Renovating the Heart (FFXV)

XXIII) Turning Tides

"I'm really sorry," Rue said right off the bat, her voice pleading Ignis not to be pissed at her. He said nothing in return, taking the backpack from her hands and pushing it into the backseat. "I really didn't mean to bother you. I was going to call Eren and my hand slipped, I swear."

"I'm not going to fire you, if that's what you're fearing."

His words startled her. What the #$%^ kind of response was that? Not going to fire me my #$%.

"Still, I hate to be an inconvenience."

"That's the way things are," he replied curtly, straightening to face her. "Get in."

"Right," Rue whispered, hurrying to get into the passenger's seat. The car started quietly and they pulled out onto the street, which was virtually dead.

"Care to explain the hole in your arm?"

"Oh, I, uh..." Rue glanced down at her shoulder. It hadn't even hurt until he mentioned it. #$%^. "Remember those kids that kept showing up at the Citadel a few weeks ago?"

"Weeks?" Ignis murmured, but she didn't hear him. As far as he knew, they'd continued to attack at random intervals and Schrader, who was in charge of cleaning up the mess, had made no drastic moves to stop them.

"I fell asleep on my couch and I heard someone fiddling with the locks," she explained, slouching in her seat. Ignis bit back the urge to tell her to sit up straight. "They opened the door and I saw two of the kids standing there. I didn't really know what to do, but one of them shot me and I shot back."

"Did they get away?" Ignis asked, unsure as to why she had decided to become his burden for the evening. After taking near hours to fall asleep, he was rudely awoken by the blaring tone of his cellphone. Assuming it was Noctis, he was confused to see Rue's name on the screen, and rightfully so. He couldn't recall a single time they'd sent more than a formal text to one another.

"Well, there's a reason I can't be in my apartment tonight," she sighed, watching the street lights flash past. "Namely, they're lying dead in the middle of my doorway and my landlord doesn't want the floors to get stained."

"You've been removed from your home because of the carpets?" Ignis repeated, frowning. The priorities of some people easily turned him off to most. He'd heard a woman's voice droning in the background of the call; that must have been the owner that removed her resident for floor polish.

"She's never had anything more on the brain than money," Rue shrugged. "I'm used to it."

"Regardless, she was wise enough not to let you walk alone at this hour," he pointed out, glancing up into his rearview mirror when he saw a light flash. It was merely another car turning another direction.

The idea of the Citadel's minor annoyance breaking into his assistant's home to assassinate her bothered him far more than one would expect. However, if they were willing to pick off one mere girl who hardly had any dealings with royalty, at what point would they be willing to dream bigger and attack the King himself? Needless to say, the idea put him on edge.

"I'm worried," Rue admitted, breaking the silence. "They've probably been following me all this time, which means they've seen Eren leave." Eren? Ignis's brow furrowed. Perhaps his senses had been right, then, when they told him those two were certainly more than mere friends. "What if they go after him?"

"As a glaive, Eren can handle himself, I'm certain," he answered coolly, though internally he was conflicted. How long should he wait before informing the Crownsguard? Everything about this attack was unnerving. Whether those rebels thought Rue might fight back or not, it was certainly a bold move to break into her home and kill her there, especially in a place so heavily guard with—That's it. "... They didn't expect to make it out alive," Ignis murmured. Rue frowned, glancing over at him.