~Aaron Hornet~

"No, stop-"

"That isn't a toy, stop biting it-"

"Honestly, how hard is it to sit still? Stop knocking into everyone!"

Aaron lunged forward and grabbed onto the golden collar around Ace's neck. His companion tried to wriggle their way out of his grasp, then gave up and stared up at him plaintively with all six of their glowing green eyes. Ace was by no means big - their canine body was no larger than a normal dog's - but their boundless energy still made dealing with them exhausting.

"Claws in," Aaron ordered, trying his best to speak firmly. He could've sent the command to Ace mentally, but doing so took more effort than he wanted to expend after chasing his companion across the length of the shuttle. Fortunately, Ace did what he asked without complaint, the serrated claws of each paw retracting with a muffled shink. "Thanks, buddy."

Aaron scratched Ace's head and all six of his companion's eyes closed in pleasure. Their barbed tail whisked back and forth, almost scratching the leg of the person next to them. "Whoops, sorry!" He pulled Ace back before anyone could get stabbed, penning them between his body and the wall of the shuttle.

"Your pet needs a leash, Hornet." A shorter boy with curly bruise-coloured hair and turquoise eyes shot Ace a disdainful look. Aaron couldn't quite remember his name...Hix? Or was it Nix?

"Mr. Squ-" He cut himself off with a sideways glance at his companion, who returned the glace with a dog-ish grin. "Ace is just excited! It's not every day he gets to leave Vivifica. Heck, it's not every day any of us get to leave the city!"

"And yet some of us manage to contain ourselves," the mystery boy continued dryly. Aaron didn't miss the way he edged a step away from Ace's still rapidly gyrating tail. Sure, the barb on the end was wickedly long and perfect for spearing vulnerable feet, but that didn't mean it was dangerous. Or at least, it wasn't to anyone with enough sense to avoid antagonizing Ace.

"Hey Mr. Squishy!" Out of nowhere, Aster Corudan materialized from the crowd next to Aaron and crouched down beside Ace to pat them on the head.

"Aster!" Aaron grumbled, his surprised expression quickly morphing into one of playful exasperation. "Their name is Ace. We're celebrities now! That means childish names like Mr. Squishy are no-nos."

"Aw, you'll always be Mr. Squishy to me, won't you?" Aster scratched behind Ace's ears and earned a slobbery lick in return. "Ack!"

Aaron took advantage of the brief lull in conversation to take stock of his surroundings. During his mad scramble after Ace, he'd been moving too quickly to see more than the blurry forms of other Hunters as he pushed past them. Now he could see that they were inside a square room with open doorways on either side. Perhaps sensing his confusion, Ace sent a mental depiction of what they'd seen while racing across the shuttle.

"Thanks buddy," Aaron murmured, ignoring matching looks of puzzlement from Aster and the other boy. Very few people fully understood the bond he shared with his companion, and he didn't feel overly inclined to enlighten everyone else. Instead he simply closed his eyes to better view the memories through Ace's green-tinted gaze.

"Earth to Aaron?" He shook his head clear of the images and opened his eyes to see Aster peering at him with a bewildered grin. "You still with us?"

"Sorry, sorry!" Aaron ran a hand through his hair and made a face. "Just thinking. Did you say something?"

"I said lots of things. If I gave you a running list we'd be here for the next century or so," Aster replied, seemingly unperturbed by Aaron's temporary lack of attention. "But if you don't mind, I could use your help interrogating our quiet friend here."

"No one is interrogating me," the purplish-brown-haired boy snapped, his arms folded over his chest as he glared at the both of them.

Aaron glanced over at Aster, who wore a worryingly thoughtful expression. The puckish gleam in his sky-blue eyes was one he had seen many times before, typically before an attempt at some kind of prank. Perhaps the mystery boy noticed it too, because a moment later there was a flash of washed-out purple and green light and he was gone. 

"What in the world...?" Aster blinked at the spot where he'd been standing only seconds ago with a perplexed frown that slowly melted into a grin. "He's even better at disappearing than I am!"

"Hey, Aaron?" A short, strange-looking girl tapped his elbow, her face pulled into a mask of worry. Her bronze-hued skin stood in sharp contrast to the silvery waves of mussed-up hair that flowed from her head, but Aaron's gaze quickly skipped those details and focused on her gleaming yellow eyes and the gnarled horns sprouting from her forehead. When she opened her mouth to speak, the words came out slightly garbled due to the pair of fangs sprouting from her gums. "Can I...talk to you?"

"Nice to see ya, Noxs!" He offered her a smile, but her anxiety didn't seem to fade. If anything, she seemed to grow even more troubled. For someone that was normally laid-back and outgoing, it was incredibly strange. "Yeah, sure. 'Bout what?"

Noctis shifted uncomfortably, her gaze darting around the room and the dozen or so Hunters in it. "I'd rather not say with so many people...can we find somewhere more private?"

"What are you being so secretive about?" She winced at his loud tone, but before anything else could be said, they were interrupted by a cry of outrage from Aster.

"THAT THIEVING, NO GOOD, ROTTEN-" Aster trailed off, seeming to have trouble finding a word bad enough to describe whoever had angered him. "-clodhopper." One of his hands encircled the opposite wrist like a manacle, and it only took a moment for Aaron to realize what was missing.

"Did he-?" 

Aster cut him off before he could finish. "He did." The grave expression on his face almost made Aaron chuckle, it was so out out of character, but he refrained with a great effort of will.

"Are you-?"

Once again, he didn't even get a chance to fully form his question.  "I'm going to find what's-his-name. Then, I guess I'll have a chance to try out that new prank I was planning." Aster proceeded to slip away so quietly Aaron almost blinked and missed it. One moment he was there, the next he wasn't.

"Aaron?" It was Noctis again, and he felt bad for ignoring her in favour of Aster.

"Sorry! Sure, somewhere more private is fine, though the shuttle might be a bit too crowded for that." He gestured at the Hunters all around them, many of whom were peering out the windows or chatting with one another excitedly. Aaron itched to join some of the conversations, but instead he kept his attention on Noctis. There would be time for socializing later, he was sure.

"There's room near the front that's empty," she replied, then made a sign for him to follow her. Aaron obliged, with Ace trailing behind more slowly.

They passed through several more divisions and square rooms, each one filled with less Hunters than the one before until they came to one that was completely empty. Noctis closed the door behind them, but wasn't able to lock it. She seemed unsettled by that, but Aaron figured he was probably just reading too much into her expressions.

"This shuttle is way bigger than it looked on the outside!" he said enthusiastically, moving to peer out a landscape window that offered a view of the empty tarmac.

"Maybe they Council hopes to make more Hunters one day, and built accordingly." Noctis had a scowl etched into her face as she walked over to stand beside him. "But that isn't what I wanted to talk to you about. There's something else..."

"Yes?" Aaron didn't mean to seem pushy, though he probably came off that way anyways. In truth it was simply the quiet atmosphere that put him off and made him more impatient. Ace mirrored his emotions, dancing along the floor with his tail swinging wildly.

"I - I've been meaning to tell someone - I mean, I've been thinking about it and-" Noctis laced her fingers together, then pulled them apart hurriedly and lowered them at her sides. "I-"

"Attention, Hunters!" The sudden crackle of an intercom system made Noctis jump positively sky-high. Aaron almost commented on it, but the voice kept speaking and he refrained, missing the panicked gleam in her yellow eyes completely.

"Attention, everyone!" they continued. "Please brace yourselves for takeoff." As if on cue, straps dropped from slots in the ceiling and dangled within easy reach, most likely so that they could do exactly as suggested. "The trip to Earth will be quick, and you will be further briefed on the fine details of your roles as well as equipped with your weaponry once we arrive. Enjoy the ride!"

Aaron immediately made a beeline for the nearest strap, wrapping it securely around his fist. He made sure Ace knew what was about to happen and to be prepared. Hopefully it wouldn't be too rough, because it wasn't like they could grab a strap with their paws.

"Takeoff complete. You are free to move around." The intercom crackled to life for a moment before fading away, and Aaron made a surprised sound. He hadn't felt a thing.

"Hey, Noxs?"

"Hm?"

"What did you want to tell me?" Aaron wondered what could possibly agitate her so much, but he didn't feel any more curious than that. Mainly, he just wanted to get back to society.

"Oh... nevermind. It wasn't really important anyways." She was making a strange face, but Aaron didn't know what it meant. Instead he shrugged, happy to have an excuse to leave, if not a bit worried about his friend.

"Well, tell me if you change your mind. You can tell me anything, kay?" When Noctis didn't answer he turned and left the room without fanfare, looking back only once as the door swung shut.

"Soon. I'll tell someone soon. Just...not now." Aaron jumped at the voice in his ears, and it took him a moment to realize that it was something Ace was hearing and had passed on through their link.

He quickly darted back and opened the door to reveal a startled Noctis and his companion. "Sorry buddy," Aaron told Ace, then smiled sheepishly at Noctis. "Bye now!"

Her wary gaze followed him as he left.