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faierius · 7 years

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Let Me Get This Shot

Sunlight sparkled merrily on the still surface of Alstor Slough while birds twittered and chirped in nearby trees. Raising his arms above his head and clasping his hands, Prompto Argentum stretched noisily. A small smile curved his lips at the beautiful morning.

“Is His Highness awake yet?” Gladiolus asked, his growly voice soft to match the early hour. The man didn't move his eyes from the contents of the breakfast pot while the fourth member of their party, Ignis, stirred carefully.

“I hope so. I woke him up, more-or-less, before I came out. And he agreed to go take pictures with me today!” Prompto crossed the campsite to join Gladio and Ignis at their makeshift camp kitchen. Folding his hands behind his back, Prompto bent forward to see what Ignis was making. “Smells good!”

“Do you wish to eat before you wander off, or shall we wait until you return?” Ignis inquired, smacking Prompto's hand as the younger man tried to snatch a sample.

Pouting and rubbing his hand, Prompto leaned against the folding table. “I'll wait. I wanna get some shots while the lighting is good,” he replied, though his stomach rumbled.

Gladio smirked, crossing his burly arms. “You sure?”

“For once, my stomach can wait. Yo, Noct! You coming, buddy?” he called, turning away from the pair. Folding his own arms, he leaned his weight on one leg and cocked his head. The stiff, hair product saturated swoop of his bangs swayed in the breeze, and he puffed a breath out to shift the hanging chunk of hair away from his eye. His thin chest expanded with a deep breath as he waited for a reply.

Thirty seconds passed before a rustle of cloth came from the tent. A heavy sigh morphed into a low groan before the flap opened and Noctis stepped into the bright sunlight. Squinting, the sleepy scowl on the man's face deepened.

“Mornin' Sleeping Beauty,” teased Gladio, leaving Ignis' side to ruffle Noctis' blue-black locks.

Swatting the big man's hand away, Noctis grumbled incoherently, opening his eyes enough to glower at him. “Ugh, how are you so cheerful?”

Hooking his arm around Noctis' neck, Gladio laughed. “I've had time to wake up,” he said, ignoring the prince's struggles.

At the table, Ignis sighed, pushing his silver framed glasses up on his nose. “If you do not wish your breakfast overcooked, I suggest you hurry along,” he interrupted with a pointed glance at the camera in Noctis' hand.

“Right. Might need this.” The prince handed the equipment off to its owner when Gladio released him. “Where to, Prompto?”

The blond beamed at his sleepy companion. “Let's go down by the water!” Without a farewell for Ignis or Gladio, Prompto grabbed Noct by the arm and took off.

“H-hey!” Stumbling, Noct fell into a jog beside his feisty teammate. “It's too early for this.”

Prompto chuckled, glancing over his shoulder at the other man. The morning sun cast a blinding glare off his white tee shirt. Though it was nice to see him in casual clothes for a change. Ignis insisted their uniforms be washed, so they were all in spare clothes for at least a few days.

“So tell me again why I had to come along so you could take pictures?” Noctis yawned widely, scratching the back of his head as they slowed to a walk.

“Motivation? Inspiration? Company? C'mon, Noct, it's not gonna kill you to be up early, y'know? Actually, I thought I'd take some pics of you. Luna'll want some of our journey, right? And I doubt she wants shots of Iggy and Gladio, or selfies.”

“For Luna,” stated Noctis, wrinkling his nose.

Lifting his camera to his eye, Prompto didn't answer as he took a few shots of the grassy hills in the distance. A catoblepas roared from it's napping spot in the larger of the two lakes ahead, punctuating the silence.

Noctis sighed, casting a side-long glance at Prompto. The man practically bounced with each step, springy and energetic despite the scowl creasing his brow. His blue, nearly periwinkle eyes glittered with restrained enthusiasm. Noct knew this expression well. He saw it too often on the road.

“If you wanna take pictures of me, that's fine,” Noct assured his friend, though his voice remained emotionless.

Prompto's face lit up, and his wild hair even seemed a bit more spiky. Noct turned away to hide his smirk. It was so easy to make some people happy.

Yawning, Noctis scratched the back of his head and followed silently behind his friend. If not for the nagging of the others, he could still be asleep right now. Another long night of vivid nightmares really did a number on him.

“Noct! Noct, over here!” called Prompto, bouncing on the balls of his feet when he spotted the perfect picture-taking location. A grin brighter than the morning sun revealed white teeth as he grabbed the prince's hand and tugged him toward a cluster of boulders.

Noctis didn't have the energy to resist and let Prompto lead him to where the boulders met the shore of the lake. Once his hand was freed, he leaned his weight on one leg and stared expectantly at Prompto. Well? What do you want me to do?

“Go, uh, go up on that one boulder. The shorter one,” Prompto answered the unspoken question, waving his hand toward the rocks. Holding his camera securely, he jogged a few steps away to get a good angle. Turning to face the rocks, he snapped a few off the cuff images of Noctis hoping up the smaller boulders to reach the right one. Once the dark haired man was in position, he put his fists on his hips and stared down at Prompto.

“What now?”

“Pose, duh! I don't wanna take boring pics of you glaring down at me. No one needs to see such a scary face,” Prompto teased, bringing the viewfinder up to his eye. Bending back, he braced his weight on one leg and took a picture.

“My scary face? Clearly you've never seen your own reflection when we run out of hair gel!” Noctis shot back, crossing his arms and shifting from one foot to the other.

Prompto's brow twitched. “Hey! My hair is no laughing matter.” He clicked the button a couple more times. This image would work so much better if he were in uniform, Prompto decided as he sidestepped for a better angle. Noctis suited the drab Lucian black.

“C'mon Noct, can you at least give me a smile?”

The prince pursed his lips in defiance to the request.

Prompto groaned dramatically. “So difficult.” Shaking his head, he lowered the camera briefly to look at his friend without anything between them. The blank stare on the man's face masked a lot of pain, and Prompto knew this. The bright light revealed dark circles around his eyes, and made him seem older than his years. Prompto didn't care for it.

“Hey, let's take some shots by the water next!” he suggested before he found himself slipping into a melancholy mood.

Shrugging, Noctis leaped effortless from his perch and trudged over to his friend. He peeked at the digital screen of the camera, wrinkling his nose at the unflattering image he saw. He did not look good climbing rocks.

“We should catch dinner here tonight,” he said, passing Prompto to stand at the water's edge. A palm-sized green toad croaked up at him.

“Fishing? Really? But it's so dull!” the blond whined as he snapped more shots.

Lifting his head, Noctis raised an eyebrow at the man. “At least we get something useful out of it.”

The blond's shoulders fell as a pout curved his lips. His gaze fell to his feet and he remained silent.

A deep crease marred Noctis' brow as he studied his friend. It was unusual for him to get upset over a joke about his hobby. “C'mon, let's just take some more pictures and get back to camp. I'm starving!”

Prompto nodded, lifting the camera to his eye once again. The pout stayed on his lips.

Scrubbing a hand through his hair, ruffling the already spiky mess, Noctis grumbled low in his throat. Crossing his arms, he faced Prompto and stared at him.

“Wh-what?”

“Would you stop sulking? You take crappy pictures when you're upset.” Noctis' words slipped into a mumble as he turned away, chewing on his bottom lip.

“I'm not upset. What makes you say that?” His freckles darkened as his cheeks flushed pink. “Ne-never mind. Let's just get some more snaps for Lady Luna.” His brow twitched, but his embarrassment seemed to fade as quickly as it came on.

What's with him? Noctis sighed heavily through his nose. “Right. Luna.”

“Hey, um, I actually need to run back to camp and grab my other memory card,” Prompto said, half turning and pointing over his shoulder. “Here, take this and get a few shots yourself! I know you're almost as good with a camera as with a rod.” Without waiting for an answer, he shoved the camera into a bewildered Noctis' hands and took off at a jog.

Noctis gaped after the blond. “What the hell?”

***

Prompto slowed to a walk and clenched his teeth. “Pull yourself together, Prom,” he hissed at himself, kicking a stone in the grass. He wasn't feeling right today. Pouting over a stupid joke? Really? “Idiot!”

Things started out so well, so normal, when he and Noctis left camp. But in the span of half an hour, everything got weird. It was like everything started going down hill when he mentioned Lunafreya. Noctis got sulky when her name was said. Prompto always thought it was because he missed her. But the way he wrinkled up his nose and sighed when Prompto said it was different from the way he acted when Ignis or Gladio said it. He didn't understand. Was he doing something wrong? There was a pretty good chance of that.

With a groan, Prompto fell into a squat and linked his hands behind his head. Would Noctis be more agreeable if he told him the pictures were for them? For the group to remember the fun they had together before everything inevitably changed. The prince would probably just say it was a stupid reason go out of their way. But Prompto liked taking pictures. He liked taking pictures of Noctis because it gave him a glimpse past that guarded, silent front he always kept. He liked taking pictures of Ignis and Gladio, too. It helped him feel like he actually belonged with them.

Inhaling and exhaling slowly, Prompto got to his feet once again. He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, focusing on calming his turbulent thoughts. He wished he wasn't such a coward. It shouldn't be so hard to tell Noctis he wanted the pictures. When could he stop making excuses? The fear of losing his best friend kept the lies on his lips.

Shaking his head, Prompto turned around and headed back to the lake. Plastering a grin on his face to disguise his unease, he approached Noctis. The man raised his head, boredom flattening his expression.

“Sorry. Turns out I had a card on me,” Prompto lied with a crooked smirk.

“This one has tons of room on it anyway,” Noctis pointed out.

“Uh, r-right. I musta misread it. Or something. Did you get any cool shots?” he asked, stepping up close to Noctis and hooking an arm around his shoulders. The fabric of his shirt was hot under Prompto's bare arm.

“See for yourself, photo boy,” replied Noctis, handing the camera back.

A genuine giggle escaped Prompto's throat as he accepted the device. Releasing Noct, he held it in both hands as he clicked through the new pictures. The prince had been busy! Pictures of trees, of water, a couple blurry shots of the catoblepas, a cool action shot of a leaping toad. Mostly blasé images mixed with a few really good ones. As he neared the end of the pictures, Noctis' face filled the screen. The first selfie was just another shot of the man's non-expression, something Prompto caught a lot of. The second was too bright to make out much of anything. The third was Noctis making a stupid face, his eyes squeezed shut and tongue sticking out. A surprised chuckle rushed from Prompto's lips.

“Hey, these are pretty good,” Prompto complimented before clicking to the last new picture. When the final image filled the screen, his jaw dropped. Another Noctis selfie, only this time he was smiling. Not the half smile, or crooked smirk he often wore in group pictures, but a full-on, tooth barring grin. His mouth had a slight slant to it, the left side a little higher, making the expression both charming and cheeky, while his gray-blue eyes sparkled with good humor.

Prompto's heart hammered against his ribs and he was sure Noct could hear it. He raised his head, meeting his friend's cool gaze. Opening his mouth to thank him for the picture, nothing but incoherent stuttering came out. He quickly clamped his mouth shut to prevent further embarrassment.

“That what you wanted?” Noctis asked him, facing the water.

Another string of random syllables fell out of Prompto before he regained control of his voice. “Y-yeah. It's perfect.”

“Don't show anyone else. It's embarrassing,” Noctis grumbled.

“But--?”

“No one,” the man repeated, turning and staring directly into Prompto's eyes.

He swallowed hard, dipping his head in a shallow nod. “Got it.” When he lifted his eyes again, Noctis was still watching him. He couldn't speak, couldn't breathe, under the intense gaze. He wanted to look away, wanted to tell Noctis to stop looking at him like that, but he couldn't move or speak.

Slowly, one of Noctis' black brows rose and he reached toward Prompto. Gently, he removed the camera from the blond's shaking hands and a mischievous smirk quirked the corner of his mouth.

“Ummm...Noct?” Prompto's cheeks burned at the expression on the prince's face.

Noctis brought the camera up to his eye and snapped a picture.

“Hey!”

Stepping out of Prompto's reach, Noctis previewed the image he just took. He smiled, a sly twisting of his full lips.

“Ooh! Love the lighting!” Noctis declared in a fair imitation of his friend.

“Noct!”

The man laughed, tossing the camera back to his blushing companion. Prompto caught the device and immediately went to delete the image. Finger hovering over the button, he paused. The heat in his cheeks increased drastically. Noctis' picture perfectly framed the morning sun behind his head, lighting up his spikes of blond hair, and shadowing his blushing cheeks. It was a good shot.

Clapping Prompto on the shoulder, Noctis started walking back toward camp. “Let's head back before Ignis and Gladio come looking for us.”

“Uh, y-yeah. R-r-right,” Prompto stuttered, following his friend. Trying to calm his racing heart, he fell behind.

“Prompto, c'mon!” Noctis called.

“There in a jiffy!” Jogging to catch up, Prompto felt a smile tug at his lips. When he fell into step beside Noctis, he cast a sidelong glance at him. Light blue eyes met gray. Both men stopped in their tracks.

Lifting an arm, Noctis slid his hand behind Prompto's head and held him firmly. Pulling him close, he pressed his forehead against the other man's.

“Prompto,” he whispered.

The blond lightly gripped his friend's arm, eyes wide as they searched Noctis' face.

“Promise me you'll never stop.”

“Stop what?” he squeaked.

“Being you.” With those words, Noctis released the blond and continued walking.

Though he was confused, those simple words made his heart flutter.

“There you are! Breakfast is getting cold.”

Prompto looked up to see Ignis standing at the top of the hill with a disapproving scowl.

“Told ya mom would come get us,” grumbled Noctis, slipping back into his bored, somewhat snarky demeanor.

The change was so smooth, it was like the last ten minutes never happened.

“Your Highness,” Ignis warned, crossing his arms and quirking a brow behind his glasses.

“Relax, Specs.” Noctis smirked, patting the man's shoulder on the way by.

Shaking his head, the bespectacled man turned his green eyes on Prompto. “So, was your morning tour fruitful?” he inquired as his younger comrade crested the hill.

The blond looked down at his camera. “Yeah,” he answered softly before raising his head again. His silly smile was back on his face. “Yeah, we got some really good shots.”

“You can show me later. But first, breakfast. Shall we?”

“Can't wait. I'm starving!”

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