"I guess," He sighed. "Keep fighting and leave flowers for the ones who can't."

He straightened up in the car and watched Titus. The man was always a bit mysterious to him, always had something slightly off. Slightly hidden. He hoped he'd get to know Titus better one day.

They all had their demons. They all deserved to deal with them on their on time in their own ways. It wasn't his place to force the prince to deal with his father and brother.

Nyx had been told he would be doing a private performance tonight and for a very special guest no less. Well, special depending on how you viewed it. A warlord visiting Galahd was cause for concern, but hopefully the man would keep things civil – otherwise Nyx would gladly show that he was more than just a dancer.

He revealed himself on the stage once the man was seated and had been offered a drink, the lightening in the room getting dimmer as soft music started to play. it was routine at this point, of course, but he liked to give it his all despite that.

"What the hell is your problem? You want to arrest me? Don't you have better things to do? I'm sure there are people who are causing more trouble than I am." Noctis frowned and kicked at the ground, sending a couple of pebbles towards the opposite wall. "So why are you–"

"I was wondering where you went you little–" Noctis was cut off when the very same man he'd been arguing with earlier stepped outside, his tone threatening until he caught sight of the Sheriff. At that point, his tone changed and he wrapped an arm around Noctis as if they were best friends. "Sorry for any trouble, Sheriff. Poor kid had a little too much to drink, and got a little rowdy. Don't worry, I'll make sure he stays out of trouble and gets home safely."

Noctis almost snorted at that. Without the element of surprise on his side, he'd get beaten to a pulp if Titus left – the other man was a lot bigger than him. He wouldn't ask Titus for his help though. He was too stubborn.

He folded his arms over his chest, frowning, his eyes flicking over toward the door as it swung open. The other man, the one Noctis had been arguing with, stepped out, expression dark, tone openly hostile until he saw Titus standing there.

The android glanced toward Noctis, but the boy was as stubborn as ever. He wanted to step in, but if Noctis wanted to handle it himself, then who was he to stop him.

Nyx had seen this human before. He was probably the most curious and reckless of his pod, always observing humans when he didn't have hunting duty – and years ago he had watched a young one often by the docks.

Often the tiny human would find itself in the water, but it could swim, so it was never a problem – even if it was slow and clumsy. Nyx always retreated then and watched from a distance so he wouldn't be spotted and the humans never noticed him.

One day the human had fallen into the water, but instead of swimming to the surface like he was supposed to, he kept sinking downwards. Nyx had been confused, so he had swum after him, only noticing then that it seemed like the human was falling asleep. It was an odd time of day to do it, but then he remembered that humans couldn't breathe underwater.

So he had pushed the human to the surface and carried him to shore, leaving him there for the bigger humans to find. Normally he would've just let him drown, but he liked this little human who seemed so fond of the ocean.

He observed him many times after that, but then one day he disappeared, along with almost everyone else. There were still people, but none that Nyx recognised.

He had not expected to see the human now, but obviously bigger – and older – than before. He almost hadn't recognised him, but now that he did he couldn't stop himself from approaching.

But it had always been there, such a solid, steady part of his life. He remembered the day he'd fallen from the dock and nearly drowned. In that near-haze of dying, he'd imagined someone had saved him. A handsome merman. Now, older, wiser, he knew it was just the current. That mermen didn't exist. But it was still a memory that struck with him.

And then the Empire had come and he had been driven away from this sea. That was, what, twenty years ago? Something close to that. He was no longer the shipwright's son, pulling in crabs and small fish. He was the Captain of the Kingsglaive, fighting a hopeless war. And he was the General of Niflheim, winning that very same war.

It was complicated. He wished things were as simple as they were back then.

He stopped at the end of the pier, looking out at the water. Familiar and not, at the same time. Would the sea welcome him again someday, when the time came, he wondered? He might like that.

The shifting of water near the leg of the pier caught his attention and he looked down to spy a head poking from the water. Dark hair, fair skin, and a rather accusatory frown. Beneath that, there was a body in the water, both human and not.

A merman.

The merman.

"Different how?" he questioned, voice a near whisper. Was it truly that simple? He doubted it. He must've done something to make Titus change his mind. To think someone he cared for like this had intended to use that care against him – of course, it was hardly something new in his position. Most people wanted to get close to the King, for power and influence, but this wasn't that.

If Titus was General Glauca, why there could only have been one purpose, couldn't there? To kill him.

It was a poor explanation. He wasn't sure what else to say, how to make the man understand just how used and abandoned he and others felt. He was the only one who had acted on it, of course, while others just complained.

And how could he explain that they had promised him their homes back? When the war was over, Niflheim would have no reason to occupy Cavaugh or other territories. They could be returned to their people, just under Niflheim's superficial banner instead of Lucis'.

"You fascinate me," he offered, having no other reason than that. It could be so... dull to simply watch the King and the Prince these days. Regis was adamant on letting the True King run around like a bumbling fool. The Empire was doing what they had done for a while, so they were not any more interesting to watch and the Oracle was studying diligently, like usual. Nothing else needed his attention and so he turned it towards whatever he desired. This time around it was Titus.

But it wasn't important at the moment.

What had he to be ashamed of?

Ardyn kissed Drautos back, tasting his own blood on the man's lips. To him, it tasted rancid, but what didn't?

Tredd winced, despite himself. "Airship we were on got blown out of the sky. Fortis is-- was-- a bastard, but he knew how to pick his shots. Broke my thigh in the crash." He said nothing about the offer of a free shot. Even if it was worth it (Ifrit's horns, it would be so worth it--) Tredd had a sinking suspicion the punch would only leave him feeling empty.

He wasn't sure what to say. Offer sympathy for his leg? Ask about the other Glaives? Offer condolences? He wouldn't. They would do no good. It was the same reason he wouldn't apologize. There was no good in it.

He looked away.

One guy was scary – a whole army with that stuff? Fucking terrifying.

Nyx warps again and debates launching more magic at the General, but honestly? It'd be a waste of magic power and he needs to save it for the warping. It's not like it's doing much anyways, which... how? Also, why wasn't Niflheim making more use of the guy? Whenever he showed up their battles were almost always won. It was like they were toying with them at this point.

He just shook his head slightly.

Nyx had guessed somewhat early on that his soulmate was older than him, if the pain he experienced when he was young was any indication. It made him feel less bad about getting hurt himself, though he tried to be mindful of his soulmate, even if there was only so much he could do.

He hadn't expected to find out so suddenly. He had been watching the fight between the Glaive and Drautos together with some of the other Glaives and when he felt a punch to his cheek at the same time as Drautos, he couldn't stop his eyes from widening.

No way. The Captain was his soulmate? Even if he was caught completely off guard, he still managed to excuse himself so he could follow Drautos to his office, closing the door behind him so they had some privacy.

He sighed as he sat down at his desk. "I knew for a while now, yes. I didn't say anything because I didn't want to complicate matters for either of us. I'm your Captain."

His arm went back around Drautos' neck, and as Drautos sank his teeth in, he let out a soft gasp of pure bliss. His eyes fluttered closed, his fingertips lightly digging into the vampire's scalp. As gentle as the bite was not, it still felt so very good in ways he could hardly begin to describe.

Since he couldn't work during the day, he needed to make up for it by taking on as many late night shifts as he could. He was scheduled to work the closing shift tomorrow too. He hadn't been expecting Titus to still be up though. It was pretty late.

The offer of left over sushi surprised him a little. He blinked and looked over to Noctis. He smiled faintly and nodded. "Yeah, that'd be nice."