A little after nine, they were all sifting through some of the many reams of paper they'd stolen after breakfast, with the occasional sheet being scrunched up and thrown into the study's fireplace by a couple of them. One of those people was Nyx.
"Y'know," he said, "it fucking bothers me how much useless shit these guys write. I've got reports here from the city and they're goin' on about daily counts of bullets, grenades, spare parts...who the fuck ever does that? Like, ever?"
"Not you, that's for sure." Noctis smiled.
"Fuckin' A. Know what I'd do with a report like this?" He then scrunched that one up too and threw it into the flames. "That. Then I'd go about having somethin' called a life."
Prompto laughed. "Bro, I thought your knives were sharper than your mouth. Startin' to think I got that all wrong."
Nyx grinned. "You know me. Tell it like it is."
"That'll only get you so far. Most likely? Into a pile of trouble."
Prompto then got hit by another ball of paper, and looked at Nyx while scrunching up his own.
"My mouth does get into a lot of places," he said, "but never trouble. That's where we differ. I'm an expert with mine."
"Yeah, right." Prompto threw a paper ball at him, but Nyx batted it away and it sailed over to land on Helena's lap.
She lifted her sheet up, spied the paper, then looked at both of the widely-grinning men. She then scrunched up her own sheet and used her gifts to make the both of them fly around in the air.
"Y'know...I kinda agree with both of you." She said.
She then froze the paper solid with ice, and they shattered and rained freezing cold snow down over the two giggling men.
The others laughed as Nyx and Prompto both shot out of their chairs to brush the coldness off their head and clothes, and Nyx levelled a playful look at Helena.
She merely smiled, then went back to looking at her papers.
Roc then came into the study. "Ah," he said, "so this is where you're all hiding. Thought you'd have left."
"Need to wade through all this." Noctis told him.
"Any joy so far?"
He shook his head. "Not unless you love countin' bullets."
Roc paused, then let it pass. "I...thought you were all setting out for Galahd today, that's all. Was going to suggest that you give all that stuff to me. I've plenty of people who are currently bored and looking for something to do."
They all stared at him.
Prompto spoke first. "Wha...why the hell didn't you tell us that? We just spent the past half-hour combin' this shit. Some of us has to get up extra-early!"
"You mean you? I couldn't find you. And like I said, I thought you'd already headed out for the settlement. If you don't want my help, then I'll happily-"
"No!" He grinned. "That's a big help."
"I rather thought so. Just leave it there, I'll send someone to come along and pick it all up later." He then left the study, and the six friends all looked at each other.
"...that was nice of him." Noctis said.
"Yeah. Maybe too nice?" Prompto wondered.
Nyx shook his head. "I'm not gonna refuse the help, this shit's gonna put me to fuckin' sleep soon." He dumped his stack of paper on the table, then looked at the others. "So! What shall our esteemed selves do today?"
"I'm in a party mood." Prompto smiled. "Let's go to Galahd."
Nyx grinned. "You ain't seen a party until you've done one there. They go pretty big."
"We do need to visit there anyway." Ignis agreed. "Helena?"
"Uh, yeah." She nodded. "If they've not had a blessing for that long, it would be a crime for me to not go."
"Agreed. We'd better make sure that we have everything, in case we don't end up back here for a while."
They all went off to check their belongings, and twenty minutes after that they were rolling along the roads, heading for Galahd, the largest of the known immigrant settlements in the south-western desert areas of Duscae.
"So what happens when a village is blessed, Hel?" Noctis asked her after a while. "Never seen one done before."
She paused. "What- not ever?"
"Not ever. Didn't get to leave the castle much."
She went back to looking at the passing scenery. "Well, after being introduced to some of the local people, I don't have to do it straight away. Magisters have to travel far, after all. I'm hoping to start within an hour or so of getting there, though. As far as seeing it goes, there's quite a bit really. It's not like a light show or theatre play or anythin' like that, but it's still very visual. I'll make my way to wherever they have their altar or place of worship- sometimes it can just be a statue, depending on what people it is- and it's actually that that gets the blessing."
"Do you get all glowy and shit?" Prompto asked.
She nodded. "Sure do. We also trot out something that's part of the Divine we ascribe to as well. I could do any of them, but...for this one I'll have Bahamut himself."
"...really?" The blonde gasped. "Wow!"
Nyx slowly turned his head to look at her.
"Well really, he's the one who holds my proper rank." She explained. "Doing anything less would be an insult, both to the people and the Divines. I've been thinking though...depending on how these people are, I might have an extra surprise for them."
"Like what?"
She smiled. "I might decide to give them Shiva too."
They all laughed at that.
"Oh, she is gonna hate you." Gladiolus grinned.
"Long as she doesn't do it within earshot of me." She replied. "I think she'd find it very educational. Either that, or I hold onto her necklace for quite a while longer."
Nyx smiled. "I'm still gonna have a fully-intact settlement at the end of this little idea of yours, right?"
"Of course." She told him. "And a very blessed one, too."
"...thank you." He said gently.
"So I'll trot a replica of Bahamut out for a bit, I'll bless the settlement for a whole entire year in front of whoever wants to come take a look, then after that, I'll explain things to Shiva and leave her with them for a few hours or so."
"Then party?" Prompto asked hopefully.
Nyx chuckled. "Yes, Prom, then party. Take a while to set up, but twice as long to see through. Hope you like the strong stuff."
"I'm...not too sure if it'll like me, but okay."
"If that's the case, you might wanna stay away from a brew that us guys call Rakkash. That shit is strong. Deceptively strong, it's pretty smooth when goin' down. I can't even take much of that."
"How bout in moderation?" Gladiolus smiled.
"Heh. Yeah, a little's always good."
"Then that's what we'll do."
They eventually parked up near the canyon in question, and went the rest of the way on foot as it was a warm, sunny day.
Inside that canyon's arcing walls, several torn-down buildings loomed overhead that sported many holes and no glass in any of the cracked, grey windows. Banners and streamers had been hammered into the structures at various places, the bright colours distracting the eyes from all the concrete grey, and in the middle of all the devastation, several rustic-built houses and shacks of all sizes could be seen. The streamers hung down and bowed over the top of them, gently sashaying in the breeze, and many people of all sizes and ages were weaving inbetween it all as they went about their daily routines.
The friends all stopped and stared at the sight for a while. Despite being crude in places, it still easily drew the eye thanks to the warm, Autumnal colours everything was made of.
"...wow." Noctis said. "I wasn't sure what I was expecting, but I sure didn't expect this. Looks amazing."
Nyx smiled. "Always gotta make the best of it. No idea who lived here before in those other buildings, but they're not that great to live in so my people built all this instead."
"Why here, though? What if some of that stuff falls over? I'd have thought that they'd build well away from it."
"Sometimes hide in it if anyone hostile comes knockin'. Handy for that- but really? Guess it was like a challenge. Can you live here, when others couldn't? Could you build a life, where there was none?" He grinned. "We sure love our challenges."
He started walking towards it. "C'mon, let's go say hi."
They passed through part of what looked like a marketplace and were closing in on a park at the centre of the area, then were surrounded by dozens of people, also wearing the many shades of Autumn in their clothes and jewellery. A middle-aged man came out of that crowd to meet them, holding a long staff made of dark, knobbled wood and a string of Amber beads at his neck.
Nyx recognised him, and walked towards the man to get pulled into a rough bear hug as the two conversed excitedly in their own unique language. At that point, several others in the crowd cheered, and a few even sang with a peculiar sort of harmony.
"I'm glad they remember." Gladiolus smiled.
"Me too." Noctis said.
"As if they'd ever forget that guy." Prompto laughed.
"I get the feelin' that this'll be a party to remember as well."
"Unless we get too wasted? Yeah, I'd say so too."
Helena saw Nyx half-turn to point at her while still talking to what appeared to be the village Elder, and he saw that man's eyes become very wide...looked like it was time for her to meet him.
The man rushed forwards, then slowed down at the last second and took a few very slow steps towards Elaine, staring at her necklace and then her face as the rest of the crowd followed and hovered very close-by.
"...you are...the High Magister?" The Elder asked hesitantly.
Helena smiled and nodded. "Yes." She said. "I am Helena."
"Can you tell me, why have we not been blessed for so long? What have we done to the Divines to warrant it?"
"You've done nothing. None of us have been able to travel far until very recently, the repeated wars took their toll on us, too. But as soon as I heard of you, I've come. I can't make up for all those years, but I can definitely bless you all now."
The Elder beamed at her. "You honour us- Bahamut honours us, too. That you have even come at all...is enough."
"I fully insist. You've gone far too long without knowing that they're still there for you. In addition, I shall also bring you the Divine known as Shiva, so that she may know you personally."
Several people were heard to gasp as well as the Elder.
He reached out with his free hand, and she took it with a smile.
"You..." He said in a voice thick with emotion. "We cannot thank you enough. Please, stay here in our village tonight, your friends also. Our house is yours, as it is with all of our people. We also gift you in return with that of our champion, if you so wish it."
She nodded. "That is very kind. Thank you."
"Were I not wed, I'd have considered it myself. You do us honour beyond measure, Daughter of Bahamut. Unless you need time to recover from your journey, we can perform the blessing within the next hour. We shall also plan a great feast tonight for all of us. I hope you shall attend?"
"We'd be honoured to join with you."
He nodded. "It is well. Please, make yourself at home." He then departed with a huge smile on his face, giving orders to people further back in the crowds seemingly at random, then the other people slowly started to make preparations.
She looked at them all, then saw Nyx standing a few metres away from her with a very warm smile on his face.
He started walking back towards them at the same time that Prompto leant forwards to get closer to Helena's ears.
"...did I hear right?" He said in a hushed voice.
"Hmm?" She almost didn't hear him, she was looking at Nyx.
"Does that leader guy...I dunno, want you or somethin'?"
Helena turned round to face the others. "No, not really, it's just a figure of speech. It means that he's that bowled over by the visit and all that, y'know."
"...oh. Okay. And who's the champion of this place?"
Nyx reached them, staying behind Helena to briefly sneak out a hand that touched her back for a couple of seconds.
"Do you really have to ask?" He said with a grin.
"It's Nyx, you idiot." Ignis said. "Do you know any other heroic Galahdians that you've met lately?"
Prompto laughed. "...point taken, heh."
"Elder's not gonna forget today for a long time." Nyx told them. "Let's find us a place to stay before the blessing starts."
Due to people being married recently, there was a large, vacant house towards the rear of the settlement grounds on the left-hand side, so they decided to set up in there. After dropping belongings and having a couple of drinks, Helena's friends decided to look in on the blessing as they were curious as to what would happen. Plus the fact that they also wanted to see how she dealt with the Ice Queen for the second time.
Ten minutes before she was due to begin, she wandered away and went with Nyx to the Elder's house to prepare, which included choosing which particular blessing to bestow on the people.
He stayed with her while she read from the book, absorbing the words and memorising them.
"They're all real special." He advised. "Cos' it's you, I don't think they'd mind whichever one you did, so...just pick the one that you like the sound of most, I guess."
She smiled. "I...don't work that way. To me, that's a half-assed job. These guys deserve more than that. I'm gonna pick the one that I feel most appropriate. For them."
He grinned at that. "Alright, whatever you want."
"Which ones have been done most in the past?"
"The most common one was love. Nearly all of 'em did that. Can see why, though, love's pretty awesome."
"Hmm. Okay."
"You...gonna give me a hint, here?"
She then closed the book and got up. "Nope." She smiled. "It's a surprise for them, right? Gonna be one for you too."
She gave him the book back and left to prepare, and he grinned at her before putting it on the table and running after her.
A few minutes later, everyone was assembled in the area near the Elder's house. A large park, at the centre of which stood a ten-foot tall wooden carving of a staff with the Sun as its headpiece.
Without a proper stone statue due to there being no stonemasons currently in the settlement, this carving would serve as the focal point for all major functions, and now, the blessing also.
Despite not having any official clothes, Helena still walked out to stand in the front of that carving like she had them on, looking very serene and slightly regal in her mannerisms. The Elder and his family had the best view, which was right outside their door, and the other friends watched from further back, standing on one of the many benches that lined the park for uninterrupted sight.
"...it's like she's a different person, y'know?" Prompto whispered to them. "She's just...all important and shit. Like a Queen?"
"It's how they have to be." Ignis told him quietly. "To a lot of people, when a Magister is on-duty it's equally important to represent the Magisterium in conduct as well as ability."
"Ssh." Noctis nudged. "It's gonna start."
"Wish I had some popcorn." Prompto sighed.
"Ssh!" Ignis hissed.
"Okay, okay, I was only jokin'."
After a few seconds, Helena closed her eyes and brought her hands together in the time-honoured gesture of prayer. She stayed like that for almost a count of ten, not moving an inch, and then the familiar pale-white glow began to appear on her.
The hands came apart and she started to weave, albeit a lot slower than when they'd first seen her do it. Shortly afterwards, the transparent form of Bahamut, complete with wings and metallic armour, appeared behind her and rose into the air to equal the height of the carving while onlookers gasped.
Those wings moved to cradle her from the shoulders downwards and then her eyes opened, a sapphire blue now within them.
Nyx, having never seen it before, was completely mesmerised.
"Oh my God..." He said under his breath. "It's really him."
"It is not the growth of Spring, nor the blaze of Summer, nor the embers of Autumn or the crystals of Winter, that drive us." She began as she remembered her chosen blessing. "The cycles move ever onwards, as does their life, in the hope of the next."
Nyx blinked and froze solid, then stared at her with a look of utter astonishment; hope. She'd actually chosen hope?
A sudden burst of happiness hit him, and briefly, he felt a tiny, telltale sting in the corners of his eyes as he beamed at her.
Bahamut's visage spoke his part next. "...forasmuch as we ever wish to live eternal, it is the passing of time and the hope of another dawn that makes us truly feel the most alive. Anyone, whether man or woman, King or pauper, shall all feel as blessed and full as each other with such riches inside their hearts."
Helena then took up the third and final part. "Remember this, when darkness would seek eternity and all would be lost. Think of this, when you may wrongly believe that you have nothing. Know this, when your path might seem twisting and indirect. The light of hope is within us all, and with that, we are always blessed."
Bahamut then threw his wings out, expanding them fully, and a shower of millions of tiny, winking lights soared into the air to rain down onto every single head present. When they touched, a feeling of warmth flooded into them all and they knew for certain that the blessing had reached them too.
After a few seconds, Bahamut lowered his wings and vanished, but the lights continued to fall for at least a minute after.
Helena's eyes faded to normal colour once the last light had found an owner, and she bowed delicately to them all as a thunderous round of applause burst out from the happy crowd.
When they were all silent, she spoke to them again.
"And now," she said, "there is someone else who wishes to walk amongst you, even if only for a few short hours. She has not been to these lands for some time, so I would ask that you extend to her your kindness as you have to me."
She then began to weave a different pattern, and before long, the cool, radiant form of Divine Shiva appeared beside her dressed in royal blue sash and top.
Shiva blinked, surveying the people in front of her that stared with burning curiosity, then looked at Helena.
"...might I first have a word with you, dear Sister?" She asked.
"Of course."
They then took a few steps back from the crowd, whereupon the Divine's voice became rathermore frosty.
"Might I ask what you are doing?" Shiva asked. "Bringing me to this place, parading me in front of all these humans?"
Helena smiled at her. "Dear Sister." She emphasised. "Before I answer that, would you care to remind me of the Divine Promise that each of you undertook at your birth?"
After a pause, Shiva grudgingly obeyed. "...as Divine above all others, we solemnly swore to protect, uphold and bless this world of Eos for eternity, and its people also."
Helena nodded. "Well-remembered. So...that answers your question, doesn't it? I told you that I wouldn't return your necklace until you better knew the true worth of people, yes?"
"That is correct."
"Well, there they are. People. These ones haven't been blessed in over fifty years, due to either war or prejudice. That cannot stand, so I have just blessed them with my Father...and now you shall walk among them. Just for a short while, to see those qualities which you yourself struggle to understand and act. I'm hoping that in the process, you'll learn."
Shiva considered this, then nodded. "I see your reasoning. Very well, I shall seek to know them."
Helena smiled. "Thank you." She then held out the necklace, which Shiva took, and the Divine showed a hint of a smile herself.
She then turned and walked into the crowd, looking at them as several children came out to dance around her.
After a pause, Shiva spun giant snowflakes for them, and the children laughed and jumped to catch them before they melted.
Helena watched for a few moments, then went to go to the others who had moved back towards other benches in the distance due to the area getting very crowded.
She sat down with them all, and Noctis handed her some wine.
"That was..." He laughed. "I'm blown away. We all are."
She grinned. "It's quite a sight if you've not seen one before. Not many will remember it here, so they'll have loved it too."
"Will Shiva behave, you think?" Ignis asked.
Helena nodded. "She thought I'd flipped before I explained it to her. A place like this has a lot of warmth- figuratively and literally. If she's gonna better understand the humans she's sworn to protect, she needs to feel both of those, not just one."
"That's more of your Magister talk." Prompto smiled. "There's a way about it. It's kinda beautiful, y'know? Real wise and stuff."
"You have to be careful with some of it. Some of the Magisters often forget what they're trying to say, they go off on one and start trying to outdo each other on eloquence. But, Shiva understands. Even if it's only one thing, she'll learn stuff today."
"She's definitely a big hit with the kids." Gladiolus chuckled. "Who'd have thought that the frostiest Divine would make one of the best babysitters?"
Helena smiled. "Stranger things have happened. Some stuff has a kind-of symmetry to it, once you figure it out. Other things happen for a direct reason, which in turn leads to others. But there are some things that can unite us all, no matter who we are or what we can and can't do. Hope's one of them. And after over fifty years of thinking they were heathen and forgotten, hope was what they needed to remember the most."
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Nyx staring at her with a strange but positive expression so she briefly looked at him and gave him a smile.
"You're very quiet." Noctis then said to him.
"Just...blown away, I guess." Came the fond reply.
"You not seen it before either?"
He shook his head. "Not that I can remember. I'm only twenty-four or thereabouts, so this is my first, I guess."
"Well, as far as firsts go you've sure started with a bang."
"Maybe even more than that." He smiled.
Prompto rolled his eyes, then got up. "Okay, we need to party soon. When even Nyx starts gettin' way too sentimental and serious, it's time to get things rockin'."
"I agree." Gladiolus said. "We could go grab some food first. I think we might need a large buffer before we start knockin' back anythin' with booze in it."
"You're not wrong there." Noctis agreed.
"Specially you, Prom, you're a lightweight."
The blonde stared at him. "Excuse me? I'm a lighty? Oh no, pal, fuckin' gloves are off now. Let's get some food- then do shots."
Ignis rolled his eyes. "Here we go..."
"What? He's makin' fun out of my drinkin' prowess- which is not lightweight- so I'm gonna show him I can handle it."
Noctis laughed. "Easy tiger, let's hit that food first, huh? There's plenty of time to get the big guns out. You don't just shove it in, there's a trick to drinkin' hard."
"...there is? Since when?"
Gladiolus pointed at him. "And that's why you fall over first."
Prompto looked at Noctis. "Teach me." He said beseechingly.
Noctis put an arm around his shoulders and started walking him towards one of the food stalls nearby. "Rule number one, is you never do it on an empty stomach. Let's fix that right now."
The others all tagged along, watching with grinning faces.
Nyx continued to glance at Helena very often and she found it rather unusual to say the least, but also very flattering.
Over the next several hours, after the six friends had stuffed themselves full of food and let it go down, the 'party' officially began and they started out slowly with regular drinks and buffering mixers, laughing and chattering about the best moments of their journey so far. They told Nyx several tales, some of which were highly-embellished, and he also told them of several times he'd had the odd exciting incident. Helena's tales about birds and eggs were especially liked, and they wasted no time in making fun of what they all called, 'the egg thing'.
Prompto also got out the camera and then kept it in his hands more or less constantly, taking pictures of everything as well as group shots and random selfies, of which several had at least two goofy faces present in them.
Once the overhead skies started to darken and announce the onset of night, huge braziers were lit all over the settlement at regular intervals to keep the Daemons at bay, as well as giving the whole area even more warmth than they'd already seen.
Not long after, music started playing in several areas as some of the locals took up drums, flutes and other instruments, and drinks floated over to them occasionally, given to them in thanks.
The next thing to emerge was the onset of the munchies, so they all started wandering around the area a lot more, pausing often along the way to nibble at anything they could carry easily.
It was at this point that Prompto started to look like he was getting drunk, the alcohol beginning to punch through the food barrier, so they then suggested that he took a breather and stuffed himself with more food at the building they now sat in.
But did Prompto actually take their advice? Not exactly...
He ran off to go and locate more burgers, and he found those...along with a large bottle of Rakkash and six glasses.
Nyx took one look at the bright blue vessel, and a groan escaped his lips. "...oh, no." He sighed. "He's found my weak spot."
"What, this stuff?" Noctis looked at the mid-brown liquid in the glass he'd been given, and took a big mouthful.
"Steady!" Nyx's hand shot out. "Do not slug it back like that."
"Why not? This is really nice."
"That's how it gets ya. It's like...it's like one of those jack-in-the-box things, y'know? You look at it and listen to it and it's all pretty and nice, you get lost in it a little bit...then bam! It blows up right in front of your face."
Noctis and Prompto stared at him for a moment, then laughed.
"What?" Noctis shook his head. "I'm startin' to think that you're wasted, bro, that's some far-fetched shit if I ever heard it."
"I'm tellin' ya, that stuff's fuckin' lethal if you knock it back. I don't care what you think, I'm takin' mine nice and slow."
"But you're still takin' it." Prompto needled him.
"Well, yeah...it's nice shit." He grinned.
"I...think I'll pass." Helena said after hearing all of that.
"Wuss." Prompto teased. "I'm still havin' some. Might regret it later, but at least I'm not a pussy."
"I don't care."
"She's already got one, dude." Noctis joked.
Nyx grinned, then picked up her wine glass and poured its remaining contents onto the nearby floor.
She stared at him. "Do you fucking mind?" She said as the others burst out laughing.
"Not a bit." He replied. "Put that mouth around some of this."
He then filled up her glass with Rakkash.
"You want me to drink that? After what I've heard?"
"All you gotta do is keep it sensible, yeah? Niiiice and slow. That way, you get enough warnin' when it starts to take hold of ya. Long as you don't throw it down your neck, s'all good baby." He then held his glass out to her. "Cheers." He smiled.
She felt reluctant, but figured that a little bit wouldn't undo her so she clinked her glass against his, and took a small sip.
It was actually very pleasant; there was a slight burn as it hit the back of her throat and went down, but it certainly didn't seem as lethal as he was making it out to be. Also tasted very sweet, as if there was a lot of syrup in its ingredients.
He saw her smile, and grinned. "Ah, see? Tastes good, right?"
"Yeah, it's...nice. Pretty sweet."
"That's why it's a killer. You don't see it comin', so, please trust me on this and take it steady...unlike these dicks here."
"Hey, who you callin' a dick, dick?" Prompto grinned.
"You need some more food." Nyx then got up and went to go to the ordering table. "Hey Princess, gimme a hand."
She rolled her eyes. "I wish he'd stop callin' me that."
"Set your dad on him." Noctis shrugged.
"I'm fucking tempted." She still went over though, and waited by his side while the cooks prepared lots of chips and chicken strips in breadcrumbs for them.
"Good night so far?" He asked quietly.
"Yeah." She smiled. "Right up until you fed me Rakkash and then started callin' me Princess again. You?"
He chuckled. "I'm havin' a great time. I've missed this. And relax, you know I'm only messin' with ya."
"You're not drunk, are you?"
"Nah. I'm not bad, bout a seven. That's where it's gonna stay, too, I'm not gettin' blasted."
"...why's that?"
He smiled at her, and then after some thought she realised that she actually knew exactly why.
"What about you?" He then asked.
"Oh no, I never like getting drunk. Don't see the point. I'll go until I feel a bit happy, then I'll stop for a while."
He nodded. "Best way. I do that, can go all night then. So what, you're like a five or six?"
She thought briefly. "Yeah, about there I think."
"Nice. Although...there's one thing I forgot to mention about the Rakkash. Totally slipped my mind."
She gave him a look. "What? You tryin' to get me drunk?"
"As. If. No, I want you...all there. What I mean is, that if you don't try to drown yourself in it like that lot are doin' despite my advice...there's a couple of other nice effects too."
She had a very strong suspicion as to what they were, and her furtive, sidelong glance announced it to him. "...like what?"
"It's good to relax with." He smiled. "Get nice and mellow, y'know? Chilled. Lot of elderly people like it for that, or those who have stressful jobs. And also...you sometimes see the odd couple with a bottle too."
...uh-oh, she thought. That's gonna be awkward.
"And you tell me this now."
"You've not had much yet. Could always stop." He teased. "Let's take this stuff over before the others end up on the floor."
He took hold of one of the trays, then she huffed and picked up the other one to rejoin the others.
Two hours further on, and the only people left outside were Noctis, Helena and Nyx. Ignis had merely decided to go because he was finally tired, Prompto had gone as he was definitely drunk, and Gladiolus had gone to help him, also feeling quite tired.
The remaining three had been rather more spaced-out with their drinks, had taken breaks and also had regular munchie stops, which accounted for them being the last three standing...or sitting down, as it were. The place they'd holed up in for the night had closed as it was late, so they'd moved back to the park and were sat together on one of the benches near the carving.
"Hope Prom's gonna be okay." Helena fretted.
"After a while." Nyx told her. "He'll sleep most of it off. Might end up with a headache, but that'll hopefully be the worst."
"We did warn him." Noctis smiled. "I think he did kinda well, actually, longest he's done for some time."
"That's only cos' you and I stuffed chips down his throat every few minutes to try and soak some of it up."
Noctis chuckled. "Yeah, that could be it."
"And we, are fuckin' victorious. Full bragging rights are ours, cos' we did it the right way and we lasted longest."
"We rule."
"We could so stick it to them tomorrow."
"Could. I don't think I will, specially if any of 'em are hangin'. I know I wouldn't like it if it were me."
"That's what friends are for though, right? Reminding you of all your shortcomings at the worst times?"
"You're awful, you are." Helena giggled. "If someone did that to you, you'd probly wanna punch 'em out."
"Do as I say, not as I do." Nyx smiled.
"That's just an excuse, you like to cause trouble."
"I do not. Not all the time, anyway."
"Ha."
"Put a sock in it, Princess. I thought Magisters were sposed to be all diplomatic and shit?"
"When working, you idiot. Do I look like I'm fuckin' working?"
Noctis laughed. "Will you two ever stop fighting?"
"Nope." Nyx grinned. "I don't mind though, kinda like it. Y'know, some of the best relationships start with people who are the opposite of each other."
"Oh really." Noctis was unconvinced.
"Yeah bro, straight up. I mean, no two days are the same. It's a surprise, and all the courtship stuff like this is way funnier."
"What courtship?" Helena asked archly.
"Know what the best bit is, though?" Nyx continued. "After all that fightin', there's lots of makin' up." He winked cheekily.
That made Noctis laugh again. "Yeah, I guess there's that. Long as you don't get killed in your sleep first."
"Well I think I agree with Noct on that one." Helena smiled.
"And on that note," the Prince said, "I think I'm done."
Nyx looked at him. "Aww, what, really? Say it ain't so."
"Sorry guys, I gotta hit the hay. Could sleep standin' up. You sure that Rakkash hasn't got a sleep inducer in it?"
"Nah, nothin' like that."
"Well somethin's sure zappin' me. I'll see you later."
He shook their hands warmly, then headed back to the house.
Nyx watched him go with a grin, then sighed and leant back into the bench, looking at the glass he'd rested on one leg.
"Been a great night." He said. "Best for a long while."
"Me too." She smiled. "All of 'em, I think. It's been far too long since we had a good night out."
"Always does people good." He then glanced at her. "What did Shiva think of her meet and greet? You never said."
"...I didn't? Oh- well, she enjoyed it. Bit more than I thought she would, anyways. I thought she'd be a little colder."
"I bet it's those kids. Man, they would not leave her alone."
She giggled. "They all love playing in the snow."
"And you knew you'd be givin' her that necklace back."
"Yeah. I did."
"That's why you gave it her so early?"
"Not entirely...I knew we'd be busy later."
He grinned at her. "Oh yeah?"
"I meant with partying." She giggled again.
"Still are. I ain't ready to stop yet. You?"
"Well...I'm not zapped out like they are. But everywhere's closed now, that's why we've been stuck on this bench in the middle of the fucking park for the last half-hour."
"There's a couple of other places, if you wanna go on for a bit."
"Like what, you mean clubs?"
"No. More like...private rooms."
She turned her head to look at him. He was smiling.
"Did you forget?" He then asked. "It's okay if you did...gotta admit, I did for a while too. Just focused on being together with the others, y'know? Big night out. We could just have a few drinks if you wanted, I'm not gonna force ya. I'd never do that."
That settled her sudden nerves a bit. Neither of them were overly-drunk either, so... "Uh, okay." She agreed.
He smiled, and held out his hand. "C'mon. It's not far."
He led her over to the top-right area of the settlement, and towards a building that had some of the much-older concrete towers nearby. It was deserted, and behind a desk there were several small keys that hung from a mounted piece of wood.
Taking one of those first, he led the way up one flight of stairs to the first floor, then along to a door at the end of that corridor. When she went to close it, she discovered that she had to use quite a lot of strength; she paused to look at it, and saw that it was reinforced with some kind of material in its middle.
Maybe 'reinforced' was the wrong word...
She dropped that thought, shoved it closed with some extra effort and then locked it with the small brass key.
"C'mon, get over here." He called. "Take a load off."
She followed the voice into what looked like a living room as it had a few cupboards, kitchen area, coffee table and couch, then sat down next to him on the latter and cradled her glass.
She looked slightly nervous now. He could see it.
"So now I know that Shiva likes Galahd," he asked her then, "what do you think of it? As a first-timer."
She thought, and she smiled. "It's a lovely place." She said. "Everything's so warm; the colours, the buildings...people. They're really friendly. Lost count of how many we talked to."
"Yeah. And that's not just cos' they know you're a Magister. They did it to the others too...and gave us more than a few extra drinks while they were at it, heh. We're real big on stuff like friendship, and hospitality, and sharing. Not only is it the right thing to do, it makes everyone feel good. They've got a lot to give, so they feel better when they can share it out."
"That's a great way to live."
"I think so too. Hearth and home. Ain't nothin' like it."
"So...why aren't you living here?" She leant forwards to put her glass on the table, then stayed there to look at the Moon that peeked through the window at her.
He thought. "Truthfully, I still got stuff to do. When I'm here, I feel like...I don't wanna leave, y'know? It takes hold of you. Has a bit today, it's like I never left. When I finally make it back here, for good, it'll be because I've done whatever I set out to do, and I wanna live more for myself. That time ain't just yet."
He then leant forwards too. "...that blessing you did."
"Did you like it?"
He smiled. "I just...I fuckin' loved it. And what you said about it, too, after? That's it, right there. I might not always go the best way about it, but that's why I do the stuff I do, say the stuff I say. And you're right- they needed it too. Probly the one thing they're missin'. That's also why I'm not home yet. You knew that."
"Heh. Yeah, I did. I told you that I got it, remember?"
"Yeah." He then took her right hand. "That's why I'm here."
She looked at him with a degree of surprise.
"It ain't just about a blessing." He told her. "That would be...a coincidence now. I'm here, cos' I want to be here. And if you think about all those times so far...there was no blessing then. Here, is the right place, and the right time. So why are you here?"
He kissed her hand a couple of times as she thought about it.
Why did she unnecessarily risk her life with the Mech?
Why did she accept the unusual law so fast?
Why, on three separate occasions, did she not push him away?
Why did she accept him on the last one?
Why did she check the door to see if it was soundproof?
And finally, why was she still here now? After everything?
She knew why. After thinking of it, she looked down at his hand.
"...I wanted to be here too." She finally admitted. Even now, she couldn't actually say the words, and briefly wondered if he understood the ones she had managed to say.
He had; he looked at her for a couple of seconds, then kept hold of her hand so that when he stood up, she did too.
Despite that, he still wanted to give her one last chance to refuse so as he led her towards the bedroom, he let go of her hand and used the same arm to hold the door open for her. A direct invitation to walk through and accept the Elder's gift.
She looked at him for a second, seeing the look in his eyes, then turned and passed through the doorway in front of her.
He still felt slightly surprised, even after that, but then he smiled and quietly followed her inside.