Hello my fav people ever! Here is a bigger than usual chapter, hope everything is good. Happy holidays to everyone and a happy new year (unless I give a Christmas chapter ;)

Enjoy!

I lowered my head in defeat… Again. I stared at my cards and sighed. My luck hadn't been with me lately, I had lost four games in a row against Riven. For a champion that did not rely on mana, she was very good at Magic.

"Gah, this is gonna go terribly," I sighed. Riven stared at me blankly as she lifted up my cards.

"Why did you not use this?" she asked, flipping a card. "Instead of summoning another creature, you could've destroyed one of mine and regained life."

"Huh… what!?" I exclaimed, staring at the card. She was 100% right. All I had to do was think. I moved my hand towards her cards.

"N-no, trust me, that would've worked," she said, laughing…. oddly. I moved towards the cards again and she jerked her hand back. "Do you want to play another game? Maybe Arena?"

"Yeah, sure…" I said, snatching the cards when she lowered her guard. "You had a counter ready! I would've lost no matter what!"

"S-Still… heh," she said, as I glared at her.

"That's it," I said, slapping down the card from my hand. "I play this. Now, we fight!"

After quickly moving the little table, I pounced on Riven, lightly pinning her against the side of the mattress. She smirked as she climbed up onto the bed, standing on her knees.

"Then we fight here, loser falls to their death," she said, with an exaggerated dramatic voice, grabbing a pillow. "Your sword skills have improved but you're no match for me yet."

"Your cockiness will be your downfall," I said, grabbing my own pillow. I stood across from her on the battlefield, armed and with the intent to… smother. "I'll give you one chance to give up."

"Yeah, I don't think so," She said, swinging her pillow at me. I raised my pillow up and blocked her attack. I weakly swung back as she defended herself easily.

"You won't get anywhere if you don't try," Riven said, smirking. I raised the pillow close to me; as if any of this was part of my real strategy. She swung her pillow with force, and I pushed mine forward. She staggered and I tackled her, using the pillow as a ram. "W-What? That's no fair!"

"All's fair in love and war, Riven," I said, laying on top of her with the pillow in between us.

"Love?" she said, turning her head away slightly. She bit her lip slightly.

"S-Sorry, it's a saying here," I said, quickly. She turned back.

"Do you not love me then?" she asked, quietly. I pushed myself up.

"That's not what I mea-"

Now, I was pinned.

Spending the entire day sleeping was every working adults dream. I laid on my side, staring at my fish tank as the dark fish swam around the large,white fish. I stared at my phone; it was almost one in the morning. I sat up and felt a blast of cold as I exited the comfort of my blankets.

"No, I don't want to work yet…" Riven said, groggily. I smirked and stretched my arms.

"We still have seven hours," I said, as she slowly sat up. "We slept for so long, hope no one needed anything."

"The knocks would wake us up," Riven said, sitting up beside me. She leaned her head on my shoulder. "You needed the rest anyway."

"Was that your plan all along?" I asked as she nodded jokingly. "That was a cheap shot, by the way."

"Yeah, you're one to talk," Riven said, sarcastically. She looked towards the window. "Irelia is near."

"She shows up at the strangest times…" I said, yawning. "Let's go then."

"I need to get dressed," Riven said, as I nodded.

"Alright, princess. I'll wait outside," I said, jokingly.

Grabbing a set of clothes from the pile of clean clothes I was too lazy to sort, I headed for the door. After changing and throwing the other clothes into the laundry hamper, I sat down at the dinner table.

'Wonder what I did wrong today?' I thought. All my encounters with Irelia lately involved her telling me I wasn't taking it seriously. After a minute, Riven came outside, dressed in her original clothing, which she always preferred to wear without the pieces of armor. "Ready?"

"Yes," She said, as I stood up. We began to head towards the door. "Keep your guard up. Three of us will be hard for nearby champions to ignore."

"Alright, don't worry," I said, closing the door very slowly. The last thing I needed was parental questioning.

We headed towards the car, grabbed my sword, and began to head towards the playground, which seemed to be Irelia's preferred meeting point. Riven carried my sword, hidden from sight from any person that could be awake. Riven's senses were on point as usual; we approached Irelia, who stood up as we neared her.

"Hello Riven, Summoner," she said, looking at us respectively. I sighed.

"Riley is fine. How have you been?" I asked, preparing for that to be the wrong answer.

"I have been alright. I wanted to speak with the two of you over a few things," she said. She looked around. "Can we go somewhere more private?"

"Uhh… what?" I asked, staring at Riven. She shook her head.

"We can speak just fine here," Riven said, crossing her arms. "We cannot return home with you, his family would more than likely wake up."

"I see. I do not want to speak here," she said, looking around. She sighed. "I was needing help… Blending in here. My clothing limits me from finding my people."

"Are… You hungry?" I asked, grinning. She stared at me with a weird stare. I shrugged. "Hey, I'll help, just don't get mad at me for not trying."

"I apologize. I spoke out of impulse… But yes, I am hungry," she said, getting quieter as the sentence went on.

"Heh… Well, it's still risky to make something at home. I know just the place though."

My life had become strange, hadn't it? I never expected to have a license or car a few years ago but now I had two women from a video game riding with me. Deciding I wasn't going to sleep till work, we ended up going to a 24 hour diner. Riven and Irelia followed behind me, covered with striped jackets I had laying around. I ended up also grabbing and changing into my work clothing, keeping the shirt unbuttoned.

"Five more hours," I sighed, staring at my phone. We sat down at a booth, led by a woman in uniform. "Caaaaan't wait."

"How has everything been going?" Irelia asked, staring across the booth at me.

"Alright. How have you been?" I asked, as she sighed.

"No luck. I can't seem to find anyone besides hostile champions," she said, crossing her arms. "I can't risk fighting so I stay hidden."

"Wise choice. You're a reliable ally when needed," Riven said, as the woman set down three cups of coffee. "Thank you."

"Oh, no problem, dear. I'll give you three a second to decide and I'll be right back," she said, smiling. "I know it's packed tonight but I won't ignore ya'll."

The second she walked away, Irelia stared at me.

"I do not see many people here," she said, as I rubbed my eye.

"It's just a joke. Order whatever sounds good," I said, as she stared at the menu. "How have you been eating then?"

"I found currency and purchased food. That took a while though, it is not very reliable," she said. I nodded.

"Well, yeah. I'll help you after we eat then, we can get some clothes," I said. She bowed her head slightly.

"Thank you, I appreciate it," she said. Riven turned to her.

"Why the sudden change of heart?" she asked as Irelia stared upwards.

"Well… when Riley and I spoke privately, I said things out of impulse and frustration," Irelia began. "I can't rush him as much as I can't rush my own endeavors. I wanted to apologize for that."

"It's fine, don't worry about it," I said. I smiled slightly. "I'd rather have you on our side."

"Yes, I would too," she said, making a sour face as she drank from the cup. I passed her a bunch of sugar packets.

"Just dump a bunch of those in there," I said. I preferred my coffee to be 60% sugar since it was rarely to stay awake… like it might be needed for later.

A few minutes later, our food arrived after we ordered it. Irelia and I had gotten a breakfast meal while Riven got pancakes. Irelia stared quietly as Riven covered the poor pancake in a sea of sticky syrup.

"After this, we'll go get you some clothes," I said, as she nodded. "Although I don't think my parents would appreciate another champion living with us."

"Oh, don't worry about that. I will be alright," she said, biting into her meal. Her eyes lit up for a second. "This is delicious."

"I haven't come here in a long time, I forgot how good breakfast food is," I said, as Riven nodded. "We figured it out. There's… about fourty champions left counting you."

"Really?" she asked, as I nodded, grabbing my phone.

"We made a list from what we could remember," I said, staring at the small screen where I noted it down. "As far as we know, these are who remains."

"I see. We will continue our efforts as we have been," she said, nodding confidently.

The conversation slowly died down as we all began to focus on eating. Irelia ate very calmly, whether it was how she usually ate or her comfortability with us. I guessed the latter, as I swore Cho'Gath next time me devoured her pancakes as if she hadn't eaten in weeks. I yawned as the woman behind the counter began to head towards the tables to clean them.

"Four and a half more hours," I said, sighing. "I already want to go home."

"Do you dislike your job?" Irelia asked me as I shrugged slightly.

"Not really, just not where I pictured myself in life," I said, leaning back. "Hopefully things will change eventually."

"They will," Riven said, as I nodded. "You said you wanted a change."

"You two seem very trusting of each other," Irelia said, with a faint smile.

The two women began to chat about various things while I stared at my plate. I began to think; I had played as Irelia way more than Riven during the years I played… Riven had been the first champion I refunded because I didn't like her at first. Why was she here with me, instead of any other champion? Why was I attracted to he and vice versa? Irelia didn't seem to be the keeper of answers like I had thought… she was just making logical guessed like the rest of us. I drank the dark nectar as I focused back on their conversation.

"Are you two planning on having children then?" Irelia asked, as I stared at her blankly.

"What? Where did this come from?"

The next fourteen hours went like this: Irelia asked questions about our relationship as Riven answered them, despite me hoping she wouldn't sometimes, after that we took Irelia to a superstore since nowhere else was open and bought her one outfit till the night when we'd go back out. Now, I sat on the comfortable chair in the messy office as the night manager counted the safe with me. I yawned as Carla smacked the back of my head.

"Ugh, why are you still here?" I asked, groggily. She looked at me with a serious face. "What'd I do?"

"You alone have us fifteen hours over on labor," she said, angrily.

"Hey, it's been busy. Ask anyone-" I began as she cut me off.

"This isn't a game. This is what the owners expect us to do," she said, as I sighed.

"They'll get over it. We make so much money, paying two kids like, 50 dollars won't have any of us starving," I said, crossing my arms. "We needed the help. I'm only one person and they refuse to have two managers at any time. Things won't be smooth with two employees running the whole place."

"Honestly, my only concern with you was your attitude. I thought you would take this seriously," she said, in a pissed tone. I stood up.

"Fine, whatever. I'll work the freaking store completely alone for the next two weeks," I said, grabbing a piece of paper. Carla reached for my arm but I quickly moved towards the steel prep table.

"What's gotten into you?" she said, as I signed the paper.

"These new owners are horrible. I'm not putting up with this anymore," I said, leaning down again. I added Riven's name.

"You're… not serious, are you?" she asked as I shook my head.

"I am. I would've loved this a year ago… but these new people are destroying this place," I said, handing her the paper.

"You don't care, do you?" she asked as I sighed and turned to the man counting the safe.

"If that's all you wanna hear, sure," I said. "It's good right?"

"Yep, it's perfect. I'll see you tomorrow then," the man said, whom I previously hated but had become a good friend.

"Give me your keys," Carla said, extending her arm. "Take this week off."

"Alright, making the sixty two year old manager have to cover me cause you don't listen," I said, handing her the keys. I patted the other man on the back and waved slightly. "I was hoping you'd be civil. Goodbye, I guess."

I took off the dress shirt and headed towards the computer terminal where Riven stood waiting. I clocked out for possibly the last time and faced the Noxian. I couldn't help but be relieved, in a way. I leaned forward and kissed her.

"Is everything alright?" Riven asked as I nodded with a smile.

"Everything is great. Things are changing," I said, as she nodded with her own smile.

"Good, you deserve it," she repeated. I grabbed her hand and we walked towards the car. "What happened?"

"We don't work here anymore,' I said, as she nodded. "I'd rather make less and be happy again."

"What next?" she asked as I quickly began to drive home.

"My parents. I can get a new job pretty easily but they definitely need to know," I said, as she nodded again.

"Today has been an eventful day," Riven said. She must've been tired, she had also been awake for almost twenty hours now. "Are you up for tonight then?"

"Yeah, a promise is a promise," I said, as I yawned. "After a power nap."

"Power nap?" she asked, as I grinned.

"Yeah, just a fancy word for a nap."

"Here put this one, this'll make guys crazy," Angie said, as I hung my head. I sat on the usual 'guy bench' at the woman's section of clothing. "Go, go!"

"But I-," Irelia began as Angie dragged her away. She looked towards Riven, who followed them with folded clothing in her arms. "Riven, help me."

"I cannot," Riven said, looking away. "She is… Too determined."

"Knowing that one day Irelia will thank me for my fashion sense," she began, grinning. "It fills me with determination."

"Last time I recommend her a game…" I said, sighing with a smirk.

My instinct was to ask Angie to help us like before. The conversation with my mother had gone very well. She freaked out for a second and then began to scold me for never saying what I really want. After comparing my stubbornness to my father's, she was ultimately happy. I told her the changes made my attitude change and I just wasn't happy there anymore. The conversation ended with her telling me that she told me so about going back to school.

"Snap out of it, loser," Angie said, clapping her hands in front of me. "Think we're good."

"Huh… oh, alright," I said, standing up. Angie handed me my card as I stared at her. "Wait, I never gave you my card…"

"Riven gave it to me…" Angie said, innocently. She handed me my wallet. "Take this too."

"God, don't make me have to change my pin, I love my pin," I sighed as she smirked.

"Calm down, I'm fine with my own identity," Angie said, as Irelia and Riven came towards us, holding a few bags. "It wasn't that bad. Just like last time."

"Thank you very much, Lady Angie," Irelia said, bowing her head. I looked at Irelia.

"Lady?" I asked, as she nodded. "You're the worst person."

"Heh, I am a lady," Angie said, puffing her cheeks.

"Is this fine then?" I asked, as she nodded.

"This is more than enough," Irelia said, as Angie stared at me.

"No," I said, sighing. "You can live two hours without eating."

"Are you going to deny my human rights?" she asked, as we went into the main area of the mall.

"I'm unemployed, I need to conserve money," I retorted with a tiny smirk

"Really?" Angie asked, seriously.

"What, no. We have enough for a while," I said, laughing. "Let's go somewhere. Somewhere with coffee."

As much as I didn't like the mall, it wasn't that bad during the weekdays. We headed to the food court and I walked around with everyone who wanted different food. It was good to see Irelia comfortable when a day ago, I thought she hated us. It was nice to sit down again, I was so low on energy still.

"This week off is gonna be great," I said, stretching my arms. Angie crossed her arms. "Exactly what I needed."

"Everything will be alright, Riley?" Irelia asked. She chuckled a bit. "Nevermind, you seem like you over think things. I doubt you do not have a plan."

"Actually, I don't this time… but I think I'll find something, don't worry about us," I said, yawning.

"You should've slept, this isn't good for you," Angie said, glaring at me.

"Yeah, doubt I'll get better sleep going back to sleep," I said, shaking my head. "School. Back to school."

"We should return home after this," Riven said. She hadn't said much today but, then again, she was with the other girls while I sat on my island.

"Yeah but at this point, I should stay up for a bit and not mess up my sleep cycle," I said. I snatched some fries from Angie.

"Why are you looking for certain people?" Angie asked Irelia.

"I have to protect my own people. Our world is full of tension between… that doesn't matter, really. Ultimately, everyone must return but I'd sleep better knowing the people close to me are safe," Irelia said. Riven's head tilted towards her quickly.

"Yeah, that makes sense. Heh, sorry, I barely know anything about your world," Angie said, as Irelia waved her off. Angie's eyes shone. "Come stay with me!"

"Wha- Are you crazy?" I asked, as she shook her head. "I don't think your parents would be too thrilled with another person living there."

"Maybe… but one night won't matter," Angie said, glaring at me. "Maybe you should move out and have some sort of champion refugee home."

"You know what… No," I said, as she prepared to argue with me as a bunch of teenage kids stared at our table of freaks.

"Hurry," Riven said, as I followed her up the stairs.

"Make a right up here, the storage area has a ladder to the roof," I said, as she nodded. She grabbed the handle and it shook, making a rattling noise. I kneeled down and waved at Riven to kneel. "C'mere."

"Huh?" she asked, as I put my hand near her ear, taking a bobby pin from her hair.

"Good thing you use these," I said, bending it. "And that I played way too much Fallout."

After a few seconds, the door opened, which was an amazement to both of us. Riven grabbed the ladder and looked at me.

"I need to go first, just in case but…" she said, looking away. "Don't look up."

"Huh?...oh, right," I said, laughing slightly. "I've seen you in less anyway."

"Hey, be quiet. Focus on this," she said, smirking.

We quickly climbed the ladder and stood on the top of the three story building. The heavy wind blew as the graying clouds covered the sky. It was cold but Riven, with more revealed skin and her skirt, remained vigilant. I held the sword loosely as we walked forward. Riven extended her arm, stopping me.

"Heh, so you came. I was starting to think you'd run away," the figure said. It was easily recognizable. He extended his sword towards us. "Like you always do, Riven."

Riven stood quietly as I stepped forward.

"Let's get this over quickly," I whispered. Riven looked at me before taking off in a sprint. I took off behind her. "Hey, wait!"

"Please stay back," Riven said, slowing down for a second. "This is between him and I."

"So you're the summoner with the pet champion?" the man said, chuckling. "I expected… A bit more."

"Hey, screw you," I said, as the wind picked up. I raised my arms to cover my face.

The sounds of swords colliding could be heard as I opened my eyes. I saw something trickle down my arm, which I guessed was rain. I lowered my arms and stared as Riven and the samurai continued to clash. I couldn't step forward; looking down, I saw my arms covered in bleeding cuts. The gust of wind had cut me… But I couldn't feel anything.

"R-Riven!" I called out, as the man dashed forward when she jumped upward. I wanted to step back or raise my arm but there was nothing I could do. As Riven landed, she turned her head and stared at me. "What's wrong?"

She slowly fell onto her knees with a face covered in tears. I stared forward as I felt a sharp pain. The man chuckled again as I saw him stand up, holding his arm forward. His sword pierced through my abdomen; I felt lighter.

"I wonder how she feels right now," He said, looking at me. Within the next second, I was falling from the three story roof. Time seemed to freeze again as a million thoughts rushed my mind.

"How does losing a person dear to you, Exile?"

…

…

I bolted upwards, covered in a freezing sweat and a sharp pain until I took a few breaths. Slowly, my head cleared and the bubbling noise of the fish filter filled my head. I was in my room… Where I should be.

"Just a nightmare…" I said to myself.

Beside me was Riven, where she had been every night for the past three months. Everything in my head was fine again. I laid back down and closed my eyes. I felt her move around.

"Everything alright?" she whispered as I put my arm on her back.

"Yeah, just a bad dream," I said, leaning back against the wooden frame. "It's kinda weird to not have to wake up early tomorrow."

"It'll be different," Riven said, sitting up. Her face glistened as much as it could in this darkness. She liked sleeping warmly and always snuck away in the morning for a shower.

"A good different," I said, as she leaned beside me. "I can eat sugary cereal and watch cartoons all day."

"Didn't Nicole need help tomorrow?" Riven asked as I nodded.

"Yeah, guess I'll do that," I said. I turned to her. "I didn't mean to wake you up."

"It's alright, talking with you is never a bother," she said, resting her head on my shoulder. "When would Nicole find out if she was accepted to the school?"

"In a few months, she's getting nervous about it since we haven't finished everything yet," I said. "She needs to master the fine art of last minute editing."

"Are you sure this is a real lesson?" Riven asked, sarcastically.

"Of course, I did some of my best with when I had an hour left," I said, as she smiled. "I probably need some sleep."

"Perhaps," she said, yawning. "Angie told me women need their beauty sleep."

"Yeah, I don't think Angie is a good person to learn about this world from," I jokingly said, as I laid back down. "Hey… About what Irelia said today while we all ate…"

"There'll be tension between us no matter what. While they held Noxus back, it made almost irreparable damage to city-state relations. I know she will not betray us," Riven said, staring upwards. She closed her eyes. "In the end, we hate the same person. The Noxus she sees is the one I do not want to be a part of."

"Yeah, I understand," I said, quietly. "Sorry to bring it up now."

"There should be no secrets between us all, secrets can lead to dangers in relationships."

"Yeah… That's for sure. Goodnight, Riven."