Tauriel ran off into the dark alleys which were secluded, dim with lights. It's been a long time since she had consumed anything. She longed for the pleasant meals she was served in her home. Now she was faced with the survival of loneliness; she had no one to rely on but herself. She didn't know the city well enough to ask for directions, and in her weakened state, she had no idea where to go.

Tauriel scratched her hair as her ears began to itch underneath the cotton hood she had been wearing for a while now. It was then that she heard it. A voice.

The voice called out, "I know you're out there. Standing in my entrance." It would appear that she had been leaning against someone's door. Trinkets decorated their front; an old woman greeted her. Her hair was a wild mess, a large collection of beads and feathers, and her arms were covered with hen and chicken feathers, dyed in a rainbow of colors.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I did—"Tauriel says before the old woman cuts her off.

"It's alright. I'm not going to bite, child." Said the old woman, calm yet persistent. "Come. You are filled with nothing but fear and loss."

The old woman enters her home as Tauriel grows unsure of the sudden meeting. She didn't even know the old woman, yet she was entering her home. She didn't know what to do.

"Are you lost, child?" Asked the old woman,

"Yes. -I come a long way. I don't know where I am." Tauriel's soft voice speaks in timidity. Scared and pitiful. The old woman moves in with a feather duster and begins to sweep the floor. "You have nothing but need here. I see it in your eyes, child. Please, sit." A worn-out velvet chair Tauriel notices and slowly seats herself in. "This is a Bilgewater you are in. A haven of corruption. Where is it you hail from?" The old woman has a raspy voice with a heavy accent.

"I'm from Noxus, madam." Said Tauriel.

"Mm, Noxus. That is where you lived but it is not where you're from." Said the woman. Tauriel peeked with confusion, "Remove your hood." The woman pointed to the hood of Tauriel's robe. With shaky hands, Tauriel slowly, and slowly, took her hood down. The woman's wrinkled face was covered with small, multicolored splotches, one over each eye. She looked at Tauriel's full visage, blonde medium hair but large rabbit ears.

"A Vastayan." The woman says. Tauriel raised her brows, "Vastayan...? I know I've heard this before..."

"You do not know what you truly are?" Said the woman.

"...My mother denied it." Tauriel frowned, fiddling with her hands. n"What is your name?" Asked the old woman.

"Tauriel." She replied. The woman moved around her curious home and said, "You may call me mother Vadoma."

"Mother Vadoma. -I-I assume you're friendly enough to...um." Tauriel meddled with her hands once again. "You're hungry," said Vadoma, "Yes. I am."

Vadoma walked over to a corner of the room and lit a candle. She placed a loaf of bread on a small, wooden table and began to tear off chunks with her teeth. Tauriel watched as chunks of bread flew from Vadoma's mouth like bullets.

"Come." She hesitated but carefully approached the old woman as she was given the food. She was given a bowl of stew and a piece of bread.

"Come, sit." Said Vadoma. Tauriel took a seat at the table. "Eat," Vadoma said, Immediately, Tauriel began feasting like a feral mutt, or like a wild rabbit, or something. She had never eaten so much food in her entire life, not even with her family on occasion.

The food was filling, and soon, she had finished her meal. "Thank you so much." The woman gave a sparse nod and began clearing the table.

"So, tell me, child. What brings you to the Blight so far from home?" Tauriel was given a chipped plate with leftovers, a sad expression began to appear on her face. "Um, well, I ran from home. My mother... she...she's gone." Tauriel, tears began to roll down her face. She picked at her teeth with her tongue, then wiped at her nose with the back of her hand. "I see, child. And that leads you here then?"

"...Well, somehow. I snuck into a ship that led me here. Although..." She coughed, wiping her mouth, "T-the crew they...they were slaughtered by this man..." Tauriel gestured to her chest.

"The man that is feared by crewmates? Captains?" Said mother Vadoma. Tauriel titled her head, nodding. "The locals... they called him the bloodharbour ripper."

"Ah, the bloodharbour ripper." Said Vadoma.

Tauriel continued as her speech spilled in nervousness. "I saw him.-Face to face. I-I thought he would k-kill me." Tauriel shook in fear.

"And so, he did not, did he?" Replied Vadoma. She gave a small smile. "This ripper. He was once a man. Not anymore." Tauriel was invested in this story, "...Who is he...?" Asked Tauriel. Mother Vadoma seats herself across from Tauriel. "This man's name is Pyke. I sense he is consumed by a curse, overwhelmed by the sea's darkness that makes him what he is now." Vadoma placed her palms together and her chin rested on them. "You." She said. "...Me?" Tauriel said in confusion.

"Perhaps you pulled that unrelenting curse from him for a moment, leaving you still breathing, child." Tauriel did not understand the old woman,

"...I'm sorry I don't understand." Said Tauriel. "Do you possess any... abilities of your own?"

Tauriel blinked. "...Well, some things, perhaps... I'm not sure. Mother told me and taught me about magic. She said it was strong in me."

Vadoma nodded, "It is in your nature." Vadoma then grabbed Tauriel's hands in hers and began to close her eyes. Her hands began to heat up, burning with a golden light that soon turned to a flickering orange. Tauriel grimaced in pain, but Vadoma continued to press her hands against each other.

"...I feel it in you. Pure magic is soon to thrive. Your innocence proceeds it as benevolent but your lack of nature could propel it to a much darker path." She opened her eyes and let go of Tauriel's hands, leaving them burning with the same orange glow.

"Are you a... witch?" Asked Tauriel.

"I'm an alchemist." Replied Vadoma, "Although the scoundrels of this land would call me a sea witch."

"Sea witch?" Tauriel frowned. As if a curtain had fallen, revealing a window beneath. The world, outside. The sea, beneath. The bloodharbour, in her mind. "Well, then perhaps you can teach me then? My mother was...resentful. She didn't think I was ready. I practiced at times but she said it would bring me out too much..." Voiced Tauriel.

"Ah, perhaps it was not your mother's place to decide your future." Said Vadoma, "This magic is something you must concede. You're uncertain of your power, child." Tauriel silently agreed with her, "...I suppose I am. I wish to learn more. Mother Vadoma."

Tauriel extended her hand vertically, palm facing up, and waited for Vadoma to make her move. It was a long time before Vadoma placed her palms against Tauriel's. Vadoma began chanting once again. A soaring heat began coursing through Tauriel's veins, "It is strong within you child." Vadoma was right, she was beginning to feel lightheaded. She looked down at her hand.

"Your heart beats its own tune." Said Vadoma. She let go of their grip and said, "Now, let out your spirits. Show me what you practiced from your... concealed years." Tauriel breathed deeply, letting out the breath slowly. Her chest deflated and her lungs expanded as she filled her body with the fresh cold air of the night. She looked out over the sea, watching the waves lap against the docks and glide away.

A bright golden light began to appear all around Tauriel, a warmth of serenity and calm. A white light, like the sun, without heat, that could not harm. It surrounded her like a cloak, and Tauriel began to feel herself dissolving, breaking apart... The light shone brightly, cutting a path through the darkness, towards the crimson horizon, and there was a soft, friendly voice singing.

"Harmony and serenity fill you. It's a part of your Vastayan nature." Said Vadoma. "I should have known, even in my ignorance, that your spirit would resist my spell." Tauriel felt her body growing heavier and heavier, the light around her turning icy and hard to see through. Vadoma backed away, Tauriel soon glimpsed that she was cooling down, and gradually Tauriel's light dimmer down.

"Night hour has succumbed. Sleep child." She was right, it was time to simmer down and have a good night's rest at this old woman's place. Tauriel was timid but she felt she could trust Vadoma, she was kind enough to let her into her home. They might even become friends. Tauriel sat up, the cold air hitting her face. She yawned, stretching her arms up above her head. She looked around her room.

Vadoma gestured her into a small room that had a prepared bed that was ready for her. She looked around the room, it was vermillion, candles decorated the place with a sense of comfort and warmth. The sound of the ocean waves was heard faintly through the closed window pane.

Tauriel walked over and opened the door slightly, peeking out to see the streets of Bilgewater. "The streets of Bilgewater are not safe for you, child." Said Vadoma. Tauriel turned to the old woman as she seated herself on the cotton bed.

"I had a feeling it was..." Her hands felt the worn-out fabric of the blankets. "But for you, it is dangerous. There are hunters that may find you particularly fond to capture. They will sell you. Vastayans are worth a fortune here in Bilgewater." Tauriel looked at her, fear beginning to rise in her.

Vadoma began to leave the room, "Time to rest." She said. Tauriel looked out the door, watching her guide out of sight. She was weary from the long day.

"I will be well protected here." She looked at the door and shut it.

The bliss of sleep was soothing, unexpectedly pleasant despite not being in her room that she would always frequent back in Noxus… When she woke up, it was morning. The land of Bilgewater in luminous sunny skies, fresh yet uncertain of her future. It was a nice view outside, the dark blue sea, and the surrounding structures of the motherland. They must be pretty, she thought. The sun shined brightly, and the birds were singing.

Tauriel felt her body ache but she felt content. The meeting with the morning blight passed and Tauriel's dull mind began searching within the dream she had. Usually, traumatic experiences are permanently engraved in her mind causing her to relive them in her slumber.

As she laid in her bed, she could not help but think of her encounter with that terrifying man with the blade. Eyes burning with coral green. His dark frame, piercing veins, and the deafening silence that carried him. Remembering that moment, Tauriel did feel something from him. The weight of that curse, the darkness from the sea consuming him.

Vadoma was right about something...

Tauriel knew she couldn't spend too long in bed thinking of that moment and quickly she got up from the bed and slowly crept out of the small room.

Tauriel rubbed her eyes and noticed that Vadoma was already awake, preparing something for them, perhaps. She turned to see what kind of food Vadoma was preparing.

"We have some deer meat." She said.

Tauriel blankly looked at the plate of meat, appalled. "-I don't eat that." Said Tauriel. Vadoma turned to look at her.

"Ah yes. You're not a carnivorous Vastayan." She nodded, "Very well." She looked back at the plate of meat and pushed it near the corner of the table. Looking around she grabbed a few fruits and vegetables that had been stored in a basket.

"Eat." She said as she put the basket by the side of the table. Tauriel got up and sat down at the table, taking in the food. Her hands pressed lightly against the skin of the food, slowly giving in little nibbles, and began to take her chance to speak.

"...I felt it at the time. The weight of... his scourge. When I was younger... I could feel the negativity of the servants, animals... Mostly my mother...at the time." Vadoma sat down at the table, gradually listening to Tauriel's words as she noticed the rabbit girl frown. "Your mother..?" Vadoma nodded, as if in agreement with Tauriel.

"Mother was always bitter, negative, and... uncertain with... her work." Tauriel took a bite of the food to keep her mouth full of food. Tauriel kept silent until she finished with the remains of food inside her mouth. She didn't want to talk about it anymore. "...Mother Vadoma, are you... planning to do something?"

The old woman looked at her, "What do you mean, child?" She replied. Vadoma took a quick look at her surroundings before continuing.

"I'm not sure... Just anything." Vadoma thought to herself for a moment. "...Mm, perhaps you may help me with something." "Oh, okay," Tauriel said, not sure that she could help Vadoma.

The woman walked over to a desk that was piled with rubbish, to her it was but to Vadoma it probably wasn't. She seized a piece of paper on the top of the mess. "…You are to… tend errands for me," Vadoma said as she handed Tauriel a list of some kind.

"Errands?…-I don't. I don't know my way around here." Tauriel said nervously, reading the piece of paper. Vadoma was already on her way to the door. "You'll learn. Now take this, and I'll see you later."

Tauriel turned to her abruptly, "But I thought you said it was dangerous for me to roam the streets?" She questioned. The old woman smiled, "Day is fine. The night is not. Cover up and do these for me, child." Tauriel nodded and took the piece of paper.

"But how? I mean…?" Vadoma at the door and shut it in front of her, leaving Tauriel to her own devices.