Been well everyone? Hope you have been doing great, missed this honestly, well I'm back! Let us move forward full speed ahead!

Chapter 11: What the institute offers. A Silver bolt in the knee. Nightmares.

As the day kept going, Taliyah had found the hard way how resourceful Cid was. The man was too simple, and in his simplicity, he seemed to have an uncanny ability to avoid any danger. Taliyah just couldn't seem to be able to make the man fall on anything.

Nasus had taken a liking to him, he had invited him to the library tomorrow. Zyra had just simply accepted him as someone who knew of plants. Recently as they kept walking he had been able to point to Rek Sai in the right direction. When she questioned how he even had seemingly understood the cries of the void beast his answer was.

"It was obvious she was looking for the exit"

Taliyah just couldn't understand the simplicity of the therapist, nor his seemingly hidden skill on understanding the inner workings of everyone mind. To her it was mind reading, for him it seemed to be a technique that required practice.

"How do you do it?! Seriously it doesn't make sense!"

Taliyah pretty much shouted bringing the attention of many who were moving through the spacious hallways of the Institute. Everyone resumed their trek but Shen, the Eye of Twilight was curious as to what was happening.

"What's the reason for the imbalance Stoneweaver?"

Shen was often a sort of keeper of order, so Taliyah wasn't surprised, but she decided that maybe Shen being all ninja would probably be unable to fall for the tricks of the therapist who just wouldn't go away.

"My problem is this man reading my mind! He is not respecting my privacy you know?"

At this Taliyah internally smirked, surely Shen would question the man. Cid looked dumbfounded, he was pretty much just thinking about how the man in front of him looked cool. In all honesty Cid always thought the people of Ionia sort of looked cool in their traditional clothes and suits. Call it being a fan of other places outside of Demacia.

He would wear a shirt of Noxus anytime of the day. Not that he would do it in Demacia, even less in front of Jarvan.

Shen was looking at the man in front of him. He had faced many different beings in his life, all sorts of champions too. But honestly, he believed Taliyah was lying. The man in front of him didn't look anything like a mind reader, nor even remotely a threat. But before he could speak to Taliyah the man spoke first.

"Don't go saying stuff like that, look at him, he hasn't stop trying to asses if I'm a threat, which he already found out I'm not"

Cid didn't know that his words had the opposite effect on Shen. Sure, Shen had deemed the man as non-threatening. That was before he pretty much spoke what Shen was thinking.

"So, you are a mind reader then?"

Shen looked serious at the man in front of him. Cid started laughing.

"No, not really, I'm just a therapist"

Shen deemed that as enough, he would get more information of him later. He simply bowed and left. Cid looked at Taliyah pointing at where the ninja left.

"So… who was the big ninja?"

Taliyah sighed, her intent of making Cid leave her alone had failed.

"You know, I got the feeling you want me to leave you alone. And if that's what you want that's fine"

Taliyah smiled, finally she could give it a try to reach Yasuo and Riven.

"Just so you remember though, you can't leave this place without someone teleporting you out remember?"

The therapist had made its point. Taliyah plan was to get out of his view and make the trip to Yasuo and Riven, more to Yasuo honestly, she wasn't really that trusting of Riven. But Cid was right, she would need a summoner to teleport her to them, is not like she could just make the travel faster than the teleport spell.

Her shoulders slumped. She let out a breath and just looked sad.

While Cid tried to avoid teenagers and well, people in general. He didn't like the look on Taliyah being saddened. It just didn't fit her.

"Hey, come on, don't be like that, things will go well for Yasuo."

Taliyah perked a bit hearing his words, but her optimism turned to skepticism.

"How can you be so sure?"

Cid smiled and made a motion with his hand as if he did magic.

"Because I can read people minds remember? I can even read them when they are far away"

Taliyah was sure he was joking. She hopes he was joking. Still, she was thankful for the support, she needed reassurance and she was thankful he was trying.

"Thanks… even though you are a creepy old man"

Cid chuckled at her words.

"I'm not that old you know? I'm rather young, but not a teenager anymore"

Taliyah chuckled before moving forward on the hallway.

"I will be going to the training field, want to follow?"

Cid waved to dissuade the idea.

"No thanks, I trust you are responsible enough to be on your own for a while, look for me in my office if you need me"

If she wasn't happy before, she was now, she seemed to beam happiness at being told she was responsible to be on her own. Maybe he would need to speak with Yasuo about Taliyah, she was a teenager like many others. That meant she needed her own space and a bit more trust thrown her way with a bit of responsibility.

Before Cid could walk back to his office he heard something clashing against his prosthetic leg. On inspection his left leg now had a silver bolt decorating it.

"Are you serious… there are better ways to catch my attention"

Vayne was hiding in the shadows of the arc of a door motioning for him. He simply walked while carrying the silver bolt.

"You know Vayne, there are other ways to get my attention, and those ways don't end with me having a silver bolt on the knee"

Vayne motioned for him to follow without speaking. As he made his way through the hallways he took notice they were getting into his office.

"I was just coming here you know…"

Once Cid took his place on his chair and Vayne sat on the couch reserved for patients Cid let himself look for something on the desk and he found it. Pen and paper.

"Okay. You got my attention, what do you want to chat about?"

Vayne was silent. But Cid could see the struggle she seemed to have and just waited patiently. He didn't spoke a word for long until Vayne spoke in what could be considered almost a whisper.

"I…I don't remember the name of my parents…"

"Oh…"

Cid was surprised, this was the continuation of their therapy. Cid nodded in understanding and decided to stand up and just did what felt right. He was scared, if she wanted she could kill him in less than a second, still he placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Is okay… let it all out."

Cid heard the soft sobs of Vayne. No one would be able to listen any sound on the office, the runes on the wall and the door would make sure of that. Still, it was heart breaking to hear the soft sobbing of the Night Hunter. After the sobbing was done rage took place and Vayne stood up hitting the wall.

"They were taken away! And I took Frey away! I didn't even give her a chance!"

Frey, Cid had never heard the name before, so he asked directly.

"Vayne…who is Frey?"

For a moment the rage subsided. And Vayne fell on the couch, it was obvious she wasn't one for emotions, and speaking them took out a lot of energy on her exhausting her. Emotional injuries could be insanely taxing.

"Frey was my mentor… she taught me all I needed to know to fight the Night and the things that live in it…"

But she took her away. That could only mean one thing.

"Why did you kill her?"

Vayne tensed for a moment. Silence reigned in the office as Cid was back on his chair waiting for Vayne to speak.

"Because she… she was a monster… but she wasn't one… not really"

The memory of Frey trying to explain her reasons as to hide things from Vayne was saddening for her as she remembered how immediately she ended her life with a silver bolt.

"She was from the Freljord… I can't tell you much… I killed her when she tried to explain her reasons…."

Cid nodded and simply wrote his notes regarding Vayne.

"Not going to soften things up. You are a mess Vayne"

She stood straight looking at him trying to seem threatening, but Cid wasn't impressed and kept going with his analysis, Vayne needed to hear it.

"When you don't like something, you rage against it, you don't listen to reason nor logic, you simply shoot first and don't make questions… Frey surely wasn't even a threat to you"

Vayne was still standing, and she looked like she would lunge at Cid at any moment. She simply sat on the couch, and breathed.

"I know… but I can't stop…"

And Cid understood why.

"Because the moment the hunt ends, you are back to be the lone child who couldn't save her parents… the child no one believed when she said a demon took her parents"

Vayne tensed hearing Cid words, but not in anger. But in the fact, he had understood how she felt inside.

"When will this end?"

Cid hummed a bit as he faked thinking and just spoke the truth to Vayne.

"Never. It never ends, you will always be that child. You are Shauna Vayne, but that doesn't mean you can't change you know? The past is the past, the important thing is what you do with the rest of your life you know?"

Vayne seemed to be in thought. Cid couldn't judge her reaction in her eyes due to the fact her glasses hided her eyes. But if the tension leaving her arms was any indication, it was that she had gotten the message, at least a part of it.

"I see…I will hunt them down… and I will hunt down the one who killed my parents…"

"A step forward and two steps back… You will need to learn to let the memory of your parents go away you know? No matter what you do Vayne, if you don't leave revenge, it will just burn you inside"

Vayne stood up nodding in his direction.

"The important is what I do with the rest of my life after that right?"

She left the door. She looked composed as if nothing had happened.

Cid could only wonder how much pain could she carry like that, she was master in faking that things didn't hurt, that she was fine, that she was invincible. But Cid knew a truth no one understood.

"Shauna Vayne… you are a child trying to act as a grown up…"

As Cid waited for anyone else to visit, he tried to take away the silver bolt from his leg.

"A child carrying a crossbow…"

CUT! Hey, hope you all enjoy this short piece! Hopefully I will update weekly, hope your week have a great start everyone!