THE warm early morning sun was starting to peak out over the high mountains that surrounded Altissia. The clean salty air filled your lungs as you ran through the city on your usual morning jog. You smiled to yourself as you relished in the thought that because of your morning jogs, you knew the streets better than most of the locals who had lived there their whole lives.

You had mapped it out shortly after starting your temporary stay at the 'City on the Sea' so that you could keep up with your training. Little did you know that, that 'temporary' stay was going to last about three years. So much for it being temporary, for it felt more like a century had passed since you arrived. In fact sometimes you thought that you were never going to see Insomnia again.

But that was all finally coming to an end. For after a major change in the guards, literally. Insomnia was now the most secure city in the world. Which is why today you were going to be heading back to help celebrate the 750th Founder's Day Celebration.

Everyone figured that it would be a great time to come back since there was going to be a large amount of high profile visitors in the area. Which would make it easier for you to sneak in under the radar undetected. They figured that no one would be able to find you or your dad in a crowd like that. Which didn't really matter to you. Just as long as it meant that you could finally go home.

Your dad was also going to be checking on the old house to see if you could safely move back into it. After all, it had been sitting there unoccupied the whole time you were gone. Which was a major concern. Because if he decided that it wasn't safe, then he would have to go about buying a new one.

But if you knew your dad, it didn't matter how bad of a condition that the house was in. He wasn't going to get rid of it, no matter what. It was the last thing that both of your parents had purchased together, after all. So it wasn't exactly something that he would want to part with.

And even though it had been hard to leave it all behind. It had all been necessary. For after the visit at Tenebrae, where you had arrived after you had finally gotten out of the Nif's steely hands. It had been decided that it would be best for you and your dad to leave the country for awhile.

The decision hadn't been an easy one for your dad to make. He hated leaving everything like that. But he also didn't want to take the chance of anything happening to either of you. He had already lost so much and he didn't want to take a chance on losing anyone else. So shortly after your mother's full honors funeral, you both packed up your things and went to Altissia to stay with your godmother.

You don't remember most of that time frame since it involved way to many hurtful memories, which all seemed to blend together at this point. But you remembered the funeral and how they had done a closed casket for the viewing, at your dad's request. He didn't want everyone staring at her as they looked for the bullet wound on her forehead. He did however, request that they didn't seal it up until after the two of you got to say your final goodbyes.

Which took place just before the procession to the cemetery. That part seemed to hit your dad harder than anything else. You had never seen a grown man cry as hard as he did that day when they closed her up. And you hoped that you would never see it again.

You also remembered that you had had to say goodbye to Noctis, Ignis, Gladio and everyone else at the citadel as well. Because you wouldn't be able to have any direct communications with them, due to the fear of someone tracking your calls or mail. This was the part that had hit you the hardest. You had gotten so use to being around them all that time, that being separated from them made you feel like you had lost your entire world all over again.

Your dad had tried to come up with some form of communication between you and Noctis. But nothing that he came up with was secure enough to keep the two of you safe. Not even after hearing about how Noctis and Lunafreya were keeping in touch. They were too afraid of something being tracked back to the citadel. Because unlike in the case between Luna and Noctis, where they were training their dogs to carry a notebook, your dad was never able to figure out a safe way for the two of you to talk that wasn't a potential threat to both of you.

So for the past three years, the most that you saw of Noctis was the occasional news appearance on the TV at Maaghos. The only other communication that you had with any of them, was the occasional 'hi' that you would hear from the secret agents who hand delivered all of your written assignments for Korn. Other than that, phones, emails, and even the internet didn't exist in your world. The only exception was during school when you got online at the local library to do your classwork and the written assignments for Korn, that he was still giving you.

Of course all of these had to be printed out and hand carried back to Insomnia. Sometimes you wished that those assignments would have stopped as well. But then again, they had kept you busy and focused. Even though you were separated by a very large body of water that neither of you could swim or even warp across.

You glanced at your watch as you were jogging. You then got a smile on your face when you saw the time. Then you picked up your pace and immediately started to head back to your godmother's estate, which sat in the middle of the city. As you were heading back, several of the merchants were starting to set up their stands as you passed by. Some of them shouted greetings to you as you passed them.

They had gotten so use to seeing you jogging by them in the morning, that most of them considered you one of the locals now. In fact most of them had offered you something at some point in time. Most of the time, you kindly turned them down. Unless it was for a bottle of water on a super hot afternoon stores run for your dad, who was truly hopeless sometimes when it came to shopping for anything.

You kindly greeted them back with a friendly smile and a wave. You would miss them after you left. The people of Altissia had been very kind to you and to your dad since you arrived. Your dad had become part of the security team that ensured that Altissia was safe from all external and internal threats. He had helped out with several festivals that had been held there, with no issues from any of the locals or visitors. He had even improved the overall security of the whole city to include the game of Totomostro that was held at the Galviano Arena, which is like a casino, but with betting on monster fights instead of chocobo races.

Your dad had even starting to make a name for himself since first arriving. Which was a good thing and a bad thing. For you learned very quickly that anymore, you couldn't get away with anything with him. He had eyes everywhere now. Not that you would try anything anyway. But still, you couldn't even surprise him for his birthday without him finding out about it. It kind of took all of the fun out of surprising him anymore.

You, on the other, had been working very closely with Weskham Armaugh at the Maagho restaurant so that you could improve your cooking skills. Not that working in the estate's kitchen wasn't enough for you. But you felt that they weren't challenged you enough. So you decided to take it up a notch.

Which is exactly what Weskham did. He had you doing dishes that you never would have thought of. Sure, most of them involved fish. But you weren't about to complain. Any dish that involved making fish taste like anything other than just fish, was worth it.

As far as for your fighter training, you had been working directly with your dad on this. You had had no idea how much he knew in this area until he put you through your paces and then upped it a notch. He truly was a skilled fighter and teacher in all areas related to combat and weapons. He had even figured out a way for you to practice your archery without being seen.

You see there was a huge docking area that was right by the estate. It wasn't being used anymore for storing the extra gondolas. Mainly because of the degrading conditions of the docks themselves. But this worked out great for you, since you didn't need to walk around on the piers after you learned how to recall your arrows. So now you left no evidence that you had even been there.

The only skill that had to be carefully watched, was your warp training. This one was tricky since no one in Altissa, besides the two of you, could do it. So it simply scared anyone who saw it. Which is why you had to practice well after nightfall and after the arena after it closed for the evening.

This part didn't bother you though. Since you were starting to feel a bit like a superhero as you flew around and stopped people from causing problems within the city. Of course this usually only involved stopping people from stealing and doing graffiti in the wrong places since your dad said to let the police handle all the rest. But it was still rewarding enough for you.

You smiled to yourself as your excitement and heart rate were starting to race as you ran up the stairs of the First Secretary's Estate as you approached the main entrance. You were finally going back. Back home to Insomnia. And ultimately, back to Noctis.

"And just where do you think that your going?" You heard a familiar deep male voice say from the stairs in front of you.

You looked up and smiled at Weskham as you reached the landing.

"I'm going home." You proudly said as you smiled at him as sweat was starting to roll down your face.

"Not looking like that your not.  Your Prince certainly wouldn't want that." Weskham teased as he looked at you. "Now get upstairs and get ready. I won't have you seeing him again in your state.."

"You act like we're never coming back." You teased back as you stood in front of him. "I do know how to get here you know."

"Of course I know that." Weskham said with a smile to you. "And I do hope that the next time that your here, your on vacation, and not in hiding."

"Me too." You smiled back at him.

"I better go and get ready. I don't want to be late." You smiled back as you continued up the stairs.

Once you reached the top of the stairs, you quickly open up the door and slipped in.

"Ahh. There you are dear." You heard your godmother say, right as you entered the building.

You stopped and curtsied to her.

"Good morning, Madam Claustra." You said with as much grace as she had been hammering into your since you arrived.

Those were the only lessons that you didn't know that you needed, until you had meet her. You had initially thought that grace was just using your best manners. Only you found out rather quickly that this wasn't the case. She had you do some strange things, like walking with a book on your head, just so that you could walk into a room with proper posture.

Let alone learning about all the different place settings for each dinner setup. Then there was how to properly address certain high dignitaries. She had, however, showed you how to properly walk in heels and how to formally dress for different occasions. For that you were very grateful.

"I still don't understand why you insist on running through the city streets so early in the morning, when we have a private track in the courtyard." She said as she looked at you.

"I just like the city scenery better is all. I would rather look at walls of water and store fronts then four blank walls." You said with a smile.

"Do as you will." She said as she waved a hand like she was shooing a fly.

"Not like you will be doing it here anymore anyway." She finished as if you hurt her feelings.

"Like I told Weskham a few minutes ago." You said as you looked her in the eye. "I know how to get here and I can always come back for a visit."

"Be sure that you do." She answered as she looked at you. "Now go get ready. We'll be here when your done."

"Yes ma'am." You said with a smile and a quick bow.

"I'll be done shortly." You said with a smile as you headed off to your room.

You headed down the hallway in a quick shuffle until you reached the corner.  Then you turned the corner and took off at a run as you headed to your room. You startled several servants as you raced through the hallways. Most of them just smiled at you as you flew through the house. They knew that you were excited to be going home and back to your old life. You would miss them after you left, but you honestly missed home more.

Finally you rounded the last corner to your room and you picked up more speed as you raced down the hallway. But right as you were about to reach your room, your dad's bedroom door opened up practically right in front of you. You barely had time to react as you warped to the left so that you avoided running right smack into it. Your dad jumped back into his room at the motion, as you warped to the other slide of the hallway. Your dad then spotted you up against the opposite wall as the blue mist slowly disappeared. He gave you a slightly stern look when he realized what had happened. You sheepishly smiled back at him as you slowly walking away.

"I would prefer to avoid injuring ourselves before we left." Your dad called after you, right as you had your hand on your door handle.

"Sorry about that dad." You said as you smiled with a tense smile.

"And don't take to long." You heard him call from the his room. "We don't want to be late for our lunch date."

You smiled to yourself as you thought about that part. Because you were really looking forward to having lunch with Ignis and Korn in Galdin Quay. In fact you had been trying to prepare yourself for this day for a few months now. You had gone out and bought a dress specifically for today. You initially had had a hard time trying to convince your dad that you should get this one. But after reminding him that he owned you one from before. He had crumbled pretty easy after that and agreed to let you get it.

"Don't worry dad." You said as you opened the door. "I wouldn't let us miss this for the world."

So then after a quick shower, you put on your dress and your favorite high heels. You then sat down at the vanity to do your makeup and hair. Your hands nervously shook as you tried to put on your eyeliner as you thought about what to ask him about Noctis. Of course you hadn't actually seen or even talked to Ignis for three years now. So you had any idea how much the other had really changed.

All you knew was that you gotten a bit taller and had filled out more. Much to your relief. And you had toned up from all of the workouts that your dad had been putting you through. But, this of course gave you no idea about him. Or even Noctis for that matter.

Sure you had seen Noctis on the TV ever once in a while. But you knew that it was really hard to see everything through a TV screen. You started to get nervous again as you were finishing off by putting on your lipstick. Perhaps Noctis wouldn't like how you looked now. Maybe you were too tall for him now. Or perhaps not tall enough. You put your lipstick down and dabbed your lips on a tissue to set it.

Then you looked down as you threw out the tissue. Maybe he had already forgotten about you all together. Which wouldn't surprise you since you've been gone for so long. Or perhaps he had already replaced you completely with Luna. She would be a better candidate since she was already royalty. You absently started ran your fingers over the cool blue crystal that he had given you. Which had become a calming habit for you.

"I really wish your mother could see you now." You heard your dad's voice quietly say from your doorway.

You turned around and looked at he as he smiled as you. You could see the pride and sorrow in his eyes as he looked at you. You smiled back as you silently rejoiced in seeing a smile on his face.

He didn't smile as much as he use to. Not since losing your mom anyway. Which really concerned you. So every time he did smile, you cherished it and tried to keep it there as long as possible.

"Stand up." He said as he leaned up against the door frame in his khaki slacks, white button up shirt, and unbuttoned navy blue jacket. "Let's see how it looks."

You smiled then stood up. He smiled then gestured for you to spin around. You grinned, then you slowly spun around so that the silky skirt flared out to the sides before softly falling back down to your legs.

"I can see that I'm going to have trouble with you." He said as he shook his head as he smiled at you.

"Now why would you say that?" You asked as you spun back around and faced him.

"Because of all of the boys that are going to beating down the door." He said as he stood back up and walked over to you.

"I hope his highness doesn't mind the attention on you." He said as he put his hands on your shoulders.

"The only attention will be on him. I can assure you of that." You said as you looked at him. "No one will be looking at me like that."

"Oh I beg to differ." He said as he spun you around again and made you face the full size mirror. "No high school boy will be able to resist this."

You smiled to yourself as you looked in the mirror. You had really liked the dress when you had seen it in the store. The color and airiness of it was what had caught your attention. For the summer heat had been high and you wanted something that was elegant but lite at the same time. You ran your hand over the skirt and you felt the soft satin of the over skirt glide over your legs as it moved. The feeling made you feel more elegant and a bit sexy.

Your dad smiled beside you. Then he kissed you on the cheek and turned back towards the door.

"Come on." He said as he paused by the door. "I'll help you with your luggage."

After checking the bedrooms to ensure that you had everything. You and your dad walked down the hallway for the last time as you pulled your suitcases behind you. All of the servants and maids stood in the hallway and said their goodbyes to the two of you as you walked past. You were excited to be leaving, but at the same time, you would miss all of them. They had helped you and your dad more than they knew. For their support was one of the main reasons that you were both still smiling and joking with each other.

There had been plenty of nights where that had not been the case, as the two of you were both yelling at each other as you were both frustrated and hurting at the same time. Your dad had struggled a bit with learning how to be both a father and a mother to a teenager daughter, who was trying to make heads and tails of the changes that she was facing without the help from her mom. He had tried everything possible. And in the end, both of you had finally found some common ground as you talked and spent time with just each other.

There had been plenty of long walks and lazy days spent fishing, as a way of getting both of you to relax and talk. Those days would be the ones that you would miss the most after leaving here. For you knew that he would go back to his usual busy schedule and you to yours. And neither of you would have the time like you had there.

You reached over and grabbed your dad's hand as you both walked down the hallway. He looked over at you and smiled as his interlaced his fingers with yours and slightly squeezed your hand. You could tell that he was as nervous as you, as the two of you walked down the hallway to return home for the first time without your mom being with you. You both knew that it wasn't going to the easy. But you had both agreed to be patient, open and to support each other, no matter what.

After turning the final corner, you saw Camelia and Weskham standing by the front door. They were both slightly grinning as the two of you approached. You slightly smiled back at them. You recalled their cold looks that they had given you when you had first arrived. Now it wasn't that they were cruel to you or anything. But they had both been very stern and straight with you from the beginning.

It was something that you weren't use to. And it took you awhile to learn how to handle both of them. Weskham required the straight forward approach. Where Camelia required you to give her your full obedience. Of course in the end, you knew that it was all worth it with both of them to handle them as such.

"You sure you have everything?" Weskham asked as he looked at the two small suitcases in between the two of you. "Those suitcases seem awfully lite for being here for three years."

"We hadn't brought that much with us either." Your dad added as he turned to Weskham. "Besides, I think we are both in for a wardrobe change once we get home. I don't think either of us will have anything that fits us there anymore."

You smiled at your dad as he glanced back down at you. You knew this to be true since the clothes that you had brought with you were long gone now. With the exception of a certain pair of black sweatpants and a gray hoodie. But those were pretty wore out at this point. But your dad knew better then to try and get you to part with them.

"Then I hope that this will help you to get started." Camelia said as she handed Paul a seal envelope. "But don't open it now. Wait until you are at Galdin Quay."

Paul looked at the envelope with a curious glance before giving her a smile as he put the envelope in his inside jacket pocket. "Thanks Camelia. This means a lot coming from you."

"It's the least that I can do for my best Security manager and father of my goddaughter." Camelia replied with a smile.

"And now for you young lady." Camelia said as she handed you your own envelope

. "I know that you will know what to do with this. But like your dad. You have to wait until you arrive in Galdin Quay before you open it."

"Thank you Madam Claustra." You said as you gave her a bow. "I really appreciate everything that you have done for us."

"Think nothing of it." Camelia said with a slight smile. "Its what any good godmother would do."

"Are you ready? Your boat awaits." Weskham said as he gestured towards the front doors.

"Yes." Your dad said before he looked at Camelia. "Thank you again Camelia, for everything. I couldn't have made it this far without your help."

"Your fine work here with my security forces is enough thanks for me." Camelia said as she slightly grinned back at him. "For thanks to you, our profits have soared since tourists feel safe enough to come and stay awhile. Which has also increased our overall tourist rating to be the highest it has ever been."

"I'm glad to hear it." Paul nodded back. "Take care Camelia."

"You too Paul." Camelia said as she held out her hand.

Paul smiled at her and gave her a strong handshake back before releasing it.

"Let me know if you need anything once you get back." Camelia said as she clasped her hands.

"I think that we will be fine once we get settled again." Paul tried to reassure her as he grabbed the handle of his suitcase. "But thank you for the offer."

"Right this way, folks." Weskham said as he opened the door for you and your dad.

Your dad then grabbed the handle of his suitcase as he grabbing your hand and lead you out the door. As you stepped outside and saw the stairs. Then you watched your dad drop down his handle so that he could pick up his suitcase so that he could carry it down. You followed suit and was about to pick it up when Weskham grabbed it instead.

"Let me get that little one." He quietly said as he grabbed your suitcase. "Wouldn't want you to fall down the stairs as you tried to carry this in your heels."

"I'm not so little anymore." You said to him as you smiled since you had actually forgotten for a moment that you even had on heels. "But I do appreciate the assistance. Thank you."

Weskham smiled back at you as he nodded. You were certainly going to miss him once you had left. But at least now you knew who he was. And how to get there so that you could see both of them later.

As the three of you made your way over to the docking area, you talked about various events that you had done at the different areas of the city. It seemed that there wasn't a section of the city that you hadn't been to. You smiled and laughed at some of the events that had taken place throughout Altissia over the past three years. As you arrived at the docks, you were sad that it was about to end. You hadn't truly realized how much it had grown on you.

You stood on the loading dock and looked out at the city as you recalled every area so that you could always remember it. After a few minutes your dad came up to you and placed his hand on your shoulder. You quickly glanced up at him before you looked back at the city one last time. He stood with you for a few minutes before he turned you to the large black boat that was waiting at the pier. He then helped you climb onboard.

After you were on deck, you followed your dad and Weskham into the bridge area. Weskham was going over the instruments with your dad and was explaining everything to him. You watched as well, but you didn't quite understand what half of the terms were that he was using. You knew how to handle a gondola, but a speed boat was a different story.

"So do you think that you got it?" Weskham asked your dad as he searched his face.

"Yeah I got it. It's no different then the speed boats from the academy." Paul said as he looked back at Weskham after a quick glance at the instrument panel again. "But why do you ask? Aren't you going to be taking us over?"

Weskham gave you dad a broad smile as he searched his face. "No my friend. For this is the last time that I will step foot on this boat. As a gift from me, this fine vessel is yours now."

Paul froze in place as he stared at Weskham.

"What?" He asked as he gave him a curious look. "But why would you give me your boat? Aren't you going to need it later?"

"I'm too old to be traveling around the world anymore." Weskham said as he shook his head. "And besides, I have a restaurant to run now. And I have no desire to leave it."

"Thank you." Paul said as he reached over and grabbed Weskham's hand and gave it a strong handshake. "I'll take good care of her for you."

"See that you do." Weskham said as he released Paul's hand.

"Oh, and before I forget." Weskham said as he reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out what looked like a set of keys. "Your going to need these for the boat and for a little something in your garage back at Insomnia. Courtesy of King Regis."

"What.........no wait...." Paul started to argue.

"He said it's yours to do with as you see fit." He said as he started to walk away from Paul. "Not sure exactly what he meant by that. But he said that you would understand."

Then Weskham turned to you and handed you a small notebook. You looked at it then gave him a curious look as you opened it up and saw that it was full of his receipts.

"I can't take this. These are your secret receipts." You said as you looked back up at him in shock.

"Their not a secret from you." Weskham said as he smiled at you as he started climbing down from the boat. "You have already memorized them. So it only seems fitting that you take those with you."

You looked at the book in disbelief before looking back at him as he stepped back onto the pier. "I do have one favor to ask you though."

"Sure. Just name it." You said as you clutched the book to your chest.

"You must promise to keep learning new dishes so that you can share them with me one day, like I have shared mine with you." Weskham said as he crossed his arms in front of himself.

"Now that's a challenge that I like." You said back with a huge smile.

"Good. Now get out of here before your late." Weskham said as he walked to the back of the boat and released the back mooring line from the pier for your dad.

Your dad nodded then started up the engine. "Thanks Weskham." Paul called over the roar of the engine.

Weskham simply waved his hand, then he tossed off the front mooring lane which set the boat adrift. Your dad then went over and carefully pulled up each rope and flanked them on the deck for when you arrived at Galdin Quay. Once he was done, he walked back inside the bridge area. He then stood behind the wheel and slowly moved the boat forward by pushing the throttle forward which brought the boat to life as it started cutting its way through the cool waters as he headed for the exit.

You stood leaning forward as you gripped the bar on the dash in front of you as you looked out the front window. Your heart started to race as fast as the boat was starting to go. A huge grin crossed your face as your dad started to pick up some speed. You were finally going home.

The boat cut through the glass-like water as you made your way through the entryway that could only be reached by boat. The tall towered entrance was just as beautiful as when you had first come through it. You felt sad that you had missed its beauty when you first arrived. You and your dad were arguing when you had reached this point, so you hadn't really seen anything as the boat sped across the water as it headed for the dock. But now you were blown away by the beauty of the old archway as the boat quickly exited out the other side.

"Wow." You said as you stared at it.

Your dad looked over at you and smiled at you as you stared at the building. He was glad that you were seeing it this time. He had tried to point it out when you had first arriving. But you hadn't been interested in anything that he had to say at that point.

He smiled to himself as he turned his attention back to the water path that would take you out to the open sea. Once he reached open water he would be setting a course for Galdin Quay. Which he knew the way like the back of his hand. His decision to leave may have been a hard one. But it looked like you had forgiven him for the most part as you were now heading back. Much to his relief.

You continued to watch as the entrance quickly fell back and all you saw was the water path that led to the city. Then once you cleared the rock walls on both sides of the boat, your dad picked up speed and soon had the boat flying for Galdin Quay at full speed. And as you both knew it, home.

******Author Note******

Okay, so that is the first of many chapters as we continue with our journey with young Prince Noctis. For this is where the story starts to get a bit more intense as we go along. Now the plot will still be similar to my first book, Growing Pains. But the interactions will be very different between our band of Chocobros.

Be sure to come back and find out what Ignis thinks of the changes that you have gone through and to see how much he has changed. For this is the first time that either have sen or even spoken to each other directly since you left. Will those old feelings come back again? Or will he simply push you away like he did when you were little? We shall see.

Thanks for reading. :)

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