Author's Note: Hey guys sorry for the late chapter again (this feels like a bit of a pattern atm). Hopefully the longer chapter make up for it a little :)
Tristana was lying on the bed in Artemis' spare room (technically it was hers but she hadn't had the heart to call it that yet), her father's note in front of her as she reread it for what felt like the hundredth time.
To Tristy,
I'm so sorry that things turned out this way. What you are doing is courageous and wonderful and I'm so proud of you. I know you'll do great things as a Megling Commando. Try not to let your mother's words get you down. Though I know you have your differences, she really does want what's best for you.
Please be safe,
Your Father
A small smile quirked at her lips as she carefully placed the letter on her beside table. Then, with a sigh, she turned her attention to her homework.
However, she'd barely made it through the first question when a knock on the door made her pause. Curiously, the blue teen made her way to the entrance.
"Teemo," she chirped at the sight of the young yordle at the door. "What are you doing here? I thought you weren't feeling well."
He gave her a small smile, "Well you did invite me over. If the offer still stands."
"Of course!"
Cheerfully, the bright girl gave her friend a small tour of the house. Teemo followed behind her dutifully, eyes following her gestures but there was a lack of focus to them, and his expression remained lacklustre.
Noticing this, Tristana paused mid-sentence. "Teemo are you alright?"
The yordle let out a shaky breath. "I don't know," he admitted.
"Okay," Tristana didn't know what to say as she led them back to the lounge room. "So, what's up?"
"I'm not sure," Teemo said quietly. "I've just had a lot of little things that aren't adding up." Taking a deep breath, he drove forward, asking the question that had been haunting him for a while, "Tristana, I have to ask, that cut on your cheek the first day you guys came to visit. Did I do that?"
His blue gaze bore into her with such intensity that the blue girl found herself unable to lie. Mutely she nodded.
At her answer the pale yordle curled in on himself in panic, hands covering his face as a muttered stream escaped him. "Oh, no, no, no, no…" his words cut off as his breathing become too rapid.
Tristana felt her stomach twist in worry at the complete lack of composure her usually stead-fast friend was showing. Carefully, she pulled his hands away from where they'd clawed tightly at his fur, pulling his frightened gaze as she asked as calmly as possible. "Teemo, what's wrong?"
"Trist, I think something's wrong with me," he said brokenly. "I don't remember doing that. And the combat training yesterday. I don't remember any of that either. I don't remember using my team as bait and brutally taking out four other recruits."
He pulled himself from her grip. But before he got too far, he suddenly stopped, gaze unable to meet that of the concerned girl across from him.
"I'm worried," he said in a small voice. "I worried that I'm going Insane. That I've Slipped."
Tristana steeled herself, putting on a front that was more confident than she felt. "You're not going Insane."
The pale boy rounded on her, "How can you be so sure? I meet all the requirements: prolonged period of time isolated; traumatic event; uncharacteristic and violent behaviour. I hurt you Tristana. What if I do it again? What if I do something worse?"
"Do you have proof you will?" At the girl's challenge Teemo fell into a deep silence, eyes fixated on the ground. "Teemo?" the blue teen pushed.
Tension coiled like a spring in the silence before finally Teemo broke it quietly. "Did you know my dad had a sister?"
"No," Tristana admitted, a little thrown by the sudden change in conversation.
"Seraphina. She was killed by her husband a month after he was rescued."
Tristana sighed, "That doesn't mean it'll happen to you."
"But that's the thing," the yordle turned to her, worry dwelling in his blue eyes. "I recognised her name. I recognised it from the orphanage."
Silence stretched once again as the significance of that sunk in for the blue girl. Across from her, worry surged once more in Teemo. Panic rapidly rising at the implications of what that might mean. Only for it to be cut off when a warm hand landed on his shoulder.
"Hey," Tristana gave him a reassuring smile. "We should get some rest. In the morning we'll go get Rumble and Ziggs and solve this – together."
Teemo took in a shaky breath. "Thanks Trist."
Teemo took in a shaky breath as the air slowly cleared. The sweet and poignant smell of the gas mixed with the decaying earth shoved close to his nose made his already fuzzy head throb in time with his heartbeat. He closed his eyes briefly, hoping to block out some of the pain and instead focused on his surroundings.
He could feel the rough ground digging into the side of his head, however, he couldn't feel anything from the arm pinned underneath his weight nor could he feel the bush he knew was brushing up against his leg. Worse than that, he couldn't even get his lethargic limbs to move out of their way.
Breathe, he'd commanded himself, as his anxiety started rising again. Now was not the time to break down in panic.
His back was to the rock cliff, meaning he didn't have to move to see the rest of the group in a similar state. However, this clear view did not put him at any ease considering the tall figures standing on the other side of the clearing.
"Well," the first to approach was a lean, dark-skinned human (Shuriman, if Teemo was to hazard a guess). His sharp gaze swept across the downed yordles as he continued mildly. "I think that went well, all things considered."
"Went well my ass," a scrawny man with wild hair spat as he pushed past. Teemo felt a rush of fury and sadness shoot through him as the short human kicked the furry lump closest to the entrance. "Look what it did to my doggies!"
Of the four beasts that had been chasing them, only two remained; the pair leaning into the wildman's touch with gentle snorts as he tended to their injuries. He refused to even look at the silent, grey bodies flopped gracelessly next to the mauled form of their Commander.
Teemo averted his gaze, unable to look at the unrecognisable pile of torn flesh and fur that had been Commander Rodney.
When the gas had burst throughout the clearing, paralysing all but the Commander, the grizzly yordle had taken it upon himself to hold the enemy off. Helpless and in awe, all they could do was watch as the veteran had held off the prowling beasts. Every time one of them had tried to get past or ripped into him, he'd stood fast, dealing twice as much damage back. On his own, the fearsome yordle had taken out two of the creatures and heavily injured the remaining. Pushing on despite the blood slicking his hands and the ground beneath him with such determination, the recruits had been sure he would be victorious. Right up until a gunshot had left a hole through his head and they'd watched as their Commander had toppled forward into the waiting jaws of the beasts.
"Quit whining Runt." His eyes shot forward once more at the sound of wood hitting flesh, just in time to see the third human strut away from where the scrawny one was rubbing his head.
"Ya knew the risks." Her rough Bilgewater accent clashed with the bright hair and kitted outfit that screamed of Zaun.
Sneering at the woman, Runt snarled up at her, "Well maybe if your gas had hit everyone like it was supposed to, it wouldn't have turned out this way."
The loud sound of her gun resetting filled the clearing. "You saying I can't do ma job?" she asked in a deadly quiet voice.
"Enough!" the Shuriman stepped between his two colleagues. "We knew this would be a tough venture when we undertook it. Let's at least finish it before you start fighting."
Grumbling the two backed off.
"Sven, why don't you start packing up our prize. I don't want to be here longer than needed."
With a nod, the last remaining member (a bearded behemoth of a man) got to work picking up the immobilised yordles and carting them off – somewhere.
Satisfied, the leader turned to the mess that had been their Commander. "Shame about this one. He's completely unsalvageable," he said with distaste as he nudged the body with his boot. "Looks like we'll just have to bury it with the rest of the evidence."
"You bastard!" Lieutenant Roxanne shouted, the muscles in her body tensing as she tried and failed to pull herself to her feet. "Don't touch him! He was twice the man you are!"
The Shuriman knelt down to view the irate female better. "Maybe so," he admitted nonchalantly, "But what does that matter when he's dead and I'm rich?"
Helpless, Teemo could do nothing more than watch as he too was picked up and carried away with the others.
They were loaded into single cages on the back of a Yakashire (a massive, hairy beast of burden from Shurima used to carry payloads) before the group set off at a steady pace away from the mountain range and Bandle City. Up ahead, the silent Freljordian took point, finding a path that they could fit through with minimum disturbance to the surrounding undergrowth. Behind the Yakashira, the wiry human and the large hound-creatures trailed, seemingly conversing with each other.
Davis had been watching them in curiosity. Since there was little else to do, the red-furred teen asked. "What are they?"
"They're drake hounds," the Shuriman answered to their surprise. "Fascinating creatures. Only found in the northern mountains of Noxus. Since they're excellent hunters many of the nobles up there have tried to tame them. But they're so fierce and prideful that most don't succeed. Luckily for us, Runt just has a way with them. Must be his Vastayan heritage."
Roxanne narrowed her eyes. "You're pretty chatty for a captor."
The man merely shrugged. "It's hard to find good conversation in this group. Sven's a mute, Runt's crazy and trying to get a conversation out of Belladonner is like trying to pull teeth from a Xer'Sai – difficult and likely to get your head bitten off."
The purple-haired woman on the mount flipped her gun in his direction. "And don't ya forget it Kaleb."
Kaleb gave her a roguish smile. "Wouldn't dream of it!" he replied before turning back to the Lieutenant. "I'll take what I can get."
"So what are you planning to do with us?" Lexi asked.
"The only thing any sane person would come to this blasted jungle for: to make money. Do you have any idea how much a yordle pelt is worth on the black market? With the number of you we just nabbed, we're going to make a fortune."
Teemo felt the air freeze in his lungs as the other recruits stilled
"You're going to skin us?" he asked in a horrified whisper.
The Shuriman winked, "Bingo."
"Then why take us alive?" Roxanne butted in. "Surely, it would be less trouble to have killed us in the clearing rather than carting us around."
Kaleb observed her with a critical eye. "You've never had to skin multiple kills before have you?"
"Gee, what gave it away?" contempt dripped from the tan scout's voice but that didn't deter the human.
"The longer something's dead the more likely the pelt is to rot beyond a top-quality cure. Since we don't have the time to sit in this damned jungle and dedicate all our energy to skinning you lot, it's much more efficient to kill you right before we take your fur."
"You're going to make a bunch of teenagers watch as you skin their teachers and friends, while waiting their turn? That's just sick," the Lieutenant spat.
"But well worth the price," he grinned.
Ziggs glared at the blue girl at the door. However, due to how sleepy he was the effect only came across as half-hearted. "Do you have any idea what time it is?" the hazel teen grouched out.
"Seven," she answered with a grin.
"Exactly! It's seven in the morning – on a Sunday! I should be asleep." His head created a loud 'thunk' as it hit the doorway.
After how late he'd gone to bed last night, if he'd had his way Ziggs would most definitely still be in bed – friends or no friends at the door. Unfortunately for him, his mother had had other ideas. Upon seeing the two teens at the door, the kind woman had taken it upon herself to make sure her son was up to greet them. And so, with a prompt mattress flip and an earful about courtesy and getting to sleep on time, the fifteen-year-old had found himself standing dead on his feet in front of his friends in the mid-morning sun.
Exchanging a humorous look with Teemo behind her, Tristana unceremoniously poked her sleepy friend in the side. "Come on, we need your help and we've still got to get Rumble."
"You're in luck then 'cause he stayed the night," lifting his head, the hazel teen managed to snag the back of a younger sibling running past. "Yo, Pip. Could you and Taz go get Rumble? You're welcome to use whatever means necessary."
"Sure," with a grin much too sinister for a five-year-old, the honey-coloured kit ran off with a high-pitched squeal.
Tristana winced. "That's so mean."
"Yeah well, I'm too tired to be sympathetic. If I can't sleep in than neither can he."
"What time did you get to bed last night?" Teemo asked. He still felt a little anxious after the meltdown he'd had at Tristana's the previous night, but the chaotic normality of the Van Roon household was enough to ease the tension for now.
Ziggs groaned. "Too late."
Their conversation was broken when a shuddering crash echoed to the trio.
With a manic grin, Ziggs affirmed. "That was probably Rumble."
Sure enough, a few moments later the blue boy wandered into view.
"Do you have any idea what time it is?" he complained as he glared at his so-called friends.
"Seven," Tristana promptly replied before her grin fell away in shock. "What'd you do to your head?"
The teen blinked at her tiredly before his hand went to the bandage round his ears. "Oh that. Had a wrench stuck in it."
The powder-blue girl looked torn between curiosity, concern and exasperation. "You know what," she finally decided. "I don't want to know. Besides, we have bigger problems right now."
"So let me get this straight," Rumble summarised as the four yordles walked down the main road. "You've been having memory lapses since you've gotten back which you think is a sign of Insanity. And you're worried about this because of your dead Aunt whose name you recognise from when you lived in the orphanage. And that's why we're heading there now?"
Teemo nodded. "I keep getting this feeling that I'm missing something. Something important. So I figured, if I can find out where I've heard that name before maybe I can sort out why that story feels so significant to me."
"And you haven't asked your parents about this because…?"
Teemo didn't answer the steel-blue teen's question for a long moment. "Because this is something I have to do for myself," he finally admitted.
Not long after, the quartet arrived at the orphanage and Teemo was suddenly struck by the memories the old building held. This was the place he'd spent the first six years of his life. He'd never looked back after being adopted but now, as he stood in front of the building for the first time since he'd left, he wondered if he maybe should have visited. If not to help out the children in the same position as he had been, than at least for the kindly caretaker who'd dedicated her life to providing love and nurture to all those unfortunate enough to wind up there – no matter how short or long they may stay.
He didn't know how long he stood staring at the front porch before Tristana placed a hand on his shoulder.
"You okay?"
"Yeah," he straightened, giving the others a firm nod. "Let's do this."
The four teens entered into the large foyer, dodging the running children as they made their way to the first-floor office. As Teemo had hoped, the elderly caretaker was there, sorting through a stack of papers.
"Miss Whitmore?" At the gentle knock on the doorframe she looked up, her wrinkles deepening as she smiled at her visitors.
"Hello Teemo," she greeted the cream-coloured teen. "It's been a while."
"Yeah, I know," he rubbed the back of his head shyly as they entered. "You remember my friends?"
Really it was more of an introduction than a question. One of the reasons Lila Whitmore was beloved by all that met her was her uncanny ability to remember names and details about a yordle no matter how many had been and gone in her care.
"Ah yes," she answered as expected. "Tristana, Ziggs and Rumble, I believe. My look at how much you've all grown."
Teemo chuckled. "Well you haven't changed at all." It wasn't technically true, her dark hair was streaked with more grey and her wrinkles were deeper than he remembered. But the steady, calm and serene kindness he remembered from his early years was exactly the same.
She gave him a soft smile, "You were always so polite. Now, I assume you're not here just to catch up, so what can I do for you?"
A frown pulled at his features, but with the steady presence of his friends at his back the young scout was able to ask, "I was hoping you could tell me more about my past."
Her grey eyes took on a sad quality, "Ah, I should have expected this." With a sigh the elderly yordle slumped back into her seat. "Unfortunately, I'm not sure I have much to offer you."
"Please," Teemo asked her pleadingly. "Anything you know will help. You always told me I was dropped here as a baby, surely you have more information than that."
Miss Whitmore sighed before gesturing them to sit. "There is, though I don't know how much it'll help. I never told you the context around your arrival because of how young you were when you left here."
Teemo leaned forward, eager for the information about to be shared.
"The day you were brought into my care, there had been a massacre."
All four of the yordlings' eyes went wide.
"A massacre?" Ziggs repeated in a subdued voice.
The caretaker nodded, pain evident on her face. "It was a terrible event that I'll never forget. It happened not far from here actually. A nurse that had been close to the scene was the one to drop Teemo off. All she gave me was his name and a plea to keep him safe before she rushed off to help the other injured."
A long silence stretched between them before Rumble asked, "What happened to her?"
The haunted look diminished as Miss Whitmore focused back on the teens before her. "She was one of the casualties. She was shot while trying to save someone else from bleeding out. After that we had no leads to where Teemo had come from. We searched but no one came forward and none of the casualties had any ties to a child that young. In the end, we found nothing."
Teemo had been silent through the whole story but now he looked up. "Thank you," he said softly. "It may not be much but I'm glad you told me."
The old yordle returned his sad smile. "I only wish I could provide you with more."
Teemo paused before asking, "Do you know where I might have heard the name Seraphina before?"
Miss Whitmore looked surprised. "Seraphina? That was the name embroidered on the blanket you came in. I'm surprised you still remember it."
His eyes snapped up to hers as his friends exchanged glances. "The blanket: do you still have it?"
His hope vanished as she shook her head. "No. I gave it to your father years ago."
Time seemed to freeze for the pale yordle at that statement. "What?" was all he managed to get out.
"Your dad, he came here about a year after you were adopted asking about your arrival. I told him the same story and gave him the blanket. Didn't you know that?"
The other three teens turned to their friend but his expression was neutral.
Then, abruptly he stood up. "Thank you for your time. I'll come back for a casual visit soon but right now I need to go."
He gave his old caretaker a smile but it didn't reach his eyes. Then, just as suddenly, he was striding out the door.
The remaining trio exchanged worried glances before taking off after him, hollering their thanks as they left.
I've been so excited to get this chapter up! So much revealed in this one, and yet, it leaves even more questions.
Getting close to the end of this arc now :). I hope you enjoyed this chapter - I know I did.