Disclaimer: Anything that is not mine, is not mine. The game, the characters, they are not mine. The concept of the story is mine, but the elements added that were not originally mine, are definitely not mine. I hope that's enough disclaimer!

Author's Note: Another one-shot fic! I'm a big, big fan of the IgnisxAranea ship, so I made a one-shot! I hope you'll enjoy! Please read and review to let me know what you think!

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Silence had blocked out all else when Ignis heard of his worst fears from the King himself.

Aranea's sentence read death.

He didn't remember hearing Noctis' cries to dissuade his father from carrying on with the dragoon's penalty for high treason. He knew the prince rallied hard to save her from the inevitable, using all his powers and royal privileges to revoke her punishment, but Ignis was too transfixed in her dark gray eyes as she was being dragged away by the Kingsglaives to even notice. He would have done something, and he should have. But he was frozen, helpless, and very desperate.

"Don't discount her association with the Empire!" the King argued sternly when he had enough of his son's persistent contention. "Your safety is my top priority. Letting her go will only guarantee another reason for your death."

"She saved our lives!"

"I wasn't there to prove her true allegiance firsthand. She might be your ally now, but she proved herself to change sides in a blink of an eye."

"Exactly! You weren't there to prove her innocence in this incident!"

"I know enough!" Regis retorted. "I know your battle with her as she tried to terminate you under the emperor's orders. I know your hostile encounters with her on your journey. I know that she attempted another fight against my glaives who came to ensure your safety."

"They came too late, Dad. If it wasn't for Aranea–"

"Everything she did for the empire outweighs what you thought she did in the end."

"You don't understand!"

"And you're foolish to trust her so easily!"

That shut Noctis in silence. The King himself looked away at the pain in his words as his son took one formal bow before walking out.

All members of the royal council were to witness the mercenary's execution at the tip of a cliff in Cape Caem the next day. Almost everyone were already present when he arrived in the Regalia with Noctis and the rest of his entourage. He waited until everyone had stepped out of the car before taking a good, deep breath with eyes closed. He was going to face her again, and he had no audacity left in him to even look at her. He was a friend, an ally. And the very least he could do for saving their lives during their battle in Fallgrove was to ensure that they save hers.

And given how imperil their encounter was, they owed her a thousand more times.

It was only three days ago when magitek engines surrounded them, demanding the peaceful surrender of Prince Noctis. There already was a word going around about the assassination order from the Emperor who placed a hefty bounty on the prince's head, so they knew better than to trust the Imperials' promise of "peace". They would have to kill them first before getting their hands on Noctis.

The crown prince already entreated help from the glaives, a last resort he would rather not do as he did not want his father to be anymore involved. But they were heavily outnumbered, and their chances of surviving were slimming to none. It was when Aranea decided to show up with her own infantry jumping from her red ship.

There was so much distrust towards her at first, knowing how long she had served the Emperor and carried out his orders. She even almost succeeded at her own assassination attempt at the crown prince, only to pull back and used a lame excuse as "I do not do overtimes." when the battle ran for too long. But she did also express her intentions to leave her post as their hired mercenary afterwards when things got too senseless and chaotic with the Imperials. She was only in for the job and money, not for some loyalty or building a good name in her trade. She still had her own principles that she chose to fight for, as it would appear.

That night, however, marked her official defection from the Imperials. She helped them detect the troopers' weak spots with her extensive knowledge about the army, and summoned more fighters under her command to help them wipe out the oncoming hundred more troopers. She healed them, boosted their attacks, and strengthened their defense. She was, for a lack of better words, a true lifesaver. But to the glaives, she was no more than another assassin working for the imperials, a threat to the heir of the throne. And when they finally arrived, with only a few more troopers left to terminate, they immediately cuffed her. They too were in search for the prince's potential killer under his father's orders, and chancing upon her at the moment made it all too easy for them. And did she put up a fight, which only made it worse. Prompto demanded not to hurt her, but they had to knock her out cold in order to subdue her.

"Drautos should be up there, not her." Noctis hissed at no one, but audible enough for Ignis to hear. He silently agreed. The leader of glaives, no matter how heroic he was at times, did little to save their lives that night. And apparent from his poor judgement for thoughtlessly accusing Aranea, it was clearly likely that he could care less about his duty to serve and protect. They used to trust the Kingsglaives General, but they learned more things over time and not everything was truly what they seemed or believed. The cunning ability for Drautos to place the blame of his mistakes on others was among the list.

As they stood at the bottom of the mountain awaiting the arrival of Aranea's convoy, Ignis glanced at his friends. Prompto's head was hanging down, while Gladiolus held his high, wearing an unreadable expression and avoiding Clarus' eyes. Noctis was still wearing that frown, his eyes slightly darting as if searching the place for answers until they fell on his father when he walked by. Ignis noticed that even the King's expression was soft, almost sad and unsure. But he masked it with his regal composure, and maybe intentionally ignoring his son's glare. King Regis was not known for having a fickle mind. He was often praised for his careful way of making decisions, one of his strengths that prospered Insomnia, and he held that reputation well. Ignis assumed that he overlooked the possibility of Aranea's innocence because it involved the looming danger for his son's life. Ignis understood the King's unwillingness to take risks, and how he wished he couldn't blame him for it.

Aranea's vehicle finally arrived. They all turned to its direction, watching as guards stepped down and opened the back door where two more guards exited with Aranea in between. She was wearing a long, white dress of canvas material. It was cleaner than the one she was wearing the day before, but still crumpled and not white enough for his taste. He long, gray hair were down, and she wasn't wearing her usual proud face. How could she when her impending death was just minutes away? Staring at her didn't convince him enough that she was still the same Aranea that they knew. Her imprisonment and retribution had made her seem degraded.

She lifted her head, her blank eyes directed at the slope of the mountain. The glaives marched into positions around her. The executioner and his axe stood behind her. They began their hike.

Ignis ran through the last conversation they had in his mind. With his friends' help, especially Noct's, he was granted access to her highly guarded prison cell. His intentions were to thank her, primarily for saving Noctis' life.

She was sitting on a wooden bench, looking up at the small window where sunlight was streaming in. There were no chains on her like what he had feared, but she remained unmoving even at the sound of his footsteps. Ignis followed her stare, wondering what might be enchanting her so beyond that small, limiting hole. Perhaps regrets? Life that she left behind? Freedom?

"I wasn't expecting any visitors." Aranea said over her shoulder, snapping him out of his thoughts. She turned around to face him, a small grin forming on her lips.

"To be frank, I never anticipated an encounter with you like this." he said.

"Like what? Behind bars?"

"Unreachable."

"Hmph." Aranea scoffed. "Impossible to reach for anything from this angle. Thankfully it wouldn't be for long."

Ignis looked away and swallowed painfully as he pushed his glasses up his nose.

"Hey, no need to feel so guilty."

"My friends and I swore to protect the innocent. Yet we couldn't seem to find a way to protect you."

"Don't sweat it." Aranea dismissed. "I'm not exactly the most innocent. Especially to His Majesty."

"We still believe you are far from deserving of what is coming to you."

Aranea smiled, a rare sincere one. "Speaking of which, you seem to be the only one who made it down here."

"Noctis was distracting General Drautos, and the other two were keeping watch at the entrance. Noct wanted to express his thanks personally, but he couldn't be in two places at the same time. So he sent me here instead."

"Well then, tell him he's welcome."

"I also wish to express my gratitude. For saving our lives. And Noctis', despite being given the order to kill him."

Aranea shrugged. "I can't deny my involvement with the Empire no matter how much I want to, but I can't deny that fact that there really is an order for his highness' life with a very tempting reward."

"Hmm… I'm not sure if I should thank you for defying your orders and the denying said reward."

"It doesn't matter." Aranea said. "I'm already dead, either way."

"Haven't you defected already?"

"Oh I certainly did, Specs." Aranea replied, awaiting his reaction for adapting his nickname. None came other than his gaze at her direction. "I stayed long enough with the Imperials to know that they will not hesitate to kill me on sight as much as they'll do with Lucians."

"You command your own army, don't you?"

"Yep. But mine's just a dirty spot compared to the empire's military bases. Not to mention, to Lucis' army as well."

Ignis paused at the realization how she was cornered by both sides. The charge for her independence had already arrived, and it was asking for a heavy price. Defecting and changing her allegiance both meant the same thing to her– death. To her and her army.

"I don't want my men to lose their heads under my whims just because I couldn't decide which side I am. Kudos to the King on that part. His mind's steady as a rock when he makes it up."

Ignis slid a hand into his pocket and kept a straight composure after hearing her strong kindliness for her men even when it was her life tossed on the line.

"I may be asking you for too much already, but please do me one last favor and forgive yourself. Your men followed you faithfully simply because they wish to. They weren't following you blindly. I've seen how they took action before you even ordered them to. Loyalty comes strong for a good leader like yourself."

Aranea chuckled. "Is this my last confession?"

"No harm in considering it."

"Then, I'm sorry." her tone turned serious. "For getting in your way. For almost killing the prince. For giving you a hard time."

"You made up for it and more." Ignis said, trying to sound more comforting. "We are ready to forget it."

"Even Prince Noctis?"

"He more than anyone."

"Even you?"

"I'm not so certain." he admitted. "But I confess that I wish I could do more. To at least get you out of this confinement as a start."

"Then I take this as a punishment for myself. If it's too late to redeem myself, then this is the perfect place to do it." A wider grin formed on her lips. "Heh. As if I have any other choice. But at least the solitude's giving me time to actually think about life."

"Any regrets?"

"I already earned your forgiveness, so none that I know of anymore."

"We haven't earned yours yet. Not that we deserve it."

Aranea's smile fell. "Knowing how much you guys tried to save me from this, and seeing you here now, forgiveness is the least I could give you."

The sharp inhale Ignis took at the sight of her split second of vulnerability almost broke his chest. What have they done to her strength? "Aranea…" he whispered. "I wish I could do more."

Aranea gazed at him with soft, sad eyes. "Me too, Specs."

Without any word, she stood and walked closer to the rails that separated them. Ignis followed suit and approached her cell, stopping just mere inches from her. She pursed her lips and her brows arched upwards as she looked down and fought her tears. Through the narrow space on the railing, she slid three slender fingers, the most that she could manage out of her prison. Ignis stared at them before reaching with his gloved hands and brushed them gently. He didn't know what came to him when he slowly bowed and kissed her fingers, but her life was counting hours. He was not going to walk away without giving her one last gesture of human affection. It was the least he could do, and the most at the same time.

"I'm sorry." he breathed.

"I'm sorry, too."

As they trailed uphill in Cape Caem, Ignis remembered how his heart gave away at the sight of Aranea's tears before leaving. He wished he could stay a little longer and halt the truth from catching up at their moment, but an hour's visit was the most generous they were entitled with and he had to force himself out.

"Any ideas?" Noctis whispered from his side. "Anyone?"

"You're asking now?" Gladiolus hissed under his breath.

"I can already see the sea from here." Prompto muttered.

"Ignis? Any instruction?"

"I'm afraid none." Ignis replied. He could feel his heart beating furiously against his chest as they got closer to the top.

It was all too dramatic, the way they decided on a place where she was bound to meet her end. She battled with and took away many lives from the highest of places. And it was only fair that she would lose hers the same way– at the edge of the highest cliff in Lucis. Everyone halted as soon as Aranea had reached her spot, her eyes looking straight into the horizon, her chest moving up and down in the rhythm of her sharp breaths. An overdressed judge stood by, facing the spectators behind her and recited all her charges to justify her sentence under the King's name.

Ignis glanced at Noctis, whose focused face told how he was still running through ways to stop the execution in his mind. They were running out of time. And they were running out of ideas.

When he glanced back at Aranea, he only saw her vulnerability. That she was no invincible as she so passionately impressed them with in battles. Stripped of her armor, she was just another woman who committed high treason, and was about to face death for her past.

She turned around with a stern look on her face. Even at the face of death, she held her pride in not letting anything get to her. She scanned the crowd before her, remembering the last faces she would ever see as her executioner walked to her side.

"No…" Prompto whispered, sliding a foot forward. Gladiolus faced away, refusing to see her this defeated.

Ignis studied every detail of her face, her body, her hair… It was going to be the last image he was going to keep of her in his memory. When her eyes fixed with his, everything seemed to stop. He could hear his heart beating with hers at the moment's pause. Her steely look softened as she released one long, final breath, letting go tears that she had been holding in.

"Ignis."

The way she said his name for the first time was almost... pleading. Is this how he was going to remember her voice calling for him? The first and last time?

With one last bow, she turned back around into the sea. The executioner readied his axe in hand.

And then she leapt.

Ignis would rather not do anything brash or impulsive, especially in front of His Majesty. Especially if it was against his terms. But seeing her without an armour? Nor any protection? What was going to protect her from the fall?

So he ran as fast as he could to the edge and jumped after her.

That wasn't even a cue for an idea, but Noctis took it as one. Quickly, he activated his armiger and warped his way to the pair. In his wake were Prompto and Gladiolus summoning their weapons of choice to hold down the charging glaives.

Beyond the cliff, Ignis and Aranea were dropping closer to the bed of rocks, and fast. He was able to reach for an arm and swiftly pulled her closer, wrapping her body safely with his. A split second later, he felt a jolt on his side that pushed them off the rocky area and onto the waters.

Ignis and Aranea easily floated to the surface and looked around to find their savior threading in the sea with them. Noctis was looking up the cliff where he could see flashes of gunshots and hear clanging of blades.

"Noct!" Ignis called.

Noctis looked back. "Ignis! Your glasses!"

Ignis felt his face and realized that his eyewear was missing. "Ah, must've fallen off somewhere."

"Obviously." Aranea chuckled.

"You guys okay?"

"We are, thank you. Are you?"

"Yeah, 'course, I'm fine. I gotta get back though." Noctis warped back upwards as soon as he finished his sentence. He immediately regret it afterwards for not bringing Ignis back with him.

Eh, we'll manage, he thought.

The glaives were undeniably skilled and powerful, thanks to his father's borrowed powers. Soon enough, they found themselves back-to-back and surrounded by his father's personal army. Noctis kept warping, Prompto kept shooting, and Gladiolus kept swinging his sword in their best attempt to push them back and away from the cliff, but they kept on coming back for more.

Noctis really regret not bringing Ignis back with him for instructions.

Just then, one of the hooded glaives jumped in front of them and began attacking the others. Gladiolus stole a glance of the stranger before turning his focus back on the battle.

"What the hell-?"

"Don't worry!" the glaive called back. "I'm on your side!"

"Whoah, really? Thanks man!" Prompto cheered.

"Just you?" Noctis asked with slight despondence as he struck one glaive.

"Hey, we appreciate as much help as we can get." Gladiolus snapped.

"Then I'm at your service! Only death can stop me."

"Ha! Spoken like a true hero!"

"I'll take that!"

"NOCT! BEHIND YOU!" Gladiolus yelled as Drautos, in his heavy armor, was jumping towards the prince. The rebelling glaive warped to Noctis' side and blocked the attack with his kukris.

"Ulric…" the general growled between his teeth.

"Just… doing the right thing… Sir." Ulric said in his strained voice before mustering all his strength to push Drautos away from the group and sparred with him from a distance. Ulric was shoved to a side and before he could react, Drautos was hovering midair to strike Noctis once more. It clashed with another blade again, but this time, it was the King's.

"Wha-" Noct picked himself up from the ground with widened eyes as he watched his father block an attack meant for him.

"That's enough." King Regis declared in his loud, solid voice. Clarus walked by the stunned glaive that challenged Gladiolus and pushed his blade away from his son with a grin.

Drautos quickly composed himself and stood straight before the King. Regis gave him a sideway glance.

"I entrusted my son's safety in your hands."

"I believe so, Your Majesty."

"Then why were you attacking him?"

"For his aid in the convict's escape, and his contribution to this chaos."

"He didn't contribute to this chaos." Regis said. "I did."

Noctis took a step back. "Dad?"

"As it turns out I'm wrong in my decisions sometimes, and I regret not seeing it sooner. Your fight to prove her innocence and save her from a wrongful punishment has only proven how much trust you gave to this woman."

"That's all right, Dad." Noctis said, giving his friends an unsure look before turning back to him. "She saved our lives. We only wish to repay it."

"Tell me. Is she really innocent?"

"Well, not innocent from everything, but I'm counting on forgiving and forgetting."

Regis nodded. "I still don't put all my trust in her, rather I place it in you."

"Thanks, Dad."

"But," Regis held up a finger. "If she does one thing to break this trust, and all it takes is one, then I'll be bringing her back to the guillotine."

"I'd be hurt by the betrayal too so, sure. Not a problem."

Content at his son's answer, he nodded at the leader of his council. "Clarus, make sure General Drautos here remembers what he's here for."

Clarus gave a courteous bow. "As you wish."

"And if he has further problems in how we run this place, he may face me."

Noctis looked over the cliff and was relieved to see Ignis and Aranea safely resting on one of the flatter rocks. Behind him, Prompto approached Ulric and patted his back.

"Hey man, thanks for helping us back there."

Ulric nodded and pulled his hood down with a smile. "Pleasure's all mine. Nice to finally meet the famous royal entourage."

"Prompto's the name, and that's Gladiolus." Prompto said, pointing a thumb at a waving Gladiolus.

"What's up?"

"Call me Nyx."

"Man, you really take pride in those threads."

"Fashionable as they come." Nyx shrugged with a grin at his uniform. "Where is the other member of your posse? Is he okay?"

"Oh, right, he's down there."

"He sure took a leap of faith."

"Couldn't have said it better, man."

Prompto turned to Noctis. "Hey Noct, what's happening down there?"

"Oh, they're safe alright." Noctis said. "Still working on how to get them out. Or if I should even bother."

"Let's give them twenty more minutes. I think that's enough alone time." Gladiolus suggested.

Below the cliff, Ignis was looking up and wondering why no one hasn't come back for them yet. He didn't see the oncoming punch from Aranea toward his forearm. Ignis winced and glared at her, rubbing the sore spot. "There better be a valid explanation for this."

"You're stupid." she said.

"I admit I am not usually this brash in making decisions. Also, you're welcome."

"I was supposed to die knowing that I did it for the right thing!" Aranea cried.

"Was this all part of your plan? To get yourself caught and die a hero's death?"

"Getting caught was not part of the plan!"

"Then why didn't you hop into your ship when the glaives arrived? You had the best chance of escape, yet you didn't."

"I was helping you wiping out the MTs, remember?"

"The glaives arrived to do just that. You didn't have to linger."

Aranea crossed her arms, looking away into the sea that stretched into the sunlit sky. Ignis looked away as well, an arm dangling against his folded knee.

"You should not have jumped here with me." she muttered under her breath.

Ignis couldn't help but think how their world kept on shrinking. The more they encounter, the smaller the number of trustworthy people got until he could count them with only two hands, and that included her.

Meanwhile, aside from Biggs and Wedge and her army of faithful troopers, she only had them.

"Well," he began again. "We do owe you our lives."

"You were sorely losing to the MTs." she replied. "I just had to jump in."

"Then why did you?"

She shrugged. "I just made a stand. If it was the last thing I'd ever do in this waste of a life of mine, then might as well make it worthwhile and epic."

"Then I simply stood my ground as well."

Aranea scoffed. "Who are you kidding. Your life is not a waste."

"Not worthwhile either, if I didn't make it in time."

Aranea's widened eyes locked with his, dumbfounded at his sudden disclosure. He looked serious, placate, and resolved. She walked to his side and carefully sat by him without breaking his contact. Then, just as she had half expected and half hoped, he gently reached for stray hair on her face, hesitating for a moment before pushing it away when she remained unflinching. It was his chance to be this close to her without anything in between them, after all.

A small smile formed on her lips and another scoff escaped her as she shook her head under his green gaze. He leaned in closer until they were only inches away from sealing the moment, his eyes falling on her lips then back to her dark gray orbs.

"Heh, and I thought you are the smart one." she murmured softly.

A/N: NO FLUFF! Please don't hate me! Also, before you ask, Cor is nowhere to be seen. As always. LOL!