Chapter Text
Nothing comes easy. Aranea’s learnt that the hard way. Nothing’s easy, especially not loss.
She sighs, a stream of smoke escaping her lips, and she turns to face the man next to her as he takes a sip of the shitty whiskey she’d poured for him. He grimaces, and sticks his tongue out. “Nope.”
“Ah well. More for me.” And she takes the glass, downing it in a gulp, while her companion watches with a raised brow.
“Isn’t it supposed to be none for you?” He asks. “Thought you said you were quitting.”
Aranea laughs, quietly. “Not cold-turkey, Prompto. If I stop drinking all at once, I’m pretty sure the… collective hangover would kill me. Gotta ease into it.” Setting the glass down beside her, she nudges the blonde with her shoulder, voice softening. “‘Sides, it’s a… well, not a special occasion, but - whatever. It’s an occasion.”
“So, what, you’re celebrating? Because it’s not-”
“Kid, c’mon. I know. I thought having a couple drinks might help cheer you up, or distract you, or - whatever. It’s what people do.” Aranea lifts her cigarette to her lips, but pauses. “It’s what I did. It’s not easy to lose someone.”
Prompto snorts, and twists away from her a little, pulling a leg up onto the tiles beneath him. A gust of wind blows between them, and Aranea watches him shudder. “You don’t have to tell me that.”
Aranea sighs, and stubs out her cigarette, before flicking it away, off of the roof of Hammerhead Garage, ignoring Prompto’s tut. They both knew she’d go pick it up later. Cindy would have her hide if she didn’t. “Well?”
“Well what?”
“What do you want me to tell you? If you wanted a hug or someone to - wax poetic about how miserable shit is, why not go find Cin, or Ignis? What’d you scramble all the way up here for?”
It’s Prompto’s time to sigh now, and his whole body deflates with the action. His eyes are tired, and red rimmed. Bloodshot too, she thinks, but it’s dark. He’d been crying before he found her, she could tell. Poor kid. It was four, maybe five in the morning, and they’d been sitting in relative silence, just watching the stars. At least until Aranea had gone to get them a bottle, hoping the alcohol would either soothe him, or coax him into explaining why she’d had to watch him sneak out of his and Ignis’ trailer, and gaze around like a lost puppy before noticing her, and clumsily making his way up to her perch. He’d whispered ‘I miss Noct’, so she’d handed him a drink.
He stays quiet now though, and she nudges him again. “You realise Glasses is going to freak out if he wakes up without you.”
“And Cindy won’t?” She laughs, and shrugs. He’s got her there. But Cindy’s a big girl. And so is Aranea.
“Touche. Seriously though. Just want quiet company, or what? I can’t exactly share any heartwarming, cutesy anecdotes about the Prince.”
“King, actually.” She thinks about rolling her eyes at his bitter tone, but he’s right. The tiny slivers of orange poking out from behind the hills proved that much. “I just…” There he goes. “I know I can trust you to - to not… coddle me, or - lie to me.”
“I don’t coddle anyone, kid.” Well, except Cindy, but hey. A girl can coddle and or cuddle her wife if she so chooses.
He falters a little. “I-I know. I mean - I love Ignis, but he still… acts like I’m a kid sometimes. He’ll say all this… poetic, noble stuff about how I should focus more on - the positive stuff, like sure Noct’s gone but now everything’s fine, but it… it’s not.”
“Everyone grieves differently.”
Prompto scoffs, and rolls his eyes. “Yeah, I’m starting to see that.” Aranea bites her cheek, grimacing. Wrong thing to say. Idiot. Learn how to talk better. “You drink, Ignis ignores, Gladio-”
“Look, look, shut up for a second.” Clapping her hand over his mouth and shuffling to face him fully, legs no longer dangling over the edge of the roof. “Listen. I’m sure he’s sad too. You were all super close. He’s just - trying to honour the King, and his sacrifice. That’s probably how he’s thinking of it.” Prompto opens his mouth, pulling away, but she goes with him, grabbing his cheeks “I know it’s stupid. It’s a shitty, awful, situation, and we all hate that it happened, because the gods are dumb. Okay? So you’re totally allowed to be sad. Angry too. I would be, if I were you.”
She pulls her hand away as Prompto’s shoulders droop, but then wraps her arm around those same shoulders, and scoots closer. “You can be angry. But Ignis doesn’t want to be. And that’s fine too. You both miss him.”
“I- Yeah.” Prompto smiles up at her. It’s shaky, but genuine, and though she’d never say as much, it warms her heart to see. There’s just something about the kid. Maybe watching him fumble around in the snow all those years ago got to her.
“Yeah. So sit here, and watch the fuckin’ sun come up, and cry if you have to.” She claps him on the back. “I’ll be here.”
Prompto’s smile widens, and he leans into her side. “Y’know, Nea-”
“Do not.”
“You act tough, but you’re pretty soft, huh?”
She smirks, and gives him a teasing shove. “Think the ground is soft? We can find out.” There’s no menace behind her words, though they both know she’d push him in a second. Just to keep face. She’d definitely catch him. The Six know Aranea couldn’t handle the crying. Plus Cindy would yell at her. That, she does not need. Not one bit. She rests her head atop Prompto’s, squashing that ridiculous puff of his, and settles into the space between, as the orange slivers turn gold, and the dark night sky is painted amber, crimson and that strange peachy-pink she can never quite place. Prompto shivers again, jostling her, and she groans, but yanks off her jacket, and drapes it over his shoulders.
“Thanks, Aranea.”
“Sure thing, kid.”
They watch the sun rise, and if Aranea sees the sun catching a tear on Prompto's cheek, she says nothing.