Work Text:
One of the very first things Noctis learned about when he was being taught how to be a prince was to look behind pretty words.
Simple sentences said casually could be the most poisonous thing to one's ears.
But, the thing was.
He already knew that.
He nodded at Iggy when he explained it to him, a small, fake smile on his face.
Noctis already knew, of course, because of his majesty.
The king.
...
His father.
"I think it's time for you to go to bed, hm?"
You're bothering me, Noctis.
"I am feeling under the weather, perhaps another day?"
I don't have time for you, Noctis.
"Are you quite certain you have finished with your studies?"
Leave me alone, Noctis.
Even the words he heard his father speak before he left.
The last words he would ever hear out of his mouth.
"Walk tall, my son."
I love you, I'm sorry.
...
Goodbye.
Well. Those had been pretty words too.
Up to the end.
Noctis wonders if he's even heard his dad say "I love you" aloud.
If he has, it's long forgotten in the past now.
He knows that for himself, he's stopped saying it long ago.
What a mess they were.
He hopes.
That in the end...
He will be able to say those three words again.
"You guys... are the best."
...
....
.....
He didn't.