The motive has been on his mind. It's a hell of a motive, too, and Noctis wonders if they're just getting desperate. But that his whole existence could be erased is... unsettling, to say the very least. While he doesn't want that to happen at all, it's not worth it to kill anyone here. To kill anyone here, his family, is completely out of the question.
He wonders if another accident will happen.
... Well. Now he's just too worked up to get back to sleep. Noctis rubs his hands over his face and groans softly. He hopes that Nari won't wake; she's been having trouble sleeping lately, and she needs as much as she can get. Noctis quietly slips out of the room, and he heads to the first concourse.
He stops at Luna's gate. ]
... I wish I could talk to you, Luna. I need your advice more than ever.
[It was painful, the motive. Yet Nari acted like it wasn't bothering her, chewing her up inside as much as it had. Losing memories was bad enough... but what others didn't know except maybe Church was that there was one person in that entire world Nari couldn't handle forgetting her.
Mira.
The thought of her first love and best friend forgetting she ever existed caused her to have sleepless nights. Staring at the ceiling and listening to the soft breathing of the other rooms occupants. So she plans and plans hard.
Noctis leaving gave her the perfect target.
He won't hear her come up behind him till she clears her throat.]
[ Some of the others... they aren't worried. Church. Xander. Jane? She mostly thinks it's bullshit, he thinks. Honestly... Noctis himself is worried. It's crazy. Completely. That the people behind this could just erase them, it's...
But he's supposed to be dead. And here he is, breathing, heart beating a steady rhythm against his chest as he gazes at Luna's portrait. He misses her so much it's like a knife in his chest, and he reaches out to touch his fingertips against the portrait.
He, at first, doesn't even register Nari approaching. He startles a little, when she clears her throat, and he turns to her with a slightly sheepish smile. ]
No. There's way too much on my mind. [ Putting it lightly. ] Sorry. Did I wake you up when I left?
[Nari knows firsthand that there's those who can erase memories. She's been a victim of it back home to cover the death she had a hand in. To cover the fact she was the cause for her almost-killer losing her legs. And many other little incidents. Yet Mira never forgot...]
No... I never went to sleep.
[Especially tonight.]
I left Kipsie behind. She would have woken everyone up.
... Yeah. I guess that's why I can't sleep, either. It's officially Friday.
[ He has a headache starting. Noctis breathes out, slowly, deeply. He doesn't want anyone to die, even if they aren't truly gone. He doesn't want to have to go through the same damn thing they've been going through for the past two months. ]
... Hey. You want some tea or anything? Maybe it'll help us calm down.
[She shakes her head at that.] No. I... can you tell me about her? About this Lunafreya? It might help me calm down, hearing about someone else's loved one.
[And it would make Nari finalize her plan. She needed his back turned.]
[ Accidents. Intent. More accidents. It's the damn worst, and Noctis... Noctis just wants everyone to get out of here alive. He wants everyone who's died to get out of that simulation. He wants... he wants to talk to them again, and not through a ouija board or letters or anything like that. He wants to see them breathing, warm, wants them to live and keep living.
... And Luna. There's so much he wants to talk to her about. He wants to be able to hold her, to tell her--finally--that he loves her. ]
Alright. So... we met when we were kids. My dad--you remember him, right? I showed you his picture--and I went to Tenebrae, where Luna and her brother lived. It was... beautiful. And it should've been good. Nothing bad should've happened.
[ He exhales heavily. The memory of Luna's hand slipping from his father's is fresh, painful. He grits his teeth. ]
... After that, I... didn't see her. But there was this notebook that her dogs took back and forth between us. [ His cheeks warm over a little. ] We exchanged messages like that. It was nice.
[ He laughs a little sheepishly, crossing his arms. ]
Yeah. It worked for us, at least, but it's... It wasn't the same as actually talking to her. [ He's quiet for a moment. ] When we all get out of here, when we rescue the ones trapped in that simulation... I'd like you to meet Luna. I think you'd like each other.
Something like that. [ He's still bitter at Bahamut, for sure.
Noctis turns without hesitation, hands in his pockets. He's quiet for a long while. What does he say, exactly? He's thought about it a lot, to be sure. He'd written a letter back in the mall simulation, after all. But no matter how much he wrote, it never seemed like enough.
... So now... he doesn't know. But he'll start talking, nonetheless. ]
So... it's been a while, Luna. It's been ten years for me. Now that I'm seeing you like this, I don't... Putting words to my thoughts and feelings is kind of hard. Gladio always used to give me shit for not being able to spit it out. I guess he was right.
[ He falls quiet for a moment. ]
What happened to you... I wish I could've done something to change it. I wish I could've been stronger, so I could protect you. I wanted you to be happy, Luna. I wanted to see you smile. You should've lived longer. You should've been able to follow your dreams and your heart.
... But I've kept you in mine. [ He's smiling, softly and warmly. ] And now that you're here? I'm gonna do everything I can to make sure you're happy.
[There's hesitation. Nari listens, and her chest feels like it's getting tighter and tighter with each word Noctis says. If she's going to do this, it was now. Had to be now. No backing out.
Here's to hoping that Noctis was distracted enough that he won't feel the temperature change. Nari focuses hard on creating a blade made of ice. It's thin and elegant, like a rapier, all she can manage with her powers dampened. This would have to do.
Next her hand goes to her shirt, digging out the hardlight concealed under it. She thought about who Noctis would drop his guard around for a long time. The only thing she could come up with was his father. So with a shimmer of light she changes. "Regis" slowly walked a little closer to Noctis.]
I'm sure she heard you.
[Now all she has to do is wait for Noctis to turn around, blade poised and ready to strike.]
[ It's a measure of just how much he trusts her that he's being vulnerable like this. That on a Friday, with no one else around and a motive on their minds, his back has been turned for so long. He doesn't suspect a thing.
And maybe that's the worst part of it. Isn't it?
Noctis lets out a little laugh, and he reaches up to brush a hand through his hair. He thinks about Luna, as he reaches out to touch her portrait again. And the wedding dress... It's beautiful, and it's beautiful on her. He remembers her dancing in it, he remembers how she'd looked so happy... ]
... Thanks, Nari, for-- [ He turns as he speaks.
It takes less than a moment for him to freeze, completely. ]
[The look in his "fathers" eyes is that of a predator. Someone intent on killing. There's no warmth or sadness, what he might expect from his father, just a coldness that comes right before a strike.
And it's fast. The ice blade hits at just the right spot. Nari has studied body charts. She knows where the right spot to strike a heart is. How to bypass the ribs, how much force is needed, how to effectively kill.
With any luck she's aimed true and Noctis will not feel the hit. The ice breaks and leaves a shard in his chest. All she does is reform the ice and hit other spots.
[ Even though he's been stunned, Noctis knows what's coming. He knows he will not be leaving this place alive. He'll die in front of Luna's memorial, his life snuffed out by someone he had considered family. Someone who had to take on the guise of his father to take his life...
He tries not to think of the girls and how they'll find his body hours from now. He doesn't think about Touko calling him "dad," how he's just another person Max will lose, how Pyrrha will have to deal with the fact that the girl she loves is a murderer. Idly he hopes that maybe it'll be like with Xander. Maybe they'll spare Nari from execution... But he can't know for sure.
He'll have to apologize to Will for not keeping the girls out of trouble. He'll need to make it up to Mako, too; in the end, he couldn't return the scarf to his brother. It's still around his neck, and the ends are darker now with Noctis's blood. He'll need to apologize to Varric for not being able to lead until the end...
Noctis hopes, as the ice starts to find its home in his heart, that his death will be the last. That the dawn will come with the end of his life once more.
The ice pierces his heart. A split second before, he grabs where he thinks the hardlight projector is. His hand curls around the cord, gripped tight in his palm, and as he falls, so does the little device. His body hits the ground, and it will be a while before he turns as cold as the weapon that ended his life.
[Something that she's told others. Something that Nari has never kept secret from day one: She was willing to kill for the right motive. It was now up to the others to finally see that in the long run there were even things that this woman would kill for, hands down, if given the chance, and try and get away with it.
She doesn't care if they try and spare her. She'll face her execution head on if found guilty. No singalongs, no heartfelt goodbyes. Just the resignation that if Nari is caught, she rightly deserves death.
Even if it would be nice if those around her would try and fight like they did for Queenie.
Unlike Queenie, though, Nari knows that deep down she's not a good or kind person. She's just herself, and it was the others that mistook that for kindness. For compassion. For something that she knew she wasn't. There was nothing good in her... not for a long, long time. That all died with the mansion. Died when Nishitani was taken.
The only person she feels truly guilty about leaving behind was Pyrrha. If Nari believed in any god, she'd pray for them to help that girl leave this place. Help Pyrrha have a good and loving life away from here. Her family was important, but that redheaded girl with those green eyes was just like Mira. So, so much like Mira.]
I'm sorry it had to be you.
[The hardlight projection fades as she says this to Noctis, a thin mark left on the back of her neck from where the cord pulled and snapped. As soon as Noctis is down, her boot comes down on the little device to shatter it.
Now wasn't the time to build any regrets. It was time to stage this. Make someone else look guilty.
And for once have hope she can literally get away with murder.]
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fullbrings2018-03-27 08:20 pm
no subject
The motive has been on his mind. It's a hell of a motive, too, and Noctis wonders if they're just getting desperate. But that his whole existence could be erased is... unsettling, to say the very least. While he doesn't want that to happen at all, it's not worth it to kill anyone here. To kill anyone here, his family, is completely out of the question.
He wonders if another accident will happen.
... Well. Now he's just too worked up to get back to sleep. Noctis rubs his hands over his face and groans softly. He hopes that Nari won't wake; she's been having trouble sleeping lately, and she needs as much as she can get. Noctis quietly slips out of the room, and he heads to the first concourse.
He stops at Luna's gate. ]
... I wish I could talk to you, Luna. I need your advice more than ever.
no subject
Mira.
The thought of her first love and best friend forgetting she ever existed caused her to have sleepless nights. Staring at the ceiling and listening to the soft breathing of the other rooms occupants. So she plans and plans hard.
Noctis leaving gave her the perfect target.
He won't hear her come up behind him till she clears her throat.]
Can't sleep either?
no subject
But he's supposed to be dead. And here he is, breathing, heart beating a steady rhythm against his chest as he gazes at Luna's portrait. He misses her so much it's like a knife in his chest, and he reaches out to touch his fingertips against the portrait.
He, at first, doesn't even register Nari approaching. He startles a little, when she clears her throat, and he turns to her with a slightly sheepish smile. ]
No. There's way too much on my mind. [ Putting it lightly. ] Sorry. Did I wake you up when I left?
no subject
No... I never went to sleep.
[Especially tonight.]
I left Kipsie behind. She would have woken everyone up.
no subject
[ He has a headache starting. Noctis breathes out, slowly, deeply. He doesn't want anyone to die, even if they aren't truly gone. He doesn't want to have to go through the same damn thing they've been going through for the past two months. ]
... Hey. You want some tea or anything? Maybe it'll help us calm down.
no subject
[She shakes her head at that.] No. I... can you tell me about her? About this Lunafreya? It might help me calm down, hearing about someone else's loved one.
[And it would make Nari finalize her plan. She needed his back turned.]
no subject
[ Accidents. Intent. More accidents. It's the damn worst, and Noctis... Noctis just wants everyone to get out of here alive. He wants everyone who's died to get out of that simulation. He wants... he wants to talk to them again, and not through a ouija board or letters or anything like that. He wants to see them breathing, warm, wants them to live and keep living.
... And Luna. There's so much he wants to talk to her about. He wants to be able to hold her, to tell her--finally--that he loves her. ]
You want to hear about her? I can do that.
no subject
He knows what it's like to be in love. How important memories were...]
Start from wherever... childhood, recent things. I'd like to hear it all.
no subject
[ He exhales heavily. The memory of Luna's hand slipping from his father's is fresh, painful. He grits his teeth. ]
... After that, I... didn't see her. But there was this notebook that her dogs took back and forth between us. [ His cheeks warm over a little. ] We exchanged messages like that. It was nice.
no subject
Nari nods with a small smile.] Dogs can be pretty amazing like that. At least you could stay in touch even through something so simple.
no subject
Yeah. It worked for us, at least, but it's... It wasn't the same as actually talking to her. [ He's quiet for a moment. ] When we all get out of here, when we rescue the ones trapped in that simulation... I'd like you to meet Luna. I think you'd like each other.
no subject
[Nari tugs at the shirt she was wearing, motioning with her head to the memorial.]
If you were to meet her right now, what would you tell her? You know... as practice?
no subject
[ He's practically glowing as he talks about her. Noctis rubs at the back of his neck. ]
Ah... Well. There are a lot of things I'd tell her. I... don't know where to start.
no subject
[That's so sweet... Soon enough he'll be with Luna again.]
Well... look at her portrait. Pretend she's here. If you talk from the heart, she'll be able to tell.
no subject
Something like that. [ He's still bitter at Bahamut, for sure.
Noctis turns without hesitation, hands in his pockets. He's quiet for a long while. What does he say, exactly? He's thought about it a lot, to be sure. He'd written a letter back in the mall simulation, after all. But no matter how much he wrote, it never seemed like enough.
... So now... he doesn't know. But he'll start talking, nonetheless. ]
So... it's been a while, Luna. It's been ten years for me. Now that I'm seeing you like this, I don't... Putting words to my thoughts and feelings is kind of hard. Gladio always used to give me shit for not being able to spit it out. I guess he was right.
[ He falls quiet for a moment. ]
What happened to you... I wish I could've done something to change it. I wish I could've been stronger, so I could protect you. I wanted you to be happy, Luna. I wanted to see you smile. You should've lived longer. You should've been able to follow your dreams and your heart.
... But I've kept you in mine. [ He's smiling, softly and warmly. ] And now that you're here? I'm gonna do everything I can to make sure you're happy.
[ He pauses, and his voice drops to a murmur. ]
My heart is yours.
no subject
Here's to hoping that Noctis was distracted enough that he won't feel the temperature change. Nari focuses hard on creating a blade made of ice. It's thin and elegant, like a rapier, all she can manage with her powers dampened. This would have to do.
Next her hand goes to her shirt, digging out the hardlight concealed under it. She thought about who Noctis would drop his guard around for a long time. The only thing she could come up with was his father. So with a shimmer of light she changes. "Regis" slowly walked a little closer to Noctis.]
I'm sure she heard you.
[Now all she has to do is wait for Noctis to turn around, blade poised and ready to strike.]
no subject
[ It's a measure of just how much he trusts her that he's being vulnerable like this. That on a Friday, with no one else around and a motive on their minds, his back has been turned for so long. He doesn't suspect a thing.
And maybe that's the worst part of it. Isn't it?
Noctis lets out a little laugh, and he reaches up to brush a hand through his hair. He thinks about Luna, as he reaches out to touch her portrait again. And the wedding dress... It's beautiful, and it's beautiful on her. He remembers her dancing in it, he remembers how she'd looked so happy... ]
... Thanks, Nari, for-- [ He turns as he speaks.
It takes less than a moment for him to freeze, completely. ]
no subject
And it's fast. The ice blade hits at just the right spot. Nari has studied body charts. She knows where the right spot to strike a heart is. How to bypass the ribs, how much force is needed, how to effectively kill.
With any luck she's aimed true and Noctis will not feel the hit. The ice breaks and leaves a shard in his chest. All she does is reform the ice and hit other spots.
It would just take a moment to do so.]
no subject
He tries not to think of the girls and how they'll find his body hours from now. He doesn't think about Touko calling him "dad," how he's just another person Max will lose, how Pyrrha will have to deal with the fact that the girl she loves is a murderer. Idly he hopes that maybe it'll be like with Xander. Maybe they'll spare Nari from execution... But he can't know for sure.
He'll have to apologize to Will for not keeping the girls out of trouble. He'll need to make it up to Mako, too; in the end, he couldn't return the scarf to his brother. It's still around his neck, and the ends are darker now with Noctis's blood. He'll need to apologize to Varric for not being able to lead until the end...
Noctis hopes, as the ice starts to find its home in his heart, that his death will be the last. That the dawn will come with the end of his life once more.
The ice pierces his heart. A split second before, he grabs where he thinks the hardlight projector is. His hand curls around the cord, gripped tight in his palm, and as he falls, so does the little device. His body hits the ground, and it will be a while before he turns as cold as the weapon that ended his life.
Noctis Lucis Caelum is dead. ]
no subject
She doesn't care if they try and spare her. She'll face her execution head on if found guilty. No singalongs, no heartfelt goodbyes. Just the resignation that if Nari is caught, she rightly deserves death.
Even if it would be nice if those around her would try and fight like they did for Queenie.
Unlike Queenie, though, Nari knows that deep down she's not a good or kind person. She's just herself, and it was the others that mistook that for kindness. For compassion. For something that she knew she wasn't. There was nothing good in her... not for a long, long time. That all died with the mansion. Died when Nishitani was taken.
The only person she feels truly guilty about leaving behind was Pyrrha. If Nari believed in any god, she'd pray for them to help that girl leave this place. Help Pyrrha have a good and loving life away from here. Her family was important, but that redheaded girl with those green eyes was just like Mira. So, so much like Mira.]
I'm sorry it had to be you.
[The hardlight projection fades as she says this to Noctis, a thin mark left on the back of her neck from where the cord pulled and snapped. As soon as Noctis is down, her boot comes down on the little device to shatter it.
Now wasn't the time to build any regrets. It was time to stage this. Make someone else look guilty.
And for once have hope she can literally get away with murder.]