Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Noctis, I do hope you are ready, young man. Your grandfather is waiting for you in the main drawing room.” 

“He’s right here.” 

Noctis said, pointing in Somnus’s direction, staring at his dad with confusion. He knew his dad was getting on in years, he was 43 now and the crystal was putting extra years on him, but he didn’t realise he was that senile. 

“No, your other grandfather.” Regis corrected him, leaning ever so slightly on his cane. 

“Ugh! Do I have to?!” 

Noctis moaned, and suddenly all the joy he had felt from spending the morning bowling with Prompto had gone. It had been sucked out of him like a vacuum. Why was he here?! Why?! 

“Yes, you do!” Regis said sternly. 

“But that man hates me!” Noctis continued to moan, felling both his arms to the side like a 5-year-old would. 

“No, he hates your dad.” Somnus laughed, lounging in Noct’s gaming chair… which was surprisingly comfy.

Regis let out a massive sigh. “Thank you, grandfather.”  

Somnus shrugged, not bothering to fight back a yawn. “He does. He told me the last time I saw him.” 

“Well, I hope you defended my honour.” 

“No.” 

Regis merely rolled his eyes and looked back at his son. “Noctis, come on. He hasn’t seen you in a while and he’s quite old now…”

Oh so this was the reason his dad was forcing him to see his grandfather, was it?! Why couldn’t his dad just be a little more transparent with his words?  

Noctis folded his arms across his chest with the full intention of staying put in his room. “You think he’s gonna die soon then?”

“I didn’t say that.” Regis said, not missing a beat. Noctis couldn’t help but laugh. He knew how much his dad and his grandfather did not get on. “I am just saying he is your mother’s father and he would really like to see you. And you are his only blood relative after all.” 

Well, Noctis did not expect his dad to use emotional blackmail on him; and the last thing the 14-year-old prince expected was for his dad to be defending his maternal grandfather. At all! According to Ardyn and Somnus, Lord Ferro Chrysos had made it blatantly clear to his paternal grandfather Mors - which was a fucking ballsy move - he had only agreed to the union between his parents so he could better his mum’s social status. More like House Chrysos social status. Being the grandfather of the heir apparent to the Lucian throne put him above most people on the council - in some ways even above Clarus. And because of that attitude and that way of thinking, Noctis was a little bit surprised his dad was pushing for him to have a relationship with this man. Since he was everything Regis didn’t want him to be or turn out like.  

“You hate him.” Noctis said bluntly, knowing he didn’t need to say much more on the matter. 

“I don’t get on with him very well, that is not the same as hating him, Noct.” Regis told him, walking over to his son to place his hand on his shoulder. “He told me he has been really missing you recently. I think it would be great if you spent some time with him.” 

Noctis couldn’t help but smile at his dad and the kindness he had just expressed to the man he did in fact hate. “You are too good, you know that?” 

Regis smiled warmly back. “There is no such thing as being too good-” 

“You clearly haven’t seen your dad lose his rag then, Noctis.” Somnus muttered, interrupting a sweet moment between father and son. “He is not so good when that happens...” 

“Why are you still in my room?” Noctis asked, frustration mounting in his chest. 

“Hiding from Ardyn.” Somnus responded truthfully, using his foot to spin on the chair. 

“What did you do?” Regis growled, suddenly very disappointed in his grandfather.

“Told Cor something… that doesn’t matter. What matters is you are avoiding seeing your grandfather, who we all know, your mother would love you to at least talk too.” Somnus said, cruelly using Aulea to get the conversation away from himself. 

And, annoyingly to Noctis, it worked. 

His dad was still not over his mum’s death and now, because of Somnus and his big mouth, Regis would do everything in his power to get him to talk to Ferro. Because Noctis didn’t want to see his dad sad or make him think he was failing his mum in any way, he reluctantly agreed to go.

“Thank you, Noct.” Regis said lightly. “This will mean so much to him.” 

“Yeah…” 

Noctis nodded, a little concerned how his dad could be this nice to someone he hated. But then again… his dad was one of the nicest people he knew, next to Prom that was. It really shouldn’t surprise him that he could slap on a smile and pretend everything was okay. His dad was also a very skilled politician too. That was probably why he could hold his tongue in his grandfather’s presence. Both of them really. Somnus was a bit of a twat too but a tolerable one.  

Deciding it was better to get this over and done with, Noctis allowed his dad to lean on him for support and they walked down to the main drawing room together - leaving his grandad in his room to sleep on his chair. Noctis didn’t mind too much. It meant he was out of the way and not annoying Ardyn, that was always a bonus. And on the way down there, his dad gave him a gentle reminder of how to act around Lord Chrysos. Like keeping his back straight, calling him ‘grandfather’ not ‘grandad’, he was to only discuss intellectual topics and under no circumstance was he to bring up his dead mother unless Chrysos did it first. Noctis was fine with the last one. He didn’t really want to talk about his mum with someone he barely knew! The rest of his dad’s advice however was going to be a little more difficult to achieve… Oh, how he wished Iggy wasn’t in training with Gladio today! His advisor was meant to be here to help him in situations such as these! 

They stopped at the door to the drawing room and his dad knocked on the door! 

Noct’s eyes widened. He knew they didn’t get on but he didn’t know his dad was scared of him! 

The doors opened and instead of following his dad into the room, Noctis was moved in front of his dad and encouraged to go in first. 

Great… Noct thought. I gotta be your bodyguard now, hey dad? 

The prince walked into the room and saw the man who was his grandfather sitting in his dad’s chair… Noctis felt his gut twist slightly. Not even Somnus dared sit in the king’s chair… he could already tell this was going to be one the funniest conversation he had ever had… 

“Hey- Hello, grandfather.” Noctis put on a fake smile, approaching the old man. 

He looked very old. His hair was snow white, as was his beard and moustache. His face was covered in wrinkles and his eyes… They looked cloudy and they had lost some of it’s natural blue hue. Was he going blind? It wouldn’t surprise the prince. He was 77 years old! But despite his age, Ferro Chrysos had not let himself go. He was slim, but the attire he was wearing nearly put Somnus's everyday attire to shame. He wore very deep blue - again could be considered scandalous as black and blue were the colours of House Caelum not Chrysos - and his attire had gold trimmings laced throughout it. The last thing Noctis noticed was that he wore his pendant - the one that announced his status to the world, grandfather of the heir apparent - with pride. 

All Noctis could think was what a pompous twat he was!  

“Noctis.” Chrysos smiled, looking him dead in the eye. It was kinda unsettling really. “Long time no see. You have grown up so much. I don’t believe I have seen you since you were 7.” 

“Yea- yes.” Noctis nodded, thankfully, he kept catching his words before he said the wrong thing. Not even Somnus cared if he said yeah! Why the hell did this man?! “Sorry about that… the war isn’t really help- allowing for meetings often.”  

“No, I suppose it isn’t.” Chrysos agreed. “Would you care to sit with me, we could have a catch-up.” 

I don’t need your permission to sit down! 

Was what Noctis wanted to say but his dad was still behind him and he had to make a good impression for his dad. Despite the cruelty of Somnus’s words earlier, they were no short of a lie. His mum would want him to talk to her dad. That meant they weren’t allowed to argue. 

Noctis did take a seat and turned to his dad who was still standing. Noctis could see the strain it was putting on his bad leg… he didn’t realise it was that bad today. 

“Dad, sit down.” Noctis said, ready to help him if he required that. 

“Actually, Noctis, I would prefer it if it was just us. You don’t mind, do you, Regis?”

Noctis blinked. He knew that they were related and all, but did he just call his dad by his name after 7 years of not laying eyes on him?! It was becoming clearer and clearer to Noctis why he hadn’t seen him in 7 years. 

 Regis shook his head. “Of course not, Mi’lord.” 

“But dad, your leg.” Noctis said abruptly. “At least sit down until Clarus is free to help you.” 

“I am certain your father can walk by himself.” Chrysos sneered. 

“He can’t actually.” Noctis bit back, not even sparing his grandfather a glance, just as Chrysos was refusing to look at the king. Noctis stood up and held on to his dad’s arm. “Sit by me dad. I don’t want you falling over.” 

“Noct, it is alright.” Regis assured him, moving his arm out of his hold, gripping his cane tightly “Your grandfather wants to spend time with you alone and I more than respect that.” 

“Thank you, Regis.” Chrysos said, no emotion in his tone. 

“Well, I care if you hurt yourself.” 

Noctis said before repeating Ardyn’s full name three times to somehow summon him. Noctis really didn’t understand how that worked, it just did and he had stopped questioning all this weird daemonic shit his uncle could do years ago. 

“Can you take dad to get some rest?” Noctis asked, giving his uncle a cheeky smile so he didn’t get shoved by his uncle who looked very pissed off. 

“Why can’t you stay here. I am on the hunt for my little brother.” Ardyn asked, in a huff. 

“Because I want to spend time with my grandson. Is that a crime, Adagium?” 

Noctis nearly burst out laughing when Ardyn recoiled away, acting like he was disgusted by the man in front of him. It took a lot to disgust Ardyn nowadays… great.

“Oh… I thought I smelt a rat. Yes, Regis, I will gladly get you away from this viper. Good luck Noct! You are going to need it!” 

Just like that his dad and uncle disappeared leaving Noct alone with his grandfather, who he already decided he didn’t like, and now he felt sorry for both his parents and couldn't understand how they were both lovely people. His paternal grandad was a paranoid fuck wick and his maternal grandad was pompous prick! This was not going to be a fun afternoon. 

Noctis returned to his chair and he felt very uneasy as his grandad stared him down.

“What?” Noctis asked, deciding that he was going to drop all that etiquette bullcrap. If Chrysos didn’t like it he was welcome to go back home. 

Chrysos exhaled deeply. “Nothing. I merely want to get to know my grandson.” 

Well, I don’t want to get to know you… 

What followed after that was a series of awkward questions. His grandad asked him how school was, how his friends were, if he was happy, did he find Ardyn and Somnus as annoying as he used to, the normal crap Noctis had expected. But it all just made him feel very uneasy. Mainly because the man had shown little to no interest in him up until this point and Noctis couldn’t help but wonder, why now? Why not keep in contact before? So whatever the man said or pretended to be interested about it just seemed fake… completely fake. 

Noctis rubbed the back of his neck and shrugged. “Training is fine, I guess. Puts strain on my back though…” 

“It’s meant to do that.” Chrysos stated very rudely. 

“Yeah… I know…” Noctis said, narrowing his eyes. 

Had... had he forgotten what happened to him not merely a year after he exited his life? 

“You’re going to be king one day, you can’t allow pain to get in the way of your succession.” 

“...I won’t-” 

“Good. And a word of advice. Don’t do what your father did and give yourself any more needless injuries. It’s not very regal looking.” 

Anger suddenly clouded Noct’s mind and he couldn’t help but sneer at the man. “I am sorry?” 

“I merely saying your grandfather, Mors, even in his last few days didn’t allow anyone to see how frail he had become. Your father, well… that cane, he shouldn’t be using it at his age.” 

“Are you joking!” Noctis scoffed in utter disbelief. 

“Joking? Heavens, no boy. I am being serious.” Chrysos said, not at all sensing how pissed off he had made the prince. “You need to remain strong and healthy and never appear weak or lame.”

“Lame?!” Noctis yelled that time and if Chrysos didn’t know he was angry before he certainly did now. “I’ll have you know the reason why my dad is ‘lame’ is because he saved my life! Which you would have known if you bothered to turn up after that daemon attacked me and nearly severed my back!” 

“Noctis, you see here-” Chrysos growled, and Noctis paid no mind to it. 

“No, you see here!” He stood up and continued to yell at him, eyes burning like fire. “My dad is the best person I have ever met! I will not allow you to call him lame, or talk down to him, or sit in his chair! He has raised me better than anyone else ever could! And if you can’t respect him for what he is, a damned good king and a bloody excellent father, then I don’t want to talk to you. You have already missed more than half my life! It won’t matter to me if you aren’t in the rest of it.” 

Because Noctis was so angry, he stormed out, leaving the man in a stunned silence. 

Noctis didn’t care. What he cared about was finding his dad and making sure he was okay.

Once he did, Regis began panicking the fuck out and ordered Clarus to take him to see Chrysos at once, leaving Ardyn in Noctis’s care to ensure their uncle didn’t find Somnus. Noctis decided took him to the kitchen to get some ice slushies and that was where he explained to his uncle what his grandfather had said to keep Ardyn’s mindset on Chrysos and the pillock he was. 

“That man has not changed on bit.” Ardyn sneered, taking a sip of his pink slushie. “I am surprised your dad let you see him.” 

“So am I.” Noctis sighed, holding the cold plastic cup that contained his own blue slushie in his hands to prevent him from swinging at anything to relieve his frustration. “He is so…”

“Pompous? Twatish? Has a silver spoon so far up his arse he thinks Eos was made for him?” 

“Yeah.” Noctis agreed. “But… Ardyn, I gotta know... was my mum anything like him?” 

“No.” Ardyn said immediately, looking the prince dead in the eye. “Your mother was nothing like that.”

Noctis shrugged. “You say dad can be like Mors.”

“Only when he is very angry and even then, him losing his temper is usually more than justified.” 

“Yeah, but wouldn’t mum have some traits of her dad? We follow in our parent's footsteps, right?” 

That was what he had always thought. Gladio was similar to Clarus in terms of organisation and discipline. Prom was kinda like Ardyn - when his uncle was having a very good day - with how kind-hearted he was, and even Iggy acted like his uncle. And as for Noctis he knew he acted like his dad sometimes. They were both a little goofy but they could both be serious when needed. So it wasn’t a stretch in the dark to think Aulea was like Chrysos. Noctis just really hoped it was not the case....

“Some do.” Ardyn told him. “Some don’t. Your parents don’t define who you are, Noct. They are there to simply guide and help you learn from their mistakes. And to me, both your parents were fortunate to have such… crazy fathers. It meant they could see how not to behave. Trust me, not once have I ever seen your mother act how your grandfather does.” 

“You promise?” Noctis asked, a sense of relief filling his chest. 

Ardyn smiled down at him and ruffled his raven hair. “I do. I promise as much as I swear to Bahamut I will kill Somnus when I next see him.” 

Noctis snorted. “What did he tell Cor again?” 

“Never you mind.” 

Okay, that meant Noctis was never finding out or that it was something really trivial and stupid… knowing Ardyn it was probably the latter.  

Why was his uncle so goddamn petty? 

Actually he’d probably never get the answer to that either. Now, all Noctis could do was wonder how his dad was doing dealing with his other grandfather….

Chapter Text

“Regis, slow down.” Clarus ordered, trying his hardest to prevent the king from having a fall. 

Regis wasn’t in a position mentally to listen to his shield as he bashed his cane against the marble floor quickly to get back to the drawing room. 

He couldn’t believe Noctis had said that to Chrysos. 

Yes, it may have been well deserved and Regis was beyond proud that Noctis was confident enough to not only stand up for what he believed in but also his family; and at the same time he was terrified to learn what his father-in-law’s reaction would be. 

Chrysos, like Mors, had always possessed this dreadful ability to make the king feel incredibly small. He had always looked at him with disappointment and disgust, he had never liked him, he just liked the idea that he would be king one day and his daughter could be queen. Because he already distested him, Regis could picture it now, the shouting, the screaming, the pure hatred and disgust he’d throw his way on how he had raised Noctis, all because Noctis had shouted at him. 

The mere thought was enough to make Regis cringe. 

He didn’t particalling want to be screamed at on how he had raised his child… Although, Noctis had shouted at his grandfather and his son shouldn’t have really done that either - even if it was well deserved. 

“I need to speak to him, Clarus.” Regis huffed out, getting out of breath. 

“You do not owe him anything!” Clarus said sternly, easily keeping up with Regis’s pace. 

“I am not speaking to him to stroke his ego. I am doing this for Aulea. She wouldn’t want her father and son hating each other.”

That shut Clarus right up. 

The thought of his late wife made the king hobble faster towards the drawing room. For all he knew Chrysos might have already decided he had had enough and gone home. Regis would feel so awful if that was the case. 

As luck would have it when he reached the room no guard or glaive informed him his father-in-law had left. Regis didn’t know if he should be relieved or not. He leant ever so slightly on his cane before turning to Clarus. 

“You stay here.”

“If you think I am leaving you alone-” Clarus started to protest but stopped when Regis raised his hand. 

“I am afraid this is a challenge I must face alone, my friend.” Regis said, knowing for a fact Clarus would not be able to hold his tongue if Chrysos said anything horrible or unsavoury to him. The entire point of this was mending things for Noctis and Aulea, not creating more problems. “If I need you, I’ll call for you.” 

With that Regis stepped into the drawing-room, his head lower than usual, his hand latched on to his cane with his stomach in knots. He shouldn’t feel this nervous. He dealt with Somnus and Ardyn on a daily basis, talking to Chrysos shouldn’t be this daunting. Except it was, it really was and now he was walking into the lion's den with no form of protection whatsoever. 

Regis didn’t even get a chance to speak before his father-in-law spat in his direction.

“You call that raising my grandson!” Chrysos growled, Regis could feel the man’s eyes on him.

It made him shiver, he hated this so much. 

“I call it Noctis knowing his own mind.” Regis replied quietly, not bothering to sit down as the elder would only get angrier with him. 

“He is a prince! He doesn’t get to have his own mind! That is your job, no? Protecting him and teaching him how to become king. Neither of which I can see you have achieved. Your father would be disappointed in you.” 

“To be honest, Chrysos, I stopped caring what that man thought the day I became king.” Regis told him, and pretended the harsh words didn’t affect him. Because they did. They stung a lot. 

“Oh really?” Chrysos sneered. “I think Aulea would be disappointed in you too. That is what really matters here.” 

At the mention of his wife, Regis glared at her father. He was a little surprised he spoke of her at all if he was honest. Like Regis, Chrysos found it difficult to discuss her. They both missed her terribly and now he was using her to get at him? And it made Regis angry. Not angry to the point he’d throw a vase at his head in a blind rage, but enough to no longer care what he said or what the man in front of him thought. 

“How would you know that?” Regis said calmly, danger lingering at the edge of his tone. “You didn’t bother turning up until her funeral when we had been aware for months that she was dying!”     

“How dare you?!” Chrysos roared, eyes flaring up with rage. 

Regis shrugged. “You weren’t there. I called you. I called you every day to come and see her and you didn’t.” 

“That is because-” 

“Because what? My son nearly lost the ability to walk and I risked both our lives, an entire country’s safety, and became the primary reason a queen was butchered in front of her two children; all in the name of making Noctis better and you did nothing to even help your daughter. Not once.” 

“Don’t you dare compare yourself to me!” Chrysos yelled, seemingly completely ignoring his previous statement. Quite frankly, Regis found that remark offensive. 

“I wouldn’t dream of it.” Regis said smoothly, rage still present in his eyes but not once in his tone. “Because I never turned my back on my child, whereas you did!” 

It was a very harsh thing to say but it was no word of a lie. Once he and Aulea were married, Chrysos basically disappeared from their lives. He reappeared when Noctis was born for a time and then vanished once more. He only came back to bury his daughter and after Noctis turned 7, Regis honestly thought he’d never seen him again. So for Chrysos to have the audacity to call him a bad father and to tell him he had not raised Noctis well… It made him lose control of his emotions. For the king had seen his late wife crying after they had wed. Confused and upset why her father would not return her calls. Upset that he wouldn’t even come to their wedding anniversary celebrations or her birthday celebrations. Beyond hurt that he learnt she was pregnant with Noctis on the news because he couldn’t even bother to read a single letter she had sent him. Thinking about all of this… Regis was starting to wonder if Ardyn and Somnus were right… should he have allowed Chrysos to have contact with Noctis again?  

Chrysos swallowed hard and looked down to the floor, for the first time ever it seemed as if he had retreated from Regis’s gaze. Yet he could hear a slither of humour in his tone. “I was wrong about you.” 

“Pardon?” Regis asked, little to no emotion in his own voice. 

“You are exactly like your father.” Chrysos said plainly. “You have no sense of empathy whatsoever.” 

Regis clicked his tongue as he felt his grip on his cane tighten. Those words sparked a new type of anger in him, one that he was trying his hardest to keep contained. 

“Get. Out. Of. My. House.” 

Chrysos just wasn’t seeing it as threatening. He remained in the chair and continued to belittle the king. “You should have given Noctis to me to raise. He wouldn’t have been attacked if you had.”

“ CLARUS! ” Regis shouted, his rage erupting within a split second. 

Of course, Clarus immediately came in and noticed straight away how enraged his liege was and took precaution by not standing too close to his king. Clarus knew he shouldn’t have allowed Regis to come in here on his own. 

“Get him out before I throw him out!” Regis barked, bearing his teeth at his father-in-law. 

“See you have no shame whatsoever.” Chrysos said, rising to his feet. “You even called the person you cheated on my daughter with to escort me out!”

“Excuse me! I have no idea where you got that idea from but that has never happened! So don’t you dare accuse me of cheating on my wife or accuse Clarus of cheating on his!” Regis yelled, walking right up to Chrysos staring him in the eye. This time he could see fear in the elder man. He should be scared. He had said one too many things and Regis was done. “Get out! I never want to see you in my home again! And as for who Aulea would be ashamed of right now? She’d be ashamed of you!”

SMACK!   

After being struck in the face, Regis lost his footing and thankfully Clarus was there to catch him before he fell to the floor. His face stung as he placed his hand to the spot where Chrysos had hit him and… he couldn’t believe he had the balls to do that with Clarus in the room as well! 

Regis wasn’t given an opportunity to voice any command, for Clarus had forced him into a nearby chair and restrained Chrysos within a matter of seconds.

“GET OFF ME!” Chrysos yelled, not able to put up much of a fight because of his age. 

Of course, he got ignored and it would seem Clarus had somehow already managed to alert the guard. A sea of them came flooding into the room to take Chrysos down to the dungeons. 

“I am Prince Noctis’s grandfather! You can not arrest me!” Chrysos yelled again, now struggling against the guards who had put him in handcuffs and encircled him. 

“You struck the king.” Clarus reminded him, standing tall in front of the man. “I think you will find, stated in Article 23, under the founding of this nation, any form of physical assault to your sovereign is an offence punishable by death. Arresting you is the smallest sentence I am allowed to offer. Take him away.” 

Regis watched, the blood rushing to his face, as Chrysos was taken away kicking and screaming, still attempting to use his status as a way to be unhanded immediately. It didn’t work. And Regis couldn’t help but feel beyond guilty! If he hadn’t screamed those horrible words in the man’s face this wouldn’t be happening to him…

“Are you alright, Regis?” Clarus asked, crouching down near the chair so they were now eye level.   

Regis rubbed his reddened face and grunted. “Don’t bother arresting him. He’s not worth it, Clarus.”

“Unfortunately, you know I can’t do that.” Clarus said. “I wouldn’t be doing my job if I allowed that to go unpunished.” 

“Well, I am telling you, it’s fine.” Regis replied with a sigh. 

“It’s not. Besides I can’t do anything more until Somnus has been informed of this assault.” 

“He slapped me. It wasn’t attempted murder!” 

Clarus shrugged in return, doing his duty as Shield and keeping to protocol. Regis understood. Chrysos had greatly upset him too. There was no chance in hell Clarus was going to allow Chrysos any room for leniency on the matter.  

Regis groaned, burying his face into both of his hands. “Somnus hates him.” 

“Well then, he isn’t getting away with it, is he?” 

Regis leant back in his chair, knowing full well his grandfather was never going to allow this to go unpunished. All the king wanted from today was for Noctis and his grandfather to have a nice quiet afternoon… how in the name of Bahamut had it turned into an arrest? 

When Noctis found out what had occurred between his dad and grandfather he was in the middle of preventing Ardyn from strangling the life out of Somnus - he still didn’t know what the hell his grandad had told Cor for it to warrant that type of reaction! But like they always did when a member of their family needed them, his ancestors put aside their petty squabbling and raced to Regis’s aid with little to no prompting, with Noct running not far behind them. He was overcome with worry and guilt for his dad because he thought he had caused it! He was the one that pissed Chrysos off first and now not only was the man in jail but his dad had been hurt. Regis was the most important person in his life, the least he could have done for him today was be civil with his grandfather. But no he had to make a scene and now shit had really hit the fan! 

“Dad!” Noctis yelled, running towards the king. “Are you okay?!”

“Yes, everyone is making a bigger deal out of this than there needs to be.” Regis replied, giving his son a soft smile. 

“Oh I beg to differ!” Ardyn sneered. 

“Regis, if he thinks for one second he can…” 

His grandad’s words were lost on him when Noctis finally noticed the massive angry red mark across his dad’s left cheek. Tears of anger and upset consumed him. Upset because this was a direct result of his actions and anger because his dad could have fallen over! Chrysos was fucking lucky he had only left that mark! Noctis couldn’t even begin to imagine what state his dad could be in right now! He could have fallen on his bad knee… 

Noctis shook his head, balling his hands into fists. 

He wasn’t having this! No one hurt his dad! 

“Where is he?!” Noctis demanded to know, cutting Somnus’s words short.

“No! Not in a million years are you going anywhere near him!” Ardyn growled, eyes beginning to glow yellow at the thought that that man could hurt another one of his nephews. He was so glad Prompto was with Cor today. 

“Stop being overprotective. I want to see my grandad!” Noctis yelled back. 

“He physically assaulted your dad, you are not seeing him.” Somnus said calmly. 

“It’s up to dad, it’s not up to the pair of you.” Noctis reminded them before looking at his dad again. “Can I see him?” 

After a brief moment of silence, Regis shook his head. “No. Not on your own.”

“Let Gladio come into the room with me. He is my shield after all.” 

Noctis was not going to let this drop. He had already decided if no one would give him permission, he’d go himself. He may only be 14-years-old but he could easily sneak past the guards. Surely it was better they knew what he was doing than him being reckless, right? 

“Noctis I-”

“What he did was treason, Noctis.” Somnus said sternly, talking over Regis. “He counts as a danger towards your dad and therefore you. I am sorry. I don’t feel comfortable with putting you in a position where you might get hurt. Even if it is just emotional pain.” 

Noctis rolled his eyes. He knew his grandad secretly cared far too much about every member of his family but did he have to express it right now? When Noctis knew he was the only person who might be able to fix this considering he was the man’s grandson-

That was when Noctis knew that was his ticket into having a chat with Chrysos. 

The prince began to argue the notion that Regis had brought Chrysos here so the pair could spend time together. Noctis assumed it was because Chrysos was dying or wasn’t well but in denying him that chance to talk to his estranged grandfather, the little time they may have together was being wasted. Somnus and Ardyn, of course, told Noct that his argument was a  massive pile of chocobo shit but his dad didn’t. As they continued to argue about the logistics of the situation, Regis remained relatively quiet. Noctis knew the reason for this. Somehow, the six only knew how his dad was feeling guilty. Guilty and torn about whether or not he should stand with their ancestors or allow a grandson to see his grandfather. That guilt… It was the reason why Noctis, after about an hour of arguing, was indeed allowed a chance to speak briefly to Chrysos.     

But with an exception. 

Instead of Gladio being his bodyguard for this task - because Somnus wouldn’t allow it - Ardyn had to go with him and prevent Noctis from getting upset. And he wasn’t allowed in the cell. He had to stand outside and speak to the man behind the bars of his cell. And for someone who had committed treason, he was in a comfortable cell. His dad had definitely seen to it. He had a drinking fountain, a closed-off area for him to use the toilet, a bed and a chair along with a fucking television! His dad was simply too kind sometimes. Especially considering this man did not deserve it!

“Noctis!” Chrysos gasped in delight when he noticed his grandson. He even stood up in an attempt to walk over to the bars. 

“Sit back down!” Ardyn ordered, shoving Noct behind him in a protective manner. 

“I can’t get out, Adagium.” Chrysos said. “Let me see my grandson.”

“Sit back down. Then you can.” Ardyn replied, not allowing Noctis passed him. 

Despite how stupid the order was Chrysos did as he was told. Ardyn however did not allow Noctis within 2 feet of the cell. It was a little extreme but then Noctis remembered that Ardyn had millions of daemons, who wanted to protect the only being that could end their existence safe and sound, riddle within the man… so perhaps, only in his uncle’s case, it wasn’t extreme enough. 

“Noctis I-”

“Save it.” Noctis bit back, taking his grandfather off guard. “You hit my dad. I just want to know why.” 

Chrysos paused briefly, looking away from Noctis. “Because he was being disrespectful in regards to your mother.” 

That made Noctis laugh and suddenly changed Noct’s mind about wanting to mend things. “My dad?! He can’t even talk about her without crying! I don’t believe you!” 

Chrysos didn’t say anything to that. He continued to look at the floor. Noctis didn’t feel at all sorry for him. All he could see was someone in front of him who he never wanted to turn out like. Someone who cared very little about anything that wasn’t themselves. That was the type of person Noct didn’t need in life. Not when he was well aware how little time he had left on this planet. 

“Look, cause you're my grandad, dad says you can leave within a few hours.” 

“You can thank Regis for that one, since Somnus wants you on trial for that assault.” Ardyn huffed out, more than agreeing with his brother. 

“Uncle, just… let me.” Noctis said, silencing Ardyn. “Like what dad said, you aren’t coming back here nor do I want to see you again.” 

“Noctis, you are my grandson.” Chrysos protested, looking up at him. 

“Like I said before, you never bothered once. Why do you want to bother with me now?” 

“Because you have your mother’s eyes and her spirit! And I couldn’t cope with seeing you before! It hurt me too much! But I can now and I want to!” Chrysos said, pleading, trying to get Noctis to listen to him. 

Noctis closed his eyes. That was the third time his mother had been used against him today. This time, he wasn’t being guilt-tripped. He didn’t know much about Chrysos but he did know he was the type of person to do whatever it took, regardless of the methods to get what he wanted. He wasn’t getting it this time. 

“Yeah, well I have also been told that I have her manners. I am pretty sure, if she knew you hurt her husband she wouldn’t want me talking to you either. For that reason, I only came to say goodbye.” 

With that Noctis left. 

He wasn’t giving that man any more attention, not ever. Since Ardyn didn’t say anything it was clear his uncle respected and valued his decision. As he was well aware Somnus and Clarus would too. Now, it meant that man could no longer harm his dad and that his dad shouldn’t feel any guilt over them not interacting because it was his choice. 

Noctis felt good knowing he was now the one doing the protecting. Sometimes his dad needed it after all. 

He went straight to Regis, gave him a massive hug and explained himself and his reasonings. 

Regis embraced Noctis tighter. “You shouldn’t have to make a decision like this yet…” 

“Yeah, well I have.” Noctis laughed. “And I have made another decision. You aren’t gonna do anymore work today and help me find out what on Eos grandad said to Cor!” 

Regis joined in with his son’s laughter. “That is a wonderful idea, Noct! I love you.” 

“Love you too, dad.”