Chapter Text
Dawn broke in a cloudless sky over the city of Insomnia. Sunlight spilled like molten gold between towering buildings and shadow-cloaked streets, illuminating the early morning bustle of a metropolis that never slept.
From the balcony of the penthouse, Ignis Scientia looked out over it all and smiled. Not so long ago, Insomnia itself had been in the grips of a nightmare. Death and danger had lurked everywhere in the seemingly endless night, poisoning the very air with a plague of fear. He himself had seen the cost of that poison, of the evil that had been allowed to thrive unchecked beneath the city’s streets. Bodies, blood, and sacrifice.
But that past was behind them now. In casting out the darkness, they had defeated Death itself. They had saved their home, and the millions who went about their lives each day in its light. Insomnia was finally at peace.
Not, of course, that the city had escaped the violence completely unchanged. Ignis swept his gaze across the skyline, at the buildings that towered even above the distant curve of the Wall, and found it distinctly lacking. The Citadel, Regis Caelum’s crowning glory at the heart of the city, was gone. A casualty of battle, much like Regis himself.
Both losses had been devastating blows to the Caelum family, and to the new oyabun who still struggled to fill the shoes in his father’s place. Yet while the family could rebuild, it was decidedly Noctis who had suffered - and, indeed, continued to suffer - more than any of them.
Turning, Ignis found the sleeping form of his prince still curled up beneath the sheets of his bed. Disheveled bangs aside, he was a picture of peace in his sleep. Beautiful, fierce, but hardly the innocent boy he'd been not so long ago. In nearly every way, Noctis had grown into the man he was always destined to be, a man who would make his father proud. Only, Ignis mused with an adoring smile, he was so much stronger than that. Stronger because, in the face of the gods and his own death, he had chosen life. This life.
For that. Ignis couldn’t have been more grateful.
“Highness,” he hummed, stepping out of the warmth of the morning sun. From the balcony railing, he took up his cane- a beautiful ebony black with the horned skull of a Reaper carved into the silver handle - and made his way one careful step at a time to the comforting shadows of Noct’s bedroom. “Love, it’s time to get up.”
A muffled grumble from the pillows was his only answer.
“Noctis, it’s nearly ten. You know the Board will grow impatient if you keep them waiting too long. They’re expecting the budget reports this morning.”
“Let ‘em…-” the young oyabun paused to yawn. “-...wait.”
Still smiling, Ignis lowered himself to sit on the edge of the bed. His violet robe spilled open, but he did not bother closing it. There was never need for decorum here. He hummed again as he reached out to brush a lock of hair from Noct’s cheek. “And the proposal for the new tower? You know they’re going to need your signature on the zoning paperwork.”
This time when Noct moved, it was to flip himself onto his other side and bury his face in the warmth of Ignis’ body instead. “Five more minutes,” he muttered, and curled his fingers in the silk of his robes. Tugged a little, and Ignis, laughing, obliged him.
“And what,” he purred. “Would Your Highness have me tell Clarus when he inevitably calls for you?”
Noct grinned. “Tell him we’re busy.”
“Very well. In that case, I suppose we’d better get to work.” Allowing his robes slip completely from his tattooed shoulders, Ignis sank into his prince as indulgently as he ever would.
Together they crossed the grounds of the Caelum compound, heading for the row of low buildings against the back fence. Morning had given way to a brilliant spring day, and the fair weather was reflected in the energy of the Glaives they passed. Without a Citadel in which to conduct their business, Noct had been forced to repurpose the compound’s dojo as a makeshift meeting hall. As a result, the Glaive captains (in lieu of their Marshal, who was still on an extended mandatory holiday while his injuries healed) had decided to move their training session outdoors.
Libertus and Nyx could be seen across the field, barking orders at their men while they ran them through a series of drills. The newest face among the Glaive recruits was there, as well. Ignis couldn’t resist stopping to watch at the sight of Aranea Highwind, now garbed in the traditional black uniform of the Caelum family, blazing through push ups and leaving the others in her dust. Despite his initial misgivings about her streak of disloyalty, she was turning out to be a powerful asset. An expensive one, mind, but worth the price to know she’d finally be fighting on the same side.
Suddenly, Ignis felt Noct’s hand on his forearm where he clutched his cane. A seemingly simple gesture but for the blue eyes that searched him, clearly monitoring for darkness, and for signs of pain.
He shook his head. “I’m alright, Noct. Sorry. Let’s continue.”
Inside the lofted training hall of the dojo, most of the members of that morning’s meeting had already gathered. A few tables had been salvaged from the wreckage of the Citadel, and seated in folding chairs around them were the architects of Noctis’ future vision. An unlikely team of great minds, some friends, others still undecided. But all of whom Noct trusted with his plans for the rebuilding of his empire.
Unsurprisingly, Prompto was the first to greet him at the door with a smile as bright as the late morning. “Hey, buddy!”
“Hey," he grinned, tapping his fist against his best friend's. "Where’s Gladio?”
“Oh, he’s around here somewhere. Still avoiding his dad, I think.” A long-suffering sigh, then like the flip of a switch Prompto was right back to giddy excitement. “Anyway, did you get my texts? Check it out! Lady Lunafreya’s got bling! ”
He nudged Noct in the right direction. Luna was easy to spot, seated between Clarus and Monica near the center of the room. In contrast to their more somber attire, she was even more radiant than usual in a brilliant white-and-silver suit, her hair braided and adorned with blue jewels the color of sylleblossoms. But that wasn’t what had gotten Prompto so worked up. It was when she finally noticed them, and waved in a shy greeting from across the room, that Noct caught the telltale glint of gold decorating her left hand.
“Apparently, Nyx popped the question over the weekend,” Prompto positively beamed. “She said he was so nervous, he was babbling and everything. Hah! Like Luna was gonna say no, right?”
Noctis mirrored the bright smile that lit up Luna’s face. “It’s about time. So... I guess this means you and the lunkhead are next, then, huh?”
“Wh…?” Blue eyes went round as Prompto sputtered. “D-dude! Warn a guy!”
Ignis chose that moment to lift his cane between them. He gave them each a pointed look, then gestured towards the open seat at the head of the table. “Prompto, please take your place. Noctis, shall we get started? I believe we've kept our guests waiting long enough."
The oyabun conceded with a weary nod. Some habits died harder than others. They took their places at the head of the gathering - Noctis in the large, black leather chair his father and grandfather before him had used; Ignis at his side on a simple stool. Personally, Ignis would have preferred to stand, but Dr. Yaegre had insisted he take things slow while his body and back mended. Thus he lowered himself gently onto his seat beside the throne, crossed his legs, and rested his cane across his open lap.
Noct waited for him to settle before at last addressing the others in the room. " Non enum dormiunt!" his voice rang out, calling the family to attention.
" Insomnia immortalis!" they responded faithfully. Around the table, the members took their seats again in turn.
The first to speak was Noctis himself. "Good morning, everyone. I believe you all know why I've asked you to come here today."
Cid Sophiar folded his arms. "I don’t," he grumbled in perfect tradition. Cindy, seated to his left, shushed him.
"It’s been five months since this family was brought to its knees by a powerful enemy. We lost good men and women - my father included - in the fight. We lost our castle. But we did not,” he said, raising his voice. “Lose our throne.”
Somber murmurs of agreement and approval rippled around the table. Noctis waited patiently.
“The fact that you all sit here with me today is proof that the Caelum family is eternally strong. And we owe much of that strength to our allies.”
Here, he stopped to bow his head to the most important of the guests seated around him. First to Luna, representative of the Nox Fleuret family, who in the aftermath of the Citadel’s destruction had pledged Tenebrae’s financial support. The allegiance between the two families had been sealed not with a wedding, but with the exchange of gifts, heirlooms that would remind the generations to come of their promise.
Next, he turned to Camelia Claustra. There had admittedly been some tension following their uneasy partnership, especially when Claustra publically took credit for stopping Ardyn’s brutal killings. But, in the end, the move had made sense. In all of her official reports, she had never once mentioned the Caelum name, or the role they had played in reducing the city’s central landmark to ruin. The backlash, the criticism, the call for someone to blame - she had taken that fire for them, as well. There had never been any prosecution, and, perhaps by way of appreciation, the files the city had kept on Regis Lucis Caelum and Aranea Highwind had both mysteriously disappeared overnight.
Now the DA herself was seated among them, at her place beside Weskham, as usual. She acknowledged Noct’s gratitude with a curt nod of her own.
Finally, Noctis bowed his head to the senior members of the family, the ones who had stood alongside his father since before he’d even been born. Clarus Amicitia. Weskham Armaugh. Cid Sophiar. And though he wasn’t present, Noct sent a special word of thanks to Cor, who had very nearly given his life in the line of duty. They had not all seen eye-to-eye since Regis’ death, but the loyalty of these four men was unshakeable. Noctis would absolutely depend on their support moving forward, and in exchange, he had promised to start taking their advice to heart.
Satisfied, Noctis resumed his speech.
“Everyone in this room is a vital part of our family’s continued success. If we’re going to reestablish order in the streets of Insomnia, we’re going to have to cooperate as equals.” He let those words sink in for a long moment. Ignis had advised against using the word trust in his speech, but Noct hoped the deeper meaning was implicit. What he was trying to build - his vision for the future of the family’s role within Insomnia - was one of peace, not bloodshed. There had been enough of that, he figured, to last the city a century or more.
Across the table, Monica caught Noct’s eye right on time. At his cue, she strode forward to place a tablet in front of him. The lights dimmed, the tablet flickered to life, and above it a rather impressive model of the city’s layout was displayed in three dimensions. “If I may, boss? This is the proposal we’re expecting to launch to the city’s Planning and Development Committee next week. As you can see,” she continued, and clicked a button on her handheld remote to zoom in on the display. “The plots of land currently owned by Caelum Holdings Ltd. are here, highlighted in yellow. This one - “ the shape of a large building, not as wide as the Citadel but arguably taller, lit up brighter than the others around it “ - is where our reconstruction begins. If you’ll turn your attention to the folders in front of you, I’d like to go over the budget proposals related to the Regis Caelum XIII Memorial Tower, and the repurposing of funds to….”
Ignis felt a brush of fingertips across the knuckles of his left hand. Though Noct was still watching the presentation, his attention was divided, as it often was, between work and him . In the past, Ignis might have admonished him for what appeared to be lazy, even disrespectful. But now, he thought he understood better what Noctis was really trying to do.
With an inward smile, he turned his palm to slide against his prince’s, their fingers twining between their seats. I’m here , the gestured reassured him. I’m with you. Always, my love.
Hand in hand, they let the sound of Monica’s voice wash over them as the future was unveiled one glowing frame at a time.
“So, it’ll be right about...there.” Noct steepled his fingers, holding them up to his face as he tried to imagine the shape of the tower in the distance. He squinted one eye, then the other, then took a small step closer to the balcony. “There?”
“More to the right, darling,” Ignis laughed. Resting his chin gently on the oyabun’s shoulder, he shifted his wine glass to his left hand and helped to adjust Noct’s position with his right. Mostly, however, he took it as an opportunity to pull Noctis closer against him, with one hand coming to rest conveniently above the curve of a hip.
For his part, Noctis melted back against him as naturally as he’d ever done. “It’s gonna be so awesome, Iggy. You think Dad’ll like it?”
“Of course he will. The design is beautiful.” A loving kiss to the side of Noct’s cheek. “It’s an incredible honor you’re giving him.”
Noct hummed. A peaceful silence descended around them, there on the balcony high above the world. Ignis tightened his hold, hugged his lover closer, and in turn Noctis closed his eyes. One hand slid along the length of Ignis’ arm, moving slowly, purposefully toward his wrist. The breeze swayed them, a slow dance with no need for music. In that moment, everything was as it should be.
Everything was perfect.
Almost.
Lips once again brushed his cheek. “More wine, love?” Ignis offered, already reaching for the bottle.
But Noct shook his head. The two glasses he’d already had had left him feeling fuzzy, sentimental (and, if he was being honest, slightly off-balance). Not for the first time, he was glad for Ignis’ strength at his back. Smiling, Noct turned in his arms to face him. Swiped up both of their empty glasses and set them just out of reach on the balcony rail.
“Noctis, I--”
He cut short the protests forming on those lips by sealing them with his own. A chaste kiss at first, then deepening as Ignis adjusted to embrace him. Noct indulged himself for several moments, enjoying the taste and heat of Iggy’s mouth, the soft hair giving way beneath his fingertips. Even the ease with which Ignis gave into him, still so new after all the years they’d denied themselves this.
Gradually, however, Noct began to feel the weight of something more important pulling him back. As much as he wanted to spend the night losing himself in Ignis (and, he knew, there would still be time for that later), there was another reason he’d brought him up here this night. One more request for the man who had already given him so much.
“Iggy.” Though still pressed close, the tone in Noct’s voice caught Ignis’ attention at once. He slowed his pacing, peppering pale cheeks with barely-there kisses while he listened. “I...I have something for you.”
“A gift? Highness, there’s really no need.”
“It’s...not a gift. Not exactly.” This time when he pulled back, Ignis gave him space. Green eyes watched in curiosity - and perhaps hunger - as the oyabun began to unbutton the front of his shirt. Starting at the collar, working his way down until he’d revealed the slender line of a chain hanging above his breast.
A necklace? Ignis had never seen him wear any jewelry aside from his father’s ring. So why now…?
But Noctis surprised him by drawing the chain up and over his head, quickly as if he might otherwise lose his nerve. He left his collar undone as he held the necklace out for Ignis to see.
In his palm, glowing faintly against the warmth of his skin, was the most beautiful crystal Ignis had ever laid eyes on. Perfect swirls of sapphire and emerald light danced around the core, which pulsed rhythmically with a life of its own. The longer he watched the crystal, the more it seemed to thrum, to flicker, to draw him in. Before Ignis realized it, he was reaching out to run his fingers across the face.
“It’s...warm,” he observed, other words failing him in the intensity of its light. “Where did you find such a thing, Noctis?”
The younger man paused. “...I think that’s less important than what I choose to do with it now that it’s mine.”
Ignis tore inquisitive eyes from the crystal to watch Noctis instead.
“I’d like you to have it, Iggy. To keep it safe for me.”
“Are you...certain?”
“Yeah.” Noct took Ignis’ outstretched hand between his own. Placed the crystal along with the chain into which it had been set in the center of his palm, and closed his fingers around it. “I’m sure. I’ve been thinking about it, and I figure there’s no better place for it than with you. I trust you with my life, Iggy.”
Noctis knew he didn’t need to explain. Even now, as he helped to link the chain around Ignis’ neck, he felt beyond a hint of doubt that he’d made the right choice. Ignis didn’t need to understand the true nature of the crystal, only that it was important to Noct. That would be enough for him to guard it, to protect it, to kill for it if need be.
Because as much as Noctis hoped for a future of peace, he was no longer naive about the darkness in the world. Men, gods, demons - none were immune to the temptation of power. Noct knew well that a day would come again when they would have to take up their weapons, to fight the shadows and the light to defend the balance between them.
They were yakuza. They were warriors. They were kings .
As Noctis laid his hand over the crystal, pressing it flat to Ignis’ warm skin, he felt a heady rush of vitality burst through him. It carried him up onto his toes, spilled out into a passionate kiss that expressed far better than words the emotion filling his heart. Once more, Ignis didn’t have to understand. He simply felt , and fell into the kiss with equal fervor.
Far below, over the railing of the balcony, the city of Insomnia was catching its second wind. A vast kingdom of light, of shadow, and of everything in between.
It was their kingdom. And together, they would rule it well.
~end~