Another short. Fluff 'n' stuff, I say!

Riven pushed open the front door to Irelia's new home, only to shut it immediately as a torrent of stinging rain pelted her face. Sputtering, she stepped backwards into the adjacent parlor and poked her dampened head past the door frame. "You were right. It's coming down pretty hard."

Seated at the knee-high table in the center of the room, Irelia set down her book and sighed, "Was it necessary to drench yourself just to verify the obvious?" There was no malice or ridicule in her tone; to anyone listening she would sound, impossibly, perhaps inhumanly, neutral. Riven, however, saw that the Ionian woman's eyes squinted slightly, her lips baring the faintest hint of a smile. Faint, but more than enough to cause the Noxian's heart to flutter.

The fair-headed woman grinned, stalked into the room, then shook her head to scatter water through the air. "Hey look!" she exclaimed. "It's raining!"

Even the impassive Will of the Blades couldn't keep the look of annoyance from her face as she brushed the droplets from the cover of the book. "Riven. How old are you again?"

"Look, I can't believe these words are about to leave my mouth," Riven said, collapsing onto the floor next to Irelia, "but I think you should lighten up. It's a day off and we're going to a festival tomorrow. Have some fun."

The Ionian groaned then rested her forehead against the table. "The weather isn't exactly conducive to lightening up." As she spoke, a crack of thunder shook the wooden walls of her home.

Riven folded her own arms on the table and rested her cheek against them. "Aren't you bored?"

"Ionians do not get bored," came the instant, muffled replied. "I'm contemplating."

The Noxian let out a short chuckle. "Liar. We should go out."

Irelia turned her face to the side to gaze at her friend, her midnight locks spilling over her face. "Aren't you not supposed to get your splint wet?"

"Details."

"It's torrential out there."

Riven laughed. "That makes it more fun."

A weary sigh escaped the Captain's lips. "I think I liked it better when you were quiet all the time."

At that, Riven's face grew serious and her chest tightened. She was working on it, but she hadn't reconciled "old Riven" and "new Riven" quite yet. The possibility that in some way the manner in which she had changed wasn't well-received was disturbing. But seeing the solemn look on the Noxian's face, Irelia added, "Of course, that was a joke because I like you just fine. Now, are you going to convince me to do something ridiculous or not?"

I like you just fine. The smile slowly returned to Riven's face and she leapt to her feet. "You won't regret it," she promised. "Really, being in the rain is great!"

Irelia stood as well, finding herself infected by Riven's energy. "Why do you like the rain so much?" she questioned as she pulled a jacket from the hall closet.

The tow-headed woman recoiled, her insides instantly twisting into knots. "Ah, well, rain is clean," she stammered. "And... I don't know, it's just nice I guess."

The Noxian wasn't sure, but it looked like disappointment flashed across the Ionian's face as she said, "Sorry. Sometimes I forget that we hardly know each other."

And for a moment Riven could only stare blankly at the Ionian. Irelia was disappointed that she hadn't told the truth, but that meant she wanted to know more about her, right? If she wanted to know more about her, then maybe... Riven opened her mouth to speak, but Irelia was already saying, "So, are we doing this?"

The Noxian gave an internal sigh, berated herself for being so stupid, then put a hand on the handle of the front door. "Ok, when I open the door, we'll run outside, that way less water gets in the house," she instructed.

"How do I know you're not going to lock me out the house?" Irelia demanded.

A wry smile twisted the fair-headed woman's face. "You'll just have to trust me."

Irelia raised an eyebrow as if she was going to protest, but Riven was already poised to run.

"One."

The Noxian directed her gaze toward Irelia, gave her an encouraging nod.

"Two."

Irelia sighed.

"One."

Riven twisted the handle, screaming, "GO!" and the two women ran squealing into the rain.

The grassy lawn which surrounded the small house was swampy and filled with puddles, the gravel path leading to the door, slippery. It was midday but the sky was dark, muting the colors of the world around them. Then a wire of lightning split the clouds followed by a peal of thunder and Riven echoed it with an excited shout.

To her surprise, Irelia doubled over laughing.

"What?" the Noxian shouted, a smirk pulling her lips.

"This is so ridiculous!" she answered, pushing her drenched hair from her face only to have them slip back over her eyes. "I can't even see!"

Without thinking, Riven grabbed her hand and replied, "Don't worry! I won't let anything happen to you."

And her heart sank when Irelia gently pulled her hand back laughing, "I can take care of myself!"

The blonde forced a laugh of her own. "We'll see," she joked, showing her own hands into the pockets of her pants. "Come on! Let's walk to the pond then we can come back."

They passed the other homes in the area, all with curtains drawn and warm light peeking through the blinds but the two women continued down the gently sloped hill toward the neighborhood pond. It was a beautiful area covered in pink flowering trees which stretched out over the water and surrounded by thick green grass, but that day it was drowned. The roots of the trees closest to the waterline were already submerged and the grass leading down to the water was treacherously slick.

"Doesn't it feel like we're the only people in the world right now?" Irelia asked, looking out over the choppy pond. "It's so empty! Even the birds are in their homes!"

"Is that such a bad thing?" Riven countered. "You're always surrounded by people. Don't you get tired of it?"

The Ionian looked as though she were going to protest about how she was happy to be so well loved by her people that she was always busy helping them, when Riven reminded, "We're the only people in the world right now."

Irelia looked down at her soaked feet, then said, "Yeah. It can be tiring. Sometimes I just want to tell people to leave me alone or just spend the day alone at the house. But I mean, I don't want to complain or anything!"

"Irelia, you're not complaining," the Noxian assured. "How could anyone think you're complaining if you're just saying you need some time alone?"

The dark-haired woman shrugged her sodden shoulders and replied, "I'm supposed to be the defender of Ionia. There's no room for what I want."

Riven frowned, "Of course there is! You just need to make room!"

Irelia raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms over her drenched shirt. "When you were considered the epitome of the Noxian spirit, could you just 'make room' for what you wanted if it had nothing to do with your role?"

At that, the soldier bit her lip and went silent as the memories of her time in the Noxian army came hurtling back into her mind. Of course Irelia was right: To give oneself totally to one's country stripped away any many opportunities afforded to others. Hadn't she had to put herself into a self-imposed exile in order to have her own life?

The two stared over the water for a few more minutes in silence until the Ionian said, "You're right. The rain is nice. I feel like I can be anyone I want, just for a little bit."

It was a feeling all to familiar to the Noxian and this time she didn't hesitate. "When I was in Ionia with the army, it rained a lot," she confessed. "When I stood in it, I felt like maybe it was washing away some of the blood on my hands. And as long as I stood in it, I was clean. I wasn't a killer. I was just... me."

A sympathetic look came over her friend's face despite the crimes she'd admitted to committing against her people. "I thought I would never have it in my heart to forgive Noxus for what was done to Ionia," Irelia said. "But I've seen how much you suffer and even though I know most of Noxus would never feel the same regret, I think because of you, I can forgive it." Her tentative fingers took Riven's in hers and held her palm up to the sky. "To me, your hands are clean."

The Noxian was thankful for the rain pelting her face as her eyes welled with tears. Irelia had such a kind heart; how could she not fall for her? She didn't want to pull her hand away, didn't want to break the moment, but after a few moments, Irelia smirked, "I thought this wasn't supposed to be serious event?"

Riven let a smile work its way onto her face, then threw the water that had pooled in her open palm at her friend's face. "Race you back!" she called as she took off the slippery grass at a sprint.

By the time they had returned to the house, they were covered in mud, drenched, and breathless with laughter. They collapsed in the entryway of the home, uncaring now of the water and mud puddling around them as they pulled off their soaked shoes, socks, and jackets.

"Thank you for telling me what you did, Riven," Irelia smiled. "Even when I'm learning new things about you, sometimes, it feels like I've known you forever."