16 years ago
Chapter Summary: A young Ignis learns to be something he is not.
To Ignis the world of man was a strange one. Through his fledgling bond with Noct he now understood their words but their actions and intentions still baffled him much of the time.
Shortly after meeting Prince Noctis, Ignis was moved from the caverns where he'd lived all his life and relocated into the Citadel proper, where there were many men. He was instructed to maintain his human appearance at all times unless securely within one of the designated safe areas; told his identity could be dangerous in the wrong hands, he was to safeguard it as closely as his new charge.
And so, Ignis began to learn to be something he was not. Well accustomed to a life of near solitude, he found himself on unfamiliar footing when the king assigned his care to one of his attendants, an elder gentleman by the name of Alitus. The young dragon was expected to live in lodgings within the Citadel alongside the man and take on his surname, Scientia, as an alias. Ignis found the arrangement to be puzzling but not unagreeable.
Alitus was a kind man, patient and always quick to encourage Ignis' voracious curiosity. He insisted on being addressed as Uncle and was able to coax Ignis out of the early stages of apprehension for his new surroundings. The man had a very precise and clear manner of speaking. Ignis found he liked it very much and stubbornly attempted to emulate the speech pattern. For whatever reason this seemed to please Alitus immensely.
Ignis was also given tutors different from Noct's and he learned many things about Lucis, the customs of man and serving the royal family. They were commonly pleased with his progress, claiming he had an affinity for learning and retaining knowledge. But Ignis simply found everything fascinating – he wanted to know more. Soon the whisperings of prodigy and future advisor began to stir amongst the humans.
He quickly picked up on an unsaid hierarchy within the Citadel, a prescribed order directing the humans' movements and dictating their interactions. So he strove to find his place within this silent network of finicky language coupled with overt displays of docility. The humans had a complex system of address that was largely governed by station and title, though after some time he discovered familiarity also came into play. Despite being the crowned prince, Noctis often encouraged Ignis to call on him by his favored nickname in place of the conventional Highness, something Noct seemingly held no fondness for.
It was a habit his friend had plenty of time to drill into him as one advantage to living in the Citadel was getting to see Noct and see him often. The prince's quarters were also one of the very few places Ignis got to be himself, feathers and all. There the two of them would enthusiastically tackle conquests of their own imagining, climbing up the insurmountable heights of the bedroom furniture, raiding heavily defended blanket forts and rescuing the imperiled princess from her dastardly aggressors. But then sometimes they would lie still, absorbed in the fanciful narrative of one of Noct's storybooks or simply watching the lazy clouds stretch across the sky through the room's grandiose windows until the younger child inevitably wound up dosing, comfortably curled against the dragon's side. On such occasions Ignis would stand guard over the sleeping prince and continue to enjoy the view of the world beyond his dark caves. He found that he rather liked the changes his new friend had brought to his life.
It was not much time after his adjustment to living in the Citadel that the king sent him a special summons. Noctis was there waiting alongside the king, though he gave no indication that he understood why his father had called them together. The king did not look at Ignis directly when he first approached, instead sweeping his gaze out over the impressive architectural embellishments of the throne room and allowing the unique acoustics to grant his words a heavier weight. "Listen well, a king can not lead while standing still. A king pushes onward always, accepting the consequences and never looking back."
As the king spoke he turned to face the young dragon and stooped down, leaning forward to just above Ignis' eye level. "That said, a king can accept nothing without first accepting himself. Should he stand still I ask you to stand by him, by virtue of your calling as ordained by Bahamut, but also as his friend and as his brother. Please, take care of my son." With his request voiced the king ushered his son forward and Noct glanced up beneath messy bangs, anxious and unsure.
Ignis did not yet understand this world. Here there were dangers and secrets; etiquette and social intricacies he did not comprehend. Here his very being was a ruse, meant to misdirect. But here was where he had the chance to see the sky, to stand alongside and protect his friend – his brother – from all this strange world would unleash.
How could Ignis do anything less than accept?