Just so you know literally all the medical stuff in this is from wikihow so yeah
Ignis wasn't angry at Gladio, not really. Of course, he did not approve of him leaving the group, and Noct specifically, even if he was going to return soon as he had promised. But he trusted Gladio, had trusted him with his own life, and more importantly with Noctis' - and Prompto's too - ever since they were children. And if Gladio said he needed to be away for a while… then Ignis trusted him to have a good reason for it.
Ignis wasn't angry, but it was certainly hard not to be displeased, especially when they were attacked by the local wildlife after they had already been forced to exhaust themselves in two separate fights against magitek troops that normally wouldn't have stood much of chance against them. Yet this time, Gladio's absence was more than obvious during the fight.
And as if the magitek troops hadn't been enough, they'd just had to run into an entire family consisting of a cockatrice, a basilisk, and five chickatrices. At first, they had tried to make light of the situation, but soon it became apparent that the damned birds were quite a lot stronger than they were.
The chickatrices certainly were rather endearing, with that, Ignis couldn't argue, but as the fight went on, he found himself more and more irritated by their impossible habit of jumping their opponents and stomping them into the ground. But at least they weren't especially heavy, and easy to fend off, so the damage done by them was not too terrible.
Unfortunately, though, they seemed to have learnt that particular move from their parent, for Ignis did hear the warning Prompto yelled his way after taking out the last chickatrice, but barely had time to leap out of the way before the cockatrice came down onto him. Thanks to Prompto, he was able to avoid getting his ribcage crushed by the giant chicken landing on his chest, but he had been just a fraction of a second too late to get out of the way completely, and the cockatrice still managed to trap him on the ground.
By landing on his arm.
The entire weight of the giant cockatrice slammed into his arm and ground it into the rocks beneath him.
Now, Ignis thought of himself as capable of taking quite a lot of pain, at least compared to the average person, but the crushing weight of the cockatrice on his arm and the cracking sound he heard as his bones could no longer withstand the strain put on them made it impossible for him to bite back a pained cry.
Two heads simultaneously snapped in his direction. Ignis would have liked to reprimand both Noctis and Prompto for getting distracted in battle, on his behalf no less, but he quickly found himself too busy trying to breathe and keep the impending unconsciousness away.
"Prompto, defend Ignis," Noctis yelled as he summoned his royal arms and charged the cockatrice that had mercifully moved off Ignis' arm by now.
"On it!" Prompto swiftly placed himself in front of Ignis, firing at the basilisk so it never got a chance to get close to either them or Noctis. Despite the pain, Ignis felt a rush of pride and affection as he was left watching the other two finish the fight. Even without Gladio, and now without him as well, the two managed to keep their focus instead of freaking out like they probably would have just a few weeks ago. During battles, it was himself who offered a lot of advice, and the others who usually took it. It was Gladio who would put himself between the enemy and his comrades, a shield not only to Noctis, but to all of them whenever the circumstances allowed it.
Now, without him or Gladio in the picture, Noctis took upon the role of the leader without a second thought, as expected of a prin- no, not a prince. Noctis was the king, now.
And the way Prompto was standing there above him, unwavering as he fired shot after shot with that extraordinary accuracy of his, and Ignis felt as safe as if it were Gladio protecting him from further harm.
The poor chickens didn't stand a chance. Ignis almost felt bad for them as they were being beaten mercilessly by the other two. Almost, but the steady pain in his arm easily overruled any hint of pity he might have felt.
Noctis finished slicing up the cockatrice just as Prompto put one last bullet into the basilisk's head, then he warped over to where Prompto was already crouching next to Ignis.
"Hey, Iggy, we've got potions, come on. You gotta use one and it'll fix you right up," Prompto said, hands hovering over Ignis with uncertainty.
Noctis nodded in agreement, moving to crack one over Ignis' arm.
"Wait," Ignis gasped, jerking away from them and squeezing his eyes shut for a second as the movement briefly increased the pain. "Don't use a potion on me yet. I'm fairly certain that the bone is displaced. First, it needs to be reset, or it will heal wrong."
Noctis and Prompto shared a helpless look. "Uh… so what do we do?"
Ignis sighed and made to sit up, grateful for the support Prompto almost instantly provided. "For now, we should get back to camp before it gets dark. We'll deal with this once we're there." He paused, then admitted, "I may, however, require some assistance getting up."
Glad to be able to do at least something to help, Noctis and Prompto both scrambled to help Ignis to his feet without hurting him. That second part was an only somewhat successful attempt, but Ignis wasn't about to let them know and make them feel bad about it.
As he stood, he cradled his broken arm tightly to his chest and looked at the other two. "Thank you. I will be able to manage on my own now, at least until we return to the haven."
"You sure?" Noct asked, sounding sceptical.
"Certainly," Ignis replied. It wasn't a lie, he was fairly sure he would be able to make it back without help. Without waiting for a reaction, he started walking, leaving the other two stunned for a second before they hurried to catch up to him.
The walk back was silent, Prompto and Noctis guarding him from behind in case more enemies were going to show up, and Ignis focusing on breathing through the pain that shot through his arm with every step he took. He was able to make it back on his own, but he couldn't deny the relief he felt as he finally caught sight of the haven.
He let himself be helped down on the ground and took a moment to breathe as the other two got situated beside him.
"So, how do we do this?" Prompto asked. "That first aid class I had to take to get my driver's licence only taught us to call a doctor if something looks like…" he gestured towards Ignis arm, "this." And he had taken that class with Noctis, which definitely hadn't added to the amount of attention he'd paid, but it was probably better not to mention that fact to Ignis right now.
Apparently, Noctis had no such concerns. "Gladio made me take some field medicine classes, but I kind of slept through most of them…"
Ignis suppressed a sigh. The two may have grown when it came to fighting, but the same couldn't be said about other aspects of their life, it seemed. "Alright. I will guide you, then. And please do pay attention this time so you'll be ready if something like this happens again."
At least the two had the decency to look sheepish, but Ignis really couldn't be mad at them if he tried. For the second time today, he wished Gladio were there. Field medicine had been one of the first things in his training as a shield, and Ignis knew Gladio had reset a fair share of broken bones in the past. Wishing was no use, though, and he had to focus on the issue at hand first.
Before he even had the chance to start his instructions, Prompto shot him a worried look. "Wait, Iggy, do you want painkillers for this? I mean, I never had a bone set before, but I've seen movies and stuff, and this always looks really painful, so maybe you should just take a few?"
Prompto looked hopeful, like he really wished Ignis would agree to the painkillers, but Ignis, despite knowing Prompto's natural compassion was leaving him to suffer with him, shook his head. "As much as I would like to, it wouldn't be wise for me to do so. The only painkillers we have are way too strong, I won't be able to instruct you two if I take them." He considered their options for a moment. The sooner they got this over with, the better, but he really wasn't keen on getting his arm reset without anything to dull the pain.
"Alcohol?" Noctis suggested half-seriously, but Ignis shook his head. "No, but we'll try numbing it with ice. It'll be less painful that way. Noct, please get an ice pack, and something to wrap it with. A towel would work well."
With his good arm, Ignis pulled a camping chair closer to them and rested his broken arm on it. When Noctis approached with the ice pack, Ignis took it from him and gingerly held it onto his arm. "Now, I'm afraid we'll have to wait for a while until the area is numb. I'm keeping my arm elevated to keep it from swelling up too much, that'll make it easier for us later."
It must have sounded strange, the detached way he was talking about his own injury, but he found that turning this whole ordeal into a lesson for Noctis and Prompto helped him stay focused on his task. Also, despite him being able to take a lot of pain, he didn't necessarily enjoy pain, and he definitely wasn't looking forward to the actual process of resetting his bones. That being said, this impromptu first aid class most definitely served the purpose to distract not only him but hopefully also the other two from his pain.
As he continued to hold the ice pack against his arm, they sat in silence. Regularly, he received concerned glances from both Prompto and Noctis, so he kept his posture purposefully as relaxed as possible. The last thing he wanted was to worry them any further, even though their concern was truly touching.
Finally, when his arm felt numb enough from the cold, Ignis removed the ice pack and placed it on the floor behind him.
"Alright, this should suffice," he said, pulling a handkerchief from his breast pocket and folding it a few times with nimble fingers, quick despite only having one hand available to do so. "I'll be placing this in my mouth when we're ready," he explained, holding up the folded handkerchief for emphasis. "When exposed to such intense pain, it is nearly impossible not to clench one's teeth too hard. You risk doing damage to your teeth that way, which is why it is important to have something to bite down on."
Both boys looked mildly horrified at the information, but Prompto was actually starting to look quite pale, so Ignis figured it was best not to make him perform the actual act of realigning the bones in his arm. Instead, he was going to assign the lesser of two evils to him and mentally apologized to Noctis for it. "Prompto, come sit beside me so you can grab my upper arm."
When Prompto was situated, Ignis held his arm out in front of him. "I likely won't be able to hold my arm up on my own, as it is only natural to want to escape from what is causing pain, so I need you to do it for me. Just keep it suspended in the air and do not let me pull away."
Prompto's hands were shaky as he held onto Ignis' arm, but he nodded, determined to do this right and help the best he could. Ignis gave him a reassuring nod before turning his attention to Noct.
"Noct, see how there is a noticeable bend in my forearm? That's where the fracture is displaced. It should be a straight line instead." Noctis nodded too, looking nervous, but no less determined than Prompto.
"Good. Now, place your right hand underneath my arm by the elbow. Your other hand needs to go on top of my wrist. When I'm ready, you will push up with your right hand, and down with your left. Keep doing that until the bone is in a straight line again. Most importantly, never stop, no matter how much pain it causes me. Stop only when the bone is back in place. Do you have any questions?"
Both Prompto and Noctis shook their heads quickly, looking more than a little pale in the light the setting sun cast on them. He wasn't doing anyone a favour postponing the inevitable any further, though, so he took a deep breath, shoved the folded handkerchief between his teeth with his good hand, and gave Noctis a sharp nod.
As instructed, Noctis started pushing at his broken arm, and Ignis immediately bit down on the fabric in his mouth, hard, willing himself not to make a noise as he squeezed his eyes shut against the pain.
"I'm sorry, Iggy, I'm so sorry," Noctis hissed between clenched teeth, but never stopped what he was doing. Ignis figured he was probably going to be proud of him once this was over, proud of Prompto, too, but right now, all he could feel was pain. He breathed heavily through his nose to fight against the blackness eating at the edges of his vision. His arm twitched as he unconsciously tried to pull it away, but Prompto didn't let go. Instead, he gripped his upper arm more tightly and leaned his weight into Ignis' side comfortingly. "Just a little more, Iggy. You're doing great, you're almost there," he encouraged him, and Ignis latched onto Prompto's voice to keep the faint hold on his consciousness he still had.
Finally, finally, Noctis managed to push the bone back into its place, and Ignis found it safe to pass out on the spot the second he felt his bone was where it belonged. The last thing he was aware of were steady arms catching him and lowering him to the ground gently.
When Ignis came to, he was lying beside the fire on his sleeping bag, Prompto sitting to his left, Noctis to his right side. It was dark, but there was still a faint trace of light on the horizon, so he couldn't have been out for long.
As he moved to sit up, he found his injured arm in a sling, but all that was left from the pain was a persistent yet tolerable ache.
"Iggy!" Prompto said as soon as he noticed Ignis was awake. "How're you feeling?"
"A lot better, thank you," Ignis replied with a small smile. "Now, I shall start preparing dinner." With some difficulty due to only having the use of one arm, he rose from the ground and stepped towards their camping kitchen.
"What the fuck, Specs," Noctis protested, hauling himself off the floor as well.
Ignis rolled his eyes. "Language, Noct."
"He's right, though. You don't have to cook dinner tonight. We can help, you know," Prompto chimed in.
"Yeah, Prompto can cook."
Prompto shot Noctis an annoyed look but nodded. "I can cook. I won't set your kitchen on fire, I promise. Back home, I cooked a lot for myself. You can go sit down, Iggy, we've got it."
Ignis pinched the bridge of his nose with his good arm. "I don't doubt that, but it is not necessary. I am very much able to cook dinner tonight."
Noctis groaned. "Specs, c'mon. Don't be difficult."
"Here's a deal," Prompto suggested, "You can cook, but you let us help. Chop things, lift pots, stuff like that. What do you say?"
Ignis still thought it wasn't necessary, but he wasn't necessarily in the mood to argue. Besides, he appreciated the gesture, however unneeded it was. "Alright. Prompto, would you please fill the large pot with water? And Noct, I'd appreciate if you could chop a few carrots, onions, and bell peppers. We'll leave them out of your portion - just this once, don't look so pleased about it - but some of us like to keep their bodies healthy. Don't we, Prompto?"
"You got it, Iggy!" Prompto agreed cheerfully as he grabbed the pot he was to fill with water.
Noctis shot him a betrayed look. "Stop trying to suck up to Specs! I thought we were friends!"
"What? I like vegetables! Don't be mean!"
"And that's another reason for me to end this friendship!"
Ignis smiled good-naturedly at the familiar banter. At this rate, it was going to take a longer time to prepare dinner than it usually did, but he really couldn't say he minded.
The events of the day had taken their toll on all three of them, so there wasn't much of an argument when Ignis suggested going to bed right after dinner.
He was the first one to crawl into the tent, as the other two offered to do the dishes, and since that was technically their job anyway, he agreed.
To change, he tugged the sling off, careful not to move his arm too much as he removed his dirty clothes and put on something more comfortable for the night.
The sling wouldn't be needed to sleep, so he put it aside neatly with the rest of his clothes and lay down in his usual spot on his back with his injured arm folded across his stomach.
Usually, only Gladio fell asleep later than Ignis did, but tonight he found himself drifting off before the other two even entered the tent. Nearly but not entirely asleep yet, he jerked back into awareness when Noctis crawled into the tent, not pausing or even changing into different clothes. Instead, he made his way over to where Ignis was lying, flopped down next to him, and put his head very, very gently down on the shoulder of Ignis' injured arm.
Prompto was more hesitant, once he zipped the tent shut, he tentatively lay down on Ignis' other side, shuffling closer and closer until he was curled into Ignis' side. "Is- is this okay, Iggy?" he whispered softly, ready to move away the instant Ignis complained.
Ignis' lips curved upwards in a tired smile. "Certainly," he replied in a low voice, because he was pretty sure Noctis was already asleep. Prompto still felt awfully tense against him, though, so he drew his arm out from where it was trapped between them and curled it around Prompto instead. And finally, the boy relaxed.
"Night, Iggy. I'll make breakfast tomorrow," he muttered, before he, too, drifted off to sleep.
Noctis had always complained about the lack of space in the tent and made a point in stretching out as widely as possible the first two nights Gladio was gone. It was a stark difference to how they were piled together now.
Not that Ignis minded; the nights did get pretty cold now that they were missing their human space heater. And, though hadn't thought it possible, there seemed to be such a thing as too much space. After having shared a tent with three other people for weeks, he'd simply grown accustomed to the way there was always physical contact with at least one person during the night.
It was only the third night without Gladio, but Ignis hadn't got much sleep these past two nights.
He would've thought he was the only one, and that the other two were glad for the extra space, but from the way they were huddled against him now, he figured that perhaps he wasn't the only one who was used to their usual sleeping arrangements by now.
Turning his head so his nose was buried in Noctis' hair and tightening his hold on Prompto, he gave in to sleep as well.
A few days later, when Gladio rejoined the group, he gave them all a once-over for injuries. Finding none on Noctis and Prompto, he sent them off to do whatever as he turned his attention to Ignis. His gaze lingered on the arm Ignis was still holding a bit stiffly. It didn't quite hurt anymore, but all the fighting of the past days had caused a certain discomfort that had yet to disappear.
"What'd you do to your arm?" Gladio immediately demanded, reaching out and holding it lightly in his grasp to examine it more closely.
"Nothing of concern, I can assure you. Merely a disagreement with some poultry," Ignis told him, attempting to pull his arm away, but Gladio wouldn't let him.
"When did that happen?"
Ignis sighed. Clearly, Gladio wasn't going to let it go without an explanation. "The third night you were gone."
Gladio's brows furrowed. "Doesn't sound like it was nothing if it's still bothering you now," he said suspiciously.
Finally, Ignis managed to snatch his arm back. "It was a displaced fracture, if you must know. A cockatrice found it a good idea to get itself situated on my arm. Noct and Prompto took care of it."
"It being the cockatrice or your arm? Because I know for a fact that Noct slept through all of his classes on field medicine, and Prompto's barely been trained in combat, let alone anything medical."
"I know. I walked them through it, step by step. They did well, Gladio."
Now, Gladio looked impressed. "You walked them through the steps of resetting your own arm? Not bad!"
"I did what was necessary," Ignis replied. "Now, I trust you will tell us your own story about how you received those new scars in due time, yes?"
"Sure thing, Iggy," Gladio grinned, putting one arm around Ignis' shoulder and steering him towards where Noctis and Prompto had gone. "I sure hope you guys didn't miss me too much. From what it sounds like, you don't even need me anymore!"
Letting himself be pulled along, Ignis chuckled. "Oh, you don't know the half of it."
Listen I hate all things healing magic with a passion, so I tweaked things a bit, and since potions in the game only do half assed healing, they only do half assed healing here too. I know there are other curatives that to full assed healing but I don't care, don't worry I have a permit *pulls out paper that says 'I can do what I want'*
Also, this fic is based on my own game experience, basically after Gladio left my party, I was attacked by some magitek troops on the road, then I was attacked by magitek troops again, and THEN I ran into a family of chickens that were kinda stronger than I was at the time, so they kicked my ass quite a bit.
Come talk to me on Twitter ( Butterfly_OnIce) or Tumblr (thisfairytalegonebad)!