Melancholy Hues [Open]

[attr="class","monsterexo"]

"Hey, hey! Take it easy!" His voice loudly snapped toward two drunken morons who had gotten a little too heated. He hated being around drunks, but unfortunately, this was the place to go when it came to his line of work. A bounty hunter could make the most profit off of those who weren't exactly in their best state of mind. It was kind of shitty to have to take advantage of people in that respect, but when it came to survival... He would do what he had to. If it meant being able to live and see his friends again... Then it would all be worth it in the long run. 

As much as it sucked right now. The least he could do was try to break up this damn fight. Idiots. 

He stood between the drunken buffoons, though it would soon become apparent to him that such wouldn't be quite enough. He narrowly avoided a punch that would have struck him directly in the face. The Prince's slate-blue eye widened in surprise, the sloppy blow having quite a bit of power packed behind it. God - he'd better resolve this fast before it got out of hand. A crowd had already started to build up, shout from other inebriated people of the bar hitting his ears. 

In his right hand, one of his swords appeared, though it was turned to the side to make sure that he sharp edge wouldn't hit the man in front of him. He was lucky that the one behind him wasn't as fired up, or else he might have been in some trouble. Noctis struck the man in the gut only to knock the wind out of him as soon as he'd reared up for another hit. The drunk fool coughed and spat out some curse words that fell upon deaf ears; it was obvious that he wouldn't stand a chance against someone who had spent their whole life training. He turned and stumbled out of the bar, clutching his stomach. Noctis proceeded to roll his eyes, sword fading away. 

When he received thanks, he simply waved his wrist in dismissal. He did what he thought was right no matter the circumstance, and now was no different. He didn't need special praise. He was sick of that. 

"Could I get some ice water? Thanks." He asked the bartender, who had seemed surprised he didn't ask for anything alcoholic after the ordeal. To be honest, he had never been into drinking and letting himself get out of his right mind. Not with the responsibility he held on his shoulders... He suddenly became far too conscious of the Ring of Lucii in his pocket. 

What would his father think of him, now?

[attr="class","monsterexo"]

"Thanks." He repeated the word once more when the water was given to him. He was about to pull out his wallet when he was informed that water was free. Eh, cool - whatever. He'd take any ounce of saving money that he could get at this point. Growing up, he was never used to having to rough it in a tent, or having to work for every speck of money that could provide food. Lately, things had been easier. There was always a surplus of things that needed getting rid of when it came to pests. Places like Whitegrove and Tuuleen were usually teeming with business in Noctis' field, though he didn't dare set foot into the Bone Vales. The last thing he needed was to get gobbled up by something twenty times his own size.

Not that he'd never fought monsters like that, but... He had his friends by his side back then. Without those three, who knows what would happen to him? He clenched his jaw at the thought of needing them to be by him to protect him. Ardyn had mocked him for it, but in the end.. He was right, wasn't he? Noctis was a prince who felt useless on his own. How idiotic of him; how was he supposed to protect his people if he didn't even offer the confidence to protect his own skin?

Nice work there.

The royal turned, looking at the one who had commented on his rather sloppy performance. He hadn't wanted to resort to violence during that whole mess, but it had come to that eventually. Noctis never did do too well when it came to smoothing things over verbally. The two of them being drunk, also, didn't help much in the grand scheme of thing. "No need to. Can't have idiots ruining the night for everyone else." He casually shrug his shoulders, bringing his glass of water up to his lips and taking in a large gulp. It chilled him to the core and caused him to sigh pleasurably. After having gotten far too used to drinking warm, metallic water, the sense of icy coldness was rather intense. "What kind of place are you from?" Noctis asked, the glass being set back down on the bar.

The girl next to him had certainly seemed as though she'd been through far too much. In a way, he could tell that she was damaged, though he didn't know her, so he wouldn't pry. Everyone here... They had such a story to tell.