Story Four: The Showdown

AN: After a probably longer than what you'd like time, I'm back with a new story! This time it's a friendship/very slight angst/slight romance fanfic, between Riven and Yasuo! I hope you like it. :)

I used to be an honorable warrior, a prideful defender of my people.

Now, I'm exiled from my own land, and I'll be killed on the spot if I ever go back.

Now, all I do is wander along the wind.

Oh, and drink too. I never thought I'd even drink myself to sleep, but right now it seems like I can only be unconscious when drunk.

It feels like the world just hates me. Nothing that I have done good in the past can get me rid of my supposed sins, of the crime I am not culprit of.

All that's left to me is to try and find the true murderer. Not an easy task, I guess. Only thing I know about them is that they must be noxian. Which means my search is reduced to only a few millions of people.

I used to be a true daughter of Noxus, one of our strongest soldiers.

Now, I am scorned by my own land, a victim of treason at its vilest.

Now, I am a noxian seeking redemption, a woman with dreams of her true Noxus back.

Now, I am a woman beaten down by life, a foe to all who once were my allies. I am an icon, an object that all noxian can hate to hide the flaws of our oh-so-grand government.

Above all else, I now am a lost exile, a woman lost in her own life, someone whose ideals were stomped upon by her very friends.

All that's left to me now is to drown myself in drinks, to try and forget all that's happened. Someday I'll rise again. Someday I will show Noxus my strength, rising again. But, until then, I'll have to wander, forever trying to flee my past sins.

The man who walks aside the wind entered the tavern, somewhere in the lands in-between Demacia and Piltover. He'd better keep low, as even here someone could try and arrest him, to take him back to Ionia and get the prize on his head.

Immediately, he headed to the counter, behind which a fat man was sitting. The man was bald, with a long, orange beard falling over his bare chest.

"Hey, bartender, bring me your strongest drink."

The man, which had been excitedly with a cloaked customer, turned towards him, his previously drunk-looking eyes now becoming a deep, examining stare and his joyous face suddenly turning into a serious frown.

Yasuo was about to ask something along the lines of what, and getting ready to not reveal anything about him, when the fat man's face turned back into a happy, understanding smile.

"I'm not even gonna ask what happened to ya, but be careful with what you ask. Ever heard of vodka? Ours is the strongest 'round, if ya really feel like having a real drink."

Yasuo let his face show a small smile, even though he wasn't happy. That man truly was one of a kind, the bartenders who didn't ask things were becoming very rare.

"Sounds good. I'll have it."

The woman quietly approached the newcomer. He had already asked for Gragas' special vodka? He probably was someone good to drink with. And drinking with company always was better than alone, as she had discovered in all these years afte the war.

People usually saw her as a loner, but that wasn't true. She only avoided company for precaution, to avoid possible foes. But this man, this man was a kind she knew well.

From his sunk shoulders, she knew he was tired, beaten down by life. From the unfocused, sad gaze of his eyes, she knew he had been somehow wronged or betrayed. From his facial features and his clothing, which despite being ragged from use still showed out a few of its former characteristics, she was sure the man was either born in Ionia or lived there for most of his life.

He was a hopeless man, someone whose life had been completely shattered.

She knew that kind of person all too well.

She quietly sat on a bench aside the man, who definitely was a looker, despite his old rags and unkempt, shaggy beard. His long hair, tied in a ponytail, probably helped to attract her.

She decided that he did make her kind, but she wasn't about to try to seduce someone she just met in a bar.

And instead, she took the chance to try and have a bit of fun with someone who knew how life truly was.

"Life's been hard for you, hasn't it?"

The man slowly turned his head to her, giving her a tired, but still piercing and examining stare.

He probably decided she wasn't posing a threat, for he let the corners of his mouth curve slightly upwards and said:

"You don't know how hard."

It was now time for her own mouth to become a thin smile.

"I might not know, but I do have an idea. You've been through hard times back in Ionia, haven't you?"

His eyes went wide open. Probably he didn't expect someone to identify his homeland in a bar so many miles away from it.

His hand started a quick, trained motion for his sword, but she stopped it, holding his arm way before it could even reach the handle.

"Now, now, don't be so quick. We don't want to start a brawl and have Gragas kickin' us outta here, do we?"

He didn't dignify her with an answer, instead making a question:

"How do you know that I'm Ionian?"

He was actually oblivious to what revealed him? Riven heard herself giggling inside her head, but managed to keep her laughter away.

"Well, for starters, not many walk around with robes that definitely were made in Ionia, and still have been through years of abusive use. Also, not many men that were actually born in Valoran's mainland use long hair. It's more of a trend from the isles round Valoran, really."

His previously startled and afraid, even, look now had softened into a small smile, recognizing the slyness of the white-haired woman.

"I guess you're right. Still, I want to know what leads you to believe I've been through hard times there."

Riven sighed to herself. The man didn't seem so unaware of what his actions meant before she had talked to him.

"I heard you askin' Gragas for his strongest drink, and I saw your eyes before talkin' with you. Knowin' you were from Ionia, it wasn't hard to guess what made you so depressed. Anyways, care to share a drink?"

She said that right on spot, just when Gragas had returned from his stock with a brand new bottle of his own-produced vodka. Without even waiting for Yasuo's response, he put two cups down on the counter and filled both with a shot each.

Before he could walk away, though, Riven stopped him.

"We'll have the whole bottle, Gragas."

A few awkward seconds passed, Gragas looking at her with a surprised stare. He then shrugged and left the bottle on the counter, in-between the two cups. He then walked up to the cloaked man he had been talking to before Yasuo's entrance, excitedly speaking.

It was time to issue the challenge.

"So, up for a showdown?"

The Ionian smiled. He'd never refuse a challenge such as that.

"Of course. But before, I think we skipped an introduction. I am Yasuo."

Riven now also was openly smiling. Company always felt good.

"Name's Riven. Well met, Yasuo."

He had already lost the count of how many shots they'd had, but focusing himself through the veil of drunkness, he could see they were already way past the half of the bottle. In truth, they had almost drunk the entire thing, something that seemed to amaze the brewer – Gragas, wasn't it? Right now, the fatty was going on about something like how they were heavy drinkers and even he would have some trouble to keep up.

He finally managed to utter out something he had in mind for quite some time:

"Hey, Riven…"

The white-haired beauty, also having trouble to actually make out things, barely noticed that Yasuo was speaking with her.

"What is it?"

"Do you happen to know somewhere I could sleep this night? I don't think I can find a good spot after this little showdown of ours."

Riven now had been presented to a true dilemma. Should she offer him a spot in her room? Unlikely. She had just met him today, she was drunk and she had no idea if he'd accept to not try any funny things.

However, despite her better judgement, and in part because of her not-so-few shots of vodka, decided to extend him that invitation.

"Well, I have a room up here, in the second floor, but there's a problem."

Yasuo managed to shove his drunkness completely out of his way, focusing only on riven's words.

"We'll have to share a bed."

Yasuo's eyes shot wide open. He might have misinterpreted it, but if he hadn't, things were progressing way too fast.

She probably noticed what his wide-eyes meant, as she said:

"Not like that! No funny things, understood? I'm just helping you."

Well, he had no reason to refuse such a kind offer.

The two drinking buddies haphazardly made their way to the room they'd share for the night, supporting themselves by wrapping their arms round their shoulders, and then stumbling through the hall of the inn, up the stairs and finally through the short hallway before Riven's room.

They finally reached the room, not completely unscathed, as both had had way more shots than they should. Riven fumbled awkwardly her pockets for her key. After a few moments, she managed to fish it out, and now once again fumbled, as her inebriation stopped her from properly inserting the key in the lock.

When she finally managed to open the door, the two quickly went in.

They said nothing, they thought nothing. They just went straight for the bed. For the bed they'd share.

AN: And I'll leave the rest for your imagination. Did they walk past the line of what can't be undone? Or did they actually follow Riven's "no funny things" rule? Were they "having a good time" that night or not? You guess it.

So, I'll try to upload the Kat/Ashe story after this one, but it has been hard to write. Very hard. But until then, I hope this here was good enough.

Now bring forth the "Review Reply Corner(tm)"!

Malleus08: Thank you for all the praise! It's really good to hear that you, the one who asked for that story, liked it! I hope you also liked this one. :)

Creator0fWords: I, through the powers conceded to me by none other than myself, hereby forgive you from all of your crimes and sins.

I love the fact that everybody seemingly was pleased by how that Lucian story came out, as I myself really loved the way it came out. And, inb4 you misunderstand the way I write, most of the content I create will end up as somehow or somewhat dark, simply because I don't know how to write a serious story which is not dark-ish. And I'm sorry for not bringing the Kat/Ashe yet, But I'm trying! Don't sue me! T.T

Anyways, I really hope this lighter fanfic pleases you as much as the previous, if not even more! And stay on your toes for the next chapter(which I hope will be the Kat/Ashe)!

OoMatsoO: Well, glad to hear that you enjoyed it. Also, your suggestion has really baffled me. I sent you a PM about it. Don't take it wrong, I just am curious and want to understand what made you ask it.

I guess this closes the Corner. Goodbye, my dear readers! Until the next chapter!