𝕴𝖓𝖘𝖔𝖒𝖓𝖎𝖆

7. an offer

NOCTIS WOKE UP WHEN THE SUN ERUPTED THROUGH HIS CLOSED EYELIDS AND HE WAS FORCED TO AWAKE FROM HIS DREAMING. He groaned and cover his eyes from the blinding light that he hated waking up to. He rolled to the other, throwing his arm over his head to create darkness he fell asleep in. But sleep was not on the table anymore.

"You missed breakfast! And you missed the meeting with Viridis family!" He heard Lunafreya's voice right before a pillow smacked him over his head. "How long will you act so irresponsible?!"

Noctis could head Lunafreya yelling at him, but the words she said did not make any sense to her. Until suddenly, he remembered the meeting his father had been telling him yesterday ever since they arrived to the castle from the restaurant. He opened his eyes barely, peaking through the long eyelashes to look at the time on his nightstand. 01:45 PM the clock said, yet small amount of guilt washed over him.

Noctis yawned. "I must have fell asleep quite late." He commented as he pushed himself with the help of his arms against the dashboard covered in soft material.

"You must have fell asleep late." Lunafreya mocked him angrily as she stood on the side of his bed with her arms crossed over her chest. "The King had told you over and over again yesterday to come to the meeting with Viridis family because they asked specifically for you to be there!"

"Can you stop yelling?" Noctis frowned, his face wrinkling in irritation to Lunafreya's yelling since he still didn't get to his senses yet.

"No, I can't!" She replied. "You embarrassed your father!"

"That was not my intention."

"It feels like it is." She said. "Mr. Viridis came with his wife and daughter to offer his daughter as your future bride-to-be."

Noctis eyes wide open, as if the sleepiness entirely disappeared. "What did dad say?"

"No, of course."

Noctis noticed the frustrated look of Lunafreya's face. She was wearing light makeup and she was entirely dressed in white dress and a laced white veil that stopped above her forehead. She was dressed in her Oracle clothes – the clothes she usually wears when attending the Shrine of Oracle; dedicated to her and Oracles that came before her. There she attends to people of Lucis that come to receive her blessing from sickness or a message from Gods.

Noctis let out a sigh of relief. "That's a relief."

"But he was very close to saying 'yes'." Lunafreya added calmly. "Hopefully, when you know you have a fiancée you would start acting as a Prince and not a child."

"It's not my fault Ignis didn't remind me. He doesn't remind me of anything anymore." Noctis complained silently.

"Of course he can't remind you of anything anymore since he is attending cooking classes." That information came as a surprise to Noctis. "You didn't know?" Lunafreya narrowed her eyebrows in confusion.

Noctis shook her head, his expression turning into one of disbelief. "No, I didn't..."

Noctis searched his memories of Ignis telling him about taking cooking classes. But he couldn't remember. He did notice that he was being less around him lately, but he never questioned why since he believed he was on the meetings or in library. And Noctis liked it because Ignis was not bothering him and reminding him of his duties and what he should do and what he should not do. In that moment he realized that he had completely neglected his friend.

"Noctis..." Lunafreya took a seat on the bed, as closely as she could to him. "Didn't he tell you?" Noctis shook his head negatively. "He has been thinking of leaving the post as your advisor and pursuing culinary career as a chef." That came as a painful blow to Noctis.