Chapter Text
A pit stop at Lestullum left everyone thankful, the sweet feeling of a soft (yet kind of crappy) bed under them was all they wanted after a week’s worth of camping.
“Ahh~ The sweet release of back tension…” Prompto flopped himself onto the double bed, sprawling himself on the cotton covers whilst Noctis did the same. He curled up on top of the bedsheets, his feline ears lowered and his tail swept around his body gently.
Prompto let out a sigh, “I could sleep right here, right now…”
“But you’re not.” Gladiolus bluntly interrupted, which prompted Prompto to sit up “What! Please don’t tell me we’re not staying overnight!”
“Dear Gods no.” Quick to answer, Ignis pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket. “But we are extremely low on rations and there’s not enough Gil for all four of us to eat out. Myself and Gladio will stay at home and work with what ingredients we have left, You and Noctis go to the markets and fetch some new ingredients.” His voice was croaky and tired, just like everyone else’s, Prompto knew this was an order rather than a request, and he full well knew not to test a sleep-deprived Ignis, but he couldn’t help but complain.
“Come on..! Why can’t Gladio and Noct do it instead.. I’m trying to go on strike here Iggy!” Prompto let out in a whiney tone
“Quit bitching unless you don’t want a proper meal for the next 3 nights,” Gladio muttered, glaring at Prompto.
Prompto went silent, he turned his head to Noctis (who was frankly fast asleep) and closed his eyes, letting out a stressed sigh “F….Fine…” He pulled himself off the bed and yanked on Noctis’ hand “C’mon buddy, we’ve got some shopping to do.”
Noctis softly groaned as he was forced out of his napping position, he stumbled off the bed and rubbed his eyes with his free hand. “Wh..Wh..”
—
The sky reflected a sweet orange light on the stalls. Lanterns flickered on as the vendors began to set up for the night shift. Children dragging their parents to stall after stall while the older couples enjoying an afternoon stroll. The market scenery was as lively as ever.
The single thought of human interaction made Noctis crumble internally. Either that or the fact that his best friend was still holding his hand in public. Quick to the realisation, Noctis snatched his hand away from Prompto’s and pretended to awkwardly fold his arms.
“So..” Prompto squinted at the list, Ignis’ handwriting was so cursive and small, he could barely read it. “This.. looks like..Tumeric… and Nutmeg..?”
“Mmm..” The prince groaned, he already felt his sense of smell being overthrown by the strong scent of spices, especially with the new heightened senses thanks to his new feline properties(??).
“Alright, spice stalls are first off the list then!”
—
Come to think of it, the markets were really big. The area it took up was nearly two streets along, it was fairly impressive. “‘S-Scuse me..! Sorry-.. I-I’m just trying to-“ Yet it was barely breathable to even move, especially with this many people.
Prompto looked around in search for a single spice stall, it had been about five minutes since they arrived at the markets and not a single spice was in sight... And suddenly neither was Noctis.
“Hm. There’s so many food places around here yet we just can’t seem to find what we’re looking for! Have you seen anyth-“ Prompto swung around but Noctis wasn’t anywhere to be seen.
“Huh? Noct? Where’d you go, buddy?” It didn’t help that Noctis wasn’t very tall (in saying that it would be much easier to spot Gladio or Ignis in a large crowd because: 6ft boys. Big boys.) and neither was Prompto, this meant it was going to be ten times more painful to find each other because they blend better into the crowd.
Prom sighed “This won’t end well.”
—
And indeed it didn’t end well. Noctis, already hating the look of crowds, was stuck in one, without his faithful extrovert by his side. “P...Promp...tooo...” the prince whined, his ears were lowered and his tail between his legs. He was stuck between an elderly couple trying to bargain with a stubborn vendor and two parents desperately trying to settle their three young children, only Prince Noctis could get into a situation like this.
The prince kept walking forward to keep the traffic flowing, but he wasn’t quite sure what his next move would be. He observed his surroundings, eyeing off every blonde haired person he could see, but none of them were Prompto.