taught him, he searched out with his magic, but when no comforting buzz came from the direction he could feel eyes from or even the faintest taste of the familiar magic, he knew something was wrong.
“It’s nothing.” He passed off, slowly unclenching his hands and letting himself move forward once more. The intruder was totally listening in, and he really really really liked his guards this time around. They didn’t nag him to do his physical therapy, or make jokes at his expense like some of them did. It would majorly suck to have to get them reassigned because of one silly intruder.
He’s ten, that’s practically an adult. He can take care of himself, with no one to bug him to eat his veggies or brush his teeth or go to bed at an early time because he was the Prince.
Noctis let out a sigh. Now he was sad, and this excursion was meant to make him forget that. This stinks.
Luna’s red notebook was warm against his knee, and a sudden urging to return to the garden to get a semblance of comfort from his only friend made his hands twitch with eagerness unbecoming of a Prince (as if he couldn’t be human to be a Prince and if he wasn’t human then what was he?).
He was almost outside, almost able to ignore the stalker following them through the halls, almost able to pretend that the guards by his side were Regis and Luna instead, when the first guard dropped like a led balloon.
Well, he didn’t know what a led balloon looked like dropping personally, but he heard the saying and at the moment it fit pretty well.
The second whirled around, only to be pelted in the forehead by a…
Was that a canteen?
Cold hands gripped the steering part of the wheelchair, pushing him right by the thankfully only unconscious bodies of the guards and past the threshold of the door, directly into the heart of the royal family’s private garden.
“D-Don’t move.” A young shaky voice commanded him, his seat rattling from how hard the boy’s hands were shaking. “I-I don’t want to hurt you, but if I-if I don’t complete the mission I’ll be de-decommissioned so please! I won’t make it hurt, it-it’ll be just like going to sleep, okay?”
Noctis nervously tugged on the Carbuncle charm attached to the notebook, feeling rather than seeing his guardian form by his side. Carbuncle gave a little chirp of happiness, trotting alongside the wheelchair, and Noctis felt himself relax. If Carbuncle liked this newcomer, then so did he. Everything was just fine, Carbuncle was always right when it came to these kind of things. Maybe he should introduce him to Luna.
“What’s your name?” He asked excitably, leaning his neck back to the point where he was half afraid it would snap. A cold hand stopped him, trying to force him to look forward and not at his new friend but hit right in that spot instead. The spot.
A giggle - not a giggle he’s a man okay! - slipped past before he could stop it, his face instinctively leaning so he was covering his neck with his chin. “That’s ticklish!”
His new friend drew a hesitant breath, the previously recklish drive slowed to a more even crawl across the rocky terrain. Yay, now his butt didn’t have to feel like he was sitting directly on a motor. “Ticklish..? What’s that?”
“It’s when you tickle somebody and it makes them laugh.” Noctis explained as best he could after a moment, which...wasn’t really that good of an explanation. “Want me to tickle you?”
Without waiting for an answer, he swung around in his sweet and dived his hand right towards his new friend’s side. The boy jerked slightly, and then almost inaudibly, helpless giggles were escaping his mouth.
His new friend had messy blonde hair with really weird clothes. As in, covered in blood and grime and who knows what all over the scarred leather that looked about as old as his dad. And his dad was old.
“My name’s Noctis, but you can call me Noct. All my friends do!” If friends include Ignis and maybe Gladio, but he wasn’t too sure the older man really saw him as a friend. Or even if Ignis did. True friends wouldn’t make you eat your vegetables.
The blond started, staring at him with his mouth wide open. “I’m...your friend?” He asked breathlessly, his gloved hands releasing the handles to nervously fiddle with themselves.
Noctis nodded. “Of course! Besides, Carbuncle likes you. Carbuncle doesn’t even like Ignis, who’s pretty cool when he’s not feeding me vegetables.”
For the first time, his new friend seemed to notice the fox creature by their ankles. He let out a startled yelp, immediately backpedaling when Carbuncle started to approach him.
Only to rub himself against his shins like a contented cat.
They both stared.
“Huh.” Noctis said. “He doesn’t even do that for me, and he’s my guardian.”
The boy looked up from staring at Carbuncle with wet eyes. “Guardian?” He rasped, and Noctis frowned, grabbing the water bottle in his cup holder and offering it to him. The blond paused for a moment, glancing between the opened water bottle and his face for a few moments before snatching it out of his hands, greedily chugging the drink down.
“Yeah, guardian. My dad gave him to me when I was in a c-o-m-a for a long time.” He explained when it looked like there was no end in sight for his new friend and his water bottle. After a moment of thought, he reached into the small basket on the inside of the seat and pulled out a candy bar, offering it to the other boy, and wasn’t surprised in the least when it was snatched out of his hands and quickly opened.
His phone buzzed in his pocket, but he made no move to call anybody as he opened it, the other boy watching cautiously but not stopping him. After a moment, he raised his hand so he could read the text message on the screen.
It was just a smiley face emoticon, no sender in sight, and it disappeared when he exited out of the conversation. “That’s Carbuncle. He can’t talk I don't think, but he sends me messages on my phone to talk to me. And in my dreams too! I like Carbuncle. Do you like Carbuncle?”
The blond nodded. “Yeah...I like him.”
And after a moment; “My name’s Prompto, but no one’s supposed to know that, so keep it a secret.”
Noctis smiled, clapping his hands together in glee. “Okay, Prompto!”
Prompto grin was wobbly, but it was a grin nonetheless.
“I’m from Niflheim.” Prompto admitted to him later in a whisper, his hand soothingly petting the guardian lying in his lap. “I was sent here to assassinate you. If they receive word I failed, they’ll-they’ll-” He swallowed heavily, bringing his finger up to his mouth to bite at the nail there.
Noctis rubbed his chin, deep in thought of what to do. With his other hand, he heisted his leg a bit to the side so the water wasn’t up to his knees in the small pond water in front of them.
“So what if they don’t find out?” He offered hesitantly, stretching his unresponsive knee. The doctors said he would eventually get the full use of his legs back. Eventually . Everything stinks, his dad is too busy with running the country to see him even once this week, Luna is across the country under watch from the nasties, and he can’t even walk by himself.
Prompto laughed, a nervous hesitant one. “You’re the crown prince , of course people are going to know that I failed. And when I fail, they’ll call me back, and I can’t escape that.”
The idea formed in his head slowly, gradually gaining surface the more he rolled it over. He shared a glance with Carbuncle, and his phone buzzed once, twice.
Go for it :)
I’ll keep you safe!
“What if they don’t know?” Noctis asked slowly, reaching a hand out to pet Carbuncle’s head. “What if they...think I’m dead?”
“Are you saying…” Prompto’s jaw was dropped, but something like hope was lighting up in his eyes. “We should fake your death?”
Noctis’s grin could have lit up the entire city of Insomnia. “Duh.”
Prompto sputtered. “D-Do you know how hard that will be? We have to somehow get a body- wait just a missing person should work- but how are you going to get out of the capital? And what will you do - I mean, you’re the Crown Prince! Someone needs to rule after your dad dies, right?”
“That’s why.” Noctis hauled his legs out of the way, leaning with the weight of his torso like they taught him in physical therapy in Prompto’s direction. “You’ll come with me.”
A pause. Slowly, Prompto’s mouth began to close as he seriously thought about it. “I-I…”
Noctis idly slipped his fingers into the sand by his waist, letting Prompto take his time even though it was likely someone was going to find two unconscious guards and go oh where were they assigned and then it’ll all blow up and he wouldn’t be allowed to leave his wing of the castle for weeks .
“Where would we go?” The blond asked in a small voice, drawing his knees closer to his chest. His boots were discarded by the water and his filthy pants were rolled up to his knees, revealing even more blood and grime under them.
He can still taste the ashes in the air and feel the pain in his spine when he focuses on it.
“Altissia.”
Prompto peeked unsurely over at him. “Why Altissia?”
Noctis shrugged. “Everywhere else there’s solders, but Alitssia’s pretty safe. And I heard it’s pretty this time of year.”
“That’s pretty simple reasoning.” Prompto laughed, but there was a new light in his eyes. “I guess...Altissia it is.”
His own smile was steadily sneaking up on his face. Really, he’s...running away from home, with his would-be assassin. If Ignis were here, he would call him crazy and then promptly confine him to his rooms. If Gladio were here, he would have gotten his ear pulled for not responding properly to danger and more lessons the instant he could walk again.
But neither of them were here. They haven’t been there for him ever since his stupid stupid spine, and Prompto was his friend who needed help. Just the two of them, in the world outside of Insomnia.
He’ll make sure to send his dad a postcard.
A commotion rang out from beside him, and Noctis grimached. Quickly, before he could even react, Prompto was on his feet with his shoes already on, clammy hands grabbing him from under his arms and hoisting him back into his wheelchair, leaving Noctis to blink at the empty air.
“Time to go, Noct.” Prompto grinned at him cheekily, and without any hesitation the two of them practically zoomed off out of the garden, his hands white knuckled from gripping onto the handlebars. Carbuncle squeaked, and his phone rang repeatedly as the smaller summon was forced to keep up with the roller coaster wheelchair.
Astrals above, Prompto should never be in charge of any mobile unit, nevermind one with parts . For everyone’s sakes, he hopes the blond never learns how to drive.
The garden streaked past him in greens and blues as the two of them turned around corners faster than he ever imagined he could, the voices grew closer, than distant, and when he blinked Prompto had halted them to a stop near the side wall towards the hallways to the kitchen. Noctis anxiously watched as he leaned toward one of the numerous trees and rummaged around inside the trunk of it, pulling out a black briefcase and setting it on his lap, opening it with an ominous click.
Inside it were several guns neatly arranged, a folder of what looked like identifications, some potions and status effect items, and…costumes?
“First things first.” Prompto said with what he would 100% call an evil grin. “We need to disguise you.”
With that, he pulled out a wig. A girl’s wig.
“No no no absolutely not,” He yelped, trying to backpedal away from the conversation, but Prompto, the sneaky bastard, had already snapped the oiled from the last century breaks into use.
“C’mon, Noct.” Prompto encouraged with a suspicious shine in his voice that told him just how much he was enjoying this. “Everybody around here knows what you look like, and they're already looking for you as it is. They’re going to be looking for a wheelchaired boy with dark hair. What they're not going to be looking for is a girl sleeping on her brother’s back because she got tired during the tour of the Citadel.”
Noctis stared. “That’s mildly terrifying.”
Prompto grinned, with plenty of teeth. “I know.”
He sighed, but he figured Prompto was probably right, though he did make a face at the black skirt he was handed. “Just over your shorts!” Prompto promised, all the while pulling out something he called a wig cap and fitting it over his hair while he struggled pulling his unresponsive legs through the thin fabric.
“This is probably going to itch, fair warning.” Prompto explained, and then without any warning he shoved the wig on his head. Noctis sneezed, irritably brushing away the waxy strands out of his eyes and mouth.
He was right. The wig did itch.
“Now for the wheelchair.” The other boy remarked, eyeing it thoughtfully. “It would be nice to have someway for you to get around without me having to carry you, but then again it’s way too noticeable…”
Both of them shared a look at the gold engravings on the black rims. Royalty.
“It’s fine.” Noctis hummed, raising his arms, and as if the other boy had known him his own life he was already there to help him out of his seat and standing him up to lean heavily against his side. “Look at this neat trick.”
In a shower of crystals, the wheelchair dissolved under his touch and into his own special astral space.
“Woah.” Prompto’s jaw dropped, waving his free hand in the air as if to make sure he didn’t just make it invisible. “That’s so cool! How did you do that? Can you do that to my bag too?”
Noctis eagerly nodded, tapping his index finger against the offered briefcase and sliding it neatly into his astral space. Prompto’s expression practically lit up, and he realized that this was the first time someone was ever impressed with the his powers, his powers, not just the ones passed along the Caelum line.
“I have other stuff in there too.” He explained patiently, only wincing the slightest bit as Prompto shifted him around so he could get better access to climbing his back. “Like a couple drinks and sandwiches. I also got my crutches in there too, for when I can start walking again.”
Prompto passed him a curious look over his shoulder, and they steadily began heading towards the general direction of the center of the Citadel. “It’s not permanent?”
It took him a moment, and that’s when he realized it. “My legs...the doctors said I should start being able to feel touch and moving them soon, but they won’t support my weight for a while.” An aching void filled him quietly, and slowly his head began to drop down until his cheek was resting on Prompto’s shoulder. “I’m lucky, really…I could have really paralyzed them, for good. I wouldn’t even be able to go to the bathroom by myself…So, I’m lucky, you see.”
It felt as if he was trying to convince himself more than Prompto.
“I’m your friend,” Prompto whispered to him, and Noctis thought he could feel his hands on the back of his knees, but maybe it was just his tired mind playing tricks on him. “And you're mine. So that means, we’ll be here for each other. That’s what the books say, that friends are always by your side. So...It’s okay to cry if you want. The bosses get mad when I cry, but I’m not one of them. So please… It’s really really okay. I’m here.”
Noctis swallowed heavily, and buried his face into his new friend’s shoulder and let loose the bottled up grief from the past half a year, the comfort of Carbuncle by his side and the future in front of them burning brighter than the sun after being trapped in the dark for so long.