#iggift

Even throughout his early school years, he was usually more of a loner. While he wasn't having a hard time socializing, students seemed to be struggling with understanding him. The way he spoke was too high for them. He knew words they didn't. He was smarter than them and that was reason enough for them to bully him. His parents wanted to give him the opportunity to be home schooled but they simply couldn't afford it. To say he enjoyed elementary school would be a lie. Sure, he had a couple of people showing interest in him but most felt fake to them. And his gut was right, they were just trying to find new topics to mock him about.

The only good thing his IQ brought him was, sooner or later, Noctis.

While King Regis always had an eye on the stupidly talented boy of the Scientia family, it still took him quite a while to choose him as Noctis advisor. Unlike the Amicitia's, Ignis' family wasn't given the duty of being advisors, only Ignis' uncle and him were given the role - purely because they were known as one of the smartest citizens in all Insomnia. However, the role came with lots of burdens.

The moment he found out he would function as the prince's advisor and future crownsguard, his life took a significant turn. His childhood ended right at that moment. From there on out, his life was shaped by learning, quickly growing up and taking responsibility at a young age. No more fun activities, no more hobbies. He had to drop all of them in order to be with Noctis as often as he could. They had to get to know each other and form some kind of bond after all.

To please the prince, Ignis' parents decided it was time for him to learn how to cook. At first he enjoyed it, but it soon became more of a tiresome activity. He practiced at home with his nanny, trying his best to get it right. But he ended up failing every now and then - which's totally normal. But that not only frustrated the little boy, it also upset his parents.

They weren't happy about any kind of mistakes he made. The second they heard about his failure, he was punished. Each and every time they feared that he would lose his place as the prince's advisor, would be replaced by someone else. If that were to happen, his family would lose all the extra privileges they had been given. From money to a new house, they were showered with gratitude. Ignis' income certainly was huge - even though all he did was spend time with Noctis and couldn't even function as an advisor yet. But since he was so young, the money flew right onto his parent's bank account. As result, they gave up their job. Now that they were relying on Ignis', they had to make sure he'd perform well. So most times, they considered punishing him whenever he had a slip-up.

Those punishments ranged from simple shouting to being forced to cook until it was perfect and even receiving physical tasks such as doing 100 sit-ups. When he returned with bad grades, it was especially bad. After he was announced the advisor of Noctis, his parents could afford to get him homeschooled by teachers. And after the first paycheck arrived, the best ones were booked for him. So when he showed up with a bad test, they considered him as ungrateful. They took his electronic gadgets and locked him in his room, forcing him to learn and repeat those exact subjects until the evening - they'd test him to ensure he actually did as they demanded.

Sure, he loved learning new stuff.. But over the years, it started wearing off. Ignis no longer enjoyed it nearly as much now that it was something he had to do. It didn't help that, on top of learning what his parents wanted him to and what school forced him to, he still had to memorize everything the king demanded him to. From the history of Insomnia to relationships between the continents. And even after all that, he was told he had to get in shape, so he at least went for a run regularly. 

Needlessly to say, Ignis didn't exactly like his role. He was merely a child. Although he took it seriously, was somewhat proud of himself that he made it this far at such a young age, he also cursed it. The only time he felt like he could be an actual child was when he was with Noctis. Alone. They could fumble around with his new toys - toys Ignis would never be able to own as his parents would throw them away the second he'd bring them home - and sometimes played hide and seek. Although Ignis was two years older than him, it didn't take long before they became great friends. 

Of course, Regis noticed that his son seemed happier. He spoke about what he did with Ignis at dinner, told him how clever Ignis was and that he learned so much about the universe - he raved on about his best friend for ages. And that sure meant a lot to the king. Sleepovers between the boys soon became a weekly thing. And Ignis' parents certainly didn't like that. To them, it meant their son was neglecting his duty to learn and constantly improve himself.

After his return from the sleepover, his father went a little hard on him. So hard he returned to the citadel with bruises on his arms. Even the slightest bump into one made him want to cry - but his father taught him crying wasn’t right so he held back. While Noctis bought all kinds of excuses, was too naïve to think his friend's parents could've hurt him, Regis was quick to catch on to his lies. He didn't buy them. Ignis sure was smart but not yet smart enough to fool the king. Regis called him into the throne room as soon as he could and had a serious talk with him. One in which he tried to crack that boy's shell. Knowing it was the king and that lying could result in more punishment, Ignis reluctantly shared his experience and how his parents had been treating him. Within another week, both Ignis parents had been locked away by the king's demand. He felt responsible for how his son's best friend was going through a hard time. To him, both were just children and Ignis was indeed paid so Noctis would have company. At this part of their life, both were supposed to focus on forming a great bond. A bond that would last a lifetime. 

So after the encounter with king Regis, Ignis ended up living with his nanny. The house still belonged to him and his income was sent to a separate bank account that the king himself opened for him. He couldn't risk Ignis' parents stealing their son's money. 

As sad as it sounds, Ignis' health increased greatly. The pressure on his shoulders decreased slowly but steadily. His grades lifted back up, too! And on top of that, he could finally find some time for his hobbies and other free time activities that had been withheld from him. Placing his hands on his piano after so many years surely meant the world to him. Only Noctis - and perhaps Regis and his nanny - knew how much he actually loved music. It calmed him down, helped him destress. 

As months went by, he gradually grew fonder of the idea of being Noctis' advisor. Especially because he enjoyed spending time with him so much. Sure, just like any other friendship would, they argued sometimes but nonetheless, their friendship was great. How messy Noctis tended to be was mainly what upset Ignis. He often ended up cleaning up after him, simply because he couldn't stand when they left his room a terrible mess after playing some Lego. 

Over the years, their Lego turned into video games or watching some movies. Fortunately, Ignis managed to finish school early with a splendid degree. For that accomplishment, Regis held a party for him. Even though he never admitted it, Ignis was like a second son for him. He had witnessed him growing up into a man right before his eyes - just like he watched Noctis. To Ignis, Regis was some kind of adoptive father. They sometimes had meetings in which he had to inform Regis on Noctis' improvement, accomplishments and general life. Those significantly increased once Noctis moved into his own apartment. Each time they met up, the king didn't miss a chance to ask about how Ignis was doing. Now that his parents were almost nonexistent in his life, the king really just wanted to ensure he was okay. And he was. 

Although is parents showed remorse, he never forgave them. He rarely visited them, too. They had to begin from zero after they were released from jail, often begged for money. Since Ignis couldn't use most of the money he had, he gave them a minimum amount of his monthly income. It wasn't enough to cover all expenses but it was a start. Nonetheless, they were being ungrateful, called him out for how he could be so cruel to let his own parents live in poverty when he could afford a high-class life. But he didn't care. Not anymore. Without his parents, he had been doing so much better. He grew into an independent, self-confident strategist and a very goal driven perfectionist. After severe analyzing, he decided they didn't deserve his attention anymore. How they treated him was unacceptable and he refused to let them take over him again. Sure, they influenced the person he was now but in his eyes, he reached all of this on his own. It was his hard work that was paying off, not theirs. 

Aside from all the mental strengths he developed, he also started working out regularly. Gladiolus often ended up tugging him along. Those two, although they were polar opposites, soon ended up becoming friends. While Gladio was focused on training Noctis and himself, he didn't mind taking Ignis out along the way. When Ignis was off duty and Noctis was - for once - taking care of himself, he often ended up hanging out with the future king's shield. It truly was too bad that Noctis usually interrupted by calling and asking for help with his homework. He truly was a mess. 

Before actually jumping in to help, Ignis always started with simple questions: did you try this and that, and did you google it? If all his questions were answered correctly and Noctis apparently put in some effort but failed, he hopped in. Sometimes he even had to tutor him in math and other classes. Those tutoring lessons increased tremendously when Noctis' finals were around the corner. And when Prompto suddenly became part of his world, he had to help the blonde, too. Before he knew it, Gladio started asking for help on the simplest tasks, too. But it was fine - he loved helping them .. although helping them was very time-consuming.

It wasn't always easy for the once so lively Ignis but over time, he found the path leading back to himself. He took the negativity he experienced in his life, to help others. He was full of empathy and always had an open ear for his friends. Especially for Noctis because he could relate to how he felt neglected by his father.

Nonetheless, he had something in common with all of the chocobros and ended up finding great friends in all of them. It didn't matter to him that he sometimes had to function as a guide to all of them, some kind of mother. If anything, it actually made him feel needed and happy that all of them trusted him so much. They really turned out to be a great foursome. 

When he finally joined the crownsguard, he was determined to protect and support Noctis until the very end. There were no "but ifs" or "what ifs", he was willing to give his life if that meant his friend would be safe. Without Noctis, the one who indirectly changed his life for the better, his life didn't make sense to him. The royal family functioned as his second family, the one he considered his home. Noctis was like a younger brother to him, losing him would break his heart. It's truly unfortunate that he didn't know about the prophecy.  

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