Ignis stared blankly at his computer screen. The document he was working on still more than half blank. Every time he attempted to finish it, his thoughts would drift again. He hadn't been able to keep his focus all morning. It took him a few seconds to even register the meeting he was in earlier had ended. It was the scraping of chairs on the floor that stirred him from his thoughts and signaled his cue to leave. His notebook barely had but a few scribbled words on it. It was this moment that he was thankful for his vast knowledge and further self-studies that meant he probably didn't miss too much. He still scolded himself for possibly missing an important piece of information, though.

He was scolding himself now, as well. He wasn't behind on work. In fact, he was usually ahead. However, with both Noct and his own nuptials upcoming, a lot of his free time had been spent making plans rather than reading various news articles or documents produced by the secretary of the Citadel, or even just light reading from a library book for his own enjoyment.

His thoughts were stirred this time when Gladio coughed and adjusted his slouched position in the chair across from his desk. The action made Ignis jump a bit and brought Gladio's gaze up to his friend.

"What's with you today?" Gladio asked, furrowing his brows.

"Whatever do you mean?" Ignis asked, adjusting his glasses before putting his hands back in place on his keyboard.

"You've been sitting there staring off into space for the last forty-five minutes!"

"I doubt it has been that long-" Ignis starting before cutting himself off when he glanced at the clock on his desk. It really had been that long. "I suppose I just have a lot on my mind. There is a lot going on lately, in case you haven't noticed."

"Nah…it's not that. When do you ever not have a lot going on? You handle stress with the grace of an angel, Iggy. I've seen you under stress. Both the good side and the bad side of it. And you never daydream when under stress. You haven't been mentally present in this room but for five minutes. And I swear your eyes dilate every so often."

"Perhaps it is a lack of sleep."

"Nope, doubt that either. You've been this way since last night." When Ignis glanced at him questioningly, he continued on. "After you walked Y/N back to her room and came back, you've been acting super weird. You were all flustered and skittish."

"Aren't you supposed to be at Noct's side at this moment? Why do you seem to be in my office more than with him?" Ignis tried changing the subject.

"He's training with Cor today instead of me. Cor wanted to see his progress for himself by sparring with him. Oh, that reminds me…Cor mentioned he would train with Y/N if she doesn't want to train with me. But she needs to get back to a schedule. Thought I should give you a heads up. Also, keep in mind, Cor ain't gonna be any more lenient with her than I was. In fact, he's probably gonna tell her to get over herself and schedule her back with me. Something to think about when making a decision. You might want to fill her in."

"I appreciate the information," Ignis said.

"Now, quit changing the subject. Back to you. Did something happen last night after you left the first time? Did she throw one of her royal fits again or something? She seemed to actually be in a good mood for once last night and really friendly-" Gladio suddenly stopped. "Wait a minute…you got a kiss goodnight, didn't you?" Gladio smirked and pointed at his friend.

"No," Ignis denied. He technically wasn't lying. "I did not get a kiss."

"You're lying! I recognize that look now. It all makes sense. You totally got a smooch."

"No, Gladio. I did not," Ignis stated again, looking Gladio directly in the eye. "I…she didn't kiss me." Ignis wasn't sure how much he should say. In fact, he didn't want to say anything but he knew his behavior peaked Gladio's interest.

"Well she did something! She has you all out of whack lately and this time it's different."

"I…she…I don't know what you would call it." Why was he still even talking about this? Maybe he just needed to tell someone to get it out of his mind and into someone else's.

"Well try and explain it," Gladio pushed, sitting up in his seat and closing his book. He was super curious now. What did she do to fluster poor Iggy?

Ignis could feel his cheeks heating up. He could feel the heat of embarrassment stretching out through his body, his blush reaching his toes at this point. He regretted ever continuing this conversation. But the look Gladio had right now was one Ignis recognized. He wouldn't back down until he got the information he wanted. Gladio would push and push and bother and pester until Ignis gave in. Might as well get it over with now.

"She…well, she…pleasured….me with…her hand…" Ignis practically whispered out. After a few moments of silence he glanced up to see Gladio's mouth wide open and his eyebrows practically in his hairline. Ignis moved his eyes around the room trying to distract himself from the moment that seemed frozen in time. It wasn't until he sighed and scratched the back of his neck that Gladio spoke again.

"She gave you a handjob?" he squeaked out in a high pitched voice of disbelief.

"Would you keep your voice down?" Ignis scolded, getting up to close his office door.

"I absolutely will not! This is…holy Six! Sooo….how was THAT?" Gladio asked.

"I'm not going to share details with you, Gladiolus!" Ignis huffed, taking his seat again.

"Oh come on, Iggy! The first time another person touched your dick and you're going to keep quiet on me? Damn, she was drunker than I thought!"

"That's the problem!" Ignis suddenly exclaimed. "She was drunk! But I couldn't…"

"Couldn't tell her no?" Gladio smirked. "That good, huh? Yeah, it happens to the best of us."

"This isn't something to joke about! I shouldn't have let her go through with it!"

"Well, did you reciprocate for her?"

"No…"

"First of all, I wouldn't say you did anything wrong. She may have been intoxicated and out of her shell last night, but she wasn't overly drunk. She still had enough of a handle on herself to know what she was doing I would say. Just talk to her about it today and gauge her feelings on it. If she's upset with you, it's not like you haven't dealt with that before from her. And second, if she is mad and claims it's not because she thinks you took advantage of her, I guarantee it's because she's mad you didn't reciprocate! Girls are always complaining about not getting off. You need to give her something too next time!"

"I don't-" Ignis stopped himself from saying anything further. He knew Gladio knew of his inexperience with women, but he didn't feel like mentioning it out loud to him right now.

"Don't know what to do?" Gladio smirked again and chuckled a bit.

"I'm so glad you find this amusing!" Ignis replied sternly.

"Come on Ignis! I have never seen you even so much as flirt with a girl before and now here you are, an engaged man having your first sexual experience as an adult! Humor me just a little! I'm not making fun of you, though, I that's what you think. I'm your best friend. I'm here if you need advice."

"Again…I will keep that in mind but I'm not one to share my personal business. Especially pertaining to…these particular matters."

"Yeah, I figured you'd be like that. Still putting the offer out there. Sooo…you think this is gonna change anything between the two of you?"

"I have no idea. I've been mulling over it almost all night."

Ignis was quite honestly ashamed of himself. He can't believe he allowed himself to act in such a way last night. It was nothing like what he hoped their first time being intimate with each other would be like. He couldn't stop berating himself all night. How could he just be so weak and give in to something so ridiculous? It was merely a…hand job, as Gladio put it. He had fought temptation his entire life without a second thought, but last night got the best of him.

He couldn't just tell Y/N that it meant nothing or that he was displeased by it. She would take it the wrong way for sure. He was too embarrassed to bring it up to her to speak about, though. In their alcohol hazed minds, it wasn't as mortifying in the moment. He barely had anything to drink, but it was enough to bring his walls down lower than he had intended.

He also couldn't stop thinking about how amazing it was. To have another's hand on himself. A hand belonging to a beautiful woman who he intended to marry. He got hard all over again while lying in bed last night playing the event over in his mind. He wanted to bask in the high it left him with, but uncertain questions prevented that from happening.

It seemed every day something new happened he didn't expect. Something goes wrong or awry or catches him by complete surprise. He wasn't used to his life being like this. He was always prepared. Always able to pivot and approach in a different light. This was all a mess, however.

He had no idea what to do.

Y/N sat at her vanity combing her freshly washed hair. It was already after lunch time and she only just got out of bed an hour ago. She hadn't had a hangover since she was in high school and snuck out with some friends. Her pounding head kept her sleeping longer than she intended. She also was avoiding thinking about what happened last night.

She had finally let herself let loose and be carefree. She put her troubles and feelings behind and didn't allow herself to care about much for any length of time. And it was actually fun. She truly enjoyed herself. She knew it was mainly because of the alcohol. It allowed her thoughts to disintegrate and stop staying so stuck in her mind. She even, dare she say it, enjoyed Ignis' company. He was actually a great dancer. He had terrible jokes, but it almost made him…cute. He looked dashing in the suits he wore. And then there was his….Well, she wasn't disappointed, she will say that. It was true what she heard; the lanky nerdy boys were the most hung.

She didn't want to keep dwelling on that, though. She honestly wanted it out of her head. She can't believe she allowed herself to do something like that last night. What must he think of her now? That she's some common whore who stroked boys off under the influence? Her and her stupid emotions. She shouldn't have had that last drink. It was just enough to send her from floaty and giddy drunk to emotionally charged drunk. She let her thoughts get carried away thinking about her mother and everything going on back home and all the events she has coming up in the next month. That soon she would be having her own engagement party. All to please everyone but herself. She knew Ignis didn't demand things from her or expect them, but she still blamed and accused him anyways. She still took her frustrations out on him. Not that he seemed to mind. He looked to enjoy himself quite a lot. She remembered everything about last night. Nothing was hazy, as drunk as she was. And she didn't blame him for not stopping her harder. Her intent was to get him off. She would have probably been more offended if he turned her down.

Picking up her phone, she finally decided to call the one person she could talk to about last night. It only took two rings for her friend to pick up.

"You are never going to believe what I have to tell you!" her friend exclaimed as she answered, not even bothering to say hello.

"I gave Ignis a handjob last night…" Y/N answered back, ignoring everything her friend had said.

"Okay…never mind! What I had to say can wait…WHAT?! How did that happen?"

"I got drunk. And upset. And decided to take it out on him," Y/N rubbed a hand down her face, mumbling her words a bit.

"By rubbing his cock? I usually just cry and eat junk food."

"I'm not a whore, LeAnn!" Y/N bit back.

"I never said you were! Don't get upset. This is me you're talking to. I've done way more than give a shy boy a handjob after a night of drinking. I'm not judging you. It's just…wow. Unexpected."

"You're telling me! I had zero intentions of touching the man and I go and throw that all away last night. I can't just take it back!"

"Zero intentions? At all? Not even like…later?" LeAnn asked skeptically.

"Zero! I told you I wanted nothing to do with anyone here!"

"I mean, you can at least have a little fun!"

"LeAnn!"

"I'm serious! If you have to suffer living there and it's really as bad as you say, at least get something out of it! Kick him out of the bed when you're done. You don't have to be completely miserable. Doesn't seem like you're as miserable as you say you are anyways…"

"What is that supposed to mean?" Y/N asked, getting a bit heated.

"It's what I had to tell you! A picture of you and Ignis on the cover of Altissian News Gazette shows you having a grand ole time with your 'runaway lover'," LeAnn giggled.

"They printed a picture already?" Y/N exclaimed. "That was just last night!"

"Well, someone emailed or text a photo real quick over here. You two look good, by the way. Just sayin…I don't know what the fuss is, really. He isn't entirely bad looking."

"What does the article say?"

"Which one?" LeAnn rolled her eyes, even though her friend couldn't see it through the phone. "You know there's at least two different stories already and I've only just started looking at the gossip columns online."

"Give me the two printed story versions. I'll worry about the rest later. I still have yet to see what they said about it here."

"So one story is making it all out to be scandalous. Someone caught the two of you out together, oh my six she's dating the Prince's advisor, she's pledging herself to another kingdom behind everyone's back, she's been betraying us all along…blah blah blah. The other one, however, has a comment from none other than your mother!"

"WHAT? What did she say?" Y/N intrigued.

"Basically completely clears the air. That you didn't run off in the night. This was in the works for a while now. It's a treaty between kingdoms agreed upon by all parties. She mentions there was never an order to seek you out or not to communicate with you. It was all gossip, which that one is a lie. Things were so damn tense here for a while. No one was to speak of you or with you. I don't know what kind of game she was playing. But, I think this brought you a bit out of the spotlight because it's all about your brother now and the first male King to rule Accordo in generations and what that means for everyone. And leave it to your mother to take credit for everyone liking a King coming to rule, and it was her plan all along…the usual shit."

"I…URGH! Why would she let everything go on like that? And just act like it's nothing?! People weren't even allowed to talk to me and she just blows that off?" Y/N practically shouted.

"If you ask me, I think that Camelia bitch had something to do with that."

Y/N hadn't even thought about that. While her family ruled the kingdom, there was an elected official secretary who took care of most citizen general affairs. And more times than not, she exercised her powers beyond what should be allowed.

"I didn't even think of that…" Y/N commented more to herself. She was getting fed up with all this misinformation and all around weirdness going on with her mother. She needed answers. "I need to call my mom. I need to talk to her."

"Do you think she'll answer this time?"

"I'm going to call until she does!"

"Well, I'll leave you to it then! Call me after! I'm not done talking to you!" LeAnn demanded.

"Alright…I'll call you later."

Y/N hung up the phone and took a deep breath. She was nervous but more angry than anything. Her mother had a lot to answer for! She dialed the number she knew by heart and waited to see if she would pick up. Her heart almost stopped when after three rings , she heard her mother's voice.

"Hello?"

Y/N sat there a moment almost forgetting what she even called about. She was surprised her mother picked up, but also, it had been so long since she even heard her voice.

"Hello?" her mother demanded.

"…mom?"

"Y/N…I was wondering if you were ever going to call me."

"I've tried calling you on more than one occasion! You never answered! Nor would you allow anyone to even connect me to you!"

"That sounds absurd-"

"It's true! Don't even lie about it!" Y/N shouted.

"Oh do not call me a liar, Y/N. That is most ridiculous! I won't have you talking to me that way."

"Mom…, "Y/N started, feeling the beginnings of tears forming in her eyes. "I am really upset and conflicted right now! And the last thing I need is us fighting. I need answers. Why did you allow everyone to say all those things about me? To be told to not even talk to me?! I saw the headlines mom! That was not okay!"

"The things LeAnn must be telling you-"

"It's not LeAnn telling me things! It's her sending me actual links to articles being printed there! I'm reading it word for word! You can't hide what happened!"

"I'm not hiding those articles from you. You were bound to see them at some point."

"But why? Why did you let it go on the way it did? Why didn't you correct them? And why the hell won't you answer Insomnia when they contact you?"

"…how would you know anything about that?" he mother hesitated.

"Because I'm on the council mom! They asked me what you were hiding!"

"Did you…get in any kind of trouble for it?" her mother asked quietly.

"No. They just seem suspicious."

"You let me handle that. There are things…things you don't know about. Things that yes, I hid from you. But you will understand why in time."

"No! Do not give me that crap! I'm owed answers!"

"This is beyond what you need to know. There are things out of all of our control. We can only do so much to prevent them but…" her mother trailed off a moment and got quiet. "Well, you needn't worry about these things. Tell me now, how is Ignis? You two looked lovely together by the way."

"It was all a show mom! I was told by the king to make us look good."

"That was not a fake smile, Y/N. You forget I know you better than that."

"Well…I was drunk. So whatever," Y/N brushed her mother's comment off.

"He doesn't seem a bad person. Why don't you tell me a bit about him-"

"MOM! I don't want to sit and make nice small talk with you! I am so angry with you!"

"And I am only protecting you! I did what needed to be done and half of it was for nothing! It's all ending regardless!" he mother shouted back.

"What…what are you talking about?" Y/N asked hesitantly.

"It doesn't matter. I told you to not bother yourself with this. I must go now. I hope you are doing well. Keep me updated, won't you?"

"Don't you hang up!" Y/N shouted but it was too late. She heard the click on the other line going dead.

She couldn't believe her mother! What was she hiding? And what was she claiming to protect her from? She couldn't possibly try and play off this whole marrying her off as protecting her! She hated when she was treated like a child incapable of comprehending kingdom affairs.

Y/N stood from her seat at her vanity and marched next door to Bernard's room. She banged her fist on the door a few times. He answered almost right away.

"Princess! What a pleasure!" Bernard declared. It seemed he barely saw her much, with her always staying locked away in her room. "How may I assist you?"

"I need to know what you know!" she ground out.

"I beg your pardon?" he asked, not having a clue what she meant.

"I know you know something!" Y/N pushed passed him, not wanting to have this conversation in the hallway. "What haven't I been told? What has mother told you?"

"Pertaining to what, exactly?" he asked, shutting the door.

"Oh come on! I just talked to mother-"

"You spoke with her?" he asked, sounding surprised.

"Yes…why?"

"Oh I just…no one has been able to reach her lately. Even the people of Insomnia. I've been questioned quite a few times about why she may not be answering. I can't get her to take my calls, only messages and emails."

"So she isn't talking to you either?"

"Unfortunately, no. She asked for weekly updates but all she says is a stern 'thank you' in response to my emails."

"What about before I left? What did she tell you? About why I was moving here?"

"She only told me what I'm sure you were told. I wasn't told to keep anything a secret."

"What is she claiming to protect me from?" she kept questioning.

"I imagine there is a lot she is protecting you from, Y/N. This world is far different than most of us ever thought." Bernard seemed to go a bit quiet and get distant.

He knew something. Even if he didn't think he did or even if he wasn't directly told not to tell her about it…he knew something. Maybe he even figured something out on his own. But he wasn't going to budge. His whole life was spent protecting her, and he wasn't going to stop now. The difference was Y/N knew if Bernard was protecting her from something, it was serious.

She had to figure out what was going on.