[He's been awake the entire night. The sink is filled with mugs and cups of coffee Ignis went through as he waited for Gladio to show up. Everyone had arrived home, at different times of the day, except for him. Which wouldn't be unusual if he said he went camping but that's the thing. He didn't. And now, he's not here. And Ignis feels like he's going to jump out of his own skin.
Ignis' internal clock was ticking so loudly it was giving him a headache. 3 am... 4 am... 5 am... Sending messages didn't help either, for he got no response. He gets up from the kitchen chair and grabs the nearest jacket from the coatrack (Ravus') and gets outside. It's chilly to the bone, but Ignis doesn't feel it.
The chocobo stables, the gazebo, every nook and cranny of the pasture Ignis turns upside down and even stops by the house of the elderly. Gladio's shoes are not there.
6 am. There's sun on the horizon now and Ignis makes his way back to the house slowly. Checks the slate again. Nothing. Completely disheveled, eyes red from not sleeping and too much coffee, hands gripping almost painfully tightly at the jacket thrown around his shoulders, Ignis makes his way upstairs.
And gently knocks on the door to Ravus' and Gladio's room. Hoping that Gladio came back while he was gone looking for him and snuck quietly upstairs. Ignis won't even be mad.]
[Unfortunately for Ignis, it is not Gladio who answers him. Ravus, dressed in his sleep clothes, opens the door. He has his hair pulled back in a loose ponytail, and there are dark circles under his eyes. He steps back wordlessly to allow Ignis to enter.
The blankets on the bed are rumpled. Ravus had come home, waited for a few hours for Gladiolus to return, thinking little of his tardiness. When night fell, he'd lain down, telling himself that he need only sleep and Gladio would immediately come sliding into their bed to wake him up. Ravus had slept fitfully for the first hour, tossing around the empty expanse of mattress that usually held the Shield, before abandoning the attempt and sitting up for the rest of the night.
Ignis looks as bad as Ravus feels, and Ravus steels himself. They can't both break. Ravus needs to be strong, for Ignis.]
Gladiolus has yet to return. The signs indicate he will, though. Come inside and sit down.
[Ignis is wearing his jacket, looking far more lost and confused than Ravus has ever seen him. Ravus has the instincts of a gnat when it comes to providing comfort, but for Ignis' sake, he'll try.]
[Ignis opens his mouth to apologize for waking Ravus up but, from the looks of it, he wasn't asleep either. The urge to laugh in the face of helplessness gets crushed down by the weight of the fact that Gladio isn't here. And for one long moment, Ignis finds himself just standing there in the doorway, even after the invitation to come in, before his mind finally processes Ravus' words.
Quietly, Ignis steps inside and closes the door behind him. Things have been chipping on his mental fortitude for the past few months, day after day, consistently. He can't deal with this. Leaned against the door now, he lifts his gaze to Ravus, not knowing what to tell him.
He should offer some comforting words, he usually has those to spare even, for everyone. But, right now, he has nothing.]
...Forgive me. [He finally speaks up after a good moment of silence. He should probably explain this unseemly state he's in, right? It's just, well, difficult to put it into words. Ignis shakes his head as if to clear his mind.]
I'm just-...I do not know of a time where he wasn't around. I need a moment...
[What Ravus witnesses reminds him of a candle burned down to the final inch, floundering as the wick reaches its end. Ravus balls up his own fear and sorrow and locks it away inside of himself. If there is one thing being the brother of a doomed Oracle has taught him, it is burying his feelings so that he can focus on someone else's well-being.
He places his hand on Ignis' shoulder, feeling the familiar fabric of his jacket, and gives it a quick squeeze.]
Sit. [He nods toward the bed. Ignis needs sleep even more desparately than Ravus does, by the look of it, but he doubts Ignis will just quietly lie down and rest.
Ravus retrieves his slate from the tangle of sheets. He's held it close all night, waiting with dread to hear the alert he made Gladio set on it. If Gladiolus Amicitia's mognet name goes dark, Ravus will know. And until that moment comes, there is a thin strand of hope he can grasp at to keep himself from drowning.]
Look. His name is still on the device. Noctis' pilot friend said that is a sign that someone who has disappeared will return. We've seen it happen before.
[Ravus is ignoring the fact that the one they know who disappeared came back thirty years older. Gladio will return. That is all that matters. How he returns, and in what state...they can deal with that. As long as he returns...]
He will come back to you, Ignis. He's too much of a stubborn bastard not to.
[Ignis hadn't planned on staying- he didn't want to upset Ravus even further, he knew that the other man must be as upset as Ignis is. And the walls, they felt constricting. Suffocating. Making Ignis want to run outside and just stay there until Gladio shows up. Staying the room like this feels like wasting time, precious time that they do not have.
...when Gladio comes back, he should apologize. For yelling at him before. When put into his shoes- he shouldn't have been so brutal with him.
But he takes a seat as urged to, trying to get his jumbled emotions and reason under control. Especially when Ravus points out that Gladio's name still isn't grayed out. It's a small consolation but-]
I know. I'm sorry. [He sighs shakily,] Unfortunately, my brain refuses to adhere to any logic right now. [Which is not something that had ever happened to him. Logic and reasoning was something Ignis heavily relied on. Without it, Ignis feels as if the rug is pulled from underneath his feet.
To him? No, that's not proper wording.]
Us. [...] If he doesn't return to us here, I swear I'll hunt him down in the Beyond.
[Ravus takes a seat beside Ignis, leaving a foot of distance between them.]
You’ve a right to be worried. But remember, hope is not yet lost to us.
[They could go and begin a vain search to assuage their consciences and to keep themselves busy, but Ravus fears the panic that Ignis’ state could incite in the others. Ignis is always strong for Noctis, so privacy is the only remedy until Ignis can find his strength again. The walls of this room are a shield, until they can find the Shield they really need.
And yes, them, though the ‘us’ is not all that Gladio has expressed a desire for them to be. Ignis shares a history with Gladiolus, a closeness that Ravus cannot rival. If Ignis wanted Gladio to himself...Ravus would not want to bet on himself at those odds. In spite of that, he can’t begrudge Ignis his relationship with Gladio. He cares for Ignis too much for that.]
He’s given me his word to find his way back if we’re ever separated, and he’s hopelessly stalwart. If something dares keep him from us, there is no force on this star or any other that will keep us from finding it and destroying it. [And then finding increasingly inventive ways to punish Gladio for causing them so much worry by allowing himself to be spirited away in the first place.]
[Hope... The word reminds him of a name that had gone grey. Hope also disappeared like Gladio, his name lingering in color for a long while and then- gone. Ignis can feel the chill crawl up his back that similar thing could happen to Gladio. Weeks on end without a word from him and then just- disappearing.
Ignis takes a deep breath to calm his nerves and exhales slowly, closing his eyes. Don't panic, Ignis, there is no room for panicking here. People shouldn't, can't see you like this. Yet his brain refuses to embrace any attempt at it as the minutes tick by.
Gladio had told Ignis as well of what he was... "attempting" to do, which makes his this situation hurt even more somehow. He had said 'no' back then, well, he implied it. While he knew how to maintain friendships, anything that goes further than that is completely lost on Ignis. And he definitively wouldn't stand between Gladio and Ravus. The offer actually made Ignis feel as if he was the one interrupting something finally good around here. And he's not about to ruin it.]
He is... he was basically the one keeping us alive back on Eos. He knew every mountain to the last tree and every Haven from north to south. [A sad chuckle escapes him, finger curling into jacket again,] I yell at him yet I owe him. What a base for a friendship. [If he didn't grow up with Gladio and knew how he ticked, they would probably never get along.
The feeling of material underneath his fingers seems to remind Ignis;]
Ah, m-my apologies. I seem to have taken your jacket, [Ignis says, slowly slipping it off.] I... went out to check the rest of the estate. I didn't see what I took from the coatrack. [He folds it and offers it back.]
[Ravus can see his awkward attempts to comfort Ignis having the opposite effect. The man is even worse off than before. It’s chipping away at Ravus’ defenses as well.
Words can’t help because there’s so little logic to their situation and so many emotions. Maybe words are not what he should be offering Ignis. He knows the emptiness Ignis must be feeling, because there’s a Gladiolus-shaped hole within himself as well.
Ignis offers back his jacket, and instead of taking it, Ravus puts his metal hand over Ignis’ and reaches out with his other hand to tilt Ignis’ chin up. Words of reassurance have proven useless, so all that is left is action. ‘You are not alone. We will take care of each other until our Gladiolus returns.’ Not knowing how to voice those sentiments, he leans forward to close the distance between them, hoping that the touch of his lips will convey what he cannot speak.]
[It was an attempt, for which Ignis is very grateful. It's just his state of mind is supplying him with every single scenario that could lead to the most disastrous endings.
But every single thought comes to a screeching halt when Ravus' fingers rest on his chin, and before his eyes can even focus on the other's face, to ask -what is he doing-, their lips touch and it's as if everything disappears for a moment. The confusion slowly settles in, but not enough to warrant Ignis pulling away. The kiss is warm and inviting, and sends a different kind of shot down his back, to combat the chill that was climbing slowly.
Slowly, he pulls away, mind even more of a mess than earlier, adding a new layer of confusion and questions. But... it feels like they've already been answered. Ignis can feel his eyes starting to sting.]
...I can't...go through this by myself, again...
[A broken admission that he would never dare voice outside of these walls.]
[Ravus swipes the first of Ignis’ tears away with his thumb.]
I can’t either. [He admits. Ravus has only a handful of people that matter, and losing another will destroy him. ‘I am not losing Gladiolus.’ He has to keep reminding himself. ]
But we are not alone. [He closes this distance between them again, a kiss to ground himself in Ignis’ presence.]
[Ravus' finger leaves a hot trail beneath his eye as he wipes away the tears, tempting him to just lean into that touch. He didn't want to cry, not in front of Ravus. He'll upset him even more and-
'They are not alone'- the words have yet to sink in properly and settle down all the anxiety and horror that woke up inside of him the moment he realized that Gladio isn't around.
The next kiss has Ignis clutching onto Ravus' upper arm, gasping for air from the heaviness of it, every nerve feeling both strained and yet on fire.]
[Ravus gives himself a moment to stop thinking and just feel Ignis's lips against his. They will, they must, make it through this. Then he pulls back, and brushes his hand through Ignis' hair with more tenderness that he is used to using.]
You should rest. Lie down. I'll make breakfast for the others and send Estoc to put a closed sign at the cafe for the day.
[He gives Ignis' hand a squeeze and begins to push himself off of the bed to see to the tasks.]
[If it were any other situation, Ignis would adhere to reason and just let the man do what needs to be done. But this is not a regular situation and Ignis' brain isn't wired to handle all of this at once. Maybe before but- not today.
His hand grips back on Ravus' to keep him from standing, eyes not meeting his, for the moment.]
Don't... don't leave, please.
[He's been up the entire night, all of that is covered already. Ignis was looking for a way to busy himself. And even if he didn't- it can wait. Everything can wait for a few more moments.]
[He understands the hesitation, but all the same, he can't help the hint of "Why wouldn't she?" behind the certainty. Keep it light and sincere, Noct.]
May have blown her mind with the fact we've all been living under the same roof and still no property damage.
The fewer reminders that that bastard exists, the better, in my opinion.
[He cannot believe he is saying what he's about to say.]
Shall I prepare the empty room [He doesn't want to say 'Iris' room'. It is still a tender subject for Gladiolus.] or will my sister be staying with you?
[She may no longer have the title of Princess, but she is the Oracle and also his little sister and she deserves the best they all have to offer.]
Lunafreya's happiness is paramount. If you can't provide for her properly, then I will not support you courting her.
[Ravus is going to be here, alternating between feverishly cleaning the house and sharpening his sword. This is the only shovel talk Noctis is getting from him. After this, he'll stab as the warning.]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
6. 10 - Yun'Aisha, early morning
Ignis' internal clock was ticking so loudly it was giving him a headache. 3 am... 4 am... 5 am... Sending messages didn't help either, for he got no response. He gets up from the kitchen chair and grabs the nearest jacket from the coatrack (Ravus') and gets outside. It's chilly to the bone, but Ignis doesn't feel it.
The chocobo stables, the gazebo, every nook and cranny of the pasture Ignis turns upside down and even stops by the house of the elderly. Gladio's shoes are not there.
6 am. There's sun on the horizon now and Ignis makes his way back to the house slowly. Checks the slate again. Nothing. Completely disheveled, eyes red from not sleeping and too much coffee, hands gripping almost painfully tightly at the jacket thrown around his shoulders, Ignis makes his way upstairs.
And gently knocks on the door to Ravus' and Gladio's room. Hoping that Gladio came back while he was gone looking for him and snuck quietly upstairs. Ignis won't even be mad.]
...Gladio?
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The blankets on the bed are rumpled. Ravus had come home, waited for a few hours for Gladiolus to return, thinking little of his tardiness. When night fell, he'd lain down, telling himself that he need only sleep and Gladio would immediately come sliding into their bed to wake him up. Ravus had slept fitfully for the first hour, tossing around the empty expanse of mattress that usually held the Shield, before abandoning the attempt and sitting up for the rest of the night.
Ignis looks as bad as Ravus feels, and Ravus steels himself. They can't both break. Ravus needs to be strong, for Ignis.]
Gladiolus has yet to return. The signs indicate he will, though. Come inside and sit down.
[Ignis is wearing his jacket, looking far more lost and confused than Ravus has ever seen him. Ravus has the instincts of a gnat when it comes to providing comfort, but for Ignis' sake, he'll try.]
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Quietly, Ignis steps inside and closes the door behind him. Things have been chipping on his mental fortitude for the past few months, day after day, consistently. He can't deal with this. Leaned against the door now, he lifts his gaze to Ravus, not knowing what to tell him.
He should offer some comforting words, he usually has those to spare even, for everyone. But, right now, he has nothing.]
...Forgive me. [He finally speaks up after a good moment of silence. He should probably explain this unseemly state he's in, right? It's just, well, difficult to put it into words. Ignis shakes his head as if to clear his mind.]
I'm just-...I do not know of a time where he wasn't around. I need a moment...
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He places his hand on Ignis' shoulder, feeling the familiar fabric of his jacket, and gives it a quick squeeze.]
Sit. [He nods toward the bed. Ignis needs sleep even more desparately than Ravus does, by the look of it, but he doubts Ignis will just quietly lie down and rest.
Ravus retrieves his slate from the tangle of sheets. He's held it close all night, waiting with dread to hear the alert he made Gladio set on it. If Gladiolus Amicitia's mognet name goes dark, Ravus will know. And until that moment comes, there is a thin strand of hope he can grasp at to keep himself from drowning.]
Look. His name is still on the device. Noctis' pilot friend said that is a sign that someone who has disappeared will return. We've seen it happen before.
[Ravus is ignoring the fact that the one they know who disappeared came back thirty years older. Gladio will return. That is all that matters. How he returns, and in what state...they can deal with that. As long as he returns...]
He will come back to you, Ignis. He's too much of a stubborn bastard not to.
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...when Gladio comes back, he should apologize. For yelling at him before. When put into his shoes- he shouldn't have been so brutal with him.
But he takes a seat as urged to, trying to get his jumbled emotions and reason under control. Especially when Ravus points out that Gladio's name still isn't grayed out. It's a small consolation but-]
I know. I'm sorry. [He sighs shakily,] Unfortunately, my brain refuses to adhere to any logic right now. [Which is not something that had ever happened to him. Logic and reasoning was something Ignis heavily relied on. Without it, Ignis feels as if the rug is pulled from underneath his feet.
To him? No, that's not proper wording.]
Us. [...] If he doesn't return to us here, I swear I'll hunt him down in the Beyond.
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You’ve a right to be worried. But remember, hope is not yet lost to us.
[They could go and begin a vain search to assuage their consciences and to keep themselves busy, but Ravus fears the panic that Ignis’ state could incite in the others. Ignis is always strong for Noctis, so privacy is the only remedy until Ignis can find his strength again. The walls of this room are a shield, until they can find the Shield they really need.
And yes, them, though the ‘us’ is not all that Gladio has expressed a desire for them to be. Ignis shares a history with Gladiolus, a closeness that Ravus cannot rival. If Ignis wanted Gladio to himself...Ravus would not want to bet on himself at those odds. In spite of that, he can’t begrudge Ignis his relationship with Gladio. He cares for Ignis too much for that.]
He’s given me his word to find his way back if we’re ever separated, and he’s hopelessly stalwart. If something dares keep him from us, there is no force on this star or any other that will keep us from finding it and destroying it. [And then finding increasingly inventive ways to punish Gladio for causing them so much worry by allowing himself to be spirited away in the first place.]
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Ignis takes a deep breath to calm his nerves and exhales slowly, closing his eyes. Don't panic, Ignis, there is no room for panicking here. People shouldn't, can't see you like this. Yet his brain refuses to embrace any attempt at it as the minutes tick by.
Gladio had told Ignis as well of what he was... "attempting" to do, which makes his this situation hurt even more somehow. He had said 'no' back then, well, he implied it. While he knew how to maintain friendships, anything that goes further than that is completely lost on Ignis. And he definitively wouldn't stand between Gladio and Ravus. The offer actually made Ignis feel as if he was the one interrupting something finally good around here. And he's not about to ruin it.]
He is... he was basically the one keeping us alive back on Eos. He knew every mountain to the last tree and every Haven from north to south. [A sad chuckle escapes him, finger curling into jacket again,] I yell at him yet I owe him. What a base for a friendship. [If he didn't grow up with Gladio and knew how he ticked, they would probably never get along.
The feeling of material underneath his fingers seems to remind Ignis;]
Ah, m-my apologies. I seem to have taken your jacket, [Ignis says, slowly slipping it off.] I... went out to check the rest of the estate. I didn't see what I took from the coatrack. [He folds it and offers it back.]
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Words can’t help because there’s so little logic to their situation and so many emotions. Maybe words are not what he should be offering Ignis. He knows the emptiness Ignis must be feeling, because there’s a Gladiolus-shaped hole within himself as well.
Ignis offers back his jacket, and instead of taking it, Ravus puts his metal hand over Ignis’ and reaches out with his other hand to tilt Ignis’ chin up. Words of reassurance have proven useless, so all that is left is action. ‘You are not alone. We will take care of each other until our Gladiolus returns.’ Not knowing how to voice those sentiments, he leans forward to close the distance between them, hoping that the touch of his lips will convey what he cannot speak.]
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But every single thought comes to a screeching halt when Ravus' fingers rest on his chin, and before his eyes can even focus on the other's face, to ask -what is he doing-, their lips touch and it's as if everything disappears for a moment. The confusion slowly settles in, but not enough to warrant Ignis pulling away. The kiss is warm and inviting, and sends a different kind of shot down his back, to combat the chill that was climbing slowly.
Slowly, he pulls away, mind even more of a mess than earlier, adding a new layer of confusion and questions. But... it feels like they've already been answered. Ignis can feel his eyes starting to sting.]
...I can't...go through this by myself, again...
[A broken admission that he would never dare voice outside of these walls.]
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I can’t either. [He admits. Ravus has only a handful of people that matter, and losing another will destroy him. ‘I am not losing Gladiolus.’ He has to keep reminding himself. ]
But we are not alone. [He closes this distance between them again, a kiss to ground himself in Ignis’ presence.]
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'They are not alone'- the words have yet to sink in properly and settle down all the anxiety and horror that woke up inside of him the moment he realized that Gladio isn't around.
The next kiss has Ignis clutching onto Ravus' upper arm, gasping for air from the heaviness of it, every nerve feeling both strained and yet on fire.]
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You should rest. Lie down. I'll make breakfast for the others and send Estoc to put a closed sign at the cafe for the day.
[He gives Ignis' hand a squeeze and begins to push himself off of the bed to see to the tasks.]
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His hand grips back on Ravus' to keep him from standing, eyes not meeting his, for the moment.]
Don't... don't leave, please.
[He's been up the entire night, all of that is covered already. Ignis was looking for a way to busy himself. And even if he didn't- it can wait. Everything can wait for a few more moments.]
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audio; 10/5
Ravus, Luna's here. One of the other volunteers on the ship I was assigned found her.
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Is she well? Tell me my sister is unharmed.
[Greetings, what are those? Ravus needs information, now.]
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Tired and bloodied, but well. She's changing into something not soaked.
[Which should tell him a rough estimate of when she's from; he won't lie to Ravus on that one.]
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[Lunafreya's safety is of paramount importance. She is well, and with her love, so even if she doesn't... Ravus can ask for nothing more.]
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[He understands the hesitation, but all the same, he can't help the hint of "Why wouldn't she?" behind the certainty. Keep it light and sincere, Noct.]
May have blown her mind with the fact we've all been living under the same roof and still no property damage.
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[But yes, for the most part, they've all made their peace with one another.]
Where is she staying? Is she going to come here?
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[There was even a rapier styled like his back home!]
Luna said she wants to settle in first, but yeah. She'll be joining us in Yun'Ashia.
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[He cannot believe he is saying what he's about to say.]
Shall I prepare the empty room [He doesn't want to say 'Iris' room'. It is still a tender subject for Gladiolus.] or will my sister be staying with you?
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[Wait. Hold up. Hold. the fuck. up. No seriously, pardon him a moment. Did those words actually just leave Ravus' mouth? Pinch him; he's dreaming.]
Pretty sure we're gonna move to the attic. [Because good lord you
threetwo b thirsty.]no subject
[She may no longer have the title of Princess, but she is the Oracle and also his little sister and she deserves the best they all have to offer.]
Lunafreya's happiness is paramount. If you can't provide for her properly, then I will not support you courting her.
[Ravus is going to be here, alternating between feverishly cleaning the house and sharpening his sword. This is the only shovel talk Noctis is getting from him. After this, he'll stab as the warning.]
1/2
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[He can be worse than Noctis is. Just saying.]
But yes, she will be joining me, if that's what she wishes.