We'll Never Be the Same Again (Ignis x OC)

Chapter One

It hadn't been all that long since Noctis brought back the dawn. His former companions mourned the loss of their friend and king. Surprisingly, Prompto was the first to go back to 'normal'. One day he just woke up and decided that he should stop feeling sorry for himself and the guys -- that it was time to move on.

Gladio was a bit harder to break out of his shell. He was supposed to protect Noct, for gods sake! And now that the king was gone, he had become lost. What was he supposed to do? Prompto, knowing that the shield was hurting, would always try to lift his spirits. But it was after a visit to Lestallum that the blond got a glimpse of the Amicitia from before the 10 years of darkness.

Only one of the original four was left to himself: Ignis Scientia. Prompto and Gladio tried -- gods, did they try -- to lift the blind man's spirits. But he had lost too much, and there was no coming back after Noctis died.

Regardless of his losses, Ignis still had a job to do. Every morning, he managed to get out of bed and get to work on restoring Insomnia. Even though he no longer had his sight, he knew -- the city was prospering once more. But as time went on and the city no longer needed his constant guidance like it had in the beginning, Ignis found himself ... lost. He no longer had Noct to watch over, and the city was doing just fine with minimal interference from the royal advisor, especially since Prompto and Gladio took it upon themselves to create a new council. The members had been picked from the pool of survivors of the Starscourge, regardless if they had been Lucians before the darkness or not.

***

As he sat in his kitchen, Ignis couldn't help but feel like he was useless. There was no need for him to continue being the royal advisor since the royal line was now gone. There hadn't been any daemon sightings since Noct had brought back the dawn, so he couldn't go out and fight them. Life in the city was peaceful, so he and the guys had decided to only have a provisional protecting authority. Even then, most of the police were already trained in fighting, so he didn't have anyone to teach.

Releasing a sigh, Ignis rested his head on his arms, wondering when the world had gotten so dull. He sat there, stuck in his thoughts, until a knock at his door disturbed him.

"Iggy?" came an unfamiliar voice, and the man's face screwed up in confusion. He stood, making his way to the door cautiously, ready to grab one of the daggers attached to his thigh if the need arose. With an ease that would make one think he could see, Ignis made his way to the door, placing a hand on the handle before opening it.

Although he couldn't see the person, he could sense them. Ever since he had lost his sight in Altissia, he had noticed that certain people exude certain auras, and that he could 'see' them through their aura. And the person in front of him had an aura unlike the rest.

From what he could tell, they were short -- shorter than Prompto, who had been the shortest of the group ten years ago. They were also slim, about as slim as Prompto when the boy was a teenager.

"Who are you?" Ignis finally said, his hand resting on his dagger. A soft sigh answered him, followed by the sound of clothing being rustled.

"prom said you'd react like that," he heard them mutter, and it was at this point that the strategist realized he was talking to a woman. Thoughts raced through his mind -- mainly, how Prompto had tried setting him up with someone without his consent. Suddenly, the woman let out a squeak, noticing the glare Ignis had adopted unconsciously.

"Don't worry, Prompto didn't send me for that," she reassured him, but Ignis only frowned as he heard what she mumbled under her breath. "If he had, I would've smacked him."

Another sigh came from the woman.

"No, I'm here because they're worried about you," she said. He couldn't see it, but she was giving him a look that would have made him shrink in his skin. "You're being really rude, you know. Not answering any of his calls or texts, ignoring him when you're both at work. Poor boy's worried sick."

"Tell him I'm fine," he ground out, nearing the end of his patience with this stranger. For the past few years -- really, since Noct had disappeared in Zegnautus Keep -- Ignis had found his patience waning. The fact that prompt had sent someone to check on him just made his patience fall further.

"I can tell you're not."

"Six above--" he exclaimed, a hand going to rub his temples. "Look, if Prompto was really so worried, he would've come himself."

Vaguely, he heard an indignant huff from the woman before her clothing rustled once more. He assumed she had taken out her phone, as he heard her tapping against a screen for a few seconds before grumbling under her breath.

"Yeah, well he's busy," she spat. "And had I known how much of an ass you would be, I wouldn't have volunteered."