faesphere | Call Me Out / Open RP Post

[ His heart, well, is understandably torn in two. He's glad that he can help Noctis out at the end of his journey, but he doesn't want him to die. He lets his head drop, his cheek resting against on top of Noctis' head.

He can't be selfish. Not in the way how he's thinking, a part of him wants to take Noctis and run away someplace safe together (what safe place, who's he kidding), but he can't. It's not his decision to make. So, he's sworn to stand by Noctis until the very end. Then he'll grieve. ]

I love you, too, Noct. [ more than he's letting on, more than he can ever express.

He grows a bit quiet after that, letting everything just sink in. ]

The ring, [ he says slowly, tone growing a bit curious. ] I never told you about it. How do you know?

[Noctis can't help hesitating again, resting quietly against Ignis like that for so long it might almost seem as if he'd dozed off. (Can one fall asleep inside of a dream? He'd rather not find out yet.)

Finally, though, he sighs softly and speaks up once more.]

I saw... a lot of things, while I was in the Crystal. Absorbing its power meant taking in all the memories of the planet. Everything that happened, across all of history... from start to finish. [Or at least, up until he'd been pulled in. Those ten years hadn't been delivered to him while he slept.] Felt like my head was gonna explode. Even now, it's all... [He makes a vague, wobbly hand gesture.] Muddy, in there. Don't think a human being's meant to hold all that information. I remember the important stuff, though.

[Ignis. Luna. Even Ardyn, his past and his struggles, everything that made him the monster he is in the present day. Those memories are within him, now, and he understands better why he'd done so many horrible things. He, too, was ready for the end to come for him.]

[ Yeah, don't fall asleep on him again, Noctis. Not that he'll mind, but they're already stuck in a dream together.

Quietly, he listens and lets out a little wince at that. ] You must have the biggest headache. [ he murmurs softly, he can't image having all that information stuffed into ones head like that.

After a couple of more minutes of quiet, he speaks up again. ] .... Still interested in those strawberries?

[Noct's only reply is a brief, dry laugh. Headache is putting it rather lightly. He's very comfortable, though, and a good pillow is a great way to soothe a sore head.

He stirs at the suggestion when it comes, lifting himself upright and stretching his arms up over his head.]

I'm always interested in strawberries. You see any around?

[ Well now, we'll just have to do something about that, won't we?

He thought he'd saw.... Ah, there. ]

Up ahead. [ small patch of red near where they're at. He slowly, and reluctantly gets up and gently pulls the sleepy King up with him. ]

Oh, Noct. When you're ready to go, I've already got another place in mind. [ He has a mysterious smile on his face, mischief in his own eyes too. ]

[Noctis leans on Ignis as he's pulled upright, responding with an agreeable hum as he ventures towards the strawberry bush, crouching down to start plucking a few of the especially juicy looking ones. They looked so good, he could honestly just eat them all here...]

Oh yeah? Where to next, then?

[ he kneels down next to Noctis, looking over the strawberries himself. ]

Lestallum, [ he gives Noctis a quick glace as he plucks up a strawberry, letting it roll in his hand. ] I do have my reasons for wanting to go. [ not for his benefit, but he's hoping he can find what he's looking for there. he won't say much more than that. ]

I assumed you would.

[Ignis very rarely makes decisions on a whim, and this is sort of an important journey for them. May as well make it meaningful.

He collects a couple before giving in to the temptation to bite down on one, closing his eyes for a long moment and just quietly savouring the burst of sweet flavour. The taste and scent are exactly like he remembers from back then.]

Sounds good to me. Maybe we can find a nice spot to eat in the market.

[It might be weird to see it without the usual crowd of people, but he'd liked the feel of it. It reminded him of certain areas of Insomnia, less rich-and-snobby, more down to earth zones. Places where no one knew him as the prince, where he could just go grab some street food with Prompto and not worry about someone taking creepy photos for the tabloids.]

[ he gives a little nod at that. ] I assume you have your reasons for wanting to come here. [ he says softly. though he's not prying into it.

WEEELLLLL, about that. Noctis doesn't realize how close he is to hitting the nail on the head. His expression gives away nothing but a knowing smile. ]

...Mm.

[Noctis takes a moment to think about whether or not it wants to answer. There's little sense in hiding it, though- what is he protecting, exactly? And from Ignis? Absurd. This man knows his heart better than any other, save for the one who once lived here- and she's gone, his words can no longer reach her. This is his last chance to be honest about how he feels.]

I wanted to see it in daylight, one last time. I thought... it'd be nice to walk this path on my own two feet.

[The last time he'd been here, beyond the railway station, he'd been in a wheelchair the entire time, being moved gingerly from chair to bed and back again. Scared, traumatized, wounded. The second time he'd seen Tenebrae, he'd been grieving Luna's death and terrified for Prompto. If this is his last day in this world, he'd wanted to remember Tenebrae for something other than pain, for his sake and Luna's.]

[ Yes, he'd suspected that this was the case. Without saying a word, he lets the fruit fall from his hand and gets up, not before he grabs onto Noct's hand and pulls him up with him. Ignis tugs Noctis into a gentle, warm and soothing embrace as much as he can muster. For now, and after their earlier talk. ]

I know. [ he whispers quietly. ] Just how much Tenebrae means to you.

[Noctis is careful to keep the strawberries in his hand from squishing, curling his free arm around Ignis to hold him back. He closes his eyes, settling against the other man, self-indulgently accepting another embrace, face buried to his friend's shoulder.]

I'm okay, Iggy, [he murmurs.] I'm glad we came here.

[He does feel better, having done this. The company certainly helped.]

[ He can't help but feel a wave of relief wash over him, it hadn't been pretty at all the last time they were here. He can recall Gladio's protest against it, stopping here in Tenebrae, but Noctis needed this, a chance to get closure.

He does pull back after a bit. ] I'm glad we came here too. [ A quick glance at the strawberries has him wondering ] Any special meaning to the strawberries?

[Noctis considers the handful of berries, and after a moment, rather than answering, he lifts one and presses it against Ignis' lips, brows lifted. See for yourself.]

[ This night is most certainly full of surprises, he had been so stunned when he'd first saw Noctis in this strange dreamworld. Ignis makes a soft sound of surprise and his expression mirrors it, realizing what he's intended to do here.

His heartbeat picks up a little - and he's careful of course - when he gingerly takes a careful small bite out of the strawberry from Noctis' hand... ]

[This would be a really smooth seduction gesture, had it come from anyone else. A little indirect kiss by Noct taking the second bite, or a way to sweeten a proper one.

But this is Noctis, so of course what he does is smile broadly and nibble on one for himself.]

Wouldn't you want to taste this again, if you had the chance? I forgot most of it when we got back to Lucis, but I almost made myself sick eating those pastries the day Luna introduced them to me.

[ Of course, Noctis is a little shit like that. He shakes his head in amusement, what is he to do with you, Noct.

A slight blush is on his cheeks though, but he's quick to pick up on the conversation. He knows the one, the very same that he had been trying to recreate for Noctis, his attempts haven't been successful in the least bit, but he's gotten closer to the sound of it. ]

Indeed I would. [ of course, he's not at all surprised that Noctis would do something like that. ] Ah yes, the very same ones that I've tried to recreate for you.

Yup, the very same.

[Noctis rolls the strawberries into his suit jacket pocket, not really caring if they squish a bit while they walk. If he's not allowed to take them with him to the next spot, at least he tried. And if he can take them, perhaps they'll find somewhere with a kitchen.]

We finally found the missing ingredient, after all these years.

[ He kneels back down himself to pluck a couple of strawberries and pockets them as well. The final ingredient huh. This is what he had in mind, was giving the pastry a well, final go. ]

If we find the rest of the ingredients in Lestallum, perhaps I can make it for you.

[ He stands back up and looks over to Noctis again. ]

Are you ready to go?

Yeah, I'm ready.

[Noctis snags Ignis' hand again to lead him to the next destination, his eyes roving along the treeline to an exit that looks like something Carbuncle would have set up for them. He spots it after a moment: a huge tree with a vast dark hole in the center, knotted and encircled with vines. He walks towards it, pulling Ignis with him, and guides them right into the dark, his hand reaching out towards the next realm of their shared dream. The shadows swallow them up just as before.

Within moments the world re-materializes into an alley of Lestallum, half a block away from the market. The city is hot, dusty, and unnaturally quiet, humming with energy from the powerplant like always, same as ever in almost every other way. It's weird to not see the streets crowded with people, but that just means it's easy to navigate.]

The market next, right?

[ Like before, he allows himself to be dragged along and thankfully, no jumping off a cliff this time. He's patient with the darkness surrounding them and waits on his vision to clear up. They're in an alley somewhere in Lestallum.

It's kind of nice to have it to themselves. But that's not why they're here. ]

Yes, [ he confirms, starting to move in that direction. ] I'll admit that it's strange not being shoulder to shoulder with people. Did Talcott fill you in?

[ He spies out the market shortly after and blinks in surprise. Looks like there's a lot more food overall and it's filled with Ignis' and Noctis' favorite foods. The powers of a dreamland, he supposes.

Which means, he should be able to find what he's looking for the pastries. ]

I got some details, yeah. Lestallum being the only place where people can live these days... it's hard to imagine.

[Lucis had always been sparsely populated beyond the big cities, but there was always people out and about, moving from place to place. He'd never seen the world look so empty as that road trip from Galdin to Hammerhead with Talcott.]

You guys are amazing, living like that for so long.

[There's an edge of helpless regret to his voice. It was out of his hands the whole time, but he's still sorry that it took him so long to come back.]

It wouldn't have been possible without the power plant. [ though, he's blind in the real world, he got a pretty good idea of just how crowded this place got.

He gestures towards the food next. ] I think we're free to pick whatever we want.

... Did the strawberries come with you? [ his did, thankfully. ]

Ah... [Noctis gives his pocket a light pat, feeling the soft weight of them.] Looks like it. Think we can dig up the other ingredients for one more try?

[ He gives a nod. ] Why don't we split up? I'll get the rest of the ingredients and I trust you know what I like by now.

Meet at the Leville in fifteen minutes?

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