Day 43:
That Ignis might leave Noctis' side in order to accompany Reina—of his own accord, no less—was not a possibility that had occurred to Regis. While Ignis was, and always had been, a dutiful young man, Regis had no reason to believe that he might set aside his duty to Noctis for anything at all. Not even for Reina.
Never before had Ignis chosen Reina over Noctis in any significant way. Never had he given more to her. And yet, Regis himself was guilty of much the same thing, was he not? Any excuses he had were irrelevant. Any excuses Ignis had were irrelevant. Perhaps they were both learning how wrong they had been.
It took some diplomatic acrobatics to carve out even a minute of time to himself. But with Clarus' help, Regis found himself back in his office alone—at least for the moment. He stood before the southern window and dialed Ignis' number. It was one thing to ignore phone calls from your brother and quite another to ignore them from your king. He would answer. If he was at all able, he would answer.
He did.
"Your Majesty." Surprised tinged Ignis' usually level voice.
"Are you with my daughter?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"And Iris?"
"She is with us as well. As are Cor and Ardyn."
As expected. So everything was proceeding rather better than Regis had expected—or even hoped. She now had three companions, at least, who would stand by her through the light and the dark.
"May I ask a question, Your Majesty?"
"You may, though I promise no answer."
"Why did you not send anyone after her? Surely I would have been well placed for the task."
"I had rather assumed that you would put your duty to Noctis above all else. It seems I was wrong."
Regis was reminded why he hated telephone conversations. Not as much as text conversations, but bordering. He had no input save the tone of Ignis' voice and when Ignis stopped speaking he had no way of guessing what was on his mind. No expressions. No body language. Reading people was second nature for a king by necessity. Being deprived of that felt rather like running into a brick wall quite unexpectedly.
"Sire, do you recall the day you first introduced me to Noctis and Reina?"
"Quite sharply."
"As do I. Though I may have been quite young, it was the sort of experience one does not easily forget. And I recall your words to me that day. You asked me to stand beside both Reina and Noctis, not to guide but to support. To be a friend, to be a brother, to both of them. I have always kept those words in my heart, Sire."
Regis leaned back against the edge of his desk. "Good. I admit to having reservations, but I have never been more pleased to learn I was wrong. If you will stand by Reina with the same loyalty you have dedicated to Noctis all these years, then I am relieved to know you are at her side."
"I will, Your Majesty."
"Take care of her, Ignis. This is a plea from a father as much as it is an order from your king."
"Of course, Sire."
"She is not the same person as her twin. She has never had need of a mother. But I suspect she is desperately in need of a friend."
"I am aware, Your Majesty. Though I cannot aid her in the same ways I have done for Noctis, I will find my place and fill it. And I fully intend to be a friend to her."
He intended, perhaps, to be more than a friend to her, if some of those puppy dog gazes he had cast in her direction were any indication.
"I am pleased to hear it," Regis said. "And one more thing, Ignis."
"Sire?"
"Call Noctis back. He is quite worried about you."
"Ah. Yes. I will, Your Majesty. Thank you, Your Majesty."
With that farewell, Regis could almost see Ignis bowing.