shatteredlenses | LifeAfter Inbox

"All right," Ignis is hardly going to argue with a suggestion like that, especially since he's sure Gladio will be much more comfortable on the bed than on the floor. He waits patiently for the Shield to settle and then carefully crawls onto the bed himself, hands feeling in front of him so he can figure out how Gladio's positioned himself. Once he does, a small, slightly sly smile crosses his face.

"It seems you've prepared a special seat just for me. I'm honored."

Surely, Gladio is just imagining how Ignis' fingers linger as they brush against his legs. Nothing going on here!

Gladio smirks at the words but the lingering touches make his breath catch in his chest, still so strange after so long of dreaming it. He catches one of Iggy's hands, draws it up to press a kiss to his fingertips, like he had at the storytelling fire.

"You should be." Honored that is. How many people would he let sit in his lap?

Okay, honestly, he'd be cool with sleeping cuddled up with quite a few people but this was different. This was Ignis, this was a dream come true.

Ignis chuckles as he carefully settles into his appointed seat, reluctantly pulling free the hand that Gladio has taken so he can remove both his gloves and tuck them away. Oh, he doesn't need to do that in order to heal, but he regretted not removing them before. He isn't going to make the same mistake now.

While he has a pretty good idea of where the wound is, he takes his time letting his hands get there. There is a fair bit of territory to explore between Gladio's shoulders and his waist and unless he's told otherwise, Ignis is planning on taking the long way to get from point A to point B.

"How badly is the wound hurting you?"

The slow path his hands are taking gives Ignis ample opportunity to feel the way Gladio's heart races the longer his hands are on him, his breath catching and shivering out. He has to swallow thickly before he trusts himself to speak.

"Aches mostly, only stings a bit. Stood up too fast, I think but it didn't split." Just a consistent throbbing pain in his belly. It's all good.

Honestly he's hardly thinking of it now, not with Ignis in his lap and touching him like that. Not with the other's taste on his lips.

Ignis hums softly at the answer. If he was a crueler man, he would point out the pounding of Gladio's heart as a sign that the wound is hurting him more than he's admitting too, but he knows well the real cause and can't help but feel a little proud to be it.

Well, if Gladio is distracted, that means he will hurt less. It all works out.

Eventually, his fingers find the wound and rest over it lightly. Ignis pulls the magic into himself and then lets it out to do its work. At the same time, he leans forward to begin pressing a line of kisses along Gladio's collarbone.

The Shield's not the only one getting something out of this particular kind of distraction. Ignis is enjoying himself as well.

Ignis' clever fingers have been a source of distraction for years, long before Gladio had fully admitted the depths of his feelings for his friend. Now, feeling them skating over his body, light and exploratory, is enough to have him completely forget about any discomfort that his recent movements might have caused. There's that flicker of of magic and he starts to sigh, soft and relieved.

But the sound catches in his throat when Ignis' lips find his collarbone. His hands come up to catch at Ignis' shoulders, not discouraging, just holding onto him for a moment.

"I-Ig..." A gasp and then he's tangling his fingers into Ignis' hair, hauling him up for another kiss, this time a little less cautious, intense and hungry but no less emotional for it.

The soft sigh and the gasp of his name cause a shiver to run through Ignis. For just a moment before Ignis is pulled away, Gladio will be able to feel the advisor's lips curl into a smile against his skin. He makes a soft startled sound when he's pulled up, but he can't say that the kiss that follows is any kind of disappointing.

Ignis' hands flatten against Gladio's chest as he presses into the kiss, returning it with every bit of intensity and emotion. When he finally has to pull back to catch his breath, he nibbles lightly at the Shield's lower lip as he goes.

"Feeling better or do we need to reapply this particular treatment once more?"

"I'm fine." The assurance is a little too quick and he sighs, leaning up to catch one more soft kiss, to ease the insistence there.

"I don't want you over taxing yourself again." He nudges Ignis a little, trying to coax him into sitting down, leaning back against him again. "And I am fine, like I said. A little ache but it's better. A lot better. Promise."

Don't do too much and make him carry you to the mana pool, Igs.

Ignis huffs and if Gladio listens close enough, he will hear him mutter something that sounds suspiciously like 'I'm not made of bloody glass,' but as disgruntled as he might be, he doesn't fight the change in position, eventually settling into Gladio's hold.

"You'll tell me if you need me to move?" He just has to mother hen little more before he lets it go. Please, humor him.

"Know you're not ba-" The pet name catches in his throat, uncertain, and he nuzzles into Iggy's hair. It's not that he thinks Iggy can't handle it, not at all, there's just no need. He knows the limitations of his regroup and it's not meant to handle something so severe.

"Long as we both go this way a little..." And he coaxes Ignis to lean a little into the wall so his weight was distributed between the wall and Gladio's upper chest. Nothing on his belly. It's fine, Ignis. Not babe. Not yet.... but maybe soon?

Before speaking again, Ignis allows Gladio to shift their positions in whatever way he needs in order to be comfortable. Once that's done, he tilts his head up toward the Shield and smiles fondly, "You were going to say 'babe,' weren't you? It's okay. If you want to say it, that is. I don't mind."

What's one more nickname among all those he already has? Besides, this one is special.

That smile just melts his heart all over again and Gladio's kissing him again, just the press of lips to his hair, just above his temple.

"I did that once, y'know." It was embarrassing and hadn't gone over very well. Shortly before the big blowout that had them all going their separate ways. "You sure you don't mind?"

"I don't mind," Ignis repeats confidently, one hand raising so it can weave its way into Gladio's hair. "The me who didn't like it was a different man than the one who is here with you now, and I dare say, this me has much better taste than that one."

Gladio hums softly, enjoying the feel of Ignis' fingers in his hair. It's so nice as is the reassurance. It gets another kiss to his hair and a squeeze around his middle. "I think so... hope so anyway."

Ignis sighs contentedly, relaxing into Gladio as much as he dares with the man still recovering from his injury, "I don't know if I have the right to ask you to trust me yet, but I promise we'll find a way to make all this work."

"I'll always trust you, Iggy." And he squeezes a little, regardless of his injury. "You don't have to ask. Whatever it is we'll find a way because we trust each other."

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