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Ignis awoke to the distinct feeling of warmth in his back and a tightness around his chest. Even as he wasn’t sure those feelings alone had woken him, it was at least certain, that this wasn’t the first time something like this had happened. As he opened his eyes, it was still dark around him. The air had cooled, but it was still comfortably warm inside the tent, that the four of them had crawled in after dinner last night. Gladios soft snoring was the only thing to hear, but that had never woken Ignis before and Noctis was as ever silent like a cat. They all had a surprisingly harmonious dynamic, when it came to sleeping in a confined space like this, providing each of them with enough peace and quiet to rest well for the day.
As Ignis’ eyes adjusted to the darkness, he could see the mud-coloured fabric of the tent that he was facing. A faint glimmer of grey light began so seep through, the earliest greeting of the rising sun. It must’ve been no later than five, not too unusual for Ignis to wake up; he never was a tight sleeper to begin with. Yet today he didn’t move and rise, waiting, as the tightness around his quest increased.
When they went to bed at night, they had their very specific position inside the tent. As the tent was pragmatic and small, the only option for them to lay down comfortably was in a line next to each other. Ignis, the one to wake up first and prepare coffee and breakfast, had chosen to lay on the side, so that he could leave in the morning without disturbing the sleep of the others. Gladio, on the other hand, had chosen the opposite side, resting against the wall of the tent like a shield to the outside world. Next to him was the one he was protecting, the sleeping prince, who always left the tent as last, no matter how hard they tried to wake him earlier. Silent and unmoving like a stone, was Noctis the one simplest to forget, when he was asleep.
A faint sound came from Ignis’ side, no more than a soft whisper, too low to understand. He lay still, as the body shifted and moved, nestling warm against his back. A hand clung to the back of his shirt, gripping the fabric tightly and desperately. Ignis simply let it happen, unmoving as Prompto pressed against him in his sleep, murmuring softly as he was searching for something to hold onto.
The first time this had happened had been in their second night after leaving Insomnia. They were still figuring out a working routine for the night and morning, accustoming to the new sensation of sleeping on thin mats on the ground instead of downy beds. Ignis had been especially sensitive to sound and light back then and so he had awoken immediately, as Prompto moved against him for the first time. It became apparent, that Prompto wasn’t aware of his nightly moving. When Ignis approached him after the first night with the topic of his uneasy sleep the blond seemed surprised and unknowing of his own habits, so Ignis dropped the subject without saying too much; it didn’t seem worth the trouble. Prompto was quick to forget the conversation anyway as Noctis came out of the tent.
However, with time it became clear, that Prompto had trouble sleeping regularly. When Ignis noticed this at first, he tried providing Prompto with more space by moving out of the way, believing, that the blond simply wasn’t used to sleeping in such a tight environment. Though Ignis noticed right away, that whenever he avoided contact, Promptos sleep became even more restless. The troubled twisting and turning moved to Noctis’ side instead and if there was one way to anger the Prince of Insomnia it was by disturbing him in his sleep.
A soft whimper came from Prompto, before he gently pressed his forehead against Ignis’ neck. Warm puffs of air were breathed against his skin, damp and irregular, as the blond murmured on in his sleep.
Ignis had quickly learned that Prompto, even though he moved a lot, was very sensitive to touch, when he was dreaming like this. The first few times, as Ignis tried to softy shake him awake, the smaller man had snapped awake in shock, a panicked and disoriented look in his pale eyes. Luckily, he had easily fallen asleep again every time and hadn’t seemed to remember the incidents at morning; though the look of pure horror in his eyes was enough for Ignis to stop his efforts quickly.
The only thing, that it seemed Ignis could do to calm Prompto in his sleep, was to let him seek the contact and comforting warmth of another human body. So, whenever Ignis awoke at night to Prompto pressing against him, gripping his shirt and whispering inaudible things, he let it happen in silence. Staring into the darkness, he would patiently wait for the younger one to relax again, listening to his irregular breathing calming down, until it was in synch with Ignis’ own. The gripping of Promptos hands would become softer, his body more relaxed and after a few more minutes of peace and comfort Prompto would turn and go back to his usual sleeping position, the one he would then wake up in.
Just like it would happen now. Breathing steadily Ignis waited for Prompto to relax, his tense body calming more and more. His whispering turned into gentle breaths that tickled Ignis’ neck and the desperate grip on his shirt turned into warm fingertips, pressing lightly into his back. It was a surprisingly pleasant feeling. Shifting his head, Ignis glanced at the man cuddling against him, now fully relaxed. A sudden feeling of peace struck him, before Prompto moved again, turning away from him as if nothing had happened and going back to his usual deep sleep after a deep exhale.
Now fully turning Ignis pushed himself up, studying the sleeping form in front of him, wishing for his glasses, despite the darkness. It was apparent, that Promptos nightmares were rooted in something, possibly a bad memory or past experience. Yet he never said a word or seemed to be bothered by it at daytime, being cheerful and light-hearted no matter how long it had taken him to relax again in the past night. Ignis wondered whether he should risk another attempt at talking with Prompto, but then again none of the four of them was too prone to talk about their feelings too much anyway.
Suddenly feeling cold Ignis sighed and rubbed his nose, before he finally got up and left the tent. The sky was still grey, promising a soon sunrise that would bring back the heat of day. Silently moving around the camp and preparing what had to be done he then settled in one of the chairs. Deep in his thoughts he looked up at the sky, watching it shining brighter and warmer with each minute, awaiting the dawn of day. Until then an early morning coffee was all Ignis had to cast way the cold of the night.