Manifesto Ch. 3

Author's Note: This story has been going much better than I anticipated. I hadn't planned on it getting so many views and positive feedback, so the fact that I am is a true blessing in itself. Obviously, tomorrow is Christmas, so I may not have a chapter for you then, but I'm still off all this week and next week, so I'll have plenty of time. Please keep the reviews coming, and if you like, I'd greatly appreciate it if you started sharing the story with friends. I made a similar agreement with A Boy and His Fox, but if we can get to 65 favorites, I'll start working on doing some League streams. -Kiba

By the time we reached Bandle City, it'd already started to become dark again. I had to commend Nidalee on her patience with me. I don't think I'd ever hiked so far in my life. Every time I had to stop and take a break, she never seemed to mind. She would just sit across from me, staring with an intense curiosity. If I had to guess, I'd say that part of her still thought that I was indeed Kiba, just under some sort of mental affliction.

Something occurred to me, just as the thought crossed my mind. "Nidalee, you're not coming with me all the way to Piltover just to see if I'm telling the truth about who I am, are you?"

"N-no! Of course not. I believe you." She stammered, betraying her true feelings on the subject. At that point, I'd all but given up trying to convince her of my identity. I could understand her logic really. I looked, sounded, and smelled like Kiba. I knew things only Kiba would know. As far as she was concerned, I was Kiba. Which meant, of course, that she only said what she did to try to appease me.

I always hated that. I'm awful when it comes to reading into the subtext of people's expressions and actions. I'd much rather they tell me what they want from me then having this nonsensical dance we call 'socializing'. With Remy, back in my world, we always joke about the things I say. I could say something innocent like, "Are you feeling well? You look like you're not feeling good." To which she'll usually reply with something like "Are you saying I look like crap?"

She's wonderful, I know. I often feel like she deserves better than me. Her ex was a pretty big douche bag, which of course makes me look wonderful by comparison. I always worry that one day she'll wake up and realize how I am without her rose-colored glasses. Maybe she already has and she just doesn't have the heart to tell me so.

"Josh?" Nidalee asked curiously, my silence having elicited her concern. "I'm sorry if I upset you earlier."

"Don't be." I replied simply.

Another awkward silence fell between us. "So, you said you were a writer, right?" I nodded. "So...if you wrote Kiba's story with me...then you must know who is responsible, don't you? Can't you tell someone and stop it from happening?"

I considered it for a moment when a sudden sadness overcame me. All of the people who'd died in my stories, did that mean that in this world I was the one who had killed them? "I can't." I finally responded. "It's important that Kiba discovers for himself who the culprit is. To put it simply, if I interfere, it will change his fate."

"I see." She murmured, before her eyes lit up. "Well, can you at least tell me if we end up together?" I could hear the hope in her voice, but the cheer in her question quickly diminished when she saw the look on my face.

"I'm sorry. There is someone he's destined to be with, but I'm afraid it isn't you." I considered it for a moment before reaching into my pocket where I always kept my phone. I was certain I wouldn't get signal here, but I'd probably still be able to take notes on it. "How about this? When I get back, I'll write a story, just for you. Tell me what will make you happy, and I'll do my best to give it to you."

My offer caused her to smile again, sending a warm feeling through me. I was happy I was able to cheer her up. "Thank you, I really appreciate that. I'm afraid I"ll have to think about what I want, it isn't often I've thought about it. What about you? What is it you look for in a mate?"

"That's a difficult question." I answered, standing up from my resting place on the rock near the mountain's base. "I suppose we'd have to start with personality, since I care more about that than anything else." I chuckled to myself. "Actually, when I was younger I went through a pretty difficult break up, much like yours and Kiba's. I was in your shoes, in the sense that others insisted that we didn't belong together. It was harder that she agreed. I remember laying in my bed, praying for a girl that met items on a check list. She had to be beautiful, both inside and outside. I didn't want someone who had a malicious streak. I wanted her to be a little shy, like me. I even told God that I wanted her to play video games. Well, a few years later, I met Remy."

"And she is your mate?" Nidalee asked.

"Sort of." I replied, trying to think how to explain. "She's my girlfriend, certainly. We've been together for over five years now. She's met every single one of the items I had on my list. I've heard her say a cruel thing about anyone. She looks absolutely beautiful, though she'll never admit it, no matter how hard you try to make her. We're both very shy, me more than her, but when I'm with her, I feel so open. Like, I could tell her anything and she'd understand me. We've had our problems in the past. Things I blame myself for regularly."

Nidalee looked at me curiously. "Odd, you don't strike me as the disloyal kind."

"I'm not." I quickly assured her. "At least, not really. One of the reasons I enjoy writing romances so much is because I'm such a hopeless romantic myself. I fall in and out of love very easily, and unfortunately, it's more of a curse than a gift. I'd never cheat on Remy, not in a million years, but even still, my mind wanders often, even if I will not. It frightens me greatly. A friend of mine once tried to explain it to me as being polyamorous, which means that I naturally love multiple people. But I could never tell Remy that, because I know what she'd feel. She'd begin to wonder if it was because she wasn't good enough, and I don't know how to explain to her that she is everything I could ever want. When I love other people, it isn't because I've stopped loving her."

The huntress seemed confused by it all, but elected to change the subject instead. "Come Josh, we need to get over these mountains before the sun sets or else we will have to make camp once more. I can imagine you must be pretty hungry since you haven't eaten today." As soon as she mentioned it, my stomach let out a loud and painful grumble in agreement, causing her to giggle softly. "I'll keep an eye peeled as we go, alright? I'm sure there are plenty of wild berries in the mountains we can eat."

As we both continued onward, I paused once more to glance over my shoulder. Did Kindred still follow? If so, I wondered why.


As their quarry continued through the mountains, Lamb's ears twitched in contemplation. "Wolf, what is the source of conflict in his heart?" She finally asked.

"He cannot decide what he loves most." The dark figure explained. He then added as an afterthought, "I love chasing."

She mulled over Wolf's answer for a short while before replying, "What is it like to love?" Often she'd read many poems that discussed such a thing, and accounts always seemed so...conflicting. Some would claim that it was a powerful weapon, one that could overcome any obstacle, even the Kindred herself, and thus she felt it must be something to be feared. However, other times it was said to be a curse, one that the only way to escape was through death itself, and thus it was a tool to be utilized. Even still, some explained it as a tender warmth. A comfort in the time of need of those who experienced it, until the time when all things must end, and it in turn would end with it. The idea greatly confused and excited Lamb, but never before had she sought to pursue it until now.

Wolf licked his chops, unsure of how to explain it to her. "It is not like your books, sweet Lamb. It often defies explanation."

"So you do not know?" She postulated.

Her partner bared his teeth at her insulting question. "Of course I know!" He snapped. "It is merely difficult to describe. Love is like…" he trailed off, trying to think of a good example. "Let's try it like this. Sadness is like a long hunt with no kill. Do you remember those words?"

"Yes, dearest Wolf. I recall them well."

"Love is the hunt itself. When one starts the hunt, it is unsure of how it ends. Sometimes the prey is weak and slow, the hunt ending too quickly. Others the hunt goes for ages until it finally comes to a bloody end. Regardless however, one continues to hunt, because in the end it is better to hunt and possibly lose the kill, than it is to never hunt for fear of losing it."

Lamb sighed softly. "I fear your metaphors are wasted upon me, Wolf. I still do not understand. It is logical that one hunts, even with chance of failure because to not hunt indicates constant failure."

He shook his head fervently. "Perhaps so, but that is not how love works for man." He swirled about, ensuring that their prey had indeed come to rest once more before turning back to her. "Little Lamb, what would you do if I were to leave you?"

"I...don't know." She admitted, her eyes meeting his. "Why do you wish to leave me, dear Wolf?"

"We are never apart dear Lamb, I wish for you to understand. You must imagine a day when I leave. Perhaps, something ends my tale before it is time. Perhaps, I will have to accept your arrow at some day. Or imagine that you must choose to run from me?"

"I would never run from you." Lamb soothed him, stroking his muzzle. "We are Kindred, we are eternal."

"All stories must end." He reminded Lamb. "Even ours." She said nothing, simply holding on to his dark fur.

"I do not like this question." She muttered.

"It will not happen until there are none left but Kindred, only then will we possibly have to make the choice." Wolf replied, attempting to console her. "But for sake of discussion, say I was lost. How would you feel, sweet Lamb?"

She paused for a moment, fiddling with thumbs in nervous thought. "I would be incomplete." She finally murmured. "Merely a fragment of who I once was. It would be a long hunt and at its end, no quarry to kill."

The Wolf gave a knowing fanged grin. "You would feel sad?" She nodded her head solemnly. "In your sadness, would you wish to forget that I existed at all?"

"Of course not, dearest Wolf!" She cried in protest. "I would never wish such a thing, no matter how much pain it causes. We are Kindred; you are my brother. I...I…" She stammered, frustrated she could not come up with a word that explained what he meant to her.

Wolf swirled around her nudging her assuringly. "The words you are looking for are 'I love you'. For man, these three words are the most sought after of all, but with it also comes fear and apprehension."

The snow-white beauty was still unsure what he meant by such a thing. "Why does it bring fear, Wolf?"

"Because, sweet Lamb, all stories must one day end. Even ours." He replied. "Love is much like life, you see? In the end, it too must make the choice. It either ends swiftly with little pain or…" He left his sentence open, knowing that she could fill in the rest.

She, however, for the first time in her existence, felt horribly distraught at the concept. Kindred was meant to fear no one, and yet, she found her biggest fear staring her in the face with glowing eyes and gnashing teeth. But unlike those they hunted, it was only his presence that managed to soothe her concerns. Finally, she asked the most difficult question she could ever ask in her life. "Do you love me, dearest Wolf?"

He drifted towards her to give her an affectionate lick on the cheek. "More than even the chase, sweet Lamb."


Coming down through the mountains, Nidalee and I stood at the tiny gates of what was appeared to be a miniature city. I was almost concerned with whether or not I could actually fit inside of it, thanks to my large stature. My weight was never something that truly bothered me, at least on a personal level. But even I had to admit that it was disadvantageous at times. Just as I stepped forward, however, a long dart embedded in the ground at my feet. I was sick of these needles.

"Don't move a muscle!" A high-pitched voice commanded from the top of the wall, which for me was about a foot higher than the top of my head. I'd recognize the voice of Satan anywhere.

"Don't worry Captain Teemo, we're not a threat." I quickly assured him. "My name is Josh, this is Nidalee. We're just passing through." He frowned, judging me with a scrutinizing gaze. Hoisting himself off the wall, the small creature landed with a thud in the dirt, waddling closer and jabbing me with his blow pipe.

"Who are you? How do you know my name?" He demanded, just as Nidalee crouched down to stare him in the eyes.

"He just told you." She stated firmly. "I don't know how he knows your name, but I do know that your welcoming to Bandle City is very lacklustre in comparison to your reputation." Teemo turned on her with a glare as well, just before another voice called from the wall.

"Incoming!" With a loud boom, a tiny woman with pointed ears and blue skin landed with a grin. "Teemo, who are these two? Are they trying to invade?"

"We are not." I quickly interjected. "As I explained to the Captain, I'm Josh this is Nid. It's a pleasure to meet you Tristana." She seemed puzzled for a moment, examining my features carefully.

"Do I know you?" She asked.

I shook my head. "No, but I know you. Both of you. You could say that I'm good friends with Kal." It was a lie, I knew, but it was the best explanation I had. It was difficult getting used to knowing people's names before meeting them in person, especially when I was so awful with names naturally.

Nidalee's gaze shifted to me from the corner of her eye, but she said nothing. "Very well, what business do you have here in Bandle City?" She asked. "We're kind of in the middle of a crisis right now, so we can't just let people in all willy-nilly."

I bit my lip nervously. I hadn't written a crisis for Bandle City except for Jinx's attack during A Boy and His Fox. But, according to Nidalee's statements, that should have come and gone already. We were in the middle of the Grinding of Gears timeline, which meant quite a few things, primarily that Smoothest of Criminals had yet to resolve and Lux would have just met Arcturus. "What sort of crisis?" I asked.

The two Yordles looked at one another with a frown, debating whether or not to share the information with us. "Maybe we can help." Nidalee suggested, though in truth I doubted I would be of much use, regardless of the crisis.

"Well," Teemo began, "it all started a while back. A long time ago, a young Yordle woman disappeared."

"Lulu." I commented, causing him to look surprised. "Don't ask. Continue."

"Right...So, a little while back, she shows back up out of the blue. Except now she's got these freaky powers and she has barely aged at all. She's been gone for centuries, and when she came back she started spouting out stuff about tasting colors and playing hide and seek with flowers."

"Any idea where she went?" Nidalee asked.

"All we know is that she calls it 'The Glade'. She managed to find a faerie of all things." Tristana informed us. "But as chaotic as she is, she's not the worst part."

I'd figured as much. As troublesome as Lulu was, she wasn't typically mean-spirited. She was just...odd. Truthfully, I could understand the way she felt. It was never easy being the outcast of society, especially when you were the sort to prefer living in your fantasies. "Which means that Lulu is working with someone else, and I have the sinking suspicion I know who that someone is."

"You do?" Nidalee was shocked. "How on Runeterra could you possibly know that?"

"I told you, I'm a writer. In my world, I've had to do extensive research on the major forces at play in yours so that I could write about them." The yordles seemed greatly confused by our discussion. "Lulu only really has three friends. First is Pix, her faerie as Teemo put it. Second is Gnar, whom you may have had a brush with once or twice. Tiny orange yordle that every now and then stops being so tiny. Finally, there's the Yordle that I imagine is the source of your trouble: Veigar."

Immediately, Tristana had cocked and loaded her cannon while Teemo trained his blowpipe on me again. "How could you possibly know that?!" She demanded. "You must be a spy for him!"

I immediately held up my hands in surrender. "No, of course not! I'd never do that. I told you, I'm a friend of Kal's."

"Fine. If that's true, you won't mind if we send word to him and ask him about you. If he doesn't know who you are, we'll know that you were lying. If he does and he vouches for you, then we'll know you can be trusted." Teemo hissed.

This wasn't good. If they were to do that, Kal would have no knowledge of who I was. "Alright, but listen closely as this is very important. When you ask him, mention that Nidalee is with me. I've no doubt he'll vouch for us." I commented.

As the two slowly lowered their weapons, Tristana gestured for us to walk through the gates first. "Teemo, you work on sending the message to Kal. I'll escort these two to holding."

Nidalee snarled at the small creature. "You want to cage us?!"

"Tristana," I quickly interrupted standing between the two, "I understand your concern. But given my size and Nidalee's dislike of tight spaces, maybe we should instead be put in the inn. You can have someone on detail to make sure we don't get up to trouble, and this way when you find out we're not a threat, there won't be any hard feelings." I hoped that she would take my suggestion. The last thing I wanted was for Nidalee to start pouncing and mauling Yordles who were unfortunate enough to catch her wrath. "Please?" I added desperately.

"That's not how this works." She sighed. "You should know I can't just allow possible spies out and about in our city."

"How about this? I bet I can tell you something you've never told anyone else before. Something so secret that only you know the information." I tried. "If I win the game, we get the inn. If I lose, we'll go to jail no questions asked."

Tristana smirked, leaning against her cannon. "Fine. Go ahead. I'm an open book, so there's nothing that you can possibly…"

I quickly leaned down to whisper into her ear. "While you were sailing with Kal and Ahri across the ocean to Ionia, you and Teemo shared a kiss. He told you that if you ever told anyone about it, he'd kill you in your sleep." Her eyes went wide as her cheeks turned pink.

"But...you couldn't...how could you…?" Her words were shaky as she sighed. "Fine. You can stay in the stupid inn." She muttered. "But only because I'm worried you'd tell him! If you did, he probably would blame me and say I blabbed about it."

Escorting the two of us, Nidalee pressed herself close next to me. "How did you do that?" She whispered. "Does that mean you know things about me as well?"

"More than you'd like." I muttered, my expression staying stoic and firm. I could sense the fear in Nidalee's question. For her, I imagine it would feel like an awful invasion of privacy. The thought that someone could know her innermost thoughts and feelings, even if there were things she held so dear she would never share them, it must have been terrifying. "If it's any consolation, I never expected to actually come here."

"Bandle City?"

"Runeterra." I clarified. "If you want, we can talk about it in the room. I'll tell you everything I know about you. Anything else, you can keep it to yourself. You don't have to worry about me, I'll never share your secrets with anyone."

She smiled softly. "I appreciate that. I know that so far it hasn't been great to you, but I promise Runeterra really isn't so bad."

"I don't know what you two are talking about," Tristana commented, "and I really don't want to. Here's your room. If you need me, I'll be standing just outside the door keeping watch."

With that, the two of us filed into the room, just before the door slammed shut, keeping us inside of our admittedly comfy prison. "I don't like this." Nidalee said, sitting on one of the small twin beds.

"It was either this or the clink." I reminded her. "I think that this would be preferable for you."

"A golden cage is still a cage." She murmured sadly. "And how do you know this Kal person will even remember you?"

"Oh, he won't. He's never met me before. You, on the other hand, have actually met him once."

She raised an eyebrow curiously. "I...have?"

"It will have been maybe a year or two ago by now. You were being chased by a great red beast named Cho'Gath. You'd just watched him gulp down a few members of your pride before attempting to lead him away. You took him to the badlands, but Zyra had captured you then until the point where he came after the both of you. Do you remember?"

The huntress tapped the side of her head in thought. "I...think so. I'll admit, after spending time with Kiba and Morgana, I've forgotten quite a bit about my old life. I was lucky I could even still transform afterwards."

I nodded. "The magic of the wilds comes from Kumungu Jungle. If you spend too much time out of it, I fear you lose your supernatural abilities. But to get back to the point: Cho'Gath was much too strong for anyone to handle on their own. Kal was the man who managed to help you defeat him. Before he left, you told him that Kumungu takes care of its own, and that he would be seen as a friend of the jungle."

She seemed to have some recollection of the events, but the overwhelming emotion of nervousness drowned it out. "I'll admit, Josh, you frighten me. You remember things I cannot. You even know things about my powers that until recently I had no idea of. You say you're a writer, but there must be more to it than that. What you have goes beyond a story, you've created a reality."

"One that you live in." I replied. "Yes, I know. I suppose this is every writer's dream, isn't it? To be able to walk among their characters as if they truly were alive."

Her scrutinizing gaze was locked on to me as I sat there quietly, my hands in my lap. It wasn't much easier for me to be here either. "So you control what I do? How I feel, how I think?" She asked, a tinge of anger of in her voice.

I shook my head. "A good writer does not use characters as if they are puppets on a string. A good writer watches as his creations grow with him."

"So you made me?" She scoffed.

"No. Someone else created you. I merely used you in my work. There are a few characters I've created myself. You've met two of them so far: Kiba and Kal."

"Why me?"

"I"m sorry?"

Her features became more melancholic as she pulled her legs up on to the bed. "Why did you use me? The feelings I have for Kiba, they were real. Even if I admit that I made a mistake, why would you let me? You're supposed to be the one that influences events. Why did you have to hurt me?"

My breath caught in my throat. "It's not something I enjoy, you know?" I muttered. "I don't like to cause anybody pain. The reason I cried when we fought Zyra...it wasn't because I was scared, it was because I could feel the weight of her life falling onto my shoulders. I'm really sorry Nidalee, I didn't mean to hurt you. I had a role that you needed to play, so I had you play it."

"What role?" She sniffled, the both of us now starting to become emotional.

I stood from my bed, walking to sit beside her. Taking her hands in mine, I tried to explain. "Kiba, as I've told you before, is what I wish I was like. He's charismatic, charming, a skilled writer. That's what I want for myself. But he and I are also similar in that he struggles with love. See, every character I make is, in a way, an aspect of myself taken to the extreme. In a way, Kiba is all of those aspects taken to the extreme. Your role Nidalee was to provide him with a realization, one similar to your own."

"What's that?"

"Just because two people care about each other, it doesn't mean they are destined to be together. People say that love conquers all. In some ways, it's true. But at other times, you'll reach hurdles that love can't solve. Case in point, Kiba's love for you would not have given you back your powers. You wouldn't have gone back to the jungle. To put it simply, you would be absolutely miserable. Maybe you'd have stayed together for a year or two, maybe longer, but in the end you'd realize the truth: you were made for the jungle and he was made for the city. There's nothing wrong with that, of course. It just means that of the people meant for you, Kiba is not one of them. You helped him to realize that his first love doesn't have to be his only one."

She sighed, surrendering herself by curling up on the bed with her head in my lap. I could tell she was hurting, and I felt awful that not only had I caused it, but that I couldn't do anything to make it better either. "I'm not angry at you." She finally said. "I've thought a lot about Kiba since I returned to the jungle. For days, I hoped he'd come visit me in the Jungle. If he did that, maybe he'd find out he could be happy here too. But when he didn't show up, I knew that it wasn't meant to be." Taking my hand, she clung to it, nuzzling it with her cheek. "That's why when I saw you, I became so excited. I thought, maybe now I have a chance again."

"For what little comfort it gives: I am sorry." I whispered. :It hurts when I write bad things happening to others. But sometimes, it has to happen, for the sake of growth as a person. I promise though, I'm going to find a way to make it up to you."

With a smile, she leaned up to kiss my cheek. "Thank you."

Suddenly, a loud explosion rocked the inn, causing me to quickly stand and rush to the window. Outside, a yordle in dark blue reminiscent of a black mage from Final Fantasy stood cackling maniacally. "Run fools, run!" Something was strange about him though. Now he was the size of a full grown human.

To be continued...