Y/N was walking down the hallway back to her bedroom. The night's festivities were exhausting. She hated having to attend all the royal affairs. They were so boring at times. She skipped out a little early hoping her mother wouldn't notice. She rarely did, even though half the staff watched her exit. The hallway was darkened due to the night hours, but it was a trek she knew well by now. She still had a few more turns to go before she suddenly felt herself being yanked backwards. Before she could yelp out in surprise, a hand was over her mouth.

"Shhhh...don't make a sound! You make so much as a peep and I will slit your throat, got it?" a voice growled in her ear.

Not knowing what else to do, Y/N simply nodded her head yes. What seemed like a pillow case was then thrown over her head. The hand was back covering her mouth threw the material. She had no idea where they were dragging her to. She imagined that's why they threw whatever it was over her head. With the adrenaline pumping through her veins and her mind racing from fear, she quickly lost her bearings and had no idea where they were taking her. She had walked these halls so many times, she figured she could find her way anywhere blindfolded. Not in a predicament like this, it seemed, however.

Finally, a door was opened and she was shoved through it. She lost her footing and fell to the ground. Before she could get back up, she was pulled into a sitting position. Her hands were grabbed and bound tightly with thick tape in front of her. She could feel her breathing start to speed up. This was the moment she truly knew this was bad. When the man pulled the material off her head, she realized they were in a guest room. No one would think to look in here. These rooms were rarely used or even cleaned. No one stayed in them. When would they ever have guests to stay over? No one even came into the country.

She also noticed there was more than one of them. Three other men were standing in the room as well. The man who taped her hands together wasn't the same man that brought her into the room. As he ripped a piece off to tape her mouth, he said something to the man behind her and she didn't recognize the voice. Tears started welling up in her eyes.

"Hey now, no need to be scared. We just wanna have a little fun, okay? And if you ruin our fun, we'll end your life. Got it?"

Y/N once again nodded her head as a sob caught in her throat. She was young but still old enough to know that these men didn't have the same idea of fun as she did.

"Let her cry a bit," one of the men standing by the bed said. "It will make for a better picture."

"Ya know...you got a point!" The man behind her said right before he grabbed her by the hair and yanked her head backwards to look up at him standing over her. "You can cry sweetie. Just don't scream," he winked.

Keeping a hold on her hair, he pulled her up and forced her to stand. He let go of her hair and instead turned his rough actions a bit softer. His hands rubbed gently down her arms before moving to the back of her dress where she could feel him pulling at the strings of the corset top.

"They got you wearing dresses like this already at your age? You're barely a lady yet," he whispered in her ear.

The comment instantly made her skin crawl. She was entirely too you ng and innocent to even fully grasp what could possibly happen right now. But she knew it was wrong. And it was bad.

The man didn't pull the tie undone, thankfully. He let go of the strings and shoved her onto the bed, stomach down. He then motioned to one of the men in the corner. A guy she remembered having short reddish-orange hair walked up to her with his phone held out.

"Say cheese, Princess!" he mocked her, laughing and clicking the camera in her face. He pulled back after the flash went off a few times and typed something on the phone's keyboard. "Sent," he declared.

"And now…we wait," the man who seemed to be in charge announced.

"How long you think this will take?" a man behind her asked.

Y/N wasn't paying much attention anymore. She was frantically looking around the room, trying to figure out which guest room she was in. Sometimes, she would play hide and seek with her younger brother throughout the castle and would periodically be in one of the guest rooms hiding or looking for him. Purple drapes with lavender lace curtains. The royal purple and gold quilt laying across the bed. She loved this room. She often wished that quilt was on her bed. She knew where she was now. And so would whoever they sent the picture to. That quilt was her Great Aunt Raya's work. Any moment, guards would burst through the door and save her.

As if on cue, the door suddenly slammed open and a slew of shouts could be heard. She was roughly pulled from the bed and carried out the door. She had no idea who had ahold of her, but the gentle whispers in her ear told her she was safe. She was once again rushed through the halls so quickly, she got disoriented. Before she knew it, she was back on her feet and walking down the hall.

The hallway was darkened due to the night hours, but it was a trek she knew well by now. She still had a few more turns to go before she suddenly felt herself being yanked backwards. Before she could yelp out in surprise, a hand was over her mouth.

"Shhhh...don't make a sound! You make so much as a peep and I will slit your throat, got it?" A voice growled in her ear.

Y/N sat up in bed gasping for air, frantically looking around. Where was she now? What room was this? She didn't see the royal purple and gold quilt. She didn't see the darkened halls of the castle. She…she was in her room. At the Citadel. The Citadel…she lived in Insomnia now. She wasn't in Altissia anymore. She wasn't nine anymore. Those men wouldn't get her…anymore.

The dream of her reliving that horrible night she was almost kidnapped and killed replayed over and over in her dreams. As soon as she was rescued, she was put right back in that hallway she was taken in. Over and over. She didn't think the dream would ever end.

If only she had never left alone that night like she had so many other nights. If only someone had accompanied her to her room. But she had roamed the halls alone plenty of times. Why that one time did something terrible have to happen? Just like when she left the wedding and went back to her room…alone. Ignis could have escorted her back. Countless guards saw her leave. People were everywhere in the halls. How did it happen…again?

She couldn't keep living in fear, though. She had to get out again. Eventually. She had so much more planning still to do. So many details to hash out. She already skipped a couple meetings with Ignis and had no idea what decisions he made without her. Maybe she could start slow. Go get a cup of tea at the Citadel Café. Gladio taught her how to pull free if she was grabbed again. She could do this. She could walk down the hallway and down a few floors to simply get a tea. It's been long enough, right? Her engagement dinner was only in a week. She had to get it together soon.

After taking longer than usual to get ready due to purposeful staling, Y/N finally was dressed and ready to leave her room. Her hair, make-up, and dress was just as immaculate as it used to be. No one would be able to tell anything was ever wrong. Holding her head a bit higher to tell herself she could do this, Y/N opened her door and stepped out.

The initial panic that was usually there every time she even so much as opened her door was still hitting her full forced right in her chest. But she pushed it down the best she could. Maybe she should have asked Bernard to come along? She knew he would be glad to. It had only been a couple days since she told Gladio and Cor about what had happened. She figured she would have some kind of new security detail or something by now. Perhaps since she didn't, they either caught the man or deemed him no longer a threat. Cor seemed to take her account of things seriously, as did Gladio. She didn't think they were blowing any of it off.

The elevator ride was a bit frightful at first. Someone had joined her and she immediately worried about being alone with someone. But the gentle smile of the girl standing next to her holding a stack of towels became more of a welcomed presence after a few moments. She had to quit letting her mind run so wild. She couldn't bring herself to quit looking at her phone, however. She kept it out of her bag and in her hand in case she needed to phone someone immediately. If she so much as saw a hint of purple hair or green pants, she would have Cor on the line immediately.

The doors opened and the staff worker motioned for Y/N to go first. She stepped off the elevator and looked around making sure everything was as it should be. People were walking around. Commotion could be heard now that they were on a busier floor. The lighting was bright. Everything seemed as it should be. She made her way to the café and stood her place in line. She still didn't want to stand too close to anyone, as much as she craved the security of someone being nearby. It was a constant battle in her mind. People were bad. People kept her safe. She never knew which was a safer bet.

Y/N got her tea to go and walked over to the large floor to ceilings windows looking out at the gardens. Perhaps some fresh air would do her good. They were quite secluded, however, with high shrubbery that would block anyone from seeing her. She knew that was a recipe for disaster and just asking to be cornered by the strange man she was hiding from. Perhaps another day. Maybe Bernard would walk with her a day outside. Or maybe she should even meet Ignis out there a day to discuss the rest of their plans. Rather than a stuffy meeting room. She missed the crisp, ocean air from back home. Here the air smelled hard like steel and full of car pollution and dirt. Home smelled like the sea. Like roses. Clean and clear. She wasn't sure she would ever get used to this place. Perhaps it was because she never left this damn building. Maybe her and Ignis could once again go to lunch. Or Bernard. She wasn't sure why she kept thinking about going out with Ignis.

She turned and started making her way back to her room. It was a short trip and still enough to make her feel a bit better. She got to look outside, at least. The window in her room faced the other side of the building. There wasn't much of a view to look at so she didn't often open her curtains.

She was more at ease on her walk back to her room. She supposed getting out actually was good for her. She still felt a bit on edge, though. When she got off the elevator on her floor, she felt a prickle on her neck. She was used to the guest floor being a lot quieter, but it felt…more quiet than usual. She also felt a bit disoriented. Something about the hall didn't quite look familiar. Did she get off on the wrong floor? She gripped her tea and phone in her hands a bit tighter. Her phone! Maybe she should call Cor just in case. Or Bernard just to talk to her as she walked to her door. But which way was her door? This hall didn't look right.

She glanced down at her phone wondering if she should call someone. That was when she noticed something else wasn't right. Her phone didn't seem to have any signal anymore. How could that even be? The communications department was the next building over. There was not place in the Citadel that didn't have service. Her screen also seemed to glitch slightly every couple seconds. A cold chill went through her body right before she heard a low chuckle. Her head shot up and she found herself staring into a pair of eyes right in front of her.

"Silly girl," the man laughed.

It was him. No. No no no no! He was here. Again. She tried to quickly step back but he grabbed her arm again, causing her tea to fall to the floor and spill across the red carpeting. Remembering what Gladio recently taught her, she dropped her phone to the ground and grabbed her trapped hand, pulling toward herself after getting in the proper stance. Her wrist pulled free from the man's grasp and he looked at her a bit surprised.

"Oh! Someone's been training for our next meeting I see." He suddenly disappeared from in front of her and the next thing she knew he was behind her, his mouth right at her ear and holding something to her throat. "Shhhh...don't make a sound! You make so much as a peep and I will slit your throat, got it?"

Y/N's eyes widened. That was exactly what the man who kidnapped her when she was nine said. It was the exact phrase that haunted her dreams last night over and over. How could he have known?

The man then started laughing and pulled back away from her. She didn't waste the opportunity that suddenly opened. Before he had a chance to do anything else, Y/N dove to the floor for her phone. She turned back around on the floor where she was now sitting and couldn't find him anywhere. She looked back at her phone and noticed she now had service. Quickly opening her contacts, she found Cor's number.

"Leonis…" his deep voice sounded from the other side after only two rings.

"PLEASE!" she shouted into the receiver. "He's back!"

There was only a very short moment of pause before she knew he caught on to what was going on.

"Where are you?"

"Did you always follow me around this closely?" Noctis asked his shield and friend with annoyance.

"Sorry squirt. Security is tightened a bit right now," Gladio answered.

"Like it's never been tight before?" Noctis rolled his eyes.

"Someone suspicious was spotted. Just keeping an eye out," Gladio fibbed.

It wasn't entirely a lie. Someone suspicious was spotted. He didn't need to give all the details right now. A meeting was called by his father the night he had gotten ahold of him. It was kept to head of security only. Cor and Gladio shared the report Y/N gave and the video surveillance. No one had words for what had happened. Until something more solid was found, they weren't going to lock down quite as tightly as they may have before. Glaives and Crownsguard were given a description of a man and told to report any sightings of him, be it in the citadel or elsewhere. No further details were given regarding Y/N's attack. Just that he was deemed to be a potentially dangerous man. They kept the weird invisible magic details to themselves. They did, however, tell the King. He had to know someone was sneaking around his domain.

The hardest part was not saying anything around Ignis. His friend had asked if he knew any more details on the order sent out to everyone. The best he could tell him was to keep his guard up because the man was known to be sneaky.

"It's a bit concerning there aren't many details," Ignis commented, looking back over the email they were all sent. It wasn't the full report, but rather an alert to everyone that something had happened.

"We don't have much to go on right now," Gladio responded.

"He was spotted outside the Grand Hall during Noct's wedding? I think that's the most disturbing thing of all. The King and Prince were both in immediate danger. Y/N also walked back to her room alone that evening. I'm lucky nothing happened to her."

Gladio couldn't help the feeling that hit his gut when Ignis said that. He wanted to badly to tell his friend the further details he knew about that night. But Y/N made him promise not to tell, And he knew Cor or his father would have told Ignis if they felt it necessary. He was torn between his duty and his friendship right now and hated it. But Ignis was right. They were lucky nothing further happened to her. She was alright now and would be fine.

"Yeah…" he weakly replied.

"I should remind her to keep Bernard with her when she leaves her room or to contact me to escort her. I don't want to risk anything."

"Not a bad idea, actually." Gladio hated acting so aloof about the situation.

"We must be ever on our toes. Is Noctis at home this moment?"

"I got it covered Iggy. He's safe and sound tucked in at home. Glaives on guard at the door. No worries."

"I only wish I could do the same for Y/N. I wonder if there is a way I could hire a guard myself to assure her safety…" Ignis trailed off.

"Whatever you think is best, Igs."

"I got the email, Gladio. I think we all did. My father told me about everything. How is Y/N? I know we don't really get along with her, but still doesn't mean I wish anything bad to happen to her. Is Iggy freaking out?"

"Ummm…" Gladio rubbed the back of his neck. "Things are a bit hush right now."

Noctis stopped walking.

"So in other words, he doesn't even know? Dude, that's fucked! That's his girl!" Noct exclaimed.

"I know! But it was her request he not be told. We'll figure it out and it will be fine."

"If you say so, but if he finds out, we both know he's gonna be pissed."

The two walked further down the hall, headed toward the training room. Noctis had an entire week off of training and Gladio was looking forward to getting him back in there and kicking his friend's ass again. Noct thoroughly enjoyed his week off. He defiantly would have preferred to go somewhere away on his honeymoon, but until he was cleared to do so by his father, that was a no go. At least he didn't have any meetings to attend. No emails to respond to. No council members to deal with. Nothing but laying around at home with his new wife. Which Gladio loved to continuously tease him about.

"Urghh…I'm so tired. This is so lame. Do we honestly have to work out already?"

"I figured you would have built up some stamina over the last week," Gladio chuckled.

"Shut up, dude! You're such a perv!"

"Is that how you sound when Luna wants some? I'm so tired," he said in a mocking voice.

"What is with you and my sex life? Not getting enough in your own?"

"Not when I have to babysit your ass all damn day!" Gladio complained.

Before they could make it to the Training Hall doors, the duo spotted Ignis and Prompto headed their way.

"Hey Noct!" Prompto exclaimed from down the hall. He jogged over to his best friend while Ignis still kept a leisurely pace behind him. "Finally out of your room I see. Coming up for a bit of air, eh?" Prompto nudged his friend's arm and wiggled his eyebrows.

"You guys are all gross!" Noctis sneered.

"Good afternoon Highness. Gladio," Ignis greeted when he caught up with everyone.

"Sup, Iggy," Gladio nodded. "You're at the Training Hall later than usual."

"I was asked to train Prompto a bit by the Marshal." No one would have been able to tell Ignis was just training. He was already showered and back in his dress slacks and button down shirt, the sleeves rolled to his elbows.

"Yeah. I'm a dead shot with a gun but not so much with the fists," Prompto joked.

"Should let me in there with ya some day!" Gladio remarked.

"Yeah so you could squash me like a bug? No thanks!" Prompto replied nervously.

Before anything else could be said, everyone felt their phones buzzing in their pockets at the same time. They all shared a puzzled look before digging them out and reading the message sent to them all.

"Emergency meeting?" Prompto asked out loud.

"Possibly to do with the new breech of security," Ignis commented.

Gladio could feel his heart speed up a bit at the mention of the incident. Why were they calling an emergency meeting? Did they catch the guy? Was he spotted again? Before he could think of any other questions, Clarus came around the corner walking quickly toward them.

"Get to the meeting room, boys!" he commanded. "Gladiolus, keep Noctis close, do not let him out of your sight. Prince Noctis, stay at Gladio's side. The rest of you, stay with him as well. Luna is being guarded in your quarters. All Crownsguard are to report in person. Glaives will be briefed by Drautos immediately following the meeting."

"What happened?" Noct demanded.

"Our perpetrator made another appearance. Princess Y/N was attacked again."

Ignis' eyes widened and his head immediately snapped to look at Gladio. The shield couldn't help the slightly guilty look he returned to his friend. As much as Ignis wanted to shout out his shock, he kept quiet.

"Whoa!" Prompto exclaimed, worried. "The Princess was attacked?"

"It wasn't as bad this time as the last, but he threatened her once again. I'll see you boys there. Don't waste any time." Clarus walked off needing to grab something from his office before heading to his King's side. There were enough Glaives with him at the moment he wasn't worried, but he knew the duty to protect the King was his and needed to get back to him immediately.

Ignis was still staring at Gladio, practically burning a hole in his friend's head. He knew without even asking that Gladio had known about the first attack. It was written all over his face.

"Ig-" Gladio quietly started.

"You knew…" Ignis whispered out. "You didn't tell me and you knew…"

"Um…Ignis," Noctis tried to calm his advisor.

"Why?" Ignis simply asked.

"Look, Iggy…she asked me not to tell you!" Gladio responded.

"I talked about her being safe that night and you knew the whole time that she wasn't!"

"I told you, she asked me not to-"

"Why were you told and I wasn't?" Ignis demanded.

"I wasn't told anything! I was the one who figured it out. It was during training I noticed the bruises-"

"BRUISES?!"

"I took her immediately to Cor and Monica was the only other person there. We immediately delved into figuring out what happened but it's more complicated than it seems. She wasn't badly injured, though. She-"

"Any injury to her is bad to me! My fiancé was attacked by one of the biggest breeches in recent Citadel history and I wasn't informed. Nobody felt the need to tell me?! Oh Six…" Ignis suddenly looked away, breathing a bit heavier. "She wasn't sick was she? She was hurt! She was…I should have escorted her back to her room! It didn't matter that we fought. And you SHOULD HAVE TOLD ME!" Ignis turned back to his friend shouting.

"Hey! Iggy! Buddy…" Prompto stepped between the two, feeling that things were getting a bit too heated. Ignis wasn't normally angry but when he was…it wasn't pretty. "Let's calm down, okay? She's fine now! Right? She's fine?" he asked looking back at Gladio.

"Considering she was attacked again, I don't know-"

"We need to go!" Ignis exclaimed, walking in the direction of the elevators.

The other three followed closely behind him. They didn't dare speak for fear of making things worse, but they shared looks amongst each other. Was the Princess okay? Was anyone else attacked? How bad was it this time? How bad was it the first time? None of the previous emails gave much details on the victim. Gladio was the only one amongst them with any kind of answers…and even he didn't have them all.

As Ignis walked into the meeting room used specifically for confidential and highly sensitive conversations, he looked around the room scanning every face to see if she was there. She wasn't. He didn't know if that was good or bad. Was she so hurt she couldn't be present? Was she so mentally anguished she couldn't give her own personal account? He tried telling himself that even if she was able, she probably would refuse to. He still didn't know a lot of her, but knew enough to know she wouldn't be comfortable in front of everyone.

She was constantly worried about someone attacking her. She didn't even want people to know who she was. He always just brushed it off and told her there was nothing to worry about. Had she known this man was after her the whole time? Had he been pursuing her for years? He gave her his word he would protect her. And he just left her to walk back to her room alone.

Ignis hung his head in his hands as he sat at the large table. The King was watching his from his position at the head. He gave his son a look telling him to comfort his friend. Noctis rubbed a hand on Ignis' shoulder beside him.

"Hey…it's uh…it will be fine. I'm sure she's okay. If she wasn't, they would have told you first I think."

Ignis didn't say anything in return. They didn't even tell him the first time something happened…why would they now?

Clarus entered the room at last and things finally got started.

"Quiet!" his voiced boomed. "We have a serious situation on our hands. Someone has managed to breech our security systems. They have walked right into our halls without anyone noticing. And it seems they will continue to do so until we catch them."

"None of you here are at fault," the King assured them. "This is a situation unlike any before. He has managed to trick all of us."

Confused murmurs sounded in the room. The only ones not looking confused beside the King and his shield was Cor, Drautos, and Gladio. Monica seemed to be missing from the meeting.

"We have a description of the man we are looking for, but it seems only one person has seen him, and that is his repeated victim," Clarus continued on. "Princess Y/N seems to be his only target at this time. You all recently received an email about an attack along with a brief description of who to be on the lookout for. I've received many questions about the individual, and we have a few more details to add. He seems to be a little over six foot tall. He also was wearing a black hat and long black coat. He was first spotted outside the Grand Hall and this time in the residential guest floor hallway."

Ignis stomach flipped a bit. It was bad enough his fiancé was attacked where she was the first time, but now she was attacked in her own hallway near her room. Her attacker was moving closer to her and it frightened Ignis.

"This man is manipulative and deceitful," Regis began speaking again. "He has managed to find his way through our gates and most frightening of all…he is hidden from our cameras."

The room filled with chatter again. Confusion hung in the air. How could one be hidden from the cameras? They were purposely set up with zero blind spots. And no one had been made aware of any malfunctioning. Security would have been heightened in the area if that were the case. Cor stepped forward and began his report of the incident.

"When looking back through the feed at the time of the attacks, both the assailant and the victim are hidden from view. There is no sighting of the man what so ever and in every interaction Y/N has with him, she simply disappears from view until he leaves. We believe him to be using some kind of cloaking magic as well as possible time magic. The amount of time Y/N recounts the events lasting are far longer than the time she is hidden from view of the cameras. It goes without saying that if any of you see anyone even remotely resembling the description, the individual is to be immediately reported, followed, and possibly detained if you are safely able to do so. However, he doesn't seem to want to be seen by anyone but her. He has also threatened not only to return but now also her life."

Ignis took a shuttering breath and Noctis gripped his shoulder again for a moment.

"It's hard to catch someone who has gone to great lengths to never be seen," Clarus spoke. "We urge everyone to be vigilant and report anything you think is even remotely suspicious. We are heightening security on King Regis, Prince Noctis, Lady Lunafreya, and are now adding a mandatory escort to Princess Y/N if she leaves her room. Remarks made by the assailant lead us to believe the attacks could possibly be political in nature. He has made mention of being opposed to her union with Mr. Sciencia, mentioned her mother, and seems to be insinuating that he wants something from her. This is more than a random attack. We believe it to be on a personal level."

"Glaives are no longer on single patrols," Drautos chimed in. "They are to patrol in units no less than two. We want no one to be taken off guard or potentially overpowered if encountered by him."

"Direct any and all questions and reports to me, Drautos, or Cor. You are dismissed," Clarus concluded the meeting.

Before any of his friends could say anything, Ignis was out of his seat and walking toward the head of the table. He bowed in respect before saying anything to any of the four men before him.

"Your Majesty."

"Ignis, my boy," Regis greeted back. "I want you to know that everything concerning your wedding to Princess Y/N is still to carry on as usual. We do not want this man thinking he has disrupted anything. We will be sure to maximize security at your nuptials to prevent any disturbances."

"Thank you, Your Majesty," Ignis replied.

"I know you're probably worried about her, but remember your duty to your King and Prince," Cor commented. "We will handle Y/N's security."

"Of course…"

"Now, Cor…" Regis scolded lightly. "You are still allowed to be at your fiancé's side, my boy. We aren't pulling you away from her."

"But your top priority is Prince Noctis," Clarus said.

King Regis rolled his eyes. He understood completely safety protocol and that his son was to be protected at all costs. He also understood young love and that this was a chance for Ignis to stop being so stuffy and latched onto his son so tightly. A chance for him to be a little less selfish for once, even though he was the one who commanded he never leave his son's side to begin with.

"I fully understand, sir!" Ignis replied. "I…I uh…" He wasn't sure how to voice his request, knowing what the answer would probably be.

"You know we can't share the report with you, Ignis," Cor commented, with a hint of understanding in his voice.

"Yes, yes of course."

"She's in Medical. In the royal wing. Go to her," The King whispered to him.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Ignis bowed before walking quickly out the door.

Ignis walked as quickly as he could without looking like he was running. The whole time he was in the meeting, he wanted nothing more than to text Y/N or call her. Something to make sure she was alright. He couldn't believe this had been kept from him. What would be the reasoning behind it? And why did she not want him to know? Would she be mad he was on his way to her now? That he knew everything now?

Well, he hardly knew everything. The most he knew was that she had been hurt. Twice. By this horrible man that no one knew anything about. He hoped she understood his concern for her and didn't push him away too harshly. He was preparing himself for her to be angry, but kept telling himself that as long as she was alright, he could take her anger with him.

He rounded the corner and made his way to the white double doors with red lettering on them reading MEDICAL . He pressed the button on the wall that opened the doors and made his way inside. He wasn't entirely sure where to go at first. Emergency department? Trauma? He remembered the king telling him she was in the royal wing, closed off to only a select few people. Five people to be exact. It was a high security portion of the wing that was closed off to everyone but a select few. Including the medical staff. Ignis had clearance to get in with his high status relating to the Prince.

He made his way through the maze of halls to get to where he was told she would be. He swiped his employee card a few times, thankful he had it on him, and entered a pin a couple times and he was finally in the royal hallway of the medical wing. The richly painted red walls assured him he was in the right place.

A few yards down the hallway, he spotted Bernard sitting on a bench against the wall alongside Monica. He quickly walked over to them. Bernard looked up at his approach and gently smiled, nodding his head in a silent greeting. If Bernard was smiling, she couldn't be too bad…right? Monica's presence both eased and unsettled him. He wasn't sure what to make of it. Perhaps she simply escorted her to Medical and stayed to make sure everything was alright. Or because she had to give Y/N proper clearance to be there. His mind wasn't sure what to think about anything right now. Monica looked up as he stood in front of her and addressed him.

"She's right in there. The doctor just left so you won't be interrupting anything," she smiled and motioned to the door beside her.

Ignis nodded at her and hesitantly knocked before turning the door handle. He wasn't sure if his presence would be welcomed right now or not, so he was slowly inching the door open. When he had the door about halfway open, he saw her standing beside the gurney in the middle of the room. Her eyes were bloodshot and red. It was evident she had been crying a lot and was still silently doing so. Her hair looked a bit askew from its normal style. Her make-up had long been rubbed half off and smeared across parts of her face. None of that mattered to him. She wasn't in any casts. She wasn't bleeding, from what he could see. Nothing looked wrapped up or bandaged.

Ignis was staring at her wide eyed with the door still open a bit behind him. He had only steeped a few steps into the room. Y/N was breathing heavily looking at him, an unreadable look on her face. But he knew she was anguished. And he was certain the look on his own face was as well.

"I…I know you probably don't want me here but…but I…I had to…Are-Are you alri-"

Before Ignis could finish his sentence, Y/N let out a sob and reached for him, quickly crossing the room and wrapping her arms around him. Ignis let the door close behind him and took her immediately into his arms as she cried into his chest. It was a bit foreign, holding someone like this. The two of them hadn't even so much as kissed or hugged yet. But the feeling he felt in that moment, with her safe in his arms, warmed him beyond what he imagined it would.

"Shhh, it's alright," he gently told her, trying to quiet her loud sobs. "I'm so sorry! No one told me! I would never have let you leave your room alone if I had known!"

Ignis wasn't sure what all she had endured, both the first and second encounter with the man. And it was okay if he didn't. He allowed her to keep it to herself. But he would be damned if it happened again.

"H-h-he…he kno…kn-knows th-things!" she cried.

Ignis almost couldn't make out what she had tried to say. She must be referring to the man knowing of their union and her mother. He was unaware it went much deeper than that. He rubbed his hand up and down her back a couple times trying to comfort her.

"We will figure this all out. New safety procedures have been implemented to assure we find him. I swear to you I won't let you be alone again. And I'm so sorry I ever did in the first place."

A/N:

I know you may not have been expecting Ardyn to show up so quickly. It's been a few days but he was only teasing and keeping her on her toes. He definitely will be back. And our princess has finally caved and is realizing Ignis isn't as bad as she wants to think he is and she may possibly need him around. Don't get too excited, they won't be making out next chapter or anything lol but there will be a few...kinder moments between them coming up. Which also means we'll get to see her around the other boys a little bit too.

It's so strange to think how long this fic already is and how much more we still have to go we aren't even halfway done. I've yet to determine if I'm just going to make it all one long fic or break it up into two.

Anyways, thank you again for all the love and support. I've been on such a high lately from you all and this fic!