Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: Don’t own FFXV

Written for PheonixQueen15, thanks for all the help with my fics!

Chapter 1

Having wings was a privilege that not everyone had. The Noble families saw it as their right, proof they were better than others. Noctis thought that was stupid and his Dad agreed but there wasn’t a lot they could do to change opinions except lead by example.

Going to a public school was part of that. He wore a specially made harness to keep his wings against his back and a specially tailored uniform to fit them. it was just another thing that set him apart from his fellow students, caused them to whisper and point. He wasn’t the only one at the school, since wings did pop up in the population, but his wings were the nicest. They were pitch black and glossy, the feathers long and powerful looking, just like everyone in his family. There had been talk, due to his Mother’s common status, over whether or not he would have wings and what a scandal it would be if he didn’t, that had been used to try and block the marriage. His birth and glorious Lucis Caelum wings had silenced those detractors. The other kids at school had rather dull wings, greys and browns, nowhere near as large or strong as Noct’s.

Personally, Noctis loved Ignis’ wings. They had developed late, but that wasn’t uncommon in those from Tenebrae. Noctis still remembered the months of pain it had caused his Adviser as muscle, skin and bone had formed, often leaving him bedridden. He had sat with Ignis whenever he could, holding his hand or wiping his face with a cool cloth. Seeing Ignis like that had really scared him, he’d lost his Mother as a baby and he didn’t want to lose Iggy too. It had taken months for him to improve and almost a year for his wings to grow out completely. His wing span wasn’t as large as Noctis’ when compared to his body size but they were pure white and fluffy, very soft.

Gladio had the normal dark brown/gold of the Amicitia family with a massive wingspan but considering his size, it was necessary. His feathers were sleek, almost sharp looking, especially when flared in threat or to protect Noctis. Like Noctis, he had been born with his wings, they were strong enough that Gladio could actually carry Noctis if needed which was a bit scary but good to know in case of emergency. Apparently Clarus had once carried his Dad to escape an assassination attempt.

When Noctis met Prompto, he wasn’t surprised by his lack of wings. The bubbly blonde didn’t try and stare at his wings or touch them, he was always careful when they stood close and when they got close enough to touch, he was careful about how he slung an arm over Noct’s shoulders without making it look like he was being careful. It was nice, he didn’t make a production out of it. Prompto just accepted that Noctis had wings and made allowances for them without needing to be told…..which should have been a rather large hint and yet none of them picked up on it.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

“Are you ever going to accept an invitation to stay the night?” Noct asked as he put the controller down, stretching his wings out. Prompto was sitting on the floor, back against the couch so he wasn’t in hitting range.

Prompto just shrugged and leant his head back to grin up at Noctis. “Maybe,” he laughed, stretching his arms up, cracking his back. “I should head home.” He groaned and stood, putting his controller down.

Noct glanced at the window and frowned, grabbing his phone to check the time. “I think you’ve missed the last bus.”

“What?” he scrambled for his own phone and then groaned. “Guess I’m walking.”

“I’ll call Specs, he can give you a lift or you could stay.”

“Uh, no…it’s fine.”

“Prom it’s dark and I think it’s going to snow, you’ll freeze,” Noctis frowned, standing up. “I have a spare room, why won’t you stay? Nothing bad will happen, this is like the safest building in Insomnia with all the guards. You won’t get in trouble for staying, that was covered in your security clearance. Please…or I call Ignis.”

Prompto hesitated, obviously torn but realising that Noctis wasn’t kidding. “I…uh….okay,” he agreed nervously and Noctis smiled at him.

“Great, I’ll grab you some towels and tuff for the morning,” Noctis grinned and went to the closet off the kitchen, grabbing toiletries and towels for his friend. He put them on the bed, glad it was kept made so they didn’t have to do it. It wasn’t as big as his own, but it was probably big for someone without wings. “Here you go. I’ll see you in the morning,” he smiled, and Prom nodded, still seeming nervous.

“Kay…night,” he went in and closed the door and Noctis frowned when he heard it lock but shrugged it off, if it made him feel safe then that was fine.

Noctis grabbed his phone on his way back through the living room and quickly texted Spec to let him know that Prompto was staying the night. He went into his own room and stripped off, pulling on some loose sleep pants before curling up in his bed, well nest. Yeah, he could sleep in a normal bed like the one in the room where Prompto was sleeping, but he was more comfortable in his nest, bird jokes aside. He curled up and settled down to sleep, enjoying the fact that Prompto was just down the hall and safe, wings stretching out before wrapping around him.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Ignis silently let himself into the apartment, seeing the ratty sneakers next to Noctis’ better quality shoes and the second school bag. Even if Noctis hadn’t texted it would be immediately obvious that Prompto had finally agreed to stay the night. Thankfully it had been a Friday, so the boys didn’t have school, which was probably why they had played games so late that the buses had stopped. He took off his jacket and stretched his wings out, before letting them settle against his back, moving to begin preparing breakfast for two. At least waking Prompto should prove a much easier prospect than waking the Prince. Once breakfast was cooking he went to the guestroom and knocked on the door, surprised to find it was locked. “Prompto? Breakfast will be ready in thirty minutes,” he called but there was no answer, so he knocked louder. “Prompto?” he pulled a set of keys from his pocket and opened the door, stepping inside the darkened room, eyes adjusting to reveal a form on the bed but…something was off. He flicked the lights on and froze, eyes wide.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

He vaguely heard a voice calling but ignored it, snuggling down deeper in the softest bed ever. For once sleeping wasn’t causing pain and his body was determined to make use of that. The sudden light had his eyes opening, blinking and then he realised where he was….he’d locked the door! He rolled off the bed, coming to his feet on the far side of the it, away from the door, to find a frozen Ignis, staring with wide eyes and Prompto tried to back further away, petrified. This wasn’t meant to happen! A whimper or terror was torn from his throat as he glanced at the windows, trying to find a way out.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Ignis couldn’t stop staring as Prompto rolled off the bed, backing against the wall. It took the boy whimpering in fear to snap him out of it and he held his hands up, letting his wings relax to appear as unthreatening as possible. He was blocking the only exit which seemed to be increasing his anxiety, but he didn’t want the younger male to bolt. “Easy Prompto, it is alright,” he soothed automatically.

He was still shocked, Noct’s wingless friend…wasn’t. Prompto had wings unlike anything he had ever seen. There were no feathers at all….the wings composed of some sort of membrane with…yes, there was something on it, fuzzy…fur? And there was something part way along the wing, a bony protuberance of some sort. He jolted out of his thoughtful inspection when Prompto shivered, arms wrapped around himself as he tried to press even deeper into the wall. “It’s alright, no one is going to hurt you,” he soothed, taking a step closer, not liking how he was breathing or how wide his eyes were. “Look at me Prompto,” he urged gently. “I’m not mad, come here,” he held his hand out as Prompto shifted to jam himself into the corner, crumpling to the floor. Ignis took a breath and sank to his own knees, all but crawling slowly towards the terrified teen.

They had thought he was wingless, had treated him thus…had anyone ever treated him properly? Given him the kind of affection and touch that was normal between them? Did anyone even know Prompto had wings? If he hadn’t been born with them, with how much his parents travelled it was possible the boy had hidden them. and with the lack of feathers he could hide them, they looked like they would lie almost fully flat against his back, his clothing wouldn’t even need to be tailored, for bulk. But the length? How had he hidden that? No, right now that didn’t matter. Calming Prompto down and comforting him was important.

He crawled over, kneeling in front of him as Prompto trembled, head buried in his knees, and he brought his own wings forward, wrapping around the huddled form. He reached out with his hands to rest on rigid shoulders, gently rubbing at his skin and Prompto froze before his head snapped up to stare with wide eyes and Ignis smiled gently. He tugged the teen from the corner and into his arms, wings wrapping around him more firmly as he settled Prompto under his chin, rocking him gently. He pressed a kiss to messy hair, shifting a hand to gently stroke the skin between Prompto’s wings and he heard a choked off sob from the teen before ever so slowly his arms wrapped around Ignis in return. “I’ve got you, let it out,” he whispered, tears could be a good thing and he could use the emotional release. Prompto fought it for a few more seconds before he was sobbing into Ignis’ shirt, whole body shaking and Ignis just sat there, whispering occasionally and rubbing his back, the muscles were so tense they felt like rock but gradually they began relaxing.

He looked up as a sleepy Noctis appeared in the doorway, dark blue eyes widening, and he shook his head in warning. Noctis hesitated, waking up quickly as his brain fully registered the sight of his Adviser and friend on the floor, Prompto all but hidden by white wings, obviously in his lap, body heaving as he sobbed. ‘Breakfast,’ Ignis mouthed and he frowned before nodding and heading for the kitchen, pausing to look back before he vanished down the hall. That handled the worry over breakfast burning the kitchen down. He would remain for as long as Prompto needed him too. He knew his own wings had hidden Prompto’s from the Prince’s view or else he never would have left the room.

Eventually the sobs slowed, Prompto limp against him, and he shifted to see that the teen was asleep again. He got his legs under him and stood, wings shifting to help him balance as he walked to the bed and settled him back on it before slipping from the room.

“What happened? Is he alright?” Noctis demanded as he appeared.

Ignis hesitated, it should be up to Prompto to tell Noctis. “I…saw something that upset him. The rest is for him to tell you.”

“Iggy…”

“No Noctis, I will not cause him more emotional trauma.”

Noctis sat down, wings drooping. “Is it bad?”

“I do not believe so,” he was not sure how others would react. Was that why he hid them? Had someone seen and reacted badly? He went to work salvaging breakfast before pulling out his phone and requesting Prompto’s medical file. Perhaps that was an abuse of his position, but if they were going to help Prompto it was information he needed. He did wonder if the teen’s wings were useable or not. If they were then they would need to scheduled time in the training halls to teach him. Even if he couldn’t fly, it was likely he could at least glide using them.

Breakfast was long gone and Noctis was actually getting his homework done when they heard the guestroom door crack open. Before the Prince could do anything, Ignis was down the hall and slipping into the room with Prompto, something in his hands.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Prompto woke up, head aching, confused and then he froze, eyes searching the room, but he was alone. Iggy…Iggy had seen…he knew…what would he do? He remembered the sensation of warm feathers cocooning him, of a gentle hand on his back and he bit back another sob. No one had ever held him like that before. Maybe…maybe he wouldn’t tell? He saw that the door was shut and forced himself to get up and go to it, testing the knob to find it was unlocked, he pushed it open slightly but then his courage fled, and he retreated back to the bed. Seconds later Ignis was slipping inside, closing the door behind him and Prompto was shocked to see a tray in his hands.

“You slept through breakfast so I thought you may be hungry,” Ignis told him, setting the tray down before sitting on the edge of the bed, close, but not too close. “How do you feel?”

Prompto shrugged, eyeing the tray before slowly reaching out for the food.

“Noctis only knows that you were upset, you were well hidden from his sight when he came to the door. So long as neither of you are in danger I will say nothing. However, I believe you should tell him.”

“That I’m a freak?” Prompto muttered.

“You are not a freak,” Ignis stated firmly, startling him. He found the Adviser was even closer now and he tensed as a hand came to rest on his shoulder, tugging him forward until he was in Ignis’ arms again, soft, white, fluffy wings wrapping around him and he shivered, feeling them against his own ugly ones. He’d seen Ignis and Gladio likes this before, even the guys with Noctis but never with him. He could feel some of the ever present tension in his back and wings melting away as he slumped against Ignis. A hand moved into his hair and he sighed, unable to help pressing into it. “Feel better?” Ignis asked gently and he hummed in response, getting a chuckle. “No one’s ever done this for you before, have they?”

“No,” he mumbled. Now he was seeing why Noctis always sought this out though, the Prince of Naps must love the feeling. ”Noct….”

,,,,,,,,,,,,

“Will not think you are a freak either. You are his best friend and he cares deeply for you,” Ignis knew what he was worrying about. “There is a lot we can do to make you more comfortable as well.” He had seen Prompto’s room, the bed must be painful, likely so was however he hid his wings. He hated to think of him trying to do anything he could to hide. “May I ask a few question?” there was silence for a while before Prompto nodded against his chest. “Were you born with your wings?”

“No,” was the whispered answer. “Was eight.”

“I see,” at least he hadn’t spent his whole life in hiding. “Who else knows?”

“My parents.”

That had him frowning. “No one else? How have you kept this from your doctor?” that got a shrug. “Prompto?”

“Never go cause I never get really sick.” He curled a little, trying to cuddle in more and Ignis shifted his grip to help him. He felt sick that no one had ever done this for him. He knew Prompto was adopted and the Argentum’s were wingless…they wouldn’t understand the instincts that came with wings. They should have brought him to one of the centres designed for families where only their children developed wings, let him be socialised with others like him, they could be charged with neglect for not doing that but…he had the feeling fear had played a part, theirs and Prompto’s.

“There are more reasons to see a doctor than being sick,” he finally said. “If you are worried, I can ensure you see a Citadel doctor who will keep full confidentiality,” he promised. “Would you like to see Noct now?” he asked to change the topic when he felt the rapid head shaking over the doctor, he could revisit that idea later. He could feel his hesitation and made sure to keep up the comforting touches. “He’s worried about you.” Finally Prompto nodded slightly and Ignis dug his phone out to text the Prince rather than shout or move away from the teen.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Noctis sat at the table, struggling to focus, listening intently but the shut door cut off anything happening in the bedroom. What had changed between last night and today? Was Prompto going to be okay? It had been odd, seeing Ignis hold Prompto like he would Noct or Gladio. So something really had to be wrong for Iggy to have reacted like that when it wouldn’t help Prom the way it would them. It felt like an eternity before his phone beeped with a text, telling him he was welcome, so he got up and walked to the room, heart racing. He opened the door and found Prompto barely visible, curled in Ignis’ arms, hidden by his wings and he swallowed. “Prom?” it hurt, to see that blonde head flinch but Ignis leant closer, whispering to him, stroking his hair and then he slowly pulled his wings back.

Noctis frowned, confused by what he was seeing, eyes unable to make sense of it at first and then his eyes went wide. Wings…Prompto had wings…they didn’t look right though, and he moved closer. “Prompto?” a trembling hand reached out to touch the wing near him, and it jerked…it was attached to his best friend. He got onto the bed beside them and reached for Prompto with arms and wings. Seeing that, Ignis gently disentangled the boy from himself, letting him fall into Noctis’ arms. It was a good thing he was stronger than he looked, or he would have fallen, as it was, he turned so they lay on the bed face to face, with plenty of room for their wings at their backs but he lifted his right wing and covered Prompto with it even as he wrapped his arms tightly around him, careful of Prompto’s own wings. “I’ve got you,” he whispered, unknowingly echoing Ignis’ words.

“M’sorry, m’sorry,” Prompto mumbled and Noctis hushed him.

“It’s okay Prom, you’ve got nothing to be sorry for,”

“Lied to you,” he sniffled and Noctis smiled.

“I don’t care, I didn’t care that you didn’t have wings and I don’t care if you do. It doesn’t change anything,” he swore, pressing their foreheads together.

“But they’re not normal,” Prompto tried to argue.

Noctis lifted a hand, letting to hover over one of his wings, eyes asking for permission and Prompto shakily nodded. Noctis smiled and gently touched the membrane, running along it until he came to something that stuck out along the top. He touched it and it moved….kind of like a finger or toe. He then ran his fingers down the back before blinking, it wasn’t fuzz or fur but feathers, tiny, useless feather but still feathers. He looked at Prompto’s face to find his eyes screwed shut and he frowned. “Does it hurt?” he asked, hand freezing but Prompto shook his head. “The feathers are soft,” he told his friend and he slowly opened his eyes, searching Noctis’ face. “There is nothing wrong with your wings,” he promised, shifting and gently tugging the left wing out and under his own outstretched one, feeling it slide against his feathers and Prompto gasped, eyes wide. “Feel good?” he asked and Prompto nodded. “It’s meant to.”

“You’re not mad?”

“Nope,” he grinned at his friend. “Though I have no clue how you’ve managed to hide these beauties. You had your back jammed into the edge of the couch last night! That must have killed.” He would have been in agony sitting like that.

Prompto pulled back and sat up, chewing his lip nervously before he closed his eyes and took a deep breath and Noctis jumped as his wings shrank from sight, vanishing.

“How?” he blinked in shock as Prompto became wingless.

TBC….

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: Not mine

Chapter 2

Noctis stared in shock as Prompto’s wings shrank away, that wasn’t possible. Not even magic let his Dad hide his wings! He reached out and cautiously felt along Prompto’s back, feeling firm, smooth skin under his hands, they hadn’t just become invisible or something. “How?” he asked again, shock fading to wonder.

Prompto just shrugged, staring down at his lap. “Always been able to do it, since they finished growing.”

“It’s amazing,” Noctis told him and the blonde head shot up, his friend stating at him with wide eyes.

“Really?” he whispered shakily and Noctis nodded, reaching out to pull Prompto back into his arms and down onto the bed, wrapping his wings and arms around him.

“You never have to hide here,” he promised, settling Prompto’s head over his heart, a hand running through his hair, soothing him. “Can you fly?” he asked after a while, feeling how relaxed Prompto had become.

“Don’t know,” he mumbled. “Never tried…told had to hide ‘em.”

Hearing that, Noctis hated Prompto’s parents but he also sort of understood why. He had enough trouble with the kids at school whispering behind his back, and he’d had to intervene for the other winged kids several times. How much worse would it be for Prompto with his very different wings? He rubbed Prompto’s back and Prom sighed, wings slowly extending and Noctis smiled at the trust that showed. “I’ll book out a training room one day and we can work with you,” he promised.

“Not a freak?” Prompto asked very softly and Noctis tightened his grip.

“No, you’re not,” he swore.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Prompto curled into Noctis, listening to his words. Surely Iggy and Noctis couldn’t both be wrong? So…maybe he wasn’t a freak after all. He felt safer than he ever had since his wings had emerged. The idea of being able to have his wings out at the apartment when he wanted was nice, he knew the muscles in them were weak because he kept them hidden all the time. The only time they came out was at night when he was sure of being alone. He hadn’t been able to resist last night, despite the risk of being seen, it hurt to keep them retracted for too long. He’d never been so comfortable before and he didn’t want it to end. “Don’t want to move,” he mumbled, and he felt and heard Noctis chuckle.

“Then we won’t, I’ve got nothing on today,” the Prince promised. If he did have something then Specs could cancel it, Prompto needed him. He grabbed his phone and texted Ignis only to get one back that it was already done. Then a question popped up and Noctis sighed. “Prom?”

“Mmm?”

“Would you let us tell Gladio? It’ll make things easier and he’s best to teach you to fly,” he explained, feeling Prompto tense a bit. “He won’t think you’re a freak either.” Noctis knew Gladio, knew his Shield was not as hard and gruff as he’d like others to think he was. He would be more concerned that Prompto wasn’t looking after his wings properly than the fact they were different. Finally, Prom nodded so he texted Ignis again.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Gladio grabbed his phone and frowned as he read the text from Ignis, it was odd. Good thing he was done so he grabbed his bag and left the training hall, heading for Noct’s apartment. There was nothing alarming in the text, none of the codes used, so he didn’t rush. When he arrived Ignis let him in quietly and he frowned, quiet, the apartment was way too quiet. “Ignis?”

“They’re fine,” he answered, glancing over at the guest room. “It’s been a rather emotionally taxing morning.” He ushered Gladio over to the couch and sat down to explain rather than make Prompto go through it again.

Gladio stared at him in disbelief. “You serious?”

“Indeed.”

“Prompto has wings?” he didn’t believe it but Ignis nodded seriously. How had the kid managed to hide them? Okay, so he’d never seen him without a shirt but that wasn’t enough to hide wings…except somehow his were retractable. He didn’t like it, he’d come to tolerate the blonde, even sort of like him, but he did not like this at all. If he could hide wings from them all, what else could he be hiding?

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

While Gladio thought things over, Ignis went back to his research. While it wasn’t foolproof, wing types did tend to be linked to area of origin. Such as his own white wings being the normal in Tenebrae. Gladio and Noctis were more specialised cases, their wings running only in their family lines. Just because they had never heard of wings like Prompto’s, didn’t mean they didn’t exist, they knew Prompto was adopted after all. He searched the records of his own ancestral home first due to Prompto’s fair colouring. Thankfully they had records from before Tenebrae was taken over by the Empire since getting them now would be impossible. He was actually startled when his phone rang. “Scientia,” he answered.

“Why are you requesting Argentum’s medical file?”

Ignis blinked in confusion, “Marshall?” he question caught Gladio’s attention but all Ignis could do was shrug.

“Prompto Argentum’s medical file, why are you requesting it?”

Ignis hesitated, not willing to say anything to anyone yet but he had to give the man some kind of answer. “Something came up,” he winced as soon as the words were out of his mouth.

“Is he injured?”

“No sir,” why was the Marshall involved? He hadn’t even known the man was all that aware of Prompto beyond being Noctis’ school friend.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Cor frowned; something was definitely going on. He glanced down at the file on his desk, the only copy of the file on one Prompto Argentum. There was no computer copy for the kids safety and the things was stamped very clearly, Classified. His desire to take the child on himself had been denied but he had been able to do that much to protect him, ensuring that he controlled the information on the boy. He had watched him from afar the whole of the kids life in Insomnia, hating that the boy was all but abandoned by his adopted parents. Something had happened when he was eight that had really made them pull away, but he hadn’t been able to find out what. Since then he’d made sure to slip the kid extra money since his ‘parents’ never left enough. He’d been happy when Prompto and Noctis had become friends, they both needed one desperately. Yes, the Prince had his Shield and Adviser, but they had been chosen for him. He had handled getting Prompto security clearance, the checks had been easy since he kept an eye on the kid.

“Sir?”

“I’ll be there in twenty minutes,” he told the young man before hanging up. He picked up the file and left his office, telling Monica he was going to see the Prince. He needed to know what was going on. Maybe it was time Prompto learnt the truth and Noctis had the clearance level needed to open the file for him and the others if necessary. Regis might not like it but Prompto was seventeen, old enough to know and understand why it had to be kept secret.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Ignis stared at his phone and then stood, going to knock on the guestroom door.

“Come in,” Noct called softly.

Ignis opened the door to find the two teens curled tightly together, Prompto all but hidden beneath black wings. “The Marshall is on his way,” Ignis informed him softly.

“Why?”

“I requested Prompto’s medical file and for some reason that came to his attention. As I was unable to give a proper answer as to why I wished to see it, he said he was coming.”

“Cor’s the one that did Prom’s security clearance,” Noctis whispered, running his fingers through blonde hair.

“I have begun searching the records to see what I can find on his wings, they may be linked to a specific region or blood line,” ignis offered and Noctis smiled.

“I think he’d like to know where he came from, if maybe he has some family out there.”

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Ignis opened the door, letting the Marshall in as soon as he knocked, taking his coat for him, freeing dark grey wings which Cor stretched briefly. In his hand he carried a file and that surprised Ignis. “Shall I get his Highness and Prompto?”

Cor nodded. “If you want information on Prompto then he should hear it too.”

“Of course,” he slipped away and knocked on the door, opening it. “Cor is here, and he has a file with him.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Noctis nodded and went to work waking Prompto up. Usually it was the other way around but Prompto had been through an emotional ringer, so it wasn’t surprising he was sleeping. “Hey,” he whispered as bright blue eyes fluttered open.

“Hmm?” Prompto rubbed his eyes and Noct smiled.

“Cor is here, apparently Iggy put a request in for your medical files to make sure you’re being looked after, and he called.”

That had Prompto shooting upright, eyes wide. “Cor the Immortal? The Marshall?” he yelped, breathing speeding up a bit even as his wings vanished.

“That Cor. He’s the one who did your security clearance so maybe he knows something?” Noct offered and Prompto chewed at his lip. “Hey, it’ll be okay. We won’t say anything about your wings. We can see what’s in the file that had him come over and then decide what to do, okay?” He gripped his friends shoulder, grounding him and Prompto eventually nodded shakily. He hated Prompto’s anxiety but at least know he knew where it came from….hopefully his wings were the only cause anyway. Noctis stood and stretched his wings, grabbing Prompto’s shirt and tossing it to him so he could put it on and then they left the bedroom.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Cor watched as Noctis emerged from the hall, body tense, wings held semi-aggressively and he saw the reason a second later. Prompto was pale, shoulders hunched, posture…almost frail. What had happened? The Prince’s message was clear, Prompto was under his protection and he would fight to keep him safe. Cor let his own wings relax, posture as open as he could manage these days, staying seated so that he wouldn’t appear to loom over them, the downside to being so tall.

He had checked on Prompto only a week ago, the kid had been his normal self, camera never far from his hands, smiling and chatting. Now he was hunched in on himself, almost like he was expecting a blow. A glance at the others showed the instant concern in Ignis and a milder version in Gladio. Had the teen been attacked? Ignis had said he was uninjured though. It hurt, to have the boy eye him warily but he had been a mere toddler when Cor had rescued him, no more than two years old. It was likely he remembered nothing of his life before the Argentum’s, nothing of the months with Cor, first on the road and then in Insomnia. He had stayed with the boy through all of the tests, had taken him home for a few wonderful weeks…and then the Council had stuck their noses in. His request for permanent custody had been denied, he was unsuitable to raise a child and just in case Prompto turned out to be a threat then it was best he not be so close to such an important figure. He wondered if any of them knew of Noctis’ best friend...and that he was the same boy, he doubted it since none of them had a screaming fit or stroke over the friendship.

“Cor,” Noctis greeted, guiding Prompto to a seat where he was protected between Prince and Adviser.

“Your Highness, Mr Argentum,” he greeted both boys. The blonde gave a half wave, chewing his lip nervously. “Are you alright?” he asked the blonde, trying to be gentle, not his strong suite.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Prompto blinked at being addressed by the Marshall himself! He...he almost sounded...it wasn’t possible, was it? But he sounded concerned and…there was something else….something almost…familiar? He couldn’t help studying the man he’d only seen on the TV or in pictures before. “I….do I…know you?” and then he flinched back, it was a stupid question.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Ignis blinked at Prompto’s shaky question and then his eyes widened slightly as he heard the sharp inhale from Cor….there was something going on, but he wasn’t sure what.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Cor inhaled sharply at the question. It wasn’t possible…was it? “Prompto,” he called, remembering how he had spoken to a terrified, traumatised, child so many years ago. Blue eyes slowly lifted to meet his gaze and the boy blinked, shaking now, eyes widening.

“Prom?” Noctis called in alarm.

“You….it was you….” Prompto gasped out, tears falling, and Cor slid from the chair to kneel before the boy who fell from the couch and into his arms, sobbing and Cor held him, it felt as natural as it had when he had been a toddler. He felt the teen cling and he let him, running a gloved hand through blonde locks, ignoring the startled and confused looks from the Prince and his Retainers. “You left…you promised but you left,” Prompto sobbed.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Noctis watched, frozen as his best friend broke down again, this time in Cor’s arms. How many times had Cor held him like that as a kid? The man was stern, gruff…unless you knew him. He had a definite soft spot for kids thought Gladio said he hadn’t when he’d been that little. So what had changed between Gladio and himself….was it…could he be Prompto’s dad? No….they didn’t look anything alike, other than both having blue eyes, but they were very different shades.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

“I’m sorry,” Cor whispered to the distraught teen, beginning to second guess himself. Maybe he shouldn’t have come, if he hadn’t then Prompto wouldn’t remember him leaving him. How much did he remember? He prayed to the Six that he didn’t remember the labs now. Noctis surprised him by wriggling in behind Prompto, shifting his wings forward to wrap around them as he plastered himself along his friends back, forehead resting on against his neck. The move shocked Cor but he brought his own wings up, cocooning Prompto between them. Eventually the crying tapered off and the only reason he knew Prompto was awake as because of the death grip on his shirt. “How much do you remember?” he asked as gently as he could.

Prompto slowly lifted his head, revealing swollen, puffy, eyes, bloodshot from crying. “I…um…an apartment? You and a woman who watched me when you weren’t there. Strangers coming, loud voices…then my…parents…you never came back… Camping and somewhere cold but you were always there.”

“I tried to gain custody of you but was denied,” Cor said, seeing the shock on three other faces, Noctis lifting his head to reveal wide eyes. “The camping is from when I brought you to Insomnia.”

“You brought Prompto to the city?” Ignis asked in surprise and Cor nodded.

Cor nodded at Noctis to back up and the teen hesitated but shifted and Cor stood, keeping Prompto in his arms as he moved to sit on the couch, Noctis settling beside him, hand on Prompto’s back.

“Why?” Prompto asked quietly.

Cor hesitated, technically the information was classified, however if the Prince was aware of it’s existence he could order Cor to reveal it. He glanced at the file with the obvious classified stamp and then at Noctis who frowned before getting up to retrieve it, hissing when he saw the classification level and Prompto’s name.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

“What? Why?” Noctis took a deep breath. This was at the edge of what he was allowed to see when it came to classified documents, there was only one person with clearance higher and that was his Dad! “I’m ordering this file declassified for Prompto Argentum, Ignis Scientia, Gladiolus Amicitia. Report Marshall,” Noctis stated firmly, with every bit of Princely authority he could dredge up. The sight of the file…it terrified him. Why would Prompto’s file be so classified, unless there was something dangerous in it. Did they know who his birth family were? Had Cor kidnapped him or something?

“Noct?” Prompto looked at him, looking utterly lost.

“This is your file Prom, and it’s really classified,” he kept it simple for him. He’d been through so much already today and now something more was going to be revealed. He looked at Cor, “Why?”

“For his protection,” Cor answered. He looked back at Prompto. “I could not approach you, not without bringing far too much attention after everyone apparently forgot you existed. That does not mean you were abandoned.”

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Prompto frowned in confusion before swallowing. “The extra money…the camera…that was you?”

“Through others to deliver it.”

Prompto nodded in wonder. His ‘parents’ didn’t always send enough money to cover everything, but it had never truly become a problem because extra money would appear in an envelope. The camera had appeared on his thirteenth birthday, wrapped but with no card. There had been other small things over the years, especially since his parents had found out about his wings and begun ignoring him. “Where do I come from?” he asked, and Cor looked at him before glancing at the others.

“Fifteen years ago I was on a mission. I returned with files, and you.”

Prompto turned when he heard a noise, seeing something in Ignis’ expression. “Iggy?”

Ignis stared at Cor. “Niflheim, your mission was to Niflheim,” he stated as if he’d just worked something out, and Cor hesitated but then nodded.

Prompto froze in horror. No…it wasn’t possible…it couldn’t be! He didn’t even realise he was shaking his head madly until Noctis wrapped around him.

“Shh, it’s okay. It doesn’t change anything,” Noctis promised. “You are a Crown Citizen, no matter where you were born.”

“Noctis is correct,” Ignis spoke up as well. “You are registered as a Crown Citizen.” He then looked at Cor. “Did you kidnap him?”

“Technically,” Cor admitted.

“You kidnapped me?” Prompto pulled back, now watching Cor a little warily.

“I saved you,” Cor answered firmly. “Where I found you…do you remember anything before me?”

Prompto frowned, closing his eyes, trying to focus, to remember anything. “I….I…” he shivered and Noctis tightened his grip on him as Prompto gasped and then whimpered, curling into him. “It hurt…” he rubbed at his right wrist absently, eyes now open but unseeing as he trembled in Noctis’ arms. His hand drifted up to where his bandana was wrapped around his arm like always. “Needles….tubes…” he turned and buried his face against Noct who curled his wings around him protectively.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

“Shh….it’s okay, I’ve got you. You aren’t there Prom, you’re here and we won’t let anyone hurt you.” He pressed a kiss to the top of Prompto’s head, stroking his back. He hated this whole day for the pain it was causing his friend. He was not an emotional person, he preferred not to show what he was feeling, to hold himself back…but Prompto needed him, needed to know he was loved. He was really not liking what little information they had gained so far on Prom’s life before Cor. “Who hurt him? Why?” he demanded as he rocked Prompto.

“The government. It was a lab I infiltrated. What I found there…” Cor shook his head. “You know of the new Magitek soldiers?” he asked, and they all nodded, except Prompto who was watching him from the safety of Noctis’ arms. “In order to create the army, they were cloning people, growing children in labs to be raised as soldiers.”

“I was one of them,” Prompto whispered and Cor nodded. “Is that why…” he held his right hand out.

“Yes, every child I saw had one.”

“One what?” Gladio asked in confusion.

Prompto hesitated but then removed the wrist band Noctis had given him to replace his old one when it had gotten too old.

Noctis stared, it was…he reached out and gently took Prompto’s wrist in his hand, running his fingers over the skin, feeling slightly raised lines under his fingers “How could they…” his voice was shaking with grief and anger as he tightened his hold on his friend.

“Barbaric,” Ignis snarled, hands balled into fists as he saw the barcode literally ingrained into the younger males wrist. How could anyone do that to another human, to a child….then again, Cor had said clones…likely the scientists simply didn’t see them as children.

“I couldn’t do anything except take one child and as much information as I could.”

“Why did you pick me?” Prompto asked and Cor actually smirked.

,,,,,,,,,,

“You picked me,” Cor told him. “All the others were quiet, sleeping. You woke up and reached out past the wires, you wanted to be held. So I picked you up and you just cuddled right into my chest, put your thumb in your mouth and fell asleep. I couldn’t leave you there after that. I unhooked the wires, grabbed the file attached to your sleeping berth and then left. It took time to get home and then you spent time in isolation here, being tested to ensure there was nothing dangerous. I stayed with since if there was then I was already exposed. When you were released you came back to my apartment and I petitioned for custody but was denied.”

“Why? Surely Dad…” Noctis spoke up and Cor shook his head.

“He was wary, and he was right to be with how little we knew, but he also trusted my instincts.”

“The Council,” Ignis said and Cor nodded.

“They did not want a possible threat so close to the Citadel, they chose the Argentum’s to adopt you. It appears that they have forgotten you over the years as that was not an objection raised to you befriending Noctis.”

“You wanted me?” Prompto sat up and away from Noctis, staring at Cor.

“I did. Though I had my concerns, I was worried about influencing you into joining the Crownsguard when you were old enough. You were born to be a soldier and I wanted you to have the freedom to grow up and be whatever you wanted.”

“Who was the woman who watched me?”

“Monica Elshett, my aide. She was willing to look after you when work kept me away and was very upset when you were sent away. She has been my eyes in watching over you.”

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

“Oh.” Prompto slumped back into Noctis’ arms. He didn’t know what to think, his mind spinning with everything Cor had said. He was nothing more than a science experiment. He guessed that explained his horrible wings as well as the barcode and the odd scars under his bandana. No wonder his ‘parents’ couldn’t stand the sight of him now, his wings the final proof of what he was. He felt a hand on his arm and looked down to see Cor’s large, calloused, hand resting on him.

“No matter why you were born, you are Prompto Argentum now,” he insisted and Prompto nodded shakily, was it really that easy? Cor glanced over at Ignis. “Why did you want his medical file?”

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Ignis was torn, it seemed the Marshall cared for Prompto more than he could have imagined. He didn’t know if Noctis or Prompto had realised it yet, but if he had been raised a Leonis….they would have known each other from childhood, grown up together in the Citadel. Would they be the friends they were today if that had happened? With Prompto’s past it was unlikely he would have been chosen as a companion for Noctis, instead brought in by his father. How much better and more stable would Prompto’s childhood have been in the Marshall’s care? “Prompto?” he called; he would not betray the teens trust.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Prompto stared at Cor from the safety of Noctis’ arms. Could he trust him? He’d promised not to leave him…but in a way he hadn’t, he had watched over him from a distance, made sure he had enough. He sat up away from Noctis slowly.

“You don’t have to Prom,” Noctis whispered, but Prompto shook his head, reaching for the hem of his shirt only to have Noctis gently pull it up and over his head and he pressed back into his hands briefly before closing his eyes and letting his wings slide free.

TBC….

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: Not mine

Chapter 3

Cor watched as Prompto sat forward and then the Prince helped remove his shirt, eyes automatically scanning his torso, seeing the extremely faded scars that had still been red when he had taken the toddler from the lab. And then his eyes went wide in shock as something emerged from his back….wings, wings unlike any he had seen before. The kid had his shoulders hunched, looking anywhere but at him and he had the sinking feeling he knew why the Argentum’s had pulled away. He reached out slowly, making sure Prompto saw his hand coming, resting it on his shoulder and wary blue eyes slowly came up to meet his. “Does that hurt?” he asked and Prompto looked startled but then shook his head.

“Prom?” Noct asked and Cor realised he’d picked up on something.

“If…I keep them retracted too long it hurts a bit.”

“That is why you locked the bedroom door, so you could sleep with them out,” Ignis spoke up and Prompto nodded.

“I always have them out when asleep.”

Cor saw Noctis’ eyes go wide at that admission.

“But…I’ve seen your room, it’s tiny! How do you fit?”

“Not like my wings are that big,” he rolled his eyes.

“May I take a closer look?” Cor asked and Prompto hesitated but then got up and turned around before sitting again, face to face with Noctis, leaving his back to Cor. Cor studied the wings carefully, looking over the membrane that formed them, seeing the strong bone along the top that even as he watched, moved, bending. The outer wing had a crisscross pattern of some sort but in some parts of the membrane he could see fine veins running through it. A bit more than half way along there was a bony  protuberance, almost like a finger. What he first thought was fur was actually a multitude of tiny feathers, soft, and useless for flight, more likely used for warmth. “Can I touch?” he asked and Prompto tensed, Noctis taking his hands, before he slowly nodded. he carefully reached over and gently ran his hands over the wings, they felt nothing like any others he had ever known of. “When did they come in?”

“When I was eight,” Prompto answered softly.

“Ah.” Well, that explained the Argentum’s…who he would be having stern words with the next time they returned to the city. “The muscles are weak, you’ll need to do a lot of work to get these flight capable, but it should be doable,” he assured the young man. “There may be some information in the file I stole form your berth when I took you but it’s in Gralean and it’s never been fully translated.”

“May I see?” Ignis asked and Cor looked to Noctis who was still holding the file, but he quickly passed it over and Ignis opened it. Prompto retracted his wings since Cor was done and Noctis pulled him back into his arms, running his hands up and down his back to keep him calm.

Gladio leant over Ignis’ shoulder but couldn’t make heads or tails of what was written. “You can read that?”

“How can I advise Noctis if I cannot translate documents?” Ignis answered as he flipped through the information. What he was reading sickened him though he tried to keep it from his expression, his wings however were harder to keep from showing anything, flickering and dipping even as he tried to keep them still.

“Specs?” Noctis knew how to read the subtle movements of his friends wings well.

Ignis looked up and they were shocked to see tears in his eyes. He put the file aside and moved back to the couch, kneeling in front of Prompto, reaching up to run gentle fingers through soft blonde hair. Ignis stared at Prompto’s eyes, bright blue, not the violet described in the file…violet that would have turned to full red one day if not for Cor. The idea of the bubbly teen turned into one of those mechanical nightmares… he reached out and pulled him down into a hug, wings wrapping protectively around him. “How could anyone do that to a baby?” he choked out and then he felt Prompto’s arms wrap around him.

“Iggy?” Prompto whispered, terrified about what he may have read. A hand moved to card through his hair. “What is it?”

“They were…using the babies they made for the MT program to experiment, playing with DNA to see what they could do. I am not a scientist but from what I could tell, they were mixing in samples from a lot of places. Things they had dug up, daemons, beasts, whatever took their fancy. From the wording in your record they injected you with daemon blood and introduced something that they recovered from fossilized remains as well as another human apart from the original DNA donor. From the image of the fossil, I would guess that is where your wings come.” He opened the file to the correct page, showing the picture of some sort of winged creature. It was definitely not a bird.

“I think I’m gonna be sick,” Prompto groaned and Ignis let him go, Prompto getting up from the couch to help him up, rushing him to the bathroom.

“I can’t believe….” Gladio trailed off, sickened by what Ignis had translated. How could anyone do that to another living being? Cor had managed to save one baby, how many others had there been? How many innocent lives had they destroyed, sent to face the Kingsglaive on the battle field?

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Noctis steadied Prompto as he lost his breakfast, getting a cool damp cloth to put on the back of his neck. “Better?” he asked softly as Prompto finished heaving.

“Don’t touch me,” Prompto whispered, pulling away.

“Prom?” Noctis felt a flash of hurt at the words.

“You shouldn’t….not human, just an experiment,” he had his eyes clenched tightly shut, tears gathering.

Noctis felt the urge to go to Niflheim and skewer Aldercapt personally for ever allowing such things to take place. Then again, if they hadn’t, he wouldn’t have his best friend. “Don’t you dare say that,” he snapped, Prompto’s eyes snapping open at his tone. Noctis shifted to sit on the floor, pulling Prompto with him, curling his wings around Prompto, glad he had a big bathroom, or it would be very difficult to move his wings about. “You are more human than most the people I know. It doesn’t matter what they did to you or what they intended for you to be. You are Prompto Argentum, Crown Citizen and my best friend,” he stated firmly, staring him in the eye. When Prompto opened his mouth to argue, Noctis leant in and kissed him, going beet red as he pulled back, nervously waiting for Prompto to say or do something, other than stare at him. “Prom?”

“I…you…why?”

Noctis fidgeted awkwardly, his reaction could have been worse. “You’re my best friend and…” why couldn’t he be better at talking? “I uh…really like you…”

“But…but…I’m just…I’m a commoner. You’re meant to marry a Princess or something.”

“So was my Mother,” Noctis pointed out softly. “There’s no law about who a Royal can be with, so long as the line of succession is secured somehow. If…if you don’t like me like that, you can just say, I won’t be mad.” It would hurt but better to know. Though he probably could have chosen a better time to do this, poor Prompto had had an emotionally trying day and it was barely lunch time!

“You really?”

“Yeah,” Noctis’ wings flicked form his nerves and then chapped lips were pressed against his. He kissed back, grinning at Prompto when he pulled back.

“I should rinse my mouth or something.” Prompto went to get up and stumbled so Noctis steadied him, getting up as well.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Gladio watched the two as they emerged from the bathroom, Prompto a bit pale but calmer and then he saw their hands and mentally groaned. He had no issue with the two of them getting together…but they could have gotten the timing better! They needed to deal with Prompto’s past and his wings first. The fact that his wings retracted meant that theoretically they could remain hidden and Cor now knew about them now so he could tell the King if he thought it necessary. He didn’t want to think the kid could ever be a threat. Iggy was sure of his translation, that there was no mention of anything that could control him or make him turn on them. The reports from the Citadel scientists proved that the Scourge had been purged from his body within weeks of leaving Niflheim. They were sure he was just a normal boy by the time they released him. And Prompto made Noctis happier than he’d ever seen him…as happy as Ignis made him.  

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Cor watched the two, happy for them. Happiness was all he had wanted for the boy and Noctis deserved it just as much. He was going to have to tell Regis about this and Prompto’s wings, the results Ignis had translated. Ancient animal DNA was no threat to the realm, even if he did one day have children, if he could. If his DNA had been messed with he might not be able to. Their timing probably could have been better but Prompto would need Noctis’ support as he came to terms with his past. He stood up and gathered the file, Ignis would write out a translation of it later to add to the paperwork.

“You’re going?” Prompto asked nervously and he nodded.

“Ignis has my number, you can call me,” Cor offered and Prompto smiled shyly. He said his goodbyes and left; the kids could use some time to relax.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Prompto lay in bed, smiling to himself as he stretched his wings, ignoring the ache. Gladio had jumped right into teaching him, he had to build up strength before he could even think about trying to fly. It was nice being in a bed big enough to really stretch out in, he’d hate going back to his own, but he couldn’t live in Noct’s apartment, it wouldn’t be proper even if they weren’t sharing a bed. He had never dreamed of anyone accepting his strange wings and yet they all had. Even better, he knew he had been wanted, and by Cor himself! He had idolised the Marshal for years…was that because he had known deep down that he knew him? that he’d been happy with him even if only for a little while. The knowledge he’d been used as a lab rat was something he would rather not deal with, but he knew he would have to. And there was a question he dreaded finding the answer to…whose clone was he? Some army grunt? A noble? A scientist? He had no way to find out, the Empire wasn’t going to let them see the DNA profiles of their citizens after all.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Normally, Noctis was asleep the instant his head hit the pillow but not tonight. He was torn between giddy happiness and concern, all centred on the one person. He had kissed Prompto and Prompto had kissed him back! Finding out Prompto had wings had been a shock, but a good one. It would make giving him a spot in his retinue easier since one of the arguments against him would have been his inability to keep up when they took to the air. Then again, Prompto may not want others to know when his wings were so different. He hated the thought of Prompto as a baby, locked away in some lab being experimented on. They had to win the war, not just for their own people, but for everyone like Prompto. He would find a way to do it if his Dad didn’t. If they could do that to a bunch of cloned babies, what were they doing to the rest of the population?

TBC…

short chapter I know but it’s exam time. not much more of this story to go.

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: not mine

Chapter 4

Prompto stood on the ledge, Noctis beside him, black wings fully extended, and he slowly brought his own at as well, revelling in the freedom of being able to do so. They were strong now, the tiny feathers healthy, bones strong. After a year of gentle exercise and training it was time to see what his wings could do. Gladio, Ignis and Cor were spread through the room, ready to intervene if it looked like he was in trouble and Noctis couldn’t handle it.

“Ready?” Noct asked with a grin, offering his hand and Prompto took it, grinning back before Noct was pulling him off the ledge, their wings spread out, forcing them to let go of the others hand.

Prompto focused on letting instinct guide him, flapping his wings to gain altitude. He felt…free. Gliding was so easy, and he twisted and turned through the air, whooping in joy. Noctis paced him as best he could, grinning at how happy Prompto was. Soon all four of them were playing around in the air, all keeping an eye on Prompto who eventually had to land, breathing heavily as he grinned.

They got cleaned up and headed back to Noct’s apartment where Prompto lived these days, though his official address was Cor’s tiny apartment outside of the Citadel. Cor had gone to Regis and when his parents had returned to the city they had found themselves arrested for their treatment of him. They should have informed Cor when his wings developed but instead they had isolated him, made him hate himself and fear anyone finding out. At seventeen there wasn’t much need of a guardian, but Cor had quietly filed the papers, with the help of Regus and Clarus, to make himself Prompto’s legal guardian. They thankfully managed to do it without the Council finding out and raising a stink over it.

Graduation was in three days and they were both excited to be done with school, although Prompto had signed up for a photography course while waiting for his application to the Crownsguard to be processed. With the King himself backing it as well as Cor it was basically a formality. He would officially be one of Noctis’ retainers once he got through training.

Noctis had been sneaky and gone against convention, giving him access to magic already. It hadn’t come easily to Prompto at all. He still struggled at times to pull what he meant to from the Armiger but at least he was able to retrieve things now. The only theory they could come up with was because he was from Niflheim and there had never been magic on that continent, leaving the people basically unable to wield it, or it was something that had been added into his genes, such as the creature he got his wings from that made it harder. According to the file, his body had adapted to the Scourge faster than normal, so maybe whatever caused that made magic harder for him, there was no way to know. They’d had Noct’s personal physician go through Prompto’s medical file and then run some tests on him just to see how he was since there was no telling what the various genes may do as he got older, after all, MT’s weren’t designed to be long term troops. So far everything looked okay although one odd thing had popped up, a similar gene in Prompto that was found only one place else….the Lucian Royal family, although it was dormant in Prompto’s case. Which meant one of the two human DNA donors was somehow distantly related to Regis and Noctis. Very distantly seeing as there was nothing else in common between them but somewhere in Prompto’s family tree was a Lucis Caelum. That had freaked him out a little. Ignis had thankfully pointed out that there was no way he could ever be asked to rule should something ever happen to the King and Noctis since the relationship was far too distant and he would likely be unable to wield the Crystal’s magic since he’d had so much trouble with what Noctis shared.

Things between him and Noctis were going better than he ever could have dreamed of. They were being careful not to rush anything, especially with all of the things that Prompto had been hit with since revealing his wings to Noctis. They still slept in separate bedrooms and everything. Prompto had to admit that his back and wings definitely felt better since he could stretch out in the massive spare bed, not that anyone really considered it that anymore. Pretty much everything he owned was now in the room, photos covering the walls and Ignis had bought bedding to suite his taste rather than the Royal black. Once high school was done, Noct would be expected to take on more Royal duties, not to mention more training so living in the same apartment at least meant they would see each other at some point every day.

Their lives were changing and for once it didn’t scare Prompto.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Prompto knelt before the King, head bowed, but he could feel Noctis’ eyes locked onto him as he gave the Crownsguard oath. He managed to get through it without forgetting a word or stuttering or babbling which was great and then Noctis stepped forward, dressed in Princely raiment and offered his hand. Prompto took it and kissed the back as Noctis summoned up his magic, making it look like it was only now being granted to the blonde. It meant it would appear that he was a prodigy when it came to wielding magic, like Glaive Ulric but they weren’t going to admit Noct had done it early, the idea was to keep the Council from looking too closely and realising who Prompto was, though now that he was one of Noctis’ retinue they couldn’t really say anything,

Once done they returned to the apartment for a party to welcome Prompto officially into the retinue.

“Kinda feels like cheating, making people think I’ve only just been linked to Noct’s magic,” he admitted from where he was sprawled half in Noctis’ lap, enjoying the sword calloused fingers that were running over his wings.

“There is no official rule stating that this is when the magic is to be bestowed. If it makes you feel better, then just don’t deny or confirm when it happened,” Ignis answered, for once relaxing with them, leaning against Gladio who was gently preening one of his wings for him.

“I guess…” he sighed, going boneless under Noctis’ expert ministrations. How had he ever lived without this? He couldn’t imagine going back to a time when he had to hide his wings all of the time. He felt lips press against the back of his neck and smiled, wrapping an arm around Noct’s waist.

“What’s for dinner?” Gladio asked after a while.

“Green curry soup, fresh bread and salad,” Ignis answered, sleepily. “Just heat the oven and stove, I prepared it all earlier. Chocolate lava cake for dessert.”

“My favourites,” Prompto smiled happily and Noctis laughed, ruffling his hair. Of course Ignis had cooked his favourites, it was a celebration for him.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Prompto followed Noctis around, dressed in his finest clothes, in black of course, not visibly armed but ready and able to defend his Prince at a split seconds notice. Ignis was talking with someone across the room and Gladio was watching them all from his Dad’s side. Today was the big day, Noctis was officially twenty years old. Whispers were flying over whether or not the Prince would be looking for a bride soon and who the lucky lady would be, if not the Lady Lunafreya since she was basically a prisoner in Tenebrae when not travelling for her duties as Oracle. Why the people thought they would be a good couple he didn’t know, there had never been the case of an Oracle marrying the King. Their various relatives occasionally married but not the direct heirs. Noctis’ great-great-grandfather had been an Oracle’s son who had wed the reigning Queen of the time. that was the last time the bloodlines had mixed, although apparently there was rumour that his Mother had Oracle blood but even further back in her family tree. It was why there was no hope of tracking Prompto’s link to the Royal family, too many cousins and multiple births to the reigning monarch to even try and track down who he was descended from. Though, for the last four generations, there had only ever been an heir born, no ‘spare’. Some people thought the strain of the Wall was what was causing the drop in birth rate, but no one could say for sure.

They hadn’t gone public with their relationship and he dreaded the backlash when they did, especially amongst those who wanted Noct to marry Lunafreya. An heir would be provided at some point, though neither of them was looking forward to that, and that was all the law required. They both knew it would need to be within the next year or so due to the way the Crystal drained the ruling King’s strength. Regis looked older than he was, and his health was declining. Noctis wanted his Dad to have time with his grandchild, unlike Mors who had died years before Noctis was conceived.  

Prompto glanced down as a hand brushed his and then glanced up, seeing the question in Noctis’ eyes. Maybe this was as best a time and place as any, so he slowly let their fingers tangle together, making sure it was their off hands, just to be safe. It took time but eventually people began to notice and whisper, but they said nothing to either of their faces as they wandered over towards the King who smiled and clapped Prompto on the shoulder, visibly giving his blessing. That made the whispers louder.

The official announcement was made three days later.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

“This isn’t fair!” Noctis snarled as he stormed into his chambers in the Citadel where they were staying for a few nights due to too many meetings and training sessions.

“Noct?” Prompto rolled off the couch, seeing the look on his lovers face.

“Did you hear about the envoy?”

“Who hasn’t? was it really the Chancellor himself?” Prompto moved to help him out of his suite even as Noctis nodded. “Then there’s really to be peace?”

“As long as I marry Luna and we give up all territory outside of Insomnia,” Noctis answered and Prompto froze. Noctis cupped his face in his hands and kissed him. “I want to marry you,” he swore, gently brushing back an errant strand of blonde hair.

“But for peace?”

“Yeah. Either we take the peace and use the time to regain strength, or we keep fighting and possible lose everything.”

“The Glaive won’t like that,” Prompto warned, they were 99% refugees who fought because of the promise of retaking their homes. If that promise was broken… “You or your Dad needs to talk to them, not just Drautos. Make sure they know this isn’t the end of their hope.”

Noctis nodded, Prompto had made friends with many in the Kingsglaive and he spent a lot of time out in the refugee sectors, helping out. It was part of the reason there had been little public disagreement when their relationship was made public. Prompto was known to the people, at least the refugees and those in need. Those who had said something were the wealthy and native Insomnians, much of that because Prompto himself was not native. “I love you,” he murmured and Prompto grinned, kissing him.

“I love you,” he whispered back and then stared him in the eyes. “If marrying her is what has to happen…then do it. I can live with being royal boy toy or whatever.”

“Consort,” Noctis snorted, shaking his head. How was it Prompto could always lift his mood. He knew Prompto was right, and it would mean any easier way to provide an heir but…he hadn’t seen her since they were kids. A line here and there, stickers, seeing her in Imperial news…it wasn’t the same as truly knowing her. What if they couldn’t make a marriage work beyond the necessary politics?

“I’ll never leave you unless you order me away,” Prompto swore and Noctis wrapped him up in his wings, feeling Prompto’s emerge and wrap around him in return. It was rare for him to let them out anywhere, but the apartment or private training room and it felt good to know he was beginning to feel safe in his Citadel rooms.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Noctis opened another box and frowned, putting it on the reject pile as his Dad went through a nearby display case. “Was it this hard for you?” he asked, and Regis laughed.

“If you ask Clarus, it took me six months to find the perfect one.”

“I don’t have that long,” Noctis grumbled.

“True, but I trust we will find what you need.”

“I can get something reworked for Prompto before we leave, but I don’t know Luna’s size!”

“A standard size will be fine, it can be altered later,” Regis assured him. he moved to another drawer; he was sure it was here…somewhere. “Aha!” he stared at the row of rings and plucked the one he had been looking for out. “What about this?” he held it out and Noctis joined him to look at it. The stone set within was a deep blue, almost black, and the band was white metal, though not shiny so it shouldn’t catch the sun when out and about, a good thing for when in a fight. “This was your Grandmother’s, the stone matches your eyes nicely,” Regis smiled and Noctis blushed slightly but took the ring and placed it in the blue ring box he had with him, ready to be taken for alterations so that it would suite a man’s hand.

“Luna’s to go,” he muttered. Three hours later they left the jewellery vault with a second ring in a black box. This one was also white precious metal although far shinier, set with a lighter blue stone, a diamond either side of it. Noctis had seen it in a painting of one of his ancestors from centuries ago, an oracle’s second daughter who had married into the family, so it seemed right that he give it to the current Oracle.

“You seem worried,” Regis offered and Noctis nodded.

“What if Lunafreya doesn’t accept Prompto?”

“While she can do nothing to make you set him aside it could make life difficult. Though I very much doubt she will have any complaints, there are very few who do not like him,” Regis assured his son, pulling him into a brief hug. “I am proud of you Noctis. Now go see about Prompto’s ring.”

Noctis nodded and left, Regis staring after him long after he had turned the corner. Would the second ring ever be given to the one who was to wear it? He had sent a Glaive to retrieve her but there had been no word yet and he was worried. Should he send the boys to Altissia or keep them close? No…any danger should be in the city; he would send them to whatever safety they could find and perhaps it would prove to have been an unnecessary step.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Prompto glanced down at the ring on his finger as they flew through the air to their next hunt. Once they had the fund to repair the Regalia they would be back on the ground and on the way to Galdin Quay but for now he could enjoy the freedom of the sky with those he loved. Up this high, no one would be able to tell his wings were different, once back on the ground he would have to put up with people assuming he was the weak link in the group as the only one unable to fly. He didn’t mind, it made him something of a secret weapon. He didn’t really care much about his wings anymore, except for what trouble they might cause for Noctis. He was accepted by those who mattered, proven by the black he wore, the bracelets gifted by his friends that covered his barcode and the gorgeous ring he now wore on his left hand. He just hoped Lady Luna liked him and he liked her since they would be living in the same rooms. She seemed nice on tv and she had even written him a line or two over the years when she sent a note to Noctis.

With the treaty in place they could live in peace for a time, maybe have a baby to secure the succession and then they could go out and kick Niflheim out of Lucis once and for all. Leave whatever kid Noct and Luna had a secure and safe kingdom to inherit. It was a great plan.

It was a dream that lasted until Ignis walked into their hotel room at Galdin Quay, pale and clutching a newspaper.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Prompto had a bad feeling about the man of no consequence from the start, so learning he was the Chancellor wasn’t a big shock. So when Noctis went to meet Lunafreya at the altar, Prompto took to the sky, watching, out of sight, from above. He saw the Chancellor approach, saw the blade appear and dove, pulling her up and away, to safety. Then he turned back and went to Noctis’ side, shooting at the Chancellor while Noctis faced Leviathan and beat her.

“Well, aren’t you a surprise,” the man drawled and Prompto knew his wings had been seen. “Is that any way to greet a parent?”

That question made him feel sick. He was one of the donors? He shook it off and kept shooting, going to knives when the man got close. Ignis had trained with him on the blades to ensure he could use them well since there were times when a gun was neither practical or safe. Cor had helped with that training and with the basics of sword work, but he was definitely better with daggers than swords.

In the end the man left, and he dragged himself and the barely conscious Noctis to safety.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

“Did you know?” Prompto whispered and Noctis shook his head, looking just as pale and shocked as he probably did.

“Dad never wanted to talk about the whole Chosen King thing,” he admitted.

“Guess you know why now,” Prompto choked out. Finding out your son had to die to save the world…it had to have been the worst thing ever for Regis.

“If…if you want to leave…” Noct stuttered out and Prompto moved to kneel in front of him, taking shaking hands in his own.

“Never! I don’t care what anyone says, I will always be at your side. We’ll find another way,” he promised because he couldn’t imagine a world without Noctis in it. “We’re a step ahead now, they wanted Luna dead but she’s alive if weak. We’ll get her help and then Iggy can outthink everyone.”

“What about what Ardyn said to you, I heard him.”

“I don’t care if he is one of my donors. He’s a creep and a very bad man. Unless…you care?”

“No! you could be the Emperors son and I wouldn’t care,” Noctis promised and Prompto smiled.

“Then we’ve got a prophecy to beat.”

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

“So technically, I’m your many, many times cousin,” Prompto commented and Luna stared at him with wide eyes even as Noctis snorted in amusement.

“Pardon?” she asked in confusion, looking at them.

“I uh…I was ‘born’ in Niflheim, in a lab,” Prompto admitted softly, not looking at her. “Ardyn admitted to being one of my genetic donors when I faced him at Altissia. If he’s the Founder King’s brother then that explains why I carry that gene.”

“Yeah, but even if one of us was a girl and kids were possible, it wouldn’t matter cause there’s over a hundred generations between us.”

“But…what does that mean for me if he’s the Accursed?” Prompto swallowed, suddenly terrified.

“Your blood tests were clean, no sign of the Scourge,” Ignis reminded him. “Though I would have thought you would be more attuned to magic than you are. However, his DNA was not the main one used, so it is more the amount one would find from a grandparent or even great-grandparent,” he assured the blonde.

Lunafreya just listened in shock. This was not at all what she had expected, then again she had thought she would die in Altissia.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

“Prompto!” Noctis cried in relief at the sight of his technically unofficial Consort even as Ignis worked to unlock the door. They spilled into the room, the two royals moving to check over the unmoving blonde. He was strapped to an upright contraptions, limbs stretched out and wings cruelly pinned behind him. Why hadn’t he retracted them? “Prom?” he carefully touched a cool cheek, terrified they were too late but…no, there was a pulse. “We need to get hm down.”

“Carefully,” Ignis warned as he went to work on getting the shackles to release.

They laid Prompto on the floor, relieved to see his chest moving up and down, even if his eyes remained closed, face bloody and bruised. Luna knelt beside him, her hands glowing gold as she placed them on his chest before leaning in to touch foreheads. The golden glow moved to flow over Prompto’s body and Noctis wished he had an Elixir or ten, but his magic was blocked somehow, though hers wasn’t. She pulled back and he supported her, everyone watching as Prompto shifted slightly. “It is alright Prompto,” Luna assured him, taking his hand in hers.

Noctis was scared, would Prompto hate him? Be scared of him? He didn’t understand how he could have fallen for Ardyn’s trick, how he’d missed the signs that something was very wrong. Did Prompto think he hated him? “Prom? Please wake up,” he reached out a shaking hand to run through lank blonde hair.

Slowly, eyelids fluttered and then his eyes were open, unfocused for a few seconds before he slowly blinked, finally seeing them.

“Prom?”

He was shocked when Prompto whimpered. “No…no more…please…”

“Hush Prompto,” Luna soothed, gently stroking his forehead. “We are here and real my dear friend.” She moved away from Noctis’ support and called up her magic again, letting him see and feel it. “Whatever horrors he has made you see, they are over.”

“It’s us Prom,” Noctis leant in and gently brushed his lips to Prompto’s. “Sorry it took a while, but we had some issues with the train and some daemons. Then they started shooting at us. They couldn’t stop us though,” he promised.

Prompto looked between them and then over at where Ignis and Gladio were standing guard. “You’re really here?”

“Of course,” Noctis promised immediately.

“The train...you…”

“It was a trick. Ardyn… I would swear it was him I chased and pushed off. It only ended when you were falling and suddenly it was you and I couldn’t reach you.”

“The Chancellor is skilled with illusions,” Luna agreed. “You need rest, food and water before we continue.”

“Definitely,” Noctis agreed. “I’m going to help you up now. Can you retract your wings?” Prompto shook his head, a flash of fear and Noctis didn’t want to know what had been done to make him feel that. “Okay, we’ll manage,” he promised, getting an arm around Prompto, feeling his ribs through his torn clothing, and then heaving up. “Let’s get out of here.”

“There’s an empty dormitory nearby we can secure,” Gladio offered and Noctis nodded. Usually the Shield would take Prompto but with no weapons, his size made him the stronger fighter at the moment.

There was no way to tell time in the Keep but they all figured they spent a few days in the dormitory as Prompto began to recover from his ordeal. He slept in a nest of bedding on the floor between Noctis and Luna, eating cold cup noodles and ration bars and it helped him to accept that it was real, that they had come for him. Before they left to go after the Crystal, Luna kissed his cheek and he blushed but smiled shyly, happy that she accepted him so well.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

The five of them fought the flood of daemons and managed to make it to the elevator together, despite Ardyn’s taunting. When they reached the Crystal, Luna pulled Noctis back and they waited, knowing eventually Ardyn would come to gloat. Noctis pulled Prompto into a kiss, wrapping his wings around him and Prompto returned the gesture, heart in his throat because they both knew it was unlikely to have a happy ending. Noctis released him and then went to Luna who smiled and threw herself into his arms, kissing him tenderly as his wings hid her from the world. No Oracle had ever had wings, though Ravus had. He had never seen her move so fast as when her brothers daemonising body had stumbled into the hanger with them, she had freed him swiftly from that fate.

When Ardyn appeared he faced the five of them, all pissed off and wanting him gone. Noctis wielded the magic of the Kings, Luna the Oracle and shocking everyone…Prompto ripped Ardyn’s Armiger from him in his rage at the prophecy and the torture he had suffered as a baby and then over the last weeks. Everyone actually froze in shock for several seconds when it happened, the weapons going from red to purple…the same colour Prompto’s eyes had been as a baby. Used to wielding some of Noct’s magic, and seeing him use the Royal Arms, it took Prompto a few seconds before a swarm of blades was skewering Ardyn, Noct’s following after and then Luna was adding the Oracle’s Trident to the mess, glowing gold with her healing powers.

Ardyn collapsed, overwhelmed by their power, dying. “Foolish children,” he whispered. “This will not defeat me.”

“Figured as much,” Noctis admitted, eyes changing colour as he reached out and summoned Gentiana who smiled at them and nodded. She had helped make the plan on the train, though Prompto had still shocked them with stripping away Ardyn’s Armiger, so much for his not being able to use magic of his own, he’d just needed something to force it. He took the ring off and handed it to her and then her form shifted to that of Shiva and she carried Ardyn to the crystal, taking him and the ring into it. “Think it’ll work?” he whispered, and he felt Luna take his hand seconds before Prompto took the other.

“It has to,” Prompto answered, though he wasn’t sure exactly what was going on. They hadn’t had time to tell him everything, but he knew this was their one way of avoiding the prophecy. They waited in silence, Ignis and Gladio with their backs to them to ensure nothing snuck up on them. Everyone had their wings out, ready to fly up and away if necessary, Noctis shifting an arm around Luna’s waist in case he had to carry her. It felt like an eternity before anything happened, the metal beneath their feet shaking as the Crystal began to glow brighter and brighter…they heard a shattering noise and took to the air, Prompto moving to Luna’s other side in case Noct needed to pass her off. They landed several feet higher, watching as the Crystal shattered into millions of tiny shards which seemed to fade away. “Is it over?” Prompto asked, trying not to hope and then Shiva appeared before them.

“The Accursed now knows peace,”her voice sounded in the threes heads, shocking Prompto. “No taint lies within the Accursed’s child though he now wields his power. Rule well oh Chosen King.”With that she vanished.

Noctis laughed. “It’s over.”

“Now we just have to rebuild and bring the people together as one. No more borders,” Luna smiled at Prompto who grinned, tears of joy wetting his face.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Cor watched as Prompto flew up to the ledge and went to work helping to reinforce it. No one looked sideways at his wings and he was happy for Prompto. His heritage was now known to the people, his way of helping to bring everyone together. Without the Ring and Crystal, the Wall would never be raised again, but magic still lived in the Line of Lucis, as proved by both Noctis and Prompto. Now he wondered if Prompto’s early troubles with magic had been more of a mental block than anything real. Rebuilding Insomnia could take years, decades even but other places were recovering more quickly. While the nights had become very long at the end, there had still been some daylight and he hated to think how much harder recovery would have been if they had suffered a decade of darkness. If Shiva had not come to love Luna….who knew how it may have ended. Without her willingness to go against Bahamut’s prophecy and get the other Astrals to agree with her… then again if he had never rescued Prompto giving them a way to rip away a chunk of Ardyn’s power… t was amazing how a few small things could build up into a large difference.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Noctis stood before the Throne in Kingly raiment, trying not to fidget. His Father’s crown rested in his hair now and at either side of the Throne was another chair, one for Prompto and one for Luna. He looked up as the music started and swallowed at the sight of Luna in a stunning gown of white walking towards him on Prompto’s arm. Prompto was dressed in a suite of black, far fancier than any he had worn before, befitting his position, his healed wings held against his back rather than being retracted. Everyone with wings had them out for such an important ceremony. They ascended the stairs towards him, and he was sure he was going to fall over. Ignis nudged him slightly and Noctis managed a small smile for his Adviser. Only they heard Gladio’s chuckle from where he stood protectively nearby. The chairs where the Council once sat were empty, none of his Father’s had survived and Noctis had yet to name their replacements, if he was going to. Noctis barely heard a word of the ceremony as Luna finally became his wife and Prompto his official Consort. When it was done, they kissed and then took their seats to thunderous applause.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Prompto sat on a bench in the garden gently settling the feathers of little Ravus’ pitch black wings, the little Prince fidgeting. Anyone would think Ravus was his son, not Noct’s since the four year old hated naps and was always on the go, but the wings were a good proof of paternity. Besides, he’d asked the doctor, privately, and it had been confirmed, his DNA was too messed up and he was sterile. The only way for him to have a kid would be the same way he had come to be, and he would never do that. He was happy helping to raise Ravus…and he suspected Ravus’ little sibling. The last time he had seen Luna eat Green curry had been when she was pregnant with Ravus, if she didn’t suspect soon he would have to leave a pregnancy test out for her to find. It would be good to have another child, it would make the people happy to know the throne was very secure, not that there was a war anymore. The world was united under the Throne of Lucis.

Wings fixed, he sent Ravus scurrying off to find Ignis for his lessons and hoped this time the poor kid wouldn’t see something no child should. Then again, you’d think Iggy would remember to lock the door when he was with Gladio. They were talking about children soon as well, wanting to ensure Ravus had a Shield. He would have to let them know they’d need more than one kid, unless Iris planned to settle down soon.

One thing was for sure, life was not going to be boring any time soon.

The End.