A/N: The first half or so of this was like pulling teeth. That plus a weekend of URF, plus being forcibly 'volunteered' at a lab, means this was so. So. Late.
Unfortunately, I have a bit of bad news. After the chapter after this one (which might not be on time either), I'm gonna need a break to plan and brainstorm what I want to happen. I'll probably drop this for a while, maybe write some oneshots. Speaking of oneshots, I wrote one. It's on my profile, of course. Go read it? :P
Really talky chapter today, but next one will have more action, I swear. As always, thank you for reading this, and for your patience. Drop a review or something if you have a moment to spare?
XIII – Oh, yes! It's about to get much worse.
"That woman is hiding something," Thresh announced.
Ashe sighed. "I'm afraid you'll have to be more specific. Which woman? Sejuani? Elise?"
"That friend of yours," he hissed. "Lissandra."
"Oh dear. What have you done now?" she said.
"Worried? How cute," he said. "Don't be. No one noticed me."
She fixed him with a flat stare.
Thresh made a dismissive noise. "I merely observed. I would hardly do something to bring an army to your doorstep."
"Of course not," she said, rolling her eyes. "At any rate, what do you mean by 'hiding something'?"
"She… is not quite what she seems."
"Oh?" Ashe raised an eyebrow.
"For what she claims to be, her soul is – off. Not right," he replied. He seemed to be choosing his words carefully.
"You're being awfully vague," she said, with a frown. "What do you expect out of me by revealing this? To cut off my relationships with her?"
"Not at all," Thresh said, unfazed.
"She is a kind person and a good friend. There's no reason –" She cut herself off, shaking her head. "Everyone has things to hide. I haven't a leg to stand on to judge anyone else on the basis of 'hiding something'." She looked at him pointedly.
He grinned. "Of course not. Besides, you trust her, no? To tell you if it's truly important?"
Something wasn't right, here.
"You're not telling me everything," said Ashe.
"Perhaps I am not."
Her eyes narrowed. "The last time this occurred, the information being withheld led to people dying."
"You want to know, then?" he asked.
"Yes, of course I do."
He stared at her silently. What was he –
The irony hit her. It must have shown in her expression, because he began to laugh.
"I almost feel a sense of déjà vu," Thresh said. "Hm, what could it be?"
She scowled. "If people – this ceases to be a game when people are in danger!" she growled.
"Is that so?" he said softly, suddenly serious. "Does it? Mortals… they all die in the end, no?"
She did not need to hear this right now. "Is this your attempt at convincing me to tell you the – the thing I hadn't wanted to tell you?" Ashe asked.
"I don't know. Is it?"
Wait a moment.
"You haven't even confirmed if this – whatever this is you're not telling me is dangerous or not," she realized.
"Indeed. You came to that conclusion on your own," Thresh said, seeming amused.
She stood up and began to pace. "I am under no obligation to tell you anything," she mused. "But, neither are you obligated to tell me anything." Besides, she really should trust Lissandra, shouldn't she?
"Of course," he agreed.
Ashe shook her head in a futile attempt to clear it. Obligated or not, she still wanted to know what it was that he was keeping to himself. There was also an urge to tell him about the mess with Anivia, logic be damned, accompanied by a surge of emotion she was unaccustomed to feeling, one that left a bitter taste in her mouth. Guilt. Which made little sense.
But, after the guardian once again hatched from her egg, their association would be more or less over. At that point, it would probably be fine to tell him.
"I still cannot tell you anything yet," she said. "But – soon."
"How considerate of you," Thresh said.
She rolled her eyes.
Two seconds. Ashe let her attention lapse for two seconds, and suddenly there were spiders everywhere. They were on the floor, the walls, the ceiling, and all the furniture. The entire room was covered in black chitin.
She blinked once, twice, then mechanically rubbed her eyes.
"Please tell me I'm having a nightmare," she said.
"Unfortunately," Thresh muttered, "I cannot."
"Come now, I'd almost think you were unhappy to see me."
The words came from a woman who had definitely not been there a moment ago. She had red hair, and was wearing something like a corset, except more revealing, but her most obvious feature was the spiderlike appendages extending from her back.
"That would be because I am unhappy to see you, Elise."
Elise sniffed, folding her arms. "This was planned to be a surprise for you. Though, I'm not at all shocked you read the other letter. Some days, I feel you wouldn't know manners if they hit you upside the head."
"I did not read it," Thresh growled. "The – ah – intended recipient informed me of your visit."
The spider woman seemed to notice Ashe for the first time. "Oh! Forgive my rudeness," she said, smiling. "What might your name be?"
"My name is Ashe," the archer said, then glanced around. Thresh had vanished as soon as he was no longer the subject of attention.
"I'm sure you already know who I am, but allow me to introduce myself. I am Elise." The woman held out a hand.
Ashe shook it automatically. Wait, were those – those fingers tapered into sharp, red claws. She let go of the handshake a bit more quickly than was polite.
She scrambled for something to say, to cover her faux pas. "Er – I hope your journey was safe and pleasant?" she said. "You mentioned, in your letter, that you were going to help your friend? Is she alright? Where is she?"
"Oh, Evelynn is fine, and she is around, thank you," Elise said. "Though she failed to get the tea… and I ran into few issues along the way."
Ashe cast a glance at the swarm of spiders – which was still covering everything – then at the strange appendages, like the limbs of a spider, sprouting from the woman's back. "Excuse me," she said, "but may I ask how you got here without being subject to some… questions?"
"I can be perfectly subtle." With no fanfare at all, Elise was suddenly a normal, if rather striking, woman, and her swarm vanished.
She blinked. "I see."
Elise's appearance flickered, then reverted to normal, with the spiders also reappearing. "Anyhow," she said, "I am pleased to finally meet you, Ashe. I've heard interesting things about you."
"The same to you," Ashe replied. "How did you hear of me?"
"The same way you learned of me, I should think."
Naturally. She smiled and clasped her hands together, absentmindedly noticing her palms were sweating.
"Hm. You have lovely hair," Elise said, abruptly. "Would you permit me to braid it?"
What? Her hair? Ashe took a while to register the non sequitur. "I don't see why not," she said after a moment, sitting down.
Elise moved to stand behind her seat. "Now," she said, "I must confess to some curiosity. How did you come to meet Thresh?" Deft fingers separates her hair into parts, working out the tangles.
"Do you mean why he came to be in the Freljord?"
"No, not that," was the reply. "I suppose… allow me to be blunt. I have never heard him speak of anyone in the manner he does of you."
That was a worryingly vague statement. "I do not know his mind," Ashe said slowly, "nor do I think I want to. I do not know why –"
"Understandable, but that was not what I meant to ask," said Elise. "Simply put – who are you?"
She opened her mouth to respond, but then felt an odd sensation on her head. Almost like something crawling…
"Are their spiders in my hair?" she asked, focusing on keeping her breathing even.
"Spiderlings."
"What?"
"My children are called spiderlings."
Ashe processed the words, then decided to forget the past few seconds of conversation. "Of course," she said. "What was your question, again?"
"I asked, who are you?" Elise repeated.
Many-legged movement in her hair. She resisted the urge to scratch, and the urge to break out in screams and flee somewhere far away. That would be… rude. Yes.
Instead, she responded, "Well, I – I am Ashe. I am sixteen years of age, and I lead my tribe, the Avarosan. My dream – no, I will one day unite the Freljord, and lead it into an era of peace."
"Hm. Better, but still not quite what I was asking. That is what you are. I asked who you are."
She blinked in confusion. "Then I am sorry, but I don't understand what you mean."
Elise paused for a moment. "Well, then. Let me think… tell me, how would you like to die?"
What? "How I'd – how I want to die?"
"Yes. Ideally, how?"
Well, the natural answer would be of old age, in sleep, no? But when she tried to voice that, the words felt wrong. "I'm… not sure."
"The fact that your immediate answer is not 'of old age, peacefully, surrounded by loved ones' is telling," said Elise.
Ashe struggled to find words to explain it. "It just – it seems like such a, I don't know, meek end," she said. "Like – my death wouldn't accomplish anything? I can't express it clearly. I've seen so many people die uselessly."
And the idea of her death, by any means, scared her a bit. If she died, that would be the end. She would be leaving everything behind, just like –
"Is that so?"
"I would prefer to not speak of it," she muttered.
"I apologize. I should not have pressed," Elise said.
She shook her head. The motion jostled her hair, making her acutely aware of an almost liquid feeling in the strands. "What is –" she began.
"Silk."
"Oh. Is that… necessary?"
"Of course."
"Anyhow," Ashe said, "what about you? You call the Shadow Isles your home, yet you don't seem to be undead." The topic change was heavy-handed, but she wanted to move on.
"I am not," Elise confirmed.
"So…" she prompted, after some time passed with no further clarification.
"I was human, once."
"But you are not anymore?" Ashe asked.
"No," said Elise. "As a human, I had always been rather… apathetic, is the best word. I was the daughter of a minor noble, destined for some political marriage, with nothing to look forward to. I found nothing particularly interesting or exciting. I went through the motions without finding anything that truly mattered, to me."
"What changed?" Ashe said.
"What gives you the impression that something changed?" The woman's voice was amused.
"Quite evidently, something did."
Elise giggled. It was an unnerving sound, though for a different reason than Thresh's laughter – it sounded almost normal, but with something just slightly off. Or perhaps that was the spiderlings laughing along with her, in a cacophony of scrapes and screeches.
"Yes, something did… change," she said. "I paid a visit to the Shadow Isles, along with a companion. I do not recall why, anymore, but it matters not. The Isles – the moment I arrived, they called to me. My friend found the place unnerving, even repulsive, but I could see past that. I felt drawn to stay. The Isles wanted me." She sounded nearly wistful in her recollections.
"What are the Shadow Isles like?" Ashe said. "I will most likely never go there myself. Would you describe them for me?" What was this place that she and Thresh and so many other creatures of nightmare called home?
"If you desire an impartial description, I am not the best person to ask," Elise told her. "But I find them beautiful. Most of the Isles is forested, but the trees are unlike any other, ghostly, and so is the rest of the flora. The Black Mist blocks much of the sunlight, casting a perpetual twilight over the place. It is quite lovely. My words cannot do it justice."
It was difficult to imagine. Ashe had never before set foot outside the Freljord, barring her recent trip to Bilgewater, let alone seen forests.
"But I digress. Would you care to hear the rest of my story?"
"If you don't mind overmuch."
"I do not." Elise's fingers twisted the newly created braid on her head, forming loops. "Where was I… yes. My companion was growing increasingly restless, but I insisted we press on. And then I heard the spider's song."
Ashe frowned. Spiders were incapable of singing, weren't they? Was she being metaphorical? "The spider's song?" she asked.
"The song of the spider god." It wasn't visible, but she could swear Elise was smiling.
"Is this spider god the reason you are… as you are now?"
"Indeed," she replied. "My god's venom is what rids me of my mortality and grants me my power." She looked around the room. "You don't have any hairpins, do you? I suppose I must make do."
"Immortality and power? That seems to be an awfully good deal," Ashe said.
"It is. The occasional necessary human sacrifices are hardly a significant price."
She froze. "Human sacrifices?"
"Oh, yes. My companion was the first, but they aren't so difficult to obtain," said Elise. "A simple offer of religious –"
"How could you?" Ashe whispered.
"Excuse me?"
"Human sacrifices – how could you possible –"
"They are in a better place now," Elise said. Her voice had taken on an odd echo. "I have taken them all to a better place. Do you presume to judge my actions? It is no one's place but my god's to judge me!"
Ashe winced at the sharp tug on her hair that punctuated the last statement. "I'm sorry," she said, "I spoke badly." And she really had no room to judge, given what she herself had been privy to in the name of her own beliefs, given all the people she had hurt.
If nothing else, Elise clearly believed in this god of hers, even if she did have other motives. The idea of immortality and power would drive anyone to questionable actions, after all – everyone was selfish to some degree. No room to judge.
"I understand. Apology accepted," Elise said. The echoing quality to her voice was gone. "You are human, so it would be a natural reaction."
"Judging isn't something I should be able to do," Ashe muttered. "I – my own ethical code and such has been rather skewed for a while."
"Hm. Am I correct in assuming that Thresh –"
"Yes," she mumbled, cutting off that sentence.
"…do you regret that? Do you hate him for it?" Elise asked.
"I… want to," said Ashe, quietly, "but I don't believe I can."
A minute or so passed in silence, apart from the noises of the swarm of spiderlings she'd almost managed to forget about.
"There," Elise announced. "Finished." She took a few steps to stand in front of Ashe, eyeing her critically. "You look lovely."
"Er, thank you," she replied. She then picked up a hand mirror off her desk, the spiderling sitting on it scuttling away, and held it up to see her reflection.
It was impossible to see everything, what with not being able to see the back of her head, but what she could see was impressive. Her hair was tucked neatly into what seemed to be a single white braid, threaded through with silk. The braid was coiled on the back of her head, deliberately slightly off-center, into a rose-like shape. The whole thing was held together by what looked to be – were those spider legs – performing the function of hairpins.
She decided to not comment on that last fact.
"Thank you," Ashe said.
"No need to thank me," Elise said. "But perhaps there is someone to whom you want to show that?"
She blinked uncomprehendingly, before it hit her and she looked away, cheeks pink. "That – no –"
"Teasing. Both of you could do with some of it." The woman waved a hand. "But, I must be going now. I shall be around for a while still, however. Your people seem… nice."
"So long as you don't steal any of them to the Shadow Isles to sacrifice," Ashe said, a playful smile on her face.
"I wouldn't dream of it."
It was a bit disconcerting how quickly Thresh showed up after Elise's departure.
"Are you finally –" he began, then stopped upon seeing her.
"Finally what?" Ashe asked, keeping her expression as innocent as possible.
"Your hair," he said, after a moment of seeming lost for words. "What."
"Do you not like it?" She feigned a hurt expression.
"No, I – it's –" Thresh held a hand to his head, muttering something indiscernible. "It's nice," he said, at last.
"Thank you," she replied. "Actually, I had been considering cutting my hair, as it was becoming too long to be manageable, but I think I'll be keeping it like this from now on."
"I take it you had fun, then?" he said. "You seem to be in high spirits."
Ashe sobered slightly. "Elise is interesting. I suppose I can see why you might find her annoying, and while she's hardly a paragon of virtue –"
"The human sacrifices?" Thresh said.
She rolled her eyes. "Of course you… yes, the human sacrifices. Regardless, I do like her. Her story is quite fascinating."
"I vaguely remember her as a human," he said. "I saw her once when she was human. I meant to watch her and her friend for a while before pointing Yorick in her general direction, but then she found the spider."
"The spider god?"
"Mm. That is what she calls it, yes. Its name is Vilemaw, I think."
Ashe took a moment to digest that information.
"Thresh," she said eventually, "what is your story? How did you come to be as you are?"
He sighed. "That is something I prefer not to discuss, at least not now. My past is my own business."
"Ah."
"Though, I might tell you soon." Thresh grinned at her.
She frowned, giving him an unimpressed look, but a tiny smile found its way onto her lips.