Work Text:
"Ignis, please come in," Regis said when he was informed that Ignis was outside his doors.
Ignis stepped in a moment later, bowing respectively. "You asked to see me, Your Majesty?"
"Yes, it concerns the upcoming negotiations between our kingdom and the fairy kingdom."
"Concerns? Anything I should worry about?"
Regis shook his head. "No, nothing of that matters. But if we want this treaty to go well, we need our best men to represent us as a kingdom and as the human race."
"And you were going to ask if I would play the part of the diplomat?"
There was a soft chuckle from Regis. "You are always on top of everything, Ignis. Which is exactly why I wanted to send you as the lead diplomat."
Ignis bowed. "Your Majesty, I would be honored to take on this task."
"Very well, be prepared to leave by the end of this week."
"So you're really going to go to the fairy kingdom?" Noctis asked as he watched Ignis pack.
"Yes, that would be correct. Why? Think you will be fine without me?" Ignis asked.
"Yeah I'll finally not have to eat veggies for a week, it'll be great," Noctis snarked.
Ignis sent a friendly glare. "You assume that I didn't inform the cooks to keep your meal schedule the same."
"Aw Ignis, you shouldn't have," Noctis laughed dryly. "But seriously the fairy kingdom… in the fairy realm. You're not worried?"
"And what reason would I have to worry about? There are no tensions between our kingdoms hence this treaty to unite us."
Noctis shook his head. "No, not that. Not exactly. But I mean like the royals. Haven't you heard about the royal prince?"
"Prince Ravus? And what do I need to worry about?"
Noctis moved to take a seat in the nearby chair. "He hates humans. If you wanna get in the good graces of all the royals to make the treaty work, you'll have to convince him the most."
A small smile started to cross Ignis's lips. "Since when did you become so diplomatic?"
"I'm not. I just like reading up on the gossip," Noctis shrugged, chucking a little.
"And where are you getting gossip on the fairies? Don't tell me that the fairy realm uses Kwetter or has their own version of it."
"Nah, nothing like that. Just things I've heard rumors of. Still just keep your eyes on him."
"I'll do what I can, Noct. Thank you for your concern, but I know I will be able to handle whatever is given to me."
When Ignis arrived outside of the fairy kingdom, Tenebrae, he prepared himself with a few deep breaths. Even if he always did seem calm on the outside, it didn't deter from the way his heart was racing.
He did have a small bit of nervousness that nagged at him as he walked through the lush forest that led to the castle. He could already hear soft murmurs from all around him and the others in his group. No doubt there were fairies hiding and watching them out of curiosity.
He tried to keep moving though, reminding himself of his goal that he had. He had to be proper and diplomatic towards all fairy kind, so he couldn't be seen trying to seek out snooping fairies. If they wanted to speak with him that would be another matter, but for now they seemed to stay away hidden in their forest.
When Ignis arrived at the castle, he presented the papers and documents to the guards. They barely even spoke as they read over everything. They only hummed softly as they checked to make sure everything was together.
Once the papers were handed back the doors opened and the guards stepped aside. "Follow the hallway down to the end. There you will enter the court of the king and queen as well as their children. Make sure you pay your respects properly."
"We shall," Ignis nodded as he moved into the castle.
Looking around he could see how beautiful nature had been woven into the castle. Vines ran across the walls seamlessly, and every little table had a plant or flower growing vibrantly. Ignis had to admit it was quite amazing to see how well they could tend to everything. Then again they were fairies, nature was part of their natural skills.
Upon arriving at the doors to the throne, he looked back at the men of his group and then to the door. With a steady hand, he knocked lightly and waited. Only a moment passed before he heard a voice from the other side.
"Enter."
With a deep breath, Ignis pushed the doors open and walked into the throne room of the royal fairy family. He saw them sitting above him on their thrones, each of them dressed in clothes that looked shiny and silky to match their glowing shimmering wings behind them.
"Your Majesties," Ignis said loudly as he bowed properly. "We are happy to make your acquaintances today. Thank you for taking the time to meet with us."
"We are happy to have this meeting as well. If this can help further both our nations into prosperity then we are here to listen," the queen said.
When Ignis lifted his head, he once again stared up at the royal family. His eyes first fell to the queen and king, and he could see the kindness and regal then held within their own eyes. Then he drifted to the princess, Lunafreya. She offered him a kind smile that seemed to glow with sunlight itself. Then finally it was time to look at the older royal child, the prince Ravus.
For a brief second, Ignis thought his heart had skipped a beat. Ravus seemed to radiate with beauty unlike the rest. Despite his scowl and annoyed look, there was something else that intrigued Ignis. It was the way his silvery white hair had a few strains that fell in front of his face. Surely most other royals would have brushed it back to keep it neat, but this seemed like he wanted his hair to be like that. A little messy, yet it was still fitting with his royal image.
Even with that serious glare, Ravus was still breathtakingly beautiful.
Ignis remembered to breathe as he stood up tall. He couldn't let himself get distracted with such thoughts about the prince's appearance. "Well, if we may, shall we begin? We have brought with us documents that King Regis said he would like for you to read over."
"I think that sounds quite lovely, but we should first have a feast," the king said. "You and your men had a long journey and to celebrate our hopeful union, we should share a dinner."
"If that is what pleases you, then we have no objections. We all would be honored to experience what it is like at a fairies dinner."
"Then we shall start to prepare!" the queen declared. "We will first have you all shown to your rooms. From there when it is time, we will have you retrieved to be brought to the banquet hall."
With all of that settled, Ignis was led to his room he would be staying in. When he was left by the escort he moved to his bed and sat down, taking in the environment once again. Every step of the way was just another amazement to his mind. He would have to take some pictures later on if he was able, knowing Noctis would love to see more from this place.
Suddenly, there was a knock on his door. Ignis stood up, knowing it was too soon to be called for dinner. He opened the door and his eyes widened when he saw the prince standing there. Now that he was up close to him, he noticed something else that stood out within his features.
His eyes were two different colors. One was a light blue while the other was a deep purple. It was a feature most wouldn't have known unless they truly were looking for something close. Still, it only seemed to make Ignis's heart flutter against despites his protests to try and calm it down.
"Yes?" Ignis finally asked when he realized prince Ravus was going to say anything. "Is there something I can help you with?"
"I only wished to look at who the humans appointed to lead their group here. You are not what I expected."
Ignis crossed his arms. "And just what were you expecting?"
"Someone far more regal. You do not carry yourself like my father does."
"Well I am not of royal blood, but I am from a noble family," Ignis answered calmly. "The Scientia's have been loyal nobles to the Lucis Caelums for generations."
Prince Ravus raised an eyebrow. "Is that so? I would never have guessed. You humans, as far as I can tell, do not have that look to you. I can only imagine what the royal family must be like."
Ignis was starting to see what Noctis meant before. While Ravus had yet to be flat out cold or rude to him, he could sense some annoyance within his tone. The way he looked down at him and spoke in a dismissive manner showed how little he really seemed to know or care about humans.
But, Ignis wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt. If he had truly spent his entire life in the fairy realm, he would know very little about the humans themselves. It was just as Ignis knew very little about him or the other fairies, other than the stories he has read over time.
"Well, hopefully with us being here you can take the time to get to know everyone."
"If you are trying to change my perspective, there is little point. I've heard and seen plenty about humans to know where they stand."
Without another word, the prince turned around and walked away. Ignis watched him go, seeing his shining wings flutter slightly as he turned the corner. When he saw that he was alone again, Ignis closed the door and made his way back to the bed.
"I suppose this may be harder than expected."
A little while later he was finally summoned to be brought down to the banquet hall. He met up with the other diplomats as they were all brought into the massive room. The table could have easily sat 20 or so, but the royals were all at one end.
Ignis was shown to his seat, which just so happened to be next to Ravus. Either way, Ignis sat down as properly as he could and waited for the meal to be served. He tried not to stare too much, even though he knew Ravus was giving small judgmental glares.
"Thank you for joining us," the queen said. "We hope that you enjoy the meals that we present to you."
Ignis and the rest of the team nodded, and soon the king clapped his hands and servants came to place down plates of various foods.
Ignis took in a deep breath, smelling the different meals that had been placed before him. "This smells quite delicious," Ignis commented. "I am happy to get to taste what you have to offer."
Ravus hummed. "I hope that it will be enough to satisfy you. There is no meat or anything for you humans to consume if you couldn't tell."
"Ravus," his mother scolded. "Keep your manners in check."
Ignis held up a hand. "It's quite alright. I understand there are many humans who prefer that stuff quite frequently. But I myself prefer a good variety of different food groups. The fact that these appear to be from a range of fruits and vegetables makes me quite happy."
"Are you a apprierator of food?" Lunafreya asked.
"I do like to dabble in cooking various delicacies. One of my favorites is what is called a Fluffy Chiffon Cake. It's made of simple items such as Leiden sweet potato and Cleigne wheat."
"Oh my, that sounds quite intriguing," the queen mused.
"If it isn't any trouble, if this all goes well, I could bring some with me next time to share."
The queen smiled warmly. "Such a nice gesture."
"I would not be opposed to such a thing," the king added.
"In the meantime," Ravus said as he placed a small fruit tart on his plate. He gave an odd smile. "You should try this tart. I am sure you will enjoy it."
"Ravus!" Lunafreya scolded. She flicked her wrist and the tart moved from Ignis's plate over to her own. She sighed after that and looked at Ignis. "Please excuse my brother, for he was trying to play a childish fairy prank."
Ignis had heard of such pranks. In the olden days, fairies would enchant food and give it to a human and the result would cause the human to be trapped in the fairy realm, or worse be forced to do the fairy's bidding.
"Why would Ravus try that on me? If he hates humans so much why would he try such a trick? Would it be just a way to try and make me upset?" Ignis thought to himself.
"Ravus," the queen interjected. "You know we do not allow such pranks to be done, especially when it is at a dinner for guests."
Ravus sighed. "I am sorry mother. I will not try it again."
With that, there weren't any other interruptions throughout the entire dinner. Everything Ignis had was quite tasty and he made a mental note of the various ingredients that were used. When the food was finished and the dishes were clear, the king stood up and clapped his hands together.
"I understand we planned to talk over agreements and plans, and while we shall do that, I also wish to have a small gala tonight, if you are all not so tired from the trip. If not today then maybe tomorrow would be better?"
Ignis looked at his men, seeing how they were reacting to the proposition. "I have nothing against it being tonight, but what about the rest of you?"
The others agreed they didn't mind either way, none of them were too terribly tired from the journey. A small gala did sound nice from the sound of it, as a fairy gala had always rumored to be quite spectacular.
"I think it would be quite a way to end the evening with a gala," Ignis agreed. "But I am afraid we don't have suitable clothing for such an event."
"We can have our tailors help with that," the queen said.
"Then it's settled. We shall end the night with a gala! A way to commemorate this historical event!" the king declared.
Before Ignis knew it, he was being fitted for a suit made by the fairies. It was probably the softest, most comfortable thing he had ever worn. He stared at himself in the mirror, seeing how they had decided to give him a fairy suit that was a shade of purple. He had to admit it suited him quite well, and secretly he hoped he would be able to keep the suit by the end of it.
Just as he was ready to head out to be escorted to the gala, he stared at himself in the mirror. He still had his hair spiked up in his usual formal look. While he did prefer it to help keep the hair out of his face, he felt it was making him stick out in his new suit.
Quickly he took a brush and a towel that he soaked in the bathroom sink. He dampened his hair before quickly brushing it downward back to his normal style. He did style the bangs a little though, as to not just be a mess in front of his eyes. He had to try and keep some dignified look to himself after all.
Once he found himself presentable he stepped outside of the room to once again be escorted through the magnificent castle. This time he was led to the grand ballroom where the gala was being held. Already there were several fairies moving about the room. Some of them servants, and others were noble fairies or other council members. There was even a small group who had started playing some rather folksy music. Everything in the atmosphere was rather magical and unique to anything he had experienced at home.
He moved about, checking in with his team before finding an open table to take a seat and watch some of the other fairies dance. He wanted to take in as many of the moments as he could.
Eventually he caught sight of the royal family. The king and queen were seated in their special throne table chatting amongst some other fairies. The princess was engaging with others around the food table, fluttering her wings as she flew around to greet everyone.
Then there was the prince. It took a moment to find him, but Ignis saw him in the far corner of the room at a lone table. No one was near him and he looked completely disinterested in the event that was going on.
With a hum, Ignis got up and made his way over. "If I am to make a good relationship with him, maybe now would be a good place to start."
As he approached, Ravus glared at him. "What do you think you are doing here, Scientia?"
"This is a gala, isn't it? Shouldn't you be engaging with the rest?"
"I prefer not to. Parties are far from my thing."
"I can understand that. As much as I am enjoying this, I am not one for big royal galas back home. I would much prefer to stay at home and read a good book."
"You read books? What could the humans write that could possibly be entertaining?" Ravus scoffed.
"There are many things that we have in our realm. But I assume fairy literature is intriguing? I've always been curious about it," Ignis said as he took a seat next to Ravus.
Ravus eyed him carefully. "You'd want to read our works?"
"I would. I am a man who likes to learn about other cultures. Fairy culture is something I know little about. If there are any books you could recommend, it would be greatly appreciated."
Ravus stared at him again, his expression seeming to soften a little. "I suppose it wouldn't hurt…"
There was a change in the music and the king stood up raising his hands as he fluttered above everyone. "To commemorate this event, we shall have a dance. If you wish to, please come to the floor and enjoy the beauty of the music."
"Are you going to dance?" Ignis asked.
Ravus shook his head. "Dances are not much of my thing either."
"Surely you could spare time for one dance, yes? I would hate to see you all alone for the evening," Ignis said.
"And why do you care about such things? We've never met before so I see no reason why a human should be so concerned with what I do," Ravus scoffed, sneering slightly.
With a sigh, Ignis looked at him with a serious gaze. "I wish for peace and prosperity between our two kingdoms. That may be the main reason, yes, but there is more to it. I want there to be peace, not only in words, but between each human and fairy. For when there is peace, there can be friendship and a new age can begin with everyone getting along."
With a hum, Ravus rested his arms on the table. "You do like to push for this idea of friendship between our races. It's no wonder they sent you, you do have a way with those words."
"Then will you join me?" Ignis said as he stood up. He smiled kindly as he held out a hand. "Just for one dance?"
For once, instead of any of Ravus's sour expressions, he finally looked surprised. He stared with those wide eyes, first looking at Ignis's hand and then to his eyes. "Are you sure? Why offer to dance with me?"
"Because I want to start this off on the right foot. So would you join me?"
Carefully Ravus reached out his hand until it reached Ignis's. He held it lightly and Ignis gave him another smile. When the two were both on their feet they made their way to the dance floor and got into position.
When the music started up, they danced steadily and calmly, taking their time with each step and turn. Ignis would have commented that he didn't expect Ravus to be such a light and gentle dancer, but he kept it to himself and just decided to enjoy the moment.
It had been two weeks since the trip into the fairy kingdom. Two weeks since he had met with the royals of the fairy kingdom and discussed plans for the future of their kingdom and Insomnia. Ignis believed everything had gone smoothly as he thought it over, even with Ravus.
After that first night when they danced, he seemed to lighten up quite a lot. During the rest of Ignis's time there, Ravus did not scowl at him or make any rude comments. It all seemed to be much better than he had feared at first.
Now all that was left to do was wait and see when King Regis heard back from the Fleurets and see what the verdict was. Ignis knew though that only good things could come from all of his hard work, he could feel it.
When it came time for Regis to call him in to discuss the matter he had expected everything to be normal. Just a regular talk and Regis thanking him for his hard work, but when he entered he found his king to have a rather concerned look on his face.
"Ah Ignis, please take a seat. I have much I wish to discuss with you."
"Is something wrong, Your Majesty?" Ignis asked as he sat down. "Nothing has gone wrong with the peace treaty has it?"
"Oh no, nothing is wrong with that. In fact it has gone much smoother than I could have ever expected. But…"
Ignis leaned forward on his chair, trying to read the expression within his king's eyes. "But what? What has happened, Your Majesty?"
"The peace treaty is to go on as planned, but it seems that something was added to it."
Ignis raised an eyebrow. "Something?"
Regis placed his hands on his desk, lacing his fingers together. "It's nothing too worrying as far as I see. At least I would hope not. But how it came to be is what I want to make sure of."
With a deep breath, Regis looked at Ignis and finally gave him the answer. "It would seem that Prince Ravus agrees with all of the peace treaty, but he wanted to add something into it. For uniting our kingdoms, he… he has asked for your hand in marriage."
Ignis gasped, nearly choking on the air itself. "Beg your pardon? Did you say marriage?"
Regis nodded. "It would seem the fairy prince has become quite infatuated with you ever since your visit. Tell me, Ignis, was there anything you did when you talked with him?"
"Not anything I can think of outside of the realm of talking. Oh, though I did dance with him the first night of our arrival. The gala I mentioned? We took time to dance together for one piece of music."
Now it was Regis's turn to look surprised. "You said a dance? Ignis, did he ask you to dance with him?"
"No sir, I was the one to offer him a dance."
"Ignis, did you not know what that represents?"
"I'm afraid not. Have I done something that involves fairy magic?" Ignis asked.
"Not exactly. From what I have read and heard, someone offering to dance with a fairy of royal blood is a form of courtship or more or less a proposal. Especially if the royal fairy accepts the dance."
Ignis slumped back in his seat, his mind racing out of control with thoughts and questions. He had done some research on fairy traditions before he had left for that trip, but apparently not enough. He scolded himself for not being careful enough to properly read up on royal fairies and any traditions or specialties that came along with them.
But on the other hand, he had seen what a gentle soul Ravus was when he wasn't trying to judge and criticize him. Ravus actually had a side to him that did appear to be nice and kind. Even before Ignis had left, Ravus had given him a book, saying it was one he believed Ignis would enjoy reading. He had started it and it was very much something he knew he would enjoy to read every night.
"I suppose it would be rather impolite to refuse such an offer, especially since I was the one to instate it, correct?" Ignis asked.
"Are you sure, Ignis? I would hate to have you push yourself into something you don't wish for."
Ignis shook his head. "I've always wished to learn more about fairy culture, and what better way than marriage to a fairy? It would help strengthen our kingdoms as well, would it not?"
"If you are willing to go through with it, then I won't stop you," Regis said, smiling softly. "As long as you are happy and willing with your choices."
"I believe I will be," Ignis started with a warm smile.