[Regis doesn't notice the threads of fire and ash that spread across Noctis' skin right away because he is watching how the ring reacts to their current environment, but the moment he turns to his son to make a comment on it, horror immediately kills his words. He knows the ring damages even those allowed to wear it, but this? This looks more like the marks he would expect on one who was not allowed to wear the ring at all.
Before he knows what he is doing, Regis is reaching for Noctis' wrist. Does he plan to pull the ring from his son's hand? Does he just want to make him drop the spell? It's hard to say, but what does happen as soon as Regis' fingers make contact is the sharing of a flash of memory...
The room is dim, lit by only a few flickering candles. The light never quite manages to drive away the coolness of the surroundings or dispel the shadows that darken the reflection of Regis' face in the mirror. He is tired, already wearied by the responsibility he always knew was coming, but is so suddenly here.
Of course, his father would make things difficult by passing in the middle of the night.
On the dresser below the mirror a small velvet lined box sits. Within it, the Ring of the Lucii. Regis has been saying for years that he's ready to put it on--ready to do what his father hasn't--but suddenly he's hesitant to do so.
Why is that? It's not as if he is hesitant to help his people. It's not even as if he is hesitant to hold the weight of the Wall or to give his life little bit by little bit for the sake of the duty that was given to their line so many years ago. So, what is it? What makes him stop himself from touching the familiar shape? What keeps him from lifting that small piece of metal and bearing the weight of all that has come before?
Could it be the knowledge that his father is there now too? A spirit within the ring always watching and waiting? While he had still lived, Regis could leave his father's presence when the judgment and disdain became too much. He won't be able to do that now. Once he has put on the ring, it will be linked to him until he dies. The Kings of Yore will have a conduit to him be they those who died long before or those who just left life.
The Wall will stand only so long without the ring linked to a ruler, and Regis can feel every second as it passes, a steady ticking that fills the otherwise silent room with sound. His father stopped him from doing what he felt needed to be done while he was alive. How long will Regis let his disdain keep him from doing his duty to his people now?
There is a knock on the door and right after it, the concerned voice of his beloved. Of course, Aulea would not leave him to face this by himself for very long. She has always been there for him no matter how his father had scowled at her, and for some reason, it is that thought that breaks the deadlock in Regis' mind. She has always been there for him, to support him through good times and the times when his father made life a living hell. That isn't going to change no matter how much his father may try to belittle him from the ring itself.
Nothing has changed. Nothing, besides the fact that he now has the power and the ability to act for his people in the ways he's been wanting to for years. It will not be easy, but he has never expected it to be.
Nothing has changed...besides everything.
Regis slips the ring onto his finger even as he turns toward the door to answer Aulea. There is a crackled of power, a rush of greeting, and then silence. No mocking familiar voice, no lingering feeling of disapproval.
Regis was a tired, worn man when he entered the room five minutes before. When he leaves, he is a king with a whole kingdom awaiting him and the knowledge that he does not have to face what is to come alone.
no subject
Before he knows what he is doing, Regis is reaching for Noctis' wrist. Does he plan to pull the ring from his son's hand? Does he just want to make him drop the spell? It's hard to say, but what does happen as soon as Regis' fingers make contact is the sharing of a flash of memory...
The room is dim, lit by only a few flickering candles. The light never quite manages to drive away the coolness of the surroundings or dispel the shadows that darken the reflection of Regis' face in the mirror. He is tired, already wearied by the responsibility he always knew was coming, but is so suddenly here.
Of course, his father would make things difficult by passing in the middle of the night.
On the dresser below the mirror a small velvet lined box sits. Within it, the Ring of the Lucii. Regis has been saying for years that he's ready to put it on--ready to do what his father hasn't--but suddenly he's hesitant to do so.
Why is that? It's not as if he is hesitant to help his people. It's not even as if he is hesitant to hold the weight of the Wall or to give his life little bit by little bit for the sake of the duty that was given to their line so many years ago. So, what is it? What makes him stop himself from touching the familiar shape? What keeps him from lifting that small piece of metal and bearing the weight of all that has come before?
Could it be the knowledge that his father is there now too? A spirit within the ring always watching and waiting? While he had still lived, Regis could leave his father's presence when the judgment and disdain became too much. He won't be able to do that now. Once he has put on the ring, it will be linked to him until he dies. The Kings of Yore will have a conduit to him be they those who died long before or those who just left life.
The Wall will stand only so long without the ring linked to a ruler, and Regis can feel every second as it passes, a steady ticking that fills the otherwise silent room with sound. His father stopped him from doing what he felt needed to be done while he was alive. How long will Regis let his disdain keep him from doing his duty to his people now?
There is a knock on the door and right after it, the concerned voice of his beloved. Of course, Aulea would not leave him to face this by himself for very long. She has always been there for him no matter how his father had scowled at her, and for some reason, it is that thought that breaks the deadlock in Regis' mind. She has always been there for him, to support him through good times and the times when his father made life a living hell. That isn't going to change no matter how much his father may try to belittle him from the ring itself.
Nothing has changed. Nothing, besides the fact that he now has the power and the ability to act for his people in the ways he's been wanting to for years. It will not be easy, but he has never expected it to be.
Nothing has changed...besides everything.
Regis slips the ring onto his finger even as he turns toward the door to answer Aulea. There is a crackled of power, a rush of greeting, and then silence. No mocking familiar voice, no lingering feeling of disapproval.
Regis was a tired, worn man when he entered the room five minutes before. When he leaves, he is a king with a whole kingdom awaiting him and the knowledge that he does not have to face what is to come alone.
Things are as they should be.]