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The sun settled at it's peak high in the sky without a single cloud to obstruct the view. Nothing but vast blue for miles around, the only thing distinguishing the sky and sea was the fracturing light over clear, moving water.
Noctis lounged about on the edge of the shore, sun kissing his naked torso, and eyes closed in peaceful serenity.
He simply felt and listened to all that surrounded him in this empty cove. He felt the gentle waves coming up and out and up and out in an endless cycle, reaching up and touching the very beginnings of where his back met his long, slender, shimmering tail. A gentle breeze came in, and the sand whipped past and over his exposed belly, scratching his skin in the exact way Noctis liked it.
It was always just the way he liked it.
Truth be told he liked this little cove more then his underwater kingdom despite it's endless space and rainbow colours. Because unlike the underwater kingdom he was destined to rule one day, this cove expected nothing of him, it was his and his alone. He found it. He liked it. He wanted to be free within it. The welcoming liberty beaconed him to return, unlike the burden of being royalty which drove him away in the first place.
Although, it wasn't just the cove...
Noctis smiled. It was instinct, really, the way his tail swished languidly with the creeping waves as if it had a life of it's own. The motion as easy and near effortless as breathing itself.
With a sigh, Noctis propped himself up on his elbows and looked down proudly at his tail. He allowed himself the vanity in admitting he was one of the more handsome - if not the most - of the merfolk. He was of course, of royal breed; inheriting not only the legendary speed and strength from the King himself, but his tail looked as if countless sapphires had been cut to shape each and every one of his scales.
He was a true gem of the sea - a beautiful, mysterious creature of which only the ballads of myth could contain.
With some effort, he shifted over to lay on his belly, tail pushing back to help him. With his long slender fingers Noctis traced patterns along the wet sand. Nothing really special or profound. Just whatever came to his head.
Fish, clams, ships, sharks, whales - a figure with a head, torso, and two legs.
Noctis paused.
This very figure - he would always come back for him.
It was a human. Land creatures who bare similar faces to them, yet their bodies didn't belong to the sea, instead they had long, odd looking limbs instead of fins, and a very unpredictable nature. The King was always avid in ensuring the secrecy of merfolk, and his people never strayed too far from the kingdom. It kept them all sheltered from the cruelty of the land walkers and their iron ships.
Yet Noctis wasn't so troubled by it. If anything, he was keen to leave the safety of their kingdom that dwelled amongst the island bays. He was hungry to see the water world that was by his logic, rightfully theirs to see.
He had argued with his father that day - the throne, responsibility, duty, honour - the same stuff they always argued about, but that day, Noctis had enough. So he did what he did best and shunned everything, swimming out into the open sea, his speed and cunning enough to evade the sharp eyes of Ignis and Gladiolus who would always bring him back.
But not this time.
This time his insolence nearly took his life.
The water was not calm as he dilly dallied about, yet so engrossed he was in the great reef he stumbled upon, that he missed the storm that suddenly rolled in. The reef was in shallow water, and the currents were too much for him ride safely back into the deep. He was tossed and turned about until he exhausted himself completely in the fight – and then he ran out of air. Up he went to breach the surface, but it seemed his fate was sealed.
He was caught in the thick of the worst storm he had ever seen. Struggling to keep swimming let alone breath, Noctis swore he would die that night all alone and miserable. Having never seen the world with his own eyes.
The mer-Prince wriggled deeper into the soft sand feeling it's delightful coolness against his belly.
He would never forget what had happened next on that fateful day...
ooOoo
oo
ooOoo
After enduring the harsh storm, Noctis was surprised to have woken up at all. He laughed, almost maniacal, as he spotted the shinning sun and the endless sky above him. It meant he was still alive.
But of course, something was off.
He ran a hand through his hair, his silky black locks were tangled with seaweed and filled with grainy sand. Looking down at his body, the once smooth pearl white skin of his chest was marred with a nasty red sunburn along with a few grazes at his side. He figured he must have hit a few rocks on the way when he fell unconscious.
Carefully, he propped himself up on his elbows and looked around.
And then it hit him like a wrecking wave.
Where was he? What is this place? How far had he been carried? Why was the ocean so far away? How long had he been here roasting alive? Why did everything hurt so much?!
He was beached half up a rocky cove! And on an incline no less! The deadly sun will burn him to a crisp. The predators on the land will eat him alive. His powerful tail - only weapon and symbol of his noble breed - all but useless now.
He has to get to the water. Quick.
In a mad panic he hauled his way onto his belly, the rough sand and rock beneath scratched his tender skin as he began dragging his way down by his hands. His heavy tail swept about in it's attempt to keep him steady.
It was slow and agonising. Tears pricked his dry eyes, stinging as he rubbed them. The sand stuck to his skin, razing it raw. He would hit a few sharp rocks hidden beneath, and Noctis dare not check if he was bleeding. But the sharp ache of his tail made it clear how hard he was pushing.
He was scared, and he was in pain.
It had been a mistake to leave. He just wanted to go back home now.
The sun moved across the sky at a turtles pace. Noctis' back burns, his arms heavy, his lips parched and splitted. The heat of the sun has him in it's grip now.
Just a little...
More..
He then slumps, and simply lies face first on the rocks, a long way from the water that seems so close yet still so far. He doesn't want to move, he wants to lay there and sleep forever. Perhaps he'd die painlessly before the predators ate him.
It was almost surreal how vivid the imagination of water washing over him was, soothing everything that stung, his body slowly healing it's wounds. Every part of him remembers what it feels like to twist and turn about, carefree and endless with Ignis and Gladiolus at his side.
He licks his lips and tastes the blood. Noctis smiles. It would be nice to see them one last time - he owes them all a bit of an...apology, his father too...
Resigned, he sighs. Let whatever come, come.
But of course, his dramatic death throw is short lived.
“What the-?” Came a sudden loud voice that broke through to him.
Noctis' eyes shoot wide open.
Blood and adrenaline course through him in a flurry as fear grips him by the neck. His head shoots right up, looks to the side, and he comes face to face with the biggest predator of them all.
A human.
Noctis knew fear. He laughed in the face of it in fact; having wrestled with Great Whites on a few occasions, and killed a human hunter in another. But he was at distinct disadvantage without water.
He growls as the other approaches.
The human says, “W-Woah, woah, it's...it's-”
The human suddenly came running at him.
Well...Noctis thought he knew fear.
In a mad rush he drags himself forward, sand and rock flying forwards as he peddles down the incline almost pathetically. His tail thrashes about madly, mimicking the motion it would take to swim for his life.
He's not ready to die yet! He'll be damned if he gets eaten!
“Wait! No! Don't leave!” the other pleads.
And coming two steps from Noctis, the merman strikes. He snaps his tail around and delivers a mighty blow against the humans leg. Sending him toppling backwards.
“Ow, that hurt!” the skinny blonde cries out, clutching his leg.
Now was his chance. With speed he never knew he had he crawls faster. He can almost taste it, the freedom, the refuge, the salty water - all of it. But in his mad dash, his bloody hand slips, sending him rolling all the way down over sharp rock. He hits his head at the bottom.
And he blacks out.
ooOoo
oo
ooOoo
It is mid afternoon by the time Noctis lazily opens his eyes again, this time facing the open sky, and lying flat on fine silky sand a distance away from the rocky incline.
The mer-Prince feels very wet. Yet nothing hurts.
“Huh?” he murmurs.
With some effort he moves to his side, sore limbs keeping him steady. Looking down his body is covered in thick, wet, heavy material soaked in sea water. The angry red of his skin had dulled to a pink, and the odd material seemed to have soaked up the blood from his grazes, one was even wrapped up along the length of his tail. His hair is wet, and his lips have healed - eyes no longer stinging in the light.
He swallows, cheeks flushing at how amazing this actually felt.
He gasps as he spots the human sitting a few feet away, cross legged and eyeing him very critically with bright blue eyes and a bit of a pout. How long had he been starring like that?
The human murmurs in disbelief, “So...you're a fish-man.”
Noctis glares at him like he has a bad taste in his mouth; Fish-man? Hmph, he'll gladly drown this human for such disrespect. He is at the top of his food chain, he is beauty, he is strength, he is divine royalty. Not only that, he is future king of the great sea and one of the most deadly killers known to his people. Sharks fear him and the great whales respect his presence.
'Fish-man' doesn't quite cover all that!
“And you're a walking cloaca.” he retorts before grabbing a handful of sand and tossing it at him.
The human suddenly reels back wide eyed. “Holy shit! So it's true. You guys can talk,” he whispers to himself giddily.
“I have a mouth, of course I can talk.”
“Most animals have mouths, doesn't mean they can all talk...oh god we're actually talking.” The human tries to keep his breathing steady as he starts bouncing on the spot in excitement.
Noctis says, “Only dumb animals can't talk. In which case, why can you talk?”
“Woah you actually called me a– wait a sec! Ouch! No need to be so nasty I'm not going to hurt you.”
Noctis stubbornly turns away. The ocean was much closer this time. Calculating the distance to the water and his current speed, if he broke the humans legs with another hit of his tail he could probably make it there alive.
The human jumped to his feet, “Hey wait. Don't try to run away, you hurt yourself pretty badly, your cuts will bleed if you move too much. That's why I wrapped you in towels.”
“I'll take my chances.”
“Woah now! hold on! I'll cut you a deal alright? Just wait here for a bit until that wound stops bleeding, after that I'll personally lift you up and throw you back into the water if you want. I'll do it from that jetty over there too.”
Noctis pauses, eyeing the blonde. “What's to stop you from eating me?”
The blond's mouth drops in surprise. “W-What?! Look nobody is eating anybody around here, I like fish but not...'your' kinda fish.”
Noctis' eyes widened.
“No no no no! I won't eat you I promise...just, stay for a bit...please?”
With pursed lips and a longing look at the sea, the mer-Prince sighed and rested his head on his folded arms. The human then sat down, content this creature he had just found wont be trying to escape again.
They sat together in silence.
After a while, he scooted as close as he could go before a growl stopped him.
“I'm Prompto by the way.” he suddenly says.
“...Noctis. Prince Noctis.”
“Prince? Wow, that's cool.”
Noctis said nothing. But the fidgeting blonde human made it hard to ignore his presence.
“You know, that tail is the prettiest thing I've ever seen, its like someone glued gems all over it or something.”
“Mhm.”
“Can I...touch it? I mean, I've never seen anything so cool before.”
Noctis glared.
“Alright, fine I get it. Calm down. Can I at least ask you a question? You're not exactly meant to exist, at least that's what the books say.”
Noctis huffed, “Fine.”
“W-What's it like? To just swim as far out as you can go...just being free?”
Noctis looked at the blonde human again, his eyes studied the curious uplifted brow, the nervous pursing of his lips, and wide hopeful eyes. A strange question to start off with.
“It's the closest you can get to flying, except your doing it underwater. You can go as far as you want, or as deep as you want. Nothing is really stopping you I guess.”
Something about the way Prompto smiled so brightly in response made Noctis sigh in relief.
When was the last time anyone had asked him something like that?
“So...” Noctis said, slightly jutting his chin out, “you've never seen something like me before?”
“Actually - well, um, I kinda have.”
Noctis stared. There were very few tactics which merfolk used to kept their secrecy - most of which were often very effective.
“How?” he said with narrowed eyes.
“Aw come on take it easy, it happened years ago. Plus no one believed me.”
“Go on...”
With a sigh Prompto told his story, “I was kinda on the run, still am now I guess. I had nowhere to really go so I stowed away on a cruise ship bound for this place called Accordo. Naturally karma caught up with me and I ended up jumping over the railing to escape. Thought I was gonna drown.”
“But then...one of my kind saved you?”
“Yeah I guess, I must have fallen unconscious for most of it cause I woke up in a huge pair of arms - but the ship was all the way in the distance so there couldn't be anybody there to help me. I didn't see who was there. I fell asleep and woke up again on some drift wood - I saw this huge pitch black tail disappear into the water, it had long black spines and the scales reminded me of obsidian. A few minutes later a patrol boat found me. Turns out I was really close to Accordo, I was all over the news for a bit, but after that, uh, I stopped being chased. Been living here ever since.”
With the role of his eyes Noctis drawled sarcastically, “Wow, it really does sound like one us.”
“Yeah, right? What else could it be? I mean, I've never seen a tail like that, not on a fish or shark or whale, not until I saw the shape of yours. I'm not crazy!...Right?”
Noctis was taken aback, almost feeling a little guilty.
Black tail, obsidian scales...spines...could it possibly be-?
“Right. Weird that one of our kind would do that. We normally don't care.”
“So I got lucky then?”
“One in a million type.”
Prompto seemed really happy about that, he gave a big sigh and laid on his back. But that bright smile faded away.
“I just can't stop dreaming about it. I wish I could forget, or at least say 'thank you' to them. I owe them my life - owe them everything. It just kinda hurts not knowing.”
Noctis stayed silent.
“Not gonna lie, I really hoped that it had been you when I came down here. But your tails are too different...”
“Sorry, I guess.”
Prompto quickly sat up, and the smile came back like a burst of spring.
“What?! Nah! Don't be, I'm just glad that after all this time I was fucking right about everything!”
The mer-Prince could feel himself slowly relaxing as Prompto began firing question after question, which would normally annoy him in any other scenario. But not here.
Who was he? Where did he come from? Why was his tail so pretty? How long can he hold his breath for? How does he deal with sharks? What did he eat? How did he eat it? What were mermaids like? Do they really use shells or do they just let everything hang out? Each answer just made Prompto all the more excited.
Although, Prompto never asked if Noctis knew his black tailed rescuer.
He had been reluctant to speak at first. But after a while, the hesitation slowly passed as those human eyes gazed at him with earnest and honesty. There was just something about Prompto's smile that seemed to make everything ok; like lying beside a human was simply the most trivial thing in the world.
Eventually Noctis's own interest in the human was piqued. Why was Prompto here? What did humans eat? Why did they hurt sea creatures? How do they hunt on land? What were human women like? Who was their King? Is said King an annoying talking sphincter?
Prompto answered them all before finally asking the obvious question.
“So if you all live so far out, why are you all the way here? Isn't it kinda dangerous?”
Noctis sighed deeply. “Well, I ran away.”
“You too huh...” he trailed off.
Looking up, Noctis pried, “You, uh, never mentioned what it was you were running from.”
Surprised, Prompto quickly shifted his eyes away and kept on talking.
“You know I'd give almost anything to be able to leave everything behind me and just...keep swimming like you. All the way out as far as I could go, find some random place where I could belong. But...why would you run away?”
The mer-Prince took the hint.
“My old man likes to remind me that I'll be King someday. Everyday in fact, it gets on my nerves and I just can't stand it.”
“What? You don't think the idea of being King of the sea-men is really cool? Boy did you have one hell of a concussion.”
“Tsch!”
“So was beaching yourself part of the plan?”
Noctis pouted. “No.”
“There was a seagull giving you a look when I found you half dead, swore it wanted to eat your eyes or something. Avoid that part next time. Running away only works if you survive...and if you got a place to stay aside from some cardboard box on the street.”
The mer-Prince stayed quiet at that. Not really understanding the last reference, but the main idea was clear.
Prompto kept on talking. It was something he seemed to enjoy doing, though he took the hint when Noctis eventually just murmured his answers or grunted. He solemnly looked at the sand in front of him deep in thought.
Prompto sighed, and they sat together for a few minutes longer. The blonde played with the sand until he suddenly became fed up.
“You know what, I have something in my car you might like. Wait here.”
“Well, It's not like I can go anywhere.”
The blonde got up and bolted across the sand towards his 'car'. He wobbled a bit as he climbed the rocky incline, but eventually he disappeared over the other side.
A few seconds later Prompto was dashing across the sand with something in his hands that was wrapped in a plastic bag and looked rectangular in shape.
“It's lunch time, I figured I might as well share my sushi with you.”
Curious, Noctis watched from the corner of his eye as the blonde unwrapped the contents of the package. But it took some coaxing for Noctis to snap out of his solemn mood and actually look at the wrapped rolls of fish.
“It's tuna flavoured and wrapped in seaweed. Rice shouldn't do much to you though. I'm sure you wont shit your brains out if you try... I hope.”
He held out a single piece to the mer-Prince, Noctis looked at it and wrinkled his nose. It didn't look particularly appetising at all. Why did their 'tuna' look so off coloured and odd?
The mer-Prince shook his head.
“Awww don't be like that, come on, trust me you'll like it.”
He held it a little closer, gently poking the prince's cheek.
“Open wide,” said the blonde.
With a heavy sigh Noctis opened as Prompto popped the tuna flavoured delicacy in his mouth and munched. His eyes widened and he paused mid chew - the saltiness, the softness, all of it a sudden explosion of refreshing textures and flavour. He frozen in place for a whole minute while the blonde continued eating.
“Hey Noct, you alright?”
Noctis nodded and swallowed, before suddenly throwing himself on the humans lap to snatch up the rest of the glorious meal without shame. There was a bit of a struggle, between Prompto trying to at least save part of his lunch and Noctis's great tail thrashing about, it seemed neither was about to give in until a seagull flew down and stole the last piece.
They spent the rest of their time throwing rocks at the cretin and cursing at it. Meanwhile the bird turned a beady eye and feasted on top a post on the jetty out of harms way.
“Well, that's that I guess. Stupid thing!” Prompto yelled.
“Yeah, those birds steal our shit too when we surface.”
“Hey, you can't talk, if you hadn't tried to eat the whole thing we'd still have a piece left.”
“Well, I was hungry.”
Empty sushi packagings lay between them as they basked in the orange glow of the sunset. After that Prompto showed Noctis some photographs he happened to have in his car, a few magazines, a camera, and they even built a sandcastle at one point. Apparently this was Prompto's little hideaway too, he'd come here whenever he needed peace and quiet, or to impress some girl on a date. Although those relationships never really worked out. Noctis found himself agreeing - the ladies were always an enigma to him too.
With no questions left and bellies full after Prompto went to get their fifth pack, Noctis's tail swished about contently. Prompto lay on his side, fingers running over the scales of the long, thick tail in fascination.
Noctis stopped moving after a while, rather enjoying the sensation of human fingers gently prodding the scales.
After some time, Prompto finally sighed, “I should, um, probably check on that cut.”
“...Yeah.”
Noctis remained silent as Prompto slowly removed the wet towels off of him, knowing full well the wounds have already healed and scared over. And that it was time to leave the beach.
“Oh wow, it healed up rather nicely,” Prompto murmured, lingering just a second longer in checking over the merman.
The blonde stood up, “I guess you wanna go home now right?”
Prompto kept his eyes fixed to the horizon, and Noctis murmured in response.
“Well, here goes.”
The blonde took a grip onto what would be the equivalent of a human waist and lifted up the heavy Prince, he grunted as his back strained under the unusually heavy weight. But he wasn't about to drag Noctis carelessly along the sand.
Slowly and carefully with Noctis clinging to him, Prompto hobbled his way closer to the shore line where the calm waves crept up the sand. He could have left Noctis there and let him be swept up by the high tides that submerged the cove at night, but he didn't really want to say good bye that way.
This time, Prompto wanted to say goodbye on his own terms.
His back hurt a hell of a lot, but the blonde persisted, and soon the water was waist high, and the weight of Noctis suddenly disappeared. Even this deep in water, the Prince found he had little will to swim away.
“You can go now,” the blonde said as he let go.
“Yeah, I guess.”
Prompto grinned, “You were in such a hurry to get away from me before.”
Noctis murmured, “I-I know.”
One way or another, this little adventure had to come to an end.
“Hey, I live nearby so I'll always be around if, you know, you wanna come back and try another flavour of sushi?”
Noctis looked up and said, “Yeah, I...won't try to fight you for the pieces next time.”
Prompto then let go, and the mer-Prince slowly sank into the water. There was a moment of uncertainty that shivered through the blonde as he watched the figure beneath the surface just lie there unmoving. But then, with a rapid swish of his tail Noctis torpedoed through the water and into the distance, as if chasing the shinning light of the horizon.
It felt a little weird, but Prompto thought that the polite thing to do would be to wave, and so he did. He waved to some unseen figure swimming beneath the surface of the endless ocean.
He never expected a slender arm to suddenly break the waters surface a long distance away and suddenly wave back at him.
ooOoo
oo
ooOoo
After that, Noctis swore he wouldn't come back, he would never let the whims of a simple human sway him.
But who was he kidding, he swam back the second he had the chance. He wanted to see him again, even if just to tell him that he knew who the mysterious black tailed rescuer was.
With a big yawn, Noctis mumbled some nonsense as he snoozed on the sandy beach of the cove. He learned to use his tail to flick cool sand onto himself to help the odd itch that came with being out of the water for a few hours.
Napping in the sand was quickly becoming a very fond hobby of his. It was just so easy to be lulled to sleep like this. He loved it. He felt like he could just lie here forever now that he has gotten used to the suns heat.
If only he could, that would be nice.
But of course, he has to go back home sooner or later, he always ended up going back home. But going back home didn't seem so daunting any more.
The padding of soft feet rushed towards him at the end of the beach where a familiar blonde made towards him. Clutching a few towels and a plastic bag filled with lunch, Prompto smiled and waved. Excited to be together once more.
Noctis immediately lifted his head and gave a wide smile, “Hey, Prompto!”