Author's Note: Hi all, bit of a shorter chapter this time. I had another section planned to add to this but it ended up too long and I was worried about getting it all typed up in time. Hope you enjoy regardless.
Prenoon sunlight poured in through the tall window panes of the mansion's second-story room, illuminating Marie and her teacher as they worked diligently on the girl's school work. In the corner, the yordle lay curled up and dozing. Too restless to sleep well at night, he often found himself up until the early hours of the morning, mulling over his constrained situation.
His latent electrical abilities weren't helping matters either. After the effects of the magic-nullifying stone had eventually worn off, the power had grown to uncomfortable levels. Playing fetch with Ben and Marie almost every day alleviated the worst of the energy. But he could still feel it crackling under the surface, chained in check by the magic of the collar and making it hard to remain still.
And so, after nights of sleeplessness, he had fallen into routine of napping through the morning lessons. A combination of sheer exhaustion, the dull rhythmic nature of the two human occupants and the warm sunlight streaming through the open windows was the only thing capable of lulling the wary yordle into a half-state of sleep. However, his mind was still alert enough to snap to attention when the unfamiliar sound of the door opening met his ears.
The hazel yordle jerked to his feet, eyes narrowing in on the nobleman as he entered the room. He had not seen the aristocrat much during the weeks he had been here, but he had also gotten the impression that this was normal behaviour.
"Hi daddy!" Marie chirped excitedly when she caught sight of him.
"Hello sweetie," he gave her a soft smile before turning to the fair-skinned teacher. "Elaine, would you mind if I took Marie for a few hours?"
"We were in the middle of lessons," she huffed, placing her hands on her hips.
"Yes, yes. I'm aware of how important learning is," he muttered in an offhand manner as he drew the young girl into his arms. Marie giggled from her tall perch. "But I'll be heading to Piltover for a few days and wanted to spend some time with her before I go."
The child's high voice pulled their attention before Elaine could answer. "Are you leaving?"
Gently, he lent forward until their foreheads were touching. "Only for a little while my princess. There are some things I need to deal with in person and not over the wire before I can return."
"Ok," Marie answered in a small voice.
"But that means we get to spend the rest of the day together!" he swung her up and back into him, causing the little girl to laugh, forgetting her sadness (if only briefly).
"Elaine," he turned to the still frustrated maid. "I'll take Marie from here. You're free to take the rest of the day off." The aristocrat paused as his attention met with the yordle's, staring each other down for a brief moment. "Oh, and take him with you. Make sure he gets fed and doesn't get into trouble."
Before the maid could get another word in, Renard was already out of the room and the door shut with a finalising click that was obnoxiously loud in the tense air left behind.
The frizzy-haired woman let out an explosive rant. "He always does this! So what if he doesn't spend enough time with her normally. So what if she needs some sort of sense of normality and stability. No, the rules don't apply to him!" Breathing heavily through her nose she stopped and took in a long, deep breath before turning to the still wary yordle. "Guess you're with me."
He gave her a shrug, unable to do much more in the situation they had been left in.
She sighed, "Come on then."
Taking her cue, Kennen followed the woman down the stairs and into the servants dining room just off the side of the kitchen. Over the top of the partition, they could see the kitchen workers scurrying about with their work, but other than a quick greeting, Elaine paid them no mind.
"Are you hungry?" she asked the hazel yordle.
He gave a quick nod and she smiled.
"Do you like Shepherd's Pie?" Another nod. "Alright, if you want to sit down, I'll be back with our lunch in a moment."
The tall woman briskly walked out into the kitchen, navigating through the bustle with ease as she efficiently scooped up two plates of food. Meanwhile, Kennen turned to the table before hesitating. The concept of sitting at a table suddenly felt foreign to the yordle. He had not been allowed to eat at one the entire time he had been on this island, forced to act like the pet he was imitating. But Marie was not currently here, and so the collar was not inhibiting him from acting like a normal yordle. And so, with that in mind, he deliberately sat himself down at the simple piece of furniture.
Minutes later, Elaine returned and placed his meal down, before joining him with her own food.
Once more, it took Kennen a few seconds to remember that he could use the cutlery presented before him, and once more, he made a conscious decision to use them, awkwardly eating his meal. All the while he could feel the Demacian's watchful eyes on him. She didn't say anything about his technique, however. She just let out a soft sigh before she spoke up.
"I know it doesn't change what is happening, but I truly am sorry for what Renard has done to you. I knew he had changed but I never expected him to go this far."
The yordle looked up at her in surprise and curiosity. Catching her eye, he pointed up in the vague direction of the man's office before shrugging.
Despite the lack of words, the maid seemed to understand his question.
"He changed a lot after his wife died," she said softly. "Don't get me wrong, he's always been a bit entitled and condescending – his upbringing I suspect – but before it was tempered by an almost naïve curiosity. And Lilly too. She was so headstrong and kind and he would have done anything for her."
She drifted off into silence for a minute but seeing the yordle's curious eyes still glued to her she continued.
"Lilly was my best friend. We grew up in Demacia together. She came from a fairly prominent family there and I… well, I didn't. But that never stopped her from considering me any less than her. So when she moved to Piltover, of course I came with her. That's where she met Renard. I never really cared for him, but she was enamoured by his brilliance and charisma. Likewise, he was captivated by her beauty and her fiery personality."
Kennen watched her talk, drawn in to the story and the sheer, raw emotion in the Demacian's voice as she spoke.
"He and I tried to put aside our differences for her sake, but it wasn't until Marie was born that we started to truly get along."
Her voice quavered as she continued, "Unfortunately, not long after that there was an incident. A rival, jealous of Renard's success, ordered a hit on him. While the two were out for the night, they were attacked and in the ensuing fight, Lilly was killed."
Elaine cut off, blinking furiously for a long minute as she combatted her tears. Then her face became more determined and she pushed on.
"This place used to be their holiday home, but in his grief he moved everything here. He usually communicates with his company via the wire and yawpers. Only going to the mainland when absolutely necessary. But for Marie, this is all she knows. She's a beautiful child, so sweet and kind. She reminds me so much of my friend. But she gets so lonely here by herself all the time. She'll never say it, bless her soul. But you can tell just by watching her how much she desires company."
Yes, Kennen had noticed. For as bright and as cheerful and the girl usually was, he could see the longing on her face when the outside world was mentioned and the deep sadness (too sad for one so young) whenever her father was too busy for her. You could see she didn't understand – not really – but the absolute love and trust she put in the adults around her stayed her tongue on the matter. It was the biggest reason his thoughts had become so conflicted. Each moment around her endeared the girl to him more. But he also knew he could not stay forever. He too had a duty to uphold.
"I've tried for years to tell Renard that he couldn't keep her here. That she needed company from people her own age. I even convinced Marie to talk to him about being lonely. I just never expected… I never thought… I'm so, so sorry. It's my fault you're stuck here. I'm sorry!"
Her resolve broke and the woman buried her face in her hands. Tears streamed down her face as she incoherently mumbled, "I'm sorry," over and over again.
Kennen gave a soft sigh, getting out of his chair to put a gentle hand on her back. It was all he could do in the moment to let her know he didn't blame her.
The next day found Kennen and Marie in one of the secluded gardens. The six-year-old was playing a game of hop-scotch, hopping towards her stone with a dutiful (albeit wobblily) determination. Meanwhile, the yordle wandered around the small area. He wasn't really sure where he was going, just wanting to let off some restless energy as he pondered all he had learned the day before. Eventually, he paused in front of the statue poised in the centre of the courtyard, really looking at it. A simple glance at it immediately brought to mind the grand figures from the Demacian hall of heroes. Though much more life-sized than the massive statues of the west, the style was strikingly similar as was the white marble used. The female herself, had a serene smile on her face with her hands out-stretched while her long hair (pulled back in an intricate braid) and her dress bespoke of her stature of nobility.
"That's my mummy," Kennen turned to Marie as she came up beside him, looking up at the statue with a solemn expression. "She's not here anymore but Elaine says she's gone to a better place."
She shuffled, drawing her shoe through the dirt and leaving a line behind it. "She left when I was really little so I don't remember her, no matter how hard I try. But Elaine says she loved me very much. She tells me stories about her all the time. Just not in front of daddy because he doesn't like to talk about her. I think he misses her. Elaine too."
The little girl pulled her arms around herself, silent as she stared up into the benevolent statue's face.
"Can I tell you a secret?" she whispered, a quaver in her voice. "Sometimes I get angry at her. If she loved everyone so much why did she leave? It's because of her that daddy and Elaine are sad and fight. And daddy won't let me go anywhere because he's scared I'll leave too."
Her small hands scrunched up the fabric of her skirt. "It's not fair! I'd never do anything like that! I'd always come back."
The young girl's bottom lip wobbled as tears welled up in her large, brown eyes. "But what if she can't come back? Maybe she really wants to but she's lost or stuck. After all, Elaine and daddy aren't mad at her for leaving. Am I bad for being angry?"
The sheer vulnerability in the child's question tore at Kennen's heart. He wanted to tell her that it was alright to be angry; that it was completely natural to feel that way and that didn't make her a bad person. And he wished that he could explain that, sometimes no matter how much you loved someone, you had to leave them. But that didn't mean that you stopped thinking or caring about them. Sometimes life wasn't fair and you just had to make do with what you had been given.
Such as when you are unable to provide a hurting child any solace to her valid questions because you cannot communicate. So he did the only thing he could do. He nudged her gently and allowed her to throw her small arms around him; letting her cry silently into his fur as he produced a low purring noise many yordles used to comfort their young.
"I wish you could talk," she whispered.
Me too, he wished internally.
As they sat there, the yordle's thoughts turned to his own family still living in Bandle City. It had been such a long time since he'd seen them last. He hadn't even been able to contact them since the war had started. His days had been so chaotic for so long, he hadn't had much time to think about them. But now all of those repressed feelings surged to the surface. He wondered how they were doing? His little brother would have graduated by now. Had his dad retired from the scouts yet (like he kept saying he would do)? How was his mum coping with an empty nest? Every thought and question made his heart ache with an intensity he hadn't felt since he had first left them.
After a while of his thoughts spiralling, the hazel yordle internally shook himself. It wouldn't help either of them to dwell on things they could not control. So he gently pulled himself from her grip, wiping the tears from her cheeks before covering his eyes in the way she had 'taught' him to do while playing hide-and-seek. A grin brightened her confused face and she immediately rushed off to hide as she screamed, "No peaking!"
Emotional chapter. Seems everything's not so perfect on this perfect island. I'm glad that they could finally get some of these things off their chests but poor Kennen. He has enough to worry about without being everyone's personal therapy dog.
Anyway, hope you enjoyed it. And I'll see you all in a few weeks! :)