A/N: Unrelated to the chapter and maybe a bit too personal for Ao3, but I've started to undergo ADHD treatment and am seeing some success (especially when it comes to things like writing that require a lot of focus), so if I can keep things going like this then I might be able to post every week rather than every other week :) About the chapter, there is some drinking this time (nothing excessive), so if that's something you don't want to see then be warned. I like to imagine that many grumpy people like Mordekaiser let their more cheerful side out when they get drunk, and writing Braum as anything but a warm, loving friend just seems plain wrong. Also, while I do hope to eventually write a longfic about Mordekaiser and Sona in pentakill at some point, I'm trying to think of a smaller story to write about them and the band to satisfy that craving, so if you have any ideas that you want put into writing then comment or dm them to be and I'll try my hand at it if it seems appealing. Please enjoy!
After enduring more inane blabbering that Mordekaiser had done his best to zone out from, he eventually sagged in relief as Ashe led Sona to where she'd be performing for the night, leaving him and Braum to work their way through what was now a fifth jug of beer. Mordekaiser wasn't normally one to drink this heavily, but he considered tonight an exception. There was bound to be a situation like this where Braum would have no one to talk to but him, and to make the night bearable while also ignoring the urge to throttle Braum just to shut him up, he would need something to take the edge off. So whenever Braum had kindly offered to top him up, which by now had already happened a few times, he had complied, watching as with each jug Braum's face got a little redder, and his voice a little louder than it already was.
Unfortunately, though the alcohol felt strong enough as it had begun to burn the back of his throat, Mordekaiser didn't feel any better. If anything his intoxicated state had brought him to the realisation that this 'bodyguard' job was probably going to involve dealing with a lot of other annoying characters that would show up and pester him about this and that, until whenever Viego deemed it time for him to return to the Shadow Isles. He still had absolutely no clue what it was that Viego wanted him to experience here, what was so important that he had to be stripped of his rank and kicked out the door to see. If he'd wanted to get drunk with people he didn't like, he could have easily done that back home in the company of some of the more unstable Shadow Isles champions.
"So!" Braum clapped his hands together loudly, bringing Mordekaiser back from his long and admittedly rather depressing train of thought. "Since you and Sona are going to be staying with us for some time, how about you tell Braum all about yourself, hmm? It is not every day we have a guest such as yourself in the Freljord."
"What do you want to know?" Mordekaiser sighed, reaching for his tankard to take a drink, only to realise it was once again empty.
"Anything you would like to tell!" Braum grinned, leaning over the table in anticipation of what he might hear. Mordekaiser had half a mind to tell one of the many horror stories the Shadow Isles harboured as if it were his own life, just to see if Braum would keep smiling through such a gruesome tale. But then that would probably just worry him, and Mordekaiser imagined that a sympathetic Braum would be even more difficult to deal with than the one he was barely enduring now.
"My existence has been uneventful." Mordekaiser lied. "I lived a normal life until joining the League. Then I did the same things that every other champion did there, and now I somehow ended up here. The end."
"Surely it is not true!" Braum held his arms out wide, exaggerating his disbelief. "There is no such thing as this 'normal life' you speak of. There must be something interesting you can recall, something that would help Braum learn about who you are?."
"Nothing that I'm willing to tell." Mordekaiser begged for him to take the hint as he pressed himself back into his seat, trying to look as distant as he could manage. There was no way he'd answer Braum's pleas, lest he end up in the same situation as Demacia, being looked at like that again.
"Ah, that is… understandable." Braum paused, scratching his moustache. Mordekaiser was unused to seeing him so subdued. He had expected to be badgered into giving him some information for a while longer.
"Let me tell you something, friend. In the Freljord, there are many people who are found on the brink of death, freezing as the harsh blizzards chill them to the core, or hanging on by a thread as they cradle a scathing injury from a fierce troll." Braum spoke with vigour and accompanying hand gestures as always, but with a slight added softness to his tone.
"When invited into a tribe or a family, there are those who do not wish to talk about their previous life. Perhaps they carry a heavy past or simply like to keep their personal lives to themselves. But what matters most is the person that they become, and what they can do for others, for those closest to them. You, for example, have come far from home to protect young Sona from the dangers of the world. No one who would go to such lengths for another could be a bad person. So whether you share your story or not, I can assure you you'll always be welcome here."
Mordekaiser felt an initial tinge of suspicion as he thought it sounded like Braum was implying he had a life to be ashamed of, but quickly squashed it. There was no way the babbling teddy bear of a man sitting before him was malicious enough, or even subtle enough, to undercut him in such a way. Mordekaiser loathed sappy stories, but it was a little relieving that he wouldn't be asked to justify his presence here like he was used to.
"Thanks." Mordekaiser said lamely. He doubted it had sounded very convincing, but Braum beamed at him all the same. As if then reading his mind, Braum called for yet another round of drinks, winking at him knowingly. Mordekaiser gave him just a hint of a smile. At least he knew how to drink.
"Perhaps, then, you could tell me something else instead." Braum proposed to him, looking back to his jolly self as he glanced briefly between Mordekaiser and the incoming wave of drinks. "From what Sona said before, it seemed like you two had not been close before coming here. So Braum was wondering, what was it that brought you on this journey in the first place?"
"As I told you before, I find her music to be truly special. When I heard her play, I felt truly relaxed, almost weightless. I knew after that I wanted to hear her play again, so I accepted her request." Mordekaiser told him. It was a perfectly acceptable answer, but he could feel that Braum wanted something deeper than that. The more he said here, the less likely Braum would be to try and dig into his past. And he was a little curious about Braum's opinion on something. Despite being much too jolly for Mordekaiser to really be able to relate to him on anything, Braum was well travelled, if his mountain of stories was anything to go by.
"But if you wanted another reason, there is something else." Mordekaiser admitted. "I was recommended the job by a close friend. When I asked them why exactly, they said that it was important for me to 'see the world'. Tell me, if someone had said the same thing to you, what would you think that meant?"
Braum chuckled, pointing at Mordekaiser with the hand that held his beer and spilling some of its contents onto the table. "That depends on you, my friend. When Braum goes on adventures, of course there is no way to tell what he will find. But it is through trying new things at random that we discover what we love. For example, the only way to find out you like to drink, is to take the first sip!" As if to demonstrate, he proceeded to down the rest of his beer, sighing with satisfaction as he wiped the residue from his face with the back of his hand. Mordekaiser had barely started to consider his answer before Braum was already talking again.
"Perhaps what you need is a practical example. Tomorrow we will be heading out to gather some supplies for the village, and if we're lucky we will find something to hunt. Why don't you join us? We could use all the help we can get!"
"I'm not familiar with hunting game." Mordekaiser frowned. More importantly, he had already planned on spending as little time as possible out in the cold. This little trip sounded suspiciously like he would just end up being used for manual labour.
"Don't worry about that friend, we will teach you! But you still don't look convinced, so how about a little contest to decide? If I can drink more than you tonight, then you will go. If not, then you can stay here. That is, unless you are not up for the challenge?" Braum raised an eyebrow at Mordekaiser, waving his empty tankard from side to side like he was taunting a bull.
"You must think me a fool to be provoked by such an obvious trick." Mordekaiser scoffed at him, unimpressed.
"Ah, you are right. It was only a suggestion." Braum conceded.
"And besides," Mordekaiser said as he pushed his empty jug towards Braum, earning him a look of surprise, "I could drink you under the table on your best day without even trying. This will hardly be a contest."
"Sorry this probably won't compare to what you're used to at home." Ashe apologised as she led Sona through the tightly knit tables, careful to avoid the sudden movements of some of the tavern's larger customers as they would jump from their chairs in excitement at something. The stage she'd brought Sona to, if you could call it that, was a small wooden platform that had a couple of planks missing, most likely having succumbed to the clumsiness of some of the tavern's more inebriated customers.
Sona smiled politely, "Don't worry about it! You and Braum have already done so much for me, this will be fine. Though I'm a little worried my style of music won't really suit the atmosphere here…"
"You'd be surprised. I know that some of the hunters might look fearsome, but you should see them with their wives, they become the sweetest things." Ashe then held back a laugh as she remembered something, "Besides, there have been some truly horrendous 'talent acts' here. Last week Braum got really drunk and started singing this ridiculous folk song and just wouldn't stop. He was up there for the best part of half an hour before we eventually got him down with three men pulling him away, and that was only because he needed another drink."
"He can be a little… eccentric at times." Sona laughed nervously. She could still see him clearly from across the bar, moving energetically with his arms above his head as it looked like he was pretending to be some sort of large monster in a story he was telling to Mordekaiser. "Do you think that those two will be alright?" Sona asked. She couldn't help but peer over at the two of them every so often.
"They'll be fine." Ashe reassured her. "I've yet to meet anyone who hasn't eventually warmed up to Braum. Even if Mordekaiser is a bit of a special case."
"I'm sure you're right." Sona replied, tuning her etwahl while she pretended not to notice the few curious stares that were coming her way as she started to set herself up on the stage.
"By the way, not that it's any of my business, but I am a little interested in how exactly you two ended up together." The frost archer asked, keeping her voice hushed like she might be heard despite how far away Mordekaiser and Braum were from them. "I keep up with quite a few of the champions from the old days, and none of them have so much as mentioned Mordekaiser. And from what I have seen, he isn't exactly the social type. Is there a reason you chose him to accompany you?"
Sona thought carefully about how to answer that question, because she wasn't really sure herself either. It would be wrong of her to go around telling people that one reason was because Mordekaiser was not currently working as Lord of the Shadow Isles, as that had appeared to be somewhat of a touchy subject when he'd first mentioned it. But even though it probably sounded conceited to think that Mordekaiser could benefit from travelling with her, Sona had hoped distracting himself from his homeland troubles by journeying with her would help him at least a little bit. And perhaps more selfishly, she quite liked his company when he wasn't in a bad mood.
"I had the same reservations as you when we first met." Sona admitted, still being able to remember the feeling of terror she'd felt in their first encounter vividly. "But he seemed to really like my music. When I talked with him after my last time playing in Demacia, he had this look about him like he'd never even heard any music before. I thought it would be invigorating to be able to show someone like that the joys of music for the first time, so that I could experience everything again for the first time second hand, in a weird way. I was also interested in learning more about him as a person, but he keeps a lot to himself, so I'm not really sure that'll happen any time soon."
"You know, Sona, you are always so… what's the word I'm thinking of?" Ashe pondered, frowning as she bit her lip.
Sona smiled sadly, "Naive?" She guessed.
"Optimistic." Ashe corrected her, giving Sona a playful nudge of reassurance. "And kind. I know time in the Institute hardened and broke a lot of people, so I'm glad you managed to keep that compassionate side of you."
Sona held up her hands to protest, "I'm really nothing like that! It's not like I'm being completely selfless in asking Mordekaiser along. Besides, I think after the treatment he got in Demacia, he probably doesn't like me much." Sona felt a pang of guilt as if just hearing her own words. No doubt to Mordekaiser she was just like every other outsider that had judged him, remaining fearful of him just because of how he looked and the reputation he held.
"I'm not so sure. He must like something about you to come all the way out here." Ashe tried to reason with her. "But anyway, I've kept you long enough, haven't I? Go break a leg Sona, you always do." She gave Sona one last pat on the shoulder for good luck, and then left. Sona stared after her for a few moments until the fingers she was mindlessly fidgeting with met the strings of her etwahl. She had a show to put on.
Sona idly tuned the instrument despite knowing that it wasn't necessary. She'd already checked it twice over beforehand, as she always did. It was a kind of pre performance ritual to get rid of some of the nerves. Sona had hoped if she'd looked busy enough then there'd be no one looking when she started to play, but there were always at least a few pairs of eyes watching her, expecting something of her. She knew from past experience that when she started playing things would be fine, as despite her pre-performance anxieties Sona couldn't remember the last time she'd made a mistake while playing, but that didn't stop the familiar feeling of dread manifesting itself in the pit of her stomach every time she was about to start. Still, there was nothing to do in situations like these but power through.
Sona took a deep breath, lining her still trembling fingers up with the right strings as she readied herself, and after a moment's hesitation she plucked the first note. The next few came easily, and kept on coming until her hands were gliding flawlessly across the strings, almost moving by themselves. Sona kept her eyes firmly down on her rapidly moving fingers as she continued to play, taking no notice of how almost every pair of eyes and ears in the tavern were focused on her, or how the constant buzz of chatter had slowly died down until no one else was making a sand. Instead she felt her body sway to and fro to the serene melody she was creating. It felt like a gentle wind was flowing around her, its impossibly tender touch guiding her every move, until at last Sona gently laid the song to rest and left the room in silence.
The silence was short lived as Sona was surprised by a very enthusiastic wave of cheers, some of her listeners even raising their mugs in the air in appreciation, spilling beer everywhere. She hadn't even realised that there'd been such a large audience, thinking that her music would have just blended into the background amid the rowdy customers. Sona gave her usual polite bow, leaving her etwahl to rest for now as she stepped down from the platform, eyes already scanning the crowd to find Braum and the others.
She was interrupted however by a trio of large, burly men moving to block her path, all grinning from ear to ear down at her.
"That was amazing, little girl!" The man on the right beamed down at her through his thick beard, giving her a firm pat on the shoulder that threatened to knock Sona off balance. "Really helped me to relax after a long day out on the field. I've never heard anything like it!"
"Thank you." Sona nodded graciously. "But I'm an adult, not a 'little girl'."
"Really? But you are so small!" Another one of the men chuckled, placing a large hand above her forehead as if to prove his point.
The first man who spoke then also laughed, "You are so soft looking, too. Like a little baby! The women I know have scars, and muscles, but you are so slim and sweet."
"Maybe you would be interested in a husband then? I have a friend who would be perfect for you! You would get along great!" The largest and scariest male of the three of them edged himself forward, a heavily tattooed arm taking her hand before Sona could react with a surprisingly gentle grip. "What do you say?"
Sona tried to pull herself back, "Um-"
"Give her a bit of space, boys. Can't you tell she's uncomfortable?" Ashe came to rescue her, stepping in to wrestle Sona's hand free.
"Oh! We're terribly sorry!" One of them said, shuffling himself back so fast that a couple of chairs clattered to the floor behind him. "We never meant to startle you."
"Please forgive us!" the other two urged in unison, holding their large hands up in surrender. Sona wasn't really sure how to address such a sincere apology.
"It's okay, I'm fine. But, well, I will probably be playing here tomorrow so if you'd like to listen again, it's always nice to have a friendly face in the audience." Sona watched all three men nod their heads enthusiastically, one of them claiming they would bring their whole family along to listen as Ashe gently shooed them away. Sona smiled to herself. It had been a while since she had gotten such a positive review from a performance.
"Sorry about them." Ashe laughed once Sona's newfound friends were out of earshot. "Those three are hunters for the village here. Scary when they want to be. Very friendly otherwise though, perhaps a bit too much. I hope they didn't cause you any trouble."
Sona shook her head, "No, not at all. They were very nice! I just don't know if I'm ready to marry someone I haven't met." Sona and Ashe shared a small laugh with each other.
"But you know, this ought to be the kind of thing your bodyguard would sort out." Ashe said, scouring the tavern to look for the man in question. Her head stopped turning as she found a crowd of twenty or so customers gathered around one table, chatting eagerly about whatever was happening in the middle. Sona noticed as she and Ashe got closer that small amounts of money and even food were being exchanged rapidly, a lot like a betting ring of some kind. As it turned out, Mordekaiser and Braum were sitting across from each other in the centre of it all, surrounded by a dozen more empty tankards of beer that hadn't been there when Sona had left just a short while ago.
"You may have bested me in drinking, my friend, but Braum has never lost in a test of strength!" Braum boasted, his speech just a little slurred. It looked like he had spilled a small trail of beer down his bare chest as Sona noticed a wet, foamy trail leading down from his mouth. Braum held out his arm with his elbow planted firmly on the table, giving a cheeky grin by way of an extended challenge.
Ashe huffed in amusement as she watched the exchange, "So this is what they were up to." From her reaction, Sona guessed that this probably wasn't the first time a night of drinking had devolved into a contest of brawn.
"You underestimate me, old man." Mordekaiser laughed, for once his impossibly deep voice sounding more jolly than sinister. He took the outstretched hand in front of him and gripped it with more strength than necessary, earning another cheer from their small audience.
"You getting in on the bet, Ashe?" Iffi, the same waitress that Sona recognised refilling their drinks from earlier, asked Ashe while holding a small notepad with everyone's names and betting numbers scrawled across the page. Sona glanced at it briefly, noting that Braum seemed to have almost every man and woman in the bar counting on his victory.
"Come on, Ashe, surely you still know my arm wrestling record? Sixty seven wins and zero losses to date, you know you can trust Braum!" He beamed at her, nodding towards the small pile of coins on the table suggestively.
"Ugh, fine. Five silver pieces for Braum to win." Ashe smiled in spite of herself as she brought a few coins out of her cloak, finding his bravado amusing.
"And you, young miss? Who do you think will win?" Sona flinched, caught a little off guard as Iffi turned to her, one hand outstretched presumably to take whatever she chose to wager. Sona supposed it didn't really matter who she bet on, it wasn't like she would ever be short on money after how well the Institute and her career paid her. Braum was the obvious choice, his muscular form and air of confidence would be enough to persuade anyone. But then, Mordekaiser was equally large, and must have been strong to wear his thick plated armour around everywhere. He had turned to look at Sona as if reading her thoughts, watching her silently. Maybe he was hoping that he'd have at least one fan in the crowd.
"I'll take the same bet on Mordekaiser, please." Sona answered, accompanied by some very immature jeering from the crowd.
"Well said." Mordekaiser nodded to her in approval.
"Sona, my dear, how could you do this to me?" Braum pouted, pretending to be upset as he clutched the area where his heart would be with his free hand.
"Less talking, more wrestling." Mordekaiser kicked him lightly under the table, readying himself as he and Braum leaned forward in anticipation.
"On my mark." Iffi held a hand between the two of them, silencing the excited murmuring around them. "One. Two. Three!" She shouted.
The moment Iffi lifted her hand, the table jolted with palpable force as both Mordekaiser and Braum let out a burst of strength, knocking over a few empty jugs of beer that had teetered on the edge to the floor. Sona steadied herself with Ashe's arm as the spectators jostled her around a little, cheering loudly as they enjoyed the show. Despite the absurdity of the whole thing, Sona couldn't help but feel excited too, the rowdy atmosphere becoming contagious. Though he'd gained a small early lead, Braum's scrunched up face was gradually turning redder and redder, his arm shaking as his hand crept closer to the wooden top of the table. Mordekaiser released a long undignified grunting noise, turning the rest of his body with great difficulty to muster every last drop of energy into his wrestling arm. The grunt turned into a pained growl, slowly rising in pitch as despite Braum's best efforts he eventually succumbed to defeat.
Immediately Mordekaiser rose from his seat, uncaring of how the chair behind him tipped onto its back as he raised both arms triumphantly with a roar of pride. There was an instant flurry of conversation, some excited to see a new champion, while others lamented over their gambling losses.
"I can't believe Braum actually lost!"
"Is it a man or a beast wearing that armour?"
"How am I going to explain to my wife where the money for tomorrow night's roast has gone?"
"Don't worry, I bet on the new guy so I'm filthy rich! Invite her over to mine instead!"
"Do you think he's single? There's nothing more attractive than a strong man!"
Braum simply looked down at his hands as he ignored the offhand comments, disappointed, but still in a good mood.
"I've been spending too much time behind the bar and not enough in the great outdoors building my strength." He admitted, before turning to Mordekaiser with a defeated smile. "Just as promised, you need not come with us tomorrow. Though, the offer still stands of course, if you would like to anyway."
Mordekaiser halted his exaggerated celebrations momentarily to consider the offer, noting that a few other people in the bar also seemed to be waiting for his answer.
"Why not? I have nothing better to do." He chuckled as predictably Braum's expression almost immediately lit up. "Besides, the boost to my pride is more than enough reward for victory. That and my winnings." Mordekaiser added, reaching down to take some of the coins that hadn't dropped off the table.
"Wonderful!" Braum cried happily, his bitter loss already forgotten. "Then I'll see you tomorrow morning, friend. Best to get up early, you won't want to be caught out there late at night in the dark."
Mordekaiser nodded in agreement to him, before taking his drink and pushing his way out of the small crowd that had gathered to witness his triumph. He took a good few gulps and drained the jug clean, before absentmindedly jingling the coins around in his other hand. Then looking as if he suddenly remembered something, Sona watched as Mordekaiser seemed to look around for something, eyes stopping as they met hers for a brief moment and he quickly closed the short distance between the two of them.
"Hold out your hand." Mordekaiser requested, though it sounded more like an order in his voice, still intimidating as ever. Sona tentatively did as she was told, wondering what it was Mordekaiser was going to do to her, when to her surprise he gently placed the money he'd been holding into her hand.
"Your reward for picking the stronger man." Mordekaiser rumbled, answering the inquisitive look Sona must have still been giving him.
"Oh, thank you!" Sona said, sliding the coins into a pocket of her coat that was hanging on a nearby chair. She quickly returned to Mordekaiser's side, noticing how he didn't take his eyes off of her. "Congratulations, by the way. I had no idea who was going to win, it was very intense."
"Thanks." He replied gruffly. "Luckily for you the man you're paying for protection happens to be the strongest in the room. I thought that would've been the reason you originally invited me along." Despite his face being almost entirely invisible, Sona thought he looked a little offended that she hadn't known he'd win. She tried to think of some sort of excuse that would remove his doubt.
"Well, I wasn't sure. It looked like you'd had a lot to drink, so I was just a bit worried. Even Braum looks a little woozy, and he's used to drinking like this. Are you feeling okay?" Sona asked with concern. While he seemed normal enough and was able to balance perfectly well, Mordekaiser seemed a lot more talkative and approachable than usual, which Sona assumed could only be the alcohol's doing. She didn't mind the change at all though. If anything she was eager to get what conversation she could out of him while he was in this state.
"I told you before, there's no reason for you to be concerned for me." Mordekaiser waved her off. "I'm able to do my job perfectly fine still if that's what you're worried about."
"It wasn't, but that's good to know." Sona smiled at him, hoping she hadn't come off looking like accusing him of being unfit for work. "I'm glad that you and Braum are getting along though, I was a little worried that you wouldn't like him."
Mordekaiser snorted, "I didn't like him at first. People that are overly positive and energetic usually annoy me. In my experience they are the kind of people to insult you behind your back." Mordekaiser paused mid rant as he saw the corners of Sona's mouth pull down into a frown at his words. "But the man knows his way around a drink or a good meal. And his energy is somewhat contagious, I must admit. To be so welcoming to even someone like me… I can see why the two of you are friends."
"I'm glad to hear it." Sona replied, feeling a wave of relief wash over her. She wasn't sure why, but it felt important to her that Mordekaiser liked her friends, at least a little. Especially after what had happened back in Demacia.
"Incidentally, Braum invited me out on one of their little trips tomorrow." Mordekaiser began. "From what I understand it'll mostly be hunting down food and materials for the people here. So, if you wanted to stay here while that's going on, then I'm sure he could find someone to look after you."
"Why would I stay here?" Sona asked, her gaze hardening a little.
"Because it's dangerous." Mordekaiser huffed as if it should have been obvious. "There will be wild animals roaming around, possible barbarians we might encounter, and a lot of heavy lifting to do which, no offence, you won't be very useful for. All of that in the freezing cold weather you've just experienced. I had assumed that since you came here just to play some music, that you wouldn't want to bother with all that."
"What are you implying? That I wouldn't be able to take care of myself?" Sona frowned, taking a rare confrontational stance despite Mordekaiser still easily towering over her.
"You implied that yourself by asking for a bodyguard to protect you." He couldn't help but laugh. Sona opened and closed her mouth, trying to think of an equally scathing reply. It didn't come, though. Sona didn't really have much practice in arguing. She settled instead for scowling up at him instead, though it looked much more like a childish pout.
"Well you'll be surprised to find out that I will in fact be going." Sona said, folding her arms. "I came here intending to experience life in the Freljord properly, so if that involves getting my hands dirty and facing a little danger, then that's what I'll do."
"Sure." Mordekaiser shrugged at her.
"Fine, then." Sona snapped back, a small amount of frustration in her voice. She turned away from Mordekaiser, pretending to watch Braum slam his challengers hand down with ease, celebrating as he reached over to offer his opponent a firm handshake.
"I liked your performance today, by the way." Mordekaiser nudged Sona with his elbow as he spoke. "I forgot to mention that earlier."
"Thanks." She murmured in response, a little taken aback. Sona had to stop herself from feeling too happy about the compliment as even without turning to look at him, she could feel Mordekaiser smirking at her. "Don't think that you're forgiven just because you said one nice thing. I'm still mad at you."
The corners of Mordekaiser's mouth curled upwards. "Of course."
