Talon loosened the clasp of his cloak and hang it over a chair. The last six days of travel had gone fairly well, Lux and him had covered slightly more ground than he had scheduled. It would take them approximately two more days to reach the outskirts of the Variu Mountains. That meant they could spend two more nights in inns, there were hardly any houses in the wilderness and there would be even less population when the climb up the mountain would begin. He scheduled twelve to fifteen days to cross the Variu Mountains, depending on their horses' conditions. If there still was a path for horses to cross, about which Talon wasn't a hundred percent sure. The biggest variable here was his companion. He had to choose if he wanted her to be able to ride fast, for that needed her attention, or if he wanted her to continue bringing her memory in order. This was a whole new experience for Talon, trying to care for someone who would neither eat on her own accord nor tell him that she was hungry in the first place. He had expected her to be finished with regaining her memory by now, but…she wasn't. She was still nervous around him, very nervous, and the only thing she seemed to remember was that she wanted him close. Very close. As far as it concerned this point, her obedience proved to be an advantage for after the disturbing experience at their first inn, Talon wasn't inclined to get close to her in that way again. Cuddling up in the evening was okay, soothing even, for there was the possibility of her waking up with everything being as fine as it could ever be, but he'd tolerate nothing more. Lux did her part with stopping her advances as soon as he ordered her to keep still. Of course she did.
He secured the door first and checked the windows second before he proceeded to the bathroom. Lux' empty gaze would hardly ever stop to disturb him, more so when her lightless eyes followed his movements like an elaborate zaunite puppet would do. It was just a reflex though, no sign of attention, as much he had learned by now.
The bathroom was small, but with running water. Enough to wash the day's grime away. As he started to disarm, sure he wouldn't be disturbed by an unforeseen guest, he felt the tickle of consciousness from Lux that preceded her surfacing from her memory, giving her eyes at least a tiny bit more depth.
"What did you accomplish today?" Talon repeated the question that had dominated the previous five evenings.
Lux blinked, looking around, getting familiar with the outline of the room before she moved a muscle. "Much." She answered vaguely, gaze flickering to him. She seemed to be more awake today, even though Talon wasn't able to explain why it felt that way.
"Any news on how to remove your chain?" The second, repeating question he asked every evening.
This time, in contrast to the last evenings, she hesitated. "I evaluated every possibility and…I don't think that is possible anymore." She looked at him wide-eyed, waiting for his reaction.
Talon's brow shot up. "Explain." He requested, his brain not accepting a negative answer to his demand.
Lux took a deep breath, collecting herself. "Maybe there was a possibility before the original chain was altered with a second, much less elaborate spell…" she made an indistinct gesture with her hand, "before those two kinds of magic intertwined in a completely unforeseeable way…" Talon felt ashamed for a moment. "But I cannot decipher where the chain starts and where my own matrix begins. There is simply no difference anymore. I think its anti-magic merged with my magic. Tearing it away would most likely rip my own essence to pieces." She assessed with the same detached, clinical calmness she had shown the last days; as if she was interested because the task was of theoretical value, but not really affecting her. She even dared to look at him expectantly, like she awaited praise for her work.
How wrong she was. "What about trying to get inside of Demacia's walls?" He asked, refusing to accept her evaluation. The petricite dampened magic, and maybe…
She shook her head. "That won't separate what is already merged. The whole construction feels like a part of me now. It is simply too late." She repeated, a soothing smile on her face. Her fingers lifted a bit but she did not dare to touch the links around her neck. Then, before the silence became too heavy, she continued. "But without your meddling, the voice would still be in my head, so that's a progress."
Talon snorted derogatorily. It sounded like an attempt to ease his mind, but he surely was projecting. Lux was friendly to the inn-keepers she talked with, but she had not shown any sign of empathy, not since the thing around her neck had started bothering them. What was already done could not be changed anymore, though, so there was no point in asking himself if there had been a possibility to find the ominous voice she kept talking about instead of trying to overwrite the magic already etched into her. Keeping the chain around her neck was no possibility either. There would be another way. There was always another way. He placed his greaves and the poleyns next to his cloak, they were mostly clean and would not require tending today. Lux would find a way out. A few days simply weren't enough, not with all the other things she was tasked with. "Just…focus on your memory first, the rest will come later." He decided.
Lux cocked her head and pursed her lips. "Right now?"
The assassin shook his head. "Shower, sleep, then sorting." The same instructions as yesterday. And the day before. And the day before.
She looked to the bath shyly, to him after that, and to the ground at last before her eyes found his once more. "Might I join you?" She asked timidly, probably remembering the repeating, rather harsh rejections of the last days. Seemingly not enough to put her off.
Talon sighed soundlessly before he nodded once. A smile stretched her lips as she started to undress. With a sudden twinge, he missed the lighting up of her face that had used to come with her smile. Why did he allow this again? There was hardly any other way how this would play out. She wanted him, had expressed her desires more than clear. The only thing standing in her way was Talon himself, for he still wanted Lux, not this lightless shell. He could get a quick fuck from every whore in this country without having to step out of the safety of his clothes, but there was just one Lux. Currently no Lux, taken all things into account. Regardless, he had made a few promises to her that he intended to keep as best as possible. He took her familiar body in as she bent down, the flicker of his own interest igniting. Before it could heat up even more, he retreated to the bathroom, turned the faucet and stepped under the cool spray, not waiting for the water to warm. Soon enough, his personal enigma followed him with small steps, carrying a bar of soap with her. Water blurred her lines as he let it flow over his hair and face, washing away the road's dust. He felt her presence closing in, saw the hand touching his lower arm first, a non-threatening area, before her hand wandered up his arm, following the curve of an old scar winding its way up his biceps.
Sleeping with her, however involuntary on his part, had not brought her back, not sleeping with her had neither sped up the process of her returning, nor had it stopped her advances towards him. Normally he had no problems with waiting situations out but, in this case, he found his nerves tenser with every passing day.
She herself reminded him why he had chosen to keep her at arm's length. Her movements were too fast as she touched him, her hands wandering down to grasp his hip too desperate where he wasn't able to let go as quickly. He closed his fingers around her wrist, just as her hand wandered to his front with an easily predictable goal.
The fast ending she promised with a pleading sound wasn't enough. It had never been, and he wasn't inclined to fool himself into believing that it would suffice this time. He yearned for Lux to be with him now, to enjoy the sparse time before his duties would overshadow everything else, before the road would become harsh and his mind occupied by more than just following a more or less straight road. If she even wanted to be with him anymore, something he'd like to find out as well. Maybe it was just the thing around her neck forcing her to search him out. He could justify taking her with him with his need for a translation of Marcus' papers and would proceed on taking her along, regardless of their personal relationship, but letting his guard down with someone he wasn't able to judge?
She was eager though, and she kept invading his space as a testament to that. Talon had no chance of turning her around and shoving her out of the shower, not after he had consented to her joining him in the first place. He held her hands and pressed the bar of soap back into them. He needed at least a few minutes to get his mind into a halfway right setting to do something personal.
Hurt rose to her big, blue eyes. "Is there any chance-" she started.
Talon interrupted. He anticipated what she was going to say, and his answer hadn't changed since the first time she had asked. "Yes. And you know how. Do your part and this will get better." Somehow, he added silently.
Lux averted her eyes to the soap. Talon felt her resolve strengthening and he combed through his wet hair. What was she planning now? A question that was answered a few moments later as she foamed up the soap in between her hands, a gesture that triggered something in the back of his mind. As she, in a much slower pace than before, placed her hands on his chest and started soaping him up, he remembered a similar situation, having taken place about three years ago. Was that the beginning of a mischievous smile forming on her face?
He took the bar out of her hands, much like he had done at that time, and started to comb his soapy hands through her hair. She leaned into his touch and placed her hands on his shoulders, kneading his muscles. He stared at her face, saw the fixed intent on it. She was still so unbelievably beautiful. And not inclined to let this rest until she had her wits gathered, it seemed.
"Stay like this." He ordered hoarsely, shoving her back against the side wall of the shower so he'd be able to survey the room. Her hand snaked to his chin, tilting it down to a kiss. He averted his face so his lips grazed her cheeks instead. It had been a similar situation in which she had first kissed him on the lips, something that had completely taken him by surprise then, but now he expected as much. Come back and you may kiss me all you want - should you still want to, he silently urged her on as he felt her uneasiness grow. How he longed for her taste…
"Touch me." She ordered breathlessly, her accelerated breath brushing against his throat, her own hands stroking down his arms.
This was such an unfamiliar situation. Talon had seldom felt as much at loss as he did right now, so he embraced her tightly, pressing his lips to her temple. Her body stretched against him, clearly trying to coax out the natural answer of his body. There was no helping, this very physical part of Lux was here, the rest not. And this part demanded attention. There were…different ways to convey his longing, he figured, and she'd still be satisfied at the end.
His hands wandered over her skin, reacquainting himself with her alluring curves in the second best way possible. With his hands wandering to her behind, he grasped her romp, pressing her flush to him. She gasped against his neck, hips rolling forward. She gently sucked on his sensitive skin, making a shudder of want run through his body as his right hand grasped her chin and tilted her head just enough to get her away from his neck, enough for him to be able to peck a trail of kisses to the angle of her mouth. She sighed silently, just a flutter of movement against his controlling fingers as he immobilized her against the wall. His lips wandered over her throat, crossing her rapidly pulsing artery, down to her collar bone. He caught her wrists with one hand and pinned them above her head, just high enough so she had to stretch upwards, making it easier for his mouth to wander down the valley of her breasts. Here, he had to let go of her hands, which first stayed in the position he had put them. He slowly sank to his knees with his lips marking a path on her fair skin, further down where her ribcage ended and her smooth stomach began, heaving each time she took a shuddering breath. Other than her flying breath, she stayed completely still. At least her body hadn't changed with her mind, although she was thinner than he remembered. Her hands wandered to his shoulders, while his hands on her sides stabilized his way down as his knees hit the floor.
"May I?" Talon rasped, his fingers already stroking her inner thighs, nose pressed against her lower abdomen. He placed his lips below her bellybutton, looking upwards.
She looked down at him with eyes as big as the moon, the starlight reflecting in the blue orbs posing the only light there. Her fingers tangled in his wet hair. "Yes please." She whispered quietly.
Talon checked the door one more time before he closed his eyes and inhaled her scent, enhanced by the water, and tickled the soft skin between her legs with the back of his hand. He breathed soft kisses on her skin, continuing his path downwards. Her breath hitched as his tongue trailed further down, but her caressing on his hair stayed gentle. The grip of his right hand around her waist tightened, and then his tongue slowly delved through her folds, getting a first taste of her after what felt like forever. Her grasp at his shoulder strengthened and Talon ran his thumb over the dip of her hip bone, stroking down until he was able to spread her folds. The back of her head hit the shower-wall as she gasped. He circled the center of her pleasure with the tip of his tongue and the reaction was immediate, both of her fingers tightening their grip on his hair and his shoulder. He'd have liked to prolong the foreplay a bit more, but the demanding shiver of her hips reminded him that she was anything but patient at the moment. His left hand wandered between her legs and, with a second circle of his tongue, he pushed two of his fingers upwards, just enough to tease her with the implication of what he could do, later, should she come back to him. Her next gasp was louder and as Talon started to rub the flat of his tongue against her, her moaning became even louder. She grasped for the slippery wall, a movement Talon intercepted through placing her hand back on his shoulder. At his next, sensual lick she leaned on him rather than on the wall, trembling, eyes pressed close. Even with her light missing, Talon could not imagine anything more arousing than this woman, sounds of ecstasy on her lips, and his decision to neither kiss nor sleep with her wavered. He wanted nothing more than to bury himself in her at the earliest convenience, hadn't there been the prospect of lifeless depths staring at him when he would do so. Adding the uncertainty how she would think about all of this when she woke up…he'd rather enjoy the show from the front row. He used his fingers instead, pushing her walls apart as he continued to play with her bud, the increasingly desperate cries music in his ears as her hips quaked.
"Ta…lon…" She nearly choked, hands fluttering from his shoulders to the back of his head before they grasped at his shoulders.
His answer consisted in drawing another circle around her most sensitive spot with his tongue, teasing her lightly afterwards while he gradually moved his fingers inside of her. She was eager today, fighting against his hold while Talon coaxed ever-new sounds out of her. The shiver wrecking through her was a precursor to her walls clenching around his digits, her nails boring in his skin and her hip rolling against his face. His hold around her hip tightened, keeping her steady while she rode out the tidal wave on his tongue. Talon watched the ripples going through her muscles, felt the spasms under his hand as well as around his fingers and looked up to see her face, her eyes clenched shut with red dusting her skin.
Only his years of training gave him enough self-control to stay on his knees until her spasms subsided and the rhythmic clenching around his fingers decreased. As her stretched whimpers died down to heavy panting, he kissed her once more to ease the parting from him before raising himself up. Her legs nearly buckled and as she opened her eyes, she looked at him like he was an all-new person. This time her movements were too fast, her hands on his cheeks and her lips on his before he was able to turn away. She tasted like herself, her breathless gasps just like he remembered. It would be so easy to just close his eyes... The beads of the chain trapped in between them poked him uncomfortably. Talon froze, not moving until she parted from him with an unsatisfied expression. He took hold of a stone-bead, rolling it in between his fingers in contemplation.
"Hey…" She pleaded and his gaze rushed up to her face again. His grip around the chain tightened.
The moment stretched as he tried to force back the yearning want, the demands of his body and mind alike. It would be just a taste...His lips crashed against hers despite her strangeness, shoving her against the bathroom tiles as he pressed himself against her body. Her grip around him tightened as she gave in to his strength, legs still too shaky to carry her properly. His tongue dipped inside her mouth, inviting hers to dance. Her arms closed around his neck.
As their mouths parted, Talon laid his forehead against hers in an attempt to pacify his accelerated breath. Lux stroke his neck and he found he didn't mind too much. At least not as long as she had her eyes closed. Then he kissed her cheek, calming himself with deep, measured breaths.
"What are you waiting for?" Lux asked breathlessly, the blush on her face still fresh Talon wasn't able to place the eagerness in her shy smile.
Talon stroke her cheek, overlooking the bathroom once more. No new threat inside. He simply shook his head. He had tried to explain it to her a few times already, she seemingly was in no condition to understand.
Lux faltered, looking like he had not just licked her to completion, but had kicked her instead. Talon parted from her, stepping back under the water-spray which already started to cool.
"Is there no way for me to get your attention back?" She asked with an unusual edge in her voice.
"You already have the majority of it." Talon answered, starting to clean himself with efficient movements.
He heard her inhaling. "That is not what I meant." Her voice pitched.
"Then what do you mean?" Talon swiped the wet hair out of his face to look at her. She had not moved away from the shower-wall, her lips trembled.
"Did you just take me with you because of my knowledge?" Her voice did not become any louder, but an octave higher.
"What do you want from me?" Talon answered sharply, turning the water off and stepping out of the shower, giving her a berth. There was only so much self-restraint he was able to muster.
"I want to know why you helped me on the one hand, endured everything I threw at you, promised me how you'd protect me in the future when you thought I was not able to listen, you do…" she gestured to herself, to the shower, then to him, "but then you push me away when I try to express my gratitude, you sent be back to my mind when I try to apologize…" Talon's teeth ground together. He had really thought she wouldn't be able to remember. "We'll still be traveling for a few weeks, and…" She sniffled once, choking the next words out. "I know I am a Demacian-"
Talon cut her short with a snort and a pointed stare. "I don't care where you are from." He hissed. As long as she didn't remember as much, she really didn't know who he was and what he was capable of.
"Then what is your problem?" Lux swiped her hand over her eyes, her mouth forming a quivering line. "If you are trying to be chivalrous: it doesn't work." She whimpered.
Talon inched away from her, snatching a towel from the stand. "I am not being chhi… whatever." Lux had not moved, but her words felt like an attack nonetheless. "I want my woman, but that doesn't seem to be an option right now."
"I am right here, Talon!" Her voice sounded strangled now.
"You are not…yourself. You look like you are far away-" He tried to explain once more, promising himself that this would be the last time.
"I am not! Every time I am able to talk, I am here. With you." She gazed at him with her big eyes, and suddenly she did not look like a threat anymore. Maybe she never had.
Talon dried himself up, throwing another towel in her direction. She caught it. "There are still parts of you missing." He added.
"And what might that be?" Lux asked with voice quivering, stepping out of the shower as well, wrapping the towel around herself. She was getting better, he figured, at least he didn't have to tell her to do as much.
"Your memory. Your light." He stated, much calmer than she sounded. He listened at the door if the situation in their room had changed.
"My light is the problem?" She repeated with disbelieve, following him to the room where nothing had changed during their absence.
Talon nodded. She was not deaf, so the question was, perchance, for emphasis.
"The outward expression of my magic?" She clarified, brows lifting.
"Yes!" Talon answered heftily while discarding the towel, rather going for his nightly attire.
"There is a rather overwhelming amount of processed petricite around my neck! I appreciate your confidence in my powers, but that is too much, even for me!" She explained nasally. "How can my eyes shine when I can't even challenge a candle for brightness?"
Talon quietened, taking a deep breath. He looked into her eyes again, which were now glinting with tears. Her clenched fists were trembling. "You might remember that you used quite the bit of magic. Right before I knocked you out." He emphasized.
"That was different!" She howled, going for the heap of her clothes.
Talon only raised an eyebrow. She was getting better.
Instead of dressing herself, she sat down right before she jumped up again, filled by an unusual amount of restlessness. "That wasn't me, but the voice and if you knew more about magic, you were able to do command this part of me as well!" She snarled in a tone he had never heard from her. No, not never - seldom. This was anger, he reminded himself. An emotion better to be avoided, but that was currently not his first priority.
He shrugged. He had no desire to exploit this new possibility. He already felt like traveling with a puppet, there was no need to enhance that feeling.
"And, as I tried to tell you, my memory is back in order. Mostly." Lux took a deep breath. "What I mean is, some minor things still missing don't mean I am not me anymore!" Now she sounded pleading.
Talon narrowed his eyes. He didn't believe her. But if she really thought she could take him on with anything less than her top game? They stared at each other, and Talon swiped some damp tresses out of his face. Her gaze was unwavering with a certain softness inside. Persistent creature.
Talon took a deep breath. She wanted this? So be it. He would not refuse her any longer, especially not if she had her memories gathered. Maybe it was even better to have at least a strong guess if she was telling the truth or not, through that damned necklace. There were many things he wanted to say, to ask, important facts he needed to check, but the burning anger choking him for the first few days after her betrayal had cooled down to disappointment and hurt. He would have been able to keep this professional through their travel, he told himself, but when she brought it up… "How could you lie to me like that?" He asked, his voice laced with chagrin, lacking any real heat.
Her defiance was nearly palpable. "I never hid that I am no Noxian. Being from Demacia might be-"
"Your allegiances mean nothing to me!" Talon spat, his anger rekindling. "As long as you are not stupid enough to sell me or my family out." Did he really need to spell that one out? Anyway. He could live with secrets, but the betrayal she had initiated?
"I didn't give you away, and I never lied to you!" She defended herself. "Well, maybe at the beginning-"
"Your brother? Your family?" Talon interrupted, mustering her wide, rapidly moving eyes, and with that he knew she tucked another piece of information safely away. She had not regained everything, of course not. How should she know of things she did not remember in the first place?
"I…about…my relationship with them?" She clarified, and Talon nodded sharply. "My brother joined the Dauntless Vanguard when he was twelve and magic is strongly prohibited in Demacia. You could try and see what happens if anyone, if my brother gets to know the extent of the powers I wield. I would wish for an execution before they were through with me-"
His dark snarl cut her off. His anger returned with the icy chill of a zaunite fiendfyre, clearing his thoughts with brutal efficiency. "If I find anyone but me trying to kill you, I swear I'll tear them to shreds and display their sorry remains in front of your fucking citadel with my fucking name on the pile!" He never screamed, but his tone had the same effect pure volume had, for Lux took a step back looking at him with even wider eyes.
She took a deep breath, spreading her fingers in front of her body in an obvious gesture. "I'm sorry, I did not intend to upset you." She tried to soothe him.
He bared his teeth, but this time the gesture lacked any real aggression. Wiping the pivotal figures of Demacia off the ground to eliminate the threat she feared would be a strenuous effort…
"What else do you want to know?" She asked, much calmer than before, and he was able to cool down a bit, as well. Right now there was no threat, neither for her nor for him. At least none he knew of, none he could disable right away.
"You didn't lie?" He asked doubtfully.
She shook her head, something like fear but-not-fear tinting her formerly just slightly churning thoughts.
Which brought him to the second point. "How much of me do you know right now?"
"Everything?" She answered quizzically.
Talon shook his head. Then, she would hardly be as friendly she was right now.
Lux closed her eyes, her lids twitching tellingly. Talon felt curiosity and dread balanced each other as she started to verbally undermine her statement. "You don't drink because the first time you did, someone hurt you badly enough to sour it once and for all. You are obsessed with honey and sweets, and the sound of steam through pipes soothes you for a reason I don't know. You are ambidextrous, but prefer writing with your left hand for your right one is almost always occupied with a blade. You rather listen than read, and you are the first person I encountered who responds more positive to iambic pentameters than the more classical tetrameter."
Talon's eyebrows had merged with his hairline during her talk. He only knew the word 'penta-' in combination with the word '-kill', a joke Katarina and him had established on one of their first missions together. Her starting to talk in tongues didn't surprise him, it was rather reassuring. So he couldn't help but snort. "I know you know a lot of me. But how should I know if you know the things that really count?" She had not even voiced his main occupation, nor his family or things that were important to him. Just a few preferences – if you could even call it as much.
Lux sighed in exasperation. "You have three cloaks that look alike, obviously all of them of excellent quality with a high thread-count. The one you wear most often has a loose suture, going from the third to the fifth row, at the left border. The leather straps are made from deep-sea-snake from Bilgewater, for it is water-resistant, light and strong at the same time. There is an old scar on the leather, reaching from the first strap to the last, so it probably originates from when the animal was still alive. Someone took the time to match the pieces accordingly. It was most likely tanned a special way, for a cut at the left outer strap looks like a high-impact hit the leather withstood. Probably drum tanning with additives of bowstringroot-essence." Her gaze gained a challenging edge. "All three are well-worn, perfectly well-kempt. Your father's cloak is made of the same animal's-"
"I never told you that." Talon said flatly, remembering the extent to which she could talk about the appearance of a man she hadn't seen in years. Another kind of apprehension rose within him.
Her fingers fluttered. "No, like you never told me about General Mervyn Spiritmight, Commander Arrun Greenpasture and Commander Neelan Karowing. Or how you managed to arrange them-"
Talon was almost left speechless. Almost. "Since when do you know of that?" He snarled as she confirmed his suspicions. With her memories in order, she knew much. Really much. Maybe too much. She could be a great danger to him as well as to his family, should she chose to be. And why should she not? Allegiances to and fro, she was a Demacian and hadn't revisited her loyalties during the years she had spent in Noxus Prime.
Lux was not intimidated, but tilted her head up. "I figured it out about a year ago."
Nobody should have ever known it had been him to not only kill, but display the corpses in the inner sanctum of Demacia, in their sacred Citadel of Light, sitting around a map of Runeterra. He had not stayed for long enough to hear the uproar, but he figured he had left a greater impact. That had been six years ago. He had not taken this into account: of course she'd be able to trace back every single murder he had ever committed, in Demacia and anywhere else. She knew so much of him, how could he let that knowledge slip? He overacted his faltering with opening the door to the rented room. His eyes found no new threat, everything was exactly like they had left it. "Who else knows of this?" He asked tunelessly. How came it that he still underestimated the dangers her intelligence posed to him? No, he revisited, not underestimated. He simply had not categorized her as someone intending to do damage to him.
"From me? Nobody." Now she sounded just tired as she wrapped a blanket around herself. "And nobody ever will."
Talon snorted. "Why should you not spill all of my secrets to Demacian intelligence?" She would surely be able to see a pattern in his deeds, even though he had never cared to look out for such.
She seemed to choke on something, and he felt her mind shivering in the way when she evaded the grasp of the necklace, which seemed to cost her more each time she tried. "I don't intend on ever betraying your former trust in me, be sure." Her choke became visceral as she refused to answer for another moment.
Nervous specks of red bloomed on her décolletage as he refused to let her off this hook. He felt her squirming away from the answer, something that woke the predator inside of him. "Tell me. Now." He demanded, stepping close to her once more, fisting the links of the chain as physical reinforcement for how less she was able to evade him.
"I respect you. I respect your father. I would not risk your safety..." Her heartbeat hammered through the necklace. He didn't need the device to know she wasn't telling the whole truth.
He felt her revolting, trying to evade the tight chains pulling her back, felt her discomfort and his grasp around the collar tightened as he used it to leash her back. "The real reason?" He hissed, insisting in voice and in mind.
A part of him was intrigued which out she would find this time, with her mind so close that he could feel every twitch and shiver as his words milled through her brain. With a little concentration he felt something inside of her. He concentrated on the spot in his mind reserved for her, trying to anticipate her reasoning before she would be forced to voice as much. For a moment longer she tried to resist but then she... she...it didn't feel like yielding, but as he dug deeper into her mind, she simply stopped resisting, the tension of her body relieving. Before he was able to react, Talon came into contact with something unbelievably warm, soft, yet strengthened, and he hesitated. In sudden fear he flinched back, but it was too late. She hadn't been prepared to defend against him and she wasn't able to resist without preparation, at least not without risking major damage to herself and the special part of her Talon had just found. She opened up for his inner eyes to see what she had tried to hide and thrusted it into his face. "I love you." She blurted out, fist closing in front of her sternum, hope and terror balanced in her eyes. Her mind calmed down instantly, the anticipating kind of tense calmness before a major fight. Talon panted heavily, and Lux continued. "But that word is without meaning for you, so..."
While she talked, he felt what she had formerly hidden, her comforting warmth spreading over him despite the separation that kept her powers in check and her mind to herself.
Lux continued talking though, words spilling out like water from a broken dam. "But I don't know if you even have a concept what that word means, so I tried to convert it, for you to understand. You always thrilled me, even before we became…more, and then I grew to like you. We went through so much together and the man I saw was better than I could have ever imagined. I respect you, I relish in your presence, my heart flutters when you are close. I trust you, and I want to protect you from everything that wants to harm you. I'd rather die than betraying your trust in me. You kept me sane during the last years, and you taught me so much about different ways of life that I don't know how I can ever accommodate to living in Demacia again. You are strong enough to keep up with me, to keep me up when I can't do so myself. Your mind is as sharp as your blades. You are quick in thinking, and talking to you always brings me great pleasure. I miss you when you are not with me. I can imagine spending a lot more time with you, and I would love doing so, if the circumstances were any different. You became an integral part of my world, and I'd rather destroy myself than letting you get harmed because of me." Her gasping ended with her closing her eyes.
Talon didn't move. He was overwhelmed by the feelings coursing through her, reverberating in himself. "You…love…me?" Talon echoed as his mind went in a frenzy, trying to connect the unfamiliar word. She had used it before, Cassiopeia sometimes used it in completely different circumstances... He was surprised that what she felt was so similar to his own emotions. Affection in all forms - from fondness to lust to ardent admiration. Awe and affection, the overbearing need to protect, to support. Something much more substantial than a word he had seldom heard before.
He felt her hopelessness at the confession, and he awaited her try to close up and get away to lick her wound. But this indeed was Lux, his glorious, bright, hopeful woman, and instead of turning away, she turned her face up to him and he felt the desperation as she looked up into his eyes with a hint of the gleam in her eyes he had admired so often, but also with a whole new kind of fear. She seemed to wait for something. The realization that soon she'd be gone made ice clump in his stomach. She was much too smart to come back to Noxus after the stunt she had pulled, back to the people she had upset. He'd probably never see her again without them being on opposite sides of the field.
She placed her hand on his chest. "Our language greatly determines how we see the world. You don't know certain words that are normal for me, as much as you know and use many words that don't come naturally for me. I know what I feel for you, I have chosen a name and my own definition for it, but I never wanted to burden you with it."
"Burden?" Talon repeated, feeling like the greatest idiot alive as he still tried to wrap his mind around the idea of her going away.
"Simply because I always knew I'd have to leave Noxus." She took a deep breath, and somehow it felt like he had defeated her, even though he had never challenged her to battle. "I never intended to stay." She seemed to remind herself as well as him.
Talon closed his eyes for a long time. He knew as much, she had said so at an earlier stage of their relationship and had never taken that statement back. Tears fogged her eyes like clouds dimming the sun. Suddenly, her missing glow was of minor importance. He swiped the wetness away with his thumb. He knew she could not stay in Noxus - even aside from the fact that she had tried and obviously failed to deceive a very powerful man. Hardly anyone would care about her heritage as soon as she grasped for power. Her moral was adjustable to a certain degree, but she would never hurt people she deemed good, she would never support war-campaigns against countries, against people who had done nothing wrong except for existing. To avoid as much in Noxus, she would have to stay hidden. And Lux was no one to hide in the shadows like himself. She always sought the light and she would always shine, one way or another, regardless of how people tried to hold her back. He would never voluntarily be the man to put any obstacles in her way. "What do you expect of me now?" He whispered under his breath.
She peered into his face and her warmth next to him, next to the part of his mind, was so overwhelming that he almost forgot the missing light in her eyes and closed his arms around her back as she moved closer. "Nothing." She whispered, and they probably both knew it was a lie. "I expected you to kill me, but that you did not do. You always gave me more than I expected, you always did more than I could hope for. You are…" She paused. "You simply are more, better, greater than anything I ever expected to get. And I am despaired at the prospect of never seeing you again. You were the only one who ever made the effort at finding me, despite my greatest efforts to hide. You see me when not even my mother would recognize me. You have no idea how grateful I am for your presence. For everything you are to me. And how sorry I am to cause you any kind of pain."
Talon tried to swallow the lump in his throat away. "I thought we'd have more time." He voiced tentatively. This felt like a goodbye already, even though their travel would still take weeks. He did not like it one single bit. A flicker of confusion went through Lux. "You made Noxus Prime a brighter place and I always enjoyed playing with you. I never thought I'd find someone like you, someone who is smart and witty enough to provide a real challenge, whose expertise compliments mine. I just-"
Lux interrupted before he could start stuttering with pulling on the edges of his hood to seal his lips with her own. Her arms wound around his neck and he closed his arms tighter around her, trying to show his desperation through the kiss. Her mind recreated the try of her body to get as close to him as possible, and now he felt her subtle heat right next to the spot of himself he wasn't able to explain, nudging gently against him, radiating with something different than her magic. He felt like a barrier in his mind had broken, for he wanted nothing but keeping her that close, bathing in her presence, and he hoped she'd understand in this way what he wasn't able to bring across with words. While he tried to wrap his arms around her as tight as possible, he felt something…different within her. Different from the fabric of her mind, maybe not within, but very closely attached. On closer examination it was cold, hard, and seemed to live off of her.
The chain. He reached out to her mind and, against everything he was able to explain, he felt the something and, more importantly, he was able to tell where her warmth started and the smothering chill of the chain began, all the while they were still locked in that kiss. Experimentally he did the mental equivalent of tugging at the thing he had identified as the chain, causing Lux to shiver in sudden discomfort. A spontaneous plan formed in his mind. Magic was imagination given a spark, after all. He enfolded the back of her head to keep her close, trying to pin down the barely distinguishable gap between her and what held her back. "Don't get lost. Hold on to me, okay?" He whispered against her lips.
He felt her startling, but Talon did not give her any time to react before he imagined forcing himself between her and the thing holding her back. He felt her mental scream as his hands slid down to her neck, opening the chain's lock before forcing the physical thing away in time with his mental efforts. Her nails drilled into his back in sync with her mind as he ripped, seared, parted, the instantly following headache nearly knocking him out cold, only his obstinacy keeping him upright. It felt worse than skinning a living human, for she struggled, fought back, and the chain wasn't inclined to let go. But Talon had always been stubborn and, with her moving so much, it was a little easier to discriminate living fabric from the age-old spell.
Then the device was gone from her neck and her mind alike and Talon let it fall to the ground, kicking it away as far as possible. He felt Lux drilling into his mind, probably with all the might she still possessed, and then he felt a pull on her, away from him, away from everything. So cold, so strong, so deadly that it evoked the physical reaction of hugging her to his chest, to keep her from the lethal grasp. For a moment it was a struggle to keep her terrified mind close, to keep her from slipping away, then something loosened and ricocheted into him with the might of a thrown boulder, shaking his mind and body alike.
Lux collapsed as if the tension from every single one of her muscles had vanished, Talon was barely able to catch her. The formerly healthy, somewhat energetic ball inside his head had died down to a faint kindling, shivering against the still-present pull away. Talon breathed heavily as if he had traversed half of Noxus Prime in top speed, not really sure what had just happened, but terrified nonetheless. He held on to her, dragged her to the bed where he dropped down, not releasing her as nameless dread touched him. What if she followed the pull, what if she slipped away?
Her body was absolutely still, a stark opposite to the bloodcurdling terror in her mind as she tried to hold on to anything that kept her where she was. So he pulled her even closer, pressed his lips on her crown and held on to her. What had he done?
Sooo, she said it, we can go home, right?
Generalblood1: Those names were My Little Pony-references ;) Let's see if Lux has any mind to pay the horse's name any attention after this x_X Happy thanksgiving to be had for you, we don't celebrate it like Americans do.
101Asa: You seem to like people who are doomed to die x] I feel for you, though.