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[He pauses at the touch, slowly lowering his hand to look, though he knows what she's focused on before he sees it. Beyond the original circle he'd noticed since he first started wearing it here, those dark vein-line marks had never remained on his flesh longer than a handful of seconds, 20 at most. This is the first time that they'd lingered longer on him, long enough to be assumed permanent. It's a mark he'd seen before, and he knew it was possible; his father's face had a handful of them in the final years, creeping further and further as the ring sapped away more of his lifespan. Seeing the damage on his own body was a little jarring the first time he noticed, as if it at last hammered home that he too would share that fate, a life gone too soon, consumed by the power of the ring and their crystal. He understands her fear, but it isn't what scares him the most.

He can't reach into the armory right now, with his magic still stabilizing itself, but he can reach into his pocket, so he pulls out the ring and holds it in front of her, resting innocently on his palm.]

Pyra... you know... I carry this with me everywhere. Three people died trying to deliver it to me. [His father, Nyx, Luna. They're here, but back home, their sacrifices are heavy on his heart.] And someday it's gonna kill me too, along with all the Royal Arms I've gathered.

[It's grim, but... it has to be said.]

This ring... even before I knew my future, I thought it would take my life. All the kings know, that's how it works. I grew up knowing this. [Morbid, so morbid. He wishes it wasn't, but that's Lucis, through and through.] But I carry it anyway, because if I have it with me, that means no one else can find it.

[His gaze shifts downwards, recalling Ignis' plea. "Promise me that you won't let it fall into the wrong hands."]

It's better if stuff like this is kept safe, and out of reach, so no one else gets hurt.

[ The ring is innocent in his palm, n object and master alike to those it uses and those who use it. Alone, however, it is just a ring, much like the crystal is just a crystal. That such a small thing could cause so much strife... and all for what, the power that it grants? Or the hope in mortal hearts that obtaining that power will see those hopes through?

He speaks so calmly, and she sees his point. That, like the Ring of the Lucii, he can keep the Fetter out of others' hands. That's noble. That's just like him. ]

But-- you... Do you really need another dangerous object in your arsenal? [ Unlike the dormant purpose of the Royal Arms, the Omega Fetter practically caused his demise, and not for any prophecy. It would have been an inglorious death. ] And. How you feel... About carrying it, even if it's a stable form. The Fetter almost killed you. [ She looks up from the ring, searching his face. ]

This might not be all that comforting, but I've almost died plenty of times. It's not as big a deal as you might think.

[Yeah actually, even as he says it, it's not comforting at all, even to himself. Take two-]

I guess I should say, uh... if it's fixed, then it shouldn't try to kill me in the future, right? So that's a one-up over the rest of them.

[Be...tter...?]

Plus, if it starts acting up again, we'd know right away and we'd have an easier time fixing it like this than if it was hidden away somewhere. If Mythra's the only one who can fix it, then we need to keep it somewhere she has access.

[There we go, logic! Totally reasonable answer.]

[ Take one definitely causes her expression to shift, as if she's damn ready to make that protest-- ]

[ --And by the end of his small speech for take two, she closes her eyes and exhales.

She's not worried that it'll somehow corrupt on its own. ] It won't corrupt on its own. [ It's lasted far longer than he's been alive or she had been "Pyra" on its own, perfectly fine, uncorrupted. She's only worried about how he feels, if this will be one more burden on him to carry. He doesn't need more of that. ]

I don't want you carrying it to be something that worries you. Even-- even the slightest little bit, Noct.

[...Okay. Okay, maybe really think this time, because clearly he's failing to justify this properly. But that also means examining how he does feel, which is harder than he'd like to admit. How to say it without making her more worried than she is already...?]

It... would worry me more to have it out and become a burden on you, than it worries me to have it in the armory. If you think it won't get corrupted on its own, then I trust you. And if we keep it where it is, no one else can corrupt it either.

[He pockets the ring and reaches up to find her hand, fingers curling firmly.]

I want to do this. I want to help you, and I'm not so worried about it that I'd let that stop me. Okay?

[ It seems that this is what she had been waiting for: what he feels clearly spoken to her, him weighing his worry of keeping the Fetter versus having it out, his hand firmly holding hers, and what she believes is his own belief in himself that he can handle this. That, and perhaps the trust that he'll tell her if he one day cannot. She draws her gaze away from the new scar on his finger; unlike his ability to discard the Fetter if necessary, for as long as he remains in this world, he'll carry that mark....

I'm not so worried about it that I'd let that stop me."

He moves forward.

At last she smiles quietly at him, nodding her assent, as s ] ...Okay [ She nods again, more resolved this time. ] Okay.

[ Closing her eyes, her shoulders slope downward as she allows herself to relax in his presence.] ...And thank you, Noct.

Thank you for trusting me.

[Not just with the Fetter, though he wouldn't blame her for taking it back and opting to hide it somewhere more securely instead. But for trusting his word on it, when he'd said from the start it would be okay and then it very obviously wasn't.]

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