This chapter's a bit short but what can I say, Ignis said what he needed to say.

When did the sky turn black?

And when did the light come back?

I fought all through the night

Oh oh, but I made it alive!

The sun is starting to rise

Oh, oh these are beautiful times!

-"Beautiful Times" Owl City

(Ah, double blind jokes…eep.)

Noct woke up in the backseat of the car and sat up, apprising his surroundings. Ignis reclining (as much as Ignis ever did) in the driver's seat, the engine humming softly beneath them, providing warmth to what appeared to be a chilly, rainy day. And no sign of Gladio or Prompto.

"Eh?" Noct mumbled, rubbing his eyes roughly, chasing away the longing pangs for Luna, who had yet again graced his dreams

"Ah, our king finally awakens." Ignis quipped.

"'Prince', we're trying to go undercover."

"I very much doubt that's much better, your highness." He remarked dryly. "You were asleep for quite a while. Four or five hours. The others are collecting information, first real quest back together, you know. Prompto was quite disappointed when he couldn't wake you up." Ignis adjusted the rearview mirror to look at him, even though he didn't have to and could have just turned around. Habit, Noctis guessed. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Ah, yeah," Noct nodded, "I was just tired."

"I see. Noctis, I'd be lying if I weren't concerned about your sleeping habits right at present." Ignis positioned himself in the spacious front seat so he could almost fully face Noctis while still maintaining his ever-dignified appearance.

"I'm just tired, trying to get back on track," Noctis said, thinking about his constant dreams about Luna. He felt a little guilty about inadvertently keeping Ignis, though. The man hadn't had to babysit Noct for ten years and he had been thrust back into it suddenly, now with an extra ten years of experience on the young prince. "You didn't have to wait in the car with me."

Ignis fixed Noct a sour look, as if he were offended by the very idea.

"Just kidding." The conversation lulled for a few moments before Ignis spoke up again.

"Noct, do you know anything about those ten years? What happened with Prompto, Gladio and I?" Ignis asked suddenly, maneuvering himself so he could look at his king.

"Huh?" Noct was thrown by Ignis's change in disposition and the non-sequitur. Or had he heard something in his voice?

"Your Chocobo never understood why you never came back for her. She'd follow us, sometimes. But it was hard for a red Chocobo to hide well, so we always knew." He paused for a very un-Ignis bitter smile. "One day—maybe three years after you disappeared—we were on a hunt and we were ambushed by iron giants. I thought for sure, that would be the end of us. In the nick of time, Canary came charging out of nowhere, diverting attention, enough for us to retrieve our weapons and regain our bearings. And after the battle, we found her.

"There was nothing we could do, her throat was slashed and Prompto held her as she bled out. I think for Prompto, it was like losing his last real connection with you, we had no idea when you would come back, if it would even be in our lifetimes. He disappeared for a few months after we buried Canary. And that's the same time we stopped traveling with each other. We'd get together for certain missions, but for the most part, we stayed our distance from each other."

Noct didn't say a word. His friends had dealt with such darkness. The very things he had wanted to protect them from when he had sacrificed himself. He was a decade too late in the end.

"I'm not saying this to hurt you. I told you this because, your highness, not having you tore us apart. I think they've realized it too, when we lost you, we had nothing to live for, we didn't live long. You did the right thing for Insomnia as the king, but if you ever do that again, Noctis, I will revive you, and kill you myself." Ignis finished on a thoughtful tone, more like himself. "That's what I've been thinking about for a few days, you highness. Forgive me for unloading all that on you so suddenly, but I think it is of most importance."

"…Of course, Ignis…"

"Ah, there they are! And they managed to find food, too. I took the liberty of requesting an Italian salad for you. Just because we've died doesn't mean I'm going support any unsound food decisions."

Just so you know, in this world, if you die, you die. They're not immortal, they just won't age. Anyway, the next chapter will be Gladio! Thanks for reading and please review!