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[ It takes Ignis a moment to recall that conversation, but he'd hadn't forgotten that Noctis had seen Altissia through Ignis' eyes. ]

The crystal.

[ He had come home that day and noticed Noctis in a state of things. Near Ignis' own birthday too now that he recalls the faint smell of paint. That feels long ago and yet, it wasn't that far back. ]

[His lips quirk at that. He doesn't know if the guess was intentional or just lucky, but...]

On point as usual. They weren't coming from the ring, it was... whatever happened when I got pulled into the crystal. After I met with Bahamut, its power started pouring into me, so I could use it to kill Ardyn. It wasn't just power though, it was... memories. All the memories the crystal carried.

[His hand lifts to the one embedded in his chest, fingers curling.]

The crystal is... the soul of our star. Everything that happened in the history of our world, every living thing that existed, every person who lived on it, every thought they had... those are all memories it was carrying. And- turns out, I was carrying them, too. I- I think they were walled off, for a while. In my head. To protect me. [He pauses, exhaling a shaky breath.] But the wall broke, and... it was too much.

[ It's Ignis, what did you expect Noct.

'But the wall broke, and... it was too much.'

He pauses at that, considering Noctis' words. ]

It overwhelmed you.

[ Another pause as the pit of his stomach sinks. He has a feeling... though he doesn't speak it. ]

... Noct?

Mm.

[He's not going to make Ignis ask.]

It... probably would have killed me. Came pretty close. That big plan of the gods didn't count on me living this long, outside the crystal.

[His job was to find Ardyn, kill him, die to bring back the sun. It should have taken days, not the year and change he's lived peacefully in this world. It could've happened any day. He has no idea how he survived as long as he did without help.]

[ Ignis goes very still and stiffness at that, his body tensing up.

'Rough patch'. No wonder why Prompto wanted Ignis to talk to Noctis first and foremost over this one.

Noct's right here, beside him, living and breathing. He reaches out to grab gently onto Noct's shoulder, hand squeezing lightly there. A reminder to himself that he's still here. ]

... How'd you survive? [ Something to do with the crystal on his chest? ]

[Noctis understands his need immediately, and he reaches his hand up to clasp it over Ignis', squeezing firmly. He's here. He's okay.]

Pyra. She found me in time, and shared her crystal with me. It's... I don't understand it completely, but it's able to store those memories safely, out of my mind, so they don't overwhelm me. I don't remember most of it now, and I'm still sorting out a lot of stuff in my head, but... I'm still me, at least.

[He'd been so worried that he would be destroyed by those memories, that the essence of who he was would be overwritten by hundreds, thousands of other people. Somehow, through a miracle of Pyra's power, he'd been spared and come out mostly intact. There might still be a price to pay, some important memory that got lost in the shuffle or forced out to make room for the world's history, but he hasn't discovered it yet, and he's just grateful to still have his life.]

She's saved you twice by now.

[ And he's thankful for it, both times. It's not his fault that he was gone during this ordeal so he's just grateful that Noctis has someone there to watch his back during his absence. Noctis is alive and that's all he can ask for right now. ]

How are you feeling yourself, Noct?

Um... feels weird, mostly. Like- not a bad weird. It's kind of nice, and I'm getting used to it.

[He rubs idly at the crystal again.]

You'd think I would be used to glowing by now, with the magic and all, but it's- all the time. I can't decide if I want to start wearing scarves or just roll with it.

[He doesn't know how Pyra does it. Maybe she's just used to it, or maybe she doesn't care at all. She's always glowed. For him specifically, who's always dark-on-dark in aesthetics, it feels weirdly attention-grabbing, and he's still adjusting to seeing it in the mirror.

All of that is mostly useless to Ignis, though, so after a moment he adds, somewhat awkwardly,]

I've been tired a lot, since then. More than usual. Sometimes I have a hard time remembering stuff. Fair warning, I guess.

[ Ignis is surprised at himself really, he's handling this better than he thought he would, particularly since this is coming from Noctis himself this time around; and he's out of the danger zone too. Last time, Pyra told him while Noctis was resting up and he'd fretted over him. It didn't help that he had a sick Prompto to watch over on top of that.

He squeezes Noctis' shoulder before tugging him back against Ignis, to rest against him. ]

I very well can't leave you alone, can I? [ Small tease to it, but his tone sounding grateful. ] What are you having a hard time recalling?

[Noctis is pulled without resistance, hesitating a moment before settling in and allowing some of the tension to bleed out of him.]

Harder to answer than I'd like. I don't really know anything's missing until I have to think about it, y'know? I guess it's more like... my head feels foggy sometimes, and some stuff comes to mind slower than it used to. It happened on and off after Marilith, I think.

[ Ignis shifts a little while Noctis settles back on him. He hms quietly at that, he recalls the Marilith attack all too well and what it did to Noctis himself. ]

You do seem livelier this time around, [ Ignis comments quietly to himself at first, Noctis will pick up on that. ] Are you not up to full strength?

[Noctis makes a vague, uncomfortable noise at the first part. Maybe not livelier in the moment after it happened... but his recovery has definitely been faster this round. He can walk, for one.]

Not yet. I'm getting there, but... not yet. It's been harder than I like to admit.

[And Ignis would know better than anyone how little Noctis likes to confess when he's not okay.]

I'd assume rest is key here?

[ Though who knows how much Noctis has been resting with the worms about; but knowing his friend, he's probably been fighting them off when he can. ]

[He scoffs dryly, on the same train of thought.]

Yeah, had loads of that lately. You can really tell.

[ Ignis laughs softly, he's not trying to poke fun here. ]

Rest on me for a bit.

You're a bony pillow, you know.

[He doesn't appear to be moving away, though.]

Like that's ever stopped you.

[ Ignis shifts a little to try to get them a bit more on the comfortable side of things. ]

Never will, either.

[He's slept on worse places. He can pretty well sleep anywhere. Anyway, Ignis is warm, and safe. That's usually good enough for him.]

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