True to his word, Ignis arrives at Noctis's apartment at nine with a potion in hand. Normally Noctis would be at the Citadel for training by now, but Ignis had texted Gladio to let him know that Noctis had had a late night and rescheduled his training to start at ten. As he'd feared, the tabloids do have some photos from the party ("Royalty: Just Like Us! Teenage Prince Noctis Attends High School Party"), but at least it's not a front page headline, and the photos are blurry cell phone snaps of Noctis smiling politely and standing back from the crowd, or chatting with Prompto. It's hardly the first time there have been photos of Noctis and Prompto together, so this event is nothing much to remark upon, even for the worst gossip magazines.
He knocks, then lets himself in when there's no answer. The shower is running, so at least Noctis is out of bed. Ignis busies himself with making coffee and preparing breakfast. Something light, he thinks, so Noctis won't get sick during training.
By the time he's adding some cut-up strawberries to the plate of toast and scrambled eggs, Noctis emerges from his bedroom in a white T-shirt and black athletic pants. "Good morning, Your Highness," Ignis says, smiling at Noctis's pleased expression.
"Morning." Noctis sits down carefully, grimacing a little, then notices the potion sitting next to his coffee and downs it. "You didn't have to," he says as Ignis sets his breakfast in front of him.
"I know." Sitting across from Noctis, Ignis sips his own coffee, having eaten earlier in the morning. The quiet breakfast routine is comfortable, making last night almost seem like a dream, but as much as Ignis has tried not to think about everything that's happened between himself and Noctis, there are some things that he thinks they need to talk about.
When Noctis is taking his last bite of toast, Ignis asks, "Why me?"
"Hmm? Why you what?"
Ignis looks down at his coffee, cradled between his hands. "Why did you come to me to learn about sex?"
Noctis looks up at him, eyebrows raised, then back down at his plate. "Because I trust you," he says finally. "Because I know you wouldn't make fun of me, and you wouldn't risk my reputation. Because you understand that I can't give you anything more."
He sips his coffee, then catches Ignis's eyes and adds, "Because . . . I wanted to learn from someone I care about." Ignis's heart swells at his words, and Noctis smiles shyly and looks away. "I hope I'm more than just a job to you. You've always been more than just an advisor to me."
It's true that there's never been a good word to describe his relationship with Noctis. Yes, Ignis has duties and responsibilities, which he's sometimes happy to perform and sometimes not so happy about, but Noctis has never just been his job. Being together since childhood, having his entire existence revolve around Noctis, watching Noctis grow from a kind boy to a respectable young prince and hopefully into a wise and generous king . . .
Noctis has never been a job. Noctis has always been his life.
"Yes," he says, smiling back across the table. "You're rather more than a job to me."
There's a long moment between them, where Ignis feels deeply that they understand each other, and then it's broken by the alarm on Ignis's phone going off. He thumbs it away, then stands up. "I'll give you a ride to the Citadel," he says as he clears the plates.
Noctis grins and grabs his gym bag. "You got it, Specs."
***
A/N AND IT'S DONE. Writing this fic has been a journey for me. Thanks for coming along for the ride! I hope to get the last two chapters on AO3 in the next week or so. I'm so excited to know what you all think of the ending!
FILL (9C/9) Re: ignoct, virginity kink
He knocks, then lets himself in when there's no answer. The shower is running, so at least Noctis is out of bed. Ignis busies himself with making coffee and preparing breakfast. Something light, he thinks, so Noctis won't get sick during training.
By the time he's adding some cut-up strawberries to the plate of toast and scrambled eggs, Noctis emerges from his bedroom in a white T-shirt and black athletic pants. "Good morning, Your Highness," Ignis says, smiling at Noctis's pleased expression.
"Morning." Noctis sits down carefully, grimacing a little, then notices the potion sitting next to his coffee and downs it. "You didn't have to," he says as Ignis sets his breakfast in front of him.
"I know." Sitting across from Noctis, Ignis sips his own coffee, having eaten earlier in the morning. The quiet breakfast routine is comfortable, making last night almost seem like a dream, but as much as Ignis has tried not to think about everything that's happened between himself and Noctis, there are some things that he thinks they need to talk about.
When Noctis is taking his last bite of toast, Ignis asks, "Why me?"
"Hmm? Why you what?"
Ignis looks down at his coffee, cradled between his hands. "Why did you come to me to learn about sex?"
Noctis looks up at him, eyebrows raised, then back down at his plate. "Because I trust you," he says finally. "Because I know you wouldn't make fun of me, and you wouldn't risk my reputation. Because you understand that I can't give you anything more."
He sips his coffee, then catches Ignis's eyes and adds, "Because . . . I wanted to learn from someone I care about." Ignis's heart swells at his words, and Noctis smiles shyly and looks away. "I hope I'm more than just a job to you. You've always been more than just an advisor to me."
It's true that there's never been a good word to describe his relationship with Noctis. Yes, Ignis has duties and responsibilities, which he's sometimes happy to perform and sometimes not so happy about, but Noctis has never just been his job. Being together since childhood, having his entire existence revolve around Noctis, watching Noctis grow from a kind boy to a respectable young prince and hopefully into a wise and generous king . . .
Noctis has never been a job. Noctis has always been his life.
"Yes," he says, smiling back across the table. "You're rather more than a job to me."
There's a long moment between them, where Ignis feels deeply that they understand each other, and then it's broken by the alarm on Ignis's phone going off. He thumbs it away, then stands up. "I'll give you a ride to the Citadel," he says as he clears the plates.
Noctis grins and grabs his gym bag. "You got it, Specs."
***
A/N AND IT'S DONE. Writing this fic has been a journey for me. Thanks for coming along for the ride! I hope to get the last two chapters on AO3 in the next week or so. I'm so excited to know what you all think of the ending!