Inside the caravan, Angelica explained everything that happened in Insomnia, leaving out the details of how she was injured. And in turn, the boys told her of what had been going on in their own travels. Angelica let out a sigh.

"So, that's why you're out here. No ships to take you to Altissia, huh?"

"We're just doing what we can out here for now while seeking out the royal tombs," Noctis said. "We'll be heading for Lestallum soon to meet up with Iris."

Angelica smiled slightly. "Glad to hear she's okay."

"You mentioned Lady Lunafreya fleeing the Crown City too," Gladio pointed out.

The girl nodded. "Yes. Though we didn't stick together, I'm sure she made it out."

"Huh, I wonder where she could be now," Prompto pondered with curiosity. "By the way, why didn't you give us a call? You had us worried, y'know!"

She pulled out her phone, showing him. "Screen got busted. Couldn't use it."

The blond examined the phone in her hand. "I think that can be replaced. We can see about it when we get to Lestallum." She nodded in agreement.

Ignis eyed the small blood stains littering the girl's bandages. "Enough about all this. Angel, I believe your injuries require attention."

Angelica glanced down at her arm, noticing the red stains. "You're right. I'd better take care of it."

She stood from where she sat and went to the bathroom, sliding the curtain so that it covered the doorway. She slowly unraveled her bandages and gazed at her reflection. Blood leaked from the corner of her right eye where the shard of metal was lodged. It was extremely difficult to even open that eye at all, and touching it was painful. But she took a deep breath, knowing she'd have to bear it if she wanted to remove it. But before she could take it between her fingers, the curtain was pulled open.

Ignis strolled in with a potion in hand. "I assume you'll need-" She spun around to face him and he froze when he saw her wounds. "Angel, what in heaven's name happened to you?!" His raised voice alerted the others outside. Before Angelica could respond, Ignis was right in front of her, taking her head in his hands and tilting it to examine her eye. "Have you honestly been walking around like this?! Don't you know how dangerous that is?!"

"I know, I know," she responded, pushing his hands away. "I didn't have the time or materials to tend to myself."

"Well then, I suppose I'll have to take care of it." She stared up at him in disbelief. "This is a delicate procedure. A steady hand is required to successfully remove these shards without causing further damage."

Ignis immediately rushed out of the bathroom area and rummaged through their things, seeking out the medical supplies. Angelica slowly followed him out where the others saw what all the commotion was. Their eyes grew wide as they stared at the girl who casually took a seat as if her injuries meant nothing.

"The hell?" Gladio said. "Don't tell me you've been walking around like that since you left the city."

Angelica only groaned. "How did that even happen?!" Prompto questioned.

Ignis came back with everything he needed and took a seat beside the girl. "Well," the girl began, "I may have been in range of a building that blew apart and went up in flames."

"Damn," Noctis muttered in astonishment.

Ignis carefully took her hand. "This'll sting," he warned.

He took hold of a piece of glass in the top of her hand. With his index finger and thumb firmly in place, he slowly pulled it out of her skin. She winced and hissed in pain, but remained calm as the advisor set the shard aside and cleaned the open wound. Slowly, he made his way up her arm, removing every bit of shrapnel he came to. He made it to her face, where the metal in the corner of her eye was accompanied by a piece of glass in her cheek and one right next to her ear.

They were definitely more painful to remove than the others, but the worst had yet to come. Ignis was finally to her eye, the worst of her wounds. Even just lightly touching around it stung and caused the girl to wince. Before he could touch the metal, Angelica's hand shot up and grasped his upper arm. She looked at him with a somewhat pleading look, which wasn't common for her.

"Careful, please."

Ignis's emerald eyes softened slightly. "I'll be as quick and careful as I can."

With the others still silently watching on, Ignis took hold of the metal shard. The girl whimpered in reply, biting her lower lip to quiet herself. Ignis began slowly sliding the shard out, using his other hand to hold her by the chin so she wouldn't move. She endured the pain by squeezing his arm, and though she tried to remain quiet, she couldn't stop the agonizing moans and whimpers that tore from her throat.

But with Ignis's quick work, it was soon over. As soon as the shrapnel was removed, he pressed a cloth to her bleeding wound. She let out a relieved sigh and replaced his hand with her own to keep the cloth pressed down on the injury. He released her chin and she let go of his arm in response.

"There. That's all of it." Ignis took the nearby potion he had set aside and crushed it over her shoulder, letting the healing effects spread throughout her body. "Now you're injuries should all heal without any complications."

"Thank you, Ignis." She removed the cloth from her eye and slowly tried opening it. She traced her finger around the area and found her right eye completely open. She was able to see out of it once more. "It's still a bit sore, but I can manage it."

"Maybe you'll wind up with a cool scar like those bad guys in the video games!" Prompto exclaimed with excitement.

Angelica rolled her eyes. "Oh yeah, 'cause I definitively wanna look like them," she sarcastically answered. She then shook her head, a faint smile gracing her lips. "You're such a nerd, Prompto."

Noctis laughed at that. "Couldn't have said it better myself."

"Nice to have the good ol' Angel back," Gladio added.

"Enjoy it while it lasts," she joked. "So anyway, we staying here or something?"

"Yep," the prince replied.

"I'll get supper started," Ignis said.

The group went outside, leaving him to his cooking. But when Noctis, Prompto, and Angelica went to go see the chocobos, Gladiolus stayed behind, wanting to have a chat with the advisor. After all the little signs he was picking up on, he had a few questions for the bespectacled man. Ignis took notice of the tattooed man leaning against the doorway.

"Do you need something, Gladio?"

"I guess you could say that." A small smirk crept across his lips. "Don't think I haven't been picking up on your feelings all these years. I've known you long enough to notice the subtle changes in your behavior. I just didn't expect you to grow so attached to a girl."

Unfazed by the shield's awareness, Ignis continued cooking. "Well, sometimes things simply have a way of occurring unexpectedly. It doesn't surprise me that you took notice."

"You were in a bit of a sour mood after hearing about Insomnia," Gladio pointed out. "Then when Angel found us, I could've sworn I saw your eyes light up." He chuckled to himself. "And the way you reacted to her injuries, you were way more worried about them than Angel was."

Ignis pushed up his glasses, a bit embarrassed by his own overreaction earlier. "I suppose I did go a bit overboard," he admitted with a sigh. "But I simply worry for her, especially now that I understand what Miss Valerie requested of us years ago."

Gladio nodded. "Yeah, I remember that. Looks like Angel really could use someone like you to keep her on the right path."

"It isn't just my responsibility, it's all of ours. Angelica is our friend, and a valuable ally."

"And with the fact that you fancy her," the muscular man added with a smirk. "Why don't you make the next move already? Surely you aren't shy."

"No. I simply do not wish to cross the boundaries of our friendship. I have my duties to Noct, I can't distract myself with selfish desires. And I'm certain Angel feels the same. She takes pride in her responsibilities, as do I."

Gladio rolled his eyes. "Like Noct has any say in your romantic life. As long as you do your job, you're free to do what you want."

Ignis said nothing else on the matter. Truthfully, he was finding it more and more difficult to contain himself. He couldn't even describe how relieved he was when he saw Angelica alive and well after Insomnia's fall. And now he was concerned for her yet again. They all had seen how strong her desire for revenge was, and Ignis feared she might do something stupid in order to quench her thirst for vengeance.

But he vowed to honor Valerie's request. He would definitely keep a close eye on the girl from there on out. Just like with the prince, Ignis would be there to help her when she needed guidance, and keep her from straying too far onto a darker path. He only hoped his own feelings wouldn't interfere.