Mousie's Scribbles

Iris was the first to notice something was dreadfully wrong when the Regalia returned to the small house - without her brother and with the ex-prince of Tenebrae in his place. Tears threatened to fill her amber eyes but she held them back. An Amicitia never cried - well, never in public. Emotional breakdowns in private were fine - even encouraged. “Majesty,” she said, her voice wavering a moment before she steeled herself. “Please, inside,” she said, guiding the small group of heros inside. She tilted her head thoughtfully when Ravus took Ignis’s hand as they got out of the car and made their walk up to the house. She reached out and caught Ravus’s Magitek hand as he walked by her. When he paused to look at her, she glanced up at him, her amber eyes holding his bi-colored eyes. “Treat Ignis right, or I’ll kick your ass,” she hissed.

Ravus reached over and affectionately mussed her hair. “I will,” he said softly. “Now and always.”

“Good,” she said firmly before allowing him to head inside. She waited a moment outside, allowing her tears to fall before she composed herself and headed inside. “So,” she began, once she joined the others at the table, one laid out with a map on it. “What’s the plan?”

Ravus tapped a location on the map. “We head here,” he said. “Someone there should be able to send the soul of your ancestor on and allow your brother to regain control of his body.”

Iris nodded, her eyes studying the map. “That’s quite some distance,” she said, glancing up to look at Noctis.

“It is,” Noctis agreed. “But, we don’t really have a choice, not if we want your brother back,” he said.

She made a soft noise and nodded. “First things first, we’re making me your Shield,” she said, using a tone that her father would use when talking with Regis. She raised her right hand to stem the protest. “Amicitias have always guarded the king. I’m an Amicitia last I looked, therefore, it’s my duty to protect the king.”

Noctis opened his mouth to protest but closed it. Iris was right - Amicitias had always protected the king (or the stray queen - even going as far as to marry one of them). “All right,” he said finally. “For now, we rest. Tomorrow, I’ll contact Cor, see if he remembers the swearing in ceremony for the Shield. If not, well, what’s a little bullshit between friends?”

“So much for royal protocol,” Ignis sighed, earning a faint amused snort from Prompto.

“I take it that this group doesn’t believe in royal protocol?” Ravus asked, arching a silvered brow.

“Nope,” Noctis said, flashing him a cheeky smile.

Ravus cast his eyes heavenwards. “Smite me, O Mighty Smiter,” he opined.

“Careful, he might take you up on that,” Ignis sighed, rolling his eyes.

Jared subtly cleared his throat. “Perhaps we can continue this discussion *after* dinner, perhaps?” he asked.

“Of course, Lord Hester,” Noctis said, bowing his head slightly. “My apologies.”

Jared’s lips twitched in a slight smile. “Of course, your majesty,” he said. “Now, Count Scientia, would you like to aid me in the kitchen?”

Ignis nodded, flushing just a smidge at the use of his title. “Of course,” he said. He looked at Noctis and at Noctis’s nod, turned and followed Jared to the kitchen.

Dinner turned out to be a quiet affair - most didn’t want to discuss what had happened for fear of upsetting young Talcott who viewed the elder Amicitia with more than a little bit of idol worship. Somehow, Ravus managed to win the boy over by pulling out a small cactaur plush (that may have been his when he was a boy - but well, if it put the child at ease, he was more than willing to part with it).

Iris helped Jared clear the table before rejoining the others, waiting until Talcott had gone upstairs with Jared to go to bed. “So, you,” she absently gestured at Ravus. “Kicked my brother’s ass which made him go off on some sort of secret training mission?” she asked, feeling her left brow arch ever so slightly.

“That’s the gist. Unfortunately, the Tempering Grounds is an unholy place that no Oracle or Summoner would willingly set foot in,” Ravus said, picking up a cup of tea. He sipped it slowly, savouring the taste before he spoke again. “Although, I may be wrong with the Summoner as they deal with the dead.”

Iris took a sip of her tea, before setting it down and putting a little too much sugar (at least in Ignis’s opinion) in to make it a little more palatable. She playfully stuck her tongue out at his quietly whispered ‘heathen’. “You know, I never took my big brother to be an idiot but seriously? Even Papa never went there, and the only time he did was to retrieve Godfather Cor.”

Jared nodded. “Your father was fit to be tied when he learned that a then fifteen year old Cor went off to take on the Blademaster. I seem to recall your father emptying a bottle of the good Scotch when he returned.”

Noctis listened, a grim smile on his face. “So, what do we know about this Blademaster that we can use to our advantage? I mean, beyond his loyalty to Ardyn.”

Jared frowned a moment before rising from his chair, and making his way to a bookcase. He ran his fingertips across the spine of several books before giving a soft “a-ha”. He pulled the book out of the bookcase and made his way over, handing the book over to Ignis. “I’m afraid my aged eyes are not able to read all that small print anymore. If you would be so kind, Count Scientia.”

Ignis gave a brief nod before gingerly opening the book. His green eyes skimmed the pages before alighting on a name. “Chrysanthus Amicitia, Gilgamesh,” he read. “Shield to..” He paused a looked up at Jared. “Oh.”

Jared merely nodded.

“Shield to?” Ravus prompted.

“Izunia Lucis Caelum. He was supposed to be Ardyn Lucis Caelum’s Shield but well..” Ignis paused. “According to the records, Ardyn fell to the daemons, corrupted by the Starscourge he took within him as he healed those afflicted.” He paused again, looking up at Noctis. “I think, if we can get Gilgamesh to recall that Ardyn was corrupted, that he served Izunia faithfully, then we might be able to lure him back to our side.”

“And from there, we can try and free Gladio from whatever hold Gilgamesh has on him?” Iris offered up.

Noctis nodded. “So, first priority, get a Summoner so they can send Gilgamesh’s soul on. Then we can work on getting Gilgamesh to remember who he really served.”

Prompto glanced up from his phone before wordlessly passing it over to Ignis. “That might be easier said then done,” he said slowly. “Take a look at the man standing next to Ardyn in this most recent photo.”

Ignis glanced at the image and stiffened. “Oh my,” he breathed. “This may have gotten harder.”

Iris moved over so she could look and spat an oath - one that would have had both Clarus and Gladio telling her to mind her language. “So, how do we fix that?” she asked, looking at Ignis.

“I.. I don’t know. I just don’t know,” he confessed.