-SPOILERS- BEWARE! If you haven't finished the game, please do before you read!

Square owns everything, I claim nothing. :P

Hey everyone! Like most (if not all) of us, after playing the game it left a hole in my heart. I didn't want to change the story of the game, so I decided to continue it in my own little way. :) The prologue begins right after Noct's death and continues from there. This will be a multi-chapter story of around 40 chapters or so. I switch POV's between scenes, so each one will start with a divider saying whose head you'll be in. :) Hope you enjoy. XOXO

Prologue

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Death. How to define a thing like that? Everyone confronts it eventually, but once they do, they're gone. We only describe it from the other side. The living side. The heart stops and the body begins to decay and fall apart. Families mourn and bury the remains. Death is forgotten and life carries on. Nothing is ever as simple as it seems. . .

Noctis was weightless, drifting in the beyond. Eternal black, but thoughts still ran and became clearer with each moment that passed. Bright slivers of blue and white blinked as he did. Pure air filled his lungs in a rush when the slivers became a full picture. He was in the Crystal's realm. Noct's hands came up, turning front to back, the soft burn of muscles tightening when he clenched his fists. His body was whole again.

"The Chosen King has awakened. Rise, for your soul has escaped the price of Providence."

The thunderous voice behind him was calm, yet rumbled across his nerve endings like an earthquake sending tremors through a building. He should've expected it coming. Then again, he didn't expect any of this. ". . .How?"

A warm light surrounded Noctis, its energy pulling gently and guiding him upright. Bahamut's armor glistened in front of Noct and under his feet that hovered over the Astral's mighty hand. The Bladekeeper's eyes lowered, their unreadable gaze focusing on him.

"As the King of Light is revived, so is a new world. The darkness is banished, bringing forth hope to Eos."

Everything looked as it did the first time he'd stood before Bahamut. He didn't suppose the realm or even the Astral would've changed, but his own voice... his hands... He sounded younger. Scars from his latest battles were missing. He felt. . . different. Was this real? "I don't understand. The prophecy said. . . the blood price."

"You needn't question how. The blood price has been paid; the True King's fate, restored. From this, a decade is washed clean from the timeline."

Flashes of combat in the permanent night resurfaced. Glinting weapons and the clash of metal against daemon, faces of his aged friends, worn not only from time but loss and war, Ardyn's eyes as he sputtered his last words. He remembered it all. "I can still remember everything. What's changed?"

"The recollection will remain within the Chosen One and his shields, but all will be as it was without the curse upon this world. The Crystal's power is vital and resides yet in the True King. Embrace it and maintain the purity of our star. Go forth in the grace of the gods and rebuild the Kingdom of Lucis."

He was really alive? A jolt of anticipation shot through him, making his heart skip. Bahamut's hand dropped from beneath Noct and the light that had suspended him dimmed as he cascaded into the clean air of the limitless realm. The Draconian's massive form shrunk until nothing but the streaming color of blues and purples remained. His lips curved upward and his pulse raced while the hues shuttered to black once more. Prompto. Ignis. Gladio. . . I'm coming home.

It was like he'd fallen flat on his back onto the dirt floor. His gasp bounced the stone walls of the enclosure. Pulling himself up, Noct turned toward the beams of golden light that spilled in through the entrance. The scourge truly had been lifted… and he was alive. His feet staggered forward to catch up with his eager hands that reached for the prison's opening. What started out as a soft chuckle quickly became an eruption of laughter. Stepping into the balmy sunlight, he stretched his arms out to revel in its warmth. No matter how bright it was, he didn't dare close his eyes. It was the most beautiful sight he'd beheld.

A procession of excited barks jerked his head westward. A dog wagged its tail while standing by a rowboat at Angelgard's shore. Noct smiled and ran, the metal on his royal raiment chinckling with each quick stride. The dog bolted to him, tackling his chest and knocking him to the ground with slobbery kisses.

"Umbra!" Noctis managed between laps of the dog's tongue and his own snickers. "Heeey! I'm glad to see you, too."

The horizon came back into view as he sat up, then black and beige fur again. The smell of musk and dirt filled his senses when he pulled Umbra in for one last snuggle. The dog trotted to the boat and waited patiently while Noct turned his attention across the bay. Galdin Quay. It was perfect. No longer in shambles and overrun with hell. Soft music drummed in the distance and the occasional playful shout or squeal resonated over the water. Everyone was there at the resort, it seemed. And if everyone was there, they would be there, too. Elation spread across his face, starting at his ears and mouth, then to his eyes. His heart felt as though it might burst. Noct hopped into the boat and rowed.

Memories of camping and exploring with his friends filled his mind while the boat cut through the sparkling waters of the bay - Prompto's silly antics, Gladio's straightforward humor, Iggy's witty sarcasm. Noct's chest squeezed. He'd never have been able to fulfill his calling without each of their friendships. They were what kept him going. What kept him strong. It'd been far too long since they all were together without death on their minds. He missed them so much.

Noctis passed the loading dock, continuing to the shoreline. He wanted to surprise them. Without giving the boat a chance to hit land, he and Umbra jumped out of it and into the waist-deep saltwater. His hopes grew while waves sloshed gently against his back, his legs, then finally his feet once reaching the beach. The pier was just to his left. They had to be somewhere in the Mother of Pearl at the end of the quay. Though he was dripping wet, everyone that noticed his presence as he passed acknowledged him with a formal address and a bow. No one seemed shocked to see him alive and well. Or soaked. He looked down at Umbra and chuckled. It felt surreal, like he was in some crazy dream. Noct knelt to give the dog a parting scratch behind the ears before continuing down the long dock leading to the resort.

It didn't take him long at all to spot Ignis and Prompto amongst the crowded tables. It made it easier that they weren't sitting yet. He kept his distance and followed them to an empty section outlooking the ocean. They both took a seat facing Angelgard Island. A smirk tugged at his mouth. They were waiting for him. Had they come sooner, they would've seen him returning. Without a sound, Noctis sat on a bench behind them and held on for the perfect moment.

"I thought you were going to ask," Iggy continued their quiet discourse while scooting his chair closer to the table. Prompto blew out a prolonged sigh and sagged in his seat.

"I did." his styled, blonde hair shifted as he shook his head, pushing away the menu Ignis offered.

"Oh? What was her response?" Iggy inquired while adjusting what Noct assumed were sunglasses that hid his scarred eyes.

"She uh. . . she turned me down," Prompto mumbled.

Iggy froze, probably searching for something comforting to say. It was more his own or Gladio's area to slip in their two gil after something like that was said. The conversation had fallen flat. Now was as good a time as any. Noct leaned forward, pressing his forearms against his knees. "I tried to tell ya, Prompto. Orange is not your color."

His spine straightened immediately, making his brightly colored sleeveless shirt wrinkle. It didn't seem like Iggy heard him over the music and constant chatter of the packed restaurant. Instead of looking behind him, Prompto's body fell slack into another depressed slouch. "Great. Now I'm hearing things again."

"Yeah. . . And if you'd turn around, you'll be seeing things, too."

This time they definitely heard him. He grinned from ear to ear as both twisted in their seats with his name falling from their wide mouths. They nearly stumbled on the chairs' legs as well as their own when they went to stand. Noct got up only to almost get knocked right back down after Prompto threw an arm over his shoulder, pulling him in a zealous hug.

"I knew it! I knew it!" he whispered loudly in disbelief, contradicting his words, "I knew you couldn't be gone!"

The familiar aroma of fresh cologne mixed with a hint of coffee wafted through the air when Ignis wrapped around his other shoulder. "Majesty! I-I can't believe my eyes," his voice cracked next to Noct's ear, followed by a heartfelt chuckle.

His sinuses burned as he squeezed them both for a moment, then pulled back to look at their faces. Full of pride and camaraderie, they peered at him through glossy eyes. Iggy's scars were gone. An emotional laugh slipped from Noct. "I can't believe your eyes either, Specs! You can see?!"

"Indeed, I can." Ignis held his shoulder at arm's length with a genuine smile and shook his head. "I've never been more grateful for it than now."

Noct's hand tightened around Iggy's arm as it dropped from his shoulder. He never thought he'd be given a second chance to be with the only family he had left. A second chance to live. He shifted to Prompto whose face was flushed and streaked with moisture. "Alright, alright. Enough already," he sniffled, his hand coming up to wipe off his own tears that had escaped. "Let's eat! I'm starving!"

"I'd say so after thirteen days!" Prompto laughed out, settling back in his chair.

"Two weeks, huh?" He grabbed the back of the chair Iggy had claimed previously and dropped into it.

Ignis gave Noct a guileful look as he sat down across from him. "You always did know how to sleep in."

"And I'm still tired." he said with a smirk. "Gladio on his way, or what?"

". . .I'm afraid not." Iggy's gaze dropped to the table.

Why not..?

Noct wanted to shout it out, but remained quiet instead. What on Eos would keep him? Had he accepted his death and moved on? Or was it something worse…

"The Reverse, as we've been calling it, has changed a good number of things, Noct. Not only has it erased the past decade, but it's changed other little details as well. My sight, for example."

Both Ignis and Prompto had a pained air about them as Iggy tried to explain.

"Yeah, so what's that have to do with Gladio? Why isn't he here?" He wasn't angry, but the way this was going was making his skin crawl.

"We didn't tell you before. . . when we went to Insomnia. During those ten years, Gladio found a wife and had kids. Two kids," Prompto finally spit out.

Noct's eyes widened. Why hadn't they told him? Gladio had a family. . . His eyes fell to his fingers that idly picked at the corners of the menu in front of him. "And now.. they're gone." A deep sadness pulled at his throat. He never even got to meet them. "Where is he?"

"He set off to find her when it happened. Amber, the woman that was his wife," Ignis furrowed his brow. "Gladio's changed, Noct. He insists that you somehow caused the Reverse. I fear once he sees that you've returned, his opposition will only be worse."

"His opposition?" Noct clicked his tongue. "He's just upset. Hell, who wouldn't be. He'll be back."

Prompto nodded, giving him a reassuring smile. Noctis refused to believe Gladio would be upset about his return in any way. Not after all they'd been through. He considered him family much longer than ten years.

"I hope so, I really do," came Iggy's earnest response.

Noctis studied his face for a moment. What the hell had Gladio done to make him so worried? It didn't make sense. He looked past Ignis to the sky. A dark cloud was spreading and threatened to block out the brilliant sun.