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i. Noctis
Prompto was staring. He knew it was wrong but he couldn’t tear his eyes away from the young prince. Noctis was in his school, in his class. He was only several rows away from a celebrity. All Prompto had to do was get up, walk a few meters, and poof! He could talk to Noctis.
Well, maybe it wouldn’t be that simple. For starters, Noctis was usually surrounded again by a gaggle of their classmates, all of them jostling for a better position to talk to him. It had died down a bit from the first few days, with some of their classmates getting bored of it all, but it was still a crowd by any standards. Sometimes they were so thick, Noctis was barely visible. Prompto wasn’t sure if he could push past them all.
Or if he even should. With a sigh, he stared at his chubby hands before sprawling over his desk. What was he thinking? The prince wouldn’t even give him the time of day, the way he was now. Maybe if he ran a lot and ate a little and wore better clothes. Made himself look real nice, just like the movie stars did. Then maybe, just maybe, Noctis would look his way. Stare at him just as Prompto had stared at Noctis.
Yeah. That was a plan. That would work.
ii. Luna
The letters smelled of lilies. Prompto pressed the envelope to his nose and closed his eyes as he took a deep breath. All of Luna’s letters gave off a vivid scent, so strong he could just picture the bright white lilies. Maybe the Oracle had a fresh bouquet by her desk when she wrote or maybe she just naturally smelled like flowers. Like instead of sweating like a normal human, she just gave off perfume.
It was a silly thought.
He wondered if he was right.
Without a moment’s delay, he tried his best to neatly open the envelope without destroying it. He didn’t put half as much effort into keeping his homework uncrumpled, but one was a paper assigned by an ordinary teacher and the other was a message from a princess. Even his teacher would have to agree which one was more important.
Still, he couldn’t believe he was pen pals with a princess. Their letters were carried by a magic dog. It felt like something out of a fairy tale, down to the writing. To the elegant cursive that spelled out Prompto, as though he wasn’t just an ordinary boy but someone important.
He read his letter, feeling a warmth wash over him, and hoped she looked forward to his reply half as much as he did to getting hers.
iii. Gladiolus
“Alright, almost done,” Gladiolus announced, kneeling in front of the fire pit. He struck two pieces of flint together expertly and a flame jumped from his hands to the kindling he set.
“Wow, that was quick!” Prompt gawked, checking his phone for the time. They’d only just started camping, what, like five minutes ago? And sure, he kind of expected Ignis to have everything neatly packed and the tents to set up easily—that was Ignis. He was overprepared for everything. Including a prince who didn’t really like camping unless there was fishing involved.
Then again, this was Gladiolus. The guy who looked like he just came out of the wilderness. It shouldn’t be a surprise at all.
“That’s only because you’re so slow.” Gladiolus smirked, his tone teasing. Confidence oozed off him as he adjusted the logs. No, it’d be more accurate to say Gladiolus wore confidence like a second skin and Prompto couldn’t stop watching him, completely enthralled.
Prompto forced himself to reply, “I’m just normal.”
“Yeah, not buying that.” Standing up now, he clapped Prompto on the back. “Don’t worry, I’ll show you the ropes.”
“Hey, careful!” Prompto groaned, rubbing his back. “We’re not all bruisers like you.”
“Nothing a little training can’t fix.” Gladiolus raked a hand through his hair. In the twilight, the fire flickered off his toned arms and Prompt felt his mouth go dry. “I’m already giving Noctis lessons. You need some?”
“Yes,” Prompto answered without thinking. Noctis had one-on-one sessions. One-on-one with Gladiolus, with him just focusing on Prompto and no one else, with his eyes on him—and he never gave any breaks. For food, for rest, for anything. Realizing just what tutoring under Gladiolus would entail, Prompto quickly shook his head. “No, no, definitely not, I’m good.”
“You sure?” Gladiolus raised a brow and if he could just stop smiling, stop staring at Prompto with that confident gaze, it’d be good. It’d be great.
Prompto nodded furiously. “Definitely. I like my sleep.”
iv. Aranea
Black leather. Lying flat on the ground, it was all Prompto could see. Sleek black leather on a long leg, feet coming to a point on high heels. Following it up, he wasn’t surprised to find Aranea on the other end of it all, looking down at them with a smirk.
“Hello, boys. Need any help?” she drawled. She leaned down for a closer look at him, her gloved hand wrapping around his chin and angling his face up. His face heated up immediately. “Seems you’re pretty beat.”
Prompto swallowed, unable to reply. God, he was feeling hot. Sweltering, almost. His skin burned at her touch. She shifted on her feet, her heels clicking right in his ears, and his pants were suddenly tight.
For once, he understood what Gladiolus meant when he talked about being stepped on.
v. Ignis
If there was one word to describe Ignis, it would be smooth. Every action he made flowed into the other, even for something as simple as making tea. His long fingers firmly grasped the kettle, carefully pouring two cups. Prompto couldn’t tear his eyes away from the simple actions. His fingers itched to grab his camera but a photo couldn’t really capture what he was seeing.
“So, what is it?” Ignis asked as he added milk and sugar to the first cup. A long stir, two taps of the spoon, and he presented the finished product to Ignis. “One sugar, right?”
“Yeah.” Prompto carefully took the cup from Ignis. He shouldn’t be surprised by now, but even after going blind, Ignis never missed a step. It was like nothing had changed, in more ways than one. “I can’t believe there’s still tea.”
“People are crossbreeding varieties to handle more darkness,” Ignis replied, taking his own cup. He took a small sip and grimaced. “Though the taste still leaves something to be desired.”
“I didn’t even think plants could grow in the dark,” Prompto muttered, taking a sip himself. He winced at the slightly watered-down flavour. He’d have to get used to it; this was the best they could do.
“Few can. But this is the life that we are faced with, and so we must adapt.” Ignis took another sip. “So what is it?”
“Ah, right.” Prompto rubbed the back of his neck. “I just wanted to check on you before I head out.”
“Head out?” Ignis raised a brow.
“Long mission—I’m helping bring in any refugees.” Prompto frowned. Which was worse—that there was only one city, really, where people could live, or that all of humanity could somehow fit in that city? The amount of people that had died…he didn’t really want to think about it.
“Ah, that is important.” Setting aside his cup, Ignis reached out to grasp Prompto’s hand. “Take care— Gladiolus won’t be around to protect you anymore.”
“Hey, I can handle myself!” Prompto pouted before breaking into laughter. “Yeah, I will. I promise.”
“Good.” Ignis squeezed his hands one more time before pulling back. “See me when you come back.”
Somehow, Ignis always looked dignified. Even here, in this shamble of a house, with chipped teacups and little light, he still looked as noble as he did back in Insomnia. Prompto picked up his camera this time, to capture this essence and freeze it.
“Yeah.” Prompto nodded. “I will.”
It was something to bring him back, when all was said and done.