Gladio waited, his stillness belying the way his mind flickered from thought to thought. He leaned quietly against the courtyard wall, keeping an eye on the pavilion that hid Noctis from view. King Peter had left some time ago, and the warmth of the afternoon was fading into a cool evening. The shield knew that Noctis' old injuries would soon become quite stiff and painful and would force him to emerge eventually, but he was surprised that the stars had begun to shine before his prince shuffled out into the garden.

"Hey," he said gruffly.

"Hi, Gladio," said Noctis. He was a far sight from the blotchy, tearstained, angry person Gladio had seen the last time he'd spoken with the Prince. He moved gingerly, favoring his leg and back, but his breathing was even and his expression calm. He looked better than he had since Altissia.

"Do you need any help?"

"I'm fine," he said. "Just need to move a bit is all. Sure is beautiful tonight." He gazed up at the sky; Gladio peered upwards, admiring how clear everything was. The demonic miasma that plagued Eos had long since blocked out all but the moon and the brightest of stars.

"Sure is," Gladio agreed.

"Eos will look like this again soon," said Noctis.

"Noct, I..."

"We're going to do it, you know," said Noctis. "We're going to stop Ardyn and the Empire and the Demons once and for all."

"I'm sorry I've been such an ass," blurted Gladio. "I'm sorry for the things I said on the train, and for the way I treated you after Altissia. I didn't know what the ring would do to you, or I would never have pushed you." The shield forced back the memory of seeing his King use the ring for the first time after reuniting in Zegnautus Keep. Noctis had used the power of the ring to destroy a giant sword-wielding gargantua. The creature had withered, narrowing away into almost nothing, but the waves of power emanating from the ring had caused Noct's skin to crack apart, bleeding power from within and leaving elaborate networks of scar tissue on his arms, neck, and face. It didn't matter that they soon vanished. Gladio had heard the sounds his prince had made when they appeared. He knew what the cost was, and the fact that it happened over and over, healing each time, made it worse.

"I know," Noctis replied after a long pause. "And I'm sorry for after Altissia. You were right to get on my case. I was just...broken. After Luna died, I just...gave up. It was everything I could do just to wake up, let alone get out of bed. I mean, I knew I had to step up, but I just couldn't. Luna..."

"I get it," interrupted Gladio. "You loved her."

"Yeah, but it was more than that," explained Noctis. "She was...she was the Oracle. She had magic, and I could feel that, and I didn't know how much I leaned on that until she was gone. It was like I'd been using a cane to walk, and I didn't know it, so once she died, it was gone and I...I had to learn to walk without it again."

"I'm sorry," repeated Gladio, the depth of his failures striking even harder the more he learned.

"I should've told you," said Noctis. "Cid warned me about this, remember? 'A Lucis Caelem needs his brothers.' I should have said something, but I couldn't bear to add to anyone's burdens when Ignis was blind and struggling and it was because of me."

"I should've seen it," Gladio insisted.

"I forgive you," said Noctis, his tone uncharacteristically formal, and for an instant, Gladio had the strangest urge to kneel to his King and thank him on bended knee for the absolution that he knew he didn't deserve. "Thanks for sticking by me, even when I was a brat."

"I'll be with you until the end," promised Gladio, realizing that although he'd said such things before, he'd never meant it so sincerely; nor had he ever said it with a concrete ending in mind. Noctis smiled wistfully.

"I know."

The shield and his king walked slowly through the gardens until they reached the castle's main entrance. Lamps shone brightly, casting a warm glow on the stone corridors. Prompto waited in the entryway. He seemed glad to see them on good terms.

"Hey, Noct," he said awkwardly. "You good?"

"Yeah," the prince said, gently slugging his friend on the shoulder. "I'm alright."

"Do you wanna talk about it?" the blond asked.

"Not right now," said Noctis. "Maybe another time. But I'm...okay."

"I love you, man," said Prompto sincerely.

"I know," said Noct with a smile.

"Iggy's waiting in the dining hall," said Prompto. "He'd like to see you, if that's okay."

"Yeah," said Noctis. "I need to talk to him."

"Do you want me and Prompto to wait out here?" offered Gladio, guiltily remembering that he owed Ignis an apology as well. "I mean, if you guys need any privacy..."

"No, that's okay," said Noctis. "I think we need to stick together more than ever now. I need you guys."

"Always," said Gladio, Prompto nodding his agreement.

Ignis sat alone with his head in his hands near one of the great hearths that lined the room. Gladio could imagine the way those hearths would roar to heat such a large hall in the wintertime, but during the summer, only a small fire was necessary. Noctis strode up to his oldest friend, easing down onto the bench beside him with a sigh.

"I am so sorry, your Highness," whispered Ignis.

"I'm angry with you," said Noctis quietly. "Not because you didn't tell me my fate, but because you know as well as I do what your silence may have cost Eos. You let us travel for weeks in the wrong direction. You risked everything on the slimmest hope instead trusting us with the knowledge to make an informed decision, and while I understand why you did it, I can't condone it."

"I know," he whispered again, still not looking up.

"I can't speak for Prompto or Gladio or anyone else," said Noctis after a long moment, "but I forgive you." Ignis began weeping again, and Noctis awkwardly reached over to hug the taller man.

"We talked earlier," Prompto volunteered. "You don't need to worry about me."

"I'm sorry I hit you," said Gladio. "But I don't take back the things I said."

"I know, Gladio," confessed Ignis. "And you were right. You've always known your duty better than I. I let emotion cloud my judgement, and I don't deserve your forgiveness for what I've done, but I hope that we can still work together for his Highness' sake."

"For Noctis," agreed Gladio. The thought of his sister dying alone in a dark world, starving, maybe overrun by demons, still made his blood boil, but the words of King Edmund still rang in his ears, and he was determined to put his own issues aside for the good of his brother, his king. Noctis was their only hope to defeat Ardyn and the demons, and if Ignis could help them, then the shield would bury his feelings and be the better man.

Eventually Ignis wiped his nose on his disgusting handkerchief, keeping his ruined face turned away. Gladio saw the guilt before Noctis spoke. "I'm sorry you're blind because of me."

"I have never, EVER regretted my actions in Altissa!" Ignis said in a strong voice, clenching his fists. "I would have given much more to keep you safe, and I've only regretted being such a burden to you these past months. But as it happens…" Ignis flexed his fingers in what looked like nerves to Gladio. "My sight has been restored."

"What? How?!" gaped Noctis as Ignis turned to face them fully. His jagged purple burns and twisted, raised lines of scar tissue had vanished, leaving him free to open his eyes unencumbered. As Gladio looked closer, squinting in the dim firelight, he could see that Ignis' pupils were once again blue and clear, not the milky pupil-less grey they'd become during the initial days after Altissia. Prompto was unsurprised. At Gladio's pointed look, he raised his hands defensively.

"It was his news to tell, dude!"

"Queen Lucy has a remedy not unlike a Phoenix Down," explained Ignis. "She has offered it to you, your Highness, with hopes that it might improve your back, although she cannot guarantee its effectiveness on such an old injury. But she does not believe it would harm you."

"It's incredible," said Noctis, marveling at the way no trace of the wound remained. He traced his fingers gently where the scars used to be.

"What does she want for it?" asked Gladio suspiciously.

"They just want to help us, Gladio!" the advisor defended.

"I think you should do it!" interrupted Prompto before an argument could break out, not that Gladio had any intention of continuing. He was turning over a new leaf, a calmer, more supportive leaf, and Noctis needed someone he could count on now that Iggy's judgement was shown to be so compromised.

"Well, even if they do end up wanting a favor, we've taken jobs for far less," he rumbled. "I mean, if it can heal something that a dozen hi-potions wouldn't touch, maybe it can do something for you."

"I think I'll accept," said Noctis. "I mean, it..."

"Your Majesty?" interrupted a dog, trotting through the open hallway towards the group.

"Yes?" asked Noctis awkwardly, still uncomfortable talking to animals that could talk back.

"Their Majesties the Kings and Queens would like you to join them," it said, practically dancing in place with excitement. "Aslan has arrived."